Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Gluten Free Deep Fried Bliss!




My sweet family realized how much gluten free onion rings meant to me at Yeah Burger and they did a very dangerous thing today.  They gifted me with my very own, brand spanking new, never used for anything gluteny deep fryer.

So now, after eating more than my age onion rings I can reflect on the experience.  

The deep fryer is wonderful and so easy to use.  It’s a Delonghi  Cool Touch so no burns from metal housing.  The basket automatically lowers to protect you from spattering burns.  It seems very easy to clean and couldn’t have been simpler to start up.

I decided to use coconut oil in the fryer because I believe it is a healthier choice for us.  I am certain there are no preservatives or anti-foaming agents or anything else we don’t want in our food.

The first test was tortilla chips.  I simply took Trader Joe’s corn tortillas and cut them into sixths.  It took less than five minutes per batch for a perfect golden brown.  On a scale of one to ten Joe gave them a ten.






The next was Bell and Evan’s chicken nuggets.  Not something we keep on hand all the time but they are really good, all natural chicken nuggets.  Joe likes them either way but felt the deep frying made the coating extra crunchy which he really enjoyed.




The big test, though, was onion rings.  A while back I found The Baking Beauties website and made note of the onion rings.  So this morning I pulled up the onion ring recipe and couldn’t wait to get started.  Onion rings - glorious onion rings!

I followed Jeanine’s recipe with two substitutions – Pamela’s  Baking and Pancake Mix for the GF All Purpose Flour and sparkling water for the milk.  Pamela’s because I love it and had it on hand and the sparkling water because we don’t drink milk.  I’ve read that sparkling water or club soda works well in this type of batter so I thought I would give it a try.


Two large onions made a ton of onion rings.  Chris took a plate to the Feks – because who doesn’t want onion rings after dinner when you’re trying to bathe two little ones??  They’re addictive and so yummy and I had a ton of them.  I did have some spicy green gazpacho and a green salad to balance out the onion rings – that's healthy, right?? 

So if you love onion rings like I love onion rings try this recipe!

Monday, May 23, 2011

Healthy Green Smoothies versus Spicy Green Gazpacho



I understand green smoothies.  They’re a healthy way to get a salad bowl of greens and veggies in a glass but they're a hard sell at my house.

Green Gazpacho is another thing entirely.  Cooling, spicy and flavorful – gazpacho made in your blender is a meal in a bowl (or glass) and perfect for a hot summer day.  


Green smoothies can vary a lot but for the most part they are mild and and a little bland to me. Some people add apples or other fruit or juices for sweet morning smoothies. Some enjoy avocado to add healthy fat and give them staying power. All are healthy and wonderful but a cold glass of greens doesn't appeal in the morning and a sweet smoothie doesn't appeal later in the day. But that's just me and mine.










Green Gazpacho, on the other hand is spicy and flavorful. I start with fresh salsa, lime juice and a Serrano chili.  An entire bunch of cilantro adds bite and is a great for detoxification.  The greens and veggies vary depending on what is fresh and available so be creative.  I like to make them when I've already got the Vitamix out to make salsa and just leave a couple of inches of salsa in the blender.  All I have to do is keep filling up the blender.

Here’s my new favorite:

1 cup (approximately) fresh Salsa
¼ cup Lime Juice
1 Serrano chili or chili of your choice
1 bunch Fresh Cilantro
1 zucchini (cucumber works just as well
1 five ounce package organic Spinach and Greens
2 medium Carrots, cut in 3 inch chunks
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Starting with the salsa, lime juice and Serrano chili in the blender blend on high to liquefy.  Add each ingredient one by one and liquefy after each addition.  I use the tamper with my Vitamix and it takes two minutes or less to blend.  It may take a bit longer with a standard blender but it will work just as well.

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Gluten Free Calzones


Our church's youth retreat is next month and Joe will need to take most of his own meals and snacks for the week. He's really easy going about food and has actually told me he would be happy if we packed up nothing but sandwiches but somehow that doesn't sound like the healthiest plan to me. My goal is give him variety and to have most things ready to eat straight from the retreat's fridge even though they said they will happily heat things for him.  Because the facility doesn't do much in the way of gluten free meals the concern about cross contamination makes me want to avoid that as much as possible. Calzones seem a neater way to pack pizza and Joe loves pizza hot or cold so we gave them a try at lunch today.  While not the healthiest meal I can sneak in veggies and it will be an easy lunch when the others are having sandwiches. The verdict was positive so we'll definitely pack up a couple for the trip.

Over the next three weeks I'll make an extra serving or two of meals, muffins, breads, etc. here and there and pack them up as I go. I'll mark them with Joe's name, our church's name, and any heating directions. I'll dedicate a freezer shelf to keep things together so I can see what I have and what I need.  By the time he's ready to go we'll just empty the shelf or shelves right into the cooler. Having everything frozen should keep everything safely chilled for the drive.

This post is really more of a method than a recipe as the dough is the same one I use here for pizza.  I just used a good jarred sauce, cheese, Wellshire natural pepperoni for the guys, chopped drained artichoke hearts for Chris and me, fresh basil from the garden and red pepper flakes.  Use what you prefer or have on hand to make your own.

For today's experiment I made five huge calzones.  They stretched a bit getting them on the baking sheet and grew even more in the oven.  Next time I would aim to make eight for a more packable meal size calzone. I think making even smaller mini-sized versions for a party would be fun, too, and will try that soon.

Heat oven to 425 and line baking sheets with parchment.

After making the pizza dough take a large sheet of plastic wrap and spray it with a bit of olive oil. The dough is sticky and using oil on the plastic wrap will make flipping them onto the baking sheet a snap.

Put a scoop of dough in the middle and with wet hands pat it into a circle.

Toppings, or rather fillings, went on one side only.  Leave room around the edges to seal it up tight.




Holding the plastic wrap firmly, quickly fold the empty side over the filled side and gently pat the edges to seal.  The dough is very sticky and will seal easily.










Here's the tricky part - it isn't hard but you have to move quickly with steady hands - open the plastic wrap up and quickly flip the calzone onto your parchment lined baking sheet.  Although it worked well for me I do think smaller calzones would make that process easier.  Seal any little holes you may have.

Bake at 425 until golden brown.

Cheesy goodness!  Enjoy!

Monday, May 16, 2011

Meatless Monday – Falafel Burgers




This falafel burger isn’t exactly traditional but it is very flavorful.  Canned garbanzo beans makes this recipe a fast one for a weeknight.  I use cilantro instead of the usual parsley and added shredded carrots for color.  I bake them rather than frying to save calories and make clean up easier.  

You can use any gluten free bun you like but I made ours with Pamela’s Gluten Free Bread Mix.  They are just as good without a bun if you're keeping track of carbs.

Falafel Burger:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees
Line baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly oil with olive oil

Puree together:
2 cans (15 ounces each) Garbanzo Beans
1 cup chopped Onion
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
2 cloves Garlic
Dash or more Cayenne Powder
½ teaspoon Salt
½ teaspoon Pepper

Then fold in:
2 medium Carrots, finely shredded
½ - 1 cup Cilantro, finely chopped

Shape into eight burgers/patties on the parchment lined baking sheet.   They will be quite soft and you may want to wet your hands while shaping.  Spray or brush with a bit of olive oil on top. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and carefully flip and bake 15 minutes longer or until browned.

These buns were topped with sesame seeds prior to baking. The key to shaping the rolls is very wet hands as the dough/batter is really sticky.  



And here they are just out of the oven.













We enjoyed our falafel burgers with a cooling cucumber yogurt salad, which tastes great right on the burgers, and a crispy green salad. 

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Gluten Free Oatmeal Date Jumbo Cookies


It's been one of those weeks.  Allergies are getting me.  Sleep has been elusive.  My Meatless Monday post was waylaid by computer and camera issues.  The only thing that seemed blog worthy today is this recipe for Oatmeal Jumbo Cookies because sometimes you just need cookies. Now that I'm enjoying a hot cup of tulsi tea and a couple of cookies the day is looking brighter. =D


Gabby has made Oatmeal Jumbo cookies from a Better Homes and Gardens recipe each Christmas the last few years. They have become our second favorite new Christmas tradition. The first favorite? Having them all come over on Christmas day and sharing the tamales we've made together earlier that week!

The recipe is flour free and calls for quick cooking rolled oats.  Bob's Red Mill has just the thing and they're certified gluten free.  Not having to deal with mixing flours is always a good thing when baking gluten free. The combination of chewy oatmeal and peanut butter is so perfect. In fact, these cookies were the inspiration for this muffin. The original recipe calls for candy-coated milk chocolate pieces but with a dye allergy in the house they're out. Gabby has always substituted chocolate chips for us. They're heaven.


It's a recipe I've played with a few times and it's very adaptable and forgiving. Last weekend  at a friend's house we had some delicious cookies that were very nearly the same but they had dates rather than chocolate.  Since I'm planning a picnic for our beach day this weekend I thought that substitution would be ideal since chocolate chips can be messy in the sun. I'll put a dozen in the freezer when they're cool and they'll defrost in the cooler on the drive.

Because we're careful about sugar I cut it in half and used Turbinado raw cane sugar which, to me anyway, is somewhere between brown and white sugar in taste. The original recipe calls for a combination of each. I thought I had pecans in the freezer but didn't. The only thing really affected by lowering the sugar and not using the pecans was the total amount of cookies - this adaptation made 39 one inch cookies. Of course, a one inch cookie isn't very jumbo at all.  If you want truly jumbo cookies you'll get just over a dozen three inch cookies.

And by the way, do you wear aprons in the kitchen? I find they save on time and laundry because when I'm not wearing one is when I usually get splashed or spattered on! Having to run upstairs and change before company comes over is a pain and getting coconut oil out of clothing can be tough but if you're wearing an apron it's no big deal. I especially love this pretty little number - it's so bright and summery. It's from my mom's store and you can find it here.

Oatmeal Date Jumbos
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Line two baking sheets with parchment

4 cups Quick-Cooking Oats - I used Bob's Red Mill
1 cup All Natural Peanut Butter
1/2 cup Grapeseed oil
1 cup Turbinado Raw Cane Sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
3 Eggs
2 teaspoons Vanilla
1 1/2 cups chopped Dates

Mix everything together well and shape into 1 inch balls.

Bake for 15 minutes and let cool just a few before removing to plate.

Monday, May 9, 2011

Labrems Cookies & Martin's Curry Rice



The always amazing Marie surprised me with a visit last week.  She'd been at Whole Foods and met Roxana Moss of Labrems Cookies.  Roxana makes all natural, flour free, gluten free cookies and she graciously sent a box of four different cookies for us to sample.  Roxana is also gluten intolerant and, like me, has problems with too many carbs.  These are the kind of cookies I would bake myself. She sells them at Whole Foods and online and they are soooo good.  My favorite was the dark chocolate, of course, but they are all yummy.  Her website is still in the works so I've included a link to her facebook page. Roxana has been to Whole Foods stores all over the south lately so many of you should be able to find them.

Martin's Curry Rice is one of our favorite places.  It had been a while since we'd been when I noticed that Martin had updated his facebook page with a note about making tandoori chicken at the farmer's market earlier that day.  He said that the tandoori chicken was on the menu that night so we zipped right over.  Martin made a veggie curry for Chris and I to share with our chicken and packed everything up for us to take home. We curled up on the couch with a dvd and our dinner.  The dvd was awful but our dinner was delicious! It was the best tandoori chicken I've had since we moved away from California several years ago, smoky and spicy and so flavorful - not too hot and perfectly grilled. Now if I could only figure out gluten free naan to go with it.  Anyway, check out his page for specials like tandoori chicken and his all local ingredient menus.


Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Cinco de Mayo Dinner - Enfrijoladas & Gabby's Cheesy Rice



These are two of my favorite Mexican dishes.  Enfrijoladas are similar to enchiladas but instead of using a chilie based enchilada sauce you make a quick, thick sauce with black or pinto beans.  Corn tortillas are dipped into the hot bean sauce and folded.  You can fill them with just about anything from veggies to chorizo or simply dip them in the sauce and top them with cheese. Here’s a link to one recipe I especially enjoy that is even faster because it starts with black bean soup.  

My version doesn’t take much longer, though.  Black beans are pureed with water or broth, cumin and garlic. I pureed the mixture with an immersion blender right in my saucepan.  The filling is kale, onion, red pepper and mushrooms.  (If you’re Feingold stage 1 just omit the red pepper and you’ve got a stage 1 Mexican dish.)  The bright colors of the veggies remind me of the Mexican flag.  The dish is ready to serve immediately after filling.

Gabby’s Cheesy Rice is amazing.  Gabby brings her cheesy rice to many of our fiestas and my guys love it.  They were pretty excited to have it mid-week and know that I have the recipe now.  I made them in Gabby’s “lazy” way.  By not layering the ingredients the cheese and chilies were thick, gooey and delicious. (Again, for Feingold stage 1 just omit the chilies.)

This was a hearty dinner and there are plenty of leftovers for tomorrow.

Enfrijoladas

12 corn tortillas – check the package some are not 100% corn and have wheat.

Bean Sauce – puree together and heat in saucepan:

3 cups cooked Black Beans
1 cup water, bean cooking liquid or broth
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon garlic
Dash Salt
Dash Pepper

Veggies Рsaut̩ in 1 Tablespoon of Olive Oil:

8 ounces mushrooms, chopped
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cups Kale, washed and torn into small pieces

Garnish:

1 cup Cojita Cheese, crumbled
½ cup Guacamole
½ cup Salsa

To assemble:

Dip one tortilla into bean sauce, set either on a baking sheet or directly onto a serving plate.  Add a spoonful of veggies and fold in half.  Continue with the rest of the tortillas and top with cheese.

Gabby’s Cheesy Rice

And here is Gabby’s Recipe just as she typed it for me:

1 1/4 cups uncooked white rice, cooked (makes 2 and 1/2-ish cups cooked rice).
3/4 lb monterey jack cheese, cut into strips
1 cup sour cream
1 4-oz can green chilis, drained
1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded.

preheat oven to 325.

combine sour cream and green chilis.
layer 1 cup cooked rice in bottom of greased baking dish
top with 1/2 of sour cream mixture, and layer 1/2 of jack cheese on top of that.
layer 1 more cup cooked rice, repeat layers of sour cream/cheese, top with remaining rice.
sprinkle shredded cheddar on top, cover with foil and cook for 30-45 minutes until bubbly.
(i often just do rice then a single layer of the sour cream and cheese, top with the rest of the rice, and then cheese-- b/c i'm lazy. :))

I hope you enjoy this meal as much as we do.

Monday, May 2, 2011

Meatless Monday - Veggie Fajita Bowls


Here’s a little early Cinco de Mayo meal for you.  These bowls are our version of Chipotle’s Burrito Bowls.  Inexpensive rice and Beans are the basis of this fast weekday meal.  White rice was used this time but chewy brown rice would be great if you have the extra cooking time. I used pinto beans that were soaked overnight and simmered slowly through the day but heating up canned beans will work just as well on a busy weeknight. The fajita style peppers are low fat, fast and crispy.   I kept the guacamole lighter than usual and the chopped Vidalia onion and cilantro on top gave it a fresh and crunchy kick.


Veggie Fajita Bowls – serves four to six

Layer the following in bowls:

6 cups of cooked rice
6 cups of cooked beans
Fajita Veggies – recipe below
Guacamole – recipe below
Cilantro/Onions – recipe below

Fajita Veggies

3 organic Bell Peppers, sliced in thin strips
1 teaspoon Cumin
Dash Garlic
Dash Black Pepper
Dash Salt
1 Tablespoon Water

In a 10” skillet over medium high heat “sauté” peppers and with spices in Water until heated through but still a bit crispy and colorful.  It took less than five minutes for me.

Guacamole

2 avocados roughly mashed or one 7 ounce package of all natural guacamole
½ Vidalia Onion, finely chopped
1 teaspoon Lime Juice
1 Tablespoon Cilantro, chopped

Mix everything together lightly so that the avocado keeps a slightly chunky texture.

Cilantro Onions

1 Vidalia Onion, chopped
1 cup, Cilantro, finely chopped and packed
1 Tablespoon Lime Juice
Dash Sea Salt

Mix everything together.

Enjoy!