Cinco De Mayo Fiesta

I have never really done anything festive for Cinco De Mayo and so my dearest friend Kate, whom I have been friends with since we were toddlers, decided that at age 30 it was high time we celebrated this festive holiday properly.

We started off the evening at El Camino Super Cocina in Little Italy where we…

Had our picture taken with a Zonkey! (though I think he was really a pony so that would make him more of a Zoney I suppose). Nonetheless he was super cute and I felt like this definitely qualified as proper Cinco de Mayo festiveness.

Unfortunately, El Camino was way too packed to sit for a proper meal, which was sad because their food is amazing!! Last time I was there their nightly special was baked chile relleno, yes it was baked not fried and not breaded meaning completely gluten free and very much swoon worthy as far as deliciousness goes.

Before heading out we squeezed our way to the bar for a celebratory toast with tequila served in itty bitty boot glasses (so cute!)

Even though we were sad to not be eating at El Camino we were not that sad because instead we got to go to my favorite pizza place in San Diego.

Pizza Fusion

Gluten free crust topped with tri color peppers, mozzarella and the most delicious pepperonis I have ever tasted. I could not have picked a better meal for Cinco de Mayo or any night of the week for that matter.

They also just happened to have a new gluten free cider on the menu.

Fox Barrel Black Currant Cider. Now I am not typically a huge beer or cider gal but this stuff may have just chanced that. The flavor of the currant really comes out in the most perfect subtlety sweet not at all bitter way, I think I have a new favorite beverage to pair with pizza!

We may not have stuck to the typical Cinco de Mayo theme as far as celebrating goes but I must say I think we did it up just right.

Hello Again Hole-y Bread

As evident by my lapse in posting I have been busy as a gluten free bee lately baking up a storm for holiday orders. Gift baskets, birthdays, holiday parties, fundraisers, meetings, and presents for lucky gluten free girls and boys. Since so much of my time is spent in the kitchen baking sweet treats I have not had as much time to prepare leisurely meals for myself so I have had to mix up my cooking regimen a bit. Now just because I am busy does not mean I’m going to toss in the towel and microwave a frozen dinner or even worse make a run for the border (no offense to all you Taco Bell lovers out there, admittedly I use to be one too!). What I did do though was revisit a favorite quickie meal of my youth, one that I use to make when I was of an age where I was just barely tall enough to reach the knobs on the oven and use of a stove involved parental supervision. While this meal is most definitely quick and easy it by no means sacrifices nutrition or deliciousness one itty bitty bit.

 

Back in the day when I was a busy student/theater worker one of my go to meals between school and work was a toasted bagel. Spread with sweet cream cheese, topped with peanut butter, or smeared with butter and jam, warm toasted bagels were always a quick, delicious and filling meal for a girl on the go.  When I gave gluten the boot, bagels by default were shoved out of the picture as well, for a while at least. After a few months into the diet one day while shopping I noticed gluten free bagels in the freezer section of one of my local stores, at this point in my new gluten free diet I was still feeling scorned by many a disappointing frozen gluten free baked good experiences so I shyed away from the round, holey baked goods not wanting to develop any negative feelings about a food I use to enjoy so very much.

 

Flash forward a few years of gluten free eating and baking later and I find myself at the grocery store, taking a quick break from my baking to pick up a few missing ingredients and searching for something delicious and quick to prepare for myself for dinner. I made my way to the alternative breads section as I always do to check for new products and peruse the tasty gf offerings. They had all my usual prebaked bready favorites, brown rice tortillas, Kinnikinnick pizza crusts, and sweet brown rice bread. I went to reach for the tortillas thinking I would just make a quick quesadilla and that’s when I noticed them, right between the flax seed bread and some vegan muffins a bag of big, fluffy, sesame seed speckled Glutino bagels.  Now I knew from past experiences that Glutino had proven to be a pretty reliable source of scrumptious gluten free baked goods, their mini pretzels are my favorite and their cinnamon raisin bread when toasted is one of the yummiest frozen breads I have found. So I figured there was a pretty good chance that their bagels might be a tasty choice and plopped a bag of 5 in my basket and headed for the check out.

 

As soon as I saw the bagels I knew what I was going to make, as much as I love bagels with sweet toppings it was well past dinner time and all I had to eat that day was taste tests of many of the baked goodies I had been preparing since I awoke that morning so I needed something with a bit more substance than a bagel with sweet goodness on top.

 

One of the first cookbooks I received as a child had a recipe for pizza in it, now mind you this was a recipe book for children in the 6 to 7 year old range so there would be no oven involved in the original recipe.  This pizza recipe involved a bagel, pizza toppings, and a mommy to pop the completed pizza in a toaster oven to cook. Since I don’t have a toaster oven I improvised and used a big girl oven, otherwise the method for preparation was about the same and the end product just as delicious as I remember it.

 

Gluten Free Pizza Bagels

 

Ingredients

2 gluten free bagels, sliced in half

Tomato sauce

Mozzarella cheese, shredded

Deli ham, cut into small pieces

Pineapple, cut into small slices

Sprinkling of dry Italian herbs

 

Preparation

Pop the bagels in the toaster and while they are toasting gather the ingredients you are going to be using as toppings. I decided to make a Hawaiian pizza but feel free to use whatever toppings you like best on your pizza.  Once the bagels are toasted set them on a cookie sheet and then add your toppings. I like to start with a swirl of tomato sauce, then add a sprinkling of cheese, a few pieces of ham and pineapple and finish with a dash of dried Italian spices like oregano and basil. 

Once the bagels are topped pop the cookie sheet in the oven set to broil until the cheese melts and starts to bubble up a bit.

 

Enjoy your pizzas right out of the oven with a glass of vino or grape juice if you really want to reminisce on childhood meals past.

 

As with many of their other products the Glutino bagels did not disappoint and in fact tasted just as good as I remembered bagels to taste. I am already looking forward to making some of my sweet bagel favorites with them. In fact I think I might have found the perfect excuse to open that last jar of peach butter I have been saving from last summer. 

GF Pizza in SD

Pizza Fusion

Whether you like your pizza piled high with meat or covered in veggies, sprinkled with soy cheese or smothered with gorgonzola and feta Pizza Fusion has a pie that will please even the pickiest of palates. You can pick one of their specialty pizzas such as the scrumptious "Seattle" (topped with tomatoes, red onion, basil and garlic, drizzled with balsamic and olive oil, and sprinkled with mozzarella and parmesan) or you can opt to design your own choosing from their wide selection of tasty toppings. They also offer three different options for piling these scrumptious toppings on, white, multi grain and my personal favorite, gluten free. All of their crusts including the gluten free are served up thin style, which personally I feel is perfect for pizzas with fresh and flavorful ingredients like theirs. (If you want thicker style gluten free pizza you should try Brick Oven in Poway where they offer a thick New York style GF crust). The gluten free crust at Pizza Fusion was spot on flavor wise, had a nice bready texture and was not gummy or dense like many gluten free baked goods tend to be. It also came as a full size pizza which is a rare find in the gluten free pizza world. In addition to pizza they also have an array of tasty beverages to choose from, yerba matte teas, natural sodas, organic wines and beers (there's a gluten free beer too!).

They also have a selection of scrumptious salads (the pear and gorgonzola with balsamic vinaigrette was delish!) and for dessert they offer a rich, chocolaty, gluten free brownie.

Pizza Fusion is the perfect solution for a pizza night that will fit the tastes and dietary needs of almost everyone and a most delicious addition to the small but slowly growing selection of scrumptious gluten free eateries in San Diego.

Brick Oven

Brick Oven serves up the pizza I remember eating as a kid. Thick crust swirled with sweet tomato sauce, covered with a thick layer of melty mozzarella, and topped with peppers and pepperonis. No carb cutting or calorie counting here this is the kind of pizza you might be tempted to dab with a napkin before eating (don't do it!). If Pizza Hut and NY Giant (on Twin Peaks) were to get married this would be their baby, hearty deep dish crust topped with a generous portion of incredibly flavorful toppings. The BEST part about Brick Oven is that this intoxicatingly delicious pizza that I am raving about is completely GLUTEN FREE! Sure they have regular pizza but that's not what keeps me coming back for more. I recently went with a non GF friend and shared a gluten free pie and my friend said she could not tell the difference between it and regular gluten laden pizza and that she would be tempted to order their GF pizza even when not dining with me. If that is not a testimony to this pizza's deliciousness then I don't know what is!

Sandwich week, Tuesday, field trip

On Tuesday I decided to work a half day and go to the fair with my oldest and bestest friend Kate. Since we were headed west to the fairgrounds which are within walking distance of my old office in Solana Beach I thought it would be downright tragic if we did not stop by one of my old favorite lunch spots and one of the few places in San Diego where one can go for a decent gluten free sandwich, Waters. Everything at Waters is scrumptious from their super fresh and crisp salads to their hearty and sweet roasted root veggies. They also always have a selection of flavorful cheeses, fruit salad and decadent desserts (most sadly are not gluten free though, but that’s okay, more reason for me to start my own gluten free bakery!). I am always tempted to try one of their scrumptious sounding specials in the daily menu emails they send me and on occasion I do (one time they had polenta lasagna….sooo good!). Typically though I almost always end up ordering my favorite sandwich the Roasted Turkey Panini on gluten free bread without aioli (no me gusta mayo). As soon as we decided to go to Waters for lunch I knew I had to order my usual sandwich (it is sandwich week after all). I didn’t even bother to look at the specials and headed straight to the counter to place my order and was happy to see all of the familiar faces from my Solana Beach lunch break days were still there. Before I could order the girl at the counter greeted me and said, “Roasted Turkey Panini on gluten free with no aioli, right?” Even after 5 months away my dearest Waters remembered me, I felt so loved!



The sandwich was heavenly and just as delicious as I remembered. Kate loved hers too (she had the Grilled Eggplant on regular bread). After eating every last crumb of our panini’s we said good by to our beloved Waters and headed off to the fair where we…

Went on a giant slide (where Kate nearly had a heart attack after the steep climb and I was slightly groped by one of the slide attendants)



Played with animals (both real and plastic)



Were overwhelmed by the plethora of fried foods to choose from (deep fried Twinkies and Frog Legs!)



Kate decided on the fried Oreos



I had some not so sweet corn smuthered with hot sauce, salt and a bit of butter (no lemon, so sad)



Won an Elmo doll as a consolation prize after we failed to toss 16 balls into floating baskets



Enjoyed the vibrating footsie wootsie machines



We also went through a haunted house which consisted of riding on a rickety cart that ran through a trailer that had been painted black. The scariest part was worrying that the car might break down leaving us stuck inside the dark, steamy interior of the sauna like trailer. Luckily, after less than 1 minute we were free from the hot box but not before a gorilla gloved hand reached out as we exited to grab and growl at us. We really wanted to go on the fun house but they would not let us on because we were wearing sandals. Seriously, its summer and southern California, everyone is wearing sandals what kind of rule is that!?

Of course we made time to go though the many halls and tents filled with tools, gadgets and amazing knickknacks that you can’t live without. We saw the handwriting analysis machine, meat jerky vendors, hammock slingers, knife demonstrators and the mini doughnut making machine and the cute little old ladies that sell them. We also saw our friends Chris and Josh who were selling awesome tortilla warmers. Like a little cozy pillow for your tortillas these tortilla warmers are so much cuter than those old bulky styrofoam ones.

Chris is one of my gluten free friends and when I was first starting to get sick all the time he was the first person that mentioned to me that gluten might be the culprit behind my tummy troubles. I had not seen him in forever and told him that I had started this blog and have a gluten free bakery in the works. So if you are reading this, Hi Chris!! Thanks for teaching me all about the evils of gluten!

After a long day of fair fun we headed to Poway to investigate an exciting rumor I had read about last week. After Mountain Mikes in Clairemont stopped selling gluten free pizza I like many gluten free San Diegans was crushed. Then at earth day this year I found out that a chain that offered gluten free pizza called Pizza Fusion would be opening a location in downtown San Diego and Temecula in the summer. Well their June opening was bumped up to sometime in July which now has been changed on the Pizza Fusion website to “coming soon” which is fine because in the meantime I can just make delicious pizza at home or if I happen to be in the mood to dine out I can go here.

Brick Oven Pizza in Poway now offers a gluten free crust, and a delicious one at that! Like most gluten free items it takes a bit longer to prepare but trust me it is worth the wait. It comes in one size which Kate and I found was the perfect amount for two hungry girls. They also guarantee that their toppings are free from gluten as well so you can top your pizza with anything you fancy. We opted for our old high school pizza eating days favorite of pepperoni and green bell peppers.

It was a bit of a greasier pie than I am accustomed to now (probably because of the pepperoni and real cheese) but it was indeed amazingly delicious and just as I remember eating out pizza to taste like. Kate even commented that she could not tell the difference between it and a gluteny pizza. Many thanks to the kind folks at Brick Oven for bringing gluten free pizza back to San Diego!

Pizza revisited

Even long after I feel I have completely mastered a recipe or particular cooking method I still find that I continue to ponder and plot ways to make the dish even tastier. My beloved tofu and bell pepper recipe for instance is one that I am constantly tinkering with adding different spices and peppers, noting how they impact the dish (for better or worse), and making notes for future preparations of it. Pizza is another thing I am constantly playing around with and trying to improve upon. As delicious as my pizza creations have been there was one particular thing that I had not yet attempted to replicate that was leaving a void in my pizza loving heart.

Honey whole wheat crust

As a bread lover the crust has always been one of my most favorite parts of a pizza. You know those people that eat pizza and at the end of the meal have a plate full of crusts? As a child I was the exact opposite of that. In fact when I was a little one it was not uncommon for me to pull all the toppings off of the pizza and just eat the crust. Growing up we always had whole wheat breads around the house so I developed a taste for wheaty baked goods from an early age. Naturally, one of my favorite types of pizza crusts was made with the same ingredients, hearty grains, whole wheat and a touch of honey.

Making a dish that must be wheat free taste like something called honey wheat at first seemed like an impossible task but you know me I am always up for a challenge in the kitchen. So after a few days of pizza contemplation I came up with a plan which yielded this delicious recipe that has most definitely filled that sweet wheat crust pizza void in my heart.

Greek pizza with sweet “wheat” crust

For the crust

1 Cheebe all purpose baking flour pack (made with 1 egg and 1 egg white)
1 ½ tablespoons maple syrup or honey

For the toppings

A dollop of olive oil
1 package frozen spinach, thawed a smidge
2 teaspoons fennel, ground
salt and pepper to taste
1 can or jar of pizza sauce
¾ cup low fat ricotta cheese
¾ cup feta cheese, crumbled
3 or 4 chopped tomatoes, guts removed
1 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped

Preparing the crust

Following the Cheebe directions for ingredients prepare your dough (I always use 1 egg and 1 egg white instead of 2 whole eggs). When you are at the stage where you add the milk or milk substitute add in the 2 tablespoons of maple syrup or honey as well. Once the dough is mixed and kneaded roll out into a pizza shape, prick with a fork and put onto a pizza pan that has holes in the bottom to bake for 20 minutes.

*I have found that this holey pan is the key to getting a firmer, crisper crust with the Cheebe dough.

Preparing the spinach

While the dough is having its first round in the oven you can prepare your toppings. Put some olive oil in a pan and heat over medium high. Once the pan is hot add your thawed spinach. Cook until spinach breaks down, about 5 minutes. Add to this your ground fennel, stir and then season to taste with salt and pepper. Cook for another few minutes and then turn off the heat and let cool for a minute or two. Take some paper towels and press them upon the spinach to absorb some of the liquid that has drained from the spinach. You may need to do this a second time with a change of towels as you want most of the liquid to be drained from the spinach.

Topping the pie

By the time the spinach is ready your dough should have finished its first round of cooking. Swirl the top of your pizza crust with the tomato sauce (use as much or as little as your heart desires) and then sprinkle your spinach evenly atop the sauce. Next speckle the pizza with little dollops of ricotta cheese and then complete your decorating with a generous sprinkling of crumbled feta. Pop this in the oven for another 10 minutes.

Tomato topping

While the pizza is on its last round of cooking you can prep the tomato topping. Chop and remove the guts of the tomatoes cutting the meaty parts into bite sized pieces. Add to this the chopped mint and stir until combined.

Finishing touches

Once the pizza is done baking turn the broiler on low and cook the top of the pizza for 1 or 2 minutes, just to give the ricotta a slight golden hue. After slicing the pizza and plating it serve with a generous portion of the mint and tomato mixture on top of each slice.

This sweet, crispy crust is my favorite one yet! The toppings are equally delicious too, so much in fact that even a crust lover like me would not dare to scrap the toppings off of this pizza. If by chance I was dining with a crust hater I might though be inclined to offer to help them clear their plates of any unwanted bready bits!

TGIP(izza)P(arty)F!

Ever since I was an itty bity Rachie Marie baking has been one of my favorite kitchen cooking activities. Kneading bread and getting my hands all ooey gooey with dough, molding pastry into delicate shapes and meticulously decorating cupcakes so they look almost too pretty to eat. Baking felt like playing to me, like a day in art class creating something not only beautiful to the eyes but delectable to the tummy too. As much as I loved to bake for some reason I never really experimented very much with pizza. Sure we had our fair share of pizza nights at home when I was a kid but more often than not that consisted of a premade Boboli crust swirled with a little tomato sauce and topped with mozzarella and salami. While as I recall this being quite the scrumptious treat to my preteen pallet I don’t think 10 minutes in the oven really qualified it as a gourmetish baked good. It was not until after I stopped eating gluten that I really started to play around with pizza making. I don’t know if it was the fact that pizza was something that I was not suppose to eat anymore or if it was the challenge to come up with something that not only worked but that would be amazingly delicious that got to me more, but for a while there I was on a pizza making mission. And now, two years and some change later I like to consider myself an expert on the subject. Give me an hour or so and I will make you the most amazingly delicious pizza you have ever tasted (and a gluten free one at that!). Sometimes I like to make a crust from scratch, combining different flours, warm water and yeast, kneading the dough and letting it slowly rise. For thick crusted pizzas I like to use the Whole Foods Brand pizza mix or a pizza crust recipe from “Gluten Free Baking Classics” by the lovely and talented Analise Roberts. Both of these recipes yield a thick fluffy crust that is not only delicious for traditional pizza toppings like mozzarella with ham and pineapple or spicy bbq chicken but also make a heavenly garlic bread as well. Sometimes you will find that your choice of toppings work better with a thinner crust and for thin crust pizzas I almost always use Chebe brand mixes. Chebe is a company based out of Iowa that makes delicious mixes for various gluten free bread products based upon a popular bread in Brazil called “pao de queijo” or cheese bread. The mixes can be made with or without cheese and are all incredibly delicious and easy to prepare. I buy Chebe products at my local Henrys store but if you can’t find them in your area fear not you can also order them on the Chebe webby site!

Typically I get a craving for pizza once or twice a month, usually ifs after being at work or a gathering where someone offers me a delicious smelling slice of glutenous pizza. Even though I have become quite the expert in the polite decline when it comes to gluten laden foods the smell of any pizza with or without gluten still makes my mouth water and starts the wheels in my brain churning with different ideas for my next pizza creation.

Like many meals I think pizza is best when enjoyed with friends and lucky for me my most recent pizza night was one that was shared with a few of my favorite people, Matt, Jamie and Steve.

Recipe for a perfect Friday night pizza party

2 delicious gluten free pizzas
2 scrumptious salads
2 bottles of bubbly beverages (my favorite sparkling syrah from South Coast Winery, Ruby Cuvee and a bottle of Santa Cruz organics sparkling tangerine juice)
1 bowl of caramel popcorn
3 wonderful friends
and of course…musical watching!

As soon as I got home from work I started working on the pizzas. I mixed up the ingredients for my two Chebe crusts, kneaded the dough and rolled it our flat on a cookie sheet. With the Chebe dough after you roll it out I find it helps if you prick the crust with a fork a bit to keep it from puffing up too much in the oven. You also might want to put a light coating of olive oil on the crust edges to keep them from browning too quickly. If you happen to have one of those spiffy pans with the holes in the bottom these work great for making a sturdier and crispier crust. While my crusts were cooking I prepped the toppings for the pizza and by the time my lovely guests had arrived my pizza crusts were pre cooked and ready for their toppings.

Spicy sausage and sweet pepper pizza

This was one of the first fancy pizzas I made when I started cooking gluten free. When I was younger I hated veggies on pizza and while I still don’t care much for mushrooms or olives on my pizza I l-o-v-e peppers on pizza. Bell peppers, pepperchinis, jalapeños or mini sweet are all delicious and a frequent addition atop my pizzas. I find that the mini sweet work well with the thin crust of this pizza and their sweet crunch pairs wonderfully with the spicy sausage. The cheesy crust was inspired by my middle school pizza eating days at Hungry Howies that was located in the then new town of Carmel Mountain Ranch and was known for their flavored crusts (my personal favorite being the butter cheese).

Dough: Chebe pizza mix (if you can only find the flat bread or all purpose mix just add a sprinkling or two of your own dry Italian spices to the mix).
Crust: After you finish the first round of cooking and before you put your toppings on the pizza you will want to lightly coat the crust with olive oil and then dust the crust with parmesan cheese.
Sauce: Tomato sauce swirled with a generous dollop of homemade pesto.
Toppings: Pre cooked slices of Italian herb or spicy sausage, diced mini sweet peppers (or bell if you can’t find minis) and a combination of part skim mozzarella cheese and mozzarella flavored rice cheese (or just one or the other, I have semi lactose intolerant pals so I use a mix of both to cut the dairy a bit).

Pear, gorgonzola and arugula pizza

This is one of my favorites! The combination of the savory cheeses, sweet pears, crunchy walnuts and slightly bitter arugula make for the most marvelous melding of flavors and textures.

Dough: Chebe bread mix or all purpose mix.
Sauce: a swirl of olive oil.
Toppings: First top with a generous sprinkling of crumbled gorgonzola then top with thin slices of pear (bartlet and/or bosc), add a handful of toasted chopped walnut pieces and lastly lightly dust with cinnamon. After the pizza is cooked top with fresh shavings of parmesan cheese and arugula.

While our pizzas were in the oven we sipped our bubbly beverages and prepared the salads. Jamie made a sweet spring salad with field greens, strawberries, candied nuts, avocado and Briana’s Rich Poppy Seed dressing (I am pretty sure this is gluten free).

I made one of my favorite summer salads, bruschetta (sans bread of course) with chopped vine ripened tomatoes, fresh chopped basil, 4 cloves of crushed garlic a dollop of olive oil, sea salt and fresh ground pepper.

Dinner was a delicious success! Its hard for me to say what I liked best, I think it was a close call between the pear pizza and Jamie’s colorful salad.

For dessert Jamie brought all the fixins to make a sweet treat for us to snack on while we watched musicals. I dusted off the air popper to make the popcorn while Jamie mixed up a scrumptiously sticky pot of caramel sauce.

Jamie’s super yummy caramel popcorn

1 bottle Karo Syrup
1 cube butter
2 cups brown sugar
1 can sweetened condensed milk (Eagle brand)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Stir in a heated pan the brown sugar and karo syrup until melted. Let boil for 2 minutes, stirring. Take off heat and add the butter, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla. Drizzle desired amount atop popcorn and stir until combined. Save the remaining syrup in a jar in the refrigerator to be used on ice cream, brownies and other sweet treats.

The popcorn was delish and the perfect snacky dessert to enjoy while cozyed up in the living room watching movies. We had a hard time deciding what musical to watch so we watched a few scenes from one of my favorite silly Indian movies, Mujhse Shaadi Karogi and then settled on watching Newsies, since Steve had never seen it before.

Wonderful friends, fabulous food and a little song and dance about delivering newspapers, Friday nights really can't get much better than that. Unless of course we had finished the night by playing X-Box Karaoke Revolution. That might have sent me into a fun coma though, better that we save that for next Friday.