Tomato and Goat Cheese Petal Pizza

So how are you enjoying these fabulous Gluten Free Sandwich Petals. I have a recipe for you today again using these sandwich petals which is a great appetizer. This is a quick and easy recipe that you can make when you have a friend or two pop over for cocktails. I just did that with some friends to celebrate my Neighbor’s  Birthday. They were quick easy and fabulous.

Tomato and Goat Cheese Petal Pizza

Sandwich Petals you choose the flavor you like

Herbed Goat Cheese

sliced mini tomatoes

Spread Goat Cheese on Petal I used Spinach Flavor Slice tomatoes and place on top

Place in convection oven for 10 minutes oven

Slice and Serve Immediately.

Enjoy  Bon Appetit

Sheila Fretz

Chicken Spinach Enchiladas in a Green Sauce + Its My 1st Birthday

A couple years ago one of my favorite friend's  OneFabulousMom suggested I start a blog focusing on cooking. It  was the fall of 2009 I was  off to Europe for six weeks and I seriously thought about starting Cooking Underwriter  while gone. Taking in all of the fabulous foods architecture and thinking about food while I was away. Then I thought  how can  I share my recipes with the world without spending a lot of money. The economy was starting to tank and at the time I was working for one of the financial giants out there. Soon after coming back from Europe I realized that I really needed to share my recipes with the world.

So the concept for Cooking Underwriter was born. However, I would need to get my blog built in the way I wanted it to look and feel.  I wanted to make sure that before I put myself out there; I built exactly what  I wanted. I hummed and hard trying to find the best 1st post I could possibly think of in order to get traffic. At the time my family really had no cooking restrictions. Not  being not one to jump feet first it took me 8 months to actually have the guts to put my first post up. To be honest, One Fabulous Mom bullied me into starting this blog! That was on August 16th, 2011

Then after sharing a bunch of regular recipes; we found out that my daughter had a gluten allergy. So eventually Cooking Underwriter became a Gluten Free Recipe website. We have grown a lot over the last year reaching over 20,000 hits! In addition I have all of this fabulous following and I want to share these giveaways with you my readers as a Thank You!!!!!

In honor of my First Blog Anniversary I will be doing a giveaway a week to my readers from a variety of Companies. In NO particular order we will be having giveaways from Calphalon, Cutopia, All Clad and this week Sandwich Petals a fabulous Gluten Free Sandwich Product.  Plus as usual I will be showcasing there products and let you know how you to can win the giveaway of the week. Click here to enter this weeks giveaway

Now on to the recipe.

Chicken Spinach Enchiladas in a Green Sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Chicken Spinach Enchiladas in a Green Sauce Ingredients

1 pound chicken Tenders cut in cubes for quick cooking

2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil

1 Tablespoon of Taco Seasoning

4 cups of Cheddar Cheese Shredded (2 cups for filling + 2 cups for Garnish)

2 cups of green onions chopped (1 ½ for filling + ½ cup for garnish)

2 packages 12 oz chopped spinach

2 packages of Sandwich Petals we used both Spinach and Chimayo Red Chili

2 19 oz cans of Green Chili Mild Enchilada Sauce by La Victoria.

1 small can sliced olives

Cooking spray

Equipment

Large Bowl

Strainer

Cheese Cloth

1 9 x13 pan

Sheet of Aluminum foil

Cut and Cube Chicken in Frying Pan in Olive Oil Sprinkle Taco Seasoning on Top while cooking. Cook thoroughly.

Shred Cheese

While you are cooking Chicken Microwave 2 bags of Frozen Chopped Spinach Spinach for 5 min.

After Chicken is cooked Chop again

Do not overcook Spinach  because you will need to ring out the spinach in Cheese Cloth if its to hot you will burn yourself. Place cheesecloth in strainer then take cooked spinach an put in cheese cloth

Wring out the spinach like this.

Next after all water is out place in bowl with 2 cups of Cheese, 1 ½ cups onions and 1/1/2 cups of  of green chili enchilada sauce. Mix thoroughly together.

Now its time to heat up the sandwich petals so we can role. Now you must be patient and kind to these Sandwich petals. Do not heat up to many at a time. I find you can heat up to 4 maximum at a time. You must layer WET paper towels between petals, and when I say WET, I mean Wet paper towels in-between an cover with WET paper towels  and microwave for 45 seconds.

Next Spray a 9" x 13" pan and put last of can in bottom of pan

Take moist Sandwich Petal and place about a 1/4 cup filling in and roll.

Place rolled and Filled Sandwich Petals and repeat until completed.

If any break cover with Cheese because it will work like glue.

Next poor Sauce on top and cover rolled Enchiladas then

Garnish with Sliced olives

Bake covered for 45 minutes

then uncovered for 10 minutes.

Let sit for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Serve with Sour Cream and Salsa if you like or just eat on there own

Banana bread french toast

I love banana bread and I love to make it just to make the house smell good. Especially when the locations agent is coming to view my home for a commercial or a feature film or even a television show. Oliver Stone refers to my house as the banana bread house. Well the last couple of weeks we have had quiet a bit of locations agents looking at my home for jobs. Well because of this I have 4 loafs in my freezer so its time to make banana bread french toast.

Ingredients:

1 egg

1 loaf of Banana bread Sliced

1/2 cup Vanilla Coffee Mate

1/2 Cup Milk

1 Teaspoon Cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon All Spice

1 teaspoon Butter for Gridle

Equipment:

1 Large Bowl

1 Whisk

A frying Pan or a grill

This is quick and easy and not super hard or fancy. Make Banana bread then slice in half inch slices.

Take one egg crack in Large Bowl and whisk until well blended add Coffee Mate and Milk plus Cinnamon and Allspice. Whisk together until well Blended

Next dip bread in egg mixture flipping being careful not to break. Heat frying pan or griddle add butter so will not stick .Cook until golden on low then flip.

TIP OF THE DAY: Make sure Eggs are completely cooked through! Do to salmonella being in the news I really want to stress that you need to make sure that your eggs are completely cooked!!! I like to put my french toast inside the oven after I cook it for 20 minutes at 250 degrees. This way my bacon or sausage is hot when I serve and my fruit is freshly cut.

Serve w/ bananas and fresh fruit

Ginger Tamari Beef Brisket

So a couple of weeks ago I was Inspired by the Homesick Texans recipe for Brisket.  She captivated me by her words of wisdom.  I also thought to myself I like a good brisket but I need to make it my own so I quickly focused on what’s in my kitchen and started to create a Brisket of my own.  I love to be inspired this way because when you make it your own at the same time you are paying homage to the person who created it but you have created your own recipe.

Beef Brisket Ingredients

1 (5 pound ) beef brisket with Fat on top

½ cup of Rudy’s Rub 

2 Large Onions Sliced Thinly

Ginger Tamari Marinade

Ginger Tamari Marinade Ingredients

2 teaspoons salt

2teaspoons pepper

2 Tablespoons Crushed Ginger

8 cloves of Crushed Garlic

½  cup Tamari sauce

2 Tablespoons  Worcestershire sauce gluten free

½  cup liquid smoke plus an additional.

½  cup coffee left over from mornings pot of coffee

½  cup apple cider vinegar

Equipment:

1 Dutch Oven I used my Calphalon Dutch Oven its large enough and it keeps all the moisture in so the meat and the oven can do their magic together.

Directions:

Take meat out of packaging and season with Rudy’s Rub on both sides and Marinate in Dry Rub for 24 hours.

Next Day pull out of Refrigerator and bring to room temperature this could take up to three hours to do depending on size of meat. and Place Sliced onions on top while coming to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 250 degrees

In a large measuring cup Make Ginger Tamari Marinade add Salt, Pepper, Crushed Ginger,  Crushed Garlic,  Tamari sauce,  Worcestershire sauce gluten free, liquid smoke, coffee and  apple cider vinegar. Whisk Together.

In Your Dutch oven Place your meat Fat side up.

Poor Marinate over meat. Place in oven at 250 degrees and cook with lid on, in Dutch Oven an hour per pound!

 DO NOT REMOVE LID OR OPEN AT ANYTIME DURING THIS PROCESS.

Cook for 5 hours, That’s right 5 hours! I served it warm  with  Potato Salad and Cream Corn My oh My What a fabulous Meal.

Enjoy and Bon Appetit

Sheila Fretz

Banana Pancakes

On a warm Summer Weekend  I love to get up early and make a pot of coffee and then look to see what’s available in my kitchen. Miss J has been requesting Banana Pancakes for quiet some time. So I decided that I would make Banana Pancakes with Sausage and some fresh fruit. I like to use Bisquick Gluten Free when I make this because its very flavorful and you don’t taste the Xanthium gum as you do in some pancake mixes out there.

Banana Pancake Ingredients:

4 Bananas the browner the better

1 cup of Milk

1 egg

3 tablespoons of Butter Melted

1 1/3 cup of Bisquick Gluten Free

1 teaspoon butter for griddle

Equipment

Griddle or Frying Pan

1 teaspoon butter for griddle

Spatula

Take 4 Bananas and beat with Hand mixer until mushy do not over beat!

Add in Milk and Eggs beat again until blended

Add in Melted Butter blend quickly

Last add in 1 1/3 cup of Bisquick mix thoroughly

Butter Griddle or Frying pan

take 1/3 cup measuring cup scoop up batter and place on heated grill

Leave on griddle until golden then flip there will not be a lot of bubbles like traditional pancakes.

Serve with either Sausage or Bacon and fresh fruit.

Enjoy and Bon Appetit!

Sheila Fretz

A Cake made out of Cupcakes

Do you ever wonder how you make a cupcake cake? Well that was just my job the last week of school. Miss J had to do a report on the 1st dinosaur ever and she signed up to make a cake. Well at Miss J’s school that means you bring everything from the serving piece to the sharp knife plus all of the plates napkins and forks for 35 kids plus two teachers. Now I do not mind bringing all of that however.  I do want my stuff back! That’s the part that I am never sure I am going to get to happen. So my answer to this problem is sending cupcakes and Ice like a cake.

I baked Gluten Free Cupcakes by Betty Crocker but instead of adding the oil or butter I always substitute with apple sauce. This way they are really moist and it was really cute a lot of the Moms know I love to bake and cook and they thought I made from scratch and a couple moms came to me for the recipe when I explained it was Betty Crocker Gluten Free they were quiet surprised.

Take cupcakes and arrange in six rows of seven cupcakes each.

Fill up a 16" icing bag with icing.

Next use Tip 789 By Wilton it is a basket weaving tip but it really gets everything together.

Make stripes of icing over cupcakes first going vertical

Next Ice Horizontal then smooth all out.

Now its time to decorate. I find easiest way is to photo copy a picture in book then cut around picture of shape.

Next place on cake then outline with toothpick,

then outline toothpick with colored icing.  I used a pre purchased Wilton Icing.

Last we filled in picture with sugar crystals.

This was  such a fun project to do with Miss J.  I hope you enjoy decorating a cake with your kids as much as we do.

Enjoy

Sheila Fretz

Strawberry Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Sandwiches

The Other Day I went to our local Gluten Free Store who shall remain nameless and I noticed a lot of the items were not priced and I could not figure out how much an Ice cream Sandwich cost. However, I thought to myself it cant cost that much. So I agreed to buy one for Miss J. Well after I checked out and had a $65.00 bill and I only purchased 11 items I looked at the receipt and saw $7.00 for that ONE Ice Cream sandwich. I thought to myself I am going to have to make these more often.

So yesterday we were invited to one of Miss J’s classmates for a play date and I offered to bring Ice cream sandwiches. So I quickly text the little girls mother and she said any flavor would be good. I suggested a Strawberry Chocolate Chip cookie with Strawberry Ice cream. I used the recipe Raspberry swirl Oat Meal Cookies with Strawberry Fruit Spread instead and only added the semi sweet Chocolate chips.

 Bake and Make Cookies according to Directions

Let Completely Cool

Take Cookies Match them up to size.

Tip of the day when I bake them I use a cookie scoop so there all the same size. This helps when your matching up.

Scoop Ice cream on One Side

Then Cover with Matching cookie.

Wrap in Plastic Wrap

Place in  freezer for 4 to 6 hours depending on your freezer.

Unwrap and Serve

Enjoy and Bon Appetit

Sheila Fretz