Let's all enjoy the ride!
Our Favorite Things
This New Cookbook Says "Sunday Can Be Every Day!"
By Betty Rosbottom Photographs by Susie Cushner
While not specifically aimed at the Gluten-Free consumer, careful chefs* will find this cookbook an abundant source of inspiring recipes.
Sunday Roasts contains 80 tantalizing recipes for slow-roasted meats, fowl, fish, and vegetables. With an earthy sensibility that celebrates quality ingredients, author Betty Rosbottom delivers recipes for roasts of all types and price ranges.
FYI: Author Betty Rosbottom is a cooking teacher, author, and television host. She lives in Amherst, Massachusetts, and Paris, France. Photographer Susie Cushner is an award-winning photographer based in Brooklyn, New York.
Major categories include: Beef (from the humble pot roast to a glorious standing rib): Pork (popular, plentiful, and versatile); Lamb and Veal (keys for cooking to perfection); Poultry (chicken, turkey, and more); Seafood (oven-friendly fish and shellfish); Sides (simple yet satisfying partners); and Extras (Chutneys, relishes, seasoned butters- greats favor bonuses).
Dishes I am anxious to try include: Pepper-Crusted sirloin roast with Horseradish Crème Fraiche; Cumin-Rubbed Pork Tenderloins with Fresh Peach Salsa; Boneless Leg of Lamb with Tomato-Olive Relish; Golden Cider-Roasted Turkey; Halibut Steaks with Spinach, Chickpeas, and Bacon; Brussels Sprouts, Bacon, and Apples.
*The recipes in this cookbook feature the freshest ingredients available. From a cursory glance, the only stumbling blocks for those on a GF diet are in the sauces and gravy. When called upon, it is easy to substitute a GF rice flour or corn starch as a thickening agent. Always try to use fresh herbs and spices but if not possible, check to make sure the ones you use are free of any nasty gluten agents. Hint: although they can be a bit pricey, McCormick spices are your safest bet.
Available online and in fine bookstores.
First Gluten-Free Bakery Takes Top Prize on TV’s Cupcake Wars
Kyra Bussanich of Crave Bake Shop in Lake Oswego Oregon returned to the Food Network’s Cupcake Wars hoping to take home the prize after a near win in 2010. The great news for GF foodies--- she won!
The challenge was to mark the 100th episode of The Closer with delicious “police themed” cupcakes and a 10000 cupcake celebratory display. Bussanich’s team did both and took home the $10,000 prize plus the chance to serve the TNT cast.
According to Bussanich this is a "win for the entire gluten-free community." I couldn't agree more! After watching three seasons of Cupcake Wars, it is fantastic to finally see a gluten-free winner on the Food Network. Cast members of The Closer loved the cupcakes and said something like "maybe we should all go gluten-free."
Congrats, indeed!
125 Gluten-Free Vegetarian Recipes:
Quick and Delicious Mouthwatering Dishes for the Healthy Cook
Just in time for the holidays, this beautiful new cookbook comes from Carol Fenster, PH.D., a pioneer of delicious recipes and on-the-mark survival tips for those following a gluten-free diet.
It features mouthwatering vegetarian offerings in a wide variety of categories including: Maine Dishes (Pasta, Casseroles, Vegetables, etc.); Soups and Stews; Little Meals or Appetizers; Breads; Breakfast; and Basics.
Some recipes we are anxious to try: Lasagna; Parsley-Buttered Pasta; Soba Noodles with Peanut-Ginger Sauce; Stuffing with Peas and Pecans; Savory Leek-Onion Bread Pudding; Polenta Triangles with Warm Cannellini and Capers Salad; Wid Mushroom Risotto; Eggplant Roll-Ups; Mousakka; Smothered Bean Burrittos with Green Chili Sauce; Borscht (Beet Soup); Breakfast Egg Strata (casserole); Ginger Molasses Cookies; Tiramisu; Ice Cream Pie with Granola and Fresh Fruit Sauce.
Available online and in fine bookstores.
Vegan Holiday Kitchen:
More than 200 Delicious, Festive Recipes for Special Occasions
Just in time for the season, this cookbook that will keep-on-giving great recipes all year round.
Written by veteran author Nava Atlas, one of the most respected names in vegetarian and vegan cooking, it features beautiful tempting photographs by Susan Voisin.
You’ll find recipes for brunches, lunches, dinners, potlucks, and buffets conveniently arranged, including: Christmas and the Holiday Season; Hanukkah, Passover, Rosh Hashanah; Easter; Easter; Thanksgiving; Independence Day and Summer Entertaining.
All recipes are prominently marked with food allergen information (Gluten-Free, Soy-Free, Nut-free.)
Some of the dishes we are anxious to try are: Tri-Color Coleslaw; Massaged Kale Salad with Cranberries and Cashews; Pueblo Corn Pie; Rosemary-Citrus Sweet Potatoes; Swwt and Spiced Pecans; Glazed Onions and Brussels Sprouts; Ginger Winter Fruit Medley; Mock Chopped Liver (Cashews, Onion and Mushroom pate); Moroccan Carrots; and Turkish Eggplant Stew.
Available online and in fine bookstores.
Nothing Fishy About This Dish
We love... love... love asparagus! At this point of the season it's plentiful throughout New England. We love it roasted, grilled, marinated, tossed in a salad, but lately it's Asparagus Ceviche all the way!
Sure, you've heard of ceviche as citrus-marinated seafood, but this simple technique breathes new life into the already tasty vegetable.
Choose a pound of the thinnest asparagus you can find (or chop the thick ones into one inch pieces.) Discard the tough stem ends.
In a bowl add a cup of a good vinegar (we like Rice Vinegar), 3 - 4 tablespoons of your favorite mustard and the zest and juice of one large lemon. Crush in three cloves of garlic and some finely chopped ginger (about two tablespoons.). If you have it on hand, add a healthy dose of lemon grass, too. Salt and pepper to taste.
Toss everything and let sit for at least three hours.
Move the ingredients into a gallon plastic bag, refrigerate and forget for at least two days. (Hint: the longer it sits, the more tender and flavorful it becomes.)
Served chilled and enjoy.
Calling All Chefs: Your Input Wanted
We think this is a great idea! The Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University is conducting a research study about Celiac Disease and the gluten free diet. They're asking trained chefs and cooks to fill out a survey on their knowledge of Celiac Disease and food allergies. The Center hopes to get 300 participants by September. If you know a chef or a cook, please pass the survey link along and ask them to help out.
How To Succeed In Bread Making Without Really Trying
One of the challenges of living gluten-free is finding good bread. Sure, the choices are wider than even a couple of years ago, but nothing compared to the overall bread universe. What to do? Make your own, of course!
A bread machine is a great way to make bread without the usual intricate process that takes over the whole kitchen for the afternoon. There are, however, a few points to making gluten-free bread that you need to keep in mind. Some newer bread machines actually have a 'gluten-free' cycle that skips the second kneading of the dough. If you have an older machine, like we do, the secret is to remove the kneading blade after the first cycle. That will avoid over-mixing the dough and ending up with a loaf that resembles a small bowling ball.
We've noticed that gluten-free bread mixes are a bit spendy. So we were thrilled to recieve a review copy of 125 Best Gluten-Free Bread Machine Recipes by Donna Washburn and Heather Butt. These two accomplished food authors spend several chapters bringing us up to speed on terminology, techniques, tips and items to stock in your gluten-free bread machine pantry. After that, it's on to the recipes.
Those recipes go from basic white bread to multi-grain, pumpernickel, cornbread and more. There are chapters on flatbreads, pizza, dessert breads and even un-breads like croutons and French Toast.
We thought the Cranberry Raisin Bread was a huge success, and we're anxious to try out the Nutmeg Loaf.
Noodle On!
We're not talking about that TV commercial with the diminutive Chinese guy. Besides, a lot of those "Instant Noodle" products have half your day's sodium ration in one serving.
No, we're talking about Asian noodles in all their many forms and styles. A lot of Asian cuisine is gluten-free, or can be made GF with some simple substitutions (such as using wheat-free Tamari sauce instead of Soy sauce). Noodle dishes are a favorite, such as Pad Thai, which uses narrow rice noodles, or Pad See Ewe, which uses the wider rice noodles. Celophane noodles, also called Bean Threads, are excellent in stir-fry dishes. They have little flavor on their own, but pick up the sauce beautifully and look gorgeous.
We found a very good overview of gluten-free Asian noodles that covers 11 different styles. It's worth checking out and trying.
They're Berry Good!
One of our favorite little red fruits is coming into season... Strawberries! Whether baked into a gluten-free tart, added to a fresh rhubarb sauce, sliced over ice cream or just dipped in a bit of sugar, fresh strawberries are a sweet and tasty treat.
You can grow your own strawberries, but you'll need quite a few plants to get enough berries for a recipe. Your favorite Farmers' Market is another option, but why not go pick your own?
Maine has dozens of farms that feature Pick-your-own strawberries during the June-July season. You can find a list of strawberry farms here.
Once you've picked your berries, here are some tips to keep them fresh.
That's Our "Cue"
Barbecue, that is. And some of the best BBQ sauces and rubs are made right here in Maine by none other than DennyMike's 'Cue Stuff. Yes, DennyMike is a real person and his sauces and rubs are the real deal, too.
We particularly like the Mesquit-O Madness sauce for it's deep, smoky flavor with just the right amount of mesquite. Roy notes that, having spent his youth in California where you cooked over mesquite because it was there, not because it was trendy, a lot of mesquite sauces get the flavor profile very wrong. Mesquit-O Madness gets it just right.
DennyMike's Carolina-Style sauce also hits the flavor right on the head. Tangy with just the right amount of heat, Roy admits it puts his own vinegar BBQ sauce to shame.
The dry rubs are no slouch, either. Pixie Dust is versatile enough to enhance anything from burgers to fish to steaks. Cow Bell Hell is superb on meats (we've tried beef and pork so far), but be advised that when DennyMike says it's "slightly spicy", he might be understating things a bit. This mixture definitely says "Hello!" And the best part of the ingredients list on all of DennyMike's products? "No Junk!"
Full Disclosure: DennyMike's 'Cue Stuff is one of our earliest advertisers and supporters. We thank him for his interest in GlutenFreeMaine.com, and for supplying his products for our taste-testing and review.
Who Knew?
We love our rice cookers! We have two: one for small batches, one for when we are having a rice fest.
We've used them to make quinoa, too, but never realized just how versatile those little cookers can be.
Gluten-Free blogger Ginger Lemon Girl recently turned us on to a vast array of "Easy Gluten Free Rice Cooker Meals."
Since Carrie is from North Carolina, grits would be expected, but pasta, oatmeal, toast, bacon, scrambled eggs and salmon???
This we have to try! Read all of Ginger Lemon Girl's ideas.
Let us know if you discover any Rice Cooker Recipes on your own!
Watch More Food
We're both confirmed Food Network junkies. (Richard has been known to yell at the TV, "You can use rice flour! You can use rice flour!") So we were excited to learn that the Food Network has launched another project: The Cooking Channel.
USA Today gave this synopsis of the new channel:Cooking Channel's programming is "a little grittier, a little more about food and information and a little less about pure entertainment," says network general manager Michael Smith, who worked in marketing at the 17-year-old Food Network for 12 years. The personalities, for whom Food Network became famous (think Rachael Ray and Bobby Flay), "are still going to be entertaining and charismatic," Smith says, but the shows they host are going to dig deeper into a broader range of topics, from Indian food to veganism.
We're hoping that cooking gluten-free will be one of those broader topics, and we'll be keeping our eyes on the Cooking Channel. Check your local cable listings to see if the Cooking Channel is available. (it replaces Fine Living Network, so if you had FLN before, Cooking Channel is probably there now)
We All Scream
One of her favorite things!
Bangor Maine GF blogger Madison Papers has discovered an easier way to enjoy the perennial summer treat: ice cream. And, she says, it's no longer BYOC (Bring Your Own Cone.)
Madison reports that Witch Spring Hill Ice Cream in West Bath, ME now offer gluten-free cones!
"The folks at Witch Spring Hill have been awesome in the past about BYOC and always very careful to avoid cross-contamination when scooping my ice cream (something very much appreciated!), she writes. "This time, when I got to the counter clutching my GF cone the woman behind the window told me they now carry gluten-free cones - awesome! Now we can enjoy spontaneous ice cream stops, no more planning ahead!"
By the way, they feature Round Top Ice Cream (made in Damariscotta) and she highly recommends the black raspberry!
Thanks for the tip, Madison! If you have a GF tip, be sure to let us know!
See May's favorites.
See April's favorites.
