I think its a requirement for all food bloggers to have a cobbler recipe.  My recipe is nothing revolutionary or earth shattering.  All I know is that since changing our lifestyle for something that doesn't include wheat, dairy, animal protein, cane sugar, or processed foods (all of these are for the most part), cobblers have been something I have struggled with.  

Here in Colorado we are smack dab in the middle of peach season.  King Soopers finally had organic peaches on sale and so I took the bait (peaches are number one the Dirty Dozen list, so make sure you buy organic if you buy peaches).  I decided that for a challenge, instead of researching the several successful gluten free cobbler recipes out there, I would try my good friend Betty Crocker and make numerous substitutions (which in essence makes it my own).  My results proved successful.  My husband and I both agree that this is the absolute best cobbler I've come up with.  Finally!  After months and months of failed or "ok" cobblers (yep, one even tasted like bland, dense blueberry pancakes), I think this is the one.  To all of you gluten free bloggers out there who have had success with your own methods, congratulations - I know exactly what you've gone through to get this far.  Since this is my second Betty Crocker ingredient substitute success, I may just consider doing a month of Betty Crocker recipes, since pretty much every cook in the United States has one or more of her cookbooks.  

I also played around with a few pre-packaged gluten free baking mixes that meet most, if not all, of my ingredient criteria.  My favorite was Arrowhead Mills Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Mix.  The flavor of this one was actually better than the first (not by much though), but the texture was chewier and it didn't rise as well as the NOW Foods blend (the second test and photo subject).  This one was the preferred one for my husband.  The good thing about this one was that it has no milk in it, making it 100% Messy Chef lifestyle approved.  The second one I tried (which was an extremely close second because of the texture) was the NOW Foods Gluten Free Baking Mix.  The only thing I don't like about it is that it does contain buttermilk (thus, it can't be considered 100% dairy free and vegan, which I would have preferred).  The texture of this one actually reminded me of buttermilk biscuits from KFC.  

I'm going to make you a guarantee with this recipe post.  This is the best potato salad you will ever eat.  Don't believe me?  Make it for yourself and see what I mean.  

This recipe started out when I was in college.  One of my friends had this wonderful homemade potato salad recipe.  Lacey swore to me that it was the best potato salad ever.  I am usually not really a potato salad fan, but I had to try it.  She was right!  It was the best, and it was incredibly simple (potatoes, Bacon Ranch Dressing and bacon - easy, right?).  The only thing was that it was hers - I didn't feel good about saying that it was my own.  That was until I tried to make it with my own secret weapon - my own homemade Ranch Dressing.  Granted, this recipe doesn't have the bacon that was in the original recipe, but neither does my diet plan.  Guess what - I don't think it needs the bacon anymore.  

So if you need a quick and easy recipe that you can take to a last minute cookout (and you want to impress people with a ton of flavor), try this one.  You will have it done in about 20 minutes.  

Oh and thanks Lacey for the inspiration!

Sometimes the key to a great meal is to keep it simple.  When you're following a gluten free, vegetarian or vegan eating plan, sometimes it gets hard coming up with new ways for cooking vegetables, beans and rice.  The goal is to usually come up with a breakthrough in cooking the same old thing.  Sometimes I forget about the basics.  Sometimes the basics are all I have energy for after a long day at work.  

Tonight I came home to my Door To Door Organics delivery box.  This was the first delivery with mushrooms - oh how I've missed mushrooms.  Baby bellas are some of my favorites.  There were also zucchini and a bunch of green onions.  These veggies cried out to be grilled - how much more simple can you get than grilling veggies?  Grilling veggies heightens the flavor of the veggies to their full potential.  Add a delicious sauce to it and you have a wonderful meal or side dish.  The best part is that if you own a grill pan (a must have in any good kitchen), you can cook this one year round.  For all of you meat eaters out there, this would be really good with steak or chicken.

I will be the first to admit that I'm addicted to chips and salsa - isn't admitting the problem the first step?  Marrying into a family where authentic Mexican food is a common occurrence has fed this addiction.  My mother-in-law's salsa is famous and absolutely delicious!  I can't compete with her red salsa, so I thought I'd go with a different approach with this one.

I must admit that before this week I had never had a fresh apricot.  Shame on me!  They are so tasty.  I received 12 in my Door to Door Organics box this week.  I also received a bunch of nectarines.  I love all of this fresh organic fruit delivered to me weekly.  Its making me be creative with my cooking because I feel guilty if I let anything go to waste.  Growing up in Colorado, I've had the opportunity to try many different types of salsas.  One of the most unique is fruit salsa.  The blend of sweet and spicy, strange as it may seem, is actually a lovely mix.  I chose those wonderful apricots and nectarines for the base to my salsa.  It turned out wonderfully.  There is one tiny issue - what kind of chips do you serve with a fruit salsa?  Simple cinnamon sugar chips.

I know what you're thinking - cinnamon sugar chips are definitely not in the plan.  That's where I have you!  When I discovered date sugar, my granulated cane sugar problems were solved.  The chips part of things was also a problem.  How to create a chip that isn't fried in unhealthy oils?  Simple!  Bake pita bread with a little bit of grapeseed oil.  Problem solved.  The cinnamon sugar pita chips with the fruit salsa is a wonderful snack that you don't have to feel guilty about eating.  

I have the privilege of writing another guest post, this time for Ginger Lemon Girl.  Carrie of Ginger Lemon Girl issued the challenge to 30 different bloggers to come up with easy, quick, gluten free recipes that will help out a beginner to the gluten free world.  Today is my recipe.

I decided to take my Bruschetta recipe and turn it into something different - something that you can take to a picnic, which is perfect for this time of year.  I came up with this pasta salad.  Carrie tried it and included some chicken and said it was "DELISH!" (Thanks for the compliment Carrie).  

Please take some time to visit the original guest post at: http://gingerlemongirl.blogspot.com/2010/07/30-days-gluten-free-quick-easy-meals_02.html.  

Summer is in full swing!  Here in Colorado its been in the 90s and the air conditioner has been on full blast.  Its amazing how nothing quenches your thirst on a hot day better than a nice tall glass of limeade (or lemonade).  

I'm lucky enough to be the recipient of a new (old) juicer from my mother in law.  I think this is quickly becoming my new favorite gadget in the kitchen.  I never really had fresh squeezed juice while growing up, unless it said it on the carton from the grocery store.  My eyes were opened as soon as I used this amazing juicer.  If you don't have a juicer, this is one investment in your kitchen you should make.   This, along with a blender for the strawberries, will make the best summertime drink you could ever imagine.  Your kids will love it, and you'll feel good because everyone is getting a great dose of fruit.    

Whenever I try making up or following a gluten free cookie recipe, I get nervous about trying the first cookie out of the oven.  See gluten free cookies (and other baked goods) are notorious for bad textures and weird flavors among other things.  My husband's response to this cookie recipe gave me hope that not all gluten free baking is bad.  In fact, he stated that this is my best cookie yet!  

Instead of making my own gluten free flour blend, which can be extremely expensive (and you don't know if it will turn out well or not), I decided to try a new store-bought flour blend from one of my new favorite brands - NOW Foods.  I appreciate everything that NOW stands for - their mission is "to empower people to lead healthier lives."  I love the quality of the foods and ingredients I have tried from this brand.

I also decided to adapt a recipe from one of the masters - Betty Crocker.  It doesn't matter which recipe you cook out of those cookbooks, they're good.  The only problem is that many of the ingredients don't agree with our lifestyle.  Luckily, as you can see from the picture, my husband deemed this recipe a huge success - his 6 cookies after his night class gave me that verdict (makeshift recipes don't always turn out that way).  The best part about these cookies is that you won't be able to tell they're gluten free - they taste like normal cookies and the texture brings back memories of Grandma's oatmeal raisin cookies.  Oh, and just in case you were wondering, yes, this is a soft oatmeal cookie.

I guess I'm in a breakfast mode - first it was pancakes, now French toast.  Maybe its because I've been so busy lately and life is happening.  Sometimes breakfast for dinner is the best thing - wonderful comfort foods that you used to have on Saturday mornings or camping with no cares in the world.

French toast is another one of those that has been a challenge with this new lifestyle.  I've spent almost a year getting used to alternative breads and milks and oils.  Let me tell you - trying to make French Toast with rice milk when camping was not a pretty site.  I think I had a meltdown over it (there have been a few over the last year - I just want my food to turn out perfect every time).  Thank goodness my husband is a patient man, otherwise I would have given this alternative eating lifestyle up a long time ago.  

I'm still experimenting with the egg alternatives, although I may have given in to the needed egg for French toast.  Luckily eggs are one of those proteins that can be beneficial (again, everything in moderation, including eggs, especially eggs that are organic and come from vegetarian-fed, free-range chickens).  

A wonderful trick for getting in those extra servings of fruit in is to make your own fruit syrup.  I'll admit I've never tried fruit syrup on French toast before, but it was delicious.  I had that bag of blueberries in the freezer that was crying out to me to make blueberry syrup.  Use it for pancakes and ice cream (yep, I said it, ice cream - I have my weaknesses!).

So I ask you, now that you know my breakfast weakness, what is your favorite comfort food?

I finally did it!  I created gluten free, vegan pancakes that actually taste good and look like pancakes.  I am so excited about this recipe!  For about 9 months, I have been frustrated about not being able to create normal pancakes.  Mike's wheat sensitivity has given way to numerous flour tests.  Buckwheat flour has ended up being number one for pancakes!  Because we've tried to cut out animal products due to the high acid producing effect, eggless pancakes have been a challenge (eggless baking in general has produced several epic failures!).  But today, I had a breakthrough - its the age-old eggless secret: bananas.  Its amazing how if you do good research and put a little creativity into a recipe, you can come up with something great!

I'm finding myself down with a nasty Spring cold.  It somewhat resembles bronchitis and allergies all in one.  I get funny cravings when I have colds - one of them, namely, for pancakes.  Luckily these pancakes are simple enough to satisfy that craving.  What's your favorite "sick" meal.

By the way, there is no shame in eating pancakes for dinner.

I'm sitting here watching my new favorite movie Julie & Julia.  I have been inspired by a small part - the scene that inspired Julie Powell to start her blog.  She and her husband Eric were eating bruschetta and they got the idea that she should blog about food.  Ever since I first saw that scene, the bruschetta has been calling out to me.  The idea of this fresh, Italian-style salsa covering a piece of golden brown toast is so simple, yet so delicious.  

I made my first ever bruschetta tonight and sat down to the movie with a glass of wine.  It was a perfect piece of heaven.  I was amazed that the simplicity of the ingredients could blend together into what I would call a symphony of flavor. 

This is another recipe that you could use up vegetables that you don't know what to do with.  This time I used tomatoes and zucchini.  Next time I may use green peppers or mushrooms or artichokes.  Who knows.  The garden is your canvas - create a masterpiece and sit back and enjoy.