Gluten Free Texas Chili

Brrr....it's cold outside!

Must be time for 

Chili!

This is seriously the best chili.

In fact it's award-winning!

(Not by me.  Remember Shunae?  Yep, she's the one who shared with us the Little Cherry Cheesecakes...

Well, Shunae gave me the recipe, and she was the one who won the big award for Best Tasting Chili at our church chili-cookoff.  And that's sayin' somethin', if you know what I mean.)

The original recipe calls for 1 cube, yes an entire cube of butter.  I have "lightened" it and I think that it still tastes great.  So if you are feeling like living on the edge (yes, the edge of a heart attack) go ahead throw that whole cube in.  

So I hope you enjoy this spicy, chunky chili as much as we do.  It's a winter staple at our house.

Gluten Free Texas Chili

1 lb hamburger

1 medium onion, diced

1 16 oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 16oz can chili beans (read ingredients to be sure it's GF, I found the Bush's brand to be great!)

1 green pepper, diced

2 16 oz cans diced tomatoes 

1 beef bullion cube

3 T. butter

1 T. cumin

1 T. chili powder

1 t. salt

1/2 t. black pepper

Cook hamburger in a soup pot until no longer pink.  Drain off excess grease.  Place hamburger back in pot.

Combine all the other ingredients in the pot.  Cook over low heat for 1-2 hours stirring occasionally to keep from scorching.

Gluten Free Lil' Meatloafs

What could be cuter than a gluten-free Lil' Meatloaf?

Not much...

(I could list a few things, but let's get with the cooking right?)

I love this non-traditional meatloaf.

It doesn't seem so "meatloaf-y".

You can use ground turkey in place of the hamburger, but it will turn out a little dry.  I prefer to just use lean (93%) hamburger, and they turn out great.  

My three year old likes to eat them cheeseburger style on a bun, or you can serve with mashed potatoes and reminisce about dinners at your grandma's house.  I love dinners like that.

These lil' meatloafs freeze really well, just before baking wrap individually in plastic wrap and freeze.  When ready to use, thaw, top with the sauce and bake.  Easy-peasy.

I learned from Giada on the Food Network, when making anything with hamburger it's important to mix all the other ingredients together first and then add the hamburger so the meat doesn't get tough.  It's a great tip.

Gluten Free Lil' Meatloaf

1 egg

3/4 cup milk

1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1/2 cup gluten free oats

1/2 cup onion, chopped

1 t. salt

1 lb lean ground beef

2/3 cup ketchup

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 t. mustard

In a mixing bowl, beat the egg and milk.  Stir in the cheese, oats, onions, and salt.  Add ground beef and mix well.  (I usually use my hands, scrub up!)  Shape into 8 small loaves; place side-by-side in a greased 8x8 baking dish.  

Combine ketchup, brown sugar, and mustard; spoon over loaves.  Bake, uncovered at 350 for 45 minutes until meat is no longer pink and a meat thermometer reads 160.

Also try:

Gluten Free Stuffed Meatloaf

Gluten Free Crockpot Lasagna

This lasagna is ridiculously good and easy.

Thank goodness for crockpots right!

I found the full recipe was too much for my little family (and crockpot) to handle so I made the sauce and split it in half.  Grated the cheese split in half.  Put both of the "leftovers" (cheeses and sauce) into separate baggies and then into a large bag labeled "Lasagna" and had another meal waiting in the freezer for another day.  I didn't freeze the cottage/ricotta cheese or the noodles.

I used the DeBoles brand Lasagna noodles and they worked really well.  Since they "no-cook" it cuts the down the prep time.  If you use cottage cheese only cook the lasagna for 3-3.5 hours otherwise the noodles will get really mushy.  If using ricotta cheese, cook for the 4-5 hours.  The lasagna is done when the noodles are pierced easily with a fork.

Gluten Free Crock Pot Lasagna

1/2 lb ground beef

1/2 lb sausage

(or 1 lb of either meat)

1/2 onion, chopped

1 cloves garlic, minced

1 can (29 oz) tomato sauce

1 cup water

1 can (6 oz) tomato paste

1 t. dried oregano

8 oz package Gluten Free Lasagna noodles

4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese or cottage cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 t. salt

In a skillet, cook meat, onion, and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain.  Add the tomato sauce, water, tomato paste, salt and oregano; mix well. 

(If freezing, put sauce into containers or baggies.  When ready to use, defrost and continue with the next step)

Spread 1/4 of the meat sauce in an ungreased 5-quart slow cooker.  Arrange 1/3 of the noodles over sauce (breaking noodles if necessary).  Combines the cheeses and then spoon 1/3 of the mixture over noodles.  Repeat layers twice.  Top with remaining meat sauce.  Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours (shorter time if using cottage cheese) or until noodles are tender.

Stuffed Meatloaf

Here's a new "twist" on meatloaf. Instead of mixing the meat and fillings all together, you stuff the meatloaf jellyroll style and it is so good. And different. Just as easy to make as your old meatloaf recipe, this is more fun!

We loved it with corn-on-the-cob!

Stuffed Meatleaf

2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

1 T. butter

1 egg, beaten

1/3 c. milk

1/2 cup GF oats

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. pepper

1 1/2 lbs. ground beef

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Sauce:

1/2 cup ketchup

2 T. brown sugar

2 t. prepared mustard

In a large skillet, saute mushrooms and onion in butter until tender; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the egg, milk oats, salt and pepper. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well.

Mix together sauce ingredients, set aside.

On a large piece of heavy foil, pat beef mixture into a 12x8 inch rectangle; spoon mushroom mixture to within 1 in. of edges. Sprinkle cheese over mushroom mixture and spoon 1/2 the sauce on the top.

Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with a short side and peeling away foil while rolling. Seal seam and ends. Discard the foil.

Place meatloaf in a 9x13 pan, coated with cooking spray. Pour the remaining sauce over the top. Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes or until meat is no longer pink and meat thermometer reads 160. Let stand for 10 min. before slicing.

Bacon Feta Cheese Stuffed Burgers

Want to make your husband/boyfriend/brother/father/etc. smile like this:

Then make him a Stuffed Burger:

(they taste better than they look)

I like to use the Kinnicnick brand of hamburger buns. Unfortunatly I was out, but they are good wrapped in lettuce. The mushrooms add really good flavor.

Bacon Feta Cheese Stuffed Burgers

1 lb ground beef

3 oz. cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/3 cup bacon bits

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. garlic powder

1/4 t. pepper

1 lb sliced fresh mushrooms

1 T. olive oil

1 T. water

1 T. Dijon mustard

4 buns

Mayo

Lettuce

Tomato

Shape beef into eight thin patties. {This is the key- nice and thin, otherwise the burgers are too meaty, and we'll have none of that...it's the cheese you want more of!)

Combine the cream cheese, feta cheese, and bacon bits; spoon onto the center of four patties. Top with remaining patties and press edges firmly to seal. Combine salt, garlic powder and pepper; sprinkle over patties.

Grill burgers, covered, over medium heat or broil for 5-7 mins on each side or until meat thermometer reads 160 and juices run clear.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute mushrooms in oil until tender, Stir in water and mustard.

Serve burgers on buns with mayo, lettuce, tomato and mushrooms.

Gluten Free Cincinnati Chili

In need of some spicy spaghetti sauce,
but not willing to go to Cincinnati to get it?
Well, you've come to the right place!
Today I'm sharing with you a homemade, gluten free recipe for
Cincinnati-Style Chili

I first tried this "chili" when staying with family in Cincinnati.
There are places all over serving this famous style chili and they even have it on the menu for school lunches.
What makes Cincinnati Chili, Cincinnati Chili is the use of unusual spices. 
There's more than 2 million pounds of chili consumed each year with 850,000 pounds of shredded cheese on top!  
Just like any place that has a signature dish, there are certain ways to order your Cincinnati Chili.
You can get a:
Bowl- just the chili in a bowl
2-way: Chili with spaghetti noodles
3- way: chili, spaghetti, and shredded cheddar cheese
4- way: chili, spaghetti, cheddar cheese, and sliced green onions
5-way: chili, spaghetti, cheddar cheese, green onions and kidney beans or tortilla chips
or
Coney-style: a hotdog topped with chili and if you want a "cheese coney" the chili is topped with shredded cheddar cheese.

So, make the chili and make your family order which way they want to eat it.
So fun and so much easier than a trip to Cincinnati!

Gluten Free Cincinnati Chili

1 lb. hamburger

1 small onion chopped

1 small green pepper, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

1 can (14.5oz) fire-roasted diced tomatoes, undrained

1 cup root beer (A&W Rootbeer is GF)

2 T. chili powder

2 T. ketchup

2 T. minced chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (it will be about 1 pepper, I freeze the rest for later use)

1 T. ground cumin

1 beef bouillon cube

Hot cooked GF spaghetti

Optional toppings: crushed tortilla chips, chopped green onions, and shredded cheddar cheese, drained and rinsed kidney beans, or a hotdog for "coney style".

In a large sauce pan, cook the beef, onions, green pepper and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add the tomatoes, root beer, chili powder, ketchup, chipotle peppers, cumin and bouillon. Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes to allow flavors to blend. Serve over spaghetti or hot dog.
 Garnish with preferred toppings.