The Gluten Free Blog

Raymond Blanc presents Gluten Free Chef of the Year award 2009

World renowned chef Raymond Blanc was on hand this week to present Peter McKenzie of South Lanarkshire Council with 2009’s Gluten Free Chef of the Year award.

Designed to raise awareness of gluten intolerance and to highlight the need for gluten free menu options, the competition, run by Coeliac UK, awards Gluten free Chef of the Year for professional chefs and Gluten free Chef of the Year for catering students.

The competition included a three course meal, which had to be prepared using seasonal gluten free ingredients, and have a balance of flavours across the courses.

The winner, Peter McKenzie impressed the judges with his beautifully cooked and presented breast of pheasant with wild mushroom polenta. See Peter’s full gluten free menu below.

Pan seared fillet of red mullet

Starter
Pan seared fillet of red mullet nestling on a chick pea gateau, topped with a plum tomato achar with fresh oysters and a horseradish cappuccino

Main Course
Breast of pheasant, wild mushroom polenta, with seasoned savoy cabbage, oven roasted shallots and baby beets with a marsala jus

Dessert
Vanilla and basil panacotta with balsamic roasted strawberries with strands of golden sugar

He wins a one week placement at Gleneagles with twice Michelin Star chef, Andrew Fairlie.

Raymond Blanc judged the entries and commented “I was really impressed by the quality and attention to detail displayed in the entries for this competition and congratulations to all the winners!”

He added “although more common than many people realise, gluten intolerance is not taken seriously enough by far too many chefs. We all need a few really good gluten free recipes in our repertoire and I hope that more restaurateurs will understand the importance of, and gain an aptitude for, having tasty, interesting gluten free options on their menus.”

Chief Executive of Coeliac UK, Sarah Sleet, said “we are really grateful to Raymond Blanc for all his support and for highlighting the needs of people on a gluten free diet. He is showing the way for others in the catering industry by providing added choice and piece of mind for people with coeliac disease when dining out.”

See all the winning recipes on the Coeliac UK website.

This recipe is taken from Wheat-Free, Gluten-Free, Reduced Calorie Cookbook by Connie Sarros. Perfect for Christmas!

This dessert serves 10, so you can enjoy delicious leftovers.

• 2 envelopes gluten-free unflavoured gelatine
• 2 tablespoons cold water
• 2¼ cups evaporated skim milk
• 1 16-ounce can solid-pack pumpkin
• 6 tablespoons light brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
• ⅛ teaspoon ground ginger
• ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 10 teaspoons gluten-free non-dairy whipped topping
• Cinnamon

In a medium bowl, sprinkle the gelatine over the cold water to soften; set aside. In a small saucepan, heat 1 cup of the evaporated milk to just boiling. Slowly stir the hot milk into the gelatine, stirring until the gelatine is dissolved. Stir in the remaining 1¼ cups of milk and the pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and vanilla. Spray a 10-inch pie plate with gluten-free non-stick spray. Pour the pumpkin mixture into the pie plate. Chill until firm. To server, top each slice with a teaspoon of whipped topping, then sprinkle the topping lightly with cinnamon.

Makes 10 slices

One slice – Calories: 112; Total fat: 0.9 g; Saturated fat: 0.8 g; Cholesterol: 2 mg; Sodium: 71 mg; Carbohydrates: 15 g; Fibre: 1 g; Sugar: 14.1 g; Protein: 6.3 g

People often think that a having a wheat intolerance is the same as having coeliac (or celiac) disease. Not so.

In fact, coeliac disease is actually an autoimmune disease where your body’s immune system attacks its own tissues. Not nice. And if you’re someone who’s suffering from coeliac disease this reaction is triggered by gluten – the wheat protein found in wheat, barley and rye. (Sufferers may also be sensitive to oats.)

So how do you know if you have coeliac disease? Signs and symptoms vary from person to person and can range from mildly irritating and uncomfortable to downright debilitating. And of course, some of the signs and symptoms of coeliac disease are also really similar to irritable bowel syndrome; wheat intolerance; stress; anaemia; chronic fatigue syndrome; and too many nights on the town!

One coeliac disease sufferer may have bloating and diarrhoea. Whilst another may have irritability and nausea. And of course it’s entirely possible to have no signs or symptoms of coeliac disease at all. But if not treated a sufferer will ultimately suffer malnutrition as the disease stops nutrients being absorbed.

So what are the some of the signs and symptoms of coeliac disease?

• Bloating
• Nausea
• Abdominal pain
• Diarrhoea
• Wind
• Indigestion
• Constipation
• Tiredness
• Mouth ulcers
• Depression
• Infertility
• Joint ache and bone pain
• Weight loss or weight gain
• Osteoporosis
• Muscle cramps
• Tooth discoloration
• Itchy skin

If you think you have coeliac disease or have any of the signs or symptoms above we recommend you seek medical advice from your doctor as soon as possible.