Indian Rice Pudding (Kheer)

Gluten Free Indian Rice Pudding (Kheer)

This rice pudding features coconut milk, basmatti rice and cardamom. You can get kheer in most indian restaurants. Many recipes just use regular milk, but I love coconut milk and it really compliments the cardamom spice. I buy cardamom pods from the bulk barn. It can be pretty expensive, so it's nice to be able to buy just a little bit at a time. You can also use cardamom powder instead of the pods. If you like a strong cardamom flavour, open the pods and crush the tiny seeds before adding them.

with toasted almonds and coconut

Another traditional spice in kheer is saffron. I don't usually have that on hand, but if you do you can add a few threads during cooking. Top the pudding with chopped pistachios, toasted almond slivers or toasted coconut (or all three!). You can also just serve it as is.

Kheer can be served warm or chilled. It thickens up a bit more when it's chilled. If you like a more runny consistency, you can add extra milk. It's a great dessert to go with butter chicken or any other Indian dish.

I like raisins in my pudding, but you can easily make it without.


makes 3 servings (can easily be doubled)
Ingredients

1/4 cup uncooked Basmatti Rice
1 1/4 cups Milk (I use 1% but 2% or whole would make it richer and creamier)
3/4 cup coconut milk (half a can) (I use the coconut milk with the higher fat content)
3 Tbsp Sugar
6 Cardamom Pods (or 1/2 tsp ground cardamom)
3 Tbsp Raisins (optional)
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract (optional)
2-3 Tbsp Chopped, Toasted Pistachios, Almonds or Shredded Coconut

Directions

Combine rice, milk, coconut milk, cardamom and raisins in a sauce pan.
Bring to a low boil on medium heat (stirring often)
Turn down to medium-low and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, until rice is cooked and pudding has thickened (about 20-25 minutes).
To let the cardamom flavour infuse the milk, gently squish each pod with a wooden spoon once the pods have softened a bit. You don't really want all the little seeds to fall out but you want the milk to pull a lot of the flavour out.
Stir in sugar and vanilla until incorporated.
Serve warm or cool in refrigerator for a few hours. (Remove cardamom pods before serving)
Garnish with toasted pistachios, almonds or coconut.

combine rice, cardamom and milks in a saucepan

 

boil then simmer until thickened (20-25 minutes)

 

serve warm or chilled with garnish of your choice

Hot Multigrain Cereal

Gluten Free Hot Multigrain Cereal

Before I had Celiac Disease, I really enjoyed having cream of wheat cereal for breakfast. I was missing it the other day and realized I could probably do something similar with rice. I was afraid that cream of rice would seem too much like baby food, so I thought I could add some other healthy, whole grains to the mix. You could probably use any grain (or seed) you want, but my favourite combination is millet, quinoa and brown rice. I also like buckwheat when I have it on hand.

with milk and brown sugar

I use my coffee grinder to grind the grains, but you could probably just as easily use a food processor. As long as the grains are ground quite fine, this would probably work great as a baby cereal too.
Top with milk and brown sugar or honey, nuts and raisins, or whatever sounds good to you.

Makes about 6 servings
Ingredients

1/2 cup Millet
1/2 cup Quinoa
1/2 cup Brown Rice

Directions

In batches, grind the grains until quite fine (not as fine as flour but not big chunks). Use a clean coffee grinder or food processor.
You can use a fine mesh strainer to remove any large chunks.
Combine in an airtight container and store for 1-2 months.

store in airtight container

To Make

Stove top (1 serving)

Bring 1 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan.
Whisk in 1/4 cup dry cereal.
Turn down to med-low and continue to stir often for 5-7 minutes, or until desired consistency is reached.

Microwave (1 serving)

In microwave safe bowl, combine 1 cup water with 1/4 cup dry cereal.
Microwave 1 minute, stir well, smoothing out any lumps. Microwave 45 seconds, stir. Continue microwaving in 20-30 second intervals, stirring often, until cereal has reached desired consistency.

1/4 cup dry cereal

 

whisk into 1 cup boiling water, turn down heat, and cook 5-7 minutes

 

serve with milk and brown sugar

Santa Fe Chicken Casserole



Gluten Free Santa Fe Chicke Casserole

I love the Tex Mex flavours in this recipe. It's a great use for left over rotisserie chicken, but works well with raw chicken too. You can customise the add ins to suit your family's tastes (red/green peppers, corn, jalapenos, cilantro, green onion, etc).

I also love that it's a one dish meal that can be prepared ahead of time and thrown in the oven just in time for dinner (you could probably even freeze it - before or after baking - for a rainy day) Just pair it with a salad or other easy veggie side dish!

The leftovers make a great take along lunch.

serves 4-6
Ingredients

1 cup shredded cooked chicken (or 1-2 raw chicken breasts thinly sliced)
1 cup frozen or canned corn
1/2 cup chopped bell peppers (more or less as desired)
1 can black beans rinsed
1 can GF mushroom soup or cream of chicken soup (I use "no name" low fat)
1 can milk (use empty mushroom soup can to measure)
1/2 cup salsa
3/4 cup dry white rice
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup grated cheese (preferably low fat)
2 Tbsp sour cream
1/3 cup chopped cilantro (optional)
1 Tbsp Chili Powder (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350.
In 9x13 baking dish, stir together shredded chicken (not raw), corn, peppers, beans, soup, milk, salsa, rice, spices, sour cream and cilantro.
If using raw chicken breast, lay slices on top of the mixture so that they cover most of the surface.
Sprinkle grated cheese on top.
Bake for 45 mins to 1 hr (until most of the liquid is absorbed and cheese is bubbly - if cheese gets too dark, cover with aluminium foil)

combine ingredients in 9x13 pan and sprinkle with cheese

bake at 350 for 45 mins - 1 hr

 

 

Easy Chicken Broccoli Casserole

This is a quick and easy casserole dish that is great for using up leftovers. I love having this no-fuss recipe on hand for those hectic days. Simply combine all ingredients in a baking dish and cook for about an hour. You can even assemble it a day or two ahead and keep it in the fridge if you are anticipation a particularly busy day. Simply toss it in the oven an hour before supper.

I often cook one of those whole frying chickens for dinner (usually in the slow cooker) and since it's only my husband and I, we always have leftovers. This is a great way to use up leftover chicken, or you could even use other leftover meats such as pork or beef. For a vegetarian side dish you can omit the meat. This casserole will serve about 3 people if that's all you're making, but if you pair it with other side dishes, it will go much further. You can also easily double this recipe and cook in a 9x13 pan.

(makes 3-4 servings 9x9 pan)

Ingredients

1-1 1/2 cup cooked chicken chopped
1-1 1/2 cup broccoli chopped into small pieces
1 can gf cream of mushroom soup (for some brands, low fat cans are gf when the regular cans have wheat)
1 1/3 can of milk (measure in mushroom soup can)
3/4 cup uncooked rice
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp basil
2 Tbsp parmesan cheese (optional)

you can add other veggies (celery, onion) or a different kind of meat if desired

Directions

Combine all ingredients in a 9x9 baking dish (in the pictures I used a dish that a different shape but roughly equivalent in size).
Stir ingredients together and cover in foil.
Bake at 375 F for roughly 1 hour (until rice is cooked).

Dry ingredients

All ingredients, uncooked

Casserole baked

Super Easy!