Lighting the menorah on the last night of Hanukkah.

This year our family chose to celebrate the Biblical Holidays.  We used Robin Sampson’s A Family Guide to the Biblical Holidays.  We found this decision a deeply moving and exciting experience.  I personally  gained so much in my understanding of the Bible, words Jesus said, etc.  I highly recommend devoting a year to celebrate the Biblical Holidays while using the above-mentioned resource.

Last week we finished celebrating Hanukkah.  Other names include Chanukkah, Festival of Lights, and/or the Festival of Dedication.  It is a post-Mosaic holiday celebrating the miracle of the oil.  After the Maccabees were able to drive the Seleucids out, they needed to rededicate the temple.  Antiochus Epiphanes had sacrificed a pig on the altar of the Lord, which of course desecrated the altar.  After rebuilding the altar and cleaning the temple, they could  only find enough oil for one day, but it miraculously lasted for eight.

Our celebration of Hanukkah went like this.  In the evening, we took turns lighting the menorah and reading scriptures.  Each night had a different theme based on our devotional, but they all had to do with light.  On the eighth night, we fried a turkey, fried gluten-free potato latkes, and warmed up some green beans.  Since Hanukkah is about the miracle of oil, we tried to use as much as we could in our dinner. After lighting the menorah and reading our scriptures and devotional the very last night, everyone took turns opening up one small present.

I had to read several recipes to understand how to make potato latkes (aka pancakes).  I ended up combining I don’t know how many recipes while making our latkes.  They were delicious.  Even the next morning, I warmed up the leftovers and served them with eggs.  I will definitely make these again.

Frying up latkes.

Gluten-Free Potato Latkes

4 pounds of potatoes, peeled and grated
1 onion, peeled and grated
3 eggs, beaten
parsley flakes, sea salt, and pepper to taste
1/2 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup potato starch

Grate the potatoes by hand or with a food processor.  I chose the latter.  As you grate them, place the potatoes in a large bowl with cold water to keep them white.

Allow them to sit for at least 10 minutes.  Grate the onion.  In another large bowl, combine the other ingredients.

Grab some grated potatoes and squeeze out all the moisture with your hands.  You can also put them in a clean towel and wring out the water.  Either way mix the dried potatoes with the additional ingredients.  It makes an interesting consistency.  At this point I really wondered if the latkes would turn out.

In a frying pan, heat up your oil.  It should be no more than 1/4″ deep.  Traditionally I understand that olive oil is used, but you can use an oil that you are comfortable with.  Drop a spoonful of the potato mixture into the hot oil.  Gently press the mixture flat.  Wait about 4 minutes and flip carefully.  Cook another 4 minutes or until crispy brown.

Many people serve them with applesauce or sour cream.  We gave each person a dollop of sour cream, but found that everyone preferred these latkes plain.

For a Gentile family, I think we did a great job celebrating Hanukkah.  Not only did we learn a lot, but it was fun.  We really enjoyed Hanukkah as well as all the other Biblical holidays we celebrated during 2010.

Gluten-Free Spritz Cookies

My grandmother used to always make little green tree cookies during December.  It was just one of the many goodies that she made for Christmas.  As a little girl, I had no idea they were called Spritz cookies; I just knew how good they were.

To make them in a decorative shape, you need a cookie press.  They are not the easiest things in the world to operate.  I once was given a battery-operated one, which was very difficult to use.  The dough came out just fine.  It was hard to get the correct sized cookie.  If anyone has some pointers, please share.

This year I purchased a hand-operated one.  It works much easier.  One click and you have a perfectly shaped cookie.  We decided to make two different shapes: a Christmas tree and a wreath.  We thought they would both be pretty green with red sprinkles.

After making four dozen cookies, the cookie press was not working so well.  I don’t know if the dough got too warm or what, but I was getting frustrated.  I stopped trying to use the cookie press.  Instead I make little balls of green dough, and then lightly pressed the tops with the bottom of a glass.  Then we sprinkled them with red sprinkles.  They were pretty.

Andrew is decorating our Christmas tree cookies as part of our assembly line.

Gluten-Free Spritz Cookies

1 1/2 cups of butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
2 cups brown rice flour
2 cups sorghum flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sea salt
2 tsp xantham gum
food coloring (optional)

Cream the butter until fluffy in a large bowl.  Add the sugar, egg, and extracts.  Combine well.  In a bowl, put the flours together along with the salt, baking powder, and xantham gum.  Stir to mix.  Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients.  When mixed together well, drop a few drops of food coloring until it is the desired color.  Again, this last step is completely optional. 

Either form the dough into balls by hand or use your cookie press.  Place cookies on an ungreased cookie sheet.  Cook at 375 degrees for 8 minutes.  Allow to sit on the cookie sheet for about two minutes before removing to a cooling rack.  Makes 7 1/2 dozen cookies.

Last Saturday, I was working in Santa’s workshop.  Yesterday, my children and I had a regular cookie-making assembly line going.  The small boys helped me make the dough.  Kyla and Jake were using the cookie press.  I helped the small boys sprinkle the cookies before baking them.  We had Christmas music in the background. 

It was fun being together working towards a common goal.  We had to take 3 dozen cookies to a 4-H Christmas party that night.  It also made the work seem like fun and the time went by quickly.

My grandmother may have passed away earlier this year, but every time I see the tray of cookies I think of her.  These cookies may be gluten-free, but they don’t taste any different.  They are as good as I remember.

Gluten-free Sausage Cheese Balls

There has never been a better time to be required to eat gluten-free.  The options at the grocery store have increased greatly in just the past five years.  Now even the local Wal-Mart has a gluten-free section, including a great price on my favorite pasta, Tinkyada.

Bisquick has recently released a gluten-free version of its baking mix.  I do not usually purchase or use processed food like Bisquick, but the holidays are drawing near.  I begin making all different kinds of goodies, cakes, pies, and snacks that I don’t make the rest of the year. 

I hold to the 80/20 philosophy, which is that we try to eat extremely healthy homemade goods 80 percent of the time, and don’t sweat the other 20 percent.  The recipe in this article falls in the 20 percent category because the recipe calls for Bisquick baking mix. 

If your family is like mine, you do not eat Thanksgiving dinner at noon.  You eat mid-day around 2-3 p.m.  Around noon, you bring our some snacks to help tide people over for the big feast.  My daughter’s favorite appetizer are sausage cheese balls.  In fact, they are a hit everytime I have ever served them.  These meat balls are very easy to make. 

Sausage Cheese Balls

2 pounds of pan sausage
2 cups of grated sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups gluten-free baking mix

In a large bowl break up the sausage with your hands.  Add the grated cheese and baking mix.  The hardest part of this recipe is combining all three ingredients.  I use a knead-like motion to work the flour and cheese into the sausage.  Form the mixture into 1″ diameter balls and place in a shallow baking dish.  Place in a 350 degree oven for about 20-25 minutes or until cooked through.  Serve them warm.

The Bisquick Gluten-free baking mix worked really well.  I guarantee you that nobody could tell the difference.  These sausage cheese balls will be a hit regardless who eats them.  If you cannot find the gluten-free baking mix, do not worry.  You can make your own gluten-free baking mix and yield good results.

Gluten-free Baking Mix

1 cup brown rice flour
1 cup potato starch
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp sea salt
1/3-1/2 cup shortening

In a small bowl, combine all the flours, baking powder, and salt.  Cut in the shortening until the mixture is coarse.  Use as the 2 cup substitution for a gluten-free baking mix.

The above recipe requires a little more time than simply opening a box, but it is not time-consuming.  During the holidays, I am looking for all kinds of time saving techniques, which is why I will buy the store-bought version this season.  Check it out in your local grocery store.

Last year I posted a pumpkin puree recipe that I use often in the article, “Pumpkins.”  It is a simple recipe to follow, which is what drew me to it.  Sometimes the puree is too watery, especially compared to the store-bought canned pumpkin.  It is no big deal; I just have to adjust the amount of liquid in my recipes.

Another more popular way to make homemade pumpkin puree is to roast the pumpkin.  It gives the puree a slightly different flavor and color.  Choosing a smaller pumpkin is easier to handle.  When I have used larger pumpkins like the one in the photo, I have not noticed a difference in texture or flavor.  There is just a lot more pumpkin.

Remove the stem and cut the pumpkin into large chunks.  Clean out the innards.  You can save the seeds to dry and roast later, throw them out to your chickens, or throw them away.  Place the cleaned chunks on a baking sheet.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Allow the pumpkin to cook for about 45 minutes until the flesh of the vegetable is tender.  Allow them to cool down.  You have to peel the skin off and you don’t want burned fingers.  The peel is usually very easy to remove at this point.  Dispose of the skin.

In a food processor, puree the roasted pumpkin.  Place in a cheesecloth and allow the liquid to drain if you think the puree is too watery.

At this point, use the fresh puree or freeze it.  I freeze mine in 2 cup amounts since that is what most recipes call for.  If you know that you are making pumpkin pie, you can go ahead and add the spices to your puree.   This helps save you time later in the midst of making 15 different pies during the holidays.

I add: 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp ginger, and 1/8 tsp of cloves (all ground of course) to2 cups of puree.  Make sure you label your puree, “Pumpkin Pie Filling.”  Then you will just have to add the sugar, eggs, and milk to make the pie later.

Regardless which recipe you use to make homemade pumpkin puree, both will make delicious goodies.  I always feel great knowing that I made it from scratch.  I find it rewarding.

We have now entered the month of Tishri, which has three Biblical holidays.  It is the seventh month in the religious calendar, and the first month of the civil calendar.  This week we celebrated Rosh Hashanah, also known as the Feast of Trumpets.  It was a fun holiday to celebrate.  Rosh Hashanah is the New Year, as such it is a very festive occasion.

I am positive that we celebrated Rosh Hashanah differently than everyone else in the world.  We did it in our own way.  In addition to particular Bible readings and sounding a trumpet, we made Happy New Year cards for everyone in our family wishing them a sweet year to come.  Our family created a menu that we considered festive.  We had beef and chicken fajitas with all the fixings.

One of the traditional foods to eat is apples dipped in honey.  The point is to look forward to the sweetness of a new year.  Kyla suggested that we dip apples into caramel instead of honey.  Everyone agreed that that was a great idea.

So we embarked on our first cajeta making journey.  Cajeta is also called dulce de leche.  It is a caramel sauce made from goat milk.  And let me tell you, it is delicious!

Set yourself up with a cool drink, a book, and a high bar stool or very comfortable shoes because you will be stirring the pot for about 1 1/2 hours.  This I realized 30 minutes into the project.

Cajeta or Dulce de Leche

1 1/2 quarts of goat milk
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1/8 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)

In 1 cup of milk, dissolve the cornstarch and baking soda removing all lumps.  In a large pot because the mixture foams and boils as it cooks, combine the rest of the milk and sugar.  Add the cup of milk with the cornstarch and baking soda to the pot.

Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn down the heat.  You want the mixture boiling gently while you cook it.  Stir constantly.

About an hour later, the mixture will begin changing color to a creamy beige.  Continue to stir as it thickens.  When you like the consistency of the caramel sauce, remove from heat.  Stir in the vanilla and cinnamon.  Pour into jars.  Cool and refrigerate.

At this point, you can put it in a hot water bath for 20 minutes leaving a 1/2″ head space.  Otherwise it should keep in your refrigerator for 1-2 weeks if you can keep from eating it all.  My cajeta did not look like the caramel sauce you buy in the store; it was much paler in color.

We dipped our apple slices in it.  We drizzled it on banana slices.  We topped our homemade ice cream.  It is even good all by itself.

The beauty of the recipe is that you can change the flavors easily.  Instead of cinnamon and/or vanilla, use your favorite flavors.  Omit the cinnamon completely or allow a cinnamon stick to float in the mixture as it boils removing it before the sauce becomes too thick.

Making dulce de leche was a sweet addition to our home-schooling experience this week.  Since we are gearing up for fall, making this tasty treat goes well with this fun season.  It also could easily be made into gifts with a decorative jar and a little ribbon.

A two-layer gluten-free chocolate cake.

Processed foods are not ideal, but I do rely on them in a pinch.  One of the items I almost always have on hand is Bob’s Red Mill Chocolate Brownie Mix.  It is delicious and gluten-free.

You never know when someone might drop by or when you might need to bring a dessert somewhere without much notice.  Making this brownie mix is very simple.  Kyla has been making it on her own for years now.  And, Isaac is truly able to help make it.

You can eat it plain, ice it with chocolate frosting, or add chocolate chips or nuts to the mix.  Our family’s favorite way to make it is with chocolate chips and chocolate icing.  We love chocolate!

We use this mix for birthday cakes, too.  It is super simple and so tasty.  My dad, who has no food allergies, tells me every time he eats a piece of this chocolate cake that it is the best he has ever had.  This means a lot coming from him because he is quite a food connoisseur.  So, don’t be afraid to serve this cake to anyone.

Isaac came to me the other day and asked, “Mommy, can I make a treat with you?”  It is hard to say no to this cute three-year old with large blue eyes.  So, I looked in the pantry to see what ingredients I had.  He saw the brownie mix first.

When I went to grease a 13 x 9 inch pan, I realized that I had used all of mine while freezer cooking.  They were filled with delicious dinners in the freezer.  I began pulling out all of my other options from my cabinets.  I settled on two 8″ round cake pans.

I greased them and split the cake batter between the two pans.  I carefully monitored the time I baked them because I did not want them to overcook.  It took 5 minutes less time than the directions on the mix stated because of the smaller pans.

I allowed them to cool for 5 minutes and then I removed them from the pans onto a cooling rack.  When the cakes were completely cool.  I placed one layer on a pretty cake platter and iced it.  Then I placed the other layer on top and completely iced the cake.  It looked really pretty.

It tastes as good as it looks.

My family got excited about having chocolate cake for dessert.  Isaac was proud of his cake, too.  They immediately knew when they put a piece in their mouth that it was the brownie mix, but a smile crossed their lips as they enjoyed every chocolatey morsel.

If my children request the brownie cake for their birthday, I will certainly make it in this fashion because it just looks more special than sitting flat in a 13 x 9 inch pan.  I was happy to find more versatility in this great gluten-free brownie mix.  Bob’s Red Mill Brownie Mix takes the cake, whether it is one or two layers.