Gluten-free Galentine's Menu

This month we have a guest post from the one and only Laura, who has created an annotated menu inspired by Girlfriends' Valentine's (aka Galentine's) Day.  I've actually had the pleasure of trying her 'mochi yum yum' -- it's hard to believe these delicious bite-size puffs are gluten free!  (p.s. I have no idea why the dish is called 'yum yum' as yum yum sauce--which is naturally gf--is a Japanese steak house mayonnaise concoction, and this is not that.)

Gluten-free Galentine's Menu

This post is a love letter to the ladies in my life - be they gluten free, vegan, or equal opportunity hedonists.  The ladies in my life have seen me through my best and worst.  They've obliged my bad haircuts and bad food experiments and loved me all the same.

This is also a love letter to a new food discovery: mochi.

Whether you're looking to host a Galentine's Party or a good old fashioned cocktail hour, look no further for a menu and recipes.

Okay, first thing's first. Here's a menu to celebrate your favorite (gf) gals (and gents) on Valentine's Day (or any day):

• Quinoa Stuffed Mushrooms
• Oysters Rockefeller (sub breadcrumbs for GF cracker crumbs)
  
• Tampenade and Crackers (bonus points if you make your own!)
• Mochi & Goodness: read on for a recipe
• Cut fruit
• Roasted root veggies
• Shrimp and cocktail sauce
• Bubbly (of course) 

Quinoa Stuffed Mushrooms, via Little Leopard Book

On to mochi.  I discovered mochi while shopping at my local Whole Foods.  It comes in a tan/brown brick that is not initially that exciting.  The label said it was rice.  Just rice.  Perhaps the japanese answer to polenta?  I threw it in my basket and kept on shopping.

At home, I did some research.  It turns out mochi has this miraculous way of puffing up into chewy little dumplings when baked.  How it does this is beyond me.  What I can tell you is that it is delicious.
 

Mochi Yum Yum 

Ingredients:

• 1 package brown rice mochi (I found Grainaissance brand)
• Greens (mustard, radish, etc.), sliced into thin strips
• Green onions, thinly sliced
• Radishes, cut in matchsticks
• Rice vinegar
• GF tamari
• Grated ginger
• Sesame oil
• Red pepper flakes

Directions:

Heat some oil in a pan and cook your green onions over medium heat.  Add in the greens and cover with a lid to steam the greens.  Once the greens are nice and cooked (about 5 minutes depending on the type of green), take the pan off of the heat.  Add in your radishes and season the mix to your heart's content.  I recommend tamari, a healthy dose of rice vinegar and grated ginger, some sesame oil, and red pepper flakes.

Heat your oven to 400 degrees.  Cut your mochi into small squares - about 3/4 of an inch on either side and pop them in the oven.  They will puff up and brown.  You want them to be nicely toasted.
Take your mochi puffs out of the oven and let them cool for a bit.  Once they're cool enough to handle, you can cut them in half and spoon in your veggie filling.

Serve with a mixture of gluten free soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sesame oil for dipping.


And don't forget to toast your favorite gals!

Wintertime meal

We did it.  We made the dinner we first talked about in a post last week.  The entire meal is gluten-free, egg-free, vegetarian, and kosher.  (It can easily be made dairy-free/pareve by using coconut or almond milk in place of the greek yogurt.) I kind of made it up as I went, but below are approximate recipes. Keep in mind the amounts listed are my best guesses...taste as you go!

Main dish: Chickpeas & Carrots in a pumpkin-yogurt curry sauce, over basmati rice

Mix all the ingredients in a pot until cooked through, stirring periodically.  In the meantime, combine 1 cup basmati rice with 1 cup broth, water, or combo of both in a rice cooker (throw in some salt and pepper if the broth isn't seasoned or you are using water).  When finished, garnish liberally with cilantro.

• 1 can chickpeas [aka garbanzo beans]
• 3/4 can pumpkin
• 3/4 cup plain greek yogurt (can substitute coconut or almond milk to make dairy-free/vegan)
• 3 tbsp of curry powder
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• Carrots, chopped -- pre-steam to save time
• Onion, chopped
• Handful of sliced almonds
• Salt, pepper, and chilli powder, to taste (about 1 tbps each)

Side: Asian-inspired dijon slaw

Combine 1 package pre-cut carrots and brocolli stalk slaw mix with:

• Cilantro (1/3 of a bunch, leaves only, chopped)
• 2 - 3 tbsp Rice vinegar
• 1 - 1.5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 - 3 tbsp light brown sugar
• Hot sauce
• 2 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1 tsp black and/or white pepper
• Pinch of salt

Toss thoroughly and let sit (in fridge is best) for at least 20 minutes.  Add a heaping handful of sliced almonds [toasted or raw] and toss again just before serving.

Dessert: non-dairy cinnamon coffee ice cream w/ dates over a gluten-free graham cracker

• Steve's Cinnamon Coffee ice cream [vegan]
• Pitted dates
• Schar's Honey Grahams

February Guest Blogger Recipe: Lazy Man's Sushi

This month's guest blogger recipe--the first of the new year--comes to us from Brian M., a local engineer and product designer.  Brian also helps run Baltimore Food Makers, a group of people who thrive on having a close connection with where their food comes from. Read on as he describes a simple and customizable dish for those of us craving sushi, but too lazy/busy to make it! 

Lazy Man’s Sushi  

How is it that sushi elevates rice to such a higher level of sophistication?  Even if you’re not using raw fish, a simple cucumber roll would at first glance seem much more decadent than just a bowl full of rice.  True the ceremony of grasping singular slices of a sushi roll, each optimally dipped only momentarily into a tiny dish of ink dark soy sauce before resting gently on your tongue via chop sticks does cause the eater to appreciate the subtle flavors and textures more.  But when I’m throwing together lunch at the office, I rarely have the time for such eating extravagances.  Rather, I’m looking for some good, quick wholesome fuel for the rest of the day - something that satisfies all categories of carbs, protein, acidic and salty.  

Enter Lazy Man’s Sushi.  It’s all of the ingredients in an average sushi roll, but just mixed together in a big bowl.  The short grain brown rice mitigates the blood sugar bomb that is often associated with large amounts of white rice and the heavy amount of toasted sesame seeds adds some much needed crunch to an otherwise soft dish.

Ingredients*:

• Short grain brown rice, 3/4 cup
• Sesame seeds, 1/3 cup
• Rice wine vinegar, 3 tablespoons
• Nori seaweed, 2 sheets
• Canned tuna or sardines (optional), ½ can
• Olive or sesame oil (optional), 2 tablespoons
• Tamari, gluten free (optional), to taste

*quantities listed makes 1 meal for 1 person – scale as needed

Directions:

1. Pour rice into a pan, add 1 ¼ cups of water, & bring to a boil.
2. Once at a boil, reduce the heat to a very low simmer.
3. Simmer the rice for 45 minutes. 
4. While the rice is cooking, toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan on the stove top or in the oven.  Turn the seeds frequently so that they are evenly toasted--nicely browned but not burnt. 
5. When the rice has cooked for 45 minutes, turn off the heat and let sit for 10 minutes. 
6. Mix the vinegar into the rice until evenly distributed. 
7. Add toasted sesame seeds to the rice, and stir to distribute. 
8. If using fish, place the fish in a small bowl and mix with the oil until well coated.
9. Stir fish into the rice and sesame seeds.  (Note: if not using canned fish, a small amount of tamari/soy sauce can be mixed in as a substitute to supply salt to the dish)
10. Crumble the sheets of nori with your hands until in small pieces and add to the mixture. 
11. Enjoy!

Blog Spotlight

Every once and while, we'll be featuring other blogs & bloggers who offer great gluten-free information.  Tonight I'd like to share with you the 'My New Roots' blog*:

Written by a holistic nutritionist and vegetarian chef, the blog contains stunning images of the author's recipes--many of which are labeled gluten free.

Case in point?

Gluten-Free Banana Bread Pancakes

I don't even like bananas, and I want to eat these babies up.  Furthermore, the post this came from contains a detailed ingredients list and directions.

When asked: "Why do I create gluten-free recipes on My New Roots?" the author, Sarah B., writes...

'For the same reason I try to make as many of the dishes vegan, sugar-free, soy-free etc. - so that everyone can make them. I want to create all-inclusive meals that all people can enjoy, even if they’ve chosen a particular diet or they have some kind of allergy or insensitivity. And I feel it’s important for others to know that eating with ‘restrictions’ is not all that restrictive.'

 Click the links above [underlined] to be taken to the My New Roots blog!


*I am in no way related to this blog or blogger.  Simply a fan who found her posts inspiring.

December Guest Blogger recipe: Tortilla Española

Claire S., a recent graduate of Johns Hopkins University, brings us this month's guest recipe!  Claire spent a semester in Madrid, where [I like to believe] she perfected the art of Spanish tapas.  Her version of the popular 'Spanish Omelet' certainly brings me back to my own days abroad, when I first tried the dish.  Yummy yum yum.  (As usual, if you have questions for our guest blogger, please leave them in the comments section.)  ¡Buen provecho!

Tortilla Española

My undying love of the Spanish tortilla came about while studying abroad in Madrid.  It was my staple food there--not only because it’s delicious, but also because it’s affordable and you can purchase it pretty much anywhere in Spain. Very attractive for someone on a student’s budget!  The scrumptious tortilla is also incredibly versatile: it can be eaten for breakfast, lunch, or dinner and is super portable for those on-the-go.  A naturally gluten-free dish, there are only five simple ingredients: potatoes, eggs, onion, olive oil, and salt.  Once you have mastered it, this dish will become your go-to meal!

Prep Time: 20 minutes 

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• approx. 7 medium potatoes -- peeled, quartered, & thinly sliced
• 5 large eggs
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 medium onion -- minced
• Extra virgin olive oil 
• Cutlery: 10" non-stick pan; mixing bowl; strainer; 12-inch [or larger] plate

Directions:

1. Fill a 10” non-stick frying pan with a half-inch of olive oil and place over medium-high heat. 
2. Once the oil is hot, add potatoes + onion.  Allow to cook until potatoes are golden brown and soft (≈20 minutes).   
3. While the potatoes are cooking, in a separate bowl beat eggs + salt, until fluffy.   
4. Using a strainer, remove the potatoes from the frying pan, allowing the olive oil to drain into a bowl.   
5. Add the potatoes to the egg mixture and stir until combined.   
6. Drizzle some of the excess oil back into the frying pan and place over medium heat. 
7. When the pan is hot, add the potato and egg mixture.   Cook for about 5 minutes, constantly making sure that the sides of the tortilla are not sticking to the pan.   
8. Take a plate that is larger than the pan and place it upside down over the pan.  
9. Flip the tortilla onto the plate (commitment is key, don’t hesitate!).  
10. Add more olive oil to the pan and slide the tortilla back into the pan. The uncooked side should be faced down.  
11. Cook for about 5 more minutes, then slide from pan onto a serving plate.  Enjoy!

November Guest Blogger recipe: Hot Virginia Dip

This month's guest recipe comes to us from Marion V., a University of Maryland dietetic intern and fairly new 'tweeter' (follow her here).  This recipe is a healthier version of a fun hot [as in warm, not spicy] dip! If you're like me and don't know what 'minced dried beef' is or how to make it, leave a note in the comments or shout out to Marion on twitter.  -->

Hot Virginia Dip

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Greetings All, Marion here, serving as November’s guest blogger for bMoreGlutenFree.  I seem to be just sneaking in at the end of the month – I’m sure bMore is delighted about that one! Let me start off by saying that I grew up on quite a strict diet of hot pockets, pasta with butter, Snapple (lemon, of course), and bagels.  Now that I’m a little bit older and just a little bit wiser, I’ve upgraded to a more colorful diet.  But for this post I wanted to bring one of my old favorites to Baltimore so that you all have something delicious to whip up for the upcoming holiday parties.  I must also mention that I’m a dietitian-to-be, so it’s my personal preference to modify my recipes! While I’m sure you’d like to see the full-fat version of this dip, the modified version is just as delicious and saves over 200 Calories per serving.  I’ll take that! 

While I don’t know the origin of this dip, I can only assume that it’s from Virginia.  (But you know what they say about those who assume.) We used to make it with sour cream, but a few years ago I started using non-fat Greek yogurt and the difference is unnoticeable.  It’s super easy and is always a crowd pleaser.  Serve with vegetables or gluten-free crackers.

 

Ingredients

• 1 c. chopped pecans
• 2 tsp. butter (I used Smart Balance, light)
• 16 oz. non-fat cream cheese, softened
• 4 tbsp. non-fat milk
• 4 tsp. minced onion
• 3 oz. minced dried beef, rinsed
• 1 tsp. garlic powder 
• 1 c. non-fat plain Greek yogurt

Directions

1. Sauté pecans in butter until brown, about 5 min. on medium heat. Reserve for later.  
2. Mix other ingredients thoroughly. 
3. Place in 1 1/2 quart baking dish and top with pecans. Chill until serving time. 
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Serve hot! 

[It’s easiest to make this (steps 1-3) the night before your party & chill it until you’re ready.]

I wish I could say that I came up with this recipe myself, but I have to give credit to my cousin's family on her dad’s side.  They’re from Virginia, of course.

 

Sunday meal

This past sunday, we had planned to go to the Farmers' Market under the JFK Expressway* and then make some soup with our finds.  Although neither of those things happened, we did patronize the Baltimore Food Co-op^ and proceed to create a 3-course meal!  Here's what developed:

(A) Several-layer Spicy Bean & Cheese Dip
     Ingredients:

• Black Bean Refried Beans w/ Jalapenos^, 1 can  (can't remember the brand, sorry!)
• Salpica jalapeño jack queso dip^ 
• Green salsa^ (can't remember this brand either *pout*)
• Red salsa (whatever had been in my fridge for a while)
• Organic Valley shredded mozzeralla cheese^
• Hot peppers (mixed variety), chopped

• Garden of Eatin' Blue corn tortilla chips^

     Directions:
     1) Put beans in dish --> Microwave until lukewarm --> Stir
     2a) Place half of beans in glass pan/dish --> Add layer of queso
     2b) Layer some more beans --> Add layer of salsa(s)  (we did one side green and one red)
     2c) Put on more beans or queso if you want --> Cover with shredded cheese
     3) Microwave dish until the top layer of cheese is melted
     4) Sprinkle hot pepper mix on top, to taste
     5) Dunk chips in dip --> Bring to mouth and chew

(B) [Pre-]Battered Cod, with Roasted Cauliflower

     Ingredients:

• WaterfrontBISTRO Cod fillets [frozen]
• Local Cauliflower^, 1 bushel (? is that even the correct term ?)

     Directions:
     1) Remove greens from + chop cauliflower
     2a) Place cod fillets on oven-safe tray
     2b) Place cauliflower on same tray + season w/ salt and pepper
     3) Follow directions on cod box (essentially: bake at 425ºF for a while, flip fillets)

(C) Reeses-infused Brownies à la mode
     Ingredients:

• Reeses peanut butter cups  (we used the slightly-mini but not mini-mini size--because they were on post-Halloween sale--but any composition would work)
• Gluten Free Pantry Chocolate Truffle Brownie mix^
• Eggs, 2 large
• Butter, approx. 3/4 of a stick (but don't quote me on that)
• Haagen-dazs Coffee Ice Cream 

     Directions:
     1) Chop Reeses cups
     2) Follow directions on brownie mix box
     3a) Stop following directions on box when it says let cool fully.
     3b) Instead, let cool as long as you can handle, but brownies should still be warm.
     4) Top with ice cream


Everything was awesome, obviously.  And everything was gluten free!!  Even though the bean dip says 'spicy' and has a lot of hot peppers in it, the 4 of us who ate it did not find it that spicy (but keep in mind, we all like spicy food).  I also highly recommend the waterfrontBISTRO-brand cod fillets; I've also had their panko-crustred shrimp, but thought the cod cooked better.  Pretty sure I got both from Safeway.


*open Sundays 7am-noon, thru Dec. 18th
^ Items with this symbol were purchased at the Co-op

October Guest Blogger recipe: Mexican Sweet Potato Soup

This month's guest recipe comes to us from Alli of Always AlliSunny, a dietetics student and food blogger.  This dish features seasonal/fall ingredients, and I assume many were purchased at Baltimore's Waverly Farmers Market!  Please buy local whenever possible, to support your community and your health.

Mexican Sweet Potato Soup

First of all, I'd like to thank bMoreGlutenFree for asking me to be their guest blogger this month and to share a delicious gluten-free recipe perfect for the fall season. Though not gluten-free myself, as a soon-to-be dietitian (and fellow foodie blogger), I am very sympathetic of people with specific food allergies and intolerances. I love coming up with recipes and meal plans that fit people's needs while still allowing them to thoroughly enjoy great food without feeling like they are missing out. So here is a great gluten-free fall recipe that I am happy to share!!

Let's preface this by saying that I'm obsessed with the abundance of root vegetables that defines the fall season. Colorful, earthy, hearty, soulful, versatile... beets, carrots, sweet potatoes, parsnips, radishes, rutabagas, the list goes on. Sweet potatoes were my root vegetable of choice this week from the market and what better way to kick off fall then with a delicious soup?!

Sweet potatoes (which are not even in the same family as regular potatoes, surprisingly) are loaded with vitamin A from the orange-licious beta-carotene, vitamin C, fiber and tons of other important vitamins and minerals, which make it no surprise that sweet potatoes are considered one of the most nutritious vegetables in the world! But more importantly, sweet potatoes just plain taste good, they are cheap, and they are so so so versatile... a true staple in my kitchen. So here's a super simple and flavorful soup to celebrate the changing of the seasons, the wonderful autumn harvest, the onset of cooler weather, back to school time, or whatever it is you have to celebrate in your life!

Ingredients:

• 1 tblsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1-2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup carrots and celery (traditional/optional soup starters- adds good flavor)
• 3 large (or 4 medium) sweet potatoes, chopped
• 6-8 cups vegetable broth (I used my own homemade vegetable broth, but you can used store brought, preferably low sodium)
• 1 bay leaf
• Spices: salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, paprika, cilantro, cayenne (if you like it hot!)
• Chipotle hot sauce (optional)

Directions:
1. In a large soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onions, garlic, carrots and celery. Cook for 5-10 minutes, stirring often until softened.

2. Add the sweet potatoes and cover with vegetable broth. Add the bayleaf, and spices/hot sauce (a few dashes of each, depending on your preferences and what you have).

3. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the sweet potatoes are soft (~20-30min).

4. Use an immersion hand mixer or blender to blend the soup until smooth and creamy.

5. Adjust the taste with spices/hot sauce to your liking. You can also add milk or yogurt for extra creaminess. Top with a sprig of parsley or cilantro, maybe a dollop of sour cream or yogurt, and enjoy!

September Guest Blogger recipe: Gluten-Free Gnocchi

This entry is the first of a new feature on this blog: every month we will have a guest blogger post their own tried and tasty gluten-free recipe!

This month, Laura of Domestic Sundays and PFOGF shares her foray into homemade gf gnocchi. Enjoy; I know I did!

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Don't Eat Anything You Can't Pronounce - Gluten Free Gnocchi

Let's talk about my love for potatoes.  And pasta.  And therefore potato pasta: gnocchi.  Let's also talk about my love of money staying in my pocket.  GF gnocchi can go for $10 a pack -- yikes bikes!  Luckily the basic ingredients are cheap and simple: potatoes, (gf) flour, and oil.

I know what you're thinking, "Make my own pasta?!"  It turns out the hard part is getting your mouth around the word.  Say it with me: "knee-OOO-key".  Never fear - you can still make bangin' homemade pasta even if you pronounce it wrong.

*Adapted from Vegan with a Vengance

The ingredients:

• 2 pounds potatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 1/2 to 3/4 cups gluten free flour (we used Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose)

Scrub your potatoes, poke a few holes in them, and put them in the microwave until they're soft.  Wait until they're cool enough to handle and peel them.  (We learned the hard way that you definitely want to peel them after they're cooked, lest you get weird lumps in your pasta.)

Take your peeled potatoes, salt, and oil and mash them together in a bowl until they're un-lumpy.  Throw a healthy amount of flour on a (clean, non-glutenous) surface and get kneeding.  You basically want to keep working flour into the dough until it isn't sticky and it's still stretchy.

Then you get to the fun part.  Make sure you still have plenty of flour around and start making little potato-pasta-balls-o-joy.  If you want to get technical, put each ball on your thumb and roll a fork over the top so that one side has an indentation from your thumb and the other side has ridges from the fork.  If you look hard enough in the picture, you'll see that you can even make them cubes.  Or dinosaurs.  The world is your gf-oyster.

If you're not going to cook all of your pasta right now, just toss them in some flour and put them (single layer) in a tupperware container in the freezer.  They'll keep for a couple months and you can throw them straight in boiling water to cook later.

For the pasta that you're cooking, start some water boiling.  You're going to cook the pasta in batches of 8-ish.  When you put them in the water they should sink.  When they float to the surface, cook them for 60 seconds and pull them out of the water with a slotted spoon.

Voila!  You made your own pasta.  Don't you feel accomplished.

Don't forget the necessary toppings -- like hot sauce.

xoxo Domestic Sundays

Homemade Hard Cider Recipe

Homemade Hard Cider aka the easiest thing you've never made
by Domestic Sundays
 
[Editor's note: This recipe will be featured in our upcoming Hard Cider taste-testing on Sunday, September 4th and the event's Review to follow.]

You need:

1. Cider: the fresher the better, pasteurized is fine but NO preservatives (they cramp your fermenting style). I found this (in its brew-ready glass jar) in the juice isle in Safeway. Turns out people don't stock up with organic cider when preparing for hurricanes.
2. Yeast: I use champagne yeast, but you can go for lager or something else entirely (for those in Baltimore, you can find this at Maryland Homebrew in Columbia)
3. Food for the yeast: I like molasses for its rich flavor, but any kind of sugar will do
4. A good (one-way) seal: you can get airlocks for cheap at homebrew stores (and the cork to go with them - a piece I've obviously neglected, as evidenced by my saran wrap), but in a pinch, a balloon stretched over the mouth with a small hole will do. The basic goal is to prevent explosions by letting your carbon dioxide out while keeping bacteria from getting in.

If you're feeling fancy:

• Spices: cinnamon sticks, cloves, fresh ginger root, allspice, lemon juice, cardamom…go crazy!
• A hydrometer: also available at your favorite homebrew store; chemistry nerds especially love these because a quick dip in your brew before and after will let you know your alcohol composition
• A funnel: makes life way easier
• Bleach: people claim sterilizing everything is good for brewing. I'm ambivalent.

What to do:

1) On the stove, dissolve your sugar in about 2 cups of your cider. The sugar is mainly there so you can make it taste nice and ferment it a bit more. I added about 1 cup of molasses for my gallon of cider and the hydrometer told me it'll be about 9% alcohol if all goes as planned. Throw your spices in too!

2) Read your yeast packet and follow its instructions. For mine, I had to add 1/5 of the packet (because I was only making 1 gallon) to some warmish cider and let it sit for 15 minutes.

3) Dump it all in your big jug.

4) Seal that bad boy.

5) Let it sit in a closet for 5-15 days.

6) Throw it in the fridge overnight.

7) Put in bottles or just dig in! If you don't drink it all right away, you probably want to keep bottles in the fridge and drink them within a few weeks.