Tag Archives: gluten free

May 21 2013
2 Comments
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A BUN IN THE OVEN!

Life happens fast: One minute you’re a food blogger who dreams of being a private chef.  10 months later you’re a private chef who’s 5 months pregnant with no time for food-blogging.

As motherhood looms, I intend to create and post kick-ass recipes for as long as Little One will allow. It’s a she, by the way – another warrior-sister conscripted into my army of 5 amazing sisters and one niece.

I plan on posting about food events, recipes and cool, new kitchen stuff. Bear with me as I get back into the swing of things. I have the most absurd cravings! Dried Mango’s at the top of the list.

To mark my return, I bequeath you this simple North African meatball recipe. It’s gluten free, uses carrots instead of eggs, and the almonds add a nutty flavour that’s sure to warrant second servings. Serve it as a side dish with coucous.

If you’re like me, you’ve missed the soft rays of sunshine on your face and the long days outside with friends and family. Let’s welcome summer with a bang and get cooking. I can’t wait to share my new creations and introduce you to my bambino.

North African Meatballs (photo taken by Bob Siegal)

Almond Encrusted North African Meatballs / Red Pepper Yoghurt Sauce

              Meatball Recipe (Recipe serves 6)

  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 1/2 teaspoon garam masala
  • 2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion
  • 1/2 cup carrots
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 cup ground/ chopped almonds
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • Spread one tablespoon of olive oil on foil paper tin / baking dish and set aside. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
  • Mix beef, garam masala, red onions, carrots, salt and pepper (you can let it marinate overnight if you wish).
  • Scoop a portion of the mixture with a tablespoon and make even balls, then roll them in the ground almonds until evenly coated and place them in the foil tin/ baking dish and in the oven.
  • Turn meatballs after 15 minutes to brown them on the other side. 15 minutes later, they are ready to serve!Yoghurt Pepper Sauce
  • 2 cups plain greek yoghurt
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes (or more if you’d like a little more heat)
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • Mix yoghurt, honey and lemon juice, add red pepper flakes and refrigerate for half an hour. This allows all the flavours to meld and granish with additonal red pepper and parsley when you are ready to serve.

Enjoy folks!

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May 20 2012
6 Comments
I COOK

Vanilla French Toast & Grapefruit Mimosa – Sunday Brunch

Lazy Sundays call for an equally lazy brunch. Vanilla french toast with a grapefruit mimosa takes mere minutes to make and score marks for being packed with flavour.

Ingredients (serves 2)

  • 4 slices gluten free bread ( or any bread you have on hand)
  • 4 tablespoons milk
  • 2 eggs
  • pinch of salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon butter (divide into two parts)

Instructions
  • In a small mixing bowl, whisk eggs, pinch of salt, vanilla extract, milk
  • Preheat oven to warm at 170 degrees
  • Dip bread into mixture, let it soak for 15 seconds on each side
  • Melt 1/2 teaspoon of butter in a nonstick pan, place 2 slices of bread at a time into the pan and cook until golden brown for approximately 2 to 3 minutes per side.
  • Repeat the above steps with the remaining slices and place in baking pan and in the oven to keep warm.

Ingredients for Grapefruit Mimosa (serves 2)

  • Prosecco
  • 1 Grapefruit
  • 2 flute glasses
Instructions
  • Chill glasses in freezer
  • Section grapefruit in half and juice each for a flute
  • Pour half the prosecco in glasses
  • Top with grapefruit juice

Serve french toast immediately with fruit or whipped cream, I love it with bananas. Drizzle lightly with maple syrup. My go-to maple syrup is Butternut Mountain Farm Vermont Pure Maple Syrup, you can get it at Whole Foods. Any other Pure Maple Syrup brand will be a great substitute.

Happy Sunday everyone – Bon Appétit!

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Jan 15 2012
9 Comments
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Open Faced Prosciutto, Spinach, Egg & Sage Sandwich

I love Sundays! Sleep in, watch bad TV, good TV (Psych re-runs) and of course, homemade brunch/dinner. With an abundance of prosciutto, I decided to prepare something savory yet healthy. It’s low-calorie and tastes oh so good! Since prosciutto is a bit salty, you will forego adding salt while preparing this sandwich, a great choice for low carb dieters.

Proscuitto di Parma is a great source of Vitamin B and an energy booster. We all know spinach is a super food, full of vitamin A, C and K – running out of letters! Let us not forget the egg, digests easily has vitamin A, D, E and protein. Last but not least, what I like to refer to as the “super”  herb – Sage; it has all sorts of uses but as far as food is concerned, it aids in treating indigestion and flatulence (oops!). This sandwich is practically medicine – the yummy tasting kind of course.

Ingredients (serves 1)

  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 teaspoon of fresh sage
  • 3 slices prosciutto di parma
  • 1/2 cup of spinach
  • 1 slice of Udi’s gluten free bread (tastes just like regular bread but healthier or you can use whole wheat bread)
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • butter (to lightly smear on toast)
  • dash of black pepper
  • Lightly sauté sage & prosciutto without oil for about 2 minutes on high heat, this allows it to crisp quickly without sacrificing in flavour.
  •  Set aside, add oil in pan, sauté spinach for a minute, add egg in the center and black pepper.
  • Cover and let it slowly cook to desired readiness.
  • Toast slice of bread, smear a thin layer of butter and layer with prosciutto, followed by the egg and spinach on top.

Assemble in preparation of layering with prosciutto, egg & spinach on serving plate

This sandwich pairs quite nicely with a glass of prosecco – ooohhh, I’m hungry yet again! Now back to watching Psych and I hope you all had a wonderful Sunday :)  Bon Appétit!

Open-faced Prosciutto, Spinach, Egg & Sage sandwich

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