Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Beth Hillson Weekly Newsletter April 24, 2012

"The information here is intended to help you live well on a gluten-free diet. It is not intended as a replacement for medical advice. While I carefully research the information and verify web sites, I urge you to do the same before applying it to your specific health and food allergy needs. And remember that ingredients can change so read labels carefully. Eat Well - Be Well! Beth

Notes From Beth
How wonderful to see so many of our readers at the GF Expo in Chicago last week. I love connecting with everyone, especially at such a terrific event. What an upbeat, active weekend with people stopping me to say, "thanks," wherever I went. It does the heart good!

And I was able to clear up a few gluten-free myths while I was there. I want to share them since these can be life-changing for someone on a gluten-free diet.

 (1) In one blogger session, people were reminding others not to use buttermilk unless it was organic as the low-fat buttermilk contains modified food starch. Myth Dispelled: Generally modified food starch in the US is from cornstarch, although occasionally if can be from tapioca. The other choice, wheat, would have to be disclosed based on the FALCPA (Food Allergen Labeling Consumer Protection Act) legislation of 2004.

(2) Someone said their naturopath had told them to avoid Red Kidney Beans and Chickpeas as both contain gluten. Myth Dispelled: These beans are starchy, no doubt, but they certainly do not contain gluten. Rinse and drain before using to get rid of any extra starch and diminish digestive tract problems.

(3) "I heard we cannot have Ketchup," said another person. Myth Dispelled: Years ago we were told that vinegar was a no-no because it was made with grain alcohol. People were afraid to eat ketchup, pickles, relish, and mustard. Myth Dispelled: All distilled vinegar is safe as the gluten molecule is held back in the distillation process. The exception is malt vinegar which is fermented from barley.

 We've talked about gluten-free baking flour blends several times in this newsletter. A wonderful synopsis of gluten-free baking blends is listed on Delights Gluten-Free Web site.

 A few weeks ago, someone asked why their cakes sunk in the middle. I said it might be because the cake was under baked.

 Here's one more reason a cake might sink in the center: According to an article in Martha Stewart Magazine, too much leavening from baking powder or baking soda can cause a cake to rise too high and too quickly, then sink in the middle. Use 1 tsp baking powder and/or ¼ teaspoon baking soda per cup of flour. If the recipe calls for more than this amount and fails, cut back the amount of leavening next time. Keep in mind that gluten-free baking might require a bit more leavening than gluten-filled baking.

Beth - I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease last February and within the last six months I am experiencing leg pain. The pain moves from my ankles to my shins and knees. My primary care physician thinks it could be fibromyalgia. Is leg pain a symptom of Celiac Disease? Thank you. Toni


Dear Toni,
 I am not a doctor and not familiar with your particular case. So please discuss this with your physician. However, while you are there, you might ask about your blood calcium levels. Sometimes these kinds of pains can be associated with calcium deficiency. By the way, everyone diagnosed with celiac disease MUST discuss calcium levels and supplements with their doctor as the two often go hand-in-hand.

Best of luck and be well, Beth


Beth, I was wondering if you could use almond butter instead of peanut butter in cookies. I have a recipe for no flour peanut butter cookies but I wondered about using almond butter? Thank you. I love your site and the info you get to us. Great job. Barbara Gene


Dear Barbara,
 Thanks for your nice note. You certain could replace peanut butter with almond butter without making any additional changes to the recipe. Enjoy! Beth


Hi Beth,
 As I am reading letters that people send to you I am a little confused on one point. If something is organic does that mean it also gluten free? I shop at Whole Foods because they have a great gluten-free selection but when I see something that says organic I'm not sure if that means it is also gluten free. I love your newsletter with references to different websites. Thank you, Barb

 Dear Barb,
 That's a great question and one I have not received before. Organic and gluten-free are two separate designations and only overlap when a gluten-free food also bears an organic symbol. However, I can certainly understand the confusion as one organization that certifies gluten-free products does so using the QAI ( Quality Assurance International) organic certification process. While they use the same process to vet manufacturers, the gluten-free seal means that the product and all its ingredients are free of gluten to any detectable level and that a process is in place to monitor each batch of product. Organic foods, on the other hand, are foods that are produced using methods that do not involve modern synthetic inputs such as synthetic pesticides and chemical fertilizers , do not contain genetically modified organisms , and are not processed using irradiation , industrial solvents, or chemical food additives . As you can see, they are quite different. Beth

 Hi Beth,
This is for Linda who wrote in your last newsletter about having problems with GF breads. I've lately been tested for allergies through my naturopathic doctor. It's a test I had to pay for here in Ontario and it's done with my blood. It came back saying I'm allergic to all dairy and eggs. So right after finding this out I experimented with a gluten-free muffin mix that had no dairy but had eggs and I had a few cramps for a few minutes after eating the muffin. Sometimes after eating eggs, I would get nausea. So after this I started looking at the ingredients of GF breads and they all seem to have eggs in them so I just stay away! So perhaps eggs might be the problem! Good luck Linda! Liette

Dear Liette,
 Thank you for your note. That's certainly a good suggestion. Best, Beth

 Hi Beth,
 I was diagnosed with Celiac disease about a year ago. I used to love to get coffee from Starbucks, but I have read that caramel color contains gluten. Most of the coffee syrups list caramel color as an ingredient. Do you know of any flavored syrups that are gluten free, that way I can make my own coffee drinks at home. Sandy J.

 Dear Sandy,
 I think the caramel in the light Frappuccino contained barley for a short time. But the company has changed the formula. Here's something written by Amy Ratner at Gluten-Free Living Magazine. " The Light Frappuccino beverage ingredient list will no longer state "contains gluten." However, due to other restrictions in declaring a product "gluten-free," Starbucks says: We do not claim that any of our beverages are gluten free because we use shared equipment and handle gluten and allergens throughout the store. Customers that have questions should ask to review the ingredient statements with their barista or can call 1-800-23-LATTE for ingredient information."

 While it clears up that subject, it doesn't really make one feel comfortable drinking flavored coffee drinks at Starbucks. However, DaVinci Gourmet syrups do not contain gluten except for the Dulce de Leche Sugar Free Syrup so you can flavor your coffee at home. Best, Beth

 Hi Beth,
 I just wanted to let everyone know that there is a great gluten free fish place in Las Vegas Nevada. It is called Lazy Joe's Fish and chips and is owned and run by Joe Masterson. They serve fried fish and seafood in a gluten free batter. I was so excited when I found this place because I had not had fried fish in over 5 years! I eat at Lazy Joes every time I visit Las Vegas.

The location is: 7835 S Rainbow Blvd #22 Telephone: (702-489-6523) I hope anyone living in or visiting Las Vegas will give them a try. You will not be disappointed! Thanks for all you do, Sherrie

 Dear Sherrie,
 Thank you for this information. It sounds great. Beth

 Beth,
 It was wonderful meeting you at the GF Expo in Chicago last weekend. Thank you very much for signing my cookbook after the cooking class. I have not tried baking my own bread, however after your class I am going to try making pretzels. They were so good!!

 I wanted to tell you about a wonderful website www.freshglutenfree.net . It is for the company Silly Yak Bakery in Madison, WI. It has the best GF items I have ever tried. I go weekly and get a fresh loaf of bread. That is one of the things I missed most when I went gluten free. They ship nationwide and I have tried several items and loved them all. If you are ever in the Madison area, stop by their store, they always have free samples. Thank you, Janet

 Hi Janet,
 It was great meeting you in Chicago. I have a photo of you and me standing at the Glutino booth. I will post it to my gluten-free makeovers page shortly. I'm glad you enjoyed the pretzels. And thanks for that tip about Silly Yak Bakery. I rarely get to Madison, but will make a point of seeking them out or visiting their web site. Best, Beth


Questions for Beth? Send them to pantry@glutenfree.com         Gluten-Free Tidbits

 I saw this posted on the Celiac Listserv and it looked like an interesting study. Take a look and see if it is something you want to take part in. Beth

 I'm a fellow celiac doing my Master's work in how celiac disease affects quality of life. I would be very grateful if you would take the time to share your experiences with me in a questionnaire. It's secure and anonymous, and only takes five minutes to complete. Here is the link to the questionnaire, which takes you directly to Bowling Green State University's website:

 https://bgsuedhd.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_elhGfTBWXoRN81e

 Just as a brief synopsis, I'm specifically studying how age affects the quality of life for celiacs. In my own personal experience, people have different social and emotional coping methods that have a lot to do with stage in life and life experiences. For instance, my entire family was diagnosed together, and my 20 year-old brother deals with his celiac diagnosis much differently than my 50 year-old mother. There is a lot of research about celiac quality of life, but literally none about how age affects it. That's where the questionnaire comes in. Anyone 18 and over can participate, and there's no limit to how many people can be in it, so forwarding on to family and friends is definitely ok. The more the merrier!

 I also welcome any questions or comments. Please email me at kbelusk@bgsu.edu . Thank you! Cheers, Kati Beluska        
 Gluten-Free Events

 Celiac Disease Foundation Conference, Los Angeles, CA

4/28/12

http://www.celiac.org/

 Celiac Awareness Tour, Philadelphia, PA

4/28/12

http://celiacawarenesstourphilly.eventbrite.com/

 Charleston GF/AF Expo, Charleston, SC

5/5/12

http://charlestongfafexpo.blogspot.ca/

 Suffolk County Celiac Vendor Fair, Hauppague, NY

5/5/12 & 5/6/12

http://www.suffolkcountyceliacs.org/Events.html

 Have a gluten-free event? Send it to pantry@glutenfree.com .        
                A Recipe Makeover From Beth

 Hi Beth!
 Thanks for all the information! Since discovering that I have celiac disease, I have had a lot of success converting old recipes to gluten-free ones. There is this one favorite recipe, though, that I am having a lot of trouble with and I was wondering if you had any suggestions. It's called Stromboli: basically it's pizza toppings baked into a loaf of bread, which you cut into strips and dip into sauce. One of the difficulties with it is that you're supposed to put the toppings on the flattened dough, then stretch the edges over the top, overlap, and pinch them closed so it forms ribs over the filling. I would appreciate any help or insight you can offer!! Below is the original recipe. Many Thanks, Sarah

 Stromboli Pizza Pockets: 1 Loaf

1 pkg. active dry yeast (or 2 1/4 tsp)
1 cup warm water
1 T. sugar
1 T. olive oil
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 to 3 1/2 cups flour
garlic powder
Italian seasonings
Parmesan cheese
Desired pizza fillings, including mozzarella cheese

Dissolve yeast in warm water. Stir in sugar, oil, salt, and 1 cup of flour. Beat until smooth. Mix in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle. Knead on floured surface. Place in greased bowl; cover and let rise until double in size (about 30 to 60 minutes). Punch down and roll out in a long rectangular shape on a greased, 9x13in. cookie sheet. Place layers of toppings lengthwise in the middle of the dough, leaving about two inches of space on each side, top with cheese, repeat (make about four topping/cheese layers). Cut 8 even strips on both sides of layered toppings. Starting at one end, alternately fold dough strips over filling and pinch together. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese, garlic powder, and Italian seasonings. Let rest 15 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 minutes. Serve with pizza sauce.


Dear Sarah,

Years ago I made a Quick Pizza Loaf with the Gluten Free Pantry French Bread/Pizza Mix . I did not roll it, but added some of the yummy ingredients you mentioned as the dough was kneading. When it finished baking, I cut it into strips and dipped them in pizza sauce. It sounds quite similar. Here's the recipe. It can be made in a bread machine or in the oven.

 Combine:
1 box French Bread/Pizza Mix
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
½ teaspoon garlic powder (or to taste)
½ teaspoon salt

Combine liquids:
 1 ¾ cups warm water
1/3 cup olive oil
2 large eggs + 1 egg white

1, 7 gm packet active dry yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)

 Add ins:
 ¾ cup chopped pepperoni (check labels)
¾ cup mozzarella cheese
½ cup chopped ripe olives, well drained (optional)
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Pizza sauce for dipping

 Combine wet ingredients with previously mixed dry ingredients. Sprinkle in yeast. Beat well with a heavy duty mixer or let ingredients go through 10 minutes of the knead cycle in a bread machine.

 After 10 minutes of kneading (or 5 minutes of beating with a mixer), fold in the add-in ingredients, using a rubber spatula, making sure the mixture is well-combined. (You can use the rubber spatula method in the bread machine, too.) Let bread continue kneading, rising and baking.

 Or turn dough into a lightly oiled 9-x-5-inch loaf pan. Cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rise to the top of the pan. Preheat oven to 375 and bake 35 minutes or until hollow sounding when tapped.

 Turn onto a wire rack and cool until warm to touch.

 Cut into strips or cubes and dip in pizza sauce.

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