Homemade Gluten Free Italian Breadcrumbs

Last night for dinner we had Italian Breaded Pork Chops- which were delicious.

The recipe calls for Italian seasoned breadcrumbs which are something that I do not keep on hand for a few reasons. Reason one is that I prefer to make things from scratch as much as possible, reason two is that I am gluten free so I cannot eat regular breadcrumbs and reason three is that gluten free breadcrumbs are super expensive and I am cheap.

As you can tell, I ended up making my own Italian seasoned breadcrumbs and I was very happy with how they turned out.

First I brushed each side of gluten free bread with melted butter (I am mostly dairy free so I used Earth Balance Buttery Spread) and then sprinkled each side with Italian seasoning and some salt. I used store bought gluten free bread that I got a good deal on but you can just as easily use homemade bread or regular bread if you are not gluten free.

I placed the bread in an oven preheated to 325 degrees for about 30 minutes, making sure to flip halfway through. Once done, let the bread cool.

Place cooled bread into a large zipper top bag and maliciously beat with a rolling pin- this is the best part because smashing things is fun. Once the bread has been reduced to crumbs you are done! This recipe makes a panko style crumb, but you can easily make a finer crumb by utilizing a blender or food processor (though definitely not as fun). Plus, I love panko crumbs because they make your food crispier and who doesn't love them a crispy, baked pork chop?

Making your own seasoned breadcrumbs is so easy to do but what makes it even better is that it's also cheap to do and more healthy for you. I really love being able to control the ingredients in the food I serve my family- though I'll be even happier when I find a gluten free bread recipe that I actually like so I don't have to rely on store bought. Since I switched to making my own breadcrumbs my family has not grumbled once about wanting me to use store bought and they can't even tell that I am using gluten free ones!

Next time I plan on making a larger batch so that I can save some in the freezer for nights when I'm short on time, which when I think about it is pretty much every night  ; )

Eggplant "Meat" Balls- Gluten Free and Oh So Good!

this was all that was left

I have found a recipe that I love that is not only delicious but also healthy.

Eggplant "Meat" Balls. They are so good in fact that I only had two bites of chicken at dinner and ate them instead- if I can find more recipes that taste this good sans meat I may just become a vegetarian.

I originally found the recipe at Connoisseurus Veg but adapted it to a vegetarian version.

1 large eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/2 pieces
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 large egg
1 tablespoon Italian Seasoning
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (I am dairy free but Parmesan cheese doesn't bother me)
1 cup bread crumbs (I used gluten free oatmeal)

Salt the eggplant and let sit for 30 minutes. Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium heat and then add the diced onions. Saute until onions are translucent and then add the minced garlic. Once garlic is fragrant (after about a minute) add the eggplant and cook until soft, about 15 minutes.

Once eggplant mixture has cooled, add to a mixing bowl along with the egg, Italian seasoning, Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs. Mix well and then shape into balls (I made mine about 1 inch). Coat a cast iron skillet with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil (you can also use a baking sheet but the cast iron skillet makes a better crust) and arrange the eggplant balls. Cook for about 30 to 40 minutes, making sure to turn a few times so that all sides get a nice crust on them.

As I said before, these were delicious. My two year old gobbled them up (my older two would not try them) and my husband, the vegetable hater, even admitted they were pretty good. The only thing I will change next time is that I am going to try using gluten free breadcrumbs to see what the taste difference is. I feel like these "meat" balls will freeze very well which is awesome because this is one more recipe that I can make a big batch of.

I cannot wait until lunchtime to eat the leftovers, perhaps with some pasta sauce to dip them in. I am drooling.

Crispy Crunchy Oven Onion Rings

My new favorite snack is crunchy onions.

What are crunchy onions, you may ask?

Well, they are onions that are crunchy and they are delicious!

Here is the "recipe"...

one onion (I use regular old yellow onions- cheap and yummy)
cooking spray (I use gmo free canola oil)
kosher salt

Slice the onion as thin as possible. Separate the the rings and place in a single layer on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray. Spray onions with cooking spray and then sprinkle with salt. Place in an oven and "cook" on the oven's lowest setting- mine is the keep warm setting but your oven may have something different. Leave in oven for 3-4 hours, or until golden brown.

I am telling you- these things are absolutely delicious! Yes, they take awhile in the oven but the wait is well worth it (even though I steal some onions out of the oven before they are fully done). They come out super crispy and have a little bit of a bite to them- they are a great replacement for chips and are way healthier (plus they are gluten free).

I think I'm going to have to start buying a bag of onions every week...

Afternoon Snack- Gluten Free Cookies

Both girls are sleeping and my son is at school so it is time for an afternoon snack  : )

Two gluten free Chocolate Crinkle Cookies (I substituted the coconut oil for gmo free canola oil because I hate the taste of coconut).

These actually do not taste like they are gluten free and I actually prefer them to conventional chocolate crinkle cookies.

What is really awesome is that they freeze well! These two came from my freezer- I put them in the microwave for 30 seconds and they came out yummy. You can also let them defrost on your countertop.

Gluten Free Pizza- Success!

Well, pizza night was a success!

The regular pizza I made for my husband and kids was voted by them the best I have ever made and the gluten free pizza I made for myself was actually super good!

I used this recipe from The Gluten Free Goddess and even though I cut the recipe in half and am sure I made a few measurement mistakes (that's how I roll), I ended up with three individual sized pizza crusts- I used one tonight and froze the other two to use for dinner or quick lunches for myself. As you can see I ignored the part of the recipe that said to smooth the dough down but that did not impact the flavor at all. I also did not have tapioca starch so I replaced it with potato starch- can I just say holy moly when you are baking gluten free there are a ton of ingredients?

This is the finished product. I topped my pizza with nitrate free pepperoni, organic pasta sauce (I only pay $2.29 a jar at Whole Foods- what a steal), green peppers and mushrooms. Notice the lack of cheese- I am not only gluten free due to my Crohn's Disease but also dairy free for the same reason. 

The green peppers and mushrooms were from my freezer- I like to chop things up when they are on sale and freeze them for later use. It saves me money and ensures I never have to run to the store for last minute ingredients. To freeze the peppers I just chop them up and put them on a cookie sheet in the freezer. Once they are frozen I put them in a freezer bag. The mushrooms I slice and then sauté in olive oil. Once they are cooled I lay them on a cookie sheet in the freezer and then throw them in the same freezer bag as the peppers. 

I honestly have no idea how much the gluten free dough cost me to make. I do know without a doubt that it was more expensive than the regular dough I made but that is to expected when you are dealing with having to buy specialty flours. I can say for a fact though that making my own dough is cheaper than buying a mix and from what I have read, homemade gluten free dough tends to taste better.

Over a month ago I took charge of my health and made a drastic change in how I eat. While I love feeling better and not constantly having pain I also miss eating the things I used to. Finding a gluten free pizza crust recipe may seem like no biggie to many people but to someone who has a restricted diet it is like we found the holy grail.

Right now I am jumping with joy that I have two gluten free pizza crusts in my freezer just waiting to be eaten  : )