1 American leg of lamb, bone in (6-9 lbs) (I usually use a 2-3 lb piece)
2 garlic cloves, cut into slivers
Juice of one lemon (1/2 cup) (I’ve also used just bottled lemon juice in varying amounts)
Salt and pepper to taste (I skip – that’s my “to taste” – ha!)
1 tsp dry rosemary
½ tsp dry basil leaves (I use considerably more than this)

Place lamb in a shallow roasting pan. With a sharp knife, make slits in the surface of the lamb. Insert garlic slits.

Gently squeeze lemon juice over lamb, rubbing into slits and surface. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, rosemary, and basil and rub seasonings into surface.

Roast in 325 oven for 25 minutes per pound or until meat thermometer registers 150 for medium rare. Remove from oven, cover and let stand 15 minutes before slicing.

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Curried Lentils and Sweet Potatoes

– When my son was on the rotation diet, a dear friend created this recipe for him and brought it to a church potluck. It’s not particularly attractive, but it is delicious! I make a batch and freeze it in single-serve dishes for the thermos – or even to enjoy as a hearty breakfast.

1-2 TBS canola oil
1 medium sweet potato, diced fairly small
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp coriander
1 tsp paprika
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
1 lb rinsed, sorted lentils
7 cups water
1 tsp salt
½ tsp black pepper
About 8 sprigs cilantro, chopped

Heat oil. Sauté sweet potato and seasonings (down to cayenne) for 2-3 minutes. Add lentils and sauté a bit longer. Add remaining ingredients and cook for 20-30 minutes. Consider adding raisins and/or turkey for a change of pace.

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GFCF Egg-Free Waffles – In addition to their traditional use, my son likes these waffles as “hot dog rolls”. A big hit with sausage! Feel free to adjust the flours to suit your taste.

¼ c sorghum flour
¼ c garbanzo bean flour
¼ c teff flour
¼ c brown rice flour
¼ c potato starch flour
1 TBS ground flax meal
1 TBS Ener-G egg replacer
½ tsp Xanthan gum
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp Rumford or other GF baking powder
½ tsp salt
3 TBS canola oil
3 TBS Agave nectar
1 c WestSoy Rice Beverage – Plain – or other GFCF “milk”

Combine all dry ingredients. Form a well in the center and add last three ingredients. Stir just until mixed. For best results, let sit for a couple minutes and stir (very little) again. Pour onto hot waffle iron and cook 2-3 minutes or until done. Makes 8-10 waffles.

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Peach Cake– This is actually just a variation on the apple cake I shared earlier. Now while peaches are so good, it’s fabulous!

5 c peaches, unpeeled and chopped
1 1/3 c sugar
½ c oil
2 eggs (Ener-G egg replacer works, too)
2 tsp McCormick or other GF vanilla (I used 1 tsp almond extract instead – yum!)
1 ½ c brown rice flour
1 c + 2 tsp sweet rice flour, divided
1 tsp Xanthan gum
2 tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp salt
½ tsp ground cloves
1 c nuts (optional – I’ve never used)
2/3 c brown sugar
¼ c WestSoy Rice Beverage or other GFCF “milk”
1/3 c powdered sugar

Combine apples and sugar and let stand while mixing other ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine oil, eggs, and extract. In a large measuring cup, combine brown rice flour, 1 cup sweet rice flour, gum, soda, spices, salt, and nuts if desired.

Stir flour mixture into apples alternately with egg mixture. Pour into a greased 9x13 baking pan. Bake in a preheated over at 350 for 50-60 minutes or until cake tests done with a toothpick.

While cake bakes, heat brown sugar, “milk”, and 2 tsp sweet rice flour to boiling, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat. Mix in powdered sugar. Drizzle over hot cake.

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Zucchini Chocolate Cake – What to do with all that zucchini?! Try this delicious dessert. We even froze zucchini so we could enjoy this all winter long!

1 c brown rice flour
1 c garbanzo bean flour
½ c sweet rice flour
¾ tsp Xanthan gum
4 TBS Hershey’s or other GF cocoa
½ tsp Rumford or other GF baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp ground cloves (or reduce a bit for a milder flavor)
½ c Willow Valley or other GFCF “margarine”
½ c canola oil
1 ¾ c sugar
2 eggs (egg replacer works too)
1 tsp vanilla (I skipped this and the cake turned out fine)
½ c WestSoy Rice Beverage or other GFCF “milk”
Approx. ¾ tsp lemon juice
1 c finely grated zucchini
Approx. 1 ½ c Enjoy Life or other GFCF chocolate chips, divided

Combine first ten ingredients (through cloves) and set aside. Cream margarine, oil, and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla. Combine “milk” and lemon juice to make “sour milk” and add to creamed mixture. Beat well. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Stir in zucchini and approximately ¾ c chocolate chips. (I don’t measure.) Pour into greased 9x13 baking dish. Sprinkle approximately ¾ c chocolate chips (whatever works!) on top. Bake in a preheated oven at 325 for 45 minutes. (If making cupcakes, bake about 25-30 minutes.)

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Smothered Chicken with Garlic (from Pampered Chef)

3 TBS fresh rosemary or 1 TBS dried rosemary, divided
½ tsp paprika
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground black pepper
1 whole chicken (about 4 lbs)
1 lemon, cut into quarters
1 TBS olive oil
2 heads garlic, peeled (about 40 cloves)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spray a deep roasting pan with oil or PAM. Combine half of the rosemary with paprika, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Set aside. Remove and discard giblets and neck from chicken cavity. Rinse chicken with cold water and pat dry. Trim excess fat if necessary. Place lemon quarters and remaining rosemary inside the cavity of chicken. Tie ends of legs together with cotton string. Lift wing tips up toward neck, then tuck under back of chicken. Place chicken breast side up into roasting pan (or deep covered baker).

Brush outside of chicken with olive oil. Coat completely with seasoning mixture. Arrange garlic around chicken. Bake, covered, 60 minutes. Remove cover and bake another 25-35 minutes until thermometer registers 180 degrees in thickest part of thigh and juices run clear. Remove chicken from pan. Let stand 10 minutes before carving. Remove garlic from drippings and serve with chicken.

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Cabbage Roll Casserole – This tastes just like cabbage rolls, without all the trouble.

1 head of cabbage, sliced
2 cups cooked rice
1 – 1-1/2 pounds of ground beef (browned and drained)
1 medium onion chopped (brown with beef)
1 15 oz. can Nature’s Promise or other GF diced tomatoes
1-1/2 cups Imagine Natural Creations or other GFCF tomato soup *2 homemade recipes follow*
2 TBS brown sugar

In a large casserole dish (15x10 ish) layer cabbage, rice, cooked beef & onions, diced tomato and soup MIXED with brown sugar. Cover with foil. Bake 1-1/2 to 2 hours on 350 degrees. Voila! Serve with ketchup…

Chocolate Bliss Bites – Amy shares this favorite cookie recipe that she found in Prevention magazine. She tells us, “These sinfully delicious cookies have a rich chocolate flavor – yet are low in carbs, have zero fat, and contain only 25 calories each. In fact, you could eat ten of them and still not equal the calories in one piece of chocolate cake! And yes, they’re GFCF, too.”

½ c unsweetened cocoa powder
Pinch of salt
½ c. sugar, divided
3 large egg whites
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp Giant pure or other GF vanilla extract
1 TBS Domino or other GF confectioners’ sugar

Preheat oven to 300°F. Line 2 baking sheets with foil. In a small bowl, sift together cocoa, salt, and ¼ cup of the sugar. In a large bowl, with electric mixer at medium-low speed, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Beat in remaining ¼ cup sugar, ½ tablespoon at a time, until meringue is glossy and stiff peaks form. Fold in cocoa mixture and vanilla extract.
Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls about 1” apart onto prepared baking sheets. Bake 25 minutes for soft chewy cookies or 40 minutes for crisp ones. Dust cooled cookies with confectioners’ sugar.
Makes 24 cookies. Per cookie: 25 cal, 1 g protein, 6 g carb, 0 g fat, 0 g sat fat, 0 mg cohol, 0.5 g fiber, 13 mg sodium.

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Orange-Sesame Chicken – We enjoy this with polenta (just slice and bake). The orange-sesame sauce is so good over the hot polenta!

1 small whole chicken (about 4 pounds)
1 c Sunrise Valley or other GF Orange Juice
1/3 c sesame oil
1 tsp thyme leaves
1 tsp tarragon leaves
2 tsp sesame seeds
1 TBS + 1 tsp corn starch
2 TBS + 2 tsp cold water

Rinse chicken, pat dry, and place in roasting pan.

Whisk together next five ingredients (through seeds) and pour over chicken. Cover and bake at 300 for two hours or until cooked through. Remove chicken. Bring broth to a boil. Combine corn starch and water until smooth. Pour into broth and stir until thickened.

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Carrot Cookies – Cookies for breakfast?! Well…maybe. These “cookies” might be just the thing to jazz up your breakfast or snack options.

½ T flax meal
1 T hot water
½ c tapioca flour
¼ c garbanzo bean flour
3/8 c brown rice flour
2 T sweet rice flour
½ tsp cream of tartar
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ c Earth Balance or other GFCF “butter”, softened
½ c brown rice syrup (or use sugar)
¾ c raw carrot, shredded

Combine flax meal and hot water and let sit for 10 minutes. (Note this is a replacement of “half” an egg.) Meanwhile, combine flours, cream of tartar, soda, and salt and set aside. (Note: cream of tartar and baking soda are replacement for 1 tsp baking powder.) Beat butter and syrup together with an electric mixer. Add carrot and flax mixture and mix well. Stir dry ingredients into wet. Drop by teaspoons onto an ungreased baking sheet (I covered with release foil) and bake at 375 for 12 minutes.

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Porcupines – When a friend loaned Raegan the book, "Lori Bakes Gluten and Casein Free for Kids", she found this perfect-for-potlucks recipe. Thanks for sharing it with us, too!

Sauce:
1 (15oz) can Giant or other GF tomato sauce
1 c water
1 c V-8 or other GFCF vegetable juice
1 TBS brown sugar
1 tsp Giant or other GFCF Worcestershire sauce

Meatballs:
1-1/2 lb. ground beef (lean)
1/2 c water
1/2 c uncooked long grain white rice
1 egg
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1 TBS dry minced onion flakes
1/2 tsp Giant or other GFCF Worcestershire sauce.

Mix sauce ingredients: set aside. In a medium bowl, combine porcupine ingredients and mix well. Using an ice cream scoop, shape into 2" balls. Pour sauce into deep 2 quart casserole; drop uncooked porcupine balls into sauce. Cover and bake at 350 for 1 hour or until meat is no longer pink inside. Serve on top of a mound of mashed potatoes. Yield 10 porcupines (2" each)

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