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Are you running short of ideas for out-of-home meals? Here comes another load of recipes for our lunch box ideas for a quick, balanced and tasty lunch to carry with your, wherever you go.

In this way, eating gluten free and counting carbs is no longer a programme, not even when eating out of home, i.e. when meals are always a challenge: the lunch box becomes a travel companion and moment of joy and pleasure.

We found the perfect lunch box for our needs at our friend’s store “I love my house” whom I always ask for help when I am looking for equipment and kitchen solutions: here is where you can find our LUNCH BOX.

Follow me not to run short of ideas for out-of-home meals and watch this vegetarian alternative Venere rice salad with cherry tomatoes and pistachio nuts.

Quinoa salad with Primo sale cheese and salmon

38.6g carbohydrates for the whole lunch box

Ingredients for 1 lunch box

  • 100g green beans
  • 50g quinoa
  • 50g Primo sale cheese or another semi-soft cheese you like
  • 50g smoked salmon
  • 10g shelled walnuts
  • 1 clove garlic
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • parsley
  • salt

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (in Italy they may be listed on  Prontuario AIC)

Preparation

  1. Boil the quinoa in double the amount of water of its weight for about 20 minutes or until the water has been completely absorbed.
  2. Boil the green beans, strain into cold water, drain and cuthttp://unochefpergaia.it/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Insalata-di-quinoa-con-primo-sale-e-salmone-7.jpg into pieces.
  3. Pour a dribble of oil in a non-stick pan and brown a clove of garlic in it, then add chopped parsley and the green bean pieces: allow to gain flavour for a couple of minutes.
  4. Dress the quinoa with the green beans, the cheese in dices, the smoked salmon in slices and the shelled and slightly crushed walnuts; adjust salt if necessary.

insalata di quinoa

Version with gluten of Quinoa salad with Primo sale cheese and salmon

The recipe contains only naturally gluten free ingredients, so no adaptation is necessary for its version with gluten.

 

My “oven free” recipes continue, giving us pleasure for the eyes and palate and Piadina bread is certainly an excellent solution. This time we are going to prepare them in a light version using oil and especially with a fresh and colourful topping: here is the recipe of my Layered pie of Piadina with oil.

Few steps to prepare Piadina, then let your creativity free to top and overlap them to form a true Layered pie of Piadina with oil that you can slice and serve easily.  Ideal also as a solution to “clean out your fridge” upon condition that you have plenty of vegetables in season.

Do not forget to add some aromatic herbs to your recipes: they will be a pleasure for taste and will allow you to reduce the amount of salt! And if you are looking for another idea to save energy not using the oven, try these No-cook stuffed tomatoes.

Layered pie of Piadina with oil

50.6g carbohydrates per 100g Piadina

17g carbohydrates per 100g Layered pie of Piadina with oil

Ingredients for 4 pieces of Piadina

  • 150g flour mix for bread Nutrifree**
  • 120g water
  • 30g wholemeal rice flour*
  • 25 g extra virgin olive oil
  • 20g fine corn flour*
  • ½ tsp salt
  • a bit of baking soda

Ingredients for stuffing

  • 300g small tomatoes of various colours
  • 300g Stracchino cheese or another cream cheese
  • 100g mixed leafy greens
  • 100g smoked salmon
  • basil
  • oregano
  • salt

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (in Italy they may be listed on  Prontuario AIC)

Preparation

  1. Pour the flour mix and rice flour in a bowl with salt and baking soda, then pour the water and mix; finish adding the oil in a trickle.
  2. Knead on a board until smooth, then cover the dough with a T-towel or cling film and let it rest for at least 30 minutes.
  3. Divide the dough into 4 parts, shape balls, then roll them out with a rolling pin to a thickness of about 1-2mm forming a disk.
  4. Warm up a non-stick pan over medium heat and cook the disks of Piadina for 2-3 minutes on each side.
  5. Start assembling the layered pie putting a Piadina on the bottom, top it with a part of cream cheese, a layer of leafy greens and some slices of tomato; cover with a second Piadina and top it with a second part of cream cheese, leafy greens, some slices of tomato and half the salmon; add the third Piadina and top it the same way as the previous layer and finally top with the last Piadina, the remaining cream cheese and sliced coloured tomatoes overlapping the slices a bit.
  6. Complete with a pinch of salt, a dusting of oregano and parsley leaves.

torta di piadine

Version with gluten of Layered pie of Piadina with oil

Prepare the Piadina with oil using 200g wheat flour, 100g water, 25g extra virgin olive oil, 1/2 tsp salt and a bit of baking soda.  Stuff the pie to taste: the ingredients given in the recipe are all naturally gluten free.

 

A tasty recipe prepared with a few simple ingredients where the taste of good things becomes a real pleasure to share with family or friends: Potato gnocchi with tomato sauce and ‘nduja.

We thought we would start with the classic and timeless dish of gnocchi with tomato sauce to give it an even more distinctive flavour. So ‘nduja seemed the perfect solution to us!

Try it!

Potato gnocchi with tomato sauce and ‘nduja

carbohydrates 28.03g per 100g of uncooked, unseasoned gnocchi

Ingredients for gnocchi for 6 servings 

  • 1kg potatoes
  • 200g potato starch*
  • 1 egg
  • salt, rice flour* for dusting

Ingredients for the sauce

  • 600g tomato sauce
  • 40g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
  • 30g shallot
  • 30g ‘nduja*
  • 1 clove garlic
  • extra virgin olive oil and salt as needed

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

*Ingredients whose labels must read “gluten-free” (or, in Italy, present on  Prontuario AIC)

Preparation

  1. Boil the potatoes in water until soft when pierced with a fork. Peel them and pass them through a potato masher. Spread them out on the cutting board so that they cool down faster.
  2. When the mashed potatoes are cold, add the other ingredients and knead.
  3. Form cylindrical strips by dusting with a bit of rice flour and cut into chunks of about 3 cm. Pass each piece over the prongs of a fork, applying a little pressure so that the piece is hollow on the inside and with slight grooves on the outside in contact with the fork.
  4. Prepare the tomato sauce. Slice the shallot and brown it with the clove of garlic in a pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil; when the shallot is wilted, add the tomato sauce and cook for about 15 minutes; add the ‘nduja, stirring so that it incorporates well into the tomato sauce and add salt to taste.
  5. Boil the gnocchi in salted water for a few minutes until they rise to the surface. Dress them with tomato sauce and serve with grated Parmesan cheese.

Gnocchi di patate pomodoro e 'nduja

Potato gnocchi with tomato sauce and ‘nduja

Version with gluten of Potato gnocchi with tomato sauce and ‘nduja

The recipe contains only naturally gluten free ingredients, but it is possible to replace potato starch with wheat flour.