 There are more products available for people with celiac disease and gluten sensitive eaters now, than ever before. More restaurants are offering gluten free options. Grocery stores are stocking shelves with gluten free ingredients. And they're really tasty --- have you tasted a gluten free pizza crust? 🍕 I've done a lot more experimenting with gluten free recipes over the last couple of years too. I've had success making gluten free cookies, cupcakes, coffee cakes, sweet bread and tarts. It's been such a fun adventure to work with all of the new gluten free ingredients that are available.
1:1 gluten free flour is readily available and it's usually a great swap for any recipe that contains wheat flour that I want to convert to a gluten free recipe. I've tried lots of different blends and I even know which brands work best in baked goods. That's why I really didn't think twice about making gluten free biscotti. I had every reason to believe that I could create a scrumptious and crispy gluten free biscotti recipe. Have you ever wondered what sandpaper tastes like? 😅 My gluten free biscotti was crispy - but also crumbly... to the point of sandy. 😜 I so wanted this recipe to work out because they looked amazing and they smelled delicious - they just had a really off-putting consistency. So why am I following through with a recipe post that didn't turn out the way that I wanted? It's because I feel confident that there is someone out there who knows how to make gluten free biscotti that can fix my recipe. I'm hoping that I made a simple mistake and a kind blog follower will find it and message me the solution. 😬  Gluten Free Almond Biscotti 2 1/2 cups gluten free flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup sugar 4 Tablespoons butter, softened 2 eggs 2 Tablespoons water 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 teaspoon almond 3/4 cup whole almonds, coarsely chopped
 Bake 35 minutes at 350.  Cut loaves into 1/2" slices. Arrange slices on baking sheets and bake another 35 minutes at 325. (Flip biscotti over halfway through baking.)  You probably figured out by all of the Christmas dishes in the pictures that I've been sitting on this recipe for a while. I was hesitant to post a recipe that I wasn't fully satisfied with but I decided to put it out there as my plea for help. If you have a good gluten free biscotti recipe - please send it to me. Thank you.
Ciao!
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 It's time for another basement update. And I can sum up the progress on our lower level in one word... dust.🤣 Drywall dust to be exact. It's everywhere.😬 On every level - in every room and every drawer in our house. 😅 It's the best dust I've ever seen though because drywall dust means new walls.
I'm over the moon excited about our basement project. The new space will have a new workout room, living room, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom. And we have the best contractor to make all of our basement dreams come true. I knew he was the right person for the job when he suggested adding a cookie closet to store my ridiculously large cookie cutter collection. 😂 I know that this isn't news to anyone who's ever build a home or remodeled a space but, there are a LOT of decisions to be made throughout the process. Flooring, lighting, doors, walls, shelves, cabinets, windows, trim and outlets. These have become the topics of our dinner conversations every night.😅 Someday we will be able to talk about things other than ceiling paint colors and the size of kitchen cabinet hardware. 🎨  After a day of making countertop edging choices and closet configurations, I feel like I don't have the brain power left to make decisions about dinner. Is it possible that there's a limit to the number of decisions that I can make in a single day?🤣 Some days I just feel like I have to default to my comfort food - pizza. 🍕 Sausage and sweet potato pizza may not be the obvious choice for some, but it's a delicious alternative to my usual margherita pie. The perfect combination of protein, starch and gooey cheese just can't be beat. And for those of you who are ready to call me out because I don't eat pork: I made this pizza with turkey sausage. (Don't knock it till you try it.😅)  Sausage and Sweet Potato Pizza Crust 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour 1 teaspoon instant yeast 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoons sugar 1 Tablespoon olive oil 1 cup water Toppings 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded 1/2 cup Monterey jack cheese, shredded ½ pound ground pork sage sausage (or turkey sausage) 1 sweet potato peeled, diced 5-6 sage leaves fresh 1 Tablespoon butter 1 clove garlic, minced 1 egg beaten, optional 2 Tablespoons olive oil red pepper flakes
 Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until crust is light golden brown, and cheese is melted and bubbly.  Remove from stone with a pizza peel.  Cut into wedges. Happy Thursday friends.
Ciao!  Happy Valentine's DayToday is the perfect day to tell someone just how much they mean to you. So - to all my loves out there (you know who you are) -- I love you.❤️ From the bottom of my heart - thank you to everyone of you who has played a role in my life. Those of you who stayed only for a short season as well as those of you who have been in my life for a long time. You are a part of my story and I'm grateful for each and every one of you.  No big surprise here but, in case you've forgotten - I'll just remind you that food bloggers show love - with food.😅 It's our default. If someone around me is sad or lonely - I cook for them.🥘 When a friend is having a birthday or celebrating something special - I bake.🥧 Ironically - I also cook as a form of stress relief for myself. Whipping up a batch of warm, chocolate chip cookies is the best cure for a bad day, that I know of. 🍪🤣 At the risk of diving way too deep into my psyche on a food blog - I feel like I should also confess that I'm much more comfortable preparing food than I am trying to come up with the right words to comfort someone. #sayitwithspaghetti 🍝😅 Lucky for me, the people closest to me - understand my food language. With all that being said, I couldn't let Valentine's Day pass without baking a little gift for my better half. This year I made something that I knew that he would love - coconut cake. This delicious cake is absolutely loaded with coconut and smothered in smooth, cream cheese frosting. And it's a smaller size - the perfect romantic dessert for two for Valentine's Day.  Coconut Snack Cake 1 1/2 cups flour 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 3/4 teaspoon salt 1 1/4 cups cream of coconut 1/2 cup milk 2 eggs 3/4 cup sugar 3 Tablespoons butter, melted 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract 3/4 cup shredded coconut, toasted Cream Cheese Frosting 8 ounces cream cheese 1 cup powdered sugar 4 Tablespoons coconut extract pinch salt
 Spread frosting evenly over cake.  Sprinkle with remaining coconut. Happy Valentine's Day love.
Ciao!  It's Super Bowl Sunday!!! 🏈 I have to admit that I'm not as personally invested in the outcome of this years game as I should be but... I'm never one to shy away from food driven celebrations. #bringonthesnacks 🌮 I've heard that Americans actually consume more calories on Super Bowl Sunday than they do on Thanksgiving. I can't help but question -- Who's out there calculating average calorie consumption on these holidays? 🤷🏻♀️ Anywhooo... I love a good Super Bowl gathering and all the delicious food that comes with it. Cheesy dips, crispy chips and delicious sips.🧀🍻🤣 (Sorry. I couldn't help myself.) Just in case you haven't figured it out yet, I'll just come out and admit it - I attend most Super Bowl parties to see friends, for the food... and to watch the commercials. 😬 Sorry NFL.  I've used the words appetizers, starters, finger foods and hors d'oeuvres interchangeably for years - mostly because I really never knew the difference between them.😅 If I did make a distinction between the two, it was only to designate a less formal, pre-meal snack as an appetizer and an hors d'oeuvre, as a fancier, more formal, bite sized treat. For fear of looking like a complete fool by using the wrong word on my blog - I looked up the definition of both. Hors d'oeurves" is a one-bite item that's either stationary or passed and served separate from or prior to a meal." "Appetizers, on the other hand, appear as the first courses when seated at the table." By that definition, let me tell you about my 2023 Super Bowl hors d'oeuvres. (Does that sound weird to anyone else?🤣) Taco cups are great little treats to serve as an appetizer or an hors d'oeuvre though. Dress them up with avocado, cilantro and sour cream or set out the toppings and let your guests, dress up their own.  Taco Cups 1 pound lean ground beef or turkey 3 Tablespoons taco seasoning 1 (10-oz) can Ro-Tel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chiles, drained 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded 24 wonton wrappers
 Bake 12 minutes at 375.
Cheers to a great Super Bowl Sunday!
Ciao!  How in the world is a 5 foot nothing girl and a 6 foot tall man, supposed to find a couch that they can both agree on?🛋 Without disclosing our weights to the entire blogaverse - you should also know that my husband weighs almost twice as much as I do. Not only that - we have different expectations and requirements for a couch. He wants firm and supportive on his back - I want my feet to be able to reach the ground when I sit. 😂 #shortgirlproblems He wants a couch that he can stretch out on and take a nap, I want a couch that looks stylish and beautiful in the room. Budget is also a factor - as is the fact that it needs to hold up to all the abuse that we tend to throw at our furniture. 😬 I probably don't have to tell you that our couch shopping journey wasn't without its challenges. But I'm happy to report that we did finally choose a sofa that we could both agree on and... we are still happily married. 😅 We ended up purchasing a beautiful couch from a local furniture store. #supportsmallbusinesses Now we've moved onto choosing the rest of the furniture for our soon-to-be newly finished basement. Would someone please tell my husband that we don't need saddle top bar stools? 🤣🤠  Compromise is the name of the game in our house lately. Height, weight and couch preferences are just a few of the things that we differ on. We are opposite in a lot of ways but the way I look at it - we compliment each other. He's a carnivore who could live on meat and potatoes.🥩🥔 I like fish, chicken and all the vegetables.🐟🥦🥒🍅 Needless to say, it can be a challenge to find meals that we can both enjoy. Like I said - my guy likes meat and starch, but I prefer lighter, healthier meals. Turkey meatballs with brown rice dressing is a perfect meal for both of us. He gets the hearty meat that he's craving (Please, nobody tell him it's really turkey.😅) and I get a healthy and nutritious dinner. And bonus - it's delicious. 😂  Turkey Meatballs with Brown Rice Dressing 1 cup brown rice 1 teaspoon salt 1 onion, chopped 2 celery ribs, chopped 2 Tablespoons fresh sage, chopped 1/2 teaspoon pepper 4 Tablespoons butter 1 pound ground turkey 1/2 cup panko 3/4 cup chicken broth 1/2 cup dried cranberries
 Broil until browned.  Ciao!
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