I've been kindled.

Adam Kindled me for Christmas. Yes, I am turning Kindle into a verb. IT IS AMAZING.

"I have learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel"

-Maya Angelou

TJ's Rye-less Rye

I got to go to Trader Joe's this weekend!! WOO HOO!! Moderately priced gluten free fare... I am so there.

Among other items, I purchased a loaf of Trader Joe's (famous) Rye-less Rye bread. For less than $2. I was in heaven.

So what did I do with ryeless rye?

Saukerkraut + Corned Beef + Swiss cheese + 1000 Island equals...

IT'S A RUBEN!!

Pumpkin Millet Muffins

I found a great looking recipe today for Pumpkin Oatmeal Muffins. Too bad I cannot have oats. But I won't let that little fact bring me down. No siree bob.

1.5 c flour (I used my tapioca rice blend)

2 packets gelatin

.5 c ground flax

1 c cooked millet

1 can pumpkin

.5 c brown sugar (packed)

1 egg

.5 c milk

2 tbs baking powder

3 tbs oil (i used safflower)

Dump all ingredients into Kitchen Aid (that's my kind of baking). Put Kitchen Aid in lock position. Let mix until... well, mixed. Spoon into muffin cups. Bake for 15-20 minutes. YUM.

Gluten free pigs in a blanket!

So I found an AMAZING recipe for bread yesterday. I was waiting for it to rise this afternoon, and had an epiphany: pigs in a blanket. My mom used to make them with Pillsbury crescent rolls back in my gluten eating days, but, sadly, those are over. So I moved on and lo and behold : I modified a recipe. Here goes:

2 cups garbanzo/chickpea flour

1 cup corn starch

1.5 cups rice flour

3 tablespoons unflavored gelatin

3 tablespoons milled flax seeds

salt

3 tablespoons honey

.5 tablespoon cream of tartar

3 teaspoons active dry yeast

3 eggs

1 cup hot water

2 tablespoons oil (I used safflower)

Package of bratwurst (I used Lombardi's because the sample dude at Valli said they were gluten free - funny story about that guy)*

Mix flours, corn starch, gelatin, flax, salt, honey, cream of tartar, and yeast. Beat eggs, add oil and hot water. Mix dry and wet ingredients together. Grease cookie sheet. Kneed and shape them oblongly. Let rise for 1 to 2 hours.

Meanwhile, cook bratwurst thoroughly.

Let bratwurst cool while dough is patiently rising. Wrap each cooled brat in risen dough (flouring your hands before and during is helpful - this dough is very sticky) and cook until browned - may twenty minutes?

* So funny story. Adam and I went to the grocery store this morning, as opposed to our usual Friday night because we did something a bit unusual last night (played Bingo!!). So we are walking through the meat section of the store, looking at all of the oddities, and Adam spots the elusive free sample guy. He is shouting (I am not exaggerating): "LOMBARDI'S SAUSAGE! MSG FREE! GLUTEN FREE! blahblahblah". So my interest is now piqued. I look at the sausage and, I kid you not, THEY (ie, the free sample guy) PUT PRETZELS IN THE SAMPLES! Oh my word. Gluten free - with pretzels? I informed him of his mistake (between giggles) and he gave me an untainted piece of sausage. It was delicious, but still - I had to have a good laugh at that one :)

it was a graveyard smash...

Ya know, for being a last minute costume, Adam and I looked pretty darn good.

happy halloween!

"There are three things I have learned never to discuss with people: religion, politics and the Great Pumpkin."

Linus Van Pelt

in "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown"

*********************************************************************************

And, of course, just like last year, I am at home sick on halloween. Yep. I have the whole shebang this year. So I will be sitting on the couch, drinking Juicy Juice, catching up on episodes of Mad Men.

New GF foods (and other stuff)

I was adventurous this week. I tried not one, but TWO new gluten free foods. AND I found a new place to go and buy warpaint.

Glutino Vegetable crackers

Oh my. These crackers are DELICIOUS. They were so good with cheese. I was never a big cracker eater in my gluten infested days, but I may become one now because of Glutino. Unfortunately, I may not be able to afford that addiction. These babies were almost $5 a box at my local Kroger, but I am on a mission to find portable foods with the holidays coming up and all.

I read so much hype about these chicken nuggets. And after the epic fail that is Ian's chicken nuggets - they were SO gross - I wasn't quick to try these. But I should have. Unlike crackers, I did eat a lot of chicken nuggets before going GF. But one squabble: they are teeny-tiny. These were actually $6, but there was enough for two people.

I also saw a fruit I had never seen before at the grocery store before (this is odd because I am the one to eat prickly pears and pluots). It was a persimmon! So I bought some and am waiting for them to get ripe. But they do look nice on the counter!

I also have an unfortunate new obsession: Sally Beauty Supply. I was in heaven when I walked in there the first time. The Sally Girl cosmetics are so delightful! The colors are gorgeous and none of them are over $1! They kind of remind me of the mark. by Avon products. The eyeshadow actually STAYS ON MY EYES. Amazing, right?

The most amazing thing I bought at Sally was this Clarisonic-esque facial cleaner dealy thingy. It is called the i-Skin and it feels like a facial. Seeing as I cannot afford a $200+ vibrating brush, I went the el cheapo route and bought a $20 knockoff. And I am addicted. Seriously. Adam is going to find me huddled in the bathroom corner washing my face and unwilling to let go. It is that good.

Oh Pioneer by Whitman

COME, my tan-faced children, Follow well in order, get your weapons ready;

Have you your pistols? have you your sharp edged axes? Pioneers! O pioneers!

For we cannot tarry here, We must march my darlings, we must bear

the brunt of danger, We, the youthful sinewy races, all the rest on us depend, Pioneers! O pioneers!

O you youths, western youths, So impatient, full of action, full of manly pride and friendship,

Plain I see you, western youths, see you tramping with the foremost, Pioneers! O pioneers!

Have the elder races halted? Do they droop and end their lesson, wearied, over there

beyond the seas? We take up the task eternal, and the burden,

and the lesson, Pioneers! O pioneers!

All the past we leave behind; We debouch upon a newer, mightier world, varied world,

Fresh and strong the world we seize, world of labor and the march, Pioneers! O pioneers!

Celiac Awareness Month

October is Celiac Awareness Month (actually, there are two Celiac Awareness months and one Celiac Awareness day).

Celiac Disease is a serious problem in and of itself, compounded by the fact that only about 2 percent of those inflicted are actually diagnosed. And according to the latest numbers, you probably know someone who has CD. 1 in 133 people are estimated to have it, but so few doctors actually test for it. I suffered for literally 22 years before FINALLY being diagnosed. I had symptoms from birth, but my mother was just told I had colic and was lactose intolerant (in addition to being a banana baby). And so little is actually known about CD. Not too long ago, it was considered a problem one would grow out of, but this is far from the truth.

sunday, sunday, sunday!

First things first: I bought a new slowcooker. It is amazing, if I do say. It is probably the most high tech thing in my kitchen repertoire (not far behind is my mandolin & my KitchenAid deluxe mixer).

A-ma-zing. It has a temperature probe, a timer, and it is 6 quarts -- meaning a full chicken will fit in there. SO. EXCITED.

Also, Sunday is the day to cook. In addition to the chicken in the brand-spankin'-new slow cooker, I am making chicken and rice soup AND banana bread.

Who knows what other dishes I will think of before the end of the day (it is only noon, after all).

October!

May the wind always be at your back and the sun always upon your face and may the wings of destiny carry you aloft to dance with the stars

quote

"When you look at your life, the greatest happinesses are family happinesses."

- Joyce Brothers

American psychologist and advice columnist

ugh

I got glutened by a hotdog.

You know, 22 year olds are not supposed to feel like this. I have been stuck feeling like crap for way too long. And I get mad about it. I missed out on so much in high school and in college because I was sick ALL the time. I remember once, in college, my friends waited until 1 in the morning to go out because I couldn't get out of bed for hours. And I get mad at myself after being gluten free for almost a year when I make a stupid mistake and pay for it for almost a week.

I ate a hot dog today. Within 15 minutes, I had a headache that would make anyone else go to the ER. Then my stomach blew up like a balloon and I had horrid stomach pain. Next came fatigue and nausea. I feel like I will never want to eat again.

I feel so crappy, at one point I wanted to stomp across the street and punch my neighbor who was mowing his lawn and yell, "Don't you know I feel like crap!?" (kidding)

Next with come the muscle aches, the itchy skin. The infamous irritability. The rash. And oh so much more that I would prefer to not discuss on such a public forum!

Ugh. This celiac disease is the pits.

Zucchini pizza!

Ingredients :

2 zucchini

2 eggs

1 c cheddar cheese

garlic

Shred zucchini and dry it out.

Add eggs, cheddar and garlic to zucchini and spread on pan.

Cook until the edges are browned.

Add toppings

I used:

Classico roasted garlic and onion sauce

Hormel turkey pepperoni

Mozzerella cheese

Tomato

Dried basil

Cook until cheese is bubbly and...

ENJOY!

favorites!

I (finally) bought sunbutter last night. OH MY GOD. So good. I don't even have to avoid peanuts and I love it.

I also found a gluten free bread that even Adam likes! It tastes kind of like sourdough and the pieces are relatively small, but it is the least expensive and I really do like it (but it MUST be toasted! Do not eat this straight from the bag!)

It is Ener-G brand tapioca bread! A lot of celiacs do not like it (most like the light version - Kroger only carries four varieties of Ener-G bread, though). It makes a delicious sandwich though.

Another new product I tried this week was kefir. Am I in love or what? Kefir is a yogurt-like drink chock full of probiotics - good for people with celiac. Seriously, my stomach is happy for once! And I'm not going to lie, I actually think it tastes pretty good. I bought the cappuccino flavor and it will definitely be a weekly purchase! I think I am going to try the fruit-flavored kind next.

Something not so good I tried recently is Glutino brand DUO pizza. The crust was tasty, but where is the cheese? And the sauce had a weird sweet flavor that I was not fond of. If they sold the crust plain (which they very well may, but I am sheltered in the midwest so I don't know) I would definitely buy it and make my own cheesy delicious pizza out of it.

Something to think about

A quote by a Lawrence Ferlinghetti

"There is an ecstatic mechanism in birds that makes them fly upwards in spite of worms"

I know you have one too, one of those ecstatic mechanisms.

P.S.

A true friend never greets you with asking how you are, but if the statute of limitations is up yet

An excerpt of Paracelsus by Robert Browning

...that at times I almost dream

I too have spent a life the sages' way,
And tread once more familiar paths. Perchance
I perished in an arrogant self-reliance
Ages ago; and in that act, a prayer
For one more chance went up so earnest, so
Instinct with better light let in by death,
That life was blotted out—not so completely
But scattered wrecks enough of it remain,
Dim memories, as now, when once more seems
The goal in sight again. All which, indeed,
Is foolish, and only means—the flesh I wear,
The earth I tread, are not more clear to me
Than my belief, explained to you or no.

Try it!

Berghoff Harvest 12 Pack.

Delicious!

Also, Anybody got any rules on eating chocolate cake at work? Just kidding

Anyway, thats All I got, no real interesting update.

Besides that you need to drink berghoff and visit www.asofterworld.com

Adam

Also, If you stop stabbing, I'll stop screaming.

CAKE!

I made a gluten free cake last night for a family function today. It is a double chocolate Kahlua cake. Oh my... it is tasty!

Y'know, making a three layer cake with one round pan is kind of a night long ordeal... I really need to invest in another round pan, methinks. Oh well. I like baking (I really liked it before going GF, but it is difficult and quite expensive when it has to be gluten free).

Unfortunately, I had been drinking more Kahlua than I used and attempted to set up a three layer cake. It shifted a little bit. Oh well, I don't think it looks THAT bad... :)

I also tried a new GF product last night!

These are the Chebe frozen tomato basil breadsticks. I have had Chebe's dry bread stick mix and it was absolutely delicious (only had it once though - it was the first GF product I tried). These were just okay. The flavor was there, but they did not rise at all and they were very crunchy. Also, they took 45 minutes to cook! That was kind of shocking, but fine. The breadsticks were about $6 for 12, which is kind of steep, but I'd be willing to buy again if making pasta because I bet they would be really good dipped in marinara.

Bye bye summer.

Oh what a lovely weekend. It was beautiful out and we both had three whole days off of work (virtually unheard of 'round these parts).

But then I got glutened.

Last night to be specific. By salad dressing. Who else goes through their own personal hell over Caesar? Blech.

Update on my soup:

It does look pretty gross because it is an odd shade of green (a lot of zucchini) but I liked it.

Adam did not like it too much. It is very light (which I think is good because it is only September). I am making cream of sweet potato soup tonight and am oh-so-excited about that!

It has sweet potatoes, carrots, apples, broth, allspice and cinnamon. Can't really get any easier than that...

I also have to go into work early this morning, which I don't mind. I am much more of a morning person. Unfortunately I will be the only one in my department and am absolutely terrified that I will screw it up. I was transfered to a completely different department about six months ago to work on their computers and ended up liking it so much I asked to be transfered. It is a much better fit for me, anyway.

An ode to my crock

I love my crockpot. I have fond memories of my mom using hers (quite a bit) when I was a young'n. I love it so much I have a feeling that I probably don't use it quite enough because it sits unnoticed all summer. Well guess what? It's September 1st and 40 degrees out: I'm busting my beloved crock pot out.

Actually, I used it last night when I got home from work. I made a vegetable broth.

I just poured it into a stock pot about five minutes ago so it can drain completely. I may have used too much celery (is there such a thing?) but I figure it will be good to have in the freezer. Now if I only had something to do with the dilapidated veggies...

I also assembled a nice end of summer soup that will cook all day on low while I am slaving away at work and be ready to eat when I get home. It has sweet potatoes, zucchini, spinach, green beans, onion, an apple, and kidney beans (and it already smells delicious).

YUM! I can't wait to get home from work and I haven't even left yet!

-- Monica

Modern Day Bonny and Clyde

I must post this.

Again. For Everyone to See.

"Love is the ultimate outlaw. It just won't adhere to any rules. The most any of us can do is to sign on as its accomplice. Instead of vowing to honor and obey, maybe we should swear to aid and abet. That would mean that security is out of the question. The words "make" and stay" become inappropriate. My love for you has no strings attached. I love you for FREE."

Tom Robbins

Speaking Auctioneer

She's the picture girl. Sorry. No pictures.
But, Auction today in Mt. Morris.

Nothing Good.

I hate auctioneers whom (who?) you can't understand.

I've been to dozens of auctions,

and this one I can't understand for the life of me.

I did manage to steal some

jewelry for her. Well, by steal I mean exchange for moving heavy stuff.

Then to dinner at Poor Pauly's Pub.
Not that great.

It was wonderful to spend some time with my parents though,

they were in a funny mood.

Well, thunder, means lightning, means I have to unplug her 'puter.

"Life is good today"

Camp food!

Food is easily the best part of camping (actually, the best part of anything). And camp food is usually delicious. I am missing quite a few meals here (like the kielbasa and potato melange I made Saturday night) but I included the best meal of the day: breakfast.

Peaches and bananas!

Banana & honey peanut butter.

Fried eggs

Bacon!

Hash browns, tomatoes, green peppers, and onion.

Back from camping

Our tent and tarp - it rained our first day :(

Saturday morning hike.

Best camping amenity ever - hammock.

Human sun dial. Doin' it wrong.

Did not want to leave!

But we did come home to these!!

Glutino Mac & Cheese

In my preparations for camping this afternoon, I had to eat. I was running around all morning (WalMart, Aldi, and Valli) and picked up something I normally wouldn't: Glutino Mac & Cheese in the freezer section of Valli. Now, I don't normally buy microwave meals (or gluten free renditions of "normal" food, for that matter). But I was very hungry and knew I would not have much time to prepare a meal.

I am extremely disappointed. I did not think it was very good at all. The noodles were very chewy and it was not nearly cheesy enough. And for over $4, I should have been satisfied. The calorie count was absolutely extreme, but against my best judgement, I bought and ate it anyway. That is one product I will never buy again. Amy's Mac & Cheese is actually pretty good (especially during Lent) & cheaper, too. Oh well... I guess that is what I get for being nostalgic about my gluten filled childhood.

- Monica

Campfire.

FINALLY! Adam and I go camping every summer. I don't think we can go one summer without camping somewhere. I think a big part of the fun, for me at least, is the food. I love camping food. Maybe because I grew up on meat and potatoes or maybe because gluten can easily be avoided (as opposed to traveling where being gluten free is extremely difficult). Here are some photos from last summer's adventure:

GAH! Adam with no hair!!

Last summer, I think I read three books in two days. That was pretty memorable because I read what became one of my favorite books (Johnathan Safron Foer's Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. I also read Metamorphosis... I know, long over due...) This summer, I have Tana French's In the Woods and I may or may not try to actually get through Kerouac -- I think I have tried to read On the Road about 6 times, and I can never get farther than 20 pages. Maybe I should go to Barnes and Noble before our trek just so I have enough to read... But if that fails, I have My Life in France by Julia Child as a backup.

I love reading while camping because there are no distractions. No cats, no cell phone, no TV. I love reading any time, but camping is nice because you are outside and it is quiet (unlike reading in our yard... very loud). Bless my twee little heart...

We are going somewhere new this summer (we usually go to the same place)... Adam has never been there but my parents used to take us (brother, sister, and I) here when we were beh-behs. And it is gorgeous. And unlike the campgrounds we usually go to, this one actually has a body of water. I think you can fish in it but there is no swimming allowed (boo).