Oodles Of Noodles! (GF)

I've been feeling less than fabulous this week. A little sinus thing turned into a full on cold including laryngitis. Not fun for anyone.

When I don't feel well, I crave comfort foods. Chicken noodle soup, grilled cheese toasty (a grilled cheese sammy cut into 4 fingers OR into 4 triangles then arranged on the plate with the points facing like two cute little butterflies), mac and cheese. You know- gluten filled foods of doom...

So, I made an Asian chicken noodle soup. A beautiful chicken broth infused with garlic, ginger, Chinese 5 spice, and a little hot sauce. Add some diced chicken and rice noodles and your good to go. A big bowl of comfort filled with cold killers.

I toasted one of my cheesy buns so it got that toasty, nutty, cheesy flavor.

But I still wanted mac and cheese.  And then it hit me. I can make noodles! DUH. I've made my own pasta for years.

The challenge was finding a gluten free noodle recipe that had been reviewed by enough home cooks to be worthy of testing.

I found a recipe and made a small test batch. See:

Yummy GF egg noodles!

For my mac and cheese I simply cut smaller pieces about the size of skinny elbow macaroni. I simmered it in simmering salted water, drained it and dressed the pasta with homemade cheese sauce. Delicious.

It hit the spot. The flavors and textures were spot on. (Keep in mind homemade pasta is a little bit chewier than store bought.)  I was thrilled with the results.

I'm looking forward to playing with the flavors now- I'm thinking a sun dried tomato would be yummy. Or even a basil tomato... hmmm.... :)

Here's to you and your culinary adventures, friends. Cheers!


Egg Noodles
Makes 2 servings

1/4 cup tapioca flour
1/4 cup corn starch
1 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten
1 TBS oil*

Combine tapioca flour, corn starch, xanthan gum, and salt together in a small bowl.

Whisk together egg and oil. Pour into the flour mix. Stir to combine.

Dump out onto a clean counter top. Knead and work the dough for 1-2 minutes. (The dough will be stiff, just keep working it until it holds together)

Sprinkle the counter with a light dusting of corn starch. Roll the dough out as thin as you can possibly get it. Mine was almost transparent and still handled really well. Slice into desired shape (spaghetti, macaroni size, lasagna, etc)

Let air dry several hours and store in the freezer

OR

Prepare immediately:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a simmer. Add a little oil to prevent sticking. Add pasta. Keep water at a low simmer. Cook pasta 10-12 minutes until done. Drain pasta well.

* Some of the recipes I saw called for 1 egg yolk in place of 1 TBS of oil. The choice is yours. I chose to use the oil this time.