My favorite food blog, Every Last Bite just published the PERFECT gluten free and vegan Mushroom Cauliflower Risotto recipe. Ideal for a Fall dinner, this recipe is healthy, hearty and totally delicious. Now, as it is vegan and missing rice (which you could sub in if you wanted to), the taste is not exactly the same as classic risotto.

Every Last Bite writes: "Don’t get me wrong, this grain free risotto isn’t identical to the traditional dish, but the flavors are very similar. By ensuring the cauliflower rice remains chunkier in size, and stirring in a few spoonfuls of coconut cream (which adds creaminess without any extra flavor) you can emulate the same chunky texture and cream rich flavor without any starch or dairy."

I highly recommend adding this dish to your dinner line-up this Fall!


Prep time: 10 mins | Cook time: 30 mins | Serves: 4
Grain/Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Paleo, Vegan, Refined Sugar Free, Nut Free

Ingredients

• 2 cups sliced mushrooms
• ½ cup dried porcini mushrooms
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 2 sticks celery, finely diced
• ¼ cup white wine
• ½ cup chicken stock (or vegetable stock if vegan)
• 4 cups cauliflower rice (approximately 1 small head of cauliflower)
• 1½ tbsp coconut cream
  
  

Instructions

1. In a bowl soak the dried porcini mushrooms in ¾ cup hot water for 20 minutes. Once soaked remove from the water and chop, save the liquid the mushrooms were soaking in.
2. In a frying pan sauté the sliced mushrooms, soaked mushrooms and crushed garlic in 1 tablespoon of olive oil on low heat, season with the chopped thyme and salt and cook until the mushrooms are golden in color (approx 8 minutes). Once cooked, set aside.
3. Cut a head of cauliflower into quarters and place in a food processor. Quickly pulse until the cauliflower is broken down into pieces the size of a grain of rice (don't blend for longer then necessary, you don't want the cauliflower to become too fine)
4. In a sauce pan heat the white wine, chicken stock and the water the mushrooms were soaking in and keep it on a low simmer.
5. Place a large pan on high heat, add the chopped onion, celery and a large spoonful of the stock/white wine mixture. As the liquid begins to evaporate, add another spoonful.
6. Add in the cauliflower rice along with a spoonful of the broth. as soon as the liquid has begun to evaporate add in another spoonful of broth. Repeat this process once or twice more, tasting the cauliflower each time for tenderness before adding more liquid. The cauliflower rice should be tender but not mushy.
7. Stir in the coconut cream and mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle with parmesan cheese before serving.

I am a big fan of sauces  — on salad, tacos, veggies, whatever. I love a good sauce. I also have a deep passion for avocados, so it was a no-brainer to make this vegan avocado cream. A super quick sauce to whip up, this avocado cream stores very well in the fridge for a few days so you can add it to whatever meals you create. I especially like it because it contains olive oil, so it doesn't have a distinct guacamole taste (not that there is anything wrong with that). It pairs really well with almost any salad!

Recipe makes approximately 1 cup of Avocado Cream

Ingredients:
• 1 large ripe organic avocado
• 1.5 tbsp of Vegenaise
• 1/2 tbsp. of olive oil
• A pinch of sea salt (I use himalayan pink salt)
• A few drops of fresh squeezed lime juice

Method: Combine ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Serve or store in the fridge. Enjoy!

— The Healthy Celiac

These Sea Salt and Vinegar Roasted Chickpeas are one of my go-to snacks! Both healthy and delicious, these will most likely become your new favorite. Besides being an excellent vegan and gluten-free source of protein and fiber, chickpeas also contain exceptional levels of iron, vitamin B-6 and magnesium. They take about one hour to make, and store well in a covered container for days.

Ingredients
• 2 cans of organic chickpeas
• 1 pint of white vinegar
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 tablespoons of coarse sea salt

Method
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Drain and rinse your chickpeas with water.
• Add chickpeas to a saucepan with the vinegar, and bring to a boil. Once the chickpeas and vinegar have come to a boil, remove from heat and let them stand for 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes, drain the chickpeas in a strainer and toss them in olive oil.
• Place the chickpeas in a roasting pan and mix in the sea salt.
• Roast in the oven for 30 minutes, stirring every ten minutes.

Enjoy!

— The Healthy Celiac

I am definitely a creature of food habit — when I find something I like, I tend to make it a lot. Inspired by the Le Bowl from Zinque, I started making my own dairy free version of the dish. A relatively complete and healthy meal, I love this bowl for lunch or dinner. The best part is you can easily change up the veggies or protein based on what is in season, or what you're in the mood for. Here is how I make my bowl:

• Cook a cup of brown rice (you will have some left over). Once the brown rice is cooked, serve it at room temperature.
• Pan cook some organic, free-range chicken breast.
• In your bowl, start with a layer of brown rice on the bottom (again, as much or as little as you want). I then do a light layer (1/2 tbsp) of Heart Healthy Vegan Creamy Garlic sauce (which I find at Whole Foods) — This sauce is amazing and I love that it's vegan (and gluten free, of course).
• On top of the rice layer, I add arugula, one diced roma tomato, half an avocado and half a cup of diced cucumber. Then I add the chicken on top and do another 1/2 tbsp of the Vegan Creamy Garlic.
• I then top the bowl off with two scoops of hummus.

The best part about this meal is that I can pre-make the rice and chicken and have lunch or dinner ready to go for days. Sometimes I also like to take the chicken out of the recipe, and I opt for a little more hummus or add in chickpeas, making the dish entirely vegan.

Hope you enjoy!

— The Healthy Celiac