The Gluten-Free Homemaker

There will be no Squash Fest post this week due to Thanksgiving.  Instead, I thought I would post my own squash recipe today.  This soup would go well with some leftover turkey.

I have found that butternut squash soup is one of my favorite soups.  You can add things to it like the apple and potato found in this recipe or just keep it simple.  You can also try different herbs and seasoning.  Butternut squash just has such a pleasant flavor and blends up so nicely, that I seem to enjoy it no matter what I add or don’t add to the soup.

Butternut Squash Soup

• 1 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed (about 4 c.)
• 1 small onion, chopped (about 2/3 c.)
• 1 medium green apple, peeled and chopped
• 2 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped (about 1 1/2 c., I used red potato)
• 3 c. chicken broth
• 1 Tb. oil or butter
• 1/2 tsp. fresh rosemary, snipped into little pieces (or try 1/4 tsp. dried)
• salt & pepper to taste

Prepare the vegetables.  Heat the oil or butter in the bottom of a pot.  Add the onion and sauté until softened.  Add the chicken broth and heat to boiling.  Stir in the vegetables and rosemary.  Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until the vegetables are tender.  The amount of time will depend on how small you cut them.  Add salt and pepper to taste. 

Blend the soup with an emersion blender, or by adding it in batches to a stand blender.  The soup should be smooth with no chunks in it.

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Labels: soup recipes

Those of you who have been cooking for a long time, already know this, but I often remind myself that all kinds of people read this blog, and some of the simplest cooking ideas took me years to discover.

Most of us enjoy having short cuts when it comes to fixing dinner, at least some nights.  One of those shortcuts is to use leftovers from one meal to make a new meal.  It’s economical, and it saves time.  One of the easiest ways to do that is to put leftovers into a soup.  In this case, on the first night I roasted a whole chicken and cooked enough wild rice that I would have leftovers.  I didn’t cook extra veggies.  After dinner,  I used the chicken to make stock in my pressure cooker.  If you don’t have homemade stock you can buy it.  Remember to read the ingredients and look for gluten.  Pacific is brand I like to use when I don’t have homemade.

The second night, the veggies were the only thing that needed a little work, and they didn’t take long.  You could serve this soup with French bread rolls or drop biscuits.

Gluten-Free Chicken, Vegetable, and Wild Rice Soup

• 4 c. chicken broth
• 3 c. water
• 3 large carrots, peeled
• 3 small zucchini, washed and cut
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 c. cooked chicken, cut in pieces
• 1 tsp. dried basil
• 1 Tb. olive oil
• 2 c. cooked wild rice
• salt & pepper to taste

Pressure cooker:  Heat the  broth and water to boiling in the pressure cooker.  Add the  whole carrots, onion, and chicken.  Cook for 3 minutes under high pressure.  Use the cold water release method.  In a separate pot, steam the zucchini until just tender.  Remove the lid from the pressure cooker.  Remove the carrots and slice them.  Stir in the carrots, zucchini, wild rice, basil, oil, salt and pepper.  Adding cold wild rice will help cool the soup to a temperature that can be eaten but will also heat the rice.

Stovetop:  Slice the carrots and add all ingredients to a pot.  Heat to boiling and simmer  until the vegetables are cooked.

This post is linked to Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays and Tasty Tuesday.

Labels: soup recipes

I have to admit, I didn’t get terribly creative with the soup challenge this month, but that’s one of the great things about soup.  You can just keep doing variations on a theme.  In this case, it was chicken noodle soup put together with what ingredients I had on hand, and cooked in the pressure cooker.  I had never cooked pasta in the pressure cooker before, so that was an experiment.

This soup was the second way I used the shredded chicken meat I had in my freezer, which I mentioned last week.  I usually put chunks of chicken meat in soup, and I wasn’t sure how I would like shredded meat.  It worked well though.   Also, I usually make chicken and vegetable soup or chicken and noodle soup, but this time I decided to include all three.  It turned out great.  As usual, I made the soup in my pressure cooker, but you can use a regular stove top method. 

I’m looking forward to seeing your soup recipes on Wednesday!

Gluten-Free Chicken, Noodle & Vegetable Soup

• 4 c. chicken broth
• 2 c. water
• 2 c. cooked chicken, chopped or shredded
• 3 carrots
• 10 oz. frozen green beans (that’s an estimate, I just threw some in)
• 6 oz. gluten free linguini or spaghetti (that’s an estimate, I had part of a package)
• 1/2 medium onion, diced
• olive oil (I also add a little flaxseed oil)
• basil (or other seasoning)
• salt & pepper to taste

Pressure cooker:  Place everything except the oil and seasoning in the pressure cooker.  Peel or scrub the carrots, but leave them whole.  Break the green beans if they are long.  Break the linguini into thirds.  Using high heat, bring the pot to high pressure and cook for 3 minutes.  Quickly release the pressure by running cold water over the pot.  Remove the carrots and slice them, then add them back to the pot.  Stir in the oil and seasonings.

Stovetop: Heat the broth and water to a boil.  Add the carrots, chopped, the onion, and green beans.  Return to a boil and add the linguini, broken into thirds. Cook until the pasta is done and the vegetables are tender.  Stir in the chicken, oil, and seasoning.

This post is linked to Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Tasty Tuesday, and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Labels: soup recipes

Since Iris and Shirley both encouraged me to continue with a monthly challenge, I think I will.  I wanted to do a muffin challenge this month, but I need more time to come up with a basic recipe as a guideline.    I realize we just had a soup theme in November, but February is a great time to work on creating soups.  It’s so easy too!

The challenge this month is to create at least one soup, then come here and link to the recipe (or at least what you did) on  March 3rd.  You can start with a recipe if you want to give you basic amounts of ingredients, but get creative.  Soups are great for using up things you have on hand in your pantry or freezer, or for using leftovers.  You could also plan a soup with ingredients that your family enjoys.  At the end of this post are links to some of the soup recipes I have already posted.  Take a look if you need more inspiration.

I cook almost all my soups in my pressure cooker, but a slow cooker as well as the stove top are also good choices.  For that reason, I won’t give any cooking directions here.  Basically you want to make sure all your ingredients are cooked to desired doneness.  In the pressure cooker, I have to cook some vegetables whole because they get done so quickly.  In the crock pot, however, I sometimes precook veggies such as onions because they don’t get done as quickly.  Also, you might choose to use some ingredients that are already cooked.  Rice for example can be added raw and cook in the soup liquid, or you can use leftover rice and add it towards the end.

Here are suggestions for different types of ingredients you can use.  I am not giving amounts because it all depends on how much soup you want to make and how much of each particular ingredient you want to use.

Soups are pretty hard to ruin.  The two main problems I can think of are mushy veggies and lack of flavor.  As for the veggies, you just have to be careful not to overcook them.  As for flavor, make sure you taste it before you serve it, and add more seasoning of needed.  If necessary, put a spice blend on the table for people to add to the soup if they want.  One of my sons puts Old Bay seasoning on almost everything.

This list contains suggestions to get you going.  The possibilities are endless.

Liquid

• water
• chicken broth
• beef broth
• vegetable broth
• seafood broth
• milk
• cream
• milk substitute

Protein

• any meat, poultry, or seafood cut in bite size pieces
• beans, canned or precooked
• cheese, usually added at the end
• whole grains such as quinoa add some protein

Starch

• potatoes
• rice
• pasta
• quinoa
• millet
• corn
• other grain?

Vegetables

• green beans
• broccoli
• carrots
• celery
• zucchini
• onions
• peas
• leeks
• tomatoes

Seasoning/Flavor

• salt & pepper
• basil
• oregano
• curry
• cumin
• Old Bay
• garlic

Some previous soups:





Hamburger Soup










Potato Chowder




 



Creamy Vegetable Soup

Labels: monthly challenge, soup recipes

This week Alta at Tasty Eats at Home is hosting the Holiday Food Fest that is happening on Thursdays in November and December.   This week's theme is favorite fall or Thanksgiving dishes.  I can't believe that with a food blog, I don't have any great entries.  The truth is that my brother, who loves to cook and is great at it, cooks for us at Thanksgiving.  I mostly contribute in the dessert area.

That leaves me with favorite fall dishes, but I don't have anything particularly fallish either.  However, one thing I love about fall is eating soup on a cold evening.  This is one of our favorite soups. Truly, every member of my family really likes it. With meat and potato in it, you can serve it as a main dish, and if you have meat and potato guys like I do, they are sure to love it.

I'm submitting this recipe to the Ultimate Recipe Swap at Life as Mom which has a Food Allergy/Special Diet theme this week. Be sure to check out the other recipes.  This is also submitted to Friday Foodie Fix at The W.H.O.L.E. Gang where you can find other recipes with carrots.

I posted this recipe a year ago, so you may have already seen it in the recipe index.  I bet most you haven't, though, and because it is so good, I decided to republish it.


This recipe is adapted from one in Bette Hagman's book More from the Gluten-Free Gourmet.

Gluten-Free Potato Chowder

• 1 lb. bulk sausage, cooked
• 1 c. onion, chopped
• 1 c. carrot, shredded 
• 1/4 c. butter 
• 4 c. potatoes, sliced 
• 3 c. chicken broth 
• 1 c. milk 
• 2 Tb. rice flour 
• salt and pepper to taste

In the bottom of a large saucepan, saute the onion and carrot in the butter. Add the chicken broth and potatoes. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until the potatoes are cooked. With a hand potato masher, break up the potatoes until they are only small lumps.

Add the rice flour to the cold milk and blend with a fork. Add to the potato mixture. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and add the cooked sausage. Heat through. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serves 8 - 10 people.

Notes: One of the nice things about soup is that you can easily adjust the amount of ingredients to your taste. I never worry about measuring the vegetables exactly. If I have more than one cup of carrots when I'm done shredding, I put it all in. Bette's recipe includes frozen peas added after the meat is added. The soup is then cooked a couple of minutes more. Peas would ruin it for my family :).

Labels: soup recipes

Thanks to this soup I have proof that people’s tastes can change for the better.  About five years ago, I made a slow cooker version of this soup that was very similar to this recipe.  I thought it was delicious!  However, the rest of my family did not like it.  Not one of them.  I ended up taking some to my mom who also loved it.

For my husband, the problem was the sweet potatoes.  He’s an Idaho boy and grew up on Idaho potatoes, not sweet potatoes.  He doesn’t like them.  Or, I should say, didn’t like them.  In the past year he has tried and liked sweet potato fries.  What a surprise!  I decided to give this soup a try again, and was hoping he would think the chunks of sweet potatoes were carrots.  He was not to be fooled, but surprise again!  He liked it!

Not only that, but everyone liked the soup!  In fact, as I was preparing it and while we were eating it, I heard comments like, “Mmmm, that smells good,” and “Hey, this is really good.”  I couldn’t help but smile, and after everyone had told me they liked it, I told them the story from five years ago.  I hope it’s an encouragement to those of you with picky eaters.

I varied the recipe slightly by using celery instead of broccoli, which we like but I was out of.  Also, I did not include regular potatoes and I cut the amount of butter in half.  I served this soup with drop biscuits as a meatless meal.  The soup was packed with vegetables which we found quite filling.  My guys wouldn’t like meatless more than once a week, but they’re okay with it sometimes, especially when it tastes yummy. 

This recipe could easily be made vegetarian by substituting a vegetable broth for the chicken broth.  For you dairy free folks, milk is added to this soup giving it the term creamy, but I’m not sure creamy is really the right word.  I like the taste the milk gives it, but the soup would be good without it.  You could just add extra broth, or use a milk substitute.

Gluten-Free Creamy Vegetable Soup

• 4 c. chicken broth (I used Pacific brand)
• 2 Tb. butter (or substitute)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 medium sweet potatoes, cut in 1/2 in. pieces
• 1 large zucchini, cut in chunks (or 2 small)
• 2 stalks celery, sliced
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. salt (or to taste)
• 1/4 tsp.pepper (or to taste)
• 2 c. milk (or substitute, or omit and increase broth)

In a large pot, melt the butter.  Sauté the onion until almost tender.  Add the chicken broth, the vegetables, and the seasoning.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until the potatoes are done.  Add the milk and heat just until hot.

Note:  I don’t like mushy zucchini so I added the potatoes first and let them get started cooking before adding the large chunks of zucchini.

This post is linked to Ultimate Recipe Swap, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday and Tasty Tuesday.  Stop by and look for some naturally gluten free recipes or inspiration for making one.

Labels: soup recipes

Welcome to What’s for Dinner Wednesday (gluten-free style). At the end of my recipe you will find links to other blogs with gluten-free dinner ideas. We would love for you to join by adding your link. If you have not participated before, please read the guidelines here.

I wasn’t sure I would have a recipe to post this week because I made so many dinners from last week’s WFDW recipes. There were several pasta dishes last week which inspired me to make my own pasta dish using what I had on hand. I wanted to show you my picture.

I mixed gluten-free penne tossed in olive oil, a little bacon, leftover chicken, broccoli, and zucchini. I added basil and seasoned salt. The family really liked it. Now on to my recipe.

Spring is here, but it is still cool in Maryland. Cool enough that I made soup the other evening. I had some ground beef to use and pulled out this recipe which I hadn’t used in a while. I used 1 1/2 pounds ground beef because my boys like a meaty soup. After dinner, son #2 said, “That’s my favorite soup!” I made it in the pressure cooker, but it can also be done in the crock pot or on the stovetop.

Hamburger Soup

Ingredients

• 1 to 1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 potatoes, peeled
• 2 carrots
• 2 stalks celery
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 tsp. thyme
• 1/4 tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 6 c. water or broth

Instructions

Pressure cooker: Brown and drain the ground beef. In pot combine water or broth, onion, potatoes (cut in 1/2 inch pieces), carrots and celery (whole) and bay leaf. Bring to high pressure and cook for 4 minutes. Bring pressure down under cold running water. Remove lid and slice the carrots and celery. Stir in the thyme, basil, salt, and pepper.

Crock pot: Brown and drain the ground beef. Lightly sauté the onion. Dice the potatoes (pretty small), thinly slice the carrots and celery. Add everything to the crock pot and cook on low 8 – 12 hours or high 3 – 5 hours.

Stovetop: Brown and drain the ground beef. Combine all ingredients in a pot and cook until the vegetables are tender.

If you are a reader who benefits from this blog carnival, please consider leaving comments to let people know you appreciate their ideas.

1. Brian (Enchiladas) 2. Rachel (Beef Curry) 3. Jessie (Simple Salmon)

4. Wendy (Turkey Meatball Stroganoff) 5. The W.H.O.L.E. Gang-Veg Huevos Rancheros 6. Gina (Steak, roasted potatoes)

7. Melanie (Potato salad and more)

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Labels: soup recipes, What's for Dinner Wednesday

Beans are not a favorite in my family, especially lentils.  However, this is a recipe we all like.  Perhaps it's the bacon, and that we usually add shredded cheese on top. This bean soup makes a tasty inexpensive meal. My instructions are for cooking it in a crock pot, but it could be cooked on the stove.  More more crock pot recipes check out What's in Your Crock Pot at Smockity Frocks.  For other delicious recipes visit Tasty Tuesday and Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Spicy Western Beans

Ingredients

• 1/3 c. lentils
• 4 strips bacon, fried and diced
• 1 onion, chopped and cooked
• 1 clove garlic, briefly cooked with the onion
• 1 can kidney beans with liquid
• 1 can pinto beans with liquid
• 1 can diced tomatoes with liquid
• 2 Tb. ketchup
• 3/4 tsp. chili powder
• 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 bay leaf

Instructions
Boil the lentils in 1 1/3 cups water for 20-30 minutes. Drain. Combine all ingredients in a crock pot. Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours. Remove the bay leaf and serve.

My kids usually don’t like lentils, but I put them in anyway. However, I could only find red lentils at the store. I had never used that variety, so I boiled them as usual. I was left with nothing but mush. I strained it and stirred it into the soup, and the kids never knew they were there!

Labels: soup recipes, What's for Dinner Wednesday

I have never liked peas. The frozen baby peas were tolerable, but that’s it. No big mushy peas for this girl. When I got married, I learned that my husband loved split pea soup. To me, that was the worst possible way to eat them and certainly the worst way to cook them. If you don’t like peas you don’t want to smell them cooking for a couple of hours. Needless to say he didn’t get pea soup very often. Pretty much only when a friend would give him some of their leftovers.

About 15 years into our marriage my husband bought me a Kuhn Rikon pressure cooker. I had asked for it and was thrilled to get it for Christmas. As I was looking through the recipe book, I saw a recipe for split pea soup and it only cooked for 20 minutes under pressure. I decided I could handle that, and my husband was certainly deserving of a treat. To my surprise, I took the lid off the soup when it finished cooking, and it actually smelled and looked good to me. I gave it a taste and couldn’t believe I actually liked it! I’ve been making pea soup regularly ever since. I do have one son who doesn’t care for it, but he tolerates it if he has to or makes himself something else to eat.

So my kitchen tip for today is to use a pressure cooker to make pea soup or buy a pressure cooker if you don’t have one. Before giving my recipe I should say that pea soup should only be cooked under low pressure. If your pressure cooker does not have a high and low setting, then you shouldn’t attempt to make pea soup. Also, your pot should be no more than half full, so adjust the ingredients accordingly if you have a small pot. My cooker is 5 1/4 quarts.

Split Pea Soup Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 lb. dry split peas
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 large potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 6 c. chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 lb. ham, chopped (or bacon, vary amount to your taste)
• pepper to taste

Instructions

Sauté the onion in a small skillet until lightly cooked. Combine all ingredients except the pepper in the pressure cooker. Heat and stir until mixture comes to a boil. Close the lid and bring to low pressure using high heat. Cook for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let the pressure come down naturally. Remove bay leaf, stir, and add pepper to taste.

Leftover soup will be very thick the next day. You can thin it with more broth, water, or milk if desired.

Split pea soup can very easily be made gluten free. Check your chicken broth ingredients (I make my own or use Pacific brand) and make sure the ham is gluten free.

For more Kitchen Tip Tuesdays visit Tammy's Recipes. For more great recipes visit Blessed with Grace - Tempt My Tummy Tuesday.

Labels: soup recipes

Labels: soup recipes

We eat casseroles fairly often during cold weather. When I was first diagnosed, I didn't know how to replace the cream soups that most of my casseroles called for. So I was thrilled when I found this recipe which came from Amber Lee at Gluten-Free Utah.

1 c. cold milk
3 Tb. sweet rice flour or rice flour, or 2 Tb. cornstarch
2 Tb. butter
1 tsp. chicken bouillon or other flavoring
1/2 tsp. salt
pepper to taste

I have always used sweet rice flour in this recipe, but if you don't have any on hand, cornstarch will work. Either one should be whisked into the cold milk in a saucepan. Add the remaining ingredients and heat to a boil while whisking frequently. Reduce heat and simmer about a minute until thickened.

Use this soup in recipes in place of one can of creamed soup.

This recipe is flexible. You can add ingredients such as chicken, mushrooms, celery, or cheese for the kind of cream soup you want. For cream of mushroom soup I have used The Organic Gourmet Wild Mushroom Soup 'N Stock.

Labels: soup recipes