Skirt Steak Improvised Roladen

This is a variation of a recipe taught to me by my Aunt in Germany.

Ingredients

Skirt steak - remember that the better quality you buy the better the outcome. I bought from Fresh Market but also have used from Giant Foods before.
Pickles Spears- I bought a home brand made by a fella that uses his mothers recipe from New Jersey (Whole foods.)
Bacon - a few slices of the thickest you can find. I used apple-wood smoked.
Salami - dried that you can cut into thin spears matching the pickles.
Olive Oil - I used lemon infused but any will do
Butter
Salt
Pepper
Yellow Mustard
Mushrooms
Beef Broth
Red Wine

Pound the Skirt Steak with a meat pounder until it is even thinner than it comes from the market. While pounding try and stretch the sides making the strip as wide as you can without breaking the meat apart. I also use the knobbed side of the pounder to help break up the tendons.

Cut the steak into pieces that can be filled with the ingredients and then rolled closed like a burrito. This took some creative layout of the thinner pieces of steak in order to use all of it without waste.

Slice the pickle and salami lengthwise into strips that can be set closer to one side of the meat square. Add a strip or part of a strip of the bacon the pickle and salami and then roll the whole thing closed like a burrito. Either tie it closed with cooking string or pin it closed with toothpicks.

Heat up Olive oil and some butter in a frying pan and when hot add the meat. Sear the meat well on all sides with some mustard drizzled on each piece. Once well seared add the mushrooms and give them just enough time to start to saute before adding the Beef Broth and some red wine.

Bring to a bubble for 5 or 10 minutes and then cover and simmer for 30 - 40 minutes.

Serve with Red Cabbage (See GF Recipe in this blog soon)

What I check on food labels

The obvious thing is to look for the Gluten Free wording, however...

Depending on the severity of your allergy you may sometimes get away with reading the ingredients and making some assumptions. A few years back the FDA changed the labeling laws to require compound ingredients to have their make up listed in parentheses in line with the rest of the ingredients. So for example if the label used to say Caramel it must now say Caramel (sugar, etc..).

Keep in mind that there are always two issues with the labels. One is the ingredients but the other is the processing or handling of the food. If something that is made with gluten free ingredients is processed in a facility that also processes wheat for example, then there is always the possibility of cross over contamination. Many companies wont label an other wise gluten free item as gluten free for this reason.

Chicken Parmesean

I have not made this in a while but was asked to post a few more recipes for a person that is new to the GF way of life.

This is really easy to make and is so yummy that you wont realize it is G-free. Read my ingredient notes at the bottom of the recipe before making since you may get ideas on what to add or embellish to the recipe.


Ingredients
Boneless skinless chicken breasts (2 per serving)
Olive oil (a hearty drizzle around the skillet.
Spices can include:

• Dried Basil
• Turmeric
• Salt and Pepper (sea salt flakes and cracked pepper from a grinder add texture)
• Dried Onion powder
• Dried mustard
• Fennel seeds

Marinara Sauce (your favorite brand at the store is perfect)
Mozzarella cheese (can be whole or shredded I prefer shredded since I add a lot)
Broccoli
Fresh lemon and butter

Prepare
Buy chicken breasts that are already boneless and skinless. I look for relatively flat ones vs. plump because the first step is to pound them flat with a meat pounder. I usually will trim off any excess fat and skin that was not removed by the butcher. If you don't have a meat pounder they are available anywhere kitchen items are sold. DONT pound the chicken so hard that you pound a hole in it. You just trying to thin it and spread it out in width a bit so you can place a cheese filling between the two pieces. You can do this on wax paper for cleanliness or a cutting board. Remember to wash your surfaces right after.

You will flatten two breasts for each entree. So if cooking for 2 you will flatten 4 breasts. You will be making a kind of sandwich out of the two but don't worry if they don't match up exactly in size and shape. If they are way off you could also use poultry sheers (or regular scissors) to trim them a bit. Pound them flat until they are either very thin or 1/4" to 1/3" thick.

You will heat up olive oil in a skillet and lay the bottom half of each entree in the heated skillet. Next you add  the mozzarella cheese on top of the bottom breast and then cover it in marinara sauce. Finally lay on the top piece of chicken.

Spice them according your taste after you have assembled them in the skillet with some of the sample spices I have listed. I love using fennel seed and fennel pollen to impart a sweet subtle anise flavor.

I also add marina sauce around the sides of the skillet so you will have extra sauce for serving with but don't drown the chicken in the sauce since you want it to crisp up.

Grill until the bottom piece is starting to cook and then gently and carefully flip each entree. As each side starts to crisp up I usually flip twice just to get an even heating of the cheese inside. I like to cook them until starting to crisp and even enjoy having some cheese drip out and crisp up around the edges. Hmmm. I guess I used the word crisp a lot. Don't burn them though or dry them out.  Start with a higher temp and once both sides have been flipped turn it down a bit. That should do the trick.

Serve with plenty of very finely grated Parmesan cheese on top and extra sauce. After all it is called Chicken Parmesan.

Vegetables that are great with this include steamed broccoli where I will squeeze fresh lemon over it and butter.

Some Ingredient notes:
Sea Salt Flakes that come in a box are the most crunchy and add texture to the meal.
I also like using a pepper mill since you get more texture from the pepper.
I keep bags of lemons around the kitchen and use a small sieve or strainer to squeeze lemon juice into lots of my recipes. In some recipes I even trim the peel off and caramelize them with my grilled chicken. You could try this to add a nice twist to the meal. You can also caramelize fig slices with the lemon slices and when they are nice and caramely it adds a wonderful citrusy sweet flavor to the edges of the meal.

LOCATION: Osteria 177 Resturaunt in Annapolis, Maryland

Located on main street in downtown Annapolis, I enjoy the cozy bar at Osteria, but have since learned that all the food is cooked to order and made fresh. Not only do they have an awareness of gluten issues, they are able to modify recipes to make them GF for guests. And the food is quite good.

Lemon Oil emulsion

I use this as a staple when I cook. It can be used as a salad dressing or marinade for fish dishes.

Ingredients

Olive Oil - I use cold first pressed olive oil. After you taste several brands you will notice subtle differences and then choose a favorite. All of my favorites tend towards already having a natural slight lemony taste.

Lemon - I love using Myer lemons for their sweeter taste. The skin is so thin that you can eat a Myer lemon like an apple. You can use any lemon you like however. Sometimes I might add a squeeze of orange or blood orange.

Salt - I like flaky sea salt but have been playing with some of the new salts like Himalayan pink salt. In a pinch any salt will do, but I am always looking for textures.


In a Bowl
Add lemon and olive oil. Vary the ratio according to your usage. Slightly more olive oil make a great salad dressing since the lemon will be strong. For a marinade you may want a thinner more citrusy mix. Add a teaspoon or so of salt. With a fork mix the ingredients until it turns cloudy and uniform.

Char and Risotto

Char is my new favorite fish. I love Salmon and Char is its milder tasting cousin!

Ingredients
Char - I just made the whole fillet and saved left overs
Olive Oil
Lemon
Salt/Pepper
Fennel Seed
Pear

In a Skillet
Sear the Char skin side down. While cooking create a basic lemon oil emulsion (see my recipe). Drizzle the lemon oil over the Char. Sprinkle the fennel seed over them. When well seared flip and if you prefer gently remove the skin which could be used later in sushi dishes, then flip again when ready to sear the side you removed the skin from.

At the same time and in the same skillet sear slices of pear, sliced long ways. They will be used a garnish and will a touch of natural sweetness to the dish.

Plate
Place the Char on top of a bed of Truffle Oil Risotto (see my recipe). Place the pear around the dish in a decorative fashion.

Serve!

Jerk Chicken with Roasted Peppers and Avacado

This is a super easy recipe that tastes great.

Ingredients

Jerk Chicken
Boneless, skinless chicken cut into strips
Seacrets Jerk Chicken Paste Concentrate (this can be ordered online and I highly recommend this GF paste)
Olive Oil

Mix the olive oil and jerk paste into a marinade. Not to oily.
Marinate the chicken strips
Cook on the grill or in a pan with olive oil until slightly burnt on the edges


Sweet Peppers
Package from Giant comes with about 20 or so various colors about 1 to 2 inches each.
Olive oil
Lemon juice
Brown sugar
Avocado

Grease a cookie sheet with olive oil
Wash and place whole peppers evenly on cookie sheet
Drizzle peppers with olive oil and squeeze lemon juice over them
Bake on 350 until starting to brown
hen sprinkle with brown sugar and let the sugar caramelize slightly with the peppers. Do not over cook.
Plate with alternating peppers and avocado slices

Truffel Oil Risotto

Ingredients
2 cups Arboritto Rice
1 large Onion
1 stick of Butter
1 cup of White Wine
1 qt. Gluten Free Chicken Broth
Truffle flavored oil


In a large skillet
Melt 3/4 of the butter in a large skillet and saute onions till just starting to turn glassy. Add rice and stir constantly until the rice starts to lightly toast. Add white wine a little at a time so that the wine steams upon contact with the pan "sighing".  when finished begin adding the chicken broth in the same manner. Cook this until there is no more chicken broth and the risotto is creamy. Add more liquid if needed to get the rice creamy and starchy. After removing the skillet from the heat add the remaining butter and let it coat and mix in with the rice.

Serve warm with a drizzle of truffle oil.

Chicken Picata

Soooo simple.

Ingredients
Chicken Breasts - skinned and boned
Terragon - yes I have been playing with this wonderful spice lateley.
Salt
Pepper
Tumeric
Capers
Olive Oil
Lemon

In Frying Pan
Sear the chicken breasts in a frying pan with olive oil. Squeeze the juice from the lemon over the chicken then add half a jar of the capers and then sprinkle the 1/2 the spices. Brown on each side adding the remaining spices to the other side after turning. Add the rest of the capers to have some that were not caramelized. Turn a couple times till the color is to your satisfaction.
 
The perfect accompaniment is my truffle oil risotto.

Popovers do exist in GF form!

A great way to have a warm breakfast treat. This is a basic recipe that is easy to play with. I have added shredded cheese to the mix, yogurts or berrys. Even when made plain you spread butter and a nice jam to make a special treat.


Ingredients
1 cup of Gluten Free General Purpose Flour.
2 eggs
1 cup of Milk or equivalent (soy, almond etc)
salt to taste

Mix ingredients and pour into buttered or greased muffin pan.
Bake until golden (450 degrees the whole time without preheating or if preheated reduce heat to 350 after 15 mins)
Serve warm.

Tarragon Beef Stew -GF

This stew was an experiment but turned out so well that I have to add it to my list. I like cooking in the creuset pot since it holds the heat more evenly throughout. Ingredient amounts are to taste or as you desire but generally I use a tea spoon or so of spice and pinches of salt.  

Stew meat and carrots in full heat.

Ingredients
A good quality beef chuck steak - if pieces have a lot of tendon trim it off
Onion
Garlic
Mushrooms - sliced
Carrots - cut into small rounds about 1/4 to 1/2 inch long
1 or 2 cups of Red Wine
Beef Stock
Petite Peas
Black Pepper
Salt
3 tsp Tarragon
Thyme
Celery Seed
Mustard Powder
Turmeric
Paprika
Olive Oil (I used Zeta brand lemon flavored)
Bay Leave

Sear the meat in a pot with the olive oil, and crushed garlic adding the onions a few minutes later.
Begin adding a teaspoon of the spices (add the bay leaf later when you have the broth in the pot) being a bit more generous with the tarragon.

The meat will give off juices and stop searing by itself but keep the heat up and add some wine in increments letting it sigh as you add it.This is the braising phase. Scrap any burnings off the bottom as they will add flavor. Now add the carrots as they will need to cook for a while to soften.

As the mix starts to dry out and the meat starts to sear again, slowly add in the beef stock. You could braise some more but I just poured in the entire quart of beef stock and let it simmer, cooking for 2 hours. Next add in the mushrooms and peas cooking for another hour.

Serve with GF pappardelle type noodles. Nans has some that look good but have not tried them yet. http://nansgourmetfoods.com/glutenfreeplainpappardelle.aspx

buon appetito

Curried Cream Cheese Dip

Always a favorite and so easy to make!

Ingredients
1 Package of cream cheese
1 small dollop of sour cream (to soften the cheese)
Major Grey's mango chutney (I prefer Crosse & Blackwell brand)
3 TBL Sweet curry
Sliced almonds
Butter

Mix
In a large bowl.
Cream cheese, sour cream and curry. Keep stirring with a large fork until well mixed. You will need to taste the curry or add more but beware that the flavor gets stronger as it sits for a while.

Saute
Sliced almonds in butter until just turning golden or brown

Spread the cheese on a platter in a large circle that is about 1/2 inch high. Pour the chutney on top and spread until the entire top of the cheese is coated. Then sprinkle the almonds over the top of the chutney.

Serve with GF crackers or GF crustinis.

Gluten Free Grilled Shrimp Salad

Ingredients
5 -6 large shrimp per person
Butter Lettuce (I prefer the whole lettuce as you can get variety of the textures from the head)
GF Tamari
Lemon Olive Oil (I like Zeta brand from Whole Foods)
Myer Lemon
Turmeric
Mustard Powder
Fresh Grated Ginger
Salt Pepper
Spanish salted Marcona nuts (Whole Foods)
Tangerines (no corn syrup - I used Whole Foods 365 brand)
Goat Cheese

Peel and Marinade Shrimp

Marinade
In a bowl:
Lemon flavored olive oil
Fresh grated ginger
Sprinkle of turmeric
Squeeze of myer lemon juice
Sprinkle of tamari sauce
Sprinkle of mustard powder
Light salt
Pepper

Grill shrimp and half the mandarin slices on a flat iron. The mandarins will partially disintegrate into sauce.
Break up the lettuce, tearing into small parts of various sizes. Include some of the core that is lighter green and has a crunchy texture.

Put shrimp on the lettuce and sprinkle nuts and small slices of goat cheese and some uncooked mandarin slices on the lettuce

Dressing to sprinkle on salad:
Mix lemon flavored olive oil and equal part of myer lemon juice with some kosher salt
whip with a fork until cloudy and then sprinkle over salad.