Produce of the Week - Peaches

March is not exactly peach season in the North East, but they have been a current food obsession of mine.  With all the meds currently in my system my taste buds are very funky (even what I can eat is limited) so I am in constant search for appealing and appetizing foods.   
Peaches and nectarines are in my top 10 this week.

So I went in search of some new recipes to try:

I love salsa and with peach added it has a lovely sweet zing:
Peach Salsa  




I think we will make this for dinner tonight:
Peach caprese grilled chicken


My mouth was watering when I found this selection on pinterest, I intend to work my way through these salads:
Peach and Avocado salad

Another chicken entree that will make it into rotation:
Balsamic peach chicken skillet

I'll be back to share my thoughts and reviews as I try these recipes. If you have any favorite peach recipes to share please let me know in the comments below! I would love to try them.

You can find more of my art in my Etsy shop Erin Go Paint.
Or check out my daily illustrations on Instagram

Lemon Bars - gluten free dessert

 Earlier this year family we had family in town to see a Community Theater performance that my daughter was in. They came to the house for pre-show dinner, and my niece made lemon bars.

Now my daughter loves all things lemon.... Ices, sherbert, ice cream, cookies, pie, pudding, you name it - if it's a sweet treat and it has lemon, she is all over it.  She was so into the lemon bars I was afraid she would miss her curtain call. But, we jumped in the car in the nick of time, with lemon bar number 3 tucked in a little dish for her intermission snack.

Since everyone was enjoying them as much as her we had precious little leftover. We baked another batch ourselves before the week was out.  I even made it in a pie dish a few months later for PI day at school.  Such a delicious buttery shortbread crust and creamy lemon custard - there was none left over that day!

It's an simple recipe to adapt to Gluten-free, just sub your favorite GF flour. It is especially easy if you have a baking partner - while one zests and juices the lemons, the other is mixing the batter. 

We used The Pioneer Woman's recipe but there are ton of recipes out there (all quite similar) and I highly recommend trying one.  The lemon bars are very much a crowd pleaser!


You can find more of my art in my Etsy shop Erin Go Paint.
Or check out my daily illustrations on Instagram

Gluten-Free Snacking... Oven Baked Kale

 This weekend we were warming up the house with every kind of baking we could think of! Ignoring the frigid outside temperature, unless it was your turn to take out the dog.  But those trips were quick for even our new rescue pup was keeping close to the kitchen and the warm oven.
After baking a few sweet treats we were in the mood for something different.

Instead of reaching for a bag of chips we grabbed the kale from the crisper and made my daughter's favorite... Oven-roasted kale crisps.
Satisfying the craving for savory, crispy - and salty while getting a mega dose of vitamins, minerals and fiber.  Given how easy they are to make - it is truly a win-win situation.
The most time consuming part is the washing (and drying) of the kale leaves.  You want to be sure to dry them thoroughly so they will crisp well.  Then break off the big stem bits and rip the leaves into a few pieces each. We usually use curly kale but you can try any type of kale leaf.

Toss the leaves in a bowl with olive oil, salt, garlic powder and pepper before laying them out on a baking pan.  
Oven bake at 350 degrees for 15 - 20 minutes or until crispy (but don't let them burn)
The kale gets crisp and airy baked this way.  My 10 year old just gobbles them up!
There are lots of variations of seasonings for all tastes.
A delicious, fun way to get in a serving of greens. The crisps can also be crumbled on top of your salad.
Enjoy!

If you enjoy my art you can find more in my Etsy shop Erin Go Paint.  Or check out my daily illustrations on Instagram

Easy Gluten Free Mulled Wine

An easy mulled wine to brew at home, creating a fragrant brew that warms the heart and soul. Filling your home with a lovely aroma of cinnamon and cloves. This really chases away the winter chill!

 I combined a few mulled wine recipes that I found, based on what we had in the spice rack and refrigerator.  Many of the recipes had something that we didn't already have. And since I had braved the stores to stock up before the storm - I wasn't going back.  Emphasis on easy!

This was SO lovely to have waiting when we came in from our recent all-of-winter-in-one-snowstorm!  It was very much deserved and appreciated after shoveling through 28" of snow.

Enjoy responsibly!

My illustrated recipe can also be found on They Draw and Cook
If you enjoy my work and want to see more visit Erin Go Paint
 

Monday Inspiration - Eat Healthy!

"Eat Healthy, Feel Healthy, Be Healthy" watercolor & ink, copyright Erin Rogers Pickering

A rainbow of fresh nutrient dense vegetables - all naturally, deliciously Gluten Free. Take a little extra time in the produce department and try something new this week. Add an extra veggie to your meal. Snack on raw carrots or slices of crisp, juicy red pepper. Make a smoothie and throw in a little kale, or add avocado for creaminess. 
Experiment, explore, enjoy!
Eat healthy and you will feel healthy - and Be Healthy!


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Moo Shu Pork and the GF Princess

Last week was the annual book fair at school and after circling dozens of books in the promo flyer, my daughter walked the fair and narrowed her choices down to a wish list of 5.
3 of which were cookbooks.
Her #1 pick was The Disney Princess Cookbook. And she was consumed by the idea of this book. So excited about the opportunity to make Tiana's Gumbo- "we can make it for real, not like in a video game!!"
So, I bought the Princess cookbook for my little foodie, figuring I could convert just about anything to a gluten-free version. I am always up for that challenge!

The first recipe that enticed her was Moo Shu's Pork... easy enough to adapt with GF San-J Tamari sauce, and I even made a killer housin sauce if I do say so myself!  (I used a recipe from Food.com but used Tamari in place of soy sauce, cashew butter in place of peanut butter, and maple syrup instead of honey - and fresh ground ginger!).

"Ginger sketches" watercolor & ink on paper, copyright Erin Rogers Pickering

My husband and I were anxious to sit down to eat, but the little princess took one look and her face fell. "What is that?" she asked.  "It doesn't look right."

We assured her it would taste great, but instead of sitting she went to get the cookbook to show me how it was "supposed to look!"  She was devastated that it didn't match the full page, glossy, color enhanced, picture perfect culinary photo masterpiece.  (when does it ever?!)

Ah, but, the taste - it was perfection!
When hunger won out, and she was ready to taste it - she was sold!  and plowed through a few wraps (Udi's tortillas) with her Moo Shu pork. 
And, We all ate like royalty!