Gluten Free "Fricassee"

I make this one pan meal when I'm stumped as to what to make for supper or too tired to cook something that requires much effort. This is something that my mom made on occasion when she was in a supper rush or looking for something easy to throw together at the end of a long day. The "recipe" came from her mother, who called it "Fricassee". Easy and comforting with the addition of savory, I'm happy to share this family recipe with you.

Fricassee

• Ground Beef
• Potatoes, cubed (2 two three)
• Onion (large to medium), chopped
• Peas, frozen
• Savory (1/2tsp to 1tsp- depends on how much ground beef used, you can always add more if needed)
• Salt and Pepper
• Water (1/2 to 1cup depending on amt of beef and potatoes used)
• Oil (olive or canola)  

Method:

Heat oil in skillet and cook onions until translucent. Add ground beef and brown. Season with salt, pepper and savory to taste. Add potatoes and water, simmering partially uncovered, stirring occasionally. Cook until potatoes are nearly cooked through, then add peas for the remaining few minutes. Serve when peas are bright green and cooked through (about 5 minutes).  

Easy Gluten Free Pizza Dough

My daughter has been wanting to have pizza lately these days, and it has been sometime since our local grocery store has carried gf pizza crusts. (They seem to like to do this alot!- just discontinue items suddenly.) In the past we have tried gf pizza mixes with limited success in the taste and texture department. In the last little while she has been even using gf waffles as a crust substitute, making mini pizzas. However, tonight my daughter wanted to try a recipe that was more reminiscent of "real' pizza dough. So it was off to Google! Some recipes, although promising a good final product and had good reviews, just had alot of ingredients- I would have had to make a trip to our specialty store 25min away. Then I stumbled across this recipe. Simple. Not too many ingredients. And the ingredients listed were things that most of us would have already in our gf pantry. So with recipe in hand, my daughter set to work. The end result- a dough that has good consistency, as well as taste. In her words, "It's the best one I've made at home so far- I like it! It's really good!!" She was also pleased that she could eat it like real pizza- with the crust holding together and not crumbling apart- no fork required! She is quite tickled with her crust. So give it a try- click on the link!

http://www.wisebread.com/frugal-gluten-free-living-easy-pizza-crust

Easy Homemade Gluten Free Soup

Soup is one of those things that can be difficult to find prepared in a can if you are a Celiac. And to some, making your own soup from scratch can seem intimidating. Soup making though is easier than you think, and doesn't require alot of time or money. In fact your homemade soup will most likely cost you less and taste better, as well as be free of MSG too. Soup is also forgiving when you are making it, and you can let your creative side have free rein.

The Basics:

1) Stock: You can definitely use store bought- just read your label as I find stocks vary alot where gluten is concerned. I make my own stock from chicken or turkey dinners when I've got mostly bones left.

Method: Remove most of the skin from the bird- this will help cut down fat. Place the bones in a large pot. Don't worry if there is some meat left on the bird. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Keep a lid on the pot and set temperature at medium high to high- or enough to keep it boiling, but not high enough that it will boil over. Boil the bones for at least an hour- but a good indicator is when the bones fall apart, which will depend on the size of the bird. You will also have to occasionally check to see how much water is in the pot and then add water as needed to keep the bones covered. When finished boiling, you will want to strain your stock. Use a sieve (or cheese cloth) that you have placed over a fresh pot or other large vessel and carefully ladle the hot  stock into it. The sieve will remove small bones and skin that you will throw away. Next, let the strained stock cool overnight in the fridge. This will cause the fat to harden slightly on the surface of the stock. Using a spoon, remove the fat from the surface. Most likely your stock will also have slightly solidified too- jello like. Don't worry it isn't ruined. Place it on the stove to heat it back into a fully liquid state. Next, is storage. I use ziploc freezer bags. Use a small bowl to use as a support for your bag- place an open bag in bowl. Measure two cups of stock and pour into the bag. Remove as much air as you can when sealing the bag. Freeze the stock, placing it on a flat surface. I use one 2 cup measurement for making one large pot of soup- so though the process may seem tedious it will give you alot of stock(several bags worth) for soup making down the road. You can use this for gravy making too.

2) Veggies: Ok, now we get to freestyle. What do you have in your fridge or freezer?...Just about anything goes really. Experiment. Use for example tomatoes that are getting a little on the ripe side. Broccoli cut down to size works well too- use the stems to that are not overly woody, peel and chop. Carrots, green beans, potatoes(rinse chopped potato to reduce foam), frozen corn, peppers, celery...whatever you have on hand will work. Even leftover veggies can be used. If you use peas or spinach, just put in the last few minutes of cooking.
3) Meat: This is again up to you. You can go meatless if you so desire. I sometimes use the left over turkey or chicken I froze. You can also cut up a chicken breast, or make beef meat balls and drop into the hot stock. Just note that any raw meat placed into the stock will cause some foam to form at the surface, so you may want to skim this off- but it does not affect flavor. You can also pre cook meat that you put into your soup too.
4) Other Goodies: Here you can add more to your soup if you like. This can include things like kidney beans, french lentils(since they hold their shape), leftover rice in the fridge, or a few handfuls of quinoa thrown in. I just don't recommend adding gluten free pasta to the soup as it tends to dissolve and make things gluey. If you are wanting noodles in your soup, I would make a separate pot of gf noodles and add some to a bowl of soup and not to the whole pot of soup.
5) Seasoning: This can be as simple as salt and pepper. You can add a bay leaf and/or parsley if you like. Salsa can be an interesting addition for flavoring soup, or even a can of diced tomatoes. Onion can be a good flavor adder too- but cook until translucent so it doesn't overpower the soup. Use your nose also as a guide. Smell your herbs to determine whether it might be a good addition- and when in doubt err on the side of caution. Herbs like dried sage can become easily overpowering. You can always add more seasoning remember, but you can't take it away. Use dry herbs at the beginning of cooking, and fresh herbs towards the end- you can use both fresh an dry herbs in combination if you like too. Remember to taste your soup for seasoning, and adjust as necessary. And from experience- avoid garlic in your soup...

So now that you have the basics, start with cooking your onion if using. Use a bit of olive oil or canola in a large pot- cook onion until translucent. You can cook your celery and carrots now too for about 5min. Then add your homemade concentrated stock (or 1 carton of store bought), adding enough water to cover vegetables, and make the soup the consistency you desire (my husband likes a thicker soup for example). You may also need to add a bit of water throughout the cooking process due to evaporation, as well as compensating for items like quinoa and lentils that will absorb liquid. Put in all ingredients being used, except fresh herbs and peas or other more delicate vegetables- then season. If foam develops on the surface then skim what you can with a spoon. Simmer soup for at least 30min to develop flavor- add fresh herbs and peas if using and cook an additional 5min. Serve and enjoy.
Remember there is no right or wrong way when making your soup. Express yourself. The possibilities are endless.

Today I Went to Market...a Celiac Market!

I took my daughter today to the 2nd Annual Calgary Celiac Market. It was the first time we had gone, having missed the one last year. Though there was not a large number of vendors, they were more than enough- the quality and variety of product and services offered were fantastic. They also had one thing in common no matter what they were offering- good tasting food that happens to be for celiacs. (I should note that there was a spa and a makeup line too- dedicated to going above and beyond the gluten free status.) I will apologize ahead of time for not including all the vendors in this post. I had not planned on making a post about my visit until after the fact, and there was no vendors list that was available. So that being said, here are some of the highlights.

The first table we came across was JorDan distributing. They specialize in gluten free pasta imported from Italy. It is made with a rice and corn flour combination. This pasta looked good even in the packaging. The vendor sold us though when he said that the texture was even better than the corn or rice pastas on the market that we were familiar with. When we came home from the market, my daughter set to work at making herself a pot of her new gf pasta. The first thing she noticed was that the water did not look as murky, nor did it even become sludge-like while cooking. When rinsed, the pasta did not yield the customary grit either. With eager anticipation she added butter and dove in...with a "wow" soon after. I then sampled a bite- it was nearly indistinguishable from regular pasta. I think it may be better. It was not mushy, not gritty, and had a pleasing spring in the bite that is much like good non gf al dente pasta. http://www.glutenfreepasta.ca/

Another notable is a newbie...literally- officially in business for a week! Edible Rebellion makes very yummy gluten free granola. My daughter is not a fan of granola, but she loved this granola. She is still raving about it! Look for them on facebook or twitter. 

Next stop is The Gluten Free General Store. http://glutenfreegeneralstore.ca/index.php A friendly husband and wife team who have personally tried all the products that they sell. But better than that, they deliver to your home if you live in Calgary and area- charging only $3.50 for delivery for orders under $200. Food prices are also very competitive, often less than grocery store prices.

At the table across from the GF General Store was the author of Gems of Gluten Free Baking, Wendy Turnbull. Though I did not get the opportunity to meet her (as she was talking to someone about her book), it was explained to me that her recipes are made with her own gluten free flour combination that incorporates whole grains for nutrition, and provide an excellent consistency to the final product. While adding this from Amazon.com, I noticed that it has excellent reviews too. People rave at how good the end result tastes, as well as having excellent texture. In the book she also provides the flour recipe for baking success. Will let you know with an update when I try a recipe or two out!

Here are a few other vendor mentions:

Judy G gluten-free: Amazing tasting gluten free pizza! http://www.judygfoods.com/g/Judy_G_Gluten_Free

Mia Bella Beauty: Gluten free makeup made with natural minerals and soy protein. miabella@telus.net

Community Natural Foods: http://www.communitynaturalfoods.com/ Have Calgary locations and sell online.

Calgary Gluten Free Store: www.calgaryglutenfree.com

Lakeview on 90th: Fresh gf baking. glutenfree90th@gmail.com

Jam Goddess: jamgoddess@shaw.ca

Gluten Free Marketplace: http://www.glutenfreemarketplace.ca/

Effective Health Solutions: www.effectivehealth.ca Shop, clinic and spa- that is very celiac friendly on all fronts. Holistic Nutritionist, Marie-Claude Beaulieu is a Celiac herself. She seeks to provide a whole health experience for visitors- celiacs included!

Coco Brooks: www.cocobrooks.com Yummy pizza for all, with a large selection of frozen gf pizzas. My daughter bought one for herself to try. Will let you know her verdict. I have eaten their non gf pizza before, so I have confidence that the gf ones will be good as well.

GF Patisserie: I have a particular soft spot for this bakery- they are in my backyard! (Cochrane, AB) Their flour mix is phenomenal, and works well for substitutions that call for non gf flour. Other than that, all I can say is yummy- from gf goodies to gf staples, we have never been disappointed. They do birthday cakes too that my son(a non celiac) says are better than regular cake. http://www.gfpatisserie.com/ We missed the cupcakes though that they were bringing to the market- got there too late before they were all gone...

For anyone that I missed (and I know there were more)- please comment and add yourself to the vendors that I have listed here. Or comment on my facebook page if you like. Hope to see all of you and more next year! Thank you for a terrific market for Celiacs. 

Gluten Free Defined?

A recent response to my "It Still May be Edible" post got me thinking more about the term Gluten Free. At face value, Gluten Free would be interpreted as being completely void or free of gluten. However, this is not the case on a number of fronts.
All grains, including rice and corn, contain gluten. I myself was surprised when I first learned of this. However, as shown in the table in this article, wheat, barley and rye come from a different branch of the grain family tree. http://www.thorne.com/altmedrev/.fulltext/10/3/172.pdf (See Figure 1. Taxonomy of Common Dietary Grains and Table 2. Gluten Content of Various Grains).
This then brings us to the discussion of oats. Oats in the Celiac diet are controversial. Many celiacs are able to include uncontaminated oats in their diet. The fact that some are not able to consume oats, maybe due to oats being a closer relative to wheat, barley and rye vs rice and corn. However, when it comes to labelling... it then depends on which country you live in. The FDA in the United States currently does not include oats along with wheat, barley, and rye when labelling something gluten free. (See #16)  http://www.fda.gov/Food/LabelingNutrition/FoodAllergensLabeling/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/ucm111487.htm#q11 
In Canada, if a label says it is gluten free, oats is included along with wheat, barley and rye as being prohibited. http://glutenfreediet.ca/blog/?p=176 Not even uncontaminated oats is allowed to carry the Gluten Free label in Canada.
The next eye opener is broken down into parts per million (ppm). A gluten free label in Canada and the United States, means that there is no more than 20ppm of gluten in the product. Gluten free does not mean that there is zero gluten in the product. In the European Union gluten free standards previously allowed for no more than 200ppm of gluten, but have now revised these regulations to 20ppm- however, these new rules will not be enforced until January 2012. Austrailia and new Zealand on the other hand, reserves the Gluten Free label for products containing no detectable traces of gluten, and is the strictest in the world. This label requires a measure of gluten that is in the range of less than 3 to 5ppm! http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?uid=100494046660564&topic=272 Many countries do not have any standards in place for gluten free labelling. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluten-free_diet 
There are also many products that do not contain any ingredients which are of concern, and yet are not labelled as being gluten free. This could be be as a result that it is made in a plant where wheat or other problematic grains are being used, or that the manufacturer does not want to go to the trouble of getting a product labelled gluten free because of the compliance that would then be involved.

While standards are improving and becoming slowly clearer, there are some Celiacs I have discovered that feel the need to go grain free. This means that not even corn or rice are eaten. These individuals find they are still symptomatic even though they follow the current accepted gluten free diet. Going grain free thus virtually eliminates any gluten in the diet from being ingested. http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/life/story.html?id=44ca5fc0-8f4b-4833-b1b2-0b258b608961&k=21125

Essentially what Gluten Free eating boils down to, is what you feel is best for your personal health. Gluten free is a relative term to guide you, that is backed up by the food regulations where you live. Whether that includes oats or not is up to the individual Celiac and their personal "gluten free" diet. Gluten free does not mean that no gluten is being consumed- rather it is an accepted amount of gluten that is suitable for most Celiacs, proposed by the medical community and enforced by government. On the flip side, something that does not have a Gluten Free label does not necessarily mean that it is not safe to consume either. Use your educated judgement where labels have failed to keep up with the times. Therefore if you feel that your risk is low for consuming gluten in products that have not been labelled Gluten Free (of course reading your labels each time), then do so if you feel comfortable. If you feel you need to remove all gluten, go grain free. The best judge in your own health is often yourself. Be informed. Go with your "gut".

Crispy Battered Fish

Last night not knowing what to make, not feeling well with MS, and looking for something quick and easy- I decided to try my hand at making battered fish. So I "googled" it looking for a suitable gluten free recipe. I must also note that my kids are not huge fans of eating fish. My daughter especially so. I figured that battered fish would be a good way of packaging the fish so my children would be more apt to gobble it up without complaint. Though still skeptical, my son and daughter did end up liking the end result. My daughter in particular was surprised that she liked it as well as she did.
So here it is- from About.com:   http://glutenfreecooking.about.com/od/breadingsandcoatings/r/Coatings.htm

Gluten Free Fish Batter

This gluten free beer-battered fish fry batter produces crisp, light fried fish. It makes a delicious gluten-free batter for onion rings and shrimp too! If you don't like beer batter just substitute club soda for the beer. (Not having gf beer or club soda on hand, I substituted with Gingerale and cut my sugar down by half or more since I thought it may be too sweet otherwise.)

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 8 minutes

Ingredients:

• Oil for Frying -Use an oil designed for high heat frying, preferably peanut or coconut oil-(I used mostly peanut oil, but needed a bit more so topped it up with canola oil.)
• 2 pounds fresh fish fillets (I used Basa because my husband went crazy buying it on a sale- but though it definitely was not dry, the end result was a bit mushy. Basa I think is too delicate a fish. I maybe would recommend maybe cod or haddock instead since it tends to firm up more when cooked.)
• 1 cup all purpose gluten-free all purpose flour mix (I used our local gf baking mix)
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon gf baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon cayenne powder (I did used the cayenne- it was good and it wasn't overpowering. Next time I am going to try maybe smoked paprika or ground ancho chili pepper.)
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 12 ounce bottle of gluten-free beer, or 12 ounces of club soda (I used Gingerale and it worked fine.)

Preparation:

Step#1:

Combine cornstarch, gluten free all purpose flour, baking powder, cayenne pepper, sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper in a large, plastic zip lock bag.

 

Step#2:

Shake the bag to thoroughly mix the dry ingredients. Pour this mixture into a medium sized bowl.

 

Step#3:

Add gluten free beer or club soda and mix until the batter is smooth, and not too thick or thin. Add more liquid if the batter is too thick. (You will need a whisk for this since the corn starch doesn't want to blend well if a spoon is used. Also make sure you incorporate your liquid well before adding more. Mine turned out maybe a tad thin, but still ended up tasty and crisp.)

 

Step#4:
Dip fish fillets in batter, making sure both sides are coated. Hold above the bowl to let excess batter drip off. (This is where if you make it too thin that the batter will want to run off too much.)
 
Step#5:
Fry in hot oil until golden brown. (I had my gas burner on high the whole time while cooking. I used a deeper pot to help prevent spatters. To test your oil, use the end of a wooden spoon- hold it touching the bottom of the pot. If bubbles appear around the spoon then the oil is hot enough to begin cooking. When done cooking, I placed my fish on a cooling rack for cookies that sat on top of a cookie sheet. That way the oil can drip off and the batter doesn't become soggy. Place in a warm oven until ready to serve.)

Enjoy!

Insight into Celiac Disease

Here's an interesting article that gives some insight into the factors that contribute to Celiac Disease.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_108645.html

A GF Something I Stumbled Upon

Today as I was out and about, I accidentally came across this book. It looks like gluten free heaven for Celiacs. Many of the things that you miss and crave are right here in this book. I had to pass this along! Will let you know when we try some of the recipes. If you have this book, please comment- tell us what you think!

A Hidden Source of Gluten You May Not Consider

OK- you're being a "good" Celiac. Following all the rules. Reading your labels. Not cheating on your gluten free diet. Bravo! Keep it up!!
However, don't let your guard down just yet. There is something other than food that you may not have considered as a potential source of gluten...Medication.
"Really?" you may say..."does it ever end?". Yes, this too you must be vigilant in. Medications often contain fillers to deliver the active ingredient. These fillers are made of starches, and can come from a variety of sources- including wheat.
Though you may be feeling insecure again with this news- that even medicine may may you ill (when it is supposed to make you feel better not worse), don't panic just yet. There are resources out there to help you navigate your way through this too.

http://www.medicine.virginia.edu/clinical/departments/medicine/divisions/digestive-health/nutrition-support-team/nutrition-articles/PlogstedArticle.pdf

http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/glutenfree-medications-and-supplements.html

http://www.glutenfreedrugs.com/

Note: Supplements and Vitamins fall into this category too.

Good GF Information Source

I have referred to this site, The Gluten Free Diet, on and off the past couple of years. http://www.glutenfreediet.ca/index.php The author is dietician Shelley Case- and she knows her stuff! I also have her book The Gluten Free Diet, which is our GF bible. The website adds additional information that nicely compliments the book, containing the latest information, suggested resources, and other websites that are helpful.