I want to stop my day for a moment and send out kudos to Redbook today.  I was reading the newest issue (March 2011) while on my 6 mile run this morning.  I was on the treadmill, so passing that time with something to keep my mind off of how far I have gone or have left to go is key.  I came across an article on page 84 called “Bloated Much?” and thought to myself that I wonder if they will mention gluten in this article.

I began reading the article.  Twenty percent of Americans experience gas, bloating, and other stomach woes on a regular basis.  The following statement got me thinking:

“Women are more likely to suffer from tummy trouble, and rates of many digestive issues that more commonly target women – such as Celiac Disease and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) – are on the rise”. 

I am not sure that I have ever heard that women have more cases of Celiac Disease than men before.  While it may be true, it may also be that women are more likely to visit the doctor than men are. 

The article covers 4 possible causes of bloat and how to assess those causes.  The #1 culprit listed is “What you eat and drink”.  Whenever I hear of someone suffering from a stomach issue of any sort, of course the first thing that pops into my head is food.  If the person is not suffering from an illness, I always suggest keeping a food diary for at least 2 weeks.  There are so many foods that can cause bloating.  This sections lists many, including gluten.  It goes on to say one of my all time favorite things I have read in a magazine:

“That said, if you suspect a gluten sensitivity, don’t try to nix wheat, rye and barley on your own.  See a gastroenterologist for a blood test for Celiac Disease – it’s a genetic disorder that can result in severe nutritional deficiencies if it’s not handled with a proper diet.”

I about fell off the treadmill!  Seriously.  It was quite a sight.  Even with all the increased awareness out there, there are times when I see Celiac Disease or gluten sensitivities mentioned in articles with incorrect information right along with it.  Kudos to Redbook for getting the facts straight. 

The remaining reasons for bloating are #2 “Hormones” #3 “Pills you pop” and #4 “Your crazy life”.  Even if you have Celiac Disease and follow a gluten-free diet, you may still experience bloating that has nothing to do with gluten, so examining these other reasons may be worth your time.  As always, when in doubt, see your doctor.  Better to waste your time & co-pay to find out it is nothing than to ignore something that could be serious. 

Hope that you are all having a fabulous, gluten-free Valentine’s Day!  Aaron and I went out last night for our special dinner and I think that I may have gotten glutened!  ACK!  It has been a long time since this has happened and I don’t miss it one bit!    We often eat at the restaurant we went to last night, so I don’t know exactly what went wrong.  I think not knowing what made me sick is worse than being able to pinpoint it.  I did have something different, so I would love to assume that it was the new entrée so that I can just stay clear of that next time.  I am finally starting to feel a little bit better- 18+ hours later. 

Do you have any special plans today?  I will be enjoying some Dark Chocolate Truffle Hearts from Trader Joe’s later this evening.  Baked Ziti would be a great idea for Valentine’s dinner –

Here is our menu plan for the week:

Monday- Applegate Farms Chicken Nuggets, baked beans, broccoli & salad

Tuesday – Mexican Pizzas, black beans, corn & salad

Wednesday – Baked Ziti, roasted green beans & salad

Thursday – Grilled Cheese on Rudi’s Bread & Amy’s Tomato Soup & salad

Friday – Mellow Mushroom pizza & salad

Saturday – Dinner with my Mom & Joe

Baked Goods

Cookies from Glutenfreeda

Brownies

While this exciting news does not directly affect me, it may affect some of my readers, so I felt compelled to share this information.  I am all about spreading the word when I hear of a restaurant catering to the needs of the gluten-free community.  The more awareness that we have out there, the better for us all. 

When I was weeding through my inbox yesterday, I came across this email that I am going to share below.  After reading through it, I was wishing that we had Taco Time here in Ohio!  It really looks like this company has done their homework to not only offer gluten-free food items, but healthy items, too. 

TACO TIME NORTHWEST ANNOUNCES HEALTHY FIT-HITS MENU

Local Quick Service Restaurant is First to Offer Gluten-Free Menu Items in the Puget Sound

RENTON, Wash. – (February 7, 2011) Today, Taco Time Northwest, a northwest-based family-owned Mexican quick service restaurant featuring fresh ingredients, launches its new Fit-Hits menu. The new menu provides customers with low calorie entrée options to make great choices for good health and is the first Puget Sound-area quick service restaurant to feature gluten-free items on its menu.

Each Fit-Hits menu item is distinguished by simple icons and includes information about calories, fat and sodium content. The Fit-Hits menu features eight items with 400 calories or less and four gluten-free items including white chicken chili, a Baja taco, a Southwest chop salad and a light chicken taco salad.

“At Taco Time Northwest, we’re proud to use the freshest ingredients in all of our menu items,” said Robby Tonkin, president of Taco Time Northwest. “By identifying the healthiest options, we’re giving our customers the tools they need to make informed purchases to satisfy their tastes and meet their dietary goals.”

To kick-off the Fit-Hits menu, Taco Time Northwest introduces Taco Time Health Coach Deborah Enos, who specializes in bringing nutrition information to busy people. A certified nutritionist, accomplished author and motivational speaker, Enos serves on the board of the American Heart Association and has been featured inSelf Magazine, Better Homes and Gardens and Good Housekeeping. Enos will be available through the Taco Time Northwest Facebook and Twitter pages to answer customer questions and provide nutrition tips that can be easily applied to daily life.

In addition to the Fit-Hits menu, Taco Time Northwest‘s website offers a Build A Meal tool that allows customers to view nutrition information for each item on the Taco Time menu and to calculate the complete nutritional information for the entire meal.

Fit-Hits menu items range in price from $1.59 to $5.59. For more information about the Fit-Hits menu, visitwww.TacoTimeNW.com or call (425) 226-6656.

About Taco Time Northwest

Taco Time Northwest is a family-run business headquartered in Renton, Wash. Originally founded by Frank Tonkin Sr. in 1962, the Tonkin family has been instrumental in the management of the company since the beginning. With 72 restaurants in the Puget Sound region, Taco Time Northwest offers the ultimate quick service experience featuring tacos, burritos and specialty side items prepared fresh daily and made to order. In addition to a full menu of Mexican entrees and side dishes, Taco Time provides healthy dining options on its Fit-Hits menu, designed to help customers make great choices for good health. For more information about Taco Time Northwest, visit www.TacoTimeNW.com. Follow Taco Time Northwest on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/TacoTimeNW and on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/TacoTimeNW.

Do you have a Taco Time close by?  Have you tried any of their gluten-free menu items?  I would love to hear feedback on this, as I have never heard of Taco Time until I received this email.  Oh, and can someone send me a Baja Taco? 

Do you have leftovers sitting in your fridge?  Consider combining them and stuffing them inside a large baked potato for a quick meal.  We frequently have leftover veggies and chicken or taco meat, so last week I decided to take those and make a new creation.

Spicy Taco Stuffed Baked Potato

1. leftover taco meat (ground turkey + taco seasoning – Old El Paso Original is GF)
2. baked potato
3. roasted okra
4. cheddar cheese
5. avocado
6. tomato
7. Tabasco Green Pepper Sauce

1.  Bake potato.  I do this step in the microwave & then finish off in the oven if I am not ready for the potato yet.  Simply wash the potato, prick with a fork and place in the microwave.  Microwave for 1-2 minutes, then flip & repeat.  Stick a knife or fork in to test doneness.  The knife or fork will easily slide in if the potato is done.

2.  Heat remaining leftovers and then place on top of/inside potato.  Top with cheese and the microwave for 30 – 60 seconds. 

3.  Top with remaining cold ingredients & enjoy.

Get creative & make whatever combos sound good to you.  This is a great meal for these chilly nights we have had lately and all of the ingredients are naturally gluten-free!!  If you don’t have enough leftovers for the whole family, get a nice variety of toppings out – steam some broccoli, open a can of gluten-free chili or black beans. 

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

I didn’t quite get around to my menu plan this week.  While I wasn’t really watching the Super Bowl, we did have company over and I thought that being engrossed in my computer would not have been the most social way to go about the evening.    The rest of the week will look something like this:

Tuesday – Spaghetti with salad

Wednesday – Stuffed Shells, steamed broccoli & salad

Thursday – Burgers, baked steak fries, asparagus & salad

Friday –Shrimp Scampi, pasta, sugar snap peas & salad

Saturday – Pizza and salad

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

I need to get busy with my Valentine’s Day stuff…..I would love to make some heart shaped cookies this week!  In the meantime, make sure to check out my Valentine’s Day reminder list and Karina’s Gluten-free Chocolate Recipes for Love. 

Today, February 4, 2011 is National “Wear Red Day”.  Heart disease is a real problem in women and our symptoms tend to be much different than they are in men.  Make sure you are aware of the symptoms and don’t hesitate to act if you are experiencing them.  Better to go to the ER, Urgent Care or DR and be sent home because it is nothing than to wait and suffer serious consequences or death. 

Here is some very important information – please take the time to read this:

Signs of a Heart Attack:

Uncomfortable pressure, squeezing, fullness or pain in the center of your chest. It lasts more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back.
Pain or discomfort in one or both arms, the back, neck, jaw or stomach.
Shortness of breath with or without chest discomfort.
Other signs such as breaking out in a cold sweat, nausea or lightheadedness.
As with men, women’s most common heart attack symptom is chest pain or discomfort. But women are somewhat more likely than men to experience
some of the other common symptoms, particularly shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting and back or jaw pain.

Signs of Stroke and TIAs:

Sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body
Sudden confusion, trouble speaking or understanding
Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes
Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination
Sudden severe headache with no known cause

For more information, including Risk Factors, click here to view all kinds of resources and a Knowledge Tool Kit. 

In addition to wearing red today, here are some red foods you can eat to celebrate. 

• Tomatoes
• Strawberries
• Red bell pepper
• Red wine (my personal favorite) – 1 glass a day for women is good for your heart
• Cherries
• Apples
• Sun-dried Tomatoes
• Cranberries
• Cranberry Juice
• Cherry Juice
• Watermelon
• Pomegranate Juice (POM Wonderful rocks)
• Red Cabbage

All the above are naturally gluten-free, making them perfect for celebrating Wear Red Day. 

Some red recipe ideas:

• Lasagna
• Cranberry Sauce
• Parmesan Broiled Tomatoes
• Baked Apples topped with vanilla yogurt & cacao nibs
• Pizza
• Tacos with salsa

If you want to donate to help research, click here to find out where the money goes. 

And, last, but not least, if you head to Macy’s today and wear red, you will receive 20% off of your purchase!  Are you wearing red today?  I am!  I have a red sweatshirt on.

Anyone getting excited for the Super Bowl?  I am not a huge fan of football.  I do like to watch the commercials during the game, but the game itself is not of much interest to me.  I prefer to watch hockey.  One part of the Super Bowl festivities that I do enjoy is the food & drink.  How can you go wrong with a bunch of appetizers and gluten-free beer or wine? 

The other day I talked about some appetizer ideas over on Celiac-Disease.com.  Since then I have run across another recipe that I think will be a huge hit…Gluten-free Taco Party Dip!  How good does that sound? 

Picture & recipe courtesy of Crunchmaster

Ingredients:

1 can fat-free refried beans (most, like Trader Joe’s or Old El Paso are GF)
1 lb. lean ground beef (try ground bison/buffalo for an extra boost of iron)
1 (1.25 oz.) taco seasoning mix (Ortega is GF)
2 c. shredded Mexican blend ( cheddar/Monterey Jack) cheese
1 bag (4.5 oz) Crunchmaster® Roasted Garlic Multi-Seed Crackers
1/2 c. chopped fresh tomatoes
1/4 c. thinly sliced green onions

Optional additional toppings:
1 chopped avocado
3 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
1/2 c. sour cream

Pre-heat oven to 350˚F. In a large skillet, brown the ground beef and season with taco mix. Set aside. Spray a 24 oz. Au Gratin dish, or 9” deep dish pie pan with non-stick baking spray. Evenly spread 1 can of fat-free refried beans on the bottom of the dish. Top with ground beef/taco mixture. Sprinkle with Mexican blend cheese.
Layer the Multi-Seed Crackers around the outside of the dish in an overlapping pattern. Cover crackers with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning.
Bake at 350˚F for 15 minutes, until cheese melts, and dish is warmed through.
Take from oven and remove foil from crackers. Cover with fresh chopped tomatoes and sliced green onions.

Serves 8

My notes are in italics.  In order to get my family to eat that, I would have to leave out the tomatoes and onions.  Or, better yet, add them and I don’t have to worry about sharing!  HA! 

We quickly became fans of the Crunchmaster crackers the first time we tried them.  I believe that they are the perfect pairing for a dip like this. 

Sign up here for the Crunchmaster newsletter and $1 off coupon!

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

Don’t feel like cooking for the Super Bowl?  Check out this offer that P.F. Chang’s put together when you place your take out order online and pick it up on Super Bowl Sunday. 

So, did your team make it to the Super Bowl?   Do you just watch for the commercials or not watch at all?

Right now I am thankful for one thing – power.  I pray that we don’t lose it, as many in our surrounding area have.  Kids are out of school again, so we must get creative today.  The roads seem to have been cleared with the higher temps overnight – 37 right now, but now the ice on the trees & power lines are the problem.  Oh, one more thing, winds up to 40 mph today. 

I would like to thank you all for the wonderful comments on my post yesterday.  You guys have lots of great ideas for orange juice!  I need the following 8 people to email me at kim@glutenfreeislife.com with your address so I can put your coupons in the mail!

1. Susan
2. Kate
3. Christy M
4. Michelle
5. Shelly H
6. Alison C
7. Michelle
8. Ed

Here is a list of ideas for things to do when stuck inside on snow or ice days:

Power:

Skype with others stuck in the same situation.  Consider playing dress up (little girls) or make funny faces at each other

Bake gluten-free goodies.  I am thinking the flourless chocolate cookies that Martha Stewart made with Elisabeth Hasselbeck last week are the perfect activity for today!

Vacuum the house (why not kill 2 birds with one stone?)

No Power:

Head to the nearest friend or relative that does have power (I am a wimp, have I mentioned that?)

Pray

Gather candles for night/dark

Pray some more

As I am typing this out, I heard that OSU has cancelled classes today.  You know something big is going down when OSU closes. 

I am thinking it is time for some of these:

and some of this to go with it:

And, if we do lose power and have several days without, I will be needing a lot of this:

Wherever you are – stay safe.  I know that there are many locations across the US that are experiencing extreme weather conditions this week.  Do you have a gluten-free emergency kit made up?  If not, now may be the time to put one together so that you are always prepared.  This doesn’t only go for those who are gluten-free, it is a good idea for every family to have a kit & plan in place for emergency situations (and I am not talking about just running out of coffee). 

Oh, and finally, it is Groundhog Day.  Please, for the love of my sanity, let there be an early spring.  This girl needs to get her miles in.  I have never invested in a treadmill because I run outside or at my gym, which is literally 2-3 miles up the street.  Never have I had such a hard time getting to the gym to run.   Anyone know if groundhogs like chocolate?  Can they be bribed?  I just heard on our local news that 9 of the last 10 years our local groundhog (Buckeye Chuck) has predicted more winter.  His accuracy rate is 39%. 

Wherever you are, stay safe & be smart.  My OCD self is really itching to get out, but I am trying to be smart, so here I sit and write. 

The weather here sucks.  There is no way to sugar coat it.  Maybe this ice is payback for my complaining about the cold & snow?  Today the kids are off for ice.  Tonight we have snow coming.  Let’s hope that it isn’t too much snow and they can go back to school tomorrow.  Since we can’t do a whole lot here, I put together a post full of thoughts that are running around in my head.

Have you seen the commercial for Gluten-Free Chex Cereals?  Click here to view.  I love that gluten-free food is getting more exposure because this equals more awareness for Celiac Disease.

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

A few weeks back I received a coupon to get a free sample of Florida’s Natural Orange Juice from Smile.ly and Florida’s Natural.  I picked up some while shopping on Sunday and I am glad that I did.  Just in time for the storm!  I am usually an OJ snob and stick with my Tropicana, however, I was really impressed with the Florida’s Natural.  They have many varieties, including my favorite – no pulp with added vitamin D & calcium! 

I have 8 coupons for $1.00 off Florida’s Natural OJ for the first 8 people to comment on this post! 

Another bonus when you buy OJ and have a crippling ice storm…

You have something to mix your Stoli’s with.    The Stoli’s is reserved for evening hours only. 

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

Snow day lunch will include some pasta to help keep us warm.  I prefer to use marinara & roasted veggies for mine, but Jon prefers “Noodles Baldini”.  I don’t believe that I have talked about the NB here on the blog before, so I will give you a brief overview.  Like most dishes Aaron makes, there is not a written recipe.  It is more of a combination of ingredients in amounts he feels tastes good on that specific day.  Today we will be using Goldbaum’s gluten-free pasta. 

Into the mix….

• butter
• garlic powder
• oregano
• basil
• parmesan cheese
• cooked gluten-free pasta

That, my friends is “Noodles Baldini”.  Aaron has made this for the kids for years and it was only recently that Jon learned that he had created this dish.  He thought is was something like “Chicken Parmesan” that he could go order in a restaurant!  LOL!  So cute.  I do believe Gluten-Free Drumsticks are in order for dessert. 

Are you crippled by the recent weather?  What are you doing to stay entertained?  Remember to leave me a comment for your OJ coupon!  Tell me what you will do with your Florida’s Natural OJ!   Too bad they aren’t coupons for the vodka, huh? 

Did you see Elisabeth Hasselbeck on Martha Stewart’s show this week?  She was on Thursday.  I set my DVR to record the show and watched it back later.  I was unsure what to expect as I haven’t been overly impressed with Hasselbeck in the past, but wanted to go into this with an open mind.  Hasselbeck talked a little about Celiac Disease, how many people are diagnosed and how many are walking around undiagnosed.  Martha mentioned that maybe she should be tested, as she doesn’t feel well after she eats bread, though she doesn’t eat it often.  My favorite part of the show was the cookies.  Flourless chocolate cookies.  I will be making these Flourless Double Chocolate Pecan Cookies this week for sure.  If you missed the episode, you can see it here. 

In lieu of meal planning this week, I think I am going to serve Gluten-Free Drumsticks every night.    If you missed my post about the ice cream sundae cones, make sure to head over here to check it out.  Me thinks that the kids would be thrilled if I really did this.  In their dreams, right?  I will be picking up some Magic Shell today at the grocery store to see if that improves the treat.  Can’t wait to experiment!  What a way to carb load for my long runs, right? Wanna see a picture…

Still freezing where you live?  It is here in Ohio.  I hear the south has gotten a reprieve – may they send some of that warmth up north.  I’ll take 50 degrees – anything above 30 would be nice.  March and Spring Break can not come soon enough. 

Dinner Plan

Sunday – Breakfast for dinner

Monday – Baked macaroni & cheese, baked beans and salad

Tuesday – Taco night, refried beans, corn & salad

Wednesday – Bourbon chicken, brown rice, broccoli & salad

Thursday – Leftovers

Friday – BBQ pulled pork in the crockpot (hockey at dinner time), sweet potato fries and salad

Saturday –Mellow Mushroom & salad

Baked Goods

Flourless Double Chocolate Pecan Cookies

Biscuits

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

Weekly Recap

Whole Foods upcoming gluten-free events. 

Ian’s recall.

T.G.I.Friday’s adds gluten-free menu.

Enjoy Life’s cookies are now even tastier! 

Applegate Farm’s gluten-free products.

Schar breaks ground on a new US facility.

Whole Foods almond milk

Kinnikinnick Box O Chocolate Contest

Weird Food Combos

Hope you all have a wonderful week!!  I hear we are due for another snowstorm mid-week.  Yipppee!! 

Have you ever had a gluten-free drumstick?  I am not talking about chicken drumsticks, I am talking ice cream.  You know, the cones that are coated with chocolate on the inside, topped with ice cream, coated in more chocolate & peanuts?  That is what I am talkin’ about!  I am not sure what led me to make these, but after receiving some ice cream cone samples last week from Goldbaum’s, the idea popped into my head.  I get some of the best ideas at the weirdest times.  I was chatting with my sister on the phone (hands free while driving, of course) and she said something that made me think of Drumsticks.

I had to devise a plan on how to make this work.  I had all of the necessary ingredients, so I got to work once I got home.

I used the cocoa sugar cones, Edy’s Cappuccino Chip Ice Cream, chopped pecans and Trader Joe’s Chocolate Syrup.  In hindsight, I think Magic Shell would have worked better and it is gluten-free.  I poured the chocolate syrup into the cone and gently coated the cone using a butter knife.  Then I scooped the ice cream onto the cone.  I drizzled some more syrup on the cone and used a knife to spread it out and then rolled in chopped pecans.  I gently laid the finished product in a bowl and placed it in the freezer to set for a few hours.  Next time I will spray this with Pam to avoid the ice cream freezing to the dish.  Check this out….

O.M.G!!!  These brought me back to my youth!  It is really a sundae in a cone!!  And, the cones are amazing….they taste just like the cones I remember.  Drumsticks were my treat of choice as a child, though we didn’t have them often.  I can’t wait to make more!!  Jon asked for a different ice cream in his Gluten-free Drumstick – Vanilla Fudge Twirl.  He loved them and made me promise to not use any of the other sugar cones for anything but Drumsticks.  I agreed and will be picking up some Magic Shell to experiment!

The Goldbaum Ice Cream Cups are very good as well!  Hannah enjoyed eating her ice cream cone the other day using one of the cups.  I tasted the cup and was impressed that it, too, tasted just like the non-gluten-free cups.

Thank you Goldbaum for such an amazing product!  The cones can be purchased on the Gluten Freely website.

***The cones in this post were provided to me free of charge.  The opinions stated in this blog are mine and have not been influenced by anyone or anything.