Pancakes

So I realize I’ve been woefully neglecting this food blog. It’s not that I haven’t been cooking or experimenting. In fact, recently I’ve worked out all sorts of great gluten free/allergen free stuff - pizza, pastys and pancakes. The pancakes are fabulous!! Very light and fluffy. Now we tend to eat with lemon juice and sugar (British way), but feel free to pour on the maple syrup or fruit sauces.

Beth’s Pancakes

¾ cup Gluten Free Flour blend

¼ cup Potato Starch

2 Tbsp. Sugar

2 Tbsp. Baking powder

1 tsp Guar gum

1 Tbsp. Flax seed

3 Tbsp. Warm water


1 cup Dari-free Milk (or whatever milk/milk replacement you prefer)

2 Tbsp. oil

2 lemons

sugar

Mix flax seed and 3 Tbsp warm water in a bowl. Set aside.

Sift together the flour, starch, guar gum, baking powder, and sugar into a bowl. Add milk, oil and the flax seed to the dry ingredients.

Heat a non stick pan up. Pour scoops of batter into the pan. Depending on the size of pancake you wish, use a 1/4 cup to a large scoop. Cook til large bubbles form in the dough, then flip. Cook for about a minute more.

Serve with lemon juice and sugar.

Strawberry, Cucumber, and Basil Salad

4 cups hulled strawberries, quartered (1 pound)

2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

2 medium cucumbers, peeled, halved lengthwise, seeded, and thinly sliced (about 2 cups)

1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl, and toss gently to coat. Cover and chill for 1 hour.

Combine cucumbers and juice; toss to coat. Add cucumber mixture, salt, and pepper to strawberry mixture; toss gently to combine. Serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 1/2 cups)

From Cookling Light magazine

NUTRITION PER SERVING

CALORIES 49(9% from fat); FAT 0.5g (sat 0.1g,mono 0.1g,poly 0.3g); PROTEIN 1.1g; CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CALCIUM 26mg; SODIUM 150mg; FIBER 3.1g; IRON 0.6mg; CARBOHYDRATE 11.6g

Evil Jungle Prince with Chicken (or Veggies)

1/2 lb boneless chicken breast (or 1/2 lb mixed vegetables, see note below)

2 to 6 small red chile peppers

1/2 stalk fresh lemon grass

2 kaffir lime leaves

2 T oil

1/2 c coconut milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

fish sauce to taste (soy sauce for veggie version)


10 to 15 basil leaves

1 c chopped cabbage

Thinly cut chicken into 2-inch strips. (If doing veggie version, cut vegetables into thin strips.) Grind together red chili peppers, lemon grass, and kaffir lime leaves in a food processor or pound in a mortar. Heat oil to medium-high and saute pepper mixture for 3 minutes. Stir in coconut milk and cook for 2 minutes. Add chicken (or vegetables) and cook for 5 minutes or until cooked (same time for veggies). Reduce heat to medium-low. Stir in fish sauce (if using), salt, and basil. Serve on a bed of chopped cabbage.

Makes 3 to 4 servings.

Note: For mixed vegetables, choose from among bell peppers, string beans, water chestnuts, tomatoes (small cherry tomatoes are best), bamboo shoots, miniature corn, asparagus, cucumbers, zucchini, Japanese eggplant, and mushrooms. I particularly like string beans or asparagus, a few cherry tomatoes, shredded (rather than sliced) bamboo shoots, miniature corn, and some straw mushrooms or slender (Japanese) eggplant.

Baked Cod in Orange Sauce

4 (6 ounce) cod fish fillets

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

1/2 tablespoon dried thyme or 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped

1/2 tablespoon orange zest

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Arrange cod fillets on sheets of foil or heavy parchment papper


Combine remaining ingredients in a small bowl.

Pour over cod, wrap the foil or paper edges tightly to form a seal and bake for 12-15 minutes until fish is opaque throughout.

Spoon orange sauce over fish and serve with vegetables or rice. Garnish with sprigs of thyme and orange slices, if desired.

Calculated for 1 serving (203g)

Recipe makes 4 servings

Calories 156

Calories from Fat 11

Total Fat 1.3g

Saturated Fat 0.3g

Polyunsat. Fat 0.4g

Monounsat. Fat 0.2g

Trans Fat 0.0g

Cholesterol 73mg

Sodium 93mg

Potassium 775mg

Total Carbohydrate 3.8g

Dietary Fiber 0.3g

Sugars 2.6g

Protein 30.8g

Soy Sauce Substitution

2 cups low sodium beef broth

2 teaspoons cider vinegar

1 teaspoon molasses

1/8 teaspoon ground ginger


1 dash black pepper

1 dash garlic powder

1 dash onion powder

Combine all ingredients in a small sauce pan and boil uncover until reduced to 1/2 cup.  Store in refrigerator. Stir/Shake before using. (2-4 servings)

Found this on Recipezaar.com and thought it was a great replacement for soy sauce. 

Nutritional info per serving - 11 calories, 0 Fat, 3g carb

Chicken in Lemon-Thyme Sauce

2lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or bone in, skin on if you prefer)

1 Tablespoon olive oil


2-3 teasoons dried thyme leaves

1 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup dry white wine (optional)

1 1/2 -2 teaspoons arrowroot (if using cornstarch/flour 1 Tablespoon.  Other thickeners, use appropriate amount)

Juice of one lemon

salt and pepper to taste.

In a large non-stick skillet, heat the oil. If need be, use two medium skillets and divide the ingredients between the two of them. Add chicken to the skillet(s) and sprinkle with salt, pepper and thyme.  Cook for 7-8 minutes.  Flip and cook for another 7-8.  Feel free to cover them to speed up the process.  If using, add the wine to keep the chicken from burning.

Put the broth in a small bowl and combine with the lemon juice.  Add the arrowroot/cornstarch/thickener to the broth and whisk until smooth.  Pour the broths into the skillet(s) and let thicken slightly.

This came from my WeightWatchers “Cook It Quick” cookbook.  I like this one because it’s low carb, low fat, and can really add flavor to chicken.  Some days you just want chicken with Pizazz!