Tag Archives: Italian Food

Yummy! Gluten-free Veggie Dishes

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800px-Patates

Photograph courtesy of Wikipedia.


I had brought sweet coconut seed from Savage Island.

I planted kidney potatoes in small earthen hills.

Sowed seeds of eggplant in numerous boxes of soil,

Tomato and artichoke too; half-a-dozen fine pineapple

Sent over by Mr. Carruthers, the island solicitor.

As fast as we eat them, we plant the tops.

The kitchen, a shack near the house.  I made bread in the rain.

Fanny by Carolyn Kizer from Cool, Calm, and Collected: Poems 1960 -2000.

Often simple is best: for flavor, for naturally wheat-and-gluten free, for a healthy body and a healthy budget. The easy parsley potato recipe was a popular 1950s dish. The nuns used to make it for us at school.  A waxy (as opposed to starchy) potato works best for this, so I use red-skinned potatoes (new potatoes). The potato salad dressed in a lemon vinaigrette is from the Middle Eastern side of my family.  It’s refreshingly delicious and much lighter and healthier than its American counterpart. The cauliflower is made in the Italian and French traditions with brown butter and this browning trick is something you can only do with butter so I consider this a special-occasion dish. The addition of feta cheese to the Cypress Stewed String Beans (i.e., green beans, runner beans) increases the pleasure factor and reinforces the Mediterranean flavor. All things in moderation, except for wheat-and-gluten if you have Celiac Disease, and we can keep our palates tickled, our tummies full, and our health intact.  Variety and lots of fresh vegetables are key.

Parsley New Potatoes

The recipe

Serves 3 or 4

  • 1 pound small, red new potatoes, quartered
  • 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely minced
  • 1 tablespoon Smart Balance
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place a steamer in the bottom of a pot with about an inch-and-a-half of cold water.  Bring the water to a boil and then put the potatoes in the steamer.  Cover the pot, lower the gas, and steam for about ten-to-twelve minutes. Pierce the potatoes with the tip of a small pairing knife.  If they are tender, they’re read.  Be careful not to over cook. Place the potatoes in a serving bowl and gentle toss with the butter and parsley.  Salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm.

Lebanese Potato Salad

The recipe 

serves 3-4 

  • 1 pound new potatoes, quartered
  • 1/4 cup celery, minced
  • 1/8 cup red onion, minced
  • 1 small clove garlic, finely minced
  • 1 tablespoon parsley, minced
  • 1 tablespoon cilantro, minced
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • Dash or two of  Aleppo Pepper
  • Dash of sea salt

Steam the potatoes as directed in the recipe for Parsley New Potatoes.  Mix the rest of the ingredients in a serving bowl and whisk well.  Transfer the potatoes to the bowl.  Serve at room temperature.

Cauliflower

Public domain photograph from the United States government via Wikipedia.

Cauliflower with Brown Butter

The recipe

Serves 3-4

  • 1 pound of cauliflower florets
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1 tablespoon Parmesan Reggiano
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Steam the cauliflower in the same manner as the potatoes in the preceeding recipes.  Test the florets at ten minutes to see if they’re done.  Be careful not to over cook.  While the cauliflower is cooking, brown the butter*. When the cauliflower is cooked, transfer it to a serving bowl and dress it with the brown butter and other ingredients.  Serve warm.

*This link I will take you to a video instruction on how to make brown butter.  There is a trick to it.  It’s easy to burn if you are not careful.

CDC_greenbean

Public domain photograph from the United States government via Wikipedia.

Cypress Stewed String Beans

The recipe

Serves 3-4

  • 1 pound of string beans, tipped and halved
  • 1 1-pound can of stewed tomatoes
  • 1/8 cup olive oil
  • 1 medium white onion, diced
  • 1 clove garlic, diced
  • 1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely minced
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1/2 lemon, juiced
  • 1/4 teaspoon Aleppo Pepper
  • Sea salt to taste
  • 1/2 cup feta cheese, crumbled

Sauté the onion and garlic in the olive oil.  When they begin to brown, slowly add the stewed tomatoes to the pot.  Add the string beans, parsley, oregano, pepper and lemon juice.  Simmer over a low heat for approximately thirty minutes.  When the string beans, turn off the heat and add the feta.  Stir once or twice gently.  Taste for salt and add as appropriate.  Stir.  Serve warm in individual bowls.

Better Than Two Eggs Over Easy, Gluten-free

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rapini

Photograph of Broccoli Rabe (Rapini)  via Wikipedia under GNU Free Documentation License

 

Serum of steam rising from the cup,
what comfort to be known personally by Barbara,
her perfect pouring hand and starched ascot,
known as the two easy eggs and the single pancake,
without saying.
What pleasure for an immigrant—
anything without saying.”

My Uncle’s Favorite Coffee Shop by Naomi Shihab Nye from Fuel
Broccoli Rabe, sometimes called Rapini, is used in Southern Italian cooking.  I believe it’s widely available in the United States.  (You can substitute regular broccoli or Chinese broccoli if you can’t find Rabe in your area.) It’s another one of those “good-and-good-for you” vegetables to which you can become addicted.  It has a taste both bitter and nutty. It’s quite delicious when lightly sauteed in olive oil and served at room temperature with a squeeze of lemon. Here it’s served up with sausage and egg for a high protein, low carb meal, much more interesting for breakfast or brunch than the usual omelet or eggs scrambled or over easy.  It’s not a souffle in the strict sense so you needed worry that it will collapse on you.

As with all recipes on Musing by Moonlight, this recipe is wheat-and-gluten free for those with Celiac Disease or wheat-and-gluten sensitivity.

Gluten-free Broccoli Rabe Souffle
The Recipe
Serves six
Preheat oven to 350 degrees fFahrenheit

 

 

  • 2 pounds of broccoli rabe, washed, steamed, and coarsely chopped
  • 2 cups of sliced gluten free precooked sausage, such as Saag’s  Parmesan-Mushroom Sausage
  • 1 1/2 cups of diced LifeTime Fat-free mozzarella
  • 6 large omega-3 eggs, beaten and mixed with 3 tablespoons sheeps-milk parmesan
  • 1/2 teaspoon oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • sea salt to taste
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil 

Brush a one-and-a-half quart souffle dish with olive oil.

Combine all the other ingredients and mix well.

Pour into the dish and bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 minutes or until the eggs are set. 

Serve piping hot with a side of fruit salad and steaming cups of strong coffee.

CHICKEN HUNTER’S STYLE WITH PASTA, Wheat-and-Gluten Free

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red_junglefowl_hm3

Public Domain Illustration via Wikipedia.

my brain light;

tossing this and that

into the pot;

seasoning none of my life

the same way twice; happy to feed

whoever strays my way.”

Poem at Thirty-Nine by Alice Walker, Horses Make a Landscape Look More Beautiful

No one made a Brooklyn-style Italian meat-and-tomato sauce for pasta like my Aunt Mildred. Her sauce was heavy with meats – pork, meatballs, sausages – sweet and hot – and chicken. It was the chicken I loved best. So when as an adult I discovered chicken hunter’s style, pollo alla cacciatora, I fell in love. It’s a pungent tomato sauce flavored with chicken, pancetta, onions, sweet peppers, wine, fresh rosemary, and olive oil. My appreciation for this dish isn’t restricted to taste. As such dishes go, chicken hunter’s style is relatively easy and quick to prepare.  It’s also budget wise. Throughout the years, chicken has pretty consistently remained reasonably priced.

While this is hearty peasant fare, it can be presented elegantly for Sunday or company dinner or even for a romantic dinner for two. Wine is outside my areas of interest, but I suspect a Chardonnay would be an appropriate accompaniment.  This dish is well  paired with a simple salad for starters and a store-bought pastry with espresso for dessert.

Variations on the theme might be the same sauce made with rabbit or with chicken and sausage. You can’t go wrong no matter which you use for flavoring.

As with all recipes on Musing By Moonlight, this one has been adapted for those with Celiac Disease or wheat-and-gluten sensitivity.

Gluten-Free Chicken Hunter’s Style, pollo alla cacciatora

The Recipe

Services 4

The Ingredients:

  • 4 pound whole chicken, cut in eighths and skinned
  • 4  ounces of pancetta, diced
  • 2 – 28 oz cans of crushed Italian plum tomatoes
  • 1 cup of Marsala wine (or substitute water or broth)
  • 1 large yellow onion, peeled and diced
  • 6 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1 large green pepper, seeded and diced
  • 1 branch of fresh rosemary, leaves removed
  • 6 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 pinches of red chili flakes
  • sea salt to taste
  • 16 ounces of either quinoa pasta or brown rice pasta according to preference.
  • freshly grated Locatelli Romano
  • 1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced

Preparation:

1.) In a Dutch oven, brown the pancetta in olive oil.  Remove and set aside.  Add onion and peppers to the pot and brown.  When they are almost done add the garlic.  Don’t let the garlic get too dark or it will be bitter.

2.) If you choose not to skin the chicken, then brown it as well.  If you skin the chicken,  then just add it to the pot, stirring to mix well with the vegetables.  Then add the tomatoes, wine, rosemary leaves, chili flakes, and salt.  Stir well using a wooden spoon.

3.) Simmer partly covered for 40-45 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. If the chicken is done and the sauce seems thin, remove the chicken and continue to simmer the sauce to the right thickness. Taste and adjust for seasoning.

4.) Prepare the pasta according to box directions and drain.  Place on a large service dish.  Top with some sauce mixing well.  Place the pieces of chicken on top of the pasta and top them with some more sauce.  Sprinkle with parsley. Serve hot and pass the freshly grated cheese along with the entrée.