Chef Patti Anastasia
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Serving Southern New Hampshire &
the Merrimack Valley since 2003
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Table Talk » Gluten-Free ArchivesMarch 25, 2008Baking for Jayne: Gluten-Free and Vegan Chocolate Chip CookiesJayne has Celiac disease, is allergic to soy and eggs and is sensitive to dairy. All of the food that I prepare for her and her family is gluten-free, soy-free, egg-free, and uses limited dairy. Lately, I've been making a dessert or other treat for Jayne. Today, thanks to Karina of Karina's Kitchen, I made gluten-free and vegan chocolate chip cookies for Jayne. I've tried a few gluten-free chocolate chip cookie recipes and Karina's recipe beats all of them. The first test was the cookie dough. Of course, I had to try the unbaked dough. One good thing about vegan cookie dough is that you don't have to concern yourself with the food safety issue of raw eggs in the dough. Yum, this dough is delicious. It wasn't grainy/gritty like many gluten-free recipes.
The dough is chilled for one hour before you make the cookies. You roll the dough into balls, then flatten them slightly before baking. I used a heaping tablespoon of dough to form the cookies.
After 12-15 minutes, you have beautiful and delicious cookies. The cookies came out of the oven right after my client came home for lunch. We all tried them and everyone loved them. At one point, Jayne's mother asked me to move the cookies away from her so she wouldn't eat them all.
Don't you just love how the third cookie from the left in the second row from the bottom has a face? Karina's recipe is delicious. If you know someone who is gluten-free and doesn't eat eggs, be sure to make these cookies for them.
March 23, 2008Crispy Potato Cakes RevisitedBack in September, I posted this recipe for Crispy Potato Cakes. This is an updated version of that recipe. The original recipe called for grating potatoes, soaking them in water, squeezing them dry, then mixing with cornstarch, green onions, and seasoning. I've done some Cooks Illustrated-style experimenting with the recipe because I wanted to see if could find a faster way to make these without affecting the quality. To me, the changes are an improvement. They take less time to make and I like the new potato cakes even better. Test 2: Frozen Hashed Browns -- Since shredding the potatoes in the food processor worked so well, I decided to try using frozen hashed brown potatoes. I used Alexia Foods Organic Hashed Browns. To defrost the potatoes, I simply opened the bags and spread the potatoes out on a baking sheet and let them sit at room temperature for 1/2 hour. The defrosted potatoes didn't have very much moisture in them, so I decided to skip the soaking and squeezing steps. I tossed the defrosted potatoes with the cornstarch, scallions, and spices. This time, I also experimenting with forming the potato cakes freehand. I filled the measuring cup with 1/2 cup of potatoes and tipped the cup over onto the foil-lined baking sheet. I found that I didn't really need the 3-inch ring to form the potato cakes. The potatoes are moist enough to hold together. I pressed them lightly to slightly flatten them. Eliminating the ring saves a little bit of time. These were baked at 425F for 20 minutes, then flipped and baked for 15 minutes longer. They weren't quite crispy enough after 15 minutes, so I baked them for five more minutes. Ultimately, the baking time depends on how crispy you like them. The potato cakes made using the frozen hashed browns were delicious and took significantly less time to make. This method is the winner in my book.
Continue reading "Crispy Potato Cakes Revisited" » February 14, 2008Karina-s Kitchen: A Gold Mine of Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Egg-Free, and Delicous RecipesIn December, I stumbled on Karina-s Kitchen. I was looking for some new recipes for my gluten-free, dairy-free, and egg-free clients. Two clients had requested some treats for the holidays. I was bored with my standard treats that fit the bill and wanted to find something new. Karina's blog was exactly what I was looking for. Since December, I've made a bunch of recipes from her blog and each one has been a big hit with my clients. Some of the recipes that I've made are Vegan Coconut Bars, Vegan Banana Bundt Cake, Jazzed Up Turkey Tetrazzini, and Uncheese Sauce Fit for A Goddess. I have a lot more of Karina's recipes on my To Do list. My banana cake wasn't nearly as pretty as Karina's, but my client loved it and wants it again. I'll try it in miniature bundt pans next time. My client who hasn't had cheese for a year has loved all of the dishes that I've made with the Uncheese Sauce. If you or anyone who you cook for is gluten-free, be sure to check out Karina's blog. January 6, 2008Grains of Paradise and Autumn Blend LentilsI'm on a mission to try some of the interesting new ingredients that I've bought, but haven't made time to use. This lentil soup uses two items that have been sitting on my new ingredient shelf for a while: Grains of Paradise and an Autumn lentil blend. I bought the Grains of Paradise at A Market Natural Foods, a local natural foods store. The Autumn lentil blend came from Sid Wainer & Sons, a purveyor of specialty produce and speciality foods located in New Bedford, MA. Grains of Paradise have a peppery taste, with a fruity flavor like coriander and an aroma that reminds me of cardamom. I'm going to add some to my pepper mill the next time I fill it. The Autumn lentil blend was a rainbow of autumn colors. It would have been wiser to use them in dish that wasn't blended, but they've been on my shelf for a while, so in the pot they went. My lentil soup recipe is a slight modification of a recipe from Alton Brown. Of course I had to make a few modifications. I didn't have any celery, so I added some extra onion and carrots, and 1/2 teaspoon of ground celery seed. Soup needs garlic, in goes three cloves of minced garlic. Tomatoes are dreadful at this time of year, so I knew that I'd be using canned diced tomatoes. When I opened the cabinet to get the tomatoes, a can of fire-roasted tomatoes said "pick me". Oh, and I didn't bother finely chopping the vegetables because the soup gets blended with an immersion blender before serving.
Continue reading "Grains of Paradise and Autumn Blend Lentils" » December 21, 2007Eat Your Veggies in a BurgerMy favorite veggie burger is an adaptation of Eating Well's Mediterranean Burgers. Their recipe uses millet, which is hard for me to find, so I adapted it to use quinoa, one of my favorite grains. I knew that these veggies burgers would appeal to some of my clients, so I streamlined the recipe to make it easier and faster to prepare. Except for using quinoa instead of millet, I didn't make many changes to the ingredients. Rather than pan-frying them, which is time-consuming, I bake them so that I can cook them all at the same time and not have to watch them carefully while they cook. The burgers are packed with the hearty, whole-grain goodness of quinoa, along with spinach, onions, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, and feta cheese. A great way to eat your veggies. These veggie burgers are served with Olive Ketchup. This yummy condiment is so easy and the perfect topping for these burgers. In September, a client asked for these veggie burgers. They've requested them over and over again since they first tried them. These veggie burgers freeze very well. I vacuum seal the burgers and the olive ketchup separately and advise my clients to defrost, but not heat the olive ketchup. You can heat the burgers in the microwave, in a frying pan on the stovetop, or in the oven. Since the olive ketchup takes just a few minutes to make, you could make a small batch whenever you serve the burgers. Grr, there is no photo today because I just discovered that I didn't have a memory card in my camera when I took pictures of the veggie burger. You can get an idea of what the veggie burgers look like by looking at the picture on the Eating Well site. I puree the spinach in my version, so my burgers are green throughout, not brown flecked with spinach. Note to self, always check to see if there is a memory card in the camera before you start taking pictures. The next time I make these I'll come back here and update this post with a photo. Continue reading "Eat Your Veggies in a Burger" » September 29, 2007Crispy Potato CakesNOTE: See revised recipe I'm bored with making the same old potato side dishes and my search for new potato recipes led me to a Cooking Light recipe for Crispy Potato Hash Browns. The technique used in this recipe interested me. You combine grated potatoes with cornstarch, form them into "cakes" using a 3-inch biscuit cutter, then bake them in a 475º oven. The online reviews for the recipe were good, and they sounded like a good side dish for the meatloaf I was making for one of my clients this week, so I put them on the menu. Some side benefits of this recipe is that it is gluten-free, egg-free, dairy-free, and it has just a trace of fat. I don't have a 3-inch biscuit cutter, but I am a whiz with aluminum foil, so I made a 3-inch ring form with foil. Take a 2 foot long strip of foil, fold it in half the long way, then continue to fold it in half the long way until you have a strip that is about an inch wide. Then twist the strip into a rope. Fold the twisted strip in half and form it into a 3-inch diameter loop. You'll get something that looks like this.
The potatoes are grated, then soaked in cold water for 5 minutes. The comments for the recipe indicated that the box grater gives much better results than grating in the food processor, so stick with the box grater. It doesn't take long to grate the potatoes. I didn't have a salad spinner to spin dry the potatoes. I set them in a colander and used a clean towel to press down on them until I couldn't squeeze out any more water. It worked perfectly for me. Even with the hand grating, the recipe was quick and easy to prep and the results were very tasty. I renamed these to Crispy Potato Cakes because that is what they are. I see myself adding different herbs and spices to them to pair them with different dishes. How about some chili powder or cayenne pepper for a spicy potato cake? Or fresh thyme. Or curry powder. The possibilities are endless. Continue reading "Crispy Potato Cakes " » July 13, 2007Spicy Basque-Style ChickenAnother weeknight winner from Cooking Light. The Spicy Basque-Style Chicken from the June 2007 issue was my test kitchen recipe this week. It's quick, easy, and full of flavor. In the time it takes to cook the rice to accompany it, you'll have dinner on the table.
Spicy Basque-Style Chicken, Saffron Rice, Roasted Asparagus I forgot to buy green olives, so I used capers. I really liked the dish with capers and will keep that change. The bottled minced garlic was replaced with fresh minced garlic. When I made this, I added the prosciutto, but I thought the prosciutto got lost in the dish so I omitted it from the final recipe. I get my smoked Spanish paprika from Penzeys. I've been buying herbs and spices from Penzeys for over 20 years. When I first started ordering from them, their catalog was a newsprint catalog; it was long before they had a web site and retail stores. Smoked Spanish paprika adds a smoky spicy flavor. Try it, you'll love it. Good paprika is nothing like grocery store paprika. When you buy Penzeys' Smoked Spanish Paprika, add some Hungarian sweet paprika and Hungarian half-sharp paprika to your order. You'll never buy grocery store paprika again. Continue reading "Spicy Basque-Style Chicken" » July 8, 2007Salmon for SupperThis super speedy recipe is perfect for a weeknight meal. It's based on Cooking Light's Broiled Tilapia with Thai Coconut Curry Sauce. I don't care for the texture of tilapia, so I made it with salmon. Red curry paste can be quite hot, so I add 1/2 teaspoon at a time until the heat level of the dish is right for us. In this dish, 1 teaspoon of red curry paste gave us the perfect heat level. We love ginger and garlic, so I used more than the original recipe called for. Adding more brown sugar can temper the heat of this dish if you unwittingly add too much curry paste. I also made just two portions of salmon, but the full amount of sauce. I served this with Brown Basmati Rice with Edamame. I use the pasta method to cook brown rice, then toss in the edamame for a minute once the rice is cooked to the desired tenderness, about 25 minutes. The extra sauce was much hotter the next day when I had it for lunch served over the leftover brown rice with edamame.
Continue reading "Salmon for Supper" » June 9, 2007Herbed Cheese Eggplant RollsA few months ago, a client left me her well-loved copy of The Victory Garden Cookbook and asked me if I could make a recipe for eggplant rolls from this book. The eggplant rolls are stuffed with a seasoned ground beef recipe. My client wanted me to make these with the ground beef filling from the recipe and also with a cheese filling. They love my cheese-filled eggplant rolls and have requested them for the past few months. This week was no exception.
2 large eggplants Wash eggplant, but do not peel. Remove the cap and stem end. Cut into thin slices, no thicker than 1/4". For 6 servings, you need 12 slices. Arrange the eggplant slices in a colander, sprinkling salt between the layers. Let eggplant drain for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the farmers cheese, parmesan cheese, parsley, garlic, oregano, and 2 eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Place about 1/2 cup flour on a plate. You'll use this to coat the eggplant slices. Add more flour as needed. Pat the eggplant slices dry. Beat the remaining eggs with 2 tablespoons water. Dip the eggplant sliced into the eggs, then into flour. In a large saute pan, heat 2 tablespoons oil. Shake the excess flour from the eggplant slices and cook 2-3 eggplants slices until browned on each side, about 2 minutes per side. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining eggplant slices, adding more oil to the pan as needed. Preheat oven to 350. Line a large baking sheet with aluminum foil. Spread a thin layer of marinara sauce on the baking sheet. Lay an eggplant slice on a cutting board or plate. Place a large spoonful of the cheese mixture on the eggplant slice. Using a fork, spread the cheese mixture over the eggplant in a thin layer. Roll the eggplant over the filling like a jelly roll. Place the eggplant roll on the baking sheet, seam side down. . Repeat with remaining eggplant slices. Spread 2 tablespoons marinara sauce on each eggplant roll. Notes: To make these gluten-free I used Bob's Red Mill All Purpose Baking Flour and a gluten-free marinara sauce such as Muir Glen. Friendship Farmers Cheese is a low-lactose cheese and works wonderfully as a replacement for ricotta cheese.
May 12, 2007Bacon-Wrapped BBQ Chicken-Cheese RollsThis recipe for Bacon-Wrapped BBQ Chicken-Cheese Rolls was inspired by Jayne, who asked me to make her chicken with barbecue sauce, bacon, and cheese.
The chicken rolls are shown with Mini Cornbread Puddings from Everyday Food, March 2007. (Note, the Mini Cornbread Puddings are not gluten-free.) Jayne's mother and sister sampled the chicken rolls when they came home for lunch and they both loved them. I used a homemade barbecue sauce because I prefer it and also Jayne has many food allergies, but you could use your favorite bottled barbecue sauce. Continue reading "Bacon-Wrapped BBQ Chicken-Cheese Rolls" » April 20, 2007Smurf MuffinsSometimes recipes don't turn out how you want them to. This week I tested a blueberry muffin recipe from Grain-Free Gourmet. It's a simple recipe that uses blueberries, water, almond flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, vanilla extract, honey, and eggs. The recipe has you simmer the blueberries and water until the blueberries release their water and the mixture thickens. I used frozen blueberries. They just seemed to keep releasing lots of water and never really thickened. And also turned very blue! I knew I should have started over with the blueberries, but I was pressed for time, so I said to myself "how bad could it be?" Hmm, the minute I mixed the blueberries with the rest of the ingredients, I knew that I was going to end up with the ugliest muffins that I've ever baked. See for yourself.
These muffins turned out to be the color of a sickly smurf. But they are quite tasty. I brought some to my friend Lisa Allen, the author of Eating Clean, and she enjoyed them. I sent her home with a container of smurf muffins. My husband Tom declared that they looked totally unappetizing. I have to agree with him on that. But they do taste quite good and I will make them again. I want to try them with both fresh and frozen blueberries. My plan is to skip the simmering step and just add the water (or maybe fresh squeezed orange juice) and the blueberries to the rest of the ingredients. Or maybe the simmering step will work better with fresh berries. But first I need to get more almond flour. I used Bob's Red Mill Almond Meal/Flour for the smurf muffins. Although Lisa loved the texture that the Bob's Red Mill Almond Meal produced, I’d like to try these muffins with a finer textured almond meal. One of my clients recommended the almond meal from Lucy's Kitchen Shop because it has a fine texture. Maybe a 50/50 mix of fine and coarse almond flour. At any rate, it’s a recipe that I will be revisiting. April 10, 2007Chocolate Gluten Freedom Cupcakes(About 30% of my clients have special diet requirements. The majority of those are gluten-free and have other food allergies.) Today I cooked for Jayne’s family. Jayne is gluten-free and has other food allergies. She turns 10 this week so I made birthday cupcakes. The plan was that she would take the cupcakes to school to share with her classmates. But, after seeing and tasting the cupcakes, Jayne has other ideas. Her first choice is to keep the cupcakes for herself! Her second choice is to have them at her birthday dinner. She thinks that they are too good to share with her class. I wonder which plan will win out.
These beautiful cupcakes are a slightly modified version of the Chocolate Gluten Freedom Cupcakes from Vegan Cupcakes Rule the World. While Vegan Cupcakes is not a gluten-free cookbook, it has a few gluten-free recipes and since the recipes are vegan, they are perfect starting points for recipes for my clients who are allergic to dairy and eggs. I also made a modified version of the Vegan Fluffy Buttercream Frosting. I’m thrilled with the taste, look, and crumb of these cupcakes and I’m looking forward to trying more recipes from this book. (How do I know that they were delicious? Well, I got 14 cupcakes from the recipe, one of the extras was for me to sample. |
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