I was recently sent The Secret Ingredient Cookbook by Sally Bee to review.  I enjoyed Sally’s recipes, however, they were not gluten-free or dairy-free, therefore I made some tasty changes and made a spin-off of her famous recipes.

Here are two delicious recipes that I thought you may enjoy. Although they are not gluten-free, I’ve made changes below to make these meals enjoyable by us folks with gluten-intolerance.

Chicken Casserole

This dish is easy-peasy but so delicious my family demand it at least once a week. It’s simple enough to have mid-week without too much fuss, with a good helping of brown or basmati rice and lots of green vegetables (I love it with steamed asparagus).

This recipe calls for white wine, which does give a lovely flavor. Most of the alcohol is burned off during cooking, so it’s not a problem. However, if you’d like to miss out the wine, simply add more stock or even some non-alcoholic grape juice.

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp flour (I used Gluten-Free Rice Flour)
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Sprinkling of dried mixed herbs
• 4—6 skinless chicken breast portions, cut into chunky pieces
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 6 rashers (slices) very lean bacon, cut into cubes
• 8 ounces shallots, peeled, and halved if large
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
• 2 zucchini, sliced
• 1 red and 1 green (bell) pepper, deseeded and sliced
• 1 ¼ cups chicken or vegetable stock (I used Gluten-Free)
• 1 ¼ cups white wine (the alcohol will burn off during cooking)

Directions

1.)    Preheat the oven to 325°F.

2.)    Mix the flour with some black pepper and the dried mixed herbs in a large bowl, then dust the chicken breasts in the flour and put to one side. Reserve some flour for the sauce.

3.)    Over a medium heat, gently heat the olive oil in a large, lidded flameproof casserole dish, Add the chicken and the bacon and fry until golden.

4.)    Add the shallots and garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes, or until softened.

5.)    Now add all the remaining ingredients – the (bell) peppers, zucchini, stock and wine. Stir in the reserved flour to add thickness to the sauce.

6.)    Cover and cook in the oven for about 11/2 hours, or until the chicken is nice and tender.

* If towards the end of cooking you feel the sauce has reduced too much, just add a little more stock.

Orange and Peach Filo Parcels

These low-fat parcels (pockets) are like golden presents wrapped in brown paper. It’s only when you open them up and taste the insides that you appreciate the flavor and aroma of the cooked fruit and sweet maple syrup.

Makes 6 parcels

Ingredients

• 3 oranges
• 3 peaches or nectarines
• 2 tbsp maple syrup (I used agave nectar)
• ½ cup water
• 1 tbsp light olive oil
• 12 sheets fib (phyllo) 7inch squares (I used Rice Paper)
• Icing (confectioners ) sugar, to dust (I used Stevia natural sweetner)
• 3 ½ in diameter ramekin dishes

Directions

1.)    Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas mark 6.

2.)    Using a small knife, remove the peel and pith from the oranges and cut in between each segment.

3.)    Wash and slice up the peaches or nectarines into similar sized pieces as the orange segments.

4.)    Put the fruit, maple syrup and water into a large pan and simmer over a medium heat for 3 minutes. Take off the heat and strain over a jug (pitcher), saving the juices for later. Lightly oil the ramekins.

5.)    Brush one of the fib (phyllo) squares with a little oil, then lay another square on top and brush again. Turn over so that the greased side is facing down, then gently push the double fib square into a ramekin.

6.)    Repeat with the remaining pastry to line the remaining ramekins.

7.)    Divide the fruit among the ramekins. Gather up the fib edges and twist together lightly to seal. Transfer ramekins to a non-stick baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until crisp and golden.

8.)    While your parcels are cooking, pour the juices into a small saucepan and simmer until reduced by half.

9.)    When the parcels are cooked, remove from the ramekins and put onto plates. Dust with icing (confectioners’) sugar and serve with the reduced juice poured over. Yummy!

Recipes from The Secret Ingredient by Sally Bee, copyright 2010 Sterling  Publishing Co.

A Special Thanks to Partner’s Tea Co. who I had the pleasure of meeting at The Fancy Food Show last week.  Partner’s Tea is offering my readers a great discount thru August 1st.

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And, be sure to check out my featured post,

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