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| Cooking light- gluten-free shepherd's pie with lovely gravy, two ways. |
A cold rain is rolling through Connecticut, interrupting a whisper of mist with sudden bursts of stinging wet drops. The skies are wooly gray, gloomy and low. It's the kind of day that calls for comfort in the form of food. Something baked in a crock. Something piping hot and old fashioned. Something with mashed potatoes...
A savory pie, I said out loud, standing at the kitchen sink, listening to the staccato of rain drumming the skylights.
Don't tease me, said my husband, looking up from his latest screenplay.
I wouldn't joke about a thing like pie, I assured him.
Seriously. I'm thinking a shepherd's pie, I said. But not the usual shepherd's pie. No beef. No onion. No peas.
Please, he said. No peas.
You know, that could get you into trouble, I told him. Your pea prejudice. The foodie police will be at our door before you know it. Demanding equal time for peas. And I'm already in enough trouble with their ilk.
Their ilk? he asked.
Yes, I said solemnly. My shepherd's pie is going to have tofu. And in some circles, that could get you killed.
Seriously, he echoed. And shook his head. He shifted in his seat.
Hey. Honey?
I turned toward him.
No offense, but. Can I have a chicken pie? Nothing against bean curd, but.
I know, I assured him. I know tofu doesn't always float your boat.
I have a legume issue, he stated. Never been a fan.
I love you anyway, I said.
For better or for worse.
Legumes or no legumes.
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| This was my shepherd's pie with organic tofu - vegan and dairy-free goodness. |
Gluten-Free Shepherd's Pie Recipe Two Ways
This a light and healthy version of shepherd's pie made without dairy or beef. I made two versions- one vegan (for moi) using organic non-GMO firm tofu, and one with Mary's organic free range chicken, for Steve. The gravy is golden and creamy and reminded me of the pot pies I used to love in childhood.Ingredients:
For the mashed potato topping:
3 cups peeled, diced gold potatoes
Sea salt
Plain soy, nut, or light coconut milk, as needed
For the filling:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1-2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 cup sliced carrots
1 cup zucchini, sliced into half-moons
1 cup chopped broccoli florets
1 14-oz can artichoke hearts, drained, quartered
1 cup cubed organic non-GMO firm sprouted tofu, or diced cooked chicken
2 teaspoons Italian style herbs (blend of oregano, thyme, marjoram, basil, parsley)
1 teaspoon rubbed sage
1 teaspoon rosemary, minced
Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
For the gravy:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons rice flour
1/2 cup warm broth (light vegetable or chicken broth)
1 cup non-dairy milk, warmed
2 tablespoons vegan butter (I used Earth Balance)
1 teaspoon mild GF curry powder
Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste
Instructions:
For the potato topping- boil the potatoes in a pot until fork tender, about 25 minutes. Drain well. Mash with a potato masher
; add a splash of non-dairy milk and season with sea salt, to taste. Stir till smooth and creamy, adding a little more 'milk' until the potatoes are fluffy and smooth. Set aside.Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Grease four single serving 10-oz ramekins
with vegan buttery spread (I used Earth Balance). Set aside.First, make the mashed potatoes. I used "Buttercream" gold potatoes- so full of flavor.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and stir in the garlic. Add the carrots, zucchini, and broccoli. Stir and cook lightly until fork tender, roughly ten minutes. If you prefer your veggies crisper, cook only until tender-crisp.
Add in the artichoke hearts, tofu or diced cooked chicken, and herbs, season with sea salt and ground pepper; set aside.
Make your gravy. Heat the olive oil in a pot over medium-low heat; stir in the rice flour to make a paste. Stir and cook for half a minute. Slowly add in the warm broth, and non-dairy milk; keep stirring. Add the vegan butter, curry powder, and sea salt. When it begins to thicken remove from heat and taste test. It should taste mild and creamy. The herbs in the veggies will add rosemary-sage flavor.
Pour the gravy over the filling mixture and gently mix until the veggies are coated with gravy.
Spoon the filling into the ramekins. Top with a big spoonful of mashed potatoes.
Sprinkle with non-dairy/vegan shredded cheese, if you like.
Place the ramekins on a baking sheet (to catch any bubbling-over drips) and bake in the center of a hot oven for 30 to 35 minutes. I tented my ramekins with foil for the first half of baking time to keep the mashed potatoes moist. Then I removed the foil and let the the topping brown a bit.
Cook time: 30 min
Yield: 4 servings
Recipe Source: glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com
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| Two pies. Two ways. Steve's had organic free-range chicken in his. Mine, tofu. |
Karina's Notes:
I used plain organic soy milk (non-GMO) as my non-dairy milk of choice. I love its creamy richness. Though a neutral tasting coconut, or nut milk would also work. (And for those of you asking about using moo-derived milk, butter, and real cheese, sure. Dairy will work in this recipe.)
For those of you into the vegan nutritional yeast thang, you could season the gravy with a spoonful of nutritional yeast; add just enough to give the sauce some depth.
If you need a vegan pie without soy, use drained canned chick peas for the protein.
when food network picked chocolate chip cookies for this week's comfort food feast i had a moment of panic. you see, my january "goal" is to eat only whole foods...nothing processed. nothing white (flour, sugar, rice, etc). no dairy. lots of greens. you get the idea. i am doing everything possible to avoid this horrible flu without getting a flu shot (personal choice). so...regular chocolate chip cookies are out. delicious,healthy, comfort food chocolate chip cookies that meet my goal? yes, yes, yes!
there are a million recipes for "regular" chocolate chip cookies and i know food network and my fellow food bloggers will provide a number of delicious choices. i decided to do some experimenting to create another option...a good-for-you option. now these are not diet or low cal cookies. the calorie content is probably about the same as the traditional kind. but mine contain whole grain flours, less sugar than most recipes...and i used a blend of coconut sugar and organic sugar... a mix of bittersweet and unsweetened chocolate and toasted pine nuts for sweetness and crunch. (i am a taos girl right now after all!). a really important part for me is that, wherever possible, i used whole, unprocessed organic ingredients. i think they taste better, are better for you and reassure me that my food is good for me...and for the planet. so, if you can, try using organic or sustainably grown items in this recipe. so worth it...and even better at making the cookies "guilt free".
* i love unbleached white whole wheat flour, whole wheat which has been milled from the lightest wheat kernels...so light they are almost white. contains all the fiber and nutrients of regular whole wheat but lighter in color and taste. note...this is not white flour...the color is light brown when baked. i like the king arthur brand*
it is chocolate chip cookie week at .JPG)
what a month it has been! first, my computer's hard drive crashed 4 weeks ago and i went for a week without being on line. then i got really sick...it turned into pneumonia and i have been bed ridden for three weeks. today is the first day that i feel a bit better...and the first day i feel like cooking. happily, it is meatloaf week at food network. what a perfect dish for getting back into the kitchen..JPG)
i was talking to my mom a few weeks ago about her meatloaf recipe. she has made it my entire life and it is the family favorite. i have not made it in years and promised her that on my next visit we would make it together. i made today's version from memory....happily, it looks, smells and tastes like hers.
