the poverty luxe kitchen vol. 26: leftover fried rice.

here in the meyers house we eat a lot of white rice. partially because its cheap as heck and goes great with things like salmon, curry lentils, and cajun red beans, and partially because im asian and freaking love white rice (no, im not making this up, my dad is literally filipino). the thing with rice though is that its really hard to correctly guess how much of it were actually going to eat. since rice takes a long time to cook i always end up making extra just in case and then we end up with way too much rice. 
and well... leftover rice is  kind of a difficult thing to deal with when you dont have a microwave or rice cooker for reheating it. for a long time all our leftover rice used to languish in the back of the fridge getting drier and drier until either i cleaned out the fridge or needed the container it was in and threw it away. 
recently i remembered my mom saying that cold, leftover rice was the perfect start for making fried rice. on that particular day we happened to have some leftover rice, so i threw some things together to try it out, and... it was great! not only was it a quick, tasty, and reasonably healthy lunch, but it totally helped us up all kinds of bits of leftovers. once i perfected the right recipe, i made a habit of always making extra, extra rice so i can make this for lunch the next day. 
leftover fried rice.  (serves two)
heres what you need: 
2 cups cold, leftover rice 1 carrot 1 rib of celery 1/4 of an onion 1 cup shredded cabbage 2-3 cloves garlic 1 egg 2 tablespoons soy/tamari sauce olive oil
heres what you do: 
finely chop all of the vegetables and heat a small amount of olive oil in a very large pan. 
sauté veggies in over high heat until fully cooked (approx 7-10 minutes). 
add rice and continue to cook, stirring constantly (making sure to break up any large chunks of rice) until all of the rice is hot. 
scoot the rice away from the center of the pan toward the edges, forming a "well" in the center of the pan. 
crack the egg into that well, scrambling it well and quickly stirring it into the rice and veggies as it cooks. 
continue to stir until eggs are completely cooked and toss with soy/tamari sauce. 
*note: one REALLY great thing about this recipe is that its SO easy to scale up! if you have more rice, just add another egg and some more veggies and make as much as you want
this fried rice is a super tasty way to use up leftovers that would otherwise be thrown away, whats your favorite way to repurpose leftovers? 

tips for making a meal plan that doesnt suck.

obviously, I'm a huge advocate for meal planning. it has a lot of huge benefits (saves time, money, stress and encourages healthier eating habits when done right) with a minimal time investment (i do mine in about ten minutes every wednesday morning). but the big potential downside with meal planning (well, any planning, really), is that if your plan sucks... the whole week sucks. you might end up eating too much of the same thing, spending too much time in the kitchen, eating meals no one really likes, or ending up with a ton of uneaten food. be been fine-tuning our meal planning system for a few years now and i can tell you that all of those situations have happened here at one point or another. but to save you from meeting the same fate, here are a few helpful hints for making a meal plan that wont suck: 

account for the nights you arent eating at home. 

i feel like i shouldnt have to say this, but dont make a five or seven night meal plan if you know youre only going to be eating dinner three or four nights that week. this will save you a lot of time and money and wasted groceries. 

dont repeat meals in the same week. 

some meals i make (like curry lentils or black bean chili), are HUGE and feed us multiple times. to keep us from getting bored/sick of eating the same thing, i only serve that meal once the week i make it, freeze the rest in one-meal portions, and only pull them out once each week until they run out. added bonus: most weeks my meal plan is halfway done from freezer meals!

if you do freezer meals, balance what you put in and take out. 

unless you have like, the worlds biggest freezer and dont mind eating food thats been frozen for three years, dont put more meals in the freezer than youre taking out on a weekly basis. this is just basic math. 

plan for a "treat" meal in every week. 

ok, i know typically the whole point of meal planning is to eat healthier/save money/save time/whatever and thats great and all, but pushing too hard for any one of those things gets old fast. so plan on one dinner each week being something good, even if its not the healthiest/cheapest/fastest thing there is. we typically eat really cheap and healthy, but every week i make sure we have something really nice like salmon (or in n out, if theres room in the budget...). 

balance labor intensive meals with easy ones. 

ill be honest: no matter how much i like cooking (which is more and more the older i get and more i learn to make), i do not like slaving over an elaborate meal (and the corresponding elaborate mess) every single day. so for every big, messy dinner like shepherds pie or mac and cheese, theres a meal that gets pulled directly from the freezer. 

get the whole family involved. 

even though the meal planning/grocery shopping/cooking is more or less my job, im only 1/3 of the people in this family that need to eat. so im always asking james and alice their thoughts on what were eating, what they like/dont like, and what sorts of new or different recipes they want to try. 

plan for "leftover night" if necessary. 

we dont end up with a lot of leftovers, and when we do, i typically eat them for lunch since im home all day. BUT if leftovers ever are an issue, we do what i like to call a "leftover extravaganza" and kill two birds with one stone: leftovers get used up and thats one less meal to shop/cook for. 

keep to one "new" meal per week. 

a great way to drive yourself (and your family) insane and spend all your money ever on groceries is to make your entire meal plan of new recipes that youve never made before. trying new recipes is an awesome thing to do (saying this mainly to myself because i really need to do it more), but they can use a lot of new ingredients and dont always turn out (or maybe you/your family just dont like them). so just to play it safe i recommend sticking to a once-a-week rule with new recipes: the worst case scenario is that youll have one lame night the whole week, but the best case scenario is that every week has an exciting new dinner. 

keep it quick, simple, and flexible. 

contrary to what pinterest may have you believe, meal planning should not involve complicated calendars or spreadsheets or eight hour days in the kitchen (unless youre into those kinds of things, then i guess go for it). heck, i dont even assign specific days for the meals on my plan. meal planning is supposed to make your life easier. if its not, then theres absolutely no shame in trying something else. 

when done wrong, meal planning can be a total drag (i have very un-fond memories of a few times my mom tried to do the "month of freezer meals in one day" thing...), but by keeping a few things in mind, you can totally put together a plan that makes everyone happy. 

the poverty luxe kitchen vol. 25: merengue cookies.

i believe ive talked about my fondness for hollandaise sauce (yes, yes i have), and let me reiterate: i freaking LOVE hollandaise sauce. i literally named my son benedict because of how much i love hollandaise sauce (benedict, like the eggs. i seriously dont understand how i am allowed to adult). 
the thing about hollandaise sauce though is that it only uses the egg yolks. so what the heck do we do with all those whites? obviously we dont just throw them away (actually once upon a time we had a dog and i would feed them to the dog). what we do is we make merengue cookies. 
merengue cookies are amazing little things: theyre naturally fat and gluten free and taste like lucky charms marshmallows. also, theyre really easy to make, AND (if youre already using the yields for something else) practically free! the only caveat is that you do kind of need an electric mixer of some sort (thank you, my dear kitchenaid) and they take kind of a long time to bake (for cookies). but still. theyre awesome. 
merengue cookies.  (makes 1 cookie sheet full, approximately 30-35 1.5 inch cookies)
heres what you need:  3 egg whites, at room temperature (this is very, VERY important!) 1/4 tsp cream of tartar 1 cup sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract
heres what you do: 
combine the egg whites, cream of tartar, and vanilla in a large bowl (or bowl of your stand mixer), and beat at a high speed until foamy. 
slowly ad in sugar and continue to beat until stiff, glossy peaks form. 
gently transfer merengue into a gallon ziplock bag and cut a small hole in one corner. 
pipe small (1.5 inch in diameter) dots onto a foil lined baking sheet. 
bake at 300 degrees for 45 minutes, or until completely dry. 
let cool completely before removing from baking sheet.
store in an airtight container for up to a week. 
that was easy, wasnt it? whats your favorite easy dessert to make? 

6 steps to a meal plan that will ACTUALLY save you money.

***note: this post was originally published on 3/4/15, but since its very much relevant to the money saving series im working on right now, im going to re-post it with a few edits***

when it comes to groceries, the two things i mainly get asked about are meal plans and grocery lists. mainly thinks like "ok, i made the plan and the list and my grocery bill was still exactly the same!" which at first i thought was really weird, because meal planning and list making were what totally cut our grocery budget in half. but then i realized that "make a meal plan and list" probably way oversimplified the process. so today I'm going to share our method for meal planning, and hopefully, youll find at least some of it useful. because seriously, this method has been a lifesaver for us. i mean really, any weeks that we dont follow this plan (due to holidays, james working out of town, illness, laziness, etc.), our bank account really hurts. 

now, i feel like this needs a big fat disclaimer because i see SO many frugal living/personal finance bloggers talk about THIER way of doing things as though its the only way or that it is guaranteed to work for everyone/produce a certain result. because the majority of the advice ive read on such blogs has not been applicable/beneficial to our family and situation, im just going to come out and say it: that is a lie. 

this is by no means any kind of proven system and i can not guarantee any specific results or that it will even work for you/your family. 

however, the majority of this plan revolves around planning, efficiency, and reducing waste, which i do believe can at least help in most situations. so with all that out of the way, here we go: 

1. decide (in advance) where you will be shopping and how often. look, it really doesnt matter whether you go to three different stores once every few days or just go to costco once a month. in order for you to be able to effectively plan the groceries that youre going to buy, you first have to plan where/when you are going to buy them. this may sound silly but it will make a lot more sense in a minute when we get to steps 2 and 4. 

2. double check your schedule for the week (or two, or whatever the space between shopping trips is) so that youre only planning for the meals you need to plan. see, knowing how far apart your trips are going to be is essential, because the biggest money drain when it comes to groceries is buying more food than youre actually going to eat. looking over your calendar and accounting for the days/nights you dont need to cook (for example, family dinner, date night, birthday party, whatever), will keep you from buying supplies for meals that you wont even get to before its time to go shopping again. 

3. start your plan based on what foods you already have and aim to buy as little as possible. after youve figured out where youre going, when, and how many meals your preparing for, do a thorough search of all the food you currently have. got a bag of potatoes? cans of soup? chicken in the freezer? an absurd amount of cheese? start planning meals that will use up those ingredients. and if you have freezer meals/leftovers on hand by all means include those in your meal plan. do not just let them sit there taking up space. 

4. next, take a look at what's on sale. this is where its really important to know where youre going to be shopping. and while grocery sales are really there to trick you into buying extra groceries and spend more money because youre getting a "good deal", you can use this to your advantage by choosing your meals for the week based on what meats/produce/etc. are currently on sale at the store of your choosing. are pasta and sauce super cheap? make lasagna! huge sale on fish? put that on the list! doing this has the double benefit of not just saving money, but also keeping you from eating the same foods every single week (which was a really bad habit of mine for the first couple years we were married). 

5. FINALLY fill in the rest and add any extras/treats. ok, so lets pretend that im planning meals for the week (because thats how often i shop), and once i account for the nights we wont be home and leftovers in the freezer i have four dinners left to plan, using the foods that are on sale as inspiration. once i have that general plan, then i look over the pantry and fridge to see if were missing anything else: lunch supplies, cereal, condiments, spices, snacks, etc. you know, the kind of stuff that doesnt necessarily run out at the same time, that you dont have to buy very frequently but the meal plan cant go on without (in our house the #1 such thing would be olive oil), that stuff definitely goes into the plan and on the list. just, last. and only whats absolutely needed before the next shopping trip. 

6. once your plan is finished, make a detailed list (with quantities). so youve made it to the end, you know where youre going, how long youre shopping for, and what youre going to buy. now write it down (all of it). be specific ("1 lb shredded cheddar" not  just "cheese"). note the quantities (if you need three onions, then for crying out loud make sure you include that you need three onions!). the more detailed your list is, the less likely you are to forget something you needed, and the less likely you are to buy things that you dont need. trust me on this. 

and there you have it. thats how we plan our meals to save the big bucks on groceries. this plan also has the added bonus of reducing the wasted food we generate (either from things going bad before we can get to them or stuff just sitting around), and keeping out fridge and pantry from becoming disorganized and overcrowded (did i mention that the benefits of meal planning go way beyond just saving money?). 

i know everything i just wrote is the EXACT OPPOSITE of the generally accepted "start with staples and stockpile whats cheapest now to eat later and spend all day making a month of freezer meals" philosophy for thrifty grocery shopping, but you know what? thats never worked for us. and maybe it doesnt work for you either. thats ok, there are totally other ways of doing things and you can still save money. 

do you plan out your familys meals? whats your #1 tip? 

the poverty luxe kitchen vol. 24: not boring oatmeal.

the one thing about living (somewhat) near the ocean is that its always freezing in the morning (and by freezing i mean below 60 degrees, yes, i know). doesnt matter what time of year it is or how hot its going to be later, mornings = freezing. and cold mornings are just begging for a hot breakfast. unfortunately, i am very much not a morning person and no matter how much i want a hot breakfast, im just not all that into putting that much effort into making that hot breakfast. 
thankfully theres oatmeal. oatmeal is super easy and takes like two minutes. except, oatmeal is kind of boring, and (for my bottomless pit of a stomach, anyway) not all that satisfying. so in the interest of getting the hot breakfast that i so wanted on cold mornings, i came up with a few super simple additions to make my morning oatmeal a little less boring.   oh, and fast too. none of this twenty-minute oatmeal business...
not boring oatmeal.  makes one serving. 
heres what you need:  1/2 cup rolled oats 1 tsp chia seeds 1 tsp flax seeds 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 1/4 tsp cinnamon  1 cup water brown sugar (optional, for topping)
heres what you do: 
combine all of the ingredients except for the brown sugar in a small pot and bring to a boil. 
reduce heat to medium/low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the oats soften and reach your desired consistency (i like mine really thick so this takes about five minutes, so if you like yours thin, they should be even faster). 
top with brown sugar (and/or any other desired toppings) and serve immediately. 
and thats how you make the exact same thing ive had for breakfast every day for at least seven or eight months maybe even longer I MEAN oatmeal thats super fast and totally not boring. 
whats your go-to breakfast? do you eat the same thing every day or prefer to mix it up? 

the poverty luxe kitchen vol. 23: flourless peanut butter cookies.

every now and then theres a recipe thats just EVERYWHERE on the internet claiming to be the best thing ever. like, remember those "banana pancakes"? those had their moment right when i got my celiac diagnoses, so i tried them out and the were awful. i tried them again and again and eventually came to the conclusion that there is just no way to make eggs and bananas not disgusting. obviously since then I've been a little wary about internet food trends for some time, especially the minimal ingredient ones. 
BUT then i kept seeing these "flourless peanut butter cookies" or "three ingredient cookies" on pinterest and food blogs. at first i brushed them off as something not worth trying, until, of course, i REALLY needed some cookies (breastfeeding has a habit of doing that to a lady) and we were almost out out of gluten free flour. so i gave them a shot and... they were totally legit cookies. like, better than the peanut butter cookies i made from a normal recipe with the the gluten free flour i love (yes i do buy it in five pound bags, but sprouts has it a bit cheaper than that). the first batch i made got a little burnt but i figured out that was actually because of my terrible cookie pan, so i tried again and the second batch was PERFECT. 
now were making these a lot more often than id like to admit...
flourless peanut butter cookies.  (makes 12-16 cookies)
heres what you need: 
1 cup peanut butter (creamy or chunky, this does NOT work with "natural" type peanut butters) 1 cup sugar 1 egg 1 tsp vanilla extract
heres what you do: 
preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
blend peanut butter and sugar together until completely blended (i use my kitchenaid but a hand mixer will work also). 
add egg and vanilla and continue to blend, scraping bowl occasionally to ensure the dough is completely mixed.
scoop golf-ball sized balls of dough onto a foil-lined cookie sheet, and press down with a fork to make a "criss cross" pattern. 
bake for approximately 10 minutes, until edges start to brown. 
let cookies cool completely before removing from cookie sheet. 
so yeah, theres an internet fad recipe that totally works. like, i bring these to potlucks and not-gluten free people love them. 
have you had any luck with internet fad recipes? id love to hear your stories in the comments! 

the poverty luxe kitchen vol. 22: spinach + chèvre salad.

fun fact about me: im not a huge fan of salads, and i never have been (even while i was vegan, i never ate salads). james could eat a huge salad with every meal if i made one (actually, he frequently makes his own to accompany whatever it was i made), but for the most part, salads just dont do it for me. partly because they tend to be a lot of work, partly because most salads have some kind of thing i dont like in them, partly because i dont like my foods all mixed up and touching, and mostly because every single time i eat a salad (unless its like, tuna salad) i end up even hungrier than i was before i started eating salad. 

so i just never made salads. 

but then last semester i had a bit of a sticky situation for lunch: i had an awesome 20 minute break between my classes to eat a real lunch, BUT my school doesnt really have any gluten free options to buy, and there arent any microwaves available so bringing leftovers (which is what i usually eat for lunch at home) was out of the question. at first i tried to load up on snacks (fruit, cheese, crackers, granola bars, etc.) but that took a lot of prep and frankly, wasnt a real lunch. 

so then i gave in and decided to bring a salad, which was probably just a big container of spring mix with some balsamic vinegar on it because thats basically the only "salad" i ever made. and that wasnt really a real lunch either (especially considering last semester was basically the entire second half of my pregnancy). after that i decided i would figure out a salad that would keep me full at least till the end of class, and that i would actually like. oh, and it had to be easy to make, because no way was i getting up extra early to chop veggies OR adorable layering a weeks worth of salads in mason jars. 

heres what i came up with: spinach (heartier and more nutritious than the salad mix i was used to using), goat cheese (my favorite), and some simple toppings (no peeling or chopping at all!), and the simplest dressing ever. overall, its very satisfying. for a salad, i mean. 

spinach and chevre salad. 

(note: im not using any specific quantities so that way you can decide exactly how much salad you want to make. see also: i have no idea how to write a recipe for salad)

heres what you need: 

spinach

goat cheese (plain or herb flavor)

roasted pumpkin seeds (very inexpensive from the bulk bins at sprouts)

dried cranberries (preferrably unsweetened)

toasted pumpkin seed oil (from bluff cove olive oil co.)

balsamic vinegar

black pepper

heres what you do: 

place desired amount of spinach in a large bowl, topping with goat cheese, pumpkin seeds, and dried cranberries. 

drizzle with pumpkin seed oil and balsamic vinegar, adding black pepper if desired. 

normally i eat this salad by itself when i pack it for school or an outing where ill need my own lunch, but it also makes a great side dish, especially with salmon or mac and cheese). 

im curious, what are your favorite kinds of salads? 

gluten free mango ginger cupcakes (guest post by stacie at housewifes whimsy)

hey everyone! stacie from Housewife’s Whimsy is back with another guest post, this time with a recipe for gluten free mango ginger cupcakes. as if a cupcake recipe wasnt awesome enough, shes here today with one thats not only gluten free, but with a totally unique flavor AND a mascarpone icing, are you excited? cause i am. lets let stacie take over so we can get to the actual recipe:

A fresh fruit base is a departure from my typical cupcake recipes. I personally love anything and everything chocolate but I really wanted to embrace the flavors of a California summer for this cupcake. So thanks to Poverty Luxe for inspiring me to bring these bright flavors to North Iowa! The mango and ginger flavor combo may not be the first thing you think of, but you will definitely fall in love once you try it.

If you’ve ever made gluten free cupcake recipes before you know that they can tend to be on the dry crumbly side. I’ve been able to change and refine this recipe over time so it is now perfect! I have a fabulous chocolate version on my blog to complement this vanilla based version.  The texture of the cake is just as good as any “regular” cupcake you might eat. It is light and fluffy without any hint of dryness. By using both xanthan gum and cream of tartar you get the best cupcake texture possible.

This recipe uses fresh fruit throughout the entire recipe. It also has the added benefit of no refined sugars in either the cake or icing. Because of this, the cupcake is not overly sweet. It has a hint of sweetness due to the honey, but mostly it relies on the mango and ginger flavors to shine through. The mascarpone provides the perfect vehicle for the bright summery California flavor combination. The hint of lemon added to the ginger syrup really creates a complex flavor blend throughout the entire cupcake.

I typically use piping bags and tips when I ice my cupcakes. This gives them the professional look and feel that really impresses those eating your cakes. If you’re not familiar with how to do this, I have a short tutorial over on my blog that walks you through how to get that bakery look. If you’re short on time though you can ice these cupcakes with a spatula or offset knife. I chose not to garnish these since I felt they were far too pretty with the clean lines, but you could feel free to finish the tops with a chunk of mango or candied ginger if you wish.

Gluten Free Mango-Ginger Cupcakes

For the Cakes:

1 Cup Gluten Free Flour

½ Cup Raw Honey

¼ Cup Salted Butter

¼ Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

4 Eggs

½ Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1 Teaspoon Xanthan Gum

1 Teaspoon Cream of Tarter

½ Cup Mango Puree

½ Teaspoon Ground Ginger

¼ Cup Milk

For the Icing:

½ Cup Mango Puree

¼ Cup Chopped Fresh Ginger Root

½ Cup Water

1 Tablespoon Raw Honey

Splash of Fresh Lemon

16oz Mascarpone

2 Tablespoons Arrowroot Starch/Corn Starch

To make the cakes:

Preheat the oven to 350 and grease a twelve cup muffin tin or line it with paper liners.

In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the honey, butter, olive oil and eggs on high until well mixed and free of lumps.

Add the mango puree, vanilla extract and ground ginger. Stir until mixed.

Once the mixture is well combined stir in the xanthan gum, cream of tartar and gluten free flour. Beat on high until slightly elastic and the xanthan gum has been activated.

Add the milk and slowly mix until incorporated.

Using a ¼ cup measuring cup spoon the prepared batter into the lined muffin tin.

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cupcakes comes out clean. Let cool completely before icing the cupcakes.

To make the icing:

Place the fresh ginger, water, honey and spritz of fresh lemon in a small saucepan over medium heat. Let boil until reduced by half. Strain and let cool before moving on.

In a small bowl place the mascarpone, mango puree, ginger syrup and arrowroot starch. Use a spatula to stir until all the ingredients are well combined, adding additional arrowroot starch if the mixture is too runny.

Spoon the finished icing into a piping bag fitted with an icing tip if using. Pipe the icing onto the cooled cupcakes and enjoy!

Stacie LaMoore has been blogging at Housewife’s Whimsy since November 2014. Her blog contains a variety of topics including Gluten Free recipes, natural body and home ideas, and most importantly, cupcakes. She lives in northern Iowa with her husband, dog and cat where there isn’t much to do other than bake and watch the corn grow. She loves reading, kayaking and everything related to baking.  She’s very excited to have this chance to share a little of her life with you!

the poverty luxe kitchen vol. 22: red beans + rice.

one of my big personal goals for this year was to try out more recipes and to get more comfortable and creative in the kitchen. the main reason i made this goal is because i have a bad habit of settling into a routine and just making the same four or five dinners over and over again, which makes me really sad because everyone here is actually pretty adventurous with food and i feel like were missing out on SO many great new things because i just make the same recipes over and over again. another lame side effect of this habit is that sometimes a meal slips off the rotation, gets forgotten for months and months, before i remember how great it is and start making it again. 

this is one of those recipes. 

i used to make red beans and rice pretty frequently, and there was ALWAYS a jar (or three) of them in the freezer for when we needed a super fast and easy dinner. i guess its simplicity is what made me forget how great it is, but with the last few months being so crazy with work (for james), school (for me) and having a new baby, red beans and rice are officially back on the rotation. why? because its a dinner thats not only super healthy and dirt cheap, but also takes zero effort in the crock pot. 

you know those crock pot recipes that are so complicated you might as well actually cook them? this is not one of those recipes. theres some chopping, some putting things in the crock pot, some button pushing, and then you get to do whatever for a few hours. all you have to do at dinner time is make rice. actually typing this reminds me that i need to go get some kidney beans...

red beans and rice. 

(makes 8 servings)

heres what you need: 

1 lb dried kidney beans, soaked overnight. 

2-3 cloves of garlic

1 onion

3 ribs of celery

1 green bell pepper

2 tablespoons creole seasoning

salt and pepper to taste

heres what you do: 

place soaked beans in crock pot and cover with 1 inch of water. 

finely chop garlic, onion, celery, and bell pepper and add to beans. 

add creole seasoning and season with salt and pepper to taste (i add lots of pepper but no salt because the creole seasoning i use already has salt)

cook on low for 4-6 hours. serve over steamed white rice. 

to be completely honest, i dont use my crock pot a whole lot, what are your favorite crock pot recipes?

the poverty luxe kitchen vol. 21: gluten free mac and cheese.

today im bringing back another recipe from the old days of poverty luxe: good old gluten free mac and cheese. well, not exactly an old recipe because while i have posted about mac and cheese before ive had quite a long time to perfect the recipe even further. also, now that im a lot more experienced with this gluten free thing and its gotten much easier to find decent gluten free products, my (already pretty awesome) mac and cheese recipe is now somehow even better than before (not that i thought that was possible at all). 
generally speaking, i make this mac and cheese on a weekly basis. even though its not exactly a quick dinner and it does get an absurd number of dishes dirty, its the perfect real-food version of comfort food and everybody loves it. i mean, how can you not love mac and cheese? i am only a tiny bit embarrassed to admit that every time i make this, we eat the entire thing without a single morsel left over. but its just that good. we usually pair it with these honey glazed carrots, for what i like to call "everyones favorite dinner night". 
alright, ill stop rambling about the magical mac and cheese and get to the recipe now...
gluten free mac and cheese.  (serves 4)
heres what you need: 
1 12 oz package of gluten free noodles (i like the barilla GF noodles from target because theyre great and also $1.39 a box) 3 tablespoons butter 3 tablespoons sweet rice flour (available here but i get mine at the local mexican grocery store for 99 cents a bag) 1 1/2 cups milk approximately 2 1/2 cups shredded cheese (i typically use cheddar, jack, or a blend of the two) salt, pepper, garlic powder, and italian seasoning to taste
heres what you do: 
preheat oven to 400 degrees. 
boil the noodles according to the package directions, drain and put them in a large casserole dish (note: watch your noodles VERY closely and drain them while theyre still a bit firm, gluten free noodles have a tendency to get mushy if you boil them too long). 
next, melt the butter in a small pot over medium/high heat, add the rice flour and stir until a smooth paste is formed (about one minute)
now slowly whisk in the milk, and stir in some salt, black pepper, and garlic powder to your preference.
stir the sauce until it thickens and starts to boil, then remove from heat and stir in about two cups of the shredded cheese. 
pour the sauce over the noodles and mix until everythings evenly coated. top with remaining cheese and italian seasoning. 
bake at 400 until the cheese on top browns (approximately 15 minutes). 
like i said earlier, i usually make this with cheddar and/or jack cheese, BUT this recipe is ALSO great with, well... any cheese that melts. ive made it with everything from smoked gouda to pepper jack to truffle cheddar and every time its been amazing. but, you know, i just really love cheese (i mean, it was the theme of my birthday party). 
what's your favorite kind of cheese? (its hard for me to pick just one, but im a big fan of dill havarti and goat cheese).