Gluten free dark chocolate chip cookies

I am always trying to figure out that perfect cookie recipe since going gluten free. I think my search is finally over. I hit the jackpot and literally can’t stop eating these cookies. I think I am on number 4!

I love crispy cookies and my husband likes soft cookies. My first several batches I baked the cookies for 12 minutes and they crisped up nicely! Now I am baking the remainder of the dough for 10 minutes so it is more of a soft batch cookie that my husband loves. My kids, they can careless if their cookies are crispy of soft — they are just happy I am making cookies!

Gluten Free Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

 

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Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie with a sweet pie crust

Pumpkin Pie

When I made my Gluten Free Cuccidati Cookies I had a lot of dough leftover. And since the dough rolls out like a Pastry Dough I decided to experiment and see what it would taste like as a pie crust shell. So I made a Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie using said dough and prayed it would taste at least ok on Thanksgiving. Cause everyone knows that Thanksgiving isn’t really the right place to experiment with food recipes when everyone is expecting their Traditional yummy recipes.

Nevertheless, I experimented and the crust was better than ok.. it was delicious! I stressed for no reason, LOL.

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One-pot Gluten Free Turkey Alfredo

I have not been feeling well the last week. I have head congestion that just won’t seem to go away. But no matter how I feel, I am still at it in the kitchen making dinner for everyone, EVERY.SINGLE.NIGHT.

Last night I decided that I was going to use up the last of the Thanksgiving turkey leftovers and thought a pasta dinner would be the way to go.

Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE turkey leftovers… but after a week of eating Turkey for dinner — I am kinda done and would like something else regardless of how creative I can get.

Making a dinner that only requires one-pot makes for easy clean up! And not to mention a simple dinner prep.

One-Pot Turkey Alfredo

 

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Gluten Free Sopapillas

Fried Cinnamon Sugar Tortillas

My mom always made my brother and I Sopapillas growing up. Ok Sopapillas is a fancy name for a Deep-Fried Flour Tortilla, Sprinkled with Sugar and Cinnamon. Around Halloween she would carve the tortilla to look like a pumpkin which was really cool.

Nevertheless, now with gluten free tortillas available at the grocery store I no longer need to make these with Corn Tortillas and can actually use a Gluten Free Flour Tortilla. YAY!

It is just so easy and quick — Just fry up the tortilla then sprinkle with a Cinnamon-Sugar mixture and then top with a dollop of whipping cream drizzled with honey!

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Gluten Free Cuccidati Cookies

Cuccidati cookies

My mom who is 100% Italian taught me how to make my Grandmother’s Cuccidati cookies last Sunday. In my opinion they are like a yummier version of fig newtons but tastier and with a glaze frosting! AND of course, I adapted the original recipe to Gluten Free for my kids and I.

I have literally been busy beyond words. Running around like a chicken with its neck cut off. Yet, I put time aside to make these very time consuming cookies. And so very glad I did.

And since my grandmother’s recipe just had ingredients and no measurements it was all a guesstimate. Nevertheless, the cookies came out really great. Even my finicky husband stated I did a great job!

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Glaze (Dairy Free )

When you want to glaze cookies or donuts this is the best recipe. If you don’t have almond milk you can use regular milk or any milk you would like.

Glaze (Dairy Free )

Ingredients:

1 lb powdered sugar
1/2 cup almond milk
Candied Sprinkles (Optional)

Directions:

Glaze

Mix together in a medium sized bowl the powdered sugar and almond milk and set aside.

MyFEDBenefits helping you have fun

So I am in Washington DC at a Conference for the next several days. While I was downstairs in the conference center I met Brandon Nicol and a couple of his co-workers from MyFEDBenefits. They were reeling in people with their dice game for some lucky person to win a $25 visa card and while they were making it a lot of fun… I was sadly losing. I convinced them to let me to have one last throw of the die for the hopes to get a roll higher than 28. But of course the odds were stacked against me, and I lost once more.

But I want to send out a shout to say how wonderful and funny these gentlemen were. And if you need help with benefits these are your guys.

So what is it that they really do? Here is a blurb off their website:

At My Fed Benefits it is our primary goal to help Federal Employees throughout their careers to take advantage of the great aspects of their unique benefits package, help them to identify and avoid wasting money on benefits they don’t need, and assist them in getting to retirement with the standard and lifestyle they have earned and deserve.

With the ever-changing environment in the government employee sector today, it is confusing, complicated, and frustrating job for an employee to squeeze the most from the benefits they are offered.  With the maze of websites, forms, forums, hotlines, etc, and the trend to reduce or eliminate human resources as a viable place to get assistance, obtaining reliable information in a user-friendly format is a thing of the past.  That is where we come in.

Brandon Nicol is a Chartered Federal Employee Benefit Consultant — if you need information please give him a call or email.

PO BOX 1509
Jacksonville OR 97530
Cell: (541) 610-7843

BNicol@MFBHelp.com
MyFedBenefitsHelp.com

Walked in the Christmas Parade

This past Saturday, my daughter and I walked in our town’s Annual Christmas Lights Parade with our Girl Scouts Troop. It was so much fun. And believe it or not our float won for Best Youth Float!! I walked the entire 1.3 miles. And even though it was like a 1.5 hr walk it went by really fast — must had been because it was so entertaining. My daughter walked and handed out candy as well as rode in on the float to give the other girls a chance to switch off handing out the goodies!

Christmas Parade of Lights IMG_9684