Gluten Free Pumpkin Scones

I rarely crave pumpkin any time but fall, but the cold snowy weather last week  gave me an exceptional craving. I'm just glad I made these *before* the power outages!
Oven 425
Mix with a pastry cutter:
1 cup each flax meal and rice flour
1 TBL baking powder
5 TBL butter or coconut oil
1/2 tsp salt

When crumbly, stir in:
1/2 cup pumpkin pureee
3 TBL brown sugar
3 TBL molasses
2 eggs

Pat into a circle and cut into wedges. Sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Bake for 15 minutes.

Weekly Menu

I want to start sharing my weekly menus with you, both for those who might want some gluten free/real foods inspiration and so I can check back when I am stuck for ideas!


Last night, Sunday, I made coq au vin, roasted red potatoes with rosemary and olive oil, and steamed broccoli and green beans with olive oil, garlic and butter.

Tonight, mulligatawny and  Jamie Oliver;s broccoli with Asian dressing.

Tomorrow night, pork in mustard sauce, peas and balloons (pearl onions) and salad with balsamic dressing.

Wednesday, ham and potato soup, with a side salad and flax "fauxcaccia".

Thursday, I work and dinner is served there. Since I can rarely eat more than the salad, I'll take a few hard boiled eggs and an avocado and add them to the salad greens there.

Friday is always leftovers.
Please  share what you're having for dinner this week!

Gluten free, dairy free brownie for 2 or 3

Even before going gluten free myself, I would often look at classic baked goods recipes and think to myself, " I bet I could make that gluten free just by replacing the little bit of flour with more cocoa powder." Of course, anyone with any baking experience knows you can only go so far with that without the resulting baked good falling apart, even with eggs. But for a small item, made in a small container, you CAN get away with it! Here, after a bit of trial and error, is my microwave brownie for 3 ish, using no grains or flours!

In a microwavable ramekin with a capacity of about a cup, soften 3 TBL coconut oil. Stir in 1/4 cup cocoa powder, 3-4 TBL brown sugar, 1 egg, dash salt, and a few TBL chocolate chunks. Microwave at high for 1 minute, 10-20 seconds. Eat warm, and share with a friend !

Avocado Dressing plus bacon mayo

A quick and tasty dressing, suitable for almost everyone. It's vegan and free of grains, nuts, wacky vegetable oils that I know you're supposed to avoid on the Paleo diet but can't remember why*, and it's chock full of good fats...just the thing for dressing up greens!
Blend together;
2 small avocados
juice of 1 medium lime (or 2 TBL vinegar)
2-6 cloves garlic, depending on taste
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
dash salt

Enjoy!

*( and after months of exclusively eating home made olive oil dressings, I no longer care. It just TASTES better)

Here's a nifty mod if you've looked at those jars of baconnaisse and decided it was too full of vile, unnatural ingredients to be worth it.

I used my fresh mayo recipe but replaced most of the olive oil with the fat rendered from a pound and a half of Hormel Natural Selections bacon. If you think bacon fat is gritty and gross, you REALLY need to get some uncured, naturally raised bacon and try it. The fat is nearly clear! This is so dang good, it must be wrong.

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Preheat oven to 350

In bowl of stand mixer, cream:
1 stick room temperature butter
3/4 cup C&H brown sugar

When combined, add 2 jumbo eggs and a lug of vanilla.

When all is again combined, toss in
1 cup Bob's Red Mill white rice flour
1/2 cup Bob's flax meal
1 TBL organic cornstarch
dash salt

Process until well combined. Remove bowl and with large wooden spoon stir in:

1 cup Guittard 63% chocolate chips
1/4 cup Theo cacao nibs
1/4 walnut pieces

Use a small cookie scoop to scoop onto stainless cookie sheets, and bake for 12 minutes. This batch made 32 cookies, though I'm sure it would have made much more if my husband, best friend, daughter and myself had not been sampling the dough liberally. These taste quite a bit like your standard gluteny cookie and as always, the dough owns the final product.

Apple pancakes, inspired by Jamie Oliver.

My husband made Jamie's American Pancakes this morning, and I decided to have a go at primalizing them. I think I have a new favourite...these are way tastier than my standard pancakes, and hold together better too!
Stir together:
3 eggs
1 pear or apple, grated
1/2 cup flax meal
1/4 cup coconut flour
(I use Bob's Red Mill for both)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
2 TBL coconut milk (I use SoDelicious)

These pancakes need no sweetener or fat in the mix.

Heat a cast iron skillet to medium, and grease with butter or coconut oil. Drop by the mixing spoonful, making sure not to make your pancakes too big, and cook til golden and yummy (yada yada yada, I'm sure you know how to cook a pancake)

Serves as desired; I like real maple syrup, real butter, and some delicious coffee.

Pretty Primal Cookies

They're a treat, but about as healthy as a treat gets without tasting like sawdust. Sweet but not too sweet, these are packed with nutrition!

Oven 350

Line a baking sheet with parchment.

Stir together in one bowl:
1 1/4 cup almond meal (Trader Joe's)
1/4 cup each shredded coconut and walnuts
1/2 cup each honey and dark chocolate chips
1/4 tsp each salt and baking soda
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Drop with cookie scoop onto parchment lined tray and bake anywhere from 11-17 minutes, depending on your oven. I added an optional zest of one orange to mine- really ups the flavour!