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How-to Build an Epic Grain-free Cheese and Charcuterie Board
When it comes to entertaining, boards are the ultimate in wow factor without a ton of fuss. More specifically I am a HUGE fan of cheese and meat boards. Selfishly when entertaining, since I prefer to avoid grains and greasy chips and snacks, cheese and charcuterie boards offer a great, pretty low maintenance way for me to have everything that I want, while still making all of my guests happy.
My cheese and charcuterie boards are generally focused around being totally grain-free and then depending on my guests, I will often have a generous pile of toasted crostini, that I serve to the side, separately for the non gluten-free or grain-free folks. I simple arrange sliced crostini in a single layer on a cookie sheet, brush both sides with olive oil and toss under the broiler for a few minutes on each side. Add a sprinkle of sea salt. It’s the fastest way to lots of toast.
Follow along for all of my tips on How-to Build an Epic Grain-free Cheese and Charcuterie Board.
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Paleo Sausage and Herb Bread Stuffing (Low Carb, Nut-free)
I asked over on Snapchat a while back, what holiday recipes people wanted help with. There was an abundance of requests for stuffing recipes for Thanksgiving. Particularly grain-free stuffing recipes.
I have several other stuffing recipes here in the archives if you are looking for other renditions:
Roasted Butternut Squash, Apple and Leek Bread Stuffing with Collard Greens
Gluten-free Mushroom Stuffing
Single Serve Gluten-Free Classic Sausage and Bread Stuffing
This particular recipe is a holiday classic, the perfect stuffing – moist in the middle and crisp on the top. For me, this is exactly the stuffing I grew up eating, but rather than white bread so many of us can’t have or even the overly process gluten-free stuff, this is made with a super quick, homemade (nut-free) grain-free bread, that you can throw together ahead of time.
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Gluten-Free Whole-Grain Dinner Rolls
Do you miss those fluffy dinner rolls from your previous (gluten-eating) life? Truthfully, I kinda do sometimes. Mostly I have learned to stay busy when the bread basket gets delivered to the table. I engage myself in an interesting conversation, I sip my water or tea and most of the time, I could really care less that I am unable to fill up on all those starchy carbs. 10+ years of not having something, you tend to not be too bothered after a while. I’ve created new habits and I enjoy my meals so much more without having a tummy full of carbs before I have even started the main event.
But, at holiday meals, a time of traditions and coming together over food, you let go a little, you eat a bit more than you usually would, you indulge in your favorite, classic dishes (gluten-free versions, of course). The holidays, for me, can at times bring up feelings of food FOMO (fear of missing out). I want to eat like everyone else, I would love a delicious, homemade, warm (gluten-free) dinner roll to sop up my gravy at my thanksgiving feast. Please and thank you!
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Sausage and Kale Waffle Stratta
Just a little FYI, for those considering a move to California, or any other vacation-ready destination, be prepared for lots of house guests. At times your home will feel like a Bed and Breakfast. While it’s fun to have house guests and show them around Southern California, it can be a challenge to come up with meals to please everyone.
I absolutely, love to feed people but I put a lot of pressure on myself to create meals that not only work for me and my eating preferences and restriction, but foods that will also keep our visitors happy. I am a simple girl. I like to start my day with a green smoothie or some sautéed veggies. I know this type of eating doesn’t always fly for everyone else, so I am always challenging myself to create gluten-free recipes that will work for everyone.
With my husband’s family coming for two separate trips next month, I am already thinking about breakfasts that I can prepare that will work for us all. As a means to still sneak some veggies into the first meal of the day, I created my version of a stratta, with local farm fresh sausage, local pasture-raised eggs and some fresh organic kale from the farmers market – the highlight of this stratta, rather than the traditional bread, are these Gluten-free Ancient Grains Waffles from Van’s.
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Gluten-free Spiced Zucchini Bread
It’s that time of year again, when the amount of zucchini coming from my garden, is far more than two humans could ever consume. So, I’ve been getting busy making zucchini noodles, chocolate zucchini muffins, raw zucchini bites, stuffed zucchini, crispy baked zucchini rounds and more.
However, while staring at a pile of fresh heirloom zucchini freshly picked from my garden over the weekend, I realized I hadn’t made zucchini bread in a very long time, in fact I hadn’t made bread of any kind in a long time. So I pulled out my favorite gluten-free all-purpose flour blend and I got busy.
This Gluten-free Spiced Zucchini Bread has a delicate crumb and the perfect amount of spice. I like mine toasted with a little pat of coconut butter or real butter.
What’s your favorite way to enjoy zucchini?
This recipe was originally shared on the Free People Blog BLDG 25, as part of my ongoing Restricted Diet series.
[print_this]Gluten-Free Spiced Zucchini Bread
makes 1 loaf- 1 full cup of grated zucchini (from about 1 medium zucchini)
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour blend
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 cup ground flax seeds
- 2 tablespoons psyllium husk powder
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 1/2 cup light coconut sugar or other granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup olive oil or coconut oil
- 2 extra large eggs
- 1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans, optional
Preheat your oven to 350ºF. Grease a 9-inch loaf pan with coconut oil and set aside.
Place the shredded zucchini into some paper towels and gently squeeze out any excess moisture then set aside.
Put the all-purpose gluten-free flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground flax seeds, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl and whisk to blend. In another large bowl add sugar, oil, eggs, coconut milk, lemon juice and vanilla. Whisk thoroughly until smooth.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet and beat (by hand or with mixer) until well combined. Fold in the grated zucchini and the walnuts, if using. (I always reserve just a little of each to sprinkle over the tops of the loaves).
Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan, using a spatula to even out the top. Sprinkle over the reserved zucchini and nuts to the top. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a loaf comes out clean.
Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully remove the loaf from the pan and let cool completely on the rack. As hard as it can be, I allow the bread to cool for at least an hour, if not longer, before slicing into it.
Once cooled, bread can be wrapped in a double layer of plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days. [/print_this]
