Albert Heijn
Albert Heijn is a supermarket chain in Holland.
Their stores seem to be everywhere and they mark all of the gluten-free products with the correct symbol. I’ve never had any problems with anything in their stores. Last night I had some salami and goat’s cheese thingies that were ideal for eating on the move.
Their stores are also in a lot of railway stations, so you can just pop-in and buy a salad for lunch.
Arbutus, 63-64 Frith Street, Soho, London
This is one of my favourite restaurants and it didn’t disappoint last night.
Arbutus Restaurant, Soho
The interesting thing about Arbutus is that the chef is a coeliac, so when you ask for gluten-free food you get gluten-free food without contamination.
I think this was my sixth visit. My late wife liked it too!
Hayley Turner
It is great to see Hayley Turner back riding after the injuries she received on the gallops.
She is a seriously good jockey, who last year rode 100 winners in a year. This is something that few jockeys do in long careers and it is something no lady jockey has done.
But Hayley is also almost unique in that she is a top class athlete, who is a coeliac. I’m one too. We’re all proud of you Hayley!
It Must Be Cold!
It must have been cold, as the cat has started to sit on the back of the AGA again.
Cat on the AGA
She is actually sitting on the hottest part, just behind the left hob, which you can on the left. I don’t like her to do this, as it means her fur gets in the fan and clogs it up.
Chilli Con Carne
This chilli con carne was pretty simple and came from the BBC.
These are the ingredients for 6-8. I halved it and made 3, of which I froze two.
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 onions, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1kg/2¼lb lean minced beef
- 250ml/9fl oz red wine
- 2 x 400g cans chopped tomatoes
- 3 tbsp tomato purée
- 2 red chillies, thinly sliced, or 3-4 tsp dried chilli flakes
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 stick cinnamon
- good shake of Worcestershire sauce
- 1 beef stock cube
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 x 400g can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 large bunch coriander leaves, roughly chopped
- wedges of lime, to serve
This is the method used.
- Heat the oil in a large, heavy-based saucepan with a lid and fry the onion and garlic until softened. Increase the heat and add the mince, cooking quickly until browned and breaking down any chunks of meat with a wooden spoon.
- Pour in the red wine and boil for 2-3 minutes.
- Stir in the tinned tomatoes, tomato purée, fresh chilli or chilli flakes, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, and Worcestershire sauce and crumble in the stock cube. Season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bring to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook over a gentle heat for about 50 minutes to 1 hour, stirring occasionally until the mixture is rich and thickened.
- Add the kidney beans and fresh coriander. Cook for a further ten minutes, uncovered, before removing from the heat, adding any extra seasoning if necessary. Serve with rice, guacamole, sour cream and a big green salad.
The original recipe gives a few tips as well.
The chilli is much tastier a day or two after it’s cooked because the flavours develop and the texture becomes richer. Simply leave to cool, stick in the fridge and gently heat before serving. If you’re eating the chilli on the day you prepared it, any leftovers can be frozen in individual portions in well-sealed sandwich bags, then reheated by boiling from frozen in a saucepan of water for about 15-20 minutes until steaming hot.
I just froze the other two portions.
Haddock with Crushed Peas
This is a very simple recipe, that I got from The Times some months ago.
You’ll need these ingredients for two people.
- 300g frozen petits pois or fresh peas
- 2 haddock, cod or other firm white fish fillets
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lemon
- 2 sprays cherry tomatoes on the vine
- Best olive oil to serve
And this is how you do it.
- Put kettle on to boil. Use some of the water to cook peas and put the rest in the steamer pan. If you have no steamer, you could cook the fish in a hot oven for 10 mins, seasoned with a squeeze of lemon.
- Failing that, fry it dusted with flour in hot oil. If steaming, smear fillets with olive oil, place in steamer tray, cover and cook for 8 mins. Meanwhile, place tomato sprays in a frying pan/roasting tin and cook under hot grill for about 5 mins until they begin to pop but before they disintegrate.
- I spike each one with a pointed knife to stop them bursting. When peas are ready, drain and return to pan with 1 tbsp olive oil and a squeeze of lemon.
- Crush with a potato masher, tip on to warmed plates and top with the fish. Drape a spray of tomato over the top and serve with a swirl of olive oil and a lemon wedge.
The only difference is that I bake the fish in a little oil in the oven of the AGA.
Help From UK-Coeliac Yahoo Group
I belong to the UK-Coeliac Yahoo Group and when you need help, they will always give it. I asked for some freezable casserole recipes and I got this long reply from Moodthy.
I do all sorts of casseroles, and wanted to say you can get low fat sausages! Just ask your butcher to make em up of 100% lean meat 🙂
An easy way to add fibre is to chuck some lentils in to any casserole, I have packets of puey lentils, red lentils and also soya beans (but these need soaking first, while lentils are easy to chuck in). Chickpeas and red kidney beans are also great thrown in (you can buy these canned or soak them first if using dry). I love chickpeas in curries and Moroccan style stuff.
Moroccan Chicken Casserole
http://www.crazysquirrel.com/recipes/poultry/moroccan-chicken-casserole.jspx
You can substitute chicken breast for chicken thigh (lower in fat) and chuck some chickpeas in for more fibre. I use millet as a cous cous replacement.
Mediterranean style fish casserole
http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/3676/mediterranean-fish-casserole.aspx
Soya Bean and Aubergine Casserole
http://www.cookitsimply.com/recipe-0010-02l105.html
The soya beans could easy be substituted for another type.
Arabic Side Dish
This is an Arabic rice recipe that is rice, lentils and caramelised onion, it’s works great on the side of a casserole and it is the yummiest thing ever. Easy to sub brown rice for white, to get a bit more fibre in.
Thanks, Moodthy
Soluble Fibre
In an earlier post, Does Gluten Lower Cholesterol, I pondered why my cholesterol was higher than it should be.
Yesterday, I went to see a dietitian and it would appear that I’m not eating enough soluble fibre; oats, beans and pulses. In fact, with the exception of the odd tin of baked beans and broad beans when they are in season, I don’t eat much at all.
As I drove back home, I pondered why I don’t eat as many of these as I should.
For a start, I should say that I actually love beans and when I was left alone in my teens, supper would nearly always be a cold tin of baked beans and orange squash. How we lived then? I’ll eat most beans and pulses, so why have they dropped from my diet.
Could it be that, when it comes to vegetables, that I actually prefer the broccolis, cauliflowers and greens of this world? I do and I wonder if it is because my late wife didn’t eat any of them, so when she cooked the vegetables were inevitably peas or if it was something like sausages, baked beans. So now, I’m in charge these have been relegated to the subs bench. I do eat baked beans, but because of my high cholesterol, I’ve been avoiding the sort of fatty foods that I usually eat them with!
So it looks like I could have been drawn into a trap of my own making, by cooking food I like for myself, rather than following a correct diet.
How many others don’t eat enough soluble fibre becuase of ignorance like me?
There was a sad footnote to the appointment with the dietitian. They used to know my old doctor from Woodbridge, Dr. Ian Bowles, who was our GP for perhaps fifteen years or so. It was sad to hear that he died a couple of years ago, many years before he should. Such is life!
Tuna with Beans and Tomatoes
This is a pretty quick and very good recipe that came from the BBC web site. I’ve done it a few times and always do it with line caught tuna from somewhere like the Maldives, as this is sustainable.
You’ll need these ingredients. Quantities are for four people.
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 12 tomatoes, halved
- 1 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 350g baby green beans, trimmed
- 4 tuna steaks
- 10 basil leaves, roughly torn
This is the method to use.
- Preheat the oven to 390F/Gas 6. I use the bottom of the top oven on the AGA.
- Lightly mix the oil, tomatoes, sugar, vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper in a large bowl then place ingredients in a large oven-proof dish.
- Roast uncovered in a hot oven for about 35 minutes or until the tomatoes are soft.
- Steam the beans until tender.
- Grill the tuna steaks until brown on both sides or just cooked through.
- Stir the basil into the tomato mixture and then serve the tuna with the tomatoes and beans.
It’s very easy to do and is totally gluten-free.
It seems to follow the pattern of being meat or fish with a sweet sauce.
Trafford Centre
In my view there is only one good reason to go to the Trafford Centre in Manchester and that is to go to Carluccio’s for some nice gluten-free pasta. The place was designed straight out of the if it’s got crap statues on it, then it must be good school of architecture.
The Trafford Centre
Look at them all around the roof.
At least I had a chance to take a picture of the Lotus in the car park.
Lotus Elan at Trafford Centre
I’d been to the Trafford Centre before and then I’d tried to buy something in Selfridges. So I’d asked where the Store Directory was and was told that they didn’t have one. Either the girl was having me on or they have one of the most warped marketing philosophies I’ve ever heard of. And then there was the shop where I wanted to buy some new shoes for real tennis. I use indoor court shoes and he couldn’t show me anything at all, so I left.
No wonder retail is in meltdown with methods and training like that!
But still on this visit, I saw some wannabe footballers wives preening themselves outside the restaurant. I didn’t like the pink stilettos.
The Anonymous Widower 