No, Dominos, That's Not Technically Gluten-Free

So, today I get an email from Dominos that proudly claims that they now have gluten-free crusts.  Then, they tell you to read a disclaimer which states:

"Domino’s pizza made with a Gluten Free Crust is prepared in a common kitchen with the risk of gluten exposure. The National Foundation for Celiac Awareness supports the availability of Domino’s Gluten Free Crust, but CANNOT recommend the pizza for customers with celiac disease. Customers with gluten sensitivities should exercise judgment in consuming this pizza."

So, no, that's not technically gluten-free.  While they have the best of intentions, Dominos is showing a lack of research and basic knowledge concerning cooking for Celiac sufferers.  My husband would practically give his left leg to be able to order pizza for delivery again, but he is not willing to take this sort of risk.

If a Celiac were to try this "GF" pizza, which has a fair likelihood of becoming contaminated by wheat flour, the repercussions could be extreme.  Luckily for him, my husband's reaction is GI-related.  My poor eight-year-old daughter would have extreme mood swings for the subsequent six weeks in addition to the GI-related issues.  In short, the consequences outweigh the risk.  By a mile.

While I applaud your effort to help those with gluten allergies and intolerances feel a bit more normal, you missed the mark a bit on this one.

Ouch! Anyone For Leftovers?

Last night, I learned my lesson the hard way.  Again.  This time, I learned that I should always, always taste new ingredients before putting them in my recipes.

Dinner last night was intended to be a soy chorizo and black bean stew, cooked in the slow cooking for eight hours.  Either my soy chorizo from Trader Joe's was a heap spicier than the soy chorizo I picked up at the organic market last time, or I added too much chipotle chili powder.  Either way, the kids and I had to switch over to leftovers or cereal for dinner last night, because the stew made our mouths, throats, nose, and eyes burn.  It was that hot.  Oops.

A good friend suggested adding agave nectar to cut the heat, so I will try that when I re-heat (pardon the pun) these leftovers for my husband this weekend.  Here is hoping that it works.

My Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Lasagna Recipe Is Coming

As soon as I can catch a moment to myself, I will get my recipe up for a gluten-free, dairy-free lasagna.  It is a huge hit in our house, even with the kids, so I want to share it with anyone else that thought lasagna was a thing of the past with food allergies.  I would love to say that it is casein-free, too, but my non-dairy cheeses put the casein back into their products for some reason.  I am working on a meat-free version, too, because I have discovered that beef, no matter the quality, gives me migraines.

My Mediterranean (Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free) Pizza

Holy moley, Mabel!  This is the best thing in the world, I swear.  We have not been thrilled with all of our pizza attempts as of late, so we decided to alter our course.  This is what we came up with:

This is such a tasty dish, and it was pretty easy to make.  We used a Bob's Red Mill GF Pizza Crust mix for the crust (substituting 3 T water and 1 T ground flax seed per egg), pre-baked it per the package directions, coated it lightly with extra virgin olive oil, sprinkled some Italian seasonings and garlic powder on the crust, placed a layer of baby spinach on top of the seasonings, and covered that with chopped up organic Roma tomatoes, diced feta, and almond mozzarella.  We followed the package directions for baking the topped pizza, let it rest for five minutes, and dug in heartily.

The flavors in this recipe are so amazing, and every single person in our house loved it.  That includes all four little ladies.  All of them!  We are so pleased!!

The 18-Hour Energy Diet

I think this would be a fitting name for an all-natural, organic, mostly (if not completely) vegan diet. If a diet rich in vegetables and fruits and a modest amount of complex carbohydrates were marketed in this fashion, it would be all the rage.

Never, in my wildest dreams, could I have imagined that I would have so much energy that I could barely sit still nearly every day, just because of my diet. My sleep is peaceful, I wake up happy and ready to roll, and I am not "just making it through" the day now. I take my kids on walks, run errands, cook, clean, and work out. This is fantastic!

My next goal is to tailor my vitamins, minerals, and herbal supplements to my diet and health needs and wants. What a blessing it is for the Lord to have opened my eyes. I thank Him every day for showing me the path to health and happiness. May I show Him all the praise through my dedication to treating my body as a temple and encouraging others to do the same.

My Favorite Peanut Butter

We have tried so many different kinds of natural and organic peanut butters in the past year, and we finally found the one to call our favorite: creamy Maranatha Organic Peanut Butter with a hint of sea salt. Love this stuff!

My Favorite Gluten-Free Bread Recipe

I have been searching and searching for a great-tasting gluten-free bread recipe for years.  Through a little combining of recipes from here and there, plus a good deal of experimenting, I have finally hit upon a family favorite:

Ingredients
2 c. warm water
1/4 c. expeller-pressed canola oil
1 t. apple cider vinegar
3 T. agave nectar
3 T. ground flax seed*
1-1/2 c. brown rice flour*
1/2 c. coconut flour
1 c. quinoa flour*
1/3 c. cornstarch
4 T. Dari-Free non-dairy dry milk
1 t. salt
1 T. xanthan or guar gum
2-1/4 t. yeast

*These ingredients can be made at home with a spice grinder.

Directions

For a bread machine:
Place water, canola oil, vinegar, agave nectar, and ground flax seed in the pan with the paddle already attached.

In a separate bowl, combine the remaining ingredients, except yeast, and mix well.

Pour dry mixture into the pan, make a small trough in the dry ingredients for the yeast, place in bread machine, and use the 2-lb, gluten-free setting.  If your machine does not have a gluten-free cycle, the white bread setting should work just fine.

For a conventional oven:
Preheat oven to 350ºF.  Grease and flour pan.

Place water, canola oil, vinegar, agave nectar, and ground flax seed in the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment.

Mix the remaining ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl.

With the mixer on low, slowly combine the dry ingredients into the wet mixture.  Mix only until combined, as gluten-free foods are easy to over-mix.

Transfer dough to greased pan, lightly greased with shortening and dusted with gluten-free flour or cornstarch. Place pan into the oven with foil in place, and bake for 50-55 minutes.

Allow bread to cool thoroughly on a wire rack before slicing.  Store in tightly-sealed bags or freeze.