Brisbane has had a change of weather. It has actually been cold and grey for a few days! This is the kind of weather you turn to warm comfort food and especially soups. I have written before about how I don’t understand people who buy soup. It’s so easy to make and tastes SO much better when it is home made. This time I turned to a family favorite Potato and Leek Soup. I had been reading a recipe by Neil Perry on the “good food” website. His recipe is very similar to how I make this soup. I don’t bother cutting the potato so small as they are easily blitzed. Another tip is to cut the leak longways so you can make sure there is no dirt in it before dicing. Nothing worse than dirt in your soup!

You can change this to vegan soup by exchanging chicken stock for vegetable stock.

Of course if you want it to be gluten free make sure the crusty loaf is gluten free too.

Here is the recipe from Neil Perry on the Good Food website.

Method

Heat butter and oil in a large heavy-based pan. Add the potatoes, leek, onion, garlic and bay leaves and cook on a low heat, stirring frequently until the leeks have softened.

Add the stock and simmer, covered, for about 25 minutes or until potatoes are very tender. Remove the bay leaves and purée the soup until smooth. Return the soup to the saucepan and stir through the cream. Season to taste. Add more chicken stock if necessary to give the desired consistency.

Ladle into soup bowls, garnish with parsley and, if desired, some of the suggestions in Hot Tips (below). Serve with crusty bread.

HOT TIPS

• As well as garnishing with parsley you can also serve the soup with some crumbled blue cheese and crispy pancetta, as pictured.

• If you prefer, use some grated aged cheddar, a spoon of crème fraîche or pan-fried speck as garnishes.

Thanks Neil!

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I have to admit, I have never tried Chicken Pad Thai before then my daughter went out for dinner and brought home a “doggy bag” with her left overs. I ate it for lunch the next day and thought it was so delicious that I had better learn how to make it. I’m not sure how I journeyed through life and missed this wonderful meal but I’m glad that has now been rectified. It has a delightful taste of tamarind through out and the sourness of this is balanced by adding sugar to the sauce. This makes a fantastic gluten free meal for the family and is also low in fat.

I found the recipe on the web About.com and tweaked it a little.

The great thing about this recipe is that it’s full of flavour but isn’t heavy like some Thai recipes can be.

Ingredients:

• One packet of Thai rice noodles linguini-width
• 2 cups chopped chicken breast
• Marinade for Chicken: 1 tsp. cornstarch dissolved in 3 Tbsp. of soy sauce
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• optional: 1-2 fresh red chilies, minced
• 3 cups fresh bean sprouts
• 3 green onions, sliced
• 1/2 cup fresh coriander
• 1/3 cup crushed or roughly chopped peanuts (I roast them in the oven first)
• 1/4 cup chicken stock (make sure it’s Gluten Free)
• 1/2 cup of toasted dessicated coconut
• Vegetable oil for stir-frying, and wedges of lime
• PAD THAI SAUCE:
• 3/4 Tbsp. tamarind sauce dissolved in 1/4 cup warm water. You can find it in major super markets or speciality stores
• 2 Tbsp. fish sauce + more to taste
• 1-3 tsp. chili sauce
• 3 Tbsp. brown sugar
• 1/8 tsp. ground white pepper

1. Bring a large pot of water to boil and dunk in your rice noodles. Turn down the heat to low and keep an eye on them. You will be frying the noodles later, so you don’t want to over-soften them now. Noodles are ready to be drained when they are soft but not too soft. Drain and rinse with cold water to prevent sticking. Set aside.
2. Make Pad Thai sauce by combining the sauce ingredients together in a cup. Stir well to dissolve tamarind and brown sugar, and set aside. This balance of sour tamarind and sugar is what makes Pad Thai taste so amazing!
3. Place chicken slices in a small bowl. Stir together the marinade and pour over chicken. Stir well and set aside.
4. Warm up a wok or large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add 1-2 Tbsp. oil plus garlic and minced chili, if using. Stir-fry until fragrant (30 seconds). Add marinated chicken. When wok/pan becomes dry, add a little chicken stock, 1-2 Tbsp. at a time, to keep the chicken frying nicely (5-7 minutes or until cooked).
5. Add the noodles and pour the Pad Thai sauce over. Using two utensils, use a gentle “lift and turn” method to fry noodles (like tossing a salad). Stir-fry in this way 1-2 minutes. If you find your wok/frying pan too dry, push noodles aside and add a little more oil to the bottom of the pan.
6. Add the bean sprouts and continue frying for another minute or until noodles are cooked. Taste test for seasoning, adding more fish sauce until desired flavor is reached (I usually add 1 more Tbsp. of fish sauce). Toss well to incorporate. I sprinkle 1/2 cup of toasted coconut on the meal at this point.
7. Lift noodles on to a serving plate. Top with generous amounts of fresh coriander, spring onion, and crushed/chopped nuts. Add fresh lime wedges to squeeze over each portion if desired.
   ENJOY!

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Quinoa is such an amazing grain. It seems to really have all the benefits that people say it has! It’s easy to digest, gluten free and a great source of calcium so vegans often include it in their diets. It is not an acquired taste as some of these new ingredients are. As long as you wash it well before cooking with it I’m sure you’ll enjoy the taste.

I have posted some recipes before using quinoa as an ingredient but this is my favourite so far.  You could spice the potato mixture with Moroccan as I have or Indian Spices or any combination you like. You can purchase quinoa in the major supermarkets in the health aisle or if you would like to go to a organic grocer they will stock it too.

Recipe

Ingredients

6 white potatoes

1 free range egg

1/2 cup of crumbled feta

1 cup of cooked quinoa (wash well then boil in salted water for 15 mins)

2 spring onions chopped finely

1 cup of parsley chopped finely

1 tablespoon of salt

1 tablespoon of cumin

1 teaspoon of paprika

1/2 teaspoon of ground coriander seed

1/2 teaspoon of ground chilli

1 teaspoon of pepper

1 1/2 cups of gluten free breadcrumbs

Method

Place potatoes in a saucepan full of salted water and boil until tender. Drain well and allow to cool slightly then transfer to a large mixing bowl and mix with the other ingredients. Take a small amount of the mixture and roll into balls the size of a golf ball. Place on a plate ready for deep frying.

Half fill a small saucepan with an oil that you are happy to deep fry in. I used a combination of olive oil and canola oil. Heat the oil until really hot then drop in a potato ball and fry. This will take around three to five minutes.

They should come out golden and with a soft center. You can serve with a salad and some mayonaise or chutney. I served mine with a couscous salad.

No Comments | In: Gluten Free, Meals | | #