Gluten-free in Los Angeles

Thomas Keller GF Flour

2011-11-01T18:24:00.000-07:00

It's called Cup 4 Cup, just saw it on Grub St.

We're not dead, just been way too busy!

Some new stuff coming soon

http://cup4cup.com/

How I love the Sardine....

2010-12-19T20:42:00.000-08:00

Delicious, nutritious and SO easy to prepare. I remember as a kid, we went fishing several times off of piers and caught huge sardines. Not the size you see these days in stores. They were about 2 times larger. Then my grandmother prepared them by frying them, then pickling them in vinegar, adding red chiles and sliced onions. Delicious. If you've never eaten a sardine before, they are very fatty(really high in Omega 3s) and due to the high fat/oil content, they have a stronger taste. The vinegar preparation works great because it helps cut through the richness of the sardine.

I've read online about people complaining that they've heard the wonders of sardines and then when they buy them, they can't get past the many bones in there and then swear not to ever eat them again.

Whiners I say.

In many different countries, they are cooked whole and enjoyed quite a bit. Italy comes to mind. Grilled fresh sardines with nothing but a bit of olive oil and sea salt. I've prepared them this way on the BBQ during the summer and they are delicious.

If you get sardines directly from a boat, they should be much more firm and if you're really good with a fillet knife, you can fillet them. This method I'm going to describe is just much easier and faster.

So, if you want to take a leap of faith and join us, meaning the people who love sardines.....take a gander at how to remove most of the bones below.

Sardines are small fish and consequently, have small bones to match. You're never going to be able to get rid of ALL of the bones. I learned this method from Monica Galetti, Senior Sous Chef at Michelle Roux's 2 Michelin Star London restaurant, Le Gavroche.

Ingredients:

-4-5 fresh sardines
-olive oil
-capers
-lemon
-sea salt
-white pepper
-1 heirloom tomato
-1 shallot

1. Fresh sardines. Make sure your sardines are scaled and not too soft. Sardines tend to get really soft if out of the water too long and they can get completely mushy if not stored correctly. These are in average/above average condition.

2. Remove head and scrape the cavity to remove all entrails.

3. Lay the sardine flat on its belly on the cutting board.

(different angle)

4. Now, this is where the magic happens. With your fingers, gently press down on the back/vertebrae of the sardine. This actually puts pressure of the vertebrae and as a result, the vertebrae AND rib bones pop out from the flesh and distance themselves with the flesh. If you listen closely, you'll hear this happening.

5. Rib cage bones popped out of the flesh.

6. Now, place your fingers between the vertebrae and flesh. Pull all of the bones away from the flesh. Then when you reach the tail, use your sharp knife and then cut the tail and bones away from the flesh at the tail end.
Most of the bones removed! Now, remember, there will still be some really tiny, tiny pinbones, but they are so fine and small that you can't even really notice them compared to the ones that you've just removed.

7. Sardine prepped and ready to cook!

If you are extremely lucky and can get fresh sardines directly from a boat, then get them. I got these at Whole Foods and they were in average/above average condition. How can you tell by looking at this picture? Look at the belly. The belly tends to tear like that when the fish isn't right out of the water and has been iced for several days.

8. Dice tomatoes to a medium size since you want some contrasting texture. For the shallots, I almost brunoise them because nobody likes getting a mouthful of a large onion/shallot chunk. Mix tomatoes, shallots, olive oil and capers in a bowl. Season with salt and white pepper. In a hot pan on medium high, add a drizzle of olive oil. Season your sardines on both sides with sea salt and white pepper. The sardines will cook REALLY fast, so only about 30 seconds on each side. Place sardines in the hot pan for 30 seconds on each side. Place tomato/caper mixture on a plate and place sardines on top.

ALL GF pizza place in Venice

2010-06-21T13:57:00.001-07:00

I just saw this on Grub Street LA

If you're over on the Westside and specifically over in Venice, there is a place that just opened that is ALL GF.

http://www.pizza-rina.com/

The prices are a bit steep($20 for a small and $35 for a large), but imagine.....a dedicated ALL GF pizzeria. No worries about a GF pizza going into an oven that has been contaminated by a regular pizza. Places can 'have' a GF pizza ready to cook, but unless there is a dedicated oven to cook it in, it automatically turns non GF.

It's also all vegetarian.

I think we'll drop by sometime.

So many recipes, so little time...

2010-04-04T23:23:00.000-07:00

Hey, everybody.

W here. I haven't been taking a ton of pictures, but I've still been executing all of my favorite recipes since the last post. I've been making all of these things so long that I really don't need to look at any recipes and anybody who's been cooking for a long time knows what I'm talking about. Now, if I were baking something, that would be a different story.

Only pictures for now, no recipes. Sorry.

You'll always notice with the cooking that I do, everything has a minimal amount of ingredients. When you get great product, all you should do is enhance, not screw it all up! In cooking, less is more when composing a dish. Show some restraint, please. You'll see what wonders it does.

Mexican style breakfast taco-Chicken sausage, shallots, garlic, cilantro, lime, tomatoes, sriracha(basically what was on hand and the regular stuff in the pantry at the end of the week)

Tomatoes, zucchini, basil, onions, garlic-all of the organic variety

Chicken and shrimp paella!

Homemade coconut milk mango ice cream-Organic coconut milk, mango puree in the ice cream as well as diced mangoes with a hint of fresh lime. Did I mention that I use our ice cream maker quite a bit during the summer? I also made a dairy version with organic milk, heavy cream, sugar, mango puree, mangoes and lime.

Organic roast. Tasty roast. Perfectly cooked roast! Look closely. THIS is how it should be cooked. Medium! Very juicy and delicious. Not turned into a piece of leather, please. I coated the outside of the roast with salt, pepper, rosemary from our yard, dried thyme, garlic powder and onion powder.

Beet salad-Steamed beets, Italian Parsley, sea salt, white pepper, olive oil, balsamic vinegar.

Can you guess what this is? Today was Easter.

Speaking of Easter, I've always hated the way almost anybody made hard boiled eggs. You know....the yolks were grey on the outside. Overcooked! Look below. Golden yolks on the inside and out. Happiness all around.

This was a component of a cinnamon bread loaf that J made this morning. Lemon and orange zest.

J wanted orange chicken the other day, so here it is

Thai style chicken over coconut rice-Chicken breast, sriracha, mint, short grain rice, coconut milk, canola oil, vinegar, sea salt, white pepper

Vietnamese style steak salad

Dirty rice

Caldo verde-Azores style. I do not like my caldo verde pureed like they do in Spain. Chunky and rustic, please.

Homemade organic heirloom tomato sauce with basil chiffonade over golden-browned polenta slices. Remember to cook the polenta in hot oil over medium heat for a while on both sides to achieve the perfect crust on the outside to give it texture contrast.

That's it for now! I hope you all have been cooking and enjoying great food with friends and family.

-W

More random images

2010-01-11T23:52:00.000-08:00

W here.

Yes, there have been a lack of updates! Babydom keeps us quite busy and I'm working in the old neighborhood across town the entire week.

Here are a few random images. Recipes will hopefully come later. Did I mention that we have these huge rosemary bushes at the house as well as a big Meyer lemon tree?

Coconut cake

Huli huli chicken

Fresh sardines, grilled

3 types of heirloom tomato pizza

cookies

Clams, shrimp over pasta with white wine sauce

Freshly baked biscuits with homemade peach jam

Lomi lomi salmon

Fresh burdock root with carrots

stuffing

BBQed(yes, that means low and slow) turkey for Thanksgiving

Pork spareribs, Tennessee style sauce/rub

Italian salad-Fennel and supremes of Cara Cara oranges

Roast with celeriac/parsnip puree and roasted carrots.

That's it for now!

Babycakes Los Angeles

2010-01-08T08:34:00.000-08:00

A certain little guy enjoyed his cupcake top from Babycakes. They're gluten free, agave sweetened cupcakes tops are so delicious! It is my favorite thing I have tasted there, for sure. The frosting is thick and sweet. Besides the cupcake tops, I tried two different cupcakes, brownies and banana bread. I was surprised that I liked the banana cupcake more than the vanilla one, it was more moist and flavorful. I tried a couple agave sweetened brownies but they were a little dry for me. The banana bread was good- moist and not too sweet.
When we went we weren't able to find a parking spot on the street (it was the grand opening) but we turned right down Los Angeles st (right after the bakery) and there was a $4 lot. When I go again I hope to find parking on the street. It seemed like there were more vegans than gluten free people. Anyways I really love being able to get gluten free, agave sweetened sweets. Just heavenly!

Babycakes LA Grand Opening

2010-01-03T13:32:00.000-08:00

The day was finally here. Babycakes opened up their new location in downtown LA and we went to go try some of their goods. J had already been to the location in NY when visiting family and recognized a few people behind the counter. There was a line and plenty of people taking pictures. I'm guessing food bloggers(obviously).

J will have a short review of the stuff she bought later on today.

-W

2009-11-05T09:40:00.001-08:00

W here again. Just so I don't look like too much of a fool, here's the NYMAG page where it said Masterchef:Australia was coming to the US(NOT Masterchef:US):

http://videos.nymag.com/video/Masterchef-Australia-Promo#c=8ZJRDH0RXQYGT69V&t=%22%27Masterchef:%20Australia%22%20Promo

Look on the top right. They didn't have any further information, thus the update.

But, if any of you GF people can get a hold of that wedding episode where they had to make a GF, please watch it!

Thanks for looking!

Masterchef:Australia(now US) coming to the US!

2009-11-04T11:16:00.000-08:00

We watched the entire season this past summer-there were 70-something episodes!

The main reason why I'm posting about it is because:

1. There is a very specific episode when the contestants are to make a GF cake for the wife. I'll post a spoiler way below.

2. It is a REALLY good show. Probably one of the best reality cooking shows(if not the best) that's available on tv in the entire world.

SPOILER BELOW:

So, this GF wedding cake challenge was towards the end of the season of Masterchef:Australia. You can imagine our excitement to have heard that and to see how other parts of the world view GF food.

They made a layered GF cake and if I remember correctly, the GF layer was on top. BUT.....ALL OF THE OTHER LAYERS(of non-GF cake) WERE BELOW THE TOP LAYER. So...you can imagine the horror when we saw the contestants cut from top to bottom for each slice, contaminating all of the slices. When they served the cake to the bride, there WAS an entire slice of layered GF/Non-GF cake on her plate. That my GF friends, is NOT GF. I feel that there definitely should have been way more communication about cross contamination to the contestants and it actually irritated me so that I had to go and register on the Australian tv channel's website forum(TEN) and make a huge post about how that cake wasn't GF.

So, there you have it. Now remember, Masterchef:Australia is a really damn good show. If you complain about Masterchef:Australia, well, then you haven't seen most of the reality cooking shows here in the US. They are almost all average/below average with Top Chef and The Next Iron Chef being exceptions. 72 episodes is about 4-5 times more episodes than a regular reality cooking show has in its season-Top Chef for example, which usually has 15-16 episodes per season.

If you're not familar with Masterchef, it's been on in the UK for a very long time. Masterchef:Australia will also feature Matt Preston, a big-time food critic that's been on No Reservations this past season when they visited Australia.

Waitress: 'There's no wheat in there(baguette)'

2009-08-08T10:40:00.000-07:00

W here.

So, we had a little incident at the Granville Cafe at the Americana Mall in Glendale a few weeks ago. It was so shocking to me that I almost didn't know what to say.

I'd been working so much that one Friday evening, we'd decided to go out and grab a bite to eat and bring the little guy along. Before we headed out, we were looking around at restaurants with 'safe' GF options. Granville Cafe it was. I immediately didn't like the waitress...you know the type. Trying to do too much and trying to pummel you into a memorized speech/pretend niceness induced coma. Ok, whatever...I let that go. I ordered a sandwich-which wasn't GF, but I'm not entirely GF(I am 98% of the time though)....J is 100% of course. So, J orders a green salad with shrimp and I think it had feta too. We checked with the waitress about the dressing and explained about J not being able to eat wheat, gluten, etc. It was GF and in the description it didn't say that it came with croutons, so we were good to go. We also ordered some sweet potato fries(which were actually yams) and those were GF as we grilled the waitress about the cooking oil, if it was coated in any flour, etc.

The yam fries were good and tasty. Looking good so far.

About 10 minutes later out orders come out and guess what? 2 big slices of baguette are sitting on top of the salad.

The conversation went something like this:

J(immediately upon seeing the baguette slices on the salad): I can't eat that. I can't eat wheat. I explained that before...
Clueless waitress: Oh, I'll just take it off..
J: No, I already told you, I can't eat wheat and if you just take it off and I eat the salad, I'll still get sick

This is the line that made me a bit dumbfounded and made me wonder how clueless and ignorant some people are.

Clueless waitress: There's no wheat in there

W(extremely dumbfounded and thinking....WHAT THE F..?)
J: YES there is. I can't eat that. That has wheat in it.
Clueless waitress: Ok, I'll take it back to the kitchen and take care of it.

*Now....wtf. I've known since I was in elementary school that bread was made of wheat and my mom didn't even bake anything at home at all! Did she think that the bread is it's own entity and just sprouts up from bread seeds in a bakery somewhere? I was really at a loss for words and also started to get very agitated...*

So, ok...this is where I don't really trust some places when you explicitly tell them no croutons, no wheat, etc in the food. I mean, do they really take it back to the kitchen and remake a new salad or just take the bread off and send it right back out? Can you really trust places to do what you politely ask? I'm still not sure. The place wasn't really busy at all, so the line wasn't busy I'm 100% positive. So finally the salad comes back out and not really trusting the kitchen, J just ate the shrimp because they were nowhere near the baguette slices before and they were extra to add to the salad.

$16 for 5 shrimp. What a ripoff! I ate the salad later on after we got home. J had to eat something else.

Oh yeah, my sandwich sucked too. It was a club sandwich and the bacon was cold and dry like it had been cooked way before and left to sit in the fridge. Very disappointing.

So, if you're ever in Glendale and eating at the Americana....you've been warned!

-W

The herban legend and much, much more!

2009-04-04T08:54:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been months since the last relevant post. The baby has us really busy and it's been great! He really likes going to the Santa Monica farmers market to see all of the people and things abound. So, since we haven't posted anything in months, there's a lot to cover.

So, where to start? This might go out of chronological order, but let's start with last Christmas. Christmas dinner for us is usually spent with my family(5 others), so it's a really small group. However, last year, there was a last minute decision to have the entire side of my family have dinner at my parents' house. So, from 9 to about 30 since some of my family were out of town. What to cook? I had wanted to make something very different this year than the traditional Christmas dinner. I had been wanting to make this for years and years, so where did I look to?

Spain and paella!

So, I headed on down to Santa Monica Seafood(highly recommended) and bought enormous amounts of littleneck clams, mussels, shrimp, squid and I had already bought a free range chicken and imported Spanish chorizo(yes, the REAL stuff). I had a ton of rice at home, so I wasn't about to go buy Valencia(the short grain rice that is used in Spain for paella) rice. My parents have this amazing meyer lemon tree and the lemons were cut off of the tree minutes before serving. I don't remember where I got the recipes from because I basically saw a few that I liked and made a hybrid. Just google 'paella recipe', then pick and choose.

As you can see in the pictures, the seafood components don't have very much color from the saffron. Now, you must understand that my parents live about 40 minutes away and if I were to put all of the seafood into the pan when I was making the paella, by the time I got there, everything would be overcooked. If I par cooked the seafood and took it off of the stovetop and tried to let it fully cook with residual heat, it would be undercooked. So, I opted to do the smartest thing and just cook the seafood right before I was going to serve the paella.

It was absolutely delicious! The recipes I referred to were pretty authentic for a seafood paella.

Here are just a few random things that I made for J when the baby was first born, meaning, no time to do anything but take care of baby:

Fish sticks with homemade tartar sauce with fresh Thyme.

Roasted red potatoes with thyme.

The recipe is dead simple and was made with lack of time in mind. I don't remember the exact number of potatoes since this was from last year. Cut the potatoes so that they are all small and the same size so that they all cook and will be done at the same time and put into a med-large mixing bowl. Drizzle enough olive oil to coat the potatoes then add salt and pepper to taste. Also toss in some fresh thyme and mix around until everything is incorporated. Put into your 400 degree oven on a cookie sheet or your pan in the toaster oven and cook until golden brown. The outside should be crispy and the inside soft for nice contrasting textures. We put it in our convection toaster oven at 400 for about 35-40 minutes. Anything higher will burn the potatoes and leave the insides raw. I think a conventional oven would take close to an hour. Every oven is different, so keep checking those potatoes just to make sure.

Sauteed carrots with olive oil and fresh thyme.

Peel carrots and cut on the bias into about 1/4 inch cuts. Olive oil goes into the pan and cook the carrots and thyme on medium heat. Carrots take a while to cook, that's why I always cut them thin.

Homemade fried chicken (with GF batter) and homemade sweet and sour sauce. I made these a month before the baby arrived and they heated up great in the toaster oven @ 400 degrees.

The batter is just brown rice flour, but you can use white rice flour, tapioca(tends to get gummy if not cooked long enough) or most other GF flours. I broke down a whole chicken into little morsels, dredged them in the GF flour and then fried until golden and crispy. As far as the sweet and sour sauce goes, I never go by a recipe because I just make it from memory. There are plenty of recipes on the internet and mine was comprised of white vinegar, agave nectar, tomato paste, GF tamari and cornstarch.

Sauteed chicken breast with avocado and honey mustard sauce.

I can't remember if the bread was bought from Whole Foods(most likely since I didn't have time to make it). I always buy whole chickens. I can't justify paying just as much for a WHOLE frickin chicken as I would for 2-3 chicken breasts. It's just a crime. It basically works like this. J eats only the breast meat and I eat everything else. Yup, everything. Neck, gizzards, liver, the entire thing. After I break the chicken down, I'll usually make fresh chicken broth. So, after the breasts are removed from the chicken, I cut them in half so that they cook faster. Season both sides with salt and pepper. So, as far as the honey mustard sauce goes, it's easy. You can adjust honey or mustard(dijon is preferred) depending on your taste, but I usually have it more towards the mustard, but only slightly. You want balance. Add a tiny bit of olive oil to bind everything together and mix! You won't really need to add salt as the mustard is probably salty enough.

Bacon-wrapped yellowtail.

Now, you must remember. Yellowtail is an extremely lean fish. They are only fatty during the winter. Yes, I've caught my own and I know the difference. So, lean dry yellowtail needs....hmm...bacon! I believe that was free range pork bacon. Crispy bacon outside, moist, firm yellowtail on the inside. Just remember to cook on medium over the stovetop. If you can, cook both sides for 5 minutes and then throw the pan(if you have the proper kind) into the over at 425 for another 5 minutes to cook evenly.

Free range beef lettuce wrap.

You don't have to use free range beef. You can also use ground turkey, chicken, pork, etc.

This is for two people:
-1 package protein of choice.
-lettuce, iceberg or butter lettuce. I find iceberg to be better for this because of the crisper texture. That's about all iceberg is good for.
-fresh ginger, about 1-2 teaspoons(depending on your taste) of fresh grated on the microplane or very finely minced.
-cilantro, chopped. Put as much as you like.
season with salt and pepper to taste.
-sriracha if you like it spicy!

Thoroughly combine in a mixing bowl and then sautee on med high heat until cooked. Serve in lettuce cups that are washed and spun dry in a salad spinner if possible.

Clam pasta with white sauce, stuffed manilla clams and fresh asparagus.

Clam pasta with white sauce
-GF pasta, linguine is usually used, but I didn't have the time to go out and buy it, so I used GF spaghetti instead.
-fresh clams. Manilla or littleneck. Make sure to put your clams in a large container of cold water 30 minutes or so before cooking. Why? Well, if you do, the clams will spit out any residual sand that they have inside of them. Sand+pasta isn't a good combination.
-italian parsley, chopped
-milk or heavy cream, enough to thicken
-parmigiano reggiano

Cook pasta until done. At the same time, steam the clams in a pot and reserve some of the liquid since it's full of flavor from the clams. Let clams cool and remove clams from the shell, then chop. Put pasta in a large pan on med-high heat, add clams and add about a quarter cup of milk or heavy cream. Cook for only a few more minutes as you don't want the pasta to get mushy. It really depends on the brand of GF pasta you buy. I find with the GF pasta we buy from Trader Joe's, you really have to cook them for a while. Plate and sprinkle with freshly chopped italian parsley. Microplane some reggiano on top if desired.

Stuffed clams
-1 pound littleneck or manilla clams
-italian parsley, chopped
-bacon, cooked and minced. Reserve a tiny bit of bacon fat to put into the mixture to prevent it drying out.
-GF breadcrumbs. I used GF waffles. I toasted the waffles a few times to get them crispy and golden, then put them into a food processor.

Mix bread crumbs, parsley, bacon, reserve bacon fat, salt pepper into a mixing bowl. Steam the clams until they open. Discard any that aren't open after cooking. If they don't open, that means that they're dead and they were dead before you bought them. It happens. After removing clams from the steamer, scoop a bit of your mixture and put it inside of the clams. Arrange on a baking sheet or toaster oven pan and broil for a few minutes. Remove from heat, arrange on plate.

Asparagus is easy as anything to cook. We like to eat them when they have texture and a bit of crispness to them. Steam asparagus until they turn bright green and slightly tender. Don't overcook it or else it'll turn a very dull, greenish-brown.

Ok, fast forward a bit to this year and spring.

Fresh peas!

Minty peas with wild salmon and roasted potatoes.

-Enough fresh peas for 2 people, shelled.
-potatoes, I used fingerling potatoes. Probably 6 of them. Cut on the bias, about half an inch wide.
-Salmon, we used wild, you can use farmed of course.

The potatoes were tossed with olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. I then put them in the toaster oven on convection setting at 400 degrees. When the potatoes were almost done, I started seasoning the salmon with salt and pepper on both sides. Since it's wild salmon, I wanted to cook it medium rare. If you want well done, you mind as well buy farmed. Wild salmon is a beautiful thing, so treat it with great respect. While cooking the salmon for 3 minutes on each side on medium I also started boiling the peas. It only takes a few minutes for the peas. You don't want to overcook fresh peas. So, after cooking the salmon and peas, I chopped mint and mixed that with the peas along with sea salt, pepper and a tiny bit of olive oil. Sometimes you can partially mash them, but I kept them whole. The peas were succulent, tender and sweet. One of our favorite things for the spring season. Salmon and potatoes were also great.

Last week, I bought what seems like our weekly group of herbs.

Behold!

Can you name all of those herbs?

The main reason for all of those herbs are because I've been making a lot of vietnamese style noodles(pho) that uses mint, basil and cilantro. Sweet thai basil that is commonly found with pho isn't always readily available here in West LA, so I get regular basil. The others there are chives, watercress, thyme and dill.

Fried rice.

-Any oil that is relatively flavorless like safflower, canola, NO olive oil.
- 2 free range organic eggs or any kind of chicken eggs
- fresh ginger, microplaned
- garlic, microplaned
- carrots, cut thinly on the bias for quick cooking (I used white and orange)
- chives
- long grain rice, we had previously made jasmine rice so we used that.

Scramble the eggs in a separate pan, but don't overcook them. Set aside. Add oil to a large pan on med-high heat, add carrots and cook for several minutes. Then add the rice and coat the rice with the oil by moving the rice around with a spatula. After close to 10 minutes and when the rice starts changing color, add microplaned ginger and garlic. Mix more and take off of heat. Mix eggs in, plate, then garnish with chives.

California sole with minty peas and roasted potatoes or California sole with minty peas and roasted dill potatoes.

Basically, the peas(peas were mashed this time)and the potatoes were prepared the same way as the wild salmon, roasted potatoes and peas. The only difference in this one is that it uses freshly caught sole from local waters and fresh thyme/thyme flowers are sprinkled on top to garnish.

Same exact thing here except dill is incorporated into the potatoes.

Everything was great, but man...the peas sure did stand out yet again.

Ok, now we go back in time around 8-9 months to 2008. I made a ton of food that was then frozen to be reheated later when the baby was born. If any of you have had a newborn, you'll know about the lack of sleep and time.

Homemade macaroni and cheese!

Hawaiian-style lunch.

Very spicy sausage(usually portuguese sausage), rice, spring onions, sunny side up egg.

Now we go back to summer when figs were in season. Figs wrapped with bacon. Super easy to do and based on a recipe by Eric Ripert. You can also substitute dates for the figs. It's a balancing act of sweet/salty/savory. Great little canapes.

The next few things were from the Sensitive Baker in Culver City. Cupcakes with frosting and Challah bread. J was pregnant during that time, so those cupcakes didn't last very long.

J did something ingenious with the Challah. She unrolled it and we had ingredients to make cinnamon rolls! I think those ingredients were cinnamon, powdered sugar and rice milk. She made a few and let me say, they were delicious! I wasn't allowed to take more than a tiny morsel though.

Jamaican black bean burger.

I don't remember what the sauce was. The black bean burger was really good, but I can't remember the ingredients besides black beans, rice and maybe allspice and ginger.

Dragonfruit and Satsuma oranges!

Lamb with chanterelle risotto, yams and black truffle.

-Free range lamb(cooked medium)
-fresh chanterelle mushrooms
-arborio rice
-chicken broth
-yams
-parmigiano reggiano
-black truffle(optional)

Don't worry, I trimmed the lamb fat afterwards and my dog got some of it as a treat.

Leftover chicken soup.

So, remember what I said about buying a whole chicken? The leftover roasted chicken that I had goes into a soup with fresh thyme, onion, shallots, carrots and celery. Bad photo though. Reflection from the lights.

Noodle soup.

Herbs. Lots of herbs! Remember the herbs way earlier in this post and 2 hours of your life wasted ago? Yep, some of those herbs.

-Cilantro
-Mint
-Basil
-bean sprouts
-rice noodles(there aren't any good southeast asian stores around West LA, so I have to opt for pad thai noodles). Across town is a different story though.
-thinly sliced beef, chicken, pork or fish. Slicing any kind of meat, poultry or fish is really easy for me since I have really good knife skills. If you don't want to deal with the mess or aren't so good at it, have your butcher slice thin slices for you.
-sriracha
-limes
-baby bok choi

Seared diver scallops.

1 pound, diver scallops, dry packed. Season both sides with salt and pepper, put into hot pan on med high heat and sear until well carmelized on both sides. DO NOT overcook your scallops! Lemon juice and chives to finish.

Dungeness crab.

Unfortunately, we don't live in the SF Bay, Washington State or the Oregon coast. So, we have to get our dungeness crabs pre-cooked. I love dungeness crabs. I've been eating them since I was a kid.

The meat from the legs and claws is sweet, tasty and all, but the REAL crab connaisseurs know where the good stuff is. In the shell.

The pure crab taste along with the different textures from the viscera and fat is commonly referred to the 'crab butter' and it is mighty fine. If there is roe in there, you just hit the jackpot.

The oyster.

Perhaps my most favorite of all. It's hard. Really hard to beat something so pure in taste. It tastes of the ocean and depending on the variety and where they came from, sweeter or more briny. The Atlantic ocean has a higher level of salinity, so all of the east coast oysters are more briny in taste. My favorite is the Kumamoto. I like every kind I can get my hands on. Carlsbad Aquafarms sells a dozen for $10 and I usually get the Luna oysters. They are comparable to the Kumamotos. A complete steal if you ask me. Of course I've also eaten the hama hamas and they are slightly sweet and very plump.

Luna oysters(a dozen of the hundreds I've enjoyed this past year)

Hama hama oysters

That's about it for now.

Thanks for looking!

The campaign for real broth/stock!

2009-01-03T07:33:00.000-08:00

Ok, I ripped part of that from the Fenwick Arms' campaign for 'Real Gravy' in Lancashire. You may have noticed that for the most part, we've been using pre-made chicken broth in recipes. This was mostly because J was pregnant and could not stand any smells eminating from the kitchen at all. After the first few death threats that were issued to me(without sharp kitchen utensils I might add), I had to switch to pre-made. There's nothing wrong with using pre-made broth if you're in a pinch, but if you have the time(and your wife isn't pregnant any more), then go for the home made stuff. It not only tastes WAY better, you'll know what actually goes in it rather than reading the ingredients on the box. We usually bought the organic, GF kind at Whole Foods or Trader Joes during J's pregnancy.

Fast forward to the present. J's has been limiting her food to certain ones to see if it affects our little guy via breastmilk. So, she's been wanting to eat chicken. She only eats the breast meat since eating anything with any other strange texture grosses her out. I've worked around that a few times already by breaking the chicken down to nuggets, leaving practically nothing on the carcass, dredging it in a GF flour mixture and frying them into tasty little morsels. From that carcass, I have happily been able to make an excellent broth or stock like the old days! For broth, I'll usually throw in a mire poix with the bones, add spices and then let that simmer for hours, let cool then take out all of the fat on top. Otherwise, I'll throw the carcass+bones in the convection oven and roast that for a while, then throw it into a pot with herbs, spices. etc for a stock. The results-An excellent, gelatinous creation that is much deeper in flavor than a store-bought broth/stock.

I'd show a picture, but I already used up a large pyrex of chicken broth that I'd made earlier this week and the other large container is in the freezer.

If you have the time, go for it!

Happy 2009

-W

Learn to bake GF at the CIA in Hyde Park, NY

2008-11-14T12:18:00.000-08:00

Fresh off the presses:

GF baking classes at the CIA

Learning to bake GF takes time and is pretty easy once you get the hang of it. If you want a crash course, check out the CIA if you're around Hyde Park!

Gluten free cakes and cookies and free shipping! (they are kosher too)

2008-09-26T11:00:00.000-07:00

Oh my you can get gluten free lace cookies, rainbow cookies, layer cakes, cake rolls and much more with no shipping charges any where in the U.S. ! I can't believe it. I'll have to try it.
Check out Shabtai Gourmet.
They say they also have products available at Gelsons in Sherman Oaks, Tarzana and Calabasas.

I hope they are as good as they look!

Gluten free Donuts!

2008-08-25T03:12:00.000-07:00

I had to blink so that I knew I was not seeing things..I had been craving a cinnamon donut but did not want to try to attempt to make them- then lo and behold we stopped off at this market on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu and look what I found!!

They also had maple glazed and vanilla glazed. I think it was $7 for the box of 6 little donuts. They are in the freezer section of this Pacific Coast Greens store. I heated up the cinnamon flavor in the toaster oven. It tasted like a donut! This gluten free pregnant woman thought she'd died and gone to heaven!

Santa Monica Farmers market

2008-07-06T17:08:00.000-07:00

Yes, yes....very busy here with the baby coming soon. J hasn't had time to do much. I took a bunch of pictures a few weeks ago of the Santa Monica farmers market on a Wednesday morning. Fantastic produce abound and there is almost everything there that you can think of. Especially right now. You can also see quite a few of the local restaurants buying produce from the various purveyors and why not? This farmers market is one of the best in the entire US. Locals(restaurants and people) should take advantage of that.

One big thing I noticed when we visited Ireland was that most of the produce was imported in from other countries. Avocados from South Africa, grapes from Chile and ...even some stuff from California! I can't even remember everything else. It really made us appreciate how bountiful and accessible the great produce is in Southern California.

I've also bought a dozen, fresh oysters from Carlsbad Aquafarm(Northern San Diego county). They were pretty damn good when I shucked them at home and ate them with a bit of lemon juice. Also picked up some haricots verts last week, which were excellent. I'll upload those pictures later.

Here are the pictures in no particular order:

A Gluten Free event at the Sensitive Baker in Los Angeles and gluten free Seattle coming soon

2008-06-03T14:55:00.000-07:00

We returned from a short trip to Kirkland, Washington and Seattle a couple days ago.
I'll be writing about it soon. The picture above is from Cinnamon Works- a bakery at Pike's Place in Seattle. They had a bunch of Gluten free stuff.

For now I wanted to share about a fun Gluten free event happening this week in Los Angeles. I wanted to stop by The Sensitive Baker for some of there focaccia- the only gluten free bread I have found that I actually enjoy. Any other kind I'd rather not even bother to eat. I was sad to find they would be closed, I'll have to find something else to eat on my flight to NY on Thursday! However, it sounds like they are closed for a really cool reason! Read below from their blog:

Come celebrate with us at The Sensitive Baker in Culver City and be a part of an episode of A&E’s new show “We Mean Business”, a small-business makeover show, premiering this summer.

We want you to share in our joy on
Thursday June 5th from 4:30 – 6:30 pm
as we have our Grand Reopening event. Come try all of our amazing baked goods; oh and did we mention not only do they taste good but they are gluten-free! MMMMM! As our special gift to you, the first 50 people who come to the event will receive a limited edition The Sensitive Baker canvas bag as our way of saying Thank YOU! To top it all off, during the event every $10 you spend in the store earns you a raffle ticket for an entry into the grand prize drawing: a $100 gift certificate to The Sensitive Baker! What more could you ask for?!
RSVP NOW, space is limited!

EMAIL: JWOODBECK@GRBTV.COM

We look forward to seeing you there!

Johnathan “Woody” Woodbeck
“We Mean Business” — Segment Producer

GRB Entertainment

I wish I could go!

Mother's day dinner..

2008-05-12T14:25:00.000-07:00

We went over to W's parents house yesterday for dinner.
I picked out this recipe for egg flan with purple potatoes from La Tartine Gourmande. I love this blog. A food stylist and writer makes delicious food and takes beautiful pictures that she displays here. It isn't all gluten free but there is a category of gluten free recipes. Eye candy for sure! Makes you feel good about being gluten free! Here are some of our ingredients:

It was so easy to make, just like a fritatta.
For dessert I made maple sweetened lemon pudding from the April/May Living Without magazine. I loved that issue for all of it's sugar alternative recipes.
I also made a meringue for the top where I just substituted agave nectar for the sugar.
We put a few candied lemon peel slices that we made ( these had sugar) on top. It was really good.

A Big Warning About Optimum Health Resources

2008-05-07T09:21:00.000-07:00

Two years after giving up gluten I started to get this "eye pain" when I ate certain foods. It took me a long time just to realize that is was foods causing these headaches. Once I did, I spent the next 3 years trying to figure out what foods caused this pain. Other foods would make my nose completely stuffed up. I tried asking doctors about it and I got a xray of my sinuses because for a long time I thought it was my sinuses. It wasn't, at least the eye pain wasn't.

Then this past November I was just so frustrated and desperate with these food triggered headaches I decided to spend the money and get an allergy test. I decided to do the at home finger prick test, a 96 food panel for allergies from Optimum Health Resources ( formerly York Laboratories) The test cost $347. Some websites actually recommended this company (including celiac.com) On Optimum Health Resource's website it says that they were featured in Women's First magazine. So I thought it was a reputable company.

I don't know why I didn't search the forums for reviews like I do before buying anything or going anywhere for a service. BIG MISTAKE on my part. An even bigger mistake not to try to contact them before I ordered the test.

It wasn't until 8 weeks went by after sending the test back ( on their site it says it takes 6-8 weeks to get results back) that I started to do more research on them. Then I found all of the complaints on the message boards of glutenfreeforum.com. I started to get worried. At this point I called and left a message and e-mailed the company, expecting some response. I received no response whatsoever. They don't actually have a phone number where you can reach someone, it's just a machine. I continued to call and e-mail and leave messages.

On the forum some people said that they did get their results eventually after 12 weeks, so I still had hope, but the weeks kept passing. This all started 6 months ago!! Still no word from them. I filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau and still they did not reply. I urge anyone who is having similar problems with them to file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau and please contact me. Maybe a group of people with have more impact than just one person.

If anyone has any advice I welcome it. I am not sure what my next step should be to get my money back. Could I take them to small claims court even though they are across they U.S.? Or should I contact a Florida Newspaper/News channel? I have no idea.

Please, Please DO NOT use Optimum Health Resources. It is unbelievable that they continue to take (steal) people's money. They should not be allowed to do business.

Will be posting again very soon.

2008-05-03T21:40:00.000-07:00

Well, we moved a few blocks away from the beach and we've been busy packing and we finally moved in today.

Plenty of pics to post as well as some recipes if I remember correctly. It'll be very interesting to see how the farmers market is over here compared to the one in Pasadena.

Skosh Monahans

2008-04-07T12:51:00.001-07:00

On a drive back over the weekend from La Jolla, J wanted to stop off at Skosh Monahan's. An Irish pub in Costa Mesa that has GF items on its menu. On the weekends, it opens at 4pm and on weekdays, 5pm. We ordered the items to go and we ordered the GF pizza and the chicken tenders with fries.

So, we really never know what to expect with ordering GF pizza in the states because from our experience, they are all pre-made and bought into the restaurants or stores. Below is the pizza. The pizza below is from the childrens menu, so that's why it's so small. It is soy cheese and it didn't really melt when it was heated up.

The chicken tenders with fries. We both vastly preferred the chicken tenders because of the taste and texture. It's hard to say something bad about a place that does in fact offer a good selection of GF pub grub for the GF crowd and when you go to a pub, you expect pub-level food. So, yes, chicken tenders and fries ruled the evening.

I'm not sure exactly where their family is from in Ireland, but the Monahans were originally from County Roscommon, in central Ireland. J's mother's side is from County Waterford, in southern Ireland.

Here is the link to Skosh Monahan's website where you can see the GF menus:

http://www.skoshmonahans.com/

-W

GF croutons and 2 different kinds of soup.

2008-03-30T18:56:00.000-07:00

This weekend here in LA...chilly. Saturday morning, we headed on down to the farmers market and picked up some of the usual produce. J is finally feeling like eating vegetables and such, so I was happy to hear that.

So, J wanted to have potato leek soup and we got ingredients for that as well as some other things I was thinking of making.

I don't think I've ever posted a potato leek soup recipe, but it's really, really easy. I've made it a bunch of times and like a lot of the things I've made more than a few times(this doesn't include baked items), I don't need to follow a recipe. It's all in my head somewhere.

Here's an older post with pictures of the potato leek soup with chives as a garnish.

Sometimes I'll add a few shallots to the recipe just for fun as I did in that above link. Just go to Google and do a search for a potato leek soup recipe and you'll be in good hands.

So, after I made the potato leek soup, J had the good idea of making GF croutons. We had bread that we had made and it was in the fridge. So, she cut them into slices and then into cubes. Olive oil into the skillet, when hot, add the bread and make sure the heat isn't too high because otherwise, they'll burn. She also added dried oregano. garlic powder and sea salt to taste. -(Make sure that you cook one side of the croutons FIRST before adding the herbs and seasoning. )- Why? Well, if you add it early, nothing will stick to the bread and it'll all fall off into the skillet and burn. If you cook one side first, the bread is coated in olive oil and everything will stick and add flavor.

After making sure one side was browned, she turned them over to brown the other side. Seem like a lot of work? Well, not really. The results are fantastic and any really GOOD restaurant should make their croutons in the restaurant, not order them in.

Crunchy, tasty GF croutons with potato leek soup. I'm glad she wanted to make croutons because it adds a contrasting texture element to the soup as well as some really good flavor. Very warming for those cold days like Saturday was and it actually rained Saturday night.

A Meyer lemon comparison.

Growing up, we always had lemons in the backyard from a lemon tree my grandfather(carpenter/fisherman/gardener extraordinaire and one of the greatest people I know) planted a really long time ago. When I was a kid, I never knew why the lemons in our backyard had 4-5 times more juice than lemons from a grocery store and weren't as sour. Well, enter the Meyer Lemon.

My mom gave us a bunch last week and they were used for various culinary delights, but I used almost all of them for freshly made lemonade. Each of the home-grown lemons easily had 5 tablespoons of juice.

So, below....the Meyer lemon on the left is from the FM and the one on the right is from my parents' backyard. No, there is nothing wrong with the color calibration on your monitor. The FM lemon is actually orange like an orange and the one from my parents' is a deep, bright yellow. They both taste the same.

J didn't believe me when I told her that I saw orange Meyer lemons a month ago at the FM. Now she does.

Ok, so on to the second soup! This one in particular is menudo(Mexican tripe soup)-inspired.

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you'll know that tripe is one of my favorite things to eat and I like it most in menudo or made chinese style with ginger, some soy and thinly sliced scallions on top. I know...gross you say! Well, to me if you eat ANY kind of animal protein, you had better be eating and enjoying almost everything on the creature. To not do so disrespects the thing that died in order for you to eat and it's boring. Severely boring. I can go on all day and night talking about that, but let's get back to the soup!

I didn't take a picture of all of the ingredients, but I'll list them here:

-3 Tbs of olive oil
-1 large can of hominy
-tomato paste
-tomato sauce
-4 to 5 large, chopped carrots
-1/4 small cabbage, thinly sliced
-4 to 5 garlic cloves(adjust to your personal preference, I like a lot of garlic)
-3 shallots(or half an onion), finely diced
-1 container of GF organic, low sodium, chicken broth
-Sea salt to taste
-2 Tbs Ground Mexican oregano(you can find this in LA easily at most stores in the 'ethnic' aisle)
-4 Tbs Ground New Mexico chiles(you can find this in LA easily at most stores in the 'ethnic' aisle)
-Mexican hot sauce(optional) I use Cholula or Tapatio in addition because I like really spicy food.
-Limes
-Cilantro, chopped

Heat olive oil in the pot at medium heat and add shallots, garlic and carrots. When shallots are almost translucent, add hominy and cabbage. The extra water from adding the hominy will prevent the garlic from burning(also why you should cook over medium heat). Add the ground oregano and chile as well as season with some salt to taste.

After carrots have softened and the hominy is partially cooked through, add the entire box of chicken stock (and water if you wish to thin the soup). Also add 2 Tbs of tomato paste and 1 cup of tomato sauce. Stir until paste is broken up and incorporated. Let simmer for 15-20 more minutes or until carrots are cooked through and no longer crisp.

Pour soup in a bowl, add a squeeze of lime and add chopped cilantro on top for garnish.

-W

No sugar marshmallows and rice crispies! and deviled eggs..

2008-03-23T21:32:00.000-07:00

Didn't we just make something for a special occasion?

It feels like later in the year when it's Thanksgiving, my birthday/my dad's birthday, my brother's birthday and then Christmas. Non-stop cooking.

Well, anyways...Happy Easter! Colored eggs courtesy of J.

So, how onto this recipe. It doesn't have anything to do with Easter at all. J wanted to make homemade marshmallows from agave nectar and gelatin. So, we did.

You can find the exact recipe here.

I forgot the exact amounts for the gelatin.

In a mixing bowl, add gelatin to warm water and mix until mostly combined. Add 2 cups of agave nectar and a pinch of salt. Use a hand blender and blend for about 15 minutes until fluffy. In a glass baking dish, sprinkle and spread cornstarch so that the marshmallow mixture won't stick.

Use a lightly oiled spatula to spread the mixture out until almost completely flat and even all around. Let it cool and set for 3 hours(overnight like we did.) Our baking dish has a cover, so cover with saran wrap, tinfoil or whatever when cooled down.

On a large, flat surface(such as a cutting board), sprinkle and spread some cornstarch and then pull out your marshmallows to cut into squares. I'd cut them into long strips or smaller chunks so that it's easier to get out of the baking dish before cutting into smaller squares.

The end result. Light and fluffy.

So, after we made the marshmallows, J wanted to make some GF 'Rice Krispy' treats. FYI-Rice Krispies are NOT GF. That's why we bought the product below.

You can get the recipe off of Kellog's website, but this is an all too familiar recipe for me since I made it growing up.

Melt 3 Tbs of butter on low heat.

Throw in homemade marshmallows(1 1/2 cups if using pre-made marshmallows)and stir until melted.

Add crispy brown rice, stir to incorporate.

We actually added more marshmallows than the recipe called for and we were discussing the texture later. We noticed that in using the brown rice(Rice Krispies are made with white rice to my knowledge) they didn't absorb the moisture of the marshmallows like RK would and the homemade marshmallows weren't as heavy, sticky or dense compared to a normal marshmallow.

Why? Well, first of all, corn syrup and regular sugar. Did I miss that? No, not at all. These were light and they had that crunch and sweetness. My sisters swore we added something else to it besides what we told them, but it was just that we used brown rice and agave nectar.

Almost completely cooled.

Cut, arranged and ready to eat. No, these did not last long after dinner.

Well, what's Easter without more eggs?

We buy our eggs at the farmers market. I love these things. One of the most versatile products in the culinary realm. The ones we buy? Cage-free, jumbo brown eggs. $4 for 20 eggs. Sounds good to me. A dozen cage-free organic brown eggs is just about $4 at Whole Foods.

So, J wanted deviled eggs and well, here are the ingredients. I ran out of dry mustard power quite a while ago and I used the pre-made stuff instead. For half of the eggs, I added pickles and the other half, I didn't.

A few of the tasty treats. I think I made about 15 eggs worth for today. They were also devoured later on.

The last thing we made was a salad. Mixed 'gourmet' greens with shredded carrots, cucumbers, crumbled goat's cheese with a vinaigrette. Complete with edible flower on top..

Yummy sugar free, peanut free, nutty granola bars!

2008-03-21T19:50:00.000-07:00

These granola bars remind me of how the Quaker chewy granola bars taste- except these are crunchy. They are sweet but I used sweetened crispy rice instead of regular. I based this recipe of of the tasty looking recipe on GlutenFreeForGood.com
Yay for processed sugar free granola bars!
That recipe had a bunch of things that I am intolerant to (peanut butter and coconut, cocoa nibs) or that I just didn't have. Here's what worked for me:

Sugar Free, Peanut Free, Nutty Granola Bars

1 1/4 c chopped almonds
2 C gluten free oats
1 1/2 c gluten free crispy rice cereal
1/2 cup raisins ( or more if you like more)

Toast oats and almonds on a pan at 350 for about 8 -10 minutes, stirring every 4- 5 minutes to make sure they aren't burning.
Let cool a little then combine with crispy rice and raisins in a metal or glass bowl

Next combine in a pot
1/4 cup agave syrup (can be found at Trader Joes)
1/4 c maple syrup
1/4 cup soynut butter (or you could try almond butter or peanut butter)
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 - 3/4 tsp salt

bring to a boil over medium heat, after it boils turn down the heat to low/med. Boil about 5 minutes, until it thickens a bit.

Pour over oat/ rice mixture and stir to combine.

Spread it out onto a lightly greased pan and put into the fridge until they start to get crispy. Cut up and store in the fridge.
I ate them up in only a few days- I wish I had more now.

Gluten Free Ireland 2006!

2008-03-16T11:00:00.000-07:00

Alright, here it is. I wanted to do this way earlier, but I've been working all the time and it's been hard to actually sit down and get some time to post something about our first trip to Ireland. We first went back in 2006 with J's parents and we had a blast.

This is a ridiculously long post, so get ready to read.

I'd really like to do a chronological narrative travelogue to accompany the photos like I've always done because it makes for a much better read, but I have to go prep all of the veg and start the corned beef!

Ardmore.

Aird Mhor is the Gaelic(Irish) spelling in case you were wondering. J's mother's side came from Ardmore to New York, eventually settling in NYC like many Irish families did long ago.

The beach at Ardmore.

So, black pudding(blood sausage)....what is it? Well, black pudding in Ireland is made out of blood, fat, oatmeal and some grains. Recipes differ from region to region and every country has their version of blood sausage. The particular kind that is pictured below is I think Clonakilty black pudding and it's very popular. This kind is NOT GF, but when we were walking around Dublin and Galway(two of the largest cities in Ireland), they did have GF versions that were a different brand. This is usually included in the mammoth Traditional Irish breakfast and depending on the doneness of the black pudding, it is mushy or just right. I prefer mine cooked through with a tiny bit of crispiness on the outside.

So, what is that? Well yes, that is a selection of GF bread inside of Tesco in Dublin. Almost EVERY city we've been to no matter how small it was and no matter what store it was had a selection of GF food. We found that amazing and it made traveling much, much easier on J and her mother. There are larger quantities available than in the following 2 pictures. There are more further down in this post.

This is a place called Lynhams. It's a carvery-style place that had some decent food. I had some really good curry. Not sure if that was GF, but J did get a GF meal and she did ask the chef before she ordered to confirm. The great thing about Ireland is that almost everybody you talk to at B&B's or restaurants knows what Celiac(Coeliac in Ireland) is because it is one of the countries where Celiac disease and GF options are very prevalent.

J got a lunch consisting of cabbage, potatoes, rice and carrots.

Below is dinner at the Charthouse in Dingle. I can't remember what the fish was, but it was probably Pollack. When you eat at these restaurants or any restaurant around the world in general, you have to make sure to ask about fish dishes because some place DO dredge the fish in flour to give it a crisp coating.

I'm almost positive this was European Plaice(a type of fish) and is local product.

I had an appetizer of local cooked oysters and they were good, but I definitely prefer raw oysters for sure. The time we were in Ireland, the world famous Galway Oyster Festival was going to happen. We left the day it started though.

These are the Cliffs of Moher. Or....umm...what we could see of them. The wind and rain during some days were almost hurricane-strength. I've never seen rain and wind like that in my life. Ireland had the tail-end of a hurricane that was off of the east coast of the US and unfortunately, we were feeling the effects during our trip.

A delicious plate of local Mussels in Cohb.

More GF goodness. This time, GF cookies and biscuits.

Cows right near the beach in Garretstown. While J and her parents were walking around town in Kinsale, I took the car over to Garretstown for a fishing session.

We bought these in Dublin and J was really glad to be snacking on something.

J on the shores of Dingle harbor.

J had this meal in Galway. It was fresh Irish Salmon with local prawns. J had a really hard time eating so much fish almost everyday. I forgot the name of this restaurant, but the food was pretty good. When traveling around the world, eat local food. You're there and only going to have that one chance to eat local products. Irish prawns and Salmon are so very delicious.

Seafood chowder. One of the best things to eat in Ireland if you're looking for comfort-type food. This version is of course GF. I had it and J's mom had it as well. The ingredients? It could be any type of fish. Salmon, Pollack, Haddock, Plaice as well as cockles, prawns, mussels, cream, milk, parsley. Really, really good and warming on those cold, rainy days/night we were there.

The large, GF aisle in Tesco.

We bought all of this in Dublin for J to eat in case she couldn't find anything when we were going places.

Ok, another shot from Cohb. Confusing, huh? J's mom ordered a ham and cheese platter and she brought her own GF crackers.

The Traditional Full Irish Breakfast.

Heart attack on a plate, but you can't get this anywhere else. The full English breakfast is similar. Irish rashers(bacon that is very different than American bacon), eggs cooked the way of choice, baked beans(strange, huh?), black pudding, white pudding, fried potatoes, sausages and a tomato. Whew! Now, like I've said, the black, white puddings as well as the sausage might not be GF. That's one of the main reasons why J ate so much fish at the B&B's while we were there. There is usually a really large selection of things to eat at a B&B. They have all sorts of cheeses, fruit, yogurt, porridge, cereal as well as a menu to order certain things such as the Irish breakfast as shown below.

In Ireland, ALL of the oatmeal are kept in separate silos from wheat. So, you can get oatmeal anywhere. We didn't know this the first time we went, so J didn't eat any.

Jim Edwards restaurant in Kinsale.

J ordered fish.

Self explanatory, John Benny's pub in Dingle. The food that we ordered was ok. J ordered the prawns and they weren't as good as the place she ordered prawns at in Kinsale. The waitress knew what items were GF and that was great.

Now, don't get confused. This store in Dublin is called 'Kilkenny'. That is also the name of a city in Ireland and J kept getting confused when I kept talking about the store and the actual city that we stayed in later on. Inside the store, it has a cafe which has GF things to eat! I know it's hard to see, but on the second line of the menu, you can see that is says 'Organic, yeast free, wheat and gluten free...' You can get ANY sandwich they had on the menu on GF bread.

How cool is that?

J was SO happy because at this point, we hadn't slept in a really, really long time and we were all really hungry. We weren't able to sleep on the flight over from JFK because these kids were crying and running around. The flight was overnight and when we arrived in Dublin, it was the morning.

GF sandwich!
GF scone!
Breakfast at the B&B in Kinsale. Fresh Pollack with scrambled eggs.

The usual Irish street. Does it seem a little small? Well, it is. Thankfully, it's a one-way street. Most streets and roads in Ireland(unless you're in a really large city or on the Motorway) will be the size of a small, European car.....and as we've experienced, there are cars coming towards you. Driving in Ireland is a hair-raising, adrenaline-filled, life flashing before your eyes, cardiac arrest-inducing experience.

Street signs only appear where the streets begin and end. Most maps that are sold don't show the smaller streets, only the main ones. So, we did drive on streets and roads in the city and countryside wondering where the heck we were going.

Ah yes....the picture below. It was around lunchtime in Dublin and we were all starving. So, J's dad went back to the B&B for some rest and we decided to walk to this hotel that had GF lunch. Now, I must say.....in Ireland when you ask people for directions and they say 'Oh, it's not that far, only 15 minutes away', that means it's like an hour away. I asked an older Irish gentleman about that and he said that he didn't know why, but one in every seven people in Ireland would give you the correct directions.

We ended up walking for close to an hour(with a map and correct directions) and when we got there, the lunch was closed. Damn it! So, we walked all the way back, sleep deprivation at full capacity and I think we rested and went out later. I really don't remember.

Ok, more out of sequence photos. This is from earlier in the post where we went to that carvery-style place. When we were on the way to the Muckross house, there is this town that was named 'Hollywood'. Why you ask? Well, Mel Gibson had filmed parts of Braveheart there.

Muckross house cafeteria. Of course it was raining when we got there, but after wandering around the immense and gorgeous grounds, we had to eat. So, right when we turned the corner to go in, what did we see? Well......

As I've said before, it's like a GF wonderland.

J ordered soup and GF bread. I forgot what kind of soup it was.

Another photo of Ardmore. J and her mom.

Part of the breakfast at almost any B&B in Ireland. I believe this photo was from the B&B in Kinsale. Fruit, cheese and a selection of different meat.

A pub in Dingle. Seriously, if you would have watched this guy and his friend perform, he was almost possessed. Look at his eyes. That's some Poltergeist stuff right there.

Remember what I told you about driving in Ireland? This is on the way up to Ladies View on the Ring of Kerry. That road was only the size of about 1.5 cars. Not even kidding. That tourbus was coming down at around 25-30 mph and I had to literally pull the car over, into the side of the mountain. I still remember hearing the scraping that was happening as tried to avoid the bus and make sure we weren't turned into a heap of metal and flesh. When the bus was passing, there were literally inches between us and an insurance claim.

Sheep. A very common sight in the countryside. They were wandering all over the place and most likely, part of a farmer's flock.

This is what got at a place called Cafe Sol. That was in Kilkenny. Prawns, mesculin salad and I don't remember what else.

Inside of Dunnes in Galway, I saw one of the most horrifying and truly disgraceful things I have ever seen that is food related. A true culinary crime.

FROZEN, microwavable sushi. Now, mind you, this is NOT an Irish product. I checked the box and it's from Germany.

More GF items.

Part of what the produce section looks like inside of the Dunnes. I always find grocery stores and markets the most interesting to look around in no matter where we go.

The local Irish seafood selection at Dunnes.

This is traffic in the Irish countryside.

J's Irish Salmon breakfast at the Waterloo house in Dublin.

Now, we all HATE and despise airline food. Good lord, look at this pulverized piece of watermelon. It looks like it was tumbled around in a clothes dryer for hours. Complete roundness on watermelon pieces=bad.

Oh, it was disgusting too.

The White Lady in Kinsale. J had some really good GF pizza there. Unfortunately, I didn't get to take a picture because I think J and her mom inhaled it and it was gone in a blink of an eye.

A few panoramic shots I took while there:

Have a happy and fun St.Patrick's Day!

-W

Secret Irish Soda Bread Recipe- Gluten free

2008-03-15T18:52:00.001-07:00

My mother had this Secret Soda Bread recipe since we were little. She got it from her red-headed friend Mrs Morse. We always had it growing up and it is delicious. Last year was the first time I tried making a gluten free version (see below) I couldn't remember how I changed the recipe last year but I am kind of glad because this one looks more like the real thing and I really like how it tastes.

Ok so this is the big secret SHHHHHHH!!!! ..... it is.......sour cream. I have never seen sour cream in a soda bread recipe. I think in Ireland this technically may be called "freckle bread" because it is a little sweet and cakey.

I ended up using Tofutti milk-free sour cream because too much dairy makes me stuffy and sometimes gives me headaches. I still used buttermilk but I wonder if there is a dairy free substitute that would make it completely dairy free as well? That would be great. Oh I used Promise Activ dairy free butter instead of the real thing. I also used agave nectar because I try not to eat sugar. I think the agave makes it better- balances the dryness of the gluten free flour. I hope you like this as much as I do.

Secret Soda Bread Recipe- Gluten Free

4 cups

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

3 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt
********
Wet ingredients:

1 beaten egg

3/4 cup agave nectar ( most Trader Joe's carry it now)

3 Tb melted butter ( I used dairy free Promise Activ)

1 cup Tofutti sour cream ( you could try regular)

1 cup buttermilk
********

+ 1 cup raisins

*******

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 10" round cake pan or an oven safe pot.
Combine and sift dry ingredients. In a separate bowl combine wet ingredients. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients, stir well and mix in raisins. Bake up to and hour and 5 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean. I baked mine a few minutes under an hour, but I used an 8" pot and made six muffins with the rest. (baked for 15 minutes)
Enjoy with black tea with a spot of milk and sugar :)

Update: Today I made the soda bread with regular sour cream and no xanthan gum. I decided it is better without xanthan gum. I also ran our of agave so I used mostly honey. The batter was not as thick with the regular sour cream and I had to cook the muffins 5 minutes longer (20 minutes) the bread I cooked for exactly and hour.
We haven't tasted the loaf yet but W liked the muffins these muffins better. Fine with me, now I have the other loaf all to myself! It's so nice to have somewhat of an appetite back! Yay!

My mum made her own version - closer to the real thing, with real sour cream and sugar and butter. She said it was a little dry and it probably would taste better with the liquid sweetener. She said she wishes it rose more like the real thing. I have to agree it -doesn't rise nearly as much as the real thing. I think it's still really tasty

Tonight or tomorrow W is going to try to talk about our first experience visiting Ireland as far as gluten free food is concerned..Lots of Pictures!

Peanut-less peanut butter and more food ramblings of strange pregnant cravings..

2008-03-13T16:44:00.001-07:00

In a moment of weakness and morning sickness several weeks back I ordered some food from
Glutenfree.com
I like that people rate the products on this online store. So if you live in the boonies and can't find gluten free food, or you are just feeling sorry for your gluten free self and really want to splurge, check it out.

I only ordered from them once before because shipping is expensive and snackie /packaged food is usually unnecessary for me ( and too expensive!) Also I have plenty of Whole Foods around (the one in town is two stories!) that if I feel the need to spend the extra money just to have snack food I can.

But with my morning sickness nothing appealed to me. I longed for real bagels and saltines..
I was hoping to find a bagel- I had a pretty good packaged bagel one time a couple years ago. I got them from a Whole foods in Maryland. For some reason they don't sell many gluten free bagels around here. Of course no bagels compare to the real thing, especially the NY kind so I shouldn't have even tried... I tell you there are a few gluten filled food that I would give my right pinky to eat again whenever I want- those foods are: bagels, pizza and steamed vegetable dumplings (preferably all from NY) Don't even tell me there are good gluten free substitutes for those things, because there aren't. Same with crusty french bread or kaiser rolls, nothing compares. Anyways enough of that tangent...

When I went on Glutenfree.com I did find one thing that intrigued me- Peabutter. No I didn't forget some letters there, this is actually a peanut butter substitute made from peas. I love peanut butter, but it is one of the several things that I can't eat these days without getting a migraine ( along with sesame oil, coconut, chocolate, some dairy and sunflower oil..)
So when I saw this Peabutter I had to get it, despite the horrifying price. I also got some crackers, which are pretty good but are no where near saltines ( not they were trying to be)
The funny thing is although the above products are good I only ate a few and no more since, with the exception of the Peabutter. I ate that a bunch. It is pretty good but today I saw that Trader Joe's has soy butter that I think I like better and it is a less than half the price, plus it has 7g of protein, whereas the peabutter only has 2.

So anyways that's how things have been with my appetite or lack thereof. We have never had so much food in the house before, because I never know what I will feel like eating until the moment I eat. So I have been buying the strangest things that I never buy- mostly prepackaged things- that you know are expensive and things that make W turn away in horror (frozen meals and minute rice) and the worst thing is I don't end up eating most of it. Here are a few things that I have liked
I can't even tell you how many boxes of waffles I have purchased and how many waffles I have eaten over the past couple months. Lets just say it was my main source of food. I am finally finished with them- sick of them (even though I have two more boxes in the freezer)

This I really love. I previously thought soy was giving me migraines also. But lately I have been fine eating it. This is great because it's not chocolate and it is fruit juice sweetened. I like it. It comes in other flavors also.

The other things I have actually wanted to eat are cucumbers and black bean tacos.. oh and strangely enough these:

Shrimp spring rolls with mustard sauce. Yes they are takeout because I am still not preparing any food and W is too busy. They are easy to make though and maybe soon we will make some. We got this from a Thai place we have been going to for a long time. Today I made a mistake and bought overpriced ones at Whole foods and they totally sucked- way too much,way too green lettuce, no mint, tasteless shrimp and worst of all rice noodles that were hard.

I also enjoyed pad thai (minus peanuts) a couple times, I would love some now, but the second time it seemed to give me a headache.

So the past two days I have hardly been feeling nauseous at all (yay!) and I am keeping my fingers crossed that it stays that way. I still don't have an appetite though and many, many aversions. I am 15 weeks now. I am craving corned beef I keep seeing in the fridge, so hopefully I will feel like eating that Irish feast we are planning on for Sunday. I also am really wanting just one cup of black tea with milk.. I wonder if that would be ok. I know caffeine is bad, but maybe just one cup with freckle bread will be fine. :)

St.Patrick's Day dinner from last year..

2008-03-01T17:49:00.000-08:00

Last year we made dinner on St.Patrick's Day for my family.

It started off with J making GF Soda Bread as she has in the past. I can't find the recipe right now and we'll probably be able to find it in a few weeks as we'll be making dinner again this year.

Next up, the main attraction. That morning, we had gone to the Farmers Market and picked up some really good carrots in different varieties as you can see below.

This guy was a bit odd...it had....2 legs! It was like Eraserhead only that....it was a carrot.

We had also bought some beef that I started braising early in the day as well as some cabbage. In the middle of cooking, I threw in the rest of the veg which were potatoes and carrots. I didn't want everything turned into mush when it was time to eat.

So, as we got into the truck, Sasha decided that she wanted to drive, but she couldn't see over the steering wheel and her paws couldn't reach everything else..

She opted to ride in the back and watch the flowers.

The main course, which was also accompanied by Red Bridge beer(GF):

Delicious.

Eating a meal like this really brings back memories for me. My grandmother used to make this when I was a kid. She wasn't Irish, but she did make some damn fine food no matter what the occasion.

Ireland post coming next week or the week after!

-W

GF Pizza!

2008-02-26T20:01:00.000-08:00

Time for GF pizza. I've put up one GF pizza recipe before, but it was dairy-free. This one isn't.

Ingredients:

-2 1/2 cups of flour mixture
I use: 1 1/2 cups of superfine brown rice flour
1 cup of white rice flour
1/2 cup of tapioca flour

I chose that flour mixture after experimenting on pizzas for the past 2-3 years. Too much brown rice flour and the dough is too crumbly. Too much white rice flour and the dough ends up gummy.

-1/4 ounce GF quick rise yeast
-1 tsp sea salt
-1/ tsp Xanthan gum
-3 Tbs olive oil
-1 1/2 cups of warm water
-1 Tbs honey(we use raw honey)
-Cornmeal is optional for putting on the pizza stone or baking sheet
-1 cup of pizza sauce( I usually make mine from scratch, but since J can't take those smells, I opted for the bottled kind)
-Mozzarella cheese(We used organic Mozzarella and I never use the fresh kind. It-the brand which I can't remember- retains way too much water for me.

We've found out through trial and error that if we cooked the pizzas on the pizza stone, then the bottom and the middle would be kind of gummy. So, from now on we will always cook the pizzas on a metal baking sheet. It will conduct enough heat to crisp the dough. You would normally pre-heat the pizza stone in the oven, but since we hardly have any room to put something that's as hot enough to turn my fingers into cracklins, heavy and as large as half of the stovetop, I don't pre-heat it.

Directions:
Combine flour, yeast, salt and xanthan gum in large bowl. Stir in 1 cup water, olive oil and honey.

Use hands to work dough (dough will be soft and crumbly). Add just enough of the remaining 1/4 cup water to hold mixture together. Knead dough in bowl 5 minutes. Cover; let rest 10 minutes.

Lightly grease 12-inch pizza stone or metal baking sheet; sprinkle with cornmeal, if desired. Flatten dough into round disk; press dough into pan. Add sauce, and desired toppings.

Bake at 425 degrees 15-20 minutes, or until crust is brown and cheese melted. (Timing varies according to amount and number of toppings.) Use a sharp knife or pizza wheel to cut into wedges.

The pizza before it goes into the inferno.

Out of the oven in about 16 minutes. Times will vary depending on your oven.

St.Patrick's Day is coming up soon and I will be having a few enormous posts about that day and our two visits to Ireland aka GF wonderland.

-W

GF cookies!

2008-02-19T17:12:00.000-08:00

Alright, I saw Alton Brown's Good Eats episode and J really wanted to make these cookies, so here we go!

Here's a link to the recipe:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_37255,00.html

Here are the ingredients:

* Note that we substituted carob for chocolate because chocolate gives J migranes or eye pain.*

Cookie dough....so tempting to just eat right now...

Right before going into the oven.

Out of the oven and cooling.

Delicious!

GF event at the Arroyo Whole Foods in Pasadena Feb 24th

2008-02-19T14:14:00.000-08:00

Went grocery shopping this morning for ingredients for the GF cookies that Alton Brown made on his show. Before going into the store, there was a sign advertising a GF event where you can taste their GF foods. It is from noon-3pm.

If you've never been to that particular location, it's enormous!

Here's a link to some info:

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/arroyo/index.html

For the below link, scroll down until you see Feb 24th.

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/calendars/ARR.html

If you don't want to, here's the info:

Sunday, February 24th

Gluten–free Day!
12:00–3:00 p.m. Free
Celebrate the Gluten–free–ness in you and come try a variety of Gluten–free products available throughout our store!

GF carob(substituted for chocolate) cookies coming later.

-W

Gung Hay Fat Choy

2008-02-11T20:44:00.000-08:00

That of course, means Happy New Year in Chinese.

So, we went over my parents' house last night for dinner and it was pretty good. J, nauseated at the sight/smell of any food nowadays(hopefully only 1 more month left of that) wanted me to make a beef dish for her to eat. Beef because she really needs to supplement her iron intake now and it had to be somewhat Chinese-related. So, I chose something simple. Beef and broccoli.

I forgot to take a picture of it because we were in a rush and simultaneously making our dinner dish plus a GF dessert, but here are the ingredients that I used.

(this recipe is pregnancy-adapted because J can't stand really strong flavors/aromas at this time)

-1 Tbs safflower oil
-1 pound free range round beef steak, cut into small, thin strips
-2 heads of broccoli, cut into small florets
-1 tsp garlic power(I would have normally used fresh garlic)
-1 tsp ginger power(I would have normally used fresh ginger)
-1 tsp onion power(I would have normally used onion)
-5 carrots, sliced diagonally and thin
-4 tsp of wheat free Tamari
-1/4 cup water

I had the wok super hot with some safflower oil, added the carrots first because they take the longest to cook. (Remember to keep moving everything around in the wok or else it'll all burn due to the high heat) After I cooked those for about 5 minutes, I added the steak and cooked for a few minutes, browning one side. When I liked the doneness of the beef, I added the broccoli. My parents live a little less than an hour away, so I had to calculate that into the cooking time. I undercooked everything in the wok because I put everything into a cast iron pot for transport. In doing that, everything would be hot and they'd also continue to cook during the time that we drove there.

After I added the broccoli and cooked it for maybe 3 minutes, I added the tamari, 1/4 cup of water( to help steam everything in the cast iron pot) and the rest of the spices. I took everything off of the heat and out of the wok, transferred it into the cast iron pot.

It held up really well when we got there and the broccoli wasn't overcooked.

So, the other thing J wanted to eat were some GF cupcakes with frosting and somewhat of a tuile of chocolate.

The recipe was adapted from Annalise G Roberts' book, Gluten-Free Baking Classics.

I had originally thought that we had granulated sugar, tapioca flower and potato starch. We didn't, so that's why I say that the recipe is adapted.

We only had superfine brown rice flower and potato power, which I think is potato flower, not potato starch. It's really hard to tell because the powder is really fine.

So, we used:

Cupcakes

-1 cup turbinado sugar that I whizzed up in the food processor until it was fine.
-2 large free range organic eggs
-(I'm not sure about the exact amount here because J did it) I think we used 1 cup of superfine brown rice flower and 1/4 cup potato powder
-1/4 tsp sea salt
-1 1/2 tsp GF baking powder
-1/2 tsp xanthan gum
-1/2 cup canola oil
-1/2 cup GF rice milk
-1 tsp organic vanilla extract

Frosting

Liberal amounts of organic powdered sugar and a small amount of GF rice milk until the consistency was thick. We didn't like the color because when using rice milk, it turned the frosting a light brown color. J Added close to a half a stick of organic butter throughout the entire process and that did the trick.

Chocolate tuile

The tuile idea was good, but it wasn't going to work because it was pretty warm in LA on Sunday. In the low-mid 70's and the chocolate wasn't holding up. So, again, adaptation. We just laid the chocolate as flat as we could on top of the cupcakes.

We used Ghirardheli semi sweet chocolate chips and melted them on a double boiler. We also put the melted chocolate into a piping bag and created little chocolate decorations onto parchment paper. After noticing that it was way too warm in the house, we transferred the parchment paper into the fridge or freezer until we were about to leave.

-Preheat the oven to 350, mix sugar and eggs in the mixing bowl at med speed. Add the flour, salt, baking power, xanthan bum, oil, milk and vanilla. Beat again for another minute.

-Pour the mix into your cupcake pan and put into the oven.

-Bake for 20 minutes.

-Cook on a rack for 5 minutes, then take the cupcakes out of the pan and let them cool on the rack.

-When completely cool , add frosting, chocolate ornaments and enjoy!

They were delicious.

-W

Knowing what your food can do for your body.

2008-02-09T20:55:00.000-08:00

W here.

I always like to know what ingredients are in the food that I'm cooking/eating. Here is a link to where you can see exactly what nutrients and benefits different types of food can offer.

http://www.whfoods.com/foodstoc.php

I've been referring to it for quite a while and I really like the information it has.

-W

Gluten free and hungry in northern NJ?

2008-02-07T17:44:00.000-08:00

I've been meaning to write about one more place my gluten free mom brought me while I was visiting them. Janice a bistro is located in Ho-Ho-Kus, NJ closer to where they live in Sloatsburg, NY. We actually went there twice while I was visiting for the week. It is just great to go to a restaurant and not have to explain what gluten is. This place can make any of their sandwiches and burgers gluten free. Since I have not found any place in LA that does this I am especially appreciative. The first time we went we ordered penne vodka and a hamburger with fries. The fries were gluten free! After I ordered I got worried that maybe the fries were made in sunflower oil which gives me migraines. My mom asked though and lucky me- they were made with canola oil. We were starved and got bread also- which I wouldn't do if I went again because it was just from a so- so loaf and not really toasted. Ok so please take into account that my taste and cravings may be a little off because I am pregnant and when I went I was 6 weeks- in between really hungry and starting to get nauseous and picky.
I didn't love the penne vodka, to me it didn't have enough flavor and the pasta was too soft (however I must say I enjoyed it cold the next night)

I ended up eating half of my mothers hamburger with cheddar cheese and probably more than half of the fries. It was so good! I really enjoyed it and I am not a big meat eater by any means. That day it was exactly what I wanted.

We went back a few days later with my father (not gluten free) the day I was flying back to L.A. They shared a hamburger and fries and my mom also got a chocolate egg cream that she said was great.
I got grilled cheese with tomato that I dipped in ketchup , it also came with fries. I was in heaven. I practically cleaned me plate and that is so much for me. I never eat that much. But it proved to be a good thing and kept me tided over for the long time at the airport and most of the flight.
If you want a good gluten free burger or grilled cheese with fries and you're in northern New Jersey check out Janice a bistro.

Hey Los Angeles where are you gluten free options? I want to eat a good gluten free sandwich in LA!! Where are my gluten free options in Los Angeles?!
I am still eagerly awaiting yummy cupcake heaven in Babycakes nyc bakery, bringing vegan agave sweetened cupcakes to West Hollywood.. Now it seems I have to wait until June. At least then I will have my appetite back. I'll probably ravenous.. watch out for me Babycakes!

Gluten free in Spring Lake, New Jersey

2008-01-31T16:08:00.002-08:00

While visiting my family in NY , I was delighted to be able to eat some great gluten free food out an about. One place my mother took me to was Spring Lake New Jersey.

First we stopped at a store that is right outside of Spring Lake called Epicure. They had some gluten free things from companies I had never heard of before. We purchased some bread, crumb cake, raviolis and a couple sugar cookies.

The cookies were good.

I was really excited about the gluten free ravioli. We ate them later that night. I used to love ravioli and haven't had any for over 5 years. I loved them

I also enjoyed the crumb cake.

The store owner gave us a great tip...there was a deli nearby that would make up a gluten free sandwich. I was ecstatic and we headed over. It's called Mileto and it is an Italian and Polish Deli.

At first they said they wouldn't be able to make us a sandwich because they had not received their order of gluten free bread from that shop we were just at. But I knew we would be getting a sandwich. I mean, I planned exactly what I wanted the whole way over- a cheese sandwich with tomato, lettuce and mayo. Just like I would eat before I became gluten free. With that freshly sliced stack of deli cheese I knew it would be great....
We were lucky because we had purchased bread at that shop and requested them to make it on that. They were more than happy to.
I haven't been this happy about a sandwich since Ireland at Kilkenny department store, when for the first time I got a gluten free sandwich that tasted good.
They gave us a pickle and coleslaw(gluten free) just like a regular person!
I got my cheese sandwich!

My mom got Gluten free Chicken Parm that was made with gluten free bread crumbs!!

My mom is excited to go back there with my father, so he can get some good old polish food like stuffed cabbage and perogies(I'm assuming they are not gluten free, but perhaps the cabbage is) and they can go relax at the beach.
It is a lovely place, even in the winter

Would you like to see a Martha Stewart Food Allergy Magazine?

2008-01-31T15:55:00.000-08:00

Martha Stewart is having a contest for the future of her company. Staff members came up with ideas, finalist have been chosen and now they are up on her blog for America to vote.
Guess what? Her Deputy Home Editor cannot eat gluten, nuts or dairy and came up with the idea of a magazine for food allergies! I think it would be great to see such awareness of food allergies in a magazine published by such a well known figure!
Right now this idea is coming in second, so you must vote!
Go here to vote.

GF bagels!

2008-01-11T11:21:00.001-08:00

I made these the other day for J. Slightly crisp on the outside and soft in the middle. It's hard to make a good bagel that's GF, but I think these came out great. You're not going to get that chewiness inside like a real bagel, but it's better than nothing and they were still really good compared to other GF bagels we've eaten before.

I can't remember the exact recipe because I looked up a bunch of regular bagel recipes and just substituted.

-Rice flour for regular flour
-Xanathan gum
-Raw honey instead of sugar.
-I also added egg as a binder because the dough didn't have enough structure to hold together when rolled into a ball. I'm sure it's because I basically made up my own recipe.
-Canola oil
-Salt

Boil a few minutes on each side, throw into a really hot oven to get the color/crispness on the outside. Remove from heat, let cool and then enjoy!

-W

Belated birthday dinner

2008-01-10T11:12:00.000-08:00

I'm always really busy working. So much that I didn't get to cook myself the dinner that I had wanted and planned for several weeks. When I finally got around to doing it a week later, I was very happy.

I had a menu of blinis with caviar and creme fraiche along with duck with vanilla sweet potatoes and truffle butter.

I had buckwheat groats that we usually cook and incorporate into Sasha's breakfast. So, I made flour out of some with the food processor and mixed it with a bit of rice flour and other ingredients.

I had never butchered a duck before(I've butchered countless chickens), but it was pretty easy.

The free-range duck and truffle butter. I couldn't find a Muscovado duck, but I bought this one from Whole Foods. A few weeks later, after walking into Bristol Farms, I saw them in the freezer case. Maybe next time.

Ingredients for the vanilla sweet potatoes and tangerine reduction sauce.

Ingredients for the blinis.

Duck in the pan. Remember...cook it medium!

The finished product:

-W

More stuff...

2008-01-10T10:57:00.001-08:00

Olive oil-poached Sablefish(commonly called Black Cod) with herb rice.

Split pea soup ingredients. I forgot to take a picture of the actual soup.

Various types of carrots, beet root and asparagus for roasted vegetables.

Different roasted veg with beet root, brussel sprouts, cauliflower.

We're back....

2008-01-10T09:23:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since the last post, but we've both been extremely busy with our respective businesses. I'm always driving around for work, so I never really have the time to post anything. Having a blog that consistently has new content certainly is time consuming as a lot of you know. So, this blog hasn't gone away. I will have a really long post about GF food in IRELAND very soon. J and I have gone there twice. Once in 2006 and once in 2007. It's a GF paradise compared to the US.

There's been a lot of gluten-free food that has been made, especially around the holidays. J is going to visit her family in NY this weekend, so she and her mom are going to hit up some GF spots in NY and possibly some other surrounding states.

The following pictures are in no particular order.

The first stop takes us back to San Francisco for J's bday weekend. We tried to look for this place a few years ago, but we had incorrect directions and never found it. That place is Cafe Gratitude.

J mainly wanted to go there for the raw desserts since she loves them. CG uses local, organic, sustainable ingredients from local purveyors and all of that good stuff.

So, this is NOT the outside of the actual Cafe. This is where the food is made(it is then sent over to the cafe), which I will talk about later.

Of course, J's favorite things there. Dessert.

I believe this one was the Coconut cream pie a la mode with vanilla nut milk ice cream.
This is the nut-flour layer cake.

This particular salad is called "I am Fulfilled".

Alright, time to review the food. The salad....it was good with one glaring exception. Remember earlier in this long-winded post when I said they made the food off-site? That was a major problem here. The produce was fresh, BUT the dressing that was on a section of the salad was SO acidic and salty that I could barely even eat it. I mean, we're talking the acidity range of a mild drain cleaner here. If I were in a different restaurant, I would have sent it back and asked for a refund. I didn't want to cause a scene and I didn't want to upset J's weekend, so I just ate. J had the same problem with it. Later on, the roof of our mouths were very swollen and felt like we had scalded them eating really hot pizza. I felt the thin layer of skin dangling off of it. That lasted for several days. That's the problem with making it off-site. I can guarantee that the group of people putting the food together didn't taste the dressing and they must have made it in large quantities. If you're making something for people to eat, you have to taste it. If you wouldn't eat it, don't serve it.

The desserts were delicious and so much so that the next morning before we headed up to Muir Woods, J wanted to stop by and get some more to eat as a snack.

I have more pictures, but I'm not going to post them . They are about my visit to the fabulous Swan Oyster Depot and the ridiculously awesome Kumamoto and Blue Point oysters I had for breakfast. I had 2 dozen Kumamotos and dozen BP oysters. I shall be back.

Spaghetti Bolognese made with Turkey and brown rice spaghetti.

Quince with vanilla bean. Delicious.

Potato Leek soup.

J's been busy with this...

2007-10-29T15:33:00.002-07:00

http://browningtonforest.typepad.com

http://browningtonforest.etsy.com

Check out the cool artwork and store!

Shrimp ceviche

2007-10-21T10:36:00.001-07:00

Traditionally, ceviche is made by letting the acid in a citrus juice cook the fish. For shrimp, however, you usually cook before adding to the usual ingredients.

The previous morning, we went to the FM and picked up some really good vine-ripe tomatoes, onions, garlic, cilantro, lemons for something else I made. So, with the leftover pico de gallo, I just adapted it and added the juice of about 4 or 5 lemons and the cooked shrimp. Just remember to never overcook your shrimp or else they get rubbery. I've posted my pico de gallo recipe before, so I'm not posting it again.

Bright, clean, very tasty.

Sashimi/Crudo

2007-10-21T10:09:00.001-07:00

Last weekend, we headed on down to Little Tokyo to pick up some sashimi-grade fish. They had a lot of variety, but I picked up some Japanese Hamachi(Japanese Yellowtail) and Pacific Salmon.

I like a ton of different food, but I'd rather eat something like sashimi any day over anything. Why? Well, the bright and clean flavors for one. None of this soaking in soy sauce to mask the delicate and subtle flavors of the fish. Hardly doing anything to the fish or nothing at all and truly enjoying the unadulterated greatness that is raw fish is another. The more simply you prepare any kind of seafood, the better.

We also picked up some fresh Daikon and Japanese cucumbers. Japanese cucumbers are awesome. They're way more crisp and tasty than the normal ones that you find at stores.

Hamachi. Look how awesome that piece of fish is. I forgot to take a picture of the Salmon, but I trust you've probably seen Salmon before.

I first made a Hamachi crudo. Crudo means 'raw' in Italian and when you see crudo fish, it's usually dressed with some olive oil and some acid to cut through the oil and fat of the fish to bring everything together.

-1 piece of sashimi-grade Hamachi
-1 juice of half a lemon
-1 Tbs of extra virgin olive oil
-sea salt
-Japanese cucumber
-A few capers

I made the citronette with olive oil and lemon juice, mandolined the cucumber. I took my sashimi knife and sliced the lovely pieces of Hamachi. Really basic plating, nothing crazy. Hamachi down first, followed by cucumbers, capers, citronette, sprinkle of sea salt.

The next version was Sashimi and that's just thinly sliced raw fish in Japanese.
-half of a Japanese cucumber
-Wakame seaweed
-Daikon
-Hamachi
-Salmon

I julienned the cucumbers and mixed them with the Wakame and some sea salt for a quick cucumber salad. I changed the blade on the mandoline and ran the daikon through it for long strings. It would be somewhat of a garnish, but it's also meant to bring a different flavor element to the dish that would brighten it up a bit since I wouldn't be adding any acid.

Excellent.

That was lunch for that day.

Paupiette of Mahi mahi in a Barolo sauce

2007-10-20T23:04:00.000-07:00

W here.

Long time no post. J is really busy with her artwork and it's really exciting to see her work evolving into something that she really likes. I'll probably be the one doing most of the blogging from now on in my limited time.

So, onto the food.

I had been wanting to make this dish ever since I saw it on the menu at the iconic Le Cirque(in NYC) on tv. The dish was created by none other than, Daniel Boulud when he was the executive chef there. They only serve it at Le Cirque to VIPs and it's not even on the menu. Pretty impressive. He is a New York Times 4-star rated chef and multiple James Beard award(amongst many others)-winning chef that has been working in NYC for the past 25 years with several highly-rated restaurants.

Here's Daniel's website:

http://www.danielnyc.com/

I wanted to test myself and see if I could make it as well as to make a lower fat version that would still be really tasty for us and J's parents, who just got in today from NY. So, having that idea in mind this morning at the farmers market, I bought ingredients that I needed and I stopped off at the store for some fish. I chose Mahi Mahi for this particular dish. Picking out seafood for me is agonizing. I've been fishing since I could barely walk and I know what fresh seafood is and nobody can fool me into thinking their product is fresh when it isn't. I can spot old fish a mile away.

*Sidebar here for those people who buy those pre-marinated pieces of fish, chicken or beef at the store. Do you know what they slop all kinds of heavy marinades and sauces on those things? Well, those are the products that are about to go bad and they need to mask that from your palate. Think about that the next time you get that hankerin' for the 'Cajun Spiced Captain's Choice' seafood you see at the market. If you have the time, please make your food fresh with fresh products because it makes the biggest difference in the world.*

Oh yeah, we're here to read about Paupiette of Mahi.....I took a leap of faith and went with the frozen stuff because the seafood I saw recently at places didn't really entice me to buy.

We also saw some really nice pomegranates and I wanted to do a pomegranate salad to go along with the fish.

Here are some pictures:

Those 2 large fruit to either side of the pomegranate are called 'Sapotes'. The small fruit are pineapple guavas. I've never had those before. My parents always had strawberry guavas in the backyard, growing on the tree.

Pomegranate close up.

The ingredients for the dish.

Barolo, an Italian wine with some chives, shallots and leeks peering at you.

Pomegranate salad.

At long last, the paupiette of mahi mahi.

Sorry for the blurry picture...I has to snap the picture really fast because I didn't want to the fish to go cold. 4 servings was a good amount of work.

The recipe is on Chef Boulud's website and it came out awesome!

My potatoes weren't as browned as how they really should be and that's because I used Ghee. I used 4 teaspoons(20 grams of fat) of ghee for the entire dish.

-1 tsp to cook the shallots, mushrooms and leeks
-2 tsp to cook the paupiettes
-1 tsp to finish the Barolo sauce, which is called 'monter au beurre'. All French restaurants do that to any sauce. Just remember that when eating out :)

The original recipe uses 13 tablespoons(195 grams of fat) of butter! For those who are measurement-challenged, a tablespoon equals 3 teaspoons. I also used a tablespoon of coconut milk instead of heavy cream. This particular coconut milk had 2.5 grams of fat per tablespoon and heavy cream has 5 grams of fat per tablespoon. So, more fat cut out there.

The original recipe also says to strain the sauce, but I didn't because I really didn't want to throw away the fresh mushrooms and shallots I bought at the FM. So, this was a bit more rustic.

Good results tonight and this is something I'll definitely be cooking again to perfect the way I make it. The potatoes were cooked nicely, the fish was very tender and moist. The sauce with leeks beneath it all was delicious.

More soon.

-W

New Gluten Free Trader Joe' Products

2007-10-12T11:34:00.000-07:00

I noticed Trader Joe's now has gluten free granola and gluten free gingersnap cookies. I didn't try either since I can't have the sugar. Still it's cool that they are noticing the gluten free market.
I haven't posted much because I have been spending all of my time on my artwork and getting ready to make prints and set up my online shop. I am so excited!
Also I have been still going strong on my all sugar free candida diet. It is going good. I can't believe how much my body felt the withdrawal of sugar especially because the only sugar I had was honey, agave, maple syrup, dried fruits and fruits. I had a kinds of symptoms and was kind of surprised. It just reinforced how sensitive my body is to sugars. I have also been trying to figure out what foods I am intolerant to by rotating them and watching my symptoms. It's not that easy to figure out this way. But so far I am sure that at this time soy, chocolate, peanuts and sesame oil and possibly walnuts give me migraines. Brown rice in any form gives me acid reflux and makes my throat hurt as does coffee. Dairy makes me congested and makes my skin break out as does sugar. Ah, do you want to be me ? :)
Actually all this doesn't even bother me. I don't feel like "poor me" at all. I am just glad I am trying new foods and so many of them are delicious like those turkey lettuce wraps or those buckwheat carob pancakes or that pumpkin squash and sweet potato soup. I feel like I am cooking better than ever. I am learning that when cooking farm fresh foods and "healthy" foods spices are key- the fresher the better and freshly roasted and ground the best. Maybe in the future I'll get a chance to post some photos and recipes.
Be healthy!

I actually liked eating Quinoa!

2007-10-04T13:13:00.001-07:00

Quinoa- pronounced keen-wah I believe. My mum and I went around saying it quinn-noah for the like a year because we didn''t know. So now in my mind I always think quinn-noah even though I say keen-wah. I am not sure why we were even talking about Quinoa because I haven't cooked it much at all. The times I have cooked it I haven't really liked it. This recipe I loved though. Yay quinoa! I adapted it from the 101 Cookbooks site
I cooked the quinoa in broth to give it more flavor and I used string beans instead of asparagus, because that's what I had and I used almonds instead of walnuts and eggs instead of potatoes! I also probably used more oil then she did and I toasted the almonds with some oil and a sprinkle of cayenne for a kick. I just love how it is arranged. You should check out the picture on that website, it's just lovely. There are also 28 other healthy gluten free recipes with great pictures.

Just attach me to an IV and call it dinner (+ no sodabread for me but maybe for you)

2007-10-03T16:52:00.000-07:00

I am writing from behind the fog of clogged aching ears, clogged sinuses and nausea. No I'm not sick. Is it allergies? Maybe. It all started on Saturday when I decided to try and bake Irish Soda bread.

Gluten a Go Go is having a Baking Bonanza and I thought I would participate. I had made this recipe before and it turned out great, even non-gluten free people loved it. I got the recipe here and just substituted Bob's Red Mill Bread mix ( minus the yeast packet) for the flour. It is so easy and so good. Not your normal sweet with raisins soda bread, this is more like a brown bread.

So anyways, this time since I am trying to avoid dairy I wanted to substitute the buttermilk. I read a bit about it and found some people mixed soy with some lemon juice and let it sit a couple hours. I also read that this worked well because of the high protein content of soy. But soy is one of those other foods that seem to give me migraines. I went to the store looking for a alternative dairy free milk with a high protein content. Turns out the nut milks and rice milk have none or very little . Hemp milk had the highest amount so I got that. In the past it seemed like I could tolerate small amounts of soy so I decided to do half soy and half hemp milk mixed with 2 TB of lemon. Now for the flour -I didn't want to use the normal Bob's Red Mill because it has tapioca starch and potato starch, which I found out from Gluten a Go Go may not be great for cholesterol. Since we just found out Wes has very high cholesterol I mixed some different flours- like sorghum, brown rice, arrowroot, garbanzo and arrowroot. Anyways final result turned out ok, not great and W could really taste and smell the garbanzo and didn't love it. I also noticed after eating a lot I felt really spacey and got a headache. Could it be the soy? Argh.

On Sunday I tried another recipe and changed the flour amount- used more sorghum and used coconut milk instead of soy. This turned out even worse. I found out that sorghum is very gritty. So now I had these two loaves of soda bread that weren't good. I hate wasting food so I kept eating them anyways. Besides I wasn't sure it was from that, maybe I was coming down with something. But I really have not been feeling well as I keep eating it. Today I ate some and felt so nauseous right away. I also have been using stevia and am pretty sure that is giving me headaches because today after I drank a tea with the stevia I got a headache and my ears felt really clogged straight away. But I started not feeling great before I used the stevia also.

Jay-sus I can't stand all this. Now from reading this Candida book and reading over Gluten Free Goddess' post about her allergy testing I realize how food allergies are formed. So be careful with all those brown rice products gluten free kids!
Argh.. it can be really frustrating and I don't even want to think about it anymore I wish I could just attach myself to an IV call it dinner. ...like that commercial. But really I don't want that. I love food. I just need to figure which foods are making me feel crappy so I can try to avoid them once and for all and start experimenting with what I can eat.

Frustrations of being gluten free and having multiple food intolerances

2007-10-03T09:51:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago I wanted to go out to dinner and was looking for some place to go. I just got so frustrated that I had to spend so much time looking. I long for the time I would just get up and go and eat anywhere. I got so annoyed and frustrated I just gave up on going out. You see more and more it seems that it's not just gluten that bothers me. Other things also do now . I am still trying to pin them down but it seems like soy, peanuts, sesame oil, maybe walnuts and dairy also bother me. Mostly they seem to give me this eye pain or migraines. Other times they just seem to make me really nauseous.
What is going on with me? I see a future of never going out to eat and starving when I travel.
I got a book this weekend though- on Candida. I feel like I have learned more from this book than from any gluten free book so far. So many gluten free books are built around baked goods. I mean this makes sense because it is the one food that Celiacs seem to miss and crave. Gluten free people go gaga over gluten free baked goods. I know I used to feel the same way. I wish I could eat all those pre-made gluten free cookies, cakes and breads. But I can't partake because I have been avoiding sugar for a couple years now and most gluten free products have sugar- even breads, bagels and muffins. Plus the fact is I really don't want to eat tons of baked goods, I didn't before I went gluten free so why should I now? Anyways what I have learned from this book The Yeast Connection Cookbook, is that most people with Candida develop food allergies. This is because a leaky gut allows teeny tiny particles to enter the body and then the body reacts against it, causing an allergy. So it is suggested to rotate your diet every four days to prevent allergies from developing. I wonder if this could possibly be the case of some people with Celiac disease. Many people with Celiac seem to be fine eating anything as long as it's doesn't have gluten. I am totally jealous of these people, at the same time I think a bunch of celiac people develop other food allergies. Anyways in a way I am kind of grateful, it's like my body is forcing me to be super healthy and I feel good about that. It's all about simplicity and going back to the basics of pure gluten -free grains, fresh vegetables and fruits, legumes and sometimes maybe organic natural meats and fish. I am sure I will learn more, I just started to flip through this book. There are more books out there on Candida but this was one of the only ones the nearby Barnes and Nobles store had.
I also found a website that has helped me find recipes and feel less alone in this - http://www.wholeapproach.com. It has a forum where people post yeast free meals, most but not all is gluten free and sugar free. Just how I like it.. er need it to be for me. I guess my diet and this blog is more of a healthy eating blog now rather than a gluten free one. Maybe I should change the name. It's going to take me a while to get used to these alternative grains, but when I do I will post up recipes.

Inn of the Seventh Ray

2007-09-29T15:13:00.000-07:00

Inn of the Seventh Ray

So, we've been here numerous times throughout the past several years and it's one of our favorite places to go eat out. It's probably J's favorite place with Cilantro Live(Raw food restaurant in San Diego) coming in at a close second. The main reason why we like going is because of the food that is on the menu as well as the ambiance. The restaurant is up in the hills of Topanga Canyon, next to Malibu, off of Pacific Coast Highway. Most of everything on the menu is grown organically and local farms are sourced for product.

The last time we went was in July and there was a new head chef and a few new menu additions/subtractions as well. Even though we didn't have any this time, they also have naturally raised meat . For Holidays they have a special seven course menu with your choice of either vegan or meat. We came here last year for Thanksgiving, since J loved it so much when she went the previous year with her parents.
Here's the entrance to the Inn:

There's J fitting in seamlessly with the beautiful surroundings of the Topanga woodlands.

So, we ordered several appetizers and some a la carte items in order to taste different things we've never had here before since the new chef added some things to the menu.

-Cantaloupe Gazpacho: This is from the raw food menu. It was very light but good.

-Goat Cheese Stuffed Portobello Mushroom with Red cabbage marmalade and apricot puree. Great flavors, sweet, savory all in one:

-Canapé of Macadamia "cheese" with hemp flax crackers. This also was from the raw food menu The "cheese" had great texture but not much flavor, the reduction was good:

Risotto with Chantrelle mushrooms and an infused balsamic reduction. This was so good- very creamy:

Hmm...what to get for dessert?

J loved the Carob Ganache in cinnamon with a powdered almond coconut crust and fig fool. This was also from the raw food menu:

I went for the Florentino ice creams. Lavender Honey Vanilla, Espresso-Espresso and Marscapone in a pine nut filo basket with fresh berries. Sorry, but unfortunately, the filo wasn't gluten-free. You could order any of ice cream without the filo. They were all soo tasty.

Everything was really good, served in a timely matter and service was good. The only thing that would have made it better was if we actually had some rain once in a while so that the creek that's right next to the Inn was flowing. But, hey....that's So Cal for you. Also since J ate from the raw food menu she was starving still and had to eat as soon as she got home.

-W

Target Goes Organic

2007-09-27T13:07:00.001-07:00

Can you believe that I was never that big of a Target fan? People seem to love that store. I had to pick up some cleaning supplies this week and what I found made me more fond of Target.
They had all sorts of Earth friendly cleaning supplies- lots of Seventh Generation stuff and they have organic kitchen towels (as well as bath towels and organic sheets)

Candida diet

2007-09-27T10:37:00.000-07:00

Before we found out about W's bad cholesterol I was planning on going on a candida cleansing diet. About 11 years ago- way before I went gluten free I found myself at a holistic doctor in the Bronx, NY, searching for some help with how I was feeling. Dr Ballentine was the best holistic doctor I've ever been to and probably came closest to diagnosing the whole celiac thing. He ran a test for Candida Albicans that turned out positive. (Warning- some regular dr's probably think the whole Candida thing is a load of crap)
Here are some symptoms of Candida
Some of the most frequent candida symptoms are:

abdominal gas
irritable bowel syndrome
headaches
migraines
excessive fatigue
anxiety
vaginitis
rectal itching
inability to think clearly
hyperactivity
mood swings
diarrhea
constipation
hyperactivity
itching
acne
eczema
depression
sinus inflammation
PMS
dizziness
poor memory
persistent cough
earaches
low sex drive
muscle weakness
irritability
learning difficulties
multiple chemical sensitivities
cognitive impairment
fibromyalgia
thrush
athletes foot

That is from this site
I am going to go on the candida diet for about a month and see how it goes. I am doing this because even though I never eat processed sugar I have been having too many natural sugary foods like dried fruits, fruits, maple syrup, honey and simple carbohydrates like rice that are causing an unbalance. I crave sweet things and am very sensitive to sugars, even the natural kind. For most people going on a Candida cleansing diet might be very challenging but since I am already gluten free and processed sugar free it won't be that big of a change.
So in addition to being gluten and dairy free this month I am going to leave out all fruit and vinegars and eat less white rice.
I plan on putting up a menu of the week also.
When I was trying to fin info about Candida SO many add websites came up. Argh but I did find one blog so far with some meal ideas. It's called the Cardboard- diet.

Heart healthy, low cholesterol diet

2007-09-26T08:41:00.000-07:00

So we just started this blog but already things are going to change a bit around here. I think it will be for the better. In general we eat pretty healthy- we never have fast food, white bread, cookies or cakes. We eat vegetables like kale and broccoli on a regular basis. We eat oatmeal or oat cereal for breakfast. We go for walks everyday.
So it was really surprising to me when we found out last week that W has really high cholesterol and triglycerides. He says that it runs in his family. Well I never knew it was that bad. In general I eat healthier then W, I eat no sugar, gluten, very limited meat and no dairy. Man and then there were those two trips to Ireland last year and all of those full irish breakfasts he took in every morning, with sausage bacon and the works.
When I found out about W's cholesterol I felt bad and I flashed to all the things I would give him, like cheese, bread, chocolates, whole milk yogurt, too much meat and sometimes butter.I was looking more for things that he would enjoy more than what would be healthiest. I think in some ways it is good that we found this out now because it will motivate him to be even healthier and maybe cut out the dairy and most of the meat, which would make me happy. I think it would be easier if we were on the same page as to what we want to eat. Also he is such a good cook that maybe this will get him creating more veggie and dairy free gluten free meals which would be awesome. I think this will be fun. I am excited to make our lives even healthier and feel great.

I know there is always the medicine option for lowering cholesterol, but I'd rather not take that route unless nothing at all seems to help. In general I don't believe in taking medicine if you can avoid it. No matter what, it always has some kind of side affect or adds some other health problem. It's too easy to take medicine for any problem and ignore what your body is telling you. I believe more in getting in touch with your body and figuring what is unbalanced and fixing it by changing diet or habits.

Ok, so the above picture looks way too healthy, I know. But we still enjoyed it, especially because we also had that sweet, buttery tasting pumpkin to eat with it.
I didn't eat the tofu because soy gives me migraines. W loves tofu though, which may or may not be great for lowering his cholesterol. Either way its a healthy food. I put a little sesame oil (less then a teaspoon uncooked) of sesame oil on W's plate because it adds such great flavor.

That green vegetable is called Gai Lan. It's also known as Chinese broccoli. We got it from the Alhambra farmer's market, this Gai lan must be young since they are so skinny. They have all kinds of chinese vegetables at the Alhambra farmer's market. The market is kind of hidden (the parking lot across from Mervyn's) but it's worth searching out. There is also some amazing (but not healthy) grilled parmesan corn, sorry for the temptation! In the future I'll have to take another picture of the Gai lan before its cooked. You can read more about Gai lan here.

To prepare it I just cut off a little of the ends and washed it. I put about two teaspoons of canola oil (one of the best for heart healthy diets) in a pan on medium high heat. Then I added a few chopped garlic cloves. I put in the Gai lan and covered it. I checked it after a few minutes and when it was wilted I took it out. Really easy.
You can find another recipe here at Jaden's Kitchen. Just be sure to substitute wheat free tamari for the oyster sauce.

I also used the short grain japanese brown rice we got from Mitsuwa that I like much better than regular brown rice.

Here's to be as healthy as you want to be!
Cheers
-J

Let the roasting begin!

2007-09-26T08:28:00.001-07:00

What is that? It looks kind of spooky or like some strange artwork. Actually it's roasted pumpkin and it is soo delicious.
I am so excited for the fall and roasted veggies. I think it's the best way to eat many vegetables.
Truth be told though it's really not cold enough here in Los Angeles yet to be roasting. Today it's supposed to be near 90! A few days ago it was cooler and I really wanted to roast this pumpkin W got at the farmer's market. This wasn't your regular big round, smooth light orange pumpkin. I am not sure the variety but it was short, kind of bumpy and deep orange. After cutting it in half and scooping out the insides I put some olive oil on the halves and sprinkled it them with some sea salt. Then I put it in the toaster over at 400 degrees for 45-1 hour. So simple and so wonderful!
-J

Tasty gluten free, dairy free, refined sugar free and soy free cupcakes!!!

2007-09-24T16:04:00.000-07:00

Not possible? But it is! I had one tasty cupcake at NYC's
Babycakes bakery last year. It was even tastier just because I knew it had none of my food culprits in it! It's a miracle! I can eat a cupcake out somewhere!
The owner has even been on Martha Stewart's show and featured in several magazines as you can see on her site.
You can also check out all of the ingredients online.
In place of sugar, Babycakes uses one of my sweeteners of choice- agave nectar. This nectar is sweet and light. It is great because of its low glycemic index, it doesn't cause a spike in your blood sugar.

Now I am so happy to have confirmation to the rumors I heard.. Babycakes is coming to Los Angeles!! Yay!
Here is the email I received regarding the L.A opening :

Thank you for contacting BabyCakes NYC! Yes, we are opening a location in
LA, on the corner of Beverly Blvd. and Spaulding. We do not have a set
date yet, but we hope to be open early this winter. For all of the latest
information, please feel free to join our mailing list by visiting our
website, www.babycakesnyc.com .

We look forward to seeing you in LA!

BabyCakes NYC"

View their NYC menu here and get excited! In addition to cupcakes there's cookies and scones and gingerbread and more !
Tell all your gluten free dairy free friends!!

-J

Recipe: Chicken pasta and marinated zucchini

2007-09-23T20:37:00.000-07:00

We had some remaining GF penne and fusilli made from brown rice. When I went to the FM this morning, I thought of the dish and bought a bunch of basil and some zucchinis(or courgettes if you're from NZ or the EU).

I had a massive headache when I woke up this morning and it didn't go away all day, so I had to resort to using a jar of Marinara sauce that I had in case of an emergency. I'll make the fresh sauce from scratch the next time.

This will feed at least 5-6 people. I made all of this so I could take it for lunch with me when I work on the other side of town.

Chicken pasta-

What you'll need:

-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts. I prefer buying bone in, skin on and doing the prep work myself, but J is afraid of any non-firm texture in the meat that I may leave. Cut into small cubes.

-1 large zucchini, chopped.
-half of an onion, diced.
-3 cloves of garlic, diced.
-1 bunch of basil, chiffonade the basil to use in the sauce as well as a garnish on top of the pasta when serving.
-2 tomatoes, diced.
-1 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
-salt and pepper to taste
-(optional) oregano
-(optional) parmesano reggiano
-1 bag GF pasta

Do all of your prep work and get the zucchini, onion, garlic and half of the basil ready before the chicken. Cut your chicken up and then make sure to wash everything very well under hot water to make sure cross-contamination doesn't occur.

Start heating up your pasta water in a large pot and season the water with salt. When the water starts boiling, add the pasta and cook until al dente. Remove from water and drain.

Heat up a large saucepan with med-high heat with the olive oil and put the chicken in. Once the chicken is cooked on one side, flip it over and then add the zucchini, onion and garlic. Wait to put the basil in. Cook ingredients in the pot until the zucchini start to get a bit tender. The onions should be starting to brown a bit at this point. Put your tomatoes in and the liquid from them will be released into the pot, slightly steaming everything inside. If there are any brown bits at this point, scrape them off of the bottom and mix everything around.

Add your sauce. Canned, jarred, homemade(preferred), whatever.

Turn the heat down to low and simmer for about 10 minutes. Add basil after turning off the burner and stir to incorporate. During the simmering, chiffonade more basil to add on top as garnish when serving.

Plate pasta and then add sauce on top. If you have a large bowl that's laying around, put some pasta and sauce in there and incorporate before plating.

Don't combine the pasta with the sauce and refrigerate overnight. Keep them separate. That goes for any kind of pasta. The pasta will absorb the moisture in the sauce and when you eat it again, the pasta will be mush.

Not good.

Marinated zucchini(this is a take on a recipe that was created by Gordon Ramsay):

-1 zucchini
-olive oil
-salt
-baking sheet

With a peeler or mandolin, cut super-thin strips of the zucchini. Get a baking sheet or a large, flat tupperware and drizzle some oil and salt. Lay the strips down. If you have more than what can fit on one layer, repeat seasoning process and add more strips. J actually made a raw lasagna last year that was somewhat similar in the beginning stages. I then rolled the strips up and drizzled some balsamic vinegar on top.

Full version- You can stuff them (prior to rolling) with ricotta, pine nuts, lemon juice.

Serve with the chicken pasta or.....serve flat(not rolled) on top of the chicken pasta. It was very tasty like that as well.

-W

Both of these dishes were so good. The zucchini is even better this way then cooked zucchini, even with out the vinegar. It just has such a nice crisp.
-J

Farmers Market trip part 2

2007-09-23T20:10:00.001-07:00

This is another Farmers Market trip, but this particular Farmers Market in Alhambra caters more to the Asian community in Alhambra and in the surrounding cities. You'll find Asian vegetables here that are staples in different Asian cuisines that you won't find anywhere else except for the Farmers Market in Chinatown(not counting the Asian markets).

I also took pictures of some of the other things that are starting to come into season that people might be more accustomed seeing.

Different varieties of grapes and pomegranates.

These enormous things next to the watermelons are called 'Winter melons' or 'dong gua' in Chinese. They are used primarily in soup and I've eaten my share when I was growing up.

These guys below are called 'Bitter melons'. They are really bitter and they aren't cooked with any other vegetable. They are usually paired with pork or they are used in soup.

I couldn't resist the freshly roasted peanuts, so I grabbed a bag on the way out.

-W

Recipe: Red Beans and Rice

2007-09-20T09:54:00.001-07:00

This dish can easily be vegetarian. You can adjust the amount of meat you want and the amount of spice you want. Just a thought about spicy food... If you've never tried any spicy food, you should give it a try. Better yet, you should give it a few tries. I never ate spicy food before I met W.

He loves spicy food so I would try it here and there. I really didn't like it much at first, but then one day after eating a spicy cheese tamale I realized the hotness and the spiciness of it left me feeling invigorated and energized. . I think that is when I started to feel more open to spicy food and started to eat it more. You really do become more used to it the more you have it. Here's how I made red beans and rice

Heat about 2 tbs of oil in a skillet

add
1 chopped onion
1 chopped red pepper
4-5 ribs of celery chopped

saute for a few minutes (about 3)
then add
4-6 cloves garlic, chopped

saute a few more minutes

If you are really into meat you could add some kind of ham here and sausages
we had 4 chicken sausages which I chopped up and put in (as always check the labels to make sure it is gluten free)

add 1 can of drained red beans (kidney beans)

Now add the spices to your liking, just go slowly.

I used:

cajun seasoning, salt, pepper (red or black), lots of cayenne, tabasco, a tiny bit of tamari, two bay leaves and 1/2 teaspoon thyme. The only thing that makes it spicy is the cayenne and maybe the tabasco. You can just add a tiny bit if you aren't used to it.

Turn temperature down to low and cook it until you like it. I cooked mine about 4o minutes. I've seen recipes that say to cook it up to two hours. I guess the flavors come together more then.

I mashed some of the red beans while I was cooking it to get it more creamy.
I also added probably around 1 cup of broth as it cooked

Serve over hot rice.
I used Jasmine. I haven't had jasmine in a long time. I forgot how good it is! I even like it much better than basmati. It has so much flavor- even without oil or butter.

Perfect for a chilly day.

Enjoy!

-J

Dinner for one

2007-09-19T10:34:00.001-07:00

W was working late last night. But I cooked anyways. I made this white wine, tomato, zuchinni and bacon pasta dish. It originated from Epicurious
I just used the gluten free pasta instead, used turkey bacon and my much loved uncheese.
It needed a little something more so I added some salt, pepper and garlic powder.
If you've been looking at this blog a bit you may notice I 'm not big on putting up my own recipes. I'd rather just give the idea and a link. Maybe that will change as I become more experienced. Maybe not. I don't know.

Anyways after I finished cooking I poured some wine and thought to myself how I don't think I've ever cooked a nice meal just for myself. Usually if W wasn't home I'd make some non -meal, like oatmeal, waffles or cereal. But this was nice, it felt luxurious or something.
You should try it sometime. That's all.
-J

Recipe: Gluten Free Dairy free Mac and Cheese

2007-09-17T17:20:00.001-07:00

I wanted to try a macaroni and cheese recipe using the Dairy free Dragonfly's Dry Uncheese again.
Actually this was so easy I just boiled the Trader Joe's brown rice pasta and in another pot heated up the "cheese" following the instructions.

I had already made gluten free crumbs. Every time I bake gf bread I crumble the unused portion and put it in the freezer. I threw some crumbs in a food processor with some oregano, garlic powder, salt and pepper and a little oil. I processed then I took them out and put them in the toaster oven to toast. If you don't have left over bread you could do the same using gluten free waffles ( you can also find at Trader Joes) ( I learned that from the Gluten Free Goddess)

Cooking gluten free pasta may take a little getting used to. . I always put some salt in the water, about a teaspoon. I test it before the time is up and keep testing until it's a little bit al dente. If you cook it too long it can turn into mush. I always rinse it quick in cold water quickly after draining.

When the pasta was ready I put it in the pot with the "cheese" and made sure it was nice and hot. Then I served it up and sprinkled it with the crumbs. I really liked it
W thought it was good also, he just would of liked a sharper taste. When I made the Uncheese mix I didn't have all the seasonings and left some out. The flavor probably would be more intense with all the seasonings. I will definitely make this again.

-J

Recipe: Gluten free, Dairy free pizza

2007-09-17T10:11:00.001-07:00

I made pizza the other night. The crust is from a recipe in The book
125 Best Gluten- Free Recipes.

This is the best crust recipe I've found so far. I used white rice flour instead of brown because that is what I had. You can make it either in a bread machine or with a mixer. It makes a very small amount- it fits perfectly into my toaster oven pan.
I've been staying away from dairy so I just sprinkled that bulk dry uncheese mix on it that I made last week. I also put chopped up artichokes, olives and heirloom tomatoes on it. I loved those cans of artichokes from Trader Joes, they are not packed in oil.
The pizza was so good.

Article on Celiac Disease in Newsweek Magazine

2007-09-16T11:21:00.000-07:00

In case you haven't heard, there is an article on Celiac disease in the September 17th issue of Newsweek. Read it here.
It has a great explanation of Celiac Disease.

Photos: A morning at the Farmers Market

2007-09-15T19:26:00.000-07:00

I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. If you're not used to seeing the variety of fruit and vegetables here, it'll probably make your head spin.

Here's a link to the Farmers Markets in the LA area:

http://farmernet.com/events/cfms

-W

Going to the farmer's market always makes me feel so lucky to live in Los Angeles. There are so many different fruits and vegetables, many of which I have never seen before, and it's is all so abundant and of great quality! Another great thing is that so much of it is organic and most seems to be pesticide and chemical free even if they aren't "officially"organic.
-J
This is from the above website

"Q: Why should I shop at the Farmers' Market?

A: There are many good reasons to shop at farmers' markets! You can purchase fresh produce directly from the farm, eliminating the middleman or the long transportation routes between the farm and the consumer. Farmers' Markets often offer quality produce at cheaper prices because the farmers can set their own prices and don't have to go through other people or grocery stores. You may be able to find specialty items that you wouldn't find at a regular grocery store, such as persimmons, lemon cucumbers, or Asian pears!

When you visit a Farmers' Market, you are helping to build community, because the markets are a hub of activity, providing a space for community members to interact. And finally, shopping at a Farmers' Market allows you to connect to your food much more personally than you can at a larger supermarket. At a Farmers' Market, you buy from people who have a personal commitment to the produce you consume. You become more aware of the growing process when you personally pay a farmer who has grown the tomatoes that he/she is selling you."

Review: La Estrella-Pasadena

2007-09-15T15:02:00.001-07:00

The other week, we decided to grab some dinner over at La Estrella over in Pasadena on Fair Oaks since we always saw long lines there. It is always crowded, especially at night with long lines of hungry eaters that love good Mexican food.

We got ceviche, which was good and very light tasting. The fish wasn't rubbery and the entire thing wasn't salty. For those that don't really know what ceviche is, it's usually raw fish(sometimes cooked shrimp) that is marinated in citrus. The acid in the citrus cooks the fish. It usually has onion, tomatoes and cilantro.

Next up were 4 Chicken soft tacos. They were good. Different places prepare things differently and this place had shredded chicken instead of the diced chicken that I've had more of at Mexican restaurants. We ordered it 'spicy', but since I can tolerate really spicy food, it didn't even seem remotely spicy to me. J thought it was sort of spicy. The average person that doesn't eat a lot of spicy food would have probably been downing Horchata by the bucket.

Lastly for me, Cabeza(head) and Lengua(tongue) tacos. One each.

Are you completely horrified? Well, you shouldn't be. I guarantee that if you like beef tacos, you'll like these. The cabeza taco is just meat from the head with a barely noticeable different texture than that of the meat from the body. The lengua taco didn't really have a different texture to me than the cabeza taco. They were both good.

I haven't tried any of the other food they offer here, but the tacos and ceviche were good. But for now, I'd still say that Puebla Tacos down the street is still my favorite place to go.

502 N Fair Oaks Ave
Pasadena, CA 91103-3304
Phone: (626) 792-8559

-W

Prawn heads...

2007-09-15T14:11:00.000-07:00

Prawn(or Shrimp) heads. What do those two words evoke as a response? Usually something like 'ew' or 'gross!'. For those who sneer at what is generally considered garbage have no idea about the many different ways to utilize these tasty treats. They aren't just things we eat cold with cocktail sauce at your local salad bar in which, I wouldn't eat in anyways.

Shrimp heads are used a lot in Cajun cooking, especially in Gumbo for a delicious stock because it adds depth, richness and complexity to the flavors. The head is where all of the flavor comes from in Prawns/Shrimp. Shrimp heads/shells are also used to make stock for Cioppino. All different cultures around the world utilize shrimp heads in one way or another. Deep-fried shrimp heads are pretty popular with a lot of people and they are tasty. We had bought maybe close to 20 Black Tiger prawns a few weeks ago for an Indian dish I made. I reserved the heads to make Shrimp stock for.......Sasha's food. Yes, she is one spoiled doggie. After I separated the stock from the heads, well, it was snacking time.

The inside of the heads. Suck out the juice and separate the legs from the carapace for tasty morsels. Check this other blog out for pictures of how to eat the heads such as the ones I cooked: http://zarzamora.blogspot.com/2005/04/3-ways-to-eat-shrimps-head.html

Like Anthony Bourdain said once while eating with buddy Eric Ripert (James Beard award winning chef of Le Bernardin in NYC )--'I don't know any chef who wouldn't like sucking the brains out of shrimp.' I completely agree and I'd include people who love to eat and experience good food on that list as well. Large prawns have a lot more meat in the head than smaller shrimp do. You can pull the legs out of the carapace and there will be tasty morsels of meat and varying textures and flavors.

For me, throwing any good part of any animal or fish away that can be used for something else really good is a crime and nothing but disrespectful to the thing(s) that died in order for you to eat and taste something so wonderful. You can create magic out of something that seemed like so little.

-W

While I totally agree with W about not wasting any part of an animal, I do find fish heads and shrimps heads gross! It probably tastes good but I'm not used to it I just can't get past the eyeballs. I think a lot of it or most of it just has to do with what you are raised eating.
-J

The Sensitive Baker -Review

2007-09-15T12:02:00.000-07:00

We visited L.A.'s only gluten free bakery last weekend, The Sensitive Baker. It's located at
10836 1/2 Washington Blvd in Culver City. There is just street parking so bring change!
When we arrived at the store we saw pickings were some what slim - its not like a regular bakery. They had plenty of samples and frozen stuff though. If you want something in particular you should definitely call ahead. The people behind the counter were very nice and helpful. It is great to see an all gluten free bakery that is also %100 Casein-Free and %100 Kosher. Those are a lot of challenges to work with. They met the challenge well, as everything we tried was very tasty.

If you are gluten free or vegan ( there a bunch of vegan options just call ahead) and just need a baked goods fix, and if you aren't worried about eating fat (don't worry no trans fat here), or sugar you will enjoy this place I am sure. Plus sometimes you just need a treat. If you have any worry about specific ingredients you can easily check their website for product ingredients.
http://www.sensitivebaker.com

Ok, so I am a freak and in general avoid regular sugar at all costs, but I made an exception here because I knew most of these baked goods had sugar. We mostly got bread products- focaccia, bagels and kaiser rolls. We also tried a muffin and a peach tart. We skipped the other sweets but there were cupcakes, chocolate chip cookies and brownies.

Even after being gluten free for around 3 years now I still have not gotten used to the price of pre-made gluten free products. I am sure I flinched a little when I heard our total for 4 frozen kaiser rolls, 4 frozen little bagels, 4 big fresh foccacia, 1 tiny muffin and 1 tiny tart- $45. Oh man I remember those pre-gluten free days in New York. A dozen, regular bagels are about $10 and sooo tasty.
We took our goodies and headed to the beach in Playa Del Rey...
Here is the inside of their Vegan Morning Glory muffin. It was delicious. Maybe there was a little undercooked batter section, but hey.... batter is good. The only thing is I checked the ingredients just now on their site and the first ingredient is brownsugar. But, that is like most muffins parading around in their muffin mask giving people excuses for eating cupcakes for breakfast.

Here is the peach tart, it was yummy, very sweet. I would of liked it much more if it had more peach and less brown goo stuff ( do you like my technical terms? )

The focaccia was very good- very moist and chewy. Even gluten eating people like Wes would enjoy this bread.

So they called these (on top) kaiser rolls. I asked for these before I saw them. I am from NY and enjoyed kaiser rolls with butter very often growing up. You can get them at any bakery and many a gas station deli. I used to love them- crispy on the outside and light and chewy on the inside. I am probably asking for a miracle expecting a gluten free kaiser roll that is similar. They did taste good, as did the bagels. The bagels were small - Lender's bagel-size, but crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. Like homemade bagels if you have ever made them.
I am thrilled to see a gluten free bakery in Los Angeles, you should check it out if you live in LA.
10836 1/2 Washington Blvd.
Culver City, CA, 90232
(Between Overland and the 405)
http://www.sensitivebaker.com

If there was one thing I would suggest to them to consider changing is their use of palm oil in many of their products.
So maybe I sound like a tree hugging crazy Californian but I've heard that the production of palm oil is harming the rainforest and creatures who used to live in them.
Here is part of an article from The Center for Science in the Public Interest

"Cruel Oil" Report Exposes Palm Oil's Impact on Health & Environment

Plantations Clearing Rainforest, Threatening Already Endangered Species, Says CSPI

Palm oil has long been known to promote heart disease, but a new report from the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) says that palm oil production also promotes destruction of the rainforest, particularly in Malaysia and Indonesia. Further loss of forest may push endangered animal species, including orangutans, Sumatran tigers, and Sumatran rhinos, into extinction.

Production of palm oil is spiking upward, partly because some food manufacturers are seeking alternatives for partially hydrogenated oils, which promote heart disease. CSPI strongly urges manufacturers to replace partially hydrogenated oils, but to switch to the most healthful oils possible. Companies that must use palm oil should use as little as possible and obtain it from environmentally sustainable sources, says the group.

Palm oil is the world's second-most-produced and internationally traded edible oil, according to CSPI's report, Cruel Oil: How Palm Oil Harms Health, Rainforest, & Wildlife. More than 80 percent of the world's palm oil comes from Malaysia or Indonesia—where it is mostly grown on land that once was rainforest or peat-swamp forests. When those forest areas are cleared, habitat for endangered animals is destroyed.

"We applaud food manufacturers for moving away from trans-fat-laden partially hydrogenated oils, and happily, many companies are switching to such heart-healthy oils as soybean, corn, or canola," said CSPI executive director Michael F. Jacobson, who co-authored the report along with wildlife ecologist Ellie Brown. "Consumers and food processors should realize, though, that palm oil still promotes heart disease and that producing palm oil has a devastating impact on rainforest and endangered wildlife."

Read the rest of the article here.

Recipe: Mango on sticky rice

2007-09-14T07:06:00.000-07:00

This is possibly my favorite food to eat right now. There is just something about the rich coconut with the sweet mangos and the rice with salt that I just love. We had this last night for dinner even though it's a Thai dessert. My dad taught me that sometimes it's good to eat dessert for dinner, besides I don't add the sugar to this recipe. Instead I just used a little ( maybe 1 TB) agave nectar. There are so many different versions of this dessert.
I just cooked the rice in the rice steamer since I don't have a traditional rice steamer. There was some left over water I had to pour out but it still turned out really good. You can also substitute sushi rice but it may not be as sticky .
Here is one easy recipe where you make the rice in a pot
http://coconutlime.blogspot.com/2007/01/mango-sticky-rice.html

also I found this site that I really like because it breaks down how much it cost to serve.
http://noteatingoutinny.com/2006/10/06/desserts-vegan-style/

That recipe is a little different more like coconut rice with mangos instead of sticky rice with mangos. Both are probably good. The first is more traditional I think.

Here is one more link for this and more Thai recipes
http://www.thaitable.com/Thai/recipes/Mango_on_Sticky_Rice.htm

-J

Recipe: Fish Tacos and Parmesan Corn

2007-09-13T22:34:00.000-07:00

Alright, here's one of my favorite things to make. I remember the first time I had one. I was in Mexico back in the very early 90's in East Cape, the Southernmost tip of Mexico. What a revelation.

The version we made was quick, easy, delicious and it's a healthier recipe because we cooked the fillets on the skillet instead of deep frying them. This recipe would be for 2 people.

The more traditional recipe uses cabbage and a few other things we didn't have in the fridge this week.

Fish Taco:

-2 fish fillets. People usually use a white-fleshed fish, but I use Salmon sometimes and it still tastes great. This time, we used Mahi Mahi (Dorado). These fillets were close to being a foot long.
-3 limes
-Cornstarch(or rice flour). Cornstarch you say? It gives it just enough of a coating with the seasonings to give it some texture on the outside. I usually use sweet rice flour(Mochiko) to coat the fish, but I changed it up this time.
-Sea salt and pepper to taste
-1/4 cup fresh chopped Cilantro
-3 Tbs Mayonaise
-3 Tbs Plain Yogurt
-Olive oil
-2 tsp hot pepper sauce( I usually use Sriracha or Tapatio)
-4 Corn tortillas. Please note, a lot of times when you get fish tacos, the place will 'double up' your tortillas and you'll have 2 tortillas per fish taco. Why? Well, corn tortillas aren't very durable and they tend to rip and break easily even when heated up.

Place your fish fillets into a large container and marinate in the juice of 2 limes for 15-20 minutes. Remove from marinade and cut your fish into 1" strips as well as cutting the fillets into pieces long enough to fit into the corn tortillas. You don't want wider or longer strips of fish because it won't fit inside of your corn tortilla and everything will fall out or break the tortilla.

To make the sauce, place the mayo and yogurt into a bowl along with the cilantro, hot sauce and the juice of one lime. Mix together with a fork until everything is incorporated.

Heat skillet to med high temperature with a few teaspoons of Olive oil. While the skillet is heating up, combine the cornstarch(or rice flour) with sea salt and pepper. Don't go too crazy with the seasoning, just put enough. Dredge the fish in the cornstarch mixture and shake off any excess. When the oil and pan are hot, place the fish in the skillet. Cook through until a bit more than halfway done and flip the fish to finish the cooking on the other side.

In the meantime, you need to heat the tortillas up. We have a toaster oven, so you wrap the tortillas in tin foil and bake them for about 10 minutes at 350 to get them warm. If you don't have one, you can heat them up in a pan or whatever you have available. You just need to get them warm so that they're bendable. Cold corn tortillas break right away since they have no elasticity from lack of gluten.

When the fish is done, place the strips in onto your corn tortillas, spoon on some sauce and enjoy!

**We used the leftover salsa and guacamole from the other day when we made nachos.**

Parmesan rolled corn:

If you go to Farmers markets around the LA area, you'll often see grilled corn being sold by Mexican restaurants that are there. Very tasty.

Sweet corn is best used for this dish. The real version(not healthy) uses a bunch of butter to which you roll the hot corn into and then you cover that butter corn with cheesy goodness.

But, not in this one.

-2 ears of fresh, sweet corn
-Parmesan cheese--preferably the real kind--Parmigiano Reggiano, but whatever you can get.
-Sea salt and pepper to taste
-juice of 1 lime

Grate enough cheese onto a large plate to roll the corn in after it's done cooking. Season it with some sea salt and pepper. Heat up a pot with water until it boils. Carefully place your corn in and only cook for 2 minutes! If you have fresh corn, it only needs to be cooked for about 2 minutes. Don't ruin that corn by overcooking it. Carefully take the corn out, drain some of the water off of the corn and then roll into the cheese, making sure you try to cover every kernel with that cheese.

After that, plate and squeeze some lime juice, maybe some hot sauce and it'll be good to go!

-W

P.S. I think this Parmesan corn would be best grilled. I think then the corn would be softer and there would be more gaps for the Parmesan to go in. I actually sprayed the corn with some olive oil to try and get the Parmesan to stick better.

Today's Rosh Hashanah

2007-09-13T10:34:00.000-07:00

If you celebrate and are gluten free here is a great gluten free recipe roundup:
Glutenfreebay
I used to love matzo ball soup and knishes. I can't wait to try the recipes when it gets cooler here.
Also it's a too late for this holiday but I noticed LA's only gluten free bakery- The Sensitive Baker takes orders for Challah bread around the holidays.. so maybe for the next one..
We visited The Sensitive Baker recently and got various tasty bread products, that we'll be writing about soon.

Coconut rice and shrimp topped with pineapple salsa and toasted coconut

2007-09-12T07:40:00.000-07:00

So if you think that recipe sounds or looks good then this is kind of a tease. I'm not going to give any recipe because it was missing something and totally unbalanced. Maybe once I modify it I'll put it up a recipe.
I wanted to write about coconut rice though because alone it is sooo good.
Here is a recipe and a great blog
When I made the coconut rice I just put in the coconut milk, water, rice and a pinch of salt all into the rice cooker.
Ok. So coconut milk is very high in saturated fat BUT it just may be the good kind easily metabolized with beneficial properties. I hope so! Read about it here.

-J

-W here. Let me clarify what she meant by unbalanced. The coconut rice is really, really good. But....it has a subtle taste. The aroma is fantastic. It doesn't knock you on the head with coconut flavor. So, when combined with stronger flavors such as the pineapple, serrano chile and onion, you can barely taste the delicate flavors of the coconut rice. I thought of a way to get that coconut flavor to stand out a bit more and that involves spooning some coconut milk on top of the rice right when it's about to be served. That way, you get a more intense coconut flavor and that will also balance out the flavors as well as the serrano chiles if they're too hot for you.

-W

Recipe: Rice and red pepper frittata with shaved parmesan served on a warm cripsy corn tortilla or ...leftovers for short!

2007-09-12T07:04:00.000-07:00

The other day I wanted to use some left overs- mostly the guacamole and pico de gallo from the nachos the night before. We also had some rice that I wanted to use up and a red pepper on its last day. I often find a frittata is a good way to use leftovers from kale to black beans to rice.
Leftovers frittatas
Heat about 1 TB oil in a smallish skillet (we use cast iron) over medium heat

add 1/2 chopped onion
cook for about 1 minute

add 1 chopped red pepper ( seeds removed)
cook it for another minute

Add 1 cup left over rice ( we had white sushi)
mix it all around

Add about 5 eggs scrambled with a little rice milk and a pinch or two of salt and cracked pepper
turn heat down a little
cook it until the eggs look set.

In the mean time spray a little olive oil in a pan on medium heat and put in corn tortillas until they get soft

When the frittata is done slice it up and put it on the corn tortilla
Serve with guacamole, pico de gallo and a shaving of parmesan- or homemade vegan cheese ( we had leftover)

Recipe: Relaxed Sunday Dinner- Dairy free!

2007-09-10T07:10:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we had some nachos with all the fixings for dinner. Since I realized dairy really bothers my allergies I have been trying to avoid it.

Real Food Daily in both Santa Monica and West Hollywood make great "better with cheddar nachos" which are, like all of RFD, vegan( free from all meats and fish, dairy and eggs)
I have been fascinated with their cheddar nut cheese since I first had it. Their nachos used to be a bit on the salty side but last time we had them in the West Hollywood location they seemed perfect, so maybe they adjusted their recipe or the chips they use. Even W likes them. I know the idea of making cheese from nuts may seem gross or too strange for some people. But you may be surprised. The combination of cashews, nutritional yeast and spices do make a flavorful cheese substitute for those who can't have dairy or who choose not to for whatever reason.

I came across a recipe for dry bulk "uncheese" on Vegweb and wanted to try some nachos. Vegweb is one of my favorite sites. If you make this "cheese recipe you may want to cut down on the salt, especially if you are using regular salt instead of Vege- Sal. On Vegweb people post their recipes, pictures and reviews. I secretly check it first thing every week when trying to make a list of meals for the week. I say secretly because a lot of times W does not like some of my wacky vegetarian, raw food or too- healthy -to- taste -good recipes I test out on him.

W made the guacamole and the pico de gallo. Maybe he'll post recipes later. After you make the dry mix for cheese you cook it with hot water. See the recipe.
Basically we just drained the black beans and then cooked them with a little cumin and garlic,
put them on the chips and then layered on the cheese, pico de gallo, guacamole and olives.
The only mistake I made is I didn't process the nuts enough so it wasn't as smooth as it should of been.

Below is a perfect example of how W and I differ in presentation styles (Also an interesting metaphor on how we differ in our painting styles)

Guess which one is mine?
The first one. I know I have to learn a thing or to about presentation. W is teaching me a lot both about food and about art. But hey in this case it's nachos so I feel I am ok.

Next time I would use just plain corn chips I didn't realize these were soy flax seed chips. I didn't like the texture of the chip or taste - too thick. Not to mention how I have a little headache today ( that's why I try to avoid soy, sometimes it gives me headaches behind my eye but that's a whole other post)
W said he couldn't really taste the cheese, probably because he made the salsa so hot! I thought it was really good. We'll see how he likes it later in the week, because I plan to make it again in other meals.

-W here. I can't recall how many times I've made pico de gallo or guacamole. Way too many to count. Remember that dinner party I was talking about? I used the tops of the cherry tomatoes I cut off of the pesto-stuffed cherry tomatoes for the salsa. Why waste a perfectly good product?

Here's a loose recipe of the pico de gallo and guacamole that I made for the nachos.

Pico de gallo-
-4 tomatoes. In this case, I used the tops of the cherry tomatoes(which equaled about 1 small tomato) from another dish I made as well as one large heirloom tomato. That heirloom was about the size of 3 regular vine-ripened tomatoes.
-Half of an onion, diced small.
-1 Serrano or Jalapeno chile, diced.
-1/4 cup Cilantro, chopped.
-2 tsp lime juice.
-2 cloves of Garlic. You can do a quick sautee on the garlic to mellow it out a bit, but make sure not to burn it. Personally, I like raw garlic in Pico De Gallo, but J likes it sauteed.

-Sea salt and pepper to taste.

Put the tomatoes in first, then add the rest of the ingredients. Adjust the seasoning at the end with salt and pepper. Refrigerate because it's best served cold.

Guacamole(this will be enough for the nachos and some leftovers)
There are so many different variations and the one I usually make has tomatoes and Cilantro, but since we almost overdosed on tomatoes this past week, I didn't want any in there and we had to save the cilantro for something else.

-3 ripe Avocados, chopped. We used a Reed Avocado this time, but Haas are available like weeds out here in LA. I find that the Haas are a gamble to buy sometimes and have stringy bits inside a lot of times. But, I love the richness and flavor of them. The Reed avocado was about the size of 3 Haas avocados.
-3-4 Tbs of lime juice.
-Sea salt and pepper to taste.
-2 cloves of Garlic, minced. (I like them raw, J likes them sauteed)

Add the avocados into a bowl or mortar and pestle. Then add the lime juice to avoid discoloration on the avocados. If you're just using a bowl, use a fork to mash the mixture until you start getting a good consistency.

Mince Garlic. You can add it raw or cooked. If you're going to cook it...

Do a quick sautee on the minced Garlic in some Olive Oil just to take some of the bite out and then quickly add to the Guacamole. Adjust seasoning at the end.

-W

Recipe: Cajun-style rice

2007-09-07T22:56:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick recipe that I make sometimes when I have to work on-site, on the other side of town. It's delicious and very easy to make.

-3 tsp of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
-Half an onion(although I prefer Shallots), finely diced.
-One Red or Green Bell Pepper, diced.
-2 cloves of Garlic, minced.
-1 package of Andouille Chicken Sausage, chopped on the bias into half inch pieces. This particular kind happens to be GF and you can get it at Trader Joe's.
-4 cups of leftover rice.
-Sea salt and pepper to taste.
-Italian parsley for garnish. A few pinches of freshly chopped will do just fine. I didn't have any this time, but that doesn't mean that you can't use it, right?

I love Cajun food. I've made Dirty Rice countless times and knowing the flavors and ingredients that are in Dirty Rice helped me think of this recipe on the fly when I got home at night with nothing to bring for lunch the following day. So, here we go.

-Do all of your prep work for the onion, garlic and red bell pepper FIRST. Mise en place, baby, mise en place.

-Turn the burner to medium high heat with a large skillet, put the olive oil in and when the oil is hot, add the garlic, red bell peppers and onion. Season very lightly with sea salt. Cook a few minutes until onions start to get some color. The redness of the bell peppers will also start to seep out into your onions and garlic, giving it a nice, reddish-golden color. You don't have to worry about the garlic burning because all of that moisture that are in the peppers will get drawn out and you shouldn't be burning your garlic to a crisp anyways.

-Add the Andouille sausage. Why add the sausage now even if it's already cooked? Well, I want to render the fat out of the sausage into the other ingredients and into the skillet so that the rice can absorb a lot of that flavor. I also want to get some color on the sausage.

-Keep moving everything around so that the sausage does indeed get color. When the sausage is browned to your liking, add the rice. Stir the entire mixture around, making sure that the rice gets completely coated with the juice and brown bits that are on the bottom of the skillet. We actually had leftover Sushi rice(Short grain) that we had made that morning, so the rice was more moist than if I had done it with day-old rice. Cook 7-10 more minutes after adding rice, stirring every few minutes.

-Remove from heat and sprinkle the chopped Parsley on top.

I really liked the texture of the rice like that because it absorbed all of the flavors that were in the skillet. It was really tasty while hot and the rice was even moist when it had been refrigerated overnight.

I also didn't add very much salt or pepper at all because you have to remember that the Andouille sausage is already packed full of spices. Taste when done and adjust seasoning accordingly.

Yes, it sure was tasty.

There's a dinner party we're going to tomorrow night and I nailed down the 2 items that we're going to bring that'll showcase some of Summer's best.

-W

P.S. Don't mind Wes and his fancy chef terms like "render out" and "mise en place."
In his spare time he likes to pretend he's a chef, hahaha and probably just acquired that vocabulary from extensive watching of the food network. I myself never heard of the term mis en place until watching Top Chef. Apparently it is a french term and is pronounced Meez ahn plahs. It means "setting in place" and just means preparing everything before you start cooking.
-J

Eating seasonal....

2007-09-05T22:04:00.001-07:00

This post is a few months late because Summer was officially over this past weekend.

One of the best things I enjoy about the Summer in LA is the abundance of so many different kinds of fruit and vegetables available at the local Farmers' Market. The things we look forward to (and in no particular order) are:

-White and Yellow Peaches, White and Yellow Nectarines.

-Different varieties of melons-Watermelon, French varieties(fragrant and oh- so sweet), Canary, Honeydew, muskmelon(most commonly called Cantaloupe in the US).

-Different varieties of grapes(Red, Green, Concord).

-Strawberries, Plums, Pluots, Apricots, Cherries(Bing and Rainer), Blueberries, Raspberries(Red and Gold).

-Blood, pink and other oranges. Those might be a bit earlier than Summer, I can't remember right now.

-The tasty multitude of heirloom tomatoes that put ANY sorry, supermarket tomato to absolute shame. Ripe heirlooms are already a flavor explosion. Season it properly with a tiny bit of sea salt and you just might have a culinary epiphany on your hands. Also included are vine-ripened, red and yellow Cherry tomatoes.

-Purslane, great in salad.

You have to remember that all fruit and vegetables that are in supermarkets are picked way before they are ripe because it takes time to get to the store(processing and travel) and for the most part, they(mostly Summer fruit) all aren't close in quality to their FM counterparts. In my opinion, Farmers' Markets are the way to go because all of the fruit are picked the day before they are sold.

There are so many other things and I can't remember them all right now. Maybe J might remember other things tomorrow. If you live in a place that has such a wide array or fresh fruit and vegetables during Summer, take advantage of that because you don't know how lucky you are. For example, we were sorely missing the fresh fruit and veggies of the So Cal Summer when we were in Ireland back in June. I'll talk about that some other time, but let's just say that there was a very limited variety available at the local stores which I thought was strange.

There are of course a ton of other things available the entire year.

Asparagus, Artichokes, a cornucopia of different fingerling potatoes-Peruvian Purple, Russian Banana, French fingerling, Red thumb and a few others. Different varieties of Kale and Chard. Red, Yellow, White and Orange Carrots. Bell peppers in-Yellow, Orange, Green, Red, 'Chocolate' and Purplish-white.

Well, you get the idea. I'm leaving out hundreds of other things we always get and those include fresh herbs. I love the hydroponic herbs at the FM.

Here are but a few pictures of some of the treats we get from the FM during the Summer and throughout the year in So Cal.

The inside of a Pluot

Japanese Heirloom Tomato

French variety Muskmelon(very fragrant without even cutting it open) which I think is a hybrid of a Honeydew and Cantaloupe because it tastes like both with the Honeydew flavor characteristics coming through more.

Yellow Cherry Tomatoes

Yellow/Red Heirloom tomatoes(they were called Pineapple) with fresh Basil, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Japanese Cucumbers, assorted greens, sunflower seeds, sea salt and pepper.

Red heirloom tomato(I don't know the exact variety)with Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Sea Salt and a chiffonade of Basil.

Mini-watermelon(Super-delicious and juicy)
Remember, to pick a ripe one, stop with that tapping nonsense! You aren't playing the bongo drums. Look for a yellow spot on the watermelon and make sure it feels heavy for its size. Why you ask? That's the spot that the Watermelon lays on the ground and if the spot is whitish, your melon isn't ripe.

I'll be adding more later.

-W