Spring Meltdowns and Gluten Free Comfort Foods

This has been a funny weather year in the Northeast... we had a record breaking HEAT wave in March which caused the great meltdown of the ski resorts. We managed to pull through it and set a new record for latest snowmaking on record for Sugarloaf. Those dedicated snowmakers unfurled the hoses and made snow on March 27th. Snowmaking usually ends for the season in early February and the snow from snowmaking and Mother Nature has been known to last well into April and even into May here at Sugarloaf.  The snowmaking effort paid off and the mountain recovered in good fashion and Mother Nature even came through with more seasonable temperatures and a bit of natural snow.

I'm not gonna lie- this ski bum enjoyed a week of summer temps and even sported chacos and shorts during the heat wave.  The pups also soaked up the rays of the sun in style.

 We did ski during the great meltdown and I was well prepared with my Udi's Bagel for lunch on the ski lift.

The bright side of a spring meltdown is that you actually can eat a bagel on the lift without the fear of frostbite setting in. This is a rare mitten-less photo of my hand that would not normally occur.

This new cold spell has inspired a more winter like menu and I found myself making the first Beef Stew of the winter and it created a wonderful aroma in the house as it simmered in the crockpot all day. 

 We also found comfort in a warm Risotto with chicken....

 And in Red Curry with chicken and veggies...

I've also revisited my Peanut Sauce with Chicken and Noodles

Now the calendar and Mother Nature seem to have made peace and we're going to enjoy skiing for a few more weeks here in Maine. I'll take this kind of meltdown any day over the kind of meltdown we went through last winter.  That was much harder then melting snow and it pains me whenever anyone has to go through those types of challenges. So please join me and let's send some good thoughts to Marlow from Gluten Hates Me who is facing her own roller coaster this year.
Here's a Survival Smoothie (virtual style) for Marlow and anyone else who needs some antioxidants for some serious fighting power.

Oh Bother Smoothie
1 handful ice cubes
1 banana
1/2 cup frozen blueberries (Wild Maine Blueberries preferred here at campchaos)
1 cup apple juice (or a bit more)
1 scoop Spiru-tein High Energy Meal Vanilla Flavor (make sure it's labeled gluten free!)

Toss all into a blender and hit the smoothie button until smooth. Place in favorite mug and feel the blueberries power you up. 

gluten free breakfast of champions

I took inspiration this week from Marlow over at Gluten Hates Me and ventured back to Oatmeal for breakfast. It's warm, hearty and filling which makes for a great meal after a morning walk in the Maine woods with my favorite dogs in their blaze orange vests.

I added brown sugar and a bit of real maple syrup to sweeten my oat. Did you know that not only does Bob's Red Mill make Old Fashioned Gluten Free Oats but also Quick Cooking Gluten Free Oats as well? These aren't your average Oats as Bob's takes special precautions with the growing and use dedicated Oat fields and test the oats during the process to ensure the gluten free status. 
I'm headed away for the weekend and these oats even made it into my glutarded snack and food bag for my travels for a quick breakfast away from home.

Think Outside Flashbacks in 7 Links

Even before I got the bottom of Marlow's post on her GHM Flashback in 7 Links post I was thinking that I'd love to do that. It's the cool nights of fall and this time of transition and changing seasons that set on the nostogia. I was honored to be tagged in the post to play.Things have been busy here so I'm just now sitting down and going over Think Outside the Breadbox to bring you this trip down memory lane?

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Ajax Peak and Allred's in Telluride

Dinner at 10,000 feet above Sea Level? It truly is an elevated experience and I wish every post-hike dinner could like taste like that.

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Strawberry Whoopie Pies
 Whoopie Pies with a strawberry twist? How have I not made these in a few months...



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My Version of Street Noodles

I'm a huge fan of recreating my favorites from PF Chang's but was shocked to see how much traffic this post has gotten. I'm happy to share and hope others enjoy the flavors as well. It's a great launching pad post and I hope it inspires you to twist the dish to your favorite flavors.

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A Bit of Local Love... Telluride, CO

This series put all my posts about Telluride in one simple spot. I've given a brief description of each place so it keeps it easy and quick for those visiting my small mountain town.

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Gluten Freedom with Spinach and Rice Noodles
Funny title but I reveal the results of my DNA test from Kimball Labs. I've never felt like a true Celiac based on the path I've taken so I call myself a glutard. I've got the genes, I've got the reactions to gluten but I never had a biopsy so I have a hard time saying that I have Celiac. What do you think? Do you need a doctor's diagnosis to use the label Celiac?



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Chocolate Whoopie Pies
I'm a native Mainer... how can I not be proud of my mad whoopie pie skills? 

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Food Photography is hard. My current kitchen had terrible lighting and I struggle with my photos a lot.  I managed to snag this photo using my Droid and just loved it.

Do you want to play too? Leave a comment below to link you your Flashback in 7 posts. I want to read your blog too! Thanks for sharing.

Strawberry Cupcakes for #33

Dave turned 33 this week and deemed it his Larry Bird birthday as Mr. Bird boasted the number #33 during his carreer with the Boston Celtics. (I'm not into basketball but rolled with it.)

His request was strawberry cupcakes so I pulled out the Bronski's Artisanal Gluten Free Cupcakes Cookbook which I had picked up and loved since June and the kitchen aid whirled into action. I've become a huge fan of measuring flours using my new scale and my baking has been spot on.

Thankfully the Bronski's also included high altitude adjustments for cupcakes in the cookbook as well.

 I picked a great quart of strawberries up at the local grocer and added them to this beautiful batter.

which became a stunning cupcake after a stint in the oven..

a bit of vanilla frosting and green food coloring added the Celtics flare that Dave was looking for...

as well as a few nicely placed #33's and a good group of friends who helped us mark the occasion at Oak's.

stress is a funny monster...

The seasons are changing and everyone seems to be going through stuff... Marlow's headed back to school (you go girl!), Pete's in his final month of training for an Ultramarathon and working to raise money for the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness in the process and others are going through the worst kind of hell- but finding so much support in other bloggers.

Stress is a funny monster and we all cope differently.

Sometimes when I'm stressed I make things likes these...

or like these...

other times I play with these monsters...

or hit up the hot yoga studio for my weekly fusion class. I also do all these things when I'm not stressed but find that I crave them when the tension hits between my temples and the pressure of the world weighs heavy on my shoulders.

When my stressed out sweet tooth struck I dug out my trusty droid and pulled up a recipe that we grabbed while back east. Dave's mom, Anne made great peanut butter squares so I whipped up a gluten free batch for us to enjoy.

From Droid think outside

Remember when you had to copy a recipe by hand? yeah- those days are over. I shot it with my droid knowing that there would be no scrap of paper to loose. It was a first for me and they were tasty- although I didn't melt the chocolate well so it came out thick in places.

Thankfully we seem to be in a smooth part of life while others around us are dealing with stuff, some big, some small, some good stress and some life changing stress. I can empathize...  this winter was a heavy time for us and I found myself baking whoopie pies and obsessively controlling the little details that I could (packing)... and knitting. In my first year as a knitter I've made dozens of hats, two scarfs and 3 baby sweaters. Knit one, purl one was something I could do that provided some relief from stress and also made others happy without adding the calories of whoopie pies.

a bit of cookbook love... Artisanal Gluten Free Cupcakes

My number one cookbook Artisanal Gluten Free Cooking now has a bff, the kind of friend that likes to stay in on a Friday night and make sweet treats that make you feel like it's a special occasion- even when it's not. A friend that will skip one of the biggest festivals of the year in Telluride then tell you that your baked goods are wonderful (thanks Dave).
Artisanal Gluten Free Cooking now shares my cookbook stand with Artisanal Gluten Free Cupcakes which are both by Peter and Kelli Bronski. Team Bronski developed my favorite flour blend which I rock in 24 cup batches (tightly covered and stored in my fridge) which I tend to fly through during my baking extravaganzas.
Dave even ventured out of the baked goods section of AGFC and made the Lime Cilantro Chicken last week for dinner.

He made the marinate the night before and let the chicken swim for 24 hours then after bit of time on the grill and a pairing with little green trees and our gabo gato and it was confirmed- the Bronski's are not just good bakers but great chef's as well. (and Dave is good at following directions)

They've also converted to the popular "bake by weight" method. I ordered a scale last week and it came in handy for both this baking venture but even more so for measuring out my latest batch of AGF Flour. I've never mixed 24 cups up so quickly. The scale was so much fun to bake with and blend flour with.  Good thing as I was excited to measure out 403 grams for my first batch. Kellie and Peter even though ahead and added altitude adjustments for those of us living at 9,000 feet, that's the bonus of cook book authors who also used to live at altitude.

 My first venture was the Snickerdoodle cupcakes. Dave and I both love the Bronski's cookie version and thought the cupcake would be fun. My kitchen aid whirred into action as I mixed the wet then combined with the dry. The batter was fluffy and I spooned it into the cupcake tins, put into the preheated oven and forgot to set the timer... disaster on my first batch didn't sit well with me or my sweet tooth but thankfully I recalled the fuzzy photo I had taken as I put them in the oven. I took a quick shot to gauge the camera clock then set a timer. They were a touch overdone but a cupcake fiasco had been adverted thanks to my Nikon.

These cupcakes were WINNERS among my gluten eating friends that enjoyed them the next day. Dave wanted to try vanilla frosting but since I wielded the knife I grabbed a can of chocolate (yes, Betty helps me cheat and save a few steps.) Dave and I had even cheated and each ate a warm cupcake with frosting and the cinnamon flavor made me feel like I was eating a happy memory.
These snickerdoodles were a great start to a beautiful friendship. I'm looking forward to making friends with the mojito, strawberry and mocha cupcakes as well. It's a simple and straightfoward book that agrees with my baking style and uses my favorite flour blend. 
I was feeling such a rush after a few cupcakes that I didn't let my good times stop there... I pulled out AGFC and flipped to the cookie page and whirled the kitchen aid back up and made up a batch of...

Chocolate Chip cookies. It was as bad as "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" but thankfully I cleaned up the kitchen a flopped into bed so I could wake up to this the next day...

what is this "saturday" you speak of? I'm ready for my walk now.

Mayhem and his more reserved old brother Chaos have been on morning wake up duty each day at 7am. We're back in summer mode with a daily walk on the trails behind our condo. The boys love this and hate to miss it- especially for something as trivial as a Saturday.

A bit of blog love...Lettuce Wraps... a la PF Chang Style

One of my favorite things about reading other blogs is being able to relate to another person's gluten free story. Each of us arrived at the gluten-free lifestyle a different way but we each stay for the same reason- to feel good and enjoy food again. Posting recipes and sharing food via the internet, blog love at it's finest.
Dave and I have been making lettuce wraps for years but the other night we dug up Heidi's recipe over at Adventures of a Gluten Free Mom and used it as a guide to make PF Chang Style Lettuce wraps. So good and a great dinner for two...

I'd like to blame my lack of blogging on spring. I'd love to say that the weather's been great so we're spending time outside with the dogs at night instead of the kitchen but that's sadly not the case as we had over a foot of snow last week Yes, it's May. Yes, I do miss spring. Yes, it's mostly melted now so I can start to pull out chacos until the next snowstorm later this week.
Dave's a snowmaker and groomer at the ski resort so we're readjusting to making dinner for two again. I'm spending a lot less time in the kitchen making and perfecting new recipes and experiments. When I dine alone, I tend to get obsessed with a new dish. Dave won't go for that as he likes variety. We're trying to move into summer mode even if Mother Nature has other ideas for us.

time to make the donuts... dunkin munchkin style

There's some key memories that I have from growing up in New England, days at the ocean, campfires with s'mores on maple branches, the smell of a forest heavy with pine, black flies and Dunkin' Donuts. We sadly found out when we moved west of the Mississippi that America does not run on Dunkin- just the east coast. Walk around Boston and you'll find a Dunkin on every block. I get jealous while back east when others enjoy Dunkin Donuts... especially Munchkins, little balls of happiness... unless you happen to be a glutard then the little ball of happiness becomes a little ball of great pain.
We've become good at making donuts (ah donuts...see memories here) but it was more of a french crueler style all light and airy. I found a post on Going Gluten Free for Dunkin Style Donuts and we used our first lazy off season Saturday to try it out.
We stuck to the recipe with just a few tweaks. I used Almond Milk and Artisan Gluten Free Flour Blend that is my go to flour blend. We tried powdered sugar to finish them off in but found out that both Dave and I prefer a cinnamon and sugar mix.  We used a fondue pot to keep the temp steady at 375 and did small batches. We learned that we don't have a fire extinguisher so we kept the baking soda handy and kept everything out of the way of the hot oil.

Dough

 

 

Mayhem and Chaos

Make the dough then let it rest as directed. Realize the two dogs are being very cute together and snap a photo of the lovable brothers before getting the oil heated and you area prepped.

baking soda for safety...

 

 

 

a cookie dough scoop makes pretty and uniform balls

golden colored perfection

proper tools help a lot... like this fancy scooper

shake with cinnamon and sugar then enjoy!

It was a perfect off season Saturday project... for those unfamiliar with "off season" it's best defined as the time after winter and before summer while the ski area, the town and the people thaw out. Many people take this time to get out of town to warm locations. It's a very quiet time in town and can also be called mud season. Today it could be confused with winter as it's starting to snow again...

gluten free cake balls- let the sugar shock begin....

I've read a few blogs about people making cake pops- both glutenous and gluten-free and was motivated to give it a whirl as I needed a sweet treat for a friend's baby shower that I knitted this hat for.

I followed the basics from this blog and set to work. My first cake was a FAIL as I attempted a chocolate cake from scratch via the 1,000 Gluten Free Recipes book. I made no adjustments for 9,000 feet of altitude and subbed one flour mix for another, just enough adversity to create an epic failure of a cake. Thankfully my Pamela's Yellow cake mix yielded better results.

The next day I shook off my failure and crumbled my pretty yellow cake and mixed it with frosting. It didn't take me long to figure out that my cookie dough scoop made pretty little balls without the messy cake covered hands. When I reached the last third of the mix, I added some coconut and small chocolate chips for variety. I let them chill out and planned my coatings. I first melted Nestle Milk Chocolate chips (about a cup) and dipped away. I worked in small batches of chilly balls and melted chocolate for better results. I added flair to the still warm chocolate before setting them back in the fridge to firm up. I also did a small batch of white chocolate with a dab of green food coloring added for some extra flair.

I tested my work to make sure they were worthy and almost went into sugar shock. These little balls of goodness went over well at the shower and also with a few other folks I made try them. They were almost like a small donut covered in chocolate. They aren't an everyday snack but they will be back for another special event, like a Saturday or something.

Homemade Pasta

I'm not the least bit Italian although I felt it last week as I pulled out the brand new pasta roller attachments for the kitchen aid mixer last week. Brand new and will NEVER be touched by gluten- such a wonderful feeling. I cracked open my trusty copy of Artisanal Gluten Free Cooking and flipped to the Bronski's pasta dough recipe. It's similar to this that they posted on No Gluten, No Problem in 2008 and I did make one tweak- my dough was very dry so I added water a tablespoon at a time until it was pliable. I had to work it a bit by hand until I could feed it through the roller.

xanthum gum, eggs with bit of salt and artisanal flour blend

getting ready to mix together by hand....

and now the toys come out...

and the pasta cutter....

the finished pasta- I'm a bad direction reader and over boiled- but a good first attempt

I was a bit nervous but the simple ingredient list put me at ease and the Bronski's had some good tips for using a machine in the book. It was a meditative recipe to work with as I played with the dough then fed it through the machine. I bagged some of the uncooked pasta and put it in the fridge for Dave to try. He's a gluten eater and LOVED this, in fact he loved it more then I did. It was a fun project with a tasty finish and the four servings were huge. I think it took me about an hour for this first attempt- it's hard to keep track on Thursdays as I get a bit preoccupied by Grey's Anatomy.

Stuffed Squash

Two weeks ago on our grocery store adventure- (really a full day of stocking up is an adventure) I found squash on sale. I'm working on eating more veggies and picked a few up. I did a bit of research and found Allie's Stuffed Squash and gave it a whirl with a few tweaks of my own.
I cut the squash and cooked for 45 minutes at 400 with some butter and syrup then stuffed with quinoa and spinach that I had made in the rice cooker/steamer. I fried up a bit of bacon for a garnish and moderate the insane veggie intake of my dinner.

My squash came out a bit on the dry side so next time I'll go back to my normal squash prep of cutting in half and baking the two sides upside down in a Pyrex dish with a half inch of water in the pan. It just works better for me- I live at 9,000 feet in a dry climate.  It's not a meal that Dave would get excited about but made for a good dinner and leftovers for me.

1.1.11

My younger sister has also joined our fabulous group of glutards and it was fun to be able to welcome her to the club this past year. It's been fun going over the changes with her, since we have many of the same genes our experiences have been similar. We both lost weight, became happier and more balanced and a slew of other issues. She also tends to notice more then I do as she's still fairly new to the club.  It must have been the year for that as Gluten Hates Me also had a sibling join the Glutard club.

For Christmas I sent her a copy of Artisanal Gluten Free Cooking for her Kindle via amazon- it was really fun to sit on my couch in Colorado and have her wake up to an email on the east coast telling her about the gift. We also gifted her Gluten Free Girl for her kindle as well. I love instant gratification.

I'm still a fan of book version for cookbooks and haven't committed to a Kindle at all- but I did get the Kindle app for my droid. It's been fun for light reading but I really like making notes in cookbooks. 

The final part of her gift required more work then a few clicks, as I made her a batch of the Artisan Gluten-Free flour in a functional container and managed to get it in the mail a few days after the holiday. (I work in the ski industry, I can't even get holiday cards out at all as I'm stupidly busy from mid-November until April) 


Today she sent a photo of her first creation from her new cookbook.

From Droid think outside

Last night we kept things mellow as there was a cold snap of -10 here in Telluride and I had to work this morning. We went up to Mountain Village a put the pups in my office while we watched some fireworks and a torch light parade of skiers come down the mountain then walked home with the monsters.

Dave laughed when I bought the dogs jackets but I know they don't mind wearing them as the mercury drops.
They also have super light up collars and lights for winter walks. It must be fun for the people watching from the gondola above to see the two flashers bounding down the slope.

 

They needed the walk- Mayhem had quite of bit of energy to burn and tried to wrestle with Chaos the whole way home.  Chaos just turned six while Mayhem will hit his terrible two's at the end of March. Mayhem has brought renewed puppy energy into our house in the last year and really brought Chaos back to a second puppyhood at times.

Ajax Peak and Allred's in Telluride

Saturday marked 4 years to the day that Dave and I moved to Telluride from Sugarloaf, Maine. We're had a busy four years and haven't hiked too much due to various factors like a broken toe (me, a few summers ago) and a healing leg (Chaos, last summer after a nasty ski injury to his back tendon) and general life stuff.


September 18, 2006

We're leaving for Maine in a week for our wedding and will be driving cross country with the dogs for the event. We're also moving into a new condo and have been packing our stuff up one box at a time. It was a hard day last week when I packed away the pretty pink kitchen aid for the next month. Everything is going into storage and when we return to Telluride in mid-October we will move to our new digs.



our wedding logo- designed by colleen shea



As a gluten-free person travel presents some challenge but I'm feeling prepared and have already checked in with the Portland, Maine Whole Foods to see if they have Udi's for me (yes- they do) and managed to snag two cases of New Planet Tread Lightly for the event and vacation as well. I've mapped out Whole Foods along the route and have been researching options plus packing food. I've got a big batch of Artisan GF Flour made up and ready to travel plus a few other goodies like Bumble Bars to carry me through the 2,600 mile trip.



After all this we are pretty tired and used Saturday not for packing but for playing. We ignored the boxes of stuff, wedding details and travel plans and headed up Ajax. I was up early with last minute hike preparations and we were on the road shortly after 7am. We cruised through town and the 4Runner climbed to the top of Bridal Veil Falls where we began our 6 mile round trip hike. The sun in Telluride is really intense so the early morning helped us summit by 10:40am and enjoy some time watching town park fill with the Blues & Brews Festival folks from 12,785 feet. Mayhem, our  young golden loved the hike and was ready for more while Chaos, who is almost 6 and still plagued by his back tendon did well but was tired by the end of the hike.



September 18, 2010 Ajax Peak overlooking Telluride and the ski resort



Recently a fellow blogger and excellent writer, Peter Bronski came to Telluride and did some excellent reviews on local restaurants. I've dined at both establishments before but Peter's photos and descriptions had Dave and I walking into Allred's on Saturday night. I love it when other people help me rediscover my own town. We were going to sit at the bar and enjoy a quick bite but their happy hour specials had the bar filled and we ended up in the dining room. Both locations offer excellent views of the town of Telluride and the box canyon plus a view of Ajax Peak.



Allred's Dinner

We each had a small fillet Mignon and I had a sage brown butter sauce while Dave had the Chimichurri sauce. My sauce was yummy and melted the steak in my mouth while Dave's had sweet tones of cilantro, garlic, onion and peppers. We shared a side of sweet potato mash and mushrooms.

Sweet Potato Mash

I'm normally not a mushroom fan but these were tasty. Allred's works to source their menu from sustainable sources and I'm certain the mushrooms were on the menu as a result of our rainy summer that spurred growth of fungi in the area. Plus the listing caught our eyes, organic trumpet royale mushrooms with texas wild boar bacon, parmesan

organic trumpet royale mushrooms

It was an amazing meal and we haven't stopped talking about it, plus it was all gluten free.

Dinner at Allred's was a great ending to a perfect day in Telluride.