Jan 27, 2010 Posted by Lisa Milone on Jan 27, 2010 | 11 comments

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

I’ve been trying to find time to sit down for days to post this recipe. Is it just me or is life always a little bit crazier at the beginning of the week? Tonight I’m cooking a wonderful dinner for my friend Annie as a birthday gift. I’ll be sure to post the recipe for the meal by the end of the week (I promise). I’ll give you a little hint as to how easy this one is.. two words.. crock pot.

Okay, now for the yummy recipe. This recipe can be used to make a bread or muffins. Since I’m a huge fan of anything I can grab and go, I always choose muffins. These probably aren’t the best choice for breakfast, but I always start my day with them when I make them. I know, I know.. It’s not multi-grain or loaded with protein. They’re also great as a mid-day snack or even a little dessert. I almost forgot to mention an important part! I have had so many family and friends eat these and have no idea they are gluten free, dairy free, or soy free! Truly tasty. Give ‘em a try and see for yourself.

Ingredients:
3 ½ cups gluten-free all-purpose flour
1 tsp xantham gum
1 ½ cups turbinado raw cane sugar
1 ½ tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp nutmeg
1 ½ tsp salt
1 can (15 oz) organic pumpkin puree
1 tsp vanilla
½ cup water
1 cup coconut oil (melted and cooled)
2 eggs (beaten)
1 cup allergen free chocolate chips – I use Enjoy Life Foods brand

Preheat oven to 350° F.

In a large bowl, combine flour, xantham gum, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, & salt. In a separate bowl, combine oil, water, vanilla, pumpkin and eggs; stir into dry mixture until moistened.

Stir in the chocolate chips.

Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups about three-fourths full. Bake muffins for 25-35 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Let the muffins cool for five minutes and then move them to a wire rack to fully cool. Recipe makes 24 muffins.

Jan 24, 2010 Posted by Lisa Milone on Jan 24, 2010 | 7 comments

Hungry For Pizza?

Happy work week eve everyone. This weekend passed by a little too quickly for me. Was it like that for anyone else? I did experiment with a few different recipes and I’m pretty excited to share them with you this week. One of them involves chocolate – my favorite ingredient, of course.

There has been a giant rain cloud hovering over Nashville for days now. I love winter but I have to admit… this cold, dreary weather has left me longing for sunny, happy weather. For now, I’ll just throw a recipe into the mix that is the best summertime meal. It’s pretty much a classic meal, so it could most likely be the right choice for a Super Bowl party too. You can’t go wrong with a delicious homemade pizza and an ice-cold beer. You heard that right – both of these things are gluten-free. Keep reading, you will be happy to hear that gluten-free pizza AND beer exists.

Ingredients:
1 ½ cups Namaste Pizza Crust Mix
1 ¼ cups water
1 tsp olive oil (plus oil to coat the pan)

Heat oven to 450° F. Place oven rack at lowest position. Coat a large pizza pan (I used a large baking sheet) with oil or non-stick spray.

Combine 1 ½ cups pizza crust mix with 1 teaspoon oil and 1 ¼ cups water. Beat with an electric mixer for 3 minutes. Batter will be the consistency of cake batter.

Scrape batter onto pizza pan and spread with spatula. It is VERY important to spread batter to at least 14 inches.

Bake for approximately 20 minutes on lowest rack. Pull the crust out and add sauce and toppings.

I used a gluten-free pizza sauce and topped the pizza with goat mozzarella, shredded chicken, two chopped roma tomatoes, a small can of black olive slices, and some spinach. Bake an additional 10-15 minutes.

Slice and enjoy! The gluten-free beer I served with this is made from sorghum. Redbridge can be found in most grocery stores. Click here to read more about it on their website.

Jan 22, 2010 Posted by Lisa Milone on Jan 22, 2010 | 2 comments

Pass the salt.. and the pepper.

Last week my old roommate and wonderful friend Stancy came in town with her friend Lissa. They flew in from Texas on Monday and it was such a treat to have these two at the house for a few days! They are both incredible photographers so be sure to take a look at their work: Stancy Higley Photography & Lissa Anglin Photography. Stancy brought me these adorable salt & pepper shakers. I’m seriously thrilled about them. Yes, that might seem odd that I’m THRILLED about salt & pepper shakers, but I’ve never owned any. There really is something you should know – I don’t really have a ton of kitchen items and baking tools. Little by little, I’m adding things to my drawers and cabinets to help me with this cooking adventure but for now I’m making do with what I have. I think it’s this way for most young people. Fancy kitchen items can be really costly and it’s not always affordable to go out and buy something to make one recipe. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely have a lengthy wish list, but for now I am really happy with my new clear mixing bowls and these fun salt & pepper shakers.