Ok, confession. This is the first cheesecake I have made…ever. I have always been intimidated by the cheesecake, but I decided to dive in head first and make one for company. I wanted a cheesecake that was firm enough to be served au naturel. I went looking for a cheesecake recipe and came across an Easter crustless cheesecake on MarthaStewart.com. My only alteration to the recipe was using coarsely ground almonds instead of finely ground almonds. I wanted the cheesecake topping to be more obvious. The ground almonds on the top of the cheesecake added a wonderful crunch, which made graham cracker crust a distant memory. The almond flavor complemented the orange zest in the cheesecake very well. This is a great cheesecake recipe! It truly is the richest, smoothest cheesecake. I am going to ask my mother-in-law, the family cheesecake expert, for her tips and recipes. I am hooked on cheesecake now!

CRUSTLESS CHEESECAKE

1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, softened

1/4 Pound finely ground blanched almonds

4 8-ounce cream cheese, room temperature

1/2 Cup heavy cream

1 1/2 Cups sugar

4 large eggs, lightly beaten

Grated zest of 1 lemon

Grated zest of 1 orange

1 Teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Butter a springform pan or an 8x8x3 cake pan and dust with the finely ground blanched almonds. You can grind the almonds in a food processor or put them in a plastic bag and hit them with a mallet. If you are using a springform pan, line the outside of the pan with a double layer of heavy-duty foil to prevent leakage.

Beat the cream cheese, cream, and sugar well with an electric mixer. Add the eggs, vanilla, and zest; beat until combined.

Put the roasting pan in the oven and carefully add boiling water. Let the humidity level rise in the oven for 15 minutes and then place your springform pan in the roasting pan. The water should come about 2/3 of the way up the springform pan. The water bath will help to protect the eggs from curdling from the direct heat of the oven. The added moisture in the air will also help keep the cheesecake from becoming overcooked or drying out.

Bake until firm- about two hours. Once the cheesecake is done baking, crack the oven door and let the cheesecake cool in the oven.

Once the cheesecake has cooled, refrigerate it overnight. Invert on a plate to serve.

Some additional tips from The New Food Lover’s Tiptionary: More than 6,000 Food and Drink Tips, Secrets, Shortcuts, and Other Things Cookbooks Never Tell You

• Make sure the cheese is at room temperature or it will not blend smoothly with the other ingredients.
• After blending the cheese until smooth, slowly add the other ingredients and do not overbeat at this stage. It will cause the cheesecake to puff up and then fall drastically. This will make the cheesecake dense and could cause it to crack.
• Refrigerate the cheesecake for at least six hours before serving. This makes the cheesecake creamier and easier to cut.
• Cheesecakes baked in a slow oven for a longer period of time will shrink less when cooled.
• Do not open the oven door during the first thirty minutes because it might cause the cheesecake to crack.

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Posted by Natalie
Filed under: Celiac, Desserts, Gluten Free, Holidays | 10 Comments »

This crustless quiche was adapted from a deep dish crab pie my mother created in 1985. Since this recipe was an adaptation from a pie recipe, we had enough ingredients to make one small and one regular sized quiche. We gave the second quiche to a neighbor for her Easter brunch.

CRAB QUICHE

1/2 cup carrot, grated

2 Tablespoons butter

1/4 cup green onions, diced or cut in 1/2 inch slices

1 teaspoon fresh dill

1 tablespoon fresh basil

16 oz. fresh crabmeat

1 can evaporated milk

5 eggs

2 Tablespoons dry sherry

1 Tablespoon prepared mustard

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Saute carrot in butter until tender. Add green onions, dill and basil; cook one minute. Remove from heat and stir in the crab. Cover the bottom of a pie plate or quiche pan with the crab mixture. If you have too much of the crab mixture, make a second smaller quiche. Beat the eggs, evaporated milk, sherry, mustard, and salt. Pour over crab mixture in pans. If you are making a second quiche, reserve enough of the egg mixture to cover the crab in the second dish. Bake until the quiche(s) is set, about 45 minutes.

Serves 4-6

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Posted by Natalie
Filed under: Breakfast, Celiac, Eggs, GF Living, Holidays, Seafood | 1 Comment »

Quiche is the classic brunch dish. It was definitely featured in this gluten-free mommy’s Easter brunch feast. Since we were feeding thirteen and variety is the spice of life, my mother and I made a pair of quiches. Our dueling quiches (everything is a competition) were definitely a hit with the crowd. There was not a single slice left of either quiche. I made the Spinach Tomato Quiche- the clear favorite. haha

My mother contributed the Crab Quiche in the next post, which we adapted from her 1985 Deep Dish Crab Pie recipe. She has vowed a rematch. I look forward to it!

CRUSTLESS SPINACH TOMATO QUICHE

1/2 cup asiago cheese, freshly shredded

1/2 cup mild cheddar cheese, freshly shredded

1 cup fresh spinach leaves, chopped

scant 1/4 cup of red onion, sliced thin

2 plum tomatoes, sliced thin

1 cup evaporated milk

4 large eggs

1/4 teaspoon salt

pinch cayenne

basil

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a quiche dish or pie plate. Spread the asiago cheese and then the cheddar cheese on the bottom of the pie plate or quiche pan. Layer red onion, spinach and tomato slices over the shredded cheese. Sprinkle basil over the tomatoes. Beat the eggs, milk, salt, and cayenne pepper. Pour this egg mixture in the pie plate or quiche pan. Bake for 35-40 minutes.

8 slices; serves 4-6

Other beautiful crustless quiches:

Mrs. G.F.’s Basic Crustless Quiche

Gluten Free Goddess’ Purple Potato Quiche

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Posted by Natalie
Filed under: Breakfast, Celiac, Eggs, Gluten Free, Holidays, Vegetarian | 6 Comments »

I was so tired from all the holiday cooking that my family went out to dinner tonight. We chose a safe favorite, Pei Wei Restaurant. They have a gluten-free menu and the location we go to is never busy. A real plus in gluten-free dining! I always get the Sweet and Sour Steamed Shrimp with brown rice. I have also tried the Vietnamese Chicken Salad Rolls at the location in Scottsdale, AZ. The Sweet and Sour dish is consistently well-done, but I do not have a taste for the Vietnamese Chicken Salad Rolls. I think they could be improved- however, they do taste like chicken salad! I have been to three locations of this chain and have had consistent good service. I have only had to send back my food once in all the times I have been there. Going out is always risky, but I feel better that most of their staff is familiar with the term, “gluten-free.” The food is reasonably priced; two people (and one hungry toddler) can eat for under $20.

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Posted by Natalie
Filed under: Celiac, GF Living, Gluten Free, Restaurants | 3 Comments »

Chicken and Rice is one of my family’s favorite recipes. I got this recipe from my favorite cookbook, The Quick Recipe (The Best Recipe Series). This cookbook won the James Beard award in the general category in 2004 and every single recipe I have tried is amazing. Make sure your split chicken breasts are hormone and broth-free. Also make sure your chicken broth does not contain gluten. There are a few gluten-free chicken broths out there- I think Pacific Foods has one. I try to make homemade chicken broth every other week. I freeze whatever I don’t think I will use and use it the next week. I love being able to control the sodium content and ensure that my broth is gluten-free. I buy a 3.5 lb chicken for my broth, so I will also have cooked chicken to throw into recipes that week.

CHICKEN AND RICE with LEMON, PEAS, and SCALLIONS

4 Split Chicken Breasts, bone in, skin on (10-12 oz. each)

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 teaspoons of lemon zest

juice from one lemon

lemon wedges

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 onion, chopped fine

1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1 1/2 cups basmati or jasmine rice

1 3/4 cup chicken stock or reduced sodium chicken broth

1 cup water

5 scallions, sliced thin

1 cup green peas

Directions:

For the chicken:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the chicken to be cooked. Season with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a dutch oven on med. heat until steaming. Cook the split chicken breasts skin side down about 6 minutes. Place chicken in a casserole dish and cook for about 30 minutes until an instant-read thermometer reaches 160 degrees.

For the rice:

Reserve only 2 tablespoons of oil from dutch oven. Cook the onion with a little bit of salt until translucent. Add the red pepper flakes and rice and cook until rice begins to be translucent- about three minutes. Add lemon zest and garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. Pour in the chicken stock and water and heat to a boil. Scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Turn heat to low, cover and cook for 16-18 minutes. Once the rice is cooked, remove from heat and add peas. Cover the top of the dutch oven with a towel and lid and let sit for 10 minutes. Toss with lemon juice and scallions. Serve with the lemon wedges.

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Posted by Natalie
Filed under: Celiac, Dinner, Egg-free, Gluten Free, Poultry | 5 Comments »