Knottie Recipes

beef stroganoff

Adapted from Jax Peters Lowell's The Gluten-Free Gourmet. Serves four or five.
This was a great dinner--surprisingly good, really--and came together really quickly, especially given that we had precooked pasta (whole-wheat spaghetti for Smartboy, gluten-free penne for me).

1 lb. beef sirloin
1 + 2 T. rice flour
1/2 t. salt
2 T. vegetable oil + a little extra
4.5-oz. jar sliced mushrooms, drained
1 chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T. ketchup
1.25 c. organic broth or stock
1 c. Organic Valley sour cream
2 T. rice wine
gluten-free pasta, cooked

Cut beef into 1/4" strips. Combine 1 T. flour and salt in a bowl. Coat the meat. Heat a skillet, add the oil, and ease in the coated meat away from you. Brown quickly. Add mushrooms, onion, and garlic. Cook 3-4 minutes, until onion is crisp but tender.
Remove meat and mushrooms from pan. Add a bit more oil to pan drippings and blend 2 remaining T. flour. Put ketchup in broth and stir into pan. Cook, stirring, over medium heat until thickened and bubbly.
Return browned meat and mushrooms to skillet. Stir in sour cream and wine. Cook slowly until heated through. Do not boil. Serve sauce over cooked pasta.

pork tenderloin with spinach and water chestnuts

Adapted from The Everything Gluten-Free Cookbook. Serves four.

• 2 pork tenderloins, about 3/4 lb. each
• 1/4 c. potato flour
• 1/4 t. nutmeg
• 1/4 t. ground cloves
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 c. olive oil
• 2 T. lemon juice
• 1 t. gluten-free Worcestershire sauce
• 8 oz. fresh baby spinach
• 1/2c. sliced water chestnuts

Trim the pork and cut into serving pieces. On a sheet of waxed paper, mix together the flour and seasonings. Dredge the pork in the mixture.

Saute the pork in the olive oil for about six minutes per side. It should be medium.

Add the lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, spinach, and water chestnuts. Stir to wilt. Sprinkle with more olive oil if the pan is dry.

stuffed pork chops

Adapted from The Everything Gluten-Free Cookbook. Serves four.

• 1 tart apple, peeled, cored, and chopped
• 1/2 c. chopped onion
• 1 T. dried rosemary, crumbled, or 2 T. chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/4 c. finely chopped Italian flat-leaf parlsley
• 1/2 c. olive oil
• 1/2 c. gluten-free cornbread crumbs
• saltand pepper to taste
• 4 thick-cut pork rib chops
• 1/4 c. olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 onions chopped
• 1/2c. chicken broth
• 1/2 c. dry white wine
• zest and juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 ripe pears, peeled, cored, and quartered
• 2 t. cornstarch mixed with 2 oz. cold water (slurry to thicken the gravy)

Saute the apple, onion, and herbs in 1/2c. olive oil.When softened, add the cornbread rumbs, salt, and pepper. When cool enough to handle, stuffinto the chops and secure with toothpicks.

Add 1/4 c. olive oil to the pan and brown the chops on medium-high. Add the rest of the ingredients except for the slurry. Cover. Simmer for 40 minutes over very low heat.

Place the chops on a warm platter and add the slurry to the gravy in the pan, if desired, to thicken it. Add salt and pepper to taste.

favorite family casserole

Adapted from Bette Hagman's The Gluten-Free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Food. Serves eight.

• 1 lb. ground beef (I'll try turkey or chicken as well)
• 2 c. gluten-free spaghetti sauce
• 4 c. gluten-free pasta
• 5 green onions, sliced thin
• 3 oz. gluten-free cream cheese
• 1 c. Organic Valley sour cream (I just love this one most :) )
• 3/4 c. shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a skillet, cook the ground meat until browned. Stir in the sauce, cover, and simmer 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to package directions. Drain and place in a 2.5-quart greased baking dish. Top with the meat.

Blend together the cream cheese, sour cream, and green onions. Spread over the meat and sprinkle with the cheddar. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

pasta bake

Adapted from Bette Hagman's Bean Flour Noodle Bake in The Gluten-Free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Food. Serves six.

• 6 servings gluten-free pasta, cooked
• 6 green onions, sliced thin
• 6 slices no-filler )gluten-free) bacon, microwaved crisp and cut into little bits
• 2 c. gluten-free cottage cheese
• 1 c. Organic Valley sour cream
• additional milk to cover noodles
• 1/4 c. parmesan or romano cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 2.5-quart casserole with cover.

Place cooked pasta in the casserole and stir in the green onions, bacon pieces, cottage cheese, and sour cream. Stir well. If the liquids don't cover the pasta, add enough milk to cover (2-4 T.). Top with the shredded cheese and bake for 35-40 minutes until the liquids bubble.

pork and sweet potato in foil

Adapted from Bette Hagman's The Gluten-Free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Food. Serves four.

• 4 14" foil squares
• 1 lb. pork tenderloin
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 medium sqeet potatoes, peeled and grated
• 1 apple, peeled, cored, and chopped
• 1/3 c. currant jelly
• 2 t. hot orange juice
• dash cinnamon

Preheat oven to 450. Spray each foil square with vegetable oil. Wash pork, cut into 1/2"-thick slices, and season with salt and pepper.

On each square of foil, place 1/4 of the sweet potato and apple in a mound, then arrange 1/4 of the pork in a circle around the edge of the mound. Combine jelly, hot orange juice, and cinnamon in a small bowl and blend. Spoon over the mounds. Fold the packets by bringing up the sides and pinching them together. Seal the side seams. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the pork is done.

savory minestrone

Adapted from Bette Hagman's The Gluten-Free Gourmet

• 1 lb. gluten-free sweet Italian sausage
• 1 T. vegetable oil
• 1 c.diced onion
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 c. diced carrots
• 1 t. crumbled basil
• 2 small zucchini,sliced
• 16 oz. canned tomatoes, undrained
• 29 oz. beef stock
• 2 c. shredded cabbage
• 1 t. salt
• 1/4 t. pepper
• 16 oz. canned Great Northern beans, undrained
• 1/4 c. gluten-free pasta (optional)

Slice sausage crosswise into 1/2" slices and brown in oil in a deep saucepan or Dutch oven. dd onion, garlic, carrots, and basil. Cook for five minutes. Add zucchini, tomatoes with juice, beef stock, cabbage, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for an hour. Add beans with their liquid and cook another 20 minutes. Add pasta if desired.

This soup keeps and freezes well.

sausage-and-lentil one-pot meal

Adapted from Bette Hagman's Sausage and Lentil Bake in The Gluten-Free Gourmet

• 1 c. dried lentils
• 2 c. water
• 2 t. gluten-free instant beef broth granules
• 8 oz. gluten-free kielbasa (this recipe is only low-fat if Healthy Choice's kielbasa is gluten-free--I'll have to check!)
• 16 oz. canned tomatoes
• 1 c. sliced celery
• 1 c. chopped onions
• 1 t. dried minced garlic
• 1/4 c. ketchup
• 1 t. prepared mustard
• 3 T. brown sugar

Wash lentils and pick over carefully. Drain. Put water and broth granules into four-quart Dutch oven and bring to a boil over high heat. Meanwhile, cut sausage into 1/4"-thick rounds. Puree the tomatoes. Prepare other vegetables.

Add all the ingredients to the stock and let the contents come back to a boil. Boil briskly for about 30 seconds, stirring constantly.

Reduce heat to low. Cover the pot, leaving the lid slightly ajar. Simmer 45-50 minutes, until lentils are tender. If mixture seems too thick,stir in 1/4c. water. Serve with a tossed salad.

chicken pot pie

Adapted from Rebecca Bunting's Rock & Roll Piecrust and Chicken Pot Pie recipes in Jax Peters Lowell's The Gluten-Free Bible

• 2/3 c. brown-rice flour
• 2/3 c. tapioca flour
• 2/3 c. potato starch
• 3 T. cornstarch
• 1 T. xanthan gum
• 1.5 t. salt
• 10 T. cold butter, cut into chunks
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 T. olive oil
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 1/2 yellow turnip, 1/2" cubes or smaller
• 2.5 c. + 1/2 c. gluten-free chicken broth
• 2 medium potatoes, cubed
• 3 stalks celery, finely sliced
• 3 T. gluten-free flour mix
• 1 c. frozen peas
• 2 c. cooked chicken cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1/3 c. minced fresh parsley
• 1 t. dried herb mixture (thyme, marjoram, sage, rosemary)
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Place flours, starches, gum, and salt in food processor with metal blade, mixing to combine.

2. Add cold butter chunks and pulse until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal.

3. Add beaten eggs in steady stream through feed tube with machine running. Process until mixture forms a ball.

4. Divide dough in half and form into two flattened balls.

5. Place one ball on an 18" sheet of plastic wrap, dusting lightly with cornstarch.

6. Place a second sheet of plastic wrap on top of dough and roll out large enough to line three-quart casserole dish..

7. Remove top layer of wrap and invert dough over casserole, centering and easing dough into dish. Gently peel off remaining plastic wrap. Place dish on baking sheet to catch drips.

8. Place other ball on 18" sheet of plastic wrap, dusting lightly wth cornstarch.

9. Place second sheet of plastic wrap on top of dough and roll out with rolling pin into disc large enough to cover dish.

10. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

11.  In large saucepan, saute onion in oil over low heat until softened.

12. Add carrot and turnip and cook two to three minutes. Add 2.5 c. gluten-free chiken broth with potatoes and celery. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, eight to ten minutes, just until vegetables are tender. Take care not to overcook them.

13. In a small bowl, whisk together flour mix and remaining 1/2 c. broth until smooth. Add to vegetable mixture, along with the frozen peas, chicken, parsley, and herb mixture. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until heated through and thickened.

12. Add filling to crust and top with second crust by pressing lightly into place. Let the edges meet the sides of the dish or not. Cut a few slits with a sharp knife. Bake 25-30 minutes, or until crust is lightly browned.

13. Cover apples with top crust, sealing the edges and fluting decoratively. With a sharp knife, cut a few slits in the top.

14. Place baking sheet and plate in oven and bake for 45-50 minutes.

15. Serve with a scoop of gluten-free vanilla ice cream (I love Ben and Jerry's organic vanilla) or a slice of good cheddar cheese. Yum :)

gluten-free this

i've been frustrated with food lately. a lot. see, i'd been sick for months. top to bottom sick. couldn't keep anything in, from any direction. and the week after christmas (2005), it started getting so bad that i couldn't even leave the house. i could barely leave the couch or bed (or toilet). those were my options. it was awful. for three weeks. finally, one morning i was reading a marie claire magazine i'd bought for some random hair article, turned a page, and there was a two-page spread on celiac disease and gluten intolerance. the list of symptoms caught my eye: got it, got it, got it...i'd just called my doctor that morning, finally realizing that whatever i had wasn't getting better and had really persisted for three weeks (it's weird how you don't realize how long you're really sick sometimes). i spent the day investigating the whole celiac/gluten thing, so when the doctor's office called me 8.5 hours later to tell me that she probably wouldn't be able to see me for several more weeks, i told her i'd taken myself off of gluten that day and it was the first day in three weeks that i hadn't thrown up. within four days, i felt pretty much normal.
it's now been six weeks with no gluten, and i feel good. but it's hard. i'm not cooking much. and today i turn to the first recipe in real simple, one of many favorite sources of recipes and just plain cooking and menu inspirations, and it's for meatloaf. now, i love meatloaf. one of those comfort foods i've always loved. the recipe calls for 1.25 lbs. ground beef (no problem), a two-ounce envelope of onion soup mix (i'm betting i can find one that's gluten-free at whole paycheck), a cup of shredded italian cheese blend (same), a cup of chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (no problem), two eggs (no problem), 1.5 cups of saltines (here's a problem: i'm not aware of any gluten-free saltines; i might be able to substitute some gluten-free crackers i have, which would be fine, because i hate them), 1/3 cup of water, and 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce (i do have a bottle of gluten-free sauce). so...i'm going to attempt a gluten-free version of this this weekend, i think. i'll keep you posted; wish me luck.