Book of Yum

This weekend I had the pleasure of attending the anniversary party of Mariposa Gluten-Free Bakeshop in Oakland, California. I found out about the event from the Mariposa monthly newsletter, which promised scrumptious gluten-free food samples, sparkling champagne and festive live music. I don’t need much of an excuse to go visit my favorite gluten-free pizza bakery, so I marked it on my calendar and even persuaded some gluten-free “taste-testers” to accompany me. Patti, the owner of Mariposa, was true to her word, serving a delicious spread of gluten-free baked goods like Peach and Spinach pizza, Tomato Basil Pizza, gluten-free baguettes for bruschetta accompanied with tomatoes or peach chutney, gluten-free dairy-free chocolate chip cookies, and other baked sweets. They also had refreshing fresh fruit and chilled champagne, as well as delightful italian blood orange soda and sparkling water. The best thing? The bakery was absolutely hopping with fans of Mariposa’s tasty gluten-free offerings. There’s nothing I like seeing more than a gluten-free bakery with lots of customers. Soon after we got there, a local band started playing outside, adding to the festive atmosphere.

The sophisticated peach and spinach topped pizza toppings won my heart, and I also thoroughly loved the simpler marguerita style tomato and basil pizza. I probably gobbled more than my fair share (cough cough) but it’s just so hard to hold back when faced with the best gluten-free pizza in California! I also thought the chocolate chip cookie bites were absolutely divine- I’m not sure, but they seemed a slightly different formula than I remembered from before. At any rate, the chocolate chips were big, chocolaty and melty and they were worth any amount of guilt. The other baked offerings were tasty, but I already have my favorites (not on sample, alas). I just can’t resist their nut-meal cookies (drool, almond slices and plump raisins- they taste too good to be bad for you!). And don’t even get me started on the completely addicting dairy-free lemon-coconut bars. I bought four nut-meal cookies and four lemon-coconut bars. Turns out the lemon bars are from a family recipe that Patti converted to be gluten-free. Yummy! I also bought one of each of the frozen, topped pizzas. At $12 they are not inexpensive, but worth every penny and a world away from commercially available gluten-free frozen pizzas like Amy’s Rice Crust pizza.

Haven’t made it to Cafe Mariposa’s Gluten-free Bakery yet? Here’s their vital stats:
5427 Telegraph Ave, Unit D3,
Oakland, CA 94609
tel: 510.595.0955
fax: 510.595.0966
info@mariposabaking.com
Don’t forget, you can also order their products online!
Hours:
Monday - Friday 9am - 6pm
Saturday - Sunday 10am - 4pm

My First Review of Cafe Mariposa
My Second Review of Cafe Mariposa

But there were even more gluten-free delights available besides the regular baked goods. During the party, Mariposa’s neighboring business The Wine Mine had a $1 gluten-free beer tasting in his awesome wine shop between 12-2pm. Apparently this booming local business has found it advantageous to stock some of the more exotic gluten-free beers, as well as a wide selection of tasty wines. For a mere $1, we were offered samples not only of the mainstream Redbridge and increasingly well-known New Grist, but also Green’s Belgian beer in three styles.

Here’s my entirely subjective Review of Gluten-Free Beers:

Anheuser-Busch’s Redbridge beer is becoming a classic in the gluten-free community. Some drinkers compare it to a mass-market beer like Coors. It’s fairly easy to drink, but does have a slight bitter aftertaste thanks to the sorghum base.

New Grist is my latest gluten-free beer discovery, and I find it an extremely drinkable light-tasting beer without much of an aftertaste. According to their web site, “New Grist is the first beer brewed without malted barley or any gluten-containing products to be recognized as beer by the U.S. Government.”

Green’s Belgian Discovery Gluten-Free Amber beer was an extremely pleasant surprise. It’s tasty and beer-like without a nasty aftertaste and has a complex, golden body. My fellow gluten-free taste tester with a taste for beer liked it the best of Green’s beers, and I had to agree. Well worth the effort to hunt this beer down! i liked it so much I bought one to take home.

On the other hand, Green’s Belgian Endeavour Gluten-Free Dubbel might appeal to those who like a dark beer, and it certainly had a strong, distinctive taste. However, to my taste buds it tasted unpleasantly medicinal, and my fellow taster thought that it was weirdly “sweet.” After the first dainty sip, I literally could not drink any more, but it’s important to remember that tastes vary and you might enjoy it, so it’s definitely worth a try.

Green’s Belgian Quest Gluten-Free Tripel Blonde Ale is quite fizzy and somewhat sweet. It’s easy to drink, and pleasant with an almost perfume-like flavor. It had a slightly bitter aftertaste. I bought one to take home, but more for the sake of comparison than anything- I couldn’t see myself drinking it regularly.

Have you tried these gluten-free beers? I’m just working on developing a palate for beer, so you might have a much different impression of them. Please tell me what you think of them in the comments!

For now, I’ll leave you with the recipe for Patti’s delicious and easy tomato bruschetta. Hopefully I’ve whetted your appetite for Mariposa’s tasty gluten-free baked goods. Remember, I don’t have any affiliation with these folks- just an appreciation for some quality gluten-free goods. In fact… I might just have to bake one of those gluten-free pizzas for dinner tonight.

Did you go to the Mariposa Cafe One Year Anniversary party? Tell me about it in the comments!

Mariposa Tomato Bruschetta Recipe Side Dish  Sauces & Condiments  Vegetables  Italian

Ingredients Topping: 1 container Trader Joe’s refrigerated Bruschetta Sauce lots of finely diced Roma tomatoes olive oil to taste a dash of sea salt and white pepper a smile while it was being prepared. (Food always tastes better when made with a smile! :-)) *Sea’s note: a little fresh basil would be tasty, too! Base: 1 Gluten-free baguette (Mariposa’s or your favorite homemade baguette recipe- I often make Bette Hagman’s rapid-rise french bread, but Mariposa’s baguettes are more nutritious), sliced and toasted (if bread is not fresh out of the oven) A Directions Combine topping ingredients in a medium or large bowl, tasting as you go to adjust seasonings. When it tastes perfect let it sit for a few minutes (or half an hour) to let flavors marry and then serve on toasted baguette slices OR let guests spoon their topping onto fresh slices to taste. Notes A simple and fun party appetizer!

Rating:  8 Original Source:  Mariposa Gluten-Free Bakery culinary goddess. Do not replicate anywhere without my and Mariposa’s permission. Recipe ID:  1294 Added:  September 16, 2008 Last Modified:  September 16, 2008

Recently I had the special challenge of creating completely allergen free food for our latest CeliacBayArea potluck. These dishes had to be gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free, egg-free, bean-free, nut-free, and even coconut-free. What’s a soy, coconut, nut loving girl to do? One of my go-to potluck dishes that I enjoy making is a simple spring roll, but my favorite dipping sauce uses nuts in some form or another. Luckily, some time back I’d discovered a lovely and easy sweet chili sauce that went beautifully with spring rolls. I’ve often made this as well as a peanut sauce in case there are people at the party allergic to peanuts. However, as I thought about the party, I wasn’t sure my ordinary, salad-like spring roll would do. Many (although not all) of our diners were not vegetarian, and I thought they might find a salad-type roll a bit light and unsatisfying. But what if I made a heartier filling with mushrooms- something seasoned like a rich Chinese food dish- and combined it with fresh cilantro (just a leaf or two) and some rice noodles? Wouldn’t that be hearty and tasty, and give my soy-free friends a chance for Chinese food flavors that they don’t often get to enjoy? I had a plan. I’ve been working on a jicama stir-fry for a while, ever since I discovered how delicious it is fried in flavorful oil. For this variation, I combined jicama, carrot, and mushroom for a hearty and pleasant stir fry with sweet and savory elements. The sauce required some thought- ordinarily I would have used sesame oil to give it savory appeal, but since nuts were out I had to look elsewhere for my flavors. I came up with a savory sauce using alcohol, vegetable stock (yes, mine is soy-free and guten-free! I use the bouillon on the left for all my Chinese dishes), honey, and rice vinegar. On its own it wasn’t special, but combined with the salty and savory elements of the stir fry, it really brought everything together. The verdict of my tasters? DH loved the stir fry and kept stealing bits of it, to my chagrin. He wanted to just eat it on rice, but I had other designs for it. And as far as the potluck- I think our allergen-free members really enjoyed the flavor. Allergy-boy (a fervent carnivore) liked the combination of vegetables, and my friend JM (of okra fame) wanted the recipe. Perhaps the greatest compliment of all- even though I’d made enough for an army (I thought), with two boxes filled with two tiers of rolls, our small-ish party managed to eat almost all of the summer rolls I’d brought. So much for leftovers… heheh. Although I am lucky enough (I think) not to be intolerant to soy, with some of the negative press around it, it seems like it doesn’t hurt to take a break from it once in a while. And, when you can make something this tasty, and this allergen-free, being soy-free no longer seems like such a restriction. After all, how yummy IS soy sauce, when it comes down to it? When’s the last time you felt like glugging it straight from the bottle? I don’t know about you, but I’m starting to think I could do without it.

How to make Spring/Summer Rolls and peanut sauce recipe
Summer Rolls Vegan Lunchbox-Style
Gluten-Free Soy-Free Chinese Fried Rice Recipe
Soy-free Szechuan Chinese Pea Recipe
Soy-free Szechuan Chili-Zucchini Brown fried Rice Recipe

Coming Soon…
Gluten-Free Soy-Free Living- Challenge #3 Gluten Free Vegetarian Sushi without the soy sauce (and without missing it!)
Recipes, Tricks and tips for gloriously yummy (and healthy) Japanese dining- out AND at home!
Past Episodes…
Gluten-Free Soy-Free Living- Challenge #1 Gluten-Free,Soy-Free, Dairy-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Soy-Free Chinese Jicama Stir Fry Main Course  Vegetables  Chinese

Ingredients 1/2 cup Canola Oil (or peanut, if allergies don’t forbid) 1 tbsp. szechuan peppercorns a few slices of fresh ginger 2 large garlic cloves 2 scallions, just the white part 1 small jicama or 3/4 large jicama, peeled and cut into sticks 2 carrots, peeled and cut into sticks 8 med-lg. mushrooms (white or crimini), washed, stems removed, sliced 1/4 tsp. salt (NO LESS! Chinese food NEEDS the saltiness, and remember, you’ve already cut down on sodium by not using soy sauce) 2 tsp. fresh ginger, minced Sauce: 1/2 cup vegetable stock (or make from vegetable bullion) 1 tsp. mirin 1 tsp. brandy 1/2 tsp. rice vinegar 2 tsp. honey a touch of salt 1 tsp. cornstarch (the important measurements here are the VEG STOCK AND CORNSTARCH. proportions of the alcohol and honey etc. are estimated- just add until you’ve created a balance in sauce that you like. This isn’t a lip-smackingly yummy sauce on its own- it is to add depth of flavor to well seasoned vegetables that are already flavorful) Directions Szechuan oil: Heat a wok on high and add Szechuan to pan, tossing lightly. Turn heat to low and toast peppercorn lightly, stirring frequently- about a minute and a half. Add the peanut oil and raise heat to medium or medium high, depending on your stove. Once oil begins to bubble lightly (if it ever does), add ginger, and garlic cloves. Lower heat and let cook until the garlic cloves and ginger turns brown. You may want to turn them in the oil to get them brown on both sides. When they are golden brown remove them and discard. Add in the white part of the scallions and let it brown, and then remove it from the oil and discard. You should have nicely flavored oil by now. If you have the patience, let cool and strain into a glass container (with a lid). If you don’t have the patience, strain with heat resistant metal strainer after letting it reach a cooler temperature into a heat resistant metal or glass. You don’t need to clean your wok if you are planning on immediately making this stir fry. Mix your sauce ingredients in a small bowl and reserve. Add cornstarch last by mixing it with a small amount of the sauce first and then adding it to the sauce. Take two tablespoons of the flavored oil and heat in your wok over high heat. Toss in your salt and then, a few seconds later, your fresh minced ginger. As it starts to brown, throw in your jicama sticks. Move them in the wok with cooking chopsticks or other wooden cooking device (I have a wooden paddle thing I’m rather fond of) to allow them to brown evenly and not burn as well as get evenly coated with the yummy oil. After two minutes or so, add in the mushrooms, and then the carrots. You do NOT want to overcook the carrots, so watch them carefully. You want the mushrooms to be nice and soft and melty and the carrots to be crisp tender. Continue moving the food around as needed. When the dish seems ALMOST done, stir your sauce one last time and create a well in the center of the wok. Add the sauce to the center of the wok and then fold in the veggies as it thickens. Make sure the sauce has evenly coated all the veggies and then turn off the heat. Remove from wok and place in serving dish. Notes If needed, you can add more oil right before you add the mushrooms and carrots, but try to let the oil heat up a little before adding the next ingredients, and keep the jicama away from it on the sides of the wok. You can also experiment with LESS oil, but it adds a lot of flavor and the interest to the dish, so I would try it first with the given amount and then adjust for your own tastes. Steamed veggies are an alternative for the super-health conscious- but I’ve never been keen on them and the goal here is to achieve lip-smacking Chinese restaurant style tastiness without soy or gluten. You can serve this with rice (white or brown), rice noodles, or even in a summer roll rice paper wrap. Craziness, I know.

Rating:  9 Original Source:  The contents of my brain, do not replicate anywhere without my permission or I will have to send Ra and his minions after you. Recipe ID:  1286 Added:  August 23, 2008 Last Modified:  September 6, 2008