food allergies

A Lemony Dessert to Remember…… Meyer Lemon Love!

This week my friend Josh bought some special lemons at Trader Joe’s in Montgomery county.  I was filled with envy, lemon envy to be exact!  He inspired me to post on these very lemons, Meyer Lemons.

My brother Robert lives in Texas, below Houston.  He had a good sized lemon tree in his yard and every December for the past few years he has sent me a box of lemons. Meyer lemons to be exact.  They are a cross between a lemon and an orange.  The fruit looks very much like a lemon but the flavor is much sweeter and they have a gorgeous fragrance that is hugely appealing.

When I received the first box I was at a momentary loss.  What to do with a dozen lemons!  I went to Food Network and looked under Meyer lemon.  I found a few items and the best of them was this lemony tart.  It is very simple; dump all the filling ingredients into a mixing bowl, spin them up good with a hand mixer and pour carefully into a partially cooked and cooled tart crust, bake some more, chill and serve with a dollop of whipped cream.  Real whipped cream, none of that funky canned stuff!   Image

Sometimes I make it in my long rectangular tart pan.  I like to put 3-4 thin slices of Meyer lemon down the tart as decoration.  Robert sometimes puts in fresh lemon leaves with his fruits and they are also a nice tart decoration.

This filling is made with buttermilk, which has a bad reputation with some.  Don’t be put off by that, when you bite into this tangy tart you would never know that it is based in buttermilk.  It is well blended and the addition of the lemon zest takes it to a higher level in flavor.  You will not be disappointed in this easy to make dessert.

I had no trouble making it gluten free; the tart shell is from my favorite cookbook by Annalise Roberts.  I swapped out the all purpose flour in the filling for sweet rice flour.  Perfect!

 

Meyer Lemon Buttermilk Tart

Ingredients:

1 9 inch Un-baked Tart Crust

Filling

¾ cup buttermilk

½ cup granulated sugar

2 lg. eggs

6 tbsp. Meyer lemon juice

2 tbsp sweet rice flour

2 tbsp finely grated Meyer lemon peel

————-

Preparation:

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Bake 9-10 inch tart crust for 10 min

Cool at least ten minutes before filling

Mix all filling ingredients in a mixing bowl until smooth.  Pour into crust and bake at 325 for 25-30 min; until set.  Cool completely and refrigerate until chilled.  Can decorate tart with thin slices of Meyer lemon tart.

 

Topping:

1 cup heavy cream

2 tbsp powdered sugar

Beat cream, add powdered sugar.  Serve a dollop with each slice of tart.  It is okay without the topping but it really sparkles with lemon when you have the contrast of the whipped cream.

So, if you get your hands upon some Meyer lemons please make this recipe.  I promise you will love it for both the delicate flavor and the easy preparation.  Anyone who likes lemon will be in love once they bite into this tart!

Tasty GF Camping Can be Done!

Camping can be fun and relaxing.  We go most every summer.   This is tent camping at a state park, a place with a real bathroom with running water!  You park your car and empty it and set up the tent ten feet from your car.  Picnic table and fire pit provided. But we cook all our food, no running out for breakfast at some local joint like many campers do….so GF cooking would be part of the deal. We went camping last weekend at a lovely state park; Ricketts Glen; incredible waterfalls to hike around!  Some things were just as they normally are, like grilling proteins such as shish kabobs, baking potatoes in the camp fire, bacon for breakfast and lots of fresh fruit.   Image

But there were some GF recipe issues so I had to adjust some of what we ate. It wasn’t that problematic after all; more of an issue that one person did not eat meat so we had to segregate the bacon from the fakon – weird looking fake bacon that I did not try.  Maybe it tastes good but I will pass! Before we went I did some thinking and some research on how to make my favorites GF.

The usual buttermilk waffles I make in my antique cast iron waffle iron had to become GF.  I found a recipe that seemed do-able; I made them up as pancakes at home earlier that week.  But they were kinda stiff and dry.  I had to re-think them.  I had followed the recipe closely and it used water and buttermilk powder. I realized that real buttermilk would taste far better and buttermilk is a smart milk for camp baking. It is sturdier than regular milk and can exist in a cooler for 2-3 days and yet stay edible. And because waffles are naturally supposed to be crunchy, well the recipe worked very nicely. There is some cinnamon in them which helps with the flavor.  And all four of us loved them especially someone who is a cinnamon freak!  I brought some homemade grape syrup which was awesome poured on top.  Breakfast waffles – GF, Check!

And then there was protein; easy to do GF so I will not even get into a lot of detail there.  Suffice to say marinated salmon steaks, potatoes cooked in coals, corn on cob in husk on grill top.  MMMmm.  We also did shish kabob which is also GF by nature.  Just know that if you should need to flour any meat or fish, white rice flour works fine.  GF Protein – Check!

Sides: we had those baked potatoes and then the second night I made a wild and brown rice pilaf on the camp stove.  Easy and tasty; I added a bullion cube, diced red onion and some dried parsley to it.  I have also made quinoa on a camp stove, not hard to do either and it cooks faster than brown rice. GF Sides – check!

And the most problematic item was the cobbler.  We always have blueberry cobbler when camping as we both love blueberries and cobbler.  But I had tried some GF cobbler/crisp recipes with no real success.  The one I made this weekend was a muffin mix that said it could sub for a cobbler in a pinch and it was fantastic; light and fluffy and yummy.  I pre-made the mix for the cornstarch and sugar to cook the blueberries in and I premade the cobbler mix (sealed in baggies with recipe written on the side with a black sharpie pen).  We beat the eggs up as much as muscles could do and added that as well as a bit of melted butter and some buttermilk to the dry mix.  Stir well and pour over the hot fruit; it had to cook extra long on the fire as someone wanted extra cobbler topping and it nearly filled the pan to the lid.  We heaped hot coals on the lid and it finally completed the top layer. Next time I am not listening to him on that issue!  GF Dessert – Check check!

I should mention that on Friday night my best friend made a dump cake full of jam and chocolate, baked over the camp fire and served with whipped cream and Kailua.  She used a GF cake mix.  It came out sort of molten like a hot pudding. It was very tasty if kinda sweet.  And it was so supportive of her to bake GF for me!

So to reiterate: I found great easy recipes for GF waffles and cobbler.  Both as good as any you will find made with wheat.  We ate great protein and tasty sides.  I did make sandwiches for lunch using some okay GF bread.  I still haven’t found the perfect GF sandwich bread but someone gave me a new recipe I must try – she said it makes great sandwiches…. I live and hope for a success story on that item and soon as I really miss sandwiches and rolls.   My friends did not mind eating my GF cobbler and waffles and it was not any more difficult to take with us or cook on open fire.  So feel free to camp GF: if you want my waffle and cobbler recipes ask and I will post them soon.  Peace and happy camping!!

Originally posted June 21, 2013.  I went camping again last fall and the waffles were fantastic. I have made that cobbler again and it works wonderfully with many kinds of fruit. And, I have a new favorite pancake recipe; I will post it soon.

Chopped; Wheat Free Style!

IMG_0584Ever watch Chopped on Food Network? I love that show.  Each contestant gets 3-4 weird to normal ingredients that must be in their final dish.  The dish must be tasty, look good and they have to transform the ingredients.  I am fascinated by what they are able to create in a limited time.  Check it out sometime.

So, I often play my home version of Chopped.  But I don’t limit myself to 20 or 30 minutes nor do I ask myself to radically transform the ingredients.  My rules are that I must make something yummy for supper using ingredients I already have in my kitchen and at least 2-3 that I must include in that particular meal.  Generally I have limited time to throw it together due to my hectic work schedule.  So, sort of like a Chopped episode.  At least I don’t have 3 other chefs there trying to out cook me!

Tonight I had a package of chicken thighs, a head of cauliflower, and half a lemon to build a dinner around.  I added potatoes, onions and garlic as well as some herbs to create a lovely one dish meal that was done in less than an hour.  I started it roasting and was able to complete some chores before sitting down to a wonderful supper.  I did supplement it with a salad of kale, celery and some cooked broccoli, topped off with my own olive oil vinaigrette.  I suppose you could use another cut of chicken, just adjust your cooking time accordingly but thighs cook long and that gave my vegetables enough time to be soft and lightly browned for perfect flavor and texture.  Here is my roughed out recipe

Feeds 4

Ingredients:

One package of 4 bone-in chicken thighs, skin removed

2 Tbsp sweet brown rice flour (can use plain brown rice or sweet white rice flour)

¼ tsp paprika

¼ plus ½  tsp dried thyme

½ to 1 tsp sea salt, good sprinkle of fresh ground black pepper

1 to 2 Tbsp mild olive oil

½ a head of cauliflower, cut up into 2 inch florets

½ a lemon; make zest strips from the skin and you will use the juice too

1 medium yellow onion

2 garlic cloves

3 large russet potatoes

1-2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

¼ cup chicken broth.

So I took the flour and put it in a large baggie, added the herbs, salt, black pepper.  Shook them up and shook each chicken thigh in the baggie briefly to coat it.  Heat 1 to 2 Tbps. olive oil in a large frying pan, when hot, add the chicken thighs.  They should not touch each other.  Cook over medium heat for 3-4 minutes on each side or until browned.  I turn them with my old school metal tongs, the kind with the rounded ends, they look like weird scissors.  Perfect for turning chicken pieces.

While it browns get the veggies ready.  Spray a 9×13 glass or ceramic low sided casserole dish with canola or olive oil cooking spray.  Peel and cut the garlic cloves in half, throw in.  Wash and cut the potatoes into 1 inch wide wedges, cut them across into short wedges.  Throw in.  Cut up the onion into 1 inch long chunks, toss in.  Toss in the cauliflower florets. Drizzle the rest of the olive oil over the veggies. Drizzle the juice of the lemon over it and cut up the lemon half and sprinkle small pieces on the dish. Sprinkle them with some more thyme; maybe another ¼ tsp.  Sprinkle with more salt if you like and some fresh ground black pepper.  Nestle the chicken thighs in there, pour the chicken broth over it.  I had some homemade leftover from another meal and it was perfect for this, I even left the chicken fat in it for extra flavor.  Cover the casserole with a sheet of aluminum foil.  Bake in 375 oven for 45 minutes to an hour; until veggies are done when poked with fork and chicken pieces are also done; clear liquid only when pierced.

Dig in and enjoy the subtle flavor of the lemon and herbs with the chicken and cauliflower along with the mellow flavor of the potatoes, onion and garlic.  Simple and gluten free  and a perfect meal on a chilly spring evening.    Use your favorite gf flour for the chicken dipping.  Most any kind will work.  I am betting you could change out the veggies to suit what you have around the house.  Healthy, tasty and cheap especially if you get the cauliflower on sale.  I think I am almost ready for my Chopped episode!

Eeek my GF Sibling is Visiting and I Have no Clue!

It may seem daunting to make dinner for a friend who is gluten free. What can you make? How can you do that in your kitchen? I want to give you some basic advice for such a situation so you won’t feel too stressed out about it. I wrote this for my sisters and a friend who wanted to cook a meal for me last summer. Image

First, I suggest you make sure your pots/pans/cutting boards/knives/baking dishes are very clean; if you have a dishwasher run them through. Any small bit of wheat flour can be a problem so scrub up good! Especially colanders that had wheat pasta in; it sticks in the tiny holes. If you are planning on cooking GF often you should have a colander dedicated for GF usage.

Planning is everything when you are entertaining. Good menu choices for sides: anything with potatoes or rice or corn as the star is generally okay. You should check that your GF friend doesn’t have any other allergies -like to corn or dairy. Unfortunately, that is fairly common for GF individuals. So ask before you plan a menu. Also acceptable for sides are quinoa, a wide variety of beans or polenta which is made with corn. There are lots of GF pastas out there; you can make enough for everyone or just enough GF for the person who must have it. In the summer you can serve a variety of tasty salads or picnic side dishes: rice salad, potato salad, baked beans, pickled eggs and deviled eggs. If you grill do clean the grill well in advance just in case something wheaty was on it (some bbq sauces have wheat in them as a thickener). If you buy a rice mix at the supermarket check it for a GF label; a lot of seasoning packets have wheat in them. Zatarians marks which of their mixes are GF.

If your recipe for scalloped potatoes has flour in it; replace it with white rice flour, it works fairly interchangeably for thickening sauces, flouring fish fillets or meat, or for making gravy. You can buy GF bread crumbs although I personally prefer to grind up left over GF bread and freeze the crumbs. You can buy rice flour in most supermarkets and health food stores these days. Chinese grocery stores sell it too. Supermarkets have a GF area where you can find crackers, hamburger buns and a decent variety of foods to help create your meal.

Some on line resources you can check out while planning a GF meal include: http://glutenfreeresourcedirectory.com/uid/4df6c6a2-2750-4966-a17d-540b30b115c5 Also, http://celiaccentral.wordpress.com/ or: http://www.celiac.com/. There are lots of sites with GF recipes; even food.com and foodnetwork.com have gluten free recipes you can chose from.

For desserts you can always serve fresh fruit, puddings, ice cream (no cookies with cream or cookie dough ice cream!), sorbet or ices. If you want to bake a dessert there are lots of great GF recipes out there; cookies and cakes translate well to GF, sometimes tasting even better than their wheat counterparts. I put up a pie recipe a few weeks ago; the crust and crumb portions from that recipe will make a great fruit pie; just use tapioca, cornstarch or white rice flour for thickening the fruit filling of your choice. The grocery stores GF section carries cake mixes and cookie mixes so you can make a quick and tasty dessert. There are lots of recipes for flourless chocolate cake which is a chocoholics dream! And you can get GF graham crackers to make a cheese cake crust that is safe for us celiacs. Use the above mentioned flour alternatives if any wheat flour is in your cheesecake recipe as a thickener. I just got some ice cream cones that are GF. Great snack choice if your company includes little kids. There are many tasty GF dessert choices for a minimum of effort.

Honestly, you can easily make a lovely tasting meal that will be safe for your celiac friend(s). It just takes some planning and extra care in the kitchen. Step one is planning a tasty GF meal, two is purchasing GF ingredients, three is making sure the utensils and surfaces are really cleaned up well so no wheat clings anywhere, four is cooking your meal components safely in a wheat free environment and step five is relaxing with friends enjoying the delicious GF meal you lovingly prepared for your company. So, don’t hesitate when you find out someone you love is now GF. You can make a great meal without totally stressing out about how to make your food all GF. It’s as easy as one, two, three, four, five!

Originally posted in July 2013.

Chocolate Almond Cloud Pie…Oh My!

chocolate puddingSo I had this chocolate cookie crumb pie crust I bought a couple of months ago. I wanted to use it before it got stale. What to make…. Well, I have a fantastic cookbook, all pies, nothing else. By Farm Journal, published in 1981 but it has the vibe of the 1950’s. Lots of interesting combo fruit pies and chiffon pies like you never heard of. I found this recipe for a chocolate rum pie. The premade cookie crust could sub in for a traditional pie crust which the recipe called for. I had all the ingredients except the cream. And the rum flavoring…and the pudding mix and some whole milk….but I thought it sounded tasty and worth a trip to the grocery store for all the other items.

It was! Not hard to make either. I threw it together in three easy steps. It was one of those recipes where the sum of the ingredients is far tastier than the components would lead one to believe. Everyone devoured their slice. People took slices home. My mom was eager to keep a second slice….for tomorrow. This enthusiastic audience caused me to mention it on facebook. I got all these likes and a few hungry comments. The buzz of happy responses led me to decide to share my version of chocolate rum pie. I have renamed it Chocolate Almond Cloud Pie.

The name comes from the fact that it is as light as a fluffy cloud and from my love for my older sister who died nearly a year ago. Margie’s love of pie was renown in our family and I am absolutely sure she would have adored this pie. Whip some up this weekend and woo your family with chocolaty goodness that should please everyone.

Chocolate Almond Cloud Pie

Ingredients
1 pre-made chocolate cookie crumb crust, GF
1 pkg chocolate pudding, the kind you have to cook
2 cups whole milk
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp cocoa
1 cup slivered almonds, divided
1 1/3 cup heavy cream, divided
1 tbsp dark rum
4 tsp. sugar

Pour the almonds into a frying pan, no oil and toast them, stirring constantly. Alternately you could do this in the oven at a low temperature but I prefer the frying pan. Stop when they are medium brown, try not to let too many get black on the sides.

Cook the filling; put 2 cups whole milk into a medium sized and heavy sauce pan, Then add the dry pudding mix, the corn starch and the cocoa. Stir with a whisk as it heats. Once the mixture is bubbling all over the surface turn off the heat and add the rum. Pour into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and chill until cooled. Take ½ cup heavy cream and whip. Add this to the pudding and whisk until blended. Take 3 tbsp of almonds and set aside for garnishing the pie later. Sprinkle the rest of the toasted almonds over the chocolate pie crust Gently spoon it into the pie shell on top of the toasted almonds. Chill at least 2 hours until set and cold. Whip the rest of the heavy cream in a chilled bowl, adding the sugar near the end of the whipping. Gently put dollops of it all over the pudding top. Sprinkle the reserved almonds on top. Enjoy!