Celiac News

Medical terminology can be confusing for many patients, especially children. Have you ever suffered a medical nightmare like this? “Patient displays an acute communicable disease with an incubation period of 2 or 3 weeks and caused by herpesvirus, usually found in children. Manifestations include coryza, fever, malaise, and headache, followed in 2 or 3 days by the eruption of macular vesicles.” Chances are you have. The above paragraph is just a complicated description of a common childhood virus: chicken pox. In most cases doctors are happy to act as medical translators for their patients— explaining complicated medical terminology in every day language— but when it comes to written material, many medical publications rely heavily on industry jargon. It can be intimidati...

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Gluten-free foods have flooded the market with the increase of people with Celiac Disease. But is avoiding wheat and gluten products a good way to lose weight? Dr. Mike says no. "It's not the way to go if ...

Savoury Gluten Free Tartlets

These are very easy to make and delicious! I used G-Free ready to roll pastry in the Pampered Chef Mini-Muffin Pan shaped with the wooden Mini-Tart Shaper. These are perfect for gluten free pastry because you don’t need to roll it out, just make small balls of pastry, put them in the wells and the shaper pats the pastry into the tin. The tin is non-stick too so you don’t need to grease it. You will need about 400g of pastry for this recipe.

Bake the pastry at 200°C/fan 180°C/Gas 6 for 8-10 mins then add filling.

I adapted this recipe at a cooking demo last week so it would be suitable for vegetarians. Even my son who doesn’t like mushrooms thought they were delicious!

You can put any filling in you like but this is what I used -

2 tomatoes – cut in half, scoop out seeds and chop finely (you could use sun-dried tomatoes for extra flavour)
4 mushrooms finely chopped
about 100g stilton broken into small pieces
1 clove garlic crushed
125g soft cheese

Mix everything together then spoon into tart cases and bake for a further 6-9 mins until cheese is melted.

This made about 30 tartlets.

Savoury tartlets in mini-muffin pan

HUNTINGTON -- Dozens of walkers took advantage of sunny, warm weather at Ritter Park on Sunday to raise awareness for an autoimmune disease that affects 1 in 133 Americans. The fourth annual Making Tracks for Celiac ...

Greek Style Grilled Calamari

Serves 2
Can be Doubled| Can be Halved

This recipe is proof that calamari doesn’t have to be deep fried to be tasty. I came up with it after having the grilled calamari at my favorite Greek restaurant Akti, which is in the Astoria neighborhood of Queens. When Mahir, Meenakshi and I go, we order the grilled squid and shrimp platter to share, and I always relish the tender squid! Since calamari is one of the least expensive fish, takes literally two minutes to cook and has around 205 calories for a half-pound (according to Calorie King), it a no brainer to make it at home. Unfortunately, it’s also overlooked as the star it can be, and most home cooks I know don’t have it as part of their lineup. Hopefully, this super easy recipe will inspire you to change that!     ~Shivani

Ingredients:

one pound of calamari, tentacles and body (most fishmongers already sell it cut up and divided into these two parts)
2 teaspoons of olive oil
1/2 to 1 teaspoon of dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon paprika (optional)
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
salt and pepper, to taste

Instructions:

Warm a large non-stick grill pan over medium heat.

In a bowl, toss together all of the ingredients with the squid.

Grill the squid until done. About 45 seconds to one minute per side. Take care not to overcook or the dish will be chewy.

Squeeze with extra lemon juice, if desired.

Serving Suggestions:

In keeping with the Greek theme, eat this dish with a salad of chopped romaine lettuce, tomato, red onion, cucumbers, Kalamata olives, a little feta cheese and a red wine vinegar and olive oil dressing. Warmed whole wheat pita is a good starch pairing.

Mrs. Leeper's Pasta Organic, Rice Alphabets, 12 Ounce Bags (Pack of 12) (Grocery)By Mrs. Leeper's Click for more info Customer tags: gluten free pasta(3), wheat free, gluten free More: continued here Related posts:Mrs. Leeper’s Pasta Organic, Rice Spaghetti, 12 Ounce Bags (Pack of 12) (Grocery) recently tagged “gluten free pasta” Mrs. Leeper’s Pasta Organic, Rice [...] Related posts:

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Over at the Regional Recipes blog event the month's theme is the food of Puerto Rico and what can be more appropriate to cook up than the National Dish of Arroz Con Gandules, or Rice and Pigeon Peas. I am always on the lookout for another rice and beans recipe to add to our repertoire and this luscious dish turned out great for dinner and reheated for our lunch over the course of several days.

I had never tried pigeon peas, but our supermarket carried a green variety under the Goya brand. They were not a bright green like pigeon peas shown on the label, but were a more drab brownish gray. However, they have a nice earthy taste and Goya handily provided a recipe for Arroz Con Gandules right on the can which I used as a springboard for my own vegetarian version using more of the veggies sproinging out of the home gardens. Pigeon peas are protein-rich legumes are grown all over the tropics and are featured in many different cuisines. Indian cooks make a lot of recipes with pigeon peas, or toor dal, so I knew I wanted to play around with this new (to me) legume.

For a traditional Puerto Rican Arroz Con Gandules one would add a little bit of chopped ham or bacon, but I souped up my vegetarian version with extra seasoning and some chopped green olives.




Arroz Con Gandules, Garden-Style

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
2-3 frying peppers, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
5 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped
2 packets Sazon Goya con culantro y achiote (the Goya website says it gluten-free)
1 (15 oz.) can green pigeon peas, drained
2 cups rice
4 cups water
4 Tbsp. parsley, chopped
Chopped green olives for garnish


Heat oil in large heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add onion and saute until translucent, about 4 minutes, add peppers and garlic and cook another 2-3 minutes, stirring. Add tomatoes and cook another 5 minutes. When vegetables are softened, add Sazon Goya, pigeon peas, and water.

Bring to a boil. Lower heat, add rice and simmer, covered, until rice is cooked, about 15-20 minutes. Try to resist the temptation to stir the rice during its steaming or it may become gummy. Season with a little salt and pepper to taste.

Garnish with chopped parsley and chopped green olives. A squirt of hot pepper sauce is also nice.

Makes 6-8 servings.

The Regional Recipes roundup will occur after the August 31 deadline and then our hostess Joanne will announce the next country we will be visiting. Previous editions of Regional Recipes have looked at the cuisines of Ethiopia, Ireland, Greece, Vietnam, and other nations, and the roundups really give a nice overview of the flavors and foods of these different countries. Can't wait to see our next destination.

I am also sending a bowl of this delicious dish to Simone of Briciole, who is hosting this month's edition of My Legume Love Affair, a monthly blog event that highlights the various legumes of the world, including my new favorite, pigeon peas. My Legume Love Affair is the brainchild of Susan, the Well-Seasoned Cook, and her blog contains all the archives of past MLLA rounds so you can spend many hours looking at the various ways cooks around the globe cook with these wonderful peas, beans and pulses.

   

King Arthur Flour Gluten-Free Brownie and Chocolate Cake Mixes

Chocolate Baking -  Two King Arthur Flour Gluten Free Mixes Reviewed

Some time back King Arthur Flour sent me two of their gluten-free chocolate baking mixes to review, but due to oven malfunctions and then summer heat, I did not get to them right away.  When I did, I loved them!  I am not an affiliate of King Arthur Flour, and I don’t speak for them –  I was only given samples to review.  I found these mixes to be very good.  I definitely want to buy them myself!

The King Arthur Flour webpage about gluten-free FAQs states their mixes are prepared in a dedicated gluten-free facility and are   ”…Certified Gluten-Free™ by the non-profit Gluten-Free Certification Organization (GFCO), a program of the Gluten Intolerance Group (GIG®). GFCO products are tested to be less than 10ppm (parts per million) gluten. This is stricter than even the FDA requirement of less than 20ppm gluten.”   They are also allergen-free (“wheat, nuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy, eggs, and dairy”) and are certified kosher.

While the prices of these mixes if I had bought them seem a little high at $6.95 plus shipping, I have to admit that after using them, I found the quality well worth it.   

The first one I baked was the Gluten-Free Brownie Mix.   The other, their Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake Mix, I’ll describe further below.

 

Chocolate Brownie - King Arthur Flour Gluten Free Brownie Mix Review

Chocolate Brownie – King Arthur Flour Gluten Free Brownie Mix Review

The chocolate flavor is rich, without being overpowered by odd tastes that sometimes go with gluten-free flours. The texture was dense but still a little crumbly, like fudge brownies are supposed to be. They could be cut and removed from the pan without falling apart.  As their webpage says they’ve worked hard so their brownies “stay fresh longer than brownies from other mixes,” the next day I was glad to see they still had good texture and had not degenerated into chocolate pudding in the brownie pan like some recipes I’ve baked.  I was able to freeze a few of these, too, and the texture was still good after thawing — not quite as good as fresh-baked, but still good.

 Easy to put together:

Ready to mix

As you can see, the ingredients were simple:  the mix, butter or oil, water and eggs.  Just whisk them together (although I used a mixer on low — a creature of habit, I guess).  Here it is, ready to go in the oven:

Ready to bake

After baking, they have a firm, slightly springy texture and a nice crust.

Brownies baked and cooling.

Delicious!

 

Chocolate Cake – King Arthur Flour Gluten-Free Chocolate Mix Review

King Arthur Flour Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake

This chocolate cake mix made a two-layer cake that had a firm, springy texture and a rich chocolate flavor, without the odd tastes I sometimes find in gluten-free ingredients.  The layers held their shape and form well, making an attractive as well as delicious dessert.  What was left the next day still had good texture, and what I freezed still had good texture  and flavor when thawed.  It was hard to tell that it was “one of those gluten-free things.”  For a chocolate lover like me, that was great news!  You can find more nutritional information on their webpage for it here.

It was easy to put together.  You do need an electric mixer for this (not just a whisk like the brownies):

Ready to Mix

The layers came out of the oven looking good:

Baked and cooling

For the picture at the top of this section, I used my mom’s recipe for cocoa buttercream frosting, but you wouldn’t necessarily even need to frost it.  However, here’s another possibility for serving it, instead of buttercream frosting:

Ice Cream Cake!

The ice cream cake was sooooo good!

 

Food in the U.S. has gone through interesting transitions since I was a child.  I can clearly remember the days of complicated gelatin-fruit- “mystery ingredient” molds at my hometown church fellowship dinners.  Common elements within these treasures were marshmallows, canned pineapple and the occasional, rare and elusive maraschino cherry.  One per can of fruit cocktail, right?

We then entered the convenience phase (70s), the chemical additives phase (80s), moved into the pretentious and everything-imported phase (90s) and now here we are today.  In middle America with choices to make, doing our best to prepare and eat our food in the tastiest, healthiest and most competent way we know how.

I thought I would jot you a note and let you know how we make two common items in our home with only two simple ingredients.  Just to be clear, I’m not counting sea salt, ground pepper and olive oil in the “two.”  Tonight I’ll show you how we make our tried and true: summer roasted chicken and pan fried okra.

Summer Roasted Chicken

1 organically raised chicken

Approximately 3 cuts of fresh rosemary (3 pieces, about 3 inches long)

1 med white onion

Here we go: Not tried organic meats and poultry? Consider doing your family a favor and purchase roasting hens raised without antibiotics or hormones if possible. And range-fed? Even better.  If you’re not satisfied with your grocer’s selection, you might want to shop your local farms, butchers and meat markets.  It’s a nice adventure to find a local source, and developing a relationship with your local producers is always a good thing.

1) Brush your baking dish with olive oil.  Trim any extra skin or fat (I trim the tail) off the bird.  Brush the entire bird with olive oil.  Sometimes little pockets get trapped in the folds of the skin, so go over it twice with your pastry brush evenly distributing your oil for balanced baking.

Hen prepared for roasting.

2) Next, make your modified “bouquet garni” with your only two ingredients: rosemary and onion.  Wash and dry the rosemary. Cover the outside with a moderate sprinkling of destemmed leaves.  Stuff the remaining rosemary into the neck and back cavities.

3) Clean the onion, and cut into 6 or so pieces.  Stuff them into the neck and back cavities. If there are leftovers, simply lay them against the hen in the roasting pan.

4) Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven.  Bake for 30 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350 until the hen reaches AT LEAST 165 degrees.  I usually let mine go until the skin is a beautiful mix of golden and darker brown areas.  Click here for good roasting time estimates.

Make sure and bring the bird to AT LEAST 165 degrees before removing from your oven.

Beautiful to look at, smell and definitely eat.  Why these two ingredients for the summer?  Butter and garlic have waxy and fatty molecules that “weigh down” the meat, and are better for cooler temperatures.  Onions and rosemary have more open and acidic molecules which are perfect for delivering a “cool” aroma when you taste your masterpiece.  The bouquet of evergreens goes right up your nose, barely, as an afterthought this way.  Perfect.

Now – you have two options.  You can serve the stock and onions with the meal, or you can remove them both and utilize them in different ways.  I use the second choice because the hen is so juicy, there really is no need for stock.

Plate the hen, remove a couple of your onion chunks and put the pan in the refrigerator.  Once the fat is solid, remove it and put up the stock for a later use.  Good chicken stock is like gold!

Voila!

Take the roasted onion, put it in a blender with a regular container of sour cream or 8oz of Greek yogurt.  Blend.  Add about 1/2 c. of diced cucumber or about 1 T. diced fresh dill.  Tap the blender button until the green ingredients are just blended.  Use to dollop on the side of your meat or as a dip with fresh vegetables.  This cool complement helps continue to define your meal as “summer.”

Now, what to do thirty minutes before your bird is done? Hmmm – how about pan fried okra!

Pan Fried Okra

Enough okra to feed those you are serving. See below.

White or yellow cornmeal, milk (any type, including buttermilk)

I usually count about six to eight stalks of okra per person.  Our family likes pan fried okra (a lot!) so you might have to play with the amount.  Try to get the freshest medium size stalks you can find.  Smaller ones require more effort to prep and larger stalks are inedible.  The only use we’ve found for the larger ones to date is composting them or drying them and using them for firewood!  I think my neighbor dries them and paints them for a children’s craft.

Add only enough milk to cover the bottom of your container.

1) Wash and dry your okra, then cut into bitesized pieces disposing of the stem caps.  Place them in a mixing bowl.  Pour in about 1-2 T of milk for each person you are serving.  The milk should just barely cover the bottom of the bowl.  Toss to coat.  It usually takes me about four tosses.

2) Next, alternate between taking a handful of cornmeal and sprinkling it over the okra, and tossing to coat it.  A bowl for four people usually takes me 3 or 4 tries.  If you’ve ever made “puppy chow” snacks for children, then you know at some point the “dry” will coat and soak up the “wet.”

Toss in cornmeal until coated and separated.

3) Add salt and pepper, toss and fry in prepared pan.  You will need about 1-2 T. of olive oil in the pan for each person you are serving.  Make sure the pan is on med-med-high, and that the oil is heated before you add the okra.  Immediately separate any stuck pieces in the pan as the oil “sets” the coating fairly quickly.

4) I know this is silly, but the first “turn” on the okra I actually do by hand.  I want to make sure every piece gets set and is cooking evenly…so I take a fork and hand flip them over.  You don’t have to do this; just toss the pan saute’ style to continue to flip and cook the okra until done.

You’ll know your work is done when you begin to see a fairly even browning across the coating and little dark brown “crumbs” are apparent in the bottom of your pan. Vegan recipe? Use vegetable broth and cornmeal – OR, my mother and grandmother simply coat the okra with flour, then with cornmeal; they don’t use liquid.  This method makes the okra shrink more when cooked, but is simple and delicious!

If your okra looks like this, it's done!

I suggest pairing this lovely meal up with something cold and crunchy, and a cold summer beverage such as pomegranate iced tea or sparkling water with orange slices.

Here’s a snack plate I prepared with homegrown fried okra, tomatoes and cucumbers – all from my garden.  Summer is a lovely thing and the food that comes with it, perhaps even better.  Happy mealtime!

Feast with your eyes...

HUNTINGTON -- Walkers can help raise awareness and funds for celiac disease at the Making Tracks for Celiac event on Sunday, Aug. 29, at Ritter Park. Registration begins at 1 p.m., followed by the treasure ...

I don’t know why I’ve missed the “Adopt a Gluten-Free Blogger” events for th

Distinguishing patients with celiac disease by quantitative analysis of videocapsule endoscopy images
           

Abstract: Background: Although videocapsule endoscopy images are helpful in the evaluation of celiac disease, their interpretation is subjective. Quantitative disease markers could assist in determining the extent of villous atrophy and response to treatment.Method: Capsule ...

Abstract: Background: Although videocapsule endoscopy images are helpful in the evaluation of celiac disease, their interpretation is subjective. Quantitative disease markers could assist in determining the extent of villous atrophy and response to treatment.Method: Capsule endoscopy images were acquired from celiac patients with small bowel pathology (N=11) and from control patients (N=10). Image resolution was 576×576 pixels in dimension, 256 grayscale levels, and had a 2s−1 frame rate. Pixel brightness and image texture were measured over 10×10 pixel subimages and then averaged for 56×56 subimages per frame. Measurements were obtained at five locations from proximal to distal small intestine in each patient. At each location, measurements were calculated using 200 consecutive image...

Children with celiac disease have higher than normal levels of the oxidative DNA damage biomarkers urinary 8-oxodG and 8-oxoGua, regardless of their diet, report researchers. (Source: MedWire News - Pediatrics)

Children with celiac disease have higher than normal levels of the oxidative DNA damage biomarkers urinary 8-oxodG and 8-oxoGua, regardless of their diet, report researchers. (Source: MedWire News - Gastroenterology)

Children with celiac disease have higher than normal levels of the oxidative DNA damage biomarkers urinary 8-oxodG and 8-oxoGua, regardless of their diet, report researchers. (Source: MedWire News - Oncology)

FAQ: Isn’t buckwheat a form of wheat? No, it’s actually related to rhubarb and in a completely different family from wheat. (Technically, it’s a seed. Since we use it as a grain, though, I’ll call it a grain.) Buckwheat is a gluten-free, delicious savory option. It’s an excellent source of fiber, iron, protein (for a grain) and some interesting phytochemicals. Some initial limited research shows that it may have health benefits for people with high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes.

Buckwheat plays an important role in the cuisines of many cultures where growing conditions are difficult. It grows well in cold places, and on poor soil. Russia, China, Northern France, Japan, Poland, and upstate New York are a few places where it is grown. The earthy flavor can be enjoyed in different types of pancakes from around the world, toasted buckwheat groats (kasha) across Eastern Europe, noodles (soba) from Japan, and even as a jelly in Korea. If you’ve never had it, soba noodles* and kasha are readily available in large markets. Buckwheat flour or buckwheat pancake mix can be found in some stores or ordered online.

Here’s one recipe to play with– sweet rice flour is available in Asian markets. It may be possible to use all purpose flour in the place of the rice flours. Let me know if you try it!

Buckwheat Crepes
Serves 3-4

5 T buckwheat flour
4 T white rice flour
2 T sweet/glutinous rice flour
1 T sugar
2 eggs
2 T oil
1 c milk
1 t ground flax seeds
Pinch salt

Stir together the flours and sugar. Beat in the eggs, milk, and oil. Beat until almost smooth. Meanwhile, heat a non-stick griddle or crepe pan and lightly oil the surface. When hot, dip the crepe pan in the batter. Or, pour 1/4 c batter onto the pan and quickly tilt the pan to each side to spread out the batter. Cook for 45 seconds to 1 minute on each side and remove to a plate. Repeat, stirring the batter between crepes. They are reasonably good cold as a wrap or “sandwich bread”, but better warm.

We ate ours with lentil salad and dilled cucumbers. To enjoy them via Brittany, serve wrapped around an egg, ham, and a grating of Emmentaler cheese. For a Russian flavor, try them with caviar and sour cream.

*Commercially available soba noodles typically contain actual wheat.

(Source: Tissue Antigens)

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It’s not really time for stew. It’s late August, so for a Texan like me, that still mean

Gluten Free Brown Rice Elbow Pasta with Milled Flax Seed (Misc.)By Hodgson Mill Buy new: $3.39 Customer Rating: Customer tags: gf pasta, gluten free pasta More: continued here Related posts:Gluten Free Brown Rice Angel Hair Pasta with Milled Flax Seed (Misc.) recently tagged “gluten free pasta” Tinkyada Organic Brown Rice Elbow, 12-Ounce Packages (Pack of [...] Related posts:

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