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17 Apr You Say “Linguine,” I Say “Zunguine”…

Looks kinda good, doesn’t it? That’s linguine with mussels and clams in a spicy, fresh tomato sauce. Doesn’t it seem like a great way to end a week, to sit down to this and a nice glass of Chardonnay? Too bad I can’t eat it. So, what is a currently gluten-free woman to do, especially when she’s sharing this meal with a gluten lover? The answer, my friends, is compromise. And a spiralizer: linguine for him and zucchini linguine (or, as I like to call it, zunguine) for me.

Yes, there are a lot of gluten-free pastas on the market, made from rice, quinoa, vegetables, etc., and some of them are quite tasty. But sometimes I want something a little lighter, fresher and… well, I really like kitchen toys, too.

Meet an alternative answer for gluten-free pasta loving: the spiralizer. It looks a little complicated, with its crank and different blades, but it’s soooo easy, once you get started you want to spiralize everything you see (well, maybe that’s only me). Just insert your zucchini (or veg of choice – sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips – lots of veggie-into-spaghetti options), make sure the smallest blade plate is inserted (the one for making thin, multiple spirals) and crank away!

Out comes crazy-fun pasta-like spirals. I get made fun of aplenty for how excited this kind of thing makes me. But I don’t care, I love it. Food should be fun and delightful, in both the making and eating of it.

Okay, now for the recipe pictured above, for both gluten-lovers plus info on how to sub in the curly-cues above for the gluten-free. Should serve two hungry people. Pair with a bright salad.

Linguine With Clams and Mussels in a Spicy Tomato Sauce

6 oz linguine, or 2 large zucchini, sprialized into “zunguine” shape (or 3 oz linguine and 1 large zucchini, if you’re compromising)
1 T olive oil
1-2 large shallots, minced
5 cloves garlic, pressed
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 C white wine
2 T fresh sage, chopped fine
1/2 t red pepper flakes
pinch sea salt
2 large leaves of Swiss chard, stripped of the ribs and chiffonade
12 little neck clams
12 mussels

How to:

1. Place mussels and clams in a large bowl of cold water. A good soak should encourage them to open a little and release any sand they’re holding onto inside those pretty shells. When everything else is prepped, carefully scrub each one (tug out any “beards” you see on the mussels) and place in a clean bowl. Whatever you do, don’t just dump the bowl of soaking mollusks into a colander as this may damage the shells and will definitely deposit any released sand all over them again.

2. Put on a pot of water to boil and fix pasta according to package directions. Alternatively, spiralize your zucchini, place zunguine in a sauce pan and put off to the side.

3. In another sauce pan – a large one with deep sides – saute shallots and garlic in olive oil over medium heat. When shallots are soft, add tomatoes, wine, sage and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil and simmer for a couple of minutes. Taste and season as necessary (pinch salt, more red pepper flakes).

4. Add Swiss chard and shellfish to tomato sauce, cover for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, check to see if the shells are starting to open. Re-cover the pan, but keep the lid a little off center, this will allow the clams and mussels to finish steaming and let the sauce reduce a little. When all shells are open (no more than 10 mins total), uncover completely. If the sauce looks a little watery, let the liquid reduce a little. (Remember, any shells that don’t open = already dead mollusk = don’t eat it.)

5. While shellfish are cooking, drain pasta and plate on individual plates (pasta bowls or plates that can handle saucy food). If using the gluten-free option, heat pan with zucchini (medium high). The zucchini should have enough water in it to simmer in its own juices. Let simmer until zucchini just starts to soften, then turn off heat. Plate your zunguine.

6. Ladle shellfish and sauce over the linguine/zuguine. Now, EAT.

10 Apr Spring Time For Pumpkin Seeds…

Pepitas are one of my favorite ways to give a salad a little something extra. They’re easy to find – Trader Joe’s carries both raw (used in the recipe below) and roasted with salt (which are actually really salty, if you ask this salt-lover). And that extra isn’t just a nice little crunch: 1/4 C of pepitas will knock you back 186 calories, but you’ll get 8g protein and a good source of magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, iron, copper, vitamin K and zinc. And, really, all you need is 1/4 C to punch up a hearty salad for two (three, if you have an even heartier main planned).

Spring Spinach Salad with Goat Cheese and Pepitas

2 large handfuls organic baby spinach
1 medium red bell pepper, sliced and cut into bit-size pieces
1 C (heaping) yellow heirloom grape tomatoes, sliced length-wise
1/2 C blueberries
1 shot glass of raw pepitas
2 oz goat cheese, crumbled
Lemon Vinaigrette, to taste

In a large bowl, combine first four ingredients, toss to combine. Then add cheese and a splash of the vinaigrette. Toss to combine, taste and adjust dressing as desired.

Lemon Vinaigrette

3 T fresh lemon juice
1/4 C olive oil
1/2 t dijon mustard
1 small clove garlic, pressed
generous pinch sea salt
3 T water

Combine all ingredients in a jar. Cover securely. Shake until well blended. Taste, adjust seasoning, add more water or oil for desired consistency and acidity. The taste is fresh and citrusy, keeping the salad feeling light, even as the goat cheese gives it some creaminess.

15 Mar Simple Sunday Supper…

I love a lazy Sunday: morning yoga, straightening up the house, running a few errands and plenty of time to play in the kitchen. Sometimes it’s an entirely new recipe to try, sometimes it’s cleaning out the refrigerator and sometimes it’s finally getting around to cooking that thing I’ve been craving all week but haven’t had time to make.

This Sunday wasn’t fancy, just fresh and flavorful. Instead of breaking this up into a separate posts, I’m snuggling all four recipes into this one post, just like they fit into the bowl above (meals in a bowl = my favorite).

Serves two for a hearty dinner, plus leftovers for a lunch the next day. Goes well with curling up on the couch and being cozy.

Kicky Southern Greens

4 C mixed dark leafy greens (Trader Joe’s has a Southern Blend with collards, spinach, turnip greens, etc., which is what I used here)
red chili pepper flakes, to taste
sea salt, to taste
1/2 lemon
olive oil

1. Prep greens by slicing into bite-size pieces or ribbons (wash first if you’re not using pre-washed greens).

2. Heat a large pan over medium high, adding a turn of olive oil when pan is hot. When oil is warm and can easily be swirled around to coat bottom of pan, add greens.

3. Saute until greens start to wilt and brighten in color, turn heat down a little if they start to burn. After ~5 mins, add a splash or two of water from your tea kettle, season with a few (or 5…) shakes of red chili pepper flakes and cover to braise the greens. (You could go straight to braising, but I like the extra flavor the the olive oil gives it.) Check every minute or so to make sure the water hasn’t evaporated, leaving the greens to burn.

4. When greens are a deep green color and tender, season with salt and juice half of a lemon over the top. Turn off heat and toss to coat with the lemon juice. (A splash of lemon juice or vinegar – e.g. apple cider vinegar – can take the edge off of the more bitter dark leafy greens.)

The lemon juice brightens the dish up and the red chili flakes give it little kick. Thus, Kicky Southern Greens. Onward….

Simple Veggie Saute

1 small sweet potato, cut into bite-size pieces
2 medium zucchini, cut into bite-size pieces
2 C sliced mushrooms
1 orange or red bell pepper, cut into bite-size pieces
sea salt, to taste
olive oil

1. Second verse, same as the first: Heat that same large pan over medium high again, adding a turn of olive oil when pan is hot. When oil is warm and can easily be swirled around to coat bottom of pan, add veggies, except bell pepper. If using sweet potatoes, add those first, give them a couple minutes head start before adding the zucchini and mushrooms. Season with sea salt. If the veggies are taking longer than you want to cook, add a splash of water and cover for a few minutes (just a couple). Any excess water should evaporate once you remove the lid and finish the saute.

2. When veggies are tender to your liking, taste test for seasoning – adjust with more salt as necessary – add bell pepper, turn off heat and cover for just a minute. I left the peppers raw to give the mix a contrasting texture and a brighter sweetness than the cooked sweet potatoes. Adding them to the hot mess and covering for a minute takes the cold edge off the peppers’ rawness. I liked it.

You can use any veggies, really. This is what I had on hand. But I really liked the addition of the mostly raw orange bell pepper. Also, I kept the greens and vegetables separate for this meal, since it wasn’t just for me and I wanted to offer bowl-loading options, but you could easily toss the greens back into the veggies just before they’re done, then add the bell pepper. Pretty.

Savory Black Beans and Coconut Rice

1 can organic, whole black beans
1/2 can organic diced tomatoes
garlic powder
cumin
2 C cooked brown rice
1 T coconut oil, to taste
sea salt, to taste

For the black beans…

1. Drain and rinse black beans.

2. Combine beans and tomatoes (with whatever juices fall out of the can) in a small pot over medium heat.

3. Season with garlic powder, cumin (I added several hearty shakes of each) and a little sea salt to taste. Let beans simmer for a few minutes to heat through and thicken with the tomatoes. If not enough juice comes out with the tomatoes, add a small splash of water (boy, this kettle’s getting a workout) to keep beans from burning, or turn down the heat a little.

For the coconut rice…

This is a great way to use up left-over brown rice. However, if you don’t make big batches of brown rice to eat throughout a week, then, clearly, cooking the rice should be the first step in this meal.

1. Heat a shallow sauce pan over medium (the lower side of medium) – I prefer a wider sauce pan so that more of the rice can hit the bottom of the pan and heat through more evening, vs. a smaller but deeper pot that will keep the rice in a taller heap.

2. When pan is hot, add 1T coconut oil.

3. When oil is about half-way melted, add rice to pot and stir well to coat with coconut oil.

4. Cook until rice is heated through. Season with sea salt and add more coconut oil to taste.

If you’re cooking the rice fresh, either in a rice cooker or in a pot on the stove, add the coconut oil at the end once the rice has rested a few minutes – just add and stir to melt the oil and thoroughly incorporate.

Voila! Simple Sunday supper ready to be served up.