Gluten-Free Recipes for the Conscious Cook: A Seasonal, Vegetarian Cookbook (10 page)
Read Gluten-Free Recipes for the Conscious Cook: A Seasonal, Vegetarian Cookbook Online
Authors: Leslie Cerier,Kathie Swift Ms Rd
Tags: #Cooking, #Vegan Cooking, #Vegetarian, #Vegetarian & Vegan, #Vegetarian Cooking, #Gluten-Free Diet, #Low-Fat Diet, #Milk-Free Diet
Stir in the thyme and sage. Taste and adjust the seasonings if desired.
Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Fill the squash halves with the rice mixture. Top with the cheese and serve immediately.
Variations
Jade Pearl rice is both delicious and attractive in this pilaf, but you can certainly substitute other varieties of rice, such as long-grain brown rice or basmati; or, for more color and flair, try Bhutanese red rice or Chinese black rice. Just remember that when substituting other varieties of rice, you may need to
adjust the cooking time
.
A feast! You can use rice lasagna noodles in any lasagna recipe (those made by Pastariso are especially good). In fact, even though I don’t follow a gluten-free diet, I prefer rice pasta to whole wheat. Here, I’ve used chèvre instead of ricotta, and replaced the mozzarella with Cheddar (hopefully a local artisanal variety made with goat’s milk or milk from grass-fed cows) for a delicious and unusual variation. For more flavor, use chèvre with basil or other Italian herbs.
serves 4 to 6
½ cup water
2 cups
Tomato Sauce with Fennel and Marinated Dried Tomatoes
or other prepared pasta sauce
8 ounces uncooked rice lasagna noodles
6 ounces chèvre
1½ cups coarsely chopped kale
1 cup stemmed and coarsely chopped shiitake mushrooms
2 cups grated Cheddar cheese (about 8 ounces)
Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
Put the water and ½ cup of the tomato sauce in an 8-inch square baking dish and spread it over the bottom of the dish. Arrange a single layer of noodles over the sauce. Spread or crumble the chèvre on top of the noodles. Top with another layer of noodles and then all of the kale. Scatter the mushrooms and dried tomatoes over the kale. Place a final layer of noodles over the vegetables and press down gently. Pour the remaining 1½ cups sauce over the noodles and spread it evenly, then top with the grated cheese.
Cover with foil (shiny side down) or a baking sheet and bake for about 45 minutes, until the noodles are soft and the lasagna is bubbling hot. Let it stand for about 10 minutes to set up. Cut into squares and serve immediately.
Variations
Swap other kinds of fresh mushrooms for the shiitakes: white button mushrooms, criminis, portobellos, or wild mushrooms, such as chanterelles.
Use other shapes of pasta, like penne or spirals. If you do this, you can select from a wider range of gluten-free pastas, such as quinoa-corn pasta or multigrain varieties.
Replace the sauce in this recipe with 2 cups of the sauce in
Brown Rice Spirals in Tomato Sauce with Cauliflower, Olives, and Capers
.
Teff revisits its Ethiopian roots in this recipe, where it’s cooked with traditional vegetables and spices. Beyond being delicious, slices of this loaf are beautiful, with a colorful mosaic pattern.
Ethiopian Sunshine Stew
is the perfect partner for this dish.
serves 6 to 8
2 teaspoons fenugreek seeds
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
5 whole cloves
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
4 cloves garlic, pressed
1½ cups teff
1 teaspoon dried chile flakes
4½ cups boiling water
1½ cups diced red bell pepper
1 teaspoon sea salt
Toast the fenugreek seeds, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, and cloves in a small dry skillet over medium heat, stirring often, for about 1 minute, until fragrant. Transfer to a spice grinder or seed mill and grind until powdery.
Heat the oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, teff, and chile flakes and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes, until the teff is coated with the oil and the aroma of garlic and chiles fills the air. Lower the heat, then slowly pour in the water. Stir in the ground spices, bell pepper, and salt. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes, until the teff is tender and all of the water is absorbed. Taste and adjust the seasonings if desired.
Pour the mixture into a standard loaf pan and let stand for about 30 minutes, until set up. Slice into pieces about 1 inch thick and serve immediately. If you don’t want to wait, you can serve scoops of the mixture piping hot. It will have a texture like mashed potatoes, as it only sets up after cooling a bit.
I made this fantastic egg- and dairy-free loaf for a summer wedding that I catered and everyone loved it, even though most of the guests weren’t vegan. And while the final product is impressive, it’s quite easy to put together. Yellow-skinned summer squash adds eye appeal to the loaf, but zucchini would also work just fine.
serves 6 to 8
2/3 cup red lentils, rinsed
½ cup teff
2½ cups water
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
5 garlic scapes, chopped, or 5 cloves garlic, chopped
2 cups yellow summer squash, halved lengthwise and sliced into half-moons
1 teaspoon sea salt
2 cups chopped scallions (white and green parts)
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves
1¼ cups
Red Wine and Porcini Sauce
Put the lentils, teff, and water in a large saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat, cover, and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, until the teff is tender and the lentils have practically dissolved.
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic scapes, squash, and salt and sauté for about 3 minutes, until the color of the squash brightens.
Add the sauté to the cooked lentils, along with the scallions and basil, and stir well, and continue cooking until all of the water is absorbed. Taste and adjust the seasonings if desired.
Pour the mixture into a standard loaf pan and let it cool for about 30 minutes, until it sets up. Slice into pieces about 1 inch thick and serve immediately, topping each slice with a few tablespoons of the sauce.
Kasha is simply toasted buckwheat groats, and if you like, you can make your own at home. Just toast the buckwheat groats in a dry pan in a 375°F oven for about 20 minutes, and you’re good to go. For a special touch, serve this loaf topped with
Red Wine and Porcini Sauce
or
Mushroom-Leek Sauce
. It would make an especially lovely meal if you start with
Shiitake Soup with Cashew Cream
or
Tomato-Lentil Stew with Kale
as a first course.
Soaking Nuts and Seeds
There’s debate about the merits of soaking nuts and seeds before eating them or using them in cooking. Many avid raw food enthusiast maintain that nuts and seeds (except hazelnuts, Brazil nuts, and hempseeds), are difficult to digest, and that soaking helps with this. You might experiment with presoaking and see whether you notice any difference.
To presoak nuts or seeds, just put them in a bowl or jar and pour in three parts water per part of nuts or seeds. Let them soak overnight or for at least 12 hours. Then drain them and rinse them well.
If you’ll be using the nuts or seeds right away, you’re good to go. If you’ve soaked a lot and want to save them for later, you have two options: You can toast them in a low oven or food dehydrator until they’re dry and crunchy. Alternatively, you can store them in the refrigerator; if you go this route, it’s a good idea to rinse them once a day.
serves 6 to 8
1 1/3 cups kasha
¼ teaspoon sea salt
2 2/3 cups boiling water
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup diced onion
4 cloves garlic, sliced
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced red bell pepper
¾ cup walnuts
½ cup raw sunflower seeds
½ cup quinoa flour
1 teaspoon dried sage, or 1 tablespoon minced fresh sage
1½ teaspoons dried thyme, or 1½ tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
1 tablespoon umeboshi paste or miso
Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Lightly oil a standard loaf pan or a medium-size casserole dish.
Toast the kasha and salt in a medium-size dry saucepan or skillet (one with a tight-fitting lid) over medium heat, stirring often, for about 2 minutes, until the kasha is heated through and aromatic. Lower the heat, then slowly pour in the boiling water. Cover and simmer for about 10 minutes, until all of the water is absorbed.
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and sauté for about 5 minutes, until the onion begins to soften. Add the celery and sauté for about 3 minutes, until the celery becomes bright green. Add the bell pepper and sauté for 3 to 5 minutes, until its color brightens. Transfer the sautéed veggies to a large mixing bowl.
Grind the walnuts into a flour
in a food processor, then add them to the veggie mixture. Grind the sunflower seeds into a flour in the food processor and transfer them to the bowl as well. Add the cooked kasha, along with the quinoa flour, sage, thyme, and umeboshi paste and stir until thoroughly combined. You may want to start with a spoon, but at some point, it will be easier and more fun to use your hands. Taste and adjust the seasonings if desired.
Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan, cover, and bake for 30 minutes. Turn off the oven, uncover the pan, and let the loaf sit in the warm oven for 20 to 30 minutes. Slice into pieces about 1 inch thick and serve immediately.
Cooking Beans from Scratch
Some beans cook faster if presoaked; others can be cooked on a whim. Most small beans, such as mung beans and lentils cook relatively quickly without any presoaking. Soak medium-size beans, such as black, pinto, kidney, lima, and navy, for at least 4 hours before cooking. Chickpeas and soybeans need at least 6 hours. For a quick soak method, cover beans with boiling water (triple the amount of beans) and soak for 1 hour, then drain and rinse.
Before soaking, pick through a measured amount of beans and discard any defective beans, stones, or other debris. Then rinse the beans at least three times. If they need presoaking, put them in a pot or large bowl with triple the volume of water.
Always discard the soaking water; this will get rid of some of the gas-producing compounds. Then rinse the beans until the water runs clear. To further help with digestion and gas, cook beans with a sea vegetable. Dulse and kelp are good choices. They’ll also enhance the flavor of the beans and add nutrients.
The proportion of beans to cooking liquid depends on whether you want the beans to be whole, soft, or creamy. Three parts liquid to one part beans is usually a good starting point. For whole beans suitable for a salad or side dish, use a bit less, for a creamier final result, you might use more.
The actual cooking couldn’t be simpler: Just put the beans, sea vegetable, and cooking liquid in a pot and put the pot over high heat. When it comes to a boil, give it a quick stir, then lower the heat, cover, and simmer until the beans are tender. Cooking time varies from just 15 minutes for red lentils to 3 hours for soybeans. Even for a particular type of bean, cooking time can vary depending on how old and dried-out the beans are. Here’s a quick rundown of cooking time for beans used in this book: Black beans, navy beans, and pintos all take about 12 hours, and chickpeas usually take about 3 hours. You can shorten the cooking time if you use a pressure cooker.