Tag: gluten-free

Meatballs: The Easiest of Comfort Foods

Meatballs are one of the world’s great comfort foods. And they’re one of the world’s most versatile foods. You can work with any type of ground meat, beans, or grains. Add seasonings to suit your mood. Bake, grill, pan roast, or simmer in a sauce. Eat.

Meatballs are also quick to make. The hard part is getting your ingredients lined up (ye old mise en place). Still, since meatballs generally cook up in about 15 minutes or so, it’s not hard to get them done in under thirty minutes. This makes them an attractive option for weeknight meals. Continue reading “Meatballs: The Easiest of Comfort Foods”

Gluten-Free Ponzu

There is something absolutely refreshing about chilled soba noodles with a few crisp, cool vegetable piled high, served with a tangy dipping sauce called ponzu. Gluten-free ponzu can be purchased, no doubt about it. But it’s a bit pricy. As with many sauces, I find the effort involved with making my own to be so minimal that it’s worth the time. Plus, this recipe uses many of the ingredients I keep on hand for other dishes, so no special purchases are required.

For general cooking like this, I purchase restaurant-sized containers of gluten-free soy sauce from Amazon. I also purchase fancier GF soy sauces for those dishes where the flavor of the soy sauce needs to shine — in those instances, a little goes a long way, making it easier to justify a higher price point. Bonito flakes can be bought online or at Asian grocery stores (some major chain stores and Whole Foods also stock them).

Scrambling Some Eggs

When my husband switched to a lower carb diet, I joined him. Since I’m gluten free, it wasn’t a huge dietary shift for me, and, frankly, it helped me cut back on the rice I’d been using as a crutch since quitting so many other foods. Since this diet modification, I’ve been experimenting with lots more vegetable-based meals. And, we’re eating a lot more eggs.

One Sunday, we had a scrambled egg tutorial (this was followed by basic poached eggs and simple fried eggs). Since then, I just avert my eyes when he makes his scrambled eggs. It’s painful. Apparently my process was too complicated for him. Continue reading “Scrambling Some Eggs”

Under Pressure

As I think I’ve mentioned about a thousand times, I use a lot of chicken (and vegetable stock). And years ago, I realized that I was spending a small fortune to buy stock. I much prefer to make it myself, and it really doesn’t take that much active time.

In the past, I’ve set a pot on the back burner of the stove, added some aromatics like onion and garlic, tossed in some seasoning like salt and peppercorn, added the chicken carcasses I’ve bagged and tossed in the freezer. And for the next couple of hours, the stock or broth or whatever you prefer to call it would simmer away. I put the liquid in one-cup size containers and freeze them until needed. Continue reading “Under Pressure”

Really Big Salads

I said, feeling virtuous, “Let’s just have a really big salad for lunch.” My husband, feeling less virtuous, required a bit of persuasion, but eventually conceded a really big salad was just what he wanted. Mostly because all other options would require him to make his own lunch.

He is a wise man. Continue reading “Really Big Salads”

Gluten-Free Collard Green Wraps (Plus a Few Other Options)

The longer I’ve been gluten free, the more I realize the thing I miss most about sandwiches is the stuff that goes between the bread. I was reminded of this when I had a great tuna wrap, using a collard green, at Real Food Daily. The mix of tuna salad and veggies made my mouth and stomach very happy.

And the timing was perfect because I’d purchased collard greens just that week to make wraps for my lunch. Collards are great for wraps because they are large, flexible, and sturdy enough to wrap around a good amount of food. They’re also low carb, something my household is very conscious of these days. Continue reading “Gluten-Free Collard Green Wraps (Plus a Few Other Options)”

Gluten-Free Soy Sauce Eggs

Our household is eating more eggs than ever, and I’m including them in my lunch bag in different ways (hello, frittatas!). Lately, though, I’ve been adding soy sauce eggs into the mix because they’re the perfect mid-afternoon snack.

What are soy sauce eggs? Quite simply, they are hard- or soft-boiled eggs that have been peeled and marinated in a soy sauce solution. The marinade penetrates the egg white and adds lots of flavor.

I make them in batches of six, though I think I’m going to need to up my game and starting making them by the dozen since the husband is also consuming them. He likes having a low calorie, low carb option at the ready.

These eggs are, of course, delicious on their own. I also use them when making my versions of bibimbap or ramen. Add them as a topping to stir fries or fried rice. Or anything. Seriously. Anything.