Nori rolls

As a child, I generally avoided dirtying my hands in the kitchen, preferring instead to eat everything that came out of it. I got away with this for years because my mom is such an amazing and willing chef, happy to chop and saute and knead for hours when she has an appreciative audience. It wasn't until my senior year of high school, in anticipation of moving away for college, when I realized that I needed to learn to cook for myself.

One of the few things I would try my hand at and loved making with my mom were nori rolls, the all-veggie sushi roll. I would stand on my toes to see what my mom would pull from her paper bags of groceries, and when the package of nori sheets emerged, I would immediately make myself a snack: toasted nori sheets (passed over the gas flame) dipped in tamari. We would also make incredible nori rolls, with seriously sour and salty umeboshi plum paste (that I could eat by the spoonful), spread on the edges to seal in the sticky rice filling. We would slice the finished rolls on the cutting board and marvel at how perfectly formed the little swirls were, like watching a Fimo bead take shape from a lumpy roll of clay. I would devour each piece, standing over the counter top with a small dish of tamari and my favorite floral chopsticks until I cleaned the final grain of fallen rice from the dish.

Last night, I decided to try my hand at the delicacy and they were a huge success! Alex has only recently tried and enjoyed sushi, so his approval means the world. I made a variety of combinations from our five fillers, but you can use whatever you choose. Our local sushi restaurant makes peanut-avocado rolls, so I attempted a couple of those. I also made mushroom-carrot-avocado, my favorite, and an "everything," as well as simple cuke and avocado rolls. Play with your favorite fillings, get creative. Other options include green beans, soy beans, and bell peppers. When it's all done, as long as your ingredients are good, you can make a mess of the roll and still enjoy every last bite.

Sushi rice
Yields about 4 cups cooked rice
2 cups white sushi rice, rinsed until water is clear (this is necessary to clean off the starches so it will be the right consistency when cooked)
2 1/2 cups water

3 T rice vinegar
1 T sugar
1/2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
1/2 tsp tamari (the wheat-free soy sauce)

1. Cook water and rinsed rice over high heat. Once boiling, reduce to the lowest setting and cover for 20 minutes or until all water is absorbed, stirring several times to prevent sticking to the pot.

2. When rice is done (taste for cooked but chewy texture), remove from heat and let sit, covered, 10 minutes. This helps keep it moist.

3. Turn rice into large bowl and combine with vinegar-sugar mixture. Cut in sauce, as with pastry dough, until rice is thoroughly coated.

4. Spread rice across sides and bottom of bowl to cool. Cover with a damp cloth to keep it wet until you're ready to use it for the sushi.














Momma's Nori Rolls
Makes 8 rolls, with some leftover veggies

4 cups cooked sushi rice, seasoned as above

8 sheets nori, toasted VERY briefly over a low flame (just pass it over quickly until it turns bright green but before it starts smoking)

Filling of your choice:
5 shitaki mushrooms, reconstituted with boiling water for 20 minutes (reserve the liquid)
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into matchsticks, blanched briefly over boiling water
1 cucumber, peeled and sliced into matchsticks
1 avocado, sliced thinly lengthwise
1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts

Bowl of water to moisten the edge of the nori.

1. Using the back of a wooden spoon, spread about 1/2 cup of the rice on a sheet of nori (rough side face up). Press the rice onto the sheet, creating a thin coating up to the last inch of nori, being careful not to tear the wrapper. (Keep the damp cloth over the remaining rice to prevent drying.)

2. Line up your chosen filling along the bottom edge of the nori (on the rice end), placing just a few pieces of carrots, cucumber, or mushrooms stacked onto each other. You don't want to add too much or you will burst your nori.

3. Starting at the edge with the filling, wrap the nori over and roll tightly up to the non-rice end. Moisten the dry part with water and complete the roll, resting it seam-side-down on the counter. Slice at 3/4" intervals or so, to your desired thickness, and dunk in sauce (below).

Dipping Sauce
Makes enough for 2 rolls, if you cook it down
This sauce has a pleasantly sweet, woodsy flavor, thanks to the shitaki "juice" which is made from soaking the dried mushrooms in hot water for 30 minutes prior to use.

Simmer, covered, for 10 minutes:
1 cup shitaki soaking water
1 Tbsp tamari
dash of toasted sesame oil

Cook down to 1/3 cup, remove from heat and pour into small dipping bowls. Toss in some sliced scallions and go to town on the sushi.

Perfect Pesto Risotto

My wonderful friend Nora sent us the amazing cookbook, Sundays at Moosewood Restaurant, from our hometown cafe, and Alex and I have had so much fun selecting recipes from it each week. We sit down on Sunday afternoons and choose a region of the world we'd like to visit (last time it was Provence, then Italy; this week is Japan) and begin planning our week's menus. Sometimes we pick a movie or wine from the featured country to enhance the experience. I cherish those weeknights when we set aside our work woes and pressures of the city and just get lost in the flavors in front of us.

We selected this delicate, seasonal risotto to accompany the basil and peas that are fresh in the market. Risotto is traditionally made with Italian Arborio rice, a "glutinous" rice with a lovely football shape. The key to creamy, chewy risotto is to add the stock slowly, in small batches, and to stir it frequently throughout the 30 minute cooking time.

This dish was sublime--creamy, zesty, salty, with just the right bite to keep it interesting. I would recommend it with a simple salad of apples, walnuts and greens.

Pesto Risotto
5 cups vegetable stock (we used organic low-sodium)
2 T vegetable oil or butter or combo
1 yellow onion, finely minced
1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup sweet peas, briefly blanched with last 1/4 cup of stock.
4 T homemade pesto (below)

1. Boil the stock in a small saucepan, reduce heat and keep it simmering.

2. Heat oil in large saucepan on medium heat and saute onion until translucent, 3 minutes, then add the rice and toss with the oil (use a wooden spoon).

3. Add wine and stir until absorbed. Add stock, 1/2 cup at a time, and stir until each batch is absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup. Each addition should take about 2 minutes for the rice to dry out between pours. This will go on about 20 minutes, tapering off with smaller and more frequent additions at the end, reserving the last 1/4 cup of stock. Taste every couple of minutes until rice is tender but al dente.

4. Remove from heat, add the remaining 1/4 stock with the cheese. Stir in the pesto and peas, gently, to keep the shape of the rice and peas. Serve immediately while warm and fragrant. Inhale the basil-y aroma and dig in.

Presto! Pesto

Presto! Pesto
Combine in a food processor, being sure to add enough EVOO to moisten the mixture:

4 cups basil leaves, washed
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (or pinenuts, if you can splurge)
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cloves garlic
Juice of half lemon

This is all to taste, find a balance of tart and garlicky that works for you.

Animal crackers in my soup...

I'm guessing most people don't know the rest of that Shirley Temple song, it's one my little sister used to sing when she was about four years old and had a peanut belly. We had a VHS of Curly Top that we'd play over and over, fast forwarding to the dancing scenes. My sister was perfectly suited to the roll.

I was inspired by these delicious little cookies, Animal Crackers!, which I thought I'd never be able to eat again! Hurrah for Mi-Del and their gluten-free line of delicious little snacks. I do intend to start posting my own concoctions just as soon as I'm home and settled in from my trip, but in the meantime, I think it's important to share my latest GF product discoveries.

Dunking these crispy, sweet, vanilla cookies into a cold glass of milk is just the kind of Friday afternoon comfort food I need to get through the home stretch at work. They have a great *crunch* and are thinner than traditional animal crackers, but are just as satisfying and delicious. They do have eggs and milk, which is fine for me, and don't contain garbanzo (chickpea) flour, which really upsets my stomach, so they're practically perfect in every way....wrong musical. On a rainy afternoon, I highly recommend kicking back with a tall glass of milk and a bag of these goodies.

A Note on GF traveling

As I mentioned yesterday, Larabars are my new favorite nourishment when stranded without sympathizers or those knowledgeable about the issue (like my waiter last night who said, "Yeah, I'm pretty sure the flourless cake is gluten-free; we don't make it in-house, but I would guess it's fine because it says 'flourless.'") I'm learning on this trip--my first extensive travel since going GF--that guesses are not enough to keep me healthy. So what do I recommend eating when on the go and without a refrigerator?

Keep in your bag:
*Larabars- especially the Cinnamon Roll and Ginger Snap flavors
*Roasted nuts, pumpkin seeds, dried fruit (be sure to check the labels, especially if they are flavored because they can contain malt extract, "natural flavors," wheat starch, or other additives).

*Fresh fruit!!! I bought a jar of PB to keep in my room and slather on bananas (no refrigeration required). Pick things with a glycemic bang since you may have to subsist on it for a while before returning to healthy home base...

*Potato chips, corn chips, vegetable chips (again, check the labels carefully for flavorings and additives, stick with those labeled "Gluten-Free").

*GF cookies! I love Pamela's Pecan Shortbread Cookies, they are so buttery and flaky, you would never know they were "missing" anything. Alex loves them too.

Look for at restaurants:
*When in doubt, order a salad. Be sure there aren't croutons and that the dressing doesn't have additives (to be safe, ask for oil and balsamic or white vinegar- malt vinegar is made with barley).

*Risotto, polenta, paella, tofu and rice (no soy sauce, but tamari is OK), soups made without roux, and cheese plates are good fillers.

*Mexican food (get corn tortillas) is a good bet, but always check with the server to be sure. Hopefully yours will be better informed than mine was.

*French fries, potato wedges, baked potatoes are good, unless the fries are coated with flour before cooking (fast food restaurants in particular may do this, but many have menus inside with allergy information).

*Wine and tequila are usually fine. Here's a better list of safe alcoholic drinks.

Watch out for:
*Waiters and cooks who don't know what gluten is or who don't seem responsive to your questions.

*Most processed and pre-made foods, in delis and at restaurants.

Hello Chicago! (and Goodbye Oats!)

I'm in Chi-town this week for work, and aside from pulling 16-hour days with a crew of 12 others, I'm navigating the limited culinary options for a GF veggie on the road. While Chicago has fine offerings for any diet, the constraints of my work schedule are such that I'm lucky to land a salad at a fast food joint as we pass by. I can't wait to properly explore the city and its cuisine, but for now, I am savoring bananas with peanut butter and late-night Lara Bars.

Sadly, I think I got "glutened" on Sunday and I'm still suffering the effects. To explain, getting "glutened" is what folks in the GF world call being exposed to gluten, something that is more severe for Celiacs, who need only a small bit of crumbs or wheat-based additives to feel a reaction. It can be hard to pin down exactly what causes your reaction, because for many people the effects of exposure can often take 12+ hours to show up and then can last days or weeks, depending on the severity.

On Sunday, I was stranded in the Delta Shuttle terminal of LaGuardia airport for 8 hours as the crew scrambled to find a missing part for the plane (hardly reassuring on its own...) The only food option was the Panini Grill, which offered only meaty salads and meaty sandwiches, so there was nothing I could eat. I watched as the estimated departure time rose from 2:55 pm to 3:25 pm and then to 4:45 pm and so on until the late evening (we didn't end up taking off until 10 pm). After about 8 hours without food and a long journey ahead if me, I caved in to my growling stomach and bought a yogurt with granola, a risky venture that I knew might lead to illness. But it was either that or eat meat, so I chose my morals over my health (a choice I'm still paying for today).

The problem with granola is that although oats do not contain wheat or rye or barley (or the other gluten-based flours), they are considered so contaminated with wheat that they can cause a gluten reaction. Oats are usually grown in the same fields as wheat and processed, packaged, and shipped with wheat, making it very likely that they contain traces of gluten (although certified GF Oats are available now). Different countries have different standards on classifying oats: the US is the strictest, while the UK lets up to a certain contamination level pass. Scientists and nutritionists are still debating this issue, but I think my body has reached its own conclusion.

So now I am paying for that precious meal--in the form of a migraine that woke me up at 3:45 this morning and kept me up until 5:00, a sore throat, exhaustion, the feeling that I'm getting sick, and terrible stomach pain--I won't make that gamble again. I haven't felt this rotten from exposure since I stopped eating gluten, but I think that could be the very reason I'm experiencing such a strong reaction: my body has had a chance to heal, but now it is faced with its enemy and is attacking full force (please stop!!)

The up-side is that I can completely prevent this from ever happening, as long as I'm diligent and have support from the friends and family who are sharing food with me, then I have the tools to keep myself healthy. If it means starving for 8 hours in LaGuardia, the temporary pain is worth it to avoid days of punishment, but in the future, I really need to plan ahead and pack my own GF snacks for just such a predicament.

Hopefully I'll be better shortly and can post some delicious things we made this past weekend. Until then, I'll be trying to recover while working this crazy schedule for another day (7:30 am till midnight tomorrow) and then I will try to rest. I have so much sympathy for people out there who have this kind of reaction to even the smallest exposure: a "contaminated" cutting board used to slice bread; a kiss from your honey after he or she took a sip of beer; using shampoo or lipstick containing gluten. Thankfully, I think I have been fine with these things so far. If only I was home, I would drink my miracle concoction of fresh juices which I believe can heal any ailment:

Soothing Apple-Lemon-Ginger Tonic
Makes one 12-16oz. juice

In a juicer, combine:
3 green apples
3 lemons
1/2 cup fresh ginger

Chill or add ice cubes to soothe your heart and tummy.

Rhubarb of my eye

Strawberry rhubarb pie is one of my all-time favorites, for I love all things tart and pink (like grapefruits, raspberries, and watermelon Jolly Ranchers), but when pie crust is a bit of an ordeal, especially GF, this is a nice little version. The filling is all I really care about anyway, I always offer my crusts to Alex or my siblings.


I poured the ensuing pie-filling mush over some Haagen Dazs vanilla bean ice cream and just about floated off to Cloud Nine. With two spoons and one bowlful, we quickly devoured the slushy mixture and refilled several times before we were satisfied.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Mush
Makes a lot: enough for 4-6 generous ice cream toppers
2 cups rhubarb, rinsed and chopped to 1/2" slices
2 cups strawberries, rinsed and chopped to 1/2" slices
1 1/2 tsp. sugar (we're pretty brave, some folks might prefer more)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 dash cinnamon, if you like

Pint of vanilla ice cream, or just a couple spoons. It's a little too runny to treat as jam, but I'd love to hear other folks' ideas for how to use it.

1. Melt down the rhubarb and strawberries with some water, 1/8-1/4 cup should suffice.

2. Once simmering, add sugar and cinnamon, stir frequently until combined. No need to boil. Remove from heat and add vanilla.

3. Pour over ice cream and slurp it back.

Real true delicious pizza!

,

After the first agonizing two weeks without wheat, most of my painful cravings ceased and I adjusted to my new diet. In the first few days though, I was a mess to be around; all I could think about was the food I couldn't eat, and when I closed my eyes, I actually saw buttery crackers, foccacia bread, coffee cakes. I went cold turkey and didn't have any supplements yet, so I was pretty hungry to boot. It wasn't until I trekked up to the health food store a mile north of our apartment and discovered a box of GF cookies that I found some relief. Needless to say, they were gone by morning!

Having mostly adjusted to the realities of my diet and embraced all my options, I still find myself craving the chewy-crisp texture of good bread soaked in olive oil or steaming with melty butter. When Alex made me this pizza last week from the Whole Foods mix, I felt guilty with pleasure. The crust is so perfect---either thin or as a deep-dish pie--with its tender inside and firm crusty exterior (which I promptly soaked in excellent olive oil). We topped it with some homemade tomato sauce, a combination of mozzarella, parmesan, and manchego cheeses, and fresh tomatoes and basil, but anything would be amazing on this base.

Alex's pizza:
Makes two medium pizzas (serves 4)

1 package Whole Foods GF pizza crust mix, prepared
2 cups homemade tomato sauce
2-3 cups grated cheese of your choice (we did 1/2 mozz, 1/4 manchego, 1/4 parm because that's what we had in the fridge)
1 sliced tomato
1 cup fresh basil, washed

1. Prep dough, let rise 30 minutes.

2. Make tomato sauce (see below)

3. Arrange dough in a 9" cake pan for deep dish (above) or spread onto cookie sheet for thinner crust (top image). Spread half sauce across dough, to taste, and add cheeses, then arrange tomato slices and basil on top.

4. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, until it's ooey and bubbling. You do not have to pre-bake the crust, so it's a pretty quick meal from start to finish. Devour immediately!

Easy tomato sauce

This is our go-to sauce when we want to throw together a pizza, pasta dish, or even a hoagie for supper. I really love the simplicity of the flavors here, and you can modify to suit your taste, but i find that the bit of sugar is necessary to counter the canned flavor (so it isn't usually necessary when working with fresh tomatoes).

1 Tbsp. EVOO
1 Yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 28 oz. can Muir Glen organic diced plum tomatoes
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 handful fresh basil leaves, washed
dash salt and pepper to taste

1. Sautee the onion in the olive oil
2. Add the garlic and tomatoes, bring to a simmer.
3. Add the oregano, sugar, salt and pepper, stir to combine, 5 minutes.
4. Add the basil and more salt and pepper as needed.

You can also add red pepper flakes, bay leaves, fresh rosemary, mushrooms, or peppers to the sautee to bring out other flavors.

Bountiful breakfast

In continuing my ode to fresh summer berries, I must post this incredible and simple breakfast from last weekend. These Lifestream wildberry buckwheat waffles are my favorite GF variety because they have a really crispy exterior but a velvety inside that melts in your mouth (with tons of berry bits inside). I had them with peach yogurt, my alternative to butter for pancakes and waffles, and piles of fresh summer fruits. It was truly indulgent, the kind of meal that is best on a leisurely morning when you can really savor each bite. In contrast, during the week I often eat these babies plain and slightly frozen as I walk to the subway. I definitely do not recommend that method! So here's to the weekend, even when it seems so far off, for there are little indulgences awaiting.

Little bites of sunshine

Lying in bed last night, I nibbled these incredible gifts of nature. With each bite, I proclaimed a new sensation: "This tastes like sunshine!" "This tastes like exploration!" "This tastes like fireflies at dusk!"

Alex picked me these incredible black caps when he was home last weekend. I was on the phone with him as he waded waist-deep through berry bushes behind his family's barn, tugging handfuls of delicious purple fruits from their vines. That night, his mom made a black-cap pie with vanilla custard and the next morning, a coffee cake with layers of berries, cheesecake and spiced crumb topping. I sneaked a bite of the top layers, and it was truly divine.

Something about the odor of honey and the lingering lazy sunshine in these berries makes them the most flavorful and the most sensual of all berries. Although red raspberries are a close second for me, they lack the zesty bite of the wild black caps (and the nostalgia of a mid-summer discovery along an enchanted meadow path). Thank you for these little bites of heaven!

As for recipes, I'm afraid to say I just eat them plain, because they really should be savored on their own, or sprinkled atop good vanilla ice cream. I hope you're lucky enough to live near a patch of these babies, or to have someone who will brave the prickers and bring you a cupful from hundreds of miles away!