Tag Archives: spice

Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup

Here is a recipe that my mom made over the holidays.  It is often hard to find soup that is gluten and dairy free, but she did it!  It was a great appetizer to our holiday meal, and served as great leftovers whenever we wanted a snack later on in the week.  I know that it looks long, but well worth the effort!  My mom and I were amazed at the idea to grind up dried mushrooms and use them as a spice in the soup..genius!

Wild Rice and Mushroom Soup

(adapted from Cooks Illustrated)

Pieces:

  1. ½ oz dried shiitake mushrooms, rinsed
  2. 4 ¼ cups water
  3. 1 sprig fresh thyme
  4. 1 bay leaf
  5. 1 garlic clove, peeled
  6. 4 garlic cloves, peeled & minced
  7. salt & pepper
  8. ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  9. 1 cup wild rice
  10. 4 tablespoons vegan butter
  11. 1 lb cremini or white mushrooms, trimmed & sliced ¼ “ thick
  12. 1 onion, chopped fine
  13. 1 teaspoon tomato paste
  14. 2/3 cup dry sherry
  15. 4 cups low-sodium gluten-free chicken broth
  16. 1 tablespoon gluten-free soy sauce
  17. ¼ cup cornstarch
  18. ½ cup coconut creamer
  19. ¼ cup chives, minced
  20. ¼ teaspoon lemon zest

Process:

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
  2. Grind dried mushrooms in spice grinder or coffee bean grinder to a powder, or reconstitute in ¼ cup warm water until soft and finely mince.
  3. Bring 4 cups water, thyme sprig, bay leaf, peeled garlic clove, ¾ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon baking soda to a boil in medium saucepan.
  4. Add wild rice and return to boil. Cover and place in oven.
  5. Bake until tender, @45 minutes.
  6. Strain rice through fine mesh strainer set in 4 cup measuring cup.  Discard thyme sprig, bay leaf and garlic.  Add enough water to strained liquid to measure 3 cups.
  7. Melt butter in Dutch oven.  Add cremini or white mushrooms, onion, minced garlic, tomato paste, ¾ teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper.
  8. Cook until vegetables are browned, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.
  9. Add sherry, scraping up browned frond on bottom of pot.
  10. Cook until almost reduced, about 2 minutes.
  11. Add ground or reconstituted shiitake mushrooms, reserved rice liquid, chicken broth and soy sauce.
  12. Bring to boil, and then reduce heat and simmer, covered, until mushrooms and onions are tender, about 20 minutes.
  13. Whisk cornstarch and ¼ cup water in small bowl.
  14. Stir cornstarch into soup.
  15. Simmer soup until thickened, about 2 minutes.
  16. Remove pot from heat, stir in rice, coconut creamer, chives, lemon zest and salt&pepper to taste.
  17. Cover and let stand 20 minutes before serving.

Image

Happy Allergy Free Eating!

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Kick, Spice, Flavor

Oh, there are so many things you can do with a meatball and so many different spice combinations.  My recent ambition was to add some kick and some spice to chicken meatballs.  I used Asian flavorings for something different, and was very pleasantly surprised.

In a large bowl, add one pound of ground chicken.  Then add 2 tbsp. coconut creamer, 3 tbsp. red curry paste, 1 tbsp. fish sauce (you can find in the Asian section of your grocery store), juice of one lime, 2 tbsp. chopped garlic, 2 tbsp. celery seed, 2 tbsp. rice vinegar, and 2 tbsp. ginger.  Mix together with your hands, making sure all the ingredients get combined.  You can adjust the seasoning to your taste.

Here’s the fun part.  I made meatballs out of the chicken mixture by rolling them into balls and sauteing them.  You can also just as easily make the mixture into chicken patties and bake them, or even make it into a meatloaf.

To add some extra kick, make a dressing of fish sauce, lime juice, red pepper flakes, agave nectar, cider vinegar, and rice vinegar.  You can add as much or as little of each ingredient as you want… get creative!  I added about equal portions of each.  Pour over the cooked meatballs and enjoy.  So much kick, spice, and flavor!

Happy Allergy Free Eating!

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