Healthier Halloween Cookies! Cut out sugar cookies without the sugar!

I posted this last year but hey, Halloween is coming up in just a few weeks so I'm bringing it back!  It only has 1/4 cup of wheat flour in it and the rest is low-carb friendly almond flour and coconut flour.  I cut mine into ghosts - but any shape will work!

Cut Out Cookies - sugar free and lower carb

1 1/2 c almond flour
1/4 c coconut flour
1/4 c whole wheat flour
1 egg
1/4 t almond extract
1/2 t vanilla extract
1 1/2 t baking powder
3/4 c natural sweetener
5-10 drops liquid sweetener to your level of taste
scant 1/2 c butter with 1 T shortening to make up for the 'scant'

Cream the sweetener, butter and shortening.  In a large bowl mix the dry ingredients well.  Add the egg and extracts to the sweetener/butter mixture.  Add the dry mix and blend until it comes together as a dough.  If it's really sticky, add more of your favorite gluten free flour or a little more whole wheat flour until the stickiness is lessened a bit so you can form a ball and wrap in plastic wrap to chill.  Chill about 30 minutes, remove half the dough.  Return the second half back to the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 350.  Roll the dough out between 2 sheets of parchment.  Cut out your shapes and transfer them to a baking sheet. I use a Wilton icing spatula to transfer mine.  Use either ungreased or parchment lined pans.  (I did both and my cookies did not stick even on the unlined).

Place the cookie sheet in the freezer for 3-4 minutes and then place directly into the oven.  Bake for about 9-10 minutes or until you can see the edges just starting to brown.  I find almond meal based cookies to be a little more tender and delicate than wheat cookies and have learned to bake almond flour based cookies a little longer than I have to for all purpose flour based.  I just keep an eye on them and set the time for "one more minute" if I didn't see the edges had any color to them yet.

Remove from the pan and place on wire racks to cool completely.  If your cookies are baked long enough this isn't a problem - they are nice and sturdy but still tender with a perfect 'bite' to them like any good sugar cookie.

Frost with your favorite frosting.

I used a favorite "cake" frosting I whipped up but you can use any you like.

Sugar Free Butter Cream Vanilla Frosting

2/3+ c granular natural sweetener  
2 T water
2 large egg whites (separate and use the yolks in another recipe)
1 stick real butter
1 T vanilla extract
 *If you taste test it and find your personal tastes would like it sweeter, use 5-8 drops liquid sweetener

In a saucepan, place the water and sweetener. Heat over medium high until it comes to 240 degrees. 

As you are heating the sugar substitute and water, mix the egg whites in a large mixing bowl.  Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.  With the mixer running, pour the hot sweetener mixture down the side of the bowl in a thin stream, mixing into the egg whites.  Beat approximately 5-7 minutes on high until the egg whites resemble a thick and glossy meringue.

Start to add the butter in chunks, about a tablespoon at a time.  Keep the mixer running and whip the mixture about 5-7 minutes more.  If the mixture breaks up when you first add the butter and it looks like cottage cheese, no worries.  Just keep whipping until it's smooth again.  Once the frosting is smooth, add your vanilla and whip again for a few minutes.  If it's a really warm or humid day it might get too warm to work with.  Just refrigerate it for about 7 minutes, whip again.  The cooler temperatures will cause it to harden up again.

 

Photos from the cookie making process

I added a bit of whole wheat flour as we have no allergies or food restrictions in our house

I like to use a long, thin frosting spatula to transfer the cookies to the baking sheet

Ready for our decorations!

Cold Vegetable Ranch Salad - "Summer Salad"

This makes a really large salad so I usually half it and it's still enough to feed a family of 5.  Leave out what you don't have or don't like, substitute if you wish but it works best if you at least have the cauliflower, broccoli, peas, peppers and bacon and even better if you can add at least 3-5 more veggies.

Summer Salad

1 head cauliflower, chopped
1 10 oz. pkg frozen peas
1 c celery, chopped
2-3 green onions, chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped (or yellow or orange)
1 head broccoli, chopped
1 cucumber, sliced
1 pk. dry Hidden Valley Ranch mix
1 c mayonnaise
4 hard boiled eggs, sliced or chopped
cheddar cheese cubes
bacon bits or crumbled cooked bacon

Combine the dressing mix with the mayonnaise.  Add this to a large bowl of your mixed vegetables and mix well.  Add the eggs, cheese and bacon.  Cover and chill 4 hours before serving.  Even better the longer it chills and sets.

Peas are so pretty!  And taste so good with the ranch dressing mix!

Mixing in the dressing/mayo with the chopped veggies

 

Homemade Wheat Bread - Autumn and Homemade Bread Just Go Hand in Hand

Wheat Bread 
double loaf

3 c warm water
1 T instant/quick yeast
1/3 c oil
1/3 c honey or sweetener
1 T salt
6 c hard white whole wheat flour mixed with;
1/2 c rolled oats or quick oats
1/4 c vital wheat gluten with vitamin C

Combine water, yeast, oil, honey and salt.  Add about 5 cups of the flour mix and start to mix slow in a heavy duty mixer with a bread hook.  Add 1-2 cups more flour as needed so it forms a nice ball of dough.  Let it knead about 8 minutes.  Coat your hands with a bit of oil and turn dough out onto an oiled or parchment lined surface.  Divide and form 2 loaves.  Place in greased bread pans.  Cover with plastic wrap and let raise in a warm area for about 45 minutes until doubled in size.  Bake breads at 350 for 25-30 minutes in a regular open bread loaf pan or about 45 minutes for a heavy duty, restaurant style pan with lid.  Remove and cool. You can rub butter on the top surface of the bread in the 'open' traditional style baking pans for a softer crust with a nice flavor.



Note:  I have found the square pans are thicker and need to be baked longer than the bread I bake in a traditional bread loaf pan (up to 15 minutes longer!).

Slow Cooked Roast that Makes it's Own Gravy

We go through stages where we don't care for roasts and then suddenly we want them pretty often.  For some reason, roasts have been really popular in our house for the last couple months; and it's not even cold outside yet! 

This is one I throw together often because we love the flavor of but I don't ever actually measure anything.  You can also add/delete a couple items if you wish or you have them on hand.

I know most people buy Lipton Onion Soup mixes... it seems people usually have those on hand.  I don't because I usually just whip up my own homemade version.  So in the photo below you'll see some beef soup base (beef bouillon), celery seed, onion powder and dehydrated onions.  This is what is in a store bought Lipton Soup Mix.  So basically - if you have a package on hand just use that.  If you don't, then use the items below.  :)

 

Another option - you can brown or pan sear the roast before hand if you wish.  I almost never do.  I haven't found it's necessary and by the time the roast is finished cooking it's a nice dark brown color anyway and the flavor doesn't seem to be affected either way.

Slow Cooked Roast

1 chuck roast
1/4 c dried minced onion
2 T beef soup base (or 2 cubes bouillon)
1/2 t onion powder
1/4 t celery seed
dash salt
1 can cream of mushroom soup
optional:  extra mushrooms, baby potatoes

Use can use 1 envelope dry onion soup mix instead of the onion, beef flavor, onion powder and celery seed.  I know some people will cringe to see it has mushroom soup in it.  My husband would too... except you really can't tell in this dish once it's cooked.  Seriously; he doesn't eat sauces or gravies if he can tell it's made with mushroom soup but this one cooks up wonderfully and adds to the flavor and texture of the gravy.  Brown the roast beforehand if you wish (not necessary).

Place in the slow cooker or crock-pot along with the other ingredients and use the empty soup can to measure out water.  Add 1 can of water to the crock, cover and cook on low for about 8 hours or high for about 6 (depends on your own crock pot). 

You can add extra mushrooms if you wish and you can add some baby potatoes.  If you can, just add them for the last 2-3 hours cook time but if you need to add them at the beginning, be sure to just put them on top of the roast so they cook slower.  Remove the potatoes and roast when done to a serving dish and gently stir the gravy to mix it all before serving with the potatoes.  You could also serve with pasta, rice or mashed cauliflower.

 

An Update: Can I Freeze Eggs for Long Term Storage? - How did that work out for me?

 You CAN FREEZE EGGS.  You just have to add 1 of 2 options and then you can get this...

Perfectly 'normal' eggs even though they were indeed frozen.

If you are going to use up your eggs within a couple weeks, don't bother with long term storage.  Your eggs are fine.  But when you come across a really good deal (like 15 dozen eggs for the price of like, 4 dozen) and you need some longer term storage options, I am super happy to say freezing eggs works like a charm.

The only thing you really need to think about ahead of time is how you will want to use your eggs; in something sweet (like baking) or something savory (like scrambled eggs).  If you aren't sure - then do some of EACH.  Just make sure to mark them well.

To each container of 4 lightly beaten eggs I added either approximately 1/2 t salt or 1 t sugar or corn syrup. 

That was it.  Sugar or Salt.

Because we don't usually use white, granulated sugar in our home, and because salt is used in pretty much all baked goods from cakes to cookies as well as scrambled eggs, etc. I opted to do all my freezer eggs with salt.

To thaw I just take a container out of the deep freeze and put it in the refrigerator to be used that week.  As you can see from the picture above in this post, my scrambled eggs with bacon turned out perfect!  And although the yolks are dark yellow straight out of the freezer, you can see they lighten up as they cook and look, taste and have the texture of a regular, just cracked and used eggs.