Grandma's Meatballs & Cabbage

     Many years ago my grandma became frustrated with stuffing the meat into the cabbage, only to find it fell apart and made a big mess. She decided to make a deconstructed version and it came out great. She has been making it ever since.
     This year, I am having some family over for the Jewish Holidays, so I decided to take Grandma's recipe for a spin.

The best Grandma !

Ingredients
1 lb. turkey or chopped meat, 80/20
1/2 cup GF Breadcrumbs
2 eggs
1 head cabbage, chopped
2-3 large white onions-sliced
1 can of crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
Garlic, fresh chopped or 2 tbsp Garlic Powder
Parsley
1/8 cup milk
S&P to taste

Directions
1. Make the meatballs using chopped meat, eggs, breadcrumbs, milk, garlic, S&P & parsley
2. Line a large pot or your slow cooker with onion
3. Continue to layer with cabbage, meatballs and so on
4. Top onion, cabbage and meatball layers with crushed tomatoes
5. Add 1/2 the sugar & lemon juice, set rest aside for later-will season to taste
6. S&P to taste
7. Cook on medium heat on stove for about 1-2 hours or in slow cooker 6-8 hours
8. Taste it while it cooks, it should be mildly sweet, if needed add remaining sugar & lemon juice

Check me out on InstaGram-CourtyCooksGlutenFree for more recipes !

PB&J Bars

These are not necessarily 'healthy' but they are gluten free friendly & sometimes a girl has to indulge right?

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups GF Flour 
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 tbsp of baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
3/4 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup raspberry jelly
1/2 cup chopped dry roasted peanuts 

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 8x8 baking pan or pyrex with aluminum foil and coat foil with non-stick spray, like Pam
2. Whisk flour, baking powder & salt together in a bowl
3. In a separate bowl, mix peanut butter, sugar & softened butter with an electric mixer on low speed
4. Add egg & vanilla, continue mixing until blended
5. Slowly incorporate flour mixture beating on low to blend ingredients together

6. Press 1/2 the dough into the bottom of the pan 
7. Put remaining half into the freezer for 10 minutes
8. Spread the raspberry jelly evenly over the dough 

9. Remove dough from freezer and break into small pieces and scatter evenly over jelly
10. Sprinkle chopped nuts over the dough
11. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes
12. Remove from pan and let it cool before cutting into squares

Enjoy! 

Cauliflower Rice Stir fry

This my method for making 'rice' from cauliflower. Even if you don't like cauliflower, you must try this. The flavor is very mild and mimic the consistency and texture of rice!

Ingredients
1 large head of cauliflower
1/2 carrot, chopped
1/2 cup peas
1 zucchini, chopped
1/2 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
3-4 cloves of garlic, sliced very thin
1 tbsp of ginger, chopped thin
3 tbsp of Chinese 5 Spice-if on hand
1/4 cup of soy sauce (Tamari if Gluten Free)
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed 
Fresh Cilantro
S&P to Taste

Prep!

Directions
1. Prep vegetables. Put into bowl, add Soy Sauce (Tamari) & 1 tbsp of 5 spice and marinate in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes while you prepare the cauliflower rice 
2. Clean cauliflower under water & remove stems
3. Cut into small florets & pulse 1/2 cup at a time in blender or Cuisinart

Sauteeing the cauliflower rice

4. Sautee cauliflower with Olive Oil, garlic, salt, pepper, & ginger for 10 minutes on high
5. Add vegetables (cauliflower, zucchini, peas, carrot, pepper) chicken, and remainder of soy sauce, 5 spice, and cilantro
6. Sautee all until vegetables are soft & serve!

Note: 1 head of cauliflower makes about 6 servings! Lots of extra for leftovers-yay! 

Viola!

Lasagne Rustica

This lasagne recipe is super easy & delicious! 

Ingredients: 
1 Butternut Squash, peeled & cubed
2 large sausage links, crumbled (hot or sweet)- I use Gianelli's brand
1/2 onion, chopped
1 can white beans, drained
1 jar or can of tomato sauce (I used Giada's Arrabiata)
Fresh Basil
S&P to taste
Crushed Red Pepper Flakes (CRP)
1 tomato, chopped 
1 box, gluten free lasagne (Jovial brand)

Prep Work! Of course using my Sil-Eco mat

Assembling the Lasagne!

Directions

1. Roast butternut squash in the oven on a sheet pan until soft, about 45 minutes at 350 degrees
2. Cut sausage & cook in pan until browned 
3. Drain fat & add onions and beans, cook until onions are transluscent
4. Boil lasagne sheets for 4 minutes or until al-dente
5. Remove butternut squash from the oven & mix together all ingredients (sausage, onion, beans, tomatoes, & squash
6. Add basil, CRP and S&P to taste
7. Begin to assemble your lasagne
   -begin by spreading 1/2 cup of sauce on the bottom of the pan
   - arrange 3 lasagne noodles over the sauce
  -continue by spooning the sausage/squash/bean mixture over the noodles
 -continue layering-your last layer should be lasagne noodles
-spoon the remainder of the sauce on top

Bake at 350, covered with aluminum foil for about 1 hour 
Continue baking for 10 minutes, uncovered until brown & yummy

Top with shredded mozzarella & pecorino romano & serve!

I forgot to take a picture of the finished result! But it should look something like this :)

BONUS RECIPE!

Leftover Salad

Ingredients:

Roasted butternut squash 

Dried cranberries

Goat Cheese

Carrots, chopped

Balsamic Vinegar & Olive Oil 

S&P to taste

Cauliflower Power Pizza Crust

This Grain-Free, Guilt-Free & Low-Carb Pizza Crust is to die for!   

Ingredients
1 head of cauliflower
1 egg
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup GF breadcrumbs
Fresh herbs or Italian herb seasoning
S&P to taste

Supplies: Cheese Cloth, parchment paper or Sil-eco liner, pizza stone or baking pan

Directions

1. You'll 1 head of cauliflower (the bigger the head, the bigger the pizza). Depending on how many people you are feeding, you may want to make 2 pizzas at a time. Even though your cauliflower may seem big, they are comprised mostly of water and will shrink down to a much smaller amount than appears.

2. Clean cauliflower, take off outer leaves and separate into small florets

3. In a sturdy blender (I have a Vitamix) pulse the florets-a small amount at a time- until they appear to be the texture & look of rice 

4. Place all of the riced cauliflower in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 6-7 minutes.

5. Let the cauliflower completely cool & then place all of the cauliflower into a cheese cloth-Easy to find at most grocery stores-This is important in order to squeeze out all of the excess water 

(Tip: If you do not have a cheese cloth you can use a strainer and squeeze the cauliflower with a paper towel on top in order to get rid of some of the excess water)

6. What will be left is a nice, round ball of cauliflower. Add 1 egg, 1/4 cup of parmesan cheese, S&P to taste, Italian blend herb seasoning or fresh herbs, & 1/4 cup (Gluten Free) Breadcrumbs.

7. Line a pizza stone or baking pan with parchment paper. I used my trusty Sileco liner again and roll out 'dough' or flatten with your hands until a thin pizza crust forms.

8. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees until golden brown.

Topped my crust with a little black pepper & Crushed Red (my fave)

9. Top with whatever your little heart desires and bake for another 15 minutes. 

*I topped my pizza with homemade gluten free meatballs, fresh garlic & onion, fresh basil, mozzarella & ricotta cheeses.  

WHAT!

Nutritional Info (crust only, no toppings)

Amount Per Serving = 1 slice:
Calories: 63
Total Fat: 2 g
Cholesterol: 28 mg
Sodium: 150 mg
Total Carbs: 6 g
Dietary Fiber: 3 g
Protein: 5.5 g
WW Points+: 2

Egg White Coconut Macaroons

Ok- so I don't really love to bake, but I do love sweets. It is super hard to find gluten free/healthy versions of desserts, even in NYC, where I live. Often times, the bakeries will have one or two GF offerings and they are usually chocolate-I am not a chocolate person. 

Anyway-check out my easy GF/DF macaroons below-perfect for Rosh Hashanah coming up-the holiday for sweet foods! 

Coconut Macaroons

Aren't these Anthro measuring
cups just gorgeous?

Ingredients:
3 cups sweetened coconut flakes
6 egg whites (use real egg whites here-not liquid egg whites)
1/2 cup oats (steel cut or instant)
1/2 cup organic honey
1 tbsp vanilla
1/4 tbsp of salt (kosher or sea salt works just fine here)








Directions

*Preheat Oven to 350 degrees

1- Use a hand mixer to mix egg whites & sea salt (6-8 minutes until stiff peaks form)
2- Incorporate honey & vanilla, continuing to beat with hand mixer
3- Add coconut 1 cup at a time, folding into egg white, salt, honey & vanilla mixture
4- Use a small spoon to form tablespoon size cookies onto a parchment or silicone lined sheet pan
5- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until macaroons are golden brown 

 Note: If your mixtures seems to liquidy, use your judgement to add 1/4 cup of (GF) flour at a time to thicken up your batter

I LOVE my Sile-Co Non-Stick baking liners

Back to School Edition {Parte Dos} Tortilla Egg McMuffins

Who doesn't love the Egg McMuffin? Salty, Sweet & Satisfying. 
Unfortunately, it has 300 calories, 13g of fat, 750mg of sodium {WHAT?} & is most definitely not Gluten free. 
I've been toying around with different variations of an Egg McMuffin for years & today I whipped one up that I'd love to share with you!

Note: This recipe it great for breakfast, lunch or even dinner!


Tortilla Egg McMuffin

I buy this Corn Tortillas  at my local supermarket {made in Brooklyn!} for $2.29 for around 50! They last weeks in the fridge & are great for tacos, quesadillas, & of course, tortilla mcmuffins 

Ingredients:
2 Corn Tortillas
1 organic medium sized egg -Umami-      
1 slice of Provolone Cheese -Salty-
1-2 slices of Honey Turkey -Sweet-
 2 slices of tomato
Handful of mixed greens/arugula
S&P to taste
Hot Sauce to taste

Directions

1-If you have a gas stove, I cook these tortillas RIGHT on the burner on LOW for 2-3 minutes on each side. If not, you can pan cook them or pop them in the oven for around 10 minutes
2- Melt the cheese on one side of the tortilla
3- Fry or poach the egg until the yolk is hard
4- Assemble your McMuffin & Viola! 

This reheats well too-30 seconds in the micro! 

Variations: Use a gluten free English Muffin as your bread, use any kind of cheese, and lastly, substitute ham or Canadian Bacon instead of turkey!