A Busy Day of GF Cooking

Posted on March 4, 2012 by Highly Sensitive Girl

Pancakes, GF Millet & Oat Bread, AND Meatloaf!

[NOTE: This post from yesterday never got published, because in the midst of writing it I discovered a bunch of my other sites had been hacked. Spent the past 24 hours fixing that mess. Even more exhausted now than when I wrote this post about how busy yesterday had been—little did I know it had only just begun!]

Not sure what got into me today, but it’s been a busy day of cooking and blogging (with some napping and Twins Baseball thrown in for good measure 🙂

I started the day making GF pancakes (using sorghum flour, millet flour, potato starch, and almond meal).

Later I baked a loaf of GF Millet & Oatmeal Bread and wrote it up in the Bread Diary.

I also researched stand mixers (after mine broke trying to mix the Millet & Oatmeal Bread). I’m leaning toward the Kitchen Aid Artisan, but I’m open to suggestions . . . I’ll need to save my pennies for a while before I invest in one.

Finally, I’ve now got My Favorite Meatloaf in the oven . . . which is my mother’s recipe, but using GF Breadcrumbs and soymilk. Looking at it in the oven, I’m not sure the GF Breadcrumbs work quite the same way (as binder with the egg) as the traditional breadcrumbs, but we’ll see.

GF Meatloaf

Mix together:

1 lb ground beef
1/2 c. seasoned GF breadcrumbs (if your breadcrumbs are unseasoned, add 1/2 tsp Italian Herb Seasoning Mix—oregano, basil, marjoram, thyme and rosemary)
1 egg
1/4 – 1/2 c. soymilk (or other “milk”)
salt & pepper
dash celery salt
1/2 T. Worcestershire sauce
finely chopped onion (trace amt up to 1/2 c.)
dash garlic powder
1/4 c. tomato sauce

Form into loaf and place in 9″x13″ pan (DO NOT use loaf pan). Combine an additional 1/4 c. tomato sauce with 1/4 c. water and pour over loaf.

Bake at 350° for 1 to 1-1/4 hour. [I usually cover it for the first 45 minutes and then uncover for the last half hour.]

NOTE: I haven’t had much luck finding corn-free tomato sauce, so I often mix a couple of Tbls tomato paste (the concentrate that comes in a tube is usually JUST tomatoes) with an equal amount of water to make the tomato sauce for this recipe. I mixed about 4 Tbls tomato paste and 4 Tbls water and put HALF of this mixture in the meatloaf and then diluted the remaining half as indicated above to pour over the loaf. Because I wasn’t certain how this loaf would respond to/absorb the moisture, I only added half the tomato/water mixture before putting it in the oven, then checked it and added the rest after 30 minutes. I think it would be okay to add it all before baking.

I served the meatloaf with baked sweet potato and steamed broccoli. Other than needing a bit more salt, it tasted great!!

GF Pancake Redux

Posted on March 3, 2012 by Highly Sensitive Girl

After my Shrove Tuesday Pancake debacle, I really wanted to try GF pancakes again . . . with a more successful recipe! I ended up combining two recipes I found online:

http://glutenfreehomemakerrecipes.blogspot.com/2010/06/gluten-free-pancakes.html
and
http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Gluten-Free-Pancakes

Here’s what I came up with this morning. They were pretty good!

Gluten-Free Pancakes

1/2 cup sorghum flour
1/2 cup millet flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1/2 cup almond meal
1 Tbls sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbls baking powder
2 eggs
2 Tbls oil
1 cup soymilk (or whatever “milk” you prefer)
butter/oil/shortening for greasing pan (I use Spectrum Organics Palm Shortening)

Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl (I actually use an old tupperware plastic pitcher to make pouring easier). Whisk until everything is evenly combined. Add eggs, oil, and milk. Stir and scrape bowl until everything is combined. Check consistency of batter—it should be relatively thick, but pourable. (I had to add a couple of tablespoons of rice flour to get the thickness I wanted, so starting with a bit less milk would have been a good idea.)

Heat griddle or frying pan over medium heat. Grease pan lightly. For each pancake, ladle 1/4 cup batter onto the hot skillet. Cook until the top is almost dry and small bubbles have formed. Flip. Cook for a couple more minutes or until done.

Makes 10 pancakes about 4-5″ in diameter.

Notes

I use relatively low heat and longer cooking time, 2-3 minutes for the first side and 2 minutes for the second, because in the past I’ve ended up with burnt-on-the-outside/raw-in-the-middle pancakes. Your own cooking times will depend on your pan, your stove, and your patience.
You’ll also notice that I cook one pancake at a time. Also due to past experience where I couldn’t get even cooking. Do whatever works for you.

Pork Chops & Applesauce

Posted on February 25, 2012 by Highly Sensitive Girl

My GF Breadcrumbs project got rather involved . . . but I WAS able to make the Breaded Pork Chops a L’Orange I was craving.

As mentioned in the previous post, to make these you take thin cut pork chops/cutlets, dip them in beaten egg, and then in breadcrumbs. (I first sprinkle the chops with salt & pepper & garlic powder, but you can add those later if you like. I also sprinkle some Italian Herb Blend—oregano, basil, thyme, marjoram—into the breadcrumbs, but that is also optional.)

The breaded chops are then browned in oil for a few minutes on each side.

Then a mixture of 1/2 cup OJ and 1/4 cup water is added to the pan, the heat is lowered, the pan is covered, and the chops are simmered for 45-75 minutes. I turn them every 10-15 minutes or so. Sometimes I have to add more OJ.

I serve these with rice and a green vegetable . . . and applesauce, of course!

And in case you missed it . . . this is what I think of when I have “Pork Chops & Applesauce”:

Breadcrumb Bread

Posted on February 24, 2012 by Highly Sensitive Girl

This odd looking loaf is from a recipe designed exclusively to turn into gluten-free breadcrumbs. The loaf is mostly potato starch and arrowroot starch (substituted for the cornstarch in the original recipe) and contains both quick-rise yeast AND baking powder. Apparently the yeast is “just for flavor” because there is no rise time at all.

Anyway, I’m hoping to use the resulting breadcrumbs to make “Pork Cutlets a l’Orange” (aka breaded pork cutlets cooked in orange juice). When my mom makes them, they melt in your mouth. Mine never seem to get that tender, but they are still good. Thin sliced pork cutlets sprinkled with S&P+garlic powder are dipped in egg and then in breadcrumbs, browned quickly in butter & oil (which for me will be just oil), and then simmered gently in diluted orange juice for 45-75 minutes (depending on whether you follow my sister’s version of the recipe or my mother’s; mom cooks them longer). My sister adds a drizzle of honey after the browning. Either way, they are yummy!

Not sure why I have a taste for these, but it’s probably because after the “gum incident” the other day, I was on a diet of rice, poached chicken, and applesauce for a few days . . . so I have this big jar of Unsweetened Organic Applesauce (I love that the ingredient list is: organic apples 🙂 . . . so I thought “Pork Chops . . . and Applesauce”.

Oh and yeah, pork chops were on sale when I went to buy groceries yesterday. Will add a pic of them after I make them.

Enjoy!

[Update: While I was writing the above, and the bread was cooling . . . the loaf collapsed. Not likely to get the 8 cups of breadcrumbs predicted from the recipe, but should get enough to make the pork chops. Next time I’ll use some more substantial flour, rather than just the two starches, and maybe let it rise a bit to give yeast a chance to work and the gum time to rehydrate (which apparently it needs to do to provide any structure) . . . Live and learn!!]

[Update#2: Slicing revealed that much of this bread was “gum/paste” . . . I had to carve off the bad parts before turning what was left into breadcrumbs. To do that I sliced the bread and let it “dry out” for a few hours, then I tore the slices into smaller pieces and used the food processor to pulse them into crumbs (this took several batches), finally I toasted the breadcrumbs in a 325°F oven for about 30 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes.]

Toasted Bread Crumbs . . . Gluten Free!!

NOTE: This post got rather long, so I will post the Pork Chop pics in a separate post.

Thai Food Feast

Posted on February 16, 2012 by Highly Sensitive Girl

Continuing the Around the Gluten-Free World Tour with my favorite Thai dishes. I’ve been making these for years . . . not realizing that part of why they are so satisfying is that they contain no ingredients that my body considers toxic—no gluten, wheat, corn, or dairy.*

Both of these recipes originated in Keo’s Thai Cuisine (1986) but I’ve modified them enough (and provide annotations) to feel comfortable sharing them here.

Evil Jungle Prince with Chicken
adapted from Keo’s Thai Cuisine (1986)
Makes 3-4 servings
Ingredients

1/2 – 1 pound boneless chicken breast
3/4 c. to 1-1/2 c. coconut milk* [buy a 15 oz. can]
2 to 6 small red chili peppers
1/2 stalk fresh lemon grass
2 kaffir lime leaves
10 to 15 sweet basil leaves, cleaned, dried, and (if large) gently torn into 1″ pieces
1 to 4 Tbls. fish sauce*
2-3 T. oil

Thai Sweet Sticky Rice [Look for it in an Asian Grocery. You can substitute regular rice or a bed of chopped cabbage, but the sauce this dish makes is simply delicious with sweet sticky rice.] Your rice should be all cooked and ready to eat before you start cooking the chicken.

Directions

Cut chicken into thin strips. Pour about 1/3 c. coconut milk over the chicken and allow it to marinate while you get everything else ready.

Grind together red chili peppers, lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves in a food processor or mini-chopper until the lemon grass is in fine strands. [It helps to chop the lemon grass into 1 inch lengths before processing.]

Heat oil to medium-high and saute the pepper/lemon grass/lime leaves mixture for 2 minutes. You want it to soften and release its flavors, but not burn or brown too much. Add about 1/4 c. coconut milk and stir to blend, about 1 minute.

Add chicken in its coconut milk marinade. Cook for 5-7 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add in a bit more coconut milk (if desired). Stir in fish sauce and basil leaves.

Serve over Thai Sweet Sticky Rice.

Notes

My local Asian grocery often runs out of Thai Basil before I can get there, so whenever I am lucky enough to get a bunch (which is usually much more than I need for a recipe) I make “Thai Basil Cubes” with any extra: clean and stem the basil leaves, combine with a little water in a food processor, pulse/chop, spoon into ice cube trays, freeze, transfer to a ziploc bag. Most of the pictures above are from yesterday, when I had to thaw a handful of basil cubes, strain, and add the leaves to the dish.

If you don’t have a food processor or mini-chopper to mince the lemon grass/lime leaves/chilis as finely as shown in the recipe, I recommend leaving them whole and removing them from the sauce before serving . . . the flavors will be more subtle, but there’s nothing worse than chewing on tough lemon grass. Here’s the mini-chopper I use (not sure they even still make these):

Most of the pictures above are of a double-batch of the recipe (enough to feed 6-8). The recipe as written is what I usually make; I get four meals out of it when combined with the recipe below for Eggplant & Bok Choy.

Thai Eggplant with Bok Choy
adapted from “Eggplant with Chicken” in Keo’s Thai Cuisine (1986)

2-3 Chinese/Japanese eggplants (the thin kind, not the fat Mediterranean kind) or 1 pound of Thai eggplants (small round green eggplants)
4-5 baby bok choy (or 1 small bunch broccoli)
6 Tbls oil
1-2 tsp chili paste with garlic*
10-15 Thai basil leaves
1-3 Tbls yellow bean sauce* (or 4-5 Tablesppons of homemade Black Bean Sauce)
Thai Sweet Sticky Rice

Slice unpeeled eggplant crosswise into thin slices (1/4-3/8 inch thick). Remove the end, then separate and rinse the leaves of the bok choi. Chop into bite-sized pieces. (If using broccoli instead, separate broccoli into flowerettes and/or spears. Peel and chop the tender part of the broccoli stalk if desired.)

Heat oil over medium-high heat in wok. Add chili paste with garlic. (Careful, it will splatter.) Add eggplant and cook for 3-4 minutes, getting all the slices coated with the oil/chili paste.

Add bok choy or broccoli, stir to coat.

Cover and cook/steam for 5-7 minutes. Add yellow bean sauce, stir to coat. Just before serving (when all the vegetables are cooked) add basil leaves.

Serve immediately over Thai Sweet Sticky Rice.

Makes 3-4 servings.

Notes

The original version of this dish used 1/3 pound boneless chicken breast, thinly sliced, cooked with the eggplant (rather than the broccoli). It also used crushed garlic and red chili peppers instead of chili paste, but it was difficult to avoid burning the garlic, thus my substitution of chili paste with garlic.
This dish works well with Evil Jungle Prince with Chicken.

* Do be certain to read the ingredients on any of the Asian sauces used in these recipes to verify that they are gluten-free/corn-free/dairy-free as you require . . . I’ve been able to find brands that seem “safe enough” for me, but none of them are labeled “gluten-free” (and no one is required to even acknowledge when their ingredients are “derived from corn”) . . . use your own judgment and substitute where necessary. Feel free to post substitution questions and comments in the comments below.

Update: I now make my own Chili Garlic Paste and Bean Sauce (Black rather than Yellow Bean). You can find my recipes here.