Gluten-Free Fish Sticks

LBB is piiiccckkkyyy. I can't stretch that out enough.

He won't touch most anything you give him besides fruits, veggies, and the occasional g-free cookie.

But, he does like fish sticks. Score. Except, of course, that the only fish sticks we could find for him that were gluten free were 6 bucks a box...and that box is small. Now, he loved those fish sticks...but currently my budget doesn't.

So, what's a mom to do? I went on a mission to make some gluten-free fish sticks for him. The tough part? I generally despise eating fish, so I had no idea what a good fish stick tasted like. Fortunately Dear Sweet Hubby does. And the best part about these fish sticks? I even liked them. That's how good they are.

GLUTEN-FREE FISH STICKS

4 fish fillets---we used flounder, and picked up the frozen pouch at the grocery store
1/2 C butter, melted
1/2 C corn meal
1 C crushed brown rice cereal
2 TBSP brown rice flour
1/8 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

If fish is frozen, defrost until soft enough to cut. (I liked having it still partially frozen. It was easier to cut into strips.)  Preheat oven to 475*F. Cut fish fillets into 3/4 inch strips that are 4 or 5 inches long (think fish stick sized.)

Combine the cornmeal, cereal, brown rice flour, and seasonings in a shallow pie pan. Dip each fish strip into the melted butter, then coat evenly in the cornmeal mixture. Place on a greased baking sheet and repeat for all the other strips.

Place in the oven and cook for 20 to 25 minutes, until the fish stick is flaky. Serve immediately, or freeze in a freezer bag to reheat later for a quick meal.
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I hope your family enjoys this g-free, healthy alternative to regular old fish sticks!

Grandma's Refrigerator Pickles

I'm not a big fan of pickles.

But Dear Sweet Hubby is.

And after going through lots of store-bought jars, I decided there had to be a better way. (Have you glanced at the ingredients in that jar? Yikes. I don't think something as simple as pickles should have high fructose syrup listed in the ingredients list. But that's just me.)

Anyhoo.

Luckily, my Grandma had a wonderful recipe for Refrigerator Pickles. And I'm tellin' you...it couldn't get any simpler than this. Not to mention inexpensive. A jar of fresh pickles costs me about $2. You can't beat that!

REFRIGERATOR PICKLES


7 cups washed, sliced cucumbers
1 cup sliced onions
1/2 cup chopped peppers of  your choice (optional)
3 TBSP salt
2 cups sugar
1 cup vinegar
1 tsp celery seeds 


Put cucumbers, onions, and peppers in large bowl and sprinkle with salt. Let stand for one hour; drain.


Mix sugar, vinegar, and celery seeds and pour over cucumbers. Transfer to airtight container, and put in refrigerator. Let stand for 3 days before enjoying. Will keep in airtight container for up to 3 months.

The best thing about this recipe? Besides the sheer simplicity and thriftiness? It's just a base recipe. The batch I made most recently I omitted the peppers and celery seed and just added a little garlic powder instead. (Dear Sweet Hubby gave it the seal of approval today...the batch just got done. I practically have to lock these things away until they are ready. haha.)

I've added dill instead of peppers to make dill pickles. There are so many options with this recipe!

Enjoy!

Gluten Free Cookie Nirvana

I came across THESE cookies over at Cookin' Cowgirl. My first thought was..."Wow. That girl's a genius. Those. Look. DELICIOUS." My second thought? "But...not gluten-free...better not let LBB see these."


And then it hit me.


Why can't they be gluten free? I've got a box of gluten-free cake mix sitting right in my cupboard, waiting to be used...why not use it for something that looks this delicious.


So, I went out on a whim, like most GF cooking and baking is for me. I figured, what's the worst that can happen? I waste a $5 box of cake mix. Deep breath. Be brave.


But guess what? They turned out.

And they were ever so easy to make.

I followed her original recipe pretty closely, but since the cake mix was smaller, and made of different flours, I kind of experimented as I went. So, here's the recipe:

GLUTEN FREE CAKE BATTER COOKIES

1 box cake mix, 15 ounces (I used Hodgson Mills yellow cake mix)
1 tsp baking powder (for best results, I suggest Rumford)
2 eggs
1/2 C vegetable oil (or more as needed)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 C color sprinkles

Preheat oven to 350*F. Mix cake mix and baking powder in a large bowl. Set aside. In a small bowl or glass measuring cup, mix together the eggs, vegetable oil, and vanilla extract. Mix into dry ingredients. 

Now, here's the tricky part with that tricky GF flour...it took a little bit more oil to make the batter the right consistency. I just added a few drops at a time until I got the dough to look like this:

It should be kind of crumbly but there shouldn't be any dry ingredients left. Translation: if you can mush it together no problem, you're good to go.

Next, add in the sprinkles. This is when it gets fun. :)

Scoop dough by tablespoonfuls onto a cookie sheet, about 1-2" apart. Press dough down slightly with your fingers (otherwise you may end up with domed cookies.) Bake 8-10 minutes until slightly golden brown on the edges.

 Let sit for 5 minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer to cooling rack. Enjoy with a nice cool glass of milk!

I just have to say thanks to Cookin' Cowgirl for the wonderful, delicious inspiration. :)