gluten free cooking

Coconut Chicken and Rice

This yummy recipe is great for hot summer days as it is made in an Instant Pot. It doesn’t warm up the kitchen and allows me to do other things while my IP works hard to make a great dish that is quick, delicious and healthy. It is from my favorite Instant Pot cookbook The Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cookbook by Laurel Randolph. There are many excellent recipes in this book and most of them can be gluten free; either naturally or with a little tweeting of the ingredients. I highly recommend it for great recipes and it is well designed for easy use.

My notes: I do not like cilantro so I just sprinkled some parsley in the pot and it was fine. It has a lot of curry powder but I found it to be well balanced and not too spicy; if you really want to, cut it back by a third. I used frozen ginger as it keeps so well and chops/grates easily. Don’t forget the lime to squeeze over the plate; really adds a fresh note.

Yummy Coconut Chicken and Rice

Ingredients

1 Tbsp. EVOL

1 large onion sliced vertically into 1/4 inch strips

a 1 inch length of ginger, peeled and sliced into fine sticks

2-3 garlic cloves minced

1 Tbsp curry powder

1 tsp. ground tumeric

kosher salt

ground black pepper

1 14 oz can light coconut milk

4 chicken thighs; bone in, skin on

1/2 cup water

1 1/3 cup jasmine rice

1-2 Tsp. parsley or cilantro leaves, chopped fine.

1- 1 1/2 tsp. sugar

1 lime cut in wedges

Directions: set IP on sauté, add EVOL. When hot add the sliced onions, stir for a minute, add the ginger, cook 2 minutes, add garlic, cook 30 seconds and add the two spices, stir well. Add the chicken thighs, turn over to coat with spices. Add salt and pepper to taste; I did 1/2 tsp. salt and just a few turns of pepper. Add the water and coconut milk, stir around, put the lid on and set for 13 minutes. When timer goes off, set to quick vent. Remove chicken to a plate and add the rice, parsley and sugar, stir. Close lid and set to 4 minutes. When done hit cancel and let stand 10 minutes, then vent and open. I served mine in a wide shallow bowl; removed the skin and squeezed lime juice over it all. Enjoy!

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumb Pie

Strawberry season is here and rhubarb is plentiful right now so let’s make a pie with these spring fruits. This is a crowd favorite and you will certainly get a few compliments if you make it for your family.

This is an easy pie to construct and you can store any leftover crumb mixture in a sealed container in the fridge; it keeps a few weeks.  The GF crust will work for any pie and the GF crumb topping is perfect for any crumb pie.  If you prefer a solid crust just double the crust part and top your pie with it.  Be sure to cut some slits for steam escape!

Please make every effort to use local strawberries; can get at most farm stands.  This pie really showcases the strawberries more than the rhubarb which is a silent partner so that is why I suggest you get the best; locally grown sweet ripe strawberries to make your perfect pie. If you don’t get local, at least get organic berries. They are much healthier for you and probably more flavorful.

Bake and enjoy an early summer pie in just a few minutes of work.  Don’t eat it hot; it should be cooled to room temperature or even chilled. I eat it both ways and love it either way.  I am sure you could top this with vanilla ice cream for even more yumminess.

Angie’s GF Strawberry Rhubarb Crumb Pie

Crust:

1 c plus 2 tbsp brown rice flour mix (at bottom of recipe)

2 tbsp sweet rice flour

1 Tbsp. granulated sugar

½ tsp xanthan gum

¼ tsp salt

6 Tbsp. cold butter cut into 6 chunks

1 lg. egg

2 tsp fresh orange or lemon juice

Spray 9 inch metal pie pan with cooking spray, dust with white rice flour.

Mix dry ingredients in bowl of stand electric mixer.  Add butter and mix until crumbly and resembles coarse meal.  Add egg and citrus juice.  Mix until it comes together into big chunks.  Shape into a ball with your hands. Put it on a crust sized piece of wax paper (14 x 14 inches more or less), flatten the crust ball some; put on top of it another piece of wax paper and chill it all in your fridge 15-20 minutes while you chop the rhubarb into ½ inch chunks and hull/slice the strawberries.

Filling:

2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and cut in thick slices

2-3 cups cut up fresh rhubarb – place in medium bowl

Mix with

½ to 2/3  cup sugar ( I used ½ cup but you might like it sweeter.)

1/3 c gluten free flour mix (see below recipe or Better Batter flour works great.)

I sometimes add a tsp. of orange zest to the filling; a great pairing with these fruits.

Crust: Roll out pie crust in a pie bag or between the two sheets of wax paper; try to get the thickness even, no thick middle! Peel off one side of paper and place in pie pan, centered.  Remove other slice of wax paper.  Crimp edges all around.  Fill with dry strawberry – rhubarb mixture

Crumb topping

Put all four ingredients in the same mixing bowl you made the bottom crust in and mix well with mixer paddle until crumbs form.

¾ c brown rice flour mix

½ c sugar

½ tsp xanthan gum

1/3 c cold butter cut into six chunks

Continued directions: Sprinkle the top of the pie with crumb mix; use as much as you like.  I like about ½ to 2/3 of the mixture.  Up to your personal taste… It sinks partially into the fruit mixture and adds lots of sweetness and eye appeal.

Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 40-50 minutes until bubbly and the crust is light brown.  I have a bottom heat oven so my crust gets nice and brown.  If that is an issue for you, bake the empty bottom crust ten minutes before filling so it gets a head start.

Cool at least 2 to 4 hours before serving at room temperature.

Brown Rice Flour Mix (Same as King Arthur Basic GF Blend) {Not Measure for Measure]
2 c brown rice flour

2/3 c potato starch

1/3 c tapioca flour

This post was originally shared in July 2015.  Slight changes to the text were made but the recipe is pretty much the same.

Un-stuffed Cabbage ‘n Beef Stew in my IP

Stuffed cabbage rolls are definitely a Pennsylvania treat. But making this recipe can be time consuming and complex; you have to cook the whole cabbage leaves and separately cook the filling and roll up it inside the half cooked leaves, sauce it and bake it. This is just way, way easier and pretty much better in my opinion. Less work, less heat in my kitchen (I did it in my Instant Pot but you could use a slow cooker or bake in the oven.) It isn’t a pretty dish to photograph and I frankly forgot to take pictures of making it. I debated even sharing it due to this but the flavor is so delish I knew I was gonna make it again so I wanted you to have the option to give it a try.

cabbages

Here is my entire cabbage crop. These fat leaves will make a great batch of this casserole.

This recipe is very homey; great in these trying times. I used some outside cabbage leaves but any fresh cabbage will do.  I used ground chuck but lots of people swear by ground pork or even ground turkey. The amount of spices is variable and you can use any sort of tomato product you wish to get that wonderful tomato flavor in there. I added some smoked paprika and a few raisins to make it like my old recipe. Sometimes I add a tablespoon of red wine vinegar to zip it up a bit. Fiddle with the ingredients as you wish. It will still be a comfort meal your family will appreciate. Makes about 6 servings.

cabbage n rice casserolle

Told you my photo was lousy! Trust me it tastes better than it looks. And it looked better the first time we had it.

Angie’s Unstuffed Cabbage Casserole

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef

3 big garlic cloves, minced

1 med-large onion diced

2 bay leaves

About 4-5 cups of cabbage cut into 1-2 inch squares/chunks

1 can (13.5 oz) diced tomatoes in juice

8 oz can plain tomato sauce (can leave out and use another cup of broth)

2 to 3 cups beef or chicken broth (Do 3 cups if you want it soupier)

2  tsp paprika

½ tsp. smoked paprika

1/4 tsp. oregano

A Tbsp brown sugar (optional…some folks love, some hate this) or 2 tsp. regular white sugar

2/3 cup long grain white or parboiled brown rice (package will say cook time is 20 minutes), uncooked

1.5 tsp kosher salt

¼ tsp ground pepper

1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce

1 Tbsp. tomato paste

¼ cup raisins (optional)

Directions: In instant pot or big pan brown ground beef: I sprayed it with cooking spray before starting. Or use a tsp or two of mild olive oil. While it browns chop the onions, the cabbage, open the can of tomatoes and get the spices out. After the beef is half browned add the onions, stir a couple minutes; add the garlic too.  Add the spices, bay leaves and stir. Add the tomatoes, broth, tomato sauce and paste, vinegar, Worstershire sauce and cabbage, stir, then add the sugar, rice and salt/pepper. Stir well so nothing is stuck to the bottom. Cook in IP under pressure for 9 minutes. Let rest 10 min before depressurizing and adding optional raisins. Correct seasoning; add more salt and pepper as desired and serve. You can bake it in oven for 45 minutes. Slow cooker for maybe 6 hours? I don’t use that function often but I am sure it would work fine for this recipe.

Enjoy!

Originally published in 2020. This is an updated version with a number of ingredient additions and less cooking time.

Eight Bean Storm Soup

Snowstorm today, time for a hearty stew.  This is my favorite multi-bean soup with Italian sausage.  I started with a 1.3 lb bag of 4 bean mix and added two kinds of lentil and a bit of a few others.  The thing is, if you have celiac most 15 bean mixtures for soups contain barley which has gluten, a major no no. You need to carefully read the label. In the past I found a four bean mix out at Echo Hill country store in Berks County and added some French lentils; maybe ¼ a cup and some red lentils; another ¼ cup plus a ¼ cup of dried garbanzo beans and a sprinkling of dried limas.  You can use what ever blend you like but I like a good mix for a rich thick stew.   Update: Later on, I found a bag of 15 beans for soup and no barley!! Giant Store here in town. Great score for more bean soup.

Mine has Italian sausage but you can leave that out if you want a vegetarian version. I personally love sausage in a bean stew. Gives you lots of meaty flavor and a healthy dose of protein. I am guessing you could use other things like smoky ham chunks or maybe a ham hock? I haven’t found any gf ham hocks yet; they all seem to have a touch of gluten so I am kinda discouraged over that. Smoked turkey wings work pretty well instead of hamhocks.

I enjoyed a hot bowl of this potage with a slice of toasted multigrain gf bread.  It made a full meal without anything else being necessary.   A fresh crunchy salad would go well if you want to round your dining experience out with some greens!

Ten Bean Soup with Sausage

Soak 1- 1/2 pounds of dried beans in water to cover.  If you buy lentils separately; set them aside and added them after the soaking as they don’t need the same treatment the other beans need.  Either bring to a boil and let stand an hour or just let stand in the cold water overnight.  I did the quick version!  Drain them well and rinse before returning the swollen legumes to the rinsed pot.  Cover with fresh filtered water and add a bay leaf.  Cook 1 hour, pour in more water as needed and stir so it doesn’t stick or burn.  Then, add the lentils and cook another hour until the beans are nearly tender.  It is hard to say when beans get done, depends on a number of factors, taste often to check for tenderness. And stir that pot! As they approach that almost done spot start the rest of the dish.

Chop into dice:

3 sizable carrots

1 large onion

Mince: 2 big garlic cloves

Add the veggies, stir and cook 10 minutes. Stir occasionally. Add water if needed.  I like the soup thick but it can’t be solid so add water.

As that cooks start the sausage.  Sauté one lb Italian sausage: brown in a Teflon pan with a touch of olive oil until top and bottom are browned and sausage is mostly done. Let cool a bit and slice into rounds or chunks, set aside.

Add to the soup:

½ a 14 ounce can of spicy diced tomatoes

½ tsp. dried oregano

Sprinkle dried basil

1 bay leaf

¼ tsp smoked paprika

1 beef bullion cube

½ bunch of kale leaves cut into big shreds; I cut off the bigger stems as they can be tough. (optional but excellent)

1-2 tsp sea salt

Some fresh ground black pepper

Cook ten minutes, add more water if it gets too thick. Stir occasionally.  Taste and add more spice if you think the soup needs more. Add the sliced sausage and cook five minutes more.  Taste and add more salt/pepper as you see necessary.  Let stand 5-10 minutes before ladling out.  Now that is comfort food that is good for you too! Enjoy.

Alternate cooking method that I used the last time I made this soup.  Cook soaked beans in a separate pot until nearly tender. Meanwhile, sauté veggies for about 5 minutes in a big pot in about 2 tbsp. EVOL, add 6 sausage links; cook 8 to ten minutes; add canned tomatoes, then broth and all seasonings.  Cook 5 minutes, add the beans that are about done and cook 10 minutes, remove the sausage and let cook five minutes, slice into rounds and add back in, cook 5-15 more minutes until beans taste done.  Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Originally posted two years ago in January 2015. Minor revisions; recipe remains the same.

Mom’s Company Casserole

This is something my mom made occasionally. The name is a misnomer as it is very casual and certainly nothing fancy that I would reserve for company. I think of it as more of an easy and tasty casserole that everyone in your family can enjoy. I can’t think when I last made it; perhaps 4-7 years ago? Anyway, I had all the ingredients and had just come across the recipe and so I thought, “Why not?” So, I did and it was very tasty indeed. My mom put some melted butter on before the tomato and meat sauce; I forgot it and honestly don’t think it needs it but add 2 tbsp melted butter at that point if you wish.

I left out the green pepper; didn’t have it and didn’t even remember it in the flavor profile of the casserole. I used spiral pasta as wide gf noodles are impossible to easily find and I didn’t have time to make them. I am sure you could make this with some other ground meat; it would taste different but probably be yummy.

As I show below, I adjusted the amounts of the cheeses and sour cream due to what I had on hand and it was delicious. this flexibility is handy and you can play with the amounts as you need to. I feel that without the scallions it will be rather dull tasting but you could sub in some lightly sautéed chopped onions or scallions. Even sliced and cooked leek would work.

It should feed six hungry folks. I served mine with a green salad on the side. It was a filling meal for sure!.

Apologies for the mediocre pictures; I was in a hurry and didn’t much think about the blog so I barely took any.

Ingredients:

½ lb uncooked wide noodles or spiral shaped pasta

1 Tbsp. olive oil or butter

1 lb of ground beef

16 ounces of tomato sauce

1 beef or veggie bouillon cube

1 cup cottage cheese (I used more – 1 ¼ cup as I had less cream cheese)

4-8 oz cream cheese at room temp (I used 3 oz)

1/4-1/3 cup sour cream (I used heaping 1/3 cup)

1/3-2/3 cup sliced scallions; white and green

1-2 Tbsp. chopped green pepper (optional)

2 Tbsp. melted butter (optional)

Directions: Cook the noodles or pasta according to the directions; I did 2 minutes less that package as I was going to bake this for 45 min. Drain. While it cooks; heat the oil or butter in a large frying pan and brown the meat. Be sure to break up any clumps so it is evenly sized. If there is a lot of fat when you are done; drain most of it off. Then add the tomato sauce and the broken-up bouillon cube; stir to mix.

In a medium bowl blend the two cheeses and the sour cream. Then add the scallions and green pepper.

Heat oven to 375 degrees, middle shelf.  Spray a 2 qt casserole with cooking spray.  Pour in half the noodles. Top with the creamy cheese mixture. Then top with the rest of the cooked noodles.  If you want the butter sprinkle it on now. Top with the tomato meat sauce. You can refrigerate this for up to 48 hours at this point. Bake for 45-50 minutes.  Enjoy!