My kids and I love love love pasta salad. When I make a batch of this, I have to make a double batch as the kiddos always want to have a container of it in their lunch. It has lots of “nibbly bits” (a term my mom coined for all of the little bites of flavor from different ingredients).

Ingredients:

• Dressing: 1/4 c.  extra virgin olive oil, 1/3 c. balsamic vinegar, 3-4 large cloves of garlic sent through a press, 1 tsp. Dijon mustard, 1/2 tsp. basil, 1/2 tsp. oregano, 1/2 tsp. onion powder, salt & pepper to taste
• 12 oz. gluten free pasta, cooked
• 3-4 c. chopped mix-ins of your choice...

I love a good White Russian cocktail once in a while…my husband makes the best ones ever (but maybe that’s because cocktails always taste better when someone else makes it!). We were almost out of Kahlua when I looked in my cabinet, so I decided that I’d try to make my own since I had all of the ingredients. I thought it turned out so well that I entered it into the Alaska State Fair this year and I came away with a 2nd place ribbon! *Note: You need to prepare this in advance–don’t expect to make this one night and drink it the next as you need to allow time for the flavors to mature and develop.

Ingredients:

• 1 c. ground coffee (I used THIS one since I had it in my pantry...

Apparently this thing called a Gooey Butter Cake is somewhat of a delicacy in St. Louis. As the story goes, a baker mixed some ingredients together in inaccurate proportions, but he decided to bake his concoction anyway and he ended up with this cake that is a little like a lemon bar in texture, but light in flavor. And, really, it is VERY easy to make. *Disclaimer: this is the first time I’ve made this recipe, so I can’t tell you if it’ll work in a dairy/egg free version, but I suspect that it would be just fine!*

Ingredients:

• 1 gluten free yellow cake mix (I used this one)
• 1 c. butter, melted
• 4 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 8 oz. package of cream cheese, softened
• 4 ...

Who doesn’t love a great ice cream? One of my favorites is Ben & Jerry’s Coffee Heath Bar Crunch, but it is pretty expensive for a little pint. So, I decided to try making my own. This recipe is SOOOOO easy (literally, it takes less than 10 minutes to prepare), is egg-free and does NOT require an ice cream maker! Try it and let me know what you think!

Ingredients:

• 1 serving’s worth of instant coffee of choice (I used 1 package of Starbucks Via)
• 2 tsp. gluten free vanilla extract
• 1 pint heavy whipping cream
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 6 Heath Bars, crushed

Directions:

• In a small bowl, mix the instant coffee and vanilla. Set aside so that the coffee dissolves. Do NOT sk...

We all know that everything tastes better with bacon…and with Super Bowl Sunday coming up soon, who doesn’t love an easy, yummy appetizer? These are definitely “crowd pleasers” and are usually one of the first appetizers to be completely eaten.

**NOTE: A WATER CHESTNUT IS NOT A TREE NUT*** (we looked it up at the last party I took these to because one child had tree nut allergies)

Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts

1 lb. bacon, cut width-wise into thirds
2 cans whole water chestnuts, drained
1/2 c. gluten free BBQ sauce
toothpicks

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2...