Caldo verde - one of my favorite soup.. which is naturally gf.

Caldo verde is an amazing soup, gluten free, a family favorite AND it is healthy. It is pretty easy and is cooked in less than 1/2 h. What else would you want?
it is supposed to be a Portuguese soup, but I never found it in my Portuguese cookbook, so I am doubtful.

ingredients:
*some form of sausage. I use kielbasa
* red potatoes ( 4-5)
* chicken broth (I also use my home made thxgiving stock)
* a bunch of kale.

-In a big soup pot, put your chicken broth, your red potatoes cut in small equal pieces. The fact that they are red is actually important, as they won't dissolve in the broth.
-cook until the potatoes are tender.
-mash them with a potato masher. This is not an exact science, you just don't want any more pieces.
- add the kielbasa cut in bite size pieces.
- bring back to a boil.

Meanwhile, wash and dry your kale.
For each kale leave,

• first run a sharp knife to each side of the stalk,
• then bunch it up and cut in very small ribbons

Add the kale about 5 minutes before you eat the soup.

You can add some crackers in the soup if you want but i personally like it without anything in it.
So far, I have not met anyone who disliked it, and that includes kids.

Tom Kah shrimp

In my experience, thai food is the easiest thing to order gf, followed by mexican.. I also love tom kah gai, which helps.

I recently brought a care soup to a friend of mine. There was a request for shrimp so I made it with shrimp. Here is the approximate recipe.

*about 1.5 pounds of shrimp, uncooked. (you will need to remove the shell)
* 1 tb of thai chili paste
* 1/2 C of fish sauce (get the real thing. it should have more than just anchovies in there)
* some limes
* 5-6 garlic cloves- mashed
* an onion thinly sliced
* 2 stalk of lemon grass cut in pieces
*some galangal root (not edible)
* 4-5 lime (kaffir) leaves
* 2 qts chicken stock
* 2 cans of coconut milk
* some mushrooms ( I used both enoki and brown mushroom, the traditional is straw)
* some tomatoes quartered ( I think that is an americanism, but i like it that way).
* chili flakes (optional)
* 2 chilies (optional)
* cilantro, thinly cut.
* fresh squeezed lime juice

in a thick bottom soup pan put some oil, and add the garlic, onions, chili paste, lime leaves, galangal and lemon grass. (and chilies...)
Fry until the onions are somewhat translucent. You need to watch this because the paste will burn and become bitter..
Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil.
Add the fish sauce, coconut milk and mushroom. boil for a few minutes. The mushrooms should get tender but no mushy.
Add the shrimp and tomatoes and turn off the heat.

Shrimp in my opinion, are nasty when overcooked. If added to a boiling soup, they will cook almost instantly, so I turn off the heat and wait for a few minutes.
Finally add the cilantro as a garnish.
Serve with a bit of lime juice .

If you serve it with chicken, coat the bit size chicken pieces with corn starch. cook for a few minutes before turning the heat off. The chicken with be very tender.
enjoy

scallion and gaot cheese savory cupcakes

This is a modified recipe for the excellent book: gluten free cupcakes from Amsterdam.

I adapted it using Pamela's pancake mix.

I have found that in a pinch, the mix works well.

 

1.5 C Pamela's mix

1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 C olive oil

3 large eggs

1/2 C thinly sliced scallions (came to about a bunch from the supermarket)

5 oz goat cheese (keep it cold).

 

preheat oven to about 350

prepare your cupcake tray and line with paper cups,

mix Pamela's mix and the black pepper.

In  standup mixer, mix the eggs and oil.

Add the flour/pepper mixture

Add the scallions.

 

put a small scoop of batter in each cup. You don't want to fill them.

Add a slice of goat cheese (I folded mine in two),

bake for about 20 minutes.

Note that the mix can take longer to cook than the original recipe which was straight almond flour.

 

the goat cheese will melt somewhat, but keep its shape.

 

Cool down some and serve warm.

 

 

 

Wow! it has been a long time.
So.. My daughter and I have been gf for almost a year. On the positive side, she is healthy, happy, has gained 8 pounds, 2 + inches and is pain free. I know how to cook gf, but baking still escapes me. Moreover, if by any chance, I manage to make something that tastes good and is gf, I can't seem to be able to reproduce it. <sigh>
I will post some of my success recipes before I forget.