Wednesday, August 3, 2016

Gluten for punishment!


So we are having a problem going out to eat. The wife has developed a severe allergy to gluten and dairy. It is amazing how much better she fells when it is eliminated from our diet. I cook everyday and I post recipes that have gotten sort of popular on Instagram and facebook. Mainly vegetable and meats no fish or corn or soy or dairy. Still you can make a bunch of tasty stuff.

The thing is I can still eat regular food. Not the way I used to of course just in moderation. But I can have a regular pizza or hero. It is just a struggle to find a restaurant that we can both eat at. On Friday night we tried to figure something out.
Now the best gluten free restaurant in New York City is Bistango on 29th and Third in the City. We didn't want to go there so we googled to find something closer. Lo and behold there was a place just a few blocks away that claimed to have gluten free food. So we walked there and it turned out to be an old fashioned pizza joint that had gluten free pizza. Of course I didn't get that. I got the regular grandma pie with vodka sauce.


We had to construct a meal for the wife. She went with the gluten free pizza with artichokes, black olives, spinach and goat cheese. Not on the menu but created by negotiation with our very patient waitress. It was good enough but a bit of disappointment. She much prefers my cooking. Like these gluten free hot dogs and gluten free buns and a New York Strip Steak with chimichurri sauce.


Plus my favorite side dish of asparagus in garlic and oil that I make on the little side flame on the barbecue. A favorite summer treat. We are just so used to the care and thought that I put into the food that the usual slapdash effort you get in a restaurant just sucks. It must be hell for someone like Chip who makes these wonderful meals and then has to put up with crap just to have a night out.


We went to Bistango last night after the lingerie show and it was the same deal. We had to construct a dish out of whole cloth. They were super accommodating but it still was a pain in the ass. Luckily we got there very early so they had plenty of time to do it otherwise we would have been shit out of luck.

19 comments:

Leland said...

I discovered an allergy to Gluten as well, and yeah, I feel incredibly better when I keep it out of my diet. I haven't completely eliminated it, and don't try to avoid it. Rather, when I shop to cook at home; I do choose Gluten free products when available. I'll have to admit the options have gotten better in the last few months.

edutcher said...

Aaarrrrggghhhh!

(somebody had to...0

Trooper York said...

Leland there are a lot of great things you can do gluten free.

The thing is GMO grains are really nasty shit. I mean don't get me wrong they taste great. But just about the worse stuff you can do.

I am doing a lot with zucchini and eggplant. Peppers and onions and beets and turnips and sweet potato. Chicken and lean pork roasts with out salt. Steaks and chops. Kosher gluten free hot dogs are great.

It just takes a little more work. But you don't get anything close in a restaurant. You would think that in NYC there would be a bunch of great gluten free joints. But there ain't.

Evi L. Bloggerlady said...

I assume when restaurants say "gluten free" they substitute things in not gluten free and charge you more.

Sort of like the Democrat Party.

Chip Ahoy said...

Well done.

Ask the pizza place to buy their dough. Take it home and top it yourself. You can cook it right on the grill. And I'm very jealous of your outdoor grill. Not possible where I live currently. Such a bummer because I lived by that thing summer and winter. Full on snowing and I'm out there grilling.

Did you see my bunless hamburger last night? It's fantastic.

Trooper York said...

Your burger does look fantastic. I am going to make this weekend.

I just want to say that I take a lot of inspiration from your blog. I often try some of your recipes. The only problem is that I have to dumb it down for my audience. They don't love all of the intense flavors that you produce in some of your recipes. But I just want to say how much I admire what you do. Just so you know.

I have been buying gluten free pizza dough. In fact I have made it myself along with my own gluten free bread that comes out pretty good.

I have been making some great gluten free dough with coconut or almond or rice flower. I will post some of my gluten free recipes. I hope it interesting. I don't want to only do politics all the time.

Trooper York said...

The outdoor grill is great. It is strange to do so much grilling in an urban setting but I have always had a grill of some sort. Even when I had to do it on the fire escape back in the 1970's. Of course if you did that today the nanny police would have you arrested.

NO HIBACHI FOR YOU LOSER!

rcocean said...

I don't know if "pesto sauce" is OK for you, but i've fallen in love with the stuff. Grill up some Chicken Breasts, stir fry some mushrooms and red bell peppers, and toss some pesto sauce.

Also great with any kind of lean meat or grilled veggie.

Trooper York said...

I love pesto and use it all the time. It can be gluten free. The key is the vinegar. Some vinegars have a lot of gluten. That is why rice wine vinegar and apple cider vinegar are staples in my cooking.

Trooper York said...

Chimichurri sauce is basically Brazilian pesto. So it is wonderful on chicken or beef.

I love pesto but I make it myself. The key is the pignoli nuts which are really, really expensive. Most commercial pestos do not use them.

Trooper York said...

Basic pesto:
1 Pinch of Salt

60 small basil leaves or 30 large

2 Cloves Garlic

3 tablespoons Pine Nuts lightly toasted

2 tablespoons fresh Pecorino Cheese finely grated

2 tablespoons fresh Reggiano Parmigiano cheese finely grated

3-4 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

In a mortar start with salt and few leaves of basil. Crush with a pestle, keep adding leaves a few at a time, then add garlic and pound until the mixture becomes a paste. Add pignoli and work into a paste, then add cheese and slowly pour the olive oil.Work all into a creamy consistency.

Of course you can do it all in a blender but you have to pulse it gradually not just throw it all in at once.

I go heavy on the cheese and oil though.

Trooper York said...

I definitely skip the Parmigiano cheese as well as it is from the cow. Only the Pecorino which is sheep cheese.

Leland said...

Troop, I'm all for the proteins. I also like onions and peppers. What I miss the most is Chinese, but I don't miss the recovery periods.

Trooper York said...

I make my own Chinese all the time Leland. You can get some gluten free hoisen sauce, Braggs's Aminos which is better than any soy sauce out there and some garlic coconut amino sauces.

There is a herbal shop near me that I get most of my spices. I bet you can find one near you. Just purchase the Chinese five spice herb blend. Or you can make it yourself. It has the following:

Star Ainse, Cloves, Chinese Cinnamon, Sichuan pepper and fennel seeds. This is what gives Chinese food it's distinctive flavor. If you this as your spice in the stir fry it will taste like authentic Chinese food.

Trooper York said...

I will do a stir fry recipe soon. And list he gluten free products you can get. If you buy a couple of bottles of this stuff it can last for a long time. You can stir fry a lot of stuff. If you are adventitious you can get some Chinese ingredients like bok Choy or bamboo shoots or Chinese broccoli and you can expand into more elaborate dishes. But a simple beef or chicken with broccoli is easy.

I also make my own simple fried rice with brown rice, peas, eggs, onion and Braggs. It comes out great and is a perfect side dish for your stir fry.

I do this a least once or twice a week.

Evi L. Bloggerlady said...

Try stir frying chicken strips with cumin serrano peppers red onions and fresh peaches.

I toast the whole cumin seeds, then stir fry the chicken and onions with some olive oil and serrano pepper (seeded). Add in a tiny amount of chopped anchovy. Add in fresh peach slices. I also add fresh chopped rosemary, sage, fennel tops and basil with the peaches.

Evi L. Bloggerlady said...

I should say de-seeded on the serrano, unless you want it really hot.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

Polenta is gluten free. We love the Golden Pheasant brand and buy it in mass quantities when we can find it and put it into the freezer to keep it from getting buggy. It is the coarse ground polenta. NOT just regular grind cornmeal. Coarse ground.

Can your wife tolerate cheese, like parmesan, reggiano? Things with dairy cooked into it? I can't eat some high fat cheeses, too bad because I love Brie. A glass of milk will double me over with cramps. Good thing I don't like milk anyway. However, cooked or processed milk like yogurt, cottage cheese and lower fat cheeses are ok.

Creamy polenta (cooked with half milk, half water, salt, lots of parmesan/reggiano, and butter if she can tolerate it. Topped with or on the side (my preference) sauteed italian sauage with fennel seeds, red and green bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, maybe some portobella mushrooms. Seasoned with red pepper flakes, some red wine, basil etc. All sauteed together. One of our favorites. With a green salad and some fruit.

Tonight we are having a roasted asparagus, bacon, green onion and roasted red pepper fritatta. With peaches and blackberries (from the bushes on our property) tossed with cane sugar and some pecan sandies cookies for dessert. Maybe the cookies won't work for your wife though.

Christy said...

I've been seeing pizza recipes with crusts made from shredded zucchini. Still has a quarter cup flour, but significantly less gluten. On my list to try, someday.