A Day in the Life...

Pizza Night...Gluten-Free

Most Friday nights, we make (or buy) pizza and watch a movie together.  This has been a bit of a bummer since my diagnosis of a wheat allergy.  Several times, I used a gluten-free pizza crust from the health food store and it was pretty good.  But at $10 for two small crusts, I can hardly justify it. 

Thankfully, I recently discovered that these tortillas will double as a crust just fine! 

 

Just slather some sauce on a couple of the "crusts".  (Homemade tomato paste pizza sauce...yum!  Not plain...you add stuff to it!)

 

Pile on the cheese and toppings...I picked onions and roasted red peppers tonight.  (Yes, my island is a disaster...and yes, that is a dissected cake on the left there.  Long story.)  :)

  

And voila!  They are remarkably similar to a crunchy thin crust pizza, which is my favorite (if you don't count Chicago beer crust pizza).

Mike even requested that I make him a couple of these next time!   

Homemade Marshmallows...it's easier than you think!

Since Alli can't have most "over the counter" (or would it be "at the counter") candy, we improvise or sometimes just buy the more expensive stuff that doesn't have artificial flavors or colors. 

This includes marshmallows.  Storebought ones contain food coloring, believe it or not.  I found some at the health food store and I think they were $6.00 a bag!  No thanks...I'll give it a shot myself. 

I knew Ina Garten had a recipe in her "Family Style" cookbook, but I've always been a little intimidated to try it.

We had a candy-making party here on Halloween, so I thought that would be a great time to give it a go.

Turns out...they're pretty easy!  And, I think they tasted just as good, if not better, than store bought. 

Here's how it goes.

Ingredient list...most of it is stuff you would keep on hand, except for maybe gelatine.

In a mixing bowl, let 3 packages of gelatine sit in 1/2 cup of cold water while you prepare the other ingredients.

Pour 1 1/2 cups of sugar, 1 cup of corn syrup, 1/4 tsp of salt, and 1/2 cup of water into sauce pan over med/high heat.

Using a candy thermometer, boil until mixture reaches 240 degrees. 

With mixer on slow speed, pour the hot mixture into the dissolved gelatin.   

Turn to high speed and mix for 15 minutes.  Add vanilla and mix thoroughly.   

At this point, you have marshmallow fluff.

 

Sift confectioner's sugar into the bottom of an 8x12 non-metallic pan.  Scrape the fluff into the pan.

With dampened hands, smooth the top. 

Coat again with sugar. 

Let sit uncovered overnight to dry out.  Then, slice into whatever size you would like.

Lick the spoon at your own risk...it's some sticky stuff!

We used them on our sweet potato casserole on Thanksgiving Day and they melted very nicely and got that yummy golden crust.

But I think this is our favorite way to eat them around here.

More wacky UK foods coming soon! 

Pumpkin Pie Taste Test

This year, since it was just the five of us hangin' out for Thanksgiving, I thought it would be a great time to experiment in the kitchen.  We had accidently bought a can of Libby's pumpkin pie filling along with our pumpkin puree, so hey, why not just make two different pies. 

Perfect time for a taste test!  Good old fashioned Libby's (I used the recipe off the can) verus a Smitten Kitchen/Pioneer Woman combo pie. 

I loved PW's idea of doing a ginger snap crust.  I definitely wanted to try that, especially since I bought gluten-free ginger snaps.  I even layered the caramel in the crust before the filling went in.  (A..ma..zing!) 

But over at the Smitten Kitchen, Deb did an delicious looking pumpkin pie filling that I couldn't resist.  Believe it or not, it actually has yams in it.  (Who wouldn't want to give that a shot?)  The only thing I did differently was add a couple shakes of clove and allspice to the mixture as it cooked.  It just bumped up the flavor a smidge.  It required a little more effort than your typical pumpkin pie, but boy, was it worth it!  Smooth and light, yet loaded with flavor.    

Anyway, I think you can probably guess who the winner was...

Hands down...no contest...Deb and Ree triumphed over poor bland Libby.  Not to knock Libby too much...Rachel loves a nice, mellow, crustless pumpkin pie, so it was a big winner with her.  Alli, who doesn't even like pumpkin pie, loved the "Pumpkin Pie Power Combo", as I am now calling it.  OK, maybe that's a bit much...how about the "Ginger Caramel Pumpkin Pie Sensation" or even the "Super Awesome Pumpkin Pie Crunch"? 

Maybe I'll keep working on a name...

Whatever we end up calling it, it will be a staple at our Thanksgiving dinners for years to come.