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Homemade pasta: gluten-free Sagne a la molenara

Being born in the Emilia-Romagna region, homemade pasta means egg pasta and when the Rieti-Viterbo Chamber of Commerce and theSpecial Agency of Central Italy involved me for Facebook Live to cook typical local dishes, I expected to prepare the ‘usual pasta’ and instead Sagne are something entirely different.

In fact, this homemade dough is prepared like a bread or pizza dough, but without using yeast. All you need is flour and water and a few tricks to prepare these delicious, plump pappardelle pasta that ‘doesn’t overcook’ because the first pasta thrown into the water ‘waits for the last one to be ready’, as the local experts connected from the Le tre porte restaurant in Rieti tell us.

The name ‘a la molenara’ indicates the way they were eaten by the ‘miller’, i.e. the person who prepared the flour and then cooked this type of pasta. Even today, the municipality of Cittaducale in August hosts a festival dedicated to this delicious dish.

The sauce is as in true Italian tradition, i.e. very simple, but prepared with extraordinary ingredients: a fragrant, flaming red tomato, the Pomodoro Ovalone Reatino P.A.T. (i.e. traditional Italian agri-food product) of the Tenuta San Giovanni Farm of Gianfranco Gianni and Petrucci Sabino PDO extra virgin olive oil.

Garlic and chilli peppers are the lively touch to a dish that is quick to prepare and suitable for all seasons: try it!

Homemade pasta Sagne a la molenara

carbohydrates 33.4g per 100g

Ingredients for the dough for 4-5 servings

  • 400g flour mix for bread, brand Nutrifree**
  • water
  • a pinch of salt
  • rice flour* for dusting

Ingredients for sauce

  • 500g Ovalone tomato sauce
  • 1 clove garlic
  • marjoram
  • Sabina PDO extra virgin olive oil
  • chilli pepper
  • grated Pecorino cheese for serving (not present in the original recipe)

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. Put the flour in a planetary mixer, add a pinch of salt and start mixing with the flat beater, adding lukewarm water until the dough is soft and similar to a pizza or bread dough.
  2. Place the mixture on a pastry board floured with rice flour, form it into a loaf and leave it to rest covered with a tea towel. From time to time, knead the dough again.
  3. Meanwhile, prepare the sauce. Brown a clove of garlic in extra virgin olive oil, then pour in the Ovalone tomato sauce. Let the sauce cook for about 20 minutes, adding a drop of water if necessary and season with marjoram, salt and chilli pepper to taste.
  4. Roll out the loaf to form a rectangle about 3-4mm thick. Cut 1-2cm wide strips by stretching them with your hands while laying them on the pastry board.

impasto delle sagne

  1. Put a large pot of water on the stove, bring it to the boil, salt it, and then throw in the Sagne: this dough does not overcook, so you don’t have to worry too much about the cooking time! Drain them anyway when you like the texture and throw them into a large non-stick frying pan with the tomato sauce to flavour them well.
  2. Serve them possibly with grated Pecorino cheese, which, however, was not in the original recipe.

sagne a la molenara

Version with gluten of homemade pasta Sagne alla molinara

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

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Risoni pasta timbale with mushrooms: gluten-free autumn dishes

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Now it is time for dinners at home with friends to enjoy flavourful creations to warm up the evenings that welcome autumn. So, we decided to prepare a dish that could represent autumn, a recipe full of many delights, rich and tasty: Risoni pasta timbale with mushrooms.

We had a special pasta (which we also like very much cooked with vegetables from the garden), mushrooms, vegetables, cheese, and our Risoni pasta timbale with mushrooms came to life!

Risoni pasta timbale with mushrooms

25g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 6-8 servings

  • 500g gluten-free pasta, Risoni shape**
  • 250g cabbage
  • 200g fresh Porcini mushrooms
  • 200g sliced cooked ham*
  • 40g sharp Provolone cheese
  • 40g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
  • 30g leek
  • 10g dried Porcini mushrooms
  • 1 clove garlic
  • 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • salt and pepper

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. Clean the mushrooms and slice them.
  2. In a non-stick frying pan, heat a little oil with the peeled garlic and brown the mushrooms; season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with chopped parsley. Set aside.
  3. In another non-stick pan, sauté the cabbage cut into strips with a little oil, salt and pepper and let it become soft.
  4. Chop the leek and sweat it in a pan with a little oil. Soak the dried Porcini in warm water, then cut them up and add them to the spring onion.
  5. Put a pan of water on the stove, add salt and when it boils, throw in the pasta. Stir well and cook for 4 minutes, then drain and pour into the pan with the onion and dried Porcini; add hot stock and continue stirring as if you were cooking a risotto. Add the sautéed cabbage and fresh mushrooms and, if necessary, more hot water to cook the rice.
  6. In the meantime, cover a doughnut mould with cooked ham.
  7. When the Risoni pasta is cooked al dente, take away from the heat and stir in butter, Provolone and Parmesan cheese. Pour them into the ham-lined mould, fold the ham on the upper surface as well and let the timbale rest for 1 minute before turning the mould out onto a serving plate so that the mushroom doughnut can be unmoulded.

Watch a similar version in this video recipe.

sformato-risoni-ai-funghi-senza-glutine-uno-chef-per-gaia

Version with gluten of Risoni pasta timbale with mushrooms

Replace gluten-free Risoni pasta with conventional one, all other ingredients are naturally gluten free.

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Pumpkin spoon-shaped gnocchi

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Autumn in the kitchen means pumpkin and pumpkin means Pumpkin spoon-shaped gnocchi! Pumpkin is an ingredient with innumerable properties, a delicate taste that goes well with even daring combinations, but above all with many uses.

And we love it. We like it for its bright colour that brings vitality to dishes, for its full-bodied flesh that lends itself to making any recipe interesting and tasty, for its transformation into sweet or savoury preparations following your creativity.

Today we want to pay tribute to this gift of nature with a very simple yet impressive recipe.

Ready to find out? Pumpkin spoon-shaped gnocchi

Pumpkin spoon-shaped gnocchi

14.5g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 6 servings

  • 1 kg cooked pumpkin (corresponding to approx. 1 pumpkin of the Delica variety, green skin and orange flesh)
  • 160g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
  • 140g gluten-free pasta flour mix, brand Petra 3**
  • 2 eggs
  • salt, pepper and nutmeg
  • butter, sage and Parmesan cheese for seasoning

** Ingredients specific for celiacs

Preparation

  1. Cook the pumpkin in pieces in a static oven preheated to 200°C for 20 minutes or in a thick-bottomed pan, adding a bit of water until soft and well-dried.
  2. Mash the pumpkin in a potato masher or blend it in a food processor.
  3. Mix the mashed pumpkin with grated Parmesan cheese, eggs and flour; season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
  4. Once the mixture is ready, put a pot of water on the stove, bring it to the boil, salt it and then throw in a few teaspoons of pumpkin mixture the size of a walnut at a time. Watch also the video of how to prepare Pumpkin spoon-shaped gnocchi.
gnocchi-di-zucca-senza-glutine-ph-chiara-marando

Cooking pumpkin spoon-shaped gnocchi

  1. When the gnocchi have risen to the surface, let them boil for 1 minute, then drain with a slotted spoon.
  2. Finally, dress them with melted butter, sage and grated Parmesan cheese.

gnocchi-di-zucca-senza-glutine-ph-chiara-marando

How to dress pumpkin gnocchi

Gnocchi di zucca al cucchiaio

The pumpkin gnocchi ready to be enjoyed

Version with gluten of Pumpkin spoon-shaped gnocchi

Replace the Petra 3 flour with 100g of wheat flour and 40g corn or potato starch.

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Leek and Camembert flour dumplings

Today we woke up with the idea of cooking something special for dinner, a tasty dish capable of giving much, much satisfaction to the palate. We had in mind a full-bodied preparation, rich in ingredients and with a strong flavour… in short, a sort of end-of-day prize: the Leek and Camembert flour dumplings were our answer.

Besides being served as a first course, Leek and Camembert flour dumplings can be used as a main course because of their richness, but if you want to opt for a less fatty version, replace the Camembert with lots of seasonal vegetables!

Leek and Camembert flour dumplings

14.98g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 4 servings

  • 370g milk
  • 200g Camembert cheese
  • 100g leek
  • 90g potato starch*
  • 80g butter
  • 60g wholemeal rice flour*
  • 40g grated Parmesan cheese plus a pinch to dust the surface
  • 20g breadcrumbs**
  • 4 eggs
  • nutmeg, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. Chop the leek very finely and sweat it in a non-stick pan with a little oil; season with salt and set aside. Then place the Camembert, without the white rind, in a small pan with 100g of milk over very low heat so that the cheese melts. Now add the sweated leek.
  2. Put 270g milk in a saucepan with butter, a grinding of nutmeg and a pinch of salt. Bring to the boil, remove from the heat and add starch and rice flour together, stirring well so that no lumps form. Let cool, then add the grated cheese and one egg at a time while continuing to mix. Transfer the mixture into a pastry bag with a round tip, approximately 1.5-2 cm in diameter.
  3. Place a pot of water on the stove, bring it to the boil and add salt. With a pastry bag, drop small cylinders 2-3 cm long with the help of a knife (although the dough is very soft, so the knife is only needed to interrupt the flow of mixture) into boiling water and when they rise to the surface, let them cook 1-2 minutes, then remove with a slotted spoon.
  4. Place the dumplings in an oven dish, pour the cheese cream and leeks over them, stir lightly if necessary, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs and gratinate in a convection oven preheated to 200°C for about 15 minutes.
I parigini porro e camoscio pronti per essere gustati

The leek and Camembert flour dumplings ready to be enjoyed

Version with gluten of Leek and Camembert flour dumplings

Replace the gluten-free breadcrumbs with standard breadcrumbs, no other adaptation is needed.

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Traditional Greek recipes: Aubergine Mussakàs

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The recipe we are sharing today is from the family of a Greek friend, Vassilios, whom I asked to help me give my children a taste of this traditional Greek dish: Aubergine Mussakàs.

Mussakàs can be prepared with aubergines only, or by adding potatoes as well. For carbohydrate reasons, I chose to make it with aubergines only, but given the success of the dish, I think I will also try the mixed version soon.

Of course, we will also share it with you, as well as another recipe with an oriental flavour: Falafel.

The original recipe calls for aubergines to be fried in oil and, in some cases, a little butter. I preferred to grill the aubergines in the oven to make the dish lighter. I also took the liberty of doing the same with the béchamel in terms of both quantity and egg content.

But believe me, the result was very satisfying!

Aubergine Mussakàs 

5.5g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients

  • 1.5kg aubergines, preferably round
  • 750g minced meat (to taste, mixed is also fine)
  • 500g tomato sauce (or 750g fresh tomatoes in season)
  • 150g Roman pecorino cheese (kefalotyri in Greek), grated
  • 100g onions
  • 100g white wine
  • 1 teaspoon finely chopped parsley
  • extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper to taste
  • optional cloves and/or cinnamon, to be added to the minced meat sauce (this is Vassilios’s mother’s secret)

Ingredients for the béchamel sauce

  • 600g milk
  • 60g wholemeal rice flour*
  • 30g butter
  • 2 eggs
  • 5g salt
  • cinnamon and nutmeg

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

Preparation of Aubergine Mussakàs

  1. Put the minced meat in a pan with the onion and fry well with oil. Stir often so that the meat does not create lumps and does not stick; douse with the wine, then add tomato sauce, parsley, salt, pepper and possibly 2-4 cloves and/or ½ cinnamon stick to be removed at the end.
    Bring to the boil and simmer for at least 1.5 hours, until the sauce has thickened… almost like a meat sauce.
  2. Meanwhile, wash and dry the aubergines, cut them into thin slices and grill them in the oven at 180°C until cooked.
    Prepare the béchamel sauce. In a saucepan, melt the butter, then remove from the heat and add the rice flour to create a creamy mixture; gradually add the milk, continuing to stir with a whisk so that no lumps form, return to the heat adding salt and pepper and stir until the béchamel sauce is thick and almost starts to boil. At this point, remove the pan from the heat and add the already beaten eggs, mixing everything well. Sprinkle half of the grated Pecorino cheese into the meat sauce and mix well.
  3. Now let’s assemble the dish!

ricetta-Mussakàs-blog-uno-chef-per-gaia-ph-chiara-marando

Arrange the aubergines in parallel rows in the baking dish and cover them with a layer of minced meat; form a second layer of aubergines and cover them again with a layer of meat.

ricetta-Mussakàs-blog-uno-chef-per-gaia-ph-chiara-marando

  1. Finally, finish with a generous amount of béchamel sauce, the remaining cheese and a grating of nutmeg.

ricetta-Mussakàs-blog-uno-chef-per-gaia-ph-chiara-marando

  1. Bake the Mussakàs at 180°C for about 40 minutes.

ricetta-Mussakàs-blog-uno-chef-per-gaia-ph-chiara-marando

Version with gluten of Aubergine Mussakàs

The recipe given is naturally gluten-free, so no adaptation is needed for the version with gluten.

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Creative first courses: Three-colour crêpe rolls

One eats first of all with the eyes, which is why dishes must not only be good but also harmonious and colourful: the cheerfulness they convey starts with the sight and then leaves room for the taste and that is what happens with the Three-colour crêpe rolls.

It is a sensory journey through aromas, scents and nuances.

That’s why the first course we propose here marries this theory to perfection, a perfect mix of flavour, authenticity and energy. Needless to say… strictly gluten-free.

Bring your imagination to the table then with our recipe for Three-colour crêpe rolls. If you like crêpes, also try Quinoa crêpes with broccoli.

Three-colour crêpe rolls

9.7g carbohydrates per 100 g

Ingredients for crêpes

  • 500g milk
  • 230g gluten-free multi-purpose flour**
  • 50g cooked and mashed red beet
  • 50g cooked and blended spinach (creamed spinach)
  • 6 eggs
  • 8g salt
  • extra virgin olive oil

Ingredients for the filling

  • 500g cabbage
  • 300g milk
  • 200g Bitto or Casera cheese (semi-hard cheese)
  • 30g wholemeal rice flour°
  • 10g butter
  • salt

To serve as desired: cream and parmesan fondue, creamed spinach

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. In a bowl or a food processor, blend all the ingredients for the crêpes except the beet and spinach cream. Once the batter is ready, divide it into three equal parts: one part should remain its natural colour, the other two should be completed with the creamed spinach and red beet respectively.
    In case they still contain pieces of vegetables, blend each mixture using an immersion blender.
  2. Lightly grease a frying pan about 15cm in diameter and pour in enough mixture to cover the bottom. Cook the crêpes on both sides until lightly browned.
  3. And now the filling! Cut cabbage or Savoy cabbage into strips and cook in a wok or non-stick pan with a little extra virgin olive oil and, if necessary, a bit of water. Finally, season with salt.
    In another pan, prepare the béchamel sauce with 10g butter, 30g rice flour, 300g milk and salt to taste.
Rotolini di crepes colorati

The coloured crêpe rolls

  1. Roll the crêpes, distribute the vegetables evenly on top and cover them with two tablespoons of béchamel sauce; finally, finish by adding the diced Bitto or Casera cheese; roll the crêpes and place them on a baking tin covered with parchment paper. Heat in the oven at 160°C until the cheese has melted.

Just one more step.

I rotolini di crepes colorati pronti per essere mangiati

The colourful crêpe rolls ready to be eaten

  1. Cut the crêpe rolls obliquely to obtain 3 small cylinders; spread a layer of fondue on the bottom of each plate and lay 1 cylinder per colour on top.

Serve piping hot.

Version with gluten of Three-colour crêpe rolls

Replace the 230g gluten free flour with 250g wheat flour to make the crepes; no other adaptation is needed.

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