Tag Archives: gluten free carbs

Honest Burger.

Posted by alicemwilkinson in Review and tagged with , , , ,

Honest Burger is a growing chain of burger joints with restaurants scattered over London. The other night I went to the one in Camden, which is half a restaurant, half a street food stall. We were sat at the bar/seats-looking-directly-into-the-kitchen and told that we could order, etc. and would be reseated in the restaurant proper once seats became available. This did eventually happen, though it took some time, but we were happy: there is something fascinating about watching chefs cook, though it rather puts a damper on the conversation.

The menu is small, but covers all bases – beef, chicken, veg. All burgers come with rosemary salted chips and you have the option of making all the burgers gluten-free by opting for the gluten-free bun. Also, the onion rings are gluten-free. I love onion rings.

I had the cheese burger, gluten-free of course, and a side of onion rings to “share”. The burgers are not huge, but they are ample and you get loads of chips, too many to finish actually. The burger was juicy and cooked, as promised, pink. I would have liked a little more cheese on my cheeseburger, but I’m a cheese fiend. And the bun was pretty tasty; it didn’t have that sponge quality gluten-free bread so often has. The onion rings were crunchy and sweet, delicious, especially when doused in a plentiful amount of mayo.

Finally, the cocktails, of which there aren’t many, are…OK. They are mostly gin based and very strong. I had the “Honest Cocktail” which had cucumber and lemon and was very fresh tasting, almost salad-ey. Good though, perfect for summer. My boyfriend had the “Gin Special” which apparently had orange and elderflower in it but just tasted like straight up gin to me. But they came in sweet, mini tankards with those pink and white striped paper straws that are so trendy now. It was cute. It was fine.

Fresh and zingy cocktails that pack a punch.

Fresh and zingy cocktails that pack a punch.

We will definately be going to Honest Burger again, and not just because they make gluten-free food but because the burgers, honestly, are awesome.

The Mighty Baked Potato.

Posted by alicemwilkinson in Recipe, Tips and tagged with , , , , , ,

For a perfect baked potato, simply pierce the skin all over the potato, rub with oil and salt and bake at 200°C or 180°C fan for at least an hour, but maybe 1hr 30 mins, depending on size.

Rub the skin in olive oil and plenty of salt to get the skin really crisp.

Why not rub the skin with a mix of oil and cumin, or cajun spice powder for a more exotc flavour. 

Then cut the potato down the centre and top with your favourite filling. I like leftover chilli con carne or bolognese sauce, but the best is chargrilled avocado and poached eggs.

What tops your?

What tops yours?

Another Gnocchi Dish…

Posted by alicemwilkinson in Recipe, Tips and tagged with , , , , , ,

This time I made gnocchi with meatballs made from gluten-free sausages that I bought from Waitrose.  It’s the first time I’d seen them in a supermarket, so I was pretty excited.  They’re really lovely actually, quite spicy and peppery and very meaty, although they don’t hold their shape so well when you cook them.

I simply fried off some sliced garlic and some cherry tomatoes in some olive oil.  Then I added little chunks of sausage that I’d cut up.  I also removed the sausage skin but only because it was coming off anyway; no need to bother doing this otherwise.  Once the little balls of sausage meat were cooked through, I added my cooked gluten-free gnocchi to the pan and added a little extra extra-virgin olive oil and some torn fresh basil.  It was so quick to do but it looked and tasted like I’d spent ages on it.  Yumbo-scrumbo.

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Gluten-free Gnocchi.

Posted by alicemwilkinson in Recipe, Tips and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

I’m really liking this gluten-free gnocchi that I found in my local butcher/deli.  Gnocchi is made with potato anyway, so there isn’t a huge difference in texture between this and normal gnocchi.

I used this gnocchi to make a quick lunch: I simply fried some garlic and four cherry tomatoes, halved, in a tablespoon of olive oil.  The tomatoes will soften and mush down to create a small amount of sauce.  Then I added about five prawns and some seasoning, frying on a low-medium heat until the prawns were cooked through and pink.  Once the gnocchi was cooked (this takes about 2 minutes) I added it to the prawns with some fresh basil and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.  I cooked the gnocchi with the prawns and tomato sauce for 30 seconds before piling onto a plate.

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This is so fast and filling, and packed with fresh Italian flavours.  Enjoy!

Quick Turkey Lunch.

Posted by alicemwilkinson in Recipe and tagged with , , , ,

If you, like me, miss Christmas, then this quick lunchtime (or dinnertime) dish is just the ticket.  But turkey is not just for Christmas: it’s a superfood, extremely lean and very versatile, like chicken.  Purely by chance, what I whipped up for lunch today did turn out more like a one-pan Christmas dinner than anything else, but it was yummy and filling and full of all things good for you.

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I started by frying some sliced garlic (wards off colds and some cancers, apparently), some chopped rosemary and thyme and some dried chilli flakes (just a pinch) in a large frying pan.  Then I added one breast of thinly sliced turkey meat.

Once the turkey was cooked through (this took about 5 minutes as the pieces were so thin) and starting to turn golden, I added some sprout flowers: these you can buy in Waitrose and Marks and Spencer.

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I think they’re pretty and, plus they, like the vegetables from which they were born (sprout flowers are, I believe, a cross between sprouts and kale), are so so good for you.

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I fried the sprout flowers for a few minutes until they were cooked.  Finally I added some halved and boiled red skinned new potatoes and some green beans (I had these left over from last night).  A final drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and some salt and pepper and my lunch was done!

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A little taste of Christmas without the hassle (or the food baby afterwards!).

Bean Mash.

Posted by alicemwilkinson in Recipe and tagged with , , , , , ,

Beans are fantastic.  They are high in protein, almost fat-free… They are, in fact, ridiculously good for you.   But they can be a little dull to eat sometimes.  This recipe, for bean mash, is a perfect accompaniment almost any roasted, grilled or pan fried meat and also goes very well with salmon and it is a very far cry from dull.  It can be as simple or as jazzy as you like, depending on your tastes or the accompanying flavours.  I usually make it with lots of garlic and rosemary (I’ve actually adapted this recipe over time to make it as effortless as possible; now I don’t even chop the garlic, I just leave the cloves whole!), but you could add tomatoes, chilli, bay, anchovies, you could make it with chicken stock or vegetable stock, you could mash it or leave the beans whole or semi-mashed; it’s entirely up to you.

Here’s how you make it:

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Start by heating some olive oil in a small sauce pan.  Then add whole garlic cloves (I use about three or four) and about three sprigs worth of chopped rosemary.  Then add one can of drained and well-rinsed butter beans (this will serve 2-3 people amply as a side dish).   Stir well.

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Now add enough gluten-free chicken or vegetable stock (I use the Knorr stock pots) to cover the beans.  Bring the beans to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer until the stock has reduced right down and the beans look brown and caramelized.  This can take up to half an hour depending on the amount of stock you added (quantities, in this recipe, are not so important, as you might have noticed).  You will end up with something that looks like this…IMG_2354

At this point you can turn the heat off and leave the beans until you are ready to mash them.  You can see the whole garlic cloves here: they will be mashed into the beans creating a lovely, mellow, garlicky flavour.

Next, mash the beans.

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Admittedly, this dish is not the most glamorous or visually appealing, but it tastes brilliant so who cares.  Taste the mash and adjust for seasoning; the stock, which has also been reduced, and therefore concentrated, can be very salty so don’t add salt until this point.  I rarely find I need it.

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Finally add some chopped parsley and you’re ready to go.

This dish is simple and versatile and everyone I’ve ever made it for has wanted the recipe, and I bet you will too!

Other Carbs.

Posted by alicemwilkinson in Tips and tagged with , , , , , ,

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So I’ve been looking into alternative carbohydrates.  I love pasta and bread so cutting them out will be something of an ordeal but I’m trying to stay positive and remember that no pasta means more mash potato.  I never eat mash, but now I can eat it all the time (well, not all the time, obviously, but more than I used to).   Also, whilst I can never again have pasta or pizza (unless I have the gluten-free pastas or pizza bases which, I have been reliably told by a nutritionist, may as well be called “sugar that looks like pasta”) I can have risotto, one of my favourite things; really, all this just means that I will no longer be plagued with indecision when confronted with a menu over two pages long.  I’ll have so much free time! Maybe I’ll start a rock band.

There are so many alternatives to wheat that we coeliacs really have no reason at all to resort to the processed rubbish that is marketed as gluten-free bread is pasta.  That stuff is so far far removed from being bread it may as well have gills and live in the sea.  For example, there’s potatoes, of course, but also sweet potatoes, which are delicious mashed or cut into wedges and baked.  And they cook much faster than regular potatoes so perfect for a speedy baked spud.  And of course, there’s rice, loads of rice, countless kinds of rice.  I’ve got some brown rice here and some risotto rice (I’m having fish risotto tonight) but there’s wild rice, red rice, jasmine rice, long-grain rice, the list goes on and on.  There’s also lentils, which are perfect in curries and soups and puy lentils go really well with salmon.

Oats are tricky.  I’ve been told to steer clear but there are gluten-free oats out there that have been protected from wheat contamination so you can still have porridge in the morning if you trust what the back of the box says.

In addition there’s also quinoa, buckwheat, beans, so many kinds of beans which also count of protein so they’re perfect for staying fuller for longer (try a salad with tuna and cannellini or kidney beans for lunch).  Anyway, you get the point.  There is absolutely no need to settle for pasta or bread that tastes like sweet corn or sponge when there are so many other ways of eating filling, satisfying, gluten-free meals.