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Tree Nut-free – Page 23 – surviving the food allergy apocalypse (archive)

surviving the food allergy apocalypse (archive)

Tag: Tree Nut-free

Does not contain any tree nuts or coconut.

  • Roasted Autumn Vegetables with a Balsamic Glaze

    Roasted Autumn Vegetables with Balsamic Glaze
    Roasted Autumn Vegetables with Balsamic Glaze

    It’s fall (I’m not discussing the “winter” word yet, although it snowed here yesterday) with all those yummy, carbohydrate-filled veggies available. This dish is pretty easy but seems complicated to those who aren’t in the know.  Also, although this may seem like a lot, it’s great as leftovers.  I even love it cold over a tossed salad a day or two later. Try it as a new side dish for Thanksgiving, or for other potlucks this winter.

    Roasted Autumn Vegetables with a Balsamic Glaze

    Serves at least 4 in generous portions.

    Balsamic Glaze:

    • I cup of balsamic vinegar (be careful, get one without caramel color, which could be dairy, wheat or corn.)
    • 1 1/2 Tablespoons of Italian Seasoning (or a bit of oregano, basil, marjoram, sage, rosemary, and thyme to add up to 1 1/2 Tablespoons)
    • 2 Tablespoons of brown sugar
    • 2 Tablespoons of olive oil

    Vegetables:

    • 2 carrots, peeled and chopped into 1 inch chunks
    • 2 small onions, peeled, cut in half and then each half cut into quarters
    • 1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped into 1 inch chunks
    • 1 small turnip (about the size of a large tomato), peeled and chopped into 1 inch chunks
    • 1/2 of a butternut squash (or 1 20 oz bag of fresh peeled butternut squash), peeled and chopped into 1 inch chunks
    • 2-3 cups of brussel sprouts, outer leaves removed if necessary and stems trimmed, and cut in half

    Preheat your oven to 400°F.  Using an oil mister, or a bit of oil and a paper towel, grease a sheet pan.

    Prepare all your vegetables as discussed above and put them in a large heat safe bowl.  You’re going to be tossing them with the glaze, so make sure you have room to stir and work. Put the bowl aside.

    Veggies in Bowl
    Veggies in Bowl

    Using a small non-reactive saucepan, add your balsamic vinegar, Italian seasoning or spices, and the brown sugar.  Over medium high heat, simmer the glaze at a low boil until the vinegar has reduced down to a slightly thicker syrupy consistency, as shown:

    Balsamic Glaze after reducing
    Balsamic Glaze after reducing

    Once the glaze has reduced down, remove it from the heat and add the olive oil.  Stir thoroughly.

    Pour the glaze over the vegetables, scraping down the sauce pan so that all the glaze ends up in the bowl.  Mix the vegetables and glaze thoroughly so that all the vegetables are coated.

    Mixing Veggies and Glaze to coat
    Mixing Veggies and Glaze to coat

    Pour the coated vegetables on the sheet pan and distribute them evenly.

    Veggies spread evenly on pan
    Veggies spread evenly on pan

    Place them in the oven and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 45 minutes to an hour depending on how large your pieces are. You might want to test them with a fork.

    Veggies after roasting
    Veggies after roasting

    Enjoy!

  • Maple Dill Carrots

    Maple Dill Carrots, close up. Photo by J. Andrews
    Maple Dill Carrots, close up. Photo by J. Andrews

    I made this recipe one day when I needed comfort food and then made it about 10 more times in the next month. Carrots and dill are just a great combination, and carrots lend themselves to sweetness. The maple is well-balanced by the garlic, and I find the combination rather addictive. I’ve tweaked the fine details of this recipe, but it’s really very forgiving, overall. It would make a good, crowd-pleasing side dish for Thanksgiving, and I have to think it might appeal to picky kids (but it has not been field tested on children, because generally people don’t offer their kids up for experimentation).

    Maple Dill Carrots

    Recipe makes ~3 servings if this is the only vegetable side dish.

    • 1 lb. carrots, peeled and sliced (go organic here if you can — they are noticeable sweeter and more carrot-y, which makes a difference in this recipe)
    • 1 teaspoon dill
    • 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (adjust according to your audience)
    • 1 Tablespoon Earth Balance (or butter or margarine of your choice)
    • 1 Tablespoon real maple syrup

    Place sliced carrots in a saucepan, with water enough to boil (should basically reach the bottom of the top layer of carrots, but not completely cover them). Add dill and garlic. Bring to a boil and then simmer until carrots are soft, 5-10 minutes.

    Carrots and Spice
    Carrots and Spice

    Drain the carrots — lots of the dill and garlic drain off, but the flavor is boiled in. Add the Earth Balance and maple syrup, and purée. I use a stick blender and do a bit of a half-assed job of it (Denise calls it “rustic”) so that there are some whole carrots and some chunks in the purée. That’s just how I like it. Feel free to purée more or less, as suits your tastes.

    Serve hot. Serve often.

    Maple Dill Carrots
    Maple Dill Carrots

  • Homemade Cranberry Sauce – 4 Variations

    Homemade Cranberry Sauce - starting from upper left going clockwise, whole, jelled, orange, and apple
    Homemade Cranberry Sauce – starting from upper left going clockwise, whole, jelled, orange, and apple

    So, as some of you may remember from last year’s Turkey, Turkey Stock, and Turkey Rice Soup with Kale – Denise’s Annual Insanity, or if you know me in real life, I tend to be a lunatic about Thanksgiving. I make food in quantities and amounts that bear no rational relation to the number of people coming, and I go overboard about everything. One of those things is cranberry sauce. When I was growing up, my grandmother owned (still owns, actually) a farm which had a small lake and there were some cranberries growing in one end of it. She always made several kinds of cranberry sauce at Thanksgiving. Now the cranberry bog has been taken over by brush, but I still make multiple cranberry sauces every year. Also, it’s one of those things that looks really hard, but is a piece o’cake (if you’re not a crazed lunatic who is making 40 million other side dishes as well). I usually do the cranberry sauce a couple of days ahead, because you can, and because it needs to cool. If you want some cranberries on hand year round, buy a few bags and throw them in the freezer as is, and just use them frozen, i.e. don’t thaw them out first.

    Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce

    Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce
    Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce
    • 1 cup of water
    • 1 cup of sugar
    • 1 – 12 ounce bag of cranberries

    Wash the cranberries and pick out the soft, crushed and/or bad ones. Put the water and sugar in an nonreactive sauce pan and bring it to a boil over high heat.

    Cranberries in Sugar and Water
    Cranberries in Sugar and Water

    Once the water and sugar is boiling, add the cranberries and let it come back to a boil.  Reduce to the heat to medium and boil gently for 10 minutes.  Pour into a heat safe bowl and let cool in the fridge.

    Jelled Cranberry Sauce

    Jelled Cranberry Sauce
    Jelled Cranberry Sauce
    • 1 cup of water
    • 1 cup of sugar
    • 1 – 12 ounce bag of cranberries

    Do everything for the Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce above, except when you’ve finished boiling it gently for the 10 minutes, place a wire mesh strainer over a bowl, pour the sauce into the strainer, and use a spatula to press the sauce through it into the bowl, leaving the seeds and skin behind in the strainer.

    Using Strainer to remove seeds and skin
    Using Strainer to remove seeds and skin

    Make sure you get as much of the sauce as you can through the strainer until there’s nothing left but seeds and skin. Frankly, I almost never make this because I don’t care, and not eating the skins and seeds seems like a colossal waste, but to each their own. 

    Apple Cranberry Sauce

    Apple Cranberry Sauce
    Apple Cranberry Sauce
    • 1 cup of water
    • 1 cup of sugar
    • 1 – 12 ounce bag of cranberries
    • 1 peeled, cored and chopped apple

    Follow the directions for the Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce above, but just adding the apple at the same time as the cranberries.

    Orange Cranberry Sauce 

    Orange Cranberry Sauce
    Orange Cranberry Sauce
    • 1 cup of water
    • 1 cup of sugar
    • 1 – 12 ounce bag of cranberries
    • 1 orange, zested, and then peeled and sectioned

    Wash and scrub your orange. Zest your orange, either with a micro-planer or use a vegetable peeler to take off very, very thin strips.  Make sure there is NO white pith at all, as it will cause the sauce to be bitter.  Peel your orange and then remove the outer skin from each of the sections.

    Zest and Sectioned Orange Pieces
    Zest and Sectioned Orange Pieces

    Follow the directions for the Whole Berry Cranberry Sauce above, but just adding the orange at the same time as the cranberries. 

    Enjoy!

  • Best Potato Soup

    Best Potato Soup
    Best Potato Soup

    This soup is very much for the potato people, my people. If you merely “like” potatoes, you will probably like this soup, but if, in your world, the potato is the pinnacle of nature’s bounty, this soup is for you. It contains other ingredients, but these serve mainly to make the potato shine in all its earthy goodness.

    If you really love the potato, make your chopped potatoes bigger — on the order of one-inch cubes, or mix larger and smaller cubes. The big chunks won’t break down as you reheat the soup. If you prefer your potatoes blend well with all the other ingredients, chop everything a little smaller. I opt for nice big chunks of all the vegetables, all of which then maintain their structural integrity and individual flavors and textures.

    The original recipe on which this soup is based is lost to the many moves of my grad school years. One of my roommates picked it up at one of our local grocery stores, in the free recipes section up front, and it was cheap and hearty, which made it a winner in our house. It still is. It bears up to some messing with, mainly on quantities and sizes of ingredients, and is easily made vegetarian, but the way I’ve written it up for you is the way I like it best.

     

    Best Potato Soup

    • 6 slices bacon, cooked and chopped or crumbled *(optional — leave off or use a veg substitute to make this vegetarian)
    • 2 teaspoons oil or fat, melted *(olive oil works great. I usually use bacon fat.)
    • 1/2 cup chopped onion
    • 1 cup chopped carrots
    • 4 stalks celery, chopped
    • 4 cups broth *(I prefer half vegetable broth, and half chicken broth, both homemade, but all of one or the other works fine.)
    • 4 cups cubed potatoes
    • 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
    • salt, to taste *(probably not necessary if you are using commercial broths)
    • shredded cheddar cheese or cheddar-style vegan cheese *(Daiya is my preference)

    Heat oil in soup pot over medium heat until hot. Add onion. Cook until onion is translucent, 5 or so minutes. Add carrots, celery, broth, potatoes, and cayenne. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low and simmer 20 minutes or until potatoes are done. Taste, add salt if needed. Serve topped with bacon and shredded cheese, if desired.

    Best Potato Soup
    Best Potato Soup

    It really is that easy, and this soup ages very well over the next 5 days or so. The recipe easily doubles to feed a crowd (or yourself all week).

  • Killer Chocolate Fudge-y Brownies

    Killer Chocolate Fudge-y Brownies
    Killer Chocolate Fudge-y Brownies

    So Mary Kate put up a recipe for brownies a bit ago, but it had almond flour, coconut flour and coconut oil in it, which are a big no-no for me.  So I wanted to see if I could do a brownie recipe I could eat, especially with some of my new restrictions. Keep in mind for those of you who have a corn issue, that I am not that sensitive, and that I am not dealing with packaging and cross contamination issues at this point, I’m just dealing with obvious corn and derivatives, and using safe for me ingredients.

    • 2 Tablespoons of ground or milled chia seed
    • 1/3 cup and 2 teaspoons of water
    • 350 grams of Denise’s All Purpose Gluten Free Flour Mix (I used the Gluten Free Girl’s post on gluten-free holiday baking and modified it a bit – to make 500 grams of the mix, you’ll have a bit extra to use for other recipes, whisk together thoroughly 50 grams of oat flour, 50 grams of teff flour, 75 grams of sorghum flour, 25 grams of potato flour, 125 grams of sweet or glutinous rice flour, 75 grams of potato starch, 50 grams of arrowroot, and 50 grams of tapioca starch) or 2 ½ cups of All Purpose Flour if you can have wheat
    • ½ teaspoon of sea salt
    • ½ teaspoon baking powder (For corn free baking powder you can use this recipe)
    • 1 ½ cups of sugar
    • ½ cup of brown sugar
    • ¼ cup of shortening, vegan margarine, etc., whatever is safe for you, and a little bit extra to grease the pan.
    • ¼ cup of olive oil
    • ¾ cup of water
    • 1 cup of cocoa powder
    • 1 ½ cups of safe (dairy free, nut free, soy free) chocolate chips or homemade chocolate if you’re corn free (I used this recipe, but modified it to use this sugar syrup recipe instead of honey, as honey can be problematic for people allergic to corn if you don’t know whether your beekeeper is feeding his bees corn syrup or not.  Also, I used the whole batch in these brownies, so I didn’t let them cool into chocolate chips, I just put the chocolate into a heat safe bowl as described below.)
    • 1 Tablespoon of vanilla extract (Here’s a bunch of recipes for vanilla extract, make sure to use safe alcohol if corn or wheat are an issue for you. I used Luksusowa Vodka because it’s made only from potatoes, where some vodkas may also use grain or corn.)

    Preheat your oven 325°F and lightly grease a 9 by 11 inch pan with a little bit of the shortening or margarine.

    Whisk together the ground or milled chia seed and 1/3 cup and 2 teaspoons of water in a small bowl and set aside.

    In an electric mixer bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

    Place the chocolate chips into a large metal or glass bowl (you want it to be heat-safe).

    In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar, brown sugar, shortening or margarine, oil, cocoa powder, and the water and bring it to a boil, stirring constantly.

    Melted shortening, sugar, coffee and cocoa powder in saucepan
    Melted shortening, sugar, coffee and cocoa powder in saucepan

    Once it is boiling, pour the mixture into the heat-safe bowl containing the chocolate chips, mixing it quickly so that the chocolate chips melt and combine with the mixture.

    Pour the chocolate mixture into the mixer bowl containing the flour, scraping down the chocolate mixture bowl thoroughly.  Add the chia and water mixture and the vanilla to the mixer bowl and mix on medium-high speed until the brownie batter is smooth. I used the batter beater on my KitchenAid mixer.

    Spread the batter evenly in the greased baking pan.

    Batter spread evenly in the pan
    Batter spread evenly in the pan

    Bake it in the preheated oven for 65-75 minutes. Check them using a toothpick, the toothpick should come out clean, and then remove the brownies from the oven.  Let the brownies cool completely before you cut or serve them.

    Brownies after baking
    Brownies after baking

    Some fun variations would be to mix nuts or more chocolate chips into the batter before baking, or maybe, if you like some spice, maybe a 1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper, or if you like less spice, a 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon.

    Have fun with them!

    Killer Chocolate Fudge-y Brownies
    Killer Chocolate Fudge-y Brownies

  • Creamy Broccoli Soup

    Creamy Broccoli Soup
    Creamy Broccoli Soup

    I love soup season. Not only is soup just really good food, but a pot of soup makes 4-12 servings, depending on the recipe, which usually gives me lunch for the week. In one recipe. I love that.

    I’m not sure exactly what I was going for when I started working on this soup — cream of broccoli, broccoli potato, broccoli cheese, potato cheese? My notes are a little unclear. It sort of ended up being an intersection of all of them — a creamy, rich soup, with a tangy cheesiness, and lots of broccoli, which is by far one of my favorite vegetables ever. This soup is great for the cold nights we’re starting to have, and it makes about 6 servings.

    Creamy Broccoli Soup

    • 2 lbs. russet potatoes, peeled and roughly chopped
    • 1 lb. broccoli crowns, split into florets
    • 2 teaspoons salt, split
    • 1 Tablespoon sherry (could substitute red wine vinegar, but sherry’s flavor is better here)
    • 2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
    • 1/3 cup + 1/4 cup chicken or vegetable stock
    • 1 Tablespoon Earth Balance or other solid fat
    • 3 Tablespoons tahini
    • 3 Tablespoons ketchup
    • 1 teaspoon mustard
    • 6 Tablespoons nutritional yeast
    • 1 Tablespoon + 2 teaspoons lemon juice
    • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
    • 1/4 teaspoon salt (IF NEEDED)
    • pepper to taste
    • shredded cheddar style cheese/cheese sub of your choice, to top, optional

    Put roughly chopped potatoes in a saucepan, with water to cover, and about 1 teaspoon salt. Over high heat, boil until well done (test with a fork). Drain and mash roughly.

    In a separate pot, put broccoli florets and about 1/2 to 1 inch of water. Cover and bring to a boil.  Cook broccoli until bright green and JUST done — this takes just a few minutes. The broccoli should still be crisp, but tender. Even if you like your broccoli more well-done, take it out now — it will cook more in the soup. Immediately when done, drain into a colander and let cool. When cool enough to handle, chop it.

    Mix the potatoes, broccoli, 2 cups of vegetable stock, and sherry and set aside while you make the sauce.

    In a small sauce pan, mix the 1/3c + 1/4 cup stock, and the rest of the ingredients (minus the cheese for topping) over low heat until well combined. You may want to taste this before adding the salt, as your stock may be salty enough. I generally buy low-sodium broth or stock, though, and need this little bit of additional salt.

    Add to the pot with the rest of the ingredients, and heat over low, covered, 20-30 minutes. Add more stock if needed, and adjust the seasonings before serving, sprinkled with cheese if you like.

    Broccoli and Potatoes
    Broccoli and Potatoes

  • Baked Eggplant and Zucchini Fries with Spicy Mayo Dipping Sauce

    Baked Eggplant and Zucchini Fries with Spicy Mayo Dipping Sauce
    Baked Eggplant and Zucchini Fries with Spicy Mayo Dipping Sauce

    So my friend Mary, the kale whisper, managed to procure about 5 pounds of eggplants for me, or, in other words, a crap ton of eggplants, from her neighbor’s garden. Because she’s just that awesome and cool.  So I made and canned 5 pints of Eggplant Caponata and 6 quarts of a version of Ratatouille, but I still had some eggplant and zucchini left. So I decided to try this recipe from the Gourmande in the Kitchen, but make it dairy, egg, and almond free too, since I’m allergic to all those things, and use up the zucchini.

    Baked Eggplant and Zucchini Fries with Spicy Mayo Dipping Sauce
    • 1 small eggplant about 7 inches long, sliced into pieces about 3 inches long and about 1/3 of an inch thick
    • 1 small zucchini about 7 inches long, sliced into pieces about 3 inches long and about 1/3 of an inch thick

    First dry dredge:

    • 1/2 cup of arrowroot starch (you could also use tapioca or corn starch, but corn is out for me, since I’m allergic to it)

    Second wet dredge:

    • 2 Tablespoons of safe Adobo seasoning (If you don’t have Adobo seasoning, mix 1/8 cup of paprika, 1 1/2 Tablespoons of ground black pepper, 1 Tablespoon of onion powder, 1 Tablespoon of dried oregano, 1 Tablespoon of ground cumin, 1/2 Tablespoon of ground chipotle, and 1/2 Tablespoon of garlic powder, this makes half a cup of seasoning).
    • 2 teaspoons of salt
    • 1/3 of a cup of arrowroot starch
    • 1/3 of a cup of olive oil
    • 2/3 of a cup of water

    Third dry dredge:

    • 2 cups of gluten free bread crumbs

    Spicy Mayo Dipping Sauce:

    • 1/2 cup of Earth Balance Mindful Mayo (or other mayo that’s safe for you)
    • 1 Tablespoon of Sriracha, or your other favorite hot sauce

    Preheat your oven to 425°F.  Place a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet and use an oil mister to spray the parchment paper.  You can skip the parchment paper, and just spray oil on the baking sheet, but it will be easier to clean up.

    Wash, trim and slice your zucchini and eggplant into pieces about 3 inches long and about a 1/3 of an inch thick.

    Sliced Zucchini
    Sliced Zucchini
    Sliced Eggplants
    Sliced Eggplants

    Place the arrowroot starch for the first dry dredge in a flat bottomed container with enough room to move the pieces around to coat.

    Arrowroot Starch - first dry dredge
    Arrowroot Starch – first dry dredge

    Place the ingredients for the second wet dredge in a shallow bottomed bowl and whisk them together.  Make sure the bowl has enough room to move the pieces around to coat them.

    Wet mixture - second dredge
    Wet mixture – second dredge

    Place the bread crumbs for the third dry dredge in a container with enough room to move the pieces around to coat.

    Dip each piece of zucchini or eggplant in the first dry dredge (arrowroot starch), then in the second wet dredge (arrowroot, water, oil and spices mix), then in the third dry dredge (the bread crumbs) and place them on the baking sheet.

    First Dredge
    First Dredge
    Second Dredge
    Second Dredge
    Third Dredge
    Third Dredge

    Once all the pieces are coated, place baking sheet in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes until crispy.

    Fries after baking
    Fries after baking

    While your fries are baking, mix Earth Balance Mindful Mayo and your favorite hot sauce in a dipping bowl.

    Baked Eggplant and Zucchini Fries with Spicy Mayo Dipping Sauce
    Baked Eggplant and Zucchini Fries with Spicy Mayo Dipping Sauce

    Enjoy!

  • End-of-Summer Garbanzo Chili

    End of Summer Chili
    End of Summer Chili

    Yes, I know, it’s about a week late for the end of summer, but then, the zucchini is still around, isn’t it? The zucchini lasts through the end of summer, garbanzo beans always remind me of summer salads and hummus, and the adobo seasoning and fire-roasted tomatoes taste of grilling season. This quick hot meal has some of the great flavors of summer, but is warm and filling (and made indoors).

    Adobo seasoning is one of my recent favorites, as there is a ton of flavor in it, but it’s not really spicy. There are varieties of adobo, but the one I’m referring to appears to be Puerto Rican in origin — a dry spice mix, often used to rub on meats, that consists of onion, garlic, Tellicherry black pepper, Mexican oregano, cumin, and cayenne pepper. My version is from Penzey’s Spices, but I have seen it at the grocery store, so I’m assuming it’s not too hard to find in the US. It makes almost everything better.

    End-of-Summer Garbanzo Chili

    Makes 3-4 servings, depending on how hungry you are.

    • 2 teaspoons oil
    • 3 Tablespoons chopped onion
    • 2 small zucchini, grated (“small” being about 6 inches long, 1 inch diameter — the most common size found in your average US grocery store. Honestly, a little more or less won’t hurt here.)
    • 2 oz. (1/2 half a small can) of diced jalapeños OR one fresh, diced jalapeño pepper OR a small can of green chiles (or if you’re Denise, all of the above, possibly)
    • 1 can (15 oz.) garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
    • 1 can (15 oz.) diced tomatoes, fire-roasted if you wish
    • 1 Tablespoon adobo seasoning
    • 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons millet
    • 3 Tablespoons water
    • salt to taste
    Zucchini and Beans
    Zucchini and Beans

    In a pan heated over medium-low heat, add your oil to the warmed pan. When it shimmers, add the onions. I always chop whole onions, even when I need only half for a recipe, and the rest goes into a bag in the freezer just for meals like this. Add it straight from the freezer to the hot oil, but be careful of the splatters.

    Cook onion until translucent, then add the zucchini and stir until fully coated with oil and integrated with onions, a minute or two. Then add the beans, tomatoes, and adobo, stirring each into the dish. Bring to a low boil, then reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes uncovered.

    Add the millet and water, and cover, simmering another 20 minutes, covered. Check the millet to see if it’s done, and if needed, add a bit more water (go 1 Tablespoon at a time) and time (say, 5 minutes at a go). Millet should be firm, but not crunchy, when done.

    This is also good with a sprinkle of shredded Daiya mozarella on top, if you have it, but you don’t need it.

    End of Summer Chili
    End of Summer Chili