new year, new 90-day challenge

i never make new year's resolutions. but this year, i was inspired by many things (including julia child!) and also thinking more about my health and how i can make 2010 the year that i finally feel like i think a normal person feels like. so this year, i have a resolution--and i think it will be easy to fulfill because it only requires being diligent for 90 days.

i have resolved to make virtually EVERYTHING i eat homemade until march 31, 2010.

EVERYTHING includes:
bread
pasta sauces
pasta (when possible)
yoghurt (for lee, not me--i hate yoghurt)
bbq sauce
any pastries, sweets, etc.
some alcohol, such as hard cider

EVERYTHING does not include:
things that are not easy to make when one has a full-time job, such as:
tortillas
crackers
other alcohol, such as beer (because i do not know how to make gf beer)
cheese
butter
soymilk

i think you get the picture.

i will try to get as much as i can locally and/or organically, but i already do, so that is not the focus of this project. this project is meant to inspire me and prove that living without wheat is a wonderful thing. when i was a chef, even though i worked in a kitchen all day, i still made almost everything homemade. every week, i made bread, yoghurt, granola, cookies and snacks for our lunches, you name it. i'd like to get back to that. i do not need to eat out as much as i have started to. i do not need (nor do i really like) pre-made mixes. it's about taking time to prepare everything i eat, and making it WITH LOVE :)

obviously, if friends want to go out, i will go out for a drink of wine (or what have you), but i will not eat food out. also, if friends want to have us over for dinner, we will do that as well. but our friends will also have to make the dinner from scratch--NOTE: this is not a problem at all with our friends. whenever we have dinner together, we all cook together anyway. this will not be an undue hardship.

so to start the year off right, i made cinnamon rolls for breakfast. i modified a recipe from here which apparently came from a book called The Gluten Free Kitchen by roben ryberg. here it is:


gluten free cinnamon rolls (TO DIE FOR)

2 tbsp vegan shortening
1/4 cup sugar
2/3 cup room temperature vanilla soymilk
1 packet yeast
1 egg
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup namaste all-purose gluten free flour
1 cup cornstarch
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp xanthan gum
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

filling:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup roasted and crushed hazelnuts

glaze:
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
milk, to taste to make spreadable or drippable glaze

1. preheat oven to 375.
2. cream sugar and shortening.
3. dissolve yeast in milk. stir well and add to sugar mixture.
4. add rest of ingredients and mix well until there are no lumps.
5. grease 2 large pieces of wax paper with some oil. place dough on one piece and lightly sugar the top, then lay the other piece on top and roll out dough to desired thickness between the two sheets. i made mine about 13 inches by 12 inches.
6. remove the top piece of wax paper. spread filling on the dough. leave about 1/4 inch on both the top and bottom of the dough--some of the filling will squeeze out as you roll. also leave a couple of inches on the one side. you want the dough to stick on the one side so your rolls will close.
7. using the bottom piece of wax paper, slowly roll the dough into a jelly roll shape. cut into 8-10 pieces. put pieces into a greased pie plate. bake for about 20-25 minutes.
8. while the rolls are baking, make glaze. drizzle glaze over warm rolls before serving.

the next time i make these, i will not use nuts. the hazelnuts tasted fabulous, but they pierced through the dough in a couple of places, which made the rolls difficult to cut and transfer to the pie plate. and i really don't think the rolls needed them. i'm kind of a purist when it comes to cinnamon rolls.

these rolls are delicious and they made my year! 2010 is off to a great start. i have been in heaven since consuming them :) ta da!