Roasted Acorn Squash Risotto

A delicious acorn squash risotto that is vegan and gluten-free.

 Stir it Up, Little Darling

Looking for a perfect fall side dish? Or a vegetarian knock-your-socks-off bowl of creamy goodness? Risotto might fit the bill. This is one of my all-time recipe favorites. In fact, it was the first dish I turned to eight years ago when I discovered I had to live gluten-free.

Way back then (insert hazy slow-mo flashback) I would add freshly grated Parmesan to the cooked risotto. Shaved Reggiano, to be exact. But these casein-free dairy-free days I enjoy this risotto strictly vegan. No cheese. And guess what? I don't feel deprived. Seriously. The flavors hold their own without the whole moo cow cheesy thing.

In fact, this risotto is so creamy-good and comforting I only think one thing as I taste bite after velvety bite: How could anything so simple taste so unbelievably good? Well, that, and, Who the heck needs cheese or butter, anyway?

The trick to a tasty risotto- with its signature texture- is to stir it during cooking. No cheating in a rice cooker. No covering it and setting it on low heat, praying to the Risotto Gods, hoping it will produce a tender-yet-firm-enough bite boiling away in it's sad, ignored little pot. You need to tend these pearly grains. Coax them. Sweet talk them. It's all about foreplay.

Risotto needs attention to bloom properly.

So that means a commitment on your part. But it's only a twenty-two minute commitment. You can handle that, right?

I guarantee, it's worth it.

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How To Cook Quinoa in a Rice Cooker (with recipes)

How do you cook quinoa? I was recently asked. The answer is simple.

Easy. Fast. Rockin'.

I cook it in a rice cooker.

In fact, quinoa is the easiest no-fuss "grain" you'll ever cook. It's healthy fast food. Cook up a batch ahead of time and you can stir up a fabulous light lunch (like the Lime Quinoa Salad with Mint) in a New York minute.

Well, maybe a Los Angeles minute. No wait.

A Venice Beach minute.

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Gluten-Free Quinoa, Rice, and Sides

Karina's Favorite Quinoa, Rice, 

& Vegan Side Dish Recipes

My favorite gluten-free vegetarian side dish recipes often include quinoa (here is an easy way to cook quinoa), baked rice, risotto, cornbread stuffing, roasted vegetables, and calabasitas.

Reader favorites include Horseradish Spiked Red Potato Salad and Lime Quinoa Salad with Mint. (Be sure and rinse quinoa thoroughly in cold water before cooking.)

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Pinon Rice Bake with Artichokes and Goat Cheese

Brown rice casserole with artichokes, roasted corn, chiles, pine nuts and goat cheese.

Gluten-Free Rice Casserole Bake

Here's a favorite make-ahead rice dish recipe with Mediterranean flavors- artichokes, plum tomatoes, pine nuts and goat cheese. Entertaining made simple. And there are never any leftovers.

Having someone new over for dinner always sends me into a flurry of activity fueled by nervous energy and worry. I obsess over obscure details (like an iTune playlist), change my mind about the menu (wait- enchiladas or lasagna?), forget ingredients (dagnabbit! the green beans are still in the car). So I've learned (yes, the hard way) to always make a few key dishes ahead of time. Then dinner is basically done.

And I'm not stuck in the kitchen spilling olive oil on a new silk shirt.

I can relax (well, sort of). And- goddess willing- I won't set the oven on fire because I'm too busy discussing politics or the yummy Anderson Cooper.

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Gluten-Free Spanish Rice Bake

Like Spanish rice? Try using brown rice and kick up the nutrition.

One of the more popular recipe searches here at Gluten-Free Goddess is brown rice. And why not? It's naturally gluten-free. It's an excellent grain choice for the Mediterranean Diet and the South Beach Diet. It's good source of fiber for both sensitive tummies and hearty omnivore appetites. And it's a complementary protein for earthy vegan tastes.

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