Gluten Free And You?

Quick Vegan Gluten Free Onion Soup

2009-12-14T14:06:00.000-08:00

I have explained my stand on meat eating. I do and I will. I do so love foods that stand on their own, title or not. This quick soup is one of those dishes. I make the same thing with beef stock when I have it on hand. Just substitute the water and most of the tamari in place of the stock. I love that I always have this soup option available with a stocked pantry. No shopping took place for it. This can be on the table in 15-20 minutes, a nice bonus indeed.

You can go nuts with this and add the toasted, cheese covered bread crouton but tonight I'm serving it along veggie burger patty melts with Swiss cheese for dunking.

QUICK VEGAN GLUTEN FREE ONION SOUP

4 large onions, sliced thin

4 cloves garlic, smashed

2 or so TBLS Olive oil

2-4 TBLS Wheat Free *tamari or soy sauce

Water

Dried or fresh thyme: Using fresh thyme? Use about a TBLS. Using dried thyme? A scant teaspoon should do it.

Black pepper to taste.

Do NOT salt this dish. Soy sauce or tamari does that for you. You can add some sea salt at the table if you desire.

In a stock pot, saute the onions in olive oil until almost caramelized. Do not burn them...try medium-low heat and adjust accordingly.

Add the garlic and saute till fragrant.

Add the tamari and thyme, using the tamari to scrape up yummy bits off the pan.

Add water to desired consistency...about 2-4 quarts, depending on the size of your onions and how thick or thin you prefer the broth.

Let simmer 2 more minutes and serve.

*Tamari is a slightly thicker and richer soy sauce. A little goes along way in cooking because it's usually reserved as a condiment. I think it's rich, mellow flavor works particularly well with the just about caramelized onions.

GLUTEN FREE DINNER MENU 12/14-12/20

2009-12-13T14:33:00.000-08:00

Another week of gluten free fun! Another broke week to work with. Is it just me or does it seem like everything costs too much lately? I feel like I'm stretching every dollar as far as it can possibly go but it's still not enough. Ugh. Tamale making has been put off a couple of weeks,

so we are still making them...but for New Year's Eve. The ingredients are inexpensive separately...but there's allot of them. I'm going to buy the corn husks this week, the masa next week, and so on.

We are breaking our tradition of Sunday night breakfast tonight for tamales...since all the talk of them last week somehow lead me to the Tamale Lady in front of the bookstore today. A nice treat that financially eliminated the farmer's market this week...but sometimes...you gotta' listen to your belly.

MONDAY

Sunshine Veggie Burger Melt w/ Swiss cheese and quick Vegan Onion Soup

TUESDAY

Roast Chicken w/ pan gravy, mashed potatoes, and peas.

WEDNESDAY

Rice and Black Beans w/ *queso fresco and a mixed green salad

THURSDAY

Homemade Chicken **Noodle Soup, using Tuesday's leftover chicken.

FRIDAY

Bacon BBQ Cheese Burgers w/ sweet potato oven fries

SATURDAY

Leftover Chicken Noodle Soup w/ grilled cheese sandwiches

SUNDAY

Breakfast! Biscuits w/ turkey sausage gravy, eggs, fruit.

BAKING

Sandwich bread, biscuits, frosted carrot-cake loaf, pumpkin bread

* Queso Fresco is a fresh Mexican cheese with a crumbly texture similar to feta cheese but very sweet and mild tasting. It's doesn't melt so use it for topping salads, beans, tacos...anywhere you would want a crumbly mild cheese. You can find it in most markets now and as always...at your local Latino or Mexican market.

** I often cook broken pieces of rice pasta to use up in soups. I like to cook the pasta in some of the broth and add the cooked pasta to each bowl. I find doing this and storing the noodles in a separate bowl makes the rice noodles last longer, so we can enjoy the soup twice.

Gluten Free Latkes

2009-12-12T16:07:00.001-08:00

I find the following things ridiculous: $100.00 sneakers on a growing baby or child, people who perfume their dogs, Child Beauty Pageants, and most of all...going into debt for one single day in December. I highly doubt that Jesus...wants us to remember his birth by spending more money than we have. I am working under an assumption that a poor, wandering prophet from the deserts of Israel probably would be as grossed out by all of this as I, and many others are.

And nope, I'm not an anti- Christian, Jewish, an atheist or anti holiday. I am actually a Unitarian Universalist. I am celebrating ALL of the December holidays. We lit our Menorah last night, our Christmas tree has been up for a week, and I'm deeply looking forward to Solstice Night, and Kwanzaa, which we celebrate with a meal of black eyed peas, greens, yams and a prayer for the millions of Africans and African-Americans tortured in slavery and on into this very present day of racial tension.

For me, December is about honoring traditions, not the mall or the dollar.

I grew up with many Jewish friends. I loved being invited to their Bar and Bat Mitzvah's, eating celebratory foods, and the traditions that come with them. I learned how to make latkes, challah bread, and matzo ball soup from my good friend, Lana Edison. She also taught me how to make Israeli hummus w/ lemon and lime juices added, how to shop for grocery bargains in a warehouse setting, and that gardening was a lifestyle, not a hobby. Thank you Ms. Lana.

Hanukkah (also known as Chanukah, Hanukah, Hannuka and the Festival of Lights) is an eight-day Jewish holiday that usually takes place between late November and late December. It commemorates the victory of the Maccabees, a Jewish rebel army, over the Syrians in 165 B.C.E., as well as the subsequent re-dedication of the holy Temple in Jerusalem. Jews around the world celebrate with eight nights of merriment. Traditions include lighting the menorah, exchanging gifts and enjoying treats cooked in oil. Latkes are a traditional food for Hanukkah.

These are my version, based on Ms. Lana's. They have a bit of a Swedish tint to them with the dill because I am both a Swede and a dill lover. This recipe is to feed 6 as part of a meal. We make them for the two of us and freeze what's left. They reheat nicely in the toaster oven but the lacy crispness does not return fully. They are still far superior than what frozen offerings I have found though, and these, are gluten free.

GLUTEN FREE LATKES

2 lbs. of scrubbed, unpeeled *Russet or other starchy potatoes, grated into a bowl of cold water.

2 eggs, beaten

1 small onion, grated

1-2 cloves of garlic, pressed

1/2 teaspoon of dried dill

1/4 teaspoon of salt

black pepper to taste

1/4 cup of Gluten Free Baking Mix, (more or less) to help hold things together

Oil for frying. I use a blend of olive oil and canola.

Pour water out of potato bowl, and rinse the potatoes of their starch. Drain well...we want no liquid left. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the GF mix, still well to combine. Add the GF mix a bit at a time. You may or may not need the whole 1/4 cup, you may need a tablespoon more. You are looking for the mix to barely hold together very loosely.

Take a minute now to put about an inch or two of oil in a frying pan, start heating it to medium to medium-high and set to up a 'landing pad' for your hot latkes. I use a raised cooling rack covered in a clean, brown paper bag.

Using a large spoon, place about 2-3 tablespoons of the mix into the pan and gently press or move them into a circular or oval shape. A fork helps nicely with that. Place 4 or more in the pan and cook until golden brown on the first side then flip and cook until golden on the other side. Use a spatula to lift out the latkes and allow the oil to drain off, then add it to your 'landing pad'. You can keep your landing pad in a warm 200 degree oven between batches.

If your latkes are browning too quickly...simply lower your stove a notch or two. Do the opposite if they are not browning.

You should be looking at lacy, golden patties of perfectly crisp, seasoned potatoes.

Serve with apple sauce and sour cream.

*DO NOT use red potatoes or new potatoes for this. There is too much moisture in them and the resulting latke will be gummy...eww.

AND REMEMBER: December is about honoring traditions, making memories, and sharing small, thoughtful gifts from the heart...not about debt and outdoing last years present pile. Cut you and your wallet some slack and have a an open heart and mind about what makes a holiday. A box of homemade fudge is an even better gift than reindeer dish towels in my book any day.

Tamales. A winter tale in several parts.

2009-12-09T19:15:00.000-08:00

The holiday season is in full swing here in the old pueblo. Everywhere you look there are colorful light displays, luminarias, glowing palm trees, twinkling cacti and tamales for sale.The weather matches the calendar and it's getting chilly. I know. I sure don't live in Alaska or Michigan but it IS winter here in the desert. OK. I'm going to say it. It was almost 60 today and sunny. Tonight... as soon as the sun starts setting so does the thermometer. It's cold, about 30 degrees...trust me a 30+ degree temperature drop feels like one whether it's Colorado, New Hampshire, or Arizona.

My potted, blossoming hibiscus tree is in my house, as are the cats, we are shopping (if looking in utility easements and ditches counts as shopping) around for scrap wood for the stove, there are many layers on, and jackets are out of storage. It IS winter here...even if it doesn't seem like it by a northern standard.

Which brings me back to tamales. For the first five years I lived here I lamented continually and mourned my familiar foods; fish and chips, 'grinders', Cantonese Chinese food, Devil Dogs. Now...I can't even fathom living somewhere where there is no tamale lady in front of the indy book store or the bank, no high quality, locally made tamales stocked in the freezer in every market, as well as masa, corn husks, and chilies all in local abundance.

The history of the tamale dates back to the Aztecs, and has become one of the most popular and widely known Mexican foods today as well as being naturally gluten free. A tamale is basically a long pillow of *masa (corn) dough with a filling inside, that's been wrapped in a corn husk or banana leaf, and slowly steamed cooked.

In the United States and the border regions of Mexico, tamales are commonly made with red or green chile, filled with shredded beef, chicken or pork, and wrapped with a corn husk. Tamales can be filled with just about anything, just make sure you don't overfill them and keep your filling liquid to a minimum. They can also made with sweet a sweet masa dough and filling - like chocolate or banana. Many southerners know of a different tamale, a very spicy, hot tamale available canned or fresh all up and down the Mississippi river.

Here, they are a Mexican- American Christmas tradition. The process is filled with hierarchy and traditions that don't belong to me but I'd love to honor. The process starts with the cooking of the meat, usually the night before by the matriarch and or hostess. Then the sorting and soaking of the corn husks. This job is given to the children, guests, and newcomers. The making of the masa dough left to the elder who understands making a smooth masa means a tender tamale. Choose your masa maker wisely. The laying of the filling for the most skilled hands or the Mama's, because we know how to make a little go a long way, then everyone joins in for the wrapping. It's quite the process and meant for many hands.

So I've eaten them, shopped for them, heavily researched, watched video demonstrations, and written of them. Am I ready to MAKE them? I'm really wondering that myself so I signed up for FREE 4 hour class given at a local church.

My immediate family isn't big enough for the fun of hierarchy so I'm thinking we two will share the cooking of our chosen pork butt, the husk duty, my stir crazy husband would be our masa guy, I'll thoughtfully spread the filling, we can each place the lucky olives, and we'll roll up 2009 and let it steam away for 2-3 hours and see what happens.

We're going for it...there will be recipes and pictures, and hopefully...tamales.

The next tamale instalment: The recipe and ingredient shopping field trip.

*Dried corn soaked in a lime water solution, then finely ground. Can be found in most major grocery stores and ALL Mexican markets. Also used to make corn tortillas. Some Mexican markets also offer pre-made masa...but if I don't know what's in their "secret spice blend" and broth, then I will not risk 'glutening' myself. I use MASECA brand instant masa. They have a nice, clear explanation of gluten intolerance on their website too...always a nice touch. Here's their web address www.mimaseca.com.

Thought I'd post a crafty link that's a fun, inexpensive way to brighten your holiday season, Southwest style. Enjoy!

www.ehow.com/tag/luminarias

Sunday.

2009-12-05T23:11:00.000-08:00

Sunday really is one of my favorite food days.

As a child I went to my grandmother's house every Sunday for 'dinner'. My mother was one of 15 children. Yes. 15. In a 4 room house with 1 bathroom. I think of this often when I hear someone complain about what they don't have. Imagine having to share a bed with 3-4 other people, get a dozen children off to school, make dinner for 17 people with standard kitchen sized cookware. This wasn't a TV Duggar-ish family with a large, fully outfitted home. It was the home of a Catholic steel worker in central MA who built the home with his family, with his own hands. Suffice to say, I have dozens of cousins. There was always someone to play with, gang up on, and lots of wooded acres to build forts in. We'd come running out of the woods, head to toe dirt and burrs, and to the yard to be hosed off for 'dinner'.

If you were the mother of 15 children something inside of you must snap and you get stuck on a loop of shopping and cooking for 17 or more...forever. Every Sunday felt like a holiday at Gram's. Pots of Munster spiked macaroni and meat sauce, boiled New England dinners of lower cost cuts of pot roasts and root vegetables, chickens cooked in a Reynold's bag, an oven FULL of baked potatoes, pots of grey, overcooked broccoli, salads, macaroni salad w/ Miracle Whip and chives, breads, and always, a Jello Cake.

Always served on paper plates (after the 70's), the dinner was self serve, and self seating. Take a plate, fill it, and fight for your chair or floor space. Didn't matter if it was any random Sunday or a holiday. Same circular serving pattern and family grazing style. Grazing...after dinner, not quite hungry enough for another plate, yet hunger still not quite satisfied. We'd circle like farm animals until the Jello Cakes came out. Grab your paper bowl and get your piece of Jello Cake...top it with as much Cool Whip as you can before an adult yells at you to stop.

Ahhh, the memories. I can smell the cooking turnips, simmering beef, coffee, and woodsmoke now. The aunties are scrambling out for a pre- dinner smoke, the cousins swarming the kitchen hungrily, Gram's humming to Jesus, mixed, random utensils being pulled from the drawer in the table. Happy to get the fork with the rose etched on it. Sparkling apple cider in a paper cup, life is good.

I am 7.

My mother was a decent cook held back by her own insecurities. She was a 70's Mom...single, working, and enjoying the new freedom found in convenience foods she never had as a poor child. She was best known for her Cheeze Whiz broccoli rice casserole, pinto bean chili, and a very thin, yet tasty beef stew. She wanted us to have machine sliced breads, packaged snack foods, colorful sugary breakfast cereals, and all of the forbidden foods of her childhood. She was shocked by my vegetarianism and continually attempted to 'get some meat into me', yet she was awed by my ease, fearlessness, and familiarity in the kitchen that I had developed...against all prepacked odds, and casserole dreams of my first 18 or so years.

There was a time when the height of my culinary repertoire was Hamburger Helper, salty meatloaf, and chicken baked in Italian dressing, even though I had read MTAofFC by the time I was 8 and had a library of of varied and sundry cookbooks growing like a sourdough on top of my 'fridge. Vegetarianism really cracked open the full possibilities of food to me. I started adventuring into Asian markets looking for 5-spice powder and firm tofu and walking out with snow peas, ginger, rice noodles, chili sauces, and a hunger for something more. Around this time, I read about and fell in love with Alice Waters and started thinking about where my food was coming from. Diet For A Small Planet, the Moosewood cookbook, followed by a trip to a dairy farm, working in food service, and Eastern Meditation and yoga...there I was...awash in vegetables.

Unfortunately, I was also an insanely busy college student and nutritional supplement store manager...who was also the single parent to a child with ADHD. My beautiful books grew dusty and my firm tofu grew...other stuff and I lived off of vitamins, Tiger Milk Bars, veggie subs, tabbouleh, fried mushrooms, french fries and Greek salads from my local Greek pizza place in central MA. Without proper protein and nutritional balance from food...I quickly became an erratic mess for most of my veggie years.

It took a marriage and a divorce and a total shake down of my entire life before I started including meat in my diet again. I read the amazing Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon. A student of the Weston Price foundation, Sally's book changed my life. Being introduced to fermented foods, whole foods, and quality not quantity...a moment in my life I will never forget. This is also when I started gardening, composting, and understanding that vegetables had energy too and I was hypocritical to choose which was higher. Food changed for me again. Life changed. A move across country, this marriage, new foods, more change, and the illness. All connected in someway.

As an not quite 40 y/o adult without living parents, I had a really hard time establishing my 'own' family traditions... so I ran with food. Thanksgiving? Gram's French Canadian pork stuffing. Christmas Eve? Roast Beast or Soup party. Christmas day? Brunch to end all brunches. My daughter's birthday? 'Funfetti' cake and out for sushi or home for my wings. Hubby's Birthday? Homemade enchiladas and a German chocolate cake. Sunday? Breakfast for dinner. My favorite things to cook and eat? Popcorn, perfect roast chickens w/ pan gravy, rosemary roasted potatoes, dark chocolate truffles, Greek salads, and bread. You can set your belt based on the holiday or day of the week around here.

I'm betting my food will be part of my legacy. 'She never had much money or owned her own home but boy, could she cook or what?' 'Look at all these books. She sure was a reader.' 'Oh she's a beautiful young lady with the smile, the stubbornness, and always in the kitchen like her mother.', they'll say about my daughter. 'I hope she's in the big Berkeley in the sky, eating at Chez Panisse finally.' Oh. There's no life insurance? That's OK. Just rub me in herbes de Provence and olive oil, stuff me full of rosemary, lemon, mint, and sea salt, say some words, and let me bake on high until my return back to the earth.

Gluten Free Menu December 7th-13th, 2009

2009-12-04T22:48:00.000-08:00

Moanday...

Another week to dive into the adventure of cooking gluten free, featuring a very seriously limited budget this week. So very thankful to have had the money in last week's budget to purchase a case of 6 boxes of Gluten Free Pantry's Favorite Bread Mix from Amazon. Signing up for auto shipping saved me 15%, plus free shipping. A case was $17.54 for 6, compared to $5.99 a piece in the market. I also buy Pamela's Baking and Pancake Mix the same way for similar savings.

This busy week will be about stretching what we have, some extra baking to round out what we have, preparing enough to feed my visiting MIL and the two of us, as well as leaving some food for my needed leftovers for gluten free survival. We are fine with simple or repetitive food if there is a sweet treat to be found after dinner. Smart shopping and planning these past few months does the rest with the $ I have to work with... because I have few purchases to make to 'round out' what I have. Living here, corn tortillas made the day I buy them cost .79 a dozen at my local Mexican market. Avocados are 3 for a dollar this week and limes, 6 for a dollar.

All citrus fruit, greens, and avocados are coming into season and were also available at my farmer's market on Saturday...where I found my beautiful, speckled **lettuces and kale. Desert living has it's benefits. I'll have access to locally grown greens and citrus all winter!

Monday

Rice Pasta w/ hot turkey sausage and marinara. Mixed green salad, garlic bread

Tuesday

Tamale Pie; pinto beans, veggies, green chilies, and cheese topped with *precooked polenta and baked. Avocado-Corn Salad.

Wednesday

Turkey Burgers for hubby and MIL, a Sunshine Burger*** for me. Baked potato fries, garlic green beans. Any leftover salads from Monday or Tuesday.

Thursday

Baked Whole Chicken stuffed with lime, cilantro, and chilies. Rice, warm kale-apple-lime salad

Friday

Turkey Burger Parmesan; burgers coated with bread crumbs, browned in olive oil then topped with leftover marina and cheese, covered and finished on the stove top or oven. Green salad w/ mixed lettuces and kale

Saturday

Tortilla Soup; broth and leftover chicken from Thursday. Add leftover rice. Add salsa. Let simmer, top with fresh made tortilla chips, avocado, lime, and cheese.

Sunday

Breakfast Night!

Eggs, pork sausage patties, cinnamon raisin toast, oranges.

BAKING

Sandwich bread, cinnamon raisin bread (oh so good toasted), dark chocolate brownies, banana bread

* Have you seen those tubes of polenta at the market? I've been playing with them for years. I like to mash in some fresh garlic, cumin, and a small amount of Mexican oregano and lime juice...then spread the mashed mix on top of the casserole dish. They're also really good sliced and fried in butter then used in place of an English muffin for Eggs Benedict, or as an Italian themed breakfast topped with an egg, fresh basil, and some Italian sausage. I think they are less than $2.00 at Trader Joe's and less than $3 or 4.00 at 'regular' grocery stores.

Pick one up and play...see what happens.

**When you bring home fresh greens, rinse them, dry thoroughly, wrap in a clean dish towel or paper towels, then place in a storage bag. Dry greens will last all week!

***Sunshine Burgers are the only gluten free, soy free veggie burgers I can find. Almost every other brand out there includes 'vital wheat gluten'. These are sunflower seed based. I like all 3 varieties (traditional, Southwest, and BBQ) but the BBQ is my favorite. I love to top it with sharp cheddar, red onions, and BBQ sauce, yum.

Flexibility

2009-12-03T11:11:00.000-08:00

Thursday already?

I always like to stop and compare the menu I created with what we've cooked. This week I've only cooked dinner on Monday and Tuesday so far. Last night's trip to the shopping plaza with the In and Out Burger was a set up by my hubby, lol!

In and Out offers the only 'fast food' I've willingly eaten in 18 years. Fresh, never frozen burgers gladly wrapped in lettuce...when ordered "protein style", and served with fresh, real potato and potato only french fries. A nice mid- week treat indeed...also one of the many reasons to enjoy living in "the summer inferno" known as AZ. And we did get a great deal on some holiday lights after we ate.

Never took the turkey sausage out to thaw, so those will get recycled back into next weeks menu and tonight's bison Sheppard's pie...will be Friday's, since hubby has requested my quick baked beans and some fresh German Bratwurst, ready to be eaten as it was bought on sale in October, that "jumped out of the freezer and into his hands" this morning. If I add the leftover roasted veggies from Tuesday to the bratwurst or save them for the Shep pie tomorrow...it should all work out. The chicken will also stay in the freezer for next week, and Saturday has now become, Leftover Night.

If making leftovers is a GF survival tactic...then FLEXIBILITY... is surely another

Butternut Squash Risotto

2009-12-01T20:33:00.000-08:00

Risotto cookery in our home started as a result of my teasing of my husband's need to stir while cooking. He just enjoys it...especially, it seems, when he shouldn't. I found risotto to be a perfect match for him and he's now found channeling a 'Noni' somewhere, stirring with his rice paddle.

I think this could actually be called, Lesson of Patience or Hug In A Bowl, for risotto is somehow both. Silky and creamy featuring almost al dente grains of rice, slowly cooked in chicken stock, butter, and infused with butternut squash and Parmesan cheese.

It thickens and becomes even more tender and luscious as it rests... though I'm pretty sure that's a 'risotto sin', so in honor of Italian grandmothers everywhere, we always serve it as soon as the rice is just tender.

Mangiare!

Butternut Squash Risotto/ Risotto con la Zucca

Set aside about 2 cups fresh cooked or leftover cooked butternut squash. Roasted is my preference but a quick steam or boil works too.

In a 2 quart sauce pan, gently heat 6 cups (1 box &1 can of chicken broth) stock. Keep warm.

In a deep skillet over MED heat:

Melt 4 TBS of unsalted butter

Add 1/2 cup of finely minced onion

Keep the onions moving in the pan for about 3-4 minutes, until translucent, not browned.

Add 2 cups Aborio rice to pan, stir gently for 1-2 minutes till rice is coated and beginning to whiten; do not brown.

Add either 1/2 cup of dry white wine, or your choice of a 1/2 cup of; apple juice, stock, water, the liquid your squash cooked in. Stir until liquid is absorbed.

Start adding single ladle fulls of of the warm stock and stirring until the liquid is absorbed each time before you add another ladle full.

You will be 'ladling' and stirring for close to 20 minutes. Grab a friend and share the job (and the wine) and you'll be done in no time.

When a 1/4 of the stock remains, start adding the cooked squash with the chicken broth, leaving 1-2 ladle fulls to 'finish' the dish.

When the last 1-2 ladle fulls have been nearly absorbed, the rice should feel like al dente pasta between your teeth. Cook it longer for more tender rice... but beware of overcooking it into tasty yet undesired rice grits.

Turn off heat.

Stir in a big TBS of butter, and about 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan.

Serve with a sprinkle of some more Parm, fresh grated nutmeg and or fresh ground black pepper...Ahhhh.

All of the ingredients can be found in grocery stores everywhere. Buy the best you can. Trader Joe's offers a quart of organic, free range chicken broth for $1.99. You will need 1 'box' and 1 can. Better still...if you haven't started making your own chicken stock yet, now would be the time. You can substitute veggie broth, margarine, and soy cheese if you so desire.

This is almost always made with sage added. I was sort of 'all saged out' from Thanksgiving. I don't feel we missed it since the resulting risotto was so creamy and wonderful...but I'll have to make it again to compare ;)

Thai Turkey Meatloaf

2009-11-30T15:49:00.000-08:00

I call this Thai simply because of the smell of it cooking reminds me of a Thai restaurant...even though the sauce I use, comes from Malaysia. This is 1-barely a low 2 on a heat scale of 5, when made according to directions. This, like most of my recipes, is a springboard from which your own creativity may leap from. Enjoy.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

In a large bowl, combine:

2 lbs. of ground turkey

1 egg or equivalent of egg replacer

1 cup of cooked rice. I used leftover long grain brown today. Use any cooked rice...Jasmine is especially nice.

1 large carrot, shredded

6 scallions, green and white parts, thinly sliced. Reserve a 1/4, set aside.

1/2 cup of prepared hot sauce with ginger*. Reserve 3 TBS.

Garlic, finely minced or pressed, to taste

Ginger, finely minced, to taste

Fresh basil, mint, and cilantro, to taste.

If you are not cooking for my husband or avoiding them, some thinly sliced and diced red bell peppers are a nice addition as well.

Mix thoroughly and shape into loaf. Place in baking dish, add 2 TBS of water, cover with foil and let bake for 35-45 minutes. Uncover, brush with reserved sauce, sprinkle with reserved scallions and let bake another 10-15 minutes. The final internal temp should be 165 so pull it by 155-160 and allow for carryover cooking while resting. Let rest before slicing.

I don't add serving sizes because I over cook to allow for leftovers, a gluten free survival tactic. If I had to guess...you could probably feed 6 hungry people or more. The recipe is easily doubled, tripled, and so on as well as freezes well after it's been cooked. Also...leave out the rice and egg sometime for a thrilling turkey burger.

* I use Lingham's Hot Sauce w/ Ginger and Garlic which is available in most Asian markets or online at www.treasureshidden.com . You can easily make a similar sauce by combining:

1/2 cup of ketchup, lots of minced ginger and garlic, and adding hot sauce to taste.

Tonight I'm serving it with broccoli and bok choy but it is lovely with the following recipe which gives you another place to use the herbs on hand for the meatloaf.

Spring Roll Salad

In a large bowl, combine:

Unsweetened rice wine vinegar

Honey

Stir until honey is combined.

Add and toss in the amounts you need:

Cabbage, thinly sliced

Carrots, shredded

Scallions, thinly sliced

Mung or sunflower sprouts

Fresh basil, mint and cilantro

GLUTEN FREE MENU 11/30-12/06

2009-11-30T12:48:00.000-08:00

Oh Monday. How you sneak right up under the cover of gentle Sunday. A new week, a new gluten free dinner menu.

Monday

Thai Turkey Meatloaf w/ broccoli and bok choy, and a sunflower sprout and fresh mint salad.

Tuesday

Butternut Squash Risotto w/ a roasted veggie antipasto salad

Wednesday

Bison Sheppard's Pie w/ an apple-cabbage slaw

Thursday

Rice Pasta w/ Italian turkey sausage and marinara. Caesar salad.

Use left over roasted veg from Tuesday for marinara.

Friday

Roast Chicken stuffed w/ green chilies, lime, cilantro, and garlic. W/ rice, pinto beans, avacado salad.

Saturday

Tortilla Soup made with last night's chicken carcass.

Use Friday's leftover beans as re- fried as a side, add leftover rice to soup.

Sunday

As always...Breakfast For Dinner

Cinnamon Raisin French Toast, bacon, fruit.

BAKING

Sandwich bread, cinnamon raisin bread, cookies

Welcome!

2009-11-27T13:51:00.000-08:00

After much prompting from friends and family, here it is; my gluten free cooking blog with recipes, photos, weekly menus and shopping tips.

I'm doing this for my own sanity as well as the hope that ONE person will stumble upon this and find something in what I say... that can improve their life. I am a woman who cooks gluten free food on a budget. I strive to buy local and organic as often as possible. I worked in the natural foods industry in many different positions from clerk to buyer and I have a deep understanding of the politics of food...but I will also use Velveeta as a dip for Frito's every now and again just because it's gluten free. I know it's not real food but my brain says 'normal, familiar, salty, crunchy is good'. It's like a taste of childhood and is one of my few guilty pleasures left in life.

A friend described my food as Global Comfort. I like it. I am an adventurous cook and will gladly push limits, fuse together a meal from 4 continents, and try the 'weird' thing on the menu. I also really like that comfort part...warm, creamy, one dish, familiar.

My only limit is my imagination. I was a vegetarian for 7 years. I am no longer, for reasons purely my own...which I'll gladly share. Being an omnivore is perfect for my gluten free life. I eat meat, eggs, dairy, and honey freely and I am as grateful to my bison burger as I am to my Swiss chard. Energy is energy and life feeds on life. I honor both equally and who's to say the energy of the chard is any less or more sacred the the burger. OK...bison are more sacred but not for this argument. When children are born without the teeth to eat it, I will stop eating meat. Oh...I am outspoken and stubbornly set in some continually evolving principles based on my life's experience. To balance that out, I am non-judgemental and expect the same from other evolved people.

I prioritize local and or free range meats when I am able to. The politics and stark reality of commercial meat farming are enough to keep me prioritized too...except when my own fiscal reality prevails. $4.99 a lb VS $14.99 a lb is a huge difference in reality land. The same applies to dairy foods in my reality. Eggs and most produce get the preferred treatment weekly, as local, organic finds from my farmer's market. I'm looking towards finding the money in my budget towards a weekly share in my local and very active Community Supported Agriculture program.

I also spent many years as cook and worked my way up 'the line' to become a seasoned caterer and personal chef. I am one of those cooks that can recall every detail of almost every meal I ever ate and recreate many of my favorites from those memories. Even now the act of remembering an Indian meal in Berkeley about 4 years ago is making my mouth water and filling my nose with cumin and cardamon. Food is my life...and no longer my enemy.

My person health struggle is posted under the blog titled DUH. Read it and you'll understand the title.

I am 100% gluten free. I was lucky enough to have knowledge about the foods I can and can not eat. I can't imagine how someone eating a SAD (standard American diet) can do this without professional help.

The SAD is filled with foods of convenience, factory assembled and then frozen, canned, or otherwise processed...then shipped to your grocer or your favorite chain of restaurants. We consume less fresh food and we begin to think what we're eating is still food. (Please refer to the movie Soylent Green and get back to me)

Gluten: One of many protein like substances found in different forms in wheat, barley, rye, spelt, and other grains...as well as being a sneaky bugger because it is found in almost every prepared food in the country.

In a person with gluten intolerance, it causes severe abdominal distress; bloating, gas, diarrhea or constipation, and heartburn as well as other non digestive symptoms. Some people with Celiac are asymptomatic and never feel it until it's too late and they have damaged intestines, bones, nerve pathways, or intestinal lymphoma. A note of interest. 2 asymptomatic Celiacs I know that are gluten free...upon accidental 'glutening', they now feel all the symptoms.

Knowing the right foods is easier than remembering all of the wrong foods...in all of their incarnations; vegetable protein, fillers, modified food starches...and on and on. I had given up the SAD years ago so it's been easier for me than most; you don't miss eating something you haven't eaten in years. It still shocked me when I found it in just about everything in my healthy kitchen.

I must admit though...I've never had a sweet tooth but have been baking up a storm since food stopped making me sick. I'm also a fan of the Kozy Shack and that's all I'll say about that.

But there are major challenges...cost being the first to come to mind. I found lots of great information on the web. So much so that I found myself confused. I can't afford a 'perfect organic gluten free diet' no matter how much I crave one. Agave nectar and coconut flour are fine foods and I will use them when I have spare $ to spend on them. I LOVE Elana's cookbook and her blog. That was not a jab at her. She is my role model in many culinary aspects. I'm just 'financially challenged' after being unable to work for almost 2 years :)

So what about the rest of us? Those of use trying to use a conventional grocery store and health foods with limited funds? Those of us that just want to eat? Well...that's what you will find here. And why global? Because we are.

If you are an American, chances are, your ancestors came from somewhere else and our food reflect that. Also, by adopting a global perspective on food...suddenly rice noodles become approachable. They ARE comfort food for billions of people. So are millet, quinoa, and other strange sounding, naturally gluten free 'grains', as well as masa, grits, polenta, and risotto.

Most of these are affordable, can be bought in bulk, and in reality land, most can be bought at almost any grocery store in America. Even Costco offers organic quinoa, giant bags of rice, bulk containers of corn meal and grits, bags of masa harina for corn tortillas and tamales. Asian markets offer rice noodles starting at prices less than a dollar. Money does not have to be the deciding factor between wellness and it's alternative if you plan well, shop smart (and full), and are willing to do some baking...OK, allot of baking in some cases but ever so worth your efforts of energy, time, and money.

People like my food. I have never brought home leftovers from potlucks and rarely had leftovers from small catering events. It's sometimes simple, sometimes complex, sometimes spicy, sometimes a bowl of 'rainy day, jammies on' comfort in a bowl, and now it's always gluten free.

DUH

2009-10-26T13:47:00.000-07:00

Well...it took over 2 years, 6 doctors, and thousands of dollars in negative, uninsured testing for ME to figure out what's been so wrong with me.

I had been feeling like crap for quite sometime. Lots of fatigue, joint pain, muscle pain and spasms, 'digestive' issues, and a skin rash. I had left a full time buying position at a health food store thinking I was stressed and over worked. An opportunity to work as a part time as a baker opened and I took it. While I was baking, my allergies started acting up. I was living on Claritin and Benadryl and feeling worse every day. I'd come home and watch joints swell in my hands and feet before I'd hit the bed, where I'd stay until my next shift. Finally I just basically collapsed at work and thought my kidneys had failed or something... so I quit...and so began the testing.

I was tested for almost every auto-immune disease known, various cancers, X-Ray'd, and CAT scanned. Doctor after doctor said the same thing: Arthritis (I was 36) and Fibromyalgia. When I didn't respond to treatment, more testing revealed vitamin K and D deficiencies. I did respond to treating the D issue but then leveled off at still sick, still unable to think clearly, work, or live a life worth living. My husband and a close cousin took care of me from cleaning, cooking meals, to help with bathing. I honestly feel I may have died without their care. I was erratic, sick, helpless, and terrified. I started having periods of Peripheral Neuropathy; tingling and numbness, and was beginning to believe I has MS.

Back to the doctor and to the Neurologist that ordered testing to rule MS out of the picture. That same day...I lost my health insurance and never had the testing. This made me crazy. The state of Arizona decided that we made too much money...without ever looking at the costs of now 6 medications I was taking or medical bills. Thanks again there Gov'na. My primary doctor finally said "Here. Take this Nerontin and call me in 3 months." I'm sorry but have you ever read up on Nerontin? Thanks anyway.

I lived in pain, fear, and depression for months...not taking the Nerontin and trying anything I read about to feel better. I adopted an anti-inflammatory diet...saw improvement but no real health returning. I cleansed. I chanted. I prayed. I wrote. Nothing. I finally gave up haunting WEBMD and started trying to live my life as fully as I could...health be damned.

I joined Facebook, found long lost friends and relatives and took my mind off of feeling like I was 90...not 38. During a chat with a cousin I hadn't seen in 16 years, she casually mentioned she and one of her daughters had Celiac disease, or, gluten intolerance.

Humm, really?

I don't have what doctors consider classic Celiac symptoms...unless you look at what untreated Celiac does to the body. 90% of my symptoms WERE symptoms of unaddressed Celiac disease.

I jumped on the gluten free train the next day. Within 2 days...I was feeling a bit better. In 5 days I noticed I hadn't had a single bowel spasm. On day 7, 100% gluten free, I unintentionally consumed gluten. WOW. Was I sick! Abdominal bloating and a burning mouth and face were all I needed to see to know I was on the right track.

In retrospect...the DUH comes in. I was a BAKER when I got really sick. In gluten intolerance we call that, a trigger... DUH. Or in the words of Homer Simpson, D'oh!!

I still have no health insurance but since I have found gluten to be the cause for my health issues, my family w/ insurance, that's been tested tested for Gluten Intolerance... we're up to 6 , not including me. My 20 year old daughter will also be tested.

I now can just about laugh at the fact that the cause of my decline in health...first started years ago when I started eating really well; lots of whole grains, setian, and substituting spelt, for wheat. Spelt is very high in gluten content, and setian...is a mock meat made from, you guessed it. Gluten. I can also clearly hear my Dr ask me, "Have you been exposed to anything?" I'd laugh and say, "Just flour." I did not fit the Celiac picture he had in his head as most Dr's do...that of an emaciated, swollen bellied toddler.

There is a part of me that's really pissed off still...2 additional years of suffering would do that to anyone. I am focusing on releasing that anger and I may or may not be responsible for the updated literature on Celiac disease and gluten intolerance that my former dr's office just received.

Some helpful links: www.celiac.org, www.digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/celiac/

and www.celiac.com