Here are some gorgeous fall leaf shots I took on my walk with the dog yesterday. They aren't the best, but not bad really, for a woman taking pictures with an old cell phone in one hand, while simultaneously juggling the leash of an impatient Australian Shepherd and a plastic bag full of dog poop in the other hand. (Glamorous.)
I love this sweet little oak tree.
Coming around the lake on the back side.
Close up of those vibrant oak leaves.
Front view of the lake.
The bold blue of the sky was stunning against the bright yellow of the leaves.
I have to say, I was shocked at how carefully it made me look at everything around me when I had a (phone) camera in my hand. I would highly recommend a stroll around YOUR neighborhood, with a camera in YOUR hand! Believe me, you will see beautiful things you've never seen before.
I've been doing a lot of recipe repeats, so nothing much new to report in regards to the crock pot. A few comments to update some old posts though...
Regarding the Venison Fajitas , the next day I made the leftovers into (what we thought at the time were) the BEST freezer burritos on the face of the earth. Gluten free tortilla, dab of refred beans, venison fajita leftovers, cheese. Oh heavenly my friends, heavenly.
But then, I got a good deal on a gigantic bag of tomatillos, jalapenos, and Poblano peppers at the farmers market last Saturday (yes, it's still going on...) so I made Shredded Tomatillo Chicken Filling in the crock pot, and made freezer burritos out of that, with GF tortillas (Rudy's brand as always) and a sprinkling of shredded cheddar. That was when we realized that I had reached the absolute pinnacle of freezer burrito making...I just do not think it can be topped, it was that good.
On Sunday I repeated the Southwestern Turkey Meatball recipe I made way back in August, and again it was a huge hit. These are now on a "weekly" request basis around here, so if you haven't made those yet, you gotta try them. They are just crazy-good made into a meatball sandwich on gluten free bread or buns, or just straight up, pop 'em in your mouth. They really don't need anything else. I served 'em up sandwich-style with veggies and dip on the side.
One night we ate the Turkey and Lentil Soup I made a few weeks ago and froze...it came out pretty good, although the lentils kinda turned into mush after a trip through the freezer, but it tasted the same... the texture was still just fine. We all liked it.
Now, I pulled out some of the tomatoes I had frozen whole...remember that? Well, I don't know. It worked ok, if you are going to use them for soup. Which is what I am doing with them for the most part. I microwaved them, then cut out the stem scar, which was kind of a pain to do...next time I'd probably do that first, before freezing. My cousin tried hers and said that it was difficult to get the seeds out. After trying it myself I would agree, in fact I'd say it's impossible to get the seeds out, but I don't mind them in my soup. At any rate, they were delicious, and summer-fresh tasting in the soup, so that was good.
Yesterday I dehydrated soaked pecans, and they are SO, so, so tasty. I used them in the muffins I made this afternoon. I've also got a bunch of apples to dehydrate at some point very soon, so stay tuned. I'm going to make crispy apple chips with cinnamon, and a tiny sprinkle of pure maple sugar on them!! I'll get back to you on that as soon as I can.
O.k. well that about brings us up to today. I had some yellow summer squash in the fridge, leftover from Saturday's market, and I have an early morning meeting tomorrow, so I decided to shred up that squash and make muffins for hubby and the family, who will be lazily sleeping past 4:00 a.m. tomorrow; sheesh.
My "dozen" muffins...minus the one I "tested".
I'm lovin' the recipe I used. It's from Amy Green's excellent book Simply Sugar and Gluten Free. She has it posted, along with a ton of other great recipes on her website www.simplysugarandglutenfree.com. This specific recipe is located right HERE, (although I notice a bit of a difference from the book: in the book xanthan gum is 1/2 tsp, not 1 tsp., and baking powder was 1 T, , not 1 tsp. Also in the book it did not call for lemon juice).
However, in my usual fashion, I just HAD to alter it. Quite a lot. So I'm going to tell you what I did, and then you can do what you want. I will say that I have made it exactly as it is printed in the book, and it was excellent. Here's what I made today, inspired by Amy's lovely recipe:
Dry Ingredients:
2 c. Gluten free flour blend. I used a recipe from the magazine "Living Without".
Here is that recipe for you: Living Without's High Fiber Flour Blend (It's a blend of gluten free flours you mix up yourself, with: brown rice flour, Millet flour, teff flour, tapioca starch and potato starch...but I used buckwheat instead of the Teff because I was out of Teff flour.)
* I just need to insert a side note here: Most of the time in gluten free baking you will need to use a blend of different flours to achieve a tender consistency that mimics wheat. You can mix up your own using a recipe like the one listed above, or buy a blend of GF flours, already mixed. A gluten free flour blend is NOT to be confused with a gluten free baking mix--like Pamela's. A GF baking mix would also include things like salt, baking soda perhaps, xanthan gum, etc. already mixed in. That is not what we're talking about here. Here we are simply using several gluten free flours, blended together. (Note: Amy's recipe calls for her basic flour blend, plus teff, but her blend includes chickpea flour, which I really dislike.)
2 tsp. Pampered Chef's Cinnamon Plus Spice Blend
1 T. baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp xanthan gum (this is a must for binding GF baked goods, can be bought in health food stores)
Wet Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 eggs
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 cup pure maple syrup (it called for agave nectar, but I prefer maple or honey)
Stuff to fold in:
1 3/4 c. grated summer squash (or zucchini)
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Combine wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients. Then pour wet into dry and mix with a whisk, then fold in summer squash and pecans.
Scoop into a 12 cup muffin tin (either greased, or lined with paper cupcake liners). The recipe said to bake at 350, but I try to remember to lower it 25 degrees whenever I use a dark, nonstick pan. Otherwise they will brown too much on the bottom, which they did, I forgot, but they were still good. They took between 20 and 25 minutes to bake...longer though probably, if you lower the temp 25 degrees.
Here's the inside, tender and moist, nicely spiced and slightly sweet.
Amy Green recommends frosting them with lemon cream cheese (no refined sugar) frosting, but I just like 'em plain, with butter or nut butter.
You guys, enjoy these! They are a fun treat, and quick and easy to make.
My talented cat playing the piano.
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