Cheesy GF Enchiladas

1 pkg (6) GF tortillas (I used brown rice), or you can make homemade.
1 lb ground beef
1 cup cooked white rice
salsa of choice
3 cups extra sharp cheddar cheese - shredded
mexican seasoning and cinnamon to taste
sliced black olives (small can)


Prepare a 9x13" glass pan with olive oil. Preheat oven to 350.

Brown ground beef, drain.  Mix in the rice, seasoning to taste, about 2 tbsp salsa, and half of the olives.

Soften the tortillas if you're using refrigerated, or they will tear when you fill them.  I layer them with damp paper towels and microwave for about a minute.

Fill the tortillas with approximately 1/4-1/2 cup filling, and about 2 tbsp cheese.  Roll up and place in baking pan. Top with salsa, the rest of the cheese, and the rest of the olives.

Cover with foil, bake 10 minutes. Remove foil, bake 5 more minutes.

Serve with your favorite GF tortillas chips!

GF Burritos and other things

I was so excited this weekend to finally find gluten-free tortillas! After looking for them all over I actually managed to find two different kinds from two different stores, how funny is that? The first ones I got from Fresh Market and they're made with Ivory Teff, then the other ones I got from a local health food store and they're actually brown rice tortillas - awesome!  Tonight I made burritos and I used the ivory teff ones, but I bet they would have been good either way.
GF Burritos

2 cups cooked rice (I used white because it was what I had on hand LOL)
1 lb browned ground beef - seasoned (I used cinnamon and Pampered Chef's Southwest Seasoning)
1 jar salsa (divided)
1 can refried beans
6-8 GF tortillas
2 cups Mexican style or just cheddar shredded cheese

After cooking the rice and beef, I combined them in the pot with 2 spoonfuls of salsa.  I heated the beans a little, not to hot, but just soft. I spread about 2 tbsp of the beans on a (thawed and slightly warmed) tortilla, then sprinkled some cheese on it (about two tablespoons), about a 1/4 cup of the beef/rice mixture* and then rolled it up and placed it in a greased 9x13.  Repeat with all the tortillas. Pour salsa to cover top (I didn't use the whole jar because I wanted to save some for the chips, too, but I covered them), then sprinkle remaining cheese over all that.  Then bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes until gooey and just starting to brown.
I served it with chips, salsa and sour cream.  It was awesome but VERY filling, even after my 12 year old had THREE helpings and was finally full and all of us were finished, we still had  1-1/2 left over.

*I had some beef mixture leftover and I could have done two more tortillas but I was out of room in the pan and there's only 4 of us, so I just made 6 and saved the rest of it for nachos tomorrow. ;-)

Also, in case you missed it, I was a guest blogger for Bob's Red Mill this weekend.  They're doing a series this month, having guest bloggers post gluten-free casein-free recipes for Autism Awareness month. I think it's terrific that they're doing this, please give them your support! Here's my contribution: MMMmeatballs!

Finally, I just wanted to let y'all know that I'm having surgery later this week.  It's nothing serious and it's outpatient, but I'll be out of commission for a few days and probably not up for cooking or blogging again til next week.  Unless something really great happens between now and then that I just have to share LOL  Til then, be blessed and remember to make every day an adventure!

GOOD THINGS!

I'm really happy right now about what I'm seeing with my kids.  Both are more cooperative, less hyper, and in general have better attitudes.  I was actually able to leave them alone together for a few hours today and they got along perfectly, not a single fight or "tattling text".  So I am definitely seeing this as a positive step in the right direction and I KNOW that at least part of this is from the diet.  To take Noah completely off ADHD meds and to cut Nathan's dose almost in half and still see these results? Amazing!  I am so thankful to God for bringing us on this journey, even though it's sometimes scary and difficult, I feel like we are on the right track and this is SUCH confirmation!  I'm feeling confident enough that hubby and I are going to the movies tomorrow afternoon (matinee) and leaving the boys here by themselves.  I'm so excited, we have never been able to do that before!

Also, another great thing I learned today is that I can make my homemade butter with the Magic Bullet in less than half the time and with less than half the mess of my Kitchenaid mixer. YES! Makes me super happy because I LOVE fresh butter but I'm not a fan of the mess it makes (nor of the smell if I miss some while cleaning).

I had a lunch date with a really good friend today (who is moving away soon, boohoo!) at Mellow Mushroom. I ordered the gluten-free cheese pizza and it was...eh.  I think I should add more toppings next time LOL  They don't serve it by the slice, so I ordered a medium pizza and took the leftovers home to the boys and they were certainly happy with it, so that worked out nicely.  I also think it was slightly undercooked, so if it was baked a bit longer I might like it better.  I will definitely give it another try though!

Prep Week!!

So this week is an adventure all in itself.  Since we're going completely gluten-free next week, I'm doing a ton of shopping to find alternatives to everything we're used to eating.  Mike and Noah are racing against the clock to eat up everything in the house that is going to be banned as of next week, too, so it's kind of funny.  I've been cleaning out the fridge and I'm still working on re-organizing the pantry too.  All the gluteny stuff is moved to the front so they can eat it up fast!

I'm also starting the process of experimenting. Trying new recipes, trying new things that we've not made before.  I know it sounds funny, but I'm literally making my very first beans & collards meal tonight.  I'm serving it with basmati rice and hamburger gravy.   This is a far cry from the way I used to be - back when we first got married, I knew how to bake chicken & rice, and make Hamburger Helper.  If we wanted variety in our meals, I got different flavors of it. ;-)

Over the years (and thanks to good friends and a stint as a Pampered Chef consultant), I became more comfortable in the kitchen, and eventually got to where I loved being there - especially baking!  But now that we're working toward whole and natural foods, it's a whole new ballgame and I feel like I'm learning to cook all over again.  It feels good because I've become very conscious of what we're eating now, and I love doing it all from scratch so I *know* what's in it.

I'm so blessed to have local farms here with wonderful people who give us good deals on our meat and dairy products, or in the case of Momma Debbie's farm, I get to work for eggs. :)  Today I even got enough nerve up to pet one of her cows LOL  I'm learning a lot as her "farm hand" - learning enough to to realize that I love it and I will always want to be a part of it, but that I never want to own a farm all to myself LOL  As for produce, I get a lot from the local food co-op (check your area and see if you have one, it's well worthwhile!), but I do still get stuff from Kroger too.

Okay, so now I have to go stir my beans again (OMG they smell soooo goooood!!!), but I'll let y'all know how it turned out.  Also, I'll share pics of my pantry if I ever get it the way I want it.  So, maybe never. ;-)