Emily Kerrigan’s Gluten-Free Kitchen & competition

Liz Nicholls

foodie

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We share some fuss-free food inspiration from The Gluten-Free Kitchen by registered nutritionist Emily Kerrigan from Thame, published by Vie, £10.99

Summer rolls

Rice papers and rice noodles are two fantastic staples in a gluten-free kitchen. These summer rolls might look tricky but once you make the first one or two, you’ll realise they’re actually pretty straightforward. Pack in a lunchbox or make a big batch and serve to a group as finger food.

Makes 12 | Takes 30 minutes
Ingredients:
• 100g (3½ oz) vermicelli rice noodles
• 1 carrot, julienned
• a handful of coriander, finely chopped
• a handful of mint leaves, finely chopped
• 12 large rice paper wrappers
• large lettuce leaves
• a few handfuls of cooked chicken, shredded
• lime wedges, for squeezing over
• gluten-free sweet chilli
• dipping sauce, for serving

Method
• Cook the noodles according to pack instructions then drain and set aside. Mix together the carrot and herbs in a bowl and set aside. Fill a dish wide enough to fit your rice paper wrappers with room temperature water.
• Immerse a wrapper in the water until it softens then lay it on a clean chopping board. Take a lettuce leaf and fill with a little each of the noodles, carrot, herbs and chicken. Roll up the filled lettuce leaf – this keeps the filling in place and makes the rolls easier to eat. Place the rolled lettuce cup on the wrapper towards the centre left. Fold the top and bottom of the wrapper inwards, then roll it up lengthways. Slice in half if you like.
• Repeat for all 12 rolls and serve with lime wedges for squeezing over plus sweet chilli dipping sauce.

Lemon drizzle cake

Polenta and ground almonds are gluten-free baking staples, providing bite to this fluffy cake and keeping it lovely and moist. The lemony, syrupy pistachio nuts on top make it extra special.

Makes 1 cake | Takes 1 hour 10 minutes
Cake Ingredients
• 175g (6 oz) gluten-free self-raising flour
• 1½ tsp gluten-free baking powder
• 50g (2 oz) ground almonds
• 50g (2 oz) polenta
• 2 lemons, zested
• 140g (5 oz) golden caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 225g (8 oz) natural yoghurt
• 75ml (3fl oz) rapeseed oil

For the topping
• 60g (2 oz) caster sugar
• 2 lemons, juiced
• 50g (2 oz) pistachios, chopped

Method
• Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4 and grease and line a deep 20 cm (8 in.) round cake tin. Put the flour, baking powder, ground almonds, polenta, lemon zest and golden caster sugar in a bowl (keep the lemons to juice for the topping). Beat the eggs together with the yoghurt until smooth and add to the dry ingredients with the rapeseed oil. Fold everything together. Spoon into the tin, level off with a spoon and bake for 35-40 minutes. If it is looking a little brown in the final 10 minutes you can cover it loosely with foil.
• Towards the end of baking, make the topping by heating the caster sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan over a low heat. Once the sugar is dissolved, remove from the heat and stir in the chopped pistachios.
• Cool the cake for 15 minutes in the tin then remove from the tin and sit on a wire rack set over a baking tray (to catch any drips). Poke holes in the surface of the cake with a fork or skewer then spoon over the nut syrup, letting it soak in a little between additions. Leave to cool completely before slicing.

Read about how Emily’s daughter’s experience with Coeliac Disease inspired this book here.

We have three copies of The Gluten-Free Kitchen to give away; enter here.


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Six of the best from Nico

Liz Nicholls

foodie

Six by Nico is the newest addition to the Westgate in Oxford. Liz Nicholls was lucky enough to be among the first to try it at the weekend

As the city of dreaming spires (with a wondrous view of them from the top of the Westgate) Oxford is known for its old-school charm.

But when a newcomer to the foodie scene creates a buzz, it’s a real thrill. And when that newcomer is an original foodie fanatic who has made his name in other, bigger, brasher cities before landing here, I’m sniffing about for titbits and tasters.

This is how I found myself absorbing the neon genius of an Irn Bru sorbet with a perfect ‘deep fried mars bar’ (actually a very classy chocolate pave & associated bits) in the intergalactic bonsai zen den at Six By Nico.

If you haven’t been to one of Nico Simeone’s restaurants (there are branches in Leeds, Belfast, London, Cardiff, Birmingham, Manchester and his native Glasgow) the concept is magically enjoyable. For £50 a head you can sit back and relax while you’re served a six-course tasting menu (dietary requirements catered for if you’re that person) that changes every six weeks, drawing inspiration from a memory, place or idea. For an extra £39 you can enjoy an expertly matched wine with each course, which I highly recommend you do.

Now, you might hate a ‘tasting menu’. Weeny portions and a lack of imagination at other restaurants might have given them a bad name, but not here. Thanks to hard graft, his Italian heritage, a flawless service team and a real passion for food, Nico knows exactly what he’s doing. The first menu is ‘the Chippie’, a nostalgic chip shop-inspired half dozen.

This is no bodged assortment of battered bits, instead you’ll find the courses deconstructed and dreamed up as better variations. From the starter, a mindbending parmesan and tatty concoction with curry oil, through the mains including a ‘steak pie’ of meaty magic which arrives in a smoke-filled cloche for a theatrical flourish to that incredible pud, you’re taken on a journey. But, amid a stonking interior (top marks for the amazing banquettes and yellow leather scalloped sofas) the food manages to sing. It’s not fancy for the sake of itself, either, but the flavours and originality should, hopefully mean this place is here for many changing menus to come. Oxford is stony ground for people to take root (as I know, 12 years after landing here myself) so I hope the Westgate crowd take it to their hearts.

I can’t wait for the next one. And, take it from me, you won’t leave hungry or hammered but with a spring in your step.

Bookings from 20th May. Visit Home – Six By Nico

Join Tom Kerridge’s Pirate Ship

Round & About

foodie

There’s working in the hospitality industry and then there’s working for Michelin-starred chef Tom Kerridge in the hospitality industry, if you’re looking for an opportunity to work alongside one of the best in the business then hop aboard the pirate ship!

The Tom Kerridge Group includes The Hand & Flowers, The Coach, Lush by Tom Kerridge and The Butcher’s Tap & Grill all in Marlow, as well as Kerridge’s Bar & Grill and Kerridge’s Fish & Chips (both London) and The Bull & Bear (Manchester), and with vacancies ranging from bartender through to front of house and all manner of chef and kitchen roles available you’re sure to find one that will help you in your career.

When you join the ‘pirate ship’ you’ll be joining a band of pirates all contributing to the success and growth of the Tom Kerridge Group. Clear lines of progression mean some of the team have forged thriving careers over 20 years and with a policy of promoting from within and nurturing talent you can be assured you’ll get all the support you need.

Tom says: “Working in hospitality is a way of life. At the top level it’s hard work, but the rewards you can get out of it are huge. It’s not just a job, but the chance to learn new skills, travel the world, meet amazing people and be involved in amazing events, for us, it’s a long-term career. Come and join our pirate ship!”

To find out more about the opportunities on offer visit https://careers.tomkerridge.com/