Tag: food blogger

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Warm Kale, Sweet Potato and Quinoa Salad with a Lemon, Tahini and Chive Dressing

To celebrate Coeliac UK Awareness Week this year, I’ve teamed up with Knorr UK to create the ultimate gluten free meal using one of my favourite grains – quinoa. I fell in love with this grain when I lived in South America and was delighted when I realised I wouldn’t have to give it up when I stopped eating gluten. It is delicious when cooked in vegetable stock – for this recipe I used Knorr Organic Vegetable Stock Pot, which gives it great depth and flavour. Try out this veggie recipe for yourselves for a perfect mid-week meal or a summery lunch.

Warm Kale, Sweet Potato and Quinoa Salad with a Lemon, Tahini and Chive Dressing
(Serves 2)

Ingredients

40g x Sweet Potato
2 x Garlic Cloves
1 x Tablespoon Olive Oil
Freshly Ground Pepper
80g x Quinoa
1 x Knorr Vegetable Stock Pot
200g x Kale

For the Dressing:
2 x Tablespoons Tahini
4 x Lemons (juiced)
1 x Garlic Clove (minced)
1 x Teaspoon Gluten Free Soy Sauce
Salt & Pepper to taste

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 190 degrees celsius.
2. Prepare your sweet potato for roasting by cutting into small cubes and then
arranging on a baking tray with the two garlic cloves. Drizzle the olive oil over the
pan and add cracked black pepper.
3. Roast for 20-25 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, prepare your quinoa by washing thoroughly before adding to a pan
with 400ml water. Add the Knorr Vegetable Stock Pot and bring to the boil. Cover
the pot and simmer for 15 minutes or until the water has cooked off and the quinoa
is soft.
5. Separately, wash and then steam the kale for six to eight minutes. Drain.
6. Start preparing your dressing by adding the minced garlic clove, tahini, lemon juice
and soy sauce to a bowl. Stir until all mixed together into a dressing consistency.
Add chopped chives and salt and pepper to taste.
7. Combine the cooked quinoa, kale and sweet potato together before serving and
adding the dressing. Serve with a lemon wedge and extra chives.

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Low FODMAP and Dairy Free Gnocchi Alla Marie

One of the best things about starting my gluten free blog has definitely been meeting and making such lovely new friends, who have taught me so much about diets, allergies and intolerances way beyond my own knowledge and personal issues with gluten. As a way of saying thank you for being so awesome, I decided to have a crew over to my new house for dinner to celebrate. I put myself to work to create the ultimate low FODMAP and dairy free version of my classic gnocchi dish that so many of you have been able to enjoy.

With coaching and advice from the lovely Lottie aka The Tummy Diaries on the do’s and don’ts of the low FODMAP diet and top dairy free tips from the amazing Alice aka Gluten Free Alice (who also took this lovely al fresco photo of our meal), I put together the following dish so that everyone can enjoy my Gnocchi Alla Marie. I am still learning about the FODMAP diet, and as getting your hands on appropriate seasoning or stock can be difficult, I decided to feature pancetta in my dish to add extra flavour and depth. For vegetarians, the pancetta can be replaced with black olives, which can be thinly sliced and added to the dish just before baking. Happy eating!

Low FODMAP and Dairy Free Gnocchi Alla Marie
(Serves 4-6)

Ingredients

For the Sauce:
3 x Tablespoons FODMAP friendly garlic infused olive oil
1 x Carrot (peeled and finely chopped)
1 x Red Pepper (finely chopped)
800g Chopped Tomatoes
1 x Cup Red Wine
30g Fresh Basil
80g Smoked Cubed Pancetta
1 x Teaspoon Dried Chives
Salt and Pepper to Taste

For the Gnocchi:
500g Gluten Free Gnocchi
200g Vegan Mozzarella Style Cheese
30g Fresh Chives (finely chopped)
1 x Medium Courgette (diced)

Method

  1. Heat the FODMAP friendly garlic infused oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the pepper, carrot and cook until soft.
  2. Add the pancetta and cook through, stirring the mixture frequently.
  3. When the pancetta is cooked, add the chopped tomatoes, wine, dried chives, salt and pepper and let the sauce cook on a medium heat for 20 minutes.
  4. While the sauce cooks, preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
  5. Boil water in a separate pot. Add the gnocchi to the boiling water and cook for two minutes, draining immediately.
  6. Place the partially cooked gnocchi in a good sized baking dish and add the vegan mozzarella style cheese (saving a handful for garnish), chives and courgette.
  7. Add the torn basil to the sauce before transferring it to a blender, or a bowl and then using a hand blender, liquidise until smooth.
  8. Gently pour the cooked down sauce over the gnocchi mixture and stir evenly. As the sauce tends to cook down even further during the baking process, I tend to use all of it but depending on preference, some sauce can be held back and either refrigerated or frozen for later use.
  9. Evenly sprinkle the remaining vegan mozzarella style cheese over the top along with some more black pepper.
  10. Place in the centre of the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
  11. Remove from oven and allow to sit for 5-8 minutes before serving. Accompany with mixed leaves.

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Massachusetts Chocolate Chip and Cranberry Cookies

Baking cookies is something I will always associate with my time in Massachusetts when I was little. I would visit my Nana – who still practised law well into her 90s – for the summer months. I accompanied her to the office most days armed with toys and activity books, apart from when she had to appear in court. It was then that she would leave me with her dearest friend for a few hours who was always baking something delicious, even in the 90 degree summer heat (that’s a whopping 32 degrees in European terms). She taught me many valuable lessons including: 1) no brownie is complete without the addition of nuts and 2) blueberry pies made with blueberries from any state outside of New England will never be as sweet.

I love a chocolate chip cookie as much as the next person but I have found that the addition of cranberries – in true New England style – adds an extra special dimension. There’s something about the sweetness that comes out in dark chocolate after baking that goes so well with the tart nature of the cranberries. I hope that you cookie lovers out there enjoy trying this simple and foolproof recipe and that, time permitting, you will share your top baking memory with me.

Massachusetts Chocolate Chip and Cranberry Cookies
(Makes 20 Small Cookies)

Ingredients

1 ¼ x Cups Gluten Free Flour
½ x Teaspoon Gluten Free Baking Powder
½ x Teaspoon Gluten Free Bicarbonate of Soda
1 x Cup Dairy Free Dark Chocolate Chips
½ x Cup Dried Cranberries
¾ x Cup Light Brown Muscovado Sugar
1 x Large Egg
8 x Tablespoons Vegetable Oil
2 x Tablespoons Water
½ x Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 175 degrees and line two baking trays with parchment paper.
  2. Mix all dry ingredients except the chocolate chips and cranberries in a medium sized bowl and set aside.
  3. Mix the oil, sugar, water and vanilla extract together in a large bowl.
  4. Beat the egg separately and add to the liquid.
  5. Gradually add the dry mix to the liquid, stirring in small amounts at a time. Mix until smooth.
  6. Add the chocolate chips and cranberries until equally dispersed in the mixture.
  7. Form cookies out of 1 tablespoon of dough on the baking trays, giving them enough space (the cookies grow in size in the oven!).
  8. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until lightly golden brown on the top.
  9. Leave to cool on a cooling rack for 30 minutes before eating. The cookies will remain soft and chewy!