Rebekah’s favorite cookie “pre-Gluten Free” was a tollhouse with chocolate chunks, lots of pecans and dried cherries. I have been looking for a perfect replacement for two years, and I finally found it thanks to Alton Brown of the Food Network. This recipe is based on his Chewy Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies. Try them, you won’t believe they are gluten-free!

This is a mild flavored, soft cookie that makes a wonderful breakfast. They freeze well. You can also spread the bottom with peanut butter or cream cheese and add a second cookie to make it into a cookie sandwich! Just grab one and go.

This is a recipe that has never failed me. I haven’t even tweaked it since the first time I came up with it! It is super easy and fast to put together. I always make them in the evening and let them rise in the fridge overnight. In the morning I give them a quick boil, pop them in the oven, and while I get dressed for the day they bake into the perfect breakfast. For an extra special breakfast scramble some eggs, warm up thin slices of ham or Canadian bacon and grate cheddar cheese. Put it all together into a breakfast sandwich. Also great used for regular sandwiches or as a base for pizza. These freeze well. (Note: if you have made up bags of bread mix from my previous bread recipe, one bag of bread mix, including the yeast, equals all the dry ingredients in this recipe.)

This is my favorite recipe for Macaroni and Cheese, a real comfort food. Every pot luck has to have a big crock of it or I feel like something is missing! I have found that Gluten Free large elbow macaroni works just as well as wheat pasta. (Tinkyada Joy or Quinoa Pasta are best) Use real butter and half and half or you will sacrifice the rich flavor. Like Julia Child said: “The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steaks to cook.” Come to think of it, this dish would be GREAT with steaks!

This filling is tart/sweet and very lemony. It is a wonderful pie in a traditional type pie crust, Gluten Free, of course! I tried it once in a cookie type crust and it was terrible. Or skip the crust all together and just serve in pudding bowls. You can still add the meringue, put your heat proof bowls onto a cookie sheet, top with meringue and brown as directed.

I make the best meat loaf! Yes, I know, that is prideful of me to say. And yes, I also know that if you were raised on your mother’s meat loaf it will always be your favorite. But let me tell you, no offense, Mom, my meatloaf is better than yours. It is so good hot we rarely have any left to eat cold or in sandwiches. But on the rare occasion there are leftovers they are just as good the next day. Makes great meatballs, too!

Coffee Klatch-n/ A casual social gathering for coffee and conversation.

Back in 1954 my Mom moved into a pretty well established neighborhood. The ladies had been gathering one morning a week to gossip for quite a while. My Mom was also newly married and not a great cook. She really wanted to be an accepted member of the group, so she invited everyone to her house for their next gathering. She pulled out her trusty Betty Crocker, found a basic muffin recipe and dressed it up. After baking she rolled the hot muffins in melted butter, then into Cinnamon Sugar, and served them warm. Named “French Breakfast Puffs” they seemed much more elegant. They were a huge hit and the talk of the coffee klatch for many weeks. Needless to say, she was “in.” Do you need a really special treat that is also very easy? One that also makes your house smell heavenly? This recipe is for you! And it has been revised so it is Gluten Free. Enjoy!

They are called Gingersnaps, and the flavor does snap, but these cookies have an amazing chewiness that you won’t be able to stop eating. I had these for the first time in 1983. My friend Janet brought them to a women’s retreat. After the first one I couldn’t stop eating them. I kept getting up and crossing the room to sneak just one more. Finally Janet laughed and said “I have never seen you eat like this!” My next birthday I received a basket of cookies and the recipe. I have adjusted the flours to be gluten free, of course, but the amazing texture and flavor are still there. Try them yourself! This recipe is quick and very forgiving. There is no chilling so they can be baked right away. And more importantly they can be eaten right away. Enjoy!

This recipe uses half of the Chicken Breasts Dijon recipe, or use the whole batch and double the below recipe.

I use this recipe for the base of my Pasta with Chicken and Artichokes recipe. Eat half tonight and save half for the pasta another night or use this whole recipe to make a double batch of pasta day one!