Gluten Free Journey

A Spanish Inspired Salad with Artichokes and Chorizo

2008-04-30T18:31:00.007+01:00

This salad is certainly of Spanish inspiration and is loosely based on a recipe by Delia Smith. It may be Spanish in inspiration, but I have used local ingredients wherever possible, which admittedly in April isn't that often! I love the tastes of the Mediterranean as I am sure you will now have realised, but Spain is one of my favourite countries in the 'Med'

To Serve 4

300 g chorizo sausage, diced
Handful of black pitted olives
280 g jar artichoke hearts, drained and cut in half
Handful crispy lettuce
Handful wild rocket leaves
Handful seedless grapes, cut in half
410 g tin butter beans, drained and rinsed
6-8 small tomatoes, cut in half

Dressing

2 tbsp olive oil from a jar of sun-dried tomatoes
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 sun dried tomatoes, finely chopped

Dry-fry the chorizo in a small pan over low heat, this will remove a lot of the saturated fat from the chorizo. Leave to cool

Combine the salad dressing ingredients in a screw-topped jar, leave to one side

On a large platter, arrange the crispy lettuce and rocket leaves, add the grapes, tomatoes, artichokes, olives and beans, scatter the cooled chorizo over the top. Drizzle with the dressing

:)

Soba Noodles with Lobster and an Orange and Ginger Dressing

2008-04-15T18:20:00.010+01:00

I've been going to try out gluten free noodles for a while, but have only just given myself the push to try cooking something that for me, is a new direction. I guess I've been collecting the ingredients along the way, because virtually all the ingredients for this dish were in my house, including the lobster. I bought a frozen one a few months ago when I saw some one at a good price. If I didn't have the lobster I think I would have bought some crayfish at the local fish market and used them instead

This recipe is very loosely based on one by Bill Granger in his book 'Holiday', but has undergone a considerable adaption to make it gluten free

To serve 2

250 g Soba buckwheat (gluten free) noodles
8 oz lobster tail, shell removed, meat cut into slices
1 tbsp sesame seeds
4 spring onions, sliced diagonally

Orange and Ginger Dressing

2 tbsp fresh orange juice
1 1/2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1 tbsp gluten free tamari
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 tsp runny honey
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tsp sesame oil

To make the dressing, in a screw top jar, stir together the orange juice, rice wine vinegar, tamari and ginger, add the honey and oils, shake vigorously to mix the ingredients

Cook the soba noodles in a large pan of salted water according to the pack instructions - beware the water may well froth up beyond what you are expecting, so use a very big pan

Rinse the noodles under cold running water and drain well

Put the cool noodles and lobster in a bowl and toss together. Add about half the orange and ginger dressing and half of the sesame seeds and half of the spring onions, toss well to coat in the dressing

Divide between two plates and add the remaining spring onions and sesame seeds - also add more dressing if it needs it

I had about half of the dressing left over!!!

From a Sandwich to a Salad

2008-04-10T09:59:00.009+01:00

In the old days when I thought I would be able to eat whatever I wanted for life, my favourite sandwich was a bacon lettuce and tomato on wholemeal (BLT). Then in 2001 and 2002 I took trips to Australia. On the second trip, I went to Cairns on the Gold Coast and discovered my new favourite sandwich, this was about the time I was starting to get digestive system problems, but I still didn't know that gluten was the source of my problems. My new favourite sandwich was to be a bacon, avocado and tomato on wholemeal

I've now dispensed with the wholemeal bread and am turning a sandwich into a salad, it has to be healthier anyway, without all that stodgy bread!! The way I cooked in those dim and distant days has changed somewhat, as have the ingredients I am likely to use. Bearing that in mind: the lettuce has turned into wild rocket leaves, the bacon has turned into pancetta, which has been dry-fried to let some of the saturated fat leak out and I have added a few lentils to increase the natural fibre content

The dressing is a classic one of lemon and olive oil from Jamie Oliver, which I keep in my fridge, in a screw-top jar ... a good shake and ts ready to go!

This recipe is adequate for one person as a main course salad - double up the quantities if you are serving more than yourself

1 tbsp pre-cooked Puy or other lentils
75 g pancetta, dry-fried and left to cool on kitchen paper
A large handful of wild rocket leaves
A few cherry tomatoes, halved
Avocado

Dressing

2 tbsp lemon juice
5 tbsp olive oil
Few grinds of sea salt
Few grinds of pepper

Dress a plate with the wild rocket leaves and the tomatoes
make the dressing by putting all the ingredients into a screw-top jar and giving it a good shake - this will make enough dressing for half a dozen salads
Peel the avocado and cut into chunks, place the chunks in a small bowl and toss them in a drizzle of the dressing
Pile the avocado on top of the rocket and tomatoes, then scatter the pancetta and lentils over the top

Yum! A sort of BLT salad :)

Cassoulet of Pork and Toulousian Sausages

2008-04-04T21:51:00.006+01:00

I went out for lunch in a local restaurant a few days ago and ate the most fabulous cassoulet. Not your average classical French cassoulet but more a cassoulet that made me think of Moroccan flavours. It was mainly duck and very good sausage with very few beans, but the broth was unbelievable - spicy but not hot with a tang of tomatoes

Now I want to remind myself of the flavours of a traditional French cassoulet, if there is such a thing as traditional cassoulet. Cassoulet should contain duck and should have duck fat as an ingredient. I don't fancy a heart attack any time soon, so have reduced the cholesterol element by using a vegetable oil and omitting the duck. Cassoulet should also have about half a pound of breadcrumbs added after the two hour coking phase, I decided to forego them

To serve 4 - 6

1 lb 2 oz belly of pork, skin separated from meat and cut into half inch dice
8 GF Toulouse sausages (Sainsbury's)

Bean stock

1 cup haricot beans
1 cup butter beans
1/2 onion
3 cloves garlic
Sprig fresh thyme
sprig fresh rosemary
whole carrot

Cassoulet

2 tbsp sunflower oil
3 large carrots, peeled and diced
2 tomatoes, skinned and diced
1 onion, peeled and diced
3 cloves garlic
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp dried thyme
Salt and pepper

In a large saucepan, add the onion, garlic, carrot, thyme, rosemary, beans, diced pork and pork skin, bring to the boil and simmer for 70 minutes

Preheat the oven to 160 centigrade / 300 Fahrenheit / gas mark 2

Meanwhile heat 1 tbsp of oil in a heavy based casserole, lightly saute the diced onions and garlic until softened

Remove onions and garlic from the casserole and place in a large bowl with the diced carrots and tomatoes

Add a further tablespoon of oil to the casserole and fry the sausages until browned, remove from the casserole and cut into three pieces, place in the bowl with the carrots, tomatoes etc

Drain the bean stock, reserving the stock for later use

Place all the other ingredients from the bean pan in a large roasting tin, discard the carrot, onion, pork skin, herbs and garlic

Pick out the pork and place in the casserole dish and lightly fry until golden brown, then place in the bowl with other vegetables and sausages

Add half of the beans to the casserole, add the meat and vegetables from the bowl and the herbs, then add the remaining beans. Add the stock, filling to the level of the beans, add some boiling water if necessary

Put the casserole without the lid in the preheated oven and cook for two hours

Check seasoning, I added one teaspoon of salt and a few grinds of pepper at this point

Serve

Blueberry and Chocolate Cookies

2008-03-30T19:00:00.005+01:00

Following on from my success with the peanut cookies, I decided it was cookie time again. I'd seen some fabulous blueberry cookies in my local Farmers Market and I've been longing to have one. But oh no I cant do that! I have to devise my own. Then I found the recipe devised by Mike of Gluten Free Blog fame and though I could be onto a winner. I took his strawberry and chocolate cookie recipe from his book, Gluten Free and Wheat Free Gourmet Deserts, and turned it into blueberry and chocolate cookies, then added whole blueberries. You know what .... they taste fabulous! I've used blueberry preserve and whole blueberries to ring the changes, cut down on the butter content and used very low fat cream cheese

Mikes book is fabulous, I've used a few of his recipes now, he has everything in there from an award winning carrot cake to cheesecakes. It is perfect for somebody who is just starting out on the road to gluten free and just as perfect for somebody like me who has been gluten free for about six years and just lost their baking mojo! If, like me, you want Miles book to make life easier and tastier, you can find info on Mikes book here

1/4 stick (2 oz) butter
1 cup sugar
3 oz cream cheese (I used Quark, which is very low fat cream cheese)
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 cups rice flour (Doves)
1/2 cup glutinous rice flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup blueberry preserve
Handful fresh or thawed frozen blueberries

Preheat oven to 190 degrees

Cream together the sugar, butter and cream cheese

Add baking powder, flours and cocoa powder, mix thoroughly

Add blueberry preserve, add mix until you have the consistency of cookie dough, add the blueberries and mix them in

Take small handfulls of the dough and roll into balls a little over an inch in diameter, place on a cookie pan lined with greaseproof parchment, press the cookie down until it is a little less than half an inch thick

Cook the cookies for 15 minutes or until cooked. Leave on the tin to cool for a couple of minutes, then place on a wire rack to cool

Yumyum!

Soda Bread

2008-03-26T08:34:00.006Z

I have Irish ancestry! My great-great grandfather is Irish and was born in Cork which I have recently been able to get evidence of via genealogical research. I've also been to Ireland on a few occasions. That should give me the credentials to be cooking Irish food. If you haven't been to Ireland, add it to your 'to do' list, it's a beautiful place, full of history and beautiful sights!

Moving on ...... I've been wanting to try cooking some Irish unleavened bread. So here is the first attempt, soda bread

This is based on a recipe from Healthy Gluten Free Eating by Darina Allen and Rosemary Kearney, supported by Coeliac UK

10 oz rice flour
4 oz potato flour
1 scant tsp bicarbonate of flour
1 heaped tsp gluten free baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp Castor sugar
1 free range egg, lightly beaten
12 fl oz whole cow's milk

Preheat the oven to 230 degrees / 450 degrees / gas mark 8

Sift all the dry ingredients into a large bowl

Whisk the egg and buttermilk together

Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, pour most of the milk/egg mix in. With a plastic spatula mix the flour into the milk/egg mix by stirring the flour mix around the edge of the bowl until the ingredients are mixed together. Add the remaining egg/milk mix if necessary

You should have a softish dough, but it should not be wet and sticky - do not over mix, once the dough starts to come together as a ball, move to the next stage

With rice-floured hands, lightly knead the dough ball to get an even shape, place on a floured baking tray and press the dough down to approximately 2 inches in height

With a knife cut a cross in the dough, prick with a knife at four angles (to let the Irish fairies out)

Bake in the oven for 5 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 180/350/Gas 4 and cook for a further 30 minutes or until coked. When bread is cooked, when tapped on the bottom, it sounds hollow

Fruity North African Salad from FAIRTRADE

2008-03-21T10:41:00.016Z

During the recent Fairtrade Fortnight, I bought the Fairtrade Everyday Cookbook, which I would advise anybody to but, as it is fabulous. I was going to write about the Fairtrade Foundation then, but felt it was pretty much saturated, hence writing now after the initial event, but none the less still valid

I buy Fairtrade products whenever I see them as an alternative to the standard products available. They are sometimes a tad more expensive, but I like to think that the few pence extra that I pay goes to help a community somewhere in a developing country, rather than lining the pocket of a fat-cat exploiting the communities in developing countries

Rant Over!!! Here is my recipe!!! I say my recipe, it was actually developed by Anna Hayward from Hay on Wye, Powys. Most of Anna's ingredients whereas mine are a mix of locally sourced organic and Fairtrade where possible

To serve: 4 as a main course - 4 - 6 as a starter / appetiser

175 g rice
1 organic orange
1 tbsp Fairtrade honey
410 g tin chickpeas, drained
50 g dried cranberries
50 g sultanas
50 g dates, chopped
2 large organic tomatoes, skinned and roughly chopped
1 pepper, finely chopped
3 - 4 tbsp roughly chopped fresh coriander

Cook the rice according to packet instructions, drain and place in a large bowl
Whisk the orange juice and honey together, and pour over the warm rice, set aside to cool
Add all the remaining ingredients to the bowl after a few minutes and mix well
Allow the salad to stand for half an hour so that the dried fruit has a chance to plump up
Divide into bowls

:)

St Patricks's Day Stew

2008-03-17T07:03:00.006Z

Today is traditionally Saint Patrick's Day, the day for eating traditional Irish food and supping a pint of Guiness. Saint Patrick (385 - 461 AD) is the patron Saint of Ireland and his life is usually celebrated worldwide on 17th March. This year it is being officially celebrated on 15th March due to a clash with the timeing of easter. Yep! Easter-egg time soon! However 17th March is the traditional date for St Patricks Day feasting, and I am offering a traditional thought for Saint Patrick today and a suggestion of how to celebrate it! I dont like guiness, so I'll be giving that a miss, but I do like the occasional plate of Irish food, so somewhere around here I'll be tracking down a plate of Irish food!

I dont have many recipes around here that are typically Irish, but here is the Irish Stew , that I developed for St Patricks day last year!

:)

Puy Lentils with Peppers, Artichokes, Sun-dried Tomatoes and Feta Cheese

2008-03-13T09:04:00.007Z

After the dreary few days I've had with the storms, I'm now craving sunny days and Mediterranean food! This meal transported me straight back to the 'Med'. I'm not entirely sure which country, this meal is a bit of a mix of the produce of a few countries! However, it's very flavoursome, gluten free and yummy!

This meal was made entirely of ingredients I had in the house with the exception of the parsley which I had to buy ... I always knew there was a reason for keeping my kitchen so well stocked with my 'Med' ingredients. Any other cuisine apart from the Mediterranean and I would have to do a major shopping trip!

250 g Puy lentils
1 tbsp olive oil
1 yellow pepper diced
8 sun-dried tomatoes, cut into quarters
8 marinaded artichokes, cut in half
200g feta cheese, broken into pieces
fresh parsley, chopped
Additional olive oil for drizzling
Balsamic vinegar for drizzling

To serve: 3 - 4

Cook the puy lentils according to pack instructions
Meanwhile, saute the yellow pepper in the olive oil for two minutes, add the tomatoes and artichokes, saute for a further minute
Add the cooked lentils and and feta cheese, mix to combine
Divide between four bowls or plates, drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, dress with the chopped parsley

Enjoy :)

Peanut Butter Cookies, Revisited

2008-03-09T10:41:00.007Z

A good friend of mine, Mike over at Gluten Free Blog has written a book of gluten free biscotti, brownies, cakes, cookies and a whole host of other confections. The book is entitled 'Gluten Free & Wheat Free Gourmet Desserts' which you can find out about here

I more or less gave up baking following particularly poor results from my early experiences at gluten free baking. I became the expert at throwing out baked goods, which the dustbin man picking up my trash can probably atest to! That was the - this is now! Following on from my success (who could go wrong)with the flourless peanut butter cookies, I decided to try and bake some more cookies, but using flour this time. I have slightly adapted Mike's recipe to allow for local availability and the fact that I'm not a fan of smooth peanut butter although I appreciate that I wouldn't be able to tell the difference in a cookie

Any other differences between mike's cookies and mine are probably down to the fact that Mike used a mixer and I did it the hard way, without a mixer

I was showing two little girls, aged four and ten how to cook and eat cookies at the time. They learnt the creaming method for creaming butter and sugar quickly, ran off to do some art activities and came back when the first cookies were due out of the oven. Little girls of four and ten have little patience for waiting for cookies to cool down .... they were broken into pieces to speed up the cooling process! These cookies had a very favourable report!

1 1/2 cups crunchy peanut butter
2 oz (half stick) butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup vanilla sugar
1 tbsp molasses
1 egg
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup white rice flour
1/4 cup potato flour

In a large bowl, cream the butter, sugar and peanut butter together

Mix in the egg and molasses

Mix in the baking soda and flours - mix really well at this point

Squeeze together in your hands, enough cookie dough to make balls about 1 1/4" - 1 1/2" in size (ensuring the dough is well packed to ensure cookies hold together when cooked). Place coookie balls on cookie pans lined with greaseproof paper, with your fingers press the cookies down to 1/2" thick cookies

Bake for 15 minutes at 190 degrees. They will turn golden brown when done, leave to cool slightly for a few minutes before moving to a cooling rack

These are good! I'll have to try baking again! :)

Peanut Butter Cookies a la Gluten Free

2008-03-02T15:42:00.003Z

One of the things that I miss as a result of the fluten free lifestyle is cookies. Most food containing gluten I can easily live without, but recently I have been pining for cookies! Add that to my preoccupation with peanut butter and you will understand why I have plumped for peanut butter cookies. I found plenty of recipes .... all of which took about fiftenn ingredients to get the desired cookie!!

Not being much of a baker, I've still been in the thinking process untill yesterday! I saw a post for Sunbutter cookies by Jill of Hey, That Tastes Good, which was an adaption of a recipe for flourless peanut butter cookes by Shauna of Gluten Free Girl. I came late, but I dont mind at all, this has got to be the easiest recipe for cookies I've ever seen

My youngest son, like me, has gluten issues, so I called him last night to tell him about the peanut butter cookies. He's quite a good cook despite his young age, he isnt capable of leaving any recipe alone though, he has to adapt it in some way. He is really excited about these cookies that wont make him ill, taste good and its his preoccupation now, adaptions to peanut butter cookies. ***Watch this space, if he comes up with a good one, it will be appearing here first!***

1 cup peanut butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon gluten free baking powder

Preheat the oven to 200 degrees
Cream the butter and sugar, then add the egg and baking powder
Mix thoroughly, then form into balls the size of a 2p iece, roll in granulated sugar
Bake 10 minutes.

:)

A Sweet Rissotto of Rice and Brandied Sultannas

2008-02-24T09:55:00.008Z

I am continually being nagged at by my family to cook a traditional rice pudding. A traditional rice pudding consists of pudding rice, milk, sugar, sultanas and nutmeg. This pudding which comes from Gary Rhodes latest book ' Time to Eat' is somewhat different whilst still being a rice pudding. I have adapted it slightly by omitting the butter which is added at the last minute, to cut down on saturated fat

3 oz sultanas
3 - 4 oz brandy
1 1'4 pints milk
10 fl oz double cream
Finely grated zest of a small orange
1 vanilla pod, seeds only
4 oz arborio rice
2 oz castor sugar

To serve 3 - 4

Put the brandy and sultanas and brandy in a small saucepan and gently bring to a simmer
Remove from the heat and keep to one side

Pour the milk and cream into a saucepan and add the grated orange zest and vanilla seeds. Bring to the boil before adding the rice and sugar

Simmer gently over a low heat, stirring slowly for 30 to 35 minutes, until the rice is completely cooked through and creamy

Stir in the sultanas and divide between four bowls

:)

A Greek Stew: Stifado

2008-02-17T20:11:00.012Z

The latest round of Heart of the Matter focuses on stews and casseroles, which is being co-ordinated by Michelle over at Accidental Scientist. To enter a recipe for Heart of the Matter, the dish needs to be heart-healthy, ie, low in saturated fats and salt

Stifado is a classical Greek stew of beef, onions and herbs, slightly spiced with cloves, cumin and cinammon. I found this recipe in a little book I have of global delicacies from Slimming World, it is therefore low in saturated fats and salt, with no additional oils added either. It is very flavoursome, but I'm not entirely sure where this dish sits in terms of stew or casserole, I'm inclined to think it is somewhere in the middle

Cooks note: I found this a bit too lemony after using the juice of half an averaged size lemon ... be careful with the lemon

1 onion, sliced
4 garlic cloves, cut into slivers
3/4 pint beef stock
1 lb stewing steak, fat removed and cubed
1 level tbsp tomato puree
170 ml / 6 fl oz red wine
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 sprigs thyme
1 sprig rosemary
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp each of cumin seeds and cloves
1 cinnamon stick
1 lb shallots
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander

Serves 2 - 3

Put the sliced onions, garlic and 1/2 pint of the stock in a large flameproof casserole, cover and bring to the boil. Boil for 5 - 10 minutes, then reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 20 - 30 minutes, untill the onions are tender and golden

Add the cubed beef and cook over heat, turning occasionally, untill browned all over. Stir in the tomato puree, red wine, vinegar, herbs and remaining stock

Tie the cumin seeds, cloves and cinnamon stick in a piece of muslin and place in the casserole. Cover and cook in a preheated oven at 170 degrees centigrade / 325
degrees farenheit / gas mark 3 for 2 - 21/2 hours

Peel the shallots and blanch in boiling water for 1 minute. Drain, and add to the casserole one hour before the end of cooking

Remove the herbs and spice bag from the casserole. Add the lemon juice and seasoning. Serve sprinkled with coriander

I've Been Tagged Too

2008-02-12T19:28:00.000Z

I've been tagged by Steve of Good Without Gluten to write seven random or weird things about myself. Hmmmmm! What could possibly be interesting about me! I'm particularly pleased that Steve chose me as I often read his blog!

The Rules are:

1. Link to the person that tagged you and post the rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 random or weird things about yourself.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post and include links to their blogs.
4. Let each person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

So here are my random facts!

1. I'm currently tracking the digestive disorders and digestive cancers in my family via pedigree charts of the living survivors and via genalogical studies for the deceased and ancient family relatives

2. I've had problems with food and my digestive tract for as long as I can remember. As does my youngest son, my father, paternal grandmother and great grandfather

3. I'm writing an article of the results for a family history society

4. I'm currently a part-time university student studying geology, as well as working full-time. Anybody live near Yellowstone, because I'm hoping to be along there sometime soon

5. I've stood on the crater of Mount Etna in Sicily

6. I've swum amongst the fishes on the Outer Barrier Reef off the East coast of Australia

7. My favourite food is a plate of antipasto, especially if it contains artichokes. I have discovered so much fab food as a result of writing this blog! Yup! That includes artichokes

Thats me, or at least a bit about me!

I would like to tag anybody who hasnt currently been tagged and who would like to take part!

:)

A Plateful of Chicken with Lemon and Thyme

2008-02-06T20:15:00.000Z

I've been on a mission, trying out all sorts of chicken recipes of late, without finding what I wanted. I've also been trying to come to terms with my fathers ill-health. When I'm stressed I cook!!!

I wanted a nice easy chicken recipe that had the flavours of the mediterranean, but with all the ingredients available locally. Somewhat difficult in February. The chicken is local, the thyme is in a pot in the garden, the garlic and onions were from the organic veggie box. Yes! That just leaves the wine, oil and lemons! Well its nearly all local!

This recipe is based on one by Nigella Lawson, in her book 'Forever Summer' and truly tastes divine!

8 chicken drumsticks or thighs (or a combination of the two)
1 head of garlic, seperated into unpeeled cloves
6 - 8 shallots, peeled and left whole
1 unwaxed lemon, cut into 6
small handful fresh thyme
3 tbsp sunflower oil
150 ml white wine
black pepper

Serves 4 - 6

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees celcius / gas mark 3
Put the chicken pieces into a roasting tin and add the garlic, onions, lemon and thyme leaves
Add the oil and with your hands, mix everything together, then spread the ingredients out, ensuring that the chicken is skin side up

Sprinkle over the white wine, a few grinds of pepper and cover tightly with tin foil
Cook for two hours

Remove the foil from the tin and turn the oven up to 200 degrees celcius / gas mark 6. Cook the uncovered chicken for a further 30 - 45 minutes, by which time the skin on the chicken will have turned golden brown and the lemons will be starting to scorch and caramelise at the edges

Place on a serving plate and watch it disapear

:)

Greek-ish bowl of Honey Enriched Yogurt and Walnuts

2008-02-01T16:26:00.000Z

A friend of mine, who doesnt have celiac disease or any other food allergy that I am aware of, had a fall. She is well under the age of sixty five and the fall resulted in a broken hip. (Note to self: I must get my bone density checked). This, in itself, I would have been able to deal with. Hot on its heels, in fact, the very next day, came the bombshell! I've had to deal with bad family news as well ... not a good week! This has resulted in me being quite upbeat one minute and flat on the floor the next. I need some comfort food

My repertoire of comfort food is small of not non-existent. I dont really do comfort food. In my pre gluten-free days I used to tuck into macaroni cheese or pesto pasta, but since the world of gluten-free eating overtook me, my tastes have definately changed. Gone are the heavy meals and due to my husbands heart disease and my gluten problems I eat lighter, excluding heavy sauces and deserts!!!

This is what I came up with, as my traditional comfort food of fresh raspberries with chocolate are not available. Fresh organic yogurt with walnuts and honey!

500 g carton organic natural yogurt
2 tbsp runny honey + extra for drizzling
Handfull broken walnuts, chopped

In a bowl, mix the honey and yogurt untill they are of a creamy consistency
Transfer to a serving dish or individual bowls
Top with the chopped walnuts and drizzle with the extra honey

:)

Salad of Tomatoes, Chorizo and Chick Peas

2008-01-28T20:13:00.002Z

I love the taste of chorizo and have spent the last week of so trying to dream up, in my head a tapas dish that brings together the influences of Spain, whilst being able to get the ingredients in England without too much trouble

This salad has some of the tastes of Spain that I particularly like, whilst leaving out those tastes that I can live without

And ..... all gluten free, too!

To serve: 3-4 as a tapas dish

60 g chorizo, chopped
1 clove garlic, cut into slivers
12 cherry tomatoes, cut in half
Handful chick peas
Few slices red onion
1 tbsp sherry vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp warm water

Dry fry chorizo and garlic, until golden and crispy, tip onto absorbent kitchen paper to drain the fat away, leave to cool

Make the dressing by pouring the vinegar, oil and water into a small lidded jar, shake to combine

Mix the tomatoes, chick peas, onions, chorizo, garlic and chick peas in a small bowl with half of the salad dressing. Arrange on a plate and add more of the salad dressing, if required

:)

Burns Night

2008-01-25T18:22:00.001Z

Tonight, 25th January, is 'Burns Night', a celebration of the birth of Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), the famous Scottish bard from Ayrshire

The celebration, known as 'The Burns Supper', began a few years after his death in 1796. It is still celebrated to this day in Scotland and beyond, with the format of Burns night changing very little since those days

The supper begins with the reading of the Selkirk Grace, below:

Some hae meat and cannot eat
Some cannot eat that want it
But we hae meat and we can eat
Sae let the Lord be thankit

Those attending the dinner are then asked to stand to receive the haggis, which is marched in by a piper leading the chef carrying the haggis to the top table, while the guest clap the procession

This is followed by the reading of Burns' most famous poem, 'Ode to a Haggis'

Traditionally the dinner guest then toast the haggis with a glass of whisky while it is being cut, and prepared to be part of the meal, which will consist of traditional Scottish fare, such as:

Cock-a-leekie Soup

*****

Haggis with Tatties and Neeps

*****

Typsy Laird (sherry trifle)

*****

A Tassie o' Coffee

I had intended to cook a haggis with tatties and neeps, unfortunately life has gotten in the way, as it often does. There will be haggis suppers being cooked and celebrated across the globe, wherever a few Scottish people gather

Apologies then for the fact that I am just writing about Burns Night and not actually celebrating it myself

Graphic: wikipedia

:)

A Healthier Granola

2008-01-21T17:49:00.000Z

Since I last posted a granola / muesli recipe, I still haven't found a commercially made one that I like. I guess I have now made the decision to continue making my own. Home-made certainly tastes better than anything I have ever bought, with the added bonus that I am in complete control and can keep it low sugar and low fat if I choose, incorporating my favourite flavours, which I have done here!

I have added a new (to me) ingredient, which I've never used before! Rice flakes, they work well and look just like oats, once mixed with the other ingredients and toasted in the oven. I also added dried blueberries and dried cherries .... not something I've ever seen in a commercial muesli, but I like them!!!

2 tbsp sunflower oil
2 tbsp maple syrup
150 ml apple juice
100 g puffed rice
350 g jumbo oats
100 g rice flakes
2 tbsp golden linseeds
150 g sultanas
50 g dried blueberries
50 g dried cherries
100 g walnuts, roughly chopped

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celsius / fan 140 degrees / gas mark 3

Place all the dry ingredients in a large bowl, stir to combine
Add the wet ingredients, give it a really good stir to coat all the dry ingredients with the liquid

Bake in the oven for around 45 minutes, until golden brown, turning with a spatula frequently

I eat this with a probiotic yogurt most mornings

:)

A Quick Cockaleakie Soup

2008-01-15T17:34:00.003Z

This months round of Heart of the Matter is hosted by Joanna of Joanna's Food, who has taken into consideration the fact that it is winter for some of us. This is the time when we all love the comfort of warming wholesome soups and so soup is the topic for this months round-up of heart-healthy recipes!!

I love visiting Scotland as many of you will now know. On January 25th the Scottish people, the world over celebrate the life and times of Robert Burns (1759 - 1796), AKA Rabbie Burns. They often start off their celebratory meal with cockaleakie soup before the main event which is haggis and neeps!

Traditionally cockaleakie soup is a rather long winded affair, involving making the stock (broth) by simmering a whole chicken in water with vegetables, to make the stock, then adding the other ingredients to make a soup. My version involves a stock made from the carcass of a roasted chicken, adding the left-over chicken and other ingredients to make the soup. When making the stock I haven't added the chicken skin as this is only adding unnecessary saturated fat

Stock

2 pints water
2 carrots
1 onion, halved
2 leeks, green tops only
Handful of celery stalks
Bones from the carcass of a roasted chicken

Soup

2 rashers streaky bacon, chopped
2 cups leftover chicken, chopped into 1/4 to 1/2 inch dice
2 leaks, sliced and chopped into small dice
1 - 2 oz pitted prunes, chopped
Handful dried rice
Handful parsley, chopped
1 tsp sea salt
Few grinds black pepper

Bring all of the contents of the stock to the boil in a large, heavy based saucepan, then simmer for abound 40 minutes, strain the liquid into another pan. Discard the bones and vegetables. The liquid should have reduced to around 1 1/2 pints, top this up to 2 pints with water

Add the other ingreients to the stock and simmer on a low heat for a further forty minutes or untill the vegetables are soft and cooked through and the rice is cooked

Now all you need is a haggis, to finish off the celebration! That is another post though for another day

:)

Cabbage with Pancetta and Maple Syrup

2008-01-09T20:26:00.001Z

This is so simple and yet so yummy!

Its also something I had thought about for a while and wondered if it would work. I've known for a while that bacon and maple syrup go well together, after all its part of the classic American / Canadian breakfast ... not that I've ever eaten the classic American / Canadian breakfast. I do however suspect that pancakes, bacon and maple syrup might taste pretty good, alas for me, I heard about this combination after cutting the gluten. I must try it some day! Back to the cabbage!

So I know that bacon and maple syrup is a good combination and I also know that bacon and cabbage is a good combination. So what about all three ... worth a try! I loved it, but think I may add some nuts next time!!!!

I green cabbage, shredded
150 g pancetta, cubed and dry-fried, drained on kitchen roll to remove excess fat
1 tbsp good Maple syrup

Steam the cabbage in a small amount of water in a hot wok, tossing it around as if you are stir-frying. This will help to keep the vitamins in the cabbage and prevent it from over-cooking

Add the pre-fried pancetta and maple syrup, continue to stir-fry for another couple of minutes and serve

Honey Roast Belly of Pork with Caramelised Onions

2008-01-06T16:04:00.000Z

Pork isnt a particular favourite of mine, but on the rare occasion that I cook pork this is generally what I do with it! The recipe was created by Gary Rhodes and is featured in his book 'New British Classics' and I have yet to find somebody who doesnt like pork cooked this way

Anybody dieting or reducing saturated fat due to Coronory Heart Disease should be relatively happy with this recipe. Although belly pork is a cheaper cut of meat that contains higher than average levels of saturated fat, a lot of the fat will melt away because of the long cooking time at a relatively low temperature

2 1/4 - 2 1/2 lb piece of belly pork, boned with the rind scored
5 large onions, thickly sliced
Cooking oil, for drizzling
Course sea salt
2 - tbsp honey
Salt and pepper

To serve 4

Preheat the oven to 190 degrees centigrade / 350 degrees farenheit / gas mark 4

Place the sliced onions in a roasting tray and sit the belly, rind side up, on top of the onions, drizzle oil over the rind and rub in the salt

Place in the oven and cook for one hour

After the first hour, remove from the oven and baste with any fat / juices in the tray. If the onions are dry, add a few tablespoons of water to the tray

Continue to cook for a further 90 minutes, basting every 15 - 20 minutes

The honey can now be spooned over the rind and the oven temperature increased to 200 degrees celcius / 400 degrees farenheit / gas mark 6

Continue to cook for a further 30 - 40 minutes, basting every 5 - 10 minutes. As the honey becomes hot it will start to caramelise and leave a rich, golden glaze over the pork

Once cooked and tender, remove the belly from the oven and leave to rest for 10 - 15 minutes

Serve with the onions, which will have caramelised during the cooking process

:)

After Christmas Soup

2007-12-29T13:18:00.000Z

Leftovers! What to do with them. I'm not particularly good at dealing with them, but decided this year that I would use at least 50% of them, in my attempt to reduce the amount of food I throw away each week. I have got a real bee in my bonnett about the amount of food that I am throwing away each week and trying to reduce it. The reasoning is, that the better I get at reducing wastage, the more money I will have in my purse.

Makes sense to me!!!

1 3/4 pint chicken or vegetable stock (broth)
1 lb left-over cooked vegetables
1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, minced,
1 Spanish onion, chopped
Pepper and salt
2 rashers bacon, thinly chopped or sliced

To Serve 4

In a large saucepan on medium heat, add the oil, then the garlic and onions, fry for 5 - 10 minutes, until the onions are transparent
Add the stock and heat through, add enough of the pre-cooked vegetables (I used cauliflower, carrots, Brussels sprouts and potatoes), to get the consistency you require
Carefully season with pepper and salt, bearing in mind that the vegetables will already have been seasoned, when you initially cooked them
Heat the soup through and allow to simmer for a while, to allow the flavours to mingle
In the meantime, dry-fry the bacon until it has rendered it's fat and is golden
Divide the soup between four bowls and top with the bacon
Mmmmmmmmmm! Left-over soup, that disappeared really quickly in my house!

:)

Mark's Boxing Day Beef Stew

2007-12-23T13:24:00.000Z

The original version of this recipe belongs to a friend of mine. We were sat at his kitchen table more than a decade ago and he started to cook a superbly comforting beef stew, which once cooked, was rapidly eaten by all of the people there that day. I have had to adapt it somewhat to make it gluten free but it still feels, to me, like the original Boxing Day Stew, of more than a decade ago

There was no intention to cook a beef stew that day, so the ingredients for a stew werent available. Not to be beaten, Mark flavoured the beef and vegetables with a tin of Heinz tomato soup and a tin of Heinz oxtail soup. I came along and changed that to a tin of chopped tomatoes and a pint of good beef stock with some garlic to add to the flavouring

1 kg braising steak, cut into 1/2 - 1 inch cubes
1 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic
400 g tin tomotoes, chopped or liquidised
1 pint good beef stock (broth)
2 average sized English onions, roughly chopped
4 good sized carrots, peeled and sliced
1 average sized swede, diced into 1/2 inch cubes
4 good sized potatoes, diced into 3/4 inch cubes
Gluten free gravy mix, beef flavour
1 tsp salt
Few grinds black pepper
1 tbsp parsley, chopped

To serve 6 - 8

Heat a large casserole on the hob, add the oil and garlic, add the beef and turn over in the oil and garlic until the edges are sealed

Add the tomatoes, stock and vegetables, salt and pepper. Bring to a slow boil, then reduce the temperature untill just about simmering, add the lid and leave to simmer away for about two hours or untill the beef is tender and the vegetables are cooked

At his point the liquid will be very thin although the potatoes will have thickened somewhat, thickening the liquid. If you want a thickish liquid like mine, add some beef gravy mix untill you get the desired thickness

Stir in the parsley

Hey presto, a gorgeous warming stew!

:)

A Christmas that is Gluten Free and low in Saturated Fat and Salt

2007-12-21T12:39:00.000Z

This christmas I have my two sons (aged 22 and 29) coming to stay for a few days, which I am really looking forward to! It will be three years since we have all been under the same roof for christmas day. That said, I am now beginning to ponder on the dietary restrictions!

Kevin, the elder of the two, is fairly easy to feed as he has no dietary restrictions but has tonic-clonic epilepsy, which means that alcohol is severely restricted and he has to have meals and medication at regular intervals. Leigh, the younger of the two, is a bit more difficult to feed as he has severe problems with gluten. Not too difficult yet!!!

So far I have to restrict gluten and alcohol. No big problem as I have been gluten free for more than five years, so a gluten free christmas isnt a great problem for me to deal with. The alcohol isnt really a problem either as I rarely cook with it, so just the problem of what is drunk from a glass, still no great problem as Kevin doesnt drink a great deal anyway!

So far, so good!

Add me to the equation and things start to get more difficult, as well as being gluten free, I have an ongoing problem with my cholesterol level, so saturated fats need to be avoided. Add my husband to the equation and I start to get a headache, a bad headache!! He had a heart-attack earlier this year and I have been on a learning curve to heart-healthy food ever since. His requirements are food that is low in saturated fats and salt while being high in fibre

No problem! Who am I kidding!

I'm in the preparation stages of a gluten-free christmas that is high in fibre while being low in alcohol, salt and saturated fats. If there is anybody else out there who has my food problems over christmas, this is roughly how my christmas is going to be looking this year!

Christmas Eve

Home-made beef stew with tons of heart-healthy vegetables

Christmas Day

Roasted beef and roasted crown of turkey, gluten free yorkshire puddings, a ton of vegetables and olive oil roasted potatoes, all served with a gluten-free gravy
Gluten Free christmas pudding with 0% fat Brandy cream
Gluten free cider instead of wine (cider with christmas lunch is a family tradition)

Boxing Day

Thats my mothers problem as we are all going there, but she is doing a roast chicken with an oven-load of Meditteranean-style roasted vegetables and olive oil roasted potatoes

Hopefully that will all go without a hitch! In the meantime I currently have the flu and am just about to make a nice wholesome heart-warming soup with another load of vegetables

:)