Gluten Free UnChicken Nuggets

These are gluten free, vegan 'un-chicken' nuggets made out of tofu, chickpea flour, and spices that I created for my son's lunch box.

Now that my son is in full day Kindergarten, I really struggle with packing his lunchbox. He sees what the other kids are eating and he wants what they have too. I have a problem with this, and it doesn't have a thing to do with gluten, or any other allergen. Flourescent green or pink yogurt with sprinkles, sugar and high fructose corn syrup laden drinks, heavily processed deli meats and nuggets, trans fat saturated chips, not to mention bread, pretzels, crackers and cookies made from refined flour and sugar. It's amazing to me that it is considered acceptable to feed our children such nutritionally inadequate junk.

At the same time, although my son eats healthy, nutritionally dense foods at home, he also wants to show his friends that he has fun foods in his lunch box too. I understand this. If I pack 'healthy' lunches and snacks, they comes back uneaten. If I pack nuggets with ketchup and a few carrots, the lunch box comes back clean.

Here is the recipe:

2 teaspoons grated garlic
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1/2 teaspoon tumeric
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon gluten free soy sauce
2 teaspoons mirin
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 14 ounce package firm tofu
1/2 cup chickpea flour
rice bran or canola oil

The secret to this recipe is to boil the tofu. So don't skip this step ! This is what gives the tofu it's 'nugget-like' texture. Add the tofu to boiling water, and simmer for approximately 5 minutes. Remove the tofu and let it cool down, then squeeze out as much water as possible using a clean towel.

Crumble the cooled, squeezed tofu into a bowl, together with the garlic, ginger, tumeric, black pepper, soy sauce, mirin and sesame oil. If you like, add other seasonings such as cayenne pepper, cumin or chopped spring onion at this time. Using a fork, or your hands, really mash the ingredients together. Once the tofu mixture is relatively smooth with no big lumps, add in the chickpea flour and mix well. This should create a thick paste-like batter that you can shape easily with your hands. If it is not thick enough, add more chickpea flour.

Shape the batter into a nugget shape, and fry in rice bran or canola oil until well browned. Drain on paper towels. Serve with ketchup or, for adults, with a squeeze of lemon.

Hummus

I love hummus.

I could eat hummus every day.

In fact, I think I did eat hummus every day for the first two years of my son's life when it seemed he was allergic to everything. Our most frequent lunch was flax seed crackers, hummus and sliced avocado, with a sprinkle of celtic sea salt and drizzle of good quality olive oil on top.

Here is my recipe for basic hummus. I had some for lunch today, spread on a gluten free rice tortilla, and topped with grated carrots and sliced avocado. My son ate his hummus (pictured above) with Mary's Gone Crackers onion flavored gluten free crackers. Yum !

Basic Hummus

1/2 cup sesame tahini
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cloves minced garlic
1 1/2 cups drained chickpeas
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon flaxseed oil (optional)
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar (optional)
1/2 teaspoon cumin (optional)
paprika
high quality olive oil

Combine the tahini, lemon juice, salt, garlic and chickpeas in a bowl. For a coarse texture, fork mash, or use a potato masher to mix the ingredients. If you have a food processor, combine the ingredients and process until the mixture is smooth.

Add the oils, apple cider vinegar, and cumin and stir to combine. If you don't have apple cider vinegar you can add any flavorful vinegar. I enjoy the flavor of ume plum vinegar or red wine vinegar in hummus.

If your hummus is too thick, thin it with more lemon juice or water to desired consistency.

It is best to allow the hummus to sit for an hour to allow the flavors to combine. When ready to serve, sprinkle with a pinch of paprika and a drizzle of flavorful olive oil.

Moroccan Chicken Tagine with Preserved Lemons

The most fabulous meals are shared with friends. Last week I made a Moroccan style chicken tagine with preserved lemon to share with our friends Gary and Keiko visiting us from Japan.

I served it with swiss chard sauteed with raisins and chickpeas, roasted butternut squash seasoned with cumin, a brown rice blend, and an salad of arugula and sliced daikon. For dessert we had gluten free brownies, raspberry sorbet and soy whipped cream.

Although I've made some changes to this, the basic recipe is from a promotional issue of Cuisine at home that I got in the mail about a year ago. I've adjusted the original recipe by replacing the lemons with more authentic preserved lemons, substituting boneless skinless chicken thighs, doubling the spices, and omitting the chickpeas.

Don't be intimidated by the number of ingredients. This is an easy recipe that comes together quickly.

2 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup onion, diced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1/4 cup dry white wine
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 cup canned tomatoes
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup kalamata olives, pitted and halved
1 tablespoon honey
1 preserved lemon, cut into 8 wedges

Combine the paprika, coriander, cumin, cinnamon, cayenne and salt. Rub half of the spice mixture over the chicken thighs, and let stand for 5 minutes.

Heat a skillet over medium heat and add the olive oil. Saute the chicken thighs until well browned on both side. Remove chicken and set aside.

Pour off excess drippings, leaving 1 tablespoon of oil in the pan. Add onion and saute until translucent. Then add the grated ginger, garlic and remaining spice mixture. Cook until spices are fragrant.

Deglaze the pan with 1/4 cup of white wine and the tomato paste. Simmer until the liquid evaporates.

Add the canned tomatoes, squashing the tomatoes into small pieces with your hand. Then add the broth, olives, honey, and preserved lemon. Stir to combine. Tuck the chicken into the liquid, cover and simmer on medium-low until chicken is cooked and sauce is reduced.

Preserved Lemons

Pictured above are preserved lemons, pickled red onions and pickled cucumbers with garlic.

About once a month I choose a vegetable from the farmers market to pickle. I try to find vegetables that are in season and look freshest. So far I've successfully pickled cabbage, beets, daikon and daikon greens, cucumber, and onion.

Having lived in Japan, I really appreciate a good pickle and I'm pretty happy to eat them every day, with every meal, and as snacks. I love just plain pickled cucumbers, but my very favorite are salt preserved lemons.

Preserved lemons are a staple in Moroccan and Mediterranean cuisine. They are wickedly simple to make, and the process of preserving the lemons dramatically intensifies their flavor.

Here is the process:

1 (or more) large glass jars, such as a mason or ball jar
10 (or more) lemons
1 tablespoon salt per lemon

First be sure to clean your mason jar well with soap and hot water. It is best to sterilize it by running it through the hot water cycle of your dishwasher, although it is my understanding that this is not strictly necessary.

Next, scrub the lemons well with a vegetable scrubber and dry with a clean towel. Set in a clean bowl or cutting board.

Add several tablespoons of salt to the bottom of your jar. Now, take a lemon and cut it as if you were quartering it, but don't cut all the way through the bottom. Rub as much salt as you can into the center of the lemon and then carefully fold the quarters back together. Place the lemon into the jar. Repeat this process until your jar is full of lemons.

With your clean hand, squash the lemons down into the jar as much as you can. Juice should come out of the lemons.

Last, pour lemon juice into the jar until the lemons are completely covered.

Place a lid on the jar, and invert jar several times to mix the juice and salt. Let the jar sit on your counter for 3 weeks, inverting it once or twice daily to mix the contents.

After 3 weeks, your lemons are pickled. Store them in the refrigerator indefinitely.

Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

Quinoa is perhaps my favorite gluten free discovery. It is wheat and gluten free, tastes great, is extremely versatile, and a nutritional powerhouse. Similar to the soybean, quinoa is a complete protein which makes it an excellent protein source for vegans and vegetarians. It is a nutrient dense food providing a source of magnesium, iron, copper and phosphorus.

Quinoa is easy to digest, making it an good grain for babies and toddlers, and has an addictive nutty taste. I find myself eating quinoa for breakfast topped with cinnamon, coconut butter and sliced almonds; tossing it into salads or side dishes such a quinoa tabouli; baking it into vegetable burgers; or making it into stuffing for baked acorn squash or red peppers.

Here I've mixed leftover cooked quinoa with black beans, cilantro and red onions for a tasty lunchtime salad.

Quinoa and Black Bean Salad

2 cups cooked quinoa
1 can black beans, drained
1/2 red onion, diced
1 bunch cilantro, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons flaxseed oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
salt to taste
lettuce
1 avocado, sliced

Mix quinoa, black beans, red onion and cilantro in a medium sized bowl and set aside. In a seperate bowl, mix together the garlic, olive oil, flaxseed oil, apple cider vinegar and salt to make a dressing. Add the dressing to the quinoa mixture and toss gently. If possible, let the salad sit for a least an hour to allow the flavors to develop. Serve over salad greens with sliced avocado.