Christmas Gluten Free

I am posting the recipe for Oma's Christmas Seafood Gratin here in both regular and gluten-free format, starting with gluten-free.  I had to ask Kurt to send me a copy of the recipe because I couldn't find it, which was annoying.

Oma's Christmas Seafood Gratin (gluten-free)

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2 onions, peeled and diced
2 bell peppers, cut fine
1 large package of baby bella mushrooms (crimini), sliced

1/2 cup sweet rice flour
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 cups milk (can be lactaid or lower fat than whole)
1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tsp dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

15 ounces frozen lobster meat (defrosted and drained)
16 ounces frozen lump crab meat (defrosted and drained)
8 ounces small cooked shrimp, tail off

fine cut parsley (optional)

Melt butter in a large saute pan over moderate heat.  Stir in onions, bell peppers and mushrooms.  Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat.  Blend in flour, salt and pepper until smooth.  Stir milk in gradually, then return pan to heat.  Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened.  Stir in cheese and mix.  Add lemon juice, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce.  Cook until cheese melts.

Break up the defrosted seafood, drain, and add to sauce.  Mix, and let mixture heat to a boil.

Serve on pasta.

Makes about 12 servings or so.


The directions are about the same for the regular version, with just a difference in the ingredients, so I'll just list the ingredients.

1/2 cup butter
2 onions peeled and diced
2 bell peppers, cut fine
1 large package of baby bella mushrooms
2/3 cup sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 cups milk
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
15 ounces frozen lobster meat, defrosted and drained
16 ounces frozen lump crab meat, defrosted and drained
8 ounces small, cooked, tail-off shrimp, defrosted and drained

optional parsley, chopped, as garnish.

Gluten Free for Now

Just as an update, as many of the postings as have been associated with low carb previously, I have now gone gluten, bean and red meat free, so there won't be much of that in the posts, unless someone specifically requests a family recipe that contains that stuff.

I am currently working on changing some of my favorite recipes to something gluten-free and with documented nutritional information, and may end up posting some of them here.  I am particularly interested in finding some alternatives for German Christmas cookies I have known and loved.  I have high hopes for Berlinerbrot and Elise lebkuchen and will post if they come out ok. 

Applesauce Now Appearing in the Proper Blog!

Applesauce: by popular demand! (mainly Marc)

I realized that I hadn't posted much lately, and now for the second time, Marc is asking for my applesauce recipe.  I decided it might be best if I just post it on this blog and it can be accessed whenever someone wants it. As a note: it is very important to use MacIntosh apples.  The only other ones I found that substitute well are the Paula Reds, which imbue a pink color to the sauce from the skins (the pigment appears to be heat stable).  I think macouns might also be used.  Fortunately, MacIntosh are about the most common apples out there.

1 bag of MacIntosh Apples
Water
Sugar

Wash the apples, then cut them into quarters and throw them in a large stock pot.  (don't bother with seeds, stems or skin removal).  Add enough water from the faucet to be about 1/2 to 1 inch in the bottom of the pot.  Put it on the stove and bring it to a boil, covered.  When it starts to boil, turn it down to medium high and stir.  Wait about 3 minutes and stir again.  If the apples are starting to soften, turn down to medium.  The more it boils, the lower you want to turn it, and you want to stir it from time to time to keep it from sticking and burning.  When all the apples seems to be engaged in cooking and it's nicely bubbling, turn down to low and let it simmer covered for 15-20 minutes.  The apples should look all puffed out and grainy and be very soft.  You can turn off the stove and let them sit on the burner to cool down for a half hour.

After they're a little cool and definitely soft, pour into your applesauce mill and grind into another pot (find one you can comfortably attach the mill to).  When you've gotten as much apple out of the mix as you can get, discard the rest and immediately rinse the mill (otherwise clean-up is a bear).  Start by adding 1/2 cup of sugar (or pourable splenda) and stir in completely.  Taste test and adjust the sugar upwards to taste.

The end.