Lentil soup II

Yes, you guessed it, we like lentils in this family. It is a good source of fibers and non-animal protein. And they are quite cheap too, which helps when you are trying to live GF on a budget. This soup is just perfect for the winter time or any chilly day during the year. This makes 2 Portion

1 cup of Lentils (any colour, see note if you are using red ones)
2 cups water
1 tsp vegetable bullion powder (GF)
1 tbs oil
1 tomato, diced
1 small onion, chopped
4 stalks celery – chopped, (you can use the leaves, I am not a big fan of them, so I don't)
1 tsp curry powder
6 cloves garlic, minced
Salt and Pepper

Bring lentils and water to boil. Let it simmer.
In the meantime, fry onion in oil until glassy, add celery. Add vegetables after about 10 minutes. Cover and let simmer for about 45 minutes or until lentils are cooked through. Check every 15 minutes to stir, add water as needed.
Add bullion powder, curry and garlic during the last 15 minutes.

When the lentils are cooked through season with salt and pepper.

Note: When using red lentils cooking time is considerably reduced. You should add all ingredients when the water has boiled.

You should never add salt to uncooked lentils (except red) and beans as it prevents the lentils/beans from cooking. Alway add right at the end.

Teff Pie Crust (sweet)

When I first came to Israel on my first round here, I was taken to an Ethopian restaurant. It was something totally new here and my friends thought it would be a blast. Although my friends were making more fun of the food (very childish, but then it is 15 years ago) but I really enjoyed the food and the whole experience. What stayed with me was the taste of the bread we were served - it had a very distinct flavour that I just couldn't place.

Flash foreward - turning gluten free has enhanced our lifes by exposing my family to many different flavours. My mother-in-law was very kind to send me this new type of flour, called Teff (or Tef), that comes from Ethopia and is GF. It has a sort of grey-brown color and a smell I really cannot place. Since I had no idea what to do with it I just looked online and found a few interesting ideas of what to do with it. I made a pie crust with an apple filling and teff crumbs on top. And what do you know it, the flavour was that of the bread I ate so many years ago. My kids really liked it, I thought it was nice, but I just need to get used to the Teff flavour, which really is unique. My hubby liked it too, but had more problems with the dominant Teff flavour. But it is a great alternative when turning GF. 

So, here the Teff Pie Crust recipe

2 cups Teff

1/2 cup Honey

1/2 cup oil

1 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 175°C. Mix all ingredients together and fill into a pie form. Press down with your fingers and pull up slightly on the edges. Bake for about 10-15 min (depending on how thick you made the base). Fill in your filling and bake for another 10-15 min.

Tip: To make a crumble, reserve 1/2 -2/3 cup of the dough. After you filled the crust, crumble the reserved dough over the filling and continue as above. 

PS: Teff is supposed to be super healthy. It has a great balance of amino acids, it packs a punch of protein, calcium, iron and, unlike any other grain, Vitamin C! 

GF American Style Pancakes I

This morning I got really fed up of thinking about what to serve for breakfast. Since going GF the mornings have become VERY boaring. I am not a person who likes to eat the same thing over and over again. So I deceided to try out a GF pancake recipe that I had discovered in a book (201 Gluten-Free Recipes for Kid By C. S. Forbes). Obviously I had to play around with it - anyone who knows me knows that I NEVER stick to a recipe. First I didn't have all the ingredients on hand, and secondly, I wanted them sweeter... and this was the first time I used any of the GF flours available. My family LOVED them, I thought they had a bit of a floury taste, but were definately a nice change. 

1 cup sorghum flour

3⁄4 cup GF baking mix (in this country it is pure fine, white cornflour starch)

2 1⁄2 tsp baking powder

1 tbs sugar

Pinch of  salt

1⁄4 tsp xanthan gum (although optional, it helps thicken the batter)

2 tsp GF vanilla extract

1 cup milk or milk substitutes. I used rice milk

1 large egg

2 tablespoons canola oil

Oil for frying

Whisk together all ingredients until you have a thickened batter.

Heat some oil for frying in a frying pan, drop in a heaped tablespoon of batter in a skillet and spread it slightly (I used a large frying pan and was able to fry 4 pancakes in one go) Cook until bubbles form on the top and pop and the edges are slightly dry. Flip with a spatula and cook the opposite side for 1–2 minutes. 

Serve them hot with any sweet toping of your choice (my kids liked them sprinkeled with sugar). I got 13 pancakes out of the batter.

Egg Salad with Tahini

One advantage of studying with so many different people is that you get different ideas – also when it comes to cooking. This egg salad has a twist as it uses tahini instead of mayo.

Prep Time: 10 mins         Servings: 4

 

6 hard-boiled eggs, mashed

4 tablespoons tahini paste (raw – in Israel it is called “golmi”)

4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

4 garlic cloves, crushed

2 tablespoons water

1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon paprika

Cumin, to taste (optional)

salt and pepper, to taste

 

1. Place tahini the tahini, lemon juice, water, garlic and cumin in a blender and blend for a few moments. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add the parsley and pulse again. What you get is called “green tahini”.

2. Transfer to a bowl and add the eggs. Stir gently until well mixed.

3. Sprinkle with paprika before serving.

Baked egg-in.a-hole

While trying to get the hang of the GF life I am going through some of my recipe books to figure out what I can still use - let me tell you, a lot of it is just not relevant. Sigh. Well, one of the recipes I found was an old Weight Watcher recipe that I think can be vey easily adapted. It is a spin on the "Egg in the hole" recipe. It is really easy to put together and because it sits in the oven for quite some time you can pop it in the oven before you get the kids ready. By the time they will want their breakfast it is already ready.

Per person you will need:

1 gluten free bread roll
1 egg
1 tsp chopped chives
1 tsp heavy cream
1 tsp parmesan cheese
salt and pepper

Slice off the top of the dinner roll (reserve the top) and carefully remove some of the inside of the bread until there is a hole large enough for one egg. Put the roll on a prepared baking sheet. Crack an egg into the whole of the roll. Top the egg with the chives, cream and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with Parmesan. Bake in a 175°C oven until the egg is set and the bread is toasted - about 20 min.Place bread top on baking sheet and bake until golden brown, another 5 min. Let sit 5 minutes. Place tops on rolls and serve warm.

VERY easy tomato salad

If you have been following my blog, you have realized that this is not just about GF and kosher, but that most of the recipes are frugal. We, like most people I know, are living on a budget. I also hate to throw away any food that is still good to be used. So, here is another tomato salad that is so simple to make that really, you have to try hard to srew this one up, and very versatile. It uses very basic ingredients you get in any shop (nothing needs to be special GF, except you have to be careful with the vinegar) and is a very tasty way to use up those left over tomatoes. It goes well with grilled meat or as a starter.

2 Tomatoes (per person)
Balsamic vinegar to taste (any other vinegar works too - I personally like the milder white Balsamic vinegar)
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
some spring onions or chives (optional)

Cut tomatoes into slices about 1/2 cm thick. Spread slices out in a neat circle around the edge of a bowl, with a few in the middle. Sprinkle some olive oil onto the tomatoes; making sure that it covers all of them, then sprinkle the vinegar on top (easy on the vinegar). Season with salt and peppers. Slice up some green onions or chives into small pieces, and sprinkle them over the tomatoes. You can serve it straight away, but you can also refrigerate it. It is nice if served slightly chilled.

You could also mix the olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper in a bowl (best with a small whisk) until combined and then pour this over the tomatoes.

Variations: 
Add some mozzarella cheese and basil, but leave out the spring onions/chives
Or exchange the spring onions/chives for onions (half the onion then slice it thinly into half circles) and avocado.

My first week

Ok, one week of going totally gluten free is over. I feel really great, have lost quite a bit of weight without even trying and am starting to get to grips with this life style.

But of course, after checking EVERYTHING for one week and finding gluten in all kinds of wonderfull places (like salad dressing - what?!?) I had a glitch today. I got my daughter early from kindergarten and decided to buy us an icecream as it was brutally hot. She wanted a chocolate one (and after quite a bit of debate we went for it). Since that's preatty much the only prepacked ice cream on-a-stick that I eat I took one for me too. - without checking the label. I remembered on the last bite that this ice cream cannot be GF... well, I won't die because of it but I learned a very valuable lesson: don't forget to check.

Basic Vinaigrette with variations

One thing that is a staple in this home are salads. My daugther, quite a picky eater, only started eating salads when I started using bottled salad dressings. Since going GF, bottled versions have become somewhat of a problem as some contain gluten (I still have not figured out why). 

If there is one thing that I want in my food is variations. I don’t like tasting the same  food over and over again. One way that I spice up a simple salad is real quick and simple: salad dressings. Below you have the recipe for a very basic vinaigrette, followed by a few variations.

There are different ways of making dressing, which will also influence the texture. One way is by adding everything into a glass container (e.g. an old jam glass), close the lid and shake vigorously for a few seconds. It will seperate when you let it stand for a while. 

On the other hand, if you whisk it, either manually or in a mixer, you will get a really smooth, velvety dressing – more like what you get in restaurants -  which is what I prefer.

Both versions work fine. I usually make up quite a bit at a time and then use it during the week.

A very simple way of making variations is using herbs. Dried herbs have a more intense flavor but need extra time to rehydrate and release their flavorings and should be prepared about 2 hours in advance.  If you don’t have fresh herbs, which are always preferred, you need to substitute it with about ¼ of the original quantity with dried herbs – that means if a recipe calls for 4 tsp fresh chopped herbs, you need only 1 tsp dried herbs.

You can add just about anything. You can also play around slightly with the vinegar-oil ratio, however, the basic ratio is 1 part vinegar to 3 parts oil.

Basic vinaigrette

1/2 cup wine vinegar (red, white, balsamic - cider works fine too)

1 1/2 cups extra virgin olive oil

1 1/2 to 2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper

Mustard Honey vinaigrette:

Add 1 tsp French Dijon and 1 tbs honey.
You can change the honey to Silan (date honey), or agave to change the taste.

Herbed vinaigrette:

Add 1/4 cup chopped parsley, 1 tbsp. fresh minced basil, and 1 tsp. marjoram, chives to the Mustard Honey vinaigrette.

Herbed Italian vinaigrette:

Add 1/4 cup chopped parsley, 5 cloves minced garlic, 2 tbsp. fresh minced basil, 1 tsp. fresh minced oregano (optional), 1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes.

Piquant Dressing:

Add 1 chopped hard cooked egg, 1 tsp. mustard, 1 tbsp. finely chopped onion (green works great), 1 tsp. paprika.

Avocado Dressing:

Add 1 cup pureed avocado and blend until smooth. Add a little bit of lemon juice (stops it from going brown/grey).

Sour Cream or Buttermilk Dressing:

Add 1 cup sour cream or buttermilk to basic dressing and blend until smooth. Add herbs as desired.

Flourless Chocolate Cake I

I made this cake last week on my hubbies b-day. This cake is SUPPER rich and really needs ice cream to take away that sweet, heavy edge. 

 1/2 cup water

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup white sugar

500gr bittersweet chocolate

100 gr unsalted butter (it's a stick in the US), cut into pices

6 eggs

1.  Preheat oven to 175 ° C. Grease one 28cm round cake pan and set aside. Wrap it in aluminium foil to prevent any leakage. 
2. In the top half of a double boiler (or simply a bowl set on a pot with boiling water) melt the bittersweet chocolate. 
3. Meanwhile,  combine the water, salt and sugar in a small saucepan and heat up over medium heat . Stir until completely dissolved and set aside.
4. When the chocolate has melted, pour it into the bowl of an electric mixer. Start mixing it, adding butter (one pice at a time) and the sugar-water. Slowly beat in the eggs, one at a time.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake cake at 75°C for about 40 to 45 min. The center should still be slightly wet. Chill the cake overnight (in the pan). The cake is really better the next day. 

Tips:

Bake in small ramekins for 15-25 min. 

Versatile Avocado Tomato Salad

This quick to make salad goes great with grilled chicken, steak or even grilled fish. It is also nice as a sort of salsa when you crave some Mexican food.

2 large tomatoes; seeded and chopped in large chunks

2 large Avocados; cut in large chunks

1  Red onion; cut in very fine strips

1/2 tablespoon jalapeno pepper; finely chopped - adjust to how hot you like it

juice of half a Lime (approx. 1 – 2 Tbs)

2-3 branches of fresh cilantro, chopped finely

Salt and Pepper to taste

Cut the avocadoes and tomatoes so they are approximately the same size. Combine all ingredients and serve straight away.

Important: De-seed the tomatoes or you will have way too much juice. Adjust lime juice so there's not too much liquid.

Tip: Try it with diced red or yellow pepper, green onions and a sprinkling of chili powder and cumin.
You could also add diced mozzarella for an Italian twist, but then leave out the jalapenos and add some basile. This would be a nice side dish to a GF suitable lasagne or pasta dish. You shouldn't add cumin and chili for the Italian version.

Grilled Pinapple Chicken

I personally don't care much for eating my chicken the same way day in day out. I love trying out new marinades and have started even mixing fruits with my chicken (I grew up in a home where fruits and meats are kept appart).

This recipe is quick and easy and goes really well with rice or mashed potatoes. Serve it with a side salad that is not too overpowering and you have a quick and healthy dinner.

Serves 4 people

1/2  cup  cider or white wine vinegar (GF)
2  tbsp  oil
1/2 tsp crushed garlic cloves

1/2  tsp  ground cinnamon (you can increase it to up to 1 tsp if you like a very cinnamony taste)
1/2  tsp  chili powder
750gr boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2  cup  barbecue sauce (GF)
600 gr  pineapple, from a tin, cut into 1-inch-thick wedges
1/4  tsp  salt

For the marinade, combine vinegar, oil, garlic, salt, 1/4 tsp cinnamon and the chili powder. Cut chicken lengthwise into 1 to 2 cm thick strips. In an airtight container (or freezer bag), toss together chicken and marinade. Cover and marinate in the refrigerator 30 min. Alternatively you could freeze it and use it later.

For the sauce, stir together barbecue sauce and remaining 1/2 tsp cinnamon; set aside.

Heat a pan to medium-high heat. Remove chicken from marinade (discard marinade!!). Fry the chicken for about 4 minutes and then add the pineapple. Continue cooking for another 4 minutes - until the chicken is cooked through.

Serve with cinnamon-barbecue sauce. 

Tip:  If you chose to freeze the chicken with the marinade, defrost it and then continue as normal once you are ready to put this meal together. 

Indian Red Beef curry

I love Indian food, totally dig it. But going to an Indian restaurant is not something that I like too much. First, what we get in this country is not really that good. And if I eat abroad I have to stick to vegetarian dishes.

This very simple dish only requires the most basic ingredients and is quick to make.

Serve it over Basmati rice for a very filling dinner

Serves 4

1.5 tsp oil (or 1 Tbs veg. Gee)

1/2 Tbs red pepper

1/2 tsp curry

1 tsp paprika

1 garlic clove

1 cardamon pot, slightly broken, but so that you can fish it out later

1/2 tsp each of cinnamon and pepper

500gr beef stew meat

1 can coconut milk

Heat the oil in a heavy based pan on medium high heat.

Add the spices and fry them slightly until fragrant (make sure not to burn it).

Add the meat and brown it for a few minutes. Then add the garlic and fry it for a few seconds.

Pour in the coconut milk. Put a lid on the pan. Reduce the heat to very low and simmer until done (this takes about 2-3 hours, add water if needs be).

If you serve it with rice and a light side salad this is a hearty meal for four.

4 ingredients Pinapple Chicken

This must be the simplest pineapple chicken recipe in the world. It is really yummy and quick to prepare.

6-8 Chicken thighs
1 large can Pineapples (in light syrup or natural juice), cut up into chunks - Reserve liquid
4 Tbs Ketchup
1 Tbs chicken soup granulates (GF)

Put the chicken into an oven-proof dish. Place the pineapple chunks around it.

In a small bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients and mix. Pour over chicken.

Put the chicken in the oven and turn it on to 180C. Cook for about 45 minutes or until done (juices run clear when the chicken is pierced).

Serve with salad for a light summer meal.

Tuna Mini Muffins

This recipe is always a hit. I usualy make a double batch as they are gone as soon as I put them on the table.
I once didn't have eggs for the double batch, so I used 5 eggs plus one egg yolk (left over from tsomething else I made that day) and they came out perfect.

1 can Tuna in brine - drained
50 gr. Tomatoe paste
60gr creme fraiche
4 eggs
90 gr cheese (any type)
Salt and Pepper according to taste
Fresh Parsley (about half a handful)
1 small onion

Heat the oven to 175°C
Put everything in a mixer. Put on high and mix until everything is liquid and no chunks are left. Pour into 20 prepared mini-muffin tins (I use flexible ones so I don't have to prepare them), fill them about 3/4.
Put into oven for 20 minutes or an inserted tooth pick comes out just about clean. Take out of the oven and let them sit in the tin for about 5-10 minutes before turning them out. Let them cool completely.

These are great on a buffet or served with a salad as a light meal.

TIP: These really have to be eaten cold, they are NOT nice when they are hot.

Home-made salsa

Home made salsa is not just cheaper, tastier and healthier than any store bought brand, but you can make it out of those tomatoes that would otherwise fill up the trash can and not your stomach.

1 medium sized onion
5 tomatoes
1 tsp chopped jalapenos peppers (out of a jar) - optional
olive oil - optional
salt

Peal and quarter the onion. Put into a blender and, using the pulse button, process until finely chopped. Add the tomatoes (halved or quartered) and again using the pulse mode process until you get the required consistency (I like it chunky). Add olive oil, if desired, and season with salt to taste.

If you like it spicy you can add the jalapenos - for me it depends if the kids are eating too or not... This makes a great base for a pasta sauce the next day.

Beef and rice noodle soup

Here is a soup I could adapt quite easily to GF cooking. The original called for egg noodles, so the change really isn't dramatic.

200gr lean Beef, cut into thin slices
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped
3 tbs soy sauce (GF)
1 tsp sesame oíl
3 cups water or bouillon (GF)
200 gr chinese rice noodles
1/2 can baby sweet corn - cut into 3 pieces
1/2 leek, shredded - choose a small one, they are not as overpowering in their flavour
100gr broccoli flowers
pinch of chili powder
peper and salt to taste

Mix garlic, onion, soy sauce, sesame oil into a bowl and add beef, mix well and marinade for about 30 minutes.
Bring water/boullion to boil in a large pan. Add beef with marinade and vegetables and cook for about 15 minutes, or until beef is tender. Just towards the end, break the noodles into reletively small parts and add them together with the spices and cook until beef, vegetables and noodles are all cooked through.

Serve imediately.

TIP: If you would like to freeze the soup, prepare the soup as above, ommiting the noodles. Freeze. When you want to serve, defrost and when you heat the soup up add the noodles towards the end.

Lentil soup

This is something I used to make quite a bit. Rediscovered it as it is quick to make and GF. I also don't like a lot of salt and my kids don't dig a lot of pepper. You can add sausages (GF) at the end of the cooking and just heat them through.

Makes: 4 servings

1 cup dry green lentils - picked through and washed
2 tbs olive oil
3 medium onions, chopped finaly
2 garlic teeth, crushed
2 carrots, grated
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp peper
2 tbs red wine vinegar
6 cups water or broth (GF)

Soak lentils for about 10 minutes in water. Drain well.
Heat the oil in a pot, add onions and fry until glassy-golden. Add garlic, carrots and cumin powder and fry for another minute. Add lentils. Fry for about half a minute and add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to boil, reduce heat and cook for about 30 minutes or until lentils are cooked through.

Enjoy

Quick and easy tomato salad

I had some tomatoes that needed to be used up. I made this quick tomato salad that goes really well to grilled meat. This turned out soooo yummi that I just couldn't stop eating it...

Makes 4 servings

1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons cider vinegar (or any other mild GF vinegar)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (make sure it's GF)
1 pack cherry tomatoes, halved (I used mini plum, but anything goes, even the more "exotic" versions) 
1/2 medium sized onion, very finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
salt and pepper

Mix the first three ingredients together until they are well blended. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Season to taste and chill until serving.

Note: Make sure the ingredients are GF. I was surprised to find out that items like vinegar and mustard can contain gluten. 

Refreshing Cucumber salad

Last week I bought too many cucumbers - I bought cucumbers twice - and needed to use them up (I am not someone to waste food lightheartedly). Well, I made this refreshing cucumber salad which is really easy to make and has a nice delicate flavor to it.

Makes 6- 8 servings

4 medium garden cucumbers, thinly sliced (or 1 large ("big") cucumber) 
2/3 cup cider vinegar (or any other mild GF vinegar)
2/3 cup water
4 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 pinches of pepper
2 tablespoons minced dill weed

 Place the cucumbers in the bowl. Add vinegar, water, sugar, salt and pepper and mix. 

Cover and refrigerate, mixing through once in a while, for a minimum of 3 hours.

Drain,add the dill weed. Mix and re-season with sugar, salt and pepper. 

Chicken with cashew nuts

This recipe was inspired by... well... really my pantry. When I first made it I wanted to make something sort of chinese inspired which uses chicken and cashew nuts.I came up with this really quick and healthy dish that you can make while the rice is cooking. This made enough for 4 adults.

You can serve it with rice or rice noodles.

1 whole chicken breast - skinned, deboned and cut into cubes
1 large onion - diced
3-4 garlic teeth - sliced
1 tsp minced ingwer
3 handfull cashew nuts - I buy it loose and shook it out of the bag, so this is an aproximation. You can use less
3-4 handfull frozen green beans - again, just shook it out of a bag and eyeballed it
1 tbs oil
3 tbs soy sauce (gluten free)
1 tbs gluten free vinegar
1-2 tbs honey or agave (when I first made it I used mirin, but I am not sure if that is gluten free)
1 tsp potato starch
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Fry the onions and ingwer, stirring constantly, until the onion is golden. Add the garlic and fry for about 30 seconds (be carefull not to burn the garlic as it turnes bitter)

Add the cashew nuts and fry for about 1 or 2 minutes. Add the chicken and fry for about 5 minutes, making sure all are cooked from all sides. Add the green beans and fry for another few minutes, stirring frequently.

Meanwhile; mix the soya sauce, vinegar, honey/agave and starch together. Once the chicken and green beans are cooked through add this mixture and mix well. Season to taste with salt, pepper and soy sauce.

Serve on a bed of rice

Tip: Dry fry the nuts first before adding them to the dish. They will be way more aromatic. You can also chop them up a bit so that you don't have to go crazy with the amount as I went.

My first steps and my first taste of different types of pasta

Hi,

well, we finally decided to go gluten-free at home. I am very overwhelmed by all the information out there, what is allowed, what isn't etc. We had our first gluten free pasta (well, we had some a while ago). What can I say, the corn and rice based ones we get in this country are just ... suboptimal would be a very nice discription. I guess I just have to get used to them.

HOWEVER, yesterday I made pasta out of mung beens. They were totally delicious!!!! But so expensive! I thought I was buying the whole shop and not just a bag of pasta. On the bright side, my kid loved it (very picky eater). However, if that is going to be our usual pasta I will not be making the normal "pasta and tomatoe sauce" anymore. I'll stretch it either by making bolognese or any other vegetable based sauce to reduce the amount of pasta we need to eat.

Will be posting a recipe soon

Regards
V.