Gluten Free Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars

I have noticed that a lot of the gluten free recipes that I make for my brother in law end up being super crumbly and hard to keep together while you eat. This one didn't seem to be as extreme as the rest of the recipes I have tried. It was super tasty and very rich! I would definitely try this one again, but maybe skip the gluten free cake mix part if I am not making it for my brother in law! :)

Gluten Free Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
(Recipe found at healthpositiveinfo.com via pinterest.com)

1 box Betty Crocker Gluten Free yellow cake mix
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
2 tablespoons whipping cream
2 eggs

Heat oven to 350. In medium bowl, stir together cake mix and pecans. With pastry blender or fork, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Reserve 1 cup mixture for topping. In bottom of ungreased 13×9-inch pan, press remaining mixture. Bake 10 minutes. In large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add remaining ingredients; beat until well blended. Pour over warm crust. Sprinkle with reserved topping. Bake about 35 minutes or until center is set. Cool 30 minutes. Refrigerate about 2 hours or until chilled. For bars, cut into 6 rows by 4 rows. Store covered in refrigerator.

Make Ahead Pizza Casserole

As usual, anything with pizza in the title catches my eye immediately. I know that it is usually a sure fire hit with the kiddos and it is going to be a meal that I don't have to fight with them over. I also liked the idea of "make ahead" so that got me excited as well! I doubled this recipe so that I could throw the extra pan in the freezer and have another go round of it in the future... We've actually already eaten the second pan - that's how good it was and/or how busy our schedules are! :) I mixed up the meat a bit, since I had some italian sausage in the fridge and used a pound of beef and a pound of italian sausage. I love the taste of italian sausage but not the fat that goes with it, so this was a nice way to use it! It was a great meal at our house, hope you enjoy as well!

Make Ahead Pizza Casserole
(recipe found at bettycrocker.com)


1 pound mild italian pork sausage
2 cups water
1 can (15 ounces) pizza sauce
1 can (14.5 ounces) diced tomatoes with sweet onion, undrained
4 cups uncooked rotini pasta (use gluten free noodles if desired)
1 can (2 1/4 oz) sliced ripe olives, drained
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella or pizza cheese blend

In a skillet, cook sausage over medium-high heat 8 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until no longer pink; drain. In ungreased 13x9-inch baking dish, mix water, pizza sauce and tomatoes. Stir in cooked sausage, uncooked pasta and olives (pasta should be completely covered with sauce). Cover tightly with foil; refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight. When ready to bake, heat oven to 350°F. Stir casserole; cover with foil and bake 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes or until bubbly. Uncover baking dish; stir mixture. Sprinkle with cheese; bake uncovered 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

BLT Pasta Salad

Again, on the 4th of July I was looking for a gluten free recipe to bring along for the potluck that we were heading to. I have been wanting to try this recipe for forever but it was making me a little nervous with the thought of pasta and lettuce together. It seemed like kind of a weird combo to me but the thought of a BLT salad was too much to resist. I should have tried it sooner!! I got so many comments on how good the salad was and asking about the recipe. I guess that means that I need to make it again sometime...

BLT Pasta Salad
(recipe found on pinterest via kitchme.com)

3 2⁄3 cup large macaroni shells pasta, cooked
4 cup tomatoes, diced
4 slice bacon, cooked and crumbled
3 cup lettuce, thinly sliced
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp cider vinegar
1⁄2 cup fat free mayonnaise
1⁄3 cup light sour cream
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 salt
1 pepper

In a large bowl, mix pasta, bacon, tomatoes, and lettuce. In a small bowl, mix sugar, vinegar, mayonnaise, sour cream, mustard, and salt and pepper to taste. Pour dressing over pasta mixture, stir to combine, and chill until ready to serve.

Crockpot Applesauce BBQ Chicken

I was looking for a few new recipes to make while my brother in law is staying with us... Since he is gluten free I have to be a little more careful about what I am feeding the family when he is around! :) I love applesauce with chicken and pork, but I wasn't too sure about how this was going to go all mixed together. It turned out really tasty! I couldn't find chunky applesauce anywhere that I checked so I went with the regular applesauce and it was pretty good, although I will keep checking because I want to try it with the chunkiness of apples.

Crockpot Applesauce BBQ Chicken
(recipe found on pinterest via whoneedsacape.com)

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
2/3 cup chunky applesauce
2/3 cup BBQ sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon chili powder

Spray crockpot with cooking spray. Place chicken breasts on bottom. Mix all remaining ingredients together and pour over chicken. Cook 6-8 hours on low setting. If FREEZING, place all ingredients in gallon-sized freezer bag. Freeze. Thaw overnight in refrigerator prior to placing into slow cooker.

Banana Oat Greek Yogurt Pancakes

My brother in law is staying with us for a while since he is in the process of moving his family from Arizona to Minnesota - YAY!! That means that I get to work on a whole new style of cooking and baking - Gluten Free! We do a lot of "meat" meals in our house anyhow, so that isn't that big of a deal but breakfast for us is usually carb city! :) That means finding something yummy for him to eat at the same time we are eating... I found this gluten free pancake recipe and had to give it a whirl. He thought it was pretty tasty, even though I forgot that he has a slight allergy to bananas. Whoops! Luckily it isn't that bad and it only happens sometimes - whew! Next time we will give it a try with blueberries instead so we don't take the chance of a reaction! He also mentioned that the texture was pretty good also, so all in all this is a repeat recipe!

Banana Oat Greek Yogurt Pancakes
(recipe found on pinterest via runningwithspoons.com)

1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 medium banana, sliced
2 egg whites
1/4 cup plain greek yogurt
1-2 tablespoons almond milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat a skillet over medium heat and coat it with cooking spray or oil. You want to make sure that it's very hot before you start cooking your pancakes.
Add ingredients to a blender in the order listed and blend until oats are broken down and batter is frothy. Using a ladle or 1/4 cup measuring cup, drop batter onto skillet until desired size of pancakes is reached. Cook until the edges begin to look dry and bubbles start to form on the top of the pancake, about 1 minute. Using a spatula, flip and cook about 2 more minutes on the other side. Repeat with remaining batter, making sure to coat your skillet again with oil between each batch. Remove from heat and serve with your favorite toppings.