Proscuitto salmon and lovely lentils

This recipe is:

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Yeast free

Lovely lentils indeed. With all this millet, quinoa and lentil guzzling you'd think we were mocassin wearing, yoghurt weaving hippies, but we're perfectly normal..... well I guess slightly abnormal, foodies, hence Gluten Free Food Freaks!

Anyway, onto the recipe.

Salmon and Lovely Lentils

300g puy lentils
2 salmon fillets, about 150g each
4 slices of proscuitto
olive oil
2 large handfuls of fresh green herbs (parsley, mint, basil, coriander), roughly chopped
2 spring onions, finely sliced
juice of 1 lemon
seasoning
Suggestion, serve with mixed salad leaves

Heat your oven to 220oC.
Cook the lentils in water for 25-30 minutes until tender.
Meanwhile, wrap the salmon in proscuitto and place on an oven tray. Season with freshly ground black pepper. Place in the oven for about 10 minutes.
When the lentils are cooked, drain, and mix in the lemon juice a glug of olive oil (about 1-2 tablespoons), the spring onion and herbs.
Serve the lentils and salmon with mixed leaves or freshly steamed broccoli (how do you spell that word??)

We cooked this for baby too, minus the salty proscuitto, and she absolutely loved it, hence the re-naming "mentils" because she was mad for it!

Sweet Polenta Recipe - Strawberry & Nut

This recipe is:

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Yeast free

You've got to like strawberries to like this polenta recipe - we used frozen strawberries and the juice really spread through the polenta making it sweet and tasty. Here's how to make the recipe...

250g polenta
500g (frozen) strawberries - you can probably just as easily use fresh, although it will make quite a different dish
Teaspoon vanilla essence (if you're feeling flash you can use a real vanilla pod)
50g ground almonds (we chopped our own in the blender to give a coarser texture)
A little sweetness if you like. We used a tablespoon of a low-GL agave syrup, but sugar will do :-)

Make the polenta as the recipe on the packet instructs. This is usually to boil 1 litre (2 pints) of water and gently pour in the polenta while stirring to avoid lumps. If you're using frozen strawberries take the juice into account when working out your fluid amounts. Boil gently until it comes away from the side of the pan.

Stir in the strawberries, vanilla and almonds. Spread into a greased shallow baking tray and let cool for half an hour.

You can serve the polenta with yoghurt, ice cream or whatever you want. The only problem with this polenta recipe is that once you start eating it you might not be able to stop.

Super healthy gluten free food recipe - Quinoa, herbs and griddled veg

This recipe is:

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Yeast free

You say keenwaaaaa, I say kwinoah, either way, quinoa is a super healthy grain, and suitable for a gluten free diet.

Here's a quick gluten free food recipe - great for dinner, but even better left to go cold and eaten for lunch.

Quinoa, herbs and griddled veg

400g quinoa
1.5 litres chicken or veg stock
1 red pepper
4 courgettes, sliced thinly on the diagonal
6 spring onions, sliced diagonally in 1 inch sections
1 mild red chilli, thinly sliced (so if it's too hot you can spot it and remove it easily!)
1 avocado, chopped
3 large handfuls of fresh green herbs - basil, parsley, mint, coriander - washed and roughly chopped
1 lemon, juiced
50ml mild olive oil
seasoning

Bring the stock to the boil. Wash your quinoa in plenty cold water to remove any of the bitter coating, then add to the boiling stock. This should be left to cook for about 12 -15 minutes, making sure you keep checking the stock level and topping up if required - quinoa soaks up an infeasible amount of liquid during cooking. When you've come to the end of the cooking time, taste the quinoa and it should have a light bite. Put the lid on the pan and leave for a few minutes to absorb any liquid that's left.

Meanwhile, cook your courgettes and spring onions on a low heat, with a little olive oil until they are soft and lightly golden. Use a griddle pan if you've got one, and you'll get those lovely black lines.

To cook the red pepper, either grill until the skin is black, or hold over a gas flame on the hob. When it's completely blackened, place in a sealed container for a few minutes to cool down. This makes it easier to peel off the blackened skin, plus you don't burn your fingers! Remove the stalk and seeds, then cut the skinned pepper into small strips.
In a jar, mix your lemon juice and olive oil and add some salt and freshly ground pepper.

Finally, mix all the ingredients together EXCEPT the red chilli.

Allow people to add the chilli to their own taste buds at the table - the baby passed on her share not unsurprisingly.

This is a great gluten free food recipe - the whole thing only took 20 minutes from start to finish, which I reckon is fantastic for a mid-week meal.

Here's some more info on the magical quinoa - it really is a "super-food". By the way quinoa is full of tryptophan, which is a precursor to serotonin, the mood enhancing hormone and melatonin, which helps you sleep. As if you needed persuading......

More Gluten Free Lunch Ideas - Sticky Baked Sweet Potato and Bacon

This recipe is:

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Yeast free

While the husband is putting the finishing touches to lunch, here's another great gluten free lunch idea - Sticky Baked Sweet Potato and Bacon. I love sweet potatoes and they're packed with all sorts of goodies like vitamin C, plus they're not in the deadly nightshade food group (potatoes, tomatoes, aubergines etc) which the husband is currently allergic to.

Sticky Baked Sweet Potato and Bacon
2 large sweet pototatoes
4 rashers bacon
4 spring onions, chopped
100g sweetcorn
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tsp Dijon mustard.

Bake the sweet potatoes in the microwave for the correct length of time (that's about 6 minutes in our microwave), remembering to pierce the skin so it doesn't explode.
Meanwhile, cook the bacon, then cut it into small strips.
When the potatoes are done, scoop out some of the flesh and put it in a mixing bowl.
Add all the other ingredients and mix well.
Spoon the mixture back into the potato skins, then put under a hot grill for a few minutes until it's crispy.
These are quite sweet, so to tone it down a bit, you could add some sharp, tangy cheddar to the mix.
Serve with some salad and scoff away.

Thankfully this is a more appropriate gluten free lunch idea than yesterday's crunchy apple salad - it's currently pouring down and a bit chilly in Oban. I'm nice and toasty with my yummy baked sweet potato in my tum :>)

Quick gluten free dinner recipe - Rice with spinach & coconut milk

This recipe is:

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Yeast free

This is a ridiculously easy and quick gluten free recipe. Don't get me wrong, it's not exactly haute cuisine, but it is tasty and filling, and just a little different. It's straight from the pages of 'The Return of the Naked Chef' by Jamie Oliver but I tweaked it with some ginger as I thought it would be a little flat otherwise.

Rice with spinach & coconut milk

400ml gluten free coconut milk (most is gluten free, but I have come across some with weird additives)
400g brown rice
3 tablespoons gluten free soy sauce (tamari)
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 handfuls washed baby spinach
1 inch ginger, very finely chopped (small enough to cook in 5 mins, but not so small it gives no bite)

Boil the rice in the coconut milk and enough water so that the rice absorbs it all by the time it is cooked. If you're not sure, put too little in then add more as you go. About 5 minutes before its ready, add the ginger.

Drain in a colander then steam in the colander over a little simmering water in the pan you cooked it in - fluff it up with a fork as you do this. Empty the water from the pan, put the rice back in and stir in the spinach, soy sauce and olive oil.

And that's it! A tasty meal in under half an hour. You can serve it with something else if you like, but with all the fat and protein in the coconut milk, and the vitamins and minerals in the spinach, it's a pretty balanced meal in itself.

I've been known to get grumpy when there's no hearty gluten free food to stuff myself with - sometimes you just want to feel really full, you know? This gluten free recipe is so quick and easy I think I might have run out of excuses.

If you make this recipe, let us know what you think using the comments facility.

Gluten free lunch ideas - crunchy apple salad

This recipe is:

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Yeast free

The husband came up with a great gluten free lunch idea today - crunchy apple salad. It's lovely to have your lunch made for you, but when you've just spent the previous 2 hours painting railings in *sub zero conditions, it's not exactly what you're hankering after. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I heated myself up with a massive mug of instant miso (Sanchi do a great gluten free one - which reminds me of another great gluten free lunch idea, but I'll come back to that another day...)

None the less, here it is;

Crunchy Apple Salad

2 carrots, grated
6 radishes, thinly sliced
2 eating apples, cored and thinly sliced
1 handful sultannas
1 handful of fresh parsley, washed and roughly chopped
1 handful of fresh mint, washed and roughly chopped
Dressing; 4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
8 tablespoons mild olive oil
1 tablespoon tahini
seasoning
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

Put all the dressing ingredients togther and mix well.
Put all the vegetables and herbs into a big bowl and mix through the dressing thoroughly.

I had mine with a little roast chicken, but you could serve it with cheese such as feta or grilled halloumi, and with some gluten free crackers.

So, a great gluten free lunch idea - just might be more welcome in summer!

*okay, I'm exagerating, but it was the minimum temperature that the paint can be applied and boy was I numb about the extremeties!

Salmon in coconut ginger sauce

This recipe is:

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Yeast free

This is a quick and easy gluten free recipe, but it's also extremely tasty. Also in its favour is the fact that you can make the sauce beforehand, or just while the rice is cooking. Really easy for a school night, without any hint of "I only had time for beans on toast".

Gluten free salmon in coconut and ginger sauce

Brown rice
Large glug of oil
3 or 4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 inch of ginger, chopped
1 inch of galangal (We can't always get this so I usually just stick in an extra bit of ginger)
2 lemongrass sticks, finely sliced
Rind of 1/2 lemon (optional - careful not to get the white pith, just the yellow rind)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
500 ml hot water
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
300ml coconut milk
Handful chopped coriander
2 cups frozen sweetcorn

Salmon fillets - this will make enough sauce for 4 people, so use as much salmon as you need. Take the skin off the salmon and cut into roughly 1/2 inch cubes

You can put the brown rice on once all your ingredients are prepared - it will take around 25 minutes (check the packaging) and even if you're not totally finished with the sauce by the time it's ready, it won't suffer for standing for a few minutes after you've drained it.

Fry in the oil, very gently, the ginger, garlic, galangal, lemon grass for 5 or 6 minutes until soft but not browned. Add the water, lemon rind, salt, sugar and simmer for at least 20 minutes until reduced down.

Blend the sauce until smooth and then sieve back into the pan. Push the pulp through the sieve to ensure you get as much flavour as possible.

Add the coconut milk to the juice and adjust the flavour with pepper, salt and the lemon juice.

Add the salmon cubes and bring back to the boil. Stir gently to avoid breaking up the salmon. Simmer gently for about 3 minutes, then add the sweetcorn and coriander. Bring back to the boil. Break open one of the larger pieces of salmon to check for doneness, but you really don't want to overcook the fish. One of the joys of this dish is that the fish is very gently cooked and so should be moist and tender.

I usually garnish this heap of gluten free gorgeousness with a few thinly sliced red chillies, otherwise it can look a bit peely-wally (meaning pale).

And there you have it, another naturally gluten free recipe from the Gluten Free Food Freak. Enjoy.

Free Gluten Free Recipe - Lamb, Tomato and Pinto Bean Stew

This recipe is:

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Yeast free

Free gluten free recipes - that's what you'll find at Gluten Free Food Freak. Life's hard enough without having to fork out loadsa money for recipe books that you can't use because they're full of wheat (and dairy and eggs and yeast and all the other things people are allergic to).

Today's free gluten free recipe is Lamb, Tomato and Pinto Bean stew. I made it last night and it was really quite scrummy, and baby scoffed a fair portion too.

Lamb, Tomato and Pinto Bean Stew

1 large onion
garlic
450g minced lamb
1 400g tin tomatoes
3 carrots, grated
1 gluten free stock cube e.g. Kallo or Marigold
1 tablespoon gluten free worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon tamari, a gluten free soya sauce substitute
1 tablespoon tomato puree
1 bay leaf
3 sprigs thyme
1 400g tin of pinto beans
handful of pitted prunes, chopped.
Seasoning
Suggestion - serve with brown rice.

Saute the onions and garlic for a couple of minutes in a tiny splash of olive oil (there's plenty fat in the minced lamb). Add the minced lamb and brown for a couple of minutes, stirring frequently.

When the lamb is brown, add the tomatoes, carrots, stock cube, worcestshire sauce, tamari, tomato puree, bay leaf, and thyme. Top up with some water - about 200ml - to ensure the ingredients are covered. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, you might want to cook some brown rice to serve it with.

A couple of minutes before you are ready to serve, taste and adjust seasoning as required. Add the pinto beans and prunes and heat through.

Eat your fill and freeze the rest for a quick future supper.

If you like this free gluten free recipe, post us a comment. We'd love to hear how you got on making this dish and if you've any recipes of your own you'd like to share.