gluten-free – Page 3 – And What I Ate

Shaved Apple & Fennel Salad with Lemon and Toasted Walnuts over Arugula

Oh, Gwyneth Paltrow. She seems to get a lot of shade thrown her way for the Goop blog, the way she can do things like ask her celeb friends not to do interviews with a magazine that’s threatening to expose her, her kids’ names, her “conscious uncoupling”…etc. I get it to some degree, but come on – she’s freaking Gwyenth Paltrow. She’s been in serious relationships with Brad Pitt, Ben Affleck and Chris Martin. She’s an Oscar winning actress. Her mom is Blythe Danner and her godfather is Steve Spielberg. She’s run in some pretty heavy circles probably since she was born, so can we really blame her for thinking it’s normal for everyone get a wood-fired oven in their backyard? I think her ‘I am who I am” attitude is judged as not apologetic enough, but honestly, if I were her I wouldn’t be apologetic for what I grew up in and what things I enjoy either. I think she just is who she is, and frankly, that seems pretty cool. To summarize: Get it, girl. Now, Anne Hathaway, on the other hand… Anyway, the recipes on Goop are awesome – super super clean, healthy and delicious. This salad is adapted, and I’m going to be making it alllllll the time. Brendan even said it was the best salad he’s ever had.

SHAVED APPLE AND FENNEL SALAD WITH LEMON AND TOASTED WALNUTS (serves 2-4)
– 1 bulb fennel, top parts cut off (but leaves saved), core removed.
– 1 tart apple
– Juice and zest of 1 lemon
– toasted walnuts, approx. 1/3 cup
– approx. 3 tbsp. EVOO
– kosher salt & pepper
– Arugula (optional)

1. With either a julienne slicer or a Cuisinart food processor with a slicer attachment, shave the fennel bulb and the apple into paper-thin slices (this really makes a difference in the overall salad). Put into a bigger bowl.

2. Over medium heat, toast the walnuts, shaking the pan every minute or so and making sure they don’t burn.

3. Zest and juice the lemon, then add to the bowl with the apple and fennel shavings. Add kosher salt & pepper, mix well to combine.

4. Add EVOO and walnuts, mix. Top with the toasted walnuts and a couple fennel leaves.

5. If using arugula, I just arranged some on a plate, juiced a little lemon over it, then added the apple/fennel salad on top of the arugula leaves. The apple/fennel dressing will work as enough dressing for the arugula.

6. We had this with salmon burgers with a simple lemony dill sauce on avocado toasts. So good.

Sesame Edamame, Avocado and Mozzarella Salad with Cilantro and Scallions

When I took the first bite of this, I didn’t know if I was crazy about it, and then I kept taking bites as I was making other things, and all of a sudden it just got delicious. I think the flavors really need to meld together with the dressing, so dress it at least 30 minutes before serving. Look at how pretty all that green is!

SESAME EDAMAME, AVOCADO & MOZZARELLA SALAD W CILANTRO & SCALLIONS (serves 4)

– 1 bag frozen edamame, shelled

– 2 avocados, diced

– 1 cup mini mozzarella balls, if you can find them, otherwise you can just use pieces of a regular ball of mozz

– handful of cilantro

– 4 scallions, sliced

– 1 tbsp. sesame seeds

Dressing:

– 1.5 Tbsp sesame oil

– 1.5 Tbsp. Rice Vinegar

– 1 Tbsp. Balsamic Vinegar

– Kosher Salt & Pepper, to taste.

1. Cook the edamame according to package directions. Add to a medium-sized bowl and set aside to cool while you make the dressing.

2. Get a mason jar, and add the balsamic & rice vinegars. Add the kosher salt & pepper so they react with the vinegars, and shake it up a little.

3. Add the sesame oil to the vinegars, shake well to combine.

4. Chop some cilantro and slice the scallions.

5. To the bowl with the edamame, add mozzarella, cilantro, scallions, and sesame seeds.

6. Cube avocados. The easiest way to do this is to cut an avocado in half, get rid of the pit, then cut a grid into the avocado. Run your knife around the perimeter of the gridded avocado, and you should be able to squeeze out the avocado cubes.

7. Gently fold the avocado into the bowl with the edamame mix. Add the dressing and mix well to combine.

Detox Herb & Romaine Salad

This is just about the most detoxifyingly delicious salad I can think of. It’s perfect for winter and feeling like it won’t be snowing forever. There’s an equal mix of lettuce and herbs, and a light lemon dressing is, as always, my fav. Thanks for Colly Doll for the recipe – enjoy!

HERB & ROMAINE SALAD (makes as much or as little as you want)

Equal parts:

– Romaine (the freshest you can find)

– Parsley

– Mint

– Green onions

– Dill

– Juice of 1 lemon

– Splash of EVOO

– Good quality Kosher Salt

1. Pull apart (don’t chop, this will be prettier) the herbs into equal amounts.

2. Add everything to a big bowl, then add romaine – torn, if you want.

3. Juice a lemon over the salad, then add EVOO. Top with Kosher salt and gently mix all together.

Black Bean and Cilantro Hummus

The incomparable Caravia’s does just about everything perfectly. Their food is amazing, their produce is the best/most organic you can find in the area, everything is selected with care and detail, and the health inspector, while visiting, told them “If every place was this clean, I’d be out of a job”. Oh, and it’s a family-run business (by one of my favorite families of all time) and you should go there immediately, if not sooner.

Anyway, they make a ton of awesome food, but one of my favorites is their black bean and cilantro hummus. I tried to duplicate it, but I’ll admit a loss when I meet one – theirs is still better. So the next time you visit Clarks Summit, pick some up. If not, this will do as a substitute!

BLACK BEAN AND CILANTRO HUMMUS (makes enough for a party-size serving)
– 1 BPA-free can of chick peas (also called garbanzo beans)
– 1/2 BPA-free can of black beans
– approx. 3 tbsp. cilantro
– 1/4 C. tahini
– 1/4 C. EVOO
– 1/4 – 1/3 C. chicken (or vegetable) broth
– juice of 1 lime
– 1 tsp. cumin
– kosher salt to taste

1. Drain and rinse the black beans and the garbanzo beans. Add the garbanzo beans to a bowl, set the black beans aside for later.

2. In the bowl with the chick peas, add the tahini, EVOO, 2 TBSP of cilantro, cumin and kosher salt. Mix it all together pretty well.

3. Add the mixture to a food processor, pulse it until it’s combined.

4. Little by little, add the broth – continuing to pulse the mixture – until it’s pretty light and fluffy.

5. Put the mix back in the bowl, stir in the 1/2 can of black beans and the remaining 1 TBSP of chopped cilantro. Mix it all together and refrigerate. Serve with chips, veggies, pretzel chips, or even use it as a sandwich spread.

Crunchy Chopped Salad with Feta, Mint and a Lime Vinaigrette

Oh, did you overdo it with all the food on Superbowl Sunday? Me too. I needed a serious detox meal the next day, and this salad was pretty perfect. It’s super easy, healthy, completely delicious and fun to eat. You can use whatever veggies you want, but try to get a couple different colored ones to make it look pretty. I also strongly recommend using sugar snap peas, because man, are they ever satisfying to eat. Crunch crunch crunch.

CRUNCHY CHOPPED SALAD WITH FETA, MINT AND LIME VINAIGRETTE (serves 4 – adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
– 1 cup each of 4-5 different kinds of veggies, chopped into pretty uniform pieces. I used an english cucumber, sugar snap peas, radishes and red onion.
– 2 scallions, chopped, white and green parts
– 1/3 C. crumbled feta
– approx. 6 large mint leaves, chiffonaded

LIME VINAIGRETTE
– juice of 1 lime (approx. 1 tbsp)
– 2 tbsp. EVOO
– 1 tsp. cumin
– kosher salt and pepper to taste

This is a really tough recipe. Ready?

1. Get all your veggies cleaned. Chop into similar size pieces and throw them into a bowl.

Sugar Snap Peas win the world

2. Add the feta, mint and the scallions, mix everything together.

3. In a different container, combine the lime juice with the cumin, salt & pepper. Stir to combine. Add the olive oil and mix it all together. Just before serving, pour dressing over the salad and stir everything together gently but thoroughly.

4. Serve. We had this with salmon burgers with avocado slices and a dill sauce on sourdough-rosemary bread, and oh, my god. This dinner almost cancelled out the over-indulgence of Super Bowl Sunday – I probably felt almost as bad as the Broncos did by the end of the night. You’ll get them next time, Colorado!

White Bean “Hummus” with Sage and Roasted Garlic

For months now I’ve been in a salad/scoop/soup kind of mood. That’s going to change next week, because my mom just let me know I’m in charge of making a pumpkin pie “with tiny leaves made out of dough” for Thanksgiving. I’ve never made a pumpkin pie. I’ve definitely never made one with “tiny leaves made out of dough”. Soo…in the interim, let’s get back to the 3 s’s. This one falls under the “scoop” category, and it’s awesome.

WHITE BEAN HUMMUS WITH SAGE AND ROASTED GARLIC (makes a side for about 5 people)
– 1 can white Northern beans, rinsed and drained
– couple sage leaves, chopped
– 1 clove garlic, roasted
– 1/4 EVOO (or less. Add this little by little to desired consistency)
– squeeze of lemon
– Kosher salt & freshly cracked black pepper to taste

1. Roast that garlic. Lop the top off of it, place it on a piece of tin foil, cover with some EVOO & salt, wrap the top loosely & place in an oven at 400 for about 30-40 mins.

2. Remove garlic from the oven when it’s soft & golden. Let it cool a little bit.

3. Rinse and drain a can of white beans. Put in a food processor.

4. Squeeze the roasted garlic cloves into the food processor with the beans (you can skip this completely if you don’t like roasted garlic. I do, though!)

5. Add chopped sage & lemon juice & salt/pepper.

6. Add EVOO little by little, blending well, until the “hummus” is combined and fluffy.

7. Serve with french bread, veggies, or (of course) pretzel chips.

— Side notes. It’s been an incredible couple of days. Without getting into the beginning part of this week and why it was wonderful, in the last 24 hours two of my friends Pat & Peggy got engaged. I set them up at the beginning of this year, and couldn’t be more excited for them. This is the second couple I set up who are getting married!!! I mean that’s got to be a better track record than Patti Stanger, right??

Also, we had an incredible time promoting The Great American Smokeout this morning with one of my favorites, Ryan Leckey, at South Scranton Intermediate. I do PR for Geisinger-CMC. The hospital, and Geisinger in general, is really involved with community health initiatives, so we brought in the Director of the PA Department of Health to talk to the middle school kids about the dangers of smoking, and I built a morning show (“Leckey Live“) around it. I could talk for an hour straight about everything that went wrong while I was trying to coordinate this, but I won’t, because when I walked into South Scranton this morning and saw how they had decked out the whole auditorium with signs and posters and banners etc., I was so psyched about how it looked that I high-fived the maintenance guys who’d shown up at 4am to let us into the school to start taping. South Scranton has a special place in my heart as the school we used to do our high school plays at before Scranton Prep built our fancy stage & auditorium, and it was so cool to be back there as an adult, coordinating one of my favorite morning shows ever, and feel the energy in the place from everyone (90+ kids, cheerleaders, parents, school staff, Geisinger representatives) who was so excited to be there. Ryan and his cameraman Corey just knock it out of the park, every time, but today was something extra special.

At least once a day I think “I love my job”. Today I had a bunch of those moments.

Enjoy the clips from the show here and here.

Roasted Cauliflower with Cumin and Lime

I love, love, love roasting just about anything. Roasted Lemon Cauliflower is one of my favorite snacks, and this version of it – lime instead of lemon, a little cumin – takes it to a whole other level. It’s a perfect, super healthy and delicious snack. Plus, the health benefits of cumin!!! Who knew.

ROASTED CAULIFLOWER WITH CUMIN AND LIME (serves 4 as a side or snack)
– 1 large head cauliflower
– 4 limes, juiced, zest of 2
– 1 tbsp. EVOO
– 2 tbsp cumin (don’t let this scare you)

1. Preheat the oven to 450.

2. Chop up the washed cauliflower. The easiest way to do this is to cut the cauliflower in half, then into quarters. Then, cut away the middle part (the stem, I guess). The florets should fall away on their own, pretty much mess-free. Add them to a big bowl.

3. Juice and zest 2 of the limes, then add the cumin. Mix to combine. Add the olive oil. Mix it all together and toss it with the cauliflower until it’s well-coated.

4. Lay the cauliflower in one layer on a roasting sheet. Put into the oven and cook for approx. 30- 40 minutes, or until roasted golden brown. Flip it every ten minutes, squeezing the juice of 1/2 a lime over it each time.

5. Serve as a snack or an appetizer (we had this with Roasted Red Grapes with Thyme. I told you I liked roasting things).

Hostessing is my all-time fav.

— AND, just want to give a HUGE congrats to Mario & Katie and the rest of the crew from What The Fork food truck! They made the top 4 for LIVE with Kelly & Michael‘s “Truckin’ Amazing” nationwide Food Truck competition! It’s been so cool to watch their amazing progress over the last year. Vote for them here. Congratulations guys – you make Scranton proud!

Breakfast Bake: Leeks, Smoked Salmon, Cheddar & (a little) Cream Cheese

So…I guess you can make things that are full of eggs, and still have them be kind of healthy? This recipe uses local/organic eggs (mostly whites), leeks (which are one of my favorite foods), cheddar, smoked salmon for some flavor, cream cheese, dill, etc. It was delicious, looked pretty fancy, and actually kept really well for a couple of days. And, was surprisingly really light – not to mention carb-free – for how much went into it!

BREAKFAST BAKE: LEEKS, SMOKED SALMON, CHEDDAR & (A LITTLE) CREAM CHEESE (serves 4-6)
– 12 eggs – 5 yolks & whites, 7 whites
– 2 bunches of leeks (white parts only), washed and cut into half moons
– 1/2 vidalia onion, cut into half moons
– 1/3 C. smoked salmon (approx. 4 oz), roughly chopped
– 1/4 c. milk
– 1 tbsp dill (or less, if you don’t love dill as much as I do)
– 1 c. grated cheddar
– 1 tbsp butter
– 3 tbsp. cream cheese, cut into little dots
– kosher salt & freshly cracked black pepper

1. Preheat the oven to 375.

2. Wash the leeks – these are kind of tough to clean, because all the dirt from the ground gets in between the little sections. The easiest way to clean them is to lop off the green parts and the very end of the white parts, cut them in half lengthwise, and submerge them in water for a little bit, kind of flipping through the sections of them as if they were a deck of cards. This will loosen and release any dirt hiding in them.

3. Over medium heat, melt the butter. Chop the onion and the washed leeks, then add to the pan when butter is melted and cook until wilted, approx. 10 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, add eggs, smoked salmon, cheddar, dill, milk, salt & pepper. Mix to combine well.

pre-mixed

5. Lightly grease a larger pie pan or casserole dish (either with butter or cooking spray), then add the leek/onion mixture to form a base for the Breakfast Bake.

6. Add the egg mixture on top of the leeks, and kind of bang around the pan so the mixture gets in between the cracks of the leeks and onions, and combines with everything.

7. Bake for approx. 15 minutes, until it starts to set. Remove from oven and dot with the cream cheese. Put back into the oven and bake for another 30 minutes or so, or until the dish is set and fluffy.

8. Remove from oven and let sit to cool for 15 minutes. Cut and serve. We had this with a Shaved Asparagus Salad, and it was a perfect little brunch. Happy 4th of July!

Watermelon, Feta & Arugula Salad with Basil and Red Onion

It’s the summer of salads! This is so easy, so pretty, and so tasty too. I know the 4th of July is on Thursday, so if you wanted to throw in some blueberries you could make a red, white, & blue (and green) salad for wherever you’re going to celebrate. This is a crowd pleaser – sweet watermelon, tangy feta, peppery arugula. Yummo.

WATERMELON, FETA & ARUGULA SALAD W/ BASIL & RED ONION (serves approx. 6)
– 3 cups of watermelon, cubed
– 10 oz. baby arugula
– 1/3 c. crumbled feta
– 1/4 red onion, cut into slivers of half moons
– 2 tbsp EVOO
– 2 tbsp balsamic
– small handful of basil, chiffonaded (is that a word? the verb of “chiffonade”? Oh well, it is today)
– kosher salt & fresh cracked black pepper

1. Cut the red onion into slivers, then soak it for approx. 15 minutes. This takes some of the “bite” out of the onion, so it doesn’t overpower the other flavors in the salad.

2. After it’s finished soaking, pat the onion dry, and then in a large bowl, combine it with the arugula, watermelon, basil & feta. I’ve found the easiest way to cut watermelon is to cut off the bottom (so you have a little stand), then cut it in half. Then, cut the green parts off around the sides, using downwards cuts.

Like so.

3. In a small jar, add the balsamic, then a little kosher salt & pepper. Then, add the EVOO, and mix together well.

4. When ready to serve (this gets kind of soggy if you mix it too far in advance, so add the dressing just when it’s ready to go out to the table), top the salad with the dressing. Mix everything gently together and serve. Preferably dining alfresco with your wonderful family.

— I’m big on the post-scripts lately, I know, but I just want to thank MY FRIEND Klob for believing in Andwhatiate.com so much and for his very generous donation. You’re my favorite and I’m putting that on the internet for everyone to see! Thank you my friend. I owe you dinner – I’ll cook.

Shaved Asparagus Salad with Toasted Almonds, Pine Nuts & Shaved Parm

Asparagus is everywhere during the summer, and there are so many ways to cook with it. This is a really simple, clean & bright salad to use as a side for just about anything. Some lemon juice, toasted almonds & pine nuts, & shaved parm adds a little depth to it – this is delicious.

SHAVED ASPARAGUS SALAD WITH TOASTED ALMONDS, PINE NUTS & SHAVED PARM (serves 4) – slightly adapted from the incomparable Smitten Kitchen
– 2 bundles asparagus (choose ones with ends that are tightly closed)
– Juice of 1 lemon
– 1 tbsp. of EVOO
– Kosher salt & fresh black pepper
– “curls” of fresh parm
– 1/4 C. mixture of thinly sliced almonds & pine nuts, toasted

1. Wash the asparagus, then peel them into thin ribbons with a sharp vegetable peeler.

Collyn, helping out in the kitchen

2. Throw away the tough ends, but save the middle parts to add to scrambled eggs tomorrow morning, etc. Add all the ribbons to a bowl with a paper towel to soak up any excess water.

3. Juice a lemon using a Rosle Citrus Reamer – which is one of the things I use most in cooking, then add a pinch of kosher salt & pepper. Add the EVOO.

4. Remove the paper towel from the bowl with the asparagus, then drizzle the lemon/EVOO mixture over everything.

5. Toast the almonds & pine nuts – bring a pan that isn’t non-stick to medium heat, add the almond slices, and cook for approx. 4 minutes, shaking the pan almost constantly, until they’re a golden brown. Remove from heat immediately to let cool a little bit.

6. Add the pine nut/almond mixture to the asparagus, shave thin little curls of fresh parmesan over the salad, and serve immediately.