sorry

I have been really sick this week - I have not been myself at all so the kinds of food we had this week has been a total wash for me because I was sick. No fun...

However, we did manage to feed the girl food that she could handle and even though one night was Taco Bell (crunchy corn beef taco, no cheese) and one night was left-overs. To be honest, it was kind of a blur. One night Eric made the Curley's Ribs and rice (it's ALWAYS good to have back-ups in the freezer for those "just in case" days).

Nacho Casserole to the rescue

Well - busy day today and I am coming down with a cold so I made nacho casserole for dinner. Simple really and pretty quick here goes

1/2 a bag of tortilla chips (I use Taco Loco - they are local and always very fresh - the owner does not put anything nasty in them)
1 - 1 1/2 lbs ground beef (moose, buffalo, turkey - whatever)
1 - 1 1/2 tsp McCormick Grill Seasoning
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp chili powder
1 - 1 1/2 cups organic cheese ( I used sliced Joseph Farms sharp cheddar - get it at costco, it's cheap)
1 can refried beans
2 TBS organic milk
1 small can sliced black olives


condiments -
Guacamole (my recipe is just avocado, lime and salt)
Organic sour cream
Salsa - again my favorite is Taco Loco, it is outstanding
Green chilis

really whatever else you like, it's up to you

Preheat the oven to 375 - use non-stick spray on a casserole dish

brown the meat while the oven pre-heats - add seasonings

in a saucepan heat the re-fried beans and the milk - stir (the milk makes it easier to work with)

Layer the chips first in the casserole dish, it does not have to be fancy - then some ground meat then the re-fried beans then the cheese and olives - repeat until you run out of room in the dish

THEN pop that puppy in the oven and heat until the cheese is nice and bubbly, about 10 - 15 minutes.

serve with condiments - gluten-free, organic and QUICK

The cost of "normalcy"

As I was making the bisquick gluten-free pancakes this morning for the first time, I noticed that the box only has 2 cups of mix in it - which wouldn't be an issue normally but the box cost $6.29. Then, I took a quick look around, the milk added to them is organic as well as the eggs and butter - the cost just kept going up.
Thankfully - the birch syrup Eric made was free but Carmen wanted powdered sugar instead. >ugh<

So really, the cost is huge to go organic and wheat-free (or "Carmen-Safe")
Her loaves of bread cost about $6, her eggs about $5.50 for a dozen, organic chicken is $10 a pound. Even if we made her bread from scratch we would pay about the same. It's an eye-opening part of this whole process.
Part of being a kid is that we have the need to fit in, so things like brownies, cookies and the like are important. Each box of those mixes can cost anywhere from $5.50 - $12.00. Again, for a kid, it is part of kid-dom to have access to yummy treats. Where is the "fun" in a bag of carrots when everyone else is having cupcakes?
One of the ONLY right over the counter items is pudding (not pre-made) but regular pudding. Other things that are okay but still I have to make are Rice Krispy Treats made with Rice Chex and those painfully easy oatmeal no-bake cookies.
I have come to keep gluten-free cookies in my car just in case - pre-made $6.00 a bag...
I know that it is not her choice to be like this and I am trying very hard to keep it so she can be part of the "normal" world around her. It's just really hard sometimes.

Recipe Challenge

I am on a quest to try out as many recipes as I can to see how they can be modified to be "Carmen Safe". I am doing this to show others that they can modify too - really there are some fun things out there that I have discovered, I just need to test out these things on other people's recipes.
I am no Julia Child but I am innovative and tenacious so by golly I will get-er done.
I need recipes - as many as you can send me and I will do my darn-dest...I will have to make allowances though because on top of Carmen's allergies, she is a PICKY eater - lucky me!

Picking berries

This weekend I have been invited to pick raspberries - AND I have to pick the cherries off of my parent's trees as well. Planning on making raspberry jam, possibly jelly and most definitely cherry syrup. Last weekend we picked a whole lot of black and red currants to yield 34 8oz jars of red currant jelly and 44 8 oz jars of black currant jelly. I am planning on getting the rhubarb processed too.
HOPEFULLY I can get more fireweed to process another batch of the jelly for that too.

Back to School

Last night a back to school picnic at Denali Montessori School I met a lovely lady who has a son with similar allergies as Carmen. She had baked cupcakes to share with people which had no wheat or dyes in them. Hers were the kinnikinnick brand which I have never tried. I almost cried when I spoke with her. It was amazing! There was also another mom there who made brownies which were "Carmen-safe" as well.

I brought no-bake oatmeal drop cookies because I got home too late from work to do anything else. I had a sign up to tell people what was in them and someone else used my tray to display with other "not safe" cookies and treats. I was really upset until I saw the other offerings these lovely women had made for their children.

Also - we had packed a lunch bag for Carmen with her safe food so it all worked out okay but WOW I was so impressed with these other ladies.

Bisquick!!!!

Guess what??? In Betty Crocker's new line of Gluten - Free products they have come up with Gluten Free Pancake Mix!

I was always a HUGE fan of Pamela's items but they are not always easy to find whereas Betty Crocker products are very mainstream. This is indeed exciting!