Gluten Free Cheeseburger Spuds

GLUTEN FREE CHEESEBURGER SPUDS

Thought I'd share another gluten free creation from my kitchen that was a huge hit with my kids. I had a taste for a cheeseburger, but I haven't been able to find any good gluten free hamburger buns, so I did the next best thing. I mixed my cheeseburger with my fries...TAH DAH...my cheeseburger spuds were born!



This meal literally takes no time at all and it satisfies that craving for a burger like no other I've found.
GLUTEN FREE CHEESEBURGER SPUDS
(All of my recipes are created for feeding a family of six, so adjust it accordingly for your family)


8-10 medium sized potatoes
2 lbs. ground meat
2-3 packets of Gluten Free Cheese Sauce ( I use our Cheese Sauce by Full Flavor Foods - Amazing product and it's on sale right now on our SALE page)
1 large onion
1 large tomato
2 cups of chopped lettuce
Mustard
Ketchup
Dill pickle slices or dill relish
Salt, Pepper & Garlic powder


Bake 6 potatoes @ 350 degrees for about 45 minutes or until tender

Brown the ground meat (I use ground turkey to make it healthier) Add garlic powder, salt & pepper to the meat for taste


Prepare the Cheese Sauce according to the package directions (Again, our Cheese Sauce is SO easy to prepare and it literally takes 5 minutes to make)


Slice the baked potatoes and top with the browned ground meat and cheese sauce. Top with all of your favorite cheeseburger toppings. ENJOY!


My kids never eat baked potatoes because they don't like the skin, but they ate these! Skin and all!! They got all the nutrients from the potatoes, enjoyed ground turkey without any complaints, and devoured lettuce, tomatoes and onions!! This is an amazing dish people!!


From our home to yours, best wishes for a happy gluten free day!


Susan :)
The Celiac Shack

Gluten Free Chili Mac to die for!

Here is another one of my recent creations that was a huge hit with my kids. I used to make a cheesy, gooey, absolutely delicious chili Mac that leaves my mouth watering. I had to come up with a VERY close runner up to that recipe to fill my chili Mac void, so here is my gluten free substitute: (Keep in mind that I try very hard to keep all of my food low fat and healthy, but if you're one of those lucky people that don't need to watch their calories or fat intake, then please feel free to buy regular items ~ and don't even think that the rest of us calorie/fat counters are secretly hoping you get fat one day...HA-HA) joking


Gluten Free Chili Mac ~
From the kitchen of Susan Jones (The Celiac Shack)


2 lbs Ground Turkey ( I use the 85/15 blend because I find turkey breast is too dry for my taste, but you also can use ground beef if that suits your fancy)


2 cans diced tomatoes
1 large onion (chopped)
1 green pepper
4 tablespoons oil
1 16oz fat free sour cream
2 cans unseasoned black beans
2 cloves of garlic to taste
Chili powder to taste
Salt & pepper to taste
Cumin powder to taste ( I use a lot of cumin!)
1 family sized bag of gluten free noodles ( I really like Tinkyaya noodles, but I use whatever I have on hand)

Cheddar cheese to taste


Brown the meat, chopped onions and green pepper in a large pot with a little oil. I add my cumin powder, chili powder, garlic, salt and pepper at this point. Once this mixture is nice and brown, add to tomatoes and black beans. Simmer until everything has melded together. Add seasoning if needed to your taste and add the sour cream.


Cook your gluten free pasta noodles according the package instructions and drain.


Add the noodles to the chili mixture (I heard that you should always add noodles to sauce and not sauce to noodles...not sure if it's true, but it's what I do now)


Top with the cheddar cheese and serve with a nice salad or gluten free bread.

Delicious, easy to make, and completely gluten free. Hope you guys enjoy it, as this recipe makes enough for my family of 6 and I always have leftovers for lunches the next day. Cut it in half if you don't have an army to cook for ;)

Susan :)
The Celiac Shack ~ Making gluten free fun one day at a time!

SPRING is a great Gluten Free time!

I've have a renewed excitement in cooking, baking and living gluten free! I consider myself to be a pretty good cook (and yes, my family would agree...I hope!) I was getting into my winter cooking blahs, but now that Spring is here...watch out!


I'm not one to follow recipes exactly. I'm a busy Mom, and I "fidget" recipes to work for me in my day. I like to experiment, and sometimes my creations work...sometimes they're not requested again, but this is how I run my kitchen and I like it this way. Some of my family's favorites have come from me combining two different recipes, or just experimenting with ingredients. I also lack the desire to actually write down my recipes, which drives my husband nuts! He thinks I should have a book of recipes that the kids love, but I say, "Who has time"?? All of my cooking knowledge is in my head, which can be a pretty chaotic and scary place, depending on the day. Some days my chili has a tad more cumin than others, but this is okay in my world...my time is too precious to worry about the small details - ha-ha


This new blog format will serve multiple purposes. It will allow me to share my everyday cooking experiences with you, and it will also make my husband happy because I will actually be documenting my recipes for future use...blah blah blah. I'm joking, because I am really excited to share my trial and errors with all of you and document my successes so I look like a really good gluten free cook! :)


This is one of my creations that I used to accompany my fruit salad on Easter day.

HEALTHY GLUTEN FREE FRUIT DIP/TOPPING
Ingredients:
1 8 oz package fat free cream cheese
6-12 Strawberries (dependant on your taste- I told you that I fidget recipes!!)
1 banana
Approx. 1 cup low fat Cottage cheese
Approx. 1/2 cup fat free Plain yogurt
Honey - as much as you need for sweetness
1/2 teaspoon Gluten free vanilla


Add the first 3 ingredients into a blender and slowly blend until slightly smooth. Slowly add the remainder of the ingredients, watching for consistency. You don't want your mixture to get too runny, so if you need to cut back on the yogurt and cottage cheese, please do so. Blend all the ingredients together, and serve with any fresh fruit you have on hand.


Simple, easy, healthy, and it is delicious. I'm not a big fan of adding extra calories, especially to fruits and veggies, but this is a nice healthy alternative to get cottage cheese and yogurt into my kids' diets.


I will be posting more fabulous gluten free recipes everyday, so check back!


Susan :)
The Celiac Shack ~ Making gluten free fun one day at a time!

Travel & Leisure

GLUTEN FREE VENDOR FAIR!

As always, I've been checking out what events are coming up in the gluten free world, and I wanted to share with all of you that there is a gluten free vendor fair taking place in the Chicago area in Lisle, IL.

It looks like there is going to be 50 different vendors with education tables for adults and children.  Also, there will be a Kid's area with lots of fun activities and treats.  Sounds like a great time if you're going to be in the Chicago area or want to take a road trip!

 Below is the information and the link in case you have any further questions:

Don’t miss the largest Gluten Free Vendor Fair in the Chicago area.

50+ vendors
Children’s Gluten Free Area with Activities, Education and Treats
Sample and Purchase Gluten Free Products, Books and Services
Ask the Doctor Table
Ask the Nutritionist Table
Ask the Chef Table

The Wyndham Hotel, 30000 Warrenville Road, Lisle, IL
Open to the public April 17, 2010, from 9am-12pm
Open to the public April 18, 2010, from 11am-3pm
Purchase Tickets at the Door
Adults $15
Children under 12 are free

We're always looking for more great gluten free events to post, so if you know of any, shoot us an email and we'll spread the word! 

Best wishes for a happy gluten free day!

Susan
The Celiac Shack
Making gluten free fun one day at a time!

 

Kids Corner

Easy Gluten Free Kid's Dinner

I was in a pinch for a quick and easy dinner the other night, and I came up with a casserole that knocked my kids' socks off! It was easy, pretty nutritious, and my kids actually asked for it again! Not too bad for a casserole!! ha-ha


Here is my concoction:

Gluten Free Hot Dog/Mac & Cheese Casserole


1 pack of Jennie O Turkey Hot Dogs
1 box of Gluten free noodles
2 packs of gluten free cheese sauce (I used our Full Flavor Foods Cheese Sauce)
2 cups Gluten free crackers crushed
1/2 stick melted butter
2 tablespoons olive oil (optional if you use the spinach)
1 package of frozen spinach (optional)


Boil the hotdogs just until warm - slice or chop into bite sized pieces.
Cook the gluten free pasta according to the package
Cook the cheese sauce according to the directions.
In the meantime, I pureed the spinach in the food processor or blender with the olive oil.
Grease an 11x13 casserole dish
Place the pasta in the dish
Layer the hotdogs on top of the pasta
Mix the spinach into the cheese sauce
Pour the cheese/spinach mixture over the pasta and hotdogs


Mix the melted butter with the gluten free crackers and spread evenly on top of the whole mixture.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes or until bubbly and the crackers begin to slightly brown.
Enjoy!


I'm all about easy recipes, and this is a really good one when you're short on time and want to get a home cooked meal into your kids!



Regards,
Susan
The Celiac Shack
Making gluten free fun one day at a time!

Gluten Free Products

GLUTEN FREE HOMEMADE HASH

I was in a pinch for time last night, so I went into my freezer to see what I could pull out for dinner and I saw my box of Ore Ida Frozen Hash Brown Patties. I immediately got a craving for homemade hash! I usually shred my own potatoes, but these tasty morsels really worked for a quick alternative!

This is a quick and easy way to make homemade gluten free hash that your whole family will love. I have four picky kids and they all cleaned their plates.

Easy Homemade Gluten Free Hash

Ingredients:
Frozen hash browns (I've also used frozen tater tots, they work well)
1 Large onion
1 Green pepper
2 tablespoons Olive oil
2 cups of Diced Ham
2 Chicken Breasts (Optional)
8 Eggs (optional)
4-6 Green onions
Sour cream to garnish
Salt, Pepper & Garlic powder to taste


Thaw your hash or gluten free tater tots
Cube the chicken breast into tiny pieces
In a large skillet, add 2 tablespoon olive oil, cook the cubed chicken half way (I add my garlic powder to the chicken at this point for maximum flavor). Add diced ham and diced green peppers to this pan and sauté on low until the peppers are soft and the chicken is fully cooked.
Remove this chicken/ham/green pepper mixture from the pan and place in a covered bowl
Using the same pan (I'm all about one pan dinners!) sauté the chopped onions until translucent.
Using your hands, break apart the hash browns or tater tots* and add to the onions.
(*TIP: This is a really great task for your kids to help you with since it's one thing they can't mess up...they LOVE breaking apart the potatoes and it lets them participate in cooking gluten free meals. Teaching our kids to cook for themselves is so important and even the smallest task gives them a huge sense of accomplishment!)
Add salt & pepper and let this mixture cook over medium heat until the bottom is slightly crispy. Turn this mixture and let the other side crisp up.
In the meantime, I fry up my eggs over medium so the yolks are just slightly runny.
Once everything is cooked, I plate the potato mixture covered with the chicken/ham mixture. I throw some chopped green onions on top and add a dollop of sour cream to the plate.
Easy, gluten free and delicious! Saves you the time of having to shred potatoes, and you'd never know the difference.
From my kitchen to yours, I wish you a happy gluten free day!


Regards,
The Celiac Shack
Making gluten free fun one day at a time!

New Blog Page & Posts

ALOHA EVERYONE!

I am excited to announce that starting Monday October 12th, we are starting a new blog format. We have not been posting recently because we have been working on improving the functionality and overall appearance of our page. Here's what to expect going forward with our posts:

Monday:         Health & Wellness
Tuesday:        Kids Cove  
Wednesday:  Gluten-Free Product Info.         
Thursday:     "Shack" Attack
Friday:             Travel & Leisure

We want our post not only to be entertaining, but be filled with useful information that can actually assist you in your everyday life. You will not have endless days filled with our personal thoughts and business plugs for our on-line store. We have narrowed down these ramblings to be delivered on Thursdays. We also have opened our posts up to comments from our followers. We want everyone to participate and help build a community that draws not only on success stories, but hard learned failures. As a thank you for following our blog, we will choose a random follower each week to receive a FREE gluten-free sample size snack. If you have any questions or comments regarding our new venture, please send us an e-mail at theceliacshack@yahoo.com.

So stay tuned, tell a friend & enjoy!

Regards,

The Celiac Shack

Gluten free pizza recipe!

Aloha everyone!

As you know, August is pizza month here at the shack, so I've been working on some great pizza recipes in our kitchen and I'd like to share one with you now.

I started off by using our Gluten Free Pizza Crust Mix , which happens to be the prize you will win for FREE if we choose your pizza recipe for our Gluten free pizza recipe challenge. It's delicious and easy to make.

THE CELIAC SHACK'S ALFREDO PIZZA ~
Prepare the Crust using Tastefully Gluten Free Pizza Crust
Pre-bake the crust according to the directions
Prepare Alfredo Sauce (Full Flavor Foods)
Flatten the crust in a pan
Spread the Alfredo sauce over the crust
Liberally cover the pizza cheese on top of the Alfredo sauce
Slice a tomato thinly and place on top of the cheese
Rinse Basil and cilantro leaves and place on top of the tomatoes
Add black olives
Add artichokes
Add chopped garlic (As much as you like)

Bake for 10-15 minutes at 350 degrees or until the cheese is bubbly!

It's an amazing pizza with a ton of flavor and it's a specialty pizza that is so easy to make!

Let us know how you like it. We're always looking for feedback! Remember to sign up for The Pipeline so you can see who is the winner of the Pizza Recipe Challenge and to also get great discounts on our gluten free products @ theceliacshack.net!

The Celiac Shack ~ Making gluten free fun one day at a time!

www.theceliacshack.net
theceliacshack@yahoo.com

Grilling for Gluten free kids~

My kids LOVE hot dogs, and since most hot dogs are not gluten free, I have come up with a solution to fulfill their desires, and keep their favorite foods gluten free. They never know the difference between the old hot dogs and the Jennie-O Turkey Franks that I've been substituting in their place.

Listed below is a link that gives info about all the hot dogs and sausages out there. It is very helpful and useful.

http://surefoodsliving.com/2009/05/14/hot-dogs-and-sausages-gluten-free-and-dairy-free-list/

Join The Pipeline for more great links and recipe ideas. We really are looking for you and all of your personal stories to help make our gluten free community even better!

http://www.theceliacshack.net/

theceliacshack@yahoo.com

The Celiac Shack ~ Making gluten free fun one day at a time!

The Pipeline for August

Ok..so we're busy working on our monthly newsletter, The Pipeline. We're gotten so many great emails from a lot of you and we're going over all of the gluten free BBQ recipes to pick our winner for our July BBQ recipe contest! The winner will be sent a bottle of Hot Rod Bob's BBQ sauce as their prize, and we're going to mention their name in August's Pipeline.

You still have time to submit your recipe. We're looking for great, unique, unusual, delicious, and of course, gluten free BBQ recipes! Get going and send one in. You could be the winner!

The Celiac Shack ~ Making gluten free fun one day at a time!

http://www.theceliacshack.net/

theceliacshack@yahoo.com

Great Review on The Celiac Shack!

I just read the most fabulous review on The Celiac Shack! I was so happy to see that people are really enjoying our community and products! Take a moment to read this review and then check us out for yourself!

*****************************************

The Celiac Shack

A new online Gluten Free Community and Pantry! It's hip, it's cool, and it's a really great place to get a ton of information and to purchase some really awesome gluten free products at great prices!

I've had celiac disease for a few years, and I've found The Celiac Shack last week. It has an island atmosphere and it has catchy photos and a Hawaiian theme. It's unique, fresh and brings a new approach to living gluten free. My wife loves it because it is aimed at Mothers of gluten free children, as we have 2 kids with Celiac disease also. You can sign up for their newsletter, called The Pipeline, and they run Monthly contest. You can win FREE products each month just by submitting a recipe to them at Theceliacshack@yahoo.com.

It's really a great place to visit and buy some awesome gluten free products. All of their products have been tested by their four children, which they refer to as "The Jones Gang." Very cool concept. I like knowing that their kids have taste tested and actually like the food they have for sale. My kids have eaten so much gerbil food, that they are happy to get great tasting snacks finally!

I would highly recommend that you go to Theceliacshack.net and experience this site out for yourself. You'll be happy you did.

Remember to sign up for their newsletter and submit your gluten free recipes to get discounts on their products!

Their shipping rates are also the best I've encountered. They use USPS, and my shipments have been simple and perfect!
*********************************************

The Celiac Shack ~ Making gluten free fun one day at a time!

"Magical" Breakfast!

I woke up this morning, and made my pot of "Go-Go Juice", aka, coffee. I looked in my fridge to find something for the kids to eat for breakfast. I saw a bottle of mustard, a half full jar of pickles, and some leftovers from last nights dinner. Hmmm...although it is possible to make a delicious and nutritious meal from mustard and pickles, I opted to look behind these items and I saw fat free vanilla yogurt and some fresh blackberries from my yard that The Jones Gang hand picked this week.

Viola! We had breakfast! Below is a delicious and easy breakfast that my kids love, and of course, it's gluten free.

Gluten Free Berry Smoothies!

1 cup Black Berries (any kind of berry will do)
2 c. fat-free vanilla yogurt
1 cup skim milk

1 cup Ice

Blend all ingredients in the blender until smooth, pour in glasses and serve cold!

I usually offer up my kids something along with this breakfast smoothie, but this morning, my kids were perfectly content slowly drinking their delicious smoothies solo.

As I sat down and drank my "Go-Go Juice" with my kids, my three year old daughter, Maggie, looked at me and said, "Momma, this breakfast is magical"! WOW! Couldn't we all use some magical moments in our life? I had one this morning. :)

The Celiac Shack ~ Making gluten free fun one day at a time!

Sign up for The Pipeline for more easy gluten free recipes.