Homemade gluten free bread

I love my new Zojirushi X-20 bread machine which I purchased Pleasant Hill Grain's website. I've used it three times and each loaf has come out perfectly. This picture represents "The Ultimate Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Sandwich Bread" made from a recipe I got from the spring 2006 Living Without Magazine issue. The recipe was created by Susan Adamson and was initially referred to in the spring 2005 issue of the magazine. After many calls, letters and emails from readers asking the magazine for the recipe, Susan sat down and figured out her exact recipe, which the magazine published in the spring '06 issue. I did make a few adjustments to the recipe. I used cow's milk instead of rice, soy, or almond, as recommended in the recipe. I also added 1 tablespoon of flax meal.
By the way, this is a fantastic magazine. If you have any food allergies, RUN and order it. It is well worth the price! Go to their website and order it; I didn't check, but I'm guessing you can call and order it as well.

The Ultimate Gluten-Free (Dairy-Free if you use rice, soy, or almond milk) Sandwich Bread
Makes one 1 1/2 - 2 pound loaf
Note: best if ingredients are all at room temperature

1 1/2 cups milk (I used cow's, though they recommend rice, soy, or almond)
2 tsp apple cider vinegar (make sure it's gluten free)
1/4 cup oil (I used olive, as recommended in the recipe)
3 large eggs
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 ½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp xanthan gum
1/3 cup tapiocoa flour
3/4 cup sorghum flour
2 cups brown or white rice flour (I used all brown rice flour)
2 tbsp pecan or almond meal, optional (I used almond meal)
1 tbsp flax seed meal (my addition to the recipe)
2 ¼ tbsp gluten free active dry yeast (I used Redstar)

Mix milk, vinegar and oil together in a bowl. Beat eggs and add to the liquid mixture. Pour into the bread machine bread pan. In a separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients together. Pour dry ingredients on top of liquid ingredients. Make a small well in the middle of the dry mix and add yeast. Set your bread machine according to the directions and wait for the smell to come wafting from your kitchen!

This morning, we had this bread toasted with my version of Mexican Scrambled Eggs. It was a delicious breakfast and a great way to start the day. Have a great weekend, friends.

Simple Yet Elegant

While I wish the picture was more artfully done, I can tell you that this was delicious. It was so simple, one of those recipes that has just a few ingredients, yet is just scrumptious. I don't have exact amounts for the ingredients, so if you decide to make it, you'll want to trust your instincts.

I've actually gotten a lot less obsessive compulsive about following recipes to a T. A few years ago, we stayed at at B&B in upstate NY (I'm having a deja vu, so I think I might've blogged about this before) where the Dad used to have contests with the sons when they came home from college. They would each have to utilize whatever was in the frig or pantry at the time, creating a gourmet meal for the family. Ever since then, I challenge myself now and then, to do the same thing. Or at least I try to create meals by basically using what is on hand (in this case, I bought the salmon).

salmon steaks
gluten free tamari (I use the San-J brand)
olive oil
water
salt & pepper

Coat the salmon steaks with olive oil. Sprinkle a liberal amount of tamari over the salmon. Add water to help create a sauce. Add salt & pepper to taste. Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Do not bake longer, as the fish will dry out.

And for a perfect side dish: heat a wok or saute pan over medium high heat, add a tablespoon or two of peanut oil. When hot, add a bag of baby spinach, stirfry for about 3o seconds, add a clove or two of minced garlic, salt & pepper. A great accompaniment to the salmon and a good way to get those dark greens into your diet. One small bag was enough for two of us, though each of us would've eaten more if it was there. One small bag shrinks down to nothing, so next time I'd probably make twice the amount.

Anyway, this was a reminder that sometimes the simplest of ingredients can create the most elegant meal!

Almost Gluten Free Revolution!

There I am, 8 AM, jumping for joy in the jam aisle at the Big Y Supermarket. You might've jumped for joy too. I'm actually starting to see gluten free food labeled in the mainstream supermarket. Either the market actually puts a gluten free tag on the shelf so that the customer can see it. And/or the companies that distribute food to the mainstream supermarkets are catching on and labeling their food gluten free, if it applies.

I can't go to the market anymore without my cellphone. I'm starting to believe that the cellphone was made precisely for me! Trying to find gluten free food has become a fulltime job. I'm trying not to whine, honestly, but you must know how tiring it gets. You can take nothing for granted. You have to be sure that everything you eat has no gluten in it. And if you really want to be careful, you have to go the extra mile and call the companies to find out how careful they are in their production of gluten free foods. Are they made in a facility that cleans and sanitizes the machinery before using it to prepare gluten free food? Do they actually measure for gluten? Do they follow any guidelines? How scrupulous are they?

So, you can see why I whooped it up at Big Y. Nothing fancy. Just jam. Plain ol' jam. Made by Polaner. The picture didn't come out great, but if you squint your eyes and look at the back of the label of the jam picture above, you'll see that the second line from the bottom says "GLUTEN FREE"!

And if that weren't enough to make my heart skip a gluten free beat, check this out. I went to a local Shaw's Supermarket this morning. They have a decent sized Wild Harvest department that caters to those who might otherwise go to Whole Foods Supermarket, if there was one close by (damn, still have to drive an hour to get to one). In the deli department they carry Wild Harvest turkey breast. And right on the label it says "No gluten". I asked the clerk to cut the lunch meat on a machine that hadn't been used yet, in other words, the machine was clean and untouched by gluten! She accomodated me. Fast forward to lunch. The turkey was delicious....the best I've had from a supermarket deli. I had a real turkey sandwich today, on toasted Whole Foods White Sandwich bread, with mustard, and gluten free potato chips. I was a happy camper today.

The label on the deli package in my picture doesn't say "No gluten", but trust me, the package that the turkey at the deli was wrapped in said "No Gluten".
It was a bit pricey, but isn't everything? When it comes to eating gluten free, it ain't cheap. My heart goes out to people who can't afford to buy food, let alone gluten free food. It's a shame that it costs so much.

The next gluten free food I want to tell you about comes from the company "Breads From Anna". Now, you must know that I'm usually a "make it from scratch" kind of person. But if there was ever a really good mix for making bread, it's this one. I've tried a number of her bread mixes, and they're all quite delicious. You can order it directly from her website, or find it at your local health food store. This package is from her gluten & yeast free pumpkin bread. I swear, you'd be hard-pressed to think it was gluten free. She sure knows how to combine ingredients to make it taste just like the pumpkin bread we all fondly remember. Slather some cream cheese on it, sip on a cup of tea or coffee. Yum! Well, that's it for now. Gotta go have dinner. Be well and Bon Appetit!

Bun Thit with Fried Tofu

The surprise party was a huge hit! I will be blogging about it soon, but I must finish processing the pictures we took. Meanwhile, what do you do when you have a lot of leftover ingredients from your Thai-inspired party? Make more Asian food, why of course! Our refrigerator is overflowing with bean sprouts, fresh mint, fresh Thai basil, tofu, red chili peppers, scallions, and so much more. So I decided to try and recreate, with a little help from a recipe, one of my favorite dishes (#37) from Dalat, one of our used-to-be regular Vietnamese haunts before Celiac Disease.

What is #37 you ask? Bun. That is a staple in any Vietnamese restaurant. I'm guessing bun means noodles. Usually it comes with very thin rice vermicelli noodles, sort of like angel hair pasta. But since I didn't have any vermicelli in my pantry, I used the wider rice noodle usually used for making Pad Thai. And then I improvised on the recipe I have in my files by adding fried tofu, spicy Thai basil, and peanuts.

Bun Thit: Rice Vermicelli with Fried Tofu

8 ounces dried rice noodles (thick or thin, your choice, make sure they have no wheat in them)
firm tofu, diced into bite-sized pieces
peanut oil
2 carrots, cut into narrow slivers
peanuts (about 1/4 cup chopped into small pieces, reserve some for garnish)
1/4 cup thai basil, chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped, reserve some for garnish
1/4 cup fresh mint,chopped

Cook noodles according to directions on package. Drain when finished. Meanwhile fry tofu in peanut oil. I'm not sure of the amount of oil to use, as I didn't measure it. The amount can be to your own liking. Add fried tofu, carrots, peanuts, basil, cilantro, and mint to noodles. Add dressing and toss to mix. Serve with extra cilantro and chopped peanuts sprinkled over the top.

Nuoc Cham Dressing

5 tbsp. sugar
3 tbsp. water
1/3 cup fish sauce (I used Thai Kitchen brand, as it is gluten free)
1/2 cup lime juice
1 large minced clove of garlic
1 Thai chili, minced (seed this if you want it less spicy)

Whisk together the sugar, water, fish sauce, and lime juice in a measuring cup until the sugar dissolves. Add the garlic and chili and let stand for about 30 minutes before using.

Is the matzo really gluten free?

I had the gluten free oat matzo on the first night of Passover, and then again throughout the week. My stomach has definitely been feeling funky since I've been eating it. I assumed that the gluten free oat matzo was fine. After all, it's gluten free. It has to be ok for me to eat, right? Then, tonight we had it for supper. I made matzo brei, the traditional dish you eat during Passover. Though the holiday is over, we hadn't eaten this cherished preparation at all during our observance, so I got the brainstorm to have it for our Sabbath dinner this evening.

My first attempt was dismal. I followed the usual directions. Break the matzo into pieces and add to hot water to soften. Drain and add to beaten eggs with salt & pepper, cook in butter. Serve with our usual, maple syrup. Well, I didn't even get past the first step. After a very short time in the hot water, it turned to mush. Completely dissolved into pasty yucky mush. Four very expensive matzo boards down the drain.

Then I tried skipping the first step, putting the matzo directly into the beaten eggs, following the rest of the directions. We were excited. Matzo brei! The gosh darn real thing. And I ate my portion of it, drowned in maple syrup.

But I should not have finished it. I noticed an old familiar sound, just a few minutes into eating it. My stomach started to do somersaults, grumbling and churning, just like in the old pre-gluten free days. But I couldn't stop, though I should have. Now, I'm sitting here, typing this, and feeling like crap.

So, who knows? I'll admit, it could be in my head. But, this feels awfully familiar. I wanted so much to believe that the oat matzo was indeed gluten free. But maybe there's more to it than meets the eye.

As for me, next year, I will think long and hard before partaking in that usual ritual. Maybe I'll make Hillel sandwiches with ricecakes instead:).

Shhh! Surprise Party Thai Style

Ok, here goes. We're going Thai! I created the menu for the party with a huge amount of help from Foodfan, for which I'm eternally grateful! Now, I have to hope that my husband is not going to read my blog between now and Saturday. I'm fairly certain he won't, which is why I have the nerve to publish this list on my blog.

I discovered Thai Kitchen products when I became a Celiac and needed gluten free choices. They make a huge array of foods that are gluten free and have made my entry into Thai cooking effortless. Their website is fantastic, with a huge catalog of recipes. Of course, their recipes use their products. But that's ok. Until I learn to make my own red chili paste, I'm happy to buy theirs. Anyway, this is just a quick post so that I can get the menu published on my blog. As the party plans unfold, I'll post further about it. I will definitely be posting pictures of the food prep and the finished food. But I'm also going to take and post pictures of the fabulous Vietnamese grocery store I found practically around the corner from our house! When I saw the HUGE, and I mean HUGE mint bunches for a mere penny compared to what you pay for fresh mint at our regular grocery store, I practically jumped out of my skin. Plus they have Thai basil and galangal (ginger) and a ton of other Vietnamese and Thai foods. It was heavenly, honestly!

Thai Chicken & Lettuce Wraps
Red Curry Shrimp
Spicy Basil Chicken
Jasmine Rice
Roasted Eggplant with Tofu & Basil
Spicy Corn Salad
Fruit Salad with Mint & Lime Syrup
Flourless Chocolate Cake

I might add Tom Yum Soup, which Foodfan also recommended. But I'm not positive yet about whether I will include that recipe.

I have three people coming to help with the food prep. This will be the first time I'm ever having help when I cook. But there will be about 40 people and I know it will make things run more smoothly. Now I just have to make sure he takes the bait when it comes to getting him out of the house!

Party Challenge: Any Takers?

I need some interesting recipe ideas (or menus would be even better) for entertaining. Any ideas would be most welcome. The function will include about 30 people, some cooking can be done in advance, though most will be done the day of the event. I love ethnic foods in particular, but I'm not sure they lend themselves to large group entertaining. But, I'm open to ideas. Can't wait to see what you have in mind!

Passover In New England

Passover began last Wednesday night. We had the first night seder at our house, complete with four offspring and friends. And the obligatory matzo. Except this year, the matzo was gluten free! All the way from London. Made by a rabbi, the story goes, whose daughter is Celiac. Grows his own uncontaminated oats and makes the matzo so that it is gluten free. And though ridiculously expensive, it made for a terrific Passover! In fact, the matzo balls in my chicken soup were the best I've ever made. Our menu included Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls, Mock Chopped Liver (made with brown lentils), Brisket in Sweet & Sour Sauce, Parsley-Radicchio-Cabbage Salad, Tzimmes with Crystallized Ginger, Apple Kugel (made with the gluten free matzo), Roasted Asparagus and blueberry sorbet and chocolate macaroons for dessert. All made by moi! The picture above is of the Parsley-Radicchio-Cabbage Salad.

It was a lovely way to spend the first night of Passover. And this year, I can honestly say that even though I had to make everything gluten free, you really couldn't tell the difference. In fact, Peter said that he liked the matzo even better than regular matzo. Go figure!

Beyond Salmon: Great blog!

Ok, I'm hooked, no pun intended. One of the comments on my blog today was from Helen who writes "Beyond Salmon", a blog about fish. I found only about a million recipes on her blog that look fantastic. I can't wait to try them, only problem is I don't know where to start! I'm thinking of trying the Smoked Trout and Fennel Chowder recipe, maybe for the first course at our Passover seder on Wednesday night. Instead of Chicken Soup as one course and Gefilte Fish as another course, I'll make a course that takes care of the soup and fish course at the same time! I love Gefilte Fish, but nobody else in my family eats it. So, I might as well make something that everyone will love.

I'll keep you posted. Meanwhile, thank you Helen for your wonderful blog. I just might have to come up to Boston and take one of your cooking classes.

homemade gluten free flax bagels

I have been buying packaged gluten free bagels and in fact found two very satisfactory brands (kinnickknick an glutino). But being the make-it-from-scratch gal that I am, I really wanted to make them at home. This was my first attempt, and in fact were quite good. Next time I will double the recipe and make each bagel bigger. I would also be careful about not baking them for too long, as this batch was quite crisp on the outside. Good, but I would've liked them a bit less hard. Still, they were good enough to write home about.

Gluten Free Flax Bagels
Adapted from www.wheat-free.org

The original recipe appeared with metric measurements. I converted the metric for use in the American kitchen. I used a digital scale to weigh the dry and wet ingredients. I also added flax seed meal to the recipe. Makes small 8 bagels.

100 ml warm water (3.2 oz)
1 tsp sugar
1 tbsp dried yeast
2 tbsp butter
50 ml hot water (1.6 oz)
140 g white rice flour (5.5 oz)
130 g tapioca flour (4.75 oz)
2 tbsp dry milk powder
1 ¾ tsp xanthan gum1 tsp salt
1tbsp sugar
2 tbsp flax seed meal
2 large egg whites (room temperature)
Water and 1 tsp sugar for boiling bagels
rice flour for dusting
1 tsp sugar for coating bagels

Rising time: 30 – 60 minutes
Preheat oven: 220 degrees centigrade, 425 degrees farenheight

1. Put the water in a separate bowl or measuring cup. Add and stir 1 tsp sugar until dissolved. Then sprinkle yeast on top and leave for a few minutes until foamy.
2. Melt the butter in the hot water.
3. Place the rice flour, tapioca flour, dry milk powder, xanthan gum, salt and sugar in a mixer or food processor. If using mixer, put on low speed. Mix until blended together. Then add hot water/butter mixture while machine is still “on”. Then add the egg whites and yeast mixture.Ingredients should be mixed thoroughly and the dough will be thick. If not thick enough, add a little more rice flour, mix and check the consistency again. If the mix is too thick, add small amounts of water until the consistency appears to be correct and will hold a shape. Blend for another 4 -5 minutes (on low if using mixer).
4. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or lightly spray with oil and dust with rice flour.
5. Remove dough from mixer or processor. Roll into log. Divide log into 8 equal portions. Keeping your hands either greased or floured with rice flour, roll each of the 8 portions into balls then flatten and poke a hole in the centre, widening it so that it will not close up. Put the bagels on the baking sheet and loosely cover with plastic or a lightly dampened towel. Leave in a warm place until they have doubled in size, from 30 – 60 minutes depending on the yeast type used.
6. Meanwhile, bring a large saucepan of water to a boil, dissolving 1 tsp of sugar in it. When the water has come to a rolling boil, gently drop a bagel into it. After 30 seconds carefully turn the bagel over. After another 30 seconds remove the bagel using a slotted spoon. Place on baking sheet. You can do this with several bagels at a time or as many will fit into the pan.
7. When all the bagels have been boiled in the sugar water, put them into the oven and bake for 20 – 22 minutes, depending on size.

Eating home is the best bet

So, there we were, standing outside the Hibernian Club in Worcester, MA. We had just spent the last 90 minutes playing Celtic music with a bunch of regulars. There were two unbelievable button accordian players, brothers, about 72 years old. And a few bodhrans, a penny whistle, an Irish flute, someone playing the bones and spoons. It was more then splendid. I can hardly believe we've lived in Worcester all these years and didn't know about this fantastic gathering. It was like out of a movie. It was as if these people traveled directly here from a pub in Ireland. It was the real deal.

And, now, I'll get to the food connection. We leave the Hibernian, ready to head home. Before we get in the car, I make the comment "Wouldn't it be nice to go out for dinner? Let's try Nancy Chang's. I heard an ad on TV the other day, they said they serve gluten free meals." But, alas, we decided against it. Too much risk of cross contamination. I'm a few months into what I hope is a healing of my small intestine. Better not to take the chance. So, we opted to come home instead. Going out to eat has become a chore rather than a pleasure. Except for The Elephant Walk in Boston. So far, that's the only restaurant we've been to (that I know of, but I'm still a newbie at this Celiac stuff) that has dedicated part of their kitchen to gluten free food prep and cooking. In general, it's just not worth the aggravation of trying to explain it to the waitstaff. Better to come home and play the "let's see what we can scrounge up from the food in the frig and pantry" game. I'm getting good at, actually, if I can blow my own horn for just one moment.

The trick is, you have to know how to shop. You have to trust your instincts. If you're in the market and they have avocadoes on sale, but you hadn't planned any recipes with avocadoes for that week, get them anyway. Trust that you'll figure out what to do with them. Sometimes inspiration hits with nary a recipe in sight. Other times I need to look through my files for ideas.

Where was I? Let's see. We left the Hibernian, driving past Nancy Chang's, continuing on home. It's 6:30 PM on a Sunday night. I'm beyond starving. Drive into the garage. Head directly for the kitchen. I open the frig, stare at the contents. If I wait long enough, maybe they'll jump out and magically make dinner. I close the frig and walk away. I repeat this several times. And then........

I start frenetically pulling containers and bags out of the frig. First I think guacamole. Then I change my mind and decide on a salad with avocado as the centerpiece of the salad. Gotta look up that recipe for salad dressing, the one that uses fresh squeezed lime juice. Oh yes, and I think I'll make little tacos with gluten free corn tortillas and leftover Amy's refried black beans. And there's just enough cheddar cheese left to tuck inside of the tacos. And how about that leftover spinach from this mornings' frittata. Squeeze out the water and use it in the taco. That's it! Green salad with avocado, little baby tacos with refried beans, spinach, and cheese. A delicious Sunday night meal.

The salad dressing is based on a recipe in one of my favorite cookbooks, Simple Vegetarian Pleasures by Jeanne Lemlin. But I changed it a little bit. I used lime juice instead of red wine vinegar, and I omitted the red onion. Contrary to the way most vinagrettes are made, I mix the lime juice and olive oil first, then the honey. I do this because the honey slides right off the measuring spoon when I use it to measure the olive oil first.

salad with honey-lime vinagrette

romaine lettuce
one avocado, cut into smallish chunks
small (but bigger than cherry tomatoes) quartered tomatoes
one small onion, sliced
cilantro, chopped fine

Clean and chop the lettuce into bite-sized pieces. Put in bowl. Add chopped avocado, quartered tomatoes, and sliced onion. Sprinkle cilantro over the top. Serve with honey-lime vinagrette.

honey-lime vinagrette

1 1/2 tbsp fresh squeezed lime juice
5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp honey
2 tsp dijon-style mustard
dash of salt

Combine the lime juice and olive oil. Whisk. Add the honey, mustard, and salt. Whisk again.

Sunday nights. Gotta love 'em.

Tag, You're it!

I am blogging quickly before the clock strikes midnight and I turn into a pumpkin. No food entries tonight. I promise to add some more recipes and food-related info tomorrow, but for now, I'm desperately trying to figure out how to put tags on my blog, and so far, I'll admit to being stumped. I found a great blog created by Vicki A. Davis. One of her posts is called Ten habits of bloggers that win! It looks great, and I hope to study it and figure out how to add tags to my blog. If anyone reading this has any advice, please leave me a comment!

One more thing.....I bought a Zojirushi bread machine. It is fantastic!!! I've made two loaves and so far, so good. The smell of bread is once again wafting through our house. And it tastes quite good. Can I say that life almost feels normal again? I went to a Central Massachusetts Celiac Support Group meeting this afternoon and learned a lot of great tips for making bread at home. When you click on the link for the support group, scroll down until you find the info on the page. I also bought enough flour (they had their annual gluten free flour sale) to float a battleship. Which means I'll be baking up a storm!

tomatoes that taste like tomatoes

Sometimes the simplest of foods can be so nurturing. What could be better than sliced tomatoes with mozzarella cheese and basil leaves sandwiched between the slices? And a vinagarette of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, salt & pepper drizzled on top of the composed salad. A reminder that summer is soon to come. These tomatoes were actually quite good, considering that they were probably grown in a hothouse. Who cares that they cost $5.99 for about 12 small beauties? As spring begins to soften the earth here in the northeast US, we ate tomatoes that tasted like the real thing. And it reminded us that soon, in about 4 or 5 months, we will be able to either eat our own homegrown tomatoes, or buy them at local farmers markets, where stalls are spilling over with real tomatoes, tomatoes that look and taste like tomatoes, tomatoes that are picked right off the vine early in the morning and brought to market.

On another note, I've had a few hard days. Definitely in a Celiac funk. I've been feeling pretty sorry for myself. I don't care so much, believe it or not, that I can't eat this or that. What I find deplorable is the fact that I need to consider every damn thing that goes into my mouth. For example, tonight, I made a vinagarette to drizzle over the lovely tomatoes pictured above. The balsamic vinegar that I used was Trader Joe's white balsamic vinegar. Bottled in Italy. The ingredients were seemingly safe. No gluten. But, ah, can I convince myself that something is gluten free when I want to eat it and don't really want to check for certainty? Yes, I can. It was only after I ate it that I remembered that feeling that nagged at me, in the back of my mind, as I made the dressing. The ingredients included something called grape must. I have no clue what that is. And maybe in fact there isn't gluten in grape must. But who knows about the vinegar? I've been told that products made in other countries aren't as easy to verify in terms of the gluten content. So, why did I take a chance? Why am I now having major heart burn as I write this? Because I got lazy. Because of my Celiac funk, I decided to take a chance. And now I'm sorry I did. I was just thinking, earlier today, that I've really been feeling better. No heart burn. No tummy rumblings. And then tonight I blew it. Well, there's always tomorrow.

And someone from another blog, a more experienced Celiac, gave me some good advice recently. I will feel better and then have a setback (I paraphrase). The healing will take place in stages. Three steps forward, one step backward. Slow and steady wins the race. If I keep trying to be as compliant as I can, with minor setbacks now and then, in the big picture, I hope to have totally good days more often than not. Oh yeah, and maybe my hair will stop falling out.

My life has become steak. So much so that I'm actually sick of it. I don't care if I ever eat steak again. Ever never. But it's so easy and so Celiac friendly. Never having gone all vegetarian, I find it very difficult to make the shift to do so. It seems to require so much preparation. With a diet that is centered around meat or chicken or fish, it's far less time-consuming. Throw it under the broiler or on the grill, cook 10 minutes, throw the salad together quickly, you're done. But with vegetarian cooking, it seems to require more forethought and planning. Now, if there's anyone out there who can help me with this, help me see it from a different perspective, please do so. I'd love to eat less (or no) meat and chicken, but need some help. I'm WAY open to suggestions. Bring it on.

Well, I was going to blog about traveling as a novice Celiac, but I think I'll save that for another day. Because my husband and I travel so much, we have had to come up with strategies for Celiac survival. I promise to get to that in a future post.

Penne with broccoli and baby bella mushrooms

Pasta by any other name is still pasta. Brown rice pasta or wheat pasta? Matters not, in my new Celiac book. It's still pasta. And even better still...it even tastes like the pasta I ate during my first 51 years of life! Quite honestly, with choices like this, I can barely complain about being a Celiac (only kidding). But really, if there was ever a time to be gluten intolerant, it's now. There are so many wonderful choices to make that I rarely (well, ok, hardly ever) feel deprived. Do I have glutenous cravings now and then? Maybe once in awhile. Mostly when I'm at other people's houses and I can't eat what everyone else is eating. But I'm so busy learning about life as a Celiac and exploring all of the different culinary possibilities, that I hardly have time to mourn the loss.

I've been making this recipe for so many years that I don't even need a recipe. Instead of using regular wheat pasta, I substituted brown rice pasta. I used Trader Joe's brand, but after eating it, I like the Tinkyada brand better.

This is even better the next day when leftovers are tempting you, calling your name, coaxing you into eating it cold for breakfast, nuked for lunch, or as a snack mid-afternoon, helping you over the mid-day slump.

1 pound brown rice penne pasta
1 - 2 tablespoons of olive oil
one large clove of garlic, minced
three chopped scallions
one head of broccoli, stalks peeled, chopped into small pieces
1 ten ounce package of baby bella mushrooms, cleaned and quartered
red pepper flakes
salt & pepper
parmesan cheese

Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. Be very careful not to overcook. Mushy rice pasta is quite unappetizing. Drain then run cold water over pasta to stop it from continuing to cook.

While the pasta is cooking, chop the broccoli and drop into boiling water for about 90 seconds. Drain and run cold water over it to stop it from continuing to cook.

Saute the garlic and scallions in olive oil. Adjust amount according to your taste preference. After about 1 minute, add the drained broccoli and mushrooms. Saute for about 3 minutes. Add red pepper flakes, salt & pepper to taste.

Pour drained pasta into large bowl. Add some olive oil to coat. Pour broccoli-mushroom mixture over pasta and mix well. Grate parmesan cheese over the top.

This hit the spot tonight. The only thing that could top it off and make it perfect 10 would be if I had a chocolate cookie for dessert. Hey, wait a minute. I have gluten free Pamela's chocolate chocolate cookies upstairs. Excellent!