Winter Blogfest: E.L. Roux

December 26, 2024 By 2 Comments

This post is part of Long and Short Reviews’ Winter Blogfest. Leave a comment for a chance to win an ebook copy of Unrequited Love (claim before January 1st) . 

Allergy and Food Intolerance-Friendly Chex Mix by E.L. Roux

Hi All,

This is your friendly low fantasy romance author E.L. Roux, here to talk about all things festive, and by all things, I really mean food. I have food intolerances (not allergies fortunately), but it means I have a hard time digesting fun things like wheat, dairy, soy, and plants in the Allioideae family including onions, shallots, and garlic. Sadly things like Lactaid don’t work for me, but I was able to find a powder that enabled be to digest onions and garlic (Fodzyme has been a lifesaver to my tastebud delight).

All of this is to say I love food, mainly because I have to make a lot of my food, and I try to include that love in my work. This time of year, I make a mean Chex Mix, a homemade peppermint bark, fudge, pumpkin pie, and cookies, so many cookies.

What I’ve found if you’re cooking for yourself, or a family member or friend, is that you need to read labels constantly, even for items you’ve used in the past. Don’t assume that because it’s labeled on the front as something that there isn’t a weird ingredient in it that could trigger a response. Non-stick sprays tend to almost always have soy in them. I’ve come across soy in spaghetti sauce instead of olive oil, and milk hides in things as a thickener. Vegetable oil usually contains soy, and margarine isn’t always dairy free.

All those hard things to remove aside, here’s the Spicey Check Mix I make several times around the holiday season:

• 3 cups Corn Chex
• 3 cups Rice Chex
• 1 cup nuts of choice
• 2 cups Pretzels (not all gf pretzels are soy and dairy free)
• 1/4 cup imitation butter (I use Smart Balance or soy free Earth Balance)
1/4 cup corn oil
• 1.5 tablespoon parsley flakes
• 1.5 teaspoon celery salt (watch the salt in the butter because you can over salt)
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 6-12 drops of hot sauce (tabasco is usually a safe bet)

Set oven to 250°F.

1. Heat butter and oil with flavor additions until combined and simmering, stirring occasionally.
2. Turn off heat before flavorings burn.
3. Add Chex, nuts, and pretzels into a clean paper bag.
4. Add flavoring a few teaspoons at a time, shaking and mixing the bag between additions, until all flavorings have been added and the Chex has a light oil covering.
5. Give the Chex a taste and adjust flavoring as needed by adding more spice or salt. If more oil is needed, use appropriate oil spray like an avocado oil nonstick spray or the rare canola oil nonstick spray. NOTE: I haven’t tried an olive oil spray because of its distinct flavor.
6. Place an even layer of the Chex Mix on a cookie sheet/s and place in oven the rough middle of the oven. Dry out Chex Mix in oven until fingers no longer come away with moisture and flip mix half way through (usually takes 2 to 3 hours).

Cool down before storing in an airtight container to keep it crisp😊 or just eat it by the handful like I do.

I hope you enjoy this spicy mix as much as I do!

E.L. Roux

 

I’ve been in a rut since my boyfriend dumped me, and now he’s in my coffee shop every day with his new fiancé. When grouchy Cane makes my body hum again, I know I’m ready to move on. With his curled horns and awkward smile, I’m braced for Cane to ask me out, except he doesn’t.

Cane wants to make a deal. I’d help to foresee into my ex’s love life, something I don’t want to do, and I’m guaranteed a sexy night of skin-on-skin contact wrapped in Cane’s warm muscled arms, an experience I might have been hoping for.

What’s the harm in partaking of the pleasures the spell requires? The thing is, love spells require one thing, and it’s something I’m not sure I can give…

 

E.L. Roux is a Science Fiction and Fantasy Romance author who writes about finding love in all the wrong places. E.L. uses their knowledge on everything from prosthetics to the sport of fencing, to weave together complex romances you can’t put down.

E.L. Roux lives in Washington State with their artistically inclined family, an indoor street cat, and a terror of a Bosten Terrier.

To find out more about this author, or to stay in touch, visit www.linktr.ee/elroux

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