I took my young friend Rebecca to Huckleberry Café in Santa Monica for brunch, and we couldn’t resist 2 items on the menu: the poached eggs smothered in a savory lentil and chard ragout, and fried eggs sitting atop quinoa tossed with market vegetables. Not wanting to waste a drop of the lentil stew, we spooned the last bits over the remaining quinoa, and the mixture was a winner. Rebecca, who is attending culinary school, was curious about what gave the lentil ragout its rich flavors, and we decided to try to recreate the recipe together.

My new book, Weeknight Gluten Free, is filled with recipes for luscious, naturally gluten-free sauces. One of my favorites is a vibrant pistachio and basil salsa verde. Salsa verde is an uncooked, fragrant mixture of olive oil and fresh herbs that takes only a few minutes to prepare. There are Italian, French, Spanish, Argentinian, and German versions. I use a full flavored extra-virgin olive oil, a little minced shallot, and lots of aromatic herbs as the base for many variations. 

Today is the official publication date for my new book, Weeknight Gluten Free. It is now available not only at Williams-Sonoma stores, but also at many bookstores nationwide, and online at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. I am thrilled with the stunning photography and the entire package.

In the book, I offer 100 of my favorite gluten-free recipes developed during a year of glorious experimentation. I was the food editor at Bon Appetit magazine for over 20 years and got to taste all of the great recipes we showcased. When my childhood celiac disease recently resurfaced, I was determined to continue to eat as well as I always had. I learned to cook the simple, healthful, fresh food I love, but without wheat, rye, or barley. I focus on items that are naturally gluten-free, and my inspiration comes from the gorgeous produce I find at farmers’ markets. My friends and family never realize anything is missing when they eat my new cooking.

I was not going to give up pasta when I had to stop eating wheat, so I went on a search for a tasty, firm, nutritious, gluten-free product. Most gluten-free pastas are made from rice. The texture and flavor of rice-based noodles are great in Asian cooking, but they don’t work for me in Italian food—they don’t have enough body, easily overcook to a limp mess, and the flavor is wrong. In addition, it is now suggested we cut back on rice consumption, because of high arsenic levels in some rice products.

Pretty, indulgent, relatively healthy, and easy to craft, I made a tin full of these gluten-free confections for us to enjoy during valentines’ week. But, we realized our stash was dwindling yesterday, so we rushed to take the photo here before they were all gobbled up.

When I am not creating a specific recipe for a book, magazine article, or blog post at lunchtime, I want to eat something that takes only a few minutes to prepare and is as satisfying as a sandwich. Corn tortillas have become a favorite replacement for bread, especially as the base for quick tacos.

What to serve? We were hosting 12 of our family for brunch to celebrate the visit of our Philadelphia cousins and their 2-year-old daughter. Some of the guests were vegetarians, some gluten-free, everyone loves to eat, and I wanted lots of time with the relatives. I decided to make 2 big frittatas as the centerpiece of the occasion.

Steve returned from a business trip to Washington DC with the tenacious flu that is going around this year. He’d been sick for over a week and wasn’t getting better. I made a big pot of chicken pho for dinner- a fragrant, spicy, fresh herb crowned, Vietnamese noodle soup- and his health was restored by the next day. I ended up with the same malady right before Christmas, and had the worst time shaking it. So, I cooked another big pot of chicken pho last night, and here I am back to blogging. What a relief to feel well.