Pesto Chicken

Originally, this recipe was baked and used a 'powdered' sauce. Once I went gluten-free, I was saddened to find the pre-packaged sauce contained wheat. So I revised the recipe, cut down the cooking time and made it into a quick, one pan dinner for two.



Serves 2
35 minutes
-large, deep saucepan
Quick and simple

INGREDIENTS
1/2 green bell pepper, sliced thin (1/4th inch thick)
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced thin (1/4th inch thick)
1 medium white onion, sliced into O's, 1/4th inch thick
1 medium zucchini, sliced diagonally, 1/4th inch thick

1 or 2 chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces

1 c. (approx.) water

1 + 1 tbsp olive oil

3/4 c. uncooked white long grain rice

1 tsp garlic powder*
1 tsp onion powder*
salt and pepper
2-3 tsp. dried sweet basil -OR- 1/2 c. packed fresh basil leaves, chopped.-OR- pre-made GF pesto sauce (My poor basil plant died a month ago, so I had to use dried basil today and it is not near as flavorful. If you have fresh basil, or pre-made pesto sauce, USE THAT!!)
*All McCormick spices are GF

DIRECTIONS
1. Slice up washed (and cored) bell pepper, onion and zucchini. Do not chop further.. leave the slices large! Place aside.
2. Rise off chicken breasts, cut into smallish chunks and place in large, deep sided, saucepan. Cover chicken halfway with around 1 c. water, don't submerge entirely. Add 1 tbsp. of olive oil to water/chicken and heat saucepan over high heat.
3. Cook chicken until outside is no longer pink, around 5 minutes. Water should be at a rapid boil.
4. Add 1/2. c. uncooked rice (or more, if you wish) to boiling chicken-water. Stir and reduce heat to medium-high.
5. Once water has resumed boiling, add all vegetables (bell pepper, onion, zucchini) over the top of the chicken and rice. DO NOT STIR, yet. Sprinkle liberally with garlic powder, onion powder. Season further with a bit of salt and pepper.
6. Let the veggies sit over the chicken-rice, while water boils, for 10 minutes.
7. Once veggies appear slightly steamed (tender), stir carefully with rice and chicken. Add a little more water at this point if your rice needs it. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for another 10 minutes.
8. Once rice is cooked and veggies are tender, add a generous amount of basil and another 1 tbsp. olive oil. Stir while over heat for another 3-5 minutes until dish is no longer runny.
9. Remove from heat and serve hot.

Burritos/Tacos

I used cheap ground beef, since I was making a ton of tacos for a gathering of hungry boys, and I think the extra fat made the burritos extra juicy. This is the halved recipe, but if you want to cook all 2 lbs of beef, freeze the rest of the meat and rice and reheat later for several quick dinners.



Serves 8-10, more with fillers
40 minutes
-large saucepan
-medium pot
-baster or paper towels to remove excess grease
Easy

INGREDIENTS
Taco Meat:
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 red bell pepper, cored
1/2 green bell pepper, cored
1 medium white onion
1 small can of diced green chilies (optional, for a spicier taste)
2+ tsp. chili powder*
2+ tsp. garlic powder*
1+ tsp. dried cumin*
Rice w/beans:
1/2 c. uncooked white long grain rice (makes 1 c. cooked)
1 15 oz. can pinto beans
10 corn taco shells or 10 large, soft, brown rice tortillas (I used Food for Life, but you can make your own)
*McCormick spices are GF

Fillers:
CHEESE!! (I used Galaxy Nutritional Foods rice shreds- they melt great; DF and GF, but not CF)
sour cream
shredded lettuce
diced tomatoes
guacamole
salsa

DIRECTIONS

Rice:
1. Cook 1/2 c. white rice according to directions in package; use a medium pot. Let it simmer gently, covered, for 15-20 minutes, while the meat is being prepared.
Meat:
1. Wash and finely dice both bell peppers and onion. Set aside.
2. Place beef in large saucepan or skillet. Turn heat to medium and begin cooking meat.
3. If you are using fatty beef, like I did, be sure to pour off excess fat. You shouldn't need more than a tablespoon left.
4. Once meat is fully browned (barely cooked on the surface, 3-5 minutes), add in all diced veggies (plus chilies, if desired). Season generously with chili powder, garlic powder and cumin, to taste. Add a little salt if desired.
5. Cook another 8-10 minutes over medium heat or until meat is done and onions are translucent. Set meat aside.
Rice, continued:
6. Check on rice, it should also be cooked, fluffy and tender. Turn burner down to low once rice is done.
7. Open can of pinto beans, drain, and rise 3 or 4 times with cold water. Pour washed beans right into pot with rice. Stir/fold beans into rice until they are heated through.
8. Defrost/soften tortilla shells by placing them in the microwave for 30 seconds or so. Top with meat, rice and favorite cheese.

Teriyaki Green Beans

Crispy green beans and carrots cooked in a fragrant, spicy Teriyaki sauce. Could be served over white rice for a main dish or eaten without rice as a side dish. Make this vegetarian by replacing the ham with some diced red bell pepper.



Serves 2 or 3
45 minutes
-large saucepan or wok
-peeler
Quick and simple

INGREDIENTS
3-4 cold cut ham slices* (or 4 strips of thick-cut bacon); I used lunch meat cause I am in college
1 tbsp. peanut oil
1 medium yellow or white onion
2 large carrots, peeled, then diced fine or coarsely grated
1-2 c. fresh green beans, washed with ends removed
1 tsp. garlic powder*
pepper to taste
Teriyaki Sauce:**
3/4 c. to 1 c. water
2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce*
1 tbsp. brown sugar
drop of honey
splash of soy sauce*
dash of dried ginger* (powdered)
*Oscar Mayer ham lunch meat is GF, McCormick spices are GF, Lea and Perrins Worcsh. sauce is GF, LaChoy soy sauce is GF

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Cut ham lunch meat into 1/2 inch squares and place in large saucepan or wok. Add 1 tbsp of peanut oil to meat. (If using bacon, you don't need to add oil!) Let sit.
2. Coarsely chop up onion and finely dice carrots into pieces.
3. Wash and remove ends from beans. Don't break in half, leave them long.
4. Finally, heat oil up in wok over medium heat and saute ham till it's slightly crispy (about 4-5 minutes). Add in chopped onions and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle ham and onions with garlic powder. (For bacon, cook till crispy, crumble up into bits, and remove excess oil.)
5. Dump carrots and green beans into wok. Stir-fry for another 2-3 minutes.
6. Time for the sauce: pour water into wok till it half-way covers veggies (around 1 c.). Move veggies to one side, clearing a small pool of water.
7. Add Worcestershire sauce and brown sugar, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Season further with a touch of honey, soy sauce and dried ginger (to suit your tastes). I didn't use too much ginger.
8. Move veggies around in sauce till they are half-submerged and turn heat up to high.
9. Cook, sauce boiling, for an additional 15 to 20 minutes, uncovered. Add a touch more water if necessary, especially if you want more sauce in the final product.
10. The dish is done when the green beans are no longer tough, but not soggy, either.
11. Serve over fluffy white rice.
** This sauce would probably work well as an overnight marinade; add some fresh, crushed garlic instead of powder.

Sweet Marinara Sauce

Not my favorite pasta sauce recipe.. any sugar in red sauce is too sweet for my taste (even though this was thick and flavorful and very easy!) . I'll probably make it again later, though, if I ever find time between homework sets to make garlic bread. I bet this would be a good, rich dippin' sauce.



Serves 2
30 minutes
-small pot
Quick and simple

INGREDIENTS
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes* (or fresh romas, if you don't mind paying an arm for some vegetables) Canned tomato sauce would also work.
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. garlic powder*
1 tbsp. onion powder*
1 tbsp. dried sweet basil*
1 tsp. dried oregano*
1-2 tsp. white sugar
salt and pepper to taste
*DelMonte tomatoes are GF; all McCormick spices are GF

DIRECTIONS
1. Pour entire contents of canned tomatoes into a small pot. Add olive oil, garlic powder, onion powder, dried basil and dried oregano.
2. Cook over medium-high heat for about 2o minutes, uncovered. Tomatoes should be boiling, so check back frequently and add in more water if mixture gets too dry.
3. Once the tomatoes have broken down into a thick sauce, remove from heat and add in sugar to fit your taste. Serve hot, over pasta or spread across bread.

Simple Lamb Chop

Nothing special.. just meat in a saucepan. Sure does taste good for such an easy hot lunch.



Serves 1
30 minutes
-small saucepan
Quick and simple

INGREDIENTS
1 lamb chop
salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
1. Wash off meat. Place in small saucepan over medium heat. Cook 20-30 minutes until chop is cooked through (it will still look slightly pink inside) and browned on the outside.
I ate this with pasta and marinara sauce, shown above, for a super-quick lunch.

Garlic-Zucchini Spaghetti

There are a few side dishes I eat as a simple one-person dinner.. this is definitely one of them! Besides the garlic-y olive oil, there are no other spices to cover up the wonderful flavor of zucchini. I think this would go well with steak or lamb.



Serves 2 (or 4 as a side dish)
30 minutes
-large saucepan or WOK <--- buy one of these, I love mine
-sharp knife or mandolin slicer (I also love my mandolin slicer)
Quick and simple

INGREDIENTS
1 c. cooked Tinkyada brown rice spaghetti-- group the dry pasta together lengthwise; cook up amount you have encircled between your thumb and forefinger (about 1 inch diameter) Exact amount or type of pasta can vary.
1 + 2 tbsp. olive oil
6-8 cloves garlic, minced
1 large zucchini, thinly sliced
1 large yellow zucchini squash, thinly sliced
1 large white onion
1/4 c. Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
1. Cook up the pasta in a saucepan or pot according to directions on package. Taste regularly once cooking to make sure it's not getting over-cooked. You want it slightly al dente, but not too stiff.
2. Drain cooked pasta and wash it out three times with cold water (to get rid of rice goo). Return to small pot (NOT the wok) and stir in 1 tbsp. olive oil. Set pasta aside near range.
3. Wash, peel and mince up garlic. Place in the bottom of unheated wok or large saucepan
4. Thinly slice both green and yellow zucchini; the thinner the better.. I used a mandolin slicer that got those babies to around 1/8th inch thick.
5. Thinly slice onion into 1/4th inch thick O's. Cut flat O's in half once. Knife works for onion.
6. Set zucchini and onion aside next to range.
7. Pour about 2 tbsp. olive oil over the minced garlic and heat wok up over medium heat.
8. Saute garlic for 2-3 minutes, or until garlic just begins to turn golden.
9. Turn heat up to medium-high and add sliced zucchini, yellow squash and onion into wok.
10. Stir-fry for 4-5 minutes, or until onion is translucent and zucchini just starts to 'wilt'.
11. Add oiled, cooked spaghetti into wok with veggies. Stir-fry an additional 1-2 minutes, stirring constantly.
12. Remove from stove once spaghetti is fully cooked and heated through.
13. Mix or top with Parmesan cheese and a little black pepper. Serve hot.

French Fries

I've been on a mission for awhile now, trying to duplicate fast food french fries so I could enjoy them again. This recipe won't produce crispy, golden fries like the ones at restaurants, but these partially-fried potatoes still taste good enough to eat on a busy afternoon or as a side dish, especially topped with ketchup.



Serves 2
40 minutes
-small saucepan
-small bowl filled with cold water
-small bed of paper towels
-sharp knife, or mandolin slicer
Quick and simple

INGREDIENTS
1 large russet potato, or 2-3 smaller golden potatoes (I personally liked the golden's taste better, but I know many people swear by russets)
3 tbsp. peanut oil for frying
salt and ketchup* for topping (or cheese, maybe chili?)
*Heinz ketchup is GF

DIRECTIONS
1. Wash potatoes and thinly slice them lengthwise into 1/4th inch thick pieces. Don't bother to peel them beforehand. (Russets make longer strips than the goldens). Try to make strips as uniform as possible.
2. Place thin potato strips into a bowl filled with cold water. Let the strips sit for around 5 minutes while the excess starch bleeds out.
3. Drain water. When partially dry, place some into a small saucepan.. DON'T overcrowd the pan. I use a little pan so a small amount of oil will go a longer way; you'll have to fry them in batches.
4. Add in 3 tbsp. frying oil to potatoes, or enough oil to barely cover bottom of pan.
5. Turn heat onto medium and fry potatoes for 5-10 minutes, turning frequently to avoid one side burning. Frying time will greatly depend on thickness of potatoes and kind. Russets took alot longer to cook than the goldens, by about 2 mintues.
6. When parts of potato are slightly crisp, remove slices from oil and place on waiting paper towels. Since these are not deep fried, they won't be totally crispy (tender enough to need a fork to eat ).
7. Sprinkle generously with salt and eat with some ketchup or smother in melted cheese.

Fried Rice

Fried rice is truly versatile.. use any meat and your favorite vegetables.
The secret to restaurant-style fried rice is keeping 'old' white rice and using an asian oil, such as sesame seed or peanut. Like for any stir-fry, cut up all vegetables before the wok is even hot.
*EDIT*: I improved my fried rice recipe and posted it. Use Thai Fried Rice if you have Fish sauce, high-heat oil, and a well-seasoned (non-stick) wok.



Serves 2
45 minutes
-large saucepan or wok
Easy

INGREDIENTS
1.5 c. pre-cooked (around 3/4 c. uncooked), chilled long-grain white rice (I used basmati)
Meat of choice (around 1/2 lb.): steak, chicken breast, pork chop, shrimp, tofu...
3 tbsp. peanut or sesame oil

Mirage of veggies (choose 3 to 6 of them), in order of cooking time:
water chestnuts? (never actually used these)
3 carrots, julienned
1 zucchini or yellow zucchini, sliced then chopped into quarters
1 head of broccoli
1/2 c. sno peas, ends removed
1 medium white onion, coarsely chopped, or several green onions
1/2 c. bean sprouts
1/4 c. frozen peas (NOT canned, I made that mistake before)
1/4 c. shredded cabbage or lettuce

1 tsp. garlic powder*
ground black pepper
1 large egg
1 tbsp. soy sauce*
*laChoy soy sauce is GF; all McCormick spices are GF

DIRECTIONS
Night before:
1. Cook up 1/2 c. uncooked white rice according to directions on package, EXCEPT add a little less water than originally needed. Also cut the cooking time short by around 5 minutes. This keeps the rice undercooked and not mushy. Stir cooked rice, then place in refrigerator to chill overnight.
Day of:
1. Wash and cut up all veggies into bite-sizes pieces, but not too small. Set aside near range.
2. Place meat into wok, add 1 tbsp oil and spread around sides. Cook meat fully over medium heat; shouldn't take longer than 8 minutes. Cut up into bite-sized pieces.
3. Place longest cooking vegetables into wok (chestnuts, carrots, zucchini) and stir-fry over medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes.
4. Add in next couple of veggies (broccoli, sno peas, onion), along with 1 tbsp. more oil. Stir fry another 2-3 minutes.
5. Add in remaining veggies (sprouts, frozen peas, cabbage) and stir-fry another 2-3 minutes. Season veggies with garlic powder and ground pepper.
6. Pull 'old' rice out of fridge and pour remaining 1 tbsp. oil into rice. Stir till well coated.
7. Pour oiled rice into hot veggie/meat filled wok. Stir well.
8. Stir-fry entire mixture for 1-2 more minutes, stirring constantly.
9. Push the rice mixture over to the side to make room for the egg. Break egg, and place onto cleared section of wok. Scramble egg by stirring in wok, until cooked.. it won't take longer than 1 minute.
10. Stir scrambled egg in with rest of rice and add soy sauce to mixture. Stir well and remove from heat. Serve hot. Good as a side dish to chicken or as a main dish.

Red Spaghetti Sauce

My Italian mother's tomato spaghetti sauce... easily the best red sauce I've ever had. Meaty. Thick. Savory, not sweet. Easy to make and freezes well.



Serves 2-3 -- easily doubled or tripled
1 hour and 15 minutes
-medium pot or saucepan with lid
Easy

INGREDIENTS
1/4 lb. ground beef**
14.5 oz. can tomato sauce*
1 medium white onion, diced (not too small)
6 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 tbsp dried sweet basil*
1/2 tbsp dried oregano*
salt and pepper
grated parmesan cheese, for topping over pasta
*Hunt's isn't 'listed' as GF, but I've never reacted to it and I'm very sensitive; McCormick spices are GF
**VEGETARIAN: Replace beef with 1/2 tbsp. olive oil

DIRECTIONS
1. Cut up onion and mince garlic cloves.
2. Wash ground beef and place in pot or medium saucepan. **
3. Brown meat over medium-heat (cook it till outside surface is no longer pink, but not fully cooked).
4. Add in can of tomato sauce, onions and garlic. Also stir in basil, oregano, salt and pepper to taste.
5. COVER, reduce heat to medium-low (or low) and simmer gently for 45 to 60 minutes. Stirring occasionally and adding more water if needed.
6. Serve over cooked GF pasta, with parmesan, or use in lasagna or eggplant parmesan-- Tastes better the second day!! I sometimes double the recipe, freeze in small baggies and heat up later for a quick lunch.
**If making a meat-less sauce (like for eggplant parmesan), skip this cooking step and instead add 1/2 tbsp olive oil directly into the tomato sauce.

St. Luke's Apple Pie; Revised

The original recipe produced a pie.. this is more of an apple crisp, but still turned out delicious. (Plus, who really needs the bottom pie crust, anyway?) Don't let the 'overnight prep' or detailed instructions fool you, this is actually an easy GF dessert to make.



Serves 4
1 hour + 1 hour
450 F
Overnight prep
-8 x 8 " pan
-peeler
Easy

INGREDIENTS
Fruit filling
5-6 medium ripe granny smith apples
1/2 c. white sugar
plenty of cinnamon (around 2 tsp.)*
dash of nutmeg*
GF Crumble crust
3/4 c. white rice flour (sorghum would probably work, too)
1/2. tsp xanthan gum
1/2 c. white sugar
1/3 c. butter, frozen*
*McCormick spices are GF; I used Earth Balance buttery sticks to make this DF

DIRECTIONS
Prep:
1. Place butter in the freezer if not frozen already.
Fruit filling
2. Wash and peel all 5 apples. Use a peeler as you would for a carrot... it works WAY better than using a paring knife. Lie the apple on its side and cut into 1/4th inch slices. Use a sharp knife for this, since you will be cutting right through the seeds.
3. Once you have peel-less, round apple slices, cut out the core by making 4 cuts in each flat slice: two on either side of the core, then turn the apple 90 degrees, and make another two cuts (in a checkerboard pattern) around the core. You are now left with 9 apple 'chunks'.. discard the middlemost square since it contains seeds. Repeat until you have each slice divided.
4. Place all chunks into the 8 x 8 baking pan. Pour 1/2 c. sugar over apples and mix. Also sprinkle generously with cinnamon (and a pinch of nutmeg) till it suits your taste.
Crumble Topping
5. In a medium-sized bowl, combine rice flour and xanthan gum. Stir in sugar until all is well combined.
6. Retrieve butter from freezer.. it should be hard. Carefully drop butter into flour mixture by cutting off small 'flakes' at a time.** Stir butter flakes into flour every tbsp or so in order to not clump all pieces together (this is what makes the crumble crust crumbly). Flour should coat butter and crust should appear like coarse cornmeal when correctly prepared.
7. Spoon topping over apples in pan.. don't mix. Cover pan with Aluminum foil and place in freezer overnight, or until FULLY frozen.
**Use a pastry cutter or food processor if you have one!!
To cook:
8. Preheat oven to 450 F. Remove apple pie from freezer, remove foil and place in hot oven.
9. Cook 15- 20 minutes at high temp, then, decrease oven temperature to 350 F and bake ANOTHER 30 - 45 minutes at lower temp (it cooks a total of 50-6o minutes).
10. Serve warm, or cold. Try it topped with vanilla ice cream or cinnamon whipping cream.