I have always considered myself quite a nice person. I like food of all shapes, flavours and colours. From every country and continent. I don’t discriminate, I am an equal opportunity eater. It’s only the doctors who say I’m intolerant. And certain foods who refuse to tolerate me. They certainly refuse to recognise and respect my right to eat them without major physical discomfort and distress.


Gluten and lactose are not my friends.


Despite the negative attitudes surrounding me from many of those I love best, (cakes, ice cream, hot toast) I decided to become a chef. Not always easy when you live in a bread and milk filled world. I like to think that this has helped me become a better person as I embrace my differences and refuse to let the gluten get me down. I believe InTolerance. I am the InTolerant Chef.

Food should not be about what you can’t eat, but what you can and what you enjoy eating. This blog is about my journey of cooking and eating and discovery. It’s not a definitive guide to allergy awareness nor do my intolerances make me an expert. Your body is your responsibility, not mine. I only know what works for me.


I can tell you this..... No glutens were harmed in the making of this website.

April 2, 2014

In My Kitchen- April




Welcome to another Kitchen Snap Shot as part of lovely Celia's monthly In My Kitchen roundups!

Check out the full list of participating Blogs here over at Celia's- the wonderful Fig Jam and Lime Cordial- that is chock-a-block with her recipes, garden, chickens, bread making and cheery outlook on life


This April...

In My Kitchen...
Is a This-is-all Celia's-fault Picky Platter
Celia recently posted about her beautiful antipasto-platter, and it got me all inspired to create my own. Unfortunately I got rather carried away.... On my platter is Lemon Myrtle Roast Pork, Truffle Salami, Smoked Wagu Beef Slices, Dolmades, Feta stuffed Olives, Grilled Eggplant, Pickled Artichokes, Bread and Butter Cucumbers, Dolmades, Soft Goat Cheese, Hard lactose free Cheese, Goat Brie, Horseradish and Beetroot Paste, Hommus, Chicken Cognac Pate, Truffled Anchovies, Flaxseed Crackers and gluten free Grisini- PHEW! I'm not saying how much of this was left for anyone else to eat by lunch time, but I will say that it was delicious :)




In My Kitchen...
Are a heap of Ready-to-go Freezer Meals
It's going to be a bit of a busy, mixed up month, so I've been preparing and filling the freezer with meals that just need to be popped into the oven. I label them clearly so there's no confusion, and also jot down any extra instructions required so there's no excuse for anyone to muck it up




In My Kitchen...
Is the Master List of Frozen Meals, handily stuck on the door of the fridge. I have added a few more meals to the list since that photo was taken so we have plenty of variety.If I hadn't run out of room in the freezer I'd still be cooking though, as cooking calms me, centres me, and makes me happy. I'm definitely a Feeder and love looking after my family like this




In My Kitchen...
Are the last of the garden-glut of tomatoes
I'm slow roasting them on low heat to really condense the flavours, then they'll be cooked down with red wine, herbs, and lots of garlic into a gorgeous rich sauce that can be used all year long to add a little sunshine to our meals




In My Kitchen...
Is, at last, a Canele Pan! I have wanted to make these for so long, but stubbornly refused until I had the right equipment. It really does make a difference! I couldn't afford a traditional bronze or copper pan, and I'm just not the biggest fan of silicon molds, so when I came across this heavy steel pan I no longer had an excuse.




In My Kitchen...
Are some yummy infused salts that were a gift from my lovely friend Flora, They add so much flavour sprinkled over meals, or rubbed into chicken or meat just before cooking

 



In My Kitchen...
Are ripe limes from my garden. It's the first real harvest I've had and I'm very excited!
Kaffir limes in the background- not a lot of juice, but the wonderfully aromatic rind is lovely grated into curries. Australian Finger Limes at the front- see how the juice is encapsulated in tiny little caviar type spheres? These burst with a delightful POP in your mouth, slightly sour and bitter- everything a lime should be. I love the little cuties to garnish sushi together with fish roe; they're absolutely, fantastically perfect for sprinkling on fresh oysters; great mixed through a Thai style salad for a bit of a surprise ingredient; and, of course in a nice cold GnT!




In My Kitchen...
Is this lovely condiment I found recently, Rose Harissa
You all know that I'm a sucker for floral flavours, and this one promises to be something a bit different indeed. Wow, it's hot! but not so much that you sear off your taste buds. The rose is a subtle sneakiness at the back of the burn that is sweet and very tasty. I will use this rubbed over BBQ chicken, and mixed with LF yoghurt and drizzled over lamb or potato wedges- yummo!



So Dear Readers, how do you cope with Busy Times, and what do you do that makes you happy?