Gluten Free

Nov192012

Eating and cooking Thanksgiving gluten and dairy free: Waldorf Salad

Not my kitchen window, but instead, one from a home in Tucson. So peaceful isn’t it? That’s what I want for you this holiday season. Peace.

Hum along with me . . . and, so this is Thanksgiving . . . .

My apologies to John Lennon for putting my own words in his famous song, but every year, this is what I think about our most American holiday. While other people’s excitement builds, I’m trying to figure out the best way not to get sick. It’s not easy to coast through the holidays with food intolerances and allergies.

However, I have good news. You have more options than ever to eat this starch and dairy-filled meal and remain healthy. I’ve written about the challenges before in 2008, 2009, 2011. In 2010, I simply wrote about gratitude which probably shows a change in my feelings about my disease. In 2009, my mom’s dressing is front and center. It’s the one dish that completes the holiday meal for me.

Here’s a current listing of gluten free turkeys. This year, I bought a Honeysuckle White that states clearly on the label it is gluten free. Boy have things changed.

Living gluten and dairy free for five years, here are my thoughts about the big day from a 2012 perspective.

Take your time to think about gluten and dairy free choices before you hit the supermarket. Otherwise, you may become overwhelmed. If you’re making the big meal, count yourself among the fortunate. No worries of cross-contamination from Aunt Martha’s pie, or Grandma Suzy’s stuffing. There will probably be some in your family who doubt you can prepare a delicious gluten and dairy free meal that still satisfies. Trust me. It’s possible. This year, we are going to my mother’s house for Thanksgiving and then to my brother and sister-in-law’s house for dessert (at least for the wheat and dairy eaters in the family.) When my mom decided to cook, I was glad. I’ve made separate dinners for years, and I’m tired.

If your family all comes to your house and wants their favorites–who doesn’t on this most traditional of days–you will need to keep these foods separate from yours. If your family is open to your food challenges, lucky you. Ask them to bring the fruit salad, or some other dish that is dairy and wheat free and kindly warn them of wheat ingredients in sauces. Personally, I always stress that if they want to bring a dairy or wheat filled goodie, I’m fine with it. I know some of us aren’t. I do ask them to keep their food and utensils separate from mine. Sometimes, especially with pie, people tend to double dip. They don’t mean any harm. They just don’t think about it.

Can you imagine the luxury of not having to consider every bite you take?

The following is another recipe favorite from my family’s dinner table. It is naturally gluten free.

Mama’s Waldorf Salad

Print recipe

Serves	4
Prep time	20 minutes
Allergy	Milk, Wheat
Dietary	Gluten Free, Vegetarian
Meal type	Salad, Side Dish
Occasion	Thanksgiving

Toasting the nuts makes this classic salad even better. Also, check your Miracle Whip dressings and choose the one with natural flavors and less corn syrup.

Ingredients

4 apples (Make them a mix of tart and sweet. Green and red apples are especially nice)
1 cup pecans or walnuts (toasted and broken into small pieces.)
2/3 cups chopped celery
1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries
1/3 cup Miracle Whip
1 tablespoon almond milk
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or lemon juice

Directions

Step 1
Combine apples, pecans, celery and raisins in a bowl. Mix together Miracle Whip, almond milk, apple cider vinegar and sugar. Pour over fruit and vegetables. Mix all together and place in refrigerator for several hours. The apple cider vinegar will help keep the apples from turning brown.

May252012

Garden Bloggers Fling: where do I begin?

Do you ever have times when there is so much to say, you don’t know where to begin?

The native azalea I coveted. Can't grow it here because our soil is so alkaline.

After visiting Asheville and the Garden Bloggers Fling, I am without words. I could expound upon the food . . . . Okay, for a moment, I will. The gluten and dairy free food in Asheville rivals any I’ve eaten anywhere. Bill and I haunted the Green Sage Coffeehouse and Cafe every morning when we broke our fast, and we had a wonderful dinner at Posana Cafe (which was completely gluten free), but that’s not all. I also had beautiful, healthy food at every fling event. My friends took such good care of me and the other flingers who had food and other issues. They were gracious and kind, and kindness means so much when you have a food allergy or intolerance. A special thank you to Christopher, Annie, Frances and the wonderful Ashley and Greg at The Hop. You haven’t heard of the The Hop? Well, it’s the best ice cream ever, and they always have a vegan selection too. They brought ice cream in the most faboo flavors to fling events. Then, Bill and I ate ice cream in almond or coconut milk every day we were in Asheville. My flavor fave was Ginger Molasses done in almond milk (I think.) It tasted just like a creamy ginger snap. I think I gained five pounds, but it was worth every bite. I’m sorry, I forgot to take a pictures before I ate it.

Christopher's house which was so well planned. I was impressed at how much he managed to put in such a small space.

Then, there were the gardens. I’m of an age and experience that I am so over the Biltmore Spell, but Asheville was full of the quirky, fun and fantastic. I saw so many gardens and enjoyed them so much I don’t know where to begin. Let’s start with Christopher’s mountain. I’ve followed Christopher’s journey with his parents and the building of his cabin on the mountain. Even if there were no gardens, and there were, I would have simply loved being there. It was a perfect late spring day. Nice and cool in the morning and warm in the afternoon. We started with a lovely lunch on the spot where Christopher is going to build his next project. Then, Bill and I walked through the woods to Bulbarella’s shaded retreat. We strolled through all the gardens, and I so wanted to take a native azalea home. Sadly, my soil is way too alkaline, and I’m over trying to make plants grow here that would rather not.

Heirloom iris growing in Christopher's mother's garden

Then, we had an awesome sit-down with the folks who create the Southern Living and Sunset plant collections, along with Bailey Nurseries. They didn’t sell to us, but wanted to know what we wanted in plants. They were genuinely interested in what worked and what didn’t. What a refreshing change.

What a view!

Soon, it was time to head back down the mountain and into the city where we got to go out and eat again. Life is good in Asheville. I recommend you take a trip there.

Dec202011

Gluten-free, dairy-free lemon squares or bars

Gluten Free, Dairy Free Lemon Squares

Kay from Georgia Girl with an English Heart asked yesterday if I’d linked to my gluten-free, dairy-free, lemon squares recipe. Well, I realized I hadn’t. So, just in time for Christmas baking, here it is.

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Lemon Squares

adapted from Gluten-Free Baking Classics, by Annalise G. Roberts, one of my favorite cookbooks.

Crust

1 cup of gluten free flour mix. You can either use the brown rice flour mix in the cookbook–which is excellent, or I like Pamela’s Products Amazing Wheat Free & Gluten-free Bread Mix, which is also dairy free. Pamela’s Ultimate Baking and Pancake Mix, has buttermilk so I can’t eat it, but if you can, I say go for it. If you do use either of the baking mixes, you can leave out the salt and xanthan gum. Both mixes have them.

1/4 cup organic sugar. I use organic because of chemical overload.

1 teaspoon xanthan gum. Wish I would find it organic because there are problems with corn in the U.S.

5 tablespoons of Earth Balance spread sticks. If you can’t have soy, try Spectrum shortening which is not hydrogentated.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray bottom of 8-inch square baking pan with nonstick spray. PAM now has organic ones I noticed. Dust sprayed pan with rice flour so that bars will come out easily.

Mix the above ingredients, except for Earth Balance, into the bowl of an electric mixer. Blend. Add Earth Balance in chunks and blend until crumbly. Press into pan and bake for fifteen minutes or until light brown. Cool.

Lemony Goodness Filling

3 large eggs. Oh, how grateful I am to be able to eat eggs.

3/4 cups organic sugar

2 tablespoons of gluten and dairy free flour mix. See above.

1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup fresh, organic, lemon juice

2 teaspoons fresh, organic, lemon rind

1/2 teaspoon, pure, lemon extract

Confectioner’s sugar, better if blended with tapioca instead of corn. We get a lot of corn being gluten free.

Beat eggs until frothy. Add remaining ingredients except confectioner’s sugar. Pour onto partially baked crust. Bake for twenty minutes or until filling is set.

Let cool. Dust with confectioner’s sugar and cut into bars. Enjoy!

Nov232011

Attitude of gratitude: a gluten and dairy free life

I have so much to be grateful for this year. How about you?

My mother is healthy for the first time in years, and my sister is also well. They are making most of the gluten and dairy free feast this year, and that makes me so happy. I’m also grateful for my sisters-in-law who are making much of the dinner on my husband’s side. We are eating with my family today, and my mouth waters for the three things I love most: turkey, my mother’s cornbread dressing and gravy.

Fall light through the oaks

“What?” you say. “Those items are filled with wheat and dairy.”

Well, they don’t have to be. Last year, I posted my mother’s dressing recipe. As for the turkey, we bought ours at Whole Foods which recently opened in Oklahoma City. Yes, it was pricey, but we got a fresh, organic bird with no additives. I may go back after Thanksgiving and buy an heirloom bird. I feared it was too much to ask of my family to eat a more gamey bird, but I want to try one. Perhaps, they will be on sale after the feast. I know some of us don’t have the option of Whole Foods, so I did some looking for other options. Butterball Fresh Turkey and Butterball Fresh Breast of Turkey are both gluten free, and I believe they say so right on the package. According to Honeysuckle White, their frozen and fresh turkeys are gluten, dairy, MSG and soy free. I found these turkeys last year at Wal-Mart and Target. Here, Homeland probably also carries them. Personally, I avoid any turkeys with additional broth, stuff, gravy, etc. Fresh is always best, and if you’ve waited this long to make your turkey, you need to buy fresh anyway.

It’s so scary what is put into our turkeys and other food, but today is all about gratitude so I’m not going there.

My 'Enterprise' apple in the fall. I don't get many apples from it because of the deer, but it makes up for this with such gorgeous fall color. Apple, peach and cherry trees adorn my front yard.

As for gravy, make your own and use arrowroot powder (available in bulk from Bob’s Red Mill and carried at our local Homeland in the gluten free section.) It is less gummy than cornstarch, and, in the U.S., corn has its own issues anyway. You can also use tapioca starch. Remember to stir cold water into the starch dissolving it before adding to the hot turkey broth. Otherwise, your gravy will have tiny dumplings. If that happens, it still tastes good so serve it and enjoy.

I am making the pies. In the past, I’ve made all of the crusts by hand. A food processor or electric mixer makes this easier, but easier still, is buying gluten free pie crusts from Whole Foods. I almost cried when I saw them in the freezer case. In an hour, my girls and I made a lemon meringue and two pumpkin pies. Today, I’m making a cherry crumble pie for Bill. Cherry is his favorite. I am also making mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes. I grew the sweets, and I’m about to dig the rest of them for today. I am grateful they are so easy to grow.

Speaking of the gluten free Thanksgiving, I am also thankful for my health. There was a time when I was very ill, but this year has been abundant in good health and blessings for all of our family. Going gluten and dairy free wasn’t easy, but it’s been rewarding. I’ve made new friends, and for the first time in my life, I feel strong.

The long and winding road to my upper pasture

Life really is a long and winding road full of trials, tribulations and blessings throughout. The best of Thanksgiving wishes for to all of you. You are all a part of my life, and I say a little prayer for each of you everyday. Happy Thanksgiving!

Jun292011

Gluten free, Dairy free Caesar salad

Diners at Tavern on the Green in New York

Back in the days before I went dairy and gluten free, I ate a lot of Caesar salads at various restaurants. My favorite was the one the Metro Wine Bar and Bistro in Oklahoma City served, although Juniors made a delicious one too. I like the Metro’s creamy salad dressing, and the way the chicken was grilled to perfection, crispy on the outside with a moist interior. I also adored the Metro’s famous bread and the croutons they must have made from it.

Then, gluten freedom came and soon after dairy liberty. Now, when I eat out at a restaurant, I often feel like the management is saying, “No croutons for you!!!”

No Parmesan either by the way. Half the time management also considers eggs dairy (although they aren’t), and so they won’t let me have a good salad dressing based upon eggs. I question. I cajole. The other night at Charleston’s I was told the dressing I love on their menu, champagne vinaigrette, is not gluten free. Say what!?! I still am not sure I believe them on this, and when I asked the manager what ingredient wasn’t gluten free, and he said he’d have to go back and look at the label. He never did. Before you think I’m unreasonable, it was a Monday, and they weren’t busy. His solution? The little bottles of oil and red wine vinegar which looked like they’d sat in the back for a hundred years.

No dressing for you either.

So, a few years ago, when my boys would go to their weekly, Tuesday Boy Scout meeting, the girls and I worked to perfect the best gluten and dairy free Caesar salad ever. After many good tries, we’ve finally done it, and because I want to share the yummy goodness with you, the recipe below is set to serve five or six people (because the boys figured out what we were up to, and demanded some.)

Gluten and Dairy Free Caesar Salad

Two heads of romaine lettuce or one bag of romaine hearts rinsed and torn into pieces. We use our collapsible salad spinner to rinse.

Three Udi’s Gluten Free Bagels (Multigrain), chopped up and placed so that they lay flat in a metal pan of 4 Tbsp. olive oil and 4 Tbsp. Earth Balance Spread melted. (Yes, it’s a lot of fat, but how many croutons are you going to eat? Never mind, don’t answer that.) Before placing in a 425 degree oven, toss the croutons with Penzey’s Fox Point Seasoning (this is crucial.) Toast the croutons until brown tossing them a few times until evenly golden.

Five chicken breasts (preferably from decent chickens which haven’t been locked up in a darkened chicken house their entire lives.) Sprinkle these with the Fox Point Seasoning also. Grill the chicken outside on your grill. It’s too hot to really cook indoors. You can also put the croutons on the top shelf of your gas grill and cook them that way too.

Now, if you can have dairy, and if you can, I am so jealous, buy shaved Parmesan or a block and shave it yourself. Use Cardini’s Original Caesar Dressing. It’s dog-gone good.

For those of us who are dairy free, here is my dressing.

4 Tbsp. Hellman’s mayonnaise (or another great brand)

2 Tbsp. Japanese seasoned rice vinegar (which is lightly tart and a bit sweet) If you want a sweeter dressing (I don’t, but you might), use a white balsamic in place of the Japanese vinegar. This is enough dressing for two people, but once everyone discovered how good homemade dressing is, they all asked for it. Cardini’s just sits lonely in the back of the fridge.

A sprinkle of Fox Point seasoning

A sprinkle of pepper

Mix with a whisk.

Slice the now delicious chicken and mix it all together. Get ready for yum.

Oh, and I don’t have a picture because we ate . . . every . . . last . . . bite.

Jan192011

Ten simple ways to beat the winter blues

I can't think of a better way to spend $5.99 than to purchase these little Iris reticulata.

It’s cold. It’s cloudy. It’s gloomy. In Oklahoma, we’re told we may get snow tomorrow.

Whoopee . . . let’s all break out our party hats.

Winter can be beautiful even without snow, but snow does soften what we don't want to see.

Snow would cover up some of the brown and gray of the Oklahoma winter landscape for a day or two, and it would help protect plants from the cold yet to come. However, in southern states, it is often hazardous because we don’t drive in it enough. Our street crews do their best, but it’s just not our norm.

Sigh.

Folks, we still have two and a half more months of winter fun. Are you prepared to beat the winter blues? Here are my top ten ways to squash them.

Take a walk, or go to the gym. Exercise is one of the best ways to beat Ole’ Man Winter. Don’t forget to lift weights. You’ll need that strength for spring cleanup.
Plan some time outdoors. Walk around the block, and if you live where it isn’t snowy, get down on your knees to gaze upon your garden at ground level. Marvel in its beginnings, those small shoots just peering above the soil’s surface; the pussy-willow-like coverings on the Jane magnolia’s branches. These foretell spring’s arrival. Who knows? You might even find buds on your hellebores.
The leaves of Iris x hollandica 'Miss Saigon' are a hopeful sign.
Stay Warm. Invest in soft warm clothes (I love flannel shirts) and warm Smartwool® socks. When you see the price, remind yourself they last forever, and that if you do go outdoors for more than a run to the car, you won’t freeze. The wind which whips down our plains is a cold one with no heart.
Invest in light. Even if you aren’t badly affected by SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), we all seem to get a touch of it when the days are too cloudy. It feels like the months of January and February have more than their fair share of cloudy days, so get a light box or try this nifty alarm clock my friend Robin told me about. I have full spectrum light bulbs over every reading chair in the house, but it’s important to buy those which have the proper day wavelength whatever that means. You need thirty minutes of light therapy everyday.
Take good quality fish oil and eat wild-caught salmon, or other fatty fish twice a week. I take fish oil every single day, and the brand I use doesn’t have the fishy smell. In fact, it smells like lemons. I buy it at my local pharmacy.
Learn something new. Ever wanted to knit? Take a class, or ask a friend to teach you. Would like to play the piano? Do it. I took lessons for over a year. I’m not good, but I can mark it off my bucket list. Want to know more about gardening? Read a good book like Duane Campbell’s Best of Green Space: 30 Years of Composted Columns. It’s a collection of Duane’s entertaining advice arranged by month. Although he and I don’t live in the same climate (he’s in the northeast), I just adjusted the monthly advice up a month when needed and learned a thing or two about saving money. My husband will be so glad.
Read for pleasure and inspiration. Debbie Chester, who is an author herself, gave me a book by Beverley Nichols for Christmas, Down the Garden Path. What? You don’t know of Nichols? Although he died in 1983, he’s still an icon in British style and writing from the 1920s onward. With sixty books to his credit, it is his garden writing on which collective memory lingers. Nichols’ wit was sardonic, and in fact, on the back cover photo of these books reprinted by TimberPress, he’s standing like he could just whip you and your garden into shape if you dared tempt him. In a newer publication, my friend, Kathryn Hall, has compiled her advice about gardening into a beautiful paperback, Plant Whatever Brings You Joy: Blessed Wisdom from the Garden, like her blog of the same name. Part garden column, life advice and autobiography, it, like Kathryn, is a good companion for winter’s chill (even if she does live in California, and I’m jealous).
Buy yourself something pretty. If you’re a gardener, that probably means a plant, but it could also be a tool you’re itching to buy. I was at the grocery store this morning and purchased these little Iris reticulata for only $5.99. I almost bought a Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Shooting Star,’ and I may go back and get it later. It’s important to surround ourselves with beauty. It feeds our souls.
A closeup of the little irises I bought at the grocery. A strong purple/blue to beat the blues.
Eat healthy. I’ve been watching Martha Stewart’s recent shows about power foods, and I’m actually considering getting her Whole Living Magazine team’s new book, Power Foods: 150 Delicious Recipes with the 38 Healthiest Ingredients. I haven’t decided, but isn’t the cover pretty? Even if I don’t buy it, I know eating healthy is essential to a good mood.
Power Foods
Feed your soul. All of my tips concern feeding your soul, but let’s take it one step further. Whatever your belief about God, (you know where I stand), unplug your computer, iPhone, and other electronic devices and spend some time with your Creator today. As little as thirty minutes of quiet meditation does the soul and body good if only because we take the time to be grateful and remember from where we come.

I can quote you statistics, but we know we’re a fractured world which needs to unplug. I have dinner roasting in the oven, and I’ve reconnected with you, my friends. Now, I’m off to pray for a bit and then read before my children come home.

That way, when they come bursting through the door from school, and their father comes home from work, I can give them my full attention for a moment or two because I’ve spent some of my day tending to me.

Exquisite self-care is what helps gardeners survive winter. I hope you take time for you today.

Dec232010

Let the feasting begin

Merry Christmas. Did you see the plate has one of my favorite flowers on it, the Christmas rose? Hellebores baby!

Christmas is nearly upon us. Do you have your shopping done? I hope so because the malls will be even bigger nightmares tomorrow. I tell you what, if you don’t have a gift for that certain someone, buy them an online gift card and call it good. I would.

Tonight we’ll attend the annual Nash Christmas party which unites both sides of my husband’s family along with their extended loved ones. I bet we’ll have sixty to eighty people there. What to feed them?

Roasted (insert your favorite meat here if you do indeed eat meat);

Green bean casserole;

Baked beans;

Cheese platters;

Cheese balls, crackers;

Homemade candies like Grandma Bo used to make, i.e., divinity, Aunt Bill’s Brown Candy (an Oklahoma tradition), fudge, peanut brittle ; and

Loads of dips and chips and veggies. I’m bringing humus which I purchased at the newly-opened, local Mediterranean eatery, Simply Falafel. I shouldn’t be telling you this because I’ll never get a table again, but it’s in Edmond right by the Target on 2nd Street next to Tao, and it is good.

I bet you didn’t expect Oklahoma to be so multicultural did you? So diverse? Well, Edmond is a college town too (along with Tulsa, Stillwater and my favorite, Norman), and the University of Central Oklahoma worked hard to attract students from other countries, so we live in a thriving multicultural haven of sorts (around 2nd Street at least). That’s where my beloved Thai Delight is too. Ate there yesterday in fact.

Mediterranean cuisine is great for gluten free diets. Just leave off the bread.

Gluten free lemon bars

So, this morning after braving coffee with NGBF Aimee at 7:30 a.m., I ran home and made lemon bars from Gluten-Free Baking Classics, by Annelise Roberts, which is one of the best baking books out there. Bear and I also tackled the sugar cookie dough which we will roll out tomorrow.

Oh, and we made the Texas sheet cake from Gluten Free Betty. Clever blog name. The only differences were I used my favorite non-dairy buttery sticks and Silk’s great almond milk (with cider vinegar to sour it). The cake is wonderful especially because I used Penzey’s natural cocoa. Yum.

Tomorrow I tackle cherry pie and those cookies for my family’s celebration. Along with the sugary treats, we’ll have Schwab’s hot dogs (in flaming Oklahoma red) with chili and saurkraut, tamales (red and green from our friends at El Parian in Edmond), shrimp, potato salad, baked beans and Nani’s fruit salad.

Again, everyone say it with me, “YUM!”

Note that this meal has no rhyme or reason. Nani’s fruit salad is from the great aunt of my sister’s ex-husband. He wasn’t very nice, but the salad was divine. We kept the salad. I’ll share the recipe next week. I can’t eat it because it’s loaded with whipped cream, but it’s a family tradition, and where would we be with tradition I ask you?

So, enjoy whatever y’all are having on Christmas Eve, and I’ll raise a glass of sparkling grape juice to you.