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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.

 

Are you looking for more ideas for your out-of-home lunch? Eating out is indispensable not only for those who work, but also for those who study, so the time has come to share some recipes for your lunch box or for what Japanese people call “bento“… Well, many ideas for lunch boxes that are complete, balanced and tasty to take with you on every occasion.

So, for our young ones going to university and having to eat gluten free and to count carbohydrates easily, the lunch box is a faithful travel mate that contributes to turning the lunch break into a joyful moment.

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.

This is the beginning of a project that is very dear to me because lunch is a key meal, especially for out kids and we cannot allow ourselves to run short of ideas!

Stay tuned for many more fantastic recipes! Meanwhile, have a look at my Coronation pasta salad.

Pasta with chickpea cream and broccoli

85.91g carbohydrates for the whole lunch box

Ingredients for 1 lunch box

  • 110g broccoli florets
  • 100g boiled chickpeas
  • 70g Massimo Zero Organic Pipe**
  • 15g dried apricots
  • 1 tbsp of lemon juice
  • paprika
  • 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 pasta al dente in salted boiling water, drain and dress it with a dribble of extra virgin olive oil leaving the pasta to cool down.
  2. Blend 70g chickpeas with about 50g water, lemon juice, salt and pepper and a dribble of oil to obtain a cream.
  3. Dress the remaining chickpeas with paprika, pepper and oil to taste, together with blanched broccoli florets.
  4. Season the pasta with the chickpea and broccoli mixture, then add the dried apricots cut in pieces and pour everything in the lunch box.
  5. Put the chickpea cream in the second container or on the pasta completing with a dusting of chopped parsley and a dribble of oil.  Mix well before eating.

Version with gluten of Pasta with chickpea cream and broccoli 

The recipe contains only naturally gluten free ingredients, so no adaptation is necessary for its version with gluten; however, if you want, you can replace Massimo Zero corn and rice pasta with a durum wheat alternative.

In Roman dialect, the term Fregnaccia means nonsense, lie, and nuisance, but in the tradition of Central Italy it also indicates a type of pasta, similar to a large, thick Maltagliato, so called to indicate the simplicity of a dish that wins you over with the flavour of its few, delicious ingredients. Here is the recipe for the second meeting with the Rieti-Viterbo Chamber of Commerce, Fregnacce alla sabinese.

And what are these extraordinary ingredients?

The Ovalone Rietino Tomato P.A.T. (i.e. traditional Italian agri-food product) of the Tenuta San Giovanni Farm of Gianfranco Gianni.

The Azienda Olearia’s Leccino Olives Bonifazi Oil

Petrucci’s Extra Virgin Olive Oil  and the lively The Three Doors Sabino chilli pepper

In preparing the recipe from the book ‘La Cucina Sabina’ by Maria Giuseppina Truini Palomba, we were guided by chef Marco Bartolomei and the result was a feast for the whole family.

Enjoy the journey and bon appétit!

Fregnacce Sabina style

49.3 carbohydrates per 100g of unseasoned Fregnacce

 

Ingredients for Fregnacce

  • 300g fresh pasta flour mix Molino Dallagiovanna** (for gluten-free version, see below)
  • 180g water (or however much you need to have a consistent dough)
  • a pinch of salt

Ingredients for sauce

  • 500g peeled Ovalone tomato
  • 100g Leccino olives in brine
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • parsley, chilli pepper, salt and extra virgin olive oil

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. Knead the flour with a pinch of salt and enough water to obtain a firm, homogeneous dough. Fate riposare la pasta in un sacchetto di plastica per circa 15 minuti.
  2. Divide the dough in half and roll it out with a rolling pin to a not-too-thin thickness, forming a large disc that you will leave to air dry for about half an hour. Roll each disc to form a large cylinder and cut it with the knife blade at an angle with the tip pointing once to the right and once to the left so that the resulting pieces are diamond- shaped.
  3. Prepare the sauce by putting the clove of garlic in oil with the chilli pepper. Brown the garlic well, then add the tomato after having mashed it well with a fork to make it homogeneous. Cook the sauce for about twenty minutes, seasoning with salt, then add the olives and chopped parsley and leave to season for another 10 minutes.

le fregnacce

  1. Boil the pasta in boiling salted water and when it rises to the surface, drain it, toss it in the pan with the sauce and leave it to season for a few minutes.
  2. Serve your pasta immediately because the saying in Romanesco goes ‘Cook the Fregnacce and eat them right away’.
Le fregnacce alla sabinese pronte per essere gustate

Fregnacce Sabina style ready to be thoroughly enjoyed

Version with gluten of Fregnacce Sabina style

Replace the Molino Dallagiovanna fresh pasta flour mix with an equal amount of wheat flour, adjusting the amount of water needed for kneading.

Radicchio di Treviso PGI in gluten free cuisine: how to cook Strozzapreti with Radicchio and pumpkin fondue to colour your table and make the whole family happy.

The ‘Winter Flower’ contest

To publicise the work and attention that farmers in the typical area devote to radicchio, the Consorzio Tutela del Radicchio di Treviso PGI and Radicchio Variegato di Castelfranco PGI which gathers together the producers of these incredible vegetables (also known as‘winter flowers‘ for their shape that evokes that of a flower) decided to launch a contest throughout Italy where 10 bloggers from various regions were asked to marry Radicchio with their own culinary traditions and to propose a recipe to be enjoyed when seated and one to be eaten standing.

Are you ready to see my ideas? Let’s start with the “seated recipe”: Strozzapreti with radicchio and pumpkin fondue.

The term Radicchio does not indicate a single vegetable. Depending on personal gastronomic habits and one’s area of origin, certainly the word Radicchio brings to mind different types of vegetables.

In Italy, the place in the front row is certainly taken by Radicchio from Treviso, a radicchio that holds many surprises, not only in terms of taste and versatility in cooking, but also for the way in which it is producedrarely known to consumers.

Radicchio Rosso di Treviso PGI: early and late

The acronym PGI stands for Protected Geographical Indication, but what does this designation imply? It implies that the Radicchio referred to is grown in a very specific geographical area where the soil, climate and production method make it unique and inimitable.

The characteristics of Radicchio di Treviso are therefore different from any other product, to the point that if a seedling were grown in another part of the planet, the end result would be profoundly different: this is one of nature’s many miracles.

Early Radicchio, called “precoce”

As the name implies, this is the Radicchio whose harvest begins in September (which is why you will not see it used in these recipes as it is not available) after the plants are tied with a rubber band so that light cannot penetrate them for 15-20 days. Consequently, when the large tufts are harvested, the outer leaves are removed directly in the field, while the precious dark red central part is washed and destined for our tables.

Late radicchio, called “tardivo”

Radicchio tardivo in vendita

Radicchio Tardivo for sale on the shelves of a greengrocer

This is the Radicchio we most often associate with the name Treviso and is also the type I used in my recipe for Strozzapreti.

Unlike what one might imagine for a vegetable, its colour and flavour are highly dependent on the process. It is called Tardivo because it is after four months in the field, in November, that a turning point occurs: the first cold weather ‘burns’ the outer leaves, giving them their typical ‘blade’ shape. At this point, Radicchio heads are extracted from the soil with their roots, transported to the growers’ farms and placed in tanks filled with 10-12 degree water from local springs.

The process is called “forced whitening‘: water and the absence of light cause new leaves without chlorophyll to develop inside, with a typical white and purplish-red colour.

Careful trimming and a final wash prepare Radicchio for its final destination on a long and fascinating journey: the most varied and extraordinary dishes.

I hope you are now looking forward to using Radicchio in the kitchen and preparing this fresh homemade pasta, for which I recommend involving even the youngest members of the family: it will be much more fun to forge these tasty little cylinders than to play with any toy modelling dough! Watch the video to find out how to cook this recipe. And if you want another idea for using Radicchio, try my Ricotta dumplings with radicchio.

Strozzapreti with Radicchio and pumpkin fondue

22.8g carbohydrates per 100g

 Ingredients for Strozzapreti for 4 servings

  • 100g Radicchio di Treviso PGI Tardivo
  • 100g water (taken from the water used to blanch Radicchio)
  • 100g gluten free breadcrumbs, brand Nutrifree**
  • 100g gluten free pasta flour mix, brand Molino Dallagiovanna**
  • 1 egg
  • salt

Ingredients for the pumpkin fondue

  • 200g pumpkin already peeled and seeded
  • 120g milk
  • 120g fresh cream
  • 50g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
  • Radicchio di Treviso PGI Tardivo
  • salt and pepper

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparing the dough for Strozzapreti and fondue

  1. Put a pot of water on the stove and bring it to the boil; throw in the washed Radicchio tardivo and blanch it for about 1 minute in the boiling water. Remove the Radicchio with the help of a skimmer and throw it into cold water immediately, but keep the scalding water. Drain the Radicchio and leave it in a colander so that it loses as much water as possible.
  2. Put the breadcrumbs in a bowl and, to wet them, use 100g of the boiling water used for the Radicchio: pour it in gradually while stirring the breadcrumbs with a wooden spoon. Let everything cool down.
  3. Slightly wring the blanched Radicchio with your hands to remove excess water and chop it finely on a cutting board using a knife or a half-moon. Add the chopped Radicchio to the breadcrumbs, then complete by adding flour, egg and salt.
  4. Knead all the ingredients to obtain an even mixture that will be rather moist. Wrap it in cling film and let it rest for about 15 minutes.
  5. Meanwhile, prepare the fondue. Place milk and cream in a thick-bottomed saucepan, bring to a gentle boil and allow the liquid to reduce to half. Remove from the heat and add the grated Parmesan cheese, stirring until it melts perfectly.
  6. Cut the pumpkin into cubes and cook it in the microwave for 4 minutes at maximum power in a closed container, or in a static oven at 200g for the time needed to make the pumpkin soft (the time will depend on the size of the cubes). Mash the pumpkin with a fork to obtain a purée, then add it to the fondue, mix well and season with salt and pepper.

Shaping Strozzapreti and completing

  1. Take small pieces of dough and, with the help of a dusting of brown rice flour, roll them out with a rolling pin to a thickness of about 2mm; cut small strips about 4cm long and 1.5cm wide, place them between the palms of your hands and slide your hands in the opposite direction so that the strip becomes a sort of twist.
  2. Lay the Strozzapreti on a tray lightly dusted with brown rice flour and continue until all the dough is used up.
  3. Heat up the Radicchio blanching water; pour the pumpkin fondue into a large non-stick pan and heat it up slightly. When the water in the pot comes to the boil, throw in the Strozzapreti, cook them for a few minutes until they rise to the surface and with a slotted spoon remove them and throw them into the pan with the fondue.
  4. Allow the Strozzapreti with the fondue to take on flavour for a few minutes, then serve hot, topped with a few pieces of fresh Radicchio.

Strozzapreti al radicchio pronti per essere gustati

Strozzapreti with Radicchio ready to be enjoyed

Version with gluten of Strozzapreti with radicchio and pumpkin fondue

Replace the gluten-free flour with standard flour and adjust the amount of water used to scald the breadcrumbs so that all the breadcrumbs are moistened, but not creamy.

This morning the garden had prepared a wonderful surprise: bright green spinach and plump peapods. Thinking of the best way to enjoy these gifts of spring, and wanting to cook our beloved pasta, here is the idea: Risoni pasta with garden vegetables, prepared with Massimo Zero pasta sautéed a few minutes in the vegetable sauce and perfectly al dente. A treat!

One of the convictions that has always guided me in the kitchen is that it is up to us as parents to get kids used to eating vegetables, but we certainly have to work hard to find a variety of ways to make them irresistible. Well this simple pasta is one of the many ways my children can’t say no to!

Risoni pasta with garden vegetables

35g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 4 servings

  • 400g Risoni Massimo Zero**
  • 100g fresh spinach
  • 70g fresh peas
  • 70g brie
  • 30g shallot
  • 1 clove garlic
  • extra virgin olive oil and salt as needed

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

Preparation of Risoni pasta with garden vegetables

  1. Put the sliced shallot in a frying pan with a little extra virgin olive oil and the garlic clove, fry for a few minutes. Add fresh peas and spinach that has been thoroughly washed and chopped, add salt to taste and cook over a medium heat for about 15 minutes so that the spinach loses its water. Add the Brie without its white rind only when the vegetables are cooked; then let it melt.
  2. In the meantime, bring a pot with water and salt to the boil, cook the Risoni in it, leaving them slightly al dente. Drain, keeping a few ladles of the cooking water, and pour the Risoni into the pan with the vegetable and Brie sauce; season for a few minutes, adding the necessary cooking water to keep them creamy.
  3. Now serve and enjoy!
Risoni con verdure dell'orto

Risoni pasta with garden vegetables

Version with gluten of Risoni pasta with garden vegetables

Only substitute gluten free Risoni pasta with a standard one, no other adaptation is needed.

Sweet and savoury together, but also mint and chocolate coming together, our recipe today is a mix of flavours and contrasts: After-eight egg pasta triangles.
A pleasant pasta enclosing a soft filling with an intense flavour. In short, an appetising first course to surprise with something new and unexpected.

If you love fresh pasta, also try Sardinian Culurgiones a work of art of workmanship and taste!

 

After-eight egg pasta triangles

29.48g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for the egg pasta for 8 persons

  • 500g fresh pasta flour mix, brand Molino Dallagiovanna**
  • 5 eggs
  • 15g bitter cocoa powder*
  • 40g water
  • 20g extra virgin olive oil
  • 3g salt

Ingredients for stuffing

  • 400g boiled and mashed potatoes 300g freshly grated sweet Pecorino cheese
  • 30g grated medium-aged Pecorino cheese
  • 30g extra virgin olive oil
  • 10g chopped mint
  • 1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
  • milk and salt as needed

** Ingredients specific for celiacs

Preparation

  1. Prepare the dough by mixing flour, eggs, cocoa, water, oil and salt by hand or in a planetary mixer. In no time, you will obtain a smooth and elastic dough. Wrap it in cling film and let it rest.
  2. Meanwhile, prepare the filling.
    Put the grated cheese and the mashed potatoes in a bowl and mix well until an even mixture is obtained. Heat the olive oil in a small pan and as soon as it is hot, add the chopped garlic and stir; turn off the heat and add the chopped mint. Let it rest for a minute, then pour the aromatic oil over the potato and Pecorino mixture. Mix well, add salt to taste and, if the mixture is too thick, soften it with a few tablespoons of warm milk.
  3. Now, take the dough and roll it out with a pastry cutter to the penultimate or third last hole; with a toothed cutter, cut 8cm squares.
    Using a teaspoon, or your hands, place the filling in the centre of the square, then close forming a triangle and pinching the edges together to seal the ravioli tightly.
    Bring the water to the boil, salt it lightly and gently toss in the triangles. After a few minutes, drain them and dress them with melted butter together with a few mint leaves and grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese.

Triangoli-di-sfoglia-after-eight-ph-chiara-marando

Version with gluten of After-eight egg pasta triangles

Replace gluten-free flour with wheat flour and reduce the amount of water used to 15g.

What could be better in summer than a nice, fresh Venere rice pasta salad with vegetables?

In our opinion, it is the ideal dish for the summer months, perfect for satiating hunger after returning from the beach, but also for an evening out with friends. It can be prepared in advance, in large quantities, and stored to have a great, healthy meal ready immediately.

Let’s prepare this vegetarian recipe then!

Would you like another idea for a summer salad? Try this Swordfish salad or Tomatoes with anchovy flavoured croutons.

Here’s how to prepare it!

Venere rice pasta salad with vegetables

24.65g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients

  • 400g Venere rice pasta Amaranto**
  • 300g white mushrooms
  • 250g courgettes
  • 100g yellow pepper
  • 100g red pepper
  • 100g carrots
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to taste

** Ingredients specific for celiacs

Preparation of Venere rice pasta salad

  1. Clean and slice the mushrooms and sauté them in a non-stick pan with oil and a clove of garlic.
    Next, julienne cut the courgettes and carrots and dice the pepper.
  2. Put a little oil in the wok and cook the vegetables with a clove of garlic, seasoning with salt. When the vegetables are soft, let them cool down.

Insalata-di-past-di-riso-venere-alle-verdure-blog-uno-chef-per-gaia

  1. Cook the pasta in plenty of salted water; leave it slightly al dente, drain and cool under running water.
    In a large bowl, mix the pasta with the vegetables and mushrooms; if necessary, season with salt and, if desired, add a few basil leaves.

Insalata-di-past-di-riso-venere-alle-verdure-blog-uno-chef-per-gaia

Version with gluten of Venere rice pasta salad with vegetables

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