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Gluten-free Mediterranean Flatbread
Did you know that May is Celiac Awareness Month? I shared the following over on my Instagram account but I thought it was worth mentioning here, as well.
While I discovered my own severe gluten intolerance over 11 years ago, I was actually never properly tested for Celiac (until it was too late) and now as many years later, as additional health issues have shown up to the party, many of which you guys have read about right here on the website – I now certainly suspect Celiac to be the underlying cause. (Though I denied this truth for many years)
That said, frankly speaking, my 11 year journey of eating 100% gluten-free and guiding others on their path, no matter the need, it has always been about celebrating food, exploring ingredients and hopefully encouraging others to get excited to be in the kitchen and create. Fresh, seasonal, nutrient-dense whole foods – to me it’s all about the amazing things that are naturally gluten-free, rather than supplementing with overly processed substitutes.
That said, given the nature of my work and the fact that not everyone has the ability to work from home, cook all three meals a day completely from scratch and that many of you have a whole family to feed – I am also always on the look out for gluten-free products that will make life easier, while not being loaded with terrifying ingredients. Read the rest of this entry »
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Pasta with Kale, Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Bacon (gluten-free)
Last weekend, we took the drive out to Olean to visit our farmer (I love the sound of that). We were picking up our pork share for the winter, as well as our Thanksgiving turkey. We are so lucky to have found Pierre and Sojourner Farms. The fact that every animal on the farm is pasture-raised and not pumped full of antibiotics and hormones means so much to us. I am so happy to support a wonderful place like that. It’s truly the only meat we buy.
After making the drive, it seemed wrong not to at least cook up a quick dinner with some of the delicious food we picked up. It was pretty late by the time we were ready to make dinner, so I decided to whip up a quick pasta dish for us (yeh, I know, more pasta!). The kale in my garden was still holding on and I had everything else on hand, so I thought this would be perfect. It was so perfect and delicious. Light but still hearty, it was a great quick dinner. The smokey bacon flavor was delicious and cooking the kale in the same pan as the bacon gave some of the edges that nice crisp as well. There are so many great flavors in this dish that you really don’t need much more than a pinch of Parmigiano-Reggiano on each serving, it’s that good. I am really going to miss my kale this winter, it is such a versatile green that really stands up to so many dishes. Here’s to next year’s gardening season!
Pasta with Kale, Bacon and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
serves 416 ounces organic gluten-free brown rice pasta
4 cups kale, stems removed and roughly chopped
3 slices pasture-raised farm fresh bacon (we get ours from Sojourner Farms)
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup of freshly shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheeseCook pasta in salted boiling water according to package directions. Drain.
While pasta cooks, cook bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat, 4-5 minutes or until crisp. Remove bacon from pan, set aside. Crumble when cooled. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add kale to the pan and cook 3-5 minutes until tender and a bit crisp around the edges.
In a large serving bowl, add the cooked pasta, bacon, sun-dried tomatoes, kale, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Toss to combine. The little bit of grease from the bacon should be enough for the pasta, if it isn’t, add a drizzle or two of olive oil. Top the pasta with the shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Serve.
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Sun-Dried Tomato, Mozzarella, Fontina & Arugula Pizza (Gluten-Free)
I am a big fan of homemade pizza, my Mom always made it when we were kids, with homemade pizza dough and all. I love how much fun you could have with toppings. This pizza turned out perfectly, it had so many lovely subtle flavors and the arugula finished it off nicely with a little bite. I used the same pizza dough recipe from my Caramelized Onion & Goat Cheese Pizza, but I am going to include it again here so you don’t have to look it up. Since I made this recipe up on the fly and also was making a second non-gluten-free pizza for Mark, my measurements may not be exact, so feel free to just improvise and go with what you think on the toppings. The only thing I would like to find a way to change is, some of the sun-dried tomatoes started to really blacken up as the pizza baked, it seemed to only be the ones not covered by cheese, so maybe I just need to add more cheese next time (oh darn!).
I took one leftover piece of this pizza this morning, toasted it up in the toaster oven and topped it with one fried egg. Oh my gosh was that amazing. The perfect breakfast to start a very busy day.
Sun-Dried Tomato, Mozzarella, Fontina & Arugula Pizza (Gluten-Free)
serves 2-3Gluten-free Pizza Crust
1 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp quick-rising yeast
3/4 cup warm water (about 110° F)
3/4 cup brown rice flour
1/4 cup garbanzo bean flour
1/4 cup tapioca flour
1/4 cup potato starch
1 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 eggs
1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar
2 tsp fresh rosemary, basil or oregano (I went with basil and oregano)Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or lightly grease.
In a small bowl, combine warm water, sugar and yeast. Stir until just dissolved. Cover with a kitchen towel and set aside in warm are for 10 minutes. Mixture will form a foam head of about 3/4″.
Using your food processor (which is how I did it and it worked surprisingly well), add all dry ingredients: flours, potato starch, xanthan gum and salt, directly into the processor bowl. Blend in the processor, about 1 minute. If using a mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients, and whisk together until well combined.
In another small bowl, whisk olive oil, eggs, and vinegar until blended. Add egg mixture and yeast mixture to dry ingredients, mix until combined.
Blend dough in the food processor for 2-3 minutes. Dough will be sticky and soft, it doesn’t seem much like dough at all. Add in the herbs and gently pulse or mix to combine.
Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet. Dip your hands in water or olive oil and shape the dough into a round shape about 1/4″ thick. Place in a warm, draft-free area and let rise 40 minutes. Dough should double in size.
Brush top with olive oil and sprinkle with a pinch of course salt.
This recipe can also be used to make gluten-free focaccia if you spread it to 1″ instead of 1/4″.Toppings
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon of chopped fresh herbs, I went with basil and oregano from my garden
2 ounces of sun-dried tomatoes, sliced very thin
1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella (I used organic)
1/2 cup of shredded fontina
red pepper flakes
2 cups of fresh baby arugula
fresh parmigiano-reggianoPreheat the oven to 400° F
After you have brushed a bit of olive oil on the crust and sprinkled with a bit of salt (see above), sprinkle the minced garlic all over the crust. Next, evenly sprinkle the fresh herbs and sun-dried tomatoes all over the crust. Add both cheeses and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Bake the pizza. Place the baking sheet in the middle of the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until the crust is a golden brown and the cheese is melted. After you pull the pizza out, top the entire pizza with the baby arugula. Lightly grate fresh parmigiano-reggiano on top. Cut pizza into wedges, serve immediately.
