Recipies for Spreads?

[diamondheart]

I'm wondering if anyone has any good recipies for spreads that I can use. My looong list of things I can't eat include: gluten, corn, quinoa, dairy (casein ok), soy, beans, nuts, and seeds. I can't eat some of my previously favorite stuff, like nut butters, and baba gannoush! What could I substitute for tahini in the baba gannoush, perhaps avocado? I get hungry, and I crave something easy to eat, like a spread on rice crackers or bananas.

Thanks, Claire

[rachelb]

How about tapenade? If you google I'm sure you'll find a ton of different recipes. Basically it's olive oil, olives, and anchovies, sometimes with capers and sometimes with other things. I've made it without anchovies and it's still very good.

Rachel

[JudyLV]

Claire,

We are in a similar situation. My son and I are both gluten intolerant and have delayed food allergies to dairy, eggs, peanuts, soy, legumes, citrus, pineapple, and sesame. My son likes Annie's honey mustard on some things and he puts vanilla icing on enjoy life cinnimon raisin bagels. Trader Joe's has some eggplant and olive based spreads that might work for you. The red pepper eggplant dip is really good (sorry, I don't have any handy so I don't know the exact name). I am still searching for new things to eat also.

--Judy

[jamietwo]

We used to make a sweet potato spread.

1 medium sweet potato or yam
1 small onion
some figs or dates
maple syrup to taste

Steam the veggies. Puree all ingredients.

[mistofviolets]

You could just make guacamole or avocado dip...lemon juice, seasoning and mashed avocado. Save the pit...lemon juice isn't enough to keep it from oxidizing.

I had a recipe somewhere that called for olives and artichoke hearts, pureed with a bit of olive oil. But...since olives (and oil) are on my no list, i don't know where it got off too...

Pesto is quick and easy too...puree spinach with a bit of dried basil, add garlic and olive oil until you like the consistency. Mmmmm...I need to try this with grapeseed oil...

Fruit cooks down to a nice "butter" too. And you can come up with some spreadable pumpkin options by playing with a pie recipe. (I'm sure there are pumpkin butter recipes on the net, too)

[NancyM]

I think avocado, lemon juice, mayonaisse and salt would make a marvelous spread. It is what I do when I make an avocado sandwich, although I leave the avo pretty much intact.

If you like sweet spreads, you could make lemon curd. I make a no-sugar version of it for myself but I use it more like a custard than a spread.

[jccgf]

What about a ground chicken, ground ham, or tuna spread, maybe with some finely chopped celery and onion (unless, of course, you are vegetarian). Can you do mayo?

I think the pureed vegetable dips sound interesting, and I bet you could get pretty creative trying out some things. Post back when you have a winner!

Cara

[Mrsppmrxky]

For a quick snack, I take and mash an avocado. I only add cumin, salt and pepper and then eat it. It is light and simple, but I really enjoy it with the cumin.

[JudyLV]

In the winter I sometimes make an eggplant dip. I had forgotten about it now because I don't roast vegetables in the oven in the summer--but I bet grilled vegetables would also make a great dip.
Cube, drizzle with olive oil, and Roast (400 for one hour or until tender)
sprinkle with any combination of spices (cumin, salt, pepper, paprika)
1 pound eggplant (or combination eggplant and zuchinni),
1 red bell pepper
1/2 red onion
1 clove garlic
cool mixture and place in a food processor with 1 TBS tomato paste and more salt and pepper if needed.

This keeps well in the fridge for up to a week.

--Judy

[Leslieand]

Although pesto is my favorite, bean dips are easy too. I get garbonzo mix in the natural foods department, mix with water, and dip is ready.
Leslie

[diamondheart]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. Judy, yours looked the most promising for what I can eat. I'll try it out once I get a chance to do some cooking. Pesto is one of my favorites, but I can't add the nuts anymore. Pine nuts seem to be the best of all the nuts that I tolerate, but I'm afraid I will develop a reaction to them too. Walnuts were a loser. Sesame seeds don't work anymore either, though I love my cilantro/sesame seed pesto! I think I'll try the rice parmesan "cheese". It's weird, but I'm ok with casein, just not dairy, and it doesn't seem to be just a lactose issue.

Claire

[diamondheart]

Bumping up this thread:

In the winter I sometimes make an eggplant dip. I had forgotten about it now because I don't roast vegetables in the oven in the summer--but I bet grilled vegetables would also make a great dip.
Cube, drizzle with olive oil, and Roast (400 for one hour or until tender)
sprinkle with any combination of spices (cumin, salt, pepper, paprika)
1 pound eggplant (or combination eggplant and zuchinni),
1 red bell pepper
1/2 red onion
1 clove garlic
cool mixture and place in a food processor with 1 TBS tomato paste and more salt and pepper if needed.

--Judy

Judy, I think I found your recipe on Recipezaar, called Roasted Eggplant Spread (http://www.recipezaar.com/81983). It's basically as you described above. It's good!

I made a few changes to the recipe though. I left out the red onion and added some fresh basil I had left over from another recipe I was making. I also roasted the eggplant and red peppers whole on a grill. I got the grill up to about 400 degrees, then put on the veggies and turned them about every 10 minutes. This takes about 40 minutes to do. Then, after the veggies have cooled, cut off the ends, peel them, and remove the seeds. I also didn't add the cumin or paprika, but I can see that they would taste good with these veggies. I think with the roasted eggplant and roasted red pepper as a base, you could do a lot of different combinations of spices with this spread. Very versatile. Thanks for the idea!

Claire

[JudyLV]

Claire,

I am glad you liked the dip. Now you have inspired me.

Do you like/can you eat olives? I have a recipe for a chunky eggplant/olive/tomato dip that I could dig up. I have not made that in years but remember it was very good.

--Judy

[diamondheart]

Do you like/can you eat olives? I have a recipe for a chunky eggplant/olive/tomato dip that I could dig up. I have not made that in years but remember it was very good.

--Judy

Ohh yes! By all means, send it along! I'm 100% Italian descent, so I might as well be mainlining olive oil and garlic!

Claire

[JudyLV]

Claire,
I have not made this in years but remember it was very good. It came from a friend who is a very good cook. As you can see a you can vary it with different options. It is good as a chunky dip but I imagine you could put it through a food processor to make a spread.

Eggplant Dip

1 eggplant, peeled & chopped 1/4 to 1/2" pieces
1 zuchini squash, chopped small (optional)
3 TBS olive oil
3-4 cloves garlic, pressed or finely chopped
1 large onion chopped finely
1/2+ cup green olives with pimento centers, chopped
1-2 TBS vinegar
1/2-1 tsp Italian seasoning
2 TBS sugar
1/2 tsp tobasco (optional)
1 can GF stewed tomatoes 12 oz (optional)
2 stalks celery finely chopped (optional)

Saute eggplant and zuchini in the olive oil until lightly browned. Add rest of ingredients and cook over low heat until chuncky dip consistency (45-60 minutes). Stays well in refridgerator.

--Judy

[GFPaperdoll]

Sun Dried Tomatoes, rehydrated, blended up & then add finely minced red onions & celery, roasted garlic to taste, optional small can of crab meat

I eat with Lundberg Rice Chips