Tag Archive for: senza lattosio

Do you know the irresistible texture of bread baked in a wood-fired oven? When the crust, under the blade of the serrated knife, makes that unmistakable sound that already gives you a foretaste of the pleasure of the taste of bread? Crispy bread in casserole is a gift for the senses: it is for the sight, because the colour of the bread is just right golden; it is for the smell, because the fragrance has the irresistible fragrance of bread; it is for the taste, because in addition to the flavour, the crunchy texture of the crust and the softness of the crumb are simply perfect. And everything is gluten-free!

If we want to find some faults, well, we cannot deny that it requires a lot of resting time, even though we can easily knead it the day before and ‘forget’ it in the refrigerator, and moreover, baking it requires a little more energy than bread baked in the usual way. Yet, if you have a cast-iron casserole dish, my advice is to try it right away because it is a bread that has nothing to envy the products of the best bakers in our towns.

Crispy bread in casserole

46.55g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients

  • 500g water
  • 450g flour mix for bread, brand Nutrifree**
  • 50g buckwheat flour*
  • 20g extra virgin olive oil
  • 5g brewer’s yeast
  • 5g salt
  • rice flour* for dusting and extra virgin olive oil for brushing

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. Dissolve the yeast in warm water; place the Nutrifree mix and buckwheat flour in the planetary mixer and start mixing the flours together, then gradually add the water with the yeast while continuing to knead. After kneading for at least 5 minutes, add the salt and extra virgin olive oil and mix for a few more minutes. Transfer the dough into a bowl, brush with a little oil, cover with cling film and refrigerate for 15 hours.
  2. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place it on a cutting board dusted with rice flour. Again using rice flour, fold the dough 5-6 times at least, then give it the round shape of a loaf and leave it to rise for about 2 hours covered with a cloth.
  3. Bring the oven to 230°C with a cast-iron casserole inside (I use my Le Creuset casserole) with a lid. When the oven has reached the set temperature, remove the casserole from the oven by placing it on a trivet because of the very high temperature. You can cut a cross on the surface of the loaf and drop it, literally, into the casserole to avoid burning yourself.
  4. Place the casserole in the oven closed with its lid and bake for 45 minutes.
  5. After this time, take out the casserole from the oven, open it with the help of an oven glove or potholders and turn the loaf upside down. Put the whole thing back in the oven and bake at 210°C for another 30 minutes.
  6. Remove the casserole from the oven and take out the bread; if you feel that the bread is still slightly heavy, place it in the oven without the container for another 10 minutes. Let it cool and enjoy it while listening to the sound of the crust under your teeth!

Version with gluten of Crispy bread in casserole

Replace the Nutrifree bread mix with wheat flour, but mix it with about 300g water.

For ten years I have invariably cooked traditional dishes on the celebration days of our Catholic culture, but this is the first time that a large-sized leavened dessert has satisfied me 100 per cent! I have never tasted a soft and fragrant gluten-free Colomba Pasquale like this one, prepared with simple (albeit numerous!) ingredients and a mix containing only naturally gluten-free ingredients.

You can imagine the joy of seeing the dough rise without any hesitation inside the warm oven: you know what that means for those who have to deal with flours that are always a bit temperamental like gluten free ones.

The other advantage of this Colomba is that it stays good for several days, although to fully enjoy the softness after the first day, it is best to heat the slices for a few seconds in the microwave or in a conventional oven for a few minutes.

Do you know what the only flaw is? That it has to rise at least six hours and therefore it takes a whole day with its waiting… but maybe that’s good because otherwise I think I would bake one every week.

I wish you a very happy Easter that we will certainly remember for the events that have changed our lives without warning, but I hope you will also remember it a little for my Colomba. And in the video recipe you can follow how to prepare Colomba step by step.

Colomba pasquale

49g carbohydrates per 100g

 Ingredients for the poolish

  • 75g unsweetened almond milk or soya drink*
  • 50g gluten-free multi-purpose flour mix, Massimo Zero**
  • 25g wholemeal rice flour*
  • 10g acacia honey
  • 10g brewer’s yeast

Ingredients for the dough

  • 100g gluten-free multi-purpose flour mix, Massimo Zero**
  • 95g sugar
  • 95g butter
  • 85g sultanas or candied fruit
  • 4 eggs
  • 35g tapioca starch*
  • 30g rice starch*
  • 25g rice flour
  • 25g acacia honey
  • 20g liqueur to moisten the raisins
  • 2g guar gum
  • 1g xanthan gum
  • zest of 1/2 lemon
  • 1 vanilla pod
  • orange flower water (optional)
  • tonka bean (optional)
  • salt

Ingredients for the icing

  • 40g egg white (corresponding to 1 egg white)
  • 30g icing sugar
  • 30g almond flour
  • 10g corn starch
  • 10g granulated sugar
  • almonds in their skins

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. Mix the flours for the poolish in a planetary mixer with the honey and warm milk in which the brewer’s yeast has been dissolved. You will obtain a soft dough that you will have to put to rise at room temperature for about 3 hours covered with cling film.
  2. After 3 hours, put the poolish in the planetary mixer, add the Massimo Zero mix, starches, rice flour, sugar, guar and xanthan gum. Knead by adding the eggs, one at a time, then add the very soft butter gradually so that it is absorbed. To knead in the planetary mixer, you can use the dough hook or the leaf mixer and when the dough starts to stick to the hook, it is ready to be put to rise.
  3. Let the dough rise directly in the bowl of the planetary mixer in the oven set on proving  function for 1 hour.
  4. Soak the raisins in liqueur.
  5. Put the planetary mixer bowl back in place with the hook and add the last ingredients: grated lemon zest, vanilla bean, grated Tonka bean, orange flower water and finally honey and a pinch of salt. Stir the whole mixture and complete by adding the soaked raisins and the soaking liquid.
  6. Pour the mixture into a 500g Colomba mould and put it to rise in the oven at 30°C for at least another 2 hours.
  7. Meanwhile, prepare the icing. Whip the egg whites until stiff by adding the icing sugar, then add the almond flour and corn starch. Stir well and when Colomba is ready to be baked, sprinkle the icing over the surface of the cake and top with whole almonds with the peel and granulated sugar.
  8. Heat the static oven to 165°C and bake Colomba for 1 hour and 15 minutes (depending on the oven, it may be ready even 10 minutes earlier), preferably with the cake placed in the lower part of the oven. You can add a small pan of water in the oven to keep it slightly moist. After the first 15 minutes, cover the surface of the cake with tin foil to prevent it from browning too much.
  9. Once removed from the oven, place the Colomba upside down by poking it with two Chinese food sticks and let it cool for 1 hour.
  10. Once completely cold, store the Colomba in a well-sealed plastic bag.

colomba-pasquale

I promised you that I would return from my Caribbean holiday with some new recipes! Here is the Dominican Salad, a gluten free proposal from another part of the world. In fact, our holiday diet relied almost exclusively on vegetables and fruit, perfect companions in high temperatures, and the ‘winter ingredients’ in hot countries are much more similar to the produce we can get in summer here in Italy.

In this Dominican Salad (which I prepared several times in the kitchens that hosted us on our trip to the Dominican Republic), the ingredients are available practically all year round even in Italy, except for the cherry tomatoes that I bought out of season even though they come from the greenhouses of our Sicily.

One aspect that struck me in Dominican salads was the presence in large quantities of red onion , and I was especially surprised that it was very sweet and did not leave the characteristic smell in the mouth that we are familiar with and which is certainly a deterrent to its consumption when raw, at least for those who, like me, love it in all ways.

Here, then, is a way to eat the onion almost raw, but treated in such a way as to remove the essential oils that cause the smell to remain once eaten: blanch it three times in boiling water, each time clean water, for a few seconds and you’re done. Of course, you will taste the intensity of its flavour a bit less, but you will be able to enjoy it without worrying too much about social life!

Furthermore, in our suitcase we still had a packet of gluten-free taco shells purchased from one of the rare supermarkets we found on the way on our travels, which was an invaluable accompaniment to the salad that nicely solved a fog-shrouded dinner with a touch of nostalgia for the turquoise colour.

Dominican salad

9.3g carbohydrates per 100g

without taco shells

Ingredients

  • 500g already cooked chickpeas
  • 300g avocado
  • 300g cherry tomatoes
  • 80g onions
  • ½ lemon
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • salt and pepper
  • taco shells or tacos**

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

Preparation

  1. Take the onion and cut it into slices about half a centimetre thick. Put a small saucepan on the stove with a little water so that it can quickly come to the boil. When the water boils, throw in the onion slices and leave them for about ten seconds, then drain them. Throw away the water from the saucepan and put clean water back in; bring it back to the boil and blanch the onion again for 10 seconds. Repeat the operation a third time, then drop the onion into cold water for one minute and finally drain it.
  2. Drain the chickpeas and place them in a bowl, add the peeled and chopped avocado and the cherry tomatoes cut into 4 pieces; drizzle with the juice of half a lemon, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper and finish with the well separated onion rings.
  3. Serve the salad with corn tacos, tortillas or simply home-made bread.

And if you like salads, try my Chickpea and octopus salad with balsamic vinegar.

L'insalata dominicana pronta per essere gustata

The Dominican salad ready to be enjoyed

Version with gluten of Dominican salad

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

What to do with a free-range chicken if you have a Tajine pot in your kitchen equipment? A naturally gluten free dish to bring diabetes and celiac disease together: Turmeric and lemon chicken tajine.

Looking out of the kitchen window, a picture that changes daily according to the colours the sky takes on has been accompanying me for weeks. This is the maple tree that has lived with us since we moved in our current place, and every year in autumn it gives us palettes of colour that turn on and off depending on how the sun’s rays or the rain hit its leaves.

It was the colours of these leaves that made me think of the orange of turmeric and the yellow of lemon. Add to that the fact that my parents gave me some free-range chickens directly from the farm where they live, well, I couldn’t help but prepare a dish that is as simple as I like, but absolutely unforgettable.

And you know what? Although the colours are those of autumn, this chicken is a delight at any time of the year and with whatever side dish you are comfortable preparing.

Turmeric and lemon chicken tajine

carbohydrates per 100g negliglible

Ingredients for 4 servings

  • 3-4 chicken legs (depending on size)
  • approx. 200g stock
  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 onion
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 2 tbsp chopped parsley or coriander
  • 1 lemon
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • salt and pepper

Preparation

  1. Heat the oil in the Tajine or in a saucepan. Gently fry the thinly sliced onion and the clove of garlic for 3-4 minutes without browning them. Add the chicken pieces and brown them evenly, turning the pieces often and adjusting the heat.
  2. Add turmeric, 1 tablespoon chopped parsley or coriander, stock, lemon peel (only the yellow part) in large pieces, salt and pepper, then simmer with the lid on for about 2 hours (cooking times depend on the chicken!).
  3. If necessary, remove the lid, turn up the heat and allow the cooking juices to thicken slightly.
  4. Serve accompanying the meat with a side dish of seasonal vegetables to taste or even these Cauliflower patties.
I colori della Tajine di pollo alla curcuma e limone

The colours of the Turmeric and lemon chicken tajine

Version with gluten of Turmeric and lemon chicken Tajine

The recipe contains only naturally gluten-free ingredients.

Why a Gazpacho with yellow tomatoes, peppers and crispy prosciutto? For the memories and for my love of Spain and peppers.

The first time I heard about the Carmagnola pepper was a few years ago when my neighbour gave me a jar of pickled peppers prepared by her parents who used to travel to Piedmont every year in September to buy the raw material.

I have never forgotten those peppers: the bright colours, the sweet but firm flavour and the crunchy texture made me fall in love at first taste. It was that taste that prompted me to find out where this delicious fruit of the earth came from.

Carmagnola and its pepper

Its land of origin is precisely the Carmagnola area in Piedmont and there are various types (the one I tasted was the ‘Corno di bue’, perfect for preserves). The pepper arrived in this area at the beginning of the 20th century and today it represents a fundamental resource for agriculture and the local economy and is a foodstuff known and appreciated in Piedmont and Italy for its intense yellow or bright red colour, its aroma and its wholesomeness.

Every year, in early September, Carmagnola hosts the National Pepper Fair, the largest in Italy dedicated to an agricultural product, offering 10 days of gastronomic, cultural, artistic events, and creative and engaging experiences for all senses and all age groups. Well, this year the fair reaches an extremely important milestone, namely its 70th anniversary, which is being celebrated by collecting recipes that feature pepper as their star. This fresh and fragrant Gazpacho is my way of wishing long life to a product of the earth that often graces our table with its flavours, aromas and colours. All the best, then!

Try also this recipe with Carmagnola peppers: Chicken with peppers and goji berries.

Gazpacho with yellow tomatoes, peppers and crispy prosciutto

12.58g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 4 servings

  • 500g yellow tomatoes
  • 3 peppers, 2 yellow and 1 red (approx. 270g when cooked and peeled)
  • 100g sandwich bread** or these Rustic loaves
  • 100g sliced Parma ham
  • 100g vegetable stock
  • basil leaves
  • extra virgin olive oil
  • chilli, salt and pepper

** Ingredients specific for celiacs

Preparation of Gazpacho with yellow tomatoes

  1. Clean the peppers, cut them in half, remove the stalk, seeds and white filaments, then place them in the oven under the grill at 200°C until the skin is slightly dark. Seal the peppers in a paper bag and when they are cold, peel them and set them aside. Cut ¾ of the red pepper into strips and keep aside.
  2. Place the tomatoes, bread, stock and peeled peppers (except for the red pepper in strips) in a blender to obtain a cream; season with chilli, salt and pepper.
  3. Place the Parma ham in the microwave oven on medium power and short time, and repeat the operation until the ham is crispy.
  4. Prepare small bowls with the tomato gazpacho, pepper strips, crispy ham pieces, a few basil leaves and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
Il Gazpacho di pomodori gialli, peperoni e crudo croccante

The Gazpacho of yellow tomatoes, peppers and crispy prosciutto

Version with gluten of Gazpacho with yellow tomatoes, peppers and crispy prosciutto

For the version with gluten of the recipe, replace the gluten-free sandwich bread with conventional bread.

This recipe was submitted for the Contest ‘Carmagnola Pepper: 70 years in 70 recipes’

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An alternative breakfast: Vegan muffins with almond butter.

For some of the ingredients I use in my recipes, I now have my absolute trusted suppliers and one of these is Andrea, the greengrocer who patiently accommodates my requests, including the most unusual ones!

Having now made my passion for cooking his own, Andrea often sources products that he brings from his wonderful homeland, Sicily. So I manage to have wonderful sheep’s ricotta for preparing Cassata my own way and other wonderful sweet and savoury preparations, fresh and mature Caciocavallo, oregano, cherry tomatoes, anchovies and a little gem produced by his cousin in Agrigento, the Mennulataa butter made from 100% almonds.

I must admit that I have used it in many preparations, but always around lunch or dinner time so I never managed to take a photo before my family had eaten everything up!

This time I am finally able to share a recipe that is a little unusual for me because it is vegan, but very interesting and tasty for those who do not want to give up a sweet breakfast while avoiding butter and eggs.

Vegan muffins with almond butter

36.30g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients for 9 muffins

  • 120g almond and rice milk* (or another type of plant milk)
  • 75g plant yoghurt*
  • 50g fine corn flour*
  • 50g dark chocolate*
  • 45g buckwheat flour*
  • 40g Mennulata almond butter*
  • 35g rice oil
  • 30g brown sugar
  • 27g corn starch*
  • 25g finely grated coconut*
  • 25g coconut sugar
  • 8g baking powder*
  • a pinch of salt

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

Preparation

  1. Pour the yoghurt into a bowl and mix it with the sugars and almond butter. Gradually add the flours, continuing to stir so that no lumps form, and when the mixture starts to feel rather thick, add the rice oil and the almond and rice milk; finally, add a pinch of salt, baking powder and the dark chocolate pulverised in a food processor.
  2. Place the paper cups inside a silicone or metal muffin tin, fill them ¾ full, then bake the muffins in a static oven preheated to 180°C for 20 minutes.
  3. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
  4. They are a great breakfast, especially cut in half and enriched with a teaspoon of raspberry jam.

muffin-vegani-senza-glutine-uno-chef-per-gaia

Version with gluten of Vegan muffins with almond butter

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

Carrot and almond cakes are a perfect solution for so many eating occasions: breakfast, snack, end of meal, garden party or picnic, the combination of carrots and almonds in the preparation of cakes and desserts is always a winner.

These sweets bring together the needs of type 1 diabetes and celiac disease with ease and great taste: the two main ingredients are in fact almonds and carrots, a much-loved classic, the right mix of lightness and taste that brings to mind the flavours of yesteryear, the ones we used to taste when we were kids.

Since you will be able to make so many sweets with this recipe, you can store them in the freezer and take them out at the last moment, perhaps by popping them for a few seconds in the microwave or a few minutes in the conventional oven, and you will always enjoy them as if they were freshly made.

If you are thinking of breakfast, also try the Braid with ricotta, apricots and chocolate chips.

Carrot and almond cakes

46g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients

  • 300g almonds, peeled
  • 300g carrots
  • 250g sugar
  • 150g wholemeal rice flour*
  • 4 eggs
  • 16g baking powder*
  • 1 bit of vanilla from the pod
  • a pinch of salt

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

Preparation

  1. Chop the almonds and carrots separately and set them aside. Whip the egg whites and set them aside for a moment.
  2. In a bowl or planetary mixer, whip the egg yolks with the sugar until white and frothy, then add the almonds, carrots, flour, baking powder, vanilla, salt and, as a last ingredient, the egg whites.
  3. Pour the mixture into cupcake tins of the desired size: they are perfect size for breakfast in the morning!
  4. Bake in a convection oven preheated to 160°C for about 25 minutes.
dolcetti-carote-mandorle-senza-glutine-uno-chef-per-gaia

Carrot and almond cakes

Version with gluten of Carrot and almond cakes

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

How can you give up a good plate of Tagliolini? Then, you cannot but try Tagliolini with rocket and almond pesto.

In our opinion, it is practically impossible! Whether simply with tomatoes or with other more complex ingredients for seasoning, pasta is the first course par excellence and one of the symbols of our Mediterranean identity.

Our Tagliolini with rocket and almond pesto is, needless to say, a gluten free recipe that can be considered a complete dish: it contains vegetables, carbohydrates and the health-promoting oils of dried fruit. Any other ideas for pasta? Definitely Amatriciana!!!

Tagliolini with rocket and almond pesto

carbohydrates 40.98g per 100g without the sautéed vegetables

Ingredients for 4 servings

  • 400 g corn gluten-free Tagliolini Verrigni**
  • 70g rocket
  • 35g almonds, peeled
  • diced mixed vegetables to taste
  • extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper as needed

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. Prepare the rocket pesto. Put water on the stove and bring it to the boil, add a pinch of coarse salt and blanch the rocket for 1 minute. Drain the rocket and throw it into a bowl with cold water, or water and ice.
  2. In a blender, blend the almonds to a flour.
  3. Remove the rocket from the water and place it in a tall glass to be used with an immersion blender. Add about 30g of extra virgin olive oil and blend well, if necessary add 1-2 tablespoons of water; finally add chopped almonds and season with salt and pepper.
  4. Chop up some vegetables (we made a brunoise with leek, courgette, carrot, red pepper, yellow pepper and green beans) and sauté them for a few minutes in a non-stick pan with a little oil, a pinch of salt and pepper.
  5. Cook the Tagliolini in plenty of salted water, drain them al dente, keeping some of the cooking water. Season with rocket pesto and serve with the sautéed vegetables.
  6. This recipe does not use cheese so it is suitable for lactose and dairy protein intolerant people as well as vegetarians and vegans.

tagliolini-verrigni-senza-glutine-pesto-rucolo-mandorle-uno-chef-per-gaia

Tagliolini with rocket and almond pesto

Version with gluten of Tagliolini with rocket and almond pesto

Replace gluten free Tagliolini with standard ones.

December is the month of dinners, aperitifs and delicious social moments, accompanied by the desire to wish each other well and celebrate the arrival of Christmas. But delicious doesn’t necessarily mean heavy, and Dairy-free fruit cheesecakes are perfect for those who have to deal with diabetes and coeliac disease, but also for those who are lactose intolerant.

This very simple, yet colourful and tasty recipe is therefore an idea not only for an end-of-meal dessert, but also for a snack or a fun breakfast.

These cheesecakes were also enthusiastically received at the last Parma Ham Festival where the focus was on food intolerances and how to look for solutions to avoid giving up taste and eye catching ideas. And for a savoury snack idea, try the Gluten free potato pizza with olives.

Dairy-free fruit cheesecakes

carbohydrates 13.47g per 100g without chocolate decorations

Ingredients for 12 servings

  • 500g white soy yoghurt*
  • 250g blueberry soy yoghurt*
  • 120g mixed fruit (kiwi, blueberries, raspberries, peaches, mango, etc.)
  • 70g sugar coated peanuts* or nut brittle*
  • 30g brown sugar
  • 12 dark chocolate decorations*

**Ingredients specific for celiacs

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

Preparation

  1. Add brown sugar to the white soy yoghurt and mix well.
  2. Take 12 single-portion cups and place 4 sugar coated peanuts or small pieces of nut brittle on the bottom of each one. Place 2 heaped tablespoons of white yoghurt on top of the base, then a heaped tablespoon of blueberry yoghurt, spreading it so that it covers the light yoghurt: the colour is in strong contrast, so you should see a clear separation.
  3. Decorate each cup with 2 slices of fruit, varying so that they are very colourful and cheerful. Finally, add a chocolate decoration to each cup and serve.
finte-cheesecake-alla-frutta-senza-glutine-uno-chef-per-gaia

Dairy free fruit cheesecakes

 

Version with gluten of Dairy free fruit cheesecakes

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

Cold we do not fear you! When the days start to get shorter and the evening air gets crisper, we warm up with something tasty and healthy, just like a Romanesco broccoli cream.

Velvety, fragrant and delicious, here is this very easy recipe to prepare a creamy vegetable soup.

In addition to its characteristic cauliflower flavour that is generally milder than common cauliflower, the Romanesco broccoli looks like a sculpture of oriental art: its florets are so perfect that they are bewitching, and the bright green colour completes the effect.

Try it with just a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil for seasoning and some croutons for full satisfaction. For other soups, have a look at this lentil recipe.

Romanesco broccoli cream

1.57g carbohydrates per 100g

Ingredients

  • 1 litre of water
  • 650g Romanesco broccoli
  • 165g onions
  • extra virgin olive oil, salt and (optional) curry

Preparation

  1. Put the sliced onion in a pan with oil, then add the broccoli florets and, if you want a spicy flavour, half a tablespoon of curry powder.
  2. Let it season for a few minutes, cover with water and cook for about 30 minutes until the vegetables have softened. Blend everything, adjust salt and serve with a drizzle of oil and some croutons.
Crema di cavolo romanesco

Romanesco broccoli cream

Version with gluten of Romanesco broccoli cream

This recipe is naturally gluten-free, so it needs no adaptation.