Gluten-free Beer Battered Fish

Are you ready to eat some ultra delicious crispy fish?

I found myself asking the question that comes all too frequently: What's for dinner? I rummaged through the freezer and found a packet of white fish fillets. Ok, so fish tonight, but how to make it, And make it good? I wanted something crispy and yummy. I thought I could bread it and throw the fish fingers into the oven, but they might turn out to be a little mushy. I decided to veto the breading and go for a good old fashioned battered fish fry. I took out all the gluten free flours I could find and came up with the yummy crispy, deliciously golden recipe down below that I won't soon forget and will be using again.

Gluten-free Beer Battered Fish

1 1/2 pound of white fish fillet
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder or garlic salt

Wash fish fillets, pat dry with paper towels and cut into pieces roughly 2x4 inches. They don't have to be exact, they can be an inch or two larger on either side but you don't want them too big or they will take longer to fry and soak up more oil. Season fish with salt, pepper and garlic powder.

To make Gluten-free Beer Batter:

1 cup of rice flour
1/2 cup of tapioca starch
1/2 cup of cornstarch
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon of sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder or garlic salt

1/4 teaspoon of dried basil flakes
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup beer (amber or dark works best)

Mix or sift all the dry ingredients together.
Save about 1/3 cup of the dry mix and set aside for dusting fish before battering and frying.
Add vegetable oil to the dry mix.
Add 1/4 cup of beer and mix lightly, it will be lumpy.
Stir in more beer by the tablespoon just until you get a slightly runny pancake batter consistency. You don't have to use all the beer, only use enough for the right texture.


Heat a few inches of frying oil in a pot to about 360 degrees. If you don't have a heat oil thermometer, check the oil temp by dropping a few drops of batter into the oil to see if it lively sizzles and is not smoking or spattering.

Dust pieces of fish a few at a time in the dry mix, shake off the excess and dip each piece into wet batter to thoroughly coat and place lightly into heated oil. Don't overcrowd the pot.

Fry each piece of fish about 3-5 minutes, turn in the oil once half way through until both sides are golden brown and crispy.

Remove each piece of fish from the oil and drain on a large clean paper grocery bag or paper towels on a plate or a fry oil draining rack.

Keep fish warm in the oven around 150 degrees until all the batches are done. Serve immediately.


Photo provided by myself  :-q

Gluten-free Cream of Chicken Soup substitute

You can use this substitute for recipes that need Cream of Chicken Soup or Mushroom or Celery.

1/2 Cup of Milk
1/2 cup Chicken Broth
2 Tablespoons of Cornstarch
1 Teaspoon of Butter
1/4 teaspoon Sea Salt
1/4 teaspoon of Ground Pepper
1/4 teaspoon of Ground Sage
1/4 teaspoon of Ground Thyme

Combine milk, chicken broth and cornstarch until blended.

Heat the mixture slowly on the stove, stirring occasionally.

While heating up, add butter, sea salt and ground pepper, sage and thyme.

Stir heated mixture occasionally until mixture thickens.

Turn off heat, continue stirring to prevent lumps for a few minutes.

Store in a heat safe container for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator and use as a substitute in casseroles or stews or soups, or whatever your imagination can think of!


Photo provided by savourytable.com

Baked Eggplant Parmesan (Gluten-free)

Today I tried a different way of making Eggplant Parmesan, instead of frying the eggplant, I baked it. It came out rather good, crispy, hot and delicious.

*A little tip on picking eggplants that I learned today is to find one that is shiny and unblemished, has a green top and has a round navel and not an oval one. An oval navel means that it is most likely a female berry and that it has many more seeds than the male ones with rounder navels.

This recipe makes 1-2 servings.

Baked Eggplant Parmesan

One eggplant cut into 1/2 inch slices

One egg

1/2 cup of GF breadcrumbs or 1/2 cup crushed cereal like Kix or GF frosted flakes

1/2 teaspoon of italian seasoning

1/4 finely grated parmesan

Several slices of Mozzarella

Smart Balance or butter or olive oil

Cooking Spray

Marinara Sauce

Slice the eggplant into 1/2 slices and place onto paper towels for about 30 minutes, flipping over after 15 minutes.

Crack the egg into a bowl and scramble.

Mix breadcumbs, italian seasoning and parmesan in a different bowl.

Heat oven to 375 degrees. 

Spray a baking sheet with Cooking Spray.

Dip eggplant slices into the scrambled egg and gently shake off as much of the liquid as possible and place into the breadcrumbs.

Coat slice with breadcrumbs entirely, shake off the excess and place flat onto baking sheet.

Repeat until all the slices are coated, put a small pat of Smart Balance on each slice and place into oven for about 20-30 minutes.

Flip slices over and bake for another 15 minutes.

Add mozzarella slices to the top of each slice and put back into oven for 5 minutes.

Take slices out and put into serving dish and pour Marinara Sauce over slices. 

Serve hot and enjoy!

Photo provided by hubpages.com

Delicious Homemade Chicken Soup (Gluten-free)

Photo provided by thebackyardchickenfarmer.com

MMMmm... guuuuuud, is what I say about my chicken soup recipe. It's delicious, full-bodied and perfect in a full favorite mug for a cool summer night hanging out by your outdoor fire pit snuggled in a blanket.
This recipe takes about 45 minutes to an hour to make 4 - 6 servings.

Delicious Homemade Chicken Soup

1 whole fryer chicken (4-6 pounds)
2 quarts of chicken stock
1 quart of water, or as needed
3 large potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch cubes
3 large carrots, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch sliced chunks
2 - 3 stalks of celery, chopped into 1/4 inch sliced chunks
1 onion, chopped into 1/4 inch chunks
2 teaspoons dried, crushed italian oregano
2 teaspoons ground sage
1 - 2 teaspoons dried basil
1 - 2 teaspoons garlic salt
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 bay leaf


Add cleaned whole chicken to a 8 quart soup pot or stock pot. Add 2 quarts of chicken stock and add enough water to almost cover or cover the chicken.

Heat pot until boil and reduce heat to simmer, cover for 20 minutes or a little longer until the meat falls off the bone.

Remove whole chicken and put aside to cool.

Add potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, oregano, sage, basil, garlic salt, sea salt, pepper and bay leaf to the stock pot, cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes until tender. Add a little more water if needed to cover vegetables.

While the vegetables are becoming tender, peel the meat from the chicken bones and shred into bite size pieces. Discard bones.

Find the bay leaf in the stock pot and discard.

Add chicken meat back to stock pot and continue to simmer for 5 minutes.

Serve and enjoy!

Cauliflower Pizza Crust with toppings (Gluten-free)

Photo provided by Masaandmeatballs.blogspot.com

         For all of us who have gone gluten-free and tried to go out with a bunch of friends have gone through the trials and tribulations of trying to figure where and what to eat. Having steaks and seafood all the time can get expensive, and having Mexican and Asian food can also get boring as your trash bins fill up with containers of Chinese to-go boxes. So then what, Pizza joint? Can't have the gluten-laden crusts.
   
  So what about making your own pizzas?
 
Hey there's an idea: Get your friends, yes even the vegan ones, together at someones house, gather up some ingredients and have fun making your own pizzas!


Cauliflower Pizza Crust (Gluten-free)

1 small or medium head of cauliflower or two cups of cauliflower rice (stems and leaves removed)
1/3 cup of goats milk cheese or chevre
1/3 mozzarella
1/3 romano or asiago cheese
1 egg
1/4 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp dried italian oregano
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1 pinch of sea salt
Pizza topping of choice (pepperoni, sausage, chopped onions, cheese, chicken, the sky's the limit, etc)


To Make Cauliflower Rice:
To make cauliflower rice, grate cauliflower with a cheese grater or pulse the cauliflower florets in a food processor until it is a grainy texture but not pureed. Boil cauliflower in a pot with a small amount of water, about 1 inch of water, for about 5 minutes until soft. Drain cauliflower into a sieve or collander lined with a tea towel in the sink. Allow to cool a few minutes before handling. Wrap up cauliflower in the tea towel into a ball and twist the top of the cloth to squeeze all the moisture out of the cauliflower.

Photo provided by theluckypennyblog.com

To make Cauliflower Crust with toppings:
In a large bowl mix together cauliflower with all the goats milk cheese, mozzarella, romano cheese, egg, dried basil, dried italian oregano, garlic salt and salt very well.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Transfer the dough into a parchment lined baking sheet and press into a crust form about 1/3 inch thick, such as a square, or rectangle, or two circles.

Photo provided by Detoxinista.com

Bake for about 40 minutes in the oven. Crust should be firm and golden brown.

Load up the crust with all your toppings and return to oven to bake for about 8-10 minutes.

Slice while hot, Serve and Enjoy!

Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole (Gluten-free)

   

Photo provided by bunsinmyoven.com

       Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole is a meal you can have at breakfast or dinner, hey have it for lunch. This recipe is sure to be a crowd pleaser. It's even better the next day!


Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole

2 pounds of cooked hashbrown potatoes (frozen cooked will work)
1 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 can of evaporated milk
1 egg
1/2 tablespoon of garlic salt
1 cup of chopped, cubed or shredded cooked meat of choice (Turkey, chicken, sausage, ground beef, bacon, etc.)
(optional) a few sprigs of fresh chopped parsley or green onion

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a oven safe casserole dish layer 1/2 of the potatoes, then 1/2 of the chopped onion, then 1/2 of the meat, and 1/2 cup of the cheese. Repeat the layers with the rest of the ingredients and remember to save 1/2 cup of the cheese.

Whisk together in a bowl the evaporated milk, egg and garlic salt and pour evenly over the layers.

Cover casserole and bake for 45 minutes.

Take casserole out of oven and top with remaining cheese and put back into oven for 10 minutes.

Garnish with parsley or green onion if so desired.

Serve and Enjoy!


     This cheesy potato casserole recipe doesn't use cream of anything soup that would normally contain wheat and gluten. However, it uses evaporated milk instead. If you don't have evaporated milk on hand you may use 1/2 cup of sour cream and 1/2 cup of milk.
 
    The meat in this recipe can be substituted out for cooked vegetables. Broccoli is a great substitute or even added into the layers. Cauliflower is good too but tends to be very mild in taste with all the potatoes.

    Red or green peppers or green chile is a great substitute or addition to this dish if you want to spice it up.

    Make sure the vegetables and meat are cooked before going into the dish.

     Gluten-free pasta may used instead of potatoes for a cheesy pasta casserole.

Eggplant Parmesan (Gluten-free option)

   

Photo provided by eclecticrecipes.com

       Ever dread going to an Italian restaurant to find that the only things gluten-free on the menu are salad and wine? Sure there's some establishments out there that serve meats and veggies but their side dishes usually consist of regular bread or pasta that's full of gluten. And unless the owner and grown up kids running the place are gluten sensitive it's gonna be rabbit food and booze for the rest of the meal.
       I have found one lovely place in Albuquerque, and only one anywhere so far, where the Paisanos and their adult children working in the restaurant were celiacs and had almost everything on their menu easily gluten-free optioned. One of their gluten-free choices on the menu is Eggplant Parmesan. Normally, eggplant parmesan is dipped in a batter or encrusted in bread crumbs, either of which usually contain gluten.
       This eggplant parmesan recipe makes delicious crispy battered eggplant slices topped with easy homemade marinara sauce about 2 - 3 servings.

Eggplant Parmesan (gluten-free option)

One large eggplant
1 cup Gluten-free pancake or waffle mix
1 egg
2 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1 cup of water
1/2 - 1 cup of vegetable oil
1 can of stewed tomatoes
1 package of gluten free spaghetti or marinara sauce
4 oz. of mozzarella slices

Eggplant Parmesan Sauce
1.) Heat 1 can of stewed tomatoes and package of spaghetti or marinara sauce in a small saucepan until bubbly, stirring occasionally. Turn off heat and set sauce aside.

Fried Eggplant
1.) Cut eggplant into 1/3 inch slices and place onto paper towels so that each slice is flat on the paper towels for 15-30 minutes to allow moisture to be pulled out of the eggplant.
Flip over eggplant slices and allow moisture to seep into the paper towels for another 15-30 minutes.

2.) In a medium size bowl mix together pancake or waffle mix, cornstarch, grated parmesan cheese, egg, sugar, garlic salt and about 1/2 cup of water. Mixture should be thick.
Add additional water by a tablespoon at a time and mix in between spoonfuls until consistency is like thin pancake batter while still being thicker than crepe batter. You may need to add more water to get the slightly runny consistency for this batter.

3.) Add 1/4 inch of oil to a large frying pan and heat on medium-high.

4.) Fully dip eggplant slices into batter and place into hot oil in the pan. Fry for about 3-5 minutes until golden brown and turn over. Continue cooking for about 3-5 minutes until golden brown.

5.) Take done pieces of eggplant out of the pan and place onto plates lined with paper towels to drain oil.

6.) Place cooked eggplant slices into a baking dish and top with sauce and mozzarella slices.

7.) Broil for about 1 - 2 minutes until cheese has melted and serve.

     This batter recipe can also be use to make delicious golden crispy fried onion rings, or other vegetables.
     The tomato sauce can be of choice if you don't want to make your own.
     Grated parmesan cheese can be used as a topping instead of mozzarella cheese and skip the broiling.
     Other cooked vegetables can be layered on top of the eggplant such as onions, zucchini or mushrooms.