I thought you might enjoy these delicious cookies this weekend. They’re a childhood favorite of mine. A recipe from my grandma’s recipe collection book. When I went gluten free I thought I’d never enjoy them again. But hopefully you can take this replacement method I use here to still be able to make your favorite childhood sweet!

Ingredients:
2 2/3 cup flour (I use a GF flour blend for baking, like Bob Red’s Mill Brand)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup softened butter (I do eat butter, but if you can’t you could use margarine)
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter (Look for one without a lot of added stuff)
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs worth of egg replacer (I use Ener-G brand)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract (Look for a GF one)
1 package GF, dairy free, chocolate chips (the original recipe calls for Hershey Kisses. I couldn’t find any that are GF, dairy free, so I use these chocolate chips instead)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sift flour with baking soda and salt and set aside.
2. In a large bowl beat peanut butter and butter on medium speed with mixer until well blended.
3. Add the white and brown sugar and mix until light and fluffy.
4. Add egg replacer and vanilla and beat until smooth.
5. Stir in flour mixture.
6. Using a level tablespoon, shape the mixture into 5 dozen balls with your hands. Note: I only baked half the batch of dough and placed the other half of the dough in storage bags in the freezer to make later.
7. Roll each dough ball in sugar.
8. Place each dough ball 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 8 minutes.
9. Remove from oven. Place chocolates in center of each cookie. Place back in oven for 2 more minutes. Remove, cool, and enjoy!

Hope this replacement method will help you to still enjoy your favorite cookies even on a restricted diet!

I woke up this morning and its snowing again. Don’t get me wrong, if its going to be freezing cold at least the snow is pretty. But I’m ready for Spring and unfortunately its still January. So, I thought since its still cold and snowy out you might enjoy a hearty warm meal even on a restricted diet.

This Savory Cottage Pie is warm and filling to give you lots of energy during these frigid months. Its easy to make, follows my restricted diet, and is a great all-in-one meal for a larger group as well. So enjoy!

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large yellow onion, diced medium
2 carrots, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
Coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 pound ground beef, lamb, or turkey
2 teaspoons thyme
1 cup gluten free beer, you can also use beef stock
2 tablespoons gluten free all-purpose flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill brand)
3/4 cup frozen peas
1 large russet potato (3/4 pound), very thinly sliced (I use a mandalin to slice it thin)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In large skillet heat 1 tablespoon butter over medium-high.
2. Add onions and carrots and cook, stirring often, until onion is soft, 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Add meat and cook, breaking up with wooden spoon, until almost cooked through, 3 minutes. Drain fat.
4. Add tomato paste, thyme, and beer or stock and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring frequently, until slightly reduced, 2 minutes.
5. Sprinkle flour over mixture and stir to combine. Add 1 cup water and cook until mixture thickens, about 2 minutes.
6. Stir in peas and season with salt and pepper.
7. Transfer mixture to a 2 quart baking dish.
8. Top with potatoes, overlapping slices. Season potatoes with salt and pepper and drizzle 2 tablespoons melted butter on top.
9. Bake until potatoes are browned around edges and tender, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes and serve.

*Recipe says it serves 6. I found it serves more like 4. I made 1 1/2 times the recipe (shown) to feed 5 and have left overs.
*Recipe source: Martha Stewart’s Everyday Food: November 2010 Issue.

I love quick, easy to make meals that use very few dishes to prepare. If you need a super quick, easy to make meal that’s hearty, warm, and uses left-overs you already have in your fridge, this soup is for you. This soup not only follows my restricted diet, but can also be made so its a vegetarian and vegan meal if you like.

The secret: These great boxed soups from Trader Joe’s or the health food section of your local grocery store. They generally cost anywhere from $3 to $5 and are so worth it.

Almost all of these boxed soups follow my restricted diet. Even the creamy soups a lot of times use coconut milk or soy milk as the base, so its still dairy-free. Its also nice that I recognize the ingredients listed in them; things like carrots, beans, lentils, spices, squash, etc. There are a lot of varieties available, everything from Creamy Corn and Roasted Red Pepper to Curried Red Lentil to Butternut Squash.

You can heat these soups right out of the box if you’re into thin, broth soups. But, if you’re like me and need something a little heartier here’s my solution.

What I put in these soups:
I use left-over vegetables, beans, lentils, rice noodles, and meat to add to these soups.

How I make this soup in one pot:
I cut up the left over meat or veggies that I want to add.
In a saucepan over medium heat I heat a little olive oil and add my veggies that need to be cooked a little.
Then I add the meat, beans, lentils, rice noodles (anything that needs to just be heated).
I then pour the boxed soup in, over the other ingredients. Stir and just heat it until its warm and bubbly.
I rarely add any other seasonings since the boxed soups have a lot of flavor, but you could add additional salt, pepper, cumin, or serve it with fresh herbs on top like cilantro.

Here are some ideas for yummy stuff to add to your boxed soups:

Veggies- I like to incorporate veggies that compliment the boxed soup ingredients. So if the boxed soup says that it has carrots as an ingredient, I like to add carrots, etc.
(carrots, onions, celery, butternut squash, broccoli, sweet potatoes, etc.)

Proteins and Starches- I use pretty much whatever is left over in my fridge for the proteins and starches. If I have a little left-over chicken or beans, that’s what I use.
(chicken, beef, lentils, black-eyed peas, split peas, kidney beans, cannellini beans, potatoes, corn, rice pasta, etc.)

Hope this is another yummy addition that can become a go-to quick, healthy meal for you! Enjoy!