Gluten Free Healthy Food

It makes me mad when I hear relatively recently diagnosed Celiacs talk about how they haven’t had pizza or bread since diagnosis… or that when they have had it, they didn’t enjoy it. It is not that I am mad at them- far from it! No, I’m mad at a society that equates bread products with gluten, and mad at companies that create allergen-free bread completely lacking in taste or appeal that scar these poor souls so dreadfully that they vow off bread entirely.

Oh, I know there is a school of thought that says breads are over-rated, and what we all need to do is go back to the basics. Protein, Vegetable, Fruit, crunchy grain that looks like bird seed (preferably boiled). I suppose that might be healthy and good for the body, sometimes. And this diet certainly simplifies life when you are first overwhelmed by a bewildering new diagnosis. But all the time? Forever and ever? No! Just say no, I say. Because toothsome, luscious, crunchy bread and supple, seductive pizza is something I would never want to live without… and all of us gluten-sensitive people don’t have to. And… furthermore, let me tell you a secret. Even if you can’t have dairy, or eggs, or soy- you can still have amazing bread that kicks all those lead weight gluten-free breads to the curb.

I’ve finally gotten to the point with my darling baby Yum where I can have enough ingredients to make some really tasty baked goods. Karina the gluten-free goddess showed me the ropes there, to the joy that is rice-free, dairy-free, egg-free baking. But glorious and abundant as her site is- there are still things I want to eat that haven’t been created yet. And so, this week I turned my sights to french bread. Ah, french bread. I’ve long had an affair with Bette Hagman’s classic white rice-tapioca rapid rise french bread. But, its reliance on eggs, flirtation with dairy, and rice-heavy base just doesn’t work for me these days. My spiced olive oil with fresh basil leaves balsamic vinegar drizzled recipe was getting dusty… and so, I wiped off my beloved Kitchenaid and started experimenting. This loaf was the incredibly satisfying result.

We took this loaf on a car-picnic to the drive-in movie with Baby Yum. Basil dipping oil? Check. Caraway and fresh Beet vinaigrette salad? Check. And the bread? With its crunchy exterior and soft center, it was wonderfully rippable, and made up for my long lost rice french bread big time.

Gluten-free Sorghum Rosemary french bread recipe Bread  Alternative Grains  French

Ingredients Special equipment *french bread pan- worth every penny! spectrum shortening (or other palm oil shortening, or coconut oil) Millet grits (or cornmeal if corn is not an issue for you) 1 1/2 cup sorghum flour 1/2 cup millet flour 1 cup tapioca flour (or, for a more delicate bread, arrowroot starch) 1 tbsp. xanthan gum 1 1/2 tsp. salt 2 tsp. egg replacer 2 tbsp. sugar 1 1/2 cup lukewarm water 2 tbsp. rapid-rise yeast 2 tbsp. olive oil 3 Ener-g foods Egg replacer “eggs” (4 1/2 tsp. egg replacer whisked with 6 tbsp. warm water) 1 tsp. vinegar (i use cider) melted Soy-free dairy-free earth balance margarine crushed rosemary kosher salt (flaked is perfect) Directions Preheat oven to 375F. Grease french bread pan with shortening or coconut oil and sprinkle with millet grits or other gritty gluten-free substance like cornmeal. Do NOT line french bread with aluminum foil or anything like that- the holes are there for a reason and the dough is thick enough that it will not leak out the bottom. Combine dry ingredients (through 1st egg replacer) in a medium mixing bowl of a standing mixer and fold together. Put sugar and lukewarm water in a small bowl and add yeast. As it starts to puff up, add the yeast water to the medium mixing bowl. Add olive oil, egg replacer “Eggs” and vinegar and mix on medium for 3 minutes. Carefully scoop out your dough and make bread shaped ovals in your french bread pan. Baste with melted margarine and make a few slightly slanted decorative slices in the top. Sprinkle with crushed rosemary and flaked kosher salt. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until bread sounds slightly hollow when you tap it and is a nice brown color.

Rating:  9 Original Source:  Inspired by Bette Hagman’s french bread, but now my own very different recipe. Please do not replicate without permission. Thanks! Recipe ID:  1491 Added:  March 1, 2010 Last Modified:  March 1, 2010

You may know that I have a crush on raw foods. After all, barring a few instances of nama shoyu (fresh wheat soy sauce) raw foods are mostly gluten free and almost always vegetarian (depending on who you ask). That’s why avoiding nuts for Baby Yum may be one of the more difficult restrictions, because some of my favorite raw food dishes at restaurants or at home require them. I was at the library the other day and I saw a book by Ani Phyo on the shelves. I couldn’t resist bringing it home, even though I was pretty sure most of the recipes were currently off limits. I enjoyed browsing the tasty recipes, but I was most struck by one dill-sunflower seed spread that could be adapted to fit my current diet. Ani took this nut sauce and mixed it up with grated carrot and nori (i think) and dehydrated it to make un-fish salmon cakes. It sounded yummy! Someday I might go and make that recipe with all the ingredients (for all three parts including an un-hollandaise sauce) . However, this time I was happy to take the idea of using sunflower seeds and dill together in a “nutty” un-cheese sauce and run with it in my own direction. I ended up making a salty, onion dill sauce which i then used on everything I could think of.. including this light and lovely salad. I highly recommend the addition of avocado slices- the creaminess is such a nice contrast to the spread! And on amaranth crepes- it really was divine, even if it abandoned any hope of being a real raw foods recipe. (Yeah yeah, I know, the roasted sunflower seeds already sabotaged the mission- but they taste so good!) Anyway, hope you enjoy this tasty recipe that takes a salad to a whole new level of yumminess… And to think, I once thought I didn’t like salads!

Almost Raw Dill un-cheese Havarti Spread and salad Recipe Sauces & Condiments  Vegetables  American

Ingredients Un-havarti: 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds 1/2 cup roasted, unsalted sunflower seeds 2 green onions, chopped 1 bunch of small dill, or to taste (reserve 1 tsp or more for dressing) 1/4 to 1/2 cup water salt to taste Salad: your favorite salad greens (I like arugula mixed into a more mild green romaine) 1 carrot (or more, depending on desired serving) peeled and shredded small lemon wedge (optional) Avocado slices, optional (but very nice) Dressing: 1 tbsp. cider vinegar 1 tbsp lemon juice 2 tbsp. olive oil agave nectar to desired sweetness your favorite salt 1 tsp. minced fresh dill Directions Grind sauce ingredients in small food processor or blender, adding water slowly to get the desired consistency. Salt to taste. Assemble salad ingredients. Whisk together dressing ingredients and drizzle on salad. Top with a big dollop of un-havarti sauce and garnish with a lemon wedge. If you want to be really fancy with it, and aren’t wanting an entirely raw foods meal, serve on amaranth flatbread. Heavenly!

Rating:  9 Original Source:  Un-havarti inspired by Ani Phyo’s Sunny Dill Cheese. Ultimately my original creation. Please do not replicate without my permission. Thanks! Recipe ID:  1481 Added:  January 16, 2010 Last Modified:  January 27, 2010

As you might have noticed, Baby Yum has been keeping me extremely busy lately. So busy that there have been fewer posts here at the Book of Yum, but I still post at least once a week. With less posting and Baby Yum’s allergies, you might think that I haven’t been cooking much- but it couldn’t be further from the truth! With Baby Yum’s allergies improved I’ve incorporated more foods into my diet, including sorghum. I’m a little bit in love with sorghum, actually- and have a host of new recipes I’m dying to share with you all. Let me start by introducing a wonderful, gluten-free vegan cookie recipe inspired by our own Karina, the Gluten-free Goddess and her vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe. I’m sure as written, this recipe would make you swoon. But unfortunately, I can’t use most of the listed flours (yet) and although I could eat chocolate chip cookies on a daily- make that hourly- basis, the chocolate seems to make Baby Yum hyper. So I took this recipe as a jumping off point to come up with my own yummy vegan millet-coconut flour cookies that evoke the raisin-rich goodness of an oatmeal cookie… without the oatmeal. I think you’ll enjoy these coconut treasures. They earned a big thumbs up from my traditional gluten-eating Father, who enjoyed his with some honey-sweetened herbal tea. The hardest part was sharing! I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. Tell me about your own inspired cookie experiments in the comments!

Vegan Millet Coconut No-Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Recipe Dessert  Alternative Grains  American

Ingredients The Dry: 3/4 cup millet flour 1/2 cup sorghum flour 1/2 cup arrowroot starch 1/4 cup coconut flour 1 teaspoon xanthan gum 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda The Wet: 1/2 cup Spectrum Organic Shortening 1 1/2 cups organic light brown sugar 1 tablespoon vanilla extract 2 tablespoons raw agave nectar 5-6 tablespoons your favorite gluten-free dairy-free milk 1 tbsp. Ener-G Egg Replacer + 4 tablespoons warm water (whisked together) The additions: 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut 1/2 cup sweetened coconut 1 cup raisins Directions Preheat oven to 375. Put parchment paper on your favorite cookie sheet. Whisk together your dry ingredients in a medium bowl. Put your wet ingredients into your stand mixer bowl and whip together until Shortening and brown sugar are thoroughly combined and creamy. (Alternatively, use a hand mixer, but I don’t recommend it once you add gluten-free flour.) Take your whisked egg alternative and fold it into the wet ingredients. Fold your dry ingredients into the wet until you have a nice, thick, cookie batter without any dry flour pockets. Stir in your additions. Chill dough for an hour in the refrigerator, if you can stand waiting that long! Drop ice-cream scoop (or serving tablespoon) rounds of dough onto the cookie sheet. Flatten cookies slightly as they don’t spread out much and won’t bake properly in the middle otherwise. Bake in pre-heated oven for 10-12 minutes or until cookies are a light golden brown and feel firm to the touch. Cool and remove from parchment paper. Enjoy! Notes You can freeze this dough in logs and cut off uncooked cookie disks and bake them. You may have to bake them slightly longer.

Rating:  8 Original Source:  Inspired by Karina’s Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe, but revolutionized to be an entirely new, creative recipe. Please do not replicate without my Permission. Thanks! Recipe ID:  1483 Added:  January 21, 2010 Last Modified:  January 25, 2010

For some time now, I’ve had a recipe idea rolling around in my head. I have been longing for some of my tasty Southern Fried Tofu Recipe but since I’m avoiding soy for Baby Yum, it is off the menu. So I thought, what if I could take the flavor elements of that yummy nutritional yeast, herb coating and somehow feature them in an entirely different but equally homey and comforting dish? As winter has darkened even sunny California with grey and rainy skies, soup started seeming more and more appealing. I decided to take those Southern Fried tofu flavors and infuse them into a warm, soothing un-chicken soup with nary a soybean to be seen. I loved the idea of a recipe where herbs could really sing in concert with roasted, fresh veggies and wanted a way to use some delightful baby zuchinni and baby pattypan squash that I’d found at the wonderful Milk Pail Market. This soup was just as savory and delicious as I had imagined, and was luckily done just in time for me to participate in Diane’s Gluten Free Progressive Dinner.

But a secret? This is one recipe I think I’ll be playing with for quite some time to get just right. After all, now that I’m a Mommy, I have to come up with a perfect un-chicken soup for all the colds, flus and chilly days ahead. Try this recipe, and enjoy- but don’t be afraid to tweak it for your taste buds. Just promise to tell me about your experiments- and whatever you do, don’t leave out the nutritional yeast, as it gives this recipe some serious vegan soul.

I took this soup base

And these delightful veggies

To make one yummy soup!

What’s your favorite gluten-free vegan soup recipe? Share the URL in the comments and I’ll add the link to this post!

A Gluten-free Progressive Dinner Entry.

Visit the other entrees for January’s Light Winter Warmers:

Monday January 18th Karen from Cook4Seasons made Creamy Potato Leek Soup and Roasted Cauliflower Soup With Gluten Free Croutons by Alison from Sure Foods Living.
Tuesday January 19th - Diane from The W.H.O.L.E. Gang made Winter Fire Roasted Tomato Soup w/ Prosciutto topping.

Wednesday January 20th Diane from The W.H.O.L.E. Gang made a Mexican Seafood Soup and I made this Book of Yum Un-Chicken Vegan Savory Soup.

Thursday January 21st – Amy from Simply Sugar and Gluten Free and Shirley from gluten free easily.

Friday January 22nd -Ali from The Whole Life Nutrition Kitchen.

Gluten free Vegan Un-chicken soup Soup  Vegetables  American

Ingredients 2-3 tbsp olive oil 1 onion, diced 3 carrots,peeled and diced 1/2 large fennel bulb, diced 2 celery stalks, diced scant bunch of fresh parsley, chopped 1/2 bunch fresh dill, minced 2 tbsp fresh rosemary, minced 1 tsp basil 1 tsp oregano 1 tsp tarragon 1 tsp garlic powder 1 tsp salt 1 bay leaf pepper to taste 1/4 tsp ground thyme 1/4 tsp ground sage 1/4 cup nutritional yeast (I like Kal’s) 4 cups water 4 cups veg stock 1/2 bunch of kale, de-veined and julienned (optional) 1/2 lb special veggies for roasting (i used baby zucchini and baby pattypan squash), cut into interesting shape,drizzled with olive oil, sprinkled with your favorite italian seasoning. Freshly ground black pepper Optional: 1/3 cup millet grits 6 tbsp hot water 1 tsp olive oil Directions Heat oven to 450F. Heat olive oil in large dutch oven or similar pan on medium and add your died onion. Saute for a few minutes and add your carrot, fennel, and celery. Saute until the onions are translucent and vegetables begin to caramelize. Add fresh herbs and dried herbs and saute for another minute or two. Add your nutritional yeast. Warm throughout and then add your water and vegetable stock. Add kale (optional) to pan and let soup simmer. While soup simmers, prepare your roasting vegetables and place on medium to large baking sheet. Put in oven and roast until vegetables are golden brown on one side. Roast for at least 15 minutes- timing will depend on the type of veggie you use, your preference for doneness, and the cut of the veggie. My veggies took at least 20 minutes, but i wasn’t watching them closely. If you want a thicker soup with some substance, you can take millet grits and combine them in a small bowl with hot water, olive oil, and any seasonings you like. I microwaved them for a minute, but this probably isn’t necessary. Stir into your soup. I think next time I might leave this out. Simmer soup until it has reduced to a strength of flavor that you like. For me, the soup was tasting very yummy by the time the vegetables were done roasting (about twenty minutes). Taste and adjust seasonings as needed, and add pepper. Add your roasted vegetables to the dish and let flavors marry for a few minutes. Serve and enjoy! Notes Wonderful for a cold, drizzly day or if you have a cold, just like a traditional chicken soup.

Rating:  7 Original Source:  Contents of my brain. Please do not replicate without my permission. Recipe ID:  1482 Added:  January 18, 2010 Last Modified:  January 19, 2010

In my current gluten-free rotation diet for Baby Yum, I’m rotating millet, quinoa, and amaranth. I came up with one tasty way to enjoy millet that uses millet grits like corn grits in polenta, and I’ll be sharing the recipe with you soon. However, I can’t say I enjoy whole millet seeds very much, and I didn’t have much use for the flour either until I recently had a very interesting idea. I thought that if millet grits could be used like corn grits, perhaps millet flour could be used like corn flour in tortillas or flatbread. So I went searching online to see what others had done with millet flour. Imagine my delight when I found that in India millet flour is used in delicious, smoky Bajra Roti flatbread. Of course those who must follow a gluten-free diet should be VERY careful with freshly made stuff as recipes often incorporate gluten to make it easier to handle. However, I was inspired by one intrepid Bangalorean runner, Balu’s recipe for Bajra Roti, to think that you didn’t need any other flour to make Millet flatbread, but that the method was the important thing. His chef came up with a clever way of heating the dough to make it pliable, and to my delight it really worked to create a malleable tortilla that was easier to handle than even its corn counterpart. You can also freeze uncooked flatbread by layering it with wax paper and storing in a quart ziploc freezer bag. So delightfully easy! The beauty of the recipe is that it can be made plain and substituted for corn tortillas- perfect for corn intolerant, gluten intolerant mexican food aficionados, or it can be jazzed up and given an Indian twist with spices and herbs. You can also baste the flatbread with oil for a rich, savory treat. Buttered with Earth Balance Soy-free margarine and a generous sprinkling of salt, it is simply divine. For a real treat, you could whip up a batch of Cilantro Chutney, although traditionally bajra roti is paired with a robust Garlic Chutney, Lahsun Ki Chutney. Chutney aside, this simple and satisfying bread is a recipe I would make even if I wasn’t on an elimination diet… and that’s really saying something.

How to make Gluten-free Bajra Roti, in pictures:

Can’t get enough Millet?
Try Culinary Goddess Karina’s Gluten-free Millet Buckwheat Wraps (I intend to!)
Or make Millet the star of your meal with Mark Bittman’s Millet Pumpkin Bake Recipe

Now if you’ll excuse me, I think I have a hot bajra roti on the skillet calling my name… Don’t you wish you had one too?

Bajra Roti Millet Flatbread Recipe Bread  Alternative Grains  Indian

Ingredients 2 cups millet flour 2 cups water salt to taste For seasoned roti: 1 shallot- minced 1 to 1/4 green chili- minced (amount depends on spiciness of chili and your preference) 3 tbsp. cilantro, diced Directions Bring your water to boil in a saucepan and add your flour, butdo not mix it into the water. Lower heat to low and let simmer for two minutes. Then turn off heat and mix flour into hot water evenly. Remove dough to a heat resistant bowl and leave for ten minutes or until cool enough to handle. For seasoned roti you can sprinkle dough with shallot, chili, and cilantro. Form into small balls and place in a bowl. Cover Take a quart size freezer safe ziploc bag and cut out the sides. For wimpy, no rolling method, put the bag into a tortilla press. Place a ball of dough in the press between layers of plastic. Press. For rolling method, simply roll out dough inside your ziploc bag, with rolling pin on the top outside of the bag. Either way, peel your tortilla from plastic and place on a plate. These tortillas handle well, so no worries. Heat cast iron skillet to medium and toast your flatbread until its texture changes, and if you like, until it gets light brown spots. Turn it and toast the other side. Sometimes they will puff up with internal air pockets, which I think signifies a lovely, tasty flatbread. Sprinkle with salt and serve. Try to refrain from immediately slathering your flatbread with soy-free, dairy-free margarine immediately off the skillet. Or not. It’s up to you. :) I usually gobble a few before dinner gets anywhere near the table.

Rating:  9 Original Source:  inspired by various recipes online but my own creation. Do not repicate Recipe ID:  1478 Added:  January 8, 2010 Last Modified:  January 11, 2010

I don’t know if you’ve noticed by now, but I have a huge weakness for http://www.bookofyum.com/blog/vietnamese-summer-rolls-and-heavenly-peanut-sauce-99.html">peanut sauce. Nothing makes me happier than a fresh spring roll dipped in creamy, salty, sweet gingery peanut sauce. I take them to dinner parties, assemble them on picnics, and have even been known to throw spring roll making parties just for an excuse to eat the sauce. I could eat the stuff straight, honestly, but usually try to pacify my calorie-conscious guilty conscience by eating it with fresh veggies. I have whipped up many different batches of peanut sauce, with the occasional nod to almond butter as a more allergy-friendly base.

But with my new top-allergen free diet for baby yum, it has been many a sad, sauce-less day since I last enjoyed a big saucer of peanut sauce. Today I decided that had to change. I looked into the fridge and pulled out a long-neglected jar of Sunbutter. The good news? This stuff is completely Peanut, Tree-Nut Free, and Gluten Free and produced in a dedicated facility. The bad news for those highly sensitive to soy is that their facility DOES produce soybeans. However, although I’m not eating soy these days just in case it would bother Baby Yum, she never reacted to soy as far as I could tell, and so I thought Sunbutter was worth a try. *Although Sunbutter is the brand-name variety, I actually used the less expensive Trader Joe’s version of this product.* If you do react to traces of soy, you can make your own Sunbutter recipe. I played around with some of the traditional ingredients used in peanut sauce and came up with this highly satisfying sunflower seed un-peanut sauce. It would be wonderful on spring rolls, but I enjoyed mine drizzled over sauteed yellow pepper strips and zucchini and wrapped in a gluten-free amaranth crepe. Who says eating gluten free and top eight allergen free has to be boring?

Looking for more fun things to do with sunflower seeds?
Try this Vegan Sunflower spreads with red pepper variations and more
Depressed over a new rice allergy or interested in raw foods? Try Rice-free Sunflower-seed Sushi Recipe
Did you know you can make Sunflower Seed Milk?

Peanut-free Sauce Recipe with sunflower seeds Sauces & Condiments  American

Ingredients 2 tbsp. sunbutter (or homemade sunflower seed butter) 1/4 cup hot water 1/4 tsp salt 1 tsp. cider vinegar 1 tsp maple syrup 1/4 tsp powdered ginger or freshly grated ginger pulp Directions Whisk together ingredients in a small bowl. Pour into small sauccepan and heat on low until thickened and bubbling. Take off heat, whisk again, and serve.

Rating:  8 Original Source:  Contents of my brain. Please do not replicate without my permission. Recipe ID:  1477 Added:  January 1, 2010 Last Modified:  January 1, 2010

This holiday season we have many things to celebrate. We’ve been lucky enough to have family visiting us almost constantly since the birth of Baby Yum. Most recently, we were able to take Baby Yum (now an experienced traveler) to the DH’s natal home and my adopted home, Boulder, Colorado to celebrate Christmas with his parents. The best news, though, is that my extreme elimination diet - combined with a hearty dose of infant probiotics- has improved the state of Baby Yum’s sensitive tummy to the point where i have been able to add enough foods to my diet to make some tasty holiday treats. Sometime around Thanksgiving I started craving pumpkin pie, but I didn’t know how it would be possible to make it gluten, dairy, and egg free. However, when I added coconut back into my diet, it occurred to me that coconut might very well make a lovely substitute for condensed milk. Searching online, I found out how other people made their own vegan and gluten-free pumpkin pie recipes.

Creative goddess Karina made a Hemp Milk, buckwheat Vegan Pumpkin Pie Recipe
The always scrumptious Susan of Fat Free Vegan made a Crust-free Soy and Egg-replacer based Pumpkin Pie recipe
Michelle and Lori whipped up a Vegan Pumpkin Pie recipe
and the Voracious Vegan gave us something slightly different with her Raw foods pumpkin pie ball recipe (Use Gluten-free oats)

Finally, I made my own unique allergen-free gluten-free pumpkin pie that incorporated some unconventional flours (amaranth and coconut, anyone?) and used arrowroot as the thickener. Not only does it NOT contain soy or any other alternative boxed milk, but it also does not rely on egg replacer (which contains both potato and corn derivatives). This is the perfect pie for anyone sensitive to rice, corn, potato, tapioca, or other commonly used gluten-free flours. It certainly turned out to be the perfect pumpkin pie for me- and even won accolades from my dairy-sensitive Mother, who proclaimed it “very good” and asked for the recipe!

Guten-free dairy-free egg-free vegan coconut pumpkin pie recipe Dessert  Alternative Grains  American

Ingredients Crust: 1/2 cup amaranth 1/2 cup arrowroot 1/4 cup coconut flour 1/3 cup shortening 5 tbsp cold water Filling: 2 c. solid-pack canned pumpkin 1 c. regular coconut milk 3/4 c. brown sugar 1/4 c. arrowroot starch 1 Tbsp. maple syrup 2 tsp. vanilla 1 tsp nutmeg 1/4 tsp. EACH ground ginger, cloves and salt Directions Preheat oven to 375F. Combine crust ingredients in a medium bowl, whisking flours together and then adding your shortening. Combine until dough starts forming pea-sized balls, and sprinkle in water one tablespoon at a time until you can form the dough into a ball. Once you have a ball of dough, carefully roll out on wax paper. If you have two pie tins, you can place one bottom-side up underneath the wax paper and place the second one over the dough. Invert and carefully peel off the wax paper to have a perfect pie crust. Bake for 8-10 minutes in the oven or until lightly browned. Whisk filling ingredients together in a large bowl and fill your crust with the filling. Bake for 50 minutes or until pie has firmed up somewhat. You CAN greedily eat a slice before it chills, but it will be somewhat soft until it is chilled in the refrigerator overnight. For the most impressive pie, cool overnight.

Rating:  9 Original Source:  Inspired by various recipes online, but my own creation. Please do not replicate without permission. Recipe ID:  1474 Added:  December 20, 2009 Last Modified:  December 24, 2009

Picture a little round seed that looks like it belongs in a bird feeder or could be the start of a Chia pet. Imagine this seed surrounded by a million of its friends in a plastic clear bag from Bob’s Red Mill labeled “Amaranth Grain.” On my allergy rotation diet, this seed has become a staple, but not one that particularly thrills me. In the morning I’ve been having it boiled into a porridge with lemon olive oil, honey, nutmeg and raisins. I add all these things to mask the earthy, savory nature of the seed. Boiling it creates this gel-like stuff that seems only appropriate for an astronaut meal.

After eating this gloppy porridge one too many times, I started daydreaming about things I could do to give it a better texture. Somehow I came up with the idea of spreading it out like a pizza on parchment paper and baking it into a tasty flatbread that could be used as a pizza base or crackers. And- miracle of miracles, this technique worked and transformed my martian-gel porridge into this amazing cracker bread that rivals flax crackers for crunch and has amazing flavor too! So lately, I eat my morning glop but leave half of the stuff plain, chill it and bake it later. When I enjoy this gluten-free crunchy, salty cracker flatbread with tasty veggies, it’s hard to remember that it is the same stuff that I eat for breakfast, transformed thanks to the magic of the kitchen.

The baked seed pops in your mouth a little and the high protein count means you don’t even miss t he missing dairy, egg or soy in the recipe- it is simply fabulous, and fabulously easy. I hope the next time you find yourself facing a big bowl of amaranth gruel that you will consider transforming it into some lovely salty flatbread.

And, if like me you need to avoid nuts and dairy, you may enjoy topping it with a lovely pumpkin seed basil pesto and roasted red peppers and calling it pizza. I’ve been experimenting with both pumpkin seed and sunflower seeds… as rare allergens they seemed like a good bet, and they don’t seem to bother Baby Yum. To my delight, pumpkin seed pesto is just as tasty as I could have hoped- and I don’t miss the dairy or nuts in the slightest! What are your favorite ways to cook with pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds? Share in the comments and you just might inspire my dinner!

Gluten-free Amaranth cracker recipe Bread  Alternative Grains  American

Ingredients 1/2 cup whole amaranth grain (not flour)- i use Bob’s Red Mill brand 1 1/2 cup water salt to taste flavored olive oil (lemon or basil) fresh basil, torn into pieces to garnish (optional) Directions Boil amaranth with water for 20-30 minutes, or until you have a thick porridge like consistency. Cool and place in refrigerator and thoroughly chill. Preheat oven to 425F. Line pizza pan with parchment paper and baste with olive oil. Remove chilled amaranth and spoon onto your parchment paper into a thin, round disk, much like a pizza. Baste top with olive oil (flavored olive oil is ideal) and sprinkle with plenty of salt. Bake for 20 minutes or until bottom of crust dries out and edges start to get crisp like a cracker. Carefully peel off parchment paper and turn crust over, basting with olive oil if desired. Bake until you get desired crispiness on both sides of cracker. Remove from oven, slice into pizza shapes and use as flatbread, cut into crackers (if you get it really crispy), or top and bake a little more in oven.

Rating:  7 Original Source:  Contents of my brain, please do not replicate without permission. Thanks! Recipe ID:  1471 Added:  December 7, 2009 Last Modified:  December 19, 2009

Vegan Dairy-free Pumpkin Seed Basil Pesto Recipe Sauces & Condiments  Vegetables  American

Ingredients 1/2 cup shelled pumpkin seeds (pepitas) olive oil (start with 1 tbsp. and add more as needed to form paste) 1 small bunch fresh basil (or more, to taste) salt Directions Lightly toast pumpkin seeds in a dry pan on low heat, turning as needed. Combine pumpkin seed with olive oil and basil in a small food processor and blend. Stir as needed and add more olive oil as necessary until you get a nice texture. Add salt to taste and enjoy! Notes http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepita

Rating:  7 Original Source:  Contents of my brain. Please do not replicate without my permission. Recipe ID:  1473 Added:  December 19, 2009 Last Modified:  December 19, 2009