…about Easy Peasy Gluten Free Living!

Yes. I said it. Easy and Gluten Free in the same phrase!

Well, let me tell you… I’ve had to remove Gluten from my diet since June 2012. The 14th to be exact. At first I felt eh, easy. Then I realized… no, hard and complicated! Yes, I know the title of this post has the words “easy peasy”… I am happy to report that at times it has gotten just that! Easy! It remains quite difficult but yes, easier every day! Pull up a seat, grab a drink and let me share what I did the other day!! It was my first milestone in dealing with this Gluten Free way I need to be…

Brussel Sprouts, Bacon, Onion & Garlic!

I was craving veggies so bad… for now I am not supposed to be eating raw stuff on account of my 5 uninvited ulcers as well as other issues. It sucks because I LOVE my Romaine!! So I decided to go and get a few different bunches of green yumminess I could cook, turn on some music and get creative.

I started with slicing up and cooking the bacon (real bacon, smoked and not that maple crap eiwww!!)… when that was mostly crispy I tossed in some fresh garlic, onions and halved Brussel sprouts. (Kinda fresh I guess, they were in a bag instead of on the stalk like I usually buy them… and they were pretty sassy. They told me something interesting about Stop & Shop… they were merging with another grocery store, the A & P and would then be known as the Stop and P. I told you they were fresh! lol ) Let that all sauté while I moved on to the next gorgeous green yummies. (Zucchini & then Asparagus)

After adding Zucchini and Asparagus!

See??? Smelled fantastic in my home!!! (For now anyway… you know how this stuff smells an hour or so after you’re finished… ugh yuck! Candle and incense get lit once everything comes out the oven… lol) So, anyway, simmer simmer simmer, stir stir stir… get the sausage (GF of course..) that I had started browning when I was doing up the bacon. Yea, I was doing that as well, sorry. I’m not putting this in a recipe format only because it was not a recipe. I just decided to wing it. For me, that was a huge step in getting comfortable with Gluten Free being a necessity. I haven’t done that since May 2012! My First GF Milestone!! WooHooo and I chose to share it with YOU!! 🙂

Used Some Of The Veggies To Make This With Chicken & Sausage. Topped With GF Panko Bread Crumbs!

Here is the chicken stuff out of the oven… I mixed some shredded cheddar with Gluten Free Panko Bread Crumbs that I found in the natural food section at Stop & Shop and sprinkled that over the top. All I did with that was layer everything on top of a couple of boneless skinless chicken boobies. Toss it in the oven for about 30 minutes and presto!

Finished Meal & Who Misses Gluten?! Not Me!

Here’s my plate, I know 0 points for plating but I give it a 10 out of 10 for flavor! I ended up leaving some of the chicken because I ate all the veggies first lol. One thing I will add is that once I sautéed all the veggies I dumped everything into a colander for about 20 minutes to let excess liquid drain out. (Bacon grease and some of the veggie liquid) I didn’t save it to use for something else, but I suppose you can. Let me know if you do that or not.

Leftover Veggies, Add Rosemary Ham, GF Bisquik… Voila!

The best thing about making that huge pan of veggies… Multipurpose! I took the rest, chopped up some GF Rosemary Ham and made a Quiche! I used thinly sliced potato as a crust as well as a mixture of 1/2 Cup GF Bisquick, about a cup or so of a mix of cottage cheese, 2 eggs, milk and a heaping tablespoon of sour cream. (you don’t have to use the potato crust, I just wanted to try to see if it would come out like I was expecting &… it did!!!!) I greased the pie pan with butter, layered the taters, then the veggies, ham and a little shredded cheddar then topped it with that GF Bisquick mixture. Popped it in the oven and you see a slice above! Totally heaven in your mouth! Who misses gluten???? Not me!! Not today!! It’s pretty routine for me now to read everything each time I buy it and I don’t think anything of it… you never know when someone will change an ingredient!

The creations in this post get a big fat: 5 Cheshire Cats

One last thing I will say is that my awesome son found an app for me last summer called Find Me Gluten Free. (Google Play Store for this Droid user) It has come in quite handy at times! Like when I was recently at Outback Steakhouse and they did not have a GF menu available there. I remembered that app! Poof! The same menu I saw at home was right there at my fingertip! Our waitress Jess thought it was pretty cool too! (They have it online only I guess and I had looked there first to be sure there were options for me.) BTW, I won’t go there for steak again because the Ribeye was not a real Ribeye…it was a steak but… if you want a REAL one go to Longhorn and rustle up an Outlaw Ribeye… Now THAT is a steak! Alright, I believe I’m done… for now lol. I’m hankerin’ for a slice of that Quiche!!! Gotta go!

Thanks for stopping by & get creative tonight!

Love, Alyss

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Alyss’s Rating Scale:

Excellent! – 5 Cheshire Cats

Very Good – 4 Cheshire Cats

Good – 3 Cheshire Cats

Take it or Leave it – 2 Cheshire Cats

Pretty Bad – 1 Cheshire Cats

Horrible – Big Fat Cat Turd

…about how she can gain an hour when you lose an hour!

I have found a way to gain an hour even when we’re supposed to lose an hour! Click here to find out how—> ha no click necessary… But if you have a minute check out my latest article on WXedge about Daylight Saving Time. I’d much appreciate it! You’re so freaking awesome if you did… heck even if you decided not to, you’re still here! 🙂 That means a lot!

I’ll tell ya free of charge whether you checked out my little article on WXedge or not… So, I don’t agree with this lose an hour gain an hour crap anyway and find my own way to protest. Of course as usual I didn’t change my clock so I am an hour off from you all. Does that bother me? Yes, today it does… kind of but in a weird good way lol. Seriously, it really really does. BUT it’s ok because even though every time I look at my clock and realize that it is an hour later than it shows, I know that aggravation will be rewarded 10 fold when I choose for it to be rewarded. (that reward will be so soon and I can’t wait!!)

I choose for it to be rewarded tomorrow. Here is how it will unfold… I will get up when my eyes open and my legs decide to get me out of my bed. I just hope I’m awake when that happens… lol

(mind you I am guesstimating the times based on past experiences… tomorrow is still tomorrow at this time)

I will complete my usual morning routine and head downstairs. (Don’t even ask about this… you get up after sleeping 6+ hours and what is the first thing YOU do? lol)

I will look at the clock and see that it is 7:30am and begin to make my coffee. (yes, for most of you it will be 8:30am)

I will load the dishwasher and provide fresh water for Winston and Coco. 

I will then go into the living room and turn on the tv only vaguely realizing that the timing of the news does not match up with the time on the clock. (still sleepy enough to not have the time on my phone even dawn on me)

The coffee will finish, I will pour it, (into my nascar mug not on the floor or counter lol) go into the living room sit down and marvel at the absurdity we call The News… depending on how my hormone levels are will decide whether I rant about it on facebook or twitter lol and will be occasionally glancing at the clock… seeing it is now 8:00am (yes, for you it was 9am) I start to think about what I have to do today, write it down and then decide to watch something on the boob toob while Coco makes a nest on my lap. (actually Coco making a nest kind of was the deciding factor to watch something on tv)

Now it is about 10:30am (for you 11:30am…  you get it by now) and Coco decides to melt off my lap and I glance at the clock… 10:45am… *sigh* I know it’s really 11:45am and decide that now I want my hour back! 

How does that impossible feat gain accomplishment you wonder? It’s simple…

I note the time: 10:45am, realizing it is actually 11:45am while I am up on the couch to grab the clock to change the time…

Time changed. It is now 11:45am.

I step down and admire what I have just done and go on with my day…

I next glance at that clock at 2:45pm. I sigh heavily thinking it is really only 1:45pm… I’m thinking that I lost an hour again totally forgetting that I changed the time hours ago and it’s really an hour later but really it isn’t because the time is the right time and not an hour earlier!

Therefore each time I look at the clock I actually gain an hour! (until I get used to the actual time that is… lol) hey, it works for me and makes me very happy!

Thanks again for reading and I hope you find some extra hours to use as you like too!!

Love,

Alyss

…about Coquito & how to make it!!

Oh Yum!!! The first time I ever had this, I was one shocked girl! My mother-in-law then handed me a glassful of this delicious smelling stuff. I took one sip and my eyes popped and my mouth formed that “O”… and she smiled and topped off my glass.

 I had seen her and my sister-in-law cooking up something that smelled awesome the day before.

I peeked in the fridge later and saw a multitude of different rum bottles full of the delectable delightfully creamy stuff!

This stuff was Coquito otherwise known as Puerto Rican Eggnog… or it should be called: más por favor? lol It was divine and had one hell of a kick! It is not for lightweights.

See, these are most of the ingredients… the candy canes are just a festive touch… and I can’t tell you what the purple orb is for ;)… at least it’s not a blue ball!! lol

Last year, many years after I first experienced it, I added it to my repertoire of yumminess! Actually, the recipe has been in my book for a few years, I just didn’t know it was there lol. It was one of those things that you know you have somewhere… someplace but for the love of God you have no idea where you put it ‘for safe keeping’. Not stopping to think that you put it in the very place it was supposed to be… the damn recipe book! DOH!

Here is how I make Coquito. (I am Puerto Rican by injection so I qualify to make it…lmao  haha figure that one out! 😉 lmao)

The Ingredient List:

♦ 1/2 Liter of Water (I did end up adding a little more while the cinnamon stix were a-boiling.)

♦ 1 Liter of White Rum (Yes, a WHOLE Liter)

♦ 3 or 4 Cinnamon Stix

♦ 15 oz Cream of Coconut

♦ 12 oz Evaporated Milk

♦ 14 oz Condensed Milk

♦ 4 Egg Yolks (or if you are like me and this happens… have a few on standby lol)

Egg Yolk #1 That was not supposed to happen and that is why I said to have more than 4 eggs handy lol

The nice thing is that the Cream of Coconut and the canned milks come in the sizes listed above already! No measuring those! Cool!

Check out the Goya Section to find it. I’m sure there are variations, but I like it this way. If you do decide to get creative, change it up and it comes out gross… don’t blame me! However, if your adjustments make it better to you! Cool!!! (Share what you did with me ok?!)

This is how we do it baby….

Start out with a nice big pot, add the water and cinnamon stix. Turn it on High so it will boil.

You know how they say “A watched pot never boils.” Lies, all lies. I watched and it boiled. So there.

See lol:

While it was boiling away and making my home smell yummitastic I attacked the eggs. You saw the picture above with the yolk in the sink drain… well, I learned after that one “oops” and successfully had 4 yolks in a container. (True it took 5 eggs to do it but eh whatever!)

I also added a bit more water to make up for some that boiled away… not much, just about a half cup.

I added the milks to the egg yolks and attacked them with a whisk to blend it somewhat.

Now the cinnamon water on the stove looked like this….

….so I knew it was ready… there was a nice aroma coming out of the pot and the water was a beautiful golden cinnamony color! (I think I made up my own word… lol) That’s  cinnamon steam there… mmmm!!

I turned down the heat.

Remember how I had the eggs and the milks in a separate container? I brought that over to the stove and added some of the cinnamon water to the eggy milk mixture to temper it.

If you do not do this and just dump the mixture into the hot hot cinnamon water you can (you may not, but you could) end up with yucky cinnamon flavored scrambled egg yolks. Eiw yuck! So TEMPER!! Then add it all to the cinnamon water while you are whisking away.

Once you have that all added, turn up the heat so the mixture comes to a boil.

Made with Love… see the heart? 😉

See how it looks? Those bubbles are exploding and sending this delicious vanilla custardy aroma into my home!!! I whisked it the whole time to prevent any burning on the bottom. I let it bubble away for a few minutes to make sure the egg yolks cooked and it thickened up a teeny bit.

It’s ready to come off the heat after about 3 or 4 minutes:

Remember that we have 2 ingredients left, the Cream of Coconut and the Rum. You can drink some of the Rum while you are making this, but if you do… don’t blame me if you screw it up! Me, I want every last drop of that silver liquid in my Coquito baby!

I took the pot off the heat and set it on the counter on top of a pot holder. I let it cool down for about 5 minutes. During that time, I cleaned up and got a nice pitcher ready to put it into. (I got rid of that dumb egg yolk that decided to jump out of my hand and into the sink… remember that?)

All that is left is to add the Cream of Coconut, mix that in and then add the Rum. A whole liter of Rum… yummy rum.

Cream of Coconut and Rum in and whisking away to blend it all together… omg the aroma now!! Whew STRONG!!! VERY strong! Don’t light any candles near this stuff baby! POOF!

I let it cool a bit in the pot with the occasional whiskaroo before I put a strainer over the pitcher to catch any little pieces of the cinnamon sticks and any teeny little pieces of coconut from the cream… I prefer mine smooth.

Let it chill, overnight or for a day or so for the flavors to mull together. I use the empty Bacardi bottle to transport this nectar of the Goddess, after all there is a bit of rum still in it, not much but waste not!!! For now, it is in the pitcher covered with plastic wrap in the fridge getting all happy and even more delicious!

So, make some, pour some and toast your loved ones be they near or far!

Feliz Navidad

Merry Christmas

(Enter the Holiday you celebrate here:   )

Happy whatever you celebrate!

Take a moment and count your blessings, tell the people in your life you love and appreciate them. Give your cat a hug and even though I am not doing the usual rating on this, you can figure out it gets all the Cheshire Cats and no big fat cat turds!

Thanks for stopping by, have a relaxing and sane holiday and don’t just sit there… go out grab the ingredients and start making it!!! 😉 (It’s good to make for New Years Eve/Day too!!) Just go easy and be responsible, this is some high-test stuff!

p.s. everything I used is gluten-free… if you have to be gluten-free as well, just check what you buy before you buy it. Not all rum is gluten-free and some products that were gf the last time you bought them may not be now… check everything!

Love, Alyss

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Alyss’s Rating Scale:

Excellent! – 5 Cheshire Cats

Very Good – 4 Cheshire Cats

Good – 3 Cheshire Cats

Take it or Leave it – 2 Cheshire Cats

Pretty Bad – 1 Cheshire Cats

Horrible – Big Fat Cat Turd