Gluten Free, Dairy Free, 100% Organic Frozen Pie Crust

Today for Freezer Friday, I thought I would share something I have been working with and am excited about! Monday I will be teaching some private Chef Tess Freezer Meal cooking lessons with a new client. She is an amazing woman named Lisa Schumacher. She is an entrepreneur, children's leader in BSF, and Abolitionist! Yes folks, there really is still a great need for abolitionists!! Lisa is also a leader in developing affordable Luxury skin care for the masses. 25% of their sales go toward abolishing modern slavery and child trafficking! Talk about someone making a difference! Rock on Lisa! I really believe people are put into each other's lives for a reason, and Lisa is in mine as a great example. I'm looking forward to a new wonderful friendship! Check out her company. Lily & Co. at http://www.lilynco.net/ .

I bring this up, because Lisa has some dietary needs I think apply to a lot of people. Specifically she has no gluten, or dairy in her diet. She also has no sugar. She is all about 100% organic with everything. So, I had to come up with some delicious recipes that would work for her and her family. One thing she really wanted was egg and cheese quiche. Mind you...dairy free and gluten free. First things first I needed to gather the gluten free grains that I would use for her speciality flour.

Buckwheat. Yes, it's gluten free!


Quinoa, ( boxed "pre-washed" variety if using for flour)

Basmati Brown rice,

and amaranth.

Chef Stephanie Petersen’s Gluten Free multi-grain flour:
12 oz organic buckwheat
12 oz organic brown rice
12 oz organic amaranth
12 oz organic pre-rinsed quinoa
Mix the grains in a bowl and grind on the lowest setting in your grain mill/grinder.

Though the flour looks rather white, there is 100% whole grain there. 100% gluten free.

Now to make that wonderful flour into something I could use for a quiche!
Keeping in mind...again, no dairy.

Chef Tess' Gluten Free Quiche crust Recipe
1/2 cup spectrum organic shortening or EV coconut oil
2 gluten free Chef Stephanie’s multi-grain flour
1 egg
1T vinegar
½ tsp salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

I love using extra virgin coconut oil in my organic dairy free crust. It adds amazing flavor and makes a nice flaky crust.

Cut shortening into gluten free multi-grain flour and salt until a crumb like texture forms.

Add egg and vinegar. Knead by hand about 5 minutes. It will be sticky at first, but will firm up.

Don't be afraid to let it stick to your hand a little. Once you shape it into a ball and freeze it, that dough will be nice for rolling.

Place dough ball in the freezer for 10-15 minutes. This not only helps the coconut oil to firm up, but also gives your oven a chance to really pre-heat. Roll dough out between two pieces of wax paper or on a heavy plastic gallon size bag until 9 inches in diameter.

Gently easy your hand under the plastic and flip the crust over, face side down, into an 8 inch pie tin. This recipe makes 1 crust. Press crust into pan and remove any extra edges.

Place on a sheet pan and bake uncovered 12-15 minutes, until firm.

Allow crust to cool. Now you can either cover the crust with foil and freeze it until ready to use for pies or pastries, or you can go ahead and make it into a quiche. Here is the recipe I use for that:

Tess' Ham and Cheese Quiche For the freezer (or not)
9 inch pastry shells
1cups diced fully cooked ham (so good with crab instead of ham)
1 cup sharp cheddar soy cheese
2T minced fresh onion
1 clove fresh pressed garlic
2 eggs
1 cups soy milk
3/4 tsp dill weed
fresh cracked pepper

Directions: While baking crust, combine onion, garlic, eggs, soy milk, and seasonings. Removed crusts from oven and cool, put ham and cheese in the pie shell, then pour in the egg mixture. Freeze uncoverd very flat at least one hour, then cover and Freeze up to 3 months or... put back in the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let stand 5 minutes before cutting. To cook from frozen bake 400 degrees 50-55 minutes. If you cut the pie into 8 pieces it is 25 carbs. each

There you go.

Cuban Grilled Sweet Potato Salad with Pineapple and Jicama

I love Tara. For Christmas she got me a subscription to a magazine that I love. I don't love her just for that (of course). However...I must confess, it has been one of my favorite gifts. It is called Cuisine at Home. I love it. Love it. Love it. This month's issue had an amazing recipe that I knew I would adore. However, I had to break down and do something rash. True confessions. Ready? I know I vowed a solemn vow that I would not turn on my stove this week...but I broke down and used my grill pan. It was only on for 7 minutes so I don't feel like I deviated too much from my commitment. If anyone wants to kick my pat-oootie, I apologize. I just figured that this salad would merit a solid place on this week's summer salad expo. It is a crazy combination of naturally sweet produce in a tangy spicy lime dressing that completely kicks things in high gear. It's vegan. My heart loves it. So here it is. The Cuban grilled sweet potato salad of joy and happiness. Adapted from: http://www.cuisineathome.com/

For the salad you will need:

1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch slices

1/2 of fresh pineapple (I just grilled the chunks)

1 medium jicama, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch rounds (about 12 ounces)

For the dressing:

2 T honey

juice and zest of one lime

1 tsp red pepper flakes.
pepper and kosher salt, to taste.

I'm a huge fan of jicama. This time we cut it with a crinkle cutter. It just looked really festive and my boys thought they where French fries. Ironically, even though they where not deep fat fried potato bombs, my kids still loved them.

Toss the sweet potatoes on the grill for 5-7 minutes, just until tender.

The grill marks not only add some color, but caramelized the sugars in the potatoes, making them amazing.

While the sweet potatoes where grilling, I sliced the pineapple.

Zesting the lime while the sweet potatoes cooked too...see how efficient I can be when I'm hungry? I also grilled some of the pineapple, but didn't grill it all. If I was outside grilling I may have gone that far...but I just didn't want my house to get much hotter.

Cut the lime in half and add the juice.
I carefully, mathematically and meticulously measured the honey. Okay...I may have just "eyeballed it"...

Add the chile flakes, pepper and salt.

Cool the sweet potatoes slightly, crinkle cut, and toss with the salad.

We had it as a main course, but this would also be a wonderfully flavorful side dish for some spicy kebabs or grilled fish. Totally different. Totally fat free and funky fresh.

There you go.

Ravioli Eggs

When I was growing up, Ravioli Eggs were a staple. I now call them Rav-i-oh-leeee-oh-lee eggs. Not sure why that nickname has stuck but I like it. I think the words "quick and easy" had a lot to do with their popularity around my house as a child. Not only did they taste pretty freaky awesome, but they where also a comfort food. We used plain tomato sauce (don't ask me why...). Now as an adult, I use marinara or spaghetti sauce depending on what I want. The good thing is they are low fat, low carbohydrate, loaded with flavor, and easy. Did I mention easy?! They sport a whopping 3 ingredient. I now need to go get more eggs. My kids want more of these bad boys and I only made 6. Little Man says these are now and forever his favorite breakfast food. FOREVER. He totally gulped it down. Three gulp to be exact. Grin. I couldn't be more pleased if I tried.


Ravioli Eggs

2 cups spaghetti sauce
6-8 eggs
Italian seasoning
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (optional)

In a heavy 10 inch skillet with a lid, pour tomato sauce.

Turn on heat to medium and slowly crack the eggs into the sauce as you would for poached eggs.

Sprinkle the top with Italian seasoning and Parmesan cheese. Cover and reduce heat to low for 10-12 minutes until cooked through... yolks cooked silly.

Serve warm with crusty Italian bread for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

There you go. May I suggest serving them with warm rosemary and shallot breadsticks

Rice Patties

I love to do the fancy stuff...but I am also a simple girl from simple roots. Working in the greenhouse lately has made me terribly homesick. I miss my dad. Have I mentioned my dad is a gardener by trade. I spent a lot of time at his feet watching him tend plants. Now he runs our church's greenhouse growing literally thousands of flowers a year. He is probably the reason why my soul is so creative. He is amazing. One of the most calm and gentle men on earth. What does this have to do with my food? When I was growing up, we had these little rice patties for breakfast all the time. Dinner too. In the giant world of culinary arts, I realize they aren't really high up there on the scale of difficulty...or complexity of flavor. They are however, one of my most cherished comfort foods. On any given day I can be instantly transported back to my childhood kitchen and see my dad smiling over a plate of fresh rice patties. Heaven on earth. I have more memories of my dad making this dish than any other food. Well, these and fried 'taers and onions with egg. Ironically, my mom was the one who first introduced my dad to this dish. My Grandma Dorothy used to make them. However they came into the family, they are still a part of me. So, in honor of my dear ol' Pappa (and Mama for showing dad the way)...here's how to make rice patties. They taste a lot like fried rice, but hold their shape and are a great way to use up leftover rice. I love them made with rice-a-roni too. Yes, very fancy-schmancy.

You will need:
cooked rice (chilled 3-4 hours in the fridge... so great for leftovers...see?)
eggs.
1 cup cooked rice (measure after cooking) to one egg.

I use 1/4 cup eggbeaters so it's heart healthy. Yes, you can use brown rice or pretty much any cooked grain. Barley is amazing. My mom uses cold cooked cracked wheat. Yea, those are good too.

Here's the difficult part...mix it up.

In a large skillet with a heavy bottom, cook over medium heat. Make sure you use a non-stick pan, or one you have oiled well. I scoop them into little patties like this little artistic dude. See how it looks like the sunshine. Yea, it is happy isn't it? Cook 3-4 minutes on one side and then carefully slide a spatula under the pattie and turn over gently. Cook 3-4 more minutes. We also like them with a slice of cheese on top...Top with butter while hot and season well with salt and pepper. Hello daddy.

There you go. Simple, comforting and easy. What a wonderful world.

Asian spring rolls...light and fresh.

These are not deep fried, but light and happy.
Just because it's Spring, I needed these rolls. It's not just warm here in Arizona, mind you, but stinkin' hot. Hot enough that my winter visitor "snow birds" just flew back to Wyoming. Bye bye birdies. So, in light of this event...and because I wanted something light I thought we should see the rolls. Not my dinner rolls (or fat rolls LOL). It was a dinner, and rolls where involved. I took some spring rolls to a dinner party with some dear friends.


Anyone else have those friends who has stayed your friends even after they got to know you? These are those kind of friends. Years after our first introduction, they still invite me over. It must be more than my charm and irresistible food. What a gift they are right now in my life! My camera is in Germany. Long story, but when it gets back, I will do a full tutorial on the Vietnamese Spring rolls with peanut lime dipping sauce. They are not, not, not, deep fat fried. In fact they are light tasting and different. Honestly a very welcome change. Several requests for the recipe were uttered. I cannot resist sharing. For now, please enjoy a brief recipe and description. Please forgive me for lack of photo instruction. More to follow I promise.

Asian Spring Rolls:
3 oz cooked rice vermicelli noodles, cooked 3 minutes in boiling vegetable broth and drained.
2 large carrots, peeled and cut into strips
5 green onions, cut into 4 inch strips and then in half to give 10 pieces the length of the roll.
1 cup fresh cilantro (about 10 sprigs)
1/2 cup fresh mint leaves (20 leaves)
1 cooked chicken breast, cut into 10 thin strips.
10 rice wrappers (8 inch, available in oriental markets)
3 cups thin sliced red cabbage or spinach leaves

Dipping sauce:
2 tsp lime zest
1/4 cup lime juice
2T soy sauce (must use gluten free if you want the sauce gluten free...)
1 tsp sesame oil
2 T peanut butter
2 T minced peanuts
2T oyster sauce
2 T Hoisin sauce
1 tsp hot chile sauce

Directions: Put all different ingredients in separate piles or dishes and have on hand to make the rolls. You will need a clean kitchen towel that you have moistened, as well as a 9 inch pie plate full of water. Lightly immerse the rice wrapper in water for about a minute until it starts to become pliable. Spread out on the clean towel as you would a tortilla for burritos. Lay down a sprig of cilantro, 2 mint leaves and then the a strip of chicken, a few pieces of carrot, one piece of green onion, and about 1/4 cup cooked noodles and a 1/4 cup spinach or red cabbage. Roll up the rice wrap as you would a burrito. Put on a serving tray and lightly mist with more water if necessary. Repeat 10 times. Yield 1o rolls.
For dipping Sauce: Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl with a wire whisk until smooth. Serve with the rolls.

Vietnamese vegetarian phở

This is a Vietnamese soup... phở (called phở chay for the vegetarian variety I love). I actually eat if for breakfast on a regular basis. If I don't already seem weird enough after reading my blog, that must have sealed the deal. But look at this soup and tell me it wouldn't be welcome on the table even at breakfast! Ace has been known to eat this stuff by the gallon...but not at breakfast. I am alone in my early morning noodle-fest.

It's one of my favorite things on earth for a lot of reasons, but one thing that stands out most is the Q&E factor. That would be the "quick and easy" factor. It takes all of 3 minutes to cook the noodles because they are made of rice (typically rice and water and sometimes a little tapioca...which is astonishing and wonderful news to all my gluten free readers!) I use several cups of vegetable broth with some fresh cilantro, mint, green onions, mung bean sprouts, and carrots. Sometimes I go so far as to add meat, but I prefer the lighter "no meat" version...especially at breakfast when really, who wants a heavy meal? When it has meat, it is typically sliced super thin and cooked with the hot boiling broth. Also, the fresh herbs and things are served to the side quite often and then added according to a person's preference. If I am just serving it to the family, I do it in a large gallon pot. It just seems more practical. I've been told that the larger flat noodles and my use of green onions is more typical of the northern parts of Vietnam and that the vermicelli noodles are more southern. So there's your random fact of the day. Don't quote me, as I am not an expert on this. Seriously not. Just love the food. This is one of my recipes that I kinda "eyeball"...not super exact measurements for the pot of soup stuff...just to taste and feelings that day. Note that the herbs here are fresh. Wow does it make a huge difference! Thanks again to Wendy for the gorgeous herbs!

Vegetarian phở ( phở chay)

7 oz package of flat dry rice noodles (Shahe is the brand I like but there are tons out there)

6 cups boiling vegetable stock (or any meat stock works...beef being among the most popular)
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

1/2 cup chopped fresh mint

1/2 cups Thai Basil (or whatever you can find...or be given free huh Wendy?!)

1/2 cup thin sliced green onion

1/2 cups thin sliced or julienne carrots or mung bean sprouts (or both)

2T rice vinegar

2T fish sauce

1-2 tsp chili sauce (to taste)

lemon or lime wedges

Add the noodles to the boiling stock and cook 3 minutes. Add all remaining fresh ingredients and serve. Squeeze fresh lemon or lime juice over the soup and enjoy. It's that easy. No wonder I love it! I dare you to try it...just once for breakfast.

There you go. If you omit the fish sauce...it's gluten free!

Homemade Ranch Dressing

Need Ranch Dressing but don't want all the added chemicals and junk? Here's something you'll really like. It's been Cobb salads here for a long time. Ace is on a kick. He gets those sometimes and wants something specific quite often. How it came to be Cobb salad, I'm not sure. But, they must have ranch dressing, and not just any will do, it has to be just perfectly thin and thick at the same time. A good clingin' dressin' (no that's not a Star Trek reference) . Here's my recipe:

Homemade Ranch de Chef Tess
1 cup low fat mayo
1 cup low fat buttermilk (or milk, but I like buttermilk)
2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic granules
2 T fresh chopped parsley (or 1 T dry)
salt and fresh cracked pepper
dash of dill or paprika if desired.

That 's it folks. Mix it all up until smooth. Aren't you glad I just saved you a ton on bottled dressing? So for southwest ranch, add 1tsp chile powder. For bacon ranch, add 1/4 tsp liquid smoke and 2T crumbled bacon. For good blue cheese, add 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese.

There you go!

Shallot Herb Roasted Pork with Lemon Cream Sauce and Mushrooms

I mentioned I had girl time with Tara on Friday night. What I failed to mention was that we also had a meal...not just Tara's Toasted Pound Cake with Almond Cream Sauce . This master genius dinner was one of my favorite. Shallot herb roasted pork with lemon mushroom cream sauce. It's a mouthful to say...and a mouthful to eat. I got a recipe from The Merlin Menu for Pork Tenderloin with Lime/Cream Sauce. It sounded wonderful! And it was. In true Stephanie fashion (that's me, Tess is my nickname) I tweaked it a little for the Evil Think Tank with Tara. I know Ron Merlin doesn't mind. I had to "healthify" it, so I could save my calories for dessert. As much as I would love to use a bunch of cream, the cream cheese offered a great alternative for a creamy sauce with not much guilt. Weight Watchers has really made me more aware of getting a balance. Healthy dinner and an occasional splurge is okay. I just keep track of it. So, here's the recipe. http://www.weightwatchers.com/ has a great tool there for plugging in a recipe and being able to figure out the points. This one if 5 servings, 7 points each. This recipe makes a good freezer meal as well.

Herb Roasted Pork with Lemon Cream Sauce and Mushrooms
yield 5 servings, about 3 oz cooked pork.

1 1/4 pounds pork loin, lean. cut into thin slices or very lean boneless chops
zest and juice of one lemon
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 T Penzey's Shallot Pepper (or use 1 tsp fresh pepper, 1 tsp dry tarragon, and 2T fresh minced shallot)
1T chopped fresh thyme

Sauce:
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons chopped onions
2 tablespoons chopped shallots
2 thin sliced garlic cloves
1/4 cup fat free cream cheese
1/2 cup fat free chicken broth (or juice and pan drippings from the roasted pork)
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
1 T minced fresh thyme
1 T minced fresh parsley

Salt and pepper to taste

Directions: Grate the lemon zest right onto the pork (save about 1 tsp for the sauce)
Squeeze the juice out...right onto the pork. I put my eye out with the juice. Don't do that. I teared up. It made me look emotionally unstable...and we can't have that.

Season generously with the shallot pepper (or alternative flavor blending). I also added 2 cloves of fresh minced garlic.

This is when I stopped and said out loud to myself , " Self, this is just breathtaking." I then realized I was talking to myself and shut my pie hole. Can't be looking mentally unstable...can't have that. Look at this pork. Are you talking out loud to yourself?! Woa, I may not be the only one on earth with issues.

Pop it onto a lightly oiled roasting pan . I used an olive oil pan spray.

Bake 425 degrees 15-25 minutes depending on the thickness of the pork. If you pierce it with a fork the juices should run clear. Remove pan from the oven and transfer the pork to an oven safe serving dish. Take any remaining juice from the pan and put in a dish (to use in the sauce).

For the sauce:

In a 10 inch skillet, melt butter and add onion, shallot, and mushrooms. Cook until the onions and shallots are a nice dark brown...about 6 minutes. Add the garlic the last 3 minutes to ensure it doesn't burn. Add juice from the pork or chicken broth, cream cheese, parsley, 1 tsp. lemon zest and thyme. Season with salt and pepper. Pour over the warm pork.

Serve immediately or divide between 5 microwave safe dishes and freeze. Makes a great take and heat freezer meal. Microwave 5-6 minutes from frozen.

Spiced Acorn Squash

One of my favorite ways to serve acorn squash doesn't require a lot of cooking experience or skill. It is spiced and so tasty it I almost feel guilty eating it...almost. Like pumpkin pie without the guilt. Spice mingled with a touch of sugar make this acorn squash not only tasty but satisfy a sweet tooth. It is possible to use a teaspoon or two of honey in place of the sugar. The squash is still fat free, and the small amount of added sweetener is just perfect. I've seen it made by also putting a couple of gobs of butter in the well of the squash. I love butter...and it shows. If anyone wants to add butter to their squash, go for it. I'm totally holding myself back this time.

So here's how it's done. I cut the acorn squash in half and remove the seeds with a spoon. My kids call it "scraping the brains out". Not sure squash has a brain.

Sprinkle generously with cinnamon and lightly dust with a touch of nutmeg. I have to ramble for a minute... Given my recent trip to Penzey's Spice Islands... this seemed like a perfect idea. One really must have good cinnamon. I can't live without it. The flavor is so much better than the cheap stuff, and at Penzey's it really isn't that much more expensive for the real stuff.

To cook:

Put the squash in a covered microwave safe dish and microwave on high 10-15 minutes (it takes 15 minutes for 2 cut in half or 4 halves). Sprinkle one packet of sugar in the raw on the cooked squash, and eat up. That's it. I told you it was easy!

Note: if you want to bake the acorn squash in the oven, it takes 35-40 minutes at 375 in a covered casserole. My grandma used to wrap them in aluminum foil, and that works as well.

There you go.