As anyone knows, going gluten-free can turn your kitchen upside down. A lot of methods we used to use to flavor tofu got canned as soon as we had to stop cooking with wheaty ingredients– teriyaki sauce being the big one.

While perusing the shelf of dressings and marinades one day we took a shining to a bottle of buffalo wing sauce that was not only gluten-free, but surprisingly minimal on the ingredients altogether (not to mention fat free and extremely low-calorie!). It was on sale, so of course we tried it. And now… Well, now Chris enjoys it on almost everything he eats. :)

I’ve already blogged about how I like to fry tofu, which is basically coated in cornstarch and fried in a small amount of oil (recipe here). Flavoring it with the sauce is as easy as turning the heat on low and pouring sauce over to coat.

What I (surprisingly) haven’t blogged about is the side dish we always eat with it: coconut rice with avocado and lime. If we don’t have any rice in the house, we don’t have buffalo wing tofu. We don’t even mention either one on their own. It’s always, “Buffalo wing tofu with coconut rice and avocado.” Always.

The best part is, in a rice cooker, it takes around the same amount of time to cook the rice as it does to fry tofu for two. It’s a pretty hands-mind-feet-free recipe.

We used to use white basmati rice but are in the middle of transitioning to the healthier, chewier brown rice. The coconut results are completely different– and terrifying on the first switch– but I enjoy them both. White rice will give you a much creamier side dish, but brown rice will give you great leftovers for any time of the day. The latter will also appear to not absorb any of the coconut milk while cooking, but fear not, it all works out in the end. :)

Coconut Rice with Lime:
Makes ~4 servings

1 1/2 cups Rice
1 1/2 cups Water
1 can Coconut Milk
1 tsp Salt
Zest of 1 lime

1. Rinse rice until water is no longer cloudy. For brown rice, soak for 20 minutes.

2. Add all ingredients into a rice cooker, stir and set to cook. It’s that easy. Stir it about halfway through the cooking process, if you wish.

In the event that you don’t have a rice cooker, it’s relatively easy to make on the stovetop. Simply add all the ingredients, bring to a boil with the lid on, then simmer and stir frequently until all liquid has been absorbed.

For brown coconut rice leftovers, we like to heat them up in the wok with some potatoes for a hearty breakfast snack.

Enjoy!

Some years ago we received the Vegan World Fusion cookbook for Christmas, and it kinda changed my life. I’ve never had a collection of such reliable recipes– especially vegan ones. And, while I haven’t tried them all, each one I do try is more delicious and perfect than the last.

So, of course I was beyond excited to move to Portland where one of the writers’ restaurant is located. Chris took me out for lunch at their new location on NE Broadway and 15th for my birthday last month, and it was even more delicious than you might’ve imagined.

Chris got the monk bowl, I had the chili quesadilla and we split a plate of live nachos.

My only complaint– which has nothing to do with the restaurant itself– is that the food made us pretty ill later on. We don’t eat live food on a regular basis, and it sort of wreaked havoc on our digestive system. If and when we go back for more, maybe we’ll just take it easy and split something small!

Recently I’ve started to get a little more creative when cooking my tofu. Normally I’d just slice it, throw it on the skillet with some garlic powder and call it good.

Making crispity crunchity tofu is easy if you’ve got some cornstarch and common spices lying around. Mix and match your spice rack to suit your tastes. Sometimes I like to simply add salt and lots of black pepper to my cornstarch, and other times I go straight for the Chik’Nish Seasoning.

1 pkg. Extra Firm Tofu ~1 cup Cornstarch Spices, to taste Oil, for frying Soy sauce (optional) Soy Vay Teriyaki Sauce (optional)

1. Drain tofu and cut into 1/8″ thick slices.

Earlier this summer I took advantage of my local Asian market and taught myself how to make sushi. Chris and I made a big event of it, laying out the fixins and letting everyone learn how to roll and cut it themselves.

I have always been intimidated by sushi in the kitchen, but after learning how to make it, it seems silly. Making simple vegetarian maki is incredibly easy, though a bit time consuming.

I also learned how to make Vietnamese fresh spring rolls, which is beyond easy. I’ll tell you how to make both, starting with the sushi.

2 cups Japanese short grain rice (Very important! White basmati will not work.)
2 cups water
2 Tbl rice vinegar
2 Tbl sugar
1 tbl salt
Seaweed, for rolling
Sushi fixins (cucumber, avocado, cream cheese, wasabi, etc)
Shoyu, for dipping
Saran wrap and toasted sesame seeds (optional, for inside-out rolls)

- Place rice in a medium sized pot, rinsing and draining until the water runs semi-clear. Add 2 cups of water and bring to a boil uncovered. Optional: Add a small square of nori in the pot. It will dissolve as the water boils and add a slightly different taste / look to the rice.

- Once it comes to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 15 minutes. Then, remove from heat, mix in rice vinegar, sugar and salt. Let sit for 10 minutes, covered and your sushi rice is done!

Now, I’m not going to pretend like I can actually find the words to properly describe how to roll your sushi, but I will direct you to this website, which has step-by-step pictures that helped me a ton when I was first learning.

- Have a bowl of warm water with a drizzle of vinegar handy. When laying the rice down it will be very sticky, and dipping your hands in the water before you handle the rice will help.

- Always wet your blade before making each cut, and wipe it clean afterward. This will give you an easy cut and keep the roll from tearing.

- As you cut the sushi, arrange in a bowl or on a flat serving dish and dispose of the ends. And by “dispose” I mean “eat!” :) Serve with a side of shoyu.

- If you want to make uramaki (inside-out rolls), the process is exactly the same except after laying the rice down on the seaweed, you’ll flip the whole thing over, making sure to have a piece of saran wrap between the sushi mat and rice. Sprinkle some toasted sesame seeds on the rice before flipping it over for a really fancy treat!

I don’t have a picture of this process, but hopefully my crude diagram will get the idea across!

If you were overwhelmed by all of that, Vietnamese spring rolls might be up your alley. They are a light, healthy appetizer that can be prepared in under 30 minutes and, best of all, it’s cheap as heck!

All you need to do to get started is pick up a pack of rice paper at your local Asian market. They look like this and shouldn’t cost more than a couple bucks for a whole pantload of them.

Rice paper
Rice noodles
Cabbage
Mung bean sprouts
Choice vegetables, grated or julienned (carrots, bell pepper, cucumber, etc)
Toasted sesame oil (optional)
Sauce for dipping (I like Soy Vay Teriyaki, sweet chili sauce or a peanut sauce)

- Cook rice noodles as directed. Drain and set aside.

- Drizzle a light amount of oil in a frying pan over medium-low heat. Saute the cabbage, sprouts and any firm vegetables (carrots, onions) until they are less crunchy, but not soggy. Alternatively, you can skip this step and steam them instead.

- Fill a shallow dish with warm water. Pie pans work great for this. Submerge your rice paper for 30 seconds to 1 minute, depending on the thickness of paper and heat of water. It’s important not to over soak or the paper will tear.

- Remove from water and place on a flat plate or cutting board. Assemble the ingredients in the center of the roll, and then wrap as you would a burrito. This is a great video which shows an obvious expert do the entire process.

Now, wasn’t that easy? :)

Happy Friday, everyone! Today I’m working on a portfolio (flash galleries! My work never looked so… put together!) and tomorrow I’ll continue with the Arcata series.

Ever since we got back from our trip Chris has shown signs of a developing wheat allergy, so we’ve tried to put the brakes on his wheat intake as much as possible. Originally, I was planning on making him an apple pie, but I didn’t have the energy to try something that new and risk failure (I’ve learned the hard way that special occasions are not the time to be daring in the kitchen!).

So, instead I made apple crisp, which is essentially apple pie with a sugar topping. The best part about a crisp as opposed to a pie is that you can pretty much do whatever you want– adjust the recipe below to suit your tastes!

I replaced the traditional oats with chopped walnuts, just to be safe, and served it with a scoop of French Vanilla ice cream. Is there any other way to eat apple crisp?

Gluten-Free Apple Crisp:
Makes 10-16 servings

4 Fuji Apples, peeled, cored and sliced
1 cup Sugar
1/4 cup Rice flour
2 tsp Ground cinnamon
3-4 tbls Fresh squeezed lemon juice

1 stick Butter, softened
3/4 cup Rice flour
1 cup Walnuts, chopped
3 Tbls Sugar
3 Tbls Brown sugar

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.

2. In a large bowl, combine first set of ingredients. Stir until apples are completely coated. The juices from the apples and lemon should be a little viscous; if they look runny, add more flour. Then pour in a 9×12″ glass baking dish and set aside.

3. In a medium bowl, combine second set of ingredients. Cream them together and crumble over the top of the apples.

4. Bake at 375 for approximately 30 minutes, or until delicious.

Happy Birthday, Chris!