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Tag: gluten-free

Fresh Salmon Burgers with Quinoa (Gluten-free)

There’s a guy at the farmer’s market in my neighborhood who sells frozen wild-caught, vacu-sealed, Alaskan Salmon steaks and fillets. This weekend I purchased a two-pounds of salmon filets; half of which we broiled and ate that night with farm-fresh organic  green beans and organic garlic mashed potatoes.

fresh salmon burger recipe
Fresh wild salmon burgers with lettuce, avocado, and tomatoes.

Last night, I wanted to do something different with the second pound of delicious wild salmon, so I made gluten-free salmon burgers.

My family tries to avoid eating farm-raised salmon whenever possible. Farm-raised salmon is more affordable because the fish are raised unnaturally in pens, fed soy- or corn-based feed pellets (not their natural diet), liberally dosed with antibiotics and anti-parasitic drugs (necessary due to the close quarters), and fed dye to tint their flesh pinkish like their wild cousins’.

If we see salmon on a restaurant menu and it is not preceded by the adjective “wild,” we do not order it. If a restaurant has salmon on the menu for less than $17, you can be sure it is farm-raised fish.

Even worse, Genetically Modified salmon may be approved by the FDA and these unlabeled, untested-on-humans frankenfish could end up on your plate without you even knowing it.

Wild salmon, on the other hand, can live for years swimming through the oceans and then make a final migration up-river, fighting the current as they swim upstream to spawn where they were born. Their flesh is developed from activity, not unfamiliar proteins; they do not need antibiotics or other drugs to keep them healthy; and their flesh is naturally pinkish-colored from their natural diet in the sea.

After surveying a number of salmon burger recipes for inspiration, I started cooking my own recipe. I wanted to make them gluten-free, so I substituted quinoa flakes for the bread crumbs. How did it turn out? Loved by everyone!

PS: I call these “Fresh Wild Salmon Burgers” because many salmon burger recipes use canned salmon.

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Fresh Wild Salmon Burgers with Quinoa (Gluten-free)

  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1 medium zucchini
  • 2 tsp. horseradish
  • 1 Tbsp. basil, chopped
  • 1/2 tsp. sea salt
  • Freshly cracked black pepper
  • 1 lb. skinless salmon
  • 3/4 cup quinoa flakes
  • Coconut oil
  • Toasted sesame oil

Beat the eggs in a medium mixing bowl until blended.

Trim the ends and quarter the zucchini. Pulse quarters in a food processor until diced. Add to the bowl of eggs with horseradish, basil, salt and pepper.

Cut the salmon into large chunks and pulse in the food processor until diced (do not process into a paste). Add to the egg-zucchini mixture and mix in quinoa flakes to make a mixture that will hold together in patties.

On a cast iron griddle or skillet, heat 1 Tbsp. of coconut oil with 1 tsp. of sesame oil. Place the patties into the oil, flipping when needed until cooked through.

Serve with mashed avocados with sea salt and sliced tomatoes on a bed of lettuce or on a bun.

Gluten-free Chocolate Cupcakes

When I opened my second-grader’s backpack to insert his lunchbox on Monday morning, I noticed a flyer requesting home-baked goods for the bake sale Thursday night. A-ha! An opportunity to try out one of Elana Amsterdam’s recipes from her brand new cookbook, Gluten-Free Cupcakes by Elana AmsterdamGluten-Free Cupcakes: 50 Irresistable Recipes Made with Almond and Coconut Flour!

Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes

I spied this recipe from the book in the newspaper recently and have been just waiting for an occasion calling for cupcakes to try it out.

It can be tricky to bake wheat-free cakes, but I’ve tried Elana’s recipes in the past and had good success, though I think this recipe takes the cake (ha-ha). Simply delicious and so-o-o-o easy with only 6 ingredients! I baked them together with my 6-year old and then whipped together a simple butter/powdered sugar/vanilla frosting with a couple tablespoons of coconut milk added to thin it out.

The demand for the cupcakes started out slowly at the bake sale last night, but by the end of the evening’s activities, every single one had been sold and enjoyed. And my family, at least, was glad there was a yummy gluten-free option to munch on at the event.  🙂

Here’s the recipe for

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Flourless Chocolate Hazelnut Cupcakes from Elana Amsterdam:

Ingredients

1.5 cups dark chocolate chips
1 cup hazelnuts
3 large eggs
1/4 cup agave nectar
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. sea salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 10 muffin cups with paper liners.

Combine the chocolate chips and hazelnuts in a food processor, and process until they have the consistency of coarse sand. Add the eggs and agave nectar, and pulse until combined, about 10 seconds.

Scoop 1/4 cup of batter into each prepared muffin cup.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 1 hour, then frost and serve.

My only variations: I doubled the recipe and made 1 dozen regular cupcakes and about 40 mini cupcakes. I left them in the oven a little too long waiting for the toothpick to come out completely clean; next time I will pull them out after 25 minutes no matter what. They were still yummy, though! 🙂

Gluten-free / Wheat-free Banana Bread Muffin Recipe

Gluten-free baking success at last!

BananaBreadAmaranth
Banana Amaranth mini muffins

If you’ve followed my blog you know that while I’m not the greatest of bakers it’s mostly because I have a hard time following a recipe “as written”. With baking, not following the directions to the letter can often end with inedible results.

But not today. Today I translated a regular recipe for banana bread into something that is gluten-free, wheat-free, tapioca-free, rice-free, dairy-free, and lower in fat than the original to boot.

And it’s a delicious recipe. I think my kids each ate 9 of them already.

So then I made another version that is wheat-free but not entirely gluten-free (it uses spelt flour), that is perhaps even a tad bit better, though the jury is still out. Since my son is sensitive to wheat but tolerant of spelt, it’s one of my favorite alternative flours to use.

I needed to make a lot of banana bread because Door-to-Door Organics produce delivery service was kind enough to sponsor my presence at the Land of Nutrition at the Denver and Boulder Walk MS events this month with beautiful crates of organic apples, strawberries, and bananas to distribute to hungry walkers. Most were eaten at the event, but a week later I was still looking at more than a dozen organic bananas getting browner by the day. To me, that says “banana bread.”

Or rather, mini-muffins this time. So much fun to eat!

Ever since we discovered my son was sensitive to wheat through the MRT test, we have gone wheat-free in our household. It’s really wonderful that there are so many wheat-free products on the market these days that cater to those with problems digesting gluten (Celiac’s disease). It makes it easier than ever to find wheat-free alternatives to many packaged foods.

BananaBreadSpelt
Banana Spelt mini muffins with chocolate chips or cashews

Unfortunately for us, my son is also sensitive to the most common substitutions for wheat in baked goods, namely tapioca flour, corn flour, and potato starch, which puts a lot of those products off limits to us and makes successful baking that much more challenging.

Spelt has some gluten since it is related to wheat, but in much smaller doses. Because it does have some gluten, it is one of the easiest non-wheat flours to bake with. I often add a little xanthan gum and arrowroot starch to my non-wheat flours when baking to give the dough that stickiness that gives baked goods structure.

While my son used to be sensitive to eggs, we eliminated them for a while and have been able to add them back in for baked goods. To make this recipe egg-free, see my egg-free egg-substitute post.

Gluten-free, Dairy-free Banana Bread or Mini Muffins
makes 1 loaf or about 48 mini muffins

1/4 cup apple sauce
1/4 cup safflower oil (or other oil)
1 cup sugar (or other sweetener)
2 eggs (or egg substitutes)
1/4 cup coconut milk (or other dairy or dairy alternative)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (not “flavoring”)
3 bananas
1 cup amaranth flour or spelt flour
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup buckwheat flour (name notwithstanding, buckwheat is not related to wheat)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon arrowroot starch
1/2 teaspoon xantham gum powder
Optional add ins: 1/2 cup nuts, chocolate chips, coconut flakes

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Cream applesauce, oil, sugar, and eggs together.

Add milk, vanilla, and mashed bananas and blend.

Mix remaining dry ingredients together in a separate bowl, then add to bananas and mix well.

Grease loaf pan or mini muffin tins well and bake for approximately 20 – 50 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Egg-free Egg Substitutes

In my last post I described how I substituted banana and flax seeds for eggs in a recipe for gluten-free cupcakes. There were better ways to go, as I’m learning.

Among many other things, we’ve been eliminating eggs from my son’s diet as we work to cure his chronic constipation. We’ve seen amazing results since beginning this in May, so I’m thinking this is a valid track.

Unfortunately, it does not seem to be easy to get great results in baked goods without eggs, and I haven’t had a lot of good results so far. Luckily, I’m getting some good advice on egg-free baking from readers of my own and other blogs.

Lisa commented on my post with her own egg substitute recipe:

“We’re always egg free in our household since both my husband and my daughter are severely allergic to them.

I’ve found that 1T of Arrowroot or Tapioca starch mixed in with 1T Rice Oil (or the oil of your choice) and water to make 1/4 cup = a great egg replacer for baking. It doesn’t add a leavening, but fulfills the “binder” function of the egg while not weighing things down.”

Thanks for the great tip, Lisa! I’m going to try it with arrowroot, since tapioca is on our elimination list, too.

I also learned that while using ground flax seeds works as a substitute for eggs, particularly in baked goods, I haven’t been adding them correctly.

I had already discovered that using 1 tablespoon of ground flax seeds along with 3 tablespoons of water would work as an egg substitute, particularly in baked goods, but what I didn’t know was there is a technique to making this work.

Over at Elana’s Pantry, Jess commented:

“For each egg to be replaced, blend in a blender/food processor 1 tablespoon flax seed with 3 tablespoons water until the mixture is thick and creamy. I haven’t actually tried it that way, but I have heated that ratio in a saucepan until gooey (about 2 minutes on low, stirring constantly) with fantastic results in many recipes.”

Huh. Who’d have thought you had to combine the flax seeds together with the water before adding to the recipe. Not me, though it does seem logical now.  I mean, I thought it was weird to just toss in the ground flax seeds and then pour some water into the mix and leave it like that. No wonder I couldn’t see just how it would come together and act like an egg. And then it really didn’t anyway.

So now I know why, thanks to Jess.

I love how the internet enables this whole exchange of ideas to occur. It’s a pretty cool world we live in.