Gluten Free in NC

Glutino Cinnamon French Toast

2009-07-12T06:14:00.001-07:00

Harris Teeter had Glutino's Cinnamon French Toast in the freezer aisle. I thought I'd buy some and give it a try. I baked my slices of french toast, in the oven, as directed. The french toast tasted just like my brown rice bread and I couldn't taste the cinnamon at all. The crust of the "bread" was hard as a rock after cooking. I definitely won't be buying any more of this.

Betty Crocker Devil's Food GF Cake

2009-07-12T06:03:00.000-07:00

I made the Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Devil's Food Cake last weekend. The mix makes one 8" or 9" cake or 12 cupcakes. The taste was really good - not too sweet with a nice chocolate flavor. I used Betty Crocker Chocolate Frosting for the top. I sliced my 9" layer in half to make two tiny layers. Thanks for your Gluten-Free products, Betty! :)

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

2009-06-28T12:29:00.000-07:00

Today I got to use the new Betty Crocker Yellow Cake Mix! I have found all four of her new gluten-free mixes, however not in all the same stores. The Pineapple Upside Down Cake recipe is from the Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Recipe Site. I followed the recipe as written, and it baked in a dark non-stick baking pan for about 39 min. My non-CD husband said it was great. I thought it was awesome!!

I've been gluten-free for just over 3 weeks now. I've adjusted pretty well. I found a brown rice bread that I really love and it is great with peanut butter. Even my 8 yo will eat it...but at nearly $7.00/loaf I don't share much. My belly still isn't really wanting much in the way of different foods right now. I'm not as nauseous as I used to be, but I still don't quite feel "right". I'm not sure if it's my gallbladder issue (that will remain unresolved for a while) or what.

We are waiting on the celiac panel results for my 8 yo. He has already caught on to the way that I have to eat, so if he comes back positive I don't think it will be too hard for him. It will be school that will be the hardest, but I'll cross that bridge when I have to.

GF Granola Recipe from Donna S.

2009-06-24T18:02:00.001-07:00

The following is a granola recipe that was posted by Donna S. on the Silly Yaks Yahoo Group. I made it tonight and it is amazing! I used GF Rice Chex (3 cups total) and I used 1 cup peanuts and 1 cup pecans. The rest of the recipe I followed as written. It's going to be amazing to snack on and I'll also try it on yogurt as Donna suggested. I'm didn't add raisins yet, but I'm going to. Thank you, Donna, for this awesome recipe!

Donna's GF Granola Recipe

(You can change it to any kind of GF Cereal,or any combination of nuts or nut butter)
1/3 cup honey
1/2 cup chunky peanut butter (or any nut butter)
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1-1/2 cups GF corn flakes (you can use GF oats if you can eat them)
1-1/2 cups GF rice crisps
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup sunflower seeds

Donna's Notes: most of the time I use 1 cup pecans, and 1 cup walnuts. You can add 1 cup raisins and 1 cup cranberries, or any dried fruit. I didadd these at first, but now don't bother. Heat honey, peanut butter, vanilla and cinnamon together over low heat. (Iuse the microwave on 50% power) Mix together thoroughly all other ingredientsexcept raisins and cranberries, and the heated honey and peanut butter mix. (Most of the time I add the vanilla and cinnamon after the honey and peanutbutter is heated). Pour mixture onto a cookie sheet, spreading to a uniform thickness, and letbake at 300 degrees for 20 minutes. Let cool and add dried fruit, mixing thoroughly. I eat this with vanilla, or maple yogurt or add milk and fresh berries. Idon't add the dried fruit because it's sweet enough with the honey, and yogurt. There are lots of different ways to use this recipe. You could use AgaveNectar instead of honey. (Donna S in Chiloquin, OR)

Catching up on my GF blogging...

2009-06-21T17:15:00.000-07:00

I realized a few things in the last week or so.
a) I need photos on my blog - it is boring looking at nothing but type.
b) I need to blog more often even tho no one is really reading - I need it for me.
c) I need to quit listening to *all* the other voices out there that contradict stuff that I know already to be correct.
d) I need more sleep!

I found out Friday that my ejection fraction for my gallbladder is 0%. The gastro doc's nurse wants me to come in Tuesday to "discuss my options" but when asked if I had any she said "probably not". Great - losing a body part is always a joy. (sarcasm) Seriously - if this nausea goes away I'll be happy!! Friday I threw up for the first time in about 3 weeks. Not sure why - stress maybe and eating a couple things over those 2 days? Amy's meals just don't seem to agree with me even tho they are GF/WF. Maybe it's my GB issue and I'll revisit them afterwards.

I was actually happy with my CD diagnosis!! I jumped in with both feet into the GF/WF world of eating/cooking. But when my hida scan came back like it did I was sorta bummed because I didn't really sign up for a bonus disease. Lots of people lose their GBs - I don't care about that - but I just want to feel better. GF eating for the last +2 weeks has definitely made an improvement. Now to get over this last hurdle.

Still love my GF beer - just not the price! I found bread that I like - Brown Rice Bread (WF/GF) sweetened with fruit juice! It's a little slice of GF heaven w/some GF peanut butter on it.

Tonight I stirred in a wedge of Laughing Cow light garlic/herb cheese into a bowl of hot rice. Heaven!

I found Betty Crocker's GF Chocolate Chip cookie mix in Harris Teeter! I haven't tried it yet -- too hot in NC this weekend to be baking.

Got some great ideas on the Silly Yak's board for breakfast ideas. I'm getting tired of Egg Beater's and potatoes. Other than that - just getting through the week in once piece (or trying). Oh -- forgot to mention that I already feel left out totally at work with my not being able to eat gluten. It' ll be okay though. Thursday I get my DS tested for Celiac. I hope that comes back negative but even if it doesn't, he already is understanding some of what I need to eat and what I can't eat.

My First GF Beer!+

2009-06-12T15:11:00.001-07:00

I had my first beer since going GF tonight! I found Redbridge Beer at Harris Teeter. I put it in the freezer to get it good and cold and then tasted. It wasn't really half bad! Maybe it's knowing that it's this or nothing for me for the rest of my life made it taste better. It tastes good very cold, but as my glass got warmer, the beer didn't taste so great. Guess that means I have to drink fast.

Even before my Celiac diagnosis, beer just didn't taste good. I guess because I was already bloated and icky feeling, the carbonation in beer (and soda for that matter) just made me feel worse. I think the Redbridge will be pretty tasty on that perfect late summer afternoon watching a sunset.

GF Day #6 - Biopsy Results & Hida Scan

2009-06-11T14:39:00.000-07:00

Wow! Day #6 and just the rest of my life to go down this GF road!

Got my biopsy results from upper endoscopy today. No big surprise - definitely positive for Celiac! Makes committing and sticking with this way of eating for life much easier. The biopsy is the "gold standard" for a Celiac diagnosis.

Today was my hida scan. What the gastro nurse and imaging place failed to tell me was a) I would be radioactive for 24 hours and b) I couldn't be around children under 18 and pregnant women for 24 hours. I work in the same general area as my friend, who is 5 mos. pregnant, but she works across the hall and the nuc med tech said I needed to stay at least 12' away from her. We managed that just fine. I did call her from the imaging place and told her what was up and if she was comfortable with me being there and she said yes. The 2nd problem was that I have an 8 yr. old. The tech said I had to stay at least 6' away from him. It's just for tonight so we are staying in separate rooms in the house and soon I'll get caught up w/my ironing.

The hida scan was interesting. The first part sorta boring just laying there for an hour and watching a b&w screen and all these floating white dots that was the radiation floating around in my liver. Soon my gallbladder became a big white round spot. Then, after an hour, came the medicine that makes my gallbladder contract and dump the bile into my small intestine. YIKES! That cramping and back pain sucked! It wasn't horrid, but it hurt for a little bit. The tech said that the best thing would be to not see the gallbladder at all because that would mean it emptied all the radioactive stuff out. Not so for me. Tech wasn't sure if my limited output would be at the threshold the gastro would use to yank it out or not. I think those results come back Monday. I'd been pretty sure I didn't have gallbladder issues. I will have to ask the gastro doc if my GF diet will remedy any GB issues before opting for them to yank it out.

I've been pretty much eating the same stuff these last 6 days. All foods that I know are "safe" and taste okay. Today I glutened myself out of stupidity! I went to the health food store on the way home, and I saw these single packaged cookies with big print that said "WHEAT FREE" so I bought one. Then I ate two bites and read the ingredient label at a stop light and the 2nd ingredient was barley flour! So my lesson for today was "wheat free" does not equal "gluten free".

GF Day #3

2009-06-08T16:05:00.000-07:00

Today was much like the other two. I'm slowly navigating through a new way of eating. It was strange how habits that I'd never thought about now really do matter...like making my son some pasta and not being able to taste the pasta to see if it was done! Or frying up some yellow squash in seafood batter and realizing that the oil in the Fry Daddy was now contaminated as was the Fry Daddy itself as it would be very hard to scrub totally clean.

Breakfast: Jimmy Dean Breakfast Bowl. I've GOT to find a better alternative although I hate cold cereal. The JDBB's are way too high in calories and fat.

Mid-Morning Snack: Laughing Cow Light Garlic/Herb Cheese Spread on some GF crackers.

Lunch: Egg Salad with some GF crackers and a green salad with fresh garden cukes and some Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing.

Dinner: Corn Tortilla Chips with garden salsa and some cheese melted on them and a piece of my GF cake.

My hida scan is scheduled for Thursday morning. Biopsy results from the endoscopy haven't come back yet, however it's hasn't been 5 days yet. I'm anxious to talk to my Dr. as I have some questions that I've come up with but will wait till she's back from vacation. My "regular" Dr. doesn't know squat about Celiac.

My First GF Cake! (Day #2 Gluten Free)

2009-06-07T12:16:00.000-07:00

I made my first GF cake today! The mix was from the "Really Great Food" Company and it was a mix that my doc's mom had sent to me. The cake tasted amazing! DH and DS ate it and DH said there was no way he'd know it was GF. I put some Betty Crocker Whipped Vanilla Frosting on it, but I wasn't too impressed with the consistency and taste of the BC frosting. This cake would definitely make a fantastic pineapple upside down cake! I'll have to see if I can find the same brand locally. The only down side to the mix was that I added 5 eggs and two sticks of butter! I may have Celiac but I don't need to add high cholesterol to my problems! :)

Day #2 Gluten Free went well...
Breakfast: Egg Beaters Southern Style with some crubled bacon in it.
Lunch: Corn Tortilla Chips and some amazing salsa tossed onto a baking sheet with some shredded cheddar cheese that was warmed until melted. Yum!
Dinner: Left-over hamburger with some baby red potatoes that DS, my neighbor and I had pulled out of her garden! I had a slice of cake (2nd!) for dessert.

Day #3 will put me at work. I bought some Laughing Cow Garlic/Herb cheese spread to put on my GF crackers for a snack. Lunch will probably be a salad since I bought bagged salad yesterday and need to eat it up & will top with fresh cukes my neighbor gave me today from the garden. Will have to google and make sure that the dressing I have is GF. I bought some Amy's frozen dinners to eat at work for lunch. I'll review them as I eat them. Right now I'm happy with tortilla chips and salsa!!

Wheat (Gluten) Free - Day #1

2009-06-06T18:45:00.000-07:00

Today was gluten-free day #1! I had my endoscopy this past Thursday. I was totally unimpressed with the gastroenterologist that I ended up with at a group practice. At my consult he challenged me about my Celiac diagnosis - didn't seem to believe that I had it even though I'd had the positive celiac blood panel. After the positive blood tests I went for an ultrasound of my gallbladder, kidneys, liver and aorta and all was normal.

The endoscopy was okay. I'm kind of disappointed that the drugs wore off so fast because I was looking forward to a good nap! While I was "recovering" after my procedure, the gastro doc came in - didn't bother talking to me - and told my DH that he'd not seen any damage to the small intestines but had done the biopsy (I'm hoping he did more than one!).

I called the gastro doc's nurse the next day and complained about his bedside manner to which I was told to make an appt. to come in and talk to him to discuss my questions. Then the nurse said "by the way, did he tell you he's sending you for a hida scan?" Ummmm.....NO!

A hida scan basically getting shot up with some radioactive meds via IV, after fasting for hours, and then lying on my back for an hour or two while a camera takes pictures of my digestive system "processing" the radioactive stuff. Yippee. The nurse couldn't tell me "why" he was ordering that test, only that he probably wanted to make sure my gallbladder was functioning. I have no gallbladder pain and I know from the ultrasound that my GB is "normal" with no stones...but the u/s doesn't tell anyone if or how it's functioning. Oh joy -- more time off from work. Why can't I bet ouf of work for fun reasons?

Today was my first day of totally gluten-free (GF) eating. Breakfast consisted of a hard-boiled egg. I went to Harris Teeter and got some GF foods. The prepared stuff is SO expensive! Lunch was a Jimmy Dean Breakfast Bowl (eggs/sausage/cheese) and it was pretty good. I googled and it looks like it is GF. I need some help in learning to read labels. I had two GF pecan shortbread cookies from Pamela's - they are amazing but $$$. Dinner was some baked beans (GF as far as I could tell from the label), a piece of corn on the cob, and a small 90/10 burger - no bun. It was okay. I drank lots of water because I've been reading that Crystal Light isn't the greatest additive for water. I had two diet pepsi's earlier in the day for caffeine as I'm not a coffee or tea drinker.

My belly is definitely not as bloated and distended as it would normally be after eating gluten all day. It's not totally normal, but definitely not as bad as it's been. I know that going GF is a slow process and not a miracle cure that will have me "normal" in a day or two.

I'm very fortunate to get a lot of support from the Dr. who diagnosed me. I don't know what I'd do without her! I have also done a ton of reading on the web and joined the Silly Yaks Yahoo Group for support and information.

Hopefully Day #2 will be a good one as well...

How It All Started...

2009-06-05T18:52:00.000-07:00

After months of suffering from nausea, alternating diarrhea and constipation, occassional vomiting, constant gagging, unreal fatigue, tingling hands & feet, abdominal pain, bloating, gas, and just feeling totally crappy -- I dragged myself, once again, to the Clinic for a same day visit because DH decided he would take me if I didn't go. I was *so* excited (NOT) to hear the usual "it's nerves" or "you're stressed" and take some Zantac/Nexium/Pepto [fill in the blank] for your stomach speech! Well, the planets must've been aligned just right that day and I lucked out and got the BEST DR. in the entire state of NC...because not only did she test me for Celiac...she HAS Celiac and knew to test me for it!! Not one other Dr. that I'd seen at the same clinic even bothered looking further into the underlying reasons of my "illness". Thanks to this amazing Dr. I am on the path to healing and feeling better...