Rolling with the Tides and Just for Me Gluten Free in Haverhill, MA

One of the biggest things that we all have to learn in our gluten free journey is how to deal with change and  roll with the tide. Some of us embrace the challenge head on and dive into learning, cooking and enjoying all that the gluten free life has to offer while others may take some time to warm up, no judging here- we all cope with this journey differently. Often times these lessons learned in gluten free living can help us deal with other areas of life as well.

These days I'm rolling with the tide and shifting gears a bit. It's a big step and the magnitude may not really hit until the snow flies next winter but I'm ready for the next phase of life. Camp Chaos (my home) has traditionally been in the mountains and this year we're moving to the ocean. We'll always be skiers and the mountains will always be our love but we're not solely defined by one thing or where we rest our head at night. We're opening up our lives to the next adventures and discovering that life can also feel good with a bit of sand between your toes (or on your tennis ball as in the case of the pups)  

This also changes my gluten free game as I'm now within striking distance of PF Chang's and Whole Foods. Seriously- this is big. It doesn't mean I'll hit each weekly but now I could as I'm less then 30 minutes from either. Last week I took a little field trip to Haverhill, MA and hit up a new-to-me store which I happened to feel right at home in...

I thought you might too. Just for Me Gluten Free is a small boutique that I found via a google search and since I *had* to go to Haverhill anyhow to go to Target I figured I should swing in.
There were so many of my favorite gluten free goodies but I was on a time crunch and couldn't linger. I quickly found some English Muffins that my younger sister loves and a few Liz Lovely treats.

Foods By George makes one fat english muffin and I actually thought the hearty four pack was a six pack at first. I kept them in the freezer and would let it defrost on the counter for a few hours. There's not dedicated gluten free toaster for me so I sliced it in half and fried it up in a pan with a bit of Earth's Balance before loading it with strawberry jam. I have to say- I'm impressed with George. These were thicker then the ones my Gluten Free English Muffin dealer supplied me with this winter and had a more "classic" appearance with all the delightful air pockets that became perfect little homes for the jelly.

My Liz Lovely finds were a real treat,I've been a fan of the vegan bakery since my friend first shared their gluten free goodies with me on a road trip in 2009. While I lived in Colorado I would order a case of cookies for special occasions (really- it was the best shipping deal- I had to get a whole case...thankfully they let you mix it up!) so it was fun to just pick up a pack or two. I also got to try a new product...

the new gluten free and vegan Liz Lovely Oh's. These little bad boys come in packs of 8 and are thickly coated in chocolate.

Love at first bite... I hid them in the back of the fridge but that was mostly from myself and not from Dave...

Cooking versus Knitting

I've been meaning to post more but now that we're in the thick of winter I'm finding that I'm craving knitting time more so then cooking time. Thankfully one of my gluten free sisters has been picking up my slack and offering her insight to Think Outside the Breadbox showcasing not only her lovely Pumpkin Bisque but also a hand knitted sweater covered in soup. Two loves collide...thankfully it's a washable merino wool. My knitting project list keeps growing and I seem to always have at least 3 projects rolling at once. I've been finding it hard to put my needles down to catch up on my blogging.
However, a knitter does need to keep up her energy and I've been fueling up with some great staples. I like to start my day with breakfast before I hit the needles to hard and have found that frozen Maine blueberries defrost quickly when added to a bowl of gluten free quick oats.

I've whipped up items for household use like a swiffer cover that I found on Pinterest, I need to make a few more. The textured cotton works much better then the Swiffer pads and are eco-friendly.

I made mine so I could just tuck it into the little swiffer holds.  Somehow I've even been on a salad kick lately. I'm not sure what's wrong with me as it's usually not in my rotation. Perhaps it's the Maine winter with it's lack of sunshine that's making me crave greens or maybe it's the lovely greens I've been knitting with.

I did manage to find a new gluten and dairy free dressing to use. I've also got a gf/df ranch but I'm holding that one until our next homemade chicken tenders night.

What keeps you out of the kitchen and how do you get your mojo back? I did manage to eek out a batch of Whoopie Pies for Valentine's Day (shouldn't everyone get  a little whoopie for the holiday?) but overall my flour usage has dropped considerably.

gluten free, dairy free ice cream

Last week I felt like it was my birthday when Udi's sent me a box of goodies to try. I've been enjoying Chocolate Muffins for breakfast and took the 4-pack of  bagels to Merle's Brown Bag to try to win Shawn over. (How can you not LOVE a gluten free bagel that tastes good un-toasted? Great for breakfast and lunch. I've really been digging my Udi's with Merle's bacon, turkey, mayo, pickles and onion... I may have to grab one for lunch tomorrow)

Tonight I'm making gf, df ice cream for my real birthday and it's gonna be so good that Ben and Jerry will be jealous... plus it matches the kitchen aid mixer that was my big birthday present two years ago. I found my base here and devised my own mix ins... the Udi's Chocolate muffin and coconut flakes. yum. I was pretty inspired by Marlow's tweets and blog post about her ice cream adventures and it spurred me to motivate and make my creation.

Waiting for the strawberries to defrost was painful so I cut the muffin into little pieces and put it in the freezer to chill out.

The strawberries had become soft enough and I used the immersion blender on them and then mixed with the coconut milk, vanilla and agave nectar before pouring into the ice cream maker.

After 30 minutes I spooned it into a container and mixed in the coconut flakes and my last chocolate Udi's Muffin. I still had ice cream leftover so grabbed some homemade gluten free frozen cookie dough and chopped that up for the second container.

Now I'm working on my patience and letting the ice cream set up overnight... this may cause me to eat ice cream for breakfast...

Udi's Love

I've always been a bit obsessed when I find a new product I like and a scan through my Droid photos reveals that right now I'm in LOVE with Udi's. I'd seen it reviewed on a few blogs and then stumbled on it at my "local" Natural Grocer's a mere 67 miles away. Since then I've been enjoying Peanut Butter & Jelly Bagels in the morning at work and had to confess to a co-worker that these bagels made me feel like I was cheating.

I made my first grilled cheese in over a year and went all out with colby jack cheese, turkey and peperoni. I made myself take a photo of it even though I wanted to just devour it.

I must confess that dairy and I have been struggling again. I went 96% dairy free for a while and felt great. I slowly brought it back into my life and have found that dairy and I do best if we don't spend much time together. I can have a bit of real cheese on my pizza or the occasional grilled cheese but forget about using a 1/4 of cup of real milk in Annie's GF Mac N Cheese (very bad afternoon). This leaves me going mostly dairy free with the occasional cheese treat.

I've also had a lot of untoasted Udi's at lunch, here is a delightful turkey sandwich with a side of nachos and artichoke & parm dip. I now keep a frozen loaf of Udi's in the full size fridge at work and pull out a few slices on sandwich days or toast mornings. My desk is home to a supply of tin foil so I can use the toaster oven at work and not worry. The worst part about Udi's is that the bagels fly off the shelf and I'm not always lucky enough to score a pack!

toast!

At our last "big city" grocery store expedition I was delighted to find Udi's Bread. I've read a lot of favorable reviews and my local sandwich shop even swapped to it. My first home creation? Toast.

I haven't had toast since at least November, 2008 and it may have even been longer. I covered the toaster oven in tin foil since Dave hasn't given up gluten toast and gently toasted my bread. I picked out my first toast toppings- Earth's Balance with cinnamon and sugar. YUM!  I didn't realize how much I enjoy and missed toast until that very moment. I may even have to try Udi's for french toast....

I'm really loving the new Natural Grocers store in Montrose. It's been a great source for new products. They've even hosted a gluten-free sample day and I was able to try some new products without having to commit to a whole (expensive) package. They have almost all the gluten-free flour types I could ever want including brown and white rice flour in prepackaged bulk. They've earned a lot of our buisness and it seems like each trip they get a little more. This trip had me stocking up on my standard rice noodles plus the new Ancient Harvest Pasta and other treats.

busy winter day eats...

I'm not a huge fan of most gluten free pastas but took a chance and tried the Ancient Harvest Quinoa Pasta. Ok yes, I LOVE rice noodles for street noodles but I'm talking about a pasta to smear in pesto or red sauce. This cooks well and has a nice almost nutty flavor. I haven't tried to reheat at all but I never really liked gluten spaghetti reheated. Dave found their linguine in town today and that's my next dish since I polished this box off today.
We live in a small town and specialty products can be expensive here so I save pesto purchases for our monthly stock up trips. I have found that pesto freezes well and ice cube trays create perfect portions for pizza cubes and and 1/8 of a cube for a single serving of pasta. Just pull out and defrost and hour before eating. This keeps us from wasting a tub of pesto or ever having to go without.

We had a big weekend and it included over a foot of fresh powder and some great skiing on Saturday.

We took a hot cocoa break and found this bit to go along with it...

A Chocolate Bacon Bar!

It was even marked Gluten Free right on the box... there's not a ton of GF options to grab on the go and this was a tasty one. It's not my favorite and was terribly pricey but made for a interesting ski break at High Camp.

Sunday is slow cooker day at our house. We both work and it's an easy way to start the week. We normally go for a big cut of meat and a sauce from Make It Fast, Cook It Slow but today since I was working from home I made the Orange Chicken. We hadn't made in since the fall and we're both excited to enjoy it again... just a few more hours till dinner...

lobster night

I am a native Mainer that does not like any type of seafood. I can't stand fish, clams or crustaceans. I even tried a small bite about two years ago. I was at Beaver Creek and everyone was raving about the fish that "didn't taste fishy", I tried a small bite and was overwhelmed by the fish flavor. (yuck) I do appreciate how much others love the stuff and our crew was lucky enough to enjoy a feast of it.
Our buddy Big Dave moved out here with us and comes from a fishing family. He used to spend his summers clamming before moving to Colorado. His family over at The Clam Hunter just outside of Bath, Maine shipped him out a dozen lobsters and a ton of clams for the holidays and he had some folks over on New Year's Day for a lobster bake. The crew devoured the feast, while I can't stand seafood I do enjoy time with friends and quickly made Betty Crocker Gluten Free Cookies and some Cherrybrook Gluten Free Brownies for the New Year's Day lobster bake and the gluten eaters all enjoyed them. They managed to make room in their seafood filled stomach to first sample then demolish the gluten free treats.

gluten freedom with spinach and rice noodles

Dave's gone back east for the weekend so I  have the freedom to play around with silly meals to my hearts content. He had really embraced gf cooking at home and while I enjoy his cooking I don't crave a full meat and potatos meal every night. He tends be the default chef and needs a solid meal after working on the mountain and outside all day. My office dwelling self does not need that many calories but there's no point in cooking two dinners each night so we tend to eat GF meat and starch.

I cooked some rice noodles and sauteed some spinach then stir fried them together. My lesson for this late dinner was the discovery that two cloves of garlic was too much for my simple style. I'm not really a garlic fan but since the Joy of Cooking suggested it I tried it. I felt very Julie as I reference the iconic cookbook- even if it was just the JoC instead of  MtAoFC. I did get to see the movie when it came to town and loved it. I hadn't read the book but took care of that last Friday afternoon in the sunshine with Chaos on the porch while enjoying some redbridge. I really like the rice noodles and when I reheat the leftovers tomorrow I'm going to try to add a bit more flavor to them. Tonight I had added some gluten free soy sauce and it didn't take on as much flavor as I thought it would.

I took Dave to the airport today and since we live in a small mountain town this means that this was a hour and a half drive each way. We headed down early to run a few errands and grab a late lunch. Although Dave's not glutarded it's still hard to find food in airports these days during layovers and his layover in Denver was going to be short with a long run from his puddle jumper to the big jet. We hit the pizza place with a gluten free dough option. Since I've become a lot more sensitive to everything  I had to ask about their peanut sauce and was bummed to learn that it was off limits. The waiter was great about double checking and I appreciated the extra time he put forth. They make their peanut sauce with peanut butter and SOY sauce... I didn't ask him to check the soy. I just assumed that they used the cheap stuff that is loaded with wheat like most others. I was pretty bummed since I was already planning on leaving out the cheese and was craving a thai chicken pie. I went with a pesto, chicken, onion and broccoli pie on a gluten free crust. Dave had a gooey cheese filled gluten filled pie with peperoni and sausage. I was jealous for a second until I remembered how sick that pie would make me.

Speaking of... I am officially glutarded. I can now join the club and get the t-shirt. I've been to the gastroenterologist and sent my DNA off to the lab. I have the DQ2 Alleles (DQA1*05/DQB1*02) given this and my vast array of symptoms the GI Doc confirmed that I have a big problem with gluten. He didn't think it was worth the time and energy to do an endoscopy since I haven't had  any real amount of gluten in so many months. I could go and eat gluten for two months and have the test done but this seems silly for a few reasons- I don't think I could deal with doing that much damage to myself and I don't think Dave, my friends or I could tolerate me on gluten again.... the few times I have ingested gluten were HELL. Migraines and body aches are not something I look forward to. Given all this evidence the GI handed me a small trifold pamphlet of info and welcomed me to the club. The trifold gave Dave and I a good laugh since I have consumed books and spent countless hours reseaching everything about gluten since last November!

Side Note: If you happen to share genes with me I suggest you pay attention! You and your offspring are at risk~ feel moody, poopy or funny after meals or are you tired and lethargic, grumpy or gassy~ you could be glutarded too. It's a fun club... along with a growing arsenal of books and products there's even t-shirts and stickers to help with the gluten free life. Going Gluten Free has really helped me... 

The GI Doctor did suggest that I keep a food and symptom log since a lot of foods seem to be messing with me. It's been pretty frustrating- I'm ok with losing gluten. I've accepted that and moved on but dairy including cheese... please say it ain't so! I've been avoiding it and then re-challenging. The re-challenge seems to prove that dairy and I are not friends right now. It sucks but I've been finding ways to get my fixes without causing myself dairy hell. I seem to tolerate butter in cooking but have swapped to Silk Soymilk and have avoided cheese. I can't believe it but Dave even found this "ice cream" that is gluten and dairy free. It's the first time I've had cookie dough ice cream in almost a year. I love the coconut tones in it. It's not much more then a pint of Ben & Jerry's and is so worth it.

betty's gluten free cookies

I miss a good cookie... Bob's Red Mill does a nice mix but the cookies have a crumbly texture and taste almost good for you. Betty's came out a little crumbly but had more of a cookie flavor.

I would definitely purchase Betty's Gluten Free Cookie mix again but may try baking gf cookies from scratch next time. Out of the three Betty Mixes I found at my local foodstore the yellow cake was my favorite followed by the brownies then the cookies. Cheers to Betty on a job well done for all the mixes!

Whoa. Betty!

Gluten free brownies......
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Backpackers pantry

Gotta love a company that marks gluten as an allergen. This is much better then your average quick meal and very tasty.
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Betty's in the house!

Work in progress...... Details later!
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its here!!

Hidden in my local city market!
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things to love about food shopping....

while traveling back east I ventured into many food stores. Part of this was need and part was a desire to see what different areas would have to offer me. I was amazed at the GF selection in Bangor, Maine and planned on some serious stock up trips to Portland if I move back to Sugarloaf since the Hannaford in Farmington left a lot to be desired!

I have to say after visiting over a dozen grocery stores that I have it pretty good. Although I live in Telluride I do most of my food shopping in Montrose, which is a larger city about an hour away. (Telluride is a resort town and can be expensive.) My City Market in Montrose has a good variety of GF and wheat free products and I've been able to try many of them.

I became obsessed with Whole Foods on my trip and am now living 6 hours from the closest store so I have to enjoy the things I can find...and make my own fruit packs of red berries and fresh pineapple for breakfast. I've been working on my hummus recopies for summer gatherings and baking wheat free whoopie pies for birthdays.

This summer I should be able to find some more products to test.... Betty Crocker is going GF! That's right... my former birthday cake mixes can once again grace my pantry. Plus this fall they plan on labeling all the frosting as Gluten Free as well. I can only hope these hit shelves before my birthday this summer... perhaps they will be a bit more moist then some other GF brands....

Plus Chex Cereal is certifying more flavors as GF! I never realized that they had a strawberry chex cereal and now I have big plans for it... i believe it will lend itself to really good rice crispy treat substitutions.

One of the best products I found in my east coast travels were Liz Lovely Cookies that Carol found for me. They are made in Vermont are vegan and GF! One cookie makes a great snack for two or provide all day snacking for a drive from Connecticut to South Carolina.

But kate, why are you so excited for all of these new GF products? I thought you were just wheat free? True, I am "just" wheat free but in the months since being wheat free I have learned that it isn't much more of a stretch to be gluten free as well. Plus it's not bad for me to avoid gluten.

pamela's classic vanilla cake

I first tried Pamela's Classic Vanilla Cake mix a few weeks ago... it was yummy but a bit dry which could be a result of baking at 9,000 feet. This time I added a box of vanilla flavored instant Jello pudding mix, an extra egg and a bit more water. I just sifted the two powder mixes together then added the wet ingredients.

The cake was yuumo! I made two 8" rounds and they took much longer to bake then the directions because of my additions. I believe they were in the oven for almost an hour. I served it to my wheat eating friends and the pudding mix took away the rice flour aftertaste that they usually notice. As usual my cakes were misshapen but this isn't the food network and they still tasted fine.

Jess frosted the cake for me with just normal canned mix. Not sure how gluten free this may be with the addition of the frosting and pudding mix but it was the best wheat free cake I have made yet!

I went to the allergist after a reaction to a smoothie in Moab. It was a yummy Mango Tango smoothie that had mango, peaches, coconut and orange sherbet in it. The allergist didn't have a mango test but we ruled out all other ingredients and determined that that was my last mango smoothie.... this reaction was a swollen tongue and throat. I took some Benadryl but it still caused a damper on the day in Moab. Mango won't be much of a hardship since I never have liked the fresh fruit- just the smoothie versions.

Best pizza without wheat...

During the first wheat free week I tried a frozen pizza and liked it. Tonight I loved a wheat free pizza! Chebe frozen pizza crusts also managed to impress Dave who can still eat the real stuff if he wants. Chebe frozen pizza dough isn't a real dough but like a cheese bread hybrid. It doesn't rise since it has no yeast but I love thin pizza so it works for me. I also love to add my own flair and this base gives me the perfect start to create my masterpiece and it is personal size so Dave and I can each make our own.
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Cookies!

Who doesn't love cookies? I do but find that a whole batch of my wheat free wonders sometimes go to waste. I was pumped to stumble upon these frozen goodies at the store. I can make one or 12 in the toaster oven or real oven. Dave likes them too which means they do taste good and it is not just me wishing them to be yummy.
Glutenfreeda's real cookies are pretty tasty and according to Dave don't taste wheat free. They are also super easy- just take the desired amount, place on a baking sheet and bake for 15 to 18 minutes at 325 degrees.
There are a few flavours at our grocery store and I can vouch for the sugar cookies and the chocolate minty python. I love that I don't waste any since I only bake what I am ready for.
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And the brownies photo...

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Brownies

I have tried some wheat fee products and have found Pamela's brownies to be a good replacement for normal brownies. Making them had me second guessing trying to replace sweet foods since they had a crumbling texture when I put them in the oven. When they came out I was convinced. Warm and chocolatety they fulfilled my sweet tooth cravings and kept me wheat free. After a full month of being wheat free (and over the holidays no less) I have to say that cutting wheat out hasn't been too much of a hardship. You get a different view of a cookie or a pancake when you realise it makes you feel horrible and kills your energy. And the products may not be exactly the same but you can usually find something to replace it with.
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