Tag Archives: gluten-free

Potato Leek Soup

10 Sep

I have eaten Potato Leek Soup before, but it was a store bought soup mix.  I have never actually cooked with leeks, so I was excited to see them in my Bountiful Baskets this week while most people were turning up their noses at them.  Plus, we also got gold potatoes, so Potato Leek Soup had to be made!  My husband was really excited too, and he really enjoyed the soup.  It also worked out that Saturday was an overcast, rainy, cooler day, great soup weather.  And, it was coupled perfectly with the baguettes I had gotten from my Sunizona Family Farms FarmBox.  Can you tell how excited I am about how well this meal came together?!?!

Potato Leek Soup
Based on recipes here and here

What you need:

1/2 cup butter
2 leeks, white and pale green parts only, chopped (There is a great video here on how to clean and chop the leeks, thank you Kelly H. for the link!)
1 tablespoon cornstarch
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth (make sure to use gluten-free broth if you need this gluten-free)
2 1/2 lbs potatoes, preferably Yukon gold, diced
2 cups half and half or whole milk
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper

How to make it:

Melt butter in a large stock pot and add chopped leeks, plus salt and pepper to taste.  Cook leeks in the butter until tender, about 10-15 minutes.  Do not let leeks brown, brown will give them a burnt taste.

Next, wisk the cornstarch into the chicken broth, leaving no lumps.  Pour into the stock pot.  Then, add the diced potatoes and half and half.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 20-30 minutes, until potatoes are tender.  Stir in the parsley and more salt and pepper, if desired.  If you want a smoother soup, remove about half of soup to a blender and puree, then return to the pot.  You can also use an immersion blender or hand potato masher to slightly mash some of the potatoes in the soup.  Serve hot.

Variations:

Potato Leek Soup with Sausage:  While soup is cooking, crumble and brown 1 pound of Italian sausage.  Drain excess fat.  Stir into finished soup.

Potato Leek Soup with Ham: After soup has finished cooking, add in 2 cups of fully cooked ham (such as Zaycon Foods ham)

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Stuffed Acorn Squash

13 Jun

 

I feel like this is more of a fall dish than a summer dish, but when I got acorn squash from Bountiful Baskets this week, I knew this was what I wanted to make.  I first tried this in 2010, in my first few months of participating in Bountiful Baskets.  I can’t remember where I got the idea to stuff them, but I wanted something that would be a meal all in one.  I combined a few ideas from recipes online for this, and I really am pleased with the final product.  This time around, it’s also given me a chance to use some of my fresh herbs from the pack I got a couple of weeks back.  My kids like the stuffing, but weren’t fans of the squash tonight.  Oh well, more for me and my husband!

 

Stuffed Acorn Squash

What you need:

3-4 acorn squash
1 cup wild rice blend
2 cups chicken broth
2 teaspoons fresh sage, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh thyme, chopped
4 fully cooked turkey sausage patties
1/2 cup onion
2 tablespoons butter
1 small Granny Smith apple, cored and chopped
How to make it:

Preheat your oven to 350 F.

Put wild rice blend, chicken broth, sage, and thyme in a pan and cover with a tight lid.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer.  Simmer for 50 minutes, or until fully cooked.

Meanwhile, cut the acorn squash in half and scoop out seeds. Also, cut a small part off the outside so squash will sit flat. Spray a baking sheet and place squash so the cut insides face down and bake for 30 minutes.

Prepare sausage patties according to package directions. After heated through, chop up and set aside (this can be omitted if making vegetarian)

Using the same pan from the sausage, saute onion in butter until translucent. Add in chopped apple, cooking until tender. Remove from heat. Mix in sausage and rice.

Flip the acorn squash over and fill with the wild rice mixture. Place back in oven and cook for 20 minutes.

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Spinach, Feta, and Pesto Pizza

5 Mar

This cauliflower pizza crust is really growing on me.  I was skeptical as first, but the second time around, it turned out great again.  I did notice that with 1 large pizza, the center stays a little soft, but I think that might be solved by making individual size pizzas.  Even with it a little soft, no complaints in this house, and everyone just used a fork to eat it.  Even my kids gobbled this up, and I love getting an extra veggie in them for the day hidden in the crust.  This time, instead of tomato sauce, I made Spinach Basil Pesto for the sauce. Then, I put chopped red onion, sliced black olives, torn fresh spinach leaves, a 4 oz container of crumbled feta cheese, and a 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese.  I had forgotten how much I love feta cheese on pizza.  This was a delicious meal!

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Alternative Pizza Crusts

19 Feb

We don’t have any dietary restrictions in my household, but I have some friends who eat gluten-free or low-carb.  These 2 pizzas are both gluten-free and low carb (I think, correct me if I’m wrong, please!).  My friend, Jen, is the one who had posted about the cauliflower pizza crust, and once I saw it, I knew I wanted to try it.  I love cauliflower, and it’s been cheap at the store lately.  The eggplant pizzas I found on allrecipes.com, I just modified it slightly. You do have to like the taste of eggplant to enjoy this one, but it’s a wonderful way to cook the eggplant.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust
Recipe from Jen D.

What you need:

1 large head cauliflower
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
3 eggs, beaten
3 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp garlic salt
Olive oil (optional)
Pizza sauce, shredded cheese and your choice of toppings (I used diced mushrooms)

How to make it:

Take the head of cauliflower, remove stems and leaves, and chop the florets into chunks. Add to food processor and pulse until it looks like grain. Do not over-do pulse or you will puree it. (If you don’t have a food processor, you can grate the whole head with a cheese grater). Place the riced cauliflower into a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 8 minutes. There is no need to add water, as the natural moisture in the cauliflower is enough to cook itself.

Preheat oven to 450 F. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, stir together cauliflower, egg, and mozzarella.  Add oregano and garlic salt, stir.  Transfer to the cookie sheet, and using the spoon or your hands, pat out into a 12″ round.  Optional: Brush or spray olive oil over top of mixture to help with browning.

Bake at in the preheated oven for 15 minutes.  It should look like this:

Remove from oven. To the crust, add sauce, toppings and cheese.  Return to the oven and cook for 5 more minutes, or until cheese has melted:

 

 

Eggplant Pizzas
Based on recipe here

What you need:

2 eggs
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (you could use almond flour instead)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 large eggplant, sliced into 1/2 inch rounds
1/4 cup olive oil
Pizza sauce
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Pizza toppings (I used mushrooms)

How to make it:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Beat the eggs in a bowl.  Mix the Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and oregano in a separate bowl.  Dip each eggplant slice in the egg, then in the cheese mixture one at a time, making sure to coat both sides.

Heat the olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. Place the eggplant slices in the skillet to cook, turning occasionally, until evenly browned. Drain the eggplant slices on a paper towel-lined plate. Arrange the eggplant in one layer on a baking sheet. Spoon enough pizza sauce to cover each eggplant slice. Top each eggplant with mozzarella cheese.

Bake in the preheated oven until the mozzarella cheese is melted, about 5 to 10 minutes.

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Chicken Enchilada Soup

20 Jan

If you have had Chili’s Chicken Enchilada Soup, this tastes pretty similar to that.  There is one ingredient that is not real common, masa harina, which is corn flour used to make tortillas.  You need to make sure you get the right thing, corn meal is not the same and will make the texture off.  Made that mistake before.  I found the masa harina in the baking aisle with the rest of the flour at my grocery store.  If not, you may also check the organic/natural section because it may be there with the different types of flours.  Anyway, this is a thick, filling soup that is very tasty!  To serve, I crushed some tortilla chips, you could also add some sour cream and/or pico de gallo.

Chicken Enchilada Soup

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or, I just use chicken from a rotisserie chicken or leftover chicken to save on time)
1 tbsp olive oil
½ cup diced onion
1 clove garlic
1 quart chicken broth
1 cup masa harina (corn flour)
3 cups water, divided
1 cup enchilada sauce, or 1 cup salsa, or 1 cup diced tomatoes
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (or shredded Mexican blend cheese)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
½ tsp ground cumin
*Note: If you use 1 cup diced tomatoes, you may wish to increase the chili powder  to 1 tablespoon.

In large pot over medium heat, cook chicken in oil until well browned on all sides. Remove, shred, and set aside.  (This step is skipped if you already have cooked chicken)

Cook onion and garlic together in remaining oil until onions are translucent. Pour in chicken broth.

In a bowl, whisk together masa harina and 2 cups water until well blended. This step is important, if you just put the masa harina right in the pot, it won’t blend in as well, making it gritty.  Pour into pot with remaining 1 cup water, enchilada sauce, cheese, salt, chili powder and cumin. Bring to a boil.

Add chicken. Reduce heat and simmer 30-40 minutes, until thickened.

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Chicken Taquitos

16 Dec

Oh, these are yummy!  They are pretty easy to put together, just takes some time to get them all fried.  I considered baking them this time instead of frying them, but my oven already had enchiladas cooking, so I decided to stick with frying them.   Maybe next time I will bake them.

Chicken Taquitos
Makes 18-24 taquitos 

What you need:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 cups Salsa Verde
1 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese
2 dozen 6 inch corn tortillas
Oil for frying

How to make it:

Place chicken in slow cooker and pour salsa verde over chicken.  Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4.  If you don’t have a slow cooker, cook chicken by your preferred method and mix with salsa verde.  You could even buy a rotisserie chicken at the store and shred it.  Next, mix cheese in with the chicken and salsa mixture.

Heat oil in deep fryer or a large, heavy pot.  Line a baking sheet with paper towels.

Heat a small skillet over medium low heat.  Place a tortilla in the skillet and heat for a few seconds on each side to make it easier to roll. Put about 2 Tbsp of filling at one end of the tortilla and roll tightly.  Use a toothpick in the center to keep them rolled.  Repeat for remaining tortillas.

Place 5-6 in oil at a time.  Cook for a few minutes, or until golden brown.  I don’t have a deep fryer, so I fry mine in a large pot.  And, of course, I didn’t have enough oil on hand to fully cover the taquitos, so I had to flip them halfway through cooking.

Once they have cooked, remove taquitos from oil and onto the paper towel lined baking sheet.  Allow to cool, then serve.

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Alfredo Sauce

13 Dec

I love pasta, and sometimes I live to take a break from marinara or tomato-based sauces and have a white sauce.  I have played around with this recipe a little, and tonight I think I finally got it how I like it.  I served this tonight with shrimp over linguine, but you could use chicken or keep it meatless, and serve it over a variety of pasta noodles, fettuccini, linguine, small shells, etc, and even add a vegetable like broccoli.  Or, you could serve it over just chicken and vegetables too, leaving out the pasta.  I had problems previously getting this to really thicken, so tonight I added in flour, which got it how I wanted it.  If you want to keep this gluten-free, you can use a GF flour or cornstarch, it’s really just to help thicken the sauce.  You can also leave the flour out, I just find it’s a little runnier than I like.

 

Alfredo Sauce

What you need:

2 Tbsp butter
8 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp flour, or gluten-free flour, or cornstarch
1 pint half-and-half
12 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley, or 1 Tbsp dried parsley
salt and pepper to taste

How to make it:

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium low heat.  Add in garlic and cook until garlic is just beginning to brown.  Add in flour and cook for 3-5 minutes, forming a roux.  Pour in the half-and-half, stirring constantly, to make sure the roux is fully mixed in and not lumpy.  Add the Parmesan cheese one tablespoon at a time, stirring constantly.  Mix in parsley, salt, and pepper.  Continue to stir frequently until sauce thickens.  Serve as desired.

 

Shrimp Linguine Alfredo variation:

Cook 1 pound linguine according to package directions for al dente.  Drain, and set aside.  Meanwhile, make sauce as above.  After sauce thickens, add in 1 pound fully cooked, peeled, and de-veined shrimp.  Stir and cook just until shrimp turn pink.  Combine the sauce and shrimp with the cooked noodles.  Serve.

Chicken Broccoli Fettuccini variation:

Cook 1 pound fettucini according to package directions for al dente.  Drain, and set aside.  Meanwhile, make sauce as above.  After sauce thickens, add in 1 pound fully cooked, cubed or shredded chicken and 1/2 lb steamed broccoli.  Stir and cook a few minutes.  Combine with pasta and serve.

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Mini Mac-and-Cheese Cakes

29 Nov

I was flipping through the magazine from the Taste of Home Cooking School show I went to when I came across this recipe.  I have been meaning to start working on the recipes in this magazine, but haven’t had time yet.  This was a great one to start with.  The original recipe is from the Chex cereal website (Chex is a sponsor of the Taste of Home Cooking School), and their version is gluten-free:

Gluten-Free Mini Mac-and-Cheese Cakes

Now, I cheated and used a box of mac-and-cheese dinner to make these.  While I used just regular mac-and-cheese, I know there is boxed gluten-free mac-and-cheese, so you can do my “cheat” too and still have these be gluten-free.  I found that 1 box made about 4 cups of prepared mac-and-cheese, so you could double the other ingredients and get 24 cakes instead of 12.  Or, if you have some mac-and-cheese leftover, it would be perfect to use up by making these.

Also, these stay together pretty well, so if you need something for a meal on the go, this would probably work!  Cook them before you have to leave, let them cool a little, then eat them in the car or at your destination.

 

Mini Mac-and-Cheese Cakes

What you need:

2 cups mac-and-cheese dinner, made according to the directions on the box
1 egg, beaten
3 cups Corn Chex cereal, finely crushed
4 Tbsp butter, melted
1-1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

How to make it:

Move oven rack to the lower third of your oven and pre-heat the oven to 350 F.  Mix together the mac-and-cheese and beaten egg, set aside.  In separate bowl, mix together the crushed Chex cereal, melted butter, and 1 cup of the shredded Cheddar cheese.  Grease a regular size 12 cup muffin pan.  Divide cereal mixture into each muffin cup, and press lightly into the bottom and up the sides.  Spoon the mac-and-cheese mixture into each muffin cup.  Top each with the remaining 1/2 cup Cheddar cheese.  Bake for 20 minutes, or until puffy and golden brown.  Cool for 5 minutes, then remove from pan.

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Wild Rice & Sausage Dressing

23 Nov

My Aunt Paula started making this for holiday meals a while back, and I just loved it.  Her recipe is super simple, 1 box of Uncle Ben’s wild rice, 1 package of breakfast sausage, 1 beaten egg.  Make rice according to the box, brown the sausage and crumble, mix it together with the egg, and bake at 350 F for 20 minutes.  This year, I wanted to make it more into a dressing, like the traditional bread & celery dressing, and make it a gluten-free dressing, so that it could be an alternative for a Thanksgiving meal.  Or, in our case, an addition to our meal.  We don’t have anyone in our household that needs to eat gluten-free, but I wanted to try this out in case we need it in the future or have someone over.

Wild Rice & Sausage Dressing

What you need:

1 cup wild rice blend (I used Lundberg Wild Rice Blend)
2 cups water (or amount specified on package directions)
1 Tbsp olive oil or butter (optional)
1 Tbsp dried parsley
1 tsp poultry seasoning (make sure blend is just spices, not any “blends”)
1 package breakfast sausage (most are gluten-free, but check the label)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small onion, chopped
2 cups celery, chopped
1 egg, beaten

How to make it:

Put rice, water, oil or butter, parsley, and poultry seasoning in a medium sauce pan.  Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to simmer for amount of time on rice package directions, mine was for 50 minutes.

Meanwhile, remove casings from sausage (if there are casings).  Place in a large skillet, crumble, and brown.  Add garlic, onion, and celery to skillet and continue cooking until onions and celery soften.

Mix together rice, sausage mixture, and the egg.  Pour into a greased 8×8 or 11×7 baking dish.  Bake at 350 F for 20-30 minutes.

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