Egg Free Adjustment

The past couple of weeks has been a time of adjustment in my kitchen: an adjustment to egg-free. For that change to happen, I needed a provoking insentive - afterall, I always felt sorry for folks that had to go egg free. We can't have gluten, milk, nuts or soy....but AT LEAST we could eat eggs.
Not any more.
The insentive for this change was provded by my husband being sick. Steven and Graeme had stopped eating eggs on their own over a year ago. It seemed they were mildly intollerent to them in large doses. Steven continued to have stomach problems and it took us a long time to connect it with eggs in baking. But now that he has tried eating egg-free, his stomach is feeling MUCH BETTER. I am on a campagn to change over my gluten-dairy-soy-nut-free recipes to also be egg-free. :) God must give grace, becuase what I dreaded isn't so bad! (So far!)
One of my first experiences was with cookies. I had several types turn out VERY WELL. In fact: beter then normal.
My next experience was with bread. That also turned out GREAT! I am shocked, amazed and thankful! I will be posting my new recipes over the next day or two. I hope they turn out as well for you as they have for me.
Jenny

Breadless Breakfast

Not only am I avoiding gluten, dairy, soy and nuts...but right now I am also having to avoid yeast, most sugar and simple carbohydrates. That makes breakfast a bit of a challenge!
Pictured is my current most favorite, satisfying breakfast: One fried egg (or poached), 1 piece bacon or ham or a little shredded chicken, stir fried vegetables (mix of whatever I have on hand and reheated from the night before to save time) with salsa on the side. So, even when the rest of the family is eating muffins, pancakes or toast, I am very satisfied with my delicious, filling breakfast.

For lunch I usually have a bowl of vegetable soup (homemade from leftovers with sliced vegetables and homemade broth added). Sometimes I have a flax wrap filled with raw or stirfied veggies and Dijon mustard.
My afternoon snack is usually fruit: an apple or an orange, grapefruit, or small smoothie.
Supper is whatever the family is eating...with some modifications. I eat little or none of the starch (potato, rice, whatever), a large helping of vegetables (steamed or stir fried) with a piece of meat the size of the palm of my hand. Since I have a very demanding sweet tooth :) I do usually have some dessert at supper: a cookie or a small piece of pie for example.

Eating this way has almost healed me of my long standing UT infection and the gas/bloating from too much yeast in my system. Plus I have more energy - a very welcomed bonus!

Flax Egg Replacer

If you have ever mixed flax with water, you know that if forms a thick, slippery goo. That mixture can be used as a substitute for eggs. I find that it works especially well in muffins. Flax is a source of good fatty acids and fiber: not a bad addition to any baking. Even though we can have eggs, I still add this flax mixture to gluten free bread to give it a lighter texture.

1/2 cup flax seed
2 cups water

-Grind the flax seed in the blender on high for about 1 minute.
-Add the water and continue to blend on high for anther 2 minutes. The mixture will be very thick and a stringy consistency similar to egg white.
-To substitute for eggs: mix 1/4 cup of flax mixture for 1 egg (1 cup of flax mixture for 4 eggs).

Xanthan Gum Revealed

For years I have done all my gluten free baking with xanthan gum. It was expensive but I didn't need much for each recipe and the results were good.

However, my husband and two of the children were always having intestinal problems. It was not the same as if they had eaten gluten or milk, but it was still troublesome and annoying.

By *chance* one day when I was posting a recipe, I googled "xanthan" to make sure I was spelling it right and I came up with all sorts of information on xanthan gum that I never knew before. Lights started going on as I read and I began to wonder if xanthan was actually causing a reaction in some of my family.

I had been thinking that xanthan was a natural product - NOT SO! In fact, I learned that reactions are common and that the bacteria that produces the gum is grown on high fructose corn syrup (YUK!).

After sharing the information with my husband, he said he wanted me to eliminate xanthan gum from our use. I agreed, but inwardly I panicked! I have already eliminated all dairy, gluten, nuts and soy from my kitchen and xanthan is what holds all my baking together!

Well, the first step was to buy some guar gum. This stuff is a natural product - ground from the seed of a plant native to northern India and Pakistan. It can cause intestinal problems in large amounts (like when it was used in diet pills in large amounts to create a feeling of fullness in the stomach - it was banned as a diet pill after it was proven to cause intestinal blockages or damage when used in large amounts). In baking, I substitute it for xanthan gum in the recipe, using slightly more that the xanthan called for. The texture of the dough or batter is slightly different and I have trouble making a nice loaf of bread. :( But I am working on it and experimenting with different recipes. So far, I have gotten bread that holds together and is moist, but does not rise as nice or large as with xanthan gum.
I have included links to a few articles that you may find interesting on xanthan gum. Then you can choose if it is something you want to include in your baking or want or if you want to use guar gum.
Jenny

www.celiac.com/articles/21710/1/Could-Xanthan-Gum-Sensitivity-be-Complicating-your-Celiac-Disease-Recovery/Page1.html

www.wisegeek.com/what-is-guar-gum.htm

www.wisegeek.com/what-is-xanthan-gum.htm

A "Secret Ingredient"

A friend passed on a tip to me the other day. Grace lives down the street from me and has two grown daughters with Celiac, as well as several sisters and nieces (and nephews? - I can't remember :))
Her sister had mentioned that she puts a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar in her gluten free baking (muffins, cakes, waffles, pancakes, etc) and it results in a lighter, better texture! I have yet to try it, but I am eager to see if it makes a difference. I imagine it adds some acidity that makes the baking powder more effective (???) or something like that.

Worth a try, I say!

Christmas Baking Is Coming Up!!!

I will be posting some Christmas baking shortly (probably as I do my own) :)
If any of you want to send me your Christmas recipes, I would love to post them here. Or you could just post a comment with a link to a recipe that works for you. I would love to try some new things! I will also try to include a few more recipes that are egg free.

New Gluten Free Site

I discovered a great looking gluten free blog this morning and I wanted to pass it on. I will be adding this to the label on the sidebar of great gluten free sites. I am also trying a cinnamon bun recipe from her site this morning... I'll let you know how it goes. :)

Affordable Rice Pasta

I have been meaning to post this for a while... and then when Becky emailed me and asked about it... I finally got it done. :)

This great rice pasta is available at "Real Canadian Superstore". The top is ripped off the bag, but it is their "Presidents Choice" brand. I believe that it was in the pasta isle, near middle where the pasta ends and the sauces begin... and since every Superstore is set up nearly the same, it should be easy to find. I have been to the stores in Red Deer and Airdrie and found it in the same place.

The stores are reorganizing... so everything has been moved around (ahhhhh!) - but they are making a "health section" where they have gluten free, organic, low sugar, misc. You have to watch as they will have gluten free pasta right beside organic durum pasta... just read labels.

The real bonus with this pasta is that it is a whole lot less expensive than other leading rice pasta brands. We have bought Celi-Mix, Tinkyada and others. They are all pretty good, but they run from $5-$7 per package. This rice pasta is about $2.50 per package.

That is a pretty good deal as one package feeds our family of 9.

It comes in the curly pasta (shown) and spaghetti.

Baked Rice Paper Spring Rolls

A friend sent me a link to this site and it looks GREAT! (A Gluten Free Day) One recipe of interest is the Baked Rice Paper Spring Rolls . They look wonderfully delicious!

I have bought the rice papers at Canadian Wholesale Club before, but I did not know how to use them. Now I do! :)

Hope you enjoy!

Psyllium Husk Information

Several people have asked me about the psyllium husks that are included in by bread recipe so I want to add some information about it. First of all, I realized that I was spelling it wrong (it has a "y" not an "i").

My family doctor first told me about psyllium when I first had allergies in answer to my question of how to get enough fiber. Psyllium husks are the outer seed covering of the psyllium plant seeds. They are very high in fiber and contain a compound that when mixed with water, makes a mucilage. This mucilage is very healing to the bowel, provides a soft fiber to ease constipation (or avoid it), absorb toxins, help lower cholesterol, regulate blood sugar, and stop diarrhea.

The natural product, Metamucil which is used for relieving constipation and promoting regularity is simply Psyllium. Interestingly, Psyllium is not habit forming: meaning, your colon does not come to depend on you ingesting Psylium in order to eliminate.

You can buy Psyllium at health food stores. I get it a store called "Nutter's" in a bulk bin for a fairly reasonable price. Actually the price on the bin does not look reasonable, but Psyllium husks are so light that they do not add up fast. You can also buy it in capsules which are "easier to swallow" if taking it for your bowel health - as opposed to drinking the slimy mucilage. If you take the husks dry in capsules, you just have to drink a full glass of water and the the slimy stuff forms inside :)

Of course for baking purposes, you will want to get it bulk. If you just can not find it, you can buy the Metamucil at any drug store and just use a couple Tbsp of that in the bread - just make sure that you do not get a flavored kind... "pink lemonade rice bread" just does not sound appealing! However, if you can find it bulk, it will be less expensive.

Just google "Metamucil" or "Psyllium Husks" to get more information.

Gluten Free Oats!!!

Did you know that there was such a thing as gluten free oats? Well, I didn't until today.

Here is a link.