The Adventures of 'The Kidds'

Well, doing the gluten-free diet for two weeks did improve my allergy symptoms, despite my reservations. The Bisquick Gluten Free baking mix helped me through those weeks…I had lots of gluten-free pancakes for breakfast Daniel liked them too! Because of the rice flour base, it reminded me a little of bibingka, a native Filipino rice cake (yummy!).

It was a little pricey for this gluten-free newbie, but the coupon that Crazy Coupon Mommy posted helped (thanks!!). I just learned that she now has a Gluten Free giveaway on her website, so if you’re on a gluten-free diet, head on over and check out the fab prize pack, which includes a cast-iron Swedish Pancake Pan!

Oh, and I’m now on a limited wheat diet…which means I try not to eat pizza/pasta everyday! Those were the two things I missed the most. Good alternatives are Pad Thai (yum) and also I found these yummy rice crackers at Walmart, their own brand label called “World Table.” And what do you know, Cheetos and Fritos are  gluten free!! So it’s not too bad

I was hosting playgroup the other day and needed to make some snacks. I had the Pillsbury Quickbread Blueberry mix, which I made, but I wanted something that I could eat, as my doctor wanted me to try being gluten-free for the next few weeks. Since I hadn’t gone gluten-free shopping yet, I had to make stuff from what was in our pantry.

I had a couple cans of tropical fruit salad, some condensed milk, but alas, no table cream for a true Filipino salad. While perusing the contents of my pantry, I noticed a box of Minute Tapioca which I had been meaning to use to make pie (obviously, I haven’t). Then, I noticed the packs of coconut milk powder that my mom sent over. This got me thinking….Hmmm….tapioca pudding+coconut milk powder=Yum! But would it work with fruit? Why not, they’re all tropical, yes?

It turned out great! Here’s the recipe if you’d like to try:

2 cans tropical fruit salad (14 oz), drained

1 recipe Minute Tapioca, prepared according to package directions (6 servings).

1 packet coconut milk powder (150 g)

Add the coconut milk powder to the pudding after removing from heat. Mix well and cool. Stir in the fruit salad and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Makes about 5 servings.

So Paul and I finished closing the pool tonight, so I guess summer is officially over.  We are trying something a little different this year.  We wrapped the pool this year with a cover wrap its kinda like a big roll of plastic wrap, 500 ft of plastic wrap to be exact.  Its supposed to help keep air from getting under the pool cover and actually hold it in place, it seems to have worked so far, the cover is still billowing a little but not as much as in the past.  So we will see how it works with the cover.

While in Evanston this week, we checked out a place called Olive Mountain.  It was recommended by some locals that were at my workshop.  They mentioned that it was a good middle eastern restaurant so we decided to check it out.  We ordered a Kifta Kabob and a Baked Lamb Shank, they were both pretty good.  I think most of the food could have used a little more flavoring, but maybe that is how it was supposed to taste, I’m not sure, definitely not an expert on Middle Eastern food, but it was pretty good. We didn’t really like the soup, it could have used a little more seasoning, but it was definitely a good place to eat, And I would recommend it to anyone in the Evanston area, looking for a different place to eat.

Last week, Don’s uncle Jim came for a visit before we all went to a family reunion in West Virginia. Anyway, he brought with him a full rack of pork ribs (really 2 racks, still connected in the middle) for us to cook on the grill (took up the whole grill cooking surface!). There was a ton of leftovers…we had some for lunch but we still had a sizable amount left.

Because the smoky flavor of the yummy ribs (for some reason) brought to mind Chipotle’s carnitas burrito bowl, I thought it might be good to use the leftover ribs with the same flavors, but in soup form. It turned out great–here’s the recipe.

1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
About 3 cups of leftover rib meat, chopped into small pieces
1 can (14.5 oz) RedGold petite diced tomatoes with chipotle
1 can (14.5) RedGold petite diced tomatoes
1 can black beans
1 can great northern beans
1 can golden sweet corn
4 cups of chicken broth

Saute onions and garlic in olive oil, add everything else, and simmer for about 30 minutes. Top with Fritos and cheese if desired.

It turned out great! If we weren’t making it for kiddos, we would probably have added more spice using diced jalapenos and possibly an actual chipotle pepper in adobe sauce. And added a dash of lime juice and some chopped cilantro. But these were the ingredients we had handy, and it worked pretty well Yummy.