Gluten Free A-Z Blog

Pancake and Fruit Kabobs SRS

2013-05-20T06:00:00.000-04:00

Are these pancake and fruit kabobs cute or what? All you have to do to create this beautiful breakfast presentation is simply make silver dollar pancakes ( recipe follows) and assemble on a skewer with strawberries, blackberries or any fruit or berry of your choice. Top with an easy recipe for homemade butter pecan syrup ( recipe follows) and enjoy.

This fun recipe is from a blog called, Michelle's Tasty Creations.

Michelle' Tasty Creations is my partner this month for this month's Surprise Recipe Swap. As a participant, I was secretly assigned to go through Michelle's blog, select a recipe to make, and not post it until today, which is the day all the participants reveal their recipes. All the recipes can be viewed at the roundup

I was so glad to be introduced to Michelle's blog. She has a ton of fabulous recipes, and they are so well organized that everything is so easy to find.

I had a ball going through her recipes.They all looked so good! I was very tempted to try many of her recipes including my favorites for Old Fashioned Potato Salad , her recipe for Old Fashioned Cinnamon Vanilla Rice Pudding, her Sweet Cherry Smoothie, and her real food Broccoli Cheddar Soup,( which were all easy to make gluten free) , but I kept coming back to these mini pancake and fruit kabobs. I have grandchildren, and I thought they would love them !

Michelle's recipe for pancakes easily adapted to gluten free by just changing the flour which I changed to oat flour which I made myself in the Vitamix. I simply put gluten free oats ( I get them at Trader Joe's) in the Vitamix and whizzed 2-3 times. It instantly turned into flour.

Michelle also had a recipe for a butter pecan syrup that did not need any adjusting since all the ingredients were already gluten free.

I made the syrup first, then the pancakes and then assembled.It was easy to do and looked super!! The butter pecan syrup was outstanding and complemented the fresh fruit. I didn't have any strawberries , so I used the fresh blackberries and opened a bag of frozen berries from Trader Joe's .

This is my favorite frozen fruit. It has big plump cherries in it ( Trader Joe's)

It would have been more colorful with the strawberries- next time I'll use them too. It was really a delicious breakfast.

pancakes with pecan syrup

Without syrup

I will definitely be a regular visitor to Michelle's blog, and I know I will be trying lots of her recipes. The Broccoli Cheddar Soup is next on my list to try.

This Surprise Recipe Swap is being hosted by Jutta at Hungry Little Girl.

Here's what you need for the Pancake Kabobs:

1-1/2 cups flour ( I used oat flour that I made in my Vitamix. )
1-1/2 Tbs. sugar ( or other substitute)
1 Tbs. baking powder
1 egg, at room temperature ( or egg substitute)
3 Tbs. butter, unsalted, melted
1-1/4 cups milk, ( or milk substitute) I used coconut milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup fresh strawberries, quartered ( I didn't have any- would look more colorful with the strawberries)
1/2 cup fresh blackberries, washed
Skewers

Directions:
Mix the oat flour, baking powder, and stevia in a bowl and set aside. In another bowl, mix the wet ingredients and add to the dry. Use a 1/4 cup measuring cup to ladle out the batter for each mini pancake onto a greased electric fry pan . Allow the little bubble to form and pop and then flip. Cook a few more minutes on the other side until done. Makes about 30 silver dollar pancakes. Assemble onto skewers starting with a pancake, a peice of fruit, and then a pancake and peice of fruit. My skewers were short, but you could find longers skewers for a longer kabob.

Homemade Butter Pecan Syrup:
1 cup maple syrup of your choice, I used Trader Joe's Organic Pure Maple Syrup
2 Tbs. butter
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
Directions:
Comine ingredients in a pot, bring to a boil and then simmer on very low heat to let the flavors mingle for about 5 minutes.

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Want to find out how you can participate in the Surprise Recipe Swap? click on the badge below.

The Surprise Recipe Swap is hosted by Jutta at Hungry Little Girl where you can visit and see all the participant's recipe roundup.

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Drink This; Lose weight

2013-05-13T18:44:00.003-04:00

Detox , weight loss, and blood sugar balancer drink
Make it in your kitchen

How many chemicals are you exposed to in a day? Toxins and chemicals are everywhere. We are exposed to them from pollution, the food we eat, the air we breathe, in our cosmetics, cleaning supplies, in our water, etc. etc

If we don't do something to help remove the toxins from our bodies, they can be stored in our system and potentially make us unhealthy.

In addition, toxins can slow down weight loss. Do I have your attention now.?

The following information is from

Therese Patterson of Edible Nature Organic Foods wrote and article

In her article, She wrote and I quote:

"The body retains fats as a way to protect the vital organs in the body from the toxins that we ingest (and create through stress). Body fat accumulation, especially around the mid section, is a visible sign of toxic build up and a good indication that the liver is not functioning as efficiently as it should.

If toxins build up faster than they can be eliminated, in an attempt to protect your organs, your body will actually make body fat for the specific purpose of storing toxins as far away from vital organs as possible. This fat is particularly stubborn fat that is very difficult to lose unless you decrease the toxic load and you do something to help your body detoxify.

So when we detoxify and cleanse the body of toxins, we give the body a chance to repair and strengthen itself - and when the toxins disappear, guess what happens to the protective layer of fat...yes, that disappears too!"

I have always known that eating greens like kale, collards, romaine, etc. helps you detoxify some of the fats, chemicals, and toxins we are exposed to.

What about the drink??

Recently, I found a video on You tube that taught about a detox and weight loss drink that you can make in your kitchen. ( It also helps to balance blood sugar levels)

I was very impressed with the information and the author , Dr. Josh Axe.

I decided to try his detox and weight loss drink.

Surprisingly, it tastes good to me, takes only minutes to make, and is made from things I keep in my kitchen.

I just started drinking it two days ago, so I will report back in 30 days.

Here are some of the ingredients in what Dr. Axe calls his " Secret Formula"

Apple Cider Vinegar- full of enzymes, helps balanace ph and blood sugar
Lemon Juice- high in Vit C ; helps alkalize the body ( which is essential to fighting disease)
Cinnamon- #1 Antioxidant, helps balance blood sugar levels
The formula is in the video

Enjoying my weight loss detox drink

Listen to the video and learn why these simple ingredients can help you cleanse, rejuvenate, balance blood sugar and lose weight! It's inexpensive, tastes good , and can be made very quickly.

If you are reading this in your email, you will have to go to my blog at www.glutenfreematters.com

Disclaimer: I am not endorsing this video, nor do I benefit in any way monetarily from it. I just found it interesting and think it is worth sharing. This is for educational purposes only. Always consult your doctor before making any changes in your diet.

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Layered Greek Dip SRC

2013-05-13T08:02:00.000-04:00

When the weather is mild , ( like now) we like to entertain out on the deck. To keep things intimate and simple, we invite just a few friends over and keep the menu limited to interesting appetizers like this Greek Dip. You know the Mexican layered dip with guacamole, re fried beans, etc.? This layered dip is a Greek version with a combination of Greek salad , humus, feta cheese, and Greek spices.

We love Greek food and paired with a nice bottle of wine and some gluten free chips, it's a perfect easy appetizer for a spring or summer evening with friends.

I found the recipe on a lively blog called, Close To Home authored by Maria who lives with her 3 children, husband, and two pets. Maria's blog is filled with a variety of family friendly recipes, crafts, entertaining tips, reviews and giveaways. Her blog had lots of recipes that I could have made, but being partial to vegetarian and needing something gluten free, I chose to make this delicious dip for my Secret Recipe Club choice for the month of May.

We loved the recipe!. It's one of those recipes that is fast, easy, and tasty.

Here is Maria's recipe:

Layered Greek Dip Recipe

1  8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
1  Tbsp. lemon juice
1  tsp. dried Italian seasoning
3  cloves garlic, minced
1-1/2  cups prepared hummus
1  cup chopped cucumber
1  cup chopped tomato
1/2  cup chopped pitted Kalamata olives
1/2  cup crumbled feta cheese
1/3  cup sliced green onions

Directions

In medium mixing bowl beat cream cheese, lemon juice, Italian seasoning, and garlic with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth and combined.
Spread cream cheese mixture into a deep 9-inch pie plate, or shallow serving dish. Evenly spread hummus on cream cheese layer. Top with cucumber, tomato, olives, feta cheese, and green onions. Cover and refrigerate 2 to 24 hours. Serve with pita chips and/or multigrain tortilla chips. Makes about 2-1/2 cups dip (16 servings).

I followed the recipe but left out the olives ( didn't have any) and added marinated artichokes and chopped yellow peppers.

layer of cream cheese mixture covered by a layer of humus

tomatoes, cucumbers , feta and additional veggies on top of the layers of cream cheese and humus.

Thanks Maria! This is a recipe that I'm sure I will make over and over again when I need an appetizer.

Thursday