Gluten Free Ginger Curried Cabbage

This weekend was all fun in the sun:)  It was bright, cool, and the sun illuminated the foliage beautifully.  Looking across the colorful autumn landscape I immediately imagined all the leaves gone, snow on the ground and flakes lazily meandering down from their places of birth high over my head.  But not yet.  Now is the time to enjoy the colors, smells and foods of the Fall.
 
This dish is the perfect thing for a crisp autumn night. I went a little overboard on this one by adding a cup of chopped bacon to my version the first time, but rest assured, bacon or no bacon, this is an excellent dish!  It has just the right level of spiciness, is super easy to make, and is actually quite healthy (that is if you use olive oil and not butter, and of course no bacon!:).  The ginger gives this dish its defining flavor, so feel free to increase its amount to taste.  Remember when slicing and dicing hot peppers to wash your hands thoroughly after, or even better, wear disposable latex gloves.  Nothing is worse than rubbing your eyes or nose with jalapeno juice all over your hands!

Ingredients

• 1/2 large head of cabbage (chopped)
• 3/4 cups peas (or carrots, or corn)
• 1 to 1 1/2 inch ginger (pealed and diced)
• 1/2 green chili (finely diced)
• 1/4 cup butter, olive oil, or ghee 
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• (1/2 cup chopped cooked bacon = optional)

 Cooking Directions

1. Heat up your oil, butter or ghee over medium high heat.
2. Add the diced ginger and stir frequently for 30 seconds.
3. Add the diced chili pepper and stir frequently for 30 seconds.
4. Add cumin and stir to incorporate.
5. Add coriander, turmeric and chili powder. Mix well.
6. Add the chopped cabbage, the peas, (bacon = optional), and the salt.  Mix together everything, keep the heat on medium-high, put a lid on the pot and set the timer for 10 minutes.
7. When the 10 minute timer goes off, take the lid off the pot and stir everything up thoroughly.
8. Lower heat to low and cook longer if you feel the cabbage is still too hard.  Otherwise, serve it up an enjoy!

Gluten Free at Taco Loco Philadelphia

I can't tell you how many times I drove past the generator powered culinary hot-spot known as Taco Loco, without even knowing it existed!  Located near the intersection of 4th street and Washington Avenue in South Philadelphia, Taco Loco operates out of a camper parked on the side of the road.  Tables are set up on the nearby sidewalk, but most people seem to just use the fold-down counter-tops or take their food to go.

I hear that Taco Loco is not located in the safest of areas.  So just to be safe, the earlier you go, the better.  Regardless, you shouldn't let anything stop you from sampling this little Mexican-American foodie gem! There were lots of options, but I kept it simple and asked for the tacos with shredded pork.  Don't get the fried pork, since cross-contamination will be likely.  Actually, go with the chicken to be extra safe.  I asked to read the corn-tortilla package to assure myself that there were no "gluten" ingredients included. None found!

The smell of the cilantro, and the spices, and the pork were too much for me to stand.  I took a few bites a bit too early, and burned the top of my mouth.  Soooo worth it:)  My take-away meal included sides of green and red chili sauce, which were both excellent.  So when you're in Philadelphia, and you're looking for some great Mexican-American cuisine, stop by Taco Loco and be prepare for some good eats!

Gluten Free Tuscan Bean Soup

Not that I'm a big fan of slush and sleet, recently shoveled parking spots blocked off with lawn chairs or milk crates, or those frigid winter days where it hurts to be outside, but I am happy things are cooling off.  Being a northern-blooded human, I'm most comfortable in temperatures between 45 and 75 d. F., so when the heat is 80s and up I feel like I'm made of soft molasses; I have no energy and I travel from one air-conditioned bubble to the next, silently wishing a cold front would move in so that I could pull my hoodies out of the "winter clothes" box, slap on a beanie cap and go tromping through multi-colored drifts of fallen leaves.  Well, the fall seems upon us:)  This whole week is in the 60s and 70s.  I love it.  I could even see my breath the other morning.  Weather like this gets me into a soup and stew mood for sure.  A little colder and I'll be experimenting with chili again:)~

This bean soup can easily be made vegetarian by switching the chicken stock with vegetable stock and leaving out the diced ham.  Meat in or meat out, you're going to enjoy every single steaming spoon of this dish.  I guarantee it!

Ingredients

• 2x 14 ounce cans of chopped tomatoes with herbs
• 2 cups roughly chopped savoy cabbage (or Cavolo Nero Leaves if you can find them)
• 2x 14 ounce cans of cannelloni beans
• 2 cups diced ham (pre-cooked)
• 2 cups GF chicken broth (or GF vegetable broth) or plain ol' water
• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper (to your taste)
• 1/4 tsp. garlic salt

Cooking Directions

1. Pour the chopped tomatoes into a large pan and add the chicken broth. Season with the garlic salt, sea salt and pepper. Stir and bring to a boil.
2. Add the cabbage to the pan, stir in, and then partially cover the pan.  Lower the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the cabbage is tender.
3. Drain and rinse the cannelloni beans and add them to the pan along with the diced ham. Stir together and heat for another 5 minutes.
4. Check to see if the soup is seasoned right, if not, add more salt and pepper.
5. Ladle the soup into bowls and drizzle a little bit of olive oil over the top.
6. Enjoy!