Food & Wine fixes error

If you saw my rage at Food & Wine for their labeling of honey spelt bread as safe for persons with celiac disease, you will be happy to know that they have updated and amended the recipe.

New Website to find a safe place to eat

So the name leaves me wanting, but maybe this site will still smell as sweet.  Allergy Eats was just launched and it allows you to search for a restaurant that can accommodate food allergies/intolerance by location. Hopefully as it gets up and running it will become more useful. Links to the restaurant's websites, menus and more reviews would all be helpful. Right now its hard to understand how/why these restaurants are listed because this info is missing. I am excited to see where this goes in the next few months and will probably use it when traveling.

Found via PR Newswire

King Arthur Flour announces gluten free mixes

A friend just forwarded along a press release with this interesting bit of news:

King Arthur Flour is releasing new gluten-free mixes on March 1st.

Thank you to Shaun for sharing this info!

Bob's Red Mill ownership changes hands

Avoiding gluten means becoming very well acquainted with Bob's Red Mill products. Safe: yes, cheap: no; but they are readily available and there is no roll of the roulette wheel with purchasing millet flour in bulk bins right next to the semolina - where one of the scoops is missing. Seriously, lets invoke a little Nancy Regan and just say no. From sorghum to teff, Bob's Red Mill products are clearly labeled, tested and are consistently great.

I casually refer to Bob, as if he is friend; he is in my house more often than I am, lining my pantry shelves and beckoning me to try out a new recipe. (Bob Bittner of WJIB 740AM radio receives similar treatment within the confines of the kitchen. The first name basis and quality of products makes me think that these two Bobs would not only get along, but would be fabulous dinner guests.)

The Bob of Bob's Red Mill just turned 81 and company that makes so many gluten free (and gluten-filled) products is now getting turned over to the employees. This type of business practice is incredibly rare and awesome.

Becoming a fan

I hate twitter. I loath it so much I refuse to even capitalize it as a proper name. With email, gchat statuses, Facebook, rss feeds and blogs I don't see the point of it. Yes, it has been really useful, especially as a means of communication in and about the earthquake and aftermath in Haiti, I just don't see the point of using it for day-to-day things. I like a well thought out article, that is longer than 140 characters, that is edited and well crafted. Perhaps I have never sent a text message that I thought worthy of displaying to the world.

All that said, I do think social media is pretty interesting and has fostered some great discussions and ideas. In the interested of maybe pushing NGR in that direction, you may now become a fan of No Gluten Required on Facebook!

science, the unknown and food that is fun

I have been thinking and reading a lot about autoimmune diseases lately. (I feel this is the time where I apologize to anyone who has been near me when I talk about wanting a hookworm... but a girl has got to dream.) I have been looking for, but haven't found, a really good explanation about what is going on in bodies with autoimmune diseases, and specifically what isn't working. On the whole, I have been disappointed. Information is spotty or so overly scientific, one needs a specialized degree and some medical dictionaries to get through it. (Yes, I have read Dr. Green, and while it is good, it is still lacking a solid and clear definition about what is physically/chemically happening in the body of a human with active Celiac Disease.) I spent some time talking with a scientist this weekend, and what I learned was both clarifying and confusing.

1. In general there isn't a ton of information known about autoimmune diseases or the human immune system in general. (This made me feel slightly better about not really being able to find/understand good information about the processes and problems.)

2. My theory and questions about bone marrow transplants was pretty much dispelled. (Radiation was a form of treatment therapy for lupus, so I thought maybe it would be a feasible - though probably undesirable thing -for persons with other autoimmune disorders)

3. There are multiple possibilities for how and why intestinal damage occurs in persons with Celiac Disease. The specifics of how and why the body attacks gluten AND its own body, the intestines, its 100% known. (This makes a ton more sense to me. Especially considering how many people have non-GI issues, it seems like there are several things happening at once and villa damage is just part of it)

Part of the reason why I really want to figure this stuff out is mostly curiosity and the desire to be able to better explain it to other people. Ideally, I would like a better visual representation of what the hell is going on in bodies that decide to wage war on gluten. (For some reason I always use a military or pac-man analogy.)

All in all, I have to admit that things have been easier for those looking for gluten-free options. I am surprised daily about people who actually know what gluten is, and food establishments with better and better offerings. Here are a few happy surprises:

I used the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix for cupcakes on my birthday and they were good, better than good. Fluffy, dark and not-too-chocolately, I was amazed. They even fooled a few people into thinking they were the traditional kind, when covered in burnt sugar cream cheese frosting. They were so good. Apparently they are even up for an award!

At a very indulgent dinner last month, I was surprised at how wonderful the service remains at Oleana, and at their attention to detail. After letting the server know that gluten was a no-no, he brought out a side plate of fresh cut veggies for me in lieu of the bread basket for the other diners. Not only was it thoughtful, it was a great compliment to their carrot puree - the best thing! - and sported a few sliced watermelon radishes, a personal favorite.

This past weekend, I was excited to find out that Highland Kitchen has a gluten-free menu that is not only extensive, it had offerings that were beyond the "hamburger sans bun." The house-made pickles rule and the braised pork was tender and flavorful. Not to mention their very interesting cocktail list.

Third time's the charm - Gluten free lady fingers and tiramisu

I mentioned my lady finger woes (one too crunchy, the other too cake-y) to a friend. We were discussing possible flavor components for the tiramisu - did you really think it would be possible for me to just follow a recipe, by this point, I think the jig is up - and he mentioned, "coffee, vanilla, ooh almond! How about almond meal in the cookies?!"
There was one recipes that I did come across that called for almond meal and potato starch as the main ingredients, so with one more trip to the store I deemed that another batch of lady fingers would be worth a try. And you know what... it totally worked!
I slightly modified the last recipe and then combined it with a tinkered version of Cooking for Engineer's Simple Tiramisu and voila! A surprise dessert that even surprised me, because I liked it!

Gluten Free Lady Fingers
5 tbsp almond meal flour
2 tbsp sweet rice flour
2 tbsp millet flour
1 tbsp corn starch
2 tbsp potato starch
1 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs separated
pinch cream of tartar
1 tsp vanilla
*silpat or parchment paper

1. Combine the almond meal, rice, millet, corn, potato starches, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites and the cream of tartar until they form soft peaks. Slowly sprinkle in 2tbsp of the 1/4 cup of sugar. Whip until soft peaks.
3. In a separate bowl combine the remaining sugar, egg yolks and vanilla. Whip until light yellow and the batter forms ribbons when you dip the beater into it - it should ooze off in a ribbon. This is going to take at least 5 minutes.
4. Add 1/4 of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture, fold until almost combined. In three separate stages, sift in the dry ingredients into the yolk mixture.
5. In two more additions, gently fold in the remaining egg whites.
6. Load the batter into a pastry bag with a 1/2" round tip or into a zip-top bag, and cut a 1/2" hole in the corner.
7. Pipe the mixture onto the baking pan lined with a silpat or parchment. Shoot for 3-4" lines with 1'' of space between each cookie.
8. Sprinkle with powdered sugar (ha, forgot to do this AGAIN)
9. Bake at 325F for 10-15 minutes until the edges just begin to turn golden brown.
10. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 4-5 minutes, then gently pull back the silpat/parchment and place the cookies on a wire rack to completely cool.

They turned out wonderfully! So as they cooled, I started on the tiramisu.

Gluten Free Tiramisu
1lb. mascarpone cheese
1 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 vanilla bean
2 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp rum (you can use more if you like)
2-3 ounces of prepared espresso
1/3-1/2 cup prepared coffee
cocoa powder

1. Place the cream in a mixing bowl and whip till it reaches stiff peaks. (This will happen faster than you think, so keep an eye on it. If it goes for too long you will have butter. I am not joking, it will happen and it is delicious, but then you will have to start all over again.)
2. In a separate container, wide enough to fit the cookies, mix the coffee, espresso and rum. 
3. In a separate bowl combine the cheese, sugar, vanilla bean seeds (the inside of a vanilla bean scraped) and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth.
4. Get your container that is going to house your final tiramisu ready. 
5. Gently fold the whipped cream into the cheese mixture. It should lighten it and increase the volume.
Now you are ready to assemble!
6. Dip one lady finger into the coffee mixture for 1-2 seconds total, flipping it once. Then place 4-5 dipped lady fingers onto the bottom of your dish.
7. Place a few scoops of the cheese mixture atop and spread out evenly. 
8. Dust cocoa powder over the top.
Traditional tiramisu has two layers of cookies - but it seemed like a weird/wrong ratio, so I did 3 layers.
9. Repeat the steps (1 or 2 more times) and generously cocoa the top.
10. Place in the refrigerator to cool and set up.

The cookies were a lot more delicate than traditional lady fingers. So a very short dipping time is key. That and moving quickly.

I then covered it and put it in the fridge.
It was so delicious the next day.
Overall the flavor was better than any tiramisu I have had. The vanilla bean in the cheese mixture really helped. The lady fingers held up and held the coffee, my only critique is that the almond meal with noticeable in the fact that its not as fine as  the other flours. It wasn't unpleasant, but it was a texture that wasn't creamy and soft like the rest of the dish.

Gluten free lady fingers - take 2

After the first, gritty lady fingers attempt, I decided to consult a few more recipes. The one in Jacqueline Mallorca's Gluten-Free Italian looked promising. So what did I do, try it as its written, of course not, I tinkered.

4 tbsp sweet rice flour
2 tbsp millet flour
2 tbsp corn starch
3 tbsp potato starch
1 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs separated
pinch cream of tartar
1/2 tsp vanilla
powdered sugar (~1 tbsp for dusting piped fingers)
*silpat or parchment paper

1. Combine the rice, millet, corn, potato starches, baking powder, salt and xanthan gum into a bowl. Set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites and the cream of tartar until they form soft peaks. Slowly sprinkle in 2tbsp of the 1/4 cup of sugar. Whip until soft peaks.
3. In a separate bowl combine the remaining sugar, egg yolks and vanilla. Whip until light yellow and the batter forms ribbons when you dip the beater into it - it should ooze off in a ribbon. This is going to take at least 5 minutes.
4. Add 1/4 of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture, fold until almost combined. In three separate stages, sift in the dry ingredients into the yolk mixture. (The last addition completely seized up the batter and I thought it was over - but keep going. I think the xanthan was a mistake.)
5. In two more additions, gently fold in the remaining egg whites.
6. Load the batter into a pastry bag with a 1/2" round tip or into a zip-top bag, and cut a 1/2" hole in the corner.
7. Pipe the mixture onto the baking pan lined with a silpat or parchment. Shoot for 3-4" lines with 1'' of space between each cookie.
8. Sprinkle with powdered sugar... or forget to do this, and try to do it while they are in the oven, burn yourself and laugh, after cursing.
9. Bake at 325F for 10-15 minutes until the edges just begin to turn golden brown.
10. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 4-5 minutes, then gently pull back the silpat/parchment and place the cookies on a wire rack to completely cool.

While they are warm, they are going to be soft, but as the cool they will crisp up.

Overall, these are a lot better than the first go round, much more cakey and they don't have a weird too eggy flavor. They are a bit more subtle too and not gritty.
I think they will make pretty good tiramisu, though they are about half as thick as traditional cookies, so I am wondering if they are going to get soggy once dipped in the espresso. I might try it one more time without the xanthan gum to see how they turn out.


Egg yolks, vanilla and sugar just combined.

Egg whites mixed, then sugar added - look at those peaks!

Back to the yolks, check out how much lighter they get:


First addition of the whites:

Adding in the dry:

Weird batter seizing:

Whites in, batter smooth:

Folding a bag over a 4 cup container for pouring in the batter:



Snip the tip:

Piped cookies:
Forgetting the powdered sugar, adding it while they are in the oven - not a good idea.

Done cookies:
Just a hint of color on the bottom


I really wish they were taller. I think the xanthan gum screwed everything up cause I had to work the batter a lot more and probably lost some of the height from the egg whites.

A Hand for Haiti eCookbook

Lauren at Celiac Teen did it! She created an ebook A Hand for Haiti that includes over 80 recipes, many that are gluten free. All donations made before February 12, 2010 are being matched by the Canadian government.

I am so excited to flip through mine tonight!

Gluten Free Tax Deductions

Its a little tricky, but A Gluten Free Guide has highlighted the ins and out of claiming gluten-free products and substitutes as medical expenses for Federal Taxes (in the U.S.).

I personally have never done it because you have to keep all of your receipts and do a bunch of math: you have to deduct the price of a "normal" product from the price of a gluten free one and the remaining cost is what you can deduct. Your claim also has to hit a certain percentage of your income, which was high enough that I just never bothered.

That said, if your entire house is gluten-free or you buy a lot of flours, packaged goods, it might be worth it.

gluten free lady fingers - test run

What is your favorite dessert?
I guess it would have to be tiramisu.
Really? Tiramisu?

Tiramisu is something I have never really liked. I tend to be a fruit dessert person. I usually spend most of my time trying to recreate my favorites, but I think it is fun to surprise someone with a favorite food for almost no reason... v-day is just around the corner. Valentines Day seems sort of silly to me - St. Valentine died, I am not really sure how we went from bloody death to flowers and candies, but I love an in-the-kitchen challenge. So here is my first attempt at making lady fingers, the foundation of any tiramisu.

Trial run of lady fingers
2 tbsp millet flour
2 1/2 tbsp corn starch
1 tbsp tapioca flour
1 tbsp potato starch
1 tsp baking powder baking powder
1/4 tsp xanthan gum
pinch sea salt
2 eggs, separated
1/4 + 1/2tbsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Line one jellyroll baking sheets with either parchment paper or two silpats and set aside. Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Whisk the egg yolks with 1/2 cup sugar to the ribbon and then stir in the vanilla. Beat the egg whites until stiff, add the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar and whisk for about 30 seconds more, making sure the egg whites cast off a nice glossy sheen.
In three separate batches, sprinkle the sifted dry ingredients over the egg whites and gently fold in. Repeat with the egg yolk mixture. Spoon your batter into a pastry bag fitted with a 1” plain pastry tip.
Pipe fingers that are about 4 ½ inches long. Dust the tops with confectioners’ sugar and bake for 20 minutes or until the ladyfingers are a pale copper color and firm on the outside and soft on the inside. (I didn't have any powdered sugar, so I skipped it)

Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Makes 1 dozen ladyfingers.

Gluten free lady finger recipe that I halved for a test run and modified.

My biggest worry is that they would become gummy once they were soaked in espresso, which is why I decreased the tapioca starch. They browned much faster than I expected, you can see that at 14 minutes they were over-done (but the oven has been on the fritz, so I am not sure what is to blame).
I test soaked one in coffee and it held up well and didn't get gummy, but I should have sifted the mixture because it was a little gritty. That or there is too much sugar and not all of it dissolved in the egg yolks. I really think they are too sweet, but maybe they need to be to contrast the marscarpone and espresso. I am going to make others eat them and tell me what they think.

Verdict - too gritty. I think the sugar didn't completely dissolve in the egg yolks. They are also really eggy. Maybe more flours?

Vote for best gluten free menu in Boston

The Phoenix is asking for the best of Boston in their annual poll and one of the questions asks for the Best Gluten Free Menu!

Who do you love?

Gluten Free Sourdough take 2

The first attempt at making sourdough was a bit of a hockey-puck and honestly I was a bit dissuaded to go back and figure this out. So I started out with a ball jar, water and flour.

Day 1
1 cup brown rice flour
1 cup water

Day 2
I shook the jar and forgot to feed it

Day 3
1 cup tapioca starch
1 cup water

Here is what it looked like on day 4:

BUBBLES!
Day 4 bread making

1 1/2 cup of starter (poured the hooch off first)
1 tsp honey
2/3 cup millet flour
2/3 cup potato starch
1 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 tsp psyllium husk
1 tsp baking powder
1 egg
2 tsp canola oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
2-3 tbsp hooch

1. Mix everything really well, paddle attachment.
2. Spread into a well greased baking dish.
3. Put in a warm oven (turned it on to 200F for 5 minutes, shut it off, put in pan) to proof.



2 hours, no movement.
5 hours, it was time for bed and I left the damn thing in the oven with a damp paper towel over the top
next morning, running late, pull the loaf out of the oven and it FINALLY rose. Cover in plastic wrap and throw it in the fridge.

Day 5
Baking
350F for 40 minutes.

Texture - pretty good, a little dense, but an even crumb for sure.
Taste - a little sweet, but a nice fermented flavor. It really lacked salt though. Even with toasting a slice and sprinkling salt atop it, it still wasn't something I was jazzed to eat. So I turned it into breadcrumbs. Delicious breadcrumbs.

Bread seller arrested in North Carolina

The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and the courts are now involved in a case of a specialty foods company selling gluten-free bread that isn't.

N.C. puts it weight behind gluten free cause

Bread seller arrested on fraud charges

N.C. 17 new report and video

Hopefully no one else will get sick, and maybe the FDA will do what it was suppose to do in 2008 and legally define "gluten free."

Thanks to Gluten Free Fun for posting the link.

Not being a bone marrow donor

I waffled on whether to post this or not, because I try to keep this a pretty upbeat and positive thing, but when I found out that I cannot be a bone marrow donor I was sort of shocked. I read that persons with autoimmune diseases cannot be donors, but I still thought that for some reason that didn't mean me, well until I read the B.C. guidelines.

I feel really lucky to be relatively healthy and I often just say "oh I cannot eat gluten" and call it a day. That said, this 1997 article started me thinking... if the antibodies that attack the gluten and other human tissue in the body are made in the bone marrow - and this is transferable to another human via a bone marrow transplant - is the bone marrow the key to figuring out what is going on?

I wonder if it is ALL bone marrow, or only some in certain parts of the body. Would radiation therapy alter the bone marrow and cause it to stop making the antibodies? I also wonder what persons with celiac diseases' bone marrow looks like compared to others. Are there other wacky things going on in there?

Panela

I was at the Brazilian market a few months ago and I came across panela I was exited to figure out what it is and how to use it. Turns out its just unrefined cane sugar. Sometimes its packaged as brown sugar or natural brown sugar, but it differs from the brown sugar in the Dominos box. Panela is the cane sugar before is further processed out into white sugar and molasses. It tastes a little less sweet than packaged brown sugar, with a much deeper instense molasses flavor.




It took some work to crack it open and then cut or shave off some of the sugar, but it was worth it. I used some in place of brown sugar in Indian Pudding. It was awesome!

Spicy Coconut Beef

More of a what-is-there-left-in-the-pantry/freezer thing than a recipe, but here goes. I was craving something spicy and I have a few packages of CSA beef left over and I was in the middle of attempting to make homemade coconut yogurt, so coconut beef seemed like a great idea.

I marinated the beef in 2 small sliced onions, 2 sliced key limes, 3 cloves of garlic sliced, 1/4 cup wheat free tamari, and 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce.




Ginger, Alleppo, turmeric, allspice, cayenne, cumin seed, cinnamon, coriander, celery seed all went into the pot. I started out with a 1/4 tsp of each and then added a bunch more coriander, cumin and turmeric into the mix. And then I added in a half a cup of coconut milk and several pinches of kosher salt.


Everything marinated for 2 hours. I then I seared off the beef in a hot cast iron skillet.


Then in went the marinaded. It cooked down until the onion and garlic were soft and the sauce had reduced in half.

The beef joined the pan and everything was brought to a simmer.


I served it up over just steamed green beans.
Overall, it was really good, spicier than I expected, but in a good way. Next time I would add a teaspoon of fish sauce and a few pinches of sugar to play up the Thai flavor a bit more, but it was really good and great the next day for lunch too!