Anytime Stuffing...Not Gluten-Free

When I was little mom would make the Thanksgiving stuffing starting two days before so all the spices would meld together. She would toast white bread and then let it set and dry out then cut it up in cubes. Then she would make cornbread and break it up and let it dry out. 

Mind you, we had two refrigerators so we could make up food in advance for big meals for the holidays. The next day she would haul out the big roaster and put in two sticks of butter to melt and then chop up celery and onions and put it in the roasting pan and cook until onions were opaque. She would add in the chicken broth, canned milk and 2 eggs. I got the wonderful task of getting to stir this up until it was all blended.  When it was mixed up with the right amount of liquid, not too stiff, but not too loose. It was time to start the tasting. 

Mom would start adding in the spices; poultry spice, sage, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper.   She loved her sage, so we had dressing that had great hints of sage. There were times when if we were on a trip, if she saw wild sage, we would stop and she would pick some to use in next years dressing.  

Over the years we switched to making homemade drop biscuits made from Bisquick to take the place of the toast.  It changed the whole texture of the stuffing for the better.  I got to where I was making the cornbread with Hodgeson Mills Stone ground Yellow Cornmeal instead of more refined cornmeal made in a cast iron pan. The texture of the dressing really changed for the better. 

The recipe has changed over the years some. I now use chicken bone broth instead of just plain chicken broth. If need be, I use liquid Chicken concentrate or Osem Chicken concentrate crystals for extra flavor. 

So with that being said, let's get started.

Ingredients:

Two trays of homemade biscuits made from Bisquick. Broken up and dried out

One pan of cornbread. Broken up and dried out

Two sticks butter or 3/4 cup coconut oil

One bunch of Celery, washed and chopped medium fine

Three large yellow onions, peeled and rough chopped

1 Large can of evaporated milk

1-2 qts. chicken bone broth*, preferably home made or

Osem chicken broth crystals

Poultry Seasoning

Sage  (optional)

Thyme  (optional)

Oregano  (optional)

Himalayan Pink Salt

Pepper


Directions:

In a large roasting pan on top of the stove place butter or coconut oil in pan to melt over medium-high heat.  Add in celery and onions. Cook until onions are opaque. Turn stove off. 

Add in dried biscuits and cornbread. Stir to incorporate the bread mixture with the onions and celery. 

Crack the eggs into a bowl so as to make sure there are no shells before adding into bread and veggie mixture.  

Add in one half can of evaporated milk.

Add in one half of bone broth or chicken stock.

Start stirring with a wooden spoon or spurtle*, 

Spurtle

continue to mix until everything is Incorporated.  If dressing is stiff, add more evaporated milk and chicken bone broth until mixture is fluffy but not super wet. It doesn't hurt to have a second box of bone broth on hand.

Add in 2 Tbsp of Poultry Seasoning, stirring well

Add in 2 Tsp. of Himalayan Pink Salt

Add in a pinch each of Thyme, Sage, Oregano and pepper.

Stir well. Taste.

If you want a more chicken taste add in a Tablespoon of the Osem Chicken Crystals or Liquid Chicken Broth.  The taste from here is entirely up to you. 

Place in a 9 x13 greased baking dish cover with foil and place in a 350 degree oven and bake for 30 minutes. Last 10 minutes of cooking remove foil. 

* Spurtle, is a long narrow wooden blade designed for stirring oatmeal .  It is one of the best kitchen tools I have found for mixing up a variety of items such as dressing, macaroni, potato salad, sauces, stews.  It hails from Scotland and dates back to the 15th century. I got my Spurtle from QVC. 

* Chicken bone broth is more flavorful than regular chicken broth and contains more minerals as well. Homemade broth contains the collagen our bodies needs. Chicken bone broth can be found at Walmart. 

 

Whipped Sweet Potatoes Done Up Right...Smeal Style...

Years ago when I was learning to cook, I would watch my mom start very early the day before Thanksgiving start preparing the food. One of the dishes that was treasured by my dad was whipped sweet potatoes with toasted marshmallows on top. Mom would choose 2 to 3 large sweet potatoes and scrub them and trim the ends off then put them in a large pot of water to boil until tender. Then she would remove from the pot and let cool. After they were cool she would have me remove the skins and cut them up into cubes and put them in a large bowl. Then the magic began. Brown Sugar, Canned milk, butter, vanilla, cinnamon and a hand mixer. She would have me whip them until they were light and fluffy. We would place them in a greased pie plate, cover and put them in the refrigerator until the next day where we would take them out and bake at 350 for 45 minutes then cover the top with miniature marshmallows and toast the mallows until toasty golden and puffed to perfection. It was the only thing my brother would eat of the dish as he was not a fan of sweet potatoes. Over the years the dish has changed very little other than adding in chopped walnuts or in a pinch using Princella Yams in a can. If you want a sweeter sweet potato, bake it until you can insert a knife into it. 

Ingredients:

2-3 large sweet potatoes or a large can of Princella yams.
1 small can of condensed milk
Brown Sugar
5 Tbsp. Butter 
Cinnamon
Dash of Vanilla - About a 1/2 tsp. 
Miniature Marshmallows (Optional)
Walnuts  (Optional)

Directions:

Wash and trim ends of sweet potatoes. Put in a large pot of water and bring to a boil. Turn down and simmer until a knife can be inserted easily. Remove an cool. 

Oven method.  Wash sweet potatoes and place in a 350 degree oven and bake until a knife can be inserted easily. Remove and cool. 

Can method. 2 large cans of Princella yams drained. 

Skin the potatoes and cube, placing cubes into a bowl.

Oven Method, split open the shell and scrape out the pulp into a bowl. 

Add half of the canned milk

Add 3 Tbsp.Butter

Add Brown Sugar to your desired taste of sweetness, we always liked 2 packed handfuls. 

Add 1 tsp. cinnamon

Add Dash of Vanilla Extract

Whip with an electric mixer on high or a stand mixer on high.

Add more condensed milk if potatoes are not light and fluffy. Be sure not to let them get soupy. 

Pour into a greased pie plate. 

Dot top with chopped walnuts, depends on how many you want. We like about 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts. 

Dot with cubed up butter about 2 Tbsp.

Sprinkle with brown sugar, about 3 Tbsp. 

Bake for about 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven. 

Remove from oven top with miniature marshmallows, put back in oven, keep an eye on marshmallows as they toast. When golden remove and serve. 

Food Of The Gods...Homemade Tomato Soup...

Not long ago I had 4 Roma tomatoes that were on the verge of going bad. What to do with them other than tossing them in the trash. Lightbulb!!! I recently was watching a Rachel Ray show and she mentioned taking vegetables that were just past and roasting them and then freezing them for later. 

Out came my knife, chopping board, sauce pot, garlic press and Vita-Mix. I Chopped up the tomatoes and put them into the sauce pot with some olive oil, garlic with a touch of salt over low heat. 

Lately I have been cooking with spices that I would normally not cook with such at Tumeric. However Tumeric is a natural antinflamitory and with the medication I take I use Tumeric instead of NSAIDS so if you don't like Tumeric don't put it in. 

After a bit of this and a dash of that I came up with this Tomato Soup recipe, which is so good (spicy) it will knock the socks off of you. 

Tomato Soup...Susie Smeal Style

Serves 2

4 Roma tomatoes, deseeded and skinned 
3 Garlic Cloves
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1/4 Teaspoon Turmeric 
2 Tablespoon Lemon Juice
11/2 Cups Water
4 Fresh Sweet Basil Leaves Chopped
1 Tablespoon Fresh Chopped English Thyme
Pinch of Pepper
1/2 Teaspoon Tabasco Spicy Salt 

To skin tomatoes, bring a pot of water to a boil and drop tomatoes in for three minutes. Remove and drop into ice water. Make a slit in the skins. Skins should slip right off. To deseed cut in half and squeeze the seeds out.  

Put everything into the Vitamix and run on high for 6 minutes.  Soup should be very hot and ready to eat.  You can adjust the ingredients to your taste. 

Tender Discs of Wonderment...Donuts...Oh My...

I wrote this last year but somehow forgot to post.  Thank goodness I wrote this recipe down, as the website (Primal Palate) for this recipe has been taken down and is no longer available.

Since becoming gluten-free due to a medical condition, I have been yearning for some good old fashioned donuts.  In searching for the all elusive recipe for a yeast donut using gluten free products, I had given up all hope on find one however, not necessarily my favorite, I will eat cake donuts.  

After much research I finally settled on a recipe that took the fewest ingredients and put forth a heavenly disc of deliciousness. What was this that I had discovered that was so tender, so moist, made out of almond and arrowroot flours?  

I am new to grain free baking so I was expecting a 
complete flop that I would be feeding the dogs. One Friday while in Kansas City, Christie and I headed to Pryde's Kitchen Store just on the fringe of downtown Kansas City. I love this store. The building was built in 1922 as a ballet studio for Ballet Mistress Helen S Thomes. We picked up a donut pan and a cheesecake pan as well as I was going to attempt making a raw cheesecake, but that is another story. After heading to Sprout's to finish picking up the remaining ingredients necessary to make said donuts, I settled myself down on the couch to review the recipe once more, as my back was done for and there would be no baking this day.

Saturday morning Christie had left early to help coach and participate in the 2016 MURPH Challenge. For those of you in the Cross-fit world, you know what I am talking about. For those of you who are not knowledgeable of the Murph Challenge you can read about it here.

I got up had my coffee, medication, and put on my apron and got busy putting together my Grain-Free Donuts. I have to give credit where credit is due. I would not have gotten anywhere without The Primal Palate and working with their recipe. 

Equipment Needed:

Donut Pan
Wooden Mixing Spoon
Measuring Spoons
Dry Measuring Cups
Wet Measuring Cups
2 Mixing Bowls 1 Large 1 Smaller
Blender
Spoon
Can Opener
Chopstick


Heavenly Donuts
Grain-Free

2 Cage Free eggs
3/4 cup Coconut milk
1/2 cup Pure Maple Syrup
1 tsp Pure Mexican Vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup Almond flour
1/2 cup Arrowroot flour
3 tsp Baking powder
1/2 tsp Pink Himalayan Salt

3 tbsp Organic Coconut oil

2/3 cup Lemon glaze
1 cup Chocolate ganache (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Mix the first three ingredients in a separate bowl and set aside.

Mix the next 4 ingredients together, stir well. Pour the ingredients of the first bowl into the dry ingredients mixing well. Melt coconut oil in microwave about 25 seconds, pour into mixture blending well. 

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a small mixing bowl, combine the first 4 ingredients. Using a hand mixer, blend ingredients until smooth.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the next 4 ingredients. Stir with a wooden spoon until combined. 
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and blend all ingredients with your hand mixer until smooth
5. Add your softened coconut oil to the batter and blend again until all ingredients are combined evenly.
6. Liberally grease your donut pan with coconut oil and spoon about a cup of batter into a Ziploc bag.
7. Snip one of the corners off of the Ziploc bag and pipe the batter into the donut mold. More batter makes a fluffy donut, but you will have less total donuts. Filling the molds 3/4 full will yield about 16 donuts. 
8. Smooth the tops of the batter by carefully tapping the donut pan on the counter.
9. Bake the donuts for 12 minutes, making sure to check them after 10 minutes. Remove donuts from oven and allow to cool on a wire rack. (Note: I cooled 2 batches out of the pan on the wire rack and one batch in the pan. The batch allowed to cool in the pan was by far more tender than those cooled on the wire rack.)
10. Grease donut pan again and repeat for another batch of donuts.
11. Once donuts are completely cool, dip them into your choice of frosting. It helps to have the frosting in a shallow bowl to dip in donut. A chopstick is a great tool to remove the donut from the bowl and place on the rack to let the frosting drip down the sides. Be sure to have some wax paper down underneath to catch the drips. Place the donuts in the fridge for a few minutes to help the frosting set before serving. 
12. If using the lemon glaze, refrigerate donuts after dipping, then dip a second time  and refrigerate once more to allow the glaze to set.
13. To get a real lemon pop use some food grade lemon essential oil in your lemon glaze.

Lemon Glaze

2/3 cup powdered sugar

3 tbsp lemon juice

Mix together well in a shallow bowl.  Enough for 16 donuts.  Make a double recipe to double dip. For a real lemony mixture, add 3 to 5 drops of food grade essential oil or until you get the taste you want. 

Vanilla Glaze

2/3 cup powdered sugar

3 tbsp milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix until smooth in a shallow bowl. If it starts to crust over add a few drops of milk and stir. 

What is the old saying? "I bet you can't eat just one" These little discs of tenderness are melt in your mouth wonderment. They are so mouthwatering you want to eat more than one. So just beware if you make these be prepared to slap your hands when you go to reach for them, again and again and again!

Knock Your Socks of Potato Soup...

Years ago I got desperately ill and my mother made me some of her outstanding potato soup that saved my life. I remember it like yesterday, the smell, the taste, the warmth of the pepper as it passed over my tongue. I remember that I asked for a second bowl. As my mom was bringing it to me, the reason that I was ill suddenly cleared up, my fever broke, my sinuses cleared and I was well. I had been desperately sick for 4 days.  I had, had a sinus blockage of congealed mucus. They actually had to biopsy it to see what it was. 

Mom always made cornbread to go with the potato soup, as the two seem to go hand in hand. I always made sure to watch mom make the soup so I would have the recipe down pat. With that said, here's Mom's Knock Your Socks Off Potato Soup.

Ingredients:
1 stick of Butter
Bunch of Celery
2 onions
3 lbs. small red potatoes unpeeled 
Chicken broth (your own bone broth or 2 boxes of chicken stock)
*Chicken Broth Concentrate

 1-1/2 Cup Milk (if you are sensitive to milk you can you almond milk or soy milk)
Pepper to taste

Equipment: (Only if you have)
Vegetable Knife
Vegetable Dicer

5 qt. pot
Cutting board

Directions:

Wash potatoes slice in 1/2 inch slices. Place in Dicer and push through the large dicer. Those without a dicer cut the potatoes in 1/2 by 1/2 cubes. 

Cut end of Celery off, wash all the stalks to remove any dirt. Leave the leaves on. Process through the large dicer or slice by hand slicing in about 1/4 inch slices. 

Cut the ends of the onions off and remove the skins. Slice in 1/2 inch slices.  Place in Dicer and push through the large dicer.  Those without a dicer, cut the onions in 1 inch by 1 inch cubes as they will break down. 

Put stick of butter in stock pot to start melting.

Place onions, celery and potatoes in the pot on medium-high heat along with a squirt (about a tablespoon) of Chicken Broth concentrate.

Cook until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Do not let the butter burn.

Add in Chicken Broth.

Add pepper to taste. (I like to add 1/2 tsp. when sick) Bring to a boil.

Turn off, add in a 1 1/2 cups of milk. 

Taste, if you like a more chicken base taste, add some more of the Chicken Broth Concentrate. 

This recipe is gluten free.