Strawberry Icing

Strawberries and Valentine's Day...a perfect match. Here is a recipe for strawberry icing. You can put this on a safe cupcake (here's a recipe for a safe chocolate cupcake that using a can of pumpkin) or cake. Pink and Perfect! Top with a fresh strawberry and you have a yummy looking treat!

Strawberry Icing

This recipe is free of milk, eggs, wheat, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, fish and shellfish

Ingredients
1/2 cup safe butter (like Earth's Best)
1 16 oz box confectioner's sugar
1/4 cup mashed strawberries (you can use fresh or frozen)
*add rice (or soy milk) to thin it out if necessary

Directions
Mix butter and confectioner's sugar together until smooth. Add rice or soy milk if you need to thin it out. Add strawberries, spread on cupcakes or cake.


*If you have leftovers, put it in a freezer bag and freezer for later. When needed, pull out of the freezer, let it defrost and use what you need. Put the rest back in the freezer for later use.

Chicken Marsala

We don't go out to eat on Valentine's Day because it is so crazy. Long waits frustrate me. We just make a special meal at the house and finish the night with chocolate covered strawberries. This meal is easy enough to make any night of the week, but I think the rich flavors are perfect for a Valentine's Day meal.

Chicken Marsala

This recipe is free of milk, eggs, wheat, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, fish and shellfish

Ingredients

4 skinless, boneless, chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
All-purpose flour, for dredging (safe flour for it to be wheat free)

freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces prosciutto, thinly sliced
8 ounces mushrooms (you could use baby portabella, crimini or porcini mushrooms)
1/2 cup sweet Marsala wine
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley (optional)

Directions

Put the chicken breasts side by side on a cutting board and lay a piece of plastic wrap over them; pound with a flat meat mallet, until they are about 1/4-inch thick. Put some flour in a shallow platter and season with a fair amount of pepper; mix with a fork to distribute evenly.

Heat the oil over medium-high flame in a large skillet. When the oil is nice and hot, dredge both sides of the chicken cutlets in the seasoned flour, shaking off the excess. Slip the cutlets into the pan and fry for 5 minutes on each side until golden, turning once – do this in batches if the pieces don't fit comfortably in the pan. Remove the chicken to a large platter in a single layer to keep warm.

Lower the heat to medium and add the prosciutto to the drippings in the pan, saute for 1 minute to render out some of the fat. Now, add the mushrooms and saute until they are nicely browned and their moisture has evaporated, about 5 minutes; season with pepper. Pour the Marsala in the pan and boil down for a few seconds to cook out the alcohol. Add the chicken stock and simmer for a minute to reduce the sauce slightly. Return the chicken to the pan; simmer gently for 1 minute to heat the chicken through. Season with pepper and garnish with chopped parsley before serving.

Serve with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and a vegetable (we love roasted asparagus)

Recipe adapted from The Food Network

Truffles

I saw this recipe in FamilyFun awhile ago and hung onto it because I saw that it could easily be made "safe." I am thinking these would be really cute to give to Sunday school teachers (since Valentine's Day is on Sunday). I bought little truffle wrappers dirt cheap after Valentine's Day last year (be on the lookout for those types of deals on Monday). I can't wait to try these!

Truffles

This recipe is free of milk, eggs, wheat, soy, tree nuts, peanuts, fish and shellfish

Ingredients

Basic Ganache

1 1/3 cups safe semisweet chocolate chips (like Enjoy Life)
1/3 cup vanilla soy milk (I am sure you could use rice milk to make this soy free)

CHERRY CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES
Flavoring: 1/2 cup dried tart cherries, coarsely chopped
Coating: Unsweetened cocoa powder

CHOCOLATE MINT TRUFFLES
Flavoring: 1 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
Coating: Chocolate sprinkles

CUSTOM TRUFFLE COATINGS

unsweetened cocoa powder
Crushed cookies

sprinkles, etc.

Directions

Make the base ganache: Fill a medium saucepan halfway with water, then bring the water to a simmer over medium-low heat. Reduce the heat to low. Make a double boiler by placing a large metal or glass bowl over the saucepan but not touching the water. Add the chocolate chips and soy milk to the bowl and melt the chocolate, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is smooth and shiny. Remove it from the heat.

Pick a variety: Choose one of the recipe variations above, then stir the flavoring into the warm ganache (to make plain chocolate truffles, omit the flavoring.) Transfer the mixture to a bowl, cover, and refrigerate it until it's firm enough to scoop, about 4 hours.

Shape and coat the truffles: Place the coating of your chosen recipe in a shallow bowl (for other options, see "Custom Truffle Coatings," above). Scoop out a heaping teaspoon of the chilled ganache and, using your hands, shape it into a ball. (Tip: Lightly greasing the spoon and your hands with vegetable oil prevents the chocolate from sticking.) Roll the truffle in the coating, then place the truffle in an airtight storage container. Repeat with the remaining ganache.

Storing, serving, and packaging: Cover the truffles and place them in the refrigerator until you're ready to wrap them or serve them. If you give the truffles as a gift, they can be kept at a cool room temperature for the day but should be refrigerated thereafter. Makes 24 truffles

Recipe adapted from Familyfun

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

One of my favorite treats to make on Valentine's Day is chocolate covered strawberries. They look so fancy and they are delicious!


Chocolate Covered Strawberries


This recipe is free of milk, eggs, wheat, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, fish and shellfish


Ingredients:
2 pints strawberries, washed and dried
1 bag Enjoy Life® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1 tbsp. shortening (Spectrum type, not oil)


Directions:
1) Line a cookie sheet or tray with parchment paper and set aside.

2) Melt chocolate and shortening in double boiler or microwave*

3) Dip strawberries into melted chocolate. Let excess drip back into the container. Note: If chocolate is too thick, just heat a little more. If chocolate is too thin, let it cool to the desired consistency.

4) Put on the prepared tray. Refrigerate until chocolate is hard.



*Microwave chocolate: Put 3/4 of Enjoy Life® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips and shortening in a microwaveable container. Heat for 30 second, stir. Repeat. Heat until most of the chocolate is melted. Add remaining chocolate and stir until smooth.


Need a Coupon to buy your semi-sweet chocolate chips? Go here to get a .55 off any Enjoy Life product

Recipe from Enjoy Life

Yummy Earth Lollipops

I can't believe Valentine's Day is almost here! I want to get some Yummy Earth Lollipops for my non-allergic 3 1/2 year old (I don't think Brody is ready for lollipops yet).

I love that there is no "junk" in them. They are gluten free, egg free, dairy free, peanut free, tree nut free, no high fructose corn syrup, wheat free, soy free, no MSG, 100% natural colors, no chemical dyes, real fruit extracts and Kosher Parve. Wow, if I am going to let my kids have a treat...this one meets my standards.

Where to buy YummyEarth: Available at Toys R Us, Babies R Us, Whole Foods, buybuyBaby, Marriott hotels, Disney World, Wegmans, Amazon.com, Harry and David, Smoothie King, Sprouts, Borders Books, health food stores, and supermarkets.

I can't wait to try these! Has anyone had them? What do you think...are they "Yummy"?

Guacamole

I LOVE LOVE LOVE guacamole. I take advantage of making it when avocados are on sale since they can be a bit pricey sometimes. If you have a Publix nearby, they are on sale for 2 for $1 (until next Tuesday 2/9). So...guacamole for the big game? I say..YES!

This recipe is free of milk, eggs, wheat, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, fish and shellfish

Guacamole
4-6 ripe avocados
1/2 red or yellow onion, minced
1-2 serrano chiles, stems and seeds removed, minced
2 tablespoons cilantro leaves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon of fresh lime or lemon juice
coarse salt to taste
A dash of freshly grated black pepper
1/2 ripe tomato, seeds and pulp removed, chopped (optional)
*if you want, omit the onion, serrano chiles, and tomato and just add some fresh salsa (about 1/4 cup). Doing this makes this recipe SO easy!

Directions
1. Cut avocados in half. Remove seed. Scoop out avocado from the peel, put in a mixing bowl. (See How to Cut and Peel an Avocado.)
2. Using a fork, mash the avocado. Add the chopped onion, cilantro, lime or lemon, salt and pepper and mash some more. Chili peppers vary individually in their hotness. So, start with a half of one chili pepper and add to the guacamole to your desired degree of hotness.
Keep the tomatoes separate until ready to serve.
Remember that much of this is done to taste because of the variability in the fresh ingredients. Start with this recipe and adjust to your taste.
3. Cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the guacamole to prevent oxidation from the air reaching it. Refrigerate until ready.
4. Just before serving, add the chopped tomato to the guacamole and mix.

Serve with tortilla chips

Crispy Chicken Tenders or Nuggets

Another great appetizer we are going to have for Super Bowl is chicken tenders (you could cut the chicken into smaller pieces for nuggets, this would make more). These are so easy and people will be impressed that you made them from "scratch." These taste SO much better than the processed, frozen tenders/nuggets and they are a healthier version. No one will even think that these are allergen free. Who doesn't like crispy, chicken with honey mustard and barbecue to dip them in?

This recipe is free of milk, eggs, wheat, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, fish and shellfish

Ingredients
3 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts cut into strips (or chunks for nuggets), washed off with water, then pat some extra moisture off (leave a little moisture on the chicken so it is easier to press the chips into it)
1 bag Crushed Plain Potato Chips (I used Lay's Wavy Original because they have more texture and give a great CRUNCH)

Directions
Put 1/2 bag of Plain Potato Chips in a gallon Ziploc bag and crush them up (save the rest of the bag if you need more, I end up using most of the bag because I really coat my chicken). Put chicken strips/nuggets one at a time into the Ziploc bag and press the chips into the chicken so they are covered and the chips stick. Bake on a cookie sheet (I use my pampered chef stone) for approximately 16 minutes (or until brown and crispy) at 450 degrees. Easy and good!

Recipe from Sophie Safe Cooking

Serve these with Homemade Honey Mustard and Barbecue Sauce

Homemade Honey Mustard

Ingredients
Yellow Mustard
Unprocessed, local honey

Directions
Mix together until you get the desired sweetness.

Barbecue Sauce
You might want to try Bull's Eye Original (new recipe with no High Fructose Corn Syrup) http://brands.kraftfoods.com/bullseyebbq/flavors.html

Ingredients: Tomato puree (water, tomato paste), sugar, molasses, vinegar, salt, contains less than 2% modified food starch, natural smoke flavor, mustard flour, dried onions, spice, dried garlic.

There are no allergens listed underneath (example: wheat, etc.)