Peyton Junior’s Famous Quick Chili n' Beer Recipe - Gluten Free

Chili is definitely not a traditional “soul food” dish, and contrary to what some may believe. However, it is not a Mexican dish either. Like most recipes from other cultures, it was adopted by poor and working class folks because it was cheap to make, and our family was no exception.   Some food historians place San Antonio, Texas as chili’s birthplace. However, other historians hint that chili was created by settlers from Spain’s colony, the Canary Islands, where they made a “spicy” Spanish stew similar to chili. Texas cowboys are also credited with making the first “chili mix” around 1850. Trail cooks pounded dried beef, fat, pepper, salt, and the Chile peppers together into rectangles which could be easily stacked and rehydrated with boiling water along the trail. It is suggested that the Chile pepper and other hot spices were actually added to the mix to keep the cattle from eating it.  

4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 large yellow onions, coarsely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 tablespoons chili powder
4 teaspoons ground oregano
2 teaspoon McCormick ground cumin
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 pounds lean ground beef or ground turkey
2 (15-ounce) cans tomato sauce
2 cups Bard’s Beer (or gluten free beer of your choice)
2 cup cooked kidney beans
2 cup cooked black beans
Sea salt to taste
1 cup chopped cilantro
Hot pepper sauce, to taste (optional)

In a large soup pot, heat oil over medium heat.

Add onions and garlic, and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently until onions are clear.

Stir in chili powder, oregano, cumin and crushed red pepper and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

Add ground beef and stir to brown the meat, 6 to 10 minutes. 

Add tomato sauce, gluten free beer and black beans. Season with salt and bring to a boil.

Reduce to a simmer, cover and cook for 45 minutes, stirring often, until flavors have melded and sauce is thickened and bubbly.

Stir in cilantro and hot pepper sauce for an added kick.

Gluten Free Crispy Fried Fish w/Corn Chex




Photo: Cedric Chee

1 1/2 cups gluten free Corn Chex, (crushed fine)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 cup lemon juice
4 white fish fillets
Olive oil cooking spray

Preheat oven to 375°F. In a wide shallow bowl combine crushed Corn Chex, salt, paprika and garlic powder and lemon juice. Press fish into cornflake mixture. Turn over several times so that the fillets are fully covered. Arrange fillets (about 2 inches apart)on an oil-sprayed baking sheet. Spray fillets with olive oil. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the tops of the fillets begin to brown. Turn and bake an additional 5-7 minutes, or until the fillets are cooked through. Transfer to plates and serve with Texas fries and cole slaw.

Gluten Free Carrot Cake

Photo: Chris Baskind

During the Middle Ages in Europe, when sweeteners were scarce and expensive, carrots were used in sweet cakes and desserts. In Britain...carrot puddings...often appeared in recipe books in the 18th and 19th centuries. Such uses were revived in Britain during World War II, when the Ministry of Food disseminated recipes for carrot Christmas pudding, carrot cake, etc. Carrot cakes have enjoyed a revival in Britain in the last quarter of the 20th century. They are perceived as 'healthy' cakes, a perception fortified by the use of brown sugar and whole meal flour and the inclusion of chopped nuts, and only slightly compromised by the cream cheese and sugar icing which appears on some versions." 

Oxford Companion to Food, Alan Davidson [Oxford University Press: Oxford] 1999 

Ingredients (For Cake)

3 large eggs
2 cups Betty Crocker GF Yellow Cake Mix
1/2 cup light vegetable oil
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup plain yogurt
2 teaspoons bourbon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice
2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup flaked sweetened coconut
1 1/2 cups processed carrots
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup toasted chopped walnuts

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch cake pan.  In a mixing bowl beat the eggs while mixing in the oil. Add the brown sugar and beat till smooth. Add yogurt, vanilla, cinnamon and spice, baking mix and beat till combined. The batter should be a bit thicker than wheat flour batter.  Add in the coconut, carrots, raisins and nuts; stir with a wooden spoon to combine. Spread the batter evenly in the cake pan; and place the pan in the center of a preheated oven. Bake until the cake is firm, and a wooden pick inserted into the center emerges clean, about 40 to 50 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

Ingredients for Cream Cheese Icing

4 oz. softened cream cheese
2 tablespoons softened unsalted butter
1-2 teaspoons bourbon vanilla extract, to taste
3 cups powdered cane sugar (more if needed)
A squeeze or two of a fresh orange

Icing Preparation

In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Add vanilla. Add in the powdered sugar a cup at a time; squeeze a little lemon or other citrus juice into the frosting and beat till smooth. Frost the cake. 

Note: For the icing, you should add more sugar to thicken or add more juice to thin.