I had been promising the kids that we would make a snack with marshmallows, peanut butter and graham crackers last week. I had been putting it off because I didn't have any crackers for Jessica. Finally Wen Alex talked me into doing it. I was going to run to the store and buy some GF crackers when I realized that I had a bag of Jules Gluten Free Graham Cracker mix in my pantry and decided to give it a try. It definitely made the snack a bit more time intensive, but it was worth it to try out this new mix.
In addition to the mix, I needed vanilla, butter, honey and water.
The mix includes a flour mixture and brown sugar. I creamed the butter and the sugar together. Added the honey and vanilla and mixed. Then added the water until if formed a ball. (Still mixing here.) I accidently added a little too much water and so I grabbed my Jules flour mix and added some in until the dough firmed back up. I was worried that might alter the taste, but it came out fine. After rolling out to 1/4 inch thick, I used a pizza cutter to cut into rectangles. I have several pizza cutters on hand because they are wonderful for cutting all kinds of things. Pricked with a fork. I added some cinnamon sugar to some of them. Baked for 20 minutes. They came out good. Though 1/4 inch does make a thick cracker. But, considering how some GF crackers on the market can be a bit small, this makes for a nice sized, sturdy cracker for topping with peanut butter, or chocolate and marshmallows. :-) Jessica approves! We topped hers with her white chocolate peanut butter and marshmallows and toasted. Notice her jar of pb is clearly marked gf. No one else uses her pb jars. This eliminates cross contamination that could occur if someone dipped their knife back in after spreading on something with gluten.
I purchased my mix at Andrea's Fine Foods. I think I paid $6-7 for it. I see Jules carries for abotu $10. So it is very pricey for graham crackers. I wouldn't buy this for a staple. But, they would make great crackers for doing gingerbread houses. In fact, I think I may try this mix with my pampered chef gingerbread train mold. The mix also makes gingersnaps if you add some spices. They were very yummy and had a good texture and were pretty easy to make.
Gluten Free Living: Bisquits and Donuts Bisquits are one of the foods I have yet to find a great solution for. I have made some that were ok, but none that were as good as the bisquits I make with gluten flour.
Last week I made some with Jules Gluten Free flour. I have made some really yummy things with Jules Flour. The bisquits were good, but they were not really the taste and texture we were going for. They weren't flaky but rather like the consistency of a thick shortbread.
Last night, I made some bisquits using Namaste bisquit and piecrust mix. Again, I love Namaste. We make brownies and cakes with Namaste mixes that are really good. But, the bisquits were not what I was hoping for. The consistancy was good, much like my gluten bisquits, but something about the taste was off. Now, I didn't follow the recipe exactly because it called for herbs and I was going for a breakfast bisquit, but I dont' think that was it. They were fine with some jelly or honey, but I am still looking for a bisquit that tastes good on it's own.
I have made bisquits using my standard recipe and substituting a gluten free flour mix and they were ok, but not the same. I guess I will keep working on this food item!
Donuts are another of those items that we all miss. Most donuts do not fit into either the Feingold or Gluten Free diet. Kinnikinnick makes a very yummy donut. They come frozen in a box of 6. They have vanilla, chocolate, cinnamon sugar and maple. We all enjoy them, though I try to reserve them for Jessica mostly! They fit into both of our diets. They are small compared to your average donut and a bit pricey (but average when you consider they are gluten free). I keep a box in the freezer for quick breakfasts or snacks, but we try not to eat them often. I can get these at Dierbergs or Nutrition Stop, locally.
Recently, I discovered some donut pans at Amazon and decided to try one out. My pan arrived this week and I made some last night using the recipe that came with it. I substituted a mixture of Jules and Namaste flour for the regular flour. They came out really good and disappeared quickly! It made less than a dozen with the recipe I used. I am going to play around with it more and see what varieties we can come up with. For a cake donut this will do very nicely. They were declared a great success.
The hardware
The software
The end results
Next, I need to work on a gluten free fried donut. We have made donuts before using Alton Brown's recipe, but not gluten free. I am going to have to work on that soon.
We had ravioli for dinner tonight so I will post on pasta. Pasta is one of the items that gets the most debate on the local celiac list that I am on. Some love corn pasta and hate rice pasta, others hate corn pasta and love rice pasta. We fall in the group that prefers rice pasta. We have tried a variety of the gluten free pastas available in the grocery store and our favorite is Tinkyada pasta. It is a rice pasta and comes in a wide variety of shapes, from spaghetti to elbow macaroni. Our whole family likes it and except for the occassional box of individual servings of macaroni and cheese (we use Annie's) for Jacob or Alex, we only buy and eat gluten free pasta. It has a good texture and is not mushy. Trader Joe's carries a store brand pasta that is the same as Tinkyada if you are looking for something a bit cheaper. I will buy that if I am near a Trader Joes.
In addition to the regular mac&cheese. Annies makes a yummy Rice and Cheddar cheese mac and cheese that is gluten free. For those used to Kraft, it might be a bit of an adjustment, but we have eaten Annie's so long, due to our Feingold diet, that that is what we were used to and the switch to gluten free wasn't hard at all. I really can't tell much difference between this and the stuff in the "blue box".
Mrs. Leeper's makes some hamburger helper type products made with a corn based pasta that we use occassionally for those days when we just want to make a quick meal. Though we didn't like the straight corn pasta, we can't really tell the difference when it is mixed with the meat and sauces. The nice thing about Mrs. Leeper's is that, not only is it GF, it is also Feingold safe. I would never buy a regular hamburger helper meal, even if we weren't gf.
Tinkyada makes a lasagna noodle, and I used to buy that. Then, I discovered DeBoles lasagna noodles. It is a no boil noodle and makes lasagna building a whole lot easier! One thing that we had had no luck finding until recently was gluten free ravioli. Or gf toasted ravioli. Back in December, I was pleasantly surprised to find a bag of frozen Conte's gf ravioli at Hy Vee in Columbia. With that we could have boiled ravioli or bread it and make our own toasted ravioli. I have yet to find it in St. Louis, but it was recently added to our food co-op's catalog and I brought home a case today.
For sauce, I usually buy Newman's sauces. They are Feingold and Gluten free safe and cheaper than the Amy's that we used to buy. Also easier to find than the organic sauces. Prego is gluten free, but I prefer Newman's.
As for eating out, Pasta House Co. offers gluten free pasta. They used to serve rice pasta but then switched to corn, making the corn pasta lovers happy and us less satisfied. It takes longer for them to prepare the gluten free pasta as they have to start a new pot for it. So, when we eat there, we usually call ahead and a) make sure the have it in stock and b) ask them to go ahead an get it started so we don't have to wait as long our meals. We try to pack along a couple of rolls from Andrea's Fine Foods for Jess to eat since she can't have the rolls they serve. Pasta house has several GF options on their menu but they are very pricey. We don't eat there often.
The Old Spagetti Factory also offers a Gluten Free, corn based pasta. Noodles and Company also offers a gluten free dish. Since the closest locations are in Chesterfield, these are rare treats.
There are several more upscale restaraunts around St. Louis that serve gluten free pastas and some even carry Andrea's rolls. Since we have not personally eat at them, I can't review them. Maggiano's even occassionally hosts a gluten free evening offering a multi course gluten free meal.
Olive Garden claims to offer a gluten free menu, but most people who have tried it have been very dissapointed with the quality and safety of the gluten free food there. We have not taken a chance with them yet based on a multitude of bad reviews.
John attempted to make some Gluten Free pasta from scratch recently. Unfortunately, using our pasta machine was less than successful as the dough just fell apart.. Rolling it out by hand was a little more successful.
I am often asked what product I use for various foods on the Gluten Free diet. As more and more people are needing to go on this diet for various medical reasons, they are looking for substitutes for their favorite foods. Tastes are varied, so what one person raves about, another will hate. But, I though I would start writing some posts on foods we have tried and liked.
Today, I was asked about pizza, so I will share about that.
While some dishes we will all eat gluten free, pizza is one of those things that Jessica gets GF and the rest of us eat gluten. At home, I will make a pizza with a whole grain crust for us and I will grab a Kinnikinnick frozen crust out of the freezer for Jessica and add toppings like I do for our pizza, being careful not to have any cross contamination from our crust to hers. That means putting the sauce and cheese on her pizza first. She has her own toaster oven that is strictly Gluten Free and I will cook it in there while our pizza bakes in the oven. This works out well and she likes the crust. A box comes with four personal size crusts.
Occasionally, we will go the quick route and eat a frozen pizza. We usually all eat some version of an Amy's Pizza as she uses natural ingredients with non of those nasty additives we avoid. Jessica gets the rice crust pizza. Occasionally we will share one of these and everyone likes it. For frozen pizza Amy's is pretty good.
Eating out can be a challenge. There are a few places that make a gluten free pizza. Francesca's in St. Peters makes a pretty good GF that Jessica likes. We have eaten there occassionally, but since we prefer Imo's we often grab her a pizza at Francesca's or make one at home and then take it with us. Not the most ideal situation for her.
Uno's Chicago grill makes awesome pizzas and had a Gluten Free version that was really delicious. That was a great place to go where the whole family could eat. But, with it not being as close and being a bit pricey, it was a special occasion place. Unfortunately, both St. Louis locations recently closed.
Most exciting for us is that three local Cecil Whittaker's started offering GF pizza recently. One of them is located in St. Charles near Jessica's school. This is great because we love the St. Louis style pizza and this offered us an opportunity to all eat as a family. The pizza is good and, best of all, CW does not charge an arm and a leg for it as many places do. Jessica and I often stop there for a pizza between her club meetings at school.
There are a few other places that offer GF pizza's around the city. Pi makes gourmet pizza that I have heard rave reviews on. Given that Jessica is happy with the standard cheese pizza, we have not ventured there.
Andrea's Fine Foods makes a great GF pizza and sells frozen crusts as well. I have bought them occassionally, but they are a bit trickier to cook and since Jessica really prefers a plain cheese pizza, I found that Kinnikinnick works well for us. But, if you like a more gourmet type pizza, Andrea's makes them pretty good. I am always tempted by her Spinach Artichoke Pizza, but since Jessica wouldn't eat it, I rarely buy it.
Andrea's is a great source for GF free foods. Her food is DELICIOUS! You can't tell it is gluten free. They are a dedicated Gluten Free, Nut Free bakery, that also carries some egg and dairy free items as well. Most of her items also meet our Feingold standards as well, with no artificial additives. We can buy her plain cupcakes, but not the iced ones.
Several companies make a GF pizza crust mix. But, I find it easier not to deal with gluten and GF flours all at the same time. Rolling dough out can cause a cross contamination nightmare and with pizza it's just easier to grab her crust and get it in the oven before I start messing with our dough. That's just me.
This was another good diet book. It explained a lot of the nutrient factors affecting autism and other spectrum disorders. A very good reference book. She discusses various vitamins and minerals, etc that help and what they do. She explains which ones would need to be under a doctor's supervision.
She had a very good review of the Feingold Diet, again with some scientific information to explain a bit how it works. Again, tying in with the PST deficiency and Phenols.
Good information on tests, dealing with doctors, etc. Includes some charts for documenting before and after behaviour to help convince doctors that it really is working, etc.
The second half of the book is GFCF recipes. She makes notes about how you can adapt the recipes if you are avoiding things like corn, soy, etc. Most of the recipes are FG ok. It even includes one recipe from the Feingold material. The author is Jewish so lots of recipes for Jewish Holidays and tradional Jewish fare, which is something that I haven't seen in the other books I have read.
Though the focus is somewhat GFCF, this is a good book to research nutrient therapy in general. The advise is not exclusive to the GFCF. Another highly recommended book!
This was a good book to start my research into Gluten Free living. It definitely is a good book for encouragement! The author is very enthusiastic about the Gluten Free lifestyle, so while she understands and gives you suggestions for dealing with the emotional obstacles of embracing this lifestyle, she presents it in a very good light.
There are lots of good tips in here to diagnosis, shopping, eating out, helping kids embrace the lifesytle, dealing with friends and family, cooking, etc. A great book for anyone who must eat Gluten Free.
I also thought that the book would be a good encouragement for those of us on the Feingold Diet, or anyone who is constantly reading labels and who must deal with a restricted diet that causes issues when eating out or dining with others. I loved the line about how when a product says "new and improved" that is is really a euphamism for "now you definitely need to check ingredients -again- because we have changed our formula". So true! The description of the "flip-scan" method of shopping was humorous. Yep, definitely how I shop! Grab an item, flip it over, scan ingredients. Either replace quickly or leap for joy and add to cart! LOLI also liked finding there is a name for those of us with an "extreme desire to only eath health foods", orthorexia. Anyway, the tips on dealing with resturaunts, less then helpful friends, social situations, reading labels, calling manufactures, helping kids take control of their diet, etc those are good for anyone on a restrictive diet.
The book also goes into glycemic index, the "Caveman Diet" and eating healthy on the gluten free diet. One thing that detracted from the book was her belief in evolution and her belief that man did not always eat wheat, that it was not always around. Sorry, can't buy that. But, beyond that, I found it to be very informative. Lots of websites, suggestions, helpful tips, etc.
If you have Celiac Disease, Gluten Intolerance, Diabetes, Fibromyaliga, Chronic Fatigue, IBS, autism, any autoimmune disease, etc this would be a good book to check out. There are so many things that can be helped by this diet. And this book is a great place to start.
In addition to the mix, I needed vanilla, butter, honey and water.
The mix includes a flour mixture and brown sugar.
I creamed the butter and the sugar together.
Added the honey and vanilla and mixed.
Then added the water until if formed a ball. (Still mixing here.) I accidently added a little too much water and so I grabbed my Jules flour mix and added some in until the dough firmed back up. I was worried that might alter the taste, but it came out fine.
After rolling out to 1/4 inch thick, I used a pizza cutter to cut into rectangles. I have several pizza cutters on hand because they are wonderful for cutting all kinds of things.
Pricked with a fork. I added some cinnamon sugar to some of them.
Baked for 20 minutes. They came out good. Though 1/4 inch does make a thick cracker. But, considering how some GF crackers on the market can be a bit small, this makes for a nice sized, sturdy cracker for topping with peanut butter, or chocolate and marshmallows. :-)
Jessica approves!
We topped hers with her white chocolate peanut butter and marshmallows and toasted. Notice her jar of pb is clearly marked gf. No one else uses her pb jars. This eliminates cross contamination that could occur if someone dipped their knife back in after spreading on something with gluten.
