Homemade Gluten Free Donuts

My first foray into gluten free donut making was a smashing success thanks to BabyCakes! I recently read through the "BabyCakes covers the classics" on Kindle. The book made the process sound so easy that I revoked my assertion that I would never do my own gluten free baking from scratch using the myriad of flours and thickeners one finds in most gluten free recipes.

I'm partial to cinnamon sugar donuts, so no fancy frosting here.

These are baked donuts, not fried. I don't think I would have gone through the trouble of frying donuts.

They were much easier to make than I had feared. If you can find all the ingredients in your local store, you're good to go. We found everything at Woodman's grocery store in their extensive organic aisle. We chose Bob's Red Mill products where possible. The toughest find was arrowroot, mostly because I wasn't expecting to find it in the spice rack. Once I knew where to look I had a few brands to choose from.

The mixing and baking process was very simple. The dry ingredients obviously mix easily. The only ingredient that was slightly challenging to work with was the coconut oil. But no more difficult than butter, really. I made one batch of donuts in the evening, saved half of the batter in the refrigerator, and made another fresh batch in the morning.

I filled the donut pan more fully in the second batch and that resulted in donuts that had a much better shape.

The donuts are really soft and spongy. I wasn't expecting that at all.

Now that I have all the necessary ingredients, who knows what type of donuts I'll try next.

Thanks BabyCakes!

Yellow Butterfly 01

Yellow butterfly 01, a photo by cookprosser on Flickr.

Feeding

Feeding, a photo by cookprosser on Flickr.

Vintage Pelican

Vintage Pelican, a photo by cookprosser on Flickr.

big wheel

big wheel, a photo by cookprosser on Flickr.

X-ing

X-ing, a photo by cookprosser on Flickr.

tangled

tangled, a photo by cookprosser on Flickr.

whee

whee, a photo by cookprosser on Flickr.

Blogging A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn

This blog entry will be considerably different than others you may find here. I am going to challenge myself to read as much of A People's History of the United States by Howard Zinn over the next two weeks as possible. I am guessing that I will not make it through the entire tome in that time, or if I do it will not be a detailed reading (especially if I keep blogging it!). In either case, it became apparent to me in just the opening pages that it will be an interesting read.

Join me in the read if you please. I welcome your comments, corrections, and other feedback. It is my goal to discern Zinn's goal in this book. All histories have a purpose. From Egyptian pharaoh's to Biblical chroniclers to Zinn, anyone who recites a history does so with a goal in mind. A certain narrative is to be served by the telling of certain facts and not others, or by the order of events presented (or omitted). What is Zinn's goal? We shall see.

The comments will appear in chronological order with the newest appearing at the bottom. It was just too confusing to put the newest notes at the top. I will try to keep the comments organized by chapter.

***************************************************

Ch.1 Columbus, the Indians, and Human Progress


This thought had occurred to me a few weeks ago, before beginning this book: what was the last major advancement in technology or economy that did not benefit from exploitation or human rights abuses? Will we ever expand or profit without exploitation? I always return to that kicky little ditty "Kiss Me Son of God" by They Might Be Giants.

I built a little empire out of some crazy garbage
Called the blood of the exploited working class
But they've overcome their shyness
Now they're calling me Your Highness
And a world screams, "Kiss me, Son of God"


I destroyed a bond of friendship and respect
Between the only people left who'd even look me in the eye
Now I laugh and make a fortune
Off the same ones that I tortured
And a world screams, "Kiss me, Son of God"




*************
Referring to the natives that he encountered on his arrival in the Bahama Islands, Columbus wrote, "They would make fine servants...With fifty men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we want." And with that the door was opened to the New World.
*************
Columbus really was incredibly lucky. He set out for Asia--spice routes and what-not. With his supplies, ships, and crew he never would have made it that far. He vastly underestimated the distance. It was really lucky for him (not the natives) that he came upon the Caribbean islands just a quarter of the way to Asia.
*************
In less than three generations, the Spanish had essentially depopulated Haiti of its native Arawak inhabitants. This genocide was economically motivated, royally funded, and religiously justified.
*************
This quote from Las Casas' History of the Indies regarding the nature of an oppressive occupying force still has relevance today:
"...our work was to exasperate, ravage, kill, mangle and destroy; small wonder, then, if they tried to kill one of us now and then...The admiral, it is true, was blind as those who came after him, and he was so anxious to please the King that he committed irreparable crimes against the Indians..."
*************
By page 14 Zinn steps into the narrative to criticize the lack of bloodshed in the school textbook version of Columbus. He goes on to acknowledge that all historians have an ideological interest. Good. Will he identify his own for us and save us the trouble of trying to divine it? It seems he is asking the historian to lay bare atrocities so that we may learn from them and not repeat them. As I ask in the opening to this blog post, has any progress been made without exploitation? If not, then exploitation and atrocities must be told as part of all histories. Zinn asks for balance in telling history from the perspective of the lower classes or working classes and not just from the perspective of the state (contra Kissinger, A World Restored). This narrative interruption by Zinn is precisely what I was looking for, a description of the author's approach to history. Zinn's history is essentially a view of the world from the people being acted upon, not the drivers but the driven, not the masters but the slaves, not the patrons but the clients, not the invaders but the invaded.
*************
Chapter Two: Drawing the Color Line
Zinn asks how racism in America started and how may it end.
* "The Virginians needed labor, to grow corn for subsistence, to grow tobacco for export." (32)
* Because they were outnumbered, the colonists could not force the Indians to work for them. (32)
* Black slaves were the answer. (33)
*************
It is incredible to realize anew that millions of human beings were stolen from their homes are sold into forced labor. Because the Indians were on their own land, they had something of an advantage in addition to their numbers. They had the advantage of the home field. Once captured, subjugated, and transported, black slaves lost this advantage. They were made helpless. Brutal force and physical violence were the tools for transforming this population into a subjugated mass. Nothing indirect in this type of domination. At other times and in other places such domination must by hidden behind less obviously noxious methods of domination such as commerce, politics, and religion.
*************
In seventeenth-century America, all the conditions for black and white were characterized by subordination and money incentive. (my paraphrase)
*************

Udi's Gluten Free Hot Dog Buns

It pains me to write this review. I'm a big fan of Udi's products and keep many of them on hand at all times. However, if the bag of hot dog buns I purchased at Whole Foods are representative of the product, then I simply cannot recommend them as hot dog buns.

What is a hot dog bun? It is long, typically made of white bread, soft, and a single bun slice lengthwise so that the hot dog can be held in one hand. The ideal bun should remain as a single piece even when cut. If the bun separates into two pieces, it defeats the purpose of the thing. The Udi's buns were dry, crumbly, rough, and easily separated into two pieces. In fact, I could not keep one in tact. Now, having said that, they still did the job of holding the hot dog. But I would be surprised if a young child would be able to manage it. Specifically, I chose not to put down the hot dog once I started eating it because it would have separated into dog and two bun pieces on the plate.

If the bag did not say "Hot Dog Buns", one might guess they were something else, perhaps white baguettes. As such, they work very well as garlic bread. Because the other Udi's products are so good, I will probably give these another chance.

Udi's Hotdog Buns Make Great Garlic Bread!

I stumbled into a great unintended use of the new Udi's gluten free hot dog buns: garlic bread! I was trying Caesar's gluten free gnocchi for the first time and I really wanted some garlic bread to go with it but I didn't have time to make anything from scratch.

Here's the quick fix. Pop your Udi's hot dog bun into your dedicated gluten free toaster. Toast them to your preferred darkness. I used the bagel setting on my toaster, which toasts only the open side of the bread and not the outside. After one and a half toasting cycles I adding some butter and garlic seasoning. Heaven! I was so surprised at how great these things turned out. I only prepared two pieces (using one hot dog bun). I think I could have eaten six.

The Growing Problem of Cleanliness | Triple Helix Online

Is treatment using parasitic worms the next treatment for autoimmune disorders?

The Growing Problem of Cleanliness | Triple Helix Online

Read the full article. Here are a few select quotes:

"...improvements in sanitation and medicine, mortality from infectious diseases in the United States has declined by more than 90 percent since 1900, and the quality of life has drastically improved."

"Although mortality rates from infectious diseases have decreased in recent years, a new type of affliction has arisen in its place. Autoimmune diseases are those in which our body’s own immune system attacks normal and healthy cells. This occurs because the immune system cannot tell the difference between foreign objects and normal body tissues."

"As studies have found, the prevalence of these diseases over the past century has increased."

"The most prominent explanation for this phenomenon looks at the basics of the immune system and its symbiotic relationships with other organisms."

"...a hypothesis, aptly named the 'hygiene hypothesis', states that good hygiene inadvertently causes autoimmune diseases."

"As such, if the hygiene hypothesis is correct, the cure for autoimmune diseases is simple: expose our bodies to organisms that can help properly develop and control our immune system. Currently, the most promising form of treatment for autoimmune diseases revolves around the use of parasitic worm infection."

My Review of Caesar's Pasta Gnocchi

Gnocchi are small Italian dumplings. They can be made from any variety of ingredients. My favorite version is potato gnocchi. The dish is difficult to get right. They should be light and spongy, not dense or sticky. The version from Caesar's Pasta achieves this delicate balance while being gluten free. Their gnocchi dumplings are a combination of rice, tapioca, and other ingredients. Unfortunately, at least for my palate, the rice and tapioca were present in the flavor profile. I tend not to prefer gluten free pasta made from rice. For long noodles I prefer quinoa or corn pasta. However, for gnocchi I prefer potato. Putting aside the flavor, Caesar's manages to present as spongy and light. The dumplings maintained their shape perfectly after about 4 minutes of cooking in boiling water. In the end, they were a very satisfying gnocchi dinner. I would highly recommend Caesar's gnocchi, particularly if you like rice pasta.

I would call Caesar's gnocchi great but not the greatest. The greatest gluten free gnocchi, in my opinion, is from Nuovo. It can be difficult to find. Even though it is gluten free, I have never seen it in a gluten free specialty store. I can only find it at Whole Foods, and there not consistently.

Caesar's can be found online at http://caesarspasta.com/ (as of this writing, the website was under construction).
Nuovo can be found online at http://www.nuovopasta.com/retail.asp?type=pasta

Mangia Italiana!

Tiger in Motion

OMG! This water is wet. GET OUT!

Whew. That was close.

Suburbs Get New Congressional Districts - And One Familiar Candidate

It looks like the the Congressional districts in the Chicagoland area are going to make slightly more sense than they used to, presuming the current proposal passes as presently defined. Previously the districts were very bizarre, with strange tangential isthmuses springing out from central districts. Now they roughly divide the suburbs into large contiguous blocks. There are a few notable exceptions, particularly regarding districts 14 and 11. First, why split Oswego down the middle? The Boulder Hill subdivision is in district 11 and the downtown is in district 14. Further, the far south and northern areas of district 14 could have been excised to districts 11 and 10 respectively. As it stands under the current bill, Antioch and Sandwich are in the same district. Sandwich and Yorkville have much more in common with Oswego and Shorewood than with Antioch and Gurnee. Nonetheless, it seems like a step in the right direction.

I'm happy to see that Bill Foster is tossing his hat in the ring for district 11. We need more scientists in Congress.

Here's the article from Patch.com:

Suburbs Get New Congressional Districts - And One Familiar Candidate: "

Gov. Pat Quinn is expected to sign off on new congressional district maps that will dramatically reshape the western suburbs. And one of the new districts already has its first candidate, one whose name is familiar to local voters.

Democrat Bill Foster, former U.S. Congressman in the 14th District, announced Tuesday that he will run in the newly-configured 11th District, which includes much of Montgomery, Aurora, Naperville, Woodridge, Bolingbrook and Joliet.

Foster, 55, lives in Batavia, which would remain in the 14th District under the new maps. But Congressional candidates don’t need to live in the district they would represent. Foster served two terms as congressman for the 14th, winning both a special and general election in 2008 to succeed Dennis Hastert.

Foster was the first Democrat to represent the 14th since Watergate.

But last year, he lost a close election to Randy Hultgren, the Winfield Republican who currently represents the 14th. In a phone conversation on Tuesday, Foster attributed the election results to “frustration with the slow recovery of the economy,” but said he now sees “buyer’s remorse” among voters.

And the newly-drawn maps may give him an opportunity to jump back in the game.

The Congressional district maps, approved by the Illinois House on Monday and the Illinois Senate on Tuesday, recast the 14th District as a massive swath of land that includes Geneva, Batavia, St. Charles, Oswego and Plainfield, among others, and stretches to the northern border of the state. Hultgren now shares residency in this district with fellow Republican Congressman Joe Walsh, who represents the 8th District.

The new 11th District, on the other hand, has no incumbent currently living within its bounds—it is represented by Adam Kinzinger—and includes many of the areas previously grouped into the 14th, including Aurora, where Foster enjoyed strong support.

Foster said he is happy with the way the lines were drawn, mentioning that the 11th also includes the twin technology jewels of the suburbs: the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, where Foster worked for more than 20 years, and Argonne National Laboratory in Darien.

Republicans, however, have blasted the new maps, which were drawn by Democrats without GOP involvement. Redistricting occurs every 10 years, coinciding with the U.S. Census, and the idea is to even out representation among cities, villages and ethnic groups.

But with Democrats in charge of the state House and Senate, Republicans were not needed to pass the new boundaries.

Republicans have accused Democrats of drawing the maps to benefit their own party, and to erase the results of the 2010 election. The Congressional map passed both houses of the legislature essentially along party lines: 63-54 in the House, and 34-25 in the Senate.

The National Republican Congressional Committee also took aim at Foster in a written statement released Tuesday morning.

“Illinois working families fired Bill Foster last fall because of his unwavering support for reckless spending, higher taxes and bigger government,” wrote NRCC Spokesman Andrea Bozek. “Illinois voters understand that Bill Foster’s tax and spend record was part of the problem and are unwilling to foot the bill again for his big spending agenda.”

Foster is the first candidate to announce in the new 11th District. In fact, he didn’t even wait until the new district maps were approved to throw his hat into the ring.

“I think it’s good to start the campaign as fast as possible,” he said. “I look forward to introducing myself (to voters), and meeting with old friends in Aurora, Oswego and Montgomery areas.”

See the new Congressional district maps here.
"

New Whole Foods GF Sandwich Bread

Whole Foods Gluten Free Bakehouse has developed a new white sandwich bread. The new bread is intended to improve upon the previous version of their gluten free sandwich bread. If you recall, the previous sandwich bread was rather dense and heavy. It was not flexible or soft at all. It tasted fine but was difficult to use for a sandwich. It worked well as toast or as a grilled sandwich, but not so much as the bread in a PB&J or cold cut sandwich. Well, the new bread is definitely a step in the right direction. The bread is lighter, less dense. If I'm not mistaken, the slices are slightly thinner than the previous version, which provides the bread with a sense of softness and flexibility. The taste is great. The bread is still sold out of the freezer case, and I am keeping it frozen at home. So, this still requires toasting before using. I have been able to find the perfect toaster setting for this bread (just short of 2 on my toaster) to result in a piece of bread that is thawed but not toasted and crispy. When thawed to the right degree the bread is very good. It holds together in the hand. There's nothing more frustrating in a sandwich than having the bread fall to bits in your hand. So far the new bread from Whole Foods overcomes this frustration.

So, how does it compare to my other two favorite sandwich breads? Compared to Udi's sandwich bread, the Whole Foods load is larger and less airy. Every now and again I will see a loaf of Udi's that is almost too airy, with a few hug bubbles being present in the middle of the loaf. So far I have not seen that in the Whole Foods loaf and I do not expect to see it because the loaf is still slightly on the dense side of the dense-light spectrum. In terms of softness, the Udi's bread tends to be softer. They're about equal on taste, to me anyway.

The Whole Foods loaf is similar in size to the  Rudi's gluten free loaf. However, when I eat Rudi's bread, I tend to eat their multigrain loaf because I love bread with seeds and grains in it. So, this is something of a case of comparing apples to oranges. The Whole Foods white sandwich bread is your basic straight forward white sandwich bread.

In the end, the new Whole Foods white sandwich bread is a big improvement over the previous version and it will probably make it into my lunch rotation. It is so great to have high quality choices in the gluten free bread category. Gone are the days of rock hard crumbly breads that taste nothing like bread!

Gluten Free Hamburger Bun

This weekend I ate my first hamburger bun in nearly three years. Thank you Udi's! I found them in Whole Foods  (Naperville, IL) just as they were putting them out for sale for the first time. Lucky timing! I chose the whole grain hamburger bun. It tasted great. There was little to no crumbling, a negative quality that can be associated with gluten free bread. The bun was slightly on the firm side, but not overly firm. I will definitely be buying these in the future. Bring on summer. Bring on the burgers!

Kettle Cuisine Thai Curry Chicken Soup

One of the new offerings from Kettle Cuisine is a Thai Curry Chicken Soup. This brings their gluten free soups to ten in all. The soup is packaged and prepared exactly like all the other soups: a 10 oz. serving, frozen, and microwavable. The Thai Curry Chicken Soup is gluten free and dairy free.

As my wife would ask, "What does it promise me?" The front of the package lists the following information:
* No artificial ingredients
* All natural
* Minimally processed
* Made with chicken raised without antibiotics on a vegetarian diet
* GF/DF
Most of these promises are printed in incredibly small font, which flies in the face of typical product packaging strategies. I was surprised to find the nearly microscopic statement regarding the quality of the chicken.

What is notable on the Nutrition Facts panel?
Calories: 330 for the entire bowl
Saturated Fat: ***** 8g ***** a whopping 40% of your daily value!
Sodium 560mg, rather high but typical for many prepared soups

The Ingredients are all words one can easily recognize and pronounce.

So, what about the taste? In a word, excellent. Right out of the bowl the soup smelled like authentic Thai cuisine. (We're big fans of Thai food.) The aroma of the spices reassures that the soup is going to taste great. Visually, I was pleasantly surprised to find large mushrooms and bamboo shoots. Sometimes a prepared soup relies too much on a flavor profile and not enough on actual ingredients like meat and vegetables. About the meat. Chicken in prepared soup is typically some of the most off-putting food known to man. This chicken is an exception to that rule. Every piece was quality. The overall flavor of the creamy broth was excellent--spicy but not aggressively so. It will satisfy the Thai food veteran and the occasional diner alike.

In the end, I was extremely satisfied with this soup, despite the high level of saturated fat. I will definitely buy it again and would highly recommend it to anyone. There are no hints that this soup would be aimed at a specialty diet market. In fact, one would be hard pressed to find a soup that would surpass this one as a prepared Thai soup.

Kettle Cuisine can be found at http://www.kettlecuisine.com/
On Twitter @KettleCuisine
On Facebook

Forbes' intention is not to inform the public on Celiac disease

A recent article in Forbes has drawn the attention and ire of some prominent gluten-free advocates. Unfortunately, I first saw a number of the angry responses before reading the article, and so I was predisposed to a negative opinion of the article. Upon first reading, the article seems to take a critical view of a gluten-free diet. Out of fairness, I waited a day and re-read the article before documenting my response.

So, what does the author say? What is her goal?

Granting the author all possible benefit of the doubt, the goal of the article is to observe that some people with eating disorders such as anorexia may be hiding their disorder from their friends and family by claiming that they are on a restrictive diet, such as a gluten-free diet. Let me be clear, anorexia is a serious eating disorder and families and friends of people with this disorder should help them find help and get healthy. I am no expert in behavioral psychology, so I guess I can only take the author's word that some people with anorexia are lying to their friends and families and saying that they have a specific food intolerance.

However, the article also makes the bold claim that a gluten-free diet can LEAD to an eating disorder. This incredibly bold claim goes completely unjustified and nearly undefended in the article. Specifically, the author offers that "[t]he gluten-free lifestyle, while life-saving for the minority of Americans who suffer real consequences from grains, can be a slippery slope—or simply a means of denial—for some." Two (interviewed?) sources are offered as expert opinions in support of this conclusion. No contrary opinions are offered and one must assume that none were sought.

It seems clear that the author has a negative view of the currently trending gluten-free diet. Take the following quote, which I read as highly condescending, "[t]he gluten-free diet has become a sign of enlightened eating, an intellectual diet supported by a slew of studies and a passionate cadre of celebrity supporters." Why opine that the diet is "enlightened" and observe that it is supported by "a passionate cadre of celebrity supporters"? To my mind, these are not the types of statements one makes if one supports a gluten-free diet. Further, what would it even mean that a diet is intellectual? The avoidance of gluten has nothing to do with intellect. I can only conclude that the author is attempting to achieve a light prose, but instead in her failing has committed a serious offense: superiority and judgment. One might expect a journalist to take a non-judgmental approach to their topic. But, then again this is not reportage. The discussion of celebrities is the first part of an argument that culminates in the author's assumption/conclusion that the increasingly high profile of the gluten-free diet led two cheerleaders to use it as a cover for anorexia.

In response to some of the negative comments, the author has claimed that the "intention is not to inform (or misinform) the public on celiac disease but to raise a question". If the goal was not to inform the public on Celiac disease, then goal achieved. However, I would argue that the article actively misinforms, contrary to the author's claim. The most glaring example is the unsupported claim that a gluten-free diet can lead to anorexia. Read the DSM-IV. A restrictive diet is not a root cause of anorexia. Shockingly, the author does not explain the details of anorexia: its etiology, symptoms, treatment, and prognosis. But this is not an article meant to inform the public about the very serious problem of anorexia.

GF Pasta at Luigi's House in Aurora

Big thanks to Luigi's House restaurant in Aurora for carrying gluten free pasta!

It used to be really difficult to eat gluten free at Luigi's. I remember a waiter telling me (years ago) that I came to the wrong restaurant to eat gluten free. He went on to be very helpful in guiding me toward a salmon dish. But still, that was a pretty telling description of the restaurant.

So, we hadn't gone back in quite some time. Now, to my surprise, when there last night I discovered that they offer a quinoa and corn based angel hair pasta. The server was very helpful in describing which pasta dishes would be gluten free based on all the remaining ingredients. I had the peasant pasta, with some modifications. It was excellent. Can't wait to eat the left-overs tonight.

As best I can tell, Luigi's House and their parent company Portillo's is not on Twitter. Here they are on Facebook.

"Second Opinion" Informational TV Show Talks Celiac

This program showed up on the TiVo yesterday. (We have a keyword wishlist for "Celiac" or "gluten". Occasionally a random program will show up.) This is a great overview of the difficulty doctors face in diagnosing Celiac disease. It also is a great introduction to the medical description of the disease.

If you missed it, you're in luck. The entire episode is available online! There are also a number of additional resources on their website. I highly recommend the program for everyone.





The most shocking take away for me was when one of the doctors said that in medical school they were told that Celiac disease was 1 in a million. Wow. Of course, now we hear that it is more like 1 in 133. Some say the ration may be closer to 1 in four.

Another great take away. The same doctor said that the gluten free diet makes everyone feel better. Wow. If that word gets out, we'll have not worries about the gluten free market shrinking.

Photo of the Day

drippy (by miller prosser)

Wheat Gluten is Not Food

Here's my new philosophy: wheat gluten is not food.

There are a lot of things in this world that I could eat, but shouldn't: plastic, mercury, dirt. I'm not allergic to these things, but they are bad for me. They happen also to be bad for everyone. Just add wheat, barley, and rye to that list. These things are not food. We as a species should never have begun eating them. Our bodies do not process their proteins very well. There are many other grains that we can eat. Our early ancestors never figured out that wheat was causing them sickness (who knows maybe it wasn't). Now we know that wheat gluten causes sickness, possibly even in people who do not have an allergy or autoimmune deficiency related to it.

So, I think of wheat gluten as dirt. Somehow that makes it easier (emotionally or psychologically) to avoid items made with wheat. Wonder Bread is made with dirt. Domino's pizza is made with dirt. Gross.

Friday's Feature Music -- Wilco

From Wikipedia:

"Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois.
The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup has changed frequently, with only singer Jeff Tweedyand bassist John Stirratt remaining from the original incarnation. Since early 2004, the other current members are guitarist Nels Cline, multi-instrumentalists Pat Sansone and Mikael Jorgensen, and drummerGlenn Kotche. Wilco has released seven studio albums, a live double album, and three collaborations: two with Billy Bragg, and one with The Minus 5."

Wilco - Outtasite
Uploaded by WBRNewMedia. - Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.



Wilco - Box Full Of Letters
Uploaded by WBRNewMedia. - Music videos, artist interviews, concerts and more.



Discography
A collection of performances -- free streaming
Lyrics Archive

Fan Forums

Set Lists and More

Learning How to Die, by Greg Kot

Photo of the Day

photo by Miller Prosser

Gluten Freely Website

Check it out: http://www.glutenfreely.com/

Part online store for gluten free products, part resource, part blog (or aggregate of a few other gluten free blogs), part General Mills marketing tool.

Oh, coupons and recipes too.

Kim and Scott's Gluten Free Pretzel

From Jane Anderson at About.com we learn that Kim & Scott's Pretzels are offering a gluten free soft pretzel. Unfortunately, this is another one of those products that is produced in a facility that also produces gluten containing products. On the one hand, they seem to be highly aware of allergy sensitivities. On the other hand, they don't say that their gluten free pretzels have been tested.

Will I try them? Yes.

(Kim and Scott's on Twitter)

Made in a facility that...ARGGH!

One of the most frustrating statements to see on the packaging of a gluten free item is, "Made in a facility that processes foods containing wheat." This statement is extremely vague. The customer has absolutely no idea what to expect from the product. I tend to avoid these products, but I'll occasionally break my own rule and eat them. The symptoms of Celiac disease are sometimes impossible to connect to a specific food and so it is almost impossible to "test" these items on yourself. 


We desperately need federal guidelines for the food and drug industry. Right now we're out in the Wild West of the gluten free market. What does "gluten free" mean on a product that was made in a facility that handles wheat? I assume this means that the product is made with ingredients that do not contain gluten. Does this qualify the product as "gluten free"? It shouldn't! Gluten free should mean that the final product has been tested to contain less than 20ppm of gluten (or even better, less than 15ppm or 10ppm).


For that matter, what does a restaurant mean when they say they offer a gluten free menu? At present, it simply means that they think they can offer meals that do not contain gluten. But what does the restaurant mean by this? It is rarely clear unless you ask the chef. There has been a recent spike in interest in the gluten free diet, but not because the Celiac population has exploded. Rather, this spike has been related to an increase in the perception that the gluten free diet is somehow healthier. If the restaurant thinks you are one of these voluntary gluten free diners, are they going to make sure that your meal is absolutely gluten free? I worry about this every time I eat out. It seems likely that the server or manager sees me as one of the wave of new dieters and not as a person with Celiac disease. I tend to trust restaurants that are run by people who have Celiac disease in their family (like Da Luciano's) or where I know that the chef is professionally trained and sensitive to the plight of those with food allergies (like White Chocolate Grill; on Twitter).


We really need to define standards for gluten free food. I can't see any way to achieve this without federal regulation.

Slawturday, by the way

Slawturday was a huge success. I followed roughly the guidelines provided by Triumph Dining. I used onion, radish, broccoli, celery, carrot, apple, golden raisin, and dark raisin. The dressing was a bit too mustardy at first, but I kept mixing until I was satisfied.

You can't really tell from the picture, but the yield was immense. The left overs have been very tasty.

The Open Face Elvis

I'm always looking for new options for breakfast. Here' one a throw in the rotation for a change of pace. I call it the Open Face Elvis.

Ingredients:
Two pieces of gluten free bread
Peanut butter
1 banana
bacon (optional)
Agave nectar (or honey)

Directions:
Toast two pieces of multigrain bread until crunchy. I use either Udi's whole grain bread or Rudi's multigrain bread. Spread peanut butter on the bread. Optionally, place crispy bacon on the bed of peanut butter. Arrange banana slices on the toast. Drizzle agave nectar over the sandwich. Enjoy!

Udi's on Twitter
Rudi's on Twitter

Gluten Free Items Found (and not purchased)

While wandering around Caputo's Market (on Twitter) in Plainfield last evening, I found a few gluten free items that were new to me. I purchased some (to be blogged later) and not others. Here are the ones I didn't buy (this time). Kudos to Caputo's for clear and easy to find shelf labels for gluten free items!

 I had never seen these Goya cookies. As perhaps you can tell from the photo, the box is a heavy duty cardboard. Really bizarre for a grocery item. Anyway, it was a huge box for $6 if I recall. A product of Spain I think. I'd hate to judge a cookie by its cover, but these didn't seem too appetizing to me.

 A lot of pepperoni claims to be gluten free, but there are very few pepperoni sticks that are labeled as gluten free. I was happy to see this stick from Boar's Head. Caputo's had a wide variety of Boar's Head meats, almost all of which were clearly marked as gluten free.

 There was a wide variety of meat products from Greenbridge Farm that were marked as gluten free. The picture is of some Black Forest Kielbasa.

Caputo's also had a full line of sausages from aidells (on Facebook).

More to come on the interesting items I bought...

Friday's Featured Music -- The Hold Steady

The Hold Steady

The ultimate name-dropping song:


Your Little Hoodrat Friend
Stuck Between Stations
Killer Parties
Chips Ahoy
Hurricane J

On Facebook
On MySpace
On Flikr
On Tour
On Twitter

Gluten Free Slawturday

Have you seen this recipe for slaw from Triumph Dining? I'm definitely going to make some slaw this weekend. Slawturday?

Man! The picture looks so tasty. I love these types of recipes, the kind that are essentially a list of variables.

Thanks Emily @TriumphDining

Schar Working on US Facility

From their website:

"On January 25th, 2011, we officially started the construction of our first manufacturing facility in the United States. Beginning early next year, this state-of-the-art, dedicated gluten-free facility will play a key role in bringing you the best in gluten-free taste and nutrition. And you will see some great new products as well - like our new frozen breads, Hearty White and Hearty Grain."

I have tried some of Schar's products, but should really try out a few more. It seems like I see something new at the grocery store every few weeks.

I wonder if a domestic production facility will result in lower prices. Schar says the new facility will result in a wider product line. That's good!

Gluten Free Tax Deductions Decoded

This may be the best explanation of how to deduct the cost of gluten free food from your taxes. Thanks to the Gluten Free Cooking School blog for the great post. Excellent!

BUT, it's not really practical for me.

On a related point. It's funny. I have found myself NOT noticing the price of the specialty gluten free food that I buy. I simply don't look at the price tag at the grocery store. Now, I'm fortunate to have the means to stay on a gluten free diet without too much financial worry. But still, when I first adopted the gluten free diet, it became apparent that the grocery budget was going to expand instantly. And yes, it did. In my view, grocery shopping can be enough of a struggle without the added stress of examining prices. Essentially, I made the choice to buy the food I like and need. This means that I regularly pay $5 for a loaf of bread (a small loaf of bread!), $8 for a package of cookies, and $6 for ONE bottle of beer.

The upside is that I have found a lot of really good organic or all natural foods (because they typically contain fewer ingredients and are typically produced by smaller companies that can pay closer attention to dietary needs). The price of specialty gluten free foods is what makes it a great celebration among the gluten free community when a "main stream" product goes gluten free. For example, it was a huge deal when Chex cereal went gluten free. This meant that there was now a more affordable gluten free cereal option. $2 for a box of Chex versus typically double that for a specialty gluten free cereal.

Google Search Adds Recipes

You can now search for recipes on Google! It's pretty cool. After you search for a recipe, you can limit your results by ingredients, cook time, and calories. Interesting. Hopefully some day they'll add allergy or dietary restrictions as a search feature. I tried searching "gluten free pizza" and "gluten free cake" and found some good results.

Tito's Handmade Vodka

There is still some concern over gluten content in vodka distilled from gluten-containing grains. See the discussion over at G-Free Foodie.

photo by miller prosser

In the face of this concern, it is comforting to see a clearly labeled gluten free vodka. Tito's Handmade Vodka is that vodka. It comes clearly labelled as gluten free, distilled from corn.

From their website:

"Tito’s is made from 100% corn and as a distilled spirit, is completely gluten-free. The distillation process removes the prolamines from the grain, the primary component that causes celiac disease sufferers to become ill when they consume products with gluten in them. Some producers add a little bit of the mash back into the spirit after distillation, which would add gluten content into an otherwise gluten-free distillate, but I don’t. It’s an important thing for us, and we actually include “GLUTEN-FREE” in lots of our materials and on the website so people can make informed choices. But, I am a vodka man, not a doctor, so if you have more questions or concerns, you should definitely talk to your doctor about it!"

I love that the explanation is informed.

Not only is it gluten free, but highly rated as well. I'm no expert taster, so I'm not qualified to judge critically one vodka from another. I know there are a few brands that strike my palate as slightly off. Tito's tastes smooth. It is drinkable neat or mixed. 

Tito's is based in Austin, TX. So, put on some James McMurtry tunes and sip some Tito's, even if it's snowing and cold outside.

Find Tito's on Twitter @titosvodka and Facebook. You can also find them of Flikr.

Free WebMD Magazine Subscription (digital)

Wow. Zinio is offering 8 free issues of WebMD the Magazine. They usually dedicate a few articles to allergies.

Check it out here.

BOGO Deal from Chipotle

NBC is offering a buy one get one deal from Chipotle, a popular restaurant for gluten free grub.

Click here to go to NBC's Facebook page. Watch a commercial to get the coupon.

(h/t Slickdeals)

GF Italian Potato and Sausage WIN

I stumbled my way into an amazing dinner last night.  I had been wanting to try two new gluten free products I found recently, Simply Potatoes Rosemary and Garlic Red Potato Wedges and Al Fresco Sweet Italian Style chicken sausages. So, I just tossed the potatoes and two sausages (sliced) in a skillet with some oil and sauteed until done. It doesn't get much easier than that.

The flavors complemented each other really well. Next time I may saute some minced garlic in oil before adding the potatoes and sausage.

Simply Potatoes is a product from Crystal Farms, which is in turn a Michael Foods company (twitter @michaelfoods). According to their website, all Simply Potatoes have been confirmed to be gluten free.

 These were the second flavor of Al Fresco sausages I have tried. Both have been great. All the Al Fresco sausages are gluten free EXCEPT the Mango Chipotle Chicken Sausage, which contains gluten in soy sauce. (Of course, they could use a gluten free soy sauce if they wanted to make the whole line gluten free!)

I can't wait to fix it again. That's usually the test for how much I like a new dish.

GF Rice and Chicken Casserole

Wondering what to make with the new gluten free condensed soup from Pacific Foods?

Try this recipe from their website.

I followed their recipe as closely as I could, which meant visiting three grocery stores before finding celery flakes.

Tasted great. Should be great as left-overs. 

Photos of the Day (wish we were there)

splash

tropical

Block My IL-15, PLEASE!

A new approach suggests possible help for treating Celiac disease:

http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/celiac-disease/news/20110208/new-treatment-for-celiac-disease

Another interesting take-away from this article: a vitamin A derivative may by complicit in the onset of Celiac disease. Wow.

Gluten Cross-Reactivity?

photo © 2006 Ben Cumming | more info (via: Wylio)

When I was diagnosed as having Celiac Disease (and DH), I was told that a strict gluten free diet was the only course of action. I am currently living the gluten free lifestyle. In theory, as long as I avoid gluten, I should expect to see a complete remission of the negative side effects, right? RIGHT?! Well, now I'm reading about a sticky little concept called gluten cross-reactivity.


"Cross-reactivity is a condition where your body’s autoimmune antibodies mistake other food proteins for ones you can’t tolerate. Cross-reaction to other foods creates the same effect as though you consumed gluten" (Paul Smith).


AWW, COME ON!! So, you're telling me that there are other food proteins that my body is mistaking for gluten? Sweet fancy Moses, that is depressing. So what are these other foods? Having read the list, I started to wonder if some of the IBS-type symptoms I have are related to these foods. It really seems possible.


The other food proteins include: dairy (big suprise), nightshade vegetables (tomatoes, peppers, tomatoes, aubergines), carrageenan, and potentially other foods including coffee. NOOOOOOO!!!!! See the list of foods under Array 4 in this information. At least this lab thinks that coffee is worth testing for. Has anybody had a test done by Cyrex labs?


From my experience, I think I am sensitive to the highly acidic items on the list, particularly tomatoes and coffee. I will sometimes notice that a home made gluten free pizza with home made tomato sauce will cause distress. Also, if I have coffee in the afternoon--forget it, I'm sick. It seems like I can get away with coffee in limited quantities. I am going to have to do some more testing on the tomato front.


It seems to me that there is not a lot of information on gluten cross-reactivity. If you have links to studies or other resources, please pass them along. Thx.


UPDATE: Here's a five minute video overview of cross-reactivity by Dr. Vikki Petersen.

Gluten Free Pantry French Bread & Pizza Mix

The great white whale of the gluten free food industry is bread and, by extension, pizza crust. Great strides have been made in the last few years toward capturing the whale, but we're still far short of the mark. Wow. When I first went gluten free nearly three years ago, the bread market was a pure disaster. I won't name specific brands, but it was a real nightmare. The current market is slightly better. I will even go so far as to assert that the gluten free bread industry still needs huge improvements. If we're honest, there is no way that the currently available pre-made loaves come close to glutinous bread. This just means that there is a lot of room in the market for new brands or improved older brands.

I usually keep a loaf of Rudi's Multigrain gluten free bread, a loaf of Udi's white bread, and a loaf of Udi's cinnamon and raisin bread in the freezer at all times. On the pizza front, I switch between Udi's and Rustic Crust.

The Rudi's bread is the closest to regular bread, in my opinion. It is the size of a typical loaf of sandwich bread. The multigrain tends to mask whatever negative gluten free taste may be there otherwise. I really like Udi's white bread for grilled cheese. But the size of Udi's bread makes it difficult to use for a cold cut sandwich. The cinnamon raisin bread makes great toast in the morning. The major problem with Udi's bread is the not uncommon presence of huge air bubbles through the loaf. Not a huge problem for toast, but a real pain for PB&J or grilled cheese. ALL of these breads will crumble when bent.

But this post is about a Gluten Free Pantry bread mix.

This mix requires more ingredients than some other mixes. For example, you need apple cider vinegar and honey. That's not a problem. Just more complex. Still, it was very easy to make. Unlike some mixes the dough really rose a lot.

With this mix I was able to make a medium thick pizza crust and a medium sized loaf of bread. Like most gluten free mixes, the dough was incredibly difficult to manipulate. It was extremely sticky. I didn't really try too hard to spread it thinly. Although, in retrospect, I think that would have improved the crust a great deal. In the end, it just didn't taste or feel like pizza crust. I wonder if I spread it cracker thin if it would be better. Hmmm.

As for the loaf of white bread, the picture shows how it formed, with a nice crispy crust and airy interior. In the end, the look and feel of the bread was very close to glutinous French bread. But again, the taste just didn't impress me. Honestly, most of the bread is going to go to waste just because it wasn't that great.

In the end, I would probably try this mix again as a super thin pizza crust. I, personally, have no use for this kind of French bread loaf. It's definitely no French baguette. HOWEVER, I can see how some people may enjoy it, so I guess I would still recommend it.

Breathing In Train Fumes is Dangerous

CBS News Chicago has the story. Turns out that it's dangerous to breath in train exhaust. Who would have guessed?


"Questions first mounted about the dangers of soot on Metra trains after an earlier test last year by the Tribune and the Chicago Respiratory Health Association. The test found that Metra trains pulling out of Union Station and the Ogilvie Transportation Center can have air trapped inside passenger cars that contains levels of diesel soot up to 72 times higher than on neighboring streets."


Anybody who has ever taken the train outbound from Union Station south knows not to walk down the platform toward the engine. Just get on the train at the first car and slowly work your way to the front. Or, just sit down in the middle of the train and walk ahead to the front of the train before your stop. Or, go ahead and breath in some deadly deadly fumes.


Hey, let's build the train station under streets and buildings. What could possibly go wrong!?

Photo of the Day

'merica

Photo of the Day

HDR photo - view from my window

GFOH - San-J Thai Peanut Sauce

GFOH is the on-going series of posts in which I present the gluten free products that are always on hand in my cupboards and fridge, thus, Gluten Free On Hand.

I always have a bottle of San-J Thai Peanut sauce on hand. It is gluten free and fantastic. There is nothing about the taste or flavor that would indicate that it is gluten free. It just takes like a great Thai sauce. It is very simple to use. I have used it in a wok. I have marinated with it. I have baked with it. And I have just poured it over chicken and rice, as pictured. It's so sad, I could probably eat this three times a week. I'm getting hungry just looking at this picture.

"The Daily" iPad App

I read a lot of news on my iPad, mostly through RSS feeds. However, I also use a lot a free apps like BBC, HuffPo, NPR, AP, et al. So, when I saw that the new The Daily app had been released, I was curious. There has been a lot of buzz about how the app has been built from the ground up and that millions of dollars went into its development. Luckily, the app is free for two weeks or else I never would have tried it. After the two week free trial, the app will charge $.99/week or $39.99/year. Much cheaper than a real newspaper, much more expensive than the numerous free news apps. Oh, and by the way, there are still ads (at least in the free trial version).

The opening splash screen is a horizontal carousel. By the way, it will rotate on its own if you just leave it alone. Along the bottom of the screen are news sections. A bright light shines beneath the current section. Tapping a section navigates to that section and leaves the carousel. Then, a sort of horizontal timeline at the top of the screen shows the current location in the "newspaper." The section splash screens contain links to some of the stories in that sections, apparently NOT to all the stories in the section. That seems odd to me. The sections are static and cannot be customized. Compare the FREE Huffington Post iPad app that is highly customizable.

At the top right of the main splash screen is a weather bug, which when tapped navigates to a weather page with a 5-day or 12-hour forecast, radar maps, and a daily horoscope. Really? Horoscope? Sheesh. Also along the bottom of the splash screen is an arrow that brings up six buttons: video, audio, forward to next story, random story, saved pages, and settings. There are very few settings in this iteration of the app (version 1.0.0).

What stands out immediately about this app is the creative interactive elements. At some points it is very disappointing. At other points it is exactly what the iPad is all about. For example, on the disappointing side, one might guess that the video button would play a video associated with the story currently being displayed. No. As best I can tell, it just plays the same daily summary video clip. Why? On the creative side, the app will display a lot of images in landscape mode, but switch to the text of the story in portrait mode. Also, I saw one story that included a 360 degree rotating image. Pretty cool.

What about the content. If today's edition of The Daily is representative, I would characterize the content as unserious. Ok fine. It is the day after the Super Bowl, and most newspapers are going to be football heavy. But The Daily offers "Gossip" as its second category. No, not World News. No, not Politics. Not even Local News, which you might think it capable of. Gossip! And the third section...Opinion. After that, you're getting into the deep sections of the newspaper, ones that tend not to be journalistic. Don't get me wrong, Arts & Life is a good read and can be educational but its not typically hard-hitting journalism. The Apps & Games section has daily Sudoku, Crossword, and articles.

In the end, The Daily is a flashy, interactive, shallow, and unserious news source that I will not be subscribing to.