Skillet enchiladas

Tonight was one of those "the kids are starving now and I don't know what we're having for dinner" kind of nights. And I was supposed to go grocery shopping this morning, but didn't, so our choices were rather limited, so I improvised, and it turned out surprisingly tasty. It only took about 5 minutes which was a bonus. We are totally having this meal again.

I didn't measure anything, just scooped/poured until it looked good. 

Skillet Enchiladas

Canned chicken (large can)

mayonnaise-probably a cup-ish--several large spoonfuls

salsa

green chilies (small can)

cumin-a couple shakes sprinkled on

I just put everything in the skillet and let it simmer for a few minutes.

Serve on tortilla chips and enjoy!

Or add some cheese if you're not my husband (who is doing the dairy-free thing now), and enjoy!

Caramels

If you're looking for more tasty candy recipes, here's another REALLY easy one. Just don't think about how much fat and sugar you're putting in. Or give away most of them, and the ones you eat get cancelled out by your generosity. :)

Caramels:
1 can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk (use the can for measuring the other ingredients)
2 sticks of butter
1 can Karo syrup
1 can sugar
1 can brown sugar
Combine all ingredients in a saucepan that's big enough for the liquid to more than double when it's boiling and cook on high heat, stirring constantly until it reaches soft ball stage. That means stir for a long time. Pull out your favorite Christmas book to read while you stir. To test for soft ball stage, fill a cup about halfway with cold water and put a little of the caramel into the cup. When you can pull it out in a nice soft ball that is as soft or hard as you like your caramels, turn off the stove. Pour the mixture into an ungreased cake pan and let cool. Cut into pieces and wrap with wax paper. I've found that a pizza cutter can work pretty well.

One batch can make 150+ caramels. It goes a long way. Enjoy!

Candied Pecans

'Tis the season to be baking. Fa la la la la, la la la la.

But as you will hear from many sources, if you're giving away food to non GF-ers, GF cookies or cake probably aren't the best options because the will taste "weird" to untrained taste buds. So stick with candy and other junk food that is naturally gluten-free. :)

This is the tastiest treat EVER! Candied pecans. And so easy to make.

Recipe:
2 lbs pecans
Whisk together 2 egg whites, 6 tsp (good) vanilla, 2 tsp water.
Put nuts in a BIG Ziploc and add the liquid, smoosh around. (Yes, that's the technical term)
Mix together in a bowl: 2 cups sugar, 4 tsp cinnamon, 2 tsp salt.
Dump this in the bag and smoosh around some more until they look coated. Put on a sheet cake pan and bake at 300 for an hour stirring every 15 minutes or so.

It will fill your home with a delicious aroma, and tastes just as good. I packaged them into little baggies to give to some friends and neighbors on goody plates along with some fudge and caramels.

Hope you enjoy them as much as my family does!!

Santa Fe Chicken

Santa Fe Chicken is one of my all time favorite meals because 1. it's so easy, and 2. it's SO delicious.

In a crockpot combine:
2ish pounds of chicken (cut into bite-size pieces or not)
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
a 16 oz can of salsa (Herdez is our favorite)
1 or 2 cups of frozen corn

Cook on low 6-8 hours or on high 3-4 hours. The longer you cook, the less you need bite-size pieces to begin with. I like to just let it cook until the chicken is so tender you can shred it real easy with a fork.

Add 1 cup shredded cheese and half up to a whole package of cream cheese depending on taste. Cook for another 1/2 hour up to an hour, then serve over rice, or in a tortilla.

 

Frito Pie

This is so ridiculously easy it doesn't deserve to be on a recipe blog, since I actually didn't make anything, but hey, if someone's looking for a quick and easy dinner, here you go!

Frito Pie:

Fritos 

Canned chili (regular Hormel chili is GF--I know Hormel turkey chili is NOT. I'm sure there're others to choose from)

Sour cream

Cheese

Pile it up, and enjoy!

Cinnamon Rolls

I'm not real big on baking goodies. Mostly because I'm not all that big on eating them. I'll eat them and enjoy them when they're available, but I tire quickly and can't handle too much sugar, and usually half the batch will end up going stale before our family finishes eating it. That, or my 3-year-old will throw a fit every time I tell her she can only have one and it's not really worth it to have treats that inspire tantrums.

But twice a year for General Conference I make cinnamon rolls. Sweet treats to enjoy the sweet messages from the prophet and apostles. :) And this gluten-free version is pretty much the tastiest, fluffiest batch of cinnamon rolls I've ever had, with or without gluten. I originally found the recipe here, but the process I've simplified a little.

CINNAMON ROLLS
2 tablespoons shortening

1/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup of milk, room temperature
1 packet yeast
1 egg
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup potato starch
1 cup corn starch
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
TO SPRINKLE ON BOARD COVERED WITH PLASTIC WRAP OR PARCHMENT PAPER
1 - 2 tablespoons sugar

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In medium bowl, combine shortening and sugar. Mix well. Measure warm milk and add yeast to milk. Whisk well to fully dissolve. Add milk/yeast to sugar mixture. Add remaining ingredients. Mix very well, being sure to remove all lumps. Dough will be quite soft--so soft it almost looks like liquid, still, but if you keep mixing it'll get a little more solid, though still really soft (soft enough that it doesn't really look like dough and you'll think that you messed up).

Lay out either a 15 inch square of parchment paper or plastic wrap. I like parchment paper better. Squish it out into a roughly square shape, then put plastic wrap on top and roll out until it's about 13-15 inches square.

FILLING (I actually use about half this much)
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons cinnamon
1/3 cup chopped nuts - optional

Spread the filling over the dough, leaving a little room at the edge as it spreads when you roll it up.

Roll the dough into a nice long roll.

Cut into pieces about 1 1/2 inches wide. I use dental floss to cut it without squishing it like a knife does. You can get about 8 or 9 rolls out of this.

Put in a round cake pan and either cook it or stick it in the fridge to cook in the morning.

Cook at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes.  If you keep it in the fridge over night take it out and let it warm up closer to room temperature before cooking it. After cooking spread the glaze over the top.

GLAZE
¾ cup powdered or confectionery sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
milk to thicken

These are the fluffiest cinnamon rolls, probably because they are made only of starch. Not so big on nutrition, but they sure taste good!

Cowboy pasta

This one is always pretty quick and easy and is a nice spin on the traditional pasta dish. 

Cowboy Pasta

GF Pasta

chopped onion

green pepper

chili powder

black beans

corn

salsa

tomato sauce

Saute onion, pepper and chili powder. Add equal parts salsa and tomato sauce, beans, and corn. Simmer.

Toss with pasta and top with shredded cheese.

Sometimes I'll throw in a little cooked chicken, too, but most of the time we leave it as a meatless meal, since it's pretty hearty as is.

It's always a hit here! Enjoy!