My adoptee this month is Diane of The W.H.O.L.E Gang.  Like so many people, Diane turned her food restrictions into an area of passion and has blossomed into an exciting new venture as a Health Coach.  Though I haven’t yet had the pleasure of meeting Diane personally, she’s clearly someone who takes joy in bringing people together around food and fun projects, and I appreciate her dedication to helping people eat and live well.

If you haven’t gotten a chance, do check out Diane’s recipe archives.  There’s a huge variety, and know you’ll be hungry!  I opted to make the Roasted Chickpeas.  I made them before, back in the day when Kalyn’s recipe came out in 2008. Like Diane, mine just didn’t get crispy enough, and I know I tweaked things a bit. And then they just fell off my radar…and I forgot about them until I was looking through Diane’s recipe index.   So this was a delightful re-introduction to an old friend. They were delicious, and I used the spicing that Diane but I do remember a whole bunch of varieties work!

And, of course, the Amazing Toasted Nuts uses this recipe as a base, and looks tempting, too!

Lots of Diane’s recipes were quite tempting, and I will have to make the Chicken and Roasted Green Chile Soup  when it starts to get chilly.

Please also check out the other Adopt a GF Blogger posts when Sea hosts a round up on Book of Yum.

©2012 Gluten Free Goodness. All Rights Reserved.

As is my custom, I did an adoption and an adaption.  Because I have so many food restrictions, it’s very rare that I can make a recipe as is and eat at too, and, well, that’s the fun part.  For the adoption I made Lexie’s Scones as written, and they were terrific.  The guys (glutinovores) demolished them.  Chocolate chips, a few heath bar chips (lactose free but not dairy free) and coffee liquor to boot.  We’re entertaining, and I tend to get a bit carried away despite my best intentions.

And the chocolate cake…oh, the chocolate cake.  I had to make a few tweaks because I can’t have any cane sugar, so I subbed the chips for 2 oz of Scharffenberger 100% and upped the cashews to a generous 2/3 a cup to compensate for the lack of cocoa butter.  I couldn’t resist using Thai tea instead of the water (just the boiled tea, not the cream), and it gave a much richer, more complex flavor that was absolutely stunning.  I also added in a generous 1/4 tsp stevia powder to compensate for the sugar in the chips, a pinch of vanilla and a pinch of salt.

It was amazing.  I mean, really out of this world.  We served it with cashew creme.  I will definitely make it again, but NOT in my Vitamix. I don’t know if it’s my blender, but it just doesn’t do well with very thick mixes like this one and makes horrible noises (I thought I must have left a spoon in!) and starts to smell like there’s something burning in the gears. I’ve talked to the Vitamix people in the past and they’ve basically said that it works perfectly and that the recipes just have too little liquid…I don’t know.  I’d love to hear someone else’s experience, but either way, it won’t work with MY machine, which is what counts for me!  I will try this in my food processor next time, because it’s absolutely a keeper.

So, I’d heartily recommend Lexie’s recipes, and truly, the chocolate cake is to die for in any incarnation.

Please stop by Wendy’s blog for the roundup of other adoptions!

©2012 Gluten Free Goodness. All Rights Reserved.

Carrie is an absolute darling, and I’ve ‘known’ her via blog for a few years. Her kindness and enthusiasm for yummy gluten-free food shines through most of her posts. She’s a gifted baker, and also a wonderfully expressive writer. For more of her “life thoughts” there’s also her Gluten Free Strawberry Blog. And, of course there are so many ways she supports the gluten-free community, like her yahoo group and Wilson area support group.

I’ve tried many of the recipes on Carrie’s blog, and it’s one where I *know* I can just select any recipe and it’ll be a winner. I have to say her Chocolate Chip Cookies are the winner of all winners–my husband and one of my co-workers are so addicted to those it isn’t even funny. Each time I make them, DH’s comment is, “when is she writing her cookbook?” So Carrie, you’ve got at least one pre-order already.

The Master Mix makes things easy, and I’d recommend keeping some of the ingredients for her pancakes all ready, too, just in case of a pancake emergency.

Looking through her recipes, I can’t wait to get into my new kitchen and try some others! I’ve been eying the vegan chocolate muffins for a while.

I’m submitting this to Adopt a Gluten-Free blogger, as created by Sea of Book of Yum. Z’s cup of Tea is our current hostess and thanks to both for all of their organizing efforts!

©2012 Gluten Free Goodness. All Rights Reserved.

This month’s adoption was a fun one. I adopted Melissa of Gluten-free for Good and made her Pumpkin Pecan Boyfriend Bait and her Sweet and Spicy Moroccan Stew. I’ve enjoyed Melissa’s blend of great recipes and fun nutritional musings, including one on intelligence and curviness in women. Maybe that makes the dude who wrote the “I Like Big Butts” song a visionary who inspired us to interesting research?

As a fellow nutrition professional, I appreciate Melissa’s love of real, whole, unprocessed foods, her appreciation for an active lifestyle and of course, her holistic approach.

I had to make the boy bait, of course, because who could resist with that kind of title?  And DH loved them.  They were still moist and flavorful the next day, which is never a given in gluten-freeville.  And, of course, I liked the fact that they were not heavily sweetened.  I ended up making them with coconut sugar, which worked perfectly, and I think I’d try them again with a whole grain gf flour mix.

The Moroccan Sweet and Spicy stew was quite delicious.  It made a big pot and so it was delightful to have leftovers the next day.  I blended in the meat of a young coconut instead of coconut milk, and I wished that I had two for a creamier coconut taste, and I would totally do that next time!  I even got to use roasted tomatoes from my garden which have been lurking in the freezer, which made the dish even more special.

Check out Melissa’s site for a wealth of other recipes and information!

©2012 Gluten Free Goodness. All Rights Reserved.

As you may know, it’s a very whole-food based blog, with lovely pictures, and a variety of wholesome options. What’s not to love? And their children are too cute for words. As of late, they’ve been posting more grain-free recipes, which is fantastic. And I love the new recipe index as well.

So, irony of all ironies, I go and pick a wonderfully healthy blog, and make their Chocolate Macadamia Clusters and Chocolate Brownie Cupcakes! Obviously they’re more nutrient dense than I’d find on another site, but still. I usually do an adoption and an adaptation, but I found two that I actually could make as written, so I decided to go with it. I’ve also made the Soothing Red Lentil Soup in the past, and can vouch for its excellent-ness (excellency? you get the general idea)

The cupcakes were delightful, rich, and delicious. They were served at our annual pumpkin carving party. And they’re quite unique. Most grain free recipes use egg, so these were quite a lucky find. I frosted with my favorite ganache to keep them completely sugar free.

The Chocolate Macadamia Clusters were fantastic, too, and I’m sure there are endless possibilities for these babies with different nuts, seeds or even extracts. What a winner!

So I am sneaking in just under the wire to send this to Sea at Book of Yum for her monthly Adopt a Gluten-free blogger event. And I can say for sure that I will be making those cupcakes again…and again…

©2012 Gluten Free Goodness. All Rights Reserved.

I became acquainted with Shirley by chance, and was delighted to find someone who shared my philosophy of REAL food.  Simple food.  Easy.  Yummy.  Because (IMHO) there’s no way to be truly healthy without eating good, real foods, and I posted on GFE a few months ago on the topic of healthy, real, gluten-free foods..  And of course, most of these “real foods” are naturally gluten-free.  So yay for Shirley for being such a voice of reason and motivator.  And double yay so for Shirley hosting a support group in Fredrickburg, where she inspires many in person as well as online.

As with my tradition in adopting bloggers, I’ve always done an adoption and an adaptation, because I often need to modify recipes to make them Cheryl safe.  So the adoption was her Blueberry Honey pie.  Since I needed to bring it to work, I opted for little pie crust hearts on top rather than the whipped cream, since I wasn’t sure how stable the whipped cream would be at room temp.  I made it for a co-workers’ birthday, and he loved it, as did everyone else.  I also made a mini pie for my honey, who is a blueberry-avore.  He adored it, too. The honey added a delightful dimension of brightness ( I can’t think of a better term)

The adaptation was a wee bit more subtle.  The Apple Quinoa Breakfast cake I posted last week was actually based on the healthy version of her Oatmeal Marble Squares.  Sure, it’s quinoa rather than oatmeal, apples rather that chocolate (horrors!), chia rather than an egg, some additional spices…and yet I used approximate proportions, because the base of the recipe is so similar.  My DH makes fun of me for that, I have a tendency to see recipes, change many elements and put a totally different spin on them…and yet without that initial inspiration, I wouldn’t have made them.

So please do stop by Shirley’s site for a huge array of delectable treats from the sweet to the savory to home cooking.  I mean, she’s even got Tomato Rosemary Mint Ice Cream.  If that doesn’t say adventure, I don’t know what does!

©2012 Gluten Free Goodness. All Rights Reserved.

So I took the opportunity of Adopt a GF Blogger to try out the recipe for cinnamon rolls. I followed the recipe as written, but made the roll the night before and had it ready to go. Rather than filling as directed, I used a combination of cinnamon sugar and pecan butter (yes, I said pecan butter) and glazed them with a pecan butter/cream glaze. I figure why not go all out!

They were very quickly devoured and thoroughly enjoyed. I will definitely make them again, and I’m tempted to veganize them, too.

To see more adoptions, do see Book of Yum’s roundup.

©2012 Gluten Free Goodness. All Rights Reserved.

As someone who is gluten and sugar free, it seemed quite natural that I’d want to adopt Amy. Amy is quite an impressive chica, just starting out in culinary school with a variety of recipes that she churns out regularly! I’m impressed, especially since I’ve fallen off the posting wagon as of late.

When I got Amy’s e-book to raise money for St. Jude’s walkathon, the granola bars caught my eye for 3 reasons.
1. A good friend died of leukemia when I was in elementary school
2. a year ago next week my labs and symptoms seemed to suggest leukemia. Thankfully I didn’t, but the weeks of fear, poking and prodding and hospitalization made it an abjectly miserable and memorable experience.
3. DH loves granola bars

DH eats a plethora of sugar/HFCS soaked granola bars, and it drives me bonkers. I’ve made him home made granola bars in the past, but alas, he’s complained that they’re sticky or don’t hold together well. However, Amy’s bars were a hit! I made them as directed except I used hazelnuts since it was a snow day and we were out of walnuts. They were study and flavorful, and kept well for weeks in a sealed container, which was a great plus. And most importantly, they passed the picky husband test. I made them again, even, and used cherries, chopped uncrystallized ginger and orange zest. Yum!

So thanks, Amy, for the recipes and inspiration. And I’m sure if people still want to donate to St. Jude’s through Amy or otherwise that they’d be gladly accepted.

This adoption is hosted by the fabulous Sea of Book of Yum. Check out the other adoptions and/or join in on the fun!

©2012 Gluten Free Goodness. All Rights Reserved.

I haven’t gotten to adopt a GF blogger lately, but as soon as I saw Heather’s Raspberry Divinity Tarts, because I thought they were just about the cutest thing ever, my DH loves raspberries and I have a gob of raspberries growing right now!

They are SO cute. The only thing is that they are high maintenance and get all sorts of mushy and sticky once you uncover them and add the raspberries, so gobble them down. It wasn’t hard to talk people into it, and they do keep well in a sealed container. Everyone loved them, and I’ll certainly make them again! I followed the recipe, but had it preheated too high, so that’s why they’re a bit more tan than Heather’s. I filled them with a faux Nutella paste (ok, I confess, I wanted chocolate hazelnut paste and I think the rest of the recipe may well have been an excuse to indulge).

Do check out the other recipe that Heather contributed to Sea’s Baby shower. The pictures are great and there’s good info, too. I’m delighted that I got a chance to check it all out!

©2012 Gluten Free Goodness. All Rights Reserved.

Kate of GF Gobsmacked has had a lot of practice welcoming a new one as of late! If you need a smile, check out her blog for pictures of her little sweetheart. She is bringing along her Korean Mung Bean Pancakes. They’re even kid approved, although Sea will have to wait a while until her sweetie is big enough!

Ricki of Diet, Dessert and Dogs is bringing along a variety of appetizers: almond feta cheese and Raw carrot and sunflower seed pate. Not only do they look amazing, but they’re even vegan, and the cheese is soy free, too.

Jenn, of Gluten Free Food Storage is bringing along Lentil Tacos! I don’t have a picture for this one, but it looks like a simple and tasty recipe, perfect for when you’ve got a new baby.

Wendy of Celiacs in the House is making sure we get our fill of protein with quinoa cakes. She knows Sea well enough to know that she’ll surely whip up one of her fabulous sauces to go along with it.

Emily was eager to recreate a quinoa recipe she had in San Diego, and she brings us her Garlic Asparagus Quinoa, which is perfect for Springtime.

Could I really be the only one who brings along dessert? Well, Chocolate Strawberry (or chocolate orange) mini cakes all around!

Heather of Celiac Family is bringing Raspberry Divinity Tarts that look totally delish. AND her rubber ducky meringues cookies are just beyond cute in my book. Heather, you get points for being super artistic and creative!!!

Angela of Angela’s kitchen sent in a great post for Hanana Banana Bread or mini muffins and even a pumpkin version of the same.  The banana bread was from her baby was little, and she’s got such cute flower shaped versions on her blog header!

Here’s to Sea and new beginnings! Much love as you start out on this exciting new chapter of life.

If by chance I have missed your submission, please send me an email and let me know.

©2012 Gluten Free Goodness. All Rights Reserved.