Motivation – Getting Run Down

I should be blogging more.

I have recipes all set and ready to go but sometimes I feel like, what’s the point? It’s an easy trap to fall into. I blame it on the winter, the cold, the lack of hours I work… but it all comes down to attitude. Of course that’s tough to keep positive throughout it all.

I digress…

I think it’s time for me to step into the kitchen this evening. But I have a question for any readers (if you’re out there!), cake or cupcakes? What do you prefer to eat?

Cupcakes can be easier I think, less time frosting and it doesn’t have to be perfect. They are all the rage right now and cupcake bakeries are everywhere. But cupcakes will never take the place of a fancy formal cake.

Namaste Foods Gluten Free Spice Cake Mix

Namaste Foods Gluten Free Spice Cake Mix

 

My mother brought me this mix back from the U.S. I believe she picked it up in Michigan. It comes in this great brown paper bag with clear instructions and tips. In fact it states 3 variations to the regular recipe; spice cake, carrot cake, gingerbread and applesauce cake! I went with the original but also added a few table spoons of homemade applesauce. I must admit I love mixes. It brings me back to making a regular old cake mix from the box. I started making gluten-free recipes about 4 or 5 years ago after finally realizing there was a way for me to enjoy baked goods and feel better while doing so.  But I digress. The batter smells delicious and as they are baking it fills the house with that warm, almost Christmassy aroma.  Sure it’s Febuary but it’s definitely a welcome smell any time of year. The taste was nice, not the best. It’s hard to explain what the funny taste was but we enjoyed them just the same. I added some applesauce to a regular butter-cream icing along with some cinnamon. If I could buy some Namaste products here I defiantly would. In fact the site has a letter you can print out to bring to your local store to suggest they carry their products. Very cool! Other than that option you can order online, something I’ve never done with food but I may consider it.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Here it is, the first recipe! This is my go to, my most baked and most loved (I think anyway). It’s easy to whip up and doesn’t have a bunch of ingredients that are hard to find. You’ll end up with a bit of a dry ‘batter’ but that’s what you want. I just add a few tablespoons of warm water until it combines. You don’t want it too soft or runny. I use a small scoop and have started to flatten them a little to make a more ‘cookie’ like shape instead of looking like a scoop of ice cream.

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup White Rice Flour

1 cup Potato Flour

1 cup Brown Sugar

½ cup Sugar

¾ cup Butter (melted) (I use Fleischmann’s Lactose-Free Margarine)

½ tsp. Salt

½ tsp. Baking Soda

1 tbs. Vanilla

1 Egg

1 Egg Yoke

1-2 cups Chocolate Chips

The batter should appear dry when everything is mixed together. Add a few tsp of warm water to help bind ingredients.

350 Degrees for 15-17 minutes until edges are slightly toasted.

If you make these, please send me a picture! I really want to see the results and any changes you make.

“The Gluten Debate” – The Globe & Mail

… the prevalence of non-celiac gluten intolerance is unknown, Dr. Fasano says, adding that medical knowledge of gluten sensitivity today is where it was with celiac disease 10 years ago. “The field is very foggy.”

Until a biomarker for gluten sensitivity is found, doctors must rely on a gluten-free diet for diagnosis, Dr. Fasano says. If, after testing negative for celiac disease and wheat allergy, patients’ symptoms improve after one month of avoiding even a speck of gluten, they are considered gluten sensitive, he says.

Published studies of gluten sensitivity tend to be small, including a recent double-blind randomized trial involving 34 patients at Monash University in Victoria, Australia. The research, published in January in The American Journal of Gastroenterology, found that gluten triggered symptoms in non-celiac patients with gastrointestinal problems. It concluded that “non-celiac gluten intolerance may exist.”

Source

I believe this is where I fit in. But I won’t know until I go for an actual test on my innards! That day may come but since my diet seems to work (for the most part) I think I’ll stick to it. Not a bad article but I still feel the sense that this is all a fad for the media to cover.

Hello!

I’m a twenty-something grrl from Ontario, Canada. I’ve been gluten-free for about 5 years and lactose free (with the help of digestive aids the odd time) for longer than that. I’ve always loved baking and there are home videos to prove it; flour added by hand to cheeks for a little added touch. However even before I started my own home-video cooking show I’ve had stomach problems.  Starting out as a colicky baby my mother can attest to the feeding problems. She jokes that I still suffer from colic. I just always hated eating which isn’t unusual for children who are picky eaters. But it was more than that, always complaining of stomach aches and being a somewhat sickly child my parents just figured I had a sensitive stomach.

After suffering for many years my mother brought me to a homeopathic doctor. After looking back into my history and after a bunch of digestive enzymes and parasite cleansers we decided to do an elimination diet. First to go was gluten. It was hard and at times I would just opt for white bread instead of whole wheat bread thinking that there was less “wheat” in that. But only until I went strictly gluten-free for 2 weeks did I start to notice a difference. It was pretty bad timing though, right at the Christmas holidays. But with the help of a local health food store I was able to do it. In fact I didn’t go back to gluten after that. I didn’t want to do the intestinal biopsy because I didn’t want to go back to eating gluten and feeling awful for a test I knew would come back as gluten intolerant or celiac.  So even though I haven’t been diagnosed I did what was best for me.

So that’s the back story. You can read more on the About page if you so wish. What I plan on doing here is sharing recipes, baking mishaps, food photography, reviews, blogging, and articles.  But we’ll see what happens! I encourage feed back; leave comments or send me an email with any questions, comments or facts. It seems I learn something new about gluten allergies everyday so I think we’re all searching for answers.