Eating Gluten-Free Doesn't Mean Sacrificing Great Food!
My local independent coffee shop, a place that gets very crowded on weekend mornings, proudly displays a selection of gluten-free pastries. Because I’m nosy, I’ve also noticed they have specific instructions with regard to handling these pastries, including separate tongs. This warms my heart!
(As a bonus, the pastries clearly sell well, based on my regular reviews of the selection.) Continue reading “Let’s Focus on Gluten-Free Restaurant Meals”
As with so many of my recipes, this is not truly authentic. I’m lucky there are many Vietnamese restaurants in Southern California that serve delicious gluten-free pho (both beef and chicken). I’m also aware that every place I’ve ever gone has a slightly different variation of the broth.
Some are salty and a bit spicy. Some have a bit more sweetness. Most are very rich, with intense meat or vegetable flavor.
These different flavor profiles make me confident my soup is just fine for those times when I don’t want to venture outside to get my pho fix. And when I say this soup is addictive, you can either take my word for it, or, well, become an addict yourself!
Yes, beef pho is traditional, but I haven’t mastered a good beef broth (I’ve mastered an okay beef broth), so I stick with chicken when I’m dining at home. Some things, I believe, are best left to the experts.
Despite my vow to never go to Disneyland again, I succumbed to a friend’s request that I run the Tinkerbell Half Marathon with her. It was, I will admit, a relatively easy race (or as easy as 13.1 miles can be!), and the energy of the crowd was amazing. Running through the park before the regular crowds arrived reminded me of my childhood.
(Or, it was amazing fun!)
I then spent a day at Disneyland with my family — my niece is finally old enough to appreciate the magic of Disneyland. I felt old and jaded as I watched her try to absorb all the sights and sounds of the park…and that was before we wandered halfway down Main Street. Continue reading “Gluten-Free in Disneyland”
It’s no secret that cauliflower has finally attained favorite veggie status in many households, mine included. After my success with Brussels sprouts, a food my husband eats like candy when I make it, I decided to give cauliflower another try.
Way back in the day, when I was a devotee of the so-called Mediterranean diet, I’d substituted cauliflower for potatoes to make, well, faux mashed potatoes. They weren’t the worst thing in the world, but I didn’t embrace the recipe. Probably because the recipe I tried was on the bland side. I’ve bookmarked this recipe for mashed cauliflower the next time I’m ready to try this idea again. The only thing I would add is some roasted garlic. Continue reading “Cauliflower Ideas to Make Believers Out of Doubters”
This recipe came about after some trial and error. A friend had a similar dish at a local restaurant, and raved about it. When we tried to recreate it, something was missing. We’re still trying.
In the meantime, I decided to try roasting cauliflower florets and drizzling them with a bit of Frank’s Red Hot sauce. One of the problems with the dish my friend and I made was that the cauliflower got soggy when doused in the stuff. I decided a good drizzle was all that was needed.
And so we have it — one of my favorite (and most likely to surprise guests!) side dishes. It’s easy, it’s gluten free, and the flavors of cauliflower and hot sauce mingle perfectly.
I confess to a chickpea (or garbanzo bean, if you prefer) addiction. I also like lima beans. Or pretty much all beans. But chickpeas are definitely my favorite. Maybe because they are perfect for all kinds of things, from salads to hummus.
Oh, hummus! Talk about a perfect gluten-free taste treat. Continue reading “My Favorite Weeknight Side”
When I’m hungry for chickpeas (and I’m always hungry for chickpeas), I simply heat some olive oil in a skillet, toss the dry, cooked chickpeas into the pan, and let them roast away over medium-high heat, stirring to get roasted brown spots all over. I don’t want them crispy — that’s an entirely different recipe! — but I do want them browned in spots and full of roasted flavor.
While the chickpeas are doing their thing on the stove, I whip together a lemony vinaigrette and chop parsley. When the chickpeas are done, I toss them in the vinaigrette, add the parsley, adjust the seasonings, and serve.
This ridiculously easy recipe will impress your family and friends. They’ll never know how simple it really is!
