Tag: gluten free


Jan
2013

Ratatouille

categories: Recipes

SAM_2823

Ratatouille – a delicious french vegetable dish that is usually kind of like a stew.  I found a recipe from WendyinKK that was inspired by the more upscale version presented in the Disney film.  Beautifully sliced veggies layered in a casserole – this is so gorgeous and hearty.  It is time consuming though, so be prepared.

SAM_2817

Eggplant, bell pepper, roma tomatoes, yellow squash, zucchini.  You will probably want to bust out the mandolin slicer for this one, unless your knife skills are really good.

SAM_2819

Such beautiful slices!  You will need to saute the eggplant and squash slices to release their moisture and enhance their flavor. (more…)


Jan
2013

Quinoa with Butternut Squash and Broccolini

categories: Recipes

lunch 007

It’s time for another vegetarian lunch dish with Melissa from Smells Like Brownies!  Similar to our last lunch (post here) we went with quinoa and roasted butternut squash, but changed up the rest of the flavors.  This time we added in broccolini, cherry tomatoes, pine nuts, and a delicious avocado cream.

group

We started out by cooking the quinoa and roasting the squash, which should take about the same time.  We followed the directions and added the broccolini into the partially cooked quinoa to blanch, but it wasn’t really cooking, so we put the lid on to steam it which turned it brown.  Next time, I think I would blanch the broccolini in a separate pot from the quinoa. (more…)


Jan
2013

The Hunger Games Stew – Food ‘n Flix

categories: Recipes

HG

Holy Mockingjay, Batman – I am so excited about this post!  Food ‘n Flix and Cook the Books have teamed up to do a double post for The Hunger Games, with Heather from girlichef hosting!  Announcement post is here.

The Hunger Games is the first book of a trilogy about a dystopian alternate timeline where war has reduced America to 12 Districts ruled by a Capital.  As punishment for a rebellion, all 12 Districts must offer up 1 boy and 1 girl between the ages of 12 and 18 as a tribute to compete in the Hunger Games each year.  These children must then fight to the death in a televised spectacle with only 1 survivor.  To make things even worse, all of the Districts are purposefully kept in a state of starvation except for the District of the winner – which is given ample food for a year until the next Hunger Games (hence the name).  Food, therefore, is extremely important and a focus throughout the series.

SAM_3075

The protagonist, Katniss Everdeen, is an extremely tough teen who would do anything to protect her family and especially her little sister, Primrose.  When Prim is selected as Tribute (a death sentence for the timid 12 year-old), Katniss volunteers to take her place.  Before being entered into the death-match proper, the Tributes are primped and pampered and paraded around the Capital.  It is here that Katniss experiences luxury and an overabundance of food for the first time in her life.

Her favorite dish is a Lamb Stew with Dried Plums – it is mentioned frequently and even sent to her as a present when she is fighting for her life.  I decided that the stew would be the perfect dish to make for this post, served on some wild rice that seemed fitting for the setting.  I also served it with goat cheese rolled in herbs (inspired by the cheese that Primrose makes from her prized pet) and rustic seed bread (inspired by Peeta – Katniss’s love interest and fellow Tribute, whose family owns a bakery). (more…)


Jan
2013

More Figs!

categories: Recipes

SAM_2857

I’ve stated before how obsessed I am with figs.  I snatch them up whenever I see them at the store.  Jasper does not share my love of these little jewels, which means more for me!  Bwahahahaha!  …Okay I’m fine now, sorry about that.

SAM_2853

Mostly I like to eat my figs with cheese – this makes me ridiculously happy.  Coincidentally (or not), I also like to eat my cheese with fig jam.  Anyway, one of the most popular pairings for figs is blue cheese, so I wanted to play around with that a bit.

SAM_2854

I broiled the figs with blue cheese so that they were hot and melty, but I didn’t stop there…

SAM_2856

I topped them off with crispy prosciutto and honey.

SAM_2855

It’s okay if you drool a little, I understand.

SAM_2894

Going in a sweeter direction – I also made some balsamic glazed figs with mascarpone.

SAM_2893

Adapted from this recipe – I tossed the figs with a glaze made from balsamic vinegar, sugar, orange juice, and orange zest and broiled them.  Then I served them on top of mascarpone whipped with cream and sugar.

SAM_2892

The cream melting into the hot figs with the sweet and tangy glaze… yeah – this was pretty much heaven.


Dec
2012

Quinoa Mac and Cheese

categories: Recipes

The recipe calls this “mac and cheese”, but I feel like it is more of a “cheesy casserole”.  Either way, it is tasty and good for you – packed with protein rich quinoa and tasty veggies.  You can make it even healthier by using fat free milk and fat free cheese.  It is also totally customizable to your tastes!

Start by sauteing whatever veggies you want to use.  I went with leeks and tomatoes as suggested by the recipe, but you could do onions or shallots, bell peppers, corn, spinach, anything you want.

Add the quinoa and allow to toast a little bit to get extra flavor. (more…)


Nov
2012

Salt Roasted Beet Salad with Goat Cheese

categories: Recipes

I LOVE roasted beets – sweet and rich and beautiful, like healthy edible jewels! One of my favorite ways to serve them is in a salad with watercress and fresh mozzarella.  But I have made that so many times that I wanted to try something a little different.  This version uses goat cheese, a slightly more complex dressing, and a different method of roasting.

Usually I just wrap the beets in foil and roast them.  This method involves first placing the beets on a bed of salt and herbs.  It imparts just a little bit more flavor to the beets. (more…)


Nov
2012

Quinoa Salad with Roasted Sweet Potato, Kale, Apple, and Red Onion

categories: Recipes

I recently had a lunch date with my friend Melissa of Smells Like Brownies.  As a long time vegetarian, I wanted her help to learn ways of using quinoa other than just as a substitute for rice.  She suggested that we make this Quinoa salad, chock-full of roasted veggies with a balsamic dressing.  I couldn’t wait to try it!  Roasted sweet potatoes and red onion, hearty kale, sweet and tangy apples – all the beautiful flavors of Fall. (more…)


Sep
2012

Hard “Boiled” (Baked) Eggs

categories: Recipes

I discovered this method of hard cooking eggs (attributed to Alton Brown) via Pinterest and Greetings from the Asylum.  The concept is that baking them instead of boiling them is more consistent and results in less gray, less smelly, more creamy eggs.

As you can see, the eggs will sit perfectly on most oven racks and it doesn’t matter how clean the rack is, because you will be peeling the eggs.  Bake them at 325 for 30 minutes.

As soon as you take them out (with tongs), plunge them into ice water to stop the cooking (and prevent that grey ring around the yolk that happens when they cool too slowly). (more…)


Sep
2012

Shaved Market Vegetable Salad

categories: Recipes

I was so inspired by this shaved vegetable salad at Simon in Las Vegas that the first thing I wanted to do when I got home was to make my own version.

So I went and bought the vegetables I wanted to use – carrots, celery, beets, fennel, and asparagus.

Then I sliced them up using the slicing blade on my food processor (a mandoline would also work) and tossed them with high quality olive oil, lime juice, and sea salt.

I actually stored the vegetables like that in the fridge and throughout the week or so that they lasted I would take out what I needed and add it to raw kale massaged with olive oil (which takes some of the bitterness out) along with watercress, grapes, pepitas, and fresh mozzarella for a delicious summer salad.

It is so healthy and fresh and keeping the vegetables raw means that you are getting the full nutritional value from them, plus they keep you super full.  But this seriously tastes so good that you will not even be thinking about how healthy it is.