Fenster - Gluten-Free Cooking for Two: 125 Favorites

Copyright 2017 by The Savory Palate, LLC

Photography Tom Hirschfeld

All rights reserved.

For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to or to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 3 Park Avenue, 19th floor, New York, New York 10016.

www.hmhco.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

ISBN 978-0-544-82868-1 (trade paper); 978-0-544-82873-5 (ebk)

Book design by Alison Wilkes

v1.0217

This book is lovingly dedicated to my husband, Larry, and the rest of my wonderful family.

Thanks for your love, support, and encouragement while I traveled this gluten-free journey for the past three decades.

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

A while backin what I call a BFO (Blinding Flash of the Obvious)I realized that I live in a two-person household, yet Ive been cooking for the standard family-of-four household all my life. Of course, when I was writing all my previous cookbooks, I used the four-serving rule, but even when I wasnt in cookbook-writing mode, I still made large recipes. Think of all those leftovers and wasted food that spoiled before it was eatennot to mention all of that space needed to store it!

And then, I looked around and realized my small household was like many others. How could I have missed this trend? It took phone calls and emails from my readers who asked for small-size recipes to bring me to the conclusion that the gluten-free world needs a comprehensive cookbook just for small households. So, I set about researching the small-household phenomenon.

Today, more Americans are living in small households. Research shows that the traditional family-of-four image is irrelevant for many of us. Twenty-eight percent of the 115 million households in the U.S. were solo in 2011, compared with 26 percent in 2000. According to USA Today, the largest jump is among the seniors who are part of the 77 million baby boomers who became empty nesters when their kids left home. In this case, you once cooked for several people but now its just the two of you. I can relate to this: My son (who ate so much while he was growing up that there were never any leftovers!) eventually grew up and left home, leaving my husband and me as the lone diners at our kitchen table.

In other cases, the small household isnt necessarily comprised of boomers. In my travels around the country, I meet other family configurations: newly married couples, two-roommate households, one or two members within larger families who must eat differently than the rest of the family, and other nontraditional households.

You shouldnt have to give up your favorite foods just because you live in a smallrather than four-servinghousehold. You still deserve easy, healthy, delicious food that is tailored to your needs. I am always saddened to hear people say, Oh, I dont cook much; after all, its just me / the two of us. As though they no longer deserve to eat well since they arent the typical family size! So, please get rid of the notion that your small household isnt important enough to justify cooking a meal. You, your health, and your happiness are the most important things.

Ive tailored these recipes to serve two people because this is where theres the greatest need. However, if youre a single-person household, invite a friend or family member to join you, or pack the remaining portion for your lunch for tomorrow or freeze it for later in the week. Because paring down some recipes (especially baked goods) to one serving is simply not practical, Ive formulated the recipes to yield at least two servings; even if you live alone, this shouldnt be an unmanageable size.

If you have celiac disease or gluten sensitivity, cooking for yourself and eating well is even more important because there is no pill or surgery to cure your health issues; eating gluten free is your only treatment. Theres no reason to let smallness dampen your gluten-free culinary spirit.

So lets talk about what I call the cooking-for-two (or small-batch) kitchen. After all, small can be mighty!

Not only does small-batch cooking and baking make cute little parcels of food, it also gives you greater control over portion size and reduces your need for a lot of freezer or refrigerator space. Its just a more efficient way to live, as Ive learned. Im not always wondering how to use up that huge can of tomato juice, because I now buy juice in six-packs of 5.5-ounce cans, or that big jar of applesauce, because I buy individually packaged 4-ounce cups. (More on shopping for small-batch kitchens later.)

In addition, cooking small means less food waste because there are no leftovers that grow stale before you can finish them. Some experts have estimated American households throw away around 30 percent of their food; cooking food that is appropriately sized for your needs means less of it ends up in your wastebasket.

Now that you know the advantages, lets explore how to adapt your kitchen to a cooking-for-two style.

Many of your existing appliances will still work when cooking for two, but there are some appliances that I believe are indispensable and that you should invest in to make this work for you. I mention brand names to let you know what I use, not to endorse the products.

BAKING PANS: Look for 5- or 6-inch nonstick (gray, not black) round baking pans. This size might be a bit hard to find; I use Wilton brand, which you may be able to find in specialty shops or online. A springform pan has a bottom that releases from the side and it is often used for cakes and cheesecakes. If you can find one, the cute 3-cup Bundt pan by Nordic Ware is perfect for small cakes. If you prefer to bake individual cakes, look for little 1-cup Bundt pans; their pretty shapes make especially elegant cakes.

BAKING SHEETS: You will need both nonstick (gray, not black) and regular (shiny) baking sheets, preferably 9x13 inches with rimmed edges. Use the nonstick sheets for roasting vegetables. The regular (shiny, not nonstick) sheets work well for certain kinds of cookies that dont require extensive browning on the bottom. Baking sheets can also be used for one-pan meals where you bake the starch, protein, and vegetables (in staggered times) on one sheet, like the Sheet Pan Supper of Roasted Fish and Vegetables ().

Standard 9x13-inch baking sheets can also double as pizza pans, although a 12-inch round nonstick (gray, not black) pizza pan also works for making a small pizza.

BLENDER: I use a standard, 5-cup blender that is twenty years old. Except for replacing the glass jar occasionally, it still runs like the Energizer Bunny. It is perfect for blending batches of soup that a handheld blender would struggle to handle. (See Handheld Blender below.)