Egg Free, Dairy Free, Nut Free Cut-Out Sugar Cookies

This is our all-time favorite cut-out sugar cookie. The top picture is fish cookies that we made for Tayana's birthday party. The bottom picture is Christmas and animal cookies. We have also made Valentine's hearts for homeschool get togethers. We took large hearts, undecorated, then supplied safe frosting, sprinkles, chocolate chips, etc. for the kids to decorate their own cookies.

Cut-Out Sugar Cookies

2 cups dairy free margarine
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tbsp vinegar plus enough soy milk to make 1 cup
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 tsp baking soda and 1/4 tsp salt dissolved in 2 tbsp hot water
8 cups flour

Use an electric mixer to cream the margarine and sugar. Add the vinegar-soy milk mixture and beat again. Add the vanilla and the baking soda-salt-hot water mixture and beat again. Add the flour one cup at a time, beating after each addition, until a stiff dough forms. Roll out a portion of the dough to 1/4" thick. Cut with cookie cutters as desired. Place the cut-outs on parchment paper lined baking sheets. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes or until the cookies are set and the bottoms are lightly browned. Repeat with the remaining dough, re-rolling as needed.
*  You can decorate the cookies with sprinkles before they are baked. They store better and are longer lasting this way. You can also bake the cookies then frost and decorate them once cooled.
*  You can add food coloring to each portion of the dough to form different colors.
*  Other extracts can also be used such as orange and lemon.
*  The bigger the cookie cutter you use, the softer the cookies will stay.

Sidewalk Paint

We wanted to do something fun and new on Tayana's birthday. This craft was one of the fun things we for her special day. The girls had so much fun painting on the sidewalk and watching their designs dry and become so beautiful. They loved how the the drawing were puffy. I'm not sure they will ever go back to their chalk. The girls are already asking when we can paint the sidewalk again.

1 part corn starch (I used 1 cup)
1 part water (I used 1 cup)
Food coloring

Thoroughly combine the corn starch and water. Decide how many colors you would like to make then divide the mixture into that amount of smaller containers. Stir food coloring into the containers to create the colors you desire. Paint the sidewalk and have fun!

Egg Free, Dairy Free, Nut Free Granola Candy Bars

I was attempting to make a no-bake granola bar. However, when my girls tasted the bars, they kept asking for more candy bars instead of granola bars. They make a great grab and go breakfast or snack. These granola bars pack wonderfully in Ziploc bags or foil.

Granola Candy Bars

1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup Sunbutter
1/4 cup corn syrup
2 cups oats
1 1/2 cups Rice Krispies
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup safe chocolate chips
Place the brown sugar, Sunbutter and corn syrup in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 2 minutes or until the mixture comes to a boil, stirring every minute. Add the oats, Rice Krispies and vanilla then stir until thoroughly combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. Press the mixture firmly and evenly into a sprayed 8x8 baking dish. Cool before cutting. Store tightly covered.
*  These granola bars can be doubled and placed in a 9x13 baking dish.

Egg Free, Dairy Free, Nut Free No Bake Chocolate Sunbutter Oat Clusters

My traditional No Bake Chocolate Oat Clusters have been a favorite for a long time. However, tonight I wanted to try something different, so I decided to add some Sunbutter flavor. These cookies are so yummy and wonderful. Plus, they are so fast and easy to make. Jazlyn said that these are one of her all-time favorite cookies. Feel free to shape these cookies into prettier shapes, roll them to make them more uniformly shaped, etc. I just use my mixing spoon to drop a spoonful. They are much faster to make and the kids don't care if they look perfect. They just care that they taste perfect.

No Bake Chocolate Sunbutter Oat Clusters

2 cups sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup dairy free margarine
1/2 cup soy milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
5 cups oats
3/4 cup Sunbutter

Place the sugar, cocoa, margarine and soy milk in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil. Boil without stirring for 1 minute. Add the Sunbutter then stir until thoroughly combined. Remove the saucepan from the heat then add the vanilla and oats. Stir until the oats are completely coated. Drop by spoonful onto wax paper. Allow to cool until completely set. Store at room temperature between sheets of wax paper in a tightly covered container.

Egg Free, Dairy Free Sausage and Rice

My family loved this combination of rice, sausage and peas. I love that from start to finish the meal takes less than 30 minutes.

Sausage and Rice

1 lb smoked sausage or Polska Kielbasa, sliced or diced (I use Hillshire Farms)
1 1/2 cups instant rice (I use Minute rice)
1 can beef gravy (I use Campbell's)
2 cups water
1 can peas

In a large pot, combine the sausage, rice, gravy and water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cover, reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes or until the rice is cooked and the liquid has been absorbed. Stir in the peas and cook until heated through.

Egg Free, Dairy Free Corn Fritters

I saw corn fritters the other day at the mall and I was curious if I could make them without egg. They turned out very good. I added 1 can of corn, but next time I think I'm going to add more.

Corn Fritters

1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup soy milk
3 tbsp oil, 3 tbsp water and 2 tsp baking powder - mixed together
1-2 cans whole kernel corn, drained

Fill a deep frying pan 1 1/2" deep with oil and place over medium high heat. Thoroughly combine all of the ingredients. Drop a few by rounded spoonful into the hot oil, being careful not to crowd them. Fry until deep golden brown all over. Remove with hot dog tongs and place on a paper towel to drain. Cut the 1st one open to make sure that the insides are cooked though. If not, place it back in the oil until done. After the 1st one, you will know about how long each one should take to be done.

Egg Free, Dairy Free Hamburger Rice Casserole

This is a very fast and easy to throw together meal, as long as you budget the 2 hours for baking. Depending what else we have with this meal, I need to double the recipe so that we have enough for our family of 5.

Hamburger Rice Casserole

1 lb ground meat, browned
1 can gravy (I used Campbell's beef gravy)
1 can creamed corn (or an additional can of gravy)
1 cup instant rice, uncooked
2 cups beef broth

Combine all of the ingredients and place the mixture in a greased 8x11 baking dish. Cover and bake at 350 for 2 hours.
*  Sausage, chicken or any meat desired can be used in place of the ground meat.

Egg Free, Dairy Free Potato Crumb Chicken

This is one of our favorite coatings for chicken.

Potato Crumb Chicken

1/2 cup safe bread crumbs (I use homemade)
1/2 cup safe mashed potato flakes (I use Betty Crocker Potato Buds)
3 lbs boneless skinless chicken, cut into nugget sized pieces or strips or any size desired

Combine the bread crumbs and mashed potato flakes in a wide bowl. Wet the chicken slightly with water, melted dairy free margarine or soy milk then roll the chicken in the mixture to coat completely. Place the coated chicken on a foil lined baking sheet. Bake at 400 for 30 minutes or until the chicken is cooked thorugh.
*  You can vary the amounts of the ingredients to make the amount you require, just make sure that you have equal amounts of bread crumbs and potato flakes.
*  Dry onion soup mix can also be added to the mixture.
*  I have a recipe for homemade bread crumbs posted 3/15/10 title croutons / bread crumbs.

Egg Free, Dairy Free Roast and Noodles

This is another one of our favorite meals. I like to make this if we have other people over because it makes plenty. The leftovers also freeze well. This recipe takes a while to cook, but it is very simple and doesn't require much time at all to prepare.

Roast and Noodles

3 lb roast
4 beef bouillon cubes
3 quarts hot water
16 oz spaghetti noodles, uncooked

In a roasting pan, place the roast, bouillon cubes and water. Cover and bake at 325 for 3 hours. Remove the pan from the over and transfer the roast to a cutting board. Shred the roast and return it to the water. Add the noodles and stir to cover all of the noodles with the water. Cover the pan and bake an additional 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the noodles are tender.