A Quiet Day Designing And a Milestone

We had a low-key, quiet Thanksgiving day here in the high desert. No traveling. No guests. No family. One son is back east, in his last year as a Senior RA at college [he is on duty for the holiday weekend] and the other son is working and living in Los Angeles. Both cooked yesterday.

Alex cooked himself up some penne pasta with organic chicken sausage and balsamic peppers. Colin made roasted garlic mashed potatoes to bring to a friend’s [boiling the spuds in his wok because he didn't have a pot]. I instant-messaged with both of them yesterday morning. I missed them, but I also know, Dear Reader, they are where they are supposed to be.

And so I designed instead of cooked. We had a leftover improv last night I can only describe as a humble Mexican inspired enchilada bake. And it hit the spot. We watched our favorite Thanksgiving film, Home for the Holidays, with a fire in the kiva fireplace. We went to bed early.

Yesterday was also a quiet milestone here at [Gluten Free] Goddess. I’ve been blogging for a year.

And so I offer a hearty, delicious goddess thanks to you, fabulous Reader. You are the reason I am here.

gluten free holiday Cafe Press coping with celiac

Almost Sausalito Cookie Bars

The nubby chocolate chip landscape of a favorite gluten-free cookie bar.

I ask you. What beats coconut and chocolate in a cookie recipe- especially if they happen to be gluten-free? Coconut and chocolate and macadamia nuts.

Okay, I confess. My all-time favorite cookies in those innocent pre-gluten-free days were not some hoity-toity gourmet bakery confection but those bagged big and bumpy Pepperidge Farm chocolate chunk cookies you could get in any East Coast grocery store. Yup. If memory serves me well, my go-to favorite featured coconut and chocolate. They might have been called Sausalito. Or some such California-evoking moniker.

In our quest to tweak one of our favorite dessert bar recipes this week my cookie-making husband and I came up with a chocolate chip coconut cookie bar that tastes an awful lot like those beloved crunchy-chewy Pepperidge Farm gems. We didn't happen to have any macadamia nuts on hand- but if we did I would have added some to the recipe.

And for those of you who loved dunking those Pepperidge Farm Nantucket Cookies into a glass of ice cold milk- Babycakes, these are dunk worthy.

Continue reading

'Tis [Almost!] the [Gluten Free] Holiday Season

Who needs tofurky when you have Sweet Potato Black Bean Enchiladas?

Getting through the holidays gluten-free can be tough. But then, the holidays were always a challenge for me because I was mostly vegetarian for decades (and some of those years were vegan), so, in truth, Gentle Reader, my holiday foods have forever tended to be a tad different from mainstream holiday fare. I learned early on how to tweak traditional recipes and reinvent old favorites- like using coconut milk as a delicious non-dairy sub in whipped sweet potatoes, squash, pumpkin pie, and creamy butternut soups. I used broth and roasted garlic in smashed potatoes instead of cream and butter. I have always enjoyed thinking outside the box. And in my vegan years- not once- did I make a turkey out of tofu.

Continue reading

Gluten-Free Garlic Chicken Lasagna Recipe

Tonight's quintessential New Mexican sky.

After a laid back kick off your boots and chill kind of day we had friends for dinner. Our Santa Fe buddies Joey and Will drove north to our little casita  tucked into the pinon dotted hills near Ojo Caliente. I made a recipe that's an old family favorite- since they've become like family, after all. Sometimes the best family is the family we choose with our heart.

And after all, what family doesn't love a good lasagna?

Continue reading

Kudos for Karina's Kitchen

...the best praise

Featured in Newsweek magazine 2007: Waiter, Please Hold the Wheat

Winner Whole Foods Budget Recipe Challenge 2008
Finalist Food Blogger Awards 2006, 2008 Well Fed Network
Epicurious: Go Gluten Free by Amy Sherman
A-List Allergies at BBC Slink
Gluten Free Glut at Washington Post
Gluten Free Adventuring Washington Post
Blogs Can Help with Gluten-Free Baking at BlogHer
Foodie View: Beyond Lettuce
Gluten Intolerance and Celiac Disease
Foodie View: Homemade Breads for the Holidays
Martha Stewart's Dinner Tonight: Thanksgiving Transformation- Festive Ideas for Special Diets
Martha Stewart: Dinner Tonight Slow-Cooker Week: Entertaining
Foodie View: Gluten-Free Baking Round-Up for Celiac Awareness 
"Best of the Food Blogs" on Delish.comFood Blog Spotlight: Gluten-Free at Simply Recipes

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Spice Bars

Frosted gluten-free pumpkin spice bars- yummalicious.

Pumpkin bars aren't as sexy as say, a fresh raspberry tart, or a chocolate mousse laced with Grand Marnier. In fact, they're rather bake sale pragmatic. They don't exactly inspire passionate prose. But at the end of October, as daylight dwindles and afternoon shadows creep like spiders across the burnished rustle of windswept streets [yes, Darling Babycakes, this is my ode to Hallow's Eve], nothing warms the cockles of a pilgrim soul like the autumnal flavors of cinnamon, brown sugar and pumpkin.

And so, I offer you a new recipe for this deliciously spooky time of year. Bake a batch of these spicy fallish treats, pour yourself a mug of hot apple cider, and watch Tim Burton's classic Halloween movie, Sleepy Hollow, snuggled beneath a cozy throw with someone you love.

Continue reading

Spaghetti with Artichoke Hearts, Raisins & Pecans

Sexy gluten-free pasta for two.

When I learned I had celiac disease, the first thought I lurched into was: Pasta! No more pasta? That was December 2001 and it was a cold, dark day, indeed. I was devastated. I *heart* pasta. I lurve pasta. Just the very thought of pasta perks up my appetite and sparks my desire for saucy food and spicy romance. You know, sultry jazz and candlelight. Spaghetti dripping with garlicky olive oil. Pesto coated penne. Putanesca sauced linguine. Roasted vegetable stuffed lasagna. Creamy shells. The soft reliable comfort of macaroni and cheese.

My pasta love runs deep and true.

No wonder. My husband and I honeymooned in Tuscany, Italy. Talk about love food! Honey Baby, we have been in love- and in love with Italian food- ever since. Why? If it isn't obvious, let me count the ways.

Start with sensuous and fruity extra virgin olive oil. Or the intoxicating mingle of garlic and fresh lemon. Balsamic vinegar drizzled on a roasted peach. The brilliant combo of basil leaves and pine nuts. Soft, creamy globes of mozzarella sliced thin and snuggled in between disks of juicy ripe tomatoes. Crisp white wine and nibbles of salty sweet Parmesan. Oh my.

What's not to love, Dear Reader?

Continue reading