No Gluten, No Problem

Golden Gate Dirty Thirty 50k 2013

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 13:31:00 +0000

Earlier this month I ran my third race of the year, the Golden Gate Dirty Thirty, a 50k trail race held at Colorado's Golden Gate Canyon State Park. The race was more or less a single 31-mile loop, primarily on singletrack trails, at elevations between 7,500 and 9,500 feet.

Unlike the Quad Rock 50 miler in May where my goal was to run conservatively, this time around I wanted to run hard. I told Kelli going into the race that my target was to finish in about 5:30.

The morning started off very brisk, with temps in the high 30s, maybe the low 40s best case. I was very glad to have my arm sleeves. A number of runners who dressed sparingly in favor of the warmer temps that would greet us later in the day stood around shivering at the start line before the beginning of the race.

The race director gave us all a few last-minute instructions, including two items that caused my ears to perk up. 1) The race offered a $100 award (or thereabouts) for bloodiest finisher. That was a first for me! 2) The race also offered a special prize to folks who became members of the 360 club, finishing in less than 6 hours (360 minutes). The 360 number initially struck me as liberal. Six hours is a relatively modest time to run a 50k. Shouldn't "club" membership have stricter standards? I'd soon learn why 360 was the number to beat, and by the end of the race I'd eat my words.

At first glance, the distance and elevation profile for the Dirty Thirty seemed similar to the Fruita trail race that kicked off my season. That was my benchmark, and I planned to match my exertion level in this race.

The race began with 3/4 mile or so of dirt road that allowed some of us to get sorted out before we hit the glorious singletrack that wound its way through the mountains. Life was good. I hit the first aid station feeling good, but by the time I met up with Kelli and the girls at the second aid station, questions were beginning to swirl in my head. I was falling behind my target pace, and even maintaining that slower pace was taking more exertion than I expected it to.

As I set off on the next leg of the race, more thoughts crept into my head. Something wasn't adding up. The number of climbs, and especially the magnitude of those climbs, just didn't seem to match the elevation stats and profile of the course. A realization slowly dawned: I had mis-read the stats for the course. What I thought was 8,000 vertical feet of elevation change was actually 8,000 feet of elevation gain and 16,000 vertical feet of elevation change (ascents plus descents). Talk about a major miscalculation!

That made this, per mile, the steepest ultra I've ever run. As one racer said later at the finish line, "You were either going up or down the whole time. None of that course was flat." Word.

I caught up with Kelli and the girls at the third aid station, located at a T junction in the trail. It was a demoralizing spot. The race course went left and uphill. But water and food was location right a few minutes downhill closer to a trailhead parking lot. I knew I had to head downhill to grab some nutrition and top off my bottle for the long leg ahead, but didn't relish the idea of having to re-climb back to that same spot where Kelli and the girls were waiting.

Then it was off up into the mountains once again. After hitting another aid station about an hour later, it was time for the biggest climb of the day, up to the summit of Windy Peak. The climb turned into something of a never-ending death march. Up and up it kept going. At one point I thought I'd reached the top—through the trees I could see a clearing ahead, with some race volunteers ringing a cowbell. Finally!

Only that turned out to be just the saddle between Windy Peak and another mountain, from which you continued the climb up to Windy's actual summit. It was a relief to finally reach Windy's high point. There another race volunteer punched your race bib as confirmation that you reached the top. "You must be popular today!" I told her. Oh yes, she agreed. "A number of people have told me they love me. I've even had one marriage proposal!"

After a long descent off Windy Peak and a modest climb toward the end of the race, there was just a moderate and wonderful downhill back to the finish line. By now I was running strong again, after really suffering through some of the big climbs and descents in the middle of the race. I popped out of the forest, off the singletrack and onto the dirt road that led in brief back to the finish line.

I crossed the finish line in 6:58:10, nearly an hour later than necessary for entry into the 360 club and an hour later than my slowest 50k race to date. Humbling, to say the least! I placed 123 out of 259 finishers. Right in the middle of the pack, really, but not where I had wanted to be.

It was incredible. My legs—and especially my knees—felt more beat up from this 50k race than they have after tough 50 milers. The relentless, steep climbs and descents really took a toll. But it was a great race none the less, and an important building block toward my biggest race later this year. More on that soon!

–Pete

All photos by Kelli, except #1, courtesy of Glen Delman Photography, used with permission.

Arancini

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Heritage is a funny thing. When you grow up with a certain flavor profile and ingredients in your foods, it becomes a part of you. (Or was it already a part of you, since the heritage was quite literally in your blood?)

So it seemed with these arancini. They're a dish that originated in Sicily about one thousand years ago. Risotto, formed into balls, often stuffed with mozzarella or ragu or tomato sauce, breaded, and finally deep fried.

I don't know that I ever ate arancini as a kid. If I did I have no memory of them. But my grandfather's side of the family hails from Sicily (as I'm sure I've written before, they immigrated to the United States through Ellis Island), and both Sicilian and Italian-American fare were staples of my family's diet.

Which is perhaps why, when I bit into my first arancini while we were testing this recipe, I already felt like I was home. The flavors, the ingredients, the experience were all familiar, even as the recipe itself was new.

But you don't have to be Sicilian to appreciate these arancini.

Arancini
Makes 30

Ingredients
For the risotto
1 large pinch saffron (optional)
1 cup dry white wine
3 tbsp olive oil
3 tbsp butter
1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
1 garlic clove, minced
3 cups GF chicken broth
2 tsp dried thyme
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

For the arancini
30 quarter-inch cubes mozzarella cheese
1 cup Italian-seasoned GF bread crumbs
1 1/2 liters (48 fl. oz.) frying oil

Steps
1. Add the saffron to the white wine and set aside (in your liquid measuring cup is fine).
2. In a wide-bottom pot, heat the olive oil and butter until the butter is melted over medium-low heat.
3. Add the onions and garlic, and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, in a separate saucepan, bring the chicken broth to a simmer.
5. Add the thyme and rice to the onions and garlic, and saute for one minute.
6. Add the saffron wine to the rice and stir until the wine is absorbed.
7. Add about one cup of the chicken broth to the rice and stir continuously until the broth is absorbed.
8. Add another ladle-worth of broth and continue stirring frequently until absorbed. Repeat this process until all of the broth is used up and the rice is soft and creamy, 20 to 30 minutes. (Make sure all the liquid is absorbed—you want a relatively dry risotto so your arancini balls hold together.)
9. Remove the risotto from the heat, stir in the Parmesan, spread in a thin layer in pan (such as a baking pan), and cover and refrigerate until chilled. (You can leave it chilled overnight if you want to make the recipe in two stages.)
10. Using a one-tbsp cookie scoop (or similar), scoop slightly heaping balls of risotto.
11. Make an indentation in the ball with your finger, add a cube of mozzarella, close the hole, and roll to make a ball. Place on a cookie sheet and repeat the process to make the 30 balls.
12. Bring your frying oil up to 350 deg F.
13. While the oil is heating, roll each of the balls in the seasoned bread crumbs to evenly coat.
14. Fry the balls for 3 minutes, in small batches to prevent sticking, until golden brown.
15. Drain on a paper-towel-lined plate and repeat until you're done.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten/wheat-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, soy-free, egg-free*.

*The egg-free status of the recipe is dependent on the bread crumbs you use.

The recipe is easily made vegetarian by substituting vegetable broth for the chicken broth.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Quad Rock 50 2013

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 14:11:00 +0000

After a good start to the season at the Fruita Trail Marathon in April, I logged my second major race of the year last month at the Quad Rock 50 outside of Fort Collins. It's a gorgeous course that takes place on the trails of Lory State Park and Horsetooth Mountain Open Space. You do two 25+ mile laps—one clockwise, the other counter—basically climbing two peaks (Horsetooth Mountain and Arthur's Rock) each time, hence the quad (four) rocks. But quad could just as easily refer to the muscles in your legs, which would really be working for it. The course covered 51 miles and a very stout 22,000 vertical feet of elevation change. That made the Quad Rock 50 the most climbing and descending I've tackled in a race, beating out the Virgil Crest.

I went into the race with a healthy dose of respect for those stats. I wanted to run the race relatively conservatively, using it as a stepping stone toward peaking for other races later in the season. Even so, I was feeling confident in my fitness, and felt that if I ran within my limits I had a shot at maintaining a 12 minute per mile pace, which would allow me to flirt with a 10-hour finish and my current 50-mile mountain ultra PR of 10:17, which I set at the North Face Bear Mountain Endurance Challenge last year. It sounds like an oxymoron—setting a new PR at a distance while running conservatively—but I thought it was possible. (What's that they say about "even the best laid plans...?")

The race began shortly after dawn, with 172 starters hitting the trails. But to give you a sense for how tough this race was, by the end of the day more than 1 out of every 3 of those starters will have dropped out.

I met up with Kelli at the aid station at mile 10 after two hours, basically exactly on schedule with my target pace. I was running strong and my legs were feeling good. Then it was time to tackle the next major climb.

I saw her again a while later, waiting at the aid station that immediately preceded the long climb over Arthur's Rock. I topped off on fluids and nutrition here, because this would be the longest stretch between aid, and I'd need every drop of hydration and calories.

I was trying my hardest to stick to a disciplined nutrition plan, and by and large it was working. With the exception of the longer Arthur's Rock section, where I rationed my bottle, I was drinking a 20-ounce bottle of First Endurance EFS between each aid station, and taking a big shot of First Endurance EFS Liquid Shot gel every 30 minutes. Through the aid stations I was eating solid foods—some chocolate, a bit of soda, and mostly bananas, oranges, and watermelon. This strategy worked for the duration of the race. I was able to keep nutrition going in regularly and never reached a point where I felt like I couldn't eat, which can be a fairly common occurrence during ultras.

Once over Arthur's Rock it was a long descent into the start/finish line and the turnaround point for 50-mile runners. By now my legs weren't feeling nearly as spry as they were in the early miles. It was becoming clear that this would be a long, tough day. The final miles into the halfway point were in some ways the worst—you were out of the trees and exposed to the hot sun, and you could see the cars parked at the turnaround but never seemed to get any closer, doing switchback after switchback across the mountainside. After what felt like an eternity I finally reached it.

Kelli and the girls were there waiting as usual. It's really a huge motivational boost to have them lending support through the aid stations. In an attempt to stay cooler I swapped my black T-shirt for a white one, then it was time to head back up those switchbacks and over Arthur's Rock.

I'd seen the lead 50-mile runners heading back up that climb during my descent, and I was impressed how strong they were running and how fresh they looked. Now heading up that climb as well, I was even more impressed. I knew Colorado in general had a more competitive ultra scene than New York, but times like this really drove the point home. Whenever you (ahem, I) feel like hot stuff because you run mountain ultramarathons, along comes a race course like this and racers like those to put you back into your appropriately humble place in the world!

I saw Kelli and the girls again at the base of Arthur's Rock and let her know exactly how I was feeling, which wasn't hot. In pretty much every 50-miler I've done, I hit a low point somewhere between miles 25 and 35, after which I find a second wind to finish strong. I was now approaching that low point and feeling fairly lousy. Cardiovascularly and gastrointestinally I felt pretty much great, but my legs were feeling increasingly hammered by the climbs and descents.

Though I had intended to reserve it for my recovery after the race, I asked Kelli to run to the car and get my First Endurance Ultragen. Right there on the spot, in more or less a single massive chug, I sucked down the entire 20-ounce bottle, with all the hydration and calories that it offered. Then it was time to gut out the next climb.

The next climb, from that aid station to a remote aid station at the top of a section called Towers, was more or less a glorified power hike. I hadn't yet found my second wind, my legs were hurting, and I was focused on simply making steady forward (and upward) progress.

Two brief rain showers had passed earlier in the day, but mostly the race was sunny with temps in the 60s. But literally just as I strolled into the Towers aid station, a pretty major thunderstorm blew in. Thunder crashed in the mountains around us. A cold wind picked up, whipping the rain sideways. Hail the size of marbles started coming down. I hunkered down with about 5 other racers under a tent canopy at the aid station. We weren't about to step into that maelstrom. The amazing aid station volunteers even ran out in the rain and hail to their 4WD trucks to grab jackets and sweatshirts to put around us. Most of us were wearing nothing more than shorts and T-shirts, the temperature had dropped significantly, and the wind and rain weren't keeping anybody warm.

After more than 20 minutes the weather relented, and I decided it was time to once again hit the trails. By then my legs had gotten stiff, and it took a mile or two to shake out the cobwebs and warm up my muscles again.

I saw Kelli again around mile 40, and though the race was quickly becoming a matter of psychological determination and mind over matter, I now knew that I would finish, even if it took me a while to cover those last 11 miles.

There was one final major climb, which actually passed with relative ease. The tough part was the last major descent from the top of that climb. True to the race's name, my quads were rocked. I could jog the flats, power hike the uphills, but the steep downhills were too much and too painful to run. I was reduced to walking down that last descent. Blech.

But then I hit the valley floor, and life was glorious. I was still miles out from the finish line, but the terrain was gorgeous. A wildfire had ripped through this area earlier in the year, and now a moist spring had brought the grasses back in the most vibrant greens I've seen in Colorado. A singletrack of reddish brown dirt snaked its way through this landscape and I was able to soak up the picture-perfect trail running.

The last stretch of the race finished on a dirt road, and as I turned the final corner, the girls were there waiting as enthusiastically as ever. They jumped up and down, yelling at the top of their lungs, "Go, Daddy, Go!" I'm convinced that's the best boost a runner can get—better than the best sports drink or shot of energy gel.

They'd been out there cheering for me literally all day. Now I took them by the hand and they came across the finish line with me—12 hours and 42 minutes later. My official finish time was 12:42:25, 87th out of 111 finishers and 172 starters. It wasn't the finish I was planning to have, but it was a satisfying, hard-won finish none the less. Sometimes the biggest victories aren't the ones that come according to plan, but the ones you fight for when adversity sets in.

–Pete

All photos by Kelli, except 1 and 4, by Erin Bibeau Photography, used with permission.

Blueberry Bundt Cake

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 18:23:00 +0000

Meet the BBC. No, not that BBC, the British Broadcasting Corporation. I'm talking about this blueberry bundt cake. You know, the other BBC.

We may have bucked the season with last week's recipe for caramel apples, but this week we're diving back into seasonally inspired recipes. We're at the outset of summer, when blueberries are on their way to their peak.

This past weekend our neighbors hosted a summer kickoff barbeque. Most guests brought a dish to contribute. We made a large batch of this delicious vinegar slaw. Someone else brought a bundt cake. It was of the "standard" gluten variety, and so off limits. But that's never stopped us from running home (in this case, literally around the block) to make our own gluten-free version.

Blueberry Bundt Cake
Makes 1 cake

Ingredients
3 cups (375g) Artisan Gluten-Free Flour Blend (3 1/4 cups (406g) at high altitude)
1 tbsp GF baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp xanthan gum
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) butter, room temperature
1 2/3 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
8 oz sour cream
zest of 1 lemon
1 lemon juiced (about 1/4 cup)
1 pint fresh blueberries

For the Glaze
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice

Steps
1. Grease a 10-inch bundt pan. Preheat the oven to 350 deg F.
2. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and xanthan gum in a bowl. Mix to combine and set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy.
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing to incorporate after each addition.
5. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the vanilla, sour cream, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Mix to combine.
6. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again. Add the dry ingredients. Mix on medium-low until just combined, about 10 seconds. Then, mix at high speed for 5 seconds.
7. Fold in the blueberries.
8. Spread in the pan and use a spatula dipped in water to smooth the top surface of the cake.
9. Bake for 50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
10. Cool completely in the pan. Flip out when cool.
11. To make the glaze: mix together the powdered sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl.
12. Drizzle the cooled cake with the glaze.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten/wheat-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, soy-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, vegetarian.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Caramel Apples

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Fri, 31 May 2013 13:25:00 +0000

Before you say anything, we admit: it's not exactly apple season. But such is the joy of cravings. This past Memorial Day Weekend we went camping at Steamboat Lake State Park in northern Colorado. On Sunday we attempted to climb Hahns Peak, an almost-11,000-foot peak just north of the lake. The girls did great, doing much of the hiking under their own power. But we turned back shy of the summit because of deep snow still in the trees.

On our way down the mountain and back to the car—with the girls now on our backs in kid-carrier backpacks—our older daughter Marin expressed a craving for caramel apples. The nearby Columbine General Store didn't have any caramel apples, unfortunately. But as you've probably experienced, once a craving sets in, it's hard to ignore until it's been satisfied. And so this week we set to work delivering on that craving. This is the result!

Caramel Apples
Makes 6 apples

Ingredients
1/4 cup butter (or coconut oil)
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup agave nectar
Pinch salt
1 cup heavy cream (or coconut cream*)
1 tsp GF pure vanilla extract
6 whole, room-temperature apples

Steps
1. In a saucepan, combine the butter, brown sugar, agave nectar, and salt, and bring to a boil.
2. Add the cream and stir. Then bring it to 250–252 deg F.
3. Meanwhile, prepare an ice water bath large enough for the pan to fit.
4. When the caramel reaches temperature, add the vanilla, and place the pan in the ice water until the bubbling stops.
5. Remove from the ice water bath, and stir slowly until the caramel is very smooth.
6. Allow the caramel to cool for about two minutes.
7. Meanwhile, place a layer of parchment paper on a baking sheet and sprinkle lightly with granulated sugar.
8. Skewer your apples, then prepare to dip! Slowly roll each apple in the caramel to evenly coat. Hold out of the caramel and let drip for 20 seconds. Then invert and hold for another 20 seconds. Place the apples on the prepared parchment paper.

Notes
Caramel can be a fickle beast. Many recipes recommend bringing the caramel to 248–250 deg F. This results in a lighter and very smooth caramel, but in our experience it's too "loose"—the caramel remains soft and eventually oozes off your apple over time. Meanwhile, bringing the caramel up to 255 deg F results in a darker, richer caramel, but one that is prone to developing air bubbles as it cools on the apples and is a touch too firm. The sweet spot—metaphorically and literally speaking—is 252 deg F. Store finished apples at room temp; do not refrigerate.

*For the coconut cream, your goal is to separate the coconut cream from the coconut milk in a 14-ounce can of full fat coconut milk. Place the can in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Use a puncture can opener to pour the milk out of the bottom of the can. Then use the remaining coconut cream to prepare the recipe. (The coconut milk can be reserved for another use.)

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten/wheat-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, soy-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, vegetarian, and corn-syrup-free (most caramel includes some corn syrup).

This recipe is also easily made dairy/lactose/casein-free and vegan by substituting coconut oil and coconut cream for the butter and heavy cream. In fact, the photo above is of the dairy-free version!

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Blood, Sweat, and Jeers (and Cheers!)

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 30 May 2013 13:20:00 +0000

In these final days of National Celiac Awareness Month, I thought I'd get personal on the issue of health and be fully transparent by sharing the results of my annual physical blood tests.

Now that we're back in Colorado, I've resumed seeing the primary care holistic doc who first pegged my troubles with gluten back in early 2007. (What can I say? I feel a certain sense of loyalty to the man since he successfully uncovered what other doctors had failed to...) I haven't seen him since 2010, since we were living in New York for all of 2011 and most of 2012.

So why share my blood test results? There are two illustrative reasons.

First, I hope that by using myself as a transparent example, I can be at least one demonstration of how an active gluten-free lifestyle with a particular set of dietary choices can result in positive health outcomes.

Second, and maybe more importantly, I'm hoping to refute some of the haters out there. Let me explain. The gluten-free community these days is larger and more diverse than ever. Within that broad group, you find some very conservative opinions about what the "right" and "wrong" types of gluten-free diet are. Just yesterday, a gluten-free blogger-friend was taken to task by a reader on social media for the butter and sugar she used in a recipe. There are those who vilify gluten-free grains, such as rice, corn, and quinoa. There are those who take it a step further and also vilify gluten-free, non-grain carbohydrates, such as potatoes and tapioca. And the list could go on.

But as my Gluten-Free Edge co-author Melissa McLean Jory and I write, there are some sound nutritional principles to follow (such as focus your diet on fresh, whole foods), but there's also room for plenty of personal variability within that. We need not—and should not—be so dogmatic about our approach to the food we eat. And though I'm only a sample size of one, as you'll see, my blood test results refute the critics.

Some background: my lifestyle

Of course, before I share the actual test results, it's helpful to understand my particular form of the gluten-free lifestyle.

For one, it's an active lifestyle. As most of you know, I'm an ultramarathon-distance trail runner (currently 34 years old), and I train and race an average of 30–70 miles per week for a good chunk of the year. When I'm not trail running, you can also find me camping, hiking, rock and ice climbing, skiing, you get the idea.

For another, my diet is focused on fresh, whole foods. Lots of fruits and vegetables (including fairly regular morning smoothies, as well as tofu). Some eggs and modest amounts of dairy (plenty of Greek yogurt, plus milk, butter, mozzarella cheese). Some nuts and seeds. A regular sprinkling of seafood (primarily fish and shrimp, and not nearly enough lobster for my liking). Lean meats (chicken, turkey), with some pork, and smaller quantities of beef.

And finally, while it's focused on fresh, whole foods, it's also moderately indulgent. I enjoy from-scratch gluten-free pizza more or less weekly. I drink my fair share of wine (probably 1–2 bottles per week, if I'm being honest with myself), to a lesser degree gluten-free beer, and in the summer months cocktails. In modest quantities, but on a fairly regular basis week in and week out, I enjoy treats such as chocolate, ice cream, potato chips, and especially from-scratch baked gluten-free goodies, ranging from cookies to cupcakes (usually in association with developing recipes for the blog).

Please do note that my diet includes many of the items some members of the gluten-free community vilify: rice, corn, quinoa, sweet and white potatoes, soy (via tofu), brown rice pasta, an all-purpose flour blend that includes whole grain brown rice flour, whole grain sorghum flour, cornstarch, potato starch, and potato flour. We bake (and sweeten other dishes as needed) with a variety of options including white sugar, brown sugar, molasses, honey, maple syrup, and agave nectar.

But enough about that. On to the results!

The blood test results

Electrolytes and other athlete-relevant markers

Sodium = 142 (target range: 136–145)
Potassium = 4.6 (3.5–5.1)
Chloride = 106 (96–111)
Creatinine = 0.73 (0.65–1.36)

As I noted back in March in a post about magnesium, a gluten-free diet resolved electrolyte imbalances across the board in peer-reviewed studies, and my own electrolyte panel is all in the sweet spot.

Blood sugar, protein, and the dreaded lipid panel

Glucose = 89 (70–99)
Calcium = 8.8 (8.5–10.1)
Total Protein = 7.3 (6.4–8.2)
Cholesterol = 182 (less than 200 desirable)
Triglycerides = 71 (less than 150)
HDL = 61 (40–59)
LDL = 107 (less than 100)
VLDL = 14 (less than 30)

As you can see, measures such as blood glucose, calcium, and total protein are in the sweet spot. My overall cholesterol is great. Even better news, my HDL (good cholesterol) is high. In fact, it has nearly doubled since 2010, when it was 35. The current level of 61 the American Heart Association and Mayo Clinic rate as "considered protective against heart disease." Meanwhile, my LDL (bad cholesterol) is in the "near optimal" range, again according to AHA and MC. Finally, my VLDL—an important risk factor for heart disease—is also in an optimal range.

Other measures

Vitamin D = 23 (30–150)

There were lots of other measures on my blood test, but the only one that was outside of desirable ranges was my vitamin D, which was a bit low. Curiously, it was exactly the same in 2013 as it was in 2010. I'm not especially surprised that it's low, since as a matter of routine I always get my annual physical in late winter/early spring, when your vitamin D levels are naturally their lowest over the course of the year. But I'll be paying closer to attention to getting good dietary sources of vitamin D and plenty of sunshine (not a problem when I'm trail running outdoors for hours on end these days).

Conclusion

As I said above, I'm only a sample size of one, and perhaps my ultra-running makes me a fairly unique case from a fitness standpoint. But the message is clear: a gluten-free diet combined with an active lifestyle can be a path to good—even great—health. And to the haters who maintain that gluten-free grains—or even gluten-free carbohydrates in general—are a path to destruction, let's all remember a bit of tolerance. Each person has to choose the form of the gluten-free diet that works best for their individual biology, and for some of us, that includes gluten-free grains and other carbs.

–Pete

Image copyright Skypixel | Dreamstime.com. Used with permission.

Mexican Churros

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 23 May 2013 13:17:00 +0000

Churros are a fried pastry based on a choux-style dough. They originated on the Iberian peninsula, though their popularity now extends far beyond Portugal and Spain, including much of Latin America. And what's not to love? It's fried dough, after all. And in this case, it's coated with cinnamon sugar and paired with chocolate sauce.

They can be straight, curved, or spiraled, and their classic ridged shape comes from piping them through a large star-shaped pastry tip. Much like how the ridges on gnocchi help to pick up more tomato sauce, we like to think churros' ridges help to pick up more chocolate sauce, but that's just a whimsical theory and not grounded in any real fact.

Mexican Churros
Makes 12–16 churros, 6–8 inches long each

Ingredients
1.5 L frying oil
1 cup water
4 tbsp (1/4 cup) butter
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 cups (250 g) Artisan Gluten-Free Flour Blend
3 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon
Chocolate sauce

Steps
1. Add the oil to a pot and bring up to 350 deg F. Use a candy thermometer to confirm and hold the temperature.
2. In a saucepan, combine the water, butter, sugar, and salt, and bring to a boil over high heat.
3. Remove from the heat, add the flour all at once, stirring vigorously until a ball of dough forms and pulls away from the side of the pan.
4. Transfer the dough to the mixing bowl of an electric mixer, and mix at low speed until the dough is only warm to the touch.
5. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing to incorporate each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl each time.
6. Transfer the dough to a piping bag fitted with a large star tip.
7. Pipe the dough directly into the oil, using a knife to cut the dough from the pastry tip to make 6–8-inch long strips.
8. Fry until golden brown, flipping halfway through to ensure even browning on all sides, about 3–5 minutes per side.
9. While the dough is frying, mix together the sugar and cinnamon in a shallow bowl or bread pan.
10. Remove onto a paper towel, let drain for 5 seconds, then toss in the cinnamon sugar to coat and serve on a plate.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten/wheat-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, soy-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, vegetarian.

You could likely make this recipe dairy/lactose/casein-free by substituting vegan shortening, coconut oik, or vegetable oil for the butter.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Fruita Trail Marathon 2013

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Wed, 22 May 2013 13:16:00 +0000

One month ago on April 20 I had my first trail race of the year. It was the Fruita Trail Marathon on Colorado's Western Slope, in slickrock canyon country above the Colorado River. On paper it was a single 25-mile loop, with 3,400 vertical feet of elevation gain and 6,800 feet of elevation change total, primarily on singletrack trails. In other words, it was my kind of race.

As usual with the first race of the season, my goal here was mostly to test my fitness and gauge the progress I'd need to make to get ready for bigger races later in the season. Based on the stats for this race, my target was to flirt with breaking four hours.

It was decently chilly the night before and morning of the race; as I recall, in the low 40s. But the day would warm quickly and remained mercifully overcast—the route is relentless exposed to the sun, with zero tree cover to speak of in the desert, and blazing sunshine and hot temps could really cook you out there.

The bombing at the Boston Marathon had happened just five days earlier, and the race began with a particularly somber moment of silence. One racer wore a commemorative sign on the back of his shirt and carried a large American flag the entire race, just one of many signs of solidarity and support runners nationwide showed in the wake of the tragedy.

The race began with a mile and a half or so of dirt road, which gave us all a little time to sort out our paces and positions before hitting the singletrack. I came into the first aid station—where Kelli and the girls were waiting—running strong. Although it took a few miles to shake some cobwebs out of my legs, once warmed up they were feeling good and I was on or slightly ahead of target pace.

Before I ever came in to that aid station, it was clear that I'd overdressed for the temps. I left my long-sleeve shirt with Kelli, and if I could have stripped off my running tights I would have, but left my shorts in the car.

The course scenery was nothing short of spectacular. We ran on the edges of various mesas and canyons, with the Colorado River far below. I'd like to think that it was this distracting scenery that caused me to trip and fall somewhere around mile 8 or 9. I didn't fully hit the deck; I put my hands down to catch myself, but the rocks cut my palms up pretty well.

My gluten-free race nutrition plan for this shorter event was pretty low key: start with First Endurance EFS in my bottle, but then refill with the race's sports drink, plus fuel up with the fresh fruit, chocolate, and soda available at aid stations.

When I came into the next aid station, there were large bulk bags of M&Ms. I kindly asked one of the volunteers to pour some into my hands, holding out my bloody palms. "What, you don't want to reach into the bag?" he said. I told him with a smile that I didn't mind, but that other racers might not appreciate that.

Then it was off for more canyon country trail running.

Despite the fact that my main goals were to a) test my fitness, and b) if things were feeling good, push to break 4 hours, it's sometimes hard to resist racing more aggressively. In the back of my mind, I kept returning to the idea that if I ran well, I could contend for a top 20 finish.

My strategy was to maintain a solid pace and "reel in" other runners as they faded later in the race. There were just two problems with that strategy: 1) the front-running racers didn't fade, and 2) I did. As the miles ticked by in the later stages of the race, I could feel myself slipping off my own target pace. Argh!

At the final aid station, the girls were there—smiling and cheering as loudly as ever, offering high fives as I came through—which offered a great motivational boost. There was one final substantial climb to immediately come, then a traverse of a ridge, long descent, and a flat on the gravel road back to the finish line.

I crossed the finish line in 4:20:10, good for 27th out of 131 finishers.

That's when Kelli clued me in to a little fact I'd somehow completely overlooked. Although in previous years the race was 25 miles, some course re-routes for this year resulted in an honest 26.2-mile marathon. I wasn't off pace quite as much as I'd thought I was. If you backed out that extra 1.2 miles, my finish time would have been just under 4:10, only 20 seconds or so per mile slower than I'd hoped to run.

The sun eventually broke through the clouds, and we made our way back to our campsite at a state park along the Colorado River a short drive away. On the way, we stopped to pick up some refreshing New Planet Raspberry Ale (gluten-free beer is always a good post-race nutrition plan!) and kick back for the afternoon.

It was a good start to the season.

All photos by Kelli except 3rd image, by Glen Delman Photography.

Review: New Planet Beer's Belgian and Amber Ales

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:07:00 +0000

It's been more than 7.5 months since we've posted a product review. This has been a deliberate shift on our part. As this blog and our recipes evidence, our focus is on from-scratch cooking and baking. Regularly posting gluten-free product reviews was inconsistent with our perspective, because frankly, we don't buy or use most of the products we were reviewing.

But we're coming out of retirement, so to speak, this week with a review of New Planet Beer's two new offerings: Belgian Ale and Amber Ale. Why? For one, gluten-free beer is something that we buy on a somewhat regular basis. Sure, we homebrew gluten-free beer, too. But our current capacity means that we have one—maybe two, under best-case scenario—batches of homebrew on hand. Commercially available gluten-free beer is a great way to add variety to our options. Plus, it's both National Celiac Awareness Month and National Craft Beer Week.

We have a long history of reviewing New Planet's beers. We've twice reviewed their Blonde Ale (once called Tread Lightly Ale) here and again here. When their Raspberry Ale came out, we reviewed that too. Ditto for their Pale Ale, which remains one of my favorite gluten-free beers. We've also featured New Planet in a blind tasting against other gluten-free beers, as well as in another blind tasting against barley-based pale ales. (New Planet is also a long-time supporter for my annual Gluten-Free Ultramarathon Challenge, which in three years has raised more than $9,000 for the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness.)

With the addition of the Belgian and Amber ales to their lineup, New Planet now offers five—count 'em, five!—gluten-free beers. Most gluten-free beer companies are one-trick ponies ... think Redbridge or New Grist, which offer a single brew. Omission offers two. Only Green's, which brews six varieties in Belgium but only imports three to the United States, rivals New Planet for variety.

So how do New Planet's new offerings stack up?

Belgian Ale

My maternal grandmother was from Belgium, and so Belgian beers hold a special place near and dear to my heart (and taste buds). New Planet's Belgian Ale is brewed with water, sorghum and brown rice extract, honey, orange peel, cinnamon powder, vanilla extract, sterling hops, and yeast. It weighs in at 5% ABV.

That they call it a Belgian Ale isn't terribly informative, however. It's like calling a beer American. What does that mean? Belgian beers are incredibly diverse: from the sour lambics to the fruit beers, from the wild farmhouse ales to the saisons and wits and Trappist ales. What style of Belgian beer was New Planet actually going for?

The inclusion of ingredients such as orange peel and cinnamon suggest a saison. But for me, New Planet's Belgian Ale largely misses the mark. Its defining characteristic is an overly yeasty flavor. The orange, cinnamon, and vanilla are nowhere to be found. Despite high hopes, this one left me disappointed.

Amber Ale

New Planet's Amber Ale is brewed with water, sorghum and brown rice extract, molasses, tapioca maltodextrin, sterling and simcoe hops, and yeast. It also weighs in at 5% ABV. I must admit, I've been craving darker gluten-free beers. After years of having mostly lighter gluten-free beers as options, the prospect of a darker amber ale got me really excited.

I'm happy to report that New Planet's Amber Ale more than delivers. It has rich, complex flavors. In my opinion, it's one of the best new additions to the gluten-free beer landscape in a long time, perhaps since New Planet's own pale ale came out a while back. The Amber Ale has earned an instant spot alongside my regular rotation of gluten-free beers. Grab a six pack and enjoy.

–Pete

Tabbouleh

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 16 May 2013 13:23:00 +0000

Tabbouleh is a classic Middle Eastern salad traditionally made with bulgar (wheat!), tomatoes, finely chopped parsley, mint, onion, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. There are, of course, many variations on that theme, including versions that sub couscous (more wheat!) for the bulgar, as well as gluten-free versions that use quinoa in place of bulgar. For our version, we've gone with brown rice that we ground in a food processor to give a shape and texture closer to what you'd expect if you made this dish with bulgar.

Tabbouleh
Makes 4 servings

Ingredients
1/3 cup brown rice
2/3 cup water
1 bunch parsley, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
2 tbsp chopped mint
1/4 cup grape tomatoes, diced small
1/2 shallot, minced
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lemon, juiced (about 2 tbsp)
Salt and pepper to taste

Steps
1. Grind the brown rice in a food processor until you have small pieces. This takes a few minutes. Use a fine mesh strainer to remove any "rice powder" and retain only the broken rice grains.
2. Add to a saucepan with 2/3 cup of water, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 35 minutes. Remove from the heat, fluff the rice, then spread out (such as on a cookie sheet) to cool.
3. Combine the cooked rice with all remaining ingredients in a bowl. Toss to mix well. Refrigerate and serve cool.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free/wheat-free, dairy/lactose/casein-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, soy-free, vegetarian, vegan.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Celiac Awareness Infographic

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Wed, 15 May 2013 11:00:00 +0000

Today is May 15th, which means we've officially reached the halfway point through National Celiac Awareness Month. There is much to potentially celebrate—awareness is up, rates of diagnosis are up (or so I anecdotally hear), food companies and restaurants are increasingly offering gluten-free options.

But clearly there's much more work still to be done. Rates of successful celiac disease diagnosis are still far below the actual prevalence of the disease in the population. "Gluten-free"—for better or worse—is an in vogue fad at the moment. And misconceptions about forms of gluten intolerance and the gluten-free diet persist.

A sobering reminder of the challenge still before us is hopefully encapsulated in this basic infographic I've created, which compares the Google search popularity of "gluten" vs. "celiac." Click on the image to enlarge it, and if you find it of value, please share it widely. The take-home message is painfully clear: while gluten and the gluten-free diet are surging in popularity, awareness about celiac disease in particular—at least as measured by Google searches—has remained dead flat for the last decade.

–Pete

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Apple Cider Bacon Demi Glace

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Wed, 08 May 2013 13:26:00 +0000

It's been an interesting spring here in Colorado. We thought winter was over, and then—wham!—we got nailed by several major snowstorms, all in the past few weeks, including a blizzard of sorts that closed portions of I-70 for several hours ... on May 1.

All of this wintry weather has had a surprising effect on our cooking. We are well into spring, at least as far as the calendar is concerned, and so I'd expect our seasonally-inspired cooking to gravitate towards fresh fruits and vegetables that are coming into their prime. But frankly, the cold snowy weather has had us craving soul-warming foods more indicative of fall and winter. And what's more evocative of fall than apple cider? (Okay, maybe pumpkin pie would give it a run for its money, but you know what I mean...)

Instead, we're embracing apple cider (and bacon!) this spring to make a richly flavorful sauce that pairs wonderfully with grilled pork tenderloin rubbed in some basic spices. Plus, we're borrowing the amazingly successful technique from our filet mignon recipe earlier this year, and pre-warming the pork to an internal temp of 100 degrees before searing (or in this case, grilling) to finish it.

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Apple Cider Bacon Demi Glace
Makes three 1-pound tenderloins

Ingredients

For the pork:
Three 1-pound tenderloins
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
2 1/4 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp brown sugar

For the demi glace:
6–7 strips of bacon
75 g shallots, diced
5 large garlic cloves, minced
3 cups apple cider
2 cups chicken stock
2 tbsp GF Worcestershire sauce
3 bay leaves
20 black peppercorns
1 large sprig rosemary

Steps
1. Preheat the oven to 250 deg F.
2. Combine the salt, ground black pepper, garlic powder, and brown sugar to make a rub.
3. Divide evenly among the three tenderloins, rubbing to coat.
4. Place the tenderloins on a wire rack over a baking sheet or pan and pop in the oven until the internal temperature reads 100 deg F.
5. Meanwhile, start to prepare the demi glace: Slice the bacon into 1–2-inch pieces and cook in a medium saucepan (~2 L) until well done and the fat is rendered.
6. Remove the bacon and set aside. Pour off excess fat from the saucepan, retaining only 1–2 tbsp. Sweat the shallot and garlic in the retained bacon fat until soft and translucent.
7. Add the bacon back in, plus all remaining ingredients for the demi glace.
8. Bring to a boil and reduce by 1/3 (a volume of ~1.5 L should become ~1 L).
9. Pour the demi glace through a fine mesh strainer, then return the liquid to the saucepan and continue reducing by half. (An original volume of ~1.5 L should finish at a little less than 0.5 L.)
10. If the flavor of the demi glace becomes sufficiently intense but the sauce is still very runny, thicken with just a bit of cornstarch dissolved in water (or similar).
11. Heat your grill to medium-high.
12. Grill the pre-warmed pork tenderloins. Rotate periodically to get good grill marks on all sides, and remove from the grill when the internal temperature of the thickest part of the pork tenderloin reads 155 deg F. Let rest for at least 10 minutes.
13. Slice and serve with the demi glace.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, dairy/lactose/casein-free, shellfish-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, soy-free.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Mother's Day Recipes by Moms for Moms

noreply@blogger.com (kellibronski) — Sat, 04 May 2013 00:45:00 +0000

Throughout my life I have held many roles, but never have I been in one that has felt more fulfilling, more right, and more challenging than the role of mother. I am fortunate and feel very blessed to have two beautiful children that I get to spend every day with, and this time while they are young is a gift I genuinely savor.

With Mother’s Day just around the corner, now is the time to think about how to celebrate our moms. As a child, every year we would take my grandmothers out to lunch. As a mother myself now, we have celebrated in different ways, but there is always the common theme of eating together with as many family members as can gather. There is something so fundamental about sharing food and time together that make holidays special.

For this Mother’s Day I am thrilled to be included with seven other gluten-free mom bloggers in an e-book compiled by Attune Foods, A Gluten-Free Mother's Day: Recipes for Moms by Moms. The book includes gluten-free dishes with simple ingredients for breakfast in bed, brunch, recipes designed specifically for cooking with kids, and those you can make ahead of time.

The recipes include:

Blueberry Breakfast Pudding with Granola Topping from Kim Lutz (vegan, tree nut-free, peanut-free, soy-free)
Turkey Strata Muffins with Orange Slices and Balsamic Glaze from Beth Hillson (tree nut-free, peanut-free, soy-free)
Corn Flake Quiche Lorraine from Karen Morgan (tree nut-free, peanut-free, soy-free)
Roasted Asparagus and Tomato Tart from Kelli Bronski (vegetarian, tree nut-free, peanut-free, soy-free)
Blueberry Scones with Vanilla Lemon Sweet Cashew Cream and Homemade Blueberry Chia Seed Jam from Maggie Savage (vegan, egg-free, dairy-free, peanut-free)
Peanut Butter Crunch French Toast with Maple-Peanut Butter Syrup from Alta Mantsch (vegetarian, dairy-free, tree nut-free)
Chocolate or Carob Tart with Dairy-Free Whipped Topping from Adrienne Urban (vegan, dairy-free, egg-free, peanut-free)
Strawberry Streusel Oatmeal Breakfast Cake from Kim Maes (vegetarian, dairy-free, peanut-free, tree nut-free)

Download your FREE copy of A Gluten-Free Mother's Day: Recipes for Moms by Moms.

Enjoy!
Kelli

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Fri, 03 May 2013 13:06:00 +0000

Two months ago we posted a recipe for oatmeal raisin cookies. As you may recall, there was some debate in our household about whether to include the raisins. I won that "battle." This time around, Kelli's preference won the day, I must say the recipe is better for it.

As you can see, the recipe is cinnamon swirl bread, and as you might easily surmise, the debate in this instance was whether to make it cinnamon raisin bread. We've gone for a straightforward cinnamon bread, and the result is a moist yeast bread packed with cinnamon sugar goodness.

The bread doesn't have the nice domed top we'd like (perhaps we'll continue tweaking to get that result), but in the meantime, this version is too good not to share. There's not much more to be said. Get baking!

Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups milk
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp butter
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
3 egg whites
1 tsp GF pure vanilla extract
3 cups Artisan Gluten-Free Flour Blend*
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tbsp ground cinnamon

Steps
1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat the milk with the honey, butter, and salt, stirring occasionally until the butter melts. Remove from heat and allow to cool to about 120 degrees. (You don't want to scramble the eggs in step 2, or kill the yeast in step 3.)
2. Add the egg whites and vanilla and whisk to combine. Add the yeast and let set for about 5 minutes until the mixture is bubbly.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour and xanthan gum. Add to the saucepan, and stir until well-mixed.
4. In another small bowl, stir together the brown sugar and cinnamon.
5. Transfer half of the bread batter/dough into a greased loaf pan, add 2/3 of the cinnamon mixture and top with the remaining bread batter/dough. Use a knife to swirl the bread. Pat down the top of the bread with a spatula and sprinkle the remaining cinnamon mixture on top. Cover, and let rise for 40 minutes. 5. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 375 deg F.
6. Bake for 40 minutes. (When done baking, allow to cool for about 10 minutes in the loaf pan before transferring to a wire rack to finish cooling.)

Notes
* Living here at altitude in Colorado, we made this recipe with 1/4 cup more flour than we're calling for in this recipe to account for the elevation. This is a fairly standard altitude adjustment in our recipes, but we haven't had an opportunity to "down-test" the recipe as written at sea level.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, soy-free, vegetarian.

To make this recipe corn-free, substitute another starch for the cornstarch in our flour blend.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Red Snapper Veracruz

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:52:00 +0000

Sometimes life delivers unexpected surprises. Case in point: discovering a fabulous seafood dish 1,000 miles from the nearest ocean.

I was having dinner at a new restaurant in the town of Basalt, not far from Aspen in Colorado's Roaring Fork Valley. The menu included a dish called tilapia Veracruz. I normally steer clear of ordering tilapia in restaurants, but our server—after consulting with the chef—confirmed the dish could be prepared gluten-free, and the description of Veracruz flavors was enough that I decided to take the plunge.

I'm sure glad I did. It was perhaps the best piece of tilapia I've had. Ever. The Veracruz flavors in particular were vibrant and complex. I just had to know more about it, so I could try to create our own version here at home. I implored our server: "I don't expect your chef to give up any secrets to his recipe, but please send my compliments, and if he'd be willing to share any insight into the dish, that'd be very much appreciated." The server obliged and disappeared into the back kitchen.

He returned a short time later, carrying the chef's immigration card (or something along those lines). A sly grin broke across his face. "The chef says that it's a Veracruz sauce because he's from Veracruz," pointing to the chef's Mexican hometown on the card. In other words, I wasn't walking away with any insider info.

Left to my own devices, I scoured the Internet searching for a variety of authentic (or seemingly so) Veracruz recipes, off of which I'd create my own interpretation. Soon a number of consistencies bubbled to the surface: the dish was most often made with red snapper, and included ingredients such as tomato, onion, garlic, pickled jalapenos, capers, and green olives. I added some white wine and lime juice to brighten the flavors, plus a few other ingredients to round out the flavors.

And what luck: our local fish monger—who sources fresh seafood from seven or so markets around the country—frequently carries red snapper! A couple of iterations later, and this recipe is ready for public consumption.

Red Snapper Veracruz
Makes 4–6 servings

Ingredients

For the rice:
1 cup uncooked rice
1–2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 small ladle (about 1/3 cup) Veracruz sauce

For the Veracruz sauce:
1/2 white onion, chopped
4–5 large garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cups (one 14.5-oz can) tomatoes with juice, pureed until smooth
1 cup white wine
Juice of 1 lime
10 green olives, pitted and chopped
2 heaping tbsp non-pareil capers
4 tbsp chopped pickled jalapenos plus 2 tbsp pickling juice
1–2 bay leaf
2–4 sprigs marjoram
1 tsp dried oregano

For the fish:
1 pound red snapper (about 3 fillets)
1/4 cup Artisan Gluten-Free Flour Blend (or similar)
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp paprika
olive oil

Steps

To make the rice:
1. Cook the 1 cup rice in 1.5 cups water (bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat, and let cook 15 minutes. Remove from heat and leave covered for an additional 10 minutes.) Then fluff the rice, transfer to a bowl, and let cool on your kitchen counter or in your fridge.
2. In large skillet, heat the olive oil, then add the spices and cook for 1–2 minutes to remove the "raw" flavors.
3. Add the rice to the skillet, toss to coat in the spices, and saute for 2–3 minutes.
4. Transfer the rice back to the bowl and set aside. Then make the sauce.

To make the Veracruz sauce:
5. In a saucepan over medium heat, sweat the onion and garlic in the olive oil until soft, translucent, and aromatic.
6. Then add all remaining ingredients, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and let cook uncovered for 20 minutes, until reduced by about 50%.
7. Remove the bay leaf and marjoram sprigs. Then ladle about 1/3 cup of the sauce into the rice and toss to mix well. Next cook the fish.

To make the fish:
8. Mix the flour and seasonings together in a shallow bowl.
9. Rinse and pat dry the fish. The lightly coat with flour on both sides.
10. Pan sear over medium-high heat, about 3–5 minutes per side, until the fish is opaque throughout and flakes easily.

To finish the dish:
11. Plate a piece of the fish and a serving of rice. Ladle a generous portion of sauce over the fish.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, dairy/lactose/casein-free, egg-free, shellfish-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, soy-free, pescetarian.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Orange-Almond Biscotti

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 13:04:00 +0000

Biscotti. Their name means "twice-baked biscuits." They originated in the city of Prato in Italy, north of Florence, though these days you'll find versions all over the world. The hallmarks of classic biscotti include their oblong shape, the inclusion of almonds, and their dry, crunchy texture, thanks to the twice-baked process of making them.

One great thing about biscotti is that they're not especially dependent on gluten, so while they may appear to be an "exotic" baked good, they're actually quite straightforward to make gluten-free!

Biscotti have been on our list of recipes to develop for some time. Kelli used to make them when she worked at Hope's Way, a cafe and caterer in her hometown of Ithaca, NY. Meanwhile, my Italian Godfather (no, not that Godfather) makes a pretty awesome biscotti, though for obvious reasons I haven't eaten one in a very long time.

Now that we've made this orange-almond version, I can't believe we didn't get around to this sooner. I have a suspicion biscotti will be making a regular appearance in our kitchen, and just maybe in yours, too.

Orange-Almond Biscotti
Makes about 30

Ingredients
344g (2 3/4 cups) Artisan Gluten-Free Flour Blend*
1/2 tsp GF baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 tsp GF pure orange extract
1 tsp orange zest
1 cup blanched slivered almonds

Steps
1. Preheat the oven to 350 deg F.
2. In a bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and xanthan gum. Mix and set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar, until fluffy.
4. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing to incorporate.
5. Add the orange extract and zest.
6. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined.
7. Add the almonds and mix to incorporate.
8. Place a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet.
9. Divide the dough in half. On the baking sheet, shape each half into a log about 11 inches long, 2.5 inches wide, and about a half inch tall. Leave a few inches of space between the two parallel logs.
10. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
11. Transfer to a cutting board, and with a large serrated knife, slice each log into about 15 pieces.
12. Return the slices of biscotti to the parchment-paper-covered baking sheet, with a cut side down.
13. Bake for 20–25 more minutes, until golden brown and dry.

Bonus step: serve with coffee, not an empty mug as in our photo. =)

Notes
* Living here at altitude in Colorado, we made this recipe with 1/4 cup more flour than we're calling for in this recipe to account for the elevation. This is a fairly standard altitude adjustment in our recipes, but we haven't had an opportunity to "down-test" the recipe as written at sea level.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, peanut-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, soy-free, vegetarian.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Potato Lasagna

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 20:10:00 +0000

Though we don't make it nearly as regularly as, say, our pizza, we're big fans of lasagna. Kelli tends to favor a bit more ricotta cheese and vegetables, while I like to downplay the ricotta in favor of more mozzarella plus some meat. Either way, it's always a hit.

I'll usually make the pasta noodles from scratch, sizing the sheets of lasagna to exactly match the size and shape of the pan. Even I'll admit that such an approach can be time consuming, a difficult thing especially when life gets busy, as it has for us lately.

Thus, inspired by a restaurant chef who once made lasagna using thinly sliced potatoes in lieu of more traditional pasta noodles in order to offer a gluten-free lasagna option for patrons, we set out to make a different kind of lasagna.

Our goals were twofold: 1) use thinly sliced potatoes as the "noodles" of our lasagna, and 2) use ring molds to make easily elegant personal-size lasagnas instead of a big tray of lasagna. The result, as we hope the photos show, was a smashing success.

There was even a wonderful moment of triumph in the process. At the outset, we weren't sure how the lasagna would hold up once we removed the ring molds. Would it retain its shape? Or ooze and fall over? We carefully slid the rings off, and lo and behold, the lasagna held!

I can't say I'll now abandon making fresh sheets of pasta in favor of using potatoes. But this technique will certainly make it into our rotation, especially when time is tight (or we're running low on gluten-free flour).

Potato Lasagna
Makes three 4-inch diameter individual servings

Ingredients
2 red bliss potatoes, thinly sliced (.5 mm thick on mandolin)
2 tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 small zucchini, thinly sliced (1 mm thick on madnolin)
8 ounces baby bella mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 cups packed baby spinach leaves
salt and pepper
12 ounces whole milk ricotta cheese
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for sprinkling on top
2 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley
1 cup (100g) shredded mozzarella cheese
2/3 of a jar of tomato sauce

Steps
1. Preheat the oven to 350 deg F.
2. In a large saucepot, bring salted water to a boil. Fill a separate bowl with ice water and set aside. Drop the sliced potatoes into the boiling water and cook for about 3 minutes until the potatoes are slightly tender. Remove from the water and immediately immerse in the ice water. Set aside in the water.
3. Heat the olive oil and garlic in a saute pan over medium-high heat until the garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the zucchini, mushrooms and spinach. Season with salt and pepper and saute until the liquid has come out of the vegetables and evaporated, about 10–15 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside.
4. In a bowl, combine the ricotta, parmesan, parsley, and mozzarella. Season with salt and pepper and stir to combine.
5. Drain the potatoes and lay out of on a kitchen towel and pat them dry.
6. Wrap the outside of three 4-inch springform pans with aluminum foil. Place a spoonful of sauce in the bottom of each pan, next a single layer of potatoes, followed by a layer of vegetables, and a layer of the cheese filling. Repeat the process with sauce, potatoes, vegetables and cheese. Top with another layer of sauce and sprinkle with grated parmesan.
7. Place the three pans on a large sheet pan and bake for 45 minutes, until the cheese is bubbly.
8. Remove from the oven and let set for 10 minutes. Remove the outside rings and serve.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, grain-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, vegetarian.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Italian Hamburgers

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 12:30:00 +0000

As some of you know from our activity on social media lately, we've started the process of perfecting recipes for both classic and potato roll gluten-free hamburger buns. Those recipes aren't ready to share just yet. But the process of making test batches of buns has left us with a bit of a conundrum: If you're going to go through the trouble of making hamburger buns from scratch, you ought to put those buns to good use and make some burgers! But what burgers to make?

For a little while now, we've been talking about wanting to make an Italian-inspired burger. We'd take inspiration from the beef patty, lettuce, and tomato typical of an American hamburger, but swap in Italian ingredients—our meatball recipe in lieu of a regular burger patty, mozzarella in place of Swiss or American cheese, bruschetta in place of the tomato, and fresh basil as a stand in for the lettuce. What's not to love?

With my love for alliteration, I was tempted to call these Sicilian Sliders or Bruschetta Burgers, but ultimately, we called it like it is: Italian Hamburgers. Best of all, it borrows existing recipes from the 2nd edition of Artisanal Gluten-Free Cooking but combines them in an exciting, new way!

Italian Hamburgers
Makes 6 burgers

Ingredients
1 batch Italian meatballs, instead formed into 6 burger patties
(page 163, Artisanal Gluten-Free Cooking, 2nd Edition)
6 slices mozzarella cheese
1 batch bruschetta
(page 64, Artisanal Gluten-Free Cooking, 2nd Edition)
6–10 basil leaves, chiffonade
6 gluten-free hamburger buns

Steps
1. Preheat the oven to 350 deg F.
2. Pan sear the burger patties in a hot skillet with a touch of olive oil to brown on both sides. Then transfer to a baking sheet and bake in the oven, until the internal temperature of the burgers reads 160–170 deg F.
3. At the end of the oven time, top each burger with a slice of mozzarella cheese and allow to melt. You can switch your oven to broil to melt the cheese faster, but watch carefully to be sure they don't burn.
4. Transfer the burgers to your hamburger buns. Top each burger with some of the bruschetta, dividing evenly.
5. Finish by adding some of the fresh basil to each burger.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, soy-free.

This recipe can easily be made dairy/lactose/casein-free by omitting the mozzarella cheese or substituting your favorite non-dairy cheese.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Hot Cross Buns

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 13:39:00 +0000

Easter is fast approaching, which means it's time for hot cross buns! These sweet, spiced buns are traditionally eaten on Good Friday in advance of Easter Sunday. Currants or raisins are a popular addition. Here, we've opted for raisins, plus a blend of orange and lemon zest, spices (including a touch of ground ginger), and honey. The dough itself isn't especially sweet in our version, but the icing adds enough touch of sweetness to make the end result wonderfully balanced.

It was fun to make these buns. Our family's Easter traditions include a Polish sweet bread we call mock cake, usually a baked ham, and a few other particulars. But despite the fact that hot cross buns date back centuries, it wasn't until you all prompted us—via Facebook—to come up with a gluten-free version of this beloved classic.

Hot Cross Buns
Makes 20 buns

Ingredients
1 cup warm milk
1/2 cup plus 1 tsp honey, divided
4 1/2 tsp yeast (2 packets)
500 g (4 cups) Artisan Gluten-Free Flour Blend*
1 tsp ground allspice
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp xanthan gum
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 cup (1 stick) melted butter
3 large eggs
1/2 cup raisins
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp lemon zest
Olive oil

For the glaze
1 egg
1 tbsp milk

For the icing
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp milk

Steps
1. In a large bowl, combine the milk, 1 tsp honey, and the yeast and let set for 5 minutes until the yeast is activated.
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, allspice, cinnamon, salt, xanthan gum, and ginger. Set aside.
3. In another small bowl, whisk together the melted butter, eggs, raisins, remaining 1/2 cup honey, and orange and lemon zest.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the yeast mixture, stirring to combine. Then add the flour mixture and combine to form a wet dough.
5. Grease a cookie sheet or baking pan.
6. In a small ramekin or similar, pour 2 tbsp or so of olive oil. Lightly coat the fingers and palms of your hands, and pinch off a large-ping-pong-sized ball of dough, and roll between your hands to form a smooth ball.
7. Repeat until you have 20, placing them evenly spaced apart on the sheet. Use a greased knife to cut a cross shape into the surface of each dough ball.
8. Cover and let rise in a warm location for at least 1 hour.
9. Preheat the oven to 400 deg F.
10. Whisk together the egg and milk to form the glaze. Brush the buns.
11. Bake for about 15 minutes, until deep golden brown. (The internal temp should read 200 deg F on an instant read thermometer.)
12. Let cool completely on a wire rack.
13. Mix together the powdered sugar and milk to form the icing. Add extra powdered sugar to make it thicker. Use a pastry bag, zip top bag with corner snipped, or similar to pipe the icing into a cross shape.

Notes
* Living here at altitude in Colorado, we made this recipe with 1/4 cup more flour than we're calling for in this recipe to account for the elevation. This is a fairly standard altitude adjustment in our recipes, but we haven't had an opportunity to "down-test" the recipe as written at sea level.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, soy-free, vegetarian.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Matzo

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Passover, the eight-day Jewish Festival of Freedom, starts today. One of the central aspects of the holiday is unleavened bread known as matzo or matzah. And while you could certainly buy store-bought versions (the classic rectangular, dry, cracker-like sheets so familiar to many), making homemade matzo is simple and easy, including in gluten-free form.

We've made ours circular, though you could easily modify the technique to get right angles, if you so desire. As we told a reader on Facebook, the recipe is up to us; the shape is up to you! =) Oh, and you're also responsible for making sure your kitchen is kosher and your house is free of chametz. No gluten, no chametz, no problem.

Matzo
Makes 12 6-inch matzo

Ingredients
250 g (2 cups) Artisan Gluten-Free Flour Blend
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1/2 cup warm water
Sea salt

Steps
1. Place a pizza stone on the middle rack of your oven, and preheat to 500 deg F.
2. In a food processor, pulse to combine the flour and salt.
3. Add the olive oil and pulse to incorporate completely.
4. With the food processor running, drizzle in the water until a dough ball forms.
5. Scrape out the food processor and turn the dough onto your work surface. It should be slightly tacky at most.
6. Form the dough into a log and cut into 12 equal pieces. Cover with a piece of plastic wrap or a towel to prevent from drying out.
7. Roll each piece of dough between two pieces of plastic wrap until 6 inches in diameter. It will be very thin.
8. Dust a pizza paddle or bottom of an inverter cookie sheet with flour.
9. Remove the top piece of plastic, and flip the dough onto the floured surface. Then remove the second piece of plastic wrap (which should now be on top).
10. Dock the dough with a fork and sprinkle with sea salt.
11. Repeat until your pizza paddle or cookie sheet is full. (Ours held three per batch.)
12. Slide the matzo onto the preheated pizza stone. Cook 1:30 per side.
13. Repeat until all matzo are cooked.

Notes
The browning of the matzo is what really brings out the classic flavor. If you leave your matzo too blond, it won't have the characteristic quality.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, dairy/lactose/casein-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, soy-free, vegetarian, vegan.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Fried Dough

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Growing up on Long Island in New York, I was surrounded by a large Italian Catholic population. Fairs were usually held in church parking lots, and with all those Italians around, fair food included zeppoli (an Italian form of fried dough) and sometimes funnel cakes.

Kelli, on the other hand, grew up in upstate New York's Finger Lakes region, about one hour from Syracuse, home of the Great New York State Fair. Going to the fair each late summer was an eagerly anticipated tradition throughout her childhood. At the NYS Fair, there was nary a zeppoli to be found. Instead, fried dough was the norm.

Hailing as I did from Long Island, I'd never even heard of such fried dough. In fact, when Kelli and I were recently updating our list of foods we want to re-create in gluten-free form, she accused me of purposefully omitting her beloved fried dough, because I'd included both zeppoli and funnel cake but not explicit mention of fried dough. Silly me, I'd simply assumed that her fried dough was redundant with the other two items. But I was wrong.

Kelli gave me a quick crash course in the finer points of proper fried dough. From that point forward, we had a melding of the minds—and a few test batches—to bring you this gluten-free version of her cherished childhood state fair treat.

Fried Dough
Makes 4 pieces

Ingredients
2 tbsp sugar
3/4 cup warm water (~115 deg F)
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (1 packet)
175 g Artisan Gluten-Free Flour Blend (~1 1/3 cups plus 1 tbsp)
1 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp GF pure vanilla extract
Frying oil
Powdered sugar

Steps
1. Preheat the oven to 400 deg F.
2. In a small bowl, combine the sugar, water, and yeast. Let set for about 5 minutes until the yeast is frothy and active.
3. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, xanthan gum, and salt.
4. Cut the butter into the flour with your hands or pastry cutter, until you get coarse crumbles.
5. Add the vanilla to the yeast mixture, then mix the liquids into the dry ingredients, stirring to form a wet dough.
6. Divide the dough into quarters.
7. Lightly oil a cookie sheet or baking pan.
8. Lightly coat the palms of your hands with oil, then press each dough quarter onto the cookie sheet, forming flat "pancakes" about 6 inches across. (You may need to re-coat your hands with oil between each dough quarter.)
9. Set in a warm location and let rise for at least 10 minutes.
10. Meanwhile, add enough frying oil to a skillet (or similar) to a depth of 1 to 2 inches. Bring the oil to 350 deg F.
11. Bake the dough for 3 minutes, just until the edges are slightly dry. (This "sets" the dough so you can handle it and transfer to the oil.) Release the dough from the baking sheet with a spatula if necessary.
12. Fry in the oil for 1.5 minutes per side until golden brown on each side.
13. Transfer to paper towels or a clean paper bag to let an excess oil drain.
14. Finish with a generous dusting of powdered sugar.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, soy-free, vegetarian.

This recipe can easily be made dairy-free by substituting a vegan shortening, such as Spectrum.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

Are You Getting Enough Magnesium, the Forgotten Electrolyte?

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 13:59:00 +0000

Electrolytes are crucial for all sorts of bodily functions. Their ranks include sodium, potassium, chloride, and phosphorous; lists of electrolytes usually also include calcium; and they should also include magnesium. Yet magnesium is often overlooked, which is why one peer-reviewed study called it "the forgotten electrolyte."

It's an ironic designation, given Mg's crucial and central role. Mg is part of more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body; it's important for muscle and nerve function, heart health, immune strength, and bone strength.

Mg has special relevance for those with celiac disease, but is something I don't see talked about a whole lot. So today I want to focus on a series of related topics: Mg and celiac disease, Mg and the immune system, Mg and bones, Mg and athletes, Mg and getting glutened, and dietary sources of Mg.

Mg and Celiac Disease

About half your body's Mg is found in bones. The other half is in body cells and tissues. (Less than 1% is in the blood.) Dietary Mg is absorbed in the small intestine, the same area affected by gluten in those with celiac disease, so it's no surprise that there are implications there. But the impact is big. An early 1960s study found "great magnesium losses" in the stool of a patient with untreated celiac disease. Following a gluten-free diet, "all mineral balances were restored to normal." Studies since then have only backed up those early findings. A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found a "striking magnesium loss" in the stools of those with untreated celiac disease—up to four times as high as dietary Mg intake. That same study found that "this remarkable loss was reversed by the institution of a gluten-free diet."

Mg and Your Bones

Plenty has been written about Mg and its importance for strong, healthy bones. But two studies from mid-1990s specifically looked at the situation for those with celiac disease.

The first study looked at the effect of a gluten-free diet on mineral and bone metabolism in women with celiac disease. With what we already know from the previous section, the results are not surprising: prior to following a GFD, the women exhibited signs of Mg deficiency and intestinal malabsorption of calcium; one year after following a GFD, "all biochemical variables normalized," although at that stage patients in the study hadn't yet seen actual increases in bone density.

The second study looked more closely at Mg deficiency, and its possible role in osteoporosis in those with celiac disease. Its findings were sobering. The study looked at patients with biopsy-proven celiac disease and followed them on a gluten-free diet and Mg supplementation. Among patients who entered the study with osteoporosis, those who followed a gluten-free diet and Mg supplementation for two years showed "a significant increase in bone mineral density." (Researchers noted that those with celiac disease may have lower levels of intracellular free Mg ions, which has a variety of important implications, even in patients asymptomatic on a gluten-free diet. Thus GFD plus Mg supplementation proved especially important.)

Mg and Immune Health

A number of studies—including from 1975, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2002, 2003, and 2007—all looked at the centrally important role that Mg plays in immune health. It is critical for both innate and acquired immune responses; it plays a role in inflammation (a more generalized, non-specific immune response familiar to those negatively impacted by gluten); it plays a role in anaphylaxis; it interacts with vitamin D (also implicated in celiac disease) to modulate the immune system; and it has implications for potentially immune-compromised individuals, including athletes and the elderly. In other words, Mg is pretty darned important for your immune system.

Mg and Athletes

A variety of studies from the late 1990s (such as here, here, and here) and the 2000s (here) found—not surprisingly—that Mg is very important for athletes. It helps to maintain immune strength, it helps to prevent inflammation, it helps to regulate muscle function (including a likely role in preventing muscle cramps), it helps maintain energy levels, and it improved overall athletic performance. (For more on athletes, gluten, and electrolytes, check out The Gluten-Free Edge: A Nutrition and Training Guide for Peak Athletic Performance and an Active Gluten-Free Life.)

Mg and Getting Glutened

Poke around the Internet, and you'll find lots of advice for how to help your body recover from being glutened. Take probiotics to help restore gut biota. Hydrate to replace water loss in diarrhea. Take glutamine to support gut recovery. And the list continues. But you might also consider adding magnesium to that list—either supplements or focusing on magnesium-rich foods.

Consider the story of a triathlete who contacted me a number of months ago. (I lost his email in a computer crash so some of the particulars are fuzzy, but the central details have stuck with me...) After being diagnosed with celiac disease, he switched to a gluten-free diet and had a notable improvement in performance in triathlons. At some point he was glutened in a restaurant, and despite doing everything "right" to help his recovery, he just couldn't regain his energy levels. One of the culprits turned out to be low Mg levels.

Given high Mg losses in those with celiac disease exposed to gluten, Mg's role in inflammation and immune health, and Mg's role in regulating energy levels and muscle and nerve function, we should all be more aware of maintaining healthy Mg levels in our diets and our bodies. Which leads me to...

Dietary Sources of Mg

Some have cautioned that a gluten-free diet can potentially be Mg-deficient. From my perspective, this is only a concern if your diet is heavily based on gluten-free junk food made from refined, process gluten-free starches. (Mg is contained in the germ and bran of grains, which are removed to make refined starches, hence the concern...)

However, many of the best dietary sources of Mg are also both naturally gluten-free and foods that could be part of a healthy diet anyway: dark green vegetables, some legumes (beans and peas), nuts and seeds, and whole gluten-free grains.

The following foods contain an estimated 10–20% of the average recommended daily value of Mg: almonds, spinach, cashews, soybeans, peanuts, baked potato with skin, blackeye peas, pinto beans, brown rice, millet. Lots of other great gluten-free foods (such as lentils, kidney beans, bananas, and more) are close runners up.

So make a commitment to give your body the Mg it needs. This "forgotten electrolyte" is important for anyone, but especially if you have celiac disease, are an athlete, are immune-compromised, have an intestinal malabsorption issue, or any combination of the above.

–Pete

Shanghai Street Dumplings

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Do you ever get hit with a craving out of the blue? We do. Most of the time there's some immediate or otherwise identifiable instigator behind a craving ... a nostalgic memory, a TV show, a restaurant experience. But sometimes, a craving just pops into our heads. Like these Shanghai street dumplings.

We can think of no good reason why we're so compelled to make them right now—close to St. Patrick's Day, during the season of Lent, coming from families with combined Sicilian, Belgian, Polish, and English heritage. Yet here we are. We're tempted to point a finger at P.F. Chang's, which serves Shanghai street dumplings on its menu, but it's literally been years and years (at least 7.5 years, and likely more) since we've had those, so that seems unlikely.

Regardless, these puppies are delicious. The filling and the ponzu sauce are both easy to make gluten-free via tamari wheat-free soy sauce. The real trick here is the dumpling wrappers. Our recipe combines inspiration from traditional wheat-based street dumpling wrapper recipes and the fabulous gluten-free dumpling wrappers from Laura Russell's The Gluten-Free Asian Kitchen.

The result is a gluten-free Shangai street dumpling that could go toe-to-toe with its gluten-ous counterpart any day. They're a little bit of work, but trust us, they're worth it.

Shanghai Street Dumplings
Makes 24 dumplings

Ingredients and Steps

For the filling:
1/2 lb pork, minced
5 raw shrimp (26-30 count), minced
2 green onions (scallions), minced
2 tsp brown sugar
1 tbsp tamari wheat-free soy sauce
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
2 tsp dry sherry
1/4 tsp sesame oil

1. Combine oil ingredients in a small bowl and place in the refrigerator until ready to fill the wrappers.

For the wrappers:
1/2 cup (63 g) Artisan Gluten-Free Flour Blend
1/2 cup (60 g) tapioca flour
1/2 cup (60 g) glutinous (sweet) rice flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 cup boiling water
2 tbsp cold water
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil

2. Mix the three flours, salt, and xanthan gum, then add the boiling water and mix to combine. The mixture will be dry and crumbly.
3. Add the cold water and olive oil, mixing until a dough forms. Knead with your hands in the bowl to bring the bowl together, adding extra rice flour if the dough is sticky.
4. Divide the dough in half, and roll each half to form a thick snake. Cut each half into 12 pieces and cover with plastic wrap or put in a zip-top bag to prevent from drying out.
5. Roll each gum-ball-sized piece out between two pieces of plastic wrap, to form round wrappers 3 inches in diameter.
6. Place on a cookie sheet dusted with rice flour.
* Make only as many wrappers at a time as will fit in your steamer. For example, we made 8 dumplings per batch.

To make the dumplings:
7. Heat a pot of water with your steamer on top. Cover the bottom of the steamer with a single layer of Napa cabbage leaves.
8. For each dumpling wrapper, dust off any excess rice flour.
9. Place on a plate and put about 2 tbsp filling in the center of the wrapper.
10. Moisten the edge with water, and gather the dumpling at the top, squeezing to seal.
11. Repeat to complete the first batch.
12. Steam each batch of dumplings for 10 minutes.
13. While one batch is steaming, get started on the next batch. Repeat until all batches are done.
* Replace the cabbage leaves as needed.

For the ponzu sauce:
1/4 cup tamari wheat-free soy sauce
2 tbsp orange juice
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp mirin
1 tsp water
1/4 tsp chili garlic sauce
Green onions (scallions)

14. Combine all ingredients to make the ponzu sauce.
* We used fresh-squeezed orange and lemon juice for this recipe. 1/2 lemon yielded the 2 tbsp lemon juice. We didn't have oranges, and so used 2 clementines.

15. Plate the dumplings, drizzle with the ponzu sauce, garnish with chopped scallions, and serve with additional ponzu sauce on the side.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, dairy/casein/lactose-free, fish-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli

The touch, the feel, of gluten: Can you react through skin contact?

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 12:00:00 +0000

Last week a Missouri state legislator made news when she proposed a new law requiring the declaration of wheat/gluten on labels for shampoo, conditioner, and other so-called hygiene products. The proposal met with praise from some in the gluten-free community, who claim to react strongly to gluten in shampoo and other products. Meanwhile, others in the gluten-free community responded with the equivalent of a furrowed brow, wondering, "Wait a second. I thought you could only react to gluten by ingesting it, so that it reached your small intestine."

So who's right?

The skin is a surprisingly complex and tricky organ. I don't pretend that this blog post will lay it all out neatly for you. There are a lot of avenues to explore, including the distinction between skin manifestations of ingested gluten versus actual skin reactions to surface contact with gluten. But by taking a peek into the peer-reviewed scientific literature, you can open a valuable window into answering the question: Can you react to gluten just through surface contact on your skin?

Spoiler alert: the short answer is yes (for some of you).

But first, we need to get a wee bit of background info and definitions out of the way, so that the discussion of the various studies makes sense.

Antibody responses

Your body has at least five major antibody responses. Two are important here:

IGG/IGA - these two are associated with celiac disease, and potentially with non-celiac gluten sensitivity
IGE - a true allergy, known as Type I, which has the potential for anaphylactic response

Skin conditions

Atopic dermatitis - can involve scaly, itchy rashes; blisters; dry skin
Urticaria - hives, itchy red welts
Contact dermatitis - a cell-mediated Type IV response to surface exposure to an irritant (such as poison ivy)

Skin tests for gluten

Oral challenge - ingested gluten that may cause a skin response
Skin prick test, intradermal injections - introduce gluten into the layers of the skin to monitor for response
Patch test - surface application of gluten to monitor for contact response over period of time

Okay, with that super basic overview out of the way, let's dive into the details, starting with a subject closest to the MO legislator's proposal: cosmetics.

Reactions to gluten in cosmetics

A number of studies and case studies—including from 2000, 2006, 2007, and 2012—all found identical results: contact urticaria (hives) in response to surface skin contact with a variety of cosmetics products, including lotions. The common culprit was hydrolyzed wheat protein (HWP), even in subjects who otherwise tested negative for skin reactions to regular wheat and gluten. HWP, researchers concluded, was particularly allergenic.

Skin reactions to gluten among bakers and other food preparers

Bakers and other food preparers who come into regular contact with wheat flour have been known to develop protein contact dermatitis, as evidenced—for example—by one study from 1993 and another from 2006, in which one third of study subjects developed atopic contact dermatitis.

Skin reactions among celiac disease patients

Early studies from 1976, 1977, and 1980 all found that intradermal (within the skin) injections of gluten caused skin reactions, including among as many as one third of celiac patients in one study. However, I failed to find studies that more explicitly associated surface contact with wheat/gluten with skin reactions among celiac disease patients.

Dermatitis Herpetiformis

This extensively studied condition is sometimes called the skin manifestation of celiac disease. Researchers from a 2006 study failed to produce skin reactions to intradermal injections of gluten fractions. This suggests that DH's skin rashes are associated with ingested gluten, though many other variables may come into play, and the study group was small.

Ingested gluten manifesting in the skin

But to the point of ingested gluten manifesting as skin reactions, a number of studies, including one from 2000, found that ingested gluten initiated an IGE antibody allergic response that manifested as atopic dermatitis. In such cases, a gluten-free diet reciprocally resolved the dermatitis. Thus what may appear to be a surface skin reaction to gluten is actually caused (and resolved) by the presence (or absence) of ingested gluten in the diet.

Skin reactions in wheat allergy

Compared to the IGG/IGA response of conditions such as celiac disease, the IGE pathway of wheat allergy offers additional insight. In a 1999 study of children with confirmed wheat allergy, 86% had a positive patch test. In other words, their skin reacted to surface contact with gluten. Two years later, a 2001 study, again of children with confirmed wheat allergy and atopic dermatitis, found that an atopy patch test (surface skin exposure to wheat) had a 94% positive predictive value. More recently, a 2008 study again confirmed the surface contact skin reaction to gluten among those with wheat-allergic atopic dermatitis.

Finally, in a 2004 study that bridged the worlds of celiac disease and wheat allergy, researchers found that a small percentage of patients with celiac disease also had wheat allergy, including a higher rate of IGE-associated atopic dermatitis. For such patients, they may have skin reactions to surface contact with gluten, but it's not their celiac disease at work, it's the wheat allergy.

Conclusions

As you can see, trying to answer the question of whether you can develop a skin reaction to surface contact with gluten turns up a complex network of conditions, tests, and results. But at the end of the day, some take-home lessons become clear. Whether due to celiac disease, dermatitis herpetiformis, wheat allergy, or another condition, you may develop skin manifestations of ingested gluten, but you may also have the potential for contact-related reactions to wheat/gluten. This latter population appears to be a minority, but their experiences of sometimes severe reactions to skin contact with gluten—such as via the hydrolyzed wheat protein of a shampoo—are very real.

Will you react to skin contact with gluten? I can't say. But it's clearly within the realm of possibility. For some the touch, the feel, of gluten is decidedly unpleasant, to say the least.

–Pete

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (peterbronski) — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 13:00:00 +0000

Later this year, Kelli and I celebrate 10 years of marriage. It's amazing to think that a decade has nearly passed since we tied the proverbial knot. In that time, we've almost always been of one mind on a variety of issues. That's especially true of the recipes we write for this blog and our cookbooks. With rare exception, the recipe you get—and the photo that goes along with it—is a collaborative effort that involves both of us.

But when it came time to plan this recipe, I learned something new about Kelli. She likes oatmeal cookies, and she likes raisins, but she does not like raisins in her oatmeal cookies. I, on the other hand, am an oatmeal raisin cookie traditionalist. It does not happen often in our relationship, but in this instance I drew a line in the sand and put my foot down—we were going to make proper oatmeal raising cookies. No oatmeal chocolate chip, like Kelli suggested. No oatmeal Craisin, as she also suggested when I vetoed the chocolate chips.

People would expect a tried and true oatmeal raisin cookie, I reasoned. Besides, I really wanted an oatmeal raisin cookie. Kelli eventually relented, and if I do say so myself, you're better off for it. Here, we offer up a gluten-free version of oatmeal raisin cookies. (Though do feel free to side with Kelli and omit the raisins and/or substitute other options, such as ... ahem ... chocolate chip cookies or Craisins.)

The cookies are delightfully chewy, with just the right amount of raisins, and thanks to a 1:1 gluten-free flour to oats ratio, plenty oat-y.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
Makes 38 cookies

Ingredients
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, room temperature
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp GF pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 3/4 cups* (219 g) Artisan Gluten-Free Flour Blend
1 tsp GF baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp xanthan gum
2 cups certified GF oats
1 cup raisins

Steps
1. Preheat the oven to 375 deg F.
2. In a stand mixer, cream together the butter, sugars, and vanilla, until fluffy.
3. Add the eggs and mix until incorporated.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and xanthan gum. Add to the mixer and mix until incorporated.
5. Add the oats and mix. Then add the raisins and mix.
6. Use a cookie scoop or spoon to drop the dough on an ungreased cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart.
7. Baked 10–12 minutes, until lightly brown and the edges crispy.
8. Let cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to let cool completely.

Notes
* When we made this recipe, we used 2 cups (250 g) of flour to account for the altitude here in Colorado. We wrote the recipe, however, down-calculating for sea level.
1. This recipe makes a thick dough. If your mixer is working too hard, you may mix the oats and raisins in by hand.

Degrees of Free-dom
This recipe is: gluten-free, peanut-free, tree-nut-free, fish-free, shellfish-free, soy-free, vegetarian.

Enjoy!

–Pete and Kelli