Super Bowl Snack Foods, GF style

For Super Bowl Sunday, Shayla really wanted to have a party.  Well, maybe not really a party, but she definitely wanted to have people over.  So to support this since I have no interest in football, I threw myself into cooking.  There was a lot that I wanted to eat, but I knew that I had to find a way to eat what I could without getting sicky.  In the end we decided on chicken strips and pizza, two things that everyone loves.  Of course, I didn't want to take the hassle of finding another GF flour recipe to try out, so I went with a mix.

This time it was Glutino's French Bread and Pizza Mix.  All in all, it wasn't that bad.  It was really weird to mix it up - it stayed very fluffy, even after rising.  The consistency was almost like a whipped frosting, but I followed the directions and spread it onto the cookie sheet (with a lot of struggle to get it to stay in a pizza-like form).  I used spaghetti sauce as my base, then added sausage, corn, and black olives.  I was badbadbad and used a tiny bit of cheese on top, then baked it all according to the directions.  It turned out surprisingly well!  The crust ended up fluffy, more like a semi-dense bread than a nice chewy pizza crust.  But the taste, that's where it got me.  There was no weird taste to it at all!  It was a nice, neutral flavor.  The only downside was that there was so much dough - the one package was enough to make two pizzas.  Since it was a french bread recipe, I split the difference and made a small loaf of french bread with the rest!

I really liked the way the bread turned out.  It cooked up very evenly, and has a nice texture.  I used it to make a sandwich the other day and it was almost as good as the real thing!  I think this bread would make a wonderful french toast, it's dense enough to hold up to the eggs.


The other thing that I made for the party, and Shayla helped me with, was some baked chicken strips.  It's weird the little things that you take for granted, and I miss chicken nuggets.  Now, this wasn't nearly the same, but it was good.  Fills that comfort food spot just right :)

Chicken Strips
1 lb chicken tenders
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 Tablespoon Lawry's
3 eggs, beaten
2 cups rice cereal, crunched up

In separate bowls, put cornstarch and Lawry's, eggs, and the rice cereal.  Coat the chicken with the cornstarch mix, then the egg, and finally run it through the cereal.  Put each finished piece on a baking sheet.  When full, bake on 350 for about 20 minutes, depending on the size of your chicken pieces.  Enjoy with your favorite sauce!  I used a creamy sweet onion dressing with mine :3


And that was my GF Super Bowl Party menu.  It wasn't fancy, but it did the trick.  Who needs fancy anyways - I'm just learning right now, so this is good enough for me.

Learning to bake, for real. And a sandwich.

I'm not much of a baker.  I can handle cookies and cakes with no problems, but when it comes to yeast and kneading and real baking, I have no skill.  I have tried before, when I was younger.  All of the yeast rolls I made turned out hard, or they tasted weird, or something else just as bad.  I think I forgot this when I decided that i wanted to start out on the quest to remake everything that I love.

So, I have come to a conclusion.

I need to master the art of baking with real flour before I can move forward.  I need to learn about baking theory, and practice with methods that have been known to work for years.  I know that this isn't going to be gluten-free for a while, but it's something that seems necessary to do before I leap into trying to make gluten-free croissants again.

This week I made a braided sandwich.  For those of you out there that is wondering what this is, it's only the most delicious thing ever.  And of course I can't eat it lol.  But it was something to make to help me practice my kneading skills, something that I am completely lacking in.  That, and the boys loved it at poker night!

Braided Sandwiches
1/2lb ham
4 thick slices cheddar
Mustard
1 box Hot Roll mix

Mix up Hot Roll mix according to the package.  Knead for FOREVER.  Or about ten minutes.  Let rise about ten minutes, and cut in half.  Roll out the dough into a rectangle until about 1/2 inch thick.  Add half of your meat, cheese, and condiments to center of dough, leaving about two inches all around (all fillings can be changed according to what you want).  Cut the edges on the long sides of the dough about an inch in.  I usually do about 12 per side.  Fold up the short ends until they are touching and covering all the filling, then braid the cut ends together.  Repeat for the second half of the dough.  Bake according to the directions on the box, about 20 minutes.  Let cool for at least ten minutes so the cheese can settle, then cut and enjoy!


I really want to find a way to make this so that I can eat it, but I know that I need to take time.  Until then, I just have to keep experimenting and learning through trial and error.