Gluten-casein-egg-soy free onion rings

I debated adding this recipe because it's so easy. But, I decided to offer it anyway, mostly because even the simplest foods often seem difficult to make without gluten and casein. Making fried onion rings is even more difficult without the help of eggs or soy. So, here's a really good alternative.

Ingredients:
- Onions, cut into rings or half rings.
- 1 cup gluten-free flour mix (I use 1/3 cup sorghum, 1/3 cup corn flour, 1/3 cup tapioca)
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or paprika
- 2 egg subs (I use Ener-G)
- oil

So, heat a shallow amount of oil in a frying pan. Cut the onions. Make 2 egg subs in a bowl (I use 2 tbsp powder and 4 tbsp water). Mix the dry ingredients in another bowl.

When oil is hot, dip a few onion rings in the flour mix, then dip in the egg sub, then dredge back into the flour until well coated. Fry in oil until golden and down -- just a few minutes.

Pretty good stuff. I make a batch of these after making french fries on special nights.

Gluten free food industry is booming

I know, this is a press release. But, it has some eye-opening information in it about the gluten-free food industry. Worth reading.


Gluten-Free Just Keeps Getting Easier, Tastier, and More Affordable

Coeur d'Alene, ID, September 10, 2007 --(PR.com)-- The popular gluten-free manufacturer, Namaste Foods, has released their first edition cookbook and a new website with more discounted offerings for customers.

Demand in the gluten-free market is showing no signs of slowing down. While sales in 2001 were valued at $210 million, the most recent figures show it has escalated to roughly $700 million. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, by 2010 they are expecting the market to reach a whopping $1.7 billion, primarily due to the compounding growth in the diagnosis of Celiac Disease. It has been estimated that 97% of people living with Celiac Disease still remain undiagnosed.

Yet as this special diet niche flows rapidly into the mainstream, so few companies have gotten it right. Crumbly, dry, and tasteless are terms often associated with gluten-free foods. Thankfully there is one small manufacturer tucked away in a scenic mountain town that just keeps on giving to the gluten-free community. Since 2001, Namaste Foods has been building upon their product line of gluten-free foods that actually taste good. They now boast a selection that includes eleven baking mixes (from muffins to pizza crust) and three pasta mixes.

As their products have grown significantly in popularity, appearing on grocers’ shelves nationwide, the people at Namaste have decided to expand the versatility of their mixes. Responding to customer requests, they have authored the Simple Pleasures Gluten-Free Cookbook, packed with 60 new ways to use Namaste Foods. Recipes such as the Taco Pasta Salad that follows dot this easy to use resource.

Catering further to their high level of repeat business, Namaste Foods has also redesigned their website for a new look and ease in purchasing direct, along with a host of ordering options. New customers will like the selection of trio packs, which allow you to purchase groups of three different products at a discount, while loyal customers will enjoy the bulk offerings. Every baking mix is now available in bulk sizing for significant cost savings.

Beyond the gluten-free market, Namaste Foods caters to other food allergies and sensitivities. Their mixes are produced in a dedicated facility, which is free of gluten, wheat, potato, soy, corn, milk, peanuts, and tree nuts. Namaste Foods’ baking and pasta mixes are distributed to grocers nationwide. Individually packaged mixes, bulk mixes, trio packs, and the new Simple Pleasures Cookbook are available to purchase directly from www.namastefoods.com.

Mini gluten free apple rolls

My kids got tired of my basic, and easy, roll recipe. I had tried to sneak in some flax seed to provide a little fiber and other good stuff for them, but it became a boring food. So, I tried to change it up on them. And it worked (well, with one child, anyway).
This recipe brings an added layer of flavor to the basic roll recipe. And, later, I'll sneak the golden flax back in.

Here's how to make them. Use your own flours, of course.

Ingredients:
-- 1/2 cup sorghum flour
-- 1/2 cup tapioca flour
-- 1/2 cup corn flour
-- 2 tbsp sugar
-- 1 tbsp honey or syrup
-- 2 tsp baking powder
-- 2 tsp xanthan gum
-- 2 tsp egg replacer powder
-- 1/2 tsp sea salt
-- 1 apple, peeled and diced
-- 1/2 cup of water
-- 1/2 cup oil

Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease an oven pan or use a liner. Mix the dry ingredients -- but not the apples. Put the apples in a small pot with the water. Heat to boil. Let boil 5 minutes. Pour the apple and water mix into a bowl. Using a masher or electric chopper, break down the apples. Pour the apple mush into a half cup measure. You only need a half cup. Add to the dry mix. Then add the oil. Blend together. Scoop into small rolls on the pan. Use an ice cream scoop, tablespoon measure or your hands. Bake for 12 minutes.

Extra crispy chicken wings

How do you make extra crispy wings when you can't have gluten or dairy or eggs? Well, you can, and it's not too difficult. Use your flours of choice, of course.

Ingredients:
-- dozen chicken wings, cut and washed
-- flour mix (i use 1/2 cup sorghum, 1/2 cup tapioca flour, 1 tsp sea salt, 1 tbsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper)
-- 2 egg subs (i use Ener-G)
-- oil of choice (i use canola)

Heat oil in a large pan. Cut wings. Now, toss and coat in the flour mixture. Dip into the egg sub mixture. Toss again and coat in the flour mixture. Cook in frying pan until golden and cooked through. These also could be baked.

The "regular-crispy" version of this is to not use the egg sub. Just coat the wings with the flour mix and cook.

The power of cilantro

So, are you aware of Cilantro's power to detoxify the body? How about the link between cilantro and autism? Cilantro and mercury?

It really is a powerful herb. Many people know it as cilantro, which is a common ingredient in salsas. It's green and leafy, and looks something like parsley. The plant's seeds are known as coriander.

Why am I telling you all this -- because of its detoxifying abilities, including heavy metals. If you're interested, do some research, including reading the scientific study that revealed the herb's powers - click here.

Here's a blog article on the topic that might be helpful.

And, here's a page on cilantro's healthy qualities from The World's Healthiest Foods.

Here's a snippet from the cilantro study:

"However, these mercury deposits, which commonly occur in such cases, were successfully eliminated by the oral intake of 100 mg tablet of Chinese parsley (Cilantro) 4 times a day (for average weight adults) with a number of drug-uptake enhancement methods..."

The study is by Omura, Shimotsuura, Fukuoka and Nomoto, from the Heart Disease Research Foundation, in New York.

Now, here's an easy way to store Cilantro, and for my money the best way. Harvest, or buy, fresh cilantro. Do NOT wash. Pull the leaves from the main stem -- keeping the smaller branches is OK. Place on a flat cookie sheet. Place in freezer for 30 minutes. Pull from freezer and place the crisp leaves in a freezer storage bag. Refreeze. Great way to store. When you want to use some, pull them out and wash.

And, here's a great cilantro recipe from Health Diaries:

Cilantro Pesto
Ingredients:
2 cups loosely packed cilantro leaves (stems removed)
2 tablespoons slivered almonds
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese (my kids can't eat cheese, so i was going to try polenta or just leaving it out)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 cloves garlic
2-4 teaspoons water (depending on desired consistency)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Blend all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Use more or less water to get the thickness you desire.
Serves 4-6 people.
Enjoy.

What's the harm in milk?

This is interesting stuff, especially for us Autism families avoiding the casein gene.

The devil in the milk molecule

The Press Saturday, 15 September 2007

Has a Lincoln University researcher spilt the milk industry's secret about the potential harm in its product or is it more crank science? JOHN McCRONE investigates the latest fuss over A1 and A2 milk.

Is there a health risk in drinking milk? Has there been a naughty cover-up of the facts by Fonterra and others?

These, bluntly, are the questions raised in the explosive new book by Lincoln University agribusiness professor Keith Woodford, who this week reopened a long-festering debate within the New Zealand dairy industry.

The theory, which has been around a decade, seems incredible to most people: that our brains and immune systems can literally be poisoned by poorly digested milk.

Only a certain genetic strain of milk is to blame – the A1 type. However, that is also our most common milk.

The science, put as simply as possible, is that the A1 strain breaks down to release a tiny bio-active peptide fragment called beta-casomorphin-7 (BCM-7). The other kind of milk, A2, breaks down quite harmlessly.

In people who are susceptible, which could be as many as one in five (although this is still a guess), BCM-7 may trigger a host of diseases: diabetes, heart disease, autism, schizophrenia, infant cot-death syndrome, multiple sclerosis, coeliac disease, inflammatory bowel disease – the woes of the Western world it seems.

Then there is the question of an industry cover-up. Read the rest by clicking the blog headline.

Frito-Lay friendly

If you haven't yet realized that not all chips are gluten-free, or soy-free, etc., you might consider Frito-Lay chips. No, I don't get money for saying this. I'm very impressed with this company. They don't make you guess about what ingredients are in the chips you're buying. It's all on the label. And, if you have questions, their Website is extremely helpful. They have an entire section on ingredient concerns that plainly shows you which chips have gluten, which have dairy, which are kosher, which have soy, etc. You can find that page by clicking here.

My kids only can eat the plain Lays, Ruffles and Fritos chips. No Tostitos because of the soy oil used in those. Until now! Frito-Lay recently started selling a Natural Tostitos chip that has no soy. It's in the photo above.

I'll also mention one other thing. No chip is healthy for you. I've tried many to find a good one, including Garden of Eatin and Bearitos -- both very good chips (I prefer the Bearitos). I should also note Terra Chips here for those that are corn and/or potato challenged. But do your own checking. The fat and sodium contents of those health-store chips aren't much less than Frito-Lay chips. Sometimes, the difference is zero. So, for my money, and because of all the saturated-fat snacks my kids cannot eat, AND because Frito-Lay makes it soooo easy for a family like ours to check ingredients, I'll buy Frito-Lay. Support the companies that help us.