Tag Archive for: recipes for diabetics

Cold weather? Go for a Lentil soup

As the cold weather arrives, the best thing to do is to pamper yourself with food that will warm even the coldest of days, providing the right amount of nutrients without forgetting taste, and for this there is nothing better than a steaming Lentil soup.

Well, the season of soups, the main dish for winter evenings, has begun again. The protagonists of our recipe are pulses and, more precisely, lentils. If you like lentils, discover Rascino lentils and how to cook them to prepare a Pulse pasta with Rascino lentils.

So, ready to prepare it?

Lentil Soup

12.26g carbohydrates per 100g soup without pasta

Ingredients

  • 200 g lentils
  • 100g carrots
  • 90g onions
  • 50g celery
  • gluten-free Ditalini rigati pasta** (optional)
  • water, parsley, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

Preparation

  1. Cover the lentils with water in a large saucepan, add the carrot, celery, a small bunch of parsley and the onion in large pieces and cook without salt.

zuppa-di-lenticchie-uno-chef-per-gaia

  1. Once the lentils are ready, drain them but keep the cooking water and remove the parsley.
    Put the carrot, celery and onion (if you do not like onion, you can remove it) and possibly some of the lentils in a food processor with a few tablespoons of cooking water and blend to form a cream.
  2. At this point, you can decide whether to complete the soup with or without pasta. In case you decide to prepare it with pasta, cook some Ditalini rigati in the cooking water of the lentils and, only at the end of cooking, pour the cooked lentils and the vegetable cream in the pan with pasta. If, on the other hand, you do not want to use pasta, assemble the soup by mixing the cooked lentils with the vegetable cream and the amount of cooking water necessary to reach the desired density.
  3. Then serve the soup hot with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

zuppa-di-lenticchie-uno-chef-per-gaia

Version with gluten of Lentil soup

The recipe contains only naturally gluten-free ingredients, so no adaptation is necessary for its version with gluten. If you add pasta, replace gluten-free pasta with standard pasta.

 

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Quinoa pies with avocado

Today’s recipe is vegetarian and very, very tasty: Quinoa pies with avocado, a dish I tasted, in a more American version, on one of my overseas business trips and wanted to adapt it to a more ‘Italian’ taste.

Simple, healthy ingredients for a dish that is perfect as an appetiser, focusing on lightness without sacrificing taste. If you like quinoa, try also Quinoa surprises.

Get ready!

Quinoa pies with avocado

carbohydrates 14.84g per 100g without mozzarella and mustard chutney

 Ingredients

  • 95g avocado pulp (approx. ½ avocado)
  • 75g quinoa
  • 50g spring onion
  • 1 mint leaf
  • 1 sprig of parsley
  • extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper, buffalo mozzarella, apricot mustard chutney*, valerian

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

Preparation

  1. Cook the quinoa for about 15 minutes in lightly salted water (usually twice its weight), then leave to cool.
  2. Meanwhile, in a non-stick pan, soften the finely chopped spring onion on low heat. In a bowl, mash the avocado pulp with a fork and add chopped mint and parsley. Season the cooked quinoa with the avocado cream, add the cooked spring onion and, finally, season with salt and pepper.
  3. Using a pastry cutter, form a disc of quinoa directly on the serving dish; accompany the flan with sliced buffalo mozzarella, a pinch of apricot mustard chutney and a few valerian leaves as decoration.

tortini-di-quinoa-allavocado-uno-chef-per-gaia

Version with gluten of Quinoa pies with avocado

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

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Spinach meatballs

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By now you know, our ‘Meatballs and patties’ section is designed to collect many original recipes to prepare the food par excellence that both young and old ones enjoy. Today the proposal is Spinach meatballs.

So, today we propose a perfect version to get children to eat spinach, a vegetable rich in minerals that is often not very popular.

Here are the ingredients for our recipe. And if you want more ideas for meatballs and patties, have fun here!

Spinach meatballs

6.58g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients

  • 600g lean minced beef
  • 150g cooked spinach
  • 50g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
  • 30g breadcrumbs**
  • 30g extra virgin olive oil
  • 20g wholemeal rice flour*
  • 1 egg
  • 1 clove garlic
  • salt, extra virgin olive oil, sage, milk

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation of the Spinach meatballs

  1. Mix the minced meat with the egg, breadcrumbs and grated Parmesan; add salt to taste. Finely chop the spinach and incorporate it into the minced meat mixture.
  2. Form patties of about 5cm in diameter, flour them lightly and place them in a non-stick pan with a little extra virgin olive oil, a clove of garlic and two sage leaves.
  3. Brown them on both sides, then lower the heat, cover and cook for about 30 minutes, adding a little milk and a few tablespoons of water if necessary.
  4. Serve piping hot.

polpette-di-spinaci-blog-uno-chef-per-gaia-ph-chiara-marando

Version with gluten of Spinach patties

Replace gluten-free breadcrumbs with standard breadcrumbs and rice flour with wheat flour.

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Amazing vegetables: Ratatouille

The world-famous Disney cartoon Ratatouille has not only made famous the little mouse protagonist of the story, but also the traditional French dish around which Rémy’s adventures revolve: Ratatouille.

To us Italians, such a high-sounding name makes one think of a super-fine dish, perhaps rich in preparations and sauces, typical of transalpine cuisine. Instead, Ratatouille is a very simple recipe whose goodness lies in the balance of vegetables between them and the very few other ingredients present. In short, Remy was right to be surprised by such an unusual order for the famous restaurant whose kitchen he headed!

Such a simple and tasty preparation is perfect for our table, perhaps to be served with Turkey meatballs with Porcini mushrooms.

 

Ratatouille

6.15g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients

  • 600g aubergine
  • 450g courgettes
  • 400g cherry tomatoes
  • 350g yellow and red pepper
  • 120g onions
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 clove garlic
  • extra virgin olive oil, salt

Preparation

  1. Cut the aubergines into cubes and place them in a colander, sprinkling them with salt so that their bitter liquid drains out. Meanwhile, cut the courgettes into rounds, the peppers into pieces, the onion into slices and the cherry tomatoes into halves.

Ricetta-Ratatouille-Blog-Uno-Chef-Per-Gaia

  1. In a wok, or a large non-stick frying pan, cook first the courgettes and peppers separately in a few tablespoons of oil, then finish off with the onion and cherry tomatoes; then add all the vegetables and sauté with a bay leaf and a clove of garlic.
  2. Adjust salt and pepper.

Ricetta-Ratatouille-Blog-Uno-Chef-Per-Gaia

Version with gluten of Ratatouille

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

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Meatballs with tomato sauce for happy families

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They are the food that everyone likes, young and old, but they are also the ideal solution for making an appetising main course that is easy to prepare and convenient to store: Meatballs with tomato sauce.

Meatballs are a must in the kitchen that can be prepared according to tradition, or by combining new ingredients.

Today’s recipe means authenticity: these meatballs are perfect for dipping bread in the sauce when the meatballs are over. Try also Turkey meatballs with Porcini mushrooms.

Meatballs with tomato sauce

4.89g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients

  • 600g lean minced beef
  • 300g tomato sauce
  • 50g Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated
  • 30g breadcrumbs**
  • 30g extra virgin olive oil
  • 20g wholemeal rice flour*
  • 1 egg
  • 1 clove garlic
  • salt

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. Roll up your sleeves… let’s get started! Mix the minced meat with egg, breadcrumbs and grated Parmesan, and season with salt. When the mixture is ready, form into balls about 3cm in diameter, flour them lightly and place them in a non-stick pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
  2. Brown them, then add the tomato sauce and the whole clove of garlic, previously peeled. Then season with salt, cover with a lid and leave to cook for at least 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
La cottura delle polpette al sugo

Cooking meatballs with sauce

3. Serve the meatballs piping hot with their sauce.

Le polpette al sugo pronte per essere gustate

Meatballs with sauce ready to be enjoyed

Version with gluten of Meatballs with tomato sauce

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

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Delicious chickpea hummus

Chickpea hummus is a preparation of Middle Eastern origin, spicy and creamy, but also perfect to accompany meat, fish or simply to enrich a Bruschetta.

You can also use it for tasty canapés to be topped with sweet-and-sour vegetables, but also with fish and meat. Try it with the great Emilia Romagna classics, i.e. with deli-meats and some drops of Tradizional Balsamic Vinegar. During the summer, use it as a dip for fresh vegetables: well, truly a recipes for thousands of ideas.

Here’s how to prepare it in a few minutes. 

Chickpea hummus

7.25g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients

  • 200g cooked or canned chickpeas
  • 100g water
  • 30g extra virgin olive oil
  • 20g fresh spring onion
  • 20g lemon juice
  • 15g tahina (sesame seed cream)*
  • 15g capers
  • salt and pepper

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. Fry the spring onion in a pan with a little extra virgin olive oil and water.
  2. Once cooked, place it in a blender with the other ingredients and blend until smooth and even.
  3. Try serving it as a dip or topping for croutons and Bruschetta.

hummus-di-ceci

Version with gluten of Chickpea hummus

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

 

 

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