Archive for the ‘Salads and Dressings’ Category
We are all excited that the first food share has arrived from a local CSA – a local community agriculture program. The first share of the year included beautiful red lettuce, spinach, radishes, white turnips, and bok choy.
For this salad, we chose to use what was in the cupboard to approximate a recipe from the Hamersley’s cookbook – Bistro Cooking at Home. This is a great spring meal after a hard day’s work. It makes you realize how a few simple things are all that are needed for a truly fine meal!
Make a whole red lettuce ready for a salad dressing (clean and tear the salad). Fry a couple of slices of gluten-free bacon until crispy, then drain the fat and reserve the bacon and a tablespoon of the melted fat. Toast up some regular wheat bread for the wheatavores, and a couple of slices of Glutino bread for the celiacs. Set out some butter, the bacon pieces, and a couple of glasses of Riserva Ducale Chianti, 2005.
Next, make the dressing:
Mix: 1 teaspoon gluten-free Dijon mustard
1/2 a medium shallot, chopped fine
1/2 a clove of garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
salt
fresh pepper
1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/2 a Tablespoon sherry wine vinegar (that’s 1 1/2 teaspoons)
1 Tablespoon reserved bacon fat
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Dress the lettuce, then fry 4 eggs, over easy, in the remaining bacon fat. Season them with salt and pepper. Serve the dressed salad with fried eggs, bacon pieces, toast and butter on the side, and a glass of chianti!
Make sure all your ingredients are gluten-free!
This one is for the Engineers who all converged on Boston for the Fourth!
This salsa requires grilled onions and pineapple, so it is suitable to make before you put your chicken on the grill for barbecue. Heat up your barbecue, and do the pineapple and onions first!
Obtain some gluten free soy sauce – this means reading the labels to make sure there are no wheat, barley or rye ingredients.
Make half inch thick slices from a large red onion and a peeled, cored pineapple. Put the onions and pineapple on a rack and grill them over hot coals for 3-5 minutes, or until they start to smell good and are lightly browned. Remove them from the grill and dice them.
Put the grilled, diced onion and pineapple in a bowl and add:
2 mangoes, peeled and diced
1 red bell pepper, seeded and diced
1/3 to 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
1 to 2 Tablespoons grated fresh ginger
2 Tablespoons each of rice vinegar and gluten free soy sauce
Juice of one fresh orange
1 Tablespoon olive oil (to taste – you may need more)
1 Tablespoon sesame oil
A few dashes of Tabasco sauce
A small amount of salt
Fresh ground pepper
We had a salad like this at a restaurant recently. It is quite refreshing!
We developed the recipe here for the Gf-Zing! website, celebrating flavor in the gluten free world.
6 cups fresh arugula (enough for four people to have a good-sized salad – about 1 1/2 cups for each person)
6 cups of cubed chilled watermelon (very important that it be chilled!)
1/2 cup crumbled gluten free feta cheese
1/2 cup toasted pine nuts (toast them in the oven for 10-15 minutes until they start to brown)
2-3 Tablespoons minced fresh mint (you can use some fresh basil if you don’t have enough mint – the combination is good)
Mix all of the above and toss gently with a dressing made of 1 Tablespoon olive oil, 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1/4-1/2 teaspoon sugar, 1 Tablespoon minced shallot, 3/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper. Serve immediately with toasts made from a Betty Hagman’s gf fat-free french bread, and some marinated goat cheese to spread on the toasts. Gf-Zing! does not verify the gluten free status of any product.
This dressing is excellent on Boston Lettuce, especially in the spring when the tarragon is just starting to sprout new shoots. The recipe was developed for the Gf-Zing! website, which celebrates flavor in the gluten free world.
Mix in a bowl:
1/3 cup gluten free mayonnaise
1 1/2 Tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4-1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 Tablespoon snipped fresh chives
1 teaspoon snipped fresh tarragon (or more)
sugar to taste
For the sugar, only add this by 1/4 teaspoon amounts until the flavor of the dressing is balanced. If the lemon is not very sour, there will be no need for the sugar.
Set the dressing aside for 20 minutes or a half hour before serving – this will allow the chives and tarragon to flavor it up!
You can add coarsely grated carrots, steamed or roasted asparagus, chopped walnuts, raisins or diced hard-boiled eggs to this salad.
1 cooked chicken, removed from the bones and cut or torn into large chunks
1/2 cup gluten free mayonnaise
juice of 1/2 lemon
salt
freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup minced parsley
1/4 cup minced scallions or red onion
1 stalk of celery, chopped
Fold all the ingredients together in a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Adjust the seasonings, and add a very small pinch of sugar if you like.
If you prefer less onion, or don’t like bits of onion in your chicken salad, grate a little onion and let a few teaspoons of the juice go into the mixture.
Be sure to use gluten free mayonnaise – check the gluten free food lists on the internet or at your grocery store.
1 cup sliced almonds
6 Tablespoons sugar
lettuce
2 whole scallions, chopped, or 1 Tablespoon fresh minced chives
Canned GF mandarin oranges, drained or fresh strawberries, sliced
Dressing:
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon minced Italian parsley
2 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons GF cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon GF prepared ballpark style mustard
a dash of GF hot sauce
Prepare the nuts: Cook the almonds and the sugar in a non-stick pan over medium heat, stirring constantly until the sugar has melted and the nuts are browned. Take care that the nuts do not burn. Transfer the nuts to a ceramic plate to cool. These can be stored in an airtight container so you don’t eat them all before you serve the salad.
Mix the dressing ingredients up. The mustard will act as an emulsifier, causing the dressing to become one with itself and look very nice. Put the lettuce and green onions in a salad bowl, toss with the dressing and the oranges just before serving. Pass the nuts to sprinkle on top. Most recipes of this kind have half as many nuts, but here the nuts are doubled to allow for snacking.
Your GF guests will appreciate your asking which brand of mustard they are able to eat!
3 Tablespoons minced fresh basil
1-3 medium cloves garlic
1 Tablespoon prepared Gluten Free mustard
1 Tablespoon honey
½ tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
4 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup sunflower seeds (without the shells, obviously)
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Put all ingredients in the blender and give it a whir! The original recipe was from Whole Foods Market and it included tofu. We left out the tofu, because, well, tofu in salad dressing? Go figure. The sunflower seeds give the dressing a nice creamy quality.
To serve food to gluten-free friends, check carefully with the manufacturers, or on the reputable internet-based gluten free food lists, making sure that all ingredients are gluten free. Or, ask your friends which brands are safe for them to eat. They will appreciate your concern!
A medium sized cabbage
2 carrots
1/2 cup of gluten free mayonnaise
Gluten-free seasoned rice vinegar to taste (you will need at least a half cup)
2-3 teaspoons of prepared gluten free mustard
freshly ground pepper
Clean the cabbage and shred using the food processor or a good knife and chopping board. Clean, peel and grate the carrots. Mix the cabbage and carrots with the mayo, seasoned rice vinegar (already has salt and sugar in it), mustard and pepper. If your guests like onion, you can grate a small onion and add this too!
This coleslaw will keep in the fridge for a day or two. After that, it begins to look disturbing and should be discarded.
If you are serving food to gluten-free friends, check carefully with the manufacturers, or on the reputable internet-based gluten free food lists, to make sure that all ingredients are gluten free. Or, ask your friends which brands are safe for them to eat.
1/4 cup fresh tangerine, clementine or orange juice
1/4 cup gluten free rice vinegar
1 teaspoon gluten free dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup olive oil
salt
freshly ground pepper
gluten free cayenne pepper
Minced scallions, to taste – one or two
Use romaine lettuce for the salad, mix all the dressing ingredients and pour on the salad. Toss and serve. You can add more scallions if the guests are onion lovers!
If your friends are not eating oil, omit the oil. If they prefer not to have onions, omit the onions! This dressing is great made with citrus and seasoned rice vinegar, all by themselves.
If you are serving food to gluten-free friends, check carefully with the manufacturers, or on the reputable internet-based gluten free food lists, to make sure that all ingredients are gluten free. Or, ask your friends which brands are safe for them to eat.
3-4 cups of cooked corn (you can use frozen or fresh)
1/2 cup diced red bell pepper
1 cup of cooked lima beans, edamame beans or other beans (or leave them out)
1/2 cup diced red onion
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of gluten free red chile powder
1/4 cup gluten free cider vinegar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
freshly ground black pepper
Mix it all up, refrigerate it and let the flavors mix for a couple of hours. This simple corn salad is delicious, and very colorful! If you are making this for a gluten-free friend, make sure to use gluten free spices, and tell your friend that you took the trouble. There are some spice purveyors that promise to include all ingredients on their labels, but some of them don’t and this makes the GF community wary and nervous about the possibility of fillers that may have been added to the spices!
You can add tomatoes to this recipe, and you can add 1-2 minced jalapeno peppers if you want a little heat in your salad.
If you are serving food to gluten-free friends, check carefully with the manufacturers, or on the reputable internet-based gluten free food lists, to make sure that all ingredients are gluten free. Or, ask your friends which brands are safe for them to eat.
Steam 1 1/2 pounds of green beans, or slice a couple of 12 ounce packages of mushrooms (cleaned really, really well, because after all what is all that dirt on those mushrooms anyway?)
Make a dressing of:
2-3 large cloves of garlic, minced
6-8 fresh basil leaves, minced
1/4 cup olive oil
3 Tablespoons GF red wine vinegar
salt
pepper
Marinate the beans or mushrooms in this dressing. You can add roasted red pepper strips, diced red onion, fresh spinach leaves (add spinach just before serving). Enjoy!
If you are serving food to gluten-free friends, check carefully with the manufacturers, or on the reputable internet-based gluten free food lists, to make sure that all ingredients are gluten free. Or, ask your friends which brands are safe for them to eat.
1 cup of diced ripe mango (try a champagne mango – they are yummy!)
1 cup diced ripe tomato
1/2 diced red onion
1/4 cup minced scallion
2 Tablespoons minced cilantro (use scissors for mincing – it’s quicker)
2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 Tablespoons lime juice
1 seeded jalapeno pepper, minced (careful – these are spicy!)
salt
freshly ground pepper
Prepare all the ingredients, mix, adjust the salt, pepper and sweetness, and serve.
If you are serving food to gluten-free friends, check carefully with the manufacturers, or on the reputable internet-based gluten free food lists, to make sure that all ingredients are gluten free. Or, ask your friends which brands are safe for them to eat.
6 Tablespoons of olive oil (make sure it’s fresh!)
juice of one lemon
1 teaspoon of sugar
salt
freshly ground pepper
1 scallion (green onion), cleaned and minced (use all the white part and about 1/3 of the green part)
1 teaspoon of gluten free prepared mustard of your choice
Mix this all together with a whisk, and serve with Boston lettuce or red lettuce, or a mix of baby salad greens.
If you are serving food to gluten-free friends, check carefully with the manufacturers, or on the reputable internet-based gluten free food lists, to make sure that all ingredients are gluten free. Or, ask your friends which brands are safe for them to eat.
1/4 cup vegetable oil
4 teaspoons of your favorite honey
4 teaspoons of gluten free prepared dijon mustard
1 teaspoon of minced fresh chives, shallot or scallions
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon minced fresh dill (you can mince a lot and store dill in the freezer)
1/4 teaspoon gluten free paprika
1 clove of garlic, grated or minced
3 Tablespoons gluten free red wine vinegar or cider vinegar
1 teaspoon of fresh lemon juice
salt and fresh pepper
Mix it all up, and serve with your salad!
If you are serving food to gluten-free friends, check carefully with the manufacturers, or on the reputable internet-based gluten free food lists, to make sure that all ingredients are gluten free. Or, ask your friends which brands are safe for them to eat.
When the gluten-free person makes that trip to the grocery store, they enter like a cart-horse with blinders on – seeing only the 25% of the product aisles that have gluten-free food in them. Naturally, we gravitate towards the produce section, where the vegetables are neatly sealed in gluten-free packages by their allmighty maker – not even the food industry could introduce a “solution” into a potato, or add a modified food starch to lettuce. So, we are always happy to see our colorful vegetable friends! A safe oasis of green, orange and red in a desert world of wheat.
The salad course is a favorite, so we collect a variety of healthy vegetables, but then we wander over to the dressing shelf and have to get out those reading glasses to see what creepy ingredients the manufacturers have added to the products. We are ready to present to you here, on the gluten-free Gf-Zing! website, a selection of salad dressing recipes that will make your vegetables sing!
Check the Salads and Dressings link in the menu on the left for some salad dressing recipes.