Learning to live with coeliac disease and live happily for Melanie Persson is very much about the sense of community that comes from making and sharing food.
While her first book The Very Hungry Coeliac was about fulfilling the cravings she had for food from her life pre-diagnosis and learning to adapt to her diagnosis, her latest book is about incorporating delicious gluten-free food into life through family gatherings and events with friends such as brunch, picnics, tea parties, taco night, take out, dim sum and celebrations.
“These are the aspects of living with coeliac disease or gluten intolerance that can be so hard to navigate.”
So Persson, who in 2022 was the first MasterChef Australia contestant to compete as a gluten-free cook, has pulled together recipes to fit with communal feasts and gathering around food, which are such a fundamental part of the human experience whether it is Sunday lunch with family, drinks with friends or a picnic in the park.
“I think it’s often taken for granted. That is until it is no longer possible.”
For people in the gluten-free community every social event can present the potential for anxiety, sadness or disappointment, often even overshadowing the joy of celebrations and sharing.
“There can be anxiety about getting sick or being judged, sadness at having to bring your own food or from watching your gluten-free child be excluded, or disappointment from missing out on something everyone else is enjoying. I really want to help change that, by showing it is very possible to incorporate gluten-free options into food events that happen in our lives.”
Persson, who was diagnosed with coeliac disease in 2016, admits it is not always super simple, saying obviously some things take more effort or energy than others.
Her ultimate goal is for people to feel nothing is off limits to the gluten-free community such as puff pastry, crumpets, steamed bao buns and croissants.
“I’m still working on that but, honestly, I feel I’ve made leaps and bounds in the feasts included here.”
She points out her book is not “health focused” but unapologetically dedicated to delicious food that is as much about indulgence and luxury as flavour and abundance.
“After all, I don’t think being gluten-free should mean we are excluded from the indulgences ‘regular’ people enjoy once in a while.”
Persson uses her own basic flour blend in her recipes to ensure those trying her recipes can get the same result as her. Gluten-free flour mixes are varied and thus can give different results with the same recipes. Substituting flours is not recommended as gluten-free flours are not interchangeable due to the different rates they absorb water.
“This is in the name of making the best possible food, with the most consistent results. And you won’t mind the initial effort expended to make the flour blend when you start cooking and eating food you haven’t been able to enjoy in a long time.”
The book
This is an edited extract from Gluten-Free Feasts by Melanie Persson, published by Hardie Grant Books. Available in stores nationally from August 5. Photography by Ola O. Smit.
Hakka-style stuffed tofu
This dish is one I was only introduced to after my coeliac disease diagnosis, as it can be made gluten free with only a few simple modifications. It’s an ideal option if you’re craving the flavours of dumplings or dim sum but don’t have the time (or energy) to make dumpling wrappers from scratch. If you’re not having this as part of a bigger dim sum spread, served with some steamed rice and greens it’ll become a satisfying meal, comfortably feeding two people.
Serves 2-3
Ingredients
120g prawns (shrimp), peeled and deveined (about 8-10 medium-sized prawns)
½ tsp grated fresh ginger
1 small spring onion (scallion), finely chopped, plus extra to serve
1 garlic clove, minced
¼ tsp salt
⅛ tsp white pepper
⅛ tsp caster (superfine) sugar
½ tsp gluten-free gluten-free cornflour (cornstarch), plus 1-2 tsp extra for dusting
350g block firm silken tofu
For the sauce
2 tsp gluten-free soy sauce
1 tsp gluten-free oyster sauce
80ml water
¼ tsp sesame oil
1 tsp cornflour (cornstarch)
Method
Finely chop the prawns and place them in a mixing bowl. Add the ginger, spring onion, garlic, salt, pepper, sugar and cornflour and mix well to combine. Cover and set aside.
Slice the tofu into blocks, each about 2.5cm thick. Put the pieces on a heatproof plate that will fit into your steamer.
Use a small spoon or melon baller to carefully scoop away the centre of each piece of tofu, without going the whole way through. The sides and base of the tofu should remain intact but there should be a sizable hollow in each piece. Transfer the scooped-out tofu to the bowl with the prawns and mix very well.
Using a fine sieve, dust a little cornflour evenly over the hollowed-out tofu pieces. Spoon the prawn and tofu filling into the hollow of each piece of tofu. You can pack each piece quite generously. Transfer the plate(s) to a steamer basket and allow to steam over medium heat for 8-9 minutes.
While the stuffed tofu is steaming, make the sauce. In a small saucepan, whisk together all the sauce ingredients, then place over medium heat. Allow it to cook for 3-4 minutes until it has thickened and there is no floury taste.
Transfer the stuffed tofu to a serving plate, then top generously with the sauce and extra spring onion before serving.
Note
I use a rectangular block of silken tofu but you can also use the round, sausage-shaped silken tofu. If so, simply cut into 2.5cm-thick rounds instead or rectangles.
Double chocolate choux puffs
These choux puffs are a variation of the choux used but they include what is called craquelin. This is essentially a simple biscuit layer that is baked on to the choux pastry, creating a sweet, crunchy layer. It not only adds flavour and texture, but helps the choux to rise into perfectly round, uniform buns. I love to add this to my sweet choux pastries as those fillings are often so creamy they really benefit from the texture of a slightly crunchy topping. These double chocolate choux are rich and luxurious, with two types of chocolate filling to balance out the sweetness and complement the other, generally lighter flavours found in this feast.
Makes about 12
Ingredients
1 quantity of choux pastry (below)
Icing (powdered) sugar, for dusting
For the chocolate creme patissiere
200ml single (light) cream
300ml milk
2 tsp vanilla bean paste (or extract)
4 eggs
75g caster sugar
40g gluten-free cornflour (cornstarch)
⅛ tsp salt
150g dark (bittersweet) chocolate, chopped
For the craquelin
45g unsalted butter, at room temperature
50g caster sugar
40g basic flour blend (below)
10g unsweetened cocoa powder
For the dark chocolate ganache
50g dark (bittersweet) chocolate, chopped
2 Tbsp single (light) cream
Method
Start by making the chocolate creme patissiere. Add the milk, cream and vanilla to a medium saucepan and set it over low heat, stirring regularly. Meanwhile, place the eggs, caster sugar, cornflour and salt in a mixing bowl and whisk vigorously until smooth and creamy. Place the chopped chocolate in a separate mixing bowl and set aside.
When the milk is just about to simmer, trickle it over the egg mixture, whisking constantly. Once fully combined, pour the mixture back into the saucepan and place over low heat, whisking constantly for 2-3 minutes until the creme patissiere has thickened considerably (and there is no floury taste). Transfer the creme patissiere to the bowl with the chocolate and allow it to sit for 1-2 minutes, before stirring until completely combined and even in colour. Cover with cling film (plastic wrap), ensuring the plastic is in contact with the surface of the creme patissiere (this will prevent a skin from forming). Allow to cool, then place in the fridge to chill completely.
Now prepare the craquelin. Combine the butter and caster sugar in a small bowl and mix well, then stir in the flour and cocoa powder until it forms a smooth dough. Place the dough between two large sheets of baking paper, then flatten it with your hands. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a thin layer, about 3-4mm thick. Keeping it within the baking paper sheets, transfer it to a baking sheet or chopping board and place it in the freezer. Keep it as flat as possible to make cutting easier later.
Preheat the oven to 190°C fan and line a large baking sheet with baking paper.
Make the choux pastry according to the instructions below and transfer it to a piping bag, then pipe blobs of choux pastry on to the prepared baking sheet. Each one should be roughly 1tablespoon of mixture but a little more or less is fine. Make sure you space them 3-4cm apart so they won’t touch as they bake.
Remove the craquelin from the freezer and, using a cookie cutter that is slightly larger than the circumference of the choux pastry blobs, cut rounds out of the craquelin dough and place them gently on top of each choux pastry blob.
Bake the choux pastry for 30-35 minutes. When the choux pastries have fully puffed and are golden brown all over, turn the oven off but leave the door ajar for a further 10-15 minutes. This will help them dry on the inside and prevent possible collapsing.
When the choux have cooled and the chocolate creme patissiere has fully chilled, make the dark chocolate ganache. Place the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl, add the cream and microwave on high (900W) for 30 seconds. Stir to combine, then microwave for a further 15-30 seconds if necessary to make the ganache smooth (you can also do this in a small saucepan simply stir the ingredients over low heat until melted and combined). Set aside to cool while you start filling the choux.
Use a small, serrated knife to pierce the base of each choux pastry twice in an X formation. This will allow you to fill the choux without cutting them in half, although you can simply halve them if you prefer and spoon or pipe in the two fillings.
Transfer the chilled chocolate creme patissiere to a piping bag, cut a 1cm hole in the end, and push the tip through the pierced hole to fill each choux pastry.
Transfer the cooled chocolate ganache to another piping bag, cut a 0.5cm hole in the end, then pipe a small amount (about half a teaspoon) into each puff. If a little chocolate creme patissiere oozes out around the piping bag, that’s fine, you can easily wipe it away afterwards.
Each puff should now be filled with a rich, ganache centre. Dust the choux puffs with a little icing sugar, then serve.
Choux pastry
Ingredients
125ml water
55g unsalted butter
60g rice flour
100g eggs, beaten (about 2 eggs)
Method
Start by making the choux pastry. Add the water, butter and ⅛ tsp of salt to a small saucepan and place it over medium heat. When the water is simmering and the butter has completely melted, reduce the temperature to low. Working quickly, add the rice flour and mix with a sturdy spatula to bring the mixture together as a dough. Continue mixing the dough over low heat for about 20 seconds, then transfer it to a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer (fitted with the whisk attachment).
Using a hand-held electric beater or stand mixer, immediately start mixing the dough on a medium-high speed. Trickle in the beaten eggs, mixing constantly and being careful not to pour too quickly (if the egg pools in the bowl it may get scrambled by the hot dough). Beat the dough until it is smooth and creamy, scraping down the side of the bowl as necessary, then transfer to a piping bag.
Basic flour blend
This is the plain (all-purpose) flour blend I’ve created to be used in most of the recipes in this book. To convert this flour into a self-raising blend, simply add 1 tsp of gluten-free baking powder for every 100g of this mix (this is best added as needed on the day of baking). Note that all starches used in this blend should be the super finely ground variety. This recipe was developed in gram measurements, so I advise you to follow that set of measurements for the most accurate results.
Makes 1kg
315g rice flour
250g tapioca starch
250g gluten-free cornflour (cornstarch)
165g potato starch
2 Tbsp plus 1 tsp xanthan gum
Makes 2kg
630g rice flour
500g tapioca starch
500g gluten-free cornflour (cornstarch)
330g potato starch
40g xanthan gum
Method
Sift the ingredients into a large bowl and mix until well combined. Sift and mix again to ensure the starches and xanthan gum have been evenly distributed into a homogenous flour blend.
Store in an airtight container until ready to use.
Xiao long bao (soup dumplings)Makes about 30
Ingredients
1 quantity dumpling wrappers, cut into
circles
Tapioca starch or rice flour, for dusting
Your choice of dipping sauce, to serve
For the meat filling
300g minced (ground) pork
2 tsp pork lard (at room temperature)
2 spring onions, finely chopped
2 tsp grated fresh ginger
3 garlic cloves, minced
2½ tsp gluten-free soy sauce
2 tsp gluten-free oyster sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp gluten-free Shaoxing rice wine
(or other cooking wine)
½ tsp caster sugar
½ tsp gluten-free chicken powder
(or ¼ tsp salt)
⅛ tsp white pepper
For the gelatinised stock
200ml beef stock
2 tsp gelatine powder
Pinch of white pepper
½ tsp sesame oil
½ tsp gluten-free chicken powder
(or ¼ tsp salt)
Method
Begin by making the gelatinised stock that will form the soup part of the dumplings. If you’re using a stock cube with boiling water, add the gelatine straight into the stock while very hot and stir to dissolve. If using ready-made stock, heat the stock in a saucepan to a simmer, then remove from the heat and stir in the gelatine powder. Add the white pepper, sesame oil, chicken powder and stir well. Pour the stock mixture into a shallow dish and cover with cling film (plastic wrap). One cool, place in the fridge for 2-3 hours to set completely.
To make the meat filling, mix the pork mince and lard in a bowl to break up the lard. Add the remaining filling ingredients, then mix again until everything is evenly combined.
While still in the dish, use a knife to cut the stock into small cubes. Once cut, mix all the stock with the meat filling.
To fold the dumplings, place a small spoonful of the filling into the centre of a wrapper. Lightly moisten your finger with water and run it around the edge of the wrapper. It should become slightly sticky. (If it’s wet and slippery, you’ve used too much water. Let it dry slightly before folding and/or dust your fingertips with tapioca starch or rice flour to prevent the wrapper from getting soggy.) Bring the edges of the dumpling together on top of the filling, like a little sack (the dumpling needs to be sealed at the top so that the broth doesn’t leak).
In batches, place the dumplings in a lined steamer basket, spaced 2-3cm apart, and steam over medium heat for 11-12 minutes. Serve hot with dipping sauce.