Pariah

But Little Do You Know About Something That I Talk About
I'm Tired of Driving It's Due Time That I Walk About
But In The Meantime, I'm Wise To The Demise
I've Got Eyes In The Back Of My Head So I Realize
Beastie Boys - So What'cha Want

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I hate the park. The girls love it and it's an easy 2 block walk, but I hate taking them there. It was at the park almost exactly 2 years ago where I had the spit scared out of me watching Anna interact with a little boy her age (3 1/2 years old). Or rather, watching Anna NOT interact with the little boy who wanted to play with her. He was highly verbal and approached her to play. She ran away from him in hysterics, screaming, then laughing to herself and running in tight circles over and over and over. Anytime he approached her, she ran from him, sobbing in fear. He asked me why she would not play with him. I told him, with a pit in my stomach, that she was shy. He caught up with her again at the swing set and started talking to her. Anna stared at him blankly and repeated the last few words of his sentences. Then she started scripting lines from Kipper to him verbatim, English accent and all. He just stared at her. I stared at them both. She was completely unable to communicate with him, and afraid of him because of it. For the first time it hit me like a ton of bricks, even though in the back of my head I already knew...I was looking at a little girl with autism, and so was everyone else on the playground. I'm not sure I've ever felt so alone. I went home and cried before calling the pediatrician and shaking every cage I could find to get Anna some help. I don't like to think of autism as a disability, but not being able to play with peers or communicate meaningfully with anyone - that is a a disability.

So the park for me is not a great place. I still don't like it. The park is where the typicals run amok, playing together. Two years and lots of therapy later, Anna is enchanted by their play. She runs after them, following them, mimicking what they do, copying their movements and laughter, looking to them for her next move. I take some comfort in the fact that this mimicking behavior, which drives me crazy, is supposed to be a good sign in high functioning kids. It's supposed to mean they care enough to want to be involved and accepted, and likely to adapt enough to fit in over time. But the typicals are less enchanted by Anna. She's the same age, but she plays like she is younger. She does not talk to them much because language, although she can now communicate effectively, is still not her preferred method of communication. So she ends up following. She looks a little bit different too, she tends to flail her limbs when she runs, and she'll flap her hands when she's overly excited. It' s not too bad to look at when you are an adult - looking at Anna you'd just think she was displaying typical playground behavior. And I get that from adults all the time - "but she's being typical!", "but she's so high functioning!". But the kids know better. They have to. Kids are more in tune with their guts than adults, who have learned to ignore their guts and instead rationalize with their heads. It's Darwinism in action on the playground, survival of the fittest, and kids can zero in on another kid's difference in no time flat, and close their social circle to the one who is not like them.

Watching playground behavior like this is like watching Lord of the Flies. It's going to kill me. Anna is oblivious to the huffs of annoyance, the glares, and the fact that the children she's trying to play with run away from her doesn't faze her at all. She continues running after them and although it's obvious to everyone else on the playground that the other kids are not interested in having her join their group, Anna is clueless. Although Anna's feelings are not yet hurt by this kind of treatment, my feelings are definitely hurt. Watching these interactions is just like a knife in my heart, slowly twisting with each roll of the eyes, each glower, each rebuff. I know what kind of game they are playing, and I hate it.

I don't know how to get Anna to understand the social rules of playground play...I can talk to her about it, but she doesn't understand. I'm trying so hard to build her self esteem and I'm afraid one of these days some little kid is going to grind it into the dust.

And it's not just Anna who is given the cold shoulder. I am on the outside too. Watching. Waiting. It does not help to have well intentioned people who don't know what it's like to raise a child with ASD tell me that my child is being typical. They brush off my concerns and barely contain their annoyance at my perceived overreaction- "all kids go through that!". No, they don't. I suppose it's too much to ask of others to not dismiss my daughter's struggles. I suppose it's too much to ask of others to imagine a reality that is not their own. In order to be a good parent to Anna, to get her the help she needs, to be on this journey with her I am also alone. Marginalized. Right now I feel like autism is a very lonely experience, for everyone involved. I hope as we continue our journey that will change, but I'm not holding my breath.
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"...Aspie girls she sees are more adept at copying the behaviors, mannerisms and dress codes of those around them, than Aspie boys tend to be. "From my personal experience, they seem to have a greater drive to fit in than boys with Asperger's do," she says. "So they spend a lot of time studying other girls and trying to copy them." When social settings change, this can spell disaster. "As you move from high school to college, or from one group of friends to another, you have a whole new set of rules to learn," said one Aspie woman who asked not to be named. "Not only do you lose your own identity, but if you end up surrounded by the wrong people—mimicking their behavior without understanding the motivations behind it can lead to big trouble."
http://www.newsweek.com/id/168868

"Contrary to popular notions, people at the high end of the autism spectrum disorder continuum suffer most from an inability to model "self" rather than impaired ability to respond to others, said Baylor College of Medicine researchers in a report that appear in the journal Neuron. This inability to model "self" can disrupt an individual's ability to understand the world as a whole, said Dr. P. Read Montague Jr., professor of neuroscience, and director of the Human Neuroimaging Lab and the Computational Psychiatry Unit at BCM."
http://www.bcm.edu/news/item.cfm?newsID=1058

GFCF Herbed Crackers

This is another recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens (the New Baking Book, which I love!). I was surprised at how easy these crackers were to make. Next time I'll double the recipe, because they go really fast!

1 cup GF Flour Blend (I used this one)
3/4 tsp. rubbed sage
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
3 tbsp. rice milk
2 tbsp. olive oil
*3 tbsp. fresh snipped parsley, if desired
*2 tbsp. finely chopped green onion
kosher salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Sift together the dry ingredients and place in a food processor. Add the rice milk and the oil (and parsley and green onion, if desired) and pulse till combined. Form the dough into a ball and place on a piece of lightly floured wax paper.

Flatten dough into a rectangle. Roll dough to 1/16 inch thick. Trim uneven edges and prick dough all over with a fork. Cut into rectangles with a knife or cut into shapes with a small cookie cutter. Transfer crackers to an ungreased baking sheet. Lightly spray crackers with olive oil cooking spray and sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake for about 15 minutes, or until crackers just start to brown and are firm to the touch. Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

*Adding parsley to the crackers will give your crackers pretty green specks.

Best Ever Biscuits

I've adapted this recipe from Better Homes and Gardens. I used a multi-grain flour blend, and the quinoa flour in the blend gave the biscuits a nice savory taste. I served these with Beef Stew with Sweet Potatos and Apricots. Leftovers would be good split, toasted and stuffed with egg and ham for breakfast in the morning.


2 cups GF flour blend (I used this one)
1 tbsp. baking powder
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. xanthan gum
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup palm shortening
2/3 cup rice milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly coat a baking sheet with cooking spray, set aside.

Sift together the flour through the baking soda. Cut in the shortening with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center, add rice milk all at once and stir with a fork until just moistened.

Turn dough out onto a piece of lightly floured wax paper. Pat the dough into a rectangle 1/2 inch thick. Cut dough with a floured biscuit cutter or cut with a knife into squares. Place biscuits 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet. Bake about 10 minutes, or until the bottoms of the biscuits are lightly browned. Remove to a wire rack to cool slightly. Serve warm.

Beef Stew with Sweet Potatoes and Apricots

1 pound beef stew meat, fat trimmed, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 tbsp. rice flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 cups peeled sweet potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (2 medium)
1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1 tbsp. dried parsley
pinch ground allspice
pinch ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper, to taste
2 cups beef broth
8 large dried apricots, quartered

Stir together the rice flour, salt and pepper. Place in a large ziplock bag. Add the beef cubes, close the bag, and shake to coat. Heat oil in a large skillet. Add the beef and brown on all sides. Remove the beef to a crock pot. Add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Cover and cook on low 6 - 8 hours or until the beef is tender. Discard bay leaf and adjust seasonings to taste.

Cranberry Sauce with Apples

Making your own cranberry sauce is so easy and fast, and it tastes great. This is a Penzey's recipe,which I've halved (and it still makes plenty). Homemade cranberry sauce is good with not only turkey, but chicken and pork, crackers, or plain by the spoonful.

2 cups fresh cranberries, rinsed
1 large tart apple, peeled, cored and chopped into 1/2 inch chunks
1/2 cup apple juice
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. minced orange peel

Pour the juice and sugar into a medium saucepan, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Bring the juice and sugar to a boil. Add the cranberries, apple and orange peel.


Return to a boil and simmer about 10 minutes, stirring often. The cranberries will pop and the sauce will thicken nicely. Store in the refrigerator.

GFCF Corn Bread

This recipe is adapted from Better Homes and Gardens. Call me crazy for thinking corn bread is pretty, but this corn bread really is nice to look at, and even nicer to eat.

1 cup GF flour blend (I used this one)
3/4 cup cornmeal
2 tbsp. sugar
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
2 beaten eggs
1 cup rice milk
1/4 cup canola oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a 9 inch round baking pan with cooking spray, set aside.

Sift together the flour through the salt, set aside.

Combine the eggs through the oil. Add egg mixture all at once to the dry mixture and stir until just moistened. Pour batter into the prepared baking pan and bake about 20 minutes, or until golden.

GFCF Apple Pie

Apple pie holds a special place in my memory as what spurred me into the kitchen in earnest. My uncle brought this beautiful apple pie to Thanksgiving one year when I was 13 years old. It was the most fantastic pie we'd ever laid our eyes on...piled high full of apples, the crust was golden and perfect, and I swear I could hear angels singing "aaaahhhhh!" over this pie. It was gorgeous. But when it was served, it tasted fermented. Not bad, but like too much of it would get you drunk. It was a little bit of a letdown...such a pretty pie, it didn't taste as good as it looked. And right then, I determined that I would make my pies bigger, stuffed full of more apples, more beautiful, and taste so good it'd knock the socks off of anyone. And I did. Year after year, apple pie was the pride and joy of my Thanksgiving offerings. Of course I branched out from apple pie, and what I create in the kitchen remains a source of great satisfaction (though I tend to be a better baker than a cook).

So fast forward 20 years later, when my kitchen is (still relatively new to being) gluten and casein free. I've had good success with this new reality, and I've conquered the GFCF pie crust to my satisfaction. But I had some trepidation about apple pie. Could I get it as stuffed full of apples as before? Would the crust behave, or would it crack and sink and fall apart into the apple filling? Would it be flaky and fabulous, or just so-so? What would become of my pride and joy apple pie, the hallmark of my culinary conquests? Okay, I'm going a little overboard here, but only slightly. I really was worried about apple pie for Thanksgiving this year. I took a chance on a new flour blend for the pie crust (High Protein Blend) and halved the amount of apples I'd usually put in a pie, just in case the crust was cranky. The pastry handled well, and it looked nice going into the oven. Coming out of the oven, the crust had cracked and separated all the way around the edges of the pie, and it had hugged the apples in an odd sort of way. It was not perfect looking, but it was not horrendous looking either.


It browned nicely and the edges of the crust did not burn. But really, the true test is in the tasting. And...the crust was flaky. It was not gritty, it was not gummy. I could not believe how flaky the crust turned out to be...it was perfect. Totally perfect. It might not look as beautiful as I wanted it to look, but it tasted fabulous. I'm SO happy. Next time, I'll use twice as many apples!


6 - 8 large tart apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced (use more apples, if you dare)
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. allspice
1 egg white, beaten until frothy
cinnamon sugar, for sprinkling
pastry for 2 crust pie

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Roll out half the pie pastry and line the pie plate with the pastry. Set aside.

Toss the apples with the lemon juice. Combine the sugars through the allspice with a fork and mix well. Toss the sugar mixture with the apples. Carefully place the apples in the pie plate, mounding apples in the middle of the pie.

Roll out the top crust and place on top of the apple filling. Trim the edges and flute. Brush the egg wash over the top of the pie and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Cut slits in the top of the pie for the steam to vent through. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, then turn the heat to 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until the crust is evenly brown and golden (if the crust does not look like it's getting golden enough by 20 minutes at 350 degrees, increase the heat to 375 degrees and bake for another 20 minutes). Remove from oven to a wire rack to cool. Serve warm.

Baked Chicken with Crispy Potato Chip Crust

Tom's aunt made this for dinner and gave me the recipe some years ago - yes it really does use potato chips, and yes the end result is extra crunchy and really good! I modified the original recipe just a little bit to suit my needs.

1/4 cup olive oil
4 large cloves minced garlic
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/4 cup dijon mustard
2 tsp. dried basil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

4 ounces potato chips, crushed
1/2 cup GF breadcrumbs
2 tsp. dried basil
1/4 tsp. ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray, set aside.

Combine the olive oil through the basil, blend well. Coat chicken thickly with this mixture and let marinate for half an hour.

In a shallow dish, combine the crushed potato chips through the pepper, tossing well. Coat the chicken with the potato chip mixture and set on baking sheet. Bake until the topping is crisp and the chicken is cooked through, about 30 minutes.

GFCF Chocolate Mousse Tart with Shortbread Crust

A friend recently shared a shortbread tart crust recipe with me, and I thought a chocolate filling would compliment it well. The crust reminds me of Pecan Sandies. It does not have much flavor on it's own, but it's good with the chocolate filling. I've added vanilla extract to the recipe posted here - although I didn't use vanilla extract in the crust I made this weekend, I think the crust will benefit with the addition. I've adapted the chocolate filling from a recipe found in Eating Well. There is enough mousse to fill the crust and two custard cups, which greatly pleased the girls.

Shortbread Crust
1 1/2 cups rice flour
2 large eggs
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup walnut meal or almond meal
1/4 cup coconut oil or palm shortening
1 tsp. vanilla extract or 1/2 tsp. almond extract

Chocolate Mousse Filling
1 1/2 tsp. unflavored gelatin
1 tbsp. water
3/4 cup coconut milk
2 large egg yolks
2 tbsp. sugar
1 tbsp. cornstarch
3 ounces casein free bittersweet chocolate chips
2 egg whites
1/8 tsp. cream of tartar
1/4 cup sugar

Prepare the crust
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine all ingredients in a food processor. Process until the dough sticks together and forms a ball. The dough should not be very sticky, but feel easy to knead.

Place the dough in a 9 inch tart pan. Spread evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the pan with your fingers (you will not need to use all the dough). Prick the bottom with a fork and bake about 15 minutes or until the edges are beginning to brown. Remove to a wire rack to cool.

Prepare the Filling
Sprinkle the gelatin over the water in a small bowl. Stir and let stand to thicken. Meanwhile, heat coconut milk in a medium saucepan until steaming but not boiling. Remove from heat while you whisk together the egg yolks, 2 tbsp. sugar and cornstarch in a medium bowl. Gradually whisk in 1/2 cup of the hot coconut milk into the egg yolk mixture. Then whisk the egg yolk mixture into the rest of the coconut milk in the saucepan and return to the heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 1 minute (do not boil). Remove from the heat. Whisk in the chocolate chips until melted and smooth. Whisk in the softened gelatin and set aside. (If the gelatin is too thick, soften in the microwave for a couple of seconds.)

Beat the egg whites and cream of tartar in a large bowl on medium speed until frothy. Increase the speed to high and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add 1/4 cup sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the chocolate mixture into the egg white mixture until well blended. Spread the filling evenly into the crust. Chill uncovered until set, about 1 hour. Serve with strawberries or mint leaves as a garnish, if desired.

Pumpkin Butter Bread

I stumbled across a recipe for pumpkin butter bread here while searching for interesting ways to use up pumpkin butter. This is an excellent recipe and the bread tastes even better sliced with some pumpkin butter spread on top.

1/3 cup palm shortening
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup pumpkin butter (or other fruit butter such as apple or pear)
1/3 cup water
1 2/3 cups GF flour blend (I used this one)
1 tsp. xanthan gum
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup walnut meal, if desired

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Coat a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan with cooking spray, set aside.

Cream sugar and shortening together until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the pumpkin butter and water and mix well.

Sift together the flour through the baking powder. Add to the wet mixture and beat until well combined. Fold in the walnut meal, if desired. Bake for 50 - 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Irish Whiskey Cake

I love making this cake every autumn. It smells great, and it's not too sweet. Everyone loves it. I've adapted this recipe from the Irish Heritage Cookbook by Margaret M. Johnson. And happily, I can safely say that Scotch and Irish Whiskey are safe (gluten free!).

1/2 cup dried currants
1 1/4 cup water
1/4 cup palm shortening
1/4 cup applesauce
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 cups GF flour blend (I used this one)
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. xanthan gum
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. cloves
3/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup walnut meal
1/4 cup Irish Whiskey (I use Jameson's)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two 8 inch cake pans and line the bottom with rounds of waxed paper, set aside.

In a small saucepan, combine the currants and the water. Bring to a boil and then simmer, uncovered, for about 10 minutes, or until plump. Drain and reserve the liquid. Let cool.

In a large bowl, cream the shortening, and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the applesauce and the egg and beat well. Stir in 3/4 cup of the reserved currant liquid and the whiskey. Sift together the flour through salt and add to the wet ingredients, beating until well combined. Fold in the currants and the walnut meal.

Pour the batter into the prepared pans. Bake about 25 - 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the layers comes out clean. Remove from pans to a wire rack to cool, peeling off the wax paper. Cool completely before frosting.

Irish Whiskey Frosting
1/4 cup palm shortening
2 tbsp. coconut cream*
3+ cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup Irish Whiskey

Beat together the shortening, coconut cream and powdered sugar. Add the whiskey in a steady stream and beat until smooth. Add more powdered sugar as necessary until frosting consistency is reached.

*To get coconut cream, open a can of coconut milk and skim the cream off the top.

Glow Stick in the Eye

Megan is afraid of the dark. Whenever she is caught outside in the deepening dusk, she covers her eyes with her hands and asks us to carry her. At 5:30pm tonight while the girls were eating dinner, Megan was commenting on how dark it was getting outside. So I thought it would be fun to take out the glow sticks I'd recently bought at Target to get Megan's mind off her anxiety.

We walked outside to the garage so I could throw the wash into the dryer, and I bent Megan's glow bracelet to activate it and put it around her wrist. She was excited enough to not mind the dark so much. I took Anna's glow stick to do the same thing, and as I was bending it to make it glow, it sprung a violent leak and got all over the floor, all over Anna's shirt, and shot straight into her left eye. She started screaming. I dropped everything and yelled at the girls to get inside the house. Anna sprinted, shrieking to high heaven that I hurt her eye. I flung open the door and then waited for Megan to catch up...she was screaming because she was left behind in the dark (what the neighbors must think!). Not having time to wait while Megan acted like a drama queen, I grabbed her by the wrist and hauled her little butt up in the air and into the living room, dumping her on the floor before slamming the door and running after Anna into the kitchen (I hope the neighbors didn't see that).

Anna is screaming. I need to flush her eye out. The kitchen sink is full of dishes. I push her into the bathroom to the sink and think, she is never going to let me bend her over backwards into the sink and wash her eye out under the faucet. I'm silently cursing under my breath as I yank off her clothes and throw her into the shower. She hates water in her face, especially water in her eyes, and I don't know how I'm supposed to flush the chemicals out of her eyes without a throw-down, drag-out fight. I grab a cup and start splashing water into her face. That goes over really well and I start yelling at her to calm down and let me clean her eye. She keeps yelling that I squirted her eye and her eye really hurts. I need to call Poison Control, and realize I left the phone on the washing machine in the garage. Cursing again, I run outside, grab the phone, and look up the Poison Control number on the magnet on the refrigerator. It does not work. Curses. I call 911. I can't hear the operator as I'm trying to flush out Anna's eye and she keeps screaming in my ear. I'm yelling at the 911 operator who dispatches me to the fire department. I start yelling at the fire department. Anna is screaming so loudly that I have to leave the bathroom and shut the door so I can hear.

The fire department gives me the number to the Poison Control Center. I'm silently cursing as I run back to the kitchen for a piece of paper and a pen. The number works. Poison control...I yell at them too.

How old is the child, they ask?

5 years old.

Her eye needs to be flushed for at least 15 minutes.

Yes, I'm doing that.

Get her in the shower.

Yes, she's in the shower.

She should be fine, her eye will be sore but it will feel better in a bit, and if it still hurts in several hours, she needs to go to the emergency room in case it's her cornea that is scratched.

Okay. Thank you. (Please God, not the emergency room. I'm not ready for autism in the emergency room.)

The operator says something preachy to me about how glow sticks have been outlawed for the past 25 years, but every year they get hundereds of calls like mine.

(Trust me, I will throw the bastard little glow sticks in the trash first chance I get.)

They want to know Anna's name and our zip code for reporting purposes. The frantic phone call ends. And to my surprise, I've noticed that Anna has calmed down.

She's holding her eye open.

I splash water in her eye. I tell her to blink. She blinks. She says she has to blink both eyes. I tell her that's okay. I hold open her eye and tell her to look up at the ceiling. She looks up and I splash more water in her eye. She's not screaming. She says, Mommy I'm being brave. I tell her I'm so proud of her for being so brave, and she's doing a great job helping me clean her eye, and I'm so impressed she's being such a big girl. I wait for another meltdown. Instead, Anna starts to giggle. I hold her eyelids open and splash water in her eye. Now it's a game. She's blinking before the water gets in her eye, so I trick her by splashing the water to the side of her eye, before she can see it and blink. It works. I tell her I'm tricking her eye. She thinks that's hilarious. The laughing is a little weird, but it's better than the screaming, so I laugh too.

15 minutes. 10 minutes. 5 minutes. We count down the last minutes. Then we count down the last 11 splashes. She says her eye is feeling better. I wrap her in a towel and she sits on my lap in a big bear hug. She says again that I squirted glow stick in her eye. I tell her it's an accident, and that we will never pay with Rotten Glow Sticks again. The girls both chime in, Rotten Glow Sticks! I ask Megan, who's been a silent observer, to please throw the Rotten Glow Sticks away. She does so, and then I get the girls ready for bed. Anna's eye is red and puffy, but if her mood is any gauge, she's feeling better. She starts obsessing about one eye being smaller than the other. I tell her that she needs to rest her eye while she sleeps at night, and it will look better in the morning. She keeps looking in the mirror. Not screaming. Smiling.

I don't quite know what happened tonight. I was expecting to have to be a human straitjacket for Anna in the shower as I forced water into her eyes. Instead, after the phone calls, she calmed down all by herself, and we worked through the problem together.

I will have to think about this more later. But right now, I'm feeling grateful. And proud of Anna, who is facing her fears with grace.

Leek and Bacon Quiche

This is my favorite quiche recipe. The original recipe, by Cooking Light, has no cheese in it, so it's a great candidate for gluten and casein free version of quiche. If you make it with a no roll pie crust recipe, it takes less than an hour to prepare, bake and serve. I served this quiche with a salad, Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins and Sugar Cookies for a light lunch.

1 recipe No Roll Pie Crust
6 - 8 slices bacon
3 large leeks, white and pale green parts only
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
6 eggs
2/3 cup rice milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Prepare your pie crust and bake it for about 10 minutes, or until the edge is lightly browned. Remove from oven and set aside.

Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Lay on paper towels, keeping the bacon fat in the skillet (or drain the bacon fat and add 2 tbsp. olive oil to the pan). While the bacon is cooking, split the leeks in half lengthwise and wash them. Thinly slice the leeks, then add them to the skillet. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and toss. Cover and cook the leeks on low heat for about 20 minutes, or until they are soft, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.

Chop the bacon and place on the bottom of the pre-baked pie crust. Arrange leek mixture over the bacon. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, salt, pepper and rice milk. Pour over the leeks in the pie crust. Bake for 25 - 30 minutes or until the quiche is puffed and golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

No Roll Pie Crust

This is a Penzey's recipe (made gluten and casein free, of course). It's a great pie crust for savory pies, like quiche. It's fast, easy, and tastes good too. I make this pie crust with an all purpose rice flour blend, which I like - it makes the crust slightly crisp, which works well with a quiche. This pie crust recipe makes plenty for a deep dish pie.

1 1/2 cups GF flour blend (I used this one)
1 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup canola oil
3 tbsp. rice milk

In your pie plate, whisk together the flour through the salt. Add the oil and the milk and blend well - the mix will be a little crumbly, but it should stick together when you press it with your fingers (add a little more rice milk if the mixture seems too crumbly). Press the mixture evenly with your fingers onto the bottom of the pie plate and up the sides. Flute with the tines of a fork, if desired.