Seriously!

In preparation for the Superbowl, I want to ask the celiac patients out there a couple of questions:

1. Do you cheat?

2. If you answered no to the question above, do you live in a gluten free household? How about a gluten free workplace? Do you shake hands with people who eat gluten? Does the store you buy groceries in a store that sells gluten?

If you answered yes to either of these questions, then you should know that you have been exposed to gluten.

Matter of fact.

Yes.

Did you know that when you smell, you actually are inhaling the stuff you are smelling? Wild, huh? The molecules are in the air (well, they're actually encapsulated by the water vapor in the air, but let's not get technical, K?). So, as my cousin, when 4 years of knowledge said, so, that means you're actually inhaling someone else's farts?". Yes. That's what it means.

But it also means that you're inhaling gluten simply by being in a gluten-free world. When you inhale something, the "smell" is the first part of digestion. So, with a bit of leap in explanation here, you're actually eating gluten, just by smelling it (and yes, I do get up-close-and-personal with many people's food).

so, doesn't it stand to reason, then, that you're safer eating or drinking something that has been purified of the gluten?

It's a beautiful concept- what the doctors and gluten-free groups obsess about- that you should even buy a separate set of pans JUST FOR GLUTEN FREE- SERIOUSLY!


Happy Thinking
The Irish Lass

Gluten Free Superbowl!

It's Superbowl time again- BudBowl, for those of you how remember the teams of beer bottles (god, I'm a victim of commercials- favorite all time salesman: Pillsbury Doughboy- I own almost everything from the catalog...and that was after I found out I was GF).

so, yesss...superbowl. the day of snacking HE HE HE! ;D

How do you do it GF when you LOVEEEEE your gluten snacks? Here's some ideas:

1. Substitute rice crackers for pretzels and Ritz. Here's some that I find really tasty and they come in two sizes:
http://images.calorieking.com.au/branding/dc/runtime/portionsense/109.jpg

So, those are fun. And they taste great. You might also find the nut crackers at your local grocery, including Rainbow and Cub, for those of you in the land of ice and snow:
http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51Ofdvzh49L._AA280_PIbundle-12,TopRight,0,0_AA280_SH20_.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Diamond-Smokehouse-Almond-Crackers/dp/B000H11C6I&h=280&w=280&sz=23&hl=en&start=2&sig2=pIwWgMv8zbOZ1RBLo80vuA&um=1&tbnid=UcpehPVAmIJjjM:&tbnh=114&tbnw=114&ei=dgCiR4egI4_eigHaw8WlAQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3Ddiamond%2Balmond%2Bcrackers%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN

2. Substitute popcorn or taro chips for SunChips:
http://www.terrachips.com/products/terra-taro.php

3. If you really love those beans'n'wiennies, make your own Barbeque (BBQ) sauce in your crock pot:

GF Barbeque Sauce

1 32oz can of crushed tomatoes or 2 16oz cans of tomato sauce
3/4 cup honey or brown sugar
3 Tbsp soy sauce (may add more to taste)
1 Tbsp liquid smoke (that's actually the name brand. Use either flavor).
1 tsp dry mustard powder
1 tsp horseradish or wasabi powder
1 tsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic powder (or more to taste)
3 tsps Xanthan Gum

if you like is spicy, add more horseradish or add some tabasco sauce

You will need to mix these ingredients in a sauce pan or crock pot, as the sauce will not thicken unless you have heat.

4. If you LOVE your chex mix, use the substitutions above and this recipe for gluten free worcestershire sauce:

Gluten Free Worcestershire Sauce:

1/2 C apple cider vinegar (ahh, it's good for something other than descaling the coffee pot!)
2 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp black pepper

Mix everything together in a sauce pan. Bring to boil and simmer 1 minute, stirring constantly. Cool and store in the refrigerator.

And where to get these spices, where, oh where?
Penzeys.com


Stay tuned for tomorrow when I talk about the easy gluten free grilled cheese sandwich.


Enjoy the goodies!
The Irish Lass

Drinks all around!

I LOVE a bargain. Must be the miserly Irish in me (or is that the German side...). And Happy Hour is all about a bargain.

I used to go to Friday's, but they up-ed the price of their drinks by a BUCK and they cut the size of their appetizers in 1/2! and they only offer certain appetizers. Seriously, if you do the price calculation, if you get 5 potato skins for $4 and you 10 potato skins for $7.49...uhhhhhh....

I've tried Champs- WHAT? wHAT? i'M SORRY, IT'S TOO LOUD IN HERE!

And the best one I've found is a little place called Woody's. They have $3 appetizers that are GF!!! And their 12oz margarhita is only $3.25. And it's not watered down like other places. And it's not so noisy. And they are really open to questions about what's GF and what's not.

Take their White Nachos for example. Delicious. Totally GF. ooooooooh, roasted chicken, cheese sauce (yessss GF!) and olives, scallions (most people call them green onions but they're really scallions), and fiesta chips (those are the red, white, and blue ones...I wonder which candidate will do spots for fiesta chips...)

But what I really love about happy hour is the drinks- it's a totally GF substance...usually, right?
Rum is made from sugar- check
Tequila is made from a cactus- check
Schnapps is made from sugar and berries- check
Brandy is aged, distilled wine- check
Wine is made from grapes- check

and then we come to the problem children:
Vodka- can be made of wheat or potatoes.
Beer- can be made from wheat, barley, rye, oats, or rice (yeesssss. Check Leinenkugel's)
Whiskey- can be made from barley, wheat, corn, and "malt" (which comes mainly from barley)

Now, I really like Bailey's, too. Bailey's was invented by Bailey, an Irish biochemist (SCORE!). It has Irish whiskey in it.

Irish whiskey. It's not Scotch (Scottish whiskey). It's not Crown Royal. It's not Johnny Walker. it's Irish whiskey. Why does that matter?

It matters because Irish whiskey is distilled 3 times, generally speaking, Bushmills in particular. Distillation is where the alcohol is basically boiled off into water vapor and recondenses in a different container. It is the distillation process that purifies the alcohol. Perhaps you have done this in chemistry lab. When I did this in chemistry lab, my recondensed alcohol was 99.9% pure. I was a student. These are professionals. They do it three times.

And why does that matter?

Well, the big TO DO about grain liquors and gluten intolerance is that there MIGHT be SOME gluten contamination.

MIGHT BE

after 3 times...

per batch which is then divided into 100s of containers...

and you smelling a delicious bagel or croissant will expose you to more gluten than anything in that bottle. (And that's a different story)

So, while Irish whiskey is not certified as gluten free, feel free to drink your Bailey's on occasion (but not on the road).

ok, PSA done

Sláinte Gaelach!
The Irish Lass

Cook was in the kitchen yesterday

Trying out new delicacies. And, after trying some of the different fillings for the Ma T'uan, I have a couple of items I'd really like to emphasize:

1. wait until the dough cools or it will be like ooblique
2. you MUST freeze the fillings into balls, otherwise, you can't make a ball. it makes an amoeba, which then explodes in your oil, which then pops all over because the fillings are full of water.


And now for dish duty...
the Irish Lass

What's in a name?

You might noice, that the URL has changed. Thanks for making the transition with me.

I've been working on Puto today- these are the jellish mooncakes that I mentioned from dim sum. It turns out that these are originally a glutenous Philipino recipe, that the Chinese have re-engineered for us. (dont' you love it when the work is done FOR you. ) and Centuries of trial kitchens that have really perfected the recipe. My food critics have said that this reminds of this of anything from cassava pudding to angel food cake!
So, here it is:

Puto
2 C sweet/glutinous rice soaked over night in 1 1/2C water.
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 c + 2 tbsp white, granulated sugar
4 egg whites
Optional: coconut or anise seeds for topping

1. Preheat oven to 220*, with a large pan of water on the bottom rack of the oven.
2. In a blender or food processor, puree the rice and water until very mushy like baby food.
3. Add 1 1/2C sugar and the baking powder and mix well.
4. With an electric mixer, beat the egg whites and 2tbsp sugar until stiff peaks*
5. Fold in the egg whites into the pureed rice batter.
6. Either pour in a 9"x13" pan- spreading out evenly, or place in non-stick muffin pans. (if you want to use cupcake wrapers, make sure that they are waxed on the inside- this stays sticky).
7. Optional: if you want to put a couple of sprinkles of coconut or an anise star on the cupcakes, do so here.
8. Cook for 20 minutes or until the batter sets (it remains firm/solid when you shake the pan and is not sticky to the touch).

You may use a basket steamer over a pan of water, if you want.


Happy Eatings!
The Irish Lass

ma t'uan, zeen duy, deep fried mochi, and gluten free donuts

And it was my first time at dim som today. Amazing, huh? with the near scandalous joy with which I talk about Asian food. I was, well, very pleasantly surprised.

My friend recommended Mandarin Kitchen, which in in Bloomington, MN. Now, I know that all of you might not want to fly to Minneapolis every weekend, but if you're here, or if you do fly here, check out this restaurant.

As a young, savvy, 30something, I, of course, googled the reviews for this place (mostly in search for pictures, or better yet, a coupon). I saw mixed reviews- oh the food is good, but the tip is added into the price, get there early, etc, etc.

so, I get there at 9:45 and join the other 10 cars in the parking lot. They open at 10. Since it's a balmy 25 degrees out, I decide to queue up outside the door. Glad I did. By the time the door opened, there must have been 30 people in line. And some of them Asian. (It is my belief that when you go to an Ethnic restaurant of your choice, it is a good sign that people of that ethnicity are eating there as well- like, this is a non-verbal stamp of approval).

My first impression of the restaurant- busy. good. must be good.

Next: man, it's clean. very clean. And I got tea within 60 seconds of sitting down.

This is a good sign.

I then, embarrassingly, asked one of the numerous waiters "so, this is my first time to dim som; is it buffet or... ? ". He kindly told me that the food is brought past the table and you get to see what you order...right off the plate! it's like you're freakin' royalty or something!

So, I got to inspect the food before ordering. And since I'm looking for ingredients like flour, barley, oats, rye, I avoid the painful "uhm, could you ask the chef is there's gluten in this dish" scenario. The servers know exactly what's in it. And the best part is...it's mostly rice!

YESSSSSSSSSSSSS
"noodles" are rice paper wrapped around a meat or vegetable stir fry. it's like cannaloni!

"dumplings" are rice paper with the meat inside. (meat being lobster, shrimp, crab...and the standard chicken, beef, or pork, as well).

"moon cakes" are slab rectangles of what looks like opaque sparkling jello, but tastes like a mix between Turkish Delight (yes, I've read C. S. Lewis) and Angel food cake. AND it's gluten-free.

"Zhijong", or sticky rice wraps, are bamboo or taro leaves surrounding rice and a variety of gluten-free ingredients. They refrigerate, they freeze, they are easy to heat up, they are filling, they are a different post ;)

"Deep Fried Taro Balls", or jah wu tao, are poi (taro) dumplings filled with a variety of savory and sweet goodies, and are also a different post ;)
YYEEEESSSS..

But that's not the best part. The best part was I found, yet another, source for deep-fried mochi. I also find out that they are called "ma t'uan" in Mandarin Chinese ("zeen duy" in Cantonese Chinese). Only here they put in lemon curd.

Needless to say, heaven.
Here's my recipe:

Deep Fried Mochi/Ma T'uan


























1 pound powdered sweet rice flour
1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar
1 1/4 cups boiling water
1 cup sweet red bean paste, lemon curd, or seedless raspberry jam
1/4 cup white or black sesame seeds (optional)
Peanut, Vegetable, or Canola oil

1. Open the can of jelly of your choice. Place into a freezer-safe bowl and place in the freezer for two hours until firm. This is not necessary if your paste if stiff enough to roll into a ball.
2. After the paste is firm, roll into 1" balls and place back into the freezer on a cookie sheet or plate.
3. In a 2 quart sauce pan, bring the water to a boil.
4. Dissolve the brown sugar in the boiling water and remove from heat. (or boil the water in the microwave in a microwavable bowl and add sugar).
5. Place the flour in a separate bowl, making a divot, or well, in the middle. (this will help prevent uneven mixing in the next step).
6. Gradually mix in the sugar/water with the flour. Remember, it is hot! The mixture will become very thick, like the play dough.
7. Make this dough into 2-3" balls (think golf ball). I recommend putting some rice flour on your hands.
8. With each ball, press one side into the ball, so that the dough makes a cup for the jelly or jam.
9. Place your jelly or paste of choice into the center of the dough "cups".
10. Gently pinch the opening closed and re-roll GENTLY in your hands to make completely round.
11. If you like sesame seeds, roll the balls in the seeds. These are optional.
12. Put about 3-4" of oil in the bottom of your wok, omelet pan, or chef's pan. (or, if you have a Fry Daddy, bring 'er out!). Heat on medium heat to 330 degrees.
13. Place balls into the oil and fry for 2 minutes (the sesame seeds will become golden).
14. Gently press the ball against the side of your pan- this will the "dough" inside to expand up to 3 times it size! Continue until golden brown.
15. Place on paper towels laid over a cooling rack (to drain excess oil away).
16. As soon as the balls are cool, transfer to waxed paper or Tupperware.


Happy Eatings!
The gluten free, irish lass, gourmand, and eater of dim som

The taco soup

ERRR....ok, here's the full recipe WITH the boullion cubes!

wow. Ok, I'm new at this


________________________________________________________

Taco Soup
5- 9Quart stock pot is needed.

2lbs Chicken, Beef, or Pork, cubed (1 plastic wrapped package)
2 tbls of oil or butter
2 cans of kidney beans, NOT drained! (light or dark, or, gasp, one of each!)
1 can of ortega green chilis, chopped
32oz can of hominy, NOT drained!
32oz can of crushed tomatoes
32oz can of diced tomatoes

2-3 knorr chicken, beef, or pork boullion cubes (if you have a water softener, add 2.)
1 medium red onion (the flatter theey are, the sweeter they are)
1 tbls minced garlic (you can buy this at your regular grocery)
4 tbls ancho, chitpotle, or blended chili powder
2 tbls oregano
1 tbls thyme
Corn Tortilla Chips

Optional:
Shredded monterey jack or cheddar cheese for topping (it takes about 4 cups to top the entire pot worth)
chopped cilantro (it takes about 1 bunch to top the entire pot worth)

1. Brown the onions in the butter or oil, on high heat.
2. Once the onions are soft, add the cubed meat. Once the meat begins to get brown, turn the heat down to medium.
3. Add garlic and cook meat on medium heat until it is completely cooked.
4. Ceremoniously dump in kidney beans, green chilis, hominy, and tomatoes.
5. Add chili powder and the boullion cubes.
6. Bring to a boil, then maintain a GENTLE simmer on low heat**
7. Cook for AT LEAST 30 minutes. It tastes better if you cook it for at least an hour. If the soup begins to get too thick, then add some water. we don't want the soup to get too think, though. How you can tell is put some of the soup in a clear glass. if you look through the middle of the glass outward across the soup, you should NOT see a clearish edge on the soup. If you do, you need to keep cooking. :)
8. Add the oregano and the thyme right before serving. This is because if you boil these, you will only get a bitter flavor.
9. Serve topped with corn chips and the optional cheese and cilantro.

And it's still winter in Minnesota

I'll admit. I'm not a native Minnesotan. I didn't grow up with snow days and shoveling the walk and having a dad that never saw the family because it's ice fishing season. I grew up in the land of the "warm". Why the "quotes"? Because life in the Golden State isn't always sunny. That's why it lost to Florida for the title of Sunshine State.

Yes, winters where I grew up were humid, grey, and drab. The trees still lose their leaves. The humidity creates fog as thick as pea soup. Not kidding. We had Foggy Day Bus Schedule. Waits for the fog to burn off because it's too dangerous to cross a street (except for teachers, who had to be there on time for school- threw that one in there for you Mom!). It was cold. There are gaps in the walls around light sockets and windows and the walls are only 4" thick instead of the hearty 6" here in the land of the cold, even in the best of homes.

So, we used to have soup day.

Soup day was Sunday dinner. Mom would invent some of the GREATEST soups to keep you warm while you walked to the bus stop in the fog. (well, we walked the three blocks to the school, but you get my point)

And so, I shall impart my variations of Mom's best soup recipes. And they're all gluten free.

First one up:


Taco Soup
5- 9Quart stock pot is needed.

2lbs Chicken, Beef, or Pork, cubed (1 plastic wrapped package)
2 tbls of oil or butter
2 cans of kidney beans, NOT drained! (light or dark, or, gasp, one of each!)
1 can of ortega green chilis, chopped
32oz can of hominy, NOT drained!
32oz can of crushed tomatoes
32oz can of diced tomatoes

knorr chicken, beef, or pork boullion cubes
1 medium red onion*
1 tbls minced garlic (you can buy this at your regular grocery)
4 tbls ancho, chitpotle, or blended chili powder
2 tbls oregano
1 tbls thyme
Corn Tortilla Chips

Optional:
Shredded monterey jack or cheddar cheese for topping (it takes about 4 cups to top the entire pot worth)
chopped cilantro (it takes about 1 bunch to top the entire pot worth)

1. Brown the onions in the butter or oil, on high heat.
2. Once the onions are soft, add the cubed meat. Once the meat begins to get brown, turn the heat down to medium.
3. Add garlic and cook meat on medium heat until it is completely cooked.
4. Ceremoniously dump in kidney beans, green chilis, hominy, and tomatoes.
5. Add chili powder
6. Bring to a boil, then maintain a GENTLE simmer on low heat**
7. Cook for AT LEAST 30 minutes. It tastes better if you cook it for at least an hour. If the soup begins to get too thick, then add some water. we don't want the soup to get too think, though. How you can tell is put some of the soup in a clear glass. if you look through the middle of the glass outward across the soup, you should NOT see a clearish edge on the soup. If you do, you need to keep cooking. :)
8. Add the oregano and the thyme right before serving. This is because if you boil these, you will only get a bitter flavor.
9. Serve topped with corn chips and the optional cheese and cilantro.

Happy eating!
The Irish Lass

Egg Nog Belgian Waffles

And welcome back!

So, because I'm a scientist, I have this insatible desire NOT to follow a recipe. This includes even Betty Crocker, back in the day, because, I found, that when I actually pay attention to the ingredients, it tastes SO much better. And it turns out that there are reasons for this. For instance, everyone of you probably has this little tub of red-brown powder in the kitchen that, when pressed, you would call cinnamon.

I've hated cinnamon for years.

....and the reason was that the red-brown powder has probably been in your cabinet for YEARS and it used to come in these little tins by McCormick (some of you will remember these...). Basically, it's not Cinnamon. No one else in the world would call this cinnamon. it's so old that all the flavor and aroma has turned to ash and bitterness. Personally, I recommend Pennzy's Spice Company (www.penzeys.com) It's what you'd call a spice merchant. After experiencing the full rainbow of spices from this merchant, I can understand what the whole Columbus this is about. Wow. I mean, wow! Did you know that the brown stuff in the tin, when fresh, is not even really cinnamon??? It's Cassia Cinnamon- which is a fake cinnamon. Something cheaper that was discovered and passed off as the real thing. Ceylon Cinnamon is the real deal. Try smelling some. try tasting some. wow.

But I digress. I'm talking about paying attention to your ingredients when you're making something. I'm talking about smelling your spices to know if they're fresh (because a tsp of that old, gacky brown stuff is NOT the same as a tsp of cinnamon) or if they are just milder than the flavor you want because there was a drought this year (remind me to talk about cilantro some time!)

well, I'm still in the "oh, my, well, I don't think that will taste as good as if I put this in, instead" phase. Hence, the waffles.

I didn't have any milk- I'm not a milk drinker. I used to be a milk drinker. I used to eat cereal. Milk used to be the cheapest beverage besides water. What can I say, I'm Irish. Being Irish, you can eat cheese, drink milk- all your life. You're a mutant (and happy for it!)

But what did I have? hmmm...well, it's getting to be the end of the winter holidays- the Vulcans are chasing off the Snow King, and I have my last container of egg nog. yessssssssss, who EVER developed this was AN ANGEL. or just a really good biochemist. Now, what I'm talking about is actually egg nog "batter"- it's sans alcohol. no brandy. just eggs, milk, spices. yum. and seeing as how spices, such as nutmeg and cinnamon, go really well in waffles, I decided- YES.


so, here's what I did (Egg Nog Belgian Waffles):
for 4-5 10" square waffles:

4 Cups powdered sweet rice flour
1 tsp powdered yeast
1/8 Cup tapioca starch
4 eggs
1/2 C sugar
2 Cups (1 pint) of egg nog
1 tsp double strength vanilla or 2 tsps regular vanilla extract.
3tsps Xanthan Gum

1) 4 Cups of FINELY powdered rice flour
1 tsp powdered yeast (not the granulated packet)
1/8 Cup powdered tapioca flour*

2) mix this together.

3) In a mixing bowl, beat 4 eggs and 1/2 C of white, granulated sugar, to soft peaks- with an electric mixer. **

4) While beating, add 1 tsp of Double Strength Vanilla, or 2 tsp of single strength Vanilla***

5) Beat in 1 Cup of Traditional Egg Nog (NOT SKIM!)***

6) Gradually, sift in the dry ingredients. If you don't have a sifter, slowly add the dry ingredients (or you'll knock your eggs down). The mixture will be getting stiff and thick.

7). Add the remaining 1 Cup Traditional Egg Nog. The mixture should be very runny now.

8). Add 3 teaspoons (tsps) of Xanthan Gum.

9). Heat up your iron. Spray the iron with a non-stick spray.

10). Spoon out your waffle batter onto the iron. I recommend a making a "tester" with just a little bit of batter so you can see how the batter behaves. (too thick- add more egg nog, too runny, add more Xanthan Gum).

11). If you have left overs, make sure you separate them with waxed paper before freezing, or you might have one very large waffle mass for your next meal.


*You can get these dry ingredients at your local Asian supermarket.

**Soft Peaks (Which means that you beat them past the white, foamy part to where, if you take the back of a spoon and touch the eggs, then lift up, you get something looking like mountains. If you go too far, it'll be fine for this recipe).

***The difference is how much liquid you'll end up adding to your mixture. In gluten free baking, you need to really minimize the amount of alcohol you mix with your eggs (which we will discuss later)


Happy eatings!
the irish lass

Eating Asian

Ok, so, my initial advice to people who just found out: change your diet. I don't mean use rice flour, I mean, CHANGE your diet.

I'm sorry, but it's really difficult to make pasta taste and feel like pasta when it's not semolina. You're going to spend a lot of money on "ready-made" or "boxed food" items that make 2 cups of food and still don't taste great.


So, think Asian. Think Mexican. Google countries where wheat cannot grow because of the climate and eat food from those countries. I have to say, I would never have tried Thai or Somalian if I could eat a pizza every night (Oh, don't worry- I have a pizza for your fix, too, but you'll have to check back).

What I'm saying here, is that, even with a good fake gluten- substance, there's nothing like the real thing. somethings can't be faked well. Like pasta. I know, there's actually some good pasta out there, but there's nothing like an udon noodle. Or lasagna. The greatest secret to not feeling like you have a disease but that you have a dietary condition, is to seek out food that you don't have to omit, substitute, or abstain from. My favorites are Japanese and Chinese restaurants. Really Asian. I would say that Thai is, too, but there's not a restaurant within walking distance. sorry. But I do LOVE phad thai. (this is a stir-fried rice noodle dish. it tastes like sin. oh my god).

Rules of Asian Restaurants for the GF seeker:
1. ask if they use flour or cornstarch or tapioca starch. Many cuisines from south-east Asia will use tapioca starch because flour is not natively available.
2. make sure they are using rice vinegar and not distilled- but again, this is usually the case because wheat (what "white distilled vinegar" is made from) is not grown in the jungles of south-east Asia or the desert.
3. Ask for mochi or pudding instead of the fortune cookie. Mochi are "moon cakes", found in, most commonly, Japanese restaurants, but they are found in Chinese restaurants, too. They are this little sweet rice dough ball with this red bean paste inside. No lactose, no yeast, no gluten. and if they are deep fried, the rice gets crispy like a donut. Ask for them at your local restaurants.
4. Glutinous Rice does not have gluten in it. another name for this is "sticky rice". It's perfectly safe. it's named AFTER the glutenious affect in wheat, but it HAS NOT GLUTEN IN IT.
5. Before putting sugar in your tea, make sure there's not a fortune cookie in the sugar shaker.


stay tuned for Indian, Pakastani, and Afgani

happy eatings!
the irish lass

Welcome to the world of the Irish

welcome to the gluten free (GF) goodness site- a site that discusses the pros and cons of different gluten free books, edibles, and recipes, as well as what it's like to live with celiac disease/gluten intolerance/celiac sprue.

I'm drafting this because, when I was diagnosed at 20, I went through just about every medical test imaginable, with a doctor who's bedside manner was prehistoric. One day, after the small intestinal biospy (if you want to know more about how celiac disease is diagnosed, stay tuned), I received a call from this doctor. He told me "you have celiac spruce" and was about to hang up. I'm not kidding. I panicked and asked him, "what is that? what do I do? what does that mean?" and in the very cryptic doctor language, he told me, "you can't eat gluten".

Whoa.

What the hell is gluten? So, I asked.

"it's in wheat and oats and rye and barley" (there goes my life as a baker).

"well, what do I do know? what am I supposed to eat? " To the reply of, "well, the dietitian will be meeting with you to talk about that. "

want to guess when the next appointment with the dietitian was?

so, 2 MONTHS later, I meet with the dietition. Would have died from this condition if I hadn't been willing to experiment. And cry. And experiment. And cry. And cry. And cry.

For those of you who have had this condition for quite some time, you'll know what I mean. Ever tried to make muffins with brown rice flour? (and since this was 12 years ago, that's just about what you could get around here at the co-ops). Oh, my god, and the EnerG Tapioca loaf. GAG!

So, I was resigned to a life of tapioca pudding (couldn't do instant Jello pudding because it had gluten in it) and rice cakes. Not the flavored ones. The coaster.

I have managed to survive this condition and "buck up", as they say. I continued to experiment with lots of different types of flours, recipes, techniques- all of that. But that's what I went to school for. Yes, I have two degrees in Molecular Biology/Biochemistry and Cell Biology. It basically means that I'm really good at trial and error in the wee hours of the morning. I've found some great combinations, which still take LOTS of work, but you can fake the gluten. (stay tuned for that in another blog). So, I'm journaling all of my heartache in this blog- it's theraputic. ha ha ha! Yes, recipes, yes, sob stories, yes, restaurants where you can order anything on the menu because they WILL make the substitution for you.

see you in the kitchen!
The irish lass