Gluten-Free Chicken Soup for Body and Soul

A gluten-free chicken soup to cure all ills...

We've been living on soup since Sunday. No, not turkey leftovers soup. Jewish penicillin soup. You see, Steve- that ordinarily upbeat and tenacious husband of mine- has been feeling a tad under the weather these past few days. In truth, more than a tad. He's caught a nasty cold. The kind of cold where you ache all over and do nothing but lay in bed watching a marathon of Lost on your laptop because to even zombie-walk to the sofa loveseat too-small-to-lay-on requires functional navigation skills and balance beyond your sinus-throbbing capacity.



Poor guy.


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Gluten-Free Chicken Soup for Body and Soul

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Easy Chicken and Balsamic Peppers

When it comes to big change I'm brave. I jump in feet first. In my small and particular universe it's easier to pinch your nose and hurl yourself off the edge than it is to stand there and think about it. That kind of anticipation is excruciating. Give me five minutes to think about all the things that can go wrong and I'll start making lists. And never budge an inch.


So I've learned to develop a social reflex- a Hell yeah, let's do it reflex. And in almost every circumstance this reflex has served me well (and if by some slim chance you need a list of when it has worked for me and when it has not, I've got it, filed away in my pictorial little brain).


It's the small day to day changes that can set me spinning.


The blips in routine. The interruptions of flow. The tiny changes that evolve over time into articulate curves on a chart. See this dot? This is where we used to be. See this dot? This is where we are now.


I struggle so intently on orchestrating my string of moments into some semblance of coherent awareness that within each moment I live so completely I fail to see the bigger sprawling truth. The truth that often blindsides me. I wake up to it like a child from a nap, rubbing my eyes and trying to center my bearings. I look at my aging hands and think, Whose hands are these?


I open the door to the blinding bright desert and realize I am not Georgia O'Keeffe, the weathered austere heroine in the books I devoured. I am not madly in love with the emptiness and isolation here. It does not inspire me. It steals from me. Tiny pieces day after day. The desert gnaws at me. It will leave nothing but bleached white bones. And a hip with three titanium screws.


I am trying not to feel as if I've failed somehow. Failed the desert. Or rather, some Georgia O'Keeffe fueled romantic idea of the desert. But the brittle, honest truth is- the desert does not feed me.


Karina's three year course in desert living: F


It's a good thing I can cook.



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Easy Chicken and Balsamic Peppers

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Gluten-Free Italian Meatball Recipe

Gluten-free Italian meatballs recipe with pesto rice pasta




Craving meatballs but shun evil gluten? Have I got a meatball recipe for you. And it's so good you won't even have to apologize to your Aunt Carmella. I promise. She won't ever suspect you pulled a switcheroo on the old family recipe and made it gluten-free.




Mum's the word (or is it Mama mia?).




Let's face it. When it comes to making meatballs every family boasts an ultra-special top secret meatball recipe, right? There's a loyalty to meatball mojo as fierce and tooth baring as the die hard belief that Mom's meatloaf can cure all ills, mend bruised hearts, and restore order to chaos theory.




So why am I putting myself on the line here? How do I even dare to post a gluten-free meatball recipe? The wrong ingredient or technique might actually lead to fisticuffs. Or bristling. You might turn away from Gluten-Free Goddess in utter, sheer contempt.




I'm putting my reputation on the line here, and I know it.




So why risk it? Why torture myself with the inevitable backlash? Reason one-  an obvious plea. My meatballs are gluten-free and casein-free, in other words, GFCF. My audience. My people.




These meatballs also happen to be egg-free (yes, I hear the snorts of derision- may you wake tomorrow with a blooming albumen rash and come crawling back to peruse my egg-free recipes).




Reason number two? My spaghetti and meatballs? Killer. I'm serious.




Meatball bliss.





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Gluten-Free Italian Meatball Recipe

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A Gluten-Free Pasta with Ragù You Can Mangia

Gluten-free pasta with homemade red sauce.







Before I share my new ragù pasta sauce recipe, I have a note about the blog. Gluten-Free Goddess now has a FAQ page. (Thank you, David Lebovitz for the reader-friendly blogging tip.) What took me so long? Who knows, Babycakes? I sure don't. I could blame it on my preoccupation with Mad Men. Or hot flashes. Or the simple fact that living out here in the rural sand swept hills of Northern New Mexico is making me crazy. Not shooting caribou from a helicopter crazy, but. 




Crazy enough.




At any rate, now that I've come to my senses (I'm sure it's only temporary) you, Dear Reader, will find a platter of helpful links and answers to the most frequent questions asked here at the brand spankin' new Gluten-Free Goddess FAQ page. If I've overlooked anything obvious or important, I'm sure you'll let me know- won't you?




On to ragù! Up until quite recently I had never attempted a meat ragù. My red gravy of choice was always a simple vegetarian marinara sauce with plenty of garlic and basil- vegan by default (and choice). It's a recipe that I've been simmering on my stove or in my slow cooker for years. Decades, in fact. Way better than the jarred stuff. But lately I've become an omnivore. (to heal my broken hip) and I'm appreciating the virtues of grass fed Black Angus beef.




So I made a meat ragù. And here's the recipe.




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A Gluten-Free Pasta with Ragù You Can Mangia

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Italian Eggplant Recipe with Crumbled Beef, Tomatoes and Mint

Gluten-free eggplant recipe with crumbled beef, tomatoes and mint.







The classic Italian flavors are all here- eggplant, tomato, garlic, onion and oregano with a twist of fresh chopped mint nudging it over into Greek territory- but there's not a speck of gluten or dairy.




Mediterranean goodness on a plate.




This recipe is for those of us who miss eggplant Parmesan- a little something I threw together this week when my craving for a slab of eggplant Parm (as we called it back in Massachusetts) heated up to such a fever pitch that all I could think about was, How? How to translate a dish so fiercely reliant on a fried breadcrumb coating and slabs of melty Parmesan cheese? A dish so not gluten-free. Or dairy-free. Or lower glycemic friendly to this waist-whittling goddess.




Thin, weeped eggplant slices are brushed lightly with a little extra virgin olive oil and roasted in a hot oven- all by their lonesome. This makes for a delicate, slightly crispy eggplant slice, let me tell you. Topped with a homemade ragu of Italian tomatoes, browned ground organic beef with onions and garlic and herbs and a splash of balsamic vinegar- it's love, Mediterranean style. It is sustenance. It is flavor. And it's dairy-free.







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Italian Eggplant Recipe with Crumbled Beef, Tomatoes and Mint

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Pork Roast with Mushrooms and Brown Sugar Apricot-Pomegranate Sauce

Slow cooker pork roast with apricot jam.







My first pork roast recipe- ever. And it's a home run. I apologize for the sports metaphor but I've been sitting at my desk for an hour. And not a single sentence has been birthed. Even after one hot mother of a mug of coffee (and a decaf peppermint green tea that really doesn't count because, well, it's tea), I'm still in a post Sunday fog today, basking in the afterglow of a Sunday afternoon spent with friends. We ate and drank our way through six hours of non-stop conversation. I get all warm and fuzzy just thinking about it. And I'm more than a little tempted to wax poetic about friendship and how we choose our true family and what a head banging blue-in-the-face relief it is to sit at a table with soulful people who wrestle with big questions and hunger for authenticity and integrity while also making you laugh out loud without covering your teeth and feel proud of your mayo-free potato salad.




But I won't. I'll tell you about my first pork roast instead.




I'll say it up front. It took decades to get me here- to ease into a place in my life where I might actually, finally, consider buying a hunk of pork and roasting it. I started off slowly, slyly, trying turkey bacon ten years ago. Then I graduated to the real deal roughly six years ago. Organic Sunday smoked bacon. Nitrate-free, of course. And when my body did not protest and the world as I knew it did not go up in a hellish ball of blistering flames, I decided to move on to the hard stuff. I was ready.




It was finally time to roast a pork loin. And Dear Reader- was I intimidated. You know it. In fact yours truly was almost quaking in her Rocket Dogs. Well, maybe not quaking. More like, shivery-nervous. So I decided two things.




First- that I would use my trusty slow cooker. Simple. Familiar. Not too much to screw up. Second- that I would make a sauce with pomegranate juice and a jar of apricot jam. It just seemed like a good fit.




And guess what? Tender, juicy, tangy-sweet deliciousness ensued.




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Pork Roast with Mushrooms and Brown Sugar Apricot-Pomegranate Sauce

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Grass Fed Beef in Pomegranate Sauce

Snow on the ground means time for delicious beef in pomegranate sauce.


Have I got a slow cooker recipe to soothe winter weary spirits. Why? The mesa is clouded in white this morning- again. We woke to a fresh dusting of snow. I'm posting on a laptop in bed, snug beneath a Pendleton blanket, hoping Steve lights a fire in the kiva soon.


Although consensus is that New Mexico is drop dead gorgeous in the snow, I am so not a winter person. By mid January I am bored with fussing with boots and itchy sweaters and jackets. The tedious layering. (I never choose the right winter coat, so I gave up- I haven't owned one in two years- and besides, who knew you needed a winter coat in New Mexico?) And then there is the loopy ritual of locating gloves that migrate to the oddest hiding places- inside boots or under folded pillow cases. If it isn't obvious to you, Perceptive Reader, I am more than ready for spring. Until she arrives, I remain a big fan of winter comfort food.

Last night I tossed together an intuitive combination of pomegranate juice and balsamic vinegar sweetened with pure maple syrup. Odd, you think? Just taste this.


And by the way, my recipe is featured in the fab new cookbook:  Make It Fast, Cook It Slow: The Big Book of Everyday Slow Cooking








Slow Cooker Grass Fed Beef in Pomegranate Sauce Recipe

You can slow cook this in a slow cooker like we did or slow simmer it, covered, on the stove top. It's an easy sauce- no fuss. And huge on flavor. Big, bold lip-smacking flavor. I could regale you with factoids about how good pomegranate juice is for you- with all those nifty antioxidants and all- but you know what? It's just tastes so crazy good. Try it.

1 1/2 to 2 pounds grass fed beef or buffalo roast or steak, fat trimmed if necessary
Sea salt
Light olive oil, as needed
1 onion, sliced
4-5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup unsweetened pomegranate juice
1 14-oz can Muir Glen fire roasted crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar- omit for yeast-free
1/8 cup pure maple syrup- or use agave to keep it lower glycemic
1/2 cup fresh cranberries or golden raisins
1 teaspoon dried French herb mix or Bouquet Garni
A small pinch of cinnamon

I slow-cooked my recipe in a slow cooker because that's what works for me here at high altitude. You can follow suit and Crock Pot your little heart out. Or do it old-school style, in a heavy Dutch oven or soup pot.

Salt the beef on all sides. Wait a few minutes. Kiss the cook. Get your slow cooker situated and turned on to High.

Heat a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Brown the beef on all sides to sear in the flavor, using long tongs to turn the pieces. This doesn't take but maybe five minutes, or so. Remove the beef and set aside.

Add a small dash of olive oil to the crock. Add in sliced onion and garlic. Stir to coat with the olive oil. Place the beef on top.

Pour in the pomegranate juice, crushed tomatoes, balsamic vinegar and maple syrup. Stir to combine. Add the cranberries or raisins, dried herbs, a pinch of cinnamon, sea salt and ground pepper.

Stir a little bit to co-mingle ingredients.

Cover and let the magic happen- about 4 to 5 hours.

Taste test the sauce for seasoning adjustments. My intuitive combo was the perfect balance of tart and savory with a hint of sweetness.

We served ours with a generous mound of whipped mashed potatoes. Heaven. Seriously.

Serves 4.




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Grass Fed Beef in Pomegranate Sauce

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Beef + Mushroom Stuffed Acorn Squash

A hearty stuffed acorn squash recipe- comfort food for omnivores.







Yours truly has been stewing. Not in the culinary sense, Darling. I've been stewing about Sting, and how disappointed I am with the latest news (and Oy, the photo of him ducking his head, cringing in the back seat?) about him schtupping (okay, maybe he didn't actually schtup- who knows?-maybe he innocently indulged in some lap dances in a post-concert-suffering-from-exhaustion kinda way) at the exclusive brothel-slash-strip club Relax in Hamburg, Germany, while sans wife Trudie and his six children.




Whatever.



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Beef + Mushroom Stuffed Acorn Squash

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Gluten-Free Garlic Chicken Lasagna Recipe

Tonight's quintessential New Mexican sky.




After a laid back kick off your boots and chill kind of day we had friends for dinner. Our Santa Fe buddies Joey and Will drove north to our little casita  tucked into the pinon dotted hills near Ojo Caliente. I made a recipe that's an old family favorite- since they've become like family, after all. Sometimes the best family is the family we choose with our heart.




And after all, what family doesn't love a good lasagna?





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Gluten-Free Garlic Chicken Lasagna Recipe

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Alex's Favorite Baked Chicken Mediterranean

The view on our evening walk.




There's been a hint of fall in the air. The deep night sky glitters with stars. Mornings are cool, bordering on chilly. I stand outside the portal's edge, in the sand, sipping a mug of yerba mate, and scan the cottonwoods along the bosque below, looking for the tell-tale tinge of gold.


Soon they will be yellow, a golden trail north that snakes along the Chama River. It will be time for stacking pinon to burn in the kivas. I relish the warmth of the cozy fires to come, the evenings spent wrapped in thick sweaters reading, sipping cognac.

And for the first time in years I am not dreading winter.



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Alex's Favorite Baked Chicken Mediterranean

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Mediterranean Chicken with Vinegar Roasted Peppers

Easy baked chicken and peppers makes a tasty weeknight supper.


The local markets and farm stands are stacked with peppers of every color, size and shape, ripe and gorgeous and full of vitamin C. From round, crisp and sweet to curvy-sexy and fiery, peppers are abundant now, so flavorful and fabulous. Note: New Mexico green and red chiles are a blog unto themselves; find How To Make a Roasted Green Chile sauce here.


Today I wanted to share an easy family favorite I tossed together after a tech-focused day learning the ins and outs of my spanking new iMac computer [which I confess right now, I love with all my tender geeky heart].


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Mediterranean Chicken with Vinegar Roasted Peppers

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