Even the land of pasta and pizza abounds with scrumptious gluten-free recipes. These soft rolls, ravioli, and gnocchi are so light and fragrant that you’ll forget they’re missing a typical ingredient.
These three gluten-free recipes from Brio Gluten Free Bakery in Verona call for artisanal mixtures of organic flours and long rising times. Every day, chef Giovanna Sammarro, assisted by her staff, makes a dough that leavens overnight.
But before you try your hand at her recipes, Giovanna wanted to share a couple of interesting tips for gluten-free cuisine with you:
Leavening
There are three ingredients, that on their own or when combined with other ingredients, can compensate for the elasticity-forming effect normally provided by gluten: guar, xanthan, and psyllium. Guar (also guar gum or guar flour) comes from the ground seeds of the guar plant, a legume of Indian origins. Xanthan (or xanthan gum) is obtained through a complex process that begins with the fermentation of natural strains of the bacteria Xanthomonas campestris. Psyllium (or psyllium fiber) is obtained from the seeds or cuticle of Plantago psyllium, a plant also from India. When gluten is missing, these three ingredients will help flours bond. All three can be found in pharmacies or herbalist shops.
Baking
When a recipe calls for baking at a certain temperature, you need to preheat the oven an extra 100°F, given that the temperature drops significantly once the oven door has been opened and the room-temperature ingredients have been placed inside.
chef Giovanna Sammarro
Radicchio Ravioli
Serves 4
Ingredients:
⅔ cup fine cornmeal
4 oz red radicchio
4 oz boiled potatoes
2 tbsp dark buckwheat flour, plus extra
4 tsp tapioca starch
1 tsp xanthan gum
2 large eggs
Parmigiano
Gluten-free breadcrumbs
Extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
Method:
Mix the cornmeal, buckwheat flour, tapioca starch, and xanthan gum with the eggs to form a smooth dough. Place in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.
Trim the radicchio, cut into small pieces, and rinse. Place a drizzle of oil and a pinch of salt in a frying pan and cook the radicchio over a medium flame. Turn off the heat when the white sections begin to pale, which is usually around the 10-minute mark. Let the radicchio cool, then squeeze-dry it and grind it in a mixer.
Stir in the mashed potatoes, 2 tbsp Parmigiano and 1 tbsp breadcrumbs. Transfer the mixture to a pastry bag. Take the dough out and dust the workspace with buckwheat flour. Roll the dough into a thin sheet — don’t make it paper-thin, as gluten-free dough has a higher risk of tearing.
Cut the dough into 2 1/2” squares. Squeeze a dollop of the radicchio filling onto each square and seal them into triangles. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Drop the ravioli into boiling salted water. When they float to the surface remove them with a slotted spoon. Dress as desired.
Bread Rolls with Olives and Cherry Tomatoes
Makes 12 rolls
Ingredients:
1 cup flour mix for gluten-free bread
3 tbsp fine cornmeal
4 tsp pitted olives
4 tsp sun-dried tomatoes in oil
1 ½ tsp fresh brewer’s yeast
1 ½ tsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp salt
½ tsp sugar
Method:
Dissolve the sugar in ⅔ cup warm water, then crumble and dissolve the yeast in it. Combine the flour and cornmeal in a bowl, stir in the salt and oil, then pour in the sugar and yeast solution. Knead until clump-free. If using a kneader, use a flat spatula attachment, which is better for soft doughs than a dough hook.
Crumble the olives and dice the tomatoes. Split the dough in two. Mix the olives into one half and the tomatoes into the other.
Preheat the oven to 75-85 °F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place 6 tall 21/2” cake rings on top. Divide each batch of dough into the rings.
Place in the oven and let rise for 2 hours. Set the oven to 350°F and bake the rolls without ventilation for 10 minutes, then raise the temperature to 400°F. Add ventilation and bake for another 5 minutes.
Spinach Gnocchi
Serves 6
Ingredients:
2 lbs potatoes
1 lb fresh spinach
4 tbsp rice flour, plus extra
4 tbsp cornstarch
4 tbsp tapioca starch
1 large egg
Method:
Boil the potatoes for 40 minutes. In a separate pot, boil the spinach for 2-3 minutes, drain and let cool. Squeeze dry and chop finely. Drain the potatoes and peel. Then mash them in a bowl with a potato masher. Stir in the spinach.
Combine the flour and starches, and stir them into the potato mixture, followed by the egg. Mix until smooth. On a surface dusted with rice flour, roll a little dough at a time into tubes around 1” in diameter.
Cut the tubes into small pieces to make the gnocchi. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Drop the gnocchi into the boiling water. When they float to the surface, remove them with a slotted spoon. Dress as desired.
Recipes by chef Giovanna Sammarro
Text Laura Forti / Ph Riccardo Lettieri / Styling Cecilia Carmana
Article originally published on La Cucina Italiana print magazine #2
