gluten free Archives - Page 16 of 30

Gluten-Free Menu by Akinto at Wink & Nod

June 26, 2015 By Becky 2 Comments

Disclosure: I was invited to a complimentary dinner to try the gluten-free menu at Wink & Nod. I wasn’t obligated to blog about it, but it was so delicious that I wanted to share.

Last month Ben and I had the opportunity to attend an amazing gluten-free dinner for Boston-area bloggers at Wink & Nod, a unique restaurant & bar in the South End that features a rotating kitchen. That means every six months a new chef takes up residence there to serve their own menu alongside Wink & Nod’s cocktails and other libations. Right now Chef Patrick Enage is cooking his Akinto menu, which is heavily influenced by his Filipino heritage and features many gluten-free items. You can read more about the chef and his menu here. Also, you might want to get over there soon, because he’ll only be there through the end of the summer!

The dinner at Wink & Nod was one of the best restaurant meals I’ve ever had. (You might think I don’t eat out much because I’m so busy cooking myself, but you’d be wrong! I have always loved eating out and do it way more than I should, so I’ve been to my fair share of great restaurants.) Everything we tried was both delicious and beautiful, which, as a wanna-be food stylist, I really appreciated. Each dish was built with contrasting flavors, colors, and textures that made the food really satisfying and interesting at the same time.

Paleo Breakfast Casserole with Bacon, Sausage, Sweet Potato, & Kale

June 22, 2015 By Becky 64 Comments

Breakfast Casserole with Bacon, Sausage, Sweet Potato, and Kale | acalculatedwhisk.com

This paleo breakfast casserole is so packed with flavorful ingredients that no one will notice it’s dairy free and Whole30 compliant. It’s great to make ahead and reheat on busy mornings, too!

Looking for more delicious paleo recipes? Check out my cookbook, Paleo Planet!

When I make a recipe, I always expect it to turn out great. Of course, sometimes it doesn’t, but if I weren’t expecting delicious results, why would I bother making the recipe at all?

On the other hand, sometimes there’s a qualifier. I might say to myself, “These cookies will be great–for sugar-free cookies.” Or in this case, “This will be wonderful–for a dairy-free, paleo breakfast casserole.”

Crispy Chicken with Fig and Shallot Compote

June 19, 2015 By Becky 22 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Crispy Chicken with Fig and Shallot Compote | acalculatedwhisk.com A simple but gourmet paleo dinner, perfect for a Whole30 or anytime. @beckywink

So, there may or may not be a poem at the end of this post, entitled “Ode to Figs” and written in the style of Pablo Neruda. (Have you read his poem “Ode to the Artichoke”? I’m not very into poetry but I’m very into artichokes–it’s one of the few poems I truly appreciate. Here it is in Spanish and English.) Figs are special, so I’m sharing a special but easy recipe that showcases them in all their glory. Plus, my ridiculous poem.

I got so excited when I discovered fresh figs at the market earlier this week. It seems that figs have a short season in early summer and a longer season in the fall, so if you can’t find them now, hopefully you’ll bookmark this post for later.

30 Easy Paleo Dinners (in 30 minutes or less!)

June 13, 2015 By Becky 14 Comments

Hungry but short on time? Here are 30 easy paleo dinners that can be made in 30 minutes or less!

Anyone meal planning this weekend? I have 30 quick, flavorful, and easy paleo dinners for you to consider. Seafood, chicken, turkey, beef, and even breakfast for dinner–there’s a little bit of everything here!

This summer is a busy one for me. In addition to finishing up the last few classes for my master’s program, I’m working long days at a hospital for my final clinical externship. The last thing I want to do when I get home is spend a lot of time getting dinner ready (or worse, end up ruining my Whole30 by succumbing to the temptations of takeout). I scoured the web for tasty paleo recipes that can be made, start to finish, in 30 minutes or less, and asked some of my blogger friends to share their favorite recipes as well. Almost all of these recipes are Whole30 compliant as written, but for the ones that aren’t, I’ve noted an easy substitution for you.

Do you have a go-to quick dinner? I’d love to hear about it. Let me know in the comments!

Slow-Cooked Bolognese Sauce with Sweet Potato Spaghetti

June 10, 2015 By Becky 17 Comments

There’s nothing more comforting than a slow-cooked Bolognese sauce with sweet potato spaghetti! It’s gluten free, paleo, and much more colorful and nutritious than regular spaghetti and meatballs.

This is Whole30 comfort food at its best. Making Bolognese sauce every Friday is a new tradition of mine, and even though I’ve only been doing it for a few weeks, it’s already made my weekends much heartier and more delicious.

I have Fridays off this semester so I can stay home while this fragrant sauce simmers away, but if you have to work you could start the sauce in the morning before you leave and finish it in the slow cooker, or make it your Saturday or Sunday tradition instead.

You want to let this sauce cook for a nice long time because the flavors will continue to meld and develop over the course of several hours. The long cooking time is the reason bolognese sauce is so synergistic. I also think the sauce tastes even better when I reheat it a day or two later, but I can never resist eating at least some of it the day I make it. The aroma is so enticing!

Because everyone’s schedule is different, I’m providing a slow cooker version and a version that cooks completely on the stovetop. Other than the cooking time, which is much longer for the slow cooker version, the only difference is the amount of liquid you add. The stovetop version needs extra liquid since much of the water in the sauce will evaporate, but the slow cooker keeps all that moisture locked in.

Creamy Whipped Feta

June 2, 2015 By Becky 14 Comments

This post is sponsored by Nikos Feta.

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Creamy Whipped Feta made with Nikos | Get more feta recipes & enter to win a trip to Hawaii here: https://ooh.li/1cd7e02 #sp

Have you ever whipped feta cheese?

If the answer is no, buckle your seat belt and get out your food processor. You are in for quite a ride (or at least, your food processor is in for a quite a workout).

This recipe is super simple, but totally changes the character of feta. The rich and tangy flavor that’s usually packaged in chewy little crumbles infuses this smooth, creamy, and versatile dip. I enjoyed this whipped feta with fresh asparagus spears, carrot sticks, and my favorite gluten-free crackers, but the possibilities are limitless. (It MAY have crossed my mind to use this instead of tomato sauce on a pizza, maybe with roasted red peppers and fresh mozzarella balls, too. Doesn’t that sound amazing?)

Nikos Feta works beautifully in this dip. It’s not as overwhelmingly salty as some fetas are, but still has the wonderfully sharp and distinctive flavor that feta is famous for. It’s sold in a block or in a tub of crumbles, and either one will work for this recipe! I used their traditional feta, but I bet this would also be great with one of their other flavors (tomato basil, perhaps?). You can see all the different flavors here.

Blueberry Buttermilk Ice Cream

May 30, 2015 By Becky 24 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Blueberry Buttermilk Ice Cream | acalculatedwhisk.com @beckywink

The past couple of weeks have been a whirlwind. Last weekend I went to an amazing food photography and styling workshop in Plymouth, MA (more on that here), yesterday I took the comprehensive exams for my master’s program, and somewhere in there I turned 30.

I actually love birthdays (especially mine), and so far I am feeling good about being 30. Ben’s birthday is just a week and a half before mine, so we celebrated with a joint make-your-own ice cream sandwich party. It’s hard to imagine anything more fun than smooshing ice cream between cookies with your closest friends!

This ice cream was not present at the party because it hadn’t occurred to me yet–I was actually inspired to make this because of all the leftover buttermilk I had after making Ben’s birthday cake. (He always wants a gluten cake for his big day, and who am I to deny a birthday boy? It’s the only glutinous baking I do all year. I made him this chocolate cake and it was fabulous. The only change I made was using avocado oil instead of canola. The avocado oil is tasteless and worked great in the cake!)

For the party I made a classic vanilla ice cream in my ice cream maker and Nigella Lawson’s no-churn coffee ice cream. If you don’t have an ice cream maker (or even if you do!) you HAVE to try this no-churn business. I was blown away by the awesome, creamy texture and how easy it was to make. (It is, however, less healthy than what I normally make due to copious amounts of sweetened condensed milk. Worth it for a special occasion, though!)

Chorizo Chicken with Olives and Roasted Peppers + Yellow Rice

May 25, 2015 By Becky 36 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Chorizo Chicken with Olives and Roasted Peppers + Yellow Rice | acalculatedwhisk.com A simple and flavorful paleo dinner!

Most people love simple recipes. I’m actually the opposite–I want the things I cook to be a little bit of a process. Nothing insane, but a few different components. I love the act of cooking, and I usually don’t want it to be over too quickly.

This chorizo chicken is the best of both worlds. If you want it to be super simple and quick, you can buy a jar of roasted red peppers or even leave them out. You can also serve this with a tossed salad instead of the rice. If you’re looking to have a little fun, though, you can roast your peppers on an open flame.

This genius recipe comes from Karen of Lavender and Lovage. I was assigned Karen’s blog for this month’s Secret Recipe Club reveal day, and had so much fun perusing her recipes. She lives in England but also spends a lot of time in France, where she has a cooking school. Karen has a huge selection of recipes on her blog, including several tempting choices like Scottish rhubarb and ginger crunchy streusel cake and bacon-wrapped turkey breast, which I want to make when the holidays roll around.

Parrilla Mixta Italiana

May 19, 2015 By Becky 8 Comments

This Italian summer grilling post is sponsored by Colavita.

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

To me, a mixed grill is the epitome of summer eating. When I spent a semester in Buenos Aires during college, I loved to go out with friends and order a parrilla mixta, which usually consisted of grilled steak, chicken, chorizo, and often organ meats as well, with a big bowl of herby chimichurri sauce and an even bigger bowl of french fries on the side. Add a bottle of wine and you have yourself one happy evening!

I don’t know why it took me so long to recreate a parrilla mixta at home, but when Colavita asked me to write a post on the theme of Italian summer grilling, this was the first thing that came to mind.

Here I’ve given the Argentine parrilla an Italian twist, marinating the steak and chicken with Italian seasonings and adding capers to the chimichurri. Argentine cuisine is heavily influenced by the food of Italy to begin with–even the Spanish spoken in Buenos Aires sounds uniquely reminiscent of Italian–so Colavita’s oils and vinegars work really well with all the components of this South American meal.

Watermelon Raspberry Agua Fresca

May 14, 2015 By Becky 12 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Watermelon Raspberry Agua Fresca | acalculatedwhisk.com

I “graduated” from my master’s program on Monday. We all walked across the stage, shook the provost’s hand, and got our picture taken with a little rolled up “diploma” that, when opened, basically congratulated us on having ALMOST finished our degrees. Even though the speech-language pathology program goes through August, my school only has one graduation ceremony a year, which means we all walk before taking our comprehensive exams and before our final semester has even begun.

Although it was, as my classmates are calling it, a “frauduation”, I deemed it cause for an actual celebration.

And what better way to celebrate than with a refreshing drink?

This agua fresca is so easy to make, but its unique color and flavor make it feel special. Agua fresca is often made with just watermelon, but I added raspberries here, too, to amp up the flavor and deepen the hue. The cool, sweet watermelon and tart raspberries make a great pair.

Slow-Cooker Short Ribs

May 11, 2015 By Becky 14 Comments

This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

If I had to pick one food to write a love song to, it would probably be short ribs. I just found out about them a couple of years ago when I ordered them at a restaurant expecting spareribs, and was surprised that the meltingly tender meat I received had no bones at all. The texture of short ribs feels so deluxe if you’re used to steak or ground beef. I can’t get enough!

You can buy boneless or bone-in short ribs. I usually buy bone-in because I think cooking with the bones in gives the meat extra flavor. They can be served on the bone, like in this recipe for kratiem prik thai short ribs, or off the bone, shredded, like I’ve done here.

Paleo Flatbread (Naan)

May 7, 2015 By Becky 62 Comments

Looking for a delicious paleo flatbread to scoop up some curry? This grain-free recipe rivals regular naan in both texture and flavor!

I’ve cracked the code on paleo naan! This grain-free flatbread is soft and chewy just like its gluten-laden counterparts, and thanks to the yeast, its flavor is really authentic. I’m actually a little bit worried about having figured out this recipe, because I now want it with every single meal. It’s going to take a lot of restraint to not just eat this instead of vegetables!

I’d never considered making a yeasted paleo flatbread before, partly because yeast can be time-consuming and partly because I had heard that gluten-free doughs don’t rise as well. And while that may be true, I was pretty excited about how well this dough rose (see the photos near the end of the post for evidence). Also, since this bread just needs one quick, 45-minute rise, it’s not totally insane to make on a weeknight.

I got the idea for this bread when I saw Heather’s perfect paleo flatbread recipe on Cook It Up Paleo. Her recipe calls for yeast, but doesn’t have you wait for the dough to rise. I couldn’t try her recipe as-is because it calls for coconut flour (I’m allergic to coconut), so I decided to play around with it a bit.