The Gluten Free Path

Posts Tagged ‘gluten free soups’

     I love soup! Until the last year or so I got all my soup out of a can. Unless my mom made it. My mother is a brilliant cook and always makes a several pots of soup throughout the winter, and even into the early summer. I decided in ’08 I had to learn how to make good soup.
A year and a half after my experiments I’m getting quite a bit better. I’ve got an idea as to what flavors go with what spices. I have even figured out how to get around food “road blocks”, like gluten. But it isn’t just gluten, it’s artificial things, like preservatives, flavors. Even “natural” things like natural almond flavor, I avoid. Things like that usually bother Rick or me.
     When it came to making split pea soup, which I love, I held off due to what I know they put in ham, which is usually used to flavor the soup. On top of that, pigs are among the most poorly treated of massively produced food animals. But that is a post for my other blog, the modern hippy I’ll be making in the near future.
     Our co-op, which I adore, carries uncured, happy pork. However, I don’t need the amount they carry and it is a little expensive. So I opted for turkey bacon raised ethically. It has the same flavor as bacon, without all the unhealthy pig fat. I have found that bacon is a good substitute for ham when needed.

What you will need:
2-3 cups dried split peas
1 cup dried black eyed peas(optional)
6-8 cups chicken broth (I make my own and freeze it)
1/2 finely chopped yellow onion
1-2 med/large carrots
Himalayan salt – to taste(or sea salt, but that will change the flavor a little)
Pepper – to taste
Sage – to taste
Cumin or Cardamom – to taste
3-6 slices of turkey bacon, torn up
( I firmly believe you should add whatever spices you like, but these will give you the split pea soup taste without changing it too much.)

     If you are using the black eye peas, soak over night or be prepared to cook them before anything else for at least an hour, maybe more. Simmer them in chicken broth, might as well start the flavor mixing at the beginning. Though remember the longer soup is cooked, the more steam be let off and the liquid may need to be replenished. This is partly why I start with so many cups of chicken broth.
     Once the black eyed peas are tender add the split peas and onions, about 30-45 minutes. If the peas still seem rock hard cook them longer. Add spices and carrots, simmer for 15 minutes until the carrots are softening but not too soft that they will over cook in just a few minutes. Lastly, add the turkey bacon. Simmer about 5-10 minutes to allow the flavor to be absorbed by the soup.
Serve with something tasty and enjoy!
      For the dinner photographed above, I also made stuffed shittake mushrooms and crisped up the extra bacon. Very tasty, though I’m not convinced that the recipe is final, so when it’s done I’ll put it up!

     Recently, I was searching for a recipe that would be easy to adapt for vegetarians. We decided as a nice surprise for our friends, to make them dinner for their first night back from Manchester. By accident I stumbled upon our co-op’s food blog, Sassy Sampler, and found a garlic potato soup recipe. Brilliant! The perfect soup! I already had some frozen “junk” veggies in the freezer I could use for veggie stock. Of course I added my own flair to make it more my own. I’ve added directions for making it vegetarian and non-vegetarian. Because of the ingredients, it is naturally gluten free. So if this gluten free thing is new to you, don’t over think it. This is something that would be gluten free anyway.

What you will need:

4 medium Russets, 3 medium red, and 2-3 medium yellow potatoes
1 medium/large leek, halved, then finely sliced, green and white parts
4-7 cups of chicken or veggie stock(see below for directions for both)
2 cloves of elephant garlic finely chopped
1 small regular garlic head, papery skin removed, top cut off
1/2 stick of butter
2 TBSP of safflower oil
2 bay leaves
1/2-3/4 cup of milk (I used 2%)
Thyme/ fresh or dried to taste
1/2 tsp of cumin or cardamom
3-4 dried Sage leaves, crumbled (I’d suggest using less if using fresh, it’s always stronger)
Black pepper to taste
Chopped green onions and grated cheddar cheese for garnish

     Melt butter with safflower oil until a bit foamy. Add chopped leeks and cook until soft (do not brown). Add finely chopped elephant garlic. Cook about 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add broth, garlic head, bay leaves and spices. Cook about 30 minutes, or until the garlic heads can be easily pierced with a knife. Add potatoes and cook until they are done. Remove bay leaves and the head of garlic. Mash the garlic out of the skins. Blend about half of the soup in a blender, add swished garlic paste. You may either add the milk to the blender or add it to the soup pot. Pour blended soup back into the soup pot. Serve with a garnish of grated cheddar and green onions or chives. I did mine with green onions.

Veggie Stock:

     Veggie stock is super easy. I save the “garbage veggie parts” and freeze them; such as the bottom part of a stock of broccoli, an onion that got a little rubbery, the ends of zucchini, and carrots I think I might not eat in time. How many veggie extras you need depends on how many cups you want. But remember, it’s not an exact science. It has to do with what you think tastes good. I had two full bags of “garbage veggies” in my soup pot and added 8-10 cups of water. Remember that when everything is simmering, it will loose water via steam, add more water if you want, just remember, more water means less concentrated flavor. Simmer for 4-6 hours or more, until it seems the veggies are soft or even a little mushy. Stir, let cool to freeze or refrigerate, or use immediately.

Chicken Stock:

     I use the bones from a recently roasted whole chicken. I feel that using all the bones, along with the left over meat of a roasted chicken, gives the best taste. But feel free to use whatever bones you want. Simmer bones for 2-3 or more hours. Strain, pick off the meat, add to stock or save for another meal like burritoes or a treat for the dog. Let cool to freeze or refrigerated or use immediately. Aside from using it as a soup base I like to freeze it in smaller bags and add it to refried beans and rice for
yummy tacos.