FRUIT PIZZA
This is a delicious, light dessert, perfect for a birthday party or a pitch-in. The crust is made from cookie dough frosted with sweetened cream cheese and decorated with slices of fresh fruit. The fruit and topping combinations are endless.
Ingredients:
The Measuring Cup sugar cookie dough
4 oz. cream cheese
4 oz. whipped topping
1 tsp. vanilla
assorted fruit
Method:
Line pizza pan with parchent paper. Roll cookie dough out to fit round pizza pan. (Roll dough between two sheets of parchment paper or plastic wrap or dust rolling surface lightly with sweet rice flour). A stone pizza pan works well. You may also choose to do individual cookies and have each person decorate their own. Bake in 325 degree oven until lightly browned. Cool completely on pan.
In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese, whipped topping, and vanilla until light. Spread on cooled cookie crust. Arrange desired fruit over pizza. Good choices are fresh blueberries, fresh strawberries, peaches, kiwi, grapes, bananas, pineapple or mandrin oranges. Chill thoroughly.
Some alternate ideas are:
Tofu cream cheese and non-dairy whipped topping for a diary-free treat.
Strawberry cream cheese and marshmallow fluff with strawberries and bananas.
Peanut butter and marshmallow fluff with bananas drizzled with chocolate syrup.
GLUTEN FREE SOUTHERN CORN BREAD STUFFING
Cornbread dressing is wonderful made from scratch and takes only a little pre-planning. If you are dreaming of stuffing this T-Day, you will be delighted with the ease and wonderful flavor of home-baked dressing.
This southern recipe incorporates white bread crumbs and crumbled cornbread. The breads are seasoned with celery, onion, sage and chicken broth.
Ingredients:
The Measuring Cup Gluten Free Corn Bread Mix
8 slices of gluten free bread
1 cup white onions, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 teaspoon poultry seasoning-more or less to taste
1 teaspoon sage-more or less to taste
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup parsley, chopped fresh
1 stick of butter
2 eggs, beaten lightly
Craisins or dried cranberries, optional
2 small cans chicken broth
Directions:
One day ahead:
Tear or crumble 8 slices of white bread and allow it to sit out long enough to dry.
Bake one 8 x 8 pan of cornbread. Cool completely.
Melt 4 Tablespoons of butter in skillet and sauté onions slowly about 15 minutes. Add celery and sauté 10 minutes. Add parsley and remove from heat; cool and place in airtight container in refrigerator.
Day of dinner:
Bring all stuffing ingredients to room temperature. Trim and discard any deep brown crust from the corn bread; crumble into a large mixing bowl with white bread and stir in onion/celery mixture. Mix in eggs and Craisins, if desired.
Melt remaining 4 Tablespoons butter and drizzle over stuffing, tossing lightly. Add enough broth to moisten. Toss the ingredients together until all bread is dampened but not mushy. More broth may be added to combine the ingredients.
Bake in covered, greased casserole dish about 1 hour or until baked through, 160 degrees internal temperature. Remove the foil and return to the oven for about 10 minutes longer to brown.
MAKE-AHEAD FRENCH TOAST
This is one of my all-time favorite recipes for make-ahead french toast. It is adapted from a Paula Deen recipe so it is decadent. I made it at the bed and breakfast where I baked many years ago and always got rave reviews. It is a wonderful way to start any weekend. I plan to have it ready to pop in the oven for brunch the day after Thanksgiving when we get home from
shopping.
Actual Prep Time: 25 min
Cook Time: 45 min
Serves: 6 to 8
Ingredients:
1 loaf The Measuring Cup Sour Dough or Country Sorghum bread, sliced or cubed (Cinnamon bread is good too)
6 large eggs
1 1/2 cup half-and-half
1 cup skim milk
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (or more if you like cinnamon!)
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Dash salt
Directions:
Lay bread slices or cubes (I like cubes) out to dry for several hours before making this dish. Turn the bread over to insure it is dry on both sides.
Arrange dried slices or cubes in a generously sprayed 9 by 13-inch deep baking dish in layers, overlapping the slices.
In a large bowl, combine the eggs, half-and-half, milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt and beat with a rotary beater or whisk until blended but not bubbly. Pour mixture over the bread, making sure all is covered evenly with the milk-egg mixture. Cover with foil and refrigerate overnight. It is important to let this sit overnight. The dry bread should absorb the liquid by morning.
The next day, preheat oven to 350 degrees . Sprinkle Praline Topping evenly over the bread and bake for 45-55 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. You may need to LOOSELY cover the top with aluminum foil for the last 10 or 15 minutes if it is browning too quickly.
Praline Topping:
1 stick butter, slightly soft
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Combine all ingredients except pecans with a pastry cutter or fork. Add pecans.