Gluten Free Goodness

I was out getting my garden ready, when I spied this little guy coming out of a crack in our patio. Isn’t he cute? I was surprised for a few reasons. First, he seeded himself; second, we just had a frost, and generally basil aren’t frost tolerant, and third, my husband often holds small martial arts classes on the patio, making him quite a target. Since DH had a class that night, I decided to pick him rather than tempt the fates.

I figured that considering what he’d been through, he deserved a starring role in Weekend Herb Blogger. I’ll be submitting him for next week’s edition, which is hosted by Mediterranean Cooking in Alaska.

I used the basil as a garnish for a simple and easy Thai style curry. I used home made red curry paste, but I’m sure commercial would work just as well. I also used bok choy because I couldn’t resist it at the Farmer’s Market, but I’m sure serving it with steamed broccoli would work just as well.

There are many kinds of basil, this basil was originally a gift from a friend from Vietnam, from his mom’s garden. It tastes a bit like Thai holy basil, but there’s a different twist to it.

2 tablespoons of oil
1 tablespoon minced ginger
6 cloves of garlic, minced
3 tablespoons red curry paste (a little more or less according to taste)
1 stalk of lemongrass, bruised
1 can coconut milk
3 baby bok choy, sliced
4 carrots, sliced thinly
1 lb chicken breast in cubes (you could pretty much use any protein here: shrimp, tofu, etc.)

Heat oil, saute ginger and garlic over medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Add curry paste and continue. Add sliced bok choy, then coconut milk, and bring almost to a boil. Simmer for 5 min, add carrots, and simmer 5 minutes more. Add chicken breast and poach until done.

Sprinkle with basil, serve with brown rice.

~from Cheryl’s kitchen ©2008

This week’s food is potatoes, and although I really like potatoes, my body does not share my enthusiasm. So no potatoes for me.

Also, just as an FYI, I put out a monthly newsletter on being GF and healthy, and the latest edition is here.

Despite a new baby in the house, Cooking Illustrated is this week’s kind hostess. 

So here’s my plan:

Monday:
Thai inspired:
Thai Curry with Basil (leftovers!)
Spiced Black Rice Pudding
Tuesday:
At a conference…
Wednesday:
Chinese!
Chicken and stir fry veggies in a Szechwan sauce, as inspired by Book of Yum
Thursday:
Vegan
Herbed quinoa in broth with an avocado
Friday:
Brined turkey, roasted with fresh herbs with roasted asparagus
Saturday:
Soup with turkey leftovers, a bunch of veggies and carrot tops from my garden–I have a bunch of carrots that overwintered and are mealy, but have discovered that using the tops in soup like dill is delicious! So now the neighborhood bunny and share them.

Weekly baked good:
Biscotti

Weekly Garden Harvest:
From my garden:
Basil
Thyme
Oregano
Carrot tops
Garlic shoots
From the Farmer’s Market:
Bok Choy
Greenhouse tomatoes
Asparagus