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So years ago, Denise and I posted a poll (which no longer works) as we disagree about whether the bread dish served with large birds is properly called “dressing” or “stuffing.” Denise argues that it’s stuffing. I argue that it’s stuffing IF it is stuffed into something (bird or vegetable, I don’t mind which) and it’s dressing if it isn’t. So, by that logic, this is a dressing. But by other people’s reckoning, this is a stuffing. No matter what you call it, it’s quite tasty and makes a great side dish that reheats well. I realize the timing of this might seem weird — most people think of stuffing/dressing as a Thanksgiving dish. But I was trying to make more space in the freezer and using up gluten-free breads that I didn’t love as toast, plus an excess of certain other ingredients in the house.
And that’s a key — you will need bread. Whether you make your own gluten-free bread, buy a packaged product, or are lucky enough to have a local bakery that accommodates your allergy needs, you will need bread. The lucky thing is that this is actually a great dish to use up edible but slightly disappointing bread experiments! For the right texture for dressing, bread must be thoroughly dried out and then rehydrated, and gluten-free bread is awesome at drying out, isn’t it? I remember my mom laying out bread slices on a clean towel on top of the dryer about a week before Thanksgiving, but I just threw mine in the oven at 250ºF for about an hour. Keep this in mind — you can either prep ahead and dry your bread out, or you can build in extra time the day you make your dressing. Everything else in this dish is a pantry staple in my house.
Like our Mini Thanksgiving casserole version of dressing, this one also contains celery and chestnuts, but unlike with that one, you could leave the chestnuts out here and make a nut-free version, if that’s your need. This one also has dried cranberries, which are really awesome, and uses veggie broth to stay vegan. If you like it, I’d suggest mushroom broth for the best flavor.
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2cupsgluten-free bread cubesdried out. Check for other allergens.
2Tablespoon fat of choice
1 1/2cupscelerychopped
1 1/2cupsonionchopped
1/2cupdried cranberries,rehydrated by soaking in hot water 15 minutes
5ozchestnuts,chopped (optional)
1wholeapple,cored and chopped, peeled if you prefer
~1cupvegetable broth
Servings: servings
Instructions
If you need to dry out your bread crumbs, you have a few options. 1. Set the bread out on a rack and leave it out for a few days. 2. Bake at 250ºF for about an hour, directly on the rack. 3. Toast on low and let cool completely standing up (don’t let it steam against a plate). Choose based on the amount of time you have now. Cut the bread into cubes.
Preheat oven to 350ºF.
In the oil/margarine/fat (I use vegan margarine), cook the onions until translucent. Add the celery, cook for a few minutes. Then add the cranberries, chestnuts, and apple, cooking for 2-3 minutes between each addition.
In a bowl, mix the bread and vegetables. Mix well. Slowly add the broth, stirring, until there is just a tiny bit more than what the dried bread absorbs — maybe a tablespoon or so. Pour into a greased baking dish. You can do this round casserole style (deep) or in a 9×13 pan (shallow), which will change the texture. The deep dish will be more casserole-like and the shallow dish will be more bread-y and crispy.
Cover and bake 30 minutes. Remove the cover and bake another 15 minutes, until top of bread bites are crisp. Serve hot.
Spritz or Cookie Press Cookies – Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, and Egg-Free
I’m not a baker in general. MaryKate is a much better baker than I am and she’s more into it. I’m more of a “get an appetizer instead of dessert” kind of woman. But around the holidays I kind of want some sort of cookie. A couple of weeks ago when I was developing my Homemade Pasta, Gluten-Free, Vegan & Gum-Free recipe, I was going through my assortment of kitchen toys looking for the pasta attachments for the KitchenAid, and I came across my Pampered Chef Cookie Press that I bought years ago out of nostalgia. My mom had one (which she probably doesn’t even remember having) that I used to use when I was a kid. And after I found it, I kept thinking about it, so I developed this recipe. It’s probably the closest I will ever get to having a shortbread buttery kind of cookie again. If you don’t have a cookie press, Pampered Chef has one that is a twist style now, but I like the gun ones better. Here’s an example of the gun style (no affiliation with Amazon), which is very similar to the one I have.
Full disclosure: I’m using psyllium husk in this recipe instead of chia, because chia is currently on the suspect list as a potential new allergy. Sigh. If you can still use chia (or flax, I’m allergic to flax too), I’m pretty sure that would work too. Also, I’m using my Homemade Margarine, New and Improved in this recipe because it’s all I have (note: I use cashew milk in my margarine recipe, but you can use any non-dairy milk in it). If you don’t have a corn or coconut allergy or react to palm, and you can use either Earth Balance margarine or a vegetable shortening, give it a go. If you decide to use shortening, I’d add a tablespoon of water or non-dairy milk because shortening is dryer than margarine.
I modified my normal all purpose gluten-free flour blend because the millet gave the cookies more of a whole grain taste than I was going for. The mix below makes 4 1/2 cups, but you only need 3 1/2 cups for the cookies.
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Gluten-Free Flour Blend for Spritz or Cookie Press Cookies
Gluten-Free Flour Blend for Spritz or Cookie Press Cookies Notice: Trying to access array offset on value of type bool in /home/maryzahc/public_html/adultfoodallergies.com/wp-content/plugins/wp-ultimate-recipe/helpers/models/recipe.php on line 254
Spritz or Cookie Press Cookies – Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, and Egg-Free
Print Recipe
You can still have a holiday classic, even with allergies
1tsppsyllium husk(or ground chia seed or flax seed)
2tspvanilla extract(I make my own with vanilla beans and vodka made from potatoes, as most commercial extract contains corn)
1 tspwater(if using shortening, add a tablespoon)
1 1/2cupshomemade margarine, Earth Balance margarine or vegetable shortening(Earth Balance margarine and vegetable shortening are generally not safe for corn, coconut, or palm allergies)
1/4cupbrown sugar
3/4cupwhite sugar
1/4tspsea salt
3 1/2cups Gluten-Free Flour Mix for Spritz or Cookie Press Cookies
Servings: dozen
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Mix aquafaba, psyllium, vanilla extract, and water in a small bowl and set aside to let it gel. Add salt to flour mixture in a large bowl and set aside.
Using a stand mixer and the beater blade, cream margarine or shortening with brown sugar and white sugar until well combined. Scrape down sides and add aquafaba/psyllium/vanilla extract/water mixture to the bowl. Beat together until well combined, scraping down the sides as necessary.
Add the flour mixture a cup or so at a time, beating it in as you go, scraping down the sides as necessary. Once all the flour is well incorporated, put the dough in your cookie press and spritz/press your cookies onto cookie sheets.
If you are baking on metal cookie sheets, bake for 15-17 minutes depending on your oven. If you are using baking stones, bake for 19-21 minutes, depending on your oven.
Let cool on cookie sheet or baking stone for two minutes before removing to cool on a rack.
Aquafaba/Psyllium mixtureHomemade Margarine and Brown and White Sugar before mixingHomemade Margarine and Sugar Mixture after beatingHomemade Margarine and Sugar Mixture, after adding Aquafaba/Psyllium MixtureSpritz or Cookie Press Cookie dough after all flour mixture has been addedSpritz or Cookie Press Cookie dough after pressed onto cookie sheets before bakingSpritz or Cookie Press Cookies after bakingSpritz or Cookie Press Cookies after bakingSpritz or Cookie Press Cookies cooling on rackSpritz or Cookie Press Cookies – Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, and Egg-Free
Everything about winter here in Seattle screams “eat hot food with warming spices.” I thought I knew what I was getting into, weather-wise, as I lived in Oregon for three years. You know what Seattle has that Eugene, OR does not? WATER. Puget Sound and multiple lakes. From the hill we live on, we can see the mist rising off the water (and blowing up the hill at us). It is chilly in a very wet way.
Chicken thighs are cheaper and easier to cook without drying out than chicken breasts. But they can be greasy. So to get around that, these are cooked, cooled, and warmed again to allow for straining off most of the fat. This is either a good make ahead recipe (the night before) or make it in the morning and reheat it for dinner.
This chicken is based on wanting spice flavors and winter — and I totally understand why citrus is such a good winter flavor, as it’s great and sunny. I mixed these two up to stew chicken thighs, adding greens right at the end to absorb the flavor. I served this with a bit of dressing I’m working on, and I think mashed parsnips would also be a great side. It made for an easy Sunday dinner to start the week off warmly.
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Orange Spiced Stewed Chicken Thighs
Print Recipe
This stewed chicken recipe does call for cooking, cooling, and then reheating the meat and sauce after straining or skimming off the fat. Plan accordingly.
This stewed chicken recipe does call for cooking, cooling, and then reheating the meat and sauce after straining or skimming off the fat. Plan accordingly.
1wholestar anise(or enough pieces to approximate 1)
1teaspoonwhole peppercorns
3wholecloves
3whole cardamom pods
2bagsblack tea
1cuporange juice
2poundschicken thighsbone in, skin off
freshly ground pepperto taste
2cupsmixed cooking greensroughly chopped
Servings: people
Instructions
Add water and whole spices to a large pot. Bring to a boil, then add tea bags, turn off heat, and cover. Steep 15 minutes.
Remove tea bags and whole spices. Add orange juice, bring to a boil.
Add chicken thighs, and bring again to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer. If liquid covers the chicken only part way (likely), cook 15 minutes, covered, then flip chicken and cook for another 15 minutes, covered. Cook a final 15 minutes, uncovered.
Now remove the chicken from the juice and cool all of it for at least a few hours or overnight. This will allow you to remove the excess fat from the cooking liquid. Skim or strain it out.
Bring the cooking liquid back to a boil and then add the chicken thighs. Turning the heat down, simmer for about 15 minutes.
Add the greens (I used spinach and kale here) and cook until the greens are wilted — this will depend on your greens, but 5-15 minutes is a good guess for anything short of collard greens (don’t use collards — they require a different cooking method). Spinach, kale, and chard are all good options.
Okay, so remember when I made a bunch of ham on the outside, but roast pork on the inside, roasts in an attempt to make ham? And I gave up and made Cure Your Own Ham Steaks? I found this post on Pelletsmoking.com that has a Ham Brining 101 post that finally helped me wet cure a whole ham that’s ham all the way through. I can make a whole ham for the holidays again!
Pelletsmoking.com uses commercial curing salt in its recipe, but all commercial curing salt is dyed pink for safety and contains dextrose which is generally derived from corn. As I discussed in my Cure Your Own Pastrami post, I ended up having to make my own. If you’re not allergic to corn, use the commercial stuff. If you are allergic to corn, make your own below, but be aware you’re messing with dangerous stuff and do it exactly as I describe below, so you don’t poison yourself.
Making Curing Salt:
To make Curing Salt #1, or Prague Mix #1, or Instacure #1, you need a scale, with a digital readout going out two places. You need to be absolutely precise. The mixture must be 6.25% sodium nitrite (I got mine on Amazon, make sure it’s food grade) and 93.75% salt. To make 4 ounces of Curing Salt #1, you need to weigh out 0.25 ounces of sodium nitrite making sure you tare out or zero out your container, and 3.68 ounces of salt (I used Diamond Crystal Fine All Natural Sea Salt, again no affiliation with Amazon). Mix these together well, and store in a container that’s very clearly marked so that there is no confusion as to what it is. Do not ask me for cups or teaspoon equivalents because I will not do it. This needs to be mixed as exactly as described, you cannot wing it or approximate. I cannot emphasize this enough, the proportions must be exactly as described here to be safe.
Curing Salt #1
Once you’ve made your Curing Salt #1, it’s time to make the ham!
Cure Your Own Whole Ham
Brining the Ham:
Fresh Picnic Pork Shoulder or Bston Butt, 8-10 pounds
1 1/2 gallons of distilled or filtered water
1 cup and 2 Tablespoons of kosher salt or sea salt
2 cups of brown sugar, packed firmly
3 tablespoons Curing Salt #1
marinade injector
Rub Ingredients:
4 tablespoons brown sugar, packed firmly
1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
20 or so whole cloves
To prepare the pork shoulder for brining, the skin and some of the fat should be removed. Use a boning knife to trim the skin from the shoulder.
Trimming the skin and fat from the pork shoulderPork shoulder after skin and fat has been trimmed
Mix your water, salt, brown sugar and curing salt together in a container large enough to submerge your pork shoulder completely under the surface. I frequent restaurant supply stores and use 12 quart Cambro food storage containers (again, no affiliation with Amazon). Mix all ingredients until they have dissolved completely to form your brine.
Measure out 32 ounces of the brine into a separate container. This is going to be injected into the pork. Place your pork into a container or roasting pan that will hold any brine run off. Use your marinade injector to inject the entire 32 ounces of brine into the pork, injecting evenly across and on both sides. Make sure that you inject thoroughly around the bones if you have them, to prevent bone souring. Also, if a some of the brine seeps out, that’s okay, but if it’s a lot, collect it and re-inject it.
Brine being injected into the pork
After injecting the pork with your brine, submerge the pork in your large container with the brine, using a heavy plate to weigh it down if necessary. Cover the container and place in a 37°- 40°F refrigerator to cure for 4-7 days. Turn the ham over halfway through the curing process.
After you’ve completed brining the pork, take the ham out of the brine and place it in a roasting pan. Score the shoulder in a grid pattern with your knife. This is decorative but it gives a good outline for where to place your cloves.
Ham scored
Mix the brown sugar and nutmeg listed in your rub ingredients together in a small bowl. Cover the surface of the ham with your rub. Then insert a clove in each scored square in the ham.
Ham after rub and cloves inserted before cooking
Bake at 325°F for 35-40 minutes a pound until the internal temperature is 165°F.
Cure Your Own Whole HamCure Your Own Whole Ham
Enjoy!
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DIY Curing Salt #1
Print Recipe
Make Curing Salt #1, or Prague Mix #1, or Instacure #1, without dextrose which is corn derived, so that you can cure your own safe meat.
To make Curing Salt #1, or Prague Mix #1, or Instacure #1, you need a scale, with a digital readout going out two places. You need to be absolutely precise. To make 4 ounces of Curing Salt #1, you need to weigh out 0.25 ounces of sodium nitrite making sure you tare out or zero out your container, and 3.68 ounces of fine sea salt. Mix these together well, and store in a container that’s very clearly marked so that there is no confusion as to what it is. Do not ask for cups or teaspoon equivalents because I will not do it. This needs to be mixed as exactly as described, you cannot wing it or approximate. I cannot emphasize this enough, the proportions must be exactly as described here to be safe.
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1 1/8cupskosher or sea salt(1/8 cup is 2 Tablespoons)
2 cupsbrown sugarpacked firmly
3tbspCuring Salt #1
1Marinade Injector
Rub Ingredients
4tbspbrown sugar
1/4tsp ground nutmeg
20 whole cloves
Servings: people
Instructions
Use a boning knife to trim the skin from the shoulder.
Mix water, salt, brown sugar and curing salt together in a container large enough to submerge your pork shoulder completely under the surface. Measure out 32 ounces of the brine into a separate container. Use your marinade injector to inject the entire 32 ounces of brine into the pork, injecting evenly across and on both sides. Make sure that you inject thoroughly around the bones if you have them, to prevent bone souring.
Submerge the pork in your large container with the brine, using a heavy plate to weigh it down if necessary. Cover the container and place in a 37°- 40°F refrigerator to cure for 4-7 days. Turn the ham over halfway through the curing process.
To cook the ham after brining, score the shoulder in a grid pattern with your knife. Mix the brown sugar and nutmeg listed in your rub ingredients together in a small bowl. Cover the surface of the ham with your rub. Then insert a clove in each scored square in the ham.
Bake at 325°F for 35-40 minutes a pound until the internal temperature is 165°F.
