Yummy GF Waffles (Europe)

The origin of waffles dates back to the Middle Ages, thin crisp cakes between wafer irons. In 14th century England, wafers were sold by street vendors called waferers. Some food historians say the waffle originated in Greece in the 1300. In Sweden there is even a Waffle Day! In America, waffles were brought in by the Pilgrims from Holland and are typically leavened with baking powder.

Those of us who are gluten free can celebrate the waffle with this recipe which I think are better than the run of the mill wheat ones . The potato and rice flours crisp nicely in the waffle iron. Be sure to use the right kind of rice flour, the fine ground variety and not the glutinous ground rice or regular ground. Also don’t confuse potato flour with potato starch, they are different. Substituting will affect the outcome of your waffles. If you happen to be lucky enough for leftovers, they also freeze very nicely. To save time, mix the dry ingredients and store them. When ready simply add the wet ingredients. Serve with your favorite fruit, soy yogurt and smother it in agave or maple syrup…YUMMY! Note: Sorry, this recipe does not work for pancakes.

Wheat Free, Dairy Free Waffles
2/3 cup Rice Flour ( fine ground)
1/2/ cup Potato Starch
1 tsp Baking Soda
½ tsp Salt
8 tbsp Non Dairy Butter (I use Earthblend), melted and cooled slightly
1 2/3 cup Soy Milk “Buttermilk” *
1 Egg
1 Egg Whites
2 tbsp Agave

Spray or oil your waffle iron.
Sift all the dry ingredients together.
In a separate bowl, mix the egg yolks and Egg whites together.
Add in cooled melted butter, buttermilk and agave.
Stir wet ingredients into the dry. Batter will be very thin.
Place a ladle full into waffle iron and cook until steam stops. Slowly lift top cover. If the waffles are cooked, you will have less resistance when trying to lift the cover. If it is difficult to lift
Your waffles are not done, leave in and continue to test. You should get the hang of it. This recipe will make about 6-8 square waffles.

*To make a soy “buttermilk”, take a cup of soy milk and add a tsp of apple cider vinegar, let sit for 30 minutes till it curdles. You may also use rice milk.

Good News- Your Nonwheat Alternatives are Endless

For those of you new to gluten free here are the flours to avoid that contain wheat derivatives– spelt, kamut, emmer, einkorn, wheat starch, wheat bran, wheat germ, cracked wheat, hydrolyzed wheat protein, barley, rye and triticale (which is a cross between wheat and rye). Also avoid bromated flour, durum flour, enriched flour, farina, graham flour, self rising flour, semolina, white and plain flour. In general, it is also a good rule to avoid processed foods as they may contain hidden wheat such as products with soy sauce which can sometimes contain wheat in fermenting. Michael Pollan in his book “In Defense of Food” suggests as a general rule to avoid any product with more than 5 ingredients. A good idea.

So what can you use? Well here is the great news – your repertoire of possibilities has now grown from the mundane to the exotic. Some flours I have used successfully in combination are flours made with amaranth, arrowroot, buckwheat (no, this is not wheat and one of my favorite flours), cassava, corn, flax, legume flours (fava, garbanzo etc.), millet, potatoes, nuts, quinoa, rice (brown, white and sweet rice), sago, sorghum, soy, tapioca, teff and yucca. Quite impressive a selection!

Oh, don’t forget the nut based flours like pecan, almond, soy, sesame, walnut,etc. All these range in crumb from the thickness of meal fours to the powdery quality of fine coursed nut flours. You will be amazed at how many options there are, just try browsing any of your local ethnic food stores.

What this means is that we have a world to explore and until the rest of the industrial world catches up In the meantime, enjoy the discovery of new foods!

Fish and Chips (England)

Once in awhile you have a craving for good old fish and chips. Delicate crispy pieces of fried batter dipped cod that melts in your mouth. This GF recipe is so crunchy and perfect that no one even guessed it was GF. The trick is to keep the cod crispy in the oven after frying it. In this recipe, I used soy milk versus the beer to avoid any possibility of wheat fermentation although you can use rice or almond milk as well.

1.5 lbs cod
1¼ cup brown rice flour
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
¾ cup soy milk
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 250 F. Cut, fish into chunks, wash in cold water and pat dry.
Mix dry ingredients in bowl. Mix soy milk and eggs together then stir into dry ingredients mixing till smooth.
Dip fish in batter mix and let sit for 15 minutes.
Heat oil to 350F. Place small batches of fish at a time into oil to keep temperature hot. Turn fillets to cook both sides, leave in till golden brown (6-8 minutes),
Place on paper towels to drain. Remove paper towels and place in oven until ready to serve. Serve with vinegar for a true English experience.

Millenium, San Francisco

For 15 years Millenium has served up some very special foods to appeal to the vegetarian in all of us. Located a few blocks up from Union Square in The Hotel California on Geary Street, this restaurant will not disappoint. Under the direction of Eric Tucker, his team uses the produce of the season to impress and astound his patrons with the scrumptious ever changing menu. Even the most die hard carnivore will reconsider. From the Merguez Grilled Portabello Mushroon to the Teff Crepes to non dairy mousses and puddings, almond cashew crust filled with mocha chocolate filling, dinner was divine. Best of all, the staff is accommodating and knowledgeable about any food allergies one might have offering gluten, lactose free suggestions. Enjoy!

The Darker Side of Eating Wheat

Generations ago wheat had a 50% lower gluten content and was cultivated mostly in Southwest Asia before spreading to Europe. Rice, corn, sorghum and millet were the norm in countries across the world. Today, wheat crops have genetically become very complex to allow for improved storage and improved baking. In fact, the genome for everyday wheat bread is 6.5 times larger than that of the human genome! That complexity gives it a massive number of proteins, each with a potential to cause symptoms.

It is estimated that 1 in 133 Americans of European descent may have the disease with over 1 million people in the US with undiagnosed celiac. In people who have gluten sensitivity or celiac, their bodies cannot absorb the vitamins and nutrients of the food they eat due to the immune system damaging the villi or the tiny walls in the intestine. Symptoms for celiac run the gamut from autoimmune system diseases like arthritis, lupus to allergic conditions like psoriasis, asthma, skin rashes to neurologic syndromes like depression and conditions like autism (which seems to respond best to a gluten free diet). Unfortunately for reasons not understood celiac disease can come on at any time in life and is believed to be hereditary.

Thankfully the foods that one can eat are numerous. I mentioned in a previous blog that looking at the vast array of foods that one can eat rather than ones that you cannot is not only a healthier approach but also opens one up to try a world of food from other cultures where many live without wheat. Focusing on what we can have than what we cannot makes the journey much more interesting.

A GF Venezuelan Treat

Occasionally a drive to the Napa Valley Oxbow market is a must to satisfy a craving for the Venezuelan "sandwiches" called chachapas and arepas at the informal Pica Pica Maize Kitchen. Chachapas and arepas are traditional foods available at roadside stands in Venezeula.Both are made from corn and shaped into pancakes or wrapped in dry corn leaves and boiled. Chachapas are slightly thicker than arepas due to the corn kernel pieces added to the batter. Naturally gluten free, they are traditionally eaten with a soft mozzarella type cheese. A close cousin, the arepas are grilled corn flour flatbreads which are crunchy on the outside and moist and sweet on the inside. Both are simply made of corn, water and salt which makes it a perfect GF treat. The sweetness of the corn dough is a wonderful complement to the different fillings whether savory or sweet.

At Pica Pica they serve a trendy versions like one filled with good old American ham and cheese to a unique vegetarian California blend of tofu, avocado, black beans, cheese and plantain bananas to a scrambled Venezulan egg. All are delicious and can be made easily at home with your favorite filling. Here is a GF, lactose and sugar free version of arepas you can easily make at home.

Venezuelan Arepas

1. Mix together 1 cup cornmeal and 1/4 tsp salt. (if you can have dairy, you can add a 1/2 cup of cheese with this mix)

2. Heat 1 cup soy, rice or nut milk till warm (microwave it takes about 40 seconds).

3. Mix in 2 tbsp earthblend or any non dairy butter (you can also use grapeseed oil) to the milk.

4. Stir milk into cornmeal to make a thick batter.

5. Add 1/2 cup corn kernels, 1/4 cup green onions, 1/4 cup chopped cilantro to mix.

6. Let batter sit for 15 minutes or until it forms a thick dough.

7. Form into 3 to 4 inch balls then flatten with the palm of your hand until you create flat discs about 1/2 an inch thick (You can refrigerate at this point until ready to cook)

8. Heat about 3 tbsp oil in a skillet, add discs and cook till golden. Takes about 5 minutes for one side, flip to other side and cook another 3 minutes. When cool enough, split open and fill.