A GF Recipe: Quinoa Cornbread

Ever since I was hit with the celiac diagnosis, I have attempted to make a halfway-decent gluten-free cornbread.  Typically, I have used a combination of rice flour, corn flour, and corn meal, but my concoctions usually end up grainy and crumbly.  So, last night, I decided to shake things up a little bit.  Instead of my requisite rice flour/corn flour/corn meal mix, I went with a complex blend of rice flour, corn flour, quinoa flour, and garbanzo bean flour.  The resulting bread had much more texture than your standard gluten-free cornbread, and the quinoa provided the bread with a pleasant nuttiness.  So, without further adieu, here is the aforementioned recipe.

John's Gluten-Free Quinoa Cornbread

Ingredients:
1 cup stone-ground corn flour
1/4 cup white rice flour
1/4 cup quinoa flour
1/4 cup garbanzo bean flour
3-4 tablespoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon xantham gum
1 tablespoon butter
2 beaten eggs
1 cup milk
1/4 cup melted butter

Steps:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Mix the four flours, sugar, salt, baking powder, and xantham gum in a large bowl and set aside.
3. Melt the 1 tablespoon butter in a medium-sized baking pan in the oven.  Swirl the butter around the bottom and sides of the pan.
4. In a small bowl, mix the beaten eggs, milk, and 1/4 cup melted butter.  Then, add these ingredients to the dry mix in the large bowls, and stir until the dry mix is moistened.
5. Pour batter into the baking pan.
6. Bake for 15-20 minutes (test with a toothpick - if it comes out clean, you're set).  If you have a lopsided oven like me, you may need to turn the baking pan halfway through the baking process.  Serve warm.

Initiate Post-Doc Phase

Tomorrow, I begin the next stage of my life.  Tomorrow, I officially become a post-doc.  I am pretty excited about the new changes this stage will bring.  I have already changed my office location, and I now have a window.  You may think this is but a minor change, but words cannot explain how excited I am to have a little natural light at work.

Speaking of changes, I learned yesterday that a Texas judge ruled unconstitutional a collection of asinine beer labeling laws that were hurting small breweries.  Among the changes introduced by the ruling are the following:

* Breweries are now allowed to tell customers where to buy their beers.  Seriously?
* Breweries no longer have to (untruthfully, I might add) label beers with anything greater than 4% alcohol as ales or malt liquors.

The second change is of particular interest to me.  There are a number of decent gluten-free beers that can't be sold in Texas because they are not labeled as ales or malt liquors.   Previously, I had written how Estrella Damm Daura was one such beer.  In fact, the only gluten-free beers that I have seen sold in Texas are Green's, Redbridge, and Bard's, and frankly, all three beers are sub-par.  I expect with this latest ruling that there will be a wealth of new beers available in the state of Texas within a year, gluten-free and gluten-filled.  Needless to say, I am pretty excited about that.  Maybe New Planet will finally come to Texas as well?  I will be crossing my fingers.

Texas, how could you?

So, last week, an old roommate e-mailed me about a new gluten-free beer a Catalonian friend had made him try, and it actually wasn't half-bad. Well, when I asked him the name of the beer, I got increasingly excited. You see, Estrella Damm Daura is a special kind of beer. They actually make their beer with barley, but they use a special procedure to remove the gluten before the brewing process. The result is a product with less than 6 PPM (parts per million) gluten with the official label of "best gluten-free beer in the world".

So, naturally, I started a frantic search for the beer after my roommate e-mailed me. If they had it in Boston, they had to have the beer in Austin. Right? Austinities love beer, and they love their gluten-free diets. Well, I scrambled around, hitting up two different Whole Foods, two Specs, and a variety of other locales to no success. Finally, I decided to e-mail Daura itself to ask about the availability of Estrella in Texas. Unfortunately, this is what I got back:

Hi John,

Thanks for your interest in DAURA. Unfortunately, due to labeling laws DAURA in not available in Texas. Bummer, we know. Should that change, I will reach out and let you know ASAP.

Many thanks,

Stacie

In conclusion, Texas just became a lot more lame. Fortunately for me, I will be hitting up Boulder, Colorado soon where I know they have Daura. And it will be a joyous day. A joyous day indeed.

Update: Daura is available in Virginia as well! I now have new inspiration to visit my fiancée in Williamsburg!

Second Update: Apparently, the specific law prohibiting the sale of Daura in the state of Texas is the following: any beer with more than 4% alcohol per weight (about 5.1% alcohol per volume) must be labeled as an ale, not as a beer. This is one of the more severely stupid laws I have heard of. Apparently, there has been some talk in the legislature regarding overturning this law, but no luck yet. For more on this, check out this blog entry.

Chile Rellenos!

So, Sarah had sent me a vegetarian chile relleno recipe the other night, and I finally got to try it out tonight.  I basically followed the recipe verbatim, except that I decided not to seed the jalapeño peppers in order to spice things up a bit.  And wow.  These were amazing.  Definitely an A+.

Jalapeño Black Bean Tacos and Beirut at the Moody Theater

In short, last night was a great night. I finally crafted a taco recipe I really enjoy, and I got to see Beirut in concert with the lovely fiancée.

Despite their simplicity, tacos have always thwarted me. I find my creations turn out so dry that you need to douse them in copious amounts of salsa to avoid dry mouth, literally drowning out the original flavor of the taco. This has especially been the case since I have gone gluten-free as I find myself needing two corn tortillas per taco just to keep all the ingredients intact. For this reason, I have been on a quest to build a better taco. Last night, I think I finally nailed down a decent recipe while making dinner. It involves combining the sensibilities of refried black beans, fried onions, tomatoes, and jalapeño peppers. Combine these ingredients with shredded cheddar cheese, a few slices of avocado, two heated corn tortillas, and a douse of sour cream, and you've got yourself a helluva taco - moist and delicious, spicy yet not overwhelming. So without further adieu, here is the recipe for the filler.

John's Jalapeño Black Bean Taco Filler

Ingredients:
1 16 ounce can of refried black beans
1 medium sized yellow onion, chopped
1 large jalapeño pepper, chopped
1/4 to 1/2 cup of medium hot salsa
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt

Steps:
1. Begin by heating the olive oil in a medium to large non-stick skillet at low to medium heat.
2. Gently fry the onions in the oil for 4-5 minutes, adding the jalapeño pepper in around the 2-3 minute mark.
3. Add the refried beans and salsa to the onion-pepper mixture, stirring until the mixture fully warms.
4. Salt to taste.

After dinner, Sarah and I headed downtown to check out Beirut at the Moody Theater. I have been wanting to see Beirut ever since I heard their debut album during my first year of graduate school. Beirut is the brainchild of Santa Fe native and multi-instrumentalist Zachary Condon, and with Beirut, Condon seamlessly combines elements of Eastern European and Balkan folk music with Western pop music and Mariachi. Yesterday was also my first trip to the Moody Theater, and when I entered the theater, I was taken aback with the theater's striking contrast of enormity and intimacy. I had previously heard the theater has capacity for 2,700 people yet there is no bad seat in the house. Now I cannot disagree with that statement as Sarah and I could see and hear everything perfectly in one of the top rows of the balcony. That was another thing - the acoustics in the place were absolutely pristine. Beirut and their opener, Long Island-based Twin Sister, sounded flawless and gorgeous in the theater.

As for the concert itself, Twin Sister opened with some fun and gentle indie pop. I especially enjoyed the whispy vocals, fun hairstyle, and awkward hipster dancing of Andrea Estella, the group's lead singer. She was backed by a collection of dreamy and funky pop sequences. Then, before you knew it, Condon and Beirut had taken to the stage, and the crowd went wild. My first upon seeing Beirut was honestly: "Wow, it's the old high school marching band." The band had on hand a huge collection of brass instruments - from the french horn and trombone to a variety of trumpets. Then Beirut began to play, and I was sucked quickly into the fray. Condon and his band began with a few Mariachi-inspired numbers from their latest, March of the Zapotec/Holland. Following, Beirut played some selections from their first two albums (including "Cliquot" and my personal favorite, "Postcards from Italy") and a few rather poppy new songs. In reflection, it is incredible to hear a pop song heavily reliant on an accordion. Throughout, Condon was the definition of confident and sexy, switching between instruments flawlessly, truly leading the band from song to song. Beirut finished their initial set with the Flying Club Cup's dreamy closer "After the Curtain", and the crowd begged for more. Sure enough, Condon came back and hopped on the keyboard. Beirut then played through a few more poppy renditions and closed with the anthem-matic "Gulag Orkestar". Good stuff. Anyways, Sarah and I left with huge smiles on our faces, and I recommend you check Beirut out if they swing out to a town by you. Highly worth your time.

Southern Cooking

Southern cooking, take one. Shrimp, bacon, jalapeno, and polenta with basil garnish. Need to use less water next time for the polenta.