It is constantly surprising how many things contain wheat, barley or rye. There are obvious things that you cut out straight away—bread, pasta, beer, cakes and pastries—unless they’re specifically marked “gluten free”. But there are a host of less obvious things as well, turning you into an expert in reading food contents labels. Things to check carefully on a gluten-free diet include:

• chocolate and lollies
• cereals
• biscuits and crackers
• French fries—these can be coated with flour before deep frying
• gravy mixtures
• processed meats and sausages
• salad dressings
• sauces, including soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Hoisin sauce
• seasoning mixes, including rice and noodle flavourings
• seasoned snack foods, such as potato and corn chips
• soups and stocks
• spreads, such as Vegemite, peanut butter, Anchovette paste
• yoghurts—some of the flavoured ones are thickened with gluten.

To anyone attempting a gluten-free diet, making the change seems daunting—“what am I going to eat?” being the primary concern. Our diets are often so loaded with breads and cereals that you can’t have any more, it can be a real challenge to find alternatives. There are plenty of delicious things that you can eat, it’s just about making sure you eat enough to fill you up.

Gluten-free fillers

Our favourite gluten-free fillers are:

• chickpeas, lentils, beans (kidney, cannellini, butter, fava, black)
• quinoa, buckwheat, polenta
• seeds, nuts
• corn, rice, potatoes
• eggs
• plus a host of other fresh fruits, vegetables, meats and fish.

Gluten-free substitutes

If you’re really struggling to fill up, here are some of the things that we’ve substituted into our meals to make them gluten free.

Tasty gluten-free meals

Gluten free doesn’t mean flavour free! We make some delicious gluten-free meals. Once you learn what you can and can’t eat it makes it much easier to adapt your recipes to suit. Check out some of our regular dishes:

Soups

• Zucchini, potato and feta soup
• Dhal
• Chestnut soup
• Pumpkin soup

Salads

• Witlof, apple and walnut salad
• Quinoa tabouli
• Asparagus and pea salad
• Orange and fennel salad
• Coleslaw
• Caramelised pear & fennel salad with gorgonzola

Mains

• Herbed rissoles
• Coconut chicken curry with banana chutney
• Pasta with cauliflower, peas, mint and quinoa
• Coconut, chicken and banana curry
• Thyme and lemon lamb with zucchini and chickpea
• Lamb and haloumi skewers
• Beef tacos
• Fish with charred Mediterranean vegetables
• Tuna with bean salad

There are so many mouthwatering recipes in Jamie’s 15-Minute Meals it’s hard to choose, but eventually I settled on an Asian style beef and noodle salad (page 68).

Challenge #2 Seared Asian Beef, Best Noodle Salad & Ginger Dressing

All of the recipes in this book start with the instruction “ingredients out” and this recipe also suggested boiling the kettle and setting a frypan on high heat.

Ingredients: cashews, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, rice noodles, romaine lettuce, carrot, cucumber, radishes, coriander, spring onions, cress, alfalfa sprouts, steak, Chinese five spice, pickled ginger, limes, fish sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, olive oil, red chilli

So I set about weighing ingredients and getting various tools ready to go. This took 10 minutes and 44 seconds. Slightly longer than the first challenge but not by much.

Start cooking

First is toasting the nuts and seeds until golden then setting aside. Next pouring boiling water over the noodles to heat them through; then rubbing the steak with Chinese five spice, salt and pepper, and cooking in the pan until done to your liking (medium-rare for me). All very straightforward.

Next was the ginger dressing, really just mixing the pickled ginger, lime juice, fish sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil and chopped chilli together. Not difficult.

Now on to assembling the salad—separating lettuce leaves, grating carrot, chopping radishes, cucumber and spring onion (by hand, not with the food processor like most of these recipes call for), grabbing the coriander leaves, cress and alfalfa, then arranging them on a platter or board—there’s nothing complicated here. All the while flipping your steak and, when cooked, resting it.

Finally, draining the rice noodles and scattering them over the salad, slicing the beef and placing the slices on top, then scattering the platter with the nuts and seeds.

It all sounds like the simplest thing in the world, and it is, but it still took me 22 minutes and 20 seconds to complete it. Although I have to admit, I wasn’t trying too hard because after last time I’d decided I preferred my own cooking pace.

That brings the total cooking time up to 33 minutes and 4 seconds. OK, so not 15 minutes but I still think that’s really quick to produce a delicious healthy dinner.

My thoughts

Positive: This dish had fantastic Asian elements—sweetness, saltiness, heat, fabulous crisp vegetables, amazing crunch from the toasted nuts and seeds, soft noodles, and tender juicy meat. I loved the combination. There were lots of beautiful textures and every mouthful was just a little bit different, depending on what ingredients had ended up on the fork.

Negative: Who am I kidding—brilliant dish! Just took a little longer to prepare than I expected.

Next time?

I will certainly make Jamie’s Seared Asian Beef, Best Noodle Salad & Ginger Dressing again but will start by cooking the steak, and allowing it plenty of time to rest. The nuts and seeds can easily be toasted in another pan—extra washing up but not a big deal.

Until a couple of years ago, I’d never made bircher muesli. I had this idea in my head that it was complicated. Then I stumbled upon a great recipe for bircher muesli and refined it to suit my own tastes. It takes about five minutes to prepare, but then has to be left for a while to allow the oats to soak up the fruit juice and yoghurt. I like to leave my bircher muesli overnight so the flavours really infuse and the oats become really soft.

If you love a healthy breakfast that will keep you going all the way until lunch, bircher muesli is definitely worth trying. This recipe makes enough for two serves.

Ingredients

1 apple (your choice of variety depending on your tastes), cored and grated
1 cup rolled oats (or quinoa flakes for a gluten-free alternative)
½ cup Greek style yoghurt
½ cup pure apple juice or milk
1–2 tbs sultanas
A pinch of ground cinnamon, to taste
2 tbs pepitas
¼ cup whole blanched almonds
¼ cup walnuts

Method

Combine the grated apple, oats (or quinoa flakes), yoghurt, apple juice or milk, and cinnamon in a bowl. Cover with cling film and leave for at least an hour but preferably overnight.

When ready to eat, add the pepitas, almonds and walnuts, and stir through. Serve immediately.

Note: you can replace the apple juice with pineapple or orange juice. Instead of sultanas you could try dried apricots, currants or cranberries. The pepitas and nuts can be substituted with your choice of seeds and nuts—your aiming for a bit of crunch. Also consider adding toasted shredded coconut.

I’ve been watching Jamie’s 15-Minute Meals on TV and was given the accompanying recipe book for Christmas. Always on the lookout for great recipes to add to my work-day dinner repertoire, this book is full of my kind of food and I thought it best to get stuck in and give it a go this week. And why not put a time limit on myself for once. Could I actually cook a meal in 15 minutes? Challenge accepted.

I’m notoriously slow at preparing food, partly because I like to clean up as I go and partly because of a previous kitchen mishap (picture a tough-skinned Queensland Blue pumpkin, a blunt knife and a self-stabbing—the pumpkin won that day).

I’ve read quite a few reviews of the book and blogs of people challenging themselves in the same way. Not too many seem to have managed it so my expectations for success in the 15-minute timeframe were not high.

Challenge #1 Golden scallops, sun-blush mash & greens

The golden scallops, sun-blush mash & greens recipe (page 144) appealed to me as a good starting point—all the flavours I love and maybe, just maybe, achievable in the timeframe because there’s not a lot of ingredients or chopping to worry about.

Ingredients: scallops, bacon, sage, potatoes, cheddar cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, milk, broccoli, asparagus, frozen peas, lemon juice, olive oil

Ready, set…

I should start by quoting the instructions in the book to get ready for cooking “ingredients out • kettle boiled • large shallow lidded casserole pan, high heat • medium pan, high heat • food processor (bowl blade) • large frying pan, medium heat”.

Rightly or wrongly, I took “ingredients out” to mean weighing out quantities, and some vegetable peeling and trimming. It took me 10 minutes and 27 seconds to get prepared (yes, I was keen to really test myself time-wise).

Now to the cooking. GO.

The idea was to get the potatoes on the heat first, as they would take the longest to cook. Jamie’s idea of 1cm slices going into a hot pan and covering them with already boiling water was a good one—the potatoes took a lot less time than normal to cook. Although I can envisage a few kitchen mishaps with boiling water going into the hot pan. It bubbles, hisses and spurts a lot!

Next was cooking the greens. Boiling water for 3 minutes—a no brainer really. Jamie says to toss with lemon juice and olive as soon as they have been drained. I personally think they need to be refreshed in cold water first, but I guess that would take up a bit more time and it’s something I can do next time.

Continuing on with the sun-blush part of the mash, the cheese and sun-dried tomatoes go into the food processor to blitz in readiness for when the potatoes are cooked—easy.

Next, slicing bacon and scoring scallops ready for the pan. Jamie says to cook the scallops first. For me, scallops are so quick to cook I think the bacon (I used proscuitto instead) should hit the pan first because it takes longer to melt the fat. Then the scallops and sage leaves could be added so they cook in the bacon fat. Another personal choice…

While that’s happening the cooked potatoes are drained and go into the food processor to create the mash.

Then plate up. It all comes together quite well. My cooking time: 16 minutes, 6 seconds. So not far too off the 15-minute timeframe.

Total time: 26 minutes, 33 seconds. Probably the fastest dinner I’ve ever prepared and cooked. Definitely the messiest state I’ve cooked in, physically and mentally.

My thoughts

Positive: I like the concept of Jamie’s 15 Minute Meals and the resulting dish was delicious! Sun-dried tomatoes, bacon, sage, scallops—these work so well together. Salty, meaty, sweet—brilliant! The mash, despite the rich flavours of sun-dried tomato and tasty cheddar, was surprisingly light and had a gorgeous creamy texture. It’s made me completely rethink the way I make mash.

Negative: I felt really rushed and disorganised, even though I had read the recipe several times and had everything out, weighed and ready to go. I know it’s not meant to be a race but I’m sure many people would struggle to get this done in 30–40 minutes, let alone 15! Oh, and perhaps I am guilty of gluttony but the dish needs more scallops (4 each is simply not enough of these tasty critters).

Next time?

I will most certainly make this dish again…but for me cooking should be an enjoyable experience, so I’ll do it while sipping a glass of wine and without the mad rush. I don’t really mind if this means it takes me longer.

Eating tapas at Ole Restaurant can be as light or as filling as you want, with a long list of tapas and more substantial plates (raciones). The atmosphere is casual, relaxed dining and the staff are very friendly and helpful with the menu, not to mention the food being delicious. Here’s what we had:

• chickpea fritters with hot sauce (bolitas de garbanzo)
• crispy spiced potatoes (patatas bravas)
• beef cheeks braised in pedro ximenez, green pea and radish salad (mejillas de carne)
• tomato, rocket, walnut and manchego (ensalada de tomate y manchego)
• Spanish cold set custard with warm toffee and blood orange (crema catalana)

The beef cheeks were the stand out dish of our selection—the meat was soft, melt-in-the-mouth and oh so rich, and the pea and radish salad was a good fresh palate cleanser so you could keep going back for more of that dark, decadent goodness. The crunchy patatas bravas were also brilliant for soaking up the pedro ximenez sauce leftover on the plate. Yes, it was that good! They weren’t lying about the hot sauce for the chickpea fritters (thankfully there’s sangria) but everything we ordered was delightful.

Will we be going back? Yes, definitely. We simply have to try the Spanish classic—paella—and there were three types on the menu. There were also many more appealing tapas and raciones to sample so at the very least we’ll have to make a second trip.

Summer is here and the weather is really heating up (today is 33°C and the forecast for tomorrow is 39°C!) so it’s the perfect time to be tucking into a great crunchy salad. For me, when it’s this hot the thought of not only cooking but eating a hot meal is just too much to bare so last night I whipped up an old favourite from last summer—witlof, apple and walnut salad with honey mustard dressing.

This recipe is based one by Matt Moran with some variations. What I love about it is the tartness of the apple and the crunch from the witlof and roasted walnuts. The radicchio gives a delightful slightly bitter twist. Combined with a dressing that has a hint of sweetness, I just can’t help going back for more…and more and more.

Ingredients

Leaves of ½ a radicchio (or you could use 1 red witlof)
Leaves of 1 white witlof
1 handful of rocket
1–2 green apples, sliced approximately 4mm thick (I like apple so I generally use 2)
70g walnuts, roasted

Dressing

20 ml chardonnay vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard (I like to use Maille)
1 tsp seeded mustard
2 tsp honey
70ml grapeseed oil
salt and pepper to taste

Method

In an oven pre-heated to 180°C, roast the walnuts for 10–12 minutes. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

While the walnuts are roasting make the dressing by whisking together the vinegar, mustards and honey. Still whisking, slowly pour in the grapeseed oil and combine. Season with salt and pepper.

Rinse the witlof, radicchio and rocket well and combine in a bowl with the apple slices. Drizzle with the honey mustard dressing and toss to coat. Move the leaves onto a serving platter and sprinkle the roasted walnuts over the top. Serve immediately.

I think this makes a beautiful accompaniment to a whole roasted chicken.

Note: The makes four large serves. if you want to make a smaller quantity, simply leave out the radicchio and only use 1 apple.

Herbed rissoles are a meal from my childhood, a real comfort food. Back then herbed rissoles were regularly served for dinner with creamy mashed potato and steamed greens, or as beef burger patties with salad, cheese and tomato sauce on a crunchy bread roll.

Herbed rissoles traditionally have bread soaked in milk added to the mix to fill them out and help keep them moist when cooked. They are also usually lightly dusted in plain flour before frying to help develop a golden brown crust on the outside. Now that we’re trying to eat less gluten this is a no–no so I’ve played around with the herbed rissole recipe and managed to reinvent a really tasty mix. I actually think it’s better than the original.

The secret of perfect herbed rissoles, or any burger patties, is in how vigorously you combine the ingredients. It’s important that the mixture holds together when cooked and to achieve that you need to massage the ingredients into each other so that they bind together thoroughly. The salt and milk help by acting as a kind of glue that binds the rissoles. As you work the ingredients together with your hands you’ll feel the texture of the minced beef change. Once it starts to get sticky it’s ready for the pan and won’t fall apart while cooking.

Cooked over medium heat, the resulting herbed rissoles are golden brown on the outside and dense but tender and juicy on the inside. I like to use a mix of fresh and dried herbs—the fresh herbs add lovely subtle leafy green flavours, the dried herbs pack a bit more intensity into the meat. Here’s how to make my herbed rissoles:

Ingredients

30g butter
1 onion, finely chopped
¾ cup mixed fresh herbs, finely chopped
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
1kg lean minced beef
½ cup milk
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
2 tbs olive oil

Method

Melt the butter on low–medium heat and fry the onion until it’s soft and golden, approximately 10 minutes.

For the fresh herbs I use a mix of parsley, oregano, basil, thyme and rosemary. I choose whatever is looking the best from my herb garden—sometimes it’s all five, other times not. By trying different combinations you’ll find one that best suits your tastes. My favourite is parsley, basil and oregano. The dried herb blends then supplement the fresh ones with some additional flavours and a much stronger taste. Note: if you’re not able to find good quality fresh herbs, you could use only dried herbs (approximately 1–2 tbs).

When the onion is cooked, combine it with the fresh and dried herbs, salt, pepper, milk and minced beef. Mix the meat together using your hands and combine it until the texture become sticky. Shape the mixture into patties that are about 2cm thick and set aside. Note: This raw mixture freezes well in zip lock bags if you want to separate some for cooking later.

Heat the olive oil in a large frypan over medium heat. When the frypan is hot add the herbed rissoles and cook through, turning occasionally, for approximately 8 minutes. To test they are done, cut into the centre of one and ensure the meat is no longer pink. Serve immediately.

For me, quinoa tabouli is the essence of summer. It’s light and very refreshing. The simple dressing means that the flavours of the raw vegetables are allowed to shine through and it is very clean on the palate. I feel good after eating it.

Quinoa tabouli not only tastes great, it is also very healthy for you—parsley being a source of antioxidants, folic acid, and vitamins A and C, and quinoa a source of protein, dietary fibre, phosphorus, magnesium, iron and calcium.

Quinoa tabouli takes a lot less time than the more traditional version with burghul (cracked wheat), but none of the delicious flavour is lost and it’s gluten free.

Serve with a bit of ham and hommus, barbecued lamb, or grilled chicken.

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
3 cups curly parsley, chopped
2 cups baby grape tomatoes, halved
1 Lebanese cucumber, deseeded and diced
4 shallots, finely sliced
¾ cup mint, chopped

Dressing

⅓ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
¼ cup olive oil
1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
freshly ground salt and pepper to taste

Method

Rinse the quinoa well in a colander to ensure there is no grit. Once rinsed, place it into a small saucepan with the water and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, or until the water has been absorbed. Remove the quinoa from the pan and place on kitchen towel to drain.

Meanwhile, place the lemon juice and olive oils in a small bowl. Add a pinch of salt and pepper to taste and whisk to combine. Set aside.

Place the cooked quinoa into a large salad bowl and add the parsley, tomatoes, cucumber, shallots and mint. Toss to combine. Pour in three-quarters of the salad dressing and toss to coat. Taste and add additional dressing if needed.

The fresh banana chutney is critical to the dish. It takes a simple tasty curry to the next level—being sweet, spicy, tangy all at the same time. A brilliantly refreshing summer dish.

Ingredients

For the coconut chicken curry:

1kg chicken breast, diced into 2–3cm pieces
3 tsp turmeric
2 tbs peanut oil
1 onion, roughly chopped
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
5cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1–2 birdseye chillies, seeded and finely chopped
3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 tsp mild curry paste (I use Korma paste)
1 cup chicken stock
400ml coconut milk

For the fresh banana chutney:

2–3 fresh bananas, diced
½ a small purple onion, finely diced
1 birdseye chilli, seeded and finely chopped
¼ cup fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped
2 tbs freshly squeezed lime juice

Method

Heat 1 tbs of the peanut oil in a large saucepan. Add the chicken pieces and turmeric, and stir to coat. Cook the chicken over medium heat until golden brown and cooked. Remove from the saucepan and set aside.

Heat the remaining 1 tbs of oil in the pan and add the onion, garlic, ginger and chillies. Allow to cook over medium heat until the onion is starting to soften. Add the curry paste and tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes so the tomato starts to break down. Return the chicken to the saucepan and add the stock and coconut milk. Bring to the boil, then turn the heat down to low and allow to simmer gently, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour or until thickened to your liking.

When the curry is just about ready, make the banana chutney. Place the onion in a bowl with the lime juice and allow to sit for 2 minutes. Add the banana, chilli and mint and stir to combine.

Serve the coconut chicken curry on a bed of rice with a couple of spoonfuls of the fresh banana chutney.

I have a guilty snack that I like to indulge in—cheese scones. While cheese scones don’t rate highly on the health scales, they are full of flavour and perfect with a cup of tea for a mid-morning snack. The ones in our household are gluten free, using a mix of maize and brown rice flour instead of wheat flour.

Ingredients

1 cup maize flour
1 cup brown rice flour
30g cold butter, cut into 1cm cubes
1 cup milk
1 cup grated cheddar cheese (or your preferred blend)
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp gluten free baking powder
Tiny sprinkle of pepper
½ tsp dry mustard powder (optional)
Sprinkle of dried oregano or mixed herbs (optional)

Method

Pre-heat oven to 220°C.

Sieve the two types of flour, mustard and pepper into a large bowl. Rub the cold butter into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add in the grated cheeses and gently mix through completely, ensuring there are no large clumps of cheese. Add ¾ of the milk and mix through with a knife using a slicing action to combine all the ingredients together into a dough. Judge the consistency of the mixture—it should be firm but not crumbly—and add more milk if needed.

Form the mixture into a ball with your hands. Place it on the floured bench top and pat it into a 2cm thick layer. Using a small round cutter (approximately 5cm), cut out the scones and place them on a tray lined with greaseproof paper. The scones should rest immediately beside each other with no gaps between. Sprinkle with dried herbs and place in the oven for 12 minutes.