Feast Your Eyes on Gluten-Free Holiday Grub Via Udi’s

So I got to do something pretty cool last weekend. Udi’s, the people who make gluten-free breads, pastries, sweet treats, and other replacements for those of us intolerants, invited me to a cooking class here in Los Angeles. I don’t know why they might have thought I needed some boning up on my cooking, but I was STOKED. I learned some super cool knife skills and an easy way to chop an onion. I feel much more badass in the kitchen now.

Yes, that sign above is everything we made in an afternoon at Cook LA and all of that magnificence is gluten-free, you guys. Also, it was made by pros. Or rather Cook LA pros Chef Liz Alexanian and Chef Adam Brooks, me, some Udi’s employees, a couple other awesome bloggers, and Jackie, an Udi’s recipe winner who actually did have mad skillz, as she WON A CONTEST. I worked with the lovely Suzanne of Udi’s to churn out these Toasted Pistachio-Cheese Arancini Balls.

Photo by Susan Goldman

Oh to the em gee, everybody, these were amazing. Even though I did totally mess up by forgetting to double the recipe because I was way too busy chatting with all of the other lovely people. I got way too excited as I usually cook, alone, in my kitchen, talking to my dog. So I got distracted and jacked up the risotto a bit. Here I am saying, “I am such a dumbass!”

Yet, those balls turned out quite well, if I do say so my own bad self. I’m totally stoked I now have a gluten-free recipe for those things, because it makes me so sad when I’m in an Italian restaurant and I can’t order the rice balls. You’re feeling for me right now, aren’t you? The plight of the ball-less GF’er. Michael Moore should make a documentary about the injustice of it all.

While we baked these balls in the oven on 350 until they were toasty brown (and then eliminated the step where you roll the rice balls in flour), this recipe calls for frying. If you’re concerned about making these healthier, simply bake ‘em up. Otherwise deep fry those bad boys. Udi’s will have all of these delish recipes up on their site any second now, but in the meantime here’s how you can do what I did!

Gluten-Free Christmas: Booze & Apps

Well now, doesn’t that look all Christmas-y? We trimmed that tree, and enjoyed some festive snacking yesterday so now I’m going to tell YOU how you can start your winter holiday season off with a gluten-free bang. Of course it involves booze and snacks. Of course it does.

One of my fave holiday snacks is the gluten-free cracker topped with smoked salmon, creme fraiche, and chives. It’s incredibly simple, and you’ll want to eat the entire plate-full. I recommend you share, but you don’t always have to take my recommendations as you are your own person and I respect that.

Next, I thought I’d get crafty while fantasizing about how many Pinterest shares I would get and did these Gluten-Free Peppermint Pretzel Sticks™. Not shockingly, my attempt at culinary craftiness did not go as smoothly as I anticipated, so this is exactly how many Gluten-Free Peppermint Pretzel Sticks™ I wound up with, instead of say, 50.

I tend to lose patience when I’m getting crafty also, which is just another reason I’ll never be a Pinterest star. Later I realized a nice ribbon around the shot glass would have really nailed it. Sigh. Still, I ate an entire shot glass full of white chocolate and peppermint covered pretzels. Eat your failures, people. Eat ‘em up. They are delicious.

Anyhoo! There are so many fun things you can make for a tree trimming party. I just did three, however, and one of those thing was an incredibly strong cocktail, the Sazerac. Kind of like an Old-Fashioned, but without the gooey cherries, and with a lemon twist, a classic Sazerac can be served over a giant ice cube (you have those, right?) or straight up in a martini glass. I will say it goes very well with a shot glass full of Gluten-Free Peppermint Pretzel Sticks™.

Here’s how you can pair those yummy things together and fill yourself with some holiday cheer.

Gluten-Free Thanksgiving: Snacks!!!

There’s that one part of Thanksgiving day when you’ve got the turkey cooking, and are an hour + away from starting the sides when your tummy gets a little rumbly. Me? I could eat cheese and gluten-free crackers all day, every day. But some people like a little variety in their noshing. Bring on the Snackens!

After trying a variety of gluten-free appetizers because hey, it’s my job, I decided on these three super delish munchies that don’t compete with your turkey and variety of ‘taters. The maple pecan popcorn was already gone before dinner, and the spiced nuts would have been had I not hidden them from myself. (Spiced nut tip:  Use blanched almonds for a more intense flavor.) These three yummerific treats are going to be very popular amongst the gluten-loving and the gluten-hating. Heck, you can throw these holiday-friendly snacks out anytime between now and the new year and feel totally like a gluten-free bad ass. Which is what I feel like right now as I finish off my gluten-free crostini with pesto. Bad. Ass.

Try ‘em, you’ll like ‘em!

Gluten-Free Spinach Dip Is Surprisingly Challenging

I don’t know about you, but I could eat appetizers for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I love me some small plates and that’s why this whole lack of crackers and bread can be so confounding. And also why  I carry gluten-free crackers in my purse AT ALL TIMES. I don’t care if I’m “that lady,” I’m determined to enjoy pre-meal snacks wherever I wander.

When I decided to whip up some spinach dip, on account of all of the unpronounceable ingredients in any store-bought spin-dip, I also thought it would be a great way to get my app on in a gluten-free way. WRONG.

You know what has tons of unnecessary gluten inside? Soup mixes. You know what has tons of soup mix in it? Spinach dip. So I had to buy a gluten-free soup mix. This one –

Unfortunately there are a lot of chunks that don’t just “melt down” when you mix it up with dairy and spinach. So I would recommend putting this particular brand of onion soup through a food processor before you add it to your mixins. I also had to deal with the fact that it was very low sodium. Which is all healthy and stuff, but also means you need to add some extra salt to this recipe. Like 2-3 teaspoons of salt. Which also means, you probably shouldn’t add “soup mix” to your regular rotation for dinner unless you want a little hypertension in your life.

Still, gluten-free spinach dip! YUM.