What's For Dinner? Roasted Carrots

For fun, I am participating in the first week of a recipe carnival, "Wednesday, What's For Dinner?" graciously hosted by Linda, The Gluten-Free Homemaker. She is inviting anyone who would like to share ideas for gluten-free dinners.

I really like the feeling of community that this gives me. Since we are all facing the same dietary challenges and issues, it's comforting to surround ourselves with those just like us.

I have to tell you this little story. When we first subscribed to the Dish Network, I wanted to watch the Food Network, but usually felt an overwhelming sense of loss looking at all the wonderful dishes. I would think of all the foods I couldn't eat. I allowed myself to feel these feelings and now I am slowly accepting the challenge I put to myself, "How can I make this for my special diet eaters?" So knowing this, you understand my excitement to find a recipe that needed no revisions.

It is with great joy I share this recipe, Roasted Carrots, from The Barefoot Contessa. I like simple when it comes to vegetables and these roasted carrots are simply delicious!

We hope you decide to join the carnival. I think we will have lots of fun.


Roasted Carrots

Ingredients:

nocoupons 12 carrots ( I use organic)

3 tablespoons good olive oil

1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt

1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper ( I will leave this off next time)

2 tablespoons minced fresh dill or parsley (It was fine without the fresh)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

If the carrots are thick, cut them in half lengthwise; if not, leave whole. Slice the carrots diagonally in 1 1/2-inch-thick slices. (The carrots will shrink while cooking so make the slices big.) Toss them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, and pepper. Transfer to a sheet pan in 1 layer and roast in the oven for 20 minutes, until browned and tender.

Toss the carrots with minced dill or parsley, season to taste, and serve.

Sweet Potato Casserole- Gluten, Dairy & Sugar-Free

One of my families favorite recipe is my mother's sweet potato casserole. This past Thanksgiving I was determined to remake her recipe to be gluten-free without sugar. It was a challenge, because her recipe has a lot of flour and sugar. I tried and it just wasn't what I remembered. Since I didn't have more time to keep working on it , I gave up (at least for now).

This is the recipe that I created in it's place. I'm very pleased with the taste. My boys liked it so much that it was all eaten by bedtime on Thanksgiving. I'm sure they will ask for it again very soon, because it was wonderful. This was voted their favorite dish for Thanksgiving 2008!




Sweet Potato Casserole - Gluten, Dairy and Sugar-Free

2 pounds sweet potatoes ( 3 cups mashed) (I used 4 large)
1/6 cup agave nectar or honey
7 drops of stevia liquid
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 large eggs
4 tablespoons "butter," melted (Earth Balance Buttery Sticks), or coconut oil
1/2 cup light coconut milk, or almond milk, or other non-dairy substitute

Topping:
3/4 cup pecans, chopped
2 Tablespoons agave nectar, or honey
4 Tablespoons "butter," melted (Earth Balance Buttery Sticks), or melted coconut oil
1/2 cups gluten-free flour (like Bob's Red Mill Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour), or a combination of tapioca starch and coconut flour

Wash and scrub the sweet potatoes. Place the sweet potatoes, still in their jackets, in a large pot and cover them with water. Bring them to a boil and cover with a lid. Turn down the heat, but keep them on a low boil until they are tender.

Cool and remove the peel and mash with a potato masher. Stir in the agave nectar/honey, stevia, and salt. In a separate bowl whisk the eggs, coconut or almond milk  and 4 tablespoons melted non-dairy "butter" and combine with the mashed sweet potatoes until well mixed. Pour into a greased 2-quart baking dish.

Combine the topping ingredients in a bowl and put on top of the sweet potato mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 35-45 minutes until bubbly around the edges.

My updated grain-free recipe remake can be found here.