Happy 2010

Today is the last day of 2009 and I can't imagine where the time has gone.

I finished the year with one of Amy's Kitchen frozen meals - the Asian Noodle Stir Fry. It was the best thing I've eaten from Amy's and I love their Mexican meals. The noodles were tender without being soggy. The tofu was crisp and the vegetables rounded it out nicely. Bright green broccoli, peppers, and mushrooms. Best of all it was GF! I will be buying it again and again.

I'm driving a 24' moving van to Kansas City tomorrow. My daughter Rachel is moving. We're expecting more snow so I will be driving slowly and carefully.

Happy New Year to everyone.

More next year...

Christmas Eve Blizzard 2009

We were going to work a short day on Christmas Eve. Mid morning the UPS man came in and said it was starting to ice on his windshield. I decided to move my car into the parking garage which is a definite no-no at my place of employment. Only the bigwigs get to park there. I walked to my car on a very slippery sidewalk and when I got there I couldn't open either door or my trunk. I walked back to the library got a big pitcher of hot water then walked back to my car and poured it around the door frame. The door opened at last and I got in and turned on my defroster. After a few minutes the ice on the windshield was scrapable (is that even a word) and I cleaned it off, drove to the building I work in and told my boss I was going home. By mid-afternoon it was snowing heavily and by evening the winds were gusting at 50 mph. So we were in a blizzard warning and ended up with 15 inches of the white stuff by Christmas morning. Unusual for Topeka. The roads were impossible. Everything was closed, if not by Christmas, then by snow and ice. Beautiful but deadly. My daughter and her boyfriend came over. We opened gifts and ate dinner. Then they went home. I spent the afternoon watching season 4 of "Bones". It was a quiet day.

More later....

Today the library staff and the Baker University School of Nursing faculty and staff had our Holiday celebration at the Brickyard Barn Inn. I called ahead and told them I needed to eat GF. I got to talk to the chef and he was quite familiar with GF dining. He looked at the menu for the luncheon and told me what I would be able to eat without fear. They brought me out a flourless chocolate cake kind of thing (he said it had almond flour) and they gave me a chicken breast that didn't have sauce on it. The potatoes and vegetables were safe. I was comfortable with the way they handled it and I was able to enjoy the meal without worry. Our waitress told me she understood and was being extra careful because she had an allergy to latex and had ended up in the ER during a dental procedure where they didn't pay attention to keeping everything latex free.

More later...

Lots of GF blogs out there

I am enjoying looking for and finding new (to me) GF blogs. It's quite comforting to be part of a large blogosphere of folks with Celiac or other gluten sensitivities. Today I found a blog with great recipes - Carrie over at Ginger Lemon Girl. She has a recipe for Pecan Pumpkin Pie Bars that I can't wait to try. Hop on over and check her out.

More later...

GF Holiday Partay

The local Celiac Support Group had their holiday luncheon on Saturday. There were 64 in attendance and most brought 2 dishes so their was an abundance of food. The menu included:

turkey (smoked and baked)

dressing

mashed potatoes

gravy

sweet potatoes

cranberry relish

fruit salads

pasta salads

jello molds

rolls (I guarantee you couldn't tell the difference from non-GF rolls)

pumpkin pie

cheesecake

lemon pie

brownies

and many other goodies

It felt so funny to be able to eat from all the bowls and platters without having to worry about whether it was GF. The group's president is going to make a newsletter out of all the recipes and we'll each get one attached to an email (or snail mail for those who don't do computers). I can't wait because there are some I'd love to try.

More later...

Recipe for GF Apple Compote

Apple Compote for Pancakes and Waffles

Recipe by Delores Gunther of the Topeka chapter of the CSA/USA, Celiacs helping Celiacs

2 med apples, diced
¼ cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp corn starch
½ tsp lemon juice
1/2 cup water

Place apples in saucepan. Add all other ingredients and stir over medium heat until mixture comes to a soft boil. Lower heat and simmer until mixture becomes thick and apples are soft. Spread on pancakes or waffles (GF, of course).

Personal Note: The original recipe called for one cup of water. I found the resulting mixture to be too thin. If you feel you need more water to make a thin sauce to pour over your pancakes/waffles just add more.

More Later....

More Amy's Kitchen

I've decided to start bringing my lunch every day instead of trying to run the gauntlet at the cafeteria. Today I nuked Amy's Garden Vegetable Lasagna. Printed on the front of the box is "No gluten ingredients" but on the list of ingredients it mentions that the meal has been processed in a facility which processes foods containing wheat. I'm not 100% sure what that means but I really enjoyed this product. The tomato sauce was excellent, the noodles a little limp, but the flavor over all was good. I think next time I'll heat it for the full 5 minutes because it was a little cold in the middle - not Amy's fault, mea culpa all the way.

If anyone has any good ideas of snacks and lunches to bring to work I'd love to hear them. Today I brought a golden delicious apple, Fage yogurt with honey, Back to Nature California almonds (heavenly), raw baby carrots, and a LaraBar. No, I don't plan to eat all of these today but at least I have something to eat when I get hungry. I don't want to give myself any reason to eat out of the snack machine or cafeteria. My food is tastier and healthier and above all GF.

More later...

GF Chex Mix

My co-worker has been eating chex mix by the handful this week and it smells so good when I walk by her desk. I'd pretty much given up on eating any this year until I ran across this post on Fire and Salt. I can't wait to try it. I know what I'll be making this weekend! Thanks for the recipe Brian.

More later...

P.S. *****not my photo*****

Boo Hiss

I'm never going to eat in our cafeteria again. I'm tired of spending the afternoon popping pain pills because of what eating gluten does to me. I was assured that my selections were fine by the cafeteria manager but whoa - PAIN. I had roast beef which was in broth (not gravy), mashed potatoes, and cooked carrots. Within a half hour I was starting to get that funny feeling which I now know indicates that my pain crisis will be starting. Having Celiac is going to force me to plan my meals ahead and not rely on the local cafeteria. I thought asking them would work but obviously cross-contamination is occurring. Sorry for the downer post.

More later...

Eating Out

I've been getting braver about trying to eat out. The local Celiac group gave me a list of restaurants where the staff are familiar with the restrictions of gluten-free eating. The one my daughter and I decided to try was Outback Steakhouse. When we were greeted by the hostess I asked for the GF menu and she handed me one - slick, just like their regular menu except it had notations about how to order the items to make certain they were prepared without gluten. I had a Victoria's 6 oz fillet, with a dressed baked potato and steamed veggies without the spice blend which the menu indicated was not GF. I enjoyed the meal very much. I don't eat steak often and when I do I want someone else to cook it. When we paid the check I asked the waitress to tell the manager how much I appreciated being able to eat in a place that understood the limitations. I'll be eating here again.

More later...