Fried Calamari with Pico and Avocado Dressing Plus Pina Coladas

February 28, 2010 · Filed Under GAHIGF, appetizer, beverage, bread, dairy free, easy, entree, gluten free, recipe, salad, seafood, vegetarian · 21 Comments

When Bean over at Without Adornment announced her theme for this month’s Go Ahead Honey, It’s Gluten Free! carnival, I was completely on board. Tropical Vacation meal … oh, yeah. We had plenty of snow at the time and our Key West vacation seemed long ago. One of our favorite appetizers that often turns into a meal is Fried Calamari. We’ve eaten calamari all over in our travels from our favorite waterside restaurant “down the road”—Dockside—to much more exotic, tropical spots. Going gluten free meant giving that pleasure up. Oh, sure, I’ve heard of some restaurants that serve gluten-free calamari, but we just haven’t had the good fortune to find and visit one. So making calamari has been in the back of my mind for some time.

My goal has been to make calamari as good as what is served as that favorite local restaurant. And, it’s not just calamari. It’s delicious calamari served on a bed of shredded lettuce topped with a sweet pico de gallo and a special dressing. Here’s a photo of Dockside’s calamari.

I’ve mentioned that our grocery store is pretty basic. While I was happily surprised to find squid in the freezer case recently, I was less pleased to find out that it was a package of whole squid. Opening the package, the squid didn’t look too intimidating, but once I thawed them out, many soulful eyes stared back at me. Maybe I was having flashbacks to images of the giant squid in The Beast, starring William Petersen (before his rise to fame as Gil Grissom on C.S.I.). (Mr. GFE and Son had watched and recorded that movie and we’d watched it more than once.) In the end, I just couldn’t deal with those squid. They plain ”weirded” me out. However, I still wanted to make calamari.

So we made a trip into town to the upscale Wegmans and headed to their seafood counter. And, there they were … beautiful, headless squid bodies and tentacles. Not an eye in sight—thank goodness. The folks at the seafood counter were happy to slice the squid into rings for me while we chatted. The staff member who assisted me shared that her mom had been recently diagnosed with gluten intolerance. She added that she was also trying to eat gluten free, but she expressed frustration over the high cost of gluten free products. Of course, I shared my gfe approach. Seems like I was meant to go to that seafood counter.

Once home, it was easy to prepare the squid. I used the breading mix that I used recently for the chicken tenders and fried oysters. Sometimes if you find something that works with one application, it makes sense to try it with others. There is no need to reinvent the wheel all the time. I breaded the squid exactly the same way I had done the chicken tenders … with no egg wash. The result was very lightly breaded, melt-in-your-mouth calamari. I served them over romaine leaves cut into smaller pieces topped with pico de gallo (pico is easy to make; here’s one recipe I use) and a thick, creamy, and slightly tangy avocado dressing. It’s a great dish. But, truthfully, it’s different than our favorite calamari from Dockside. Not bad different—this calamari dish is really very good—but it is different. I will make the remaining calamari in two batches. For one I’ll use this breading, but also do the egg wash like I did for the fried oysters. I’ll also do a batch to test some gluten-free breading that I purchased a while ago. I’ll keep you updated on both.

Fried Calamari
(Click here for a printable version of this and the following recipes.)

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup gluten-free flour*
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
cooking oil (I used a mixture of grapeseed and olive oil)
2 lbs fresh, raw squid—rings and tentacles

Mix cornmeal, gluten-free flour, baking powder, and salt in bowl (or paper/ziploc bag for shaking).

Dredge squid through cornmeal breading (or shake in bag). Fry in hot oil (about an inch deep on medium-high, about 375 degrees if using an electric skillet). The calamari will only take a minute or two, at most. Flip pieces when brown on one side. Remove once browned on both sides. To prevent tough calamari, do not overcook.

*I can’t tolerate many of the healthier, gluten-free flours; e.g., sorghum, buckwheat. Therefore, my gluten-free flour mix is 3 parts Asian white rice flour and 2 parts cornstarch. I gently mix three one-lb bags of the Asian white rice flour and two one-lb boxes of cornstarch in a very large bowl and then store the mix in several airtight containers (like large glass jars). It’s a very economical mix that works well in most recipes. No refrigeration is needed. If you’re interested in a complete tutorial on gluten-free flours, please read Amy’s (Simpy Sugar & Gluten-Free) post here. As always, if you are not gluten free, you can substitute all-purpose (wheat) flour instead of gluten-free flour.

Thick and Creamy Avocado Dressing

one half of an avocado, mashed
2 – 3 tbsp of Greek yogurt (to taste)
one garlic clove (I used ½ tsp minced garlic)
2 – 3 tbsp olive oil (to taste and/or consistency)
1 tsp honey

Add all to blender and blend on high a minute or two until well blended. Dollop over salad mixture and calamari as desired.

Shirley’s Notes: This dressing has more of the thickness of mayonnaise or a spread versus a true dressing. If you want a true dressing consistency, you’ll want to add more liquid: olive oil, milk, lemon juice, water, etc.—your preference.

As Bean shared on her Tropical Pork Pineapple Kabobs post, a tropical vacation meal requires a tropical drink. My faves are margaritas and pina coladas. This time I went with a pina colada. This one is gluten free and dairy free, and uses no processed mixes either. I basically took the idea of a Southern Living recipe that I’d enjoyed years ago and just revised it to use whole food ingredients, including coconut milk. Easy and luscious!

Luscious Pina Coladas

1 cup coconut milk
1 cup pineapple juice
½ cup rum
4 tbsp sugar (or other sweetener)
1 banana
1/4 cup shredded coconut
8 or more ice cubes
additional shredded coconut, if desired

Blend coconut milk, pineapple juice, rum, sugar, banana, 1/4 cup shredded coconut, and ice cubes to desired consistency. Top with additional shredded coconut, if desired.

Inspired by Southern Living

Shirley’s Notes: I like to use a frozen banana (I always have frozen baking bananas on hand), which provides a nice, thick consistency—the luscious factor in this pina colada.

If you want to stay in the tropical vacation mindset a little longer, be sure to check back at Without Adornment for the complete roundup of recipes. Thinking sunshine, turquoise blue water, warm breezes, bare legs, and wonderful tropical fare … so nice. Special thanks to Bean for hosting this month as well as ongoing thanks to Naomi (Straight Into Bed Cakefree and Dried) for originating the always fun and helpful Go Ahead Honey, It’s Gluten Free! carnival.

By the way, be sure to visit my Out and About page to find out who won the recent giveaway. And, we’re now into the final week before the Academy Awards presentation, more fondly known as the Oscars. Be sure to check out the complete roundup–either recipes inspired by Oscar nominees or others just right for throwing your own viewing celebration. They are definitely all award-winning caliber! My own contributions were Veronica’s Pumpkin Soup and the already mentioned Southern Fried Oysters. You can the listing of all the Gluten-Free Progressive Dinner Party recipes at our gracious hostess, Diane’s, blog events page at The. W.H.O.L.E. Gang.

Enjoy!

Shirley
Not just gf, but gfe!

Tags: bananas, beverage, bread, calamari, coconut, dairy free, easy, GFE, gluten free, recipe, seafood

ABC Muffins (Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Refined Sugar Free)

February 6, 2010 · Filed Under bread, breakfast, dairy free, dessert, easy, giveaway, gluten free, recipe, sugar free · 19 Comments

ABC … as in Almond Banana Carrot. The ABC muffin recipe is an adaptation of an almond muffin recipe created by Kelly Brozyna of The Spunky Coconut. I’ve known I wanted to make this recipe of Kelly’s for quite some time. I just didn’t know what I wanted to include in my version. As I’ve shared before, I’m gradually learning to like baked fruit. Bananas are never a problem. I am all about including “baking bananas” in recipes and at any given time, my freezer contents prove it. (You might want to read my Going Bananas post to know exactly what I mean. I need a freezer banana exorcism right now, in fact—even after making the ABC muffins.) But, I’m still learning to love other baked fruits. My Crustless Apple Pie has certainly gotten me past my fear of baked apples (deliciously so, I might add). And, I’ve made a Strawberry Cobbler using baked peaches and, of course, strawberries. But, for this recipe, another blogger friend’s creation—and my solution—came to mind. Anali, of Anali’s First Amendment, made Banana Carrot Cupcakes a while back. When I saw her post, I just knew I’d have to make something along those lines. (I’ve been inspired to convert one of Anali’s recipes to gluten-free goodness before … yet another banana recipe—Banana Kahlua Coconut Cake.) The banana-carrot combination just sounded so good, and even healthier. Now, add almond flour, coconut oil, and some chopped walnuts to the mix and you’ve got a cross between banana bread and carrot cake. So, that’s how I came up with these ABC muffins, adapting Kelly’s great recipe with delightful inspiration from Anali.

You’ll want to make these as soon as possible. I’ve already had to email the recipe to the folks who sampled them the other morning. They refused to wait a day or two for me to post the recipe on gfe! If you like the looks of this recipe and/or are already a fan of The Spunky Coconut, you’ll want to head over to my Out and About page for a giveaway of Kelly’s cookbook—here—with some more photos of her recipes. If you need more convincing to try a version of Kelly’s recipe, Ali, at The Whole Life Nutrition Kitchen, also made a version you’ll want to check out—Almond Cherry Muffins. Finally, check out one of Kelly’s versions, Strawberry Almond Muffins, here. In this version, she substitutes applesauce for part of the honey and uses buckwheat flour in addition to almond flour. There are just so many variations and they all taste great—dense; moist; sweet enough, but not too sweet; and healthy.

Almond Banana Carrot (ABC) Muffins (Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Refined Sugar Free)
(Click here for a print version of this recipe.)

Add to bowl:

3/4 cup honey
3 large eggs (at room temperature; cold eggs will harden the coconut oil—works best if eggs are stirred in one at a time)
1/2 cup coconut oil, liquefied (any other oil should work, but coconut oil is very healthy)

Beat. (You can use an electric mixer, but I just used a wooden spoon. I’m anti-mixer most of the time. I want to keep that upper arm strength.)

Add:

2 cups almond flour (I used Honeyville blanched almond flour)
1/2 cup flour or flour mix (I used my gluten-free flour mix*)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sea salt

Beat.

Add:

1 cup mashed, ripe bananas
¾ cup grated carrots
¼ cup chopped walnuts
(or 1 – 2 cups total of fruit and/or nuts)

Spoon into lightly greased muffin cups, to almost full.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 24 minutes.

Makes about 14.

*I can’t tolerate many of the healthier, gluten-free flours; e.g., sorghum, buckwheat. Therefore, my gluten-free flour mix is 3 parts Asian white rice flour and 2 parts cornstarch. I gently mix three one-lb bags of the Asian white rice flour and two one-lb boxes of cornstarch in a very large bowl and then store the mix in several airtight containers (like large glass jars). No refrigeration is needed. If you’d like to learn more about how to select the right gluten-free flour for all your recipes, you’ll want to check out Amy’s (Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free) current series on Understanding & Choosing Gluten-Free Flour—Part 1 here and Part 2 here.

Recipe adapted from Kelly Brozyna at The Spunky Coconut

Shirley’s Notes: The batter will be orange as you can see above, but the final muffins will be a lovely deep brown with only an orange tint. My batch made 18 muffins … probably because I only filled the muffin tins 2/3 full and also because I used a total of 2 cups of fruit and nuts. Kelly sometimes uses 1 cup versus 2. She uses sliced strawberries, blueberries, etc., and even substitutes some applesauce for part of the honey or some liquid vanilla Stevia. If you are not gluten free, all-purpose flour may be used.

My muffins were actually nice and high when I peeked in on them, but alas, I had to turn off the oven and leave for an appointment. When I returned, they were cooked perfectly, but flat. Mr. GFE called them Forgotten Muffins.

Incidentally, if you stopped by looking for Super Bowl recipes or perhaps have your own recipe to share, you’ll want to check out Diane’s Friday Foodie Fix—Super Bowl Party Foods over at The W.H.O.L.E. Gang. As the storm of the century is occurring, I’m turning a chicken carcass into broth as my base for our favorite Tortilla Soup. But, to be honest, as much as I love snow, I’m ready for a change of scenery. So, I was absolutely pleased as punch (rum punch, that is) to see that Bean of Without Adornment has chosen Tropical Vacation as this month’s Go Ahead Honey, It’s Gluten Free theme. Check out the guidelines here. I’m sooo ready for this roundup.

Next Sunday is Valentine’s Day. To celebrate, I’m doing another acronym-titled event here at gfe—the SSS …”Triple S” … “S cubed” … A Suite of Sweets for Sweethearts. Every day, I’ll have a post with a dessert or treat. They’ll certainly all be gluten free, but some will also be dairy free, some refined sugar free, some raw, some featuring surprise ingredients … there’ll be some ice cream, some cake, something for breakfast. You’re sure to find something to make for all your sweethearts!

Enjoy … and don’t forget to go here to enter the giveaway.

Shirley
Not just gf, but gfe!

Tags: bananas, bread, breakfast, dairy free, easy, GFE, gluten free, honey, moist, muffins, recipe

Top Ten Posts (Plus Two) in Year One

January 5, 2010 · Filed Under GAHIGF, bread, breakfast, crockpot, crustless, dairy free, dessert, easy, entree, flourless, gluten free, ice cream, pizza, pumpkin, recipe, slow cooker, sugar free, treats · 48 Comments

One of Key West’s cuter street “performers”

I’ve been trying to write this post since I returned from Key West, but I’m having “re-entry” problems. You know the issues you have when you come home from vacation and you just can’t get into the home-work-every day life groove again? This transition is not being helped at all by the weather. Only a few days ago I was in Key West wearing short sleeves and skirts, and walking bare legged in sandals. Now I’ve got the wood stove roaring, I’m sitting here in a thick turtleneck sweater and pajama pants, with big fuzzy socks on. Plus, I’m under a Scottish wool blanket (properly called a rug I’m told), and I’m still freezing. It really wasn’t that cold here before we left. What happened?

Anyway … while we were away, a significant milestone passed here at gfe. I celebrated my one-year anniversary of blogging. It still sounds funny to even say I am a blogger. But, on December 30 of last year, I wrote my very first post, Waiting, and nervously hit the Publish button. After months of planning and pondering starting my blog, I had actually done it! That was a great moment. I’m still proud of that post, this blog, and the gfe mission. Just over a year later, it’s 95 posts (rats, why didn’t I plan ahead so I could have had an even 100?) and 2,900 comments later. Okay, about half of those comments are mine (as Mr. GFE always says, I really do like to have the last word), but even that number makes me happy. I love chatting with my gfe readers.

From the comments readers leave and the emails I receive, I know that there are many who find the typical guidance on eating gluten free to be sorely lacking for their needs. Some initially are not even sure why they feel that way; they just know the traditional gluten-free approach is not working for them. This blog will continue with a focus on real food that is naturally gluten free (and recipes made using real gluten-free food), some mainstream processed foods that are gluten free, and few gluten-free specialty foods. Discussions will continue on who should get tested for gluten issues, who should consider a gluten-free diet, how to live gluten free with grace and ease, and everything in that general realm. The approach can keep our gluten-free lives simpler, less expensive, and, most importantly, healthier. But, if you’re a regular gfe reader, you already know about the gfe approach, so let’s turn the focus to you. Thank you for being here at gfe. I appreciate your readership, subscriptions, and I greatly appreciate all of you who take the time to comment and email me. It’s both heartening and humbling to know that gfe is truly helping you to live gluten free easily. Any blogger will tell you that the feedback we receive makes a huge difference in being sure that we’re going down the right path. Just knowing that someone is listening—i.e., someone cares and finds what you, the blogger, are sharing is of value—well, that’s huge! So, again, thank you so very much for being here! Really, my only regret this year with gfe is that I have not been able to share all the recipes, information, and discussions that I would have liked. I am never short of ideas and words (sometimes there are about 10 posts at a time rattling around in my head), but I am often short of time to properly share them all. So now you know I have enough material to last a few more years!

Many of my blogger buddies are posting 2009 wrap-ups and 2010 “launch” posts. I have really enjoyed reading them. Some have shared their Top 10 recipes of the year. Karina, the Gluten-Free Goddess, shared her Top 10 here and has graciously invited others to leave a link to their gluten-free top 10 post in comments. She’ll update her post to include them all! Check them all out. (Some of gfe’s favorite bloggers already have their lists included.) Iris, of The Daily Dietribe, even included a recipe shared here at gfe, Crustless Pecan Pie, in her list of favorite 2009 recipes—thanks, Iris! I like that she also listed the top 10 recipes that she wants to try this year, too. Who doesn’t have a list like that? Write it down, make it happen, right?

Here are my Top 12 Posts (10 Recipe Posts Plus 2 Discussion Posts) from Year One at gfe. Of course, tomorrow or next week, I might choose a different set depending on my mood, the weather, etc. (You’ll notice that I couldn’t bring myself to include an ice cream recipe, even though I purchased an ice cream maker this summer and made some amazing ice cream and sherbet, like POMerdoodle and Honeydew.) In no particular order, the top posts are as follows.

Top 10 Recipe Posts:

~Crustless Pumpkin Pie—Every bit as good as any pumpkin pie with a crust. Some folks say they like it better because it’s not as “wet” as other pumpkin pies. I get that.

~Flourless Pizza—The crust is made from eggs and cheese, then topped like a regular pizza. It’s a well-loved recipe. One of my son’s favorite.

~Flourless Chocolate Cake—Still the cake that can take any event up several notches. No unusual ingredients required. No separating of eggs or folding in of egg whites. Heavenly death by chocolate. (Those who don’t do sugar or dairy will want to check out the Flourless Chocolate Banana Honey Walnut Cake instead.)

~Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies—Not the recipe that’s everywhere on the interwebs. These cookies contain brown sugar versus white, plus baking soda and vanilla extract. These three ingredients makes a huge difference in flavor and texture. These are my “go-to” quick cookies, which everyone loves.

~Crustless Apple Pie—A recipe that will make anyone a baked apple lover, as well as a tribute to my mom on Mother’s Day.

~Popovers (titled Better than Sliced Bread for a reason)—Popovers, muffins, and biscuits will always have my heart … and stomach. Everyone loves these popovers.

~Volcano Pancake—This one is in my Valentine’s Day party post, so you can skim until you get to the recipe. It’s one that everyone erupts over. Sorry, but it’s true—in a good way. People are always telling me that they make this recipe for special breakfasts, dinners, or just a decadent afternoon snack.

~Special Turkey Breast—Unusual ingredients to make a very tasty turkey breast in your slow cooker. By the way, I also liked Erin Elberson’s (Gluten Free Fitness) take on this recipe.

~Surprise Stuffing—The easiest way I’ve found to make gluten-free stuffing. Those who’ve tried it have found it very tasty. It can happily serve the whole family or you can adjust to make enough for one or two. By the way, I can’t wait to tell you what I made with my leftover stuffing.

~Go Ahead Honey It’s Gluten Free for July—Make Me A Happy Camper—I’m a big fan of Naomi’s (Straight Into Bed Cakefree and Dried) gluten-free blog carnival, so it was a great treat to host last summer. We had quite the event on our riverside property in the mountains. You’ll find a wide variety of recipes in the roundup!

Plus Two Discussion Posts:

~Stop the Madness!—This post still captures my feelings on one of the biggest benefits of eating gfe. Sadly, the madness continues in my opinion. This post inspired some lively discussion in the comments section. I’m sure the discussion isn’t over, and I welcome comments, but ask you to consider the gfe approach to stop the madness.

~Educate, Not Eviscerate—Another discussion post. I still believe we have a long way to go in this area to ensure that our needs our best met when dining out.

To continue with this year’s plans for gfe, certainly there will be more of the same type of simple recipes that satisfy everyone in the family. My recipes will always be gluten free, but I’ll continue to share many that will be dairy free as well. Hopefully, there will be more recipes that are refined sugar free (certainly one of my own goals for healthier eating), soy free, and more. So many readers have those needs. As a support group leader, I get to actually “field test” these recipes while allowing my members with additional intolerances to still enjoy favorite dishes and baked goods. (I love that.) And, of course, there will be more discussion posts. Some of the other posts that I have wanted to share (and have not had an opportunity to yet) are ones presenting information from some great speakers that I have heard this year. I’ll plan to catch up on those. I won’t worry that I won’t be able to do them justice. I’ll just put out as much information from these individuals as I can, as best I can.

Heads up … there will be some housekeeping type changes here at gfe. I’ll be adding a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page, accessible as a “tab” below the gfe header. (Most of you who read gfe regularly will know the answers to those questions before you even read them.) I’ve already updated my blog listings on the side bar. Some of my favorite bloggers have moved on to other endeavors, or their blogs have not been updated for a long time. I feel it’s my responsibility to my readers to provide links that are current. If your blog is in that inactive state and I’m a fan, I’ll gladly reactivate the link once I see that you are posting again. (Hope you understand. I would expect you to do the same if I went on hiatus.) I’ll be going back to earlier posts and tweaking them as needed (e.g., ensure that all recipes on gfe are printable). Unfortunately, these changes may trigger them to go out via my feed again. So, I’ll apologize ahead of time in case that happens.

Again, thanks for a very exciting and fulfilling year here at gfe. I’m looking forward to spending 2010 with you all!

Shirley
Not just gf, but gfe!