Valentine's Treat--Fruit By the Foot

How we LOVE Betty Crocker!  We reported recently about their new website, focusing on their gluten free products (http://www.liveglutenfreely.com/), which is quite a large step for a major company.  They report over 200 products as gluten free.  They also began to really label their products, when gluten free, even on all their frostings.  We recently made a ‘Tinkerbell’ cake with a gf chocolate mix and white frosting, and the frosting did indeed say gluten free.

When out shopping recently, we found the Valentine’s themed Fruit By the Foot.  Of course, on the side, it does say ‘gluten free.’  How terrific!  We can usually find something similar when preparing holiday treats for school for the girls, but when we can just buy a box of fruit snacks, themed for the holiday, it makes things a little easier for us parents.  Now, the girls can take in some themed treats to school that they CAN eat and share.  Not a huge thing, but I am sure, definitely helps them in dealing with Celiac in school.  Thanks to Betty Crocker for this!

Custom Choice Cereal--Gluten Free Cereal YOU Make!

Over at the Custom Choice Cereal Blog (http://customchoicecereal.com/blog/), Hajo is hosting another Q&A session with Dr. Stephen Wangen, known as the ‘Gluten Free Doctor.’  Dr. Wangen works at the Irritable Bowel Syndrome Center in Seattle, to which he co-founded and specializes in digestive disorders and food allergies.  Definitely one in the know on Celiac Disease.  We definitely appreciate Hajo hosting Dr. Wangen for our questions, and also for his yummy gluten free cereal mixes.

As parents of Celiac children, we definitely want to make sure we do all that we can to support our children and make sure we limit the possibility of side-effects in the future.  I think most of us have heard about cases of low bone density, brittle enamel on teeth, and other negative impacts of a gluten-free lifestyle, but as in my question I asked Dr. Wangen below, keeping that strict gf lifestyle will help them grow into their adult years.

hurricanesfan66 2 days ago

Dr. Wangen,

Hello! Thanks for providing this service to us!! I have two daughters, both with Celiac. We have been able to make it through pretty well, especially as more companies pay attention to this and more resources are out there for us.

With younger daughters, we are not to concerned yet regarding possible problems in the future due to certain deficiencies, they also take multivitamins, but what should we be aware of in the future? We know of a younger boy who had enamel/calcium deficiencies and needed early dental work. We also hear of bone density problems. What proactive steps can we take now with our girls to help avoid problems in the future?

Thanks!

—

Answer from Dr. Stephen Wangen, “The Gluten Free Doctor”

The earlier that celiac disease is discovered the less likely that you’ll have to worry about any of these problems. Of course, if they already have something like an enamel defect then that will be apparent. But the best thing that you can do is continue to have them avoid gluten. If they are young then that should prevent other problems from developing in the future. However, it’s an interesting question that really needs more research.

Thanks again to the folks at Custom Choice Cereal. If you do not currently subscribe to their blog, you definitely want to do it. They share a wealth of information on research, information, and more about Celiac and gluten-free lifestyles. A definite must read!

Click Here for Our Google Map to Earth Fare

Bring the family and please join our Raleigh Cel-Kids group at Earth Fare on February 27th from 2-4pm. Earth Fare is providing gluten-free cookies for tasting!

Earth Fare is located on Moncreiffe Road, off of Brier Creek Parkway.  Use our Google Map for directions by clicking on the image to the left.

Please let us know if you can attend this event and how many individuals to expect by email at raleigh.celkids (at) gmail.com

What is childhood without cookies?  Even for a Celiac child, many great cookie recipes exist.  One of the favorites of our girls is a simple peanut butter cookie.  You know the one, you use a fork to make the ‘fence’ design afterwards.  Or you make a ball, then put in a Hershey’s Kiss or Reese Peanut Butter Cup in the middle.  Mmmm!  We also are fond of sugar and shortbread cookies, and many great gluten free recipes exist.

The Gluten Free Cookie Lady often shares recipes with us from her book, Gluten Free Cookies, available at http://www.glutenfreecookielady.com/.  What we really appreciate about this particular cookbook is the fact that so much of the proceeds go back into different Celiac organizations and support groups.  We would definitely encourage families to purchase a book for that reason, but also you receive a book with 85 tested gf cookie recipes!  Yum!

With the upcoming Valentine’s Day, Jeanne Basye, the ‘Gluten Free Cookie Lady,’ shared a recipe with us for Valentine Cookie cutouts.  Enjoy:

Valentine Sugar Cookie Cutouts

Makes almost 2 dozen

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups GF Cookie Lady’s Flour (or favorite GF flour)

2 teaspoons xanthan gum

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 teaspoon pure almond extract

1 large egg

Directions:

1.  Sift flour, xanthan gum, baking soda and cream of tartar into bowl; stir.  Set aside.

2.  Beat butter, confectioners’ sugar, vanilla and almond extract on medium speed 3 minutes, scraping bowl as needed.  Beat in egg. Gradually add flour mixture and beat until combined. Chill dough 2 hours or overnight until easy to handle.

3.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

4.  Remove dough from refrigerator; divide into 4 portions.  Place plastic wrap on countertop; sprinkle with 1-2 tablespoons of confectioners’ sugar. (Confectioners’ sugar prevents dough from sticking to plastic wrap.) Place one portion of dough on plastic wrap. Place another sheet of plastic wrap over dough.  With rolling pin, roll dough into ¼-inch thickness. Use cookie cutter to make shapes. (If necessary, dip cookie cutter into confectioners’ sugar to prevent dough from sticking.)  Transfer cutouts to prepared cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining portions.
5.  Bake 8-11 minutes or until lightly browned on edges.   Cool 2 minutes on sheet then transfer to wire rack to cool completely. Frost and decorate.

—
source:

Bayse, Jeanne. “Valentine Sugar Cookie Cutouts.” The Gluten Free Cookie Lady. Web. 31 Jan. 2010. <http://www.glutenfreecookielady.com/>.

Going back to the case of the Durham baker trying to sell regular bread as gluten-free brought out a family member to the courtroom today.  A cousin actually bought the bread at the NC State Fair this fall, then became quite ill.  Today she testified, with others, and a judge has halted the owner to stop selling products for now.  A scary, scary thing to worry about, but we can be proud of the strong people out there who will stand up for what is right!

Video and more news available here: http://durhamcounty.mync.com/site/durhamcounty/news/story/47678/durham-bread-company-owner-arrested/

Bready, The GF Bread Robot

Making bread, pizza crusts, and more apparently may get easier for folks on a gluten-free diet.  Bready, the Bread Making Robot, can be purchased starting in March, 2010.  While a steep price (starting at $299.00), Bready is the first bread machine I saw geared toward gluten free baking.  On their website (http://mybready.com), you can view a demo video and reserve a Bready for a $30.00 down payment.  It appears the original purchase comes with a 4 pack of mixes to get you started.  Whether this proves successful or not, we do appreciate seeing some cooking products now geared toward Celiac Disease.

Hmm…making bread baking even easier, I can definitely handle that. Maybe they’ll send the group a free one to trial at a CelKids event!

Introducing Bready® the Baking Robot
Fresh baked, great tasting gluten-free bread has long been the Holy Grail for people with Celiac disease and gluten sensitivity. But that search will end in March, with the arrival of Bready, a new robotic baking system invented in Sweden.

Bready delivers fresh, hot, moist gluten-free breads and cakes right at home with no contamination, no mess, no guesswork and no scavenger hunt for special ingredients. Sounds too good to be true? That’s what our Bready home testers said . . . before they fell in love with their prototypes!

Snow Coming Down in Raleigh!

Children around the Triangle are definitely excited waking up today.  A couple of good inches of snow to play in and eat.  And of course, snow and snow cream are totally gluten free!  So enjoy!

Here is a basic snow cream recipe:

Basic Recipe

1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
large bowl of snow (about 3 quarts)

Blend milk, sugar and vanilla. Stir in enough snow to make snow cream to
an ice cream consistency.

Variations – There are many variations for snow cream. For example,
substitute canned cream for milk for a heavier flavor. Add Nestles Quik
for a chocolate snow
cream, or use instant cocoa mix. (check to make sure variations for their gluten free-ness). Another variation is to add plump
raisins and cinnamon, or add a beaten egg for a nog taste. Puree an
overripe banana and add to
the mixture. Get creative – you know your family’s tastes.

Gluten Free Cooking...With Some Help!

Besides the web being a great source for gluten-free recipes, we definitely advise any Celiacs to purchase at least one cookbook.  We try to find a variety, that including many different and unique recipes.  While many books exist, and surely many are of just as high a quality as the ones to follow, we’ll just review the one we own.  Many exist though.  A simple ‘gluten free cookbook’ recipe search on Amazon revealed four pages worth.  We will definitely need to take a look at some of the others.

Hagman’s ‘The Gluten-Free Gourmet Cooks Fast and Healthy’ probably is the one we were destined to find.  We shared the Cheese Cracker recipe (Goldfish replacement) in another Cel-Kids blog post.  A yummy cracker that tastes just like regular cheddar crackers.  When first diagnosed, our oldest ate the Spinach Quiche based on the recipe in this book regularly.  We actually made this for some various gatherings, and no one could tell the difference.  Plus, we could make them in muffin pans and refrigerate some for later meals.  Before the Betty Crocker GF mixes, we routinely used the Brownie Pie recipe.  We still use it for a great treat.  Definitely a large variety of useful recipes.  Find her cookbook at Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/Gluten-Free-Gourmet-Cooks-Fast-Healthy/dp/0805065253/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1264296085&sr=8-18

Homemade Gluten Free 'Goldfish Replacement' Crackers

How we loved buying the big jug of Goldfish crackers for our girls prior to their Celiac diagnosises.  Or diagnosi.  Not sure about the plural form of that one.  Anyway, I do not think you could find a quicker snack, with at least a small amount of nutrition.  Taking Goldfish to the beach is a time honored tradition for us, as well as loading baggies full for car trips.

Of course,  Goldfish contain wheat, so that eliminates that possibility, or did until we discovered a quick and easy recipe for making crackers similar.  And what about the critics?  After trying many varieties, we found that our girls liked these most of all.  We like the convenience of how the recipe below allows for many ‘batches’ to be prepared at once.  Each batch can be cooked separately, while storing additional batches in the refrigerator.  Many also use small cookie cutters to cut the crackers into shapes, but we did not yet try that.

So, you want the recipe?  It comes from Bette Hagman’s ‘The Gluten-Free Gourmet Cooks Fast and Healthy’ cookbook.  We will review gluten free cookbooks soon, but we use this cookbook routinely, and definitely recommend its purchase.  You can find it here:http://www.amazon.com/Gluten-Free-Gourmet-Cooks-Fast-Healthy/dp/0805065253, and for $12.92 (as of this date), you really cannot do better for a 350+ page cookbook!

Cheese Crackers

• 1/2 cup magarine or butter, softened
• 2 cups loosely packed sharp Cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 cup GF Flour Mix (a rice/potato starch/tapioca mix)
• 1 teaspoon seasoning salt

Cream together the margarine and cheese.  Add the flour and seasoning salt and mix together until the dough forms a ball.  Divide the dough into 3 sections and roll each into a roll 6″ long and 1 1/2″ in diameter.  Wrap in wax paper and chill until firm.

Preheat over to 400 degrees.  Cut dough into 1/8″ slices and place on an ungreased baking sheet.  Bake for 10 minutes or until crisp and very slightly browned.  Makes about 4 1/2 dozen crackers.

—
source:

Hagman, Bette. “Cheese Crackers.” The Gluten-Free Gourmet Cooks Fast and Healthy. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2000. 203. Print.

Gluten Free Week at Camp Kanata

Once again, Camp Kanata in Wake Forest will provide a Gluten Free Camp Week this summer.  The YMCA sponsored camp will run from June 27th through July 3rd.  According to the YMCA Camp website (http://www.ymcatriangle.org/kanata/news.html):

During the week of June 27-July 3, 2010, Camp Kanata will provide a gluten-free menu to kids with Celiac Disease who are on a gluten-free diet. The “gluten-free” campers will participate in the full program with the rest of the campers, but will be provided with delicious food that is all gluten-free.

Last year, one of the Raleigh Cel-Kids Board members visited Camp Kanata during the Gluten-Free week.  While the camp also enrolls regular campers during the GF week, all the food preparation for the gluten-free meals and snacks is done at a separate kitchen.  They keep all items separated, so risk of contamination is minimal.  This will mark the 7th year of the gluten-free camp, so the Camp Kanata staff definitely is familiar with the needs of Celiac campers.

Because gf campers come from all over the Southeast to this camp, space goes fast.  Visit the website above to enroll your camper and find additional information.  We applaud the YMCA and Camp Kanata staff for bringing these opportunities to our children.