Pizza Saturdays – April 24, 2016

Saturdays were made for pizza; I will believe that as long as my stomach can tolerate mozzarella and tomatoes (I am probably a bit too hopeful that it lasts the rest of my life :)).  I’m not sure how this new routine started for us; I think it may be related to my discovery of the best gluten-free pizza in NYC at Numero 28.

Since we didn’t leave Brooklyn this weekend, I tried out a new recipe at home after the DUMBO Family Festival (views below near the Manhattan and Brooklyn bridges).  I’ve been relying too much on my favorite gluten-free pizza recipe from Minimalist Baker, so I created my own thick crust recipe this weekend, and it turned out great.  I just need to get Matt eating some veggie and meat toppings now 🙂

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Thick Crust Gluten-Free Pizza

Ingredients – Dough

  • 2 cups gluten-free flour (I use Bob’s 1:1)
  • 1/4 cup coarsely ground cornmeal
  • 1 tbsp. active dry yeast
  • 1 tbsp. sugar
  • 2 tsp. salt
  • 4 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil (plus 1 tbsp. for coating the dough)
  • 3/4 cup warm water (about 100 degrees)

Ingredients – Sauce and Toppings

  • 1 14 oz. can crushed tomatoes (make sure there are no onions and garlic in the tomatoes)
  • 2 fresh basil leaves
  • 1 clove garlic (in muslin bag)
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 3 tbsp. grated parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 block grated mozzarella cheese
  • 1 tbsp. ricotta cheese

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Coat a deep baking dish with olive oil to prevent sticking.

In a medium-size bowl, place the gluten-free flour, cornmeal, yeast, sugar and salt and stir to combine.

Create a hole in the middle of the flour mixture and add the warm water and olive oil.  Slowly stir the flour into the water mixture until it begins to come together.  Begin to mix the dough with your hands if needed to combine further.  If the dough becomes too sticky, sprinkle additional flour until the mixture forms a ball without sticking to your hands.

Coat the outside of the dough with the remaining olive oil and press down into the baking dish.  Flatten so the crust is about 3/4 in. thick, with a higher wall around the outside.  Bake for 10 – 15 minutes or until the crust begins to lightly crack.

While the crust is cooking, heat tomatoes, garlic, basil and salt over medium heat.

Remove dough from oven and coat with sauce, ricotta, parmesan and mozzarella.  Cook for another 10 – 15 minutes or until the cheese is beginning to brown and bubble.

Allow the pizza to cool for 10 minutes before serving.  Sprinkle with hot pepper flakes for some extra flavor! Enjoy!

I’d love to hear from you! Let me know your FODMAP experience with cheese / pizza – leave feedback in the comments 🙂

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In Love with Lemons – April 11, 2016

Despite all my best efforts, sometimes FODMAP-unfriendly food just sneaks into a meal and my stomach is off for a few days.  I have a few go-to remedies that help get my digestion back on track – one of them is hot water with fresh-squeezed lemon juice first thing in the morning.  “They” claim it helps gets your metabolism going, and I do find that it helps just wake my body up a bit and help get my digestion back on track after a day or so.

This next recipe calls for heavy lemon and some orange, as well.  Makes for a great snack with one of my favorite flavors at the moment.

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FODMAP-friendly Lemon Bread

Ingredients

  • 2 cups gluten-free flour (I recommend Bob’s 1:1)
  • 1.5 cups coconut oil, room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tbsp. pure maple syrup
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 orange (1 orange zest, 1/2 orange juice)
  • 2 lemons (2 lemon zest, 1 lemon juice)
  • 2 tsp. baking powder

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Grease a bread pan with extra coconut oil to cover bottom and sides.

Prepare the orange and lemons – gathering the zest of 1 orange and 2 lemons and the juice of 1/2 orange and 1 lemon.

In a medium bowl, beat the coconut oil and sugar for around 5 minutes, until the mixture becomes light and fluffy.  Crack in the eggs, add the orange and lemon zest and mix with a wooden spoon to combine.

Combine the baking powder and flour in a separate medium bowl.  Slowly add the flour mixture to the sugar and egg mixture, stirring in as you go.  Add the orange and lemon juice until the mixture softens and smooths out.

Add the mixture to the bread pan and cook for 20 – 30 minutes (depending on the depth of the pan), checking about halfway through.  The bread should be golden and an inserted tooth pick should come out clean when the cooking is complete.

Serve for dessert or take for mid-week snacks at work or school 🙂  Share your feedback and comments here!

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April Showers… April 3, 2016

It’s been a stormy week in NYC, and it looks like it isn’t getting better anytime soon. Matt said to me the other day, “Well, you know what they say about April”. Thinking he was going down the path of the common phrase, I said, “April showers bring May flowers?” To which Matt replied, “What?! That’s silly.  But…Come on April showers, make me proud!!!” He’s such a special kid 🙂

One day last week it started to rain on our walk home, and Matt saw a man sitting outside of a coffee shop in our neighborhood and shared his umbrella.  Not sure how much of this was just Matt identifying a good photo opportunity 😉

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I’ve been making at least one quick meal per week in the slow cooker, but I was struggling with being limited by onions and garlic.  This week, I added something new to the mix  – a muslin bag!  Life changing.

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Slow-cooker Balsamic Chicken

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1/2 cup chicken stock, plus extra to cover chicken before cooking (remember to check ingredients to confirm no onion and garlic powders are used)
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1 tbsp. pure maple syrup
  • 2 lb. bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
  • 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. pepper
  • 1/4 tsp. dried pepper flakes
  • 1/2 tsp. thyme
  • 1 tbsp. chopped fresh basil
  • 3 large carrots, coined
  • 1/2 zucchini, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic

Directions

Whisk the balsamic vinegar, chicken stock, sugar and maple syrup together until well combined.  Place the 3 cloves of garlic in the muslin bag and knot or tie at the top.

Place all ingredients into the slow cooker and cover with additional chicken stock if needed (chicken should be covered to support keeping moisture in the chicken).  Mix well so that seasoning is spread over all chicken.

Place slow cooker on low heat for 7 – 8 hours.  With about 30 minutes left in the cooking, take the chicken out from the slow cooker and remove bones and skin.  Shred the chicken with a fork and place back into slow cooker for the remainder of the cooking time.

Serve with rice or gluten-free pasta!

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