Gluten Free

Sweet and savoury goodies without a single speck of gluten but loads of flavour.

I don’t have a gluten intolerance but I have friends and family who do and I know some of you, my readers, are gluten free so I try my best to give you a good range of yummy treats, both meals and desserts.

A lovely little lamb for lunch

Posted on March 28, 2008

I’ve just got around to downloading the images from Sunday’s lunch. It was a lamb roast. Lamb is my favourite meat and I always marinate a whole leg for at least half a day before cooking, preferably for the whole day. What I like to do is marinate the roast in the morning and leave it in the fridge until I need to cook it at lunch or dinner.

Marinating meat with at least one acidic element makes it really tender. Here I’ve used lemon, but you could also use wine or vinegar with excellent results. (more…)

Thank goodness for Spring asparagus

Posted on March 26, 2008

A few months ago when I arrived in England I made a promise not to focus on stodgy food and continue to post delicious healthy recipes. After looking back through my archives, I noticed that what I’ve actually been doing is tempting you with chips, waffles and chocolates. Oops, sorry.

Hopefully this salad will restore your faith in me; I had it for lunch today and it was fresh, flavoursome and best of all, seasonal. (more…)

An easy way to drink more H20

Posted on March 20, 2008

[Pink grapefruit and sparkling mineral water drink]

Some people find it really hard to drink the necessary 8 glasses of water a day. Personally, I love water and can’t get enough of the stuff, but sometimes I do feel like a fizzy drink. I’m hesitant to buy the commercial ones available because they’re full of sugar and nasty additives which can make you fat and hyperactive. Not a good combo.

(more…)

The guilt trip

Posted on February 15, 2008

[Feta and preserved lemon salad]

Last night I had two Scottish salmon fillets in the fridge and I felt like something really fresh to go with them. Lately I’ve been cooking a lot of steamed and stir fried vegetables and I wanted a change.

Plus, I had a massive burger with thick cut chips for lunch (it was a special occasion), so I kind of guilt-tripped myself. Come on, admit it, you’ve done it too.

Anyway, this is what I came up with.

Happy cooking, Christie

Feta and preserved lemon salad
serves 4 as a side salad

This salad goes really well with oily fish such as salmon, but is equally good on it’s own for lunch, maybe with a few toasted pine nuts and sundried tomatoes. You really need to use Greek feta because it has a nice sour tang that goes well with the lemon and fish, Danish feta would be too creamy (although I love it).
To buy a jar of preserved lemons, click here.

large handful baby spinach
large handful watercress
large handful rocket
100g greek feta cheese
24 kalamata olives, pitted
½ preserved lemon, rind only, finely sliced
good olive oil, preferably extra virgin
juice of 1 small lemon
cracked black pepper
fresh lemon slices to garnish

Thoroughly wash and pat dry salad leaves with a clean tea towel and place in a large bowl. Crumble over the feta with your fingers and add the olives and preserved lemon.

Then, sprinkle with the lemon juice and drizzle olive oil to taste. Season with lots of cracked black pepper and toss gently to combine.

Divide between serving plates, garnish with fresh lemon slices and top with cooked salmon.

The day I ate a perfect red capsicum

Posted on February 12, 2008

[Red capsicums at Berwick St Market, Soho, London]

Berwick Street market in central London is a great place to grab some cheap fruit and veg, flowers or mixed nuts. You’ll find it hidden deep in the back streets of Soho, crammed between trendy record stores and sex shops, teeming with an ecclectic crowd of young media types, tourists, suits and dodgy characters (address below). The friendly men at the stalls show off their mighty strong lungs as they shout ‘A pound a bowl’ over the wind, rain and noisy crowds, day in and day out.

I picked up a lovely bowl of glossy red capsicums (peppers) and got 6 for my 1 pound – that’s a bargain by London standards! As soon as I got them home I sliced one up and ate it raw. It was delicious; crunchy, sweet and juicy all at once. My mind started racing with ideas on how to use these yummy delights and I honestly couldn’t decide on only one to share with you.

So I’m not going to. Here are lots of quick ideas to use this wonderful vegetable.

Happy cooking, Christie

Berwick Street Market
Berwick Street, W1
Nearest Tube: Piccadilly Circus
Open Mon-Sat 8.00am-5.30pm

Quick Ideas for Red Capsicums

Roasted Place whole capsicums on a greased tray and bake in a hot oven until blackened. Transfer to a plastic bag, seal and leave for at least 15 mins. Once cool, the skin should peel away easily and they are ready to use.

Toast Top toasted slices of sourdough or turkish bread with salami, roasted capsicum strips, rocket and a dollop of bought or home made pesto or olive tapenade.

Salad Mix fresh diced capsicum with chunks of danish feta cheese, smoked chicken breast, black olives and baby spinach leaves. Toss with a red wine vinegar, grain mustard and olive oil dressing.

Soup Saute onions and garlic until soft, but not browned. Add cubes of sweet potato, finely chopped rosemary and thyme, chicken or vegetable stock and roasted capsicum strips. Season and boil until sweet potato is tender and then puree until smooth with a hand held blender. Top with sour cream or creme fraiche for extra indulgence. This is also excellent served as a chilled soup, just substitute the herbs for flat leaf parsley, which has a fresher taste.

Pasta Grease a deep baking tray with olive oil and place a thin layer of small cooked pasta, like penne, in the bottom. Top with thinly sliced red onion, roasted capsicum strips, basil leaves, sundried tomato pesto (or passata) and slices of haloumi cheese. Season and drizzle with olive oil. Add another layer of pasta and repeat ingredients finishing with the cheese. Bake in a hot oven for 30 mins until cheese is melted and bubbling.

Dip I love to buy a tub of hummous from a Lebanese or Turkish take away shop (not the supermarket ones) and mix through pureed roasted capsicums, then serve it with fresh sliced red capsicums for dipping.

Stuffed Hungarian Style Stuff whole capsicums with a mixture of rice, minced beef, paprika, onion, garlic and egg. Then boil in a large pot of tomato soup. I promise to provide the entire recipe for this as it is truly delicious – I just need to get the recipe from my mum!