Lasagnas

Hello all. Today I decided to go old-school and make lasagna. Well, not that traditional because I made one of them gluten free, dairy free, used butternut squash sauce instead fo the usual tomato, and included mushrooms, zucchini, and ground beef in the layers. For the second one, I made a vegetarian green and white lasagna with ricotta, mozzarella, alfredo sauce, artichoke hearts, spinach, and green beans. These are two great ways to mix up the usual lasagna and make it something different.

Gluten Free, Dairy Free Lasagna
Serves 6

Ingredients:
2 packages of gluten free no boil lasagna noodles (check out gfgrocery.com)
2 packages of dairy free shredded mozzarella substitute (gfgrocery.com)
2 zucchinis sliced
1 package of sliced cremini mushrooms
1 lbs ground beef
1 Tbs olive oil
1/2 cup marsala cooking wine
1 jar of butternut squash pasta sauce (I used Dave's Gourmet)

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add mushrooms, zucchinis, and ground beef. Brown the beef.
3. Add wine and simmer until liquid has reduced and zucchinis are slightly soft.
4. In a large baking dish layer sauce, noodles, meat & veggie mixture, and cheese-like substitute.
5. Repeat step 4 until out of ingredients, ending in a layer of noodles, then sauce, then cheese.
6. Bake for 45-50 minutes.
7. Let rest for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.


Vegetarian White and Green Lasagna
Serves 6

Ingredients:
1 lbs of lasagna noodles
2 jars of alfredo sauce
2 cans of quartered artichokes, diced
1 bag of baby spinach chopped
1 bag of steamed green beans
1 large carton of ricotta cheese
8 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese (2 large bags)

Preparation:
1. Prepare lasagna noodles according to directions on the box.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
3. In a large baking pan layer noodles, ricotta cheese, sauce, veggies, and mozzarella cheese.
4. Repeat step 3 until all of the ingredients are used, end with noodles, then sauce, then mozzarella cheese.
5. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until the cheese is slightly browned.
6. Let rest 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

Falafels, hummus, and quinoa tabbouleh

The first challenge is that two of the 12 people I'm making lunch for are celiac, which means no gluten in their diets. The second challenge is that one of those two celiac individuals is lactose intolerant. The third challenge is that the group wants healthy meals and flavorful dishes. The fourth challenge is that there has to be more than one dish, preferably three dishes, to offer diversity. The final challenge: it all has to be delivered by noon. 

I may be a little insane to take this on, but only time will tell. 

To start, I made gluten free falafels. The lesson I learned from this experience is that I needed xanthan gum and didn't have it, but the recipe bellow has it added in for your convenience. 

Gluten Free Falafels

Ingredients:
1 (19 oz) can of chickpeas (also called garbanzo beans) drained
1/2 large sweet onion, roughly chopped
2 Tbs chopped fresh parsley (about one bunch with stems removed)
2 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro (about one bunch with stems removed)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp red chili flakes
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp baking powder
4-6 Tbs almond meal for stability
1/4 to 1/2 tsp xanthan gum for stability
2-4 Tbs olive oil for frying

Preparation: 
1. In a food processor, chop together the chickpeas and onion until there are no large pieces. 
2. Add in the parsley, cilantro, salt, red chili flakes, garlic, cumin, and baking powder. Process until combined. 
3. Add in the almond meal and xanthan gum until the batter can be molded into a ball without sticking to your hands. 
4. Heat oil in a frying pan over medium to high heat, it is ready when you can smell olives but is too hot if the oil smokes.
5. Use a small ice cream scoop or a large spoon to scoop out the batter into walnut sized dollops and carefully place them into the hot oil. Make sure to not splash hot oil, it sucks to get burned. 
6. When the underside of the falafels have browned, flip them. 
7. Once the falafels are golden brown all over, place onto a plate with two layers of paper towels. Serve over a salad of freshly chopped lettuce, tomatoes, hummus, tahini, and yogurt. 

Because the gluten free option didn't hold together very well without that key binding ingredient of xanthan gum, I opted to also make these with all-purpose unbleached flour in place of the almond meal and xanthan gum. Those turned out much better in terms of retaining shape and ease of cooking. Serve the with gluten falafels in pita pockets along with all the goodies mentioned above or on top of a salad.

Hummus 

Ingredients: 
2 cloves garlic
1 (19 oz) can chickpeas, drained with liquid reserved 
4 Tbs lemon juice 
2 Tbs tahini
1 tsp salt
dash black pepper (optional)
2 Tbs olive oil (optional)

Preparation: 
1. In a food processor chop the garlic.
2. Add the chickpeas, lemon juice, tahini, and salt into the food processor, blend. 
3. Add the reserved liquid until you get a good consistency to the hummus (about half the liquid)
4. Optional, for serving sprinkle black pepper and drizzle olive oil over hummus. Enjoy with pita, chips, or veggies. 

Quinoa Tabbouleh 

• Ingredients: 
• 1 3/4 cups water
• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped seeded tomato 
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley (or mint if that's what you have)
• 1/4 cup currents (or raisins if that is all you have) 
• 1/4 cup chopped cucumber
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons chopped green onions 
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 teaspoons minced sweet onion 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (to taste)
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
• 
  
• Preparation: 
• 1. Combined water and quinoa in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to low, simmer for 20 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed. 
• 2. Remove from heat and fluff quinoa with a fork.
• 3. In a small dish, combined lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Pour mixture over quinoa and mix thoroughly.
• 4. Stir in all remaining ingredients. 
• 5. Cover and let stand 1 hour. Serve chilled or at room temperature.