DCGluties.com

Hello Cupcake: Flavors

I am trying to create a gluten-free version of most “regular” flavors. So, for the most part, all the flavors you see on the regular menu will rotate through the gluten-free menu as well. The only difference is that the gluten-free selection is limited to one flavor per day. Maybe more later

In my opinion, so far my BEST gluten-free flavors are a couple of the more exotic ones – the carrot cake and the triple coconut. You probably already know this if you are on a gluten-free diet, but I am finding that the flavors with lots of other goodies in them besides flour make the best gluten-free versions. The gluten-free carrot cake has carrots, pineapple, coconut and walnuts, so you don’t even notice the flour substitution!

The coconut is similar – lots of coconut, coconut cream, and coconut cream-cheese frosting make it taste like the “real thing”!

Tags:   alexandria · buzz bakery · coconut cupcake · creme brulee · cupcakes · dupont circle · gf · gluten free · hello cupcake · ice cream sandwich · Neighborhood Restaurant Group · sheet cake · va1 Comment

A new cupcake shop is opening up in DC! Hello Cupcake will be opening in Dupont Circle this summer, and the list of flavors on their website lists a gluten free option daily. Oh, I couldn’t be happier for you guys! I’ve been a GF cupcake lover since I visited Chicago’s Swirlz Bakery back in April. Since then I had been bemoaning the lack of GF options in DC, but obviously, I was totally missing out. I contacted a couple of the new trendy cupcake places a while back to see if they were available, and I didn’t get much of a response.

Sadly, now I realize that I was missing out on a lot of options! I didn’t know about Buzz in Alexandria, from the Neighborhood Restaurant Group that brings us GF pizza at Rustico and a GF menu at Tallula. Or CakeLove’s “Green Label” baked goods (Silver Spring location, only.) I did know about the Sticky Fingers Bakery, but I just never quite got around to going to Columbia Heights.

Hello Cupcake looks like it will be a very welcome addition to the mix! The new store will be located on Connecticut Avenue, by the Dupont south exit, conveniently across the street from that Krispy Kreme that always taunts me with it’s delicious baking smells. Cupcakes will cost $3 each, and they promise to have some very interesting flavors!

Tags:   alexandria · buzz · cakelove · cupcakes · dc · dupont · gf · gf cupcakes · gf dc · hello cupcake · Neighborhood Restaurant Group · Rustico · sticky fingers bakery · swirlz bakery chicago · tallulaNo Comments.

It’s a shame, really. Most standard BBQ fare requires a glutie to come up from under the radar and ask the standard questions of her host: “may I have mine without the bun?” “what kind of hot dogs are those?” “oh, the meat is marinaded … you wouldn’t happen to have the recipe?” Most often, we’re left with a naked burger, some chips and veggies. It’s a sad day when we have to pass on the steak tips.

This Fourth of July, though, have no fear. Our friends at DC Examiner  have shared a GF chili cheese dog recipe. While the bun recipe has not yet made it through my test kitchen, we say, give it a whirl. You can use a chili recipe from the gluties or pick some up at Hard Times Cafe (I prefer the Terilingua on my dog). But always remember to be safe with your weiners … read the labels or just stick with what you know is good …  Ball Park or Hebrew National.

In the fall, maybe I’ll share my sauerkraut recipe. Beware, it stinks. For now, kraut is cheap. Buy it at the store.

The bread:
4 eggs, separated
4 ounces cream cheese
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 tsp dill
1 tsp mustard

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Grease or oil a standard-sized jelly roll pan.

With a mixer on high speed, whip egg whites with cream of tartar until
stiff peaks form (about 3-5 minutes). In a separate bowl, mix egg yolks,
cream cheese with mustard and dill. Slowly add half of the yolk batter to
the whites. Using a tall, metal spoon (I use an iced tea spoon), make a
lazy “s” through the batter once. Turn bowl 90 degrees and repeat. Add
second half of the whites to the yolk mixture. Repeat lazy S wave two more
times, each time turning the bowl 90 degrees.

Spoon into prepared pan, and gently spread to even the mixture. Bake for 30
minutes. Allow to cool on a rack. Cut into 6″ X 5″ squares (or if you
prefer no waste, cut into 6-8 equal rectangles–2 rows of 3 or 4) with a
pizza cutter, and finish edges with a spatula. Wraps can be curled by
wrapping or cradling them around a rolling pin or on a pasta drying rack.

Store loosely in an open sack. Before use, remove from sack and allow to
‘dry’.

Note: Any leftover bread material can be used to make French toast.

Makes 6-8 hot dog buns.

Nutritional information for the buns (assuming 6 buns): Calories: 120,
Carbohydrates: 1g, Fiber: 0g, Fat: 10 g

To assemble chili cheese dog:

Sprinkle inside of bun with shredded cheese. Add hot kosher dog. Top with
shredded cheese, fresh dill relish, sauerkraut and chili.

Tags:   Cheese · chili · Examiner Newspapers · Fourth of July · Hard Times Cafe · Hot DogNo Comments.

Well, I guess I’m no longer a DCGlutie. I just moved into an apartment in Evanston, IL and yesterday started classes at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. I’m settling in nicely, and I’m very excited for the opportunity I have here. And excited for the gluten-free pizza down the street from my place! Yesterday I sat through orientation, and they handed me the schedule for the next year of my life. I met my new classmates and today I’m ready to start the first day of class.

While no longer in DC, I’m definitely still a glutie. During yesterday’s orientation, the offer of “free lunch” made me consider the etiquette of refusing a free meal. It sounds easy enough, but when you’re handed a sandwich, what is the proper way of saying “no”? I’m sure what I did is definitely not the way you’re supposed to handle this type of situation.

We broke for lunch, and they herded us into a small room full of box lunches. The box contained a sandwich, a piece of fruit, a bag of chips and a cookie. I remembered what happened when I visited for the Open House and was presented with this box. I opened it up to eat the fruit and the chips, only to realize the chips (Lay’s BBQ) were not safe. I had an orange and two Diet Cokes and was starving an hour later. I was too hungry to try to do that again, so I quickly grabbed an admissions person to ask where I could find food. I said, “I have a wheat allergy.” He said, “Oh, I don’t think they’re all on wheat.” I said, “No, I still can’t eat them. Where can I buy a salad or something?” He directed me in the right direction, and I set off across campus to find salad.

After I had it, I didn’t think it would be right to walk in with a different meal, so I sat down and wolfed down the salad as quickly as possible. I ran back in the room with a water and a bag of chips. A professor joked that I was late. I sat down, and then someone said, “Ok, let’s get started with our presentations.” What? Apparently, while I was gone, everyone had done a “Getting-to-know-each-other” exercise where everyone was partnered up, and each person had to introduce the person they interviewed. I panicked. I started sweating and wondering what I should do when it came to me. I looked at the door, but it was closed, and I would have had to squeeze past too many people to get out. That would have just made things more awkward. Then I thought, “Well, I’ll just say, I can’t eat sandwiches, so I had to leave.” But I didn’t feel comfortable telling all these strangers that much about me.

Suddenly, it was my turn, so I stood up and said, “I had to run an errand, and I missed this whole thing, so I’ll, uh, just present myself.” Everyone laughed, and I rambled off my name, course of study, and fun fact. I felt like I’d dodged a bullet. I was relieved it was over, but I felt like I’d backed down from an opportunity to really tell them about myself. Eh, oh well. They’ll get to know me in time.

That’s all for now, but I hope to continue contributing to the site about all things “glutie,” even if they’re not all “DC.” Cheers!

Tags:   chicago · Diet Coke · etiquette · evanston · Evanston IL · Lay's potato chips · Medill School of Journalism · wheat allergy1 Comment

When you live in Texas for two years, you get to know a dish by the name of King Ranch Casserole. Like its cousin BBQ, it makes an appearance at every bridal shower and every birthday party whether food is served at 11 a.m. or 9 p.m. (At midnight, they serve breakfast!) In short, it’s a Mexican lasagna: layers of meat, veggies and cheese between tortillas and, like most lasagnas, it requires some time to collect and assemble the ingredients, starting with baking southwestern seasoned chicken breasts with celery and onion.

This weekend, for dinner at a friend’s house, I set out to make a gluten-free King Ranch Chicken casserole that stacked up to the original in terms of taste and creaminess and, if possible, was a little easier to put together. Swapping flour tortillas for corn was a no-brainer, but we experimented with ways to help them keep their texture (outcome recommended in recipe below). The original King Ranch recipe calls for one each of cans of condensed “cream of” chicken and mushroom soups - a pantry staple I’ve missed here and there in cooking during my transition to a GF lifestyle. Since I was trying to cut corners, making my own flavorful creamy roux substitutes was not an option. Then, Eureka! Google showed me that Health Valley has GF versions of both creamy standards but sadly, the Annandale Harris Teeter stocks neither. I remembered reading online that Progresso makes a GF creamy mushroom soup which I grabbed and, moments later, Adrian found a GF Progresso chicken cheese enchilada soup nearby. We were certain we could make some sort of fabulously creamy substitute using the two.

Other shortcuts included using two fresh rotisserie chickens and buying a bag of precut tri-color peppers with onion in the freezer section. Real Texans always use Velveeta but, being a grown-up, I try to avoid it for obvious reasons so we bought a bag of a four-cheese Mexican blend. In the end, we had a casserole that lived up to the original and the prep and assembly took less than 40 minutes. Here’s how:

Gluten-free King Ranch Chicken Casserole

• 2.5-3 cups better pieces pulled chicken from two rotisserie chickens, skin removed
• 1 bag frozen precut tri-color peppers with onion
• 1 can Progresso creamy mushroom soup
• 1 can Progresso cheese chicken enchilada soup
• 3 teaspoons xantham gum
• 1 bag pre-shredded Mexican four-cheese blend
• 18- 20 6″ corn tortillas
• 2 cans Rotel diced tomatoes (as spicy as you like), drained
• Spices: S + P, cumin, paprika, cayenne, chili pepper, onion powder, garlic salt

Heat oven to 350. Spray a 9×13 casserole with cooking spray. While pulling chicken: 1) bake tortillas directly on oven rack until dehydrated but not quite crispy 2) in a skillet, sauté frozen vegetables until the water is evaporated and they are cooked through slightly liberally adding salt and peper and 3) in a saucepan, over very low heat, combine 3/4 of each of the cans of soup and add 3 teaspoons xantham gum until thick and creamy. Reserve excess of both soups by combining in one can. Once dehydrated and cool to the touch, stack and cut tortillas into 6 wedges by making 2 cuts across.

With the back of a spoon, spread a thin layer of the thickened soup mixture on bottom of casserole pan. Arrange tortillas to cover bottom. Layer approximately 1 cup chicken with 1/2 peppers and onions and 1/2 Rotel. Top with 1/2 thickened soup mixture spread to cover and sprinkle with 1/3 bag of cheese. Take a moment to spice liberally to taste. Repeat layers with tortillas, chicken, veggies, Rotel, remaining soup mixture, another 1/3 bag of cheese and spices. Make a “roof” with tortillas. Drizzle reserved mixed soups in can over roof and top with remaining 1/3 of cheese.

Cover with foil. Bake 50 minutes, remove foil and continue baking 15 minutes until cheese is gold and bubbly. If desired, broil for more goldn’bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting.

Serve with refried beans, corn, guacamole, sour cream and a fresh green salad.

For more on the history of the dish, to see a version of the original recipe, and to explore a more labor-intensive nearly-gluten-free (swap flour for cornstarch) gourmet version, visit the Homesick Texan blog.

Tags:   corn tortillas · gluten-free king ranch chicken casserole · Health Valley gluten-free cream of chicken · Homesick Texan blog · Progresso cheese chicken enchilada soup · Progresso creamy mushroom soup · Rotel · rotisserie chickenNo Comments.