Cornbeef And Cabbage

For those with food allergies, the brine ingredients used to cure the beef are also a concern for a lot of people. Luckily, in most of the cases, the brine ingredients for corn beef ARE gluten free. Cloves, bay leaves, and peppercorns, are typically the ingredients found in the little packets that come with the beef brisket.
It never hurts to double-check, though! It's a well-known fact that there are companies that will slip stuff in without public announcement! Better to be safe, than sorry.

7 qts. water
3 c. kosher salt, approx.
1 raw egg in the shell for testing brine
1 (6 to 9 lb.) beef brisket
3 cloves garlic, peeled
20 cloves
20 peppercorns
1 bay leaf
6 sprigs fresh thyme or 1 tsp. dried
1/2 tbsp. saltpeter (aka "potassium nitrate"), available in drug stores

To cure the beef brisket, you will need a large earthenware, enamel, or stainless- steel crock. Do NOT add the meat to the crock at this time. Pour the water into the crock and add the salt, stirring to dissolve it. Add the egg. The egg is used to test the salt content of the brine. If the egg floats in the solution, it is ready. If it does not float, continue adding salt, a little at a time, stirring to dissolve, until the egg floats. Remove the egg.
Add the beef brisket to the brine. Add the garlic, cloves, peppercorns, bay leaf, thyme and saltpeter. Stir well. Place a clean, heavy weight on the meat to make certain it is covered. Place a lid on the crock and refrigerate for from 8 to 12 days. Turn the beef brisket occasionally, but keep it weighted down. When ready to cook the corned beef, remove it from the brine and rinse it well. Follow the instructions below for cooking. Makes one 6-9 pound corned beef.

Place corned beef in large pot or Dutch oven and cover with water. Simmer approximately 50 minutes per pound or until tender.
Add whole potatoes and carrots, and cook until the vegetables are almost tender. Add cabbage and cook for 15 more minutes. Remove meat and let rest 15 minutes before cutting across the grain. Place vegetables in a bowl and cover with as much broth (cooking liquid reserved in the Dutch oven or large pot) as you want.

2 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
2/3 C white sugar
1 large egg
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/8 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 C. gluten free flour mix

Cream together butter and sugar. Add the egg, baking powder, salt and vanilla. Mix until well combined. Stir in the flour until well-blended and smooth.
Divide the dough in half and roll out each half to 1/4 in. thickness between two sheets of plastic wrap that has been lightly dusted with tapioca or corn starch. Keeping the plastic in place, move the dough to the refrigerator and chill for 30 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Move one oven rack to the upper third of the oven. Grease your cookie sheets.
Take one portion of dough out of the refrigerator. Carefully remove top piece of plastic wrap. Cut out the cookies using cookie cutters. Place the cut-out cookie on the cookie sheet about 1 inch apart. Roll out the remaining dough scraps, and keep cutting cookies until all the dough has been used. Refrigerate the dough again if it gets too soft to handle. Bake 6-8 minutes, or until edges are slightly browned. Rotate the cooking sheet halfway through baking for even browning. After they are done, transfer them to a cooling rack as soon as possible.