My holiday tradition, from the time I got married and had a family has been a Christmas Eve dinner, which has included my Christmas Potatoes, ham and Christmas jello. Since going gluten-free I have changed my potatoes, by leaving out just one ingredient, which my family never misses! I have recently eliminated pork from my diet, due to causing migraines, so I have come up with a delicious holiday meat. We vary the jello, which originally was strawberry and do raspberry now.

All of these dishes are quick and easy – a necessity for me! I usually don’t measure when I’m cooking or baking, so my recipes might not give exact amounts.

Christmas Potatoes

1 bag frozen shredded potatoes
1 pint sour cream
1 stick butter
1 bunch green onions, chopped
4 oz shredded cheese (about 3 – 4 cups)
3 slices gluten-free bread (I use Udi’s whole grain)
¾ cup melted butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In very large bowl stir together potatoes, sour cream, butter, green onions and cheese. Pour mixture into 9 x 13 baking pan. Tear bread into pieces and crumble in blender. Mix with melted butter then spread over top of potatoes. Bake 45 minutes.

Holiday Poultry Dish
This is also casein free. This is a moist and tasty meat, since the seasonings and bread crumbs taste like stuffing – my family LOVES this!

Chicken or Turkey breasts (one for each family member)
Kraft mayonnaise
Sage
Poultry seasoning
Onion salt
Garlic salt
Celery salt
Gluten free bread slices (I use Udi’s whole grain)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking pan with foil. Spray with oil. Arrange breasts so they don’t overlap. Spead thin layer of mayo over each breast. Then sprinkle each with sage, poultry seasoning, onion salt, garlic salt and celery salt. Break bread into pieces and crumble in blender. (Two slices covers about 6 breasts.) Sprinkle over tops. Bake in oven about 45 minutes, depending on size of breasts.

*I put BOTH the potatoes and poultry in to bake at the same time on two different racks, then switch dishes to different racks half way through.

For Christmas Jello I use a large package of raspberry jello and use thawed, frozen raspberries. When set I top with Cool Whip – which is casein free.

My kids are grown up with their own families, but still BEG for Christmas Potatoes way before Christmas! They are SPOILED and will being having them at least THREE times this season!

Happy Holidays!

I’m planning my holiday meals, using several recipes from my cookbook:

GLUTEN-FREE HOLIDAY RECIPES
Gluten-Free Recipes for Traditional Holiday Fare

We enjoyed Halloween Cheesy Potato Chowder and Scarecrow Corn Bread as part of our Halloween fun. It was so good, we’re having it again this week. YUM!

This book is now on sale in my GF Store. Download it now!

• Crispy Candy Corn Treats
• Halloween Cheesy Potato Chowder
• Scarecrow Cornbread
• Halloweeny Fudge
• Spiced Apple Cider
• Brown Sugar Topping for Ham
• Candied Sweet Potatoes or Yams
• Cranberry JELL-O Salad
• GF/CF Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Green Bean Casserole
• Gluten-Free Stuffing
• GF/CF Crock Pot Stuffing
• Homestyle Pumpkin Pie
• Larraine’s Christmas JELL-O
• Larraine’s Christmas Potatoes
• CF/CF Christmas Sugar Cookies
• Mom’s English Toffee
• Quick and Easy Caramels
• Mom’s Peanut Brittle
• Holiday Pretzel Snacks

I have always made chili for Halloween, plus my family is in the mood during the weeks before. This week I put this chili on my menu, then realized I’ve never added it to my website! Since this is my family’s favorite chili I wanted to share. My grandkids love this version, since there’s no actual “chili” in it.

If I plan ahead, plus have the patience to remove the bones and skin, a whole chicken has the best flavor. It also makes a good broth. But I also make it using chicken breasts, which I usually have on hand. For both, I cook the chicken in the crock pot overnight.

Get the recipe:

White Bean Chicken Chili

Enjoy!

To begin I skinned and chunked 5 large peaches, placing them in a medium bowl. I squeezed the juice of one lemon over them then tossed. I added 2 tablespoons honey, ¼ cup brown sugar and ½ teaspoon vanilla then stirred the ingredients in. I divided the peaches into 6 ramekins.

I set the oven to 350 degrees. In a separate bowl I added ¾ cup almond meal/flour, ¼ cup millet flour, ¼ cup brown rice flour, ½ cup GF oats, ½ cup brown sugar, ½ cup sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt, 1 ¼ sticks butter cut into slices (shortening may be used) and ½ cup raw cashews. I used a pastry cutter ( you may use a food processor and pulse) to get a crumbly mixture. I used a small measuirng cup to carefully add the topping mixture to the fruit, carefully packing it into the peaches. I added more until each ramekin had a heaping amount, then placed them on a foil-lined baking sheet.

I baked mine for 30 minutes until tops were golden and bubbly.

I served warm, topped with vanilla ice cream. (I used Breyer’s Lactose Free Ice Cream. You may use regular ice cream or Soy Dream.)

My family will definitely be having this again soon!

Get the recipe: Favorite Peach Crisp

Lately I’ve had an abundance of mangos. This salad is a delicious way to use them – my version of Rumbi’s Mango Chicken Salad. The dressing is the perfect ingredient to bring the flavors together! You can also use mandarin oranges.

These pictures show an easy way to cut mangos into cubes. It also works for avocados. My husband LOVES this salad!

Get the recipe for Mango Chicken Salad in Gluten-Free Recipes under Salads.

I am excited to have a new recipe book, now available for download:

Finding Variety in Gluten-Free/Casein-Free Cooking
A Month’s Worth of Delicious Meals

You’ll find it in Larraine’s GF Store, along with my other recipes books.

I was diagnosed with Celiac disease after many years of illness. The diagnosis saved my life because now I know what and how to eat to be healthy. I also eat casein-free.

Those of you who have to cook this way for your family, whether for celiac disease, the autism diet, or food intolerances/allergies, know that creating a variety of meals is a challenge. I have been experimenting for months, trying to find exciting and delicious ways to make meals without gluten and casein. Now that I have perfected my recipes, I want to share them with all of you who struggle with these dietary restrictions.

Here are 30 gluten-free/casein-free meals – a whole month’s worth! We use them over and over at our house. My husband, three children, and four grandchildren love all of these recipes and I think you will, too.

Click HERE to get check out the new recipe book.

These are a healthier version of the normal oatmeal cookies. It’s a good way to sneak in some extra fruit!

GF/CF Pineapple Oatmeal Cookies
Ingredients:
2/3 cup applesauce
1 cup packed brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
¾ cup GF flour
1 tsp guar gum
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3-1/2 cup GF oats (Bob’s Red Mill)
1 (8-oz) can crushed pineapple, drained
(May add 1 cup raisins and ¾ cup chopped nuts if desired)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease cookie sheets. In a mixing bowl, cream the applesauce and the sugars together. Then add the vanilla and the egg. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, guar gum, baking soda and cinnamon; add to the creamed mixture and stir. Stir in the crushed pineapple. Finally, mix in the oats. Drop dough by heaping spoonfuls about 2 inches apart. Cook for 12 minutes. Allow cookies to cool for a couple minutes before transferring to plate or cooling rack.

My niece Stef introduced us to this recipe, and it is a family favorite. It makes a large bowl, the perfect size for family functions or picnics. For the casein-free version, just leave out the cheese. It will still taste delicious!

Broccoli Salad – by Stefanie Bohin

4 bunches broccoli cut into small pieces
1 bunch green onions, diced
1 package bacon, cooked and crumbled
8 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese (omit for the casein-free version)
1 pkg or 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
1/2 cup sugar (I use organic brown sugar)

Combine broccoli, onions, bacon, cheese and seeds in large bowl. Mix vinegar, mayonnaise and sugar. Pour over broccoli mix. Chill.

I have missed graham cracker crust for years! Today for April Fools Day I really wanted to make a version of my “worm pie.”

For a sweet dessert pie crust use 10 Pamela’s Lemon Shortbread Cookies. (I found them at Walmart. I have also seen them at health food stores.) In a bowl, crush them well with a large spoon. Add 2 Tbsp. sugar, pour in ¼ cup melted butter, whisk then push with a spoon into a pie crust.

For an easy pie recipe, stir ¼ cup boiling water into a small pkg. lime Jell-O. Add a lime yogurt plus a small tub of Cool Whip. Whisk together, then add to piecrust and chill in fridge. You can do this with any flavor of Jell-O/yogurt combination.

I have traditionally put gummy worms in my pie, but could only find octopus gummies this year.

Happy April Fools Day!

Learning is easier and more fun since getting the iPad. Jason finds it any time it’s out, and starts playing educational games. He can scroll through all the folders and games better than anyone at our house. He’s quite the expert. His therapists have commented that he knows many more words, colors, etc., since he started using the iPad.

There are so many apps available! Since Garrett and Caiti are visual learners, their tutors have incorporated the iPad into their lessons. The kids think they are playing games and have a great time!

The iPad helps when we are out in public. We use the app, “Going Places.” http://www.modelmekids.com/ It shows a story of a child in different social settings and the appropriate way to act and what to expect. I used this when I took my kids to the doctor and also when I took Garrett to the barber.

Garrett’s tutor and I put together a social story about how to act when we are at church. It was very helpful, because we could just point at the picture, and he would know what was expected of him.

The iPad is a great source of entertainment. It is always nice to see my kids enjoying doing “normal” kid things like playing video games. Garrett really likes a Spider Man game, and he’s actually better at it than I am!

You can get movies on iTunes and download them to the iPad. Whether we are at home or out in public, the kids can touch the picture of the movie they want to play. It is nice because then they are also working on making a choice.

Caiti’s favorite game is called “Rosita Counts.” Rosita jump-ropes in the game, and she wants you to jump, too. Caiti will prop the iPad on her bed and jump along with Rosita. I didn’t realize she understood the concept of the game until I walked in on her jumping along. So cute!

I love the iPad for potty training. Caiti loves the free app from Huggies Pull-Ups. When she goes in the potty, she gets a star. Each row of stars unlocks simple game for her to play.

For Garrett, who was essentially potty-trained but needed some reinforcing, I found this app called “I Earned That.” Whenever he comes home dry, he gets to place a puzzle piece. When the puzzle is completed, he will see a picture of the reward he has earned.

He earned a date with Mommy at McDonalds last week for staying dry at school 6 days in a row. Now we are working at staying dry at home. His reward will be going swimming. He loves to see the picture of the swimming pool coming together when he stays dry.

One of the best uses for the iPad is that my kids are able to connect with their Daddy while he is deployed with the Navy. I was really worried about how to explain where Daddy was. Since people with autism struggle with communication and do better with visuals, I was lucky to find an app that allowed me to do a picture explanation. This deployment has gone so much better for Garrett because he has the pictures to go with the words. He knows Daddy is on the ship in the ocean, but he will come home.

At bedtime, I use the iPad to play a video of Daddy reading a wonderful children’s book about deployment, called “Over There.” It is so sweet to see them watch their Daddy on the iPad. It’s a nightly routine that makes bedtime so much easier.

So, these are just some of the reasons I love the iPad.  It is such a help for my family.  We won’t even start on the reasons I love it for myself. 

Christine