Another Gluten Free Pasta

Another attempt at pasta. I enjoyed the Schar pasta that I had
bought much more so than the Tinkyada which had no flavour whatsoever.
The Schar pasta, as I've written about was good but really didn't heat up well. It sort of
defeats the purpose of making a big batch of sauce if it's not easy to
have noodles to eat.


That's one thing I haven't done in a while. Make my own sauce. Soon though.


I was told about a bakery nearby that had gluten free products according
to a sign in their window. So naturally, I was excited to go. I've been
there before and it was full of warm, crusty Italian rolls and breads.
I asked about the gluten free products and they pointed me to the only
things they carried. Corn pasta and spelt pasta. So they were 1 for 2,
I guess, since spelt is not allowed. Nor would I even try it if I could
since I don't particularly like the word "spelt". That's me. Super
picky but yet a food snob.


I bought a package of the penne and put it away at home along with all the other pastas I've picked up and have yet to try.


A whiff of homemade tomato sauce one day made me crave pasta though and I decided this would be the package I would try.

"The Le Veneziane corn pasta gets its characteristic golden color from its rich natural carotenes (vitamin A). This corn pasta has a delicate and gentle taste that allows it to work
with any sauce. It taste just as good as (some say better than) regular wheat pasta.

Le Veneziane corn pasta embodies Italian pasta making traditions at its best."




This was good.  Really really good. I didn't taste too
much of a corn flavour but this might be my new go-to pasta. Easy to
cook, not too starchy, not mushy, not brittle. As Goldilocks would say,
" It was just right".


I made the whole package and the leftovers, I rinsed in cold water to stop the cooking, then put a
little olive oil on the noodles so they wouldn't stick. I had a really
good feeling about the pasta. Threw some sauce on top and brought it to
work the next day for dinner. My gutsy Move of the Day? Not bringing
any other meal to eat. If this didn't heat up well and turned into
mush, I would have absolutely nothing to eat other than my snacks.


And.......










It was fantastic heated up as well. All in all, just like normal, eating for one meal and having great leftovers.




Now, I think it might be time to start making my own tomato sauce again.

Gluten Free Chocolate Mint Brownies

St Patrick's Day. Day of the Sugar Cookie with Green Icing. Or not.

I wasn't sure I would have time to make them and then I spotted Chocolate
Mint Brownies on the homepage of  www.allrecipes.com

Hmmmm. Could I? 

I've been meaning to make Gluten Free Turtle Brownies from The Baking Beauties for a while now.
Even bought the caramels but not the pecans.

Her brownies, my mint nanaimo custard/icing filling and chocolate topping.

Nanaimo???
What's that?

Happy St Patrick's Day!!

Gluten Free Tortillas

I had a craving for fajitas today.

I hate corn tortillas. Dilemma.

I'm sure they are perfectly lovely for some people but I like my nice soft flour tortillas that don't have the texture of sawdust.

I've tried a commercially sold brown rice version but wasn't that impressed with it's thawing capabilities.

I found this recipe on the Forums. When I first found out about celiac, I pretty much lived on these kinds of forums. Living Without.... Tortilla Recipe  
It's about halfway down the page.

This one is from the folks at Living Without magazine I've changed it up a little since I'm not a bean flour girl.

Gluten Free Tortillas
Gluten-Free Flour Tortillas
MAKES 6-8 TORTILLAS.

1 cup white rice flour
1/3 cup potato starch
1/3 cup tapioca flour
1/3 cup fava bean flour  ( I used sorghum )
2 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp sugar
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 TBs vegetable or other shortening
3/4 to 1 cup warm water

1. Combine all of the dry ingredients, then cut in or work in the shortening using a pastry blender or two knives or your hand.
2. Add the warm water, starting with 3/4 cup and mix well.
3. Continue to add water until a soft, cohesive dough is formed.
4. Heat a comal, tapa or griddle to medium heat. Then, form a ball of dough into a flattened disk, cupping the outside edges a bit to form a round.
5. Using a bollilo or rolling pin, roll into a round disk about 1/8 inch thick and about 8 inches in diameter or to your preference.
6. Bake one at a time on a hot griddle until the surface bubbles. Turn only once, the first side should have brown flecks.
7. Bake until the second side has slightly browned - should brown in a very short time.
8. Keep warm in a tortilla keeper or wrapped in a cloth until served.
Note: Will freeze in a sealed plastic bag for up to three months.

One of the posters who has made tortillas forever uses a tea towel to push down on the bubbles that form. 


Finally. Tortillas that taste just like flour tortillas. I made one into a quesadilla right away and it was fabulous. I froze them between parchment after this.

Later, we made fajitas and the first two I heated in foil in the oven after a very quick defrost. First one was great, by the time I was ready for the second one, it had kind of hardened again. I tried to heat it back up but it didn't work.

I had to try again. I took one out of the freezer and put it in the microwave, with a little dish of water and then heated it for about 30 seconds.Worked wonderfully this time. It was pliable during filling, eating and then even a few minutes later when I checked the end of it.

Pasta!!!!!

I've had pasta 3 times since I've been gluten free. I love pasta. Love to go for Penne with Tomato Sauce. I'm so plain... but why mess with a good thing.

I haven't been to a restaurant to try their rice pastas yet though.


I've tried Tinkyada and found that it had no flavour. The texture was fine but it just seemed strange, like something was missing.

Then I tried Schar penne and I've had that twice now. It's a fantastic substitute for me although it didn't heat up the next day very well but that could be my technique so I'll have to try again.