Saharan Harissa spice mix for Moroccan Chicken, Low FODMAP.

Harissa is a spice blend used in North Africa and the following recipe is Low FODMAP version, another example that it is possible to have rich flavours without the addition of onion and garlic. It is a special recipe, so quite expensive to produce so I would save it forIMG_1762 those occasions when you want to cook something a little different for friends and family. The recipe serves approximately six people. It also takes some time to prepare, but I think you will find that nobody will recognise the recipe is good for someone who has IBS and problems with their digestion. If you are sensitive to hot spices then replace hot paprika with mild paprika and omit the chilli from the recipe.

Ingredients 1 – Spice mix

5g Cumin

5g Hot Smoked Paprika

2.5g Coriander Powder

2.5g Coriander Seeds

2g Ginger powder

2g Tumeric

Use 1 heaped tablespoon per dish.img102 img084 img072

Ingredients 2 – Main dish

12 Skinless chicken thighs

100g Lemon & Coriander flavoured green olives

1/2 Lemon (squeezed)

1 preserved lemon

2 teaspoons of Rose Water (not sweetened!)

2 large pinches of Saffron

1 tablespoon of Garlic infused olive oil

250g Red and Yellow Pepper

300 mls water

salt

Ingredients 3 –Carbohydrate

100g Red Quinoa

100g Broken Basmati (cheaper version of basmati – works just as well)

100g Red Camargue Rice

50g Pine nutsimg146

Salt

Serves 6

Add 1 tablespoon of the spice mix to a dish, mix with 2 teaspoons of rose-water, 1 tablespoon of garlic infused oil, the juice of 1/2 a lemon.

Pour the spice mix over 12 skinless boned chicken thighs, rub in well and leave covered in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

Roast the pepper in an oven till soft, and chop.

Add the chicken to a cooking pot or tagine and add the preserved lemon, olives, pepper, saffron, salt and 300 mls of water. Cook for 1.5 hours at gas mark 5 till ingredients are soft and tender.

Near the end of the cooking time add red rice, basmati rice and salt to a pan cover with water and cook for 20 minutes. Add quinoa and salt to a separate pan cover with water and cook for 15 minutes. Drain these, mix them together and add the pine nuts.

Drain off the cooking juices from the Moroccan chicken, if you wish at this point drain off the fat floating on the surface of the cooking liquor. In a large serving dish place the rice mix in the dish first and pour over the remainder of the cooking liquor. Pile on the rest of the ingredients on the top of the rice – then enjoy!

Christmas Eve special supper – spicy saffron red pepper and courgette/zucchini Quiche

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Low Fodmap, low lactose, wheat free + gluten-free.

Ingredients

200g of gluten free wheat free flour mix.

90g of milk free margarine

Pinch of salt

(or 1 packet pastry mix for gluten free, wheat free pastry – this can contain chickpea flour, so make your own if you have problems with lentils and chickpeas)

pinch of saffron

4 tablespoons of water

1-2 red peppers

1 courgette/zucchini

1 red chilli

4 eggs

1/4 teaspoon of turmeric

saffron-rex1/4 teaspoon of chilli powder

1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika

1 oz of finely grated fresh parmesan.

Salt to taste.

Method

Place a tablespoon of just boiled water into a cup and add the saffron, leave for approximately half an hour to release the colour and flavour.

Weigh out the flour, add salt (if not a packet mix) and rub in the margarine, add the water and saffron mix to the pastry. Bring the dough together, work it well – the better it is worked in, the easier you will find it to use.

Roll out the pastry on a well floured (gluten and wheat free!) board or roll between two sheets of cling film. Line the base of a flan ring/dish. Cut out circles or shapes for the top of the flan.

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Break the four eggs into a bowl and mix well, add chilli powder, salt and turmeric, mix well.

Use a small amount of the egg mix as a wash for the base of the flan and the cut out shapes. Bake these for 15-20 minutes in an oven set a gas mark 5 or 190 degrees C. Also add to the oven a baking tray containing sliced pepper, finely chopped chilli, sprinkled over smoked paprika and spray oil. Place the peppers at the top of the oven till roasted.

Slice the courgette.

Cool the pastry, grate the parmesan. add the courgette to the base of the flan, then layer on the pepper. Pour over the egg mix, decorate with the pastry discs and sprinkle over the cheese. Cook at gas mark 6 or 200 degrees C, for approximately 20 minutes. Exclude the chilli if you find it too much for your digestion. Check your spices are wheat and gluten free if you need to.

Paella Low FODMAP, dairy free, gluten free, wheat free – obviously!!

1 Dessert spoon of garlic infused oil

1/4 teaspoon of asafoetida (check wheat free)

1 teaspoon of Spanish smoked paprika

1 generous pinch of saffron

1/2 teaspoon of turmeric

6 skinned boned chicken thighs

250g of seafood selection (skinned)

4 cups of basmati rice

500 ml chicken stock (ensure you check the label for onion & garlic)

One orange bell pepper

Pinch of salt & pepper

Method

Measure oil into a pan and add spices (except saffron)

Fry chicken, remove from oil and place in an oven at gas mark 6 (admittedly mine were a little over cooked, but I prefer it that way – honest!)

Add rice to oil and fry for 30 seconds and the add chicken stock

Add the pinch of saffron to a small dish and cover with boiling water to leach out the saffron, add this to rice mix.

Cook till rice is softened and add pepper, cook then add back the chicken, add the seafood selection and cook till warmed through.

Serve.

One of my favourite pastimes when I am on holiday is to look around the food markets, here is a market in Barcelona. I love to wander and look at the different foods that are sold and to get some ideas of what to cook when I get home.

Paprika Meatballs – Low FODMAP

Ingredients

400 g lean beef meatballs (ensure no onion in ingredients)

400 g tin of chopped tomato

2 teaspoons of Spanish Smoked Paprika

2 teaspoons cornflour

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 teaspoon of granulated sugar

1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon of asafoetida

1 teaspoon of garlic infused oil

Method

Place meatballs in a casserole dish.

Pour the tomato into a measuring jug, add to this the paprika, cinnamon, sugar, garlic infused oil and asafoetida (take care to ensure that you place your asafoetida in a tightly sealed container – it smells very strong but adds a real depth of onion flavour to the dish.)

Then add this mix to the casserole dish.

Measure out the cornflour into a small dish and then add water to form a paste (cornflour is really great to use to thicken dishes – its wheat free and mixes very well with cold water – therefore NO LUMPS 🙂 yay!)

Add this to the dish and mix well.

Cook in a preheated over at gas mark 6, 200 C, for at least 1 hour (more if you can stand to wait to try it!)

Serves 4 – served here with freshly boiled rice and roasted marrow.

Low FODMAP, wheat free (ensure that asafoetida is pure if you have coeliac disease or a wheat allergy – it can sometimes be diluted with wheat flour) gluten-free, egg free, dairy free. Check spice labels for allergens.