Christmas musings

Working at a retail store, you get to meet all kinds of people - especially during the holiday season. Many are joyful and are excited to share the season of giving with friends and family. Others take it upon themselves to show up their rich friends by giving extravagant gifts they can't afford, while others are so focused on gift-giving that they forget the reason for the season. I often get very frustrated, because I tend to take the stresses of others onto myself - healthy, I know.

Still, during this time of year I always like to take stock of what's really important in my life. I have so many blessings, that it's hard to for me to understand why anyone could hate the holiday season. I have my health, a wonderful family and incredibly faithful friends.

One thing that I love about the holidays is the food! This might be something somewhat superficial to be thankful for, but I absolutely love all the goodies that are cranked out during the Christmas season. My dad in recent years has discovered a love for baking. Two Christmases ago, he cranked out over 200 cookies and probably 10 pounds of peppermint bark. I was in sugar heaven, though I don't believe my hips appreciated this so much. My in-laws always love having people over for dinner, but the holidays are particularly special - there are tons of food, and lots of love around the table.

In order to include Evan in the holiday festivities, my entire family likes to make sure that Evan has food he can eat. My mom made Chex mix this year using only rice and corn Chex. My dad is going to make two turkeys for Christmas Eve dinner - one with regular stuffing and one with gluten free stuffing. My aunt always puts croutons on the side of the salad so that he doesn't have to pick them out.

I guess the reason I love food really, though, is the interesting power it has to bring people together. Haven't you noticed how people are always gathered at the hors d'oeuvres table? At least that's what happens in my family. Eating and talking. Sometimes playing games, sometimes poking fun at each other, but there is always love.

Pie Crust

Fall is one of my favorite times of year. Now, I certainly do not love it because the weather gets colder and the days get shorter. I love the myriad of colors, the way my house gets so cozy and the way a pumpkin spice steamer tastes. What I love most of all, however, is the produce. I have never been one to turn down a slice of apple or pumpkin pie. Or any kind of pie for that matter.

Like me, Evan is a true lover of pie. But, like most people who have to go gluten free, he was worried he may never eat pie again. Luckily, his mom came to the rescue. She thought there must be some way to make a pie gluten free. After much trial and error, they came up with the following pie crust recipe. I hope you enjoy it! It's delicious, simple and much healthier than your average pie crust.

Almond Flour Pie Crust


Ingredients

2 1/4 cups almond flour
5 tbps butter
1/4 tsp salt

Directions

Mix all ingredients together well. Press into a pie plate and fill with your favorite filling! (Note that this recipe DOES NOT work for crusts on top of pies.)

Crohn's and Genetics

Last year, I took a class on human genetic variation. As the final project for the class, we had to write a 10-15 page paper on a topic regarding genetic variation in humans. I decided to focus my paper on Crohn's disease. Because Crohn's is an autoimmune disease, I figured there had to be some kind of genetic connection. If there is a mutation in a gene that codes for a cell receptor on digestive cells, then the body could identify it as foreign and thus attack the cells. 


So, I'd like to share with you my research. This paper is called a "review of the literature." I perused the research of others, compiling and synthesizing it to create a somewhat comprehensive view of the studies that have been done over the years. 


Enjoy this first installment!

It is estimated that 60 to 70 million people are affected by some sort of digestive disease in the United States alone. One to two million of these cases of digestive disease are inflammatory bowel disease, which can be separated into two categories: Crohn’s disease and colitis (Head and Jurenka 2004). Both are defined as a chronic inflammation of the digestive tract. Crohn’s disease can occur anywhere in the digestive system, but is typically found in the ileum or colon (Shoenstadt 2004).  Colitis is essentially the same thing, but is only found in the colon. This review will be focusing on Crohn’s disease, which is a complex interplay of environmental and genetic risk factors. While the evidence is inconclusive as to the exact cause of Crohn’s disease, Western style treatments focus on using drugs. However, the literature suggests that changes in diet can treat the disease much more effectively. Therefore, more research needs to be done on diets that are helpful to people with Crohn’s disease.


While Crohn’s disease is less prevalent than colitis (according to National Digestive Disease Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC 2010) statistics in 1998, Crohn’s affected only 359,000 people, whereas colitis affected 619,000) in 2004 it accounted for 1.1 million ambulatory care visits and 141,000 hospitalizations in the US. Furthermore, 1.8 million prescriptions were made in 2004 for the treatment of the disease (NDDIC 2010). Clearly, the disease has resounding effects. It is typically diagnosed between the ages of 15 and 35 and is the result of inflammatory T helper cells that cause lesions in the digestive tract (Cariappa et al. 1998, Forcione et al. 1996).

Many studies have been done on the demographics of people that Crohn’s affects. It is generally thought of as a primarily “white” disease, in that is rarely found in people not of Caucasian descent. Jeshion et al. (1998) found in a study of 337 children with Crohn’s that 92.9% of their subjects were white, 4.4% were black, 1.2% were Hispanic and 1.5% were other, unspecified races. In contrast, Shapira and Tamir (1994) note that in the United States, the United Kingdom and Sweden, Crohn’s has been predominant in Jewish patients. Shapira and Tamir’s study examined the prevalence of Crohn’s in the Euro-American, African-Asian and Israeli populations of the Kinnaret sub-district of north Israel. They found that the prevalence of the disease in the European-American born population was twice that of the other two populations. This suggests that susceptibility to the disease correlates more with country of origin rather than just their race. This conclusion supports Ghosh and Rona’s (2003) statement that a Western diet is one of the most prominent risk factors of Crohn’s disease.

          

Almond Torte

Evan and I are a match made in heaven. He loves to bake, and I love to eat the products of his baking. Last Christmas, my parents discovered a recipe for almond torte. Being the wonderful people they are, they made modifications to make this delectable dessert "Evan friendly." From that time on, we make this almond torte when we want a fancy dessert. The best thing about this dessert is that you can top it with almost anything and make it your very own. We like berries, and I like chocolate. Anyway, here is the recipe! I hope you like it.

Ingredients


3/4 cup whole almonds or almond meal
Butter (enough to coat bottom of a 2qt baking dish)
1 tbsp plus 1/2 cup honey
4 large eggs, separated
1 tsp almond extract
1/4 tsp salt

Directions


1) Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add almonds and cook 2 minutes. Drain, rinse almonds with cold water, and slip off and discard skins. Pat dry with a kitchen towel and set aside (if using almond meal, you may skip this step).
2) Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix butter and 1 tbsp honey together and coat inside of a 2qt or 10 inch baking dish.
3) In a blender or a food processor, whirl almonds until finely ground (be careful not grind them into almond butter). If using almond meal you can skip this step.
4) In a large bowl, whisk egg yolks with remaining 1/2 cup honey for several minutes until pale yellow and thick. Gently stir in almond meal or ground almonds and almond extract. Set aside.
4) In a large clean bowl, beat together egg whites and salt until firm and peaks form. Stir 1/3 of the whites into yolk-almond mixture to combine thoroughly, then gently fold in remaining whites. Pour batter into prepared dish and bake until set and golden brown on top, about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes. Serve topped with your favorite toppings!

An Advantage of Your Non-Dominant Hand

As I was browsing my iGoogle page, I clicked on the news module and stumbled upon an article which discussed a study done by researchers of the University of Southern California. Apparently, one way to cut down on overeating is to eat with your non-dominant hand. 

The study put participants in a dark movie theatre to watch a series of movie trailers. The participants had easy access to both fresh and stale popcorn. When the researchers compared the amount of popcorn eaten with the non-dominant versus dominant hand, the amount of stale popcorn eaten was 30% lower when the participants used their non-dominant hand. The amount of fresh popcorn eaten didn't change significantly.

The study also looked at whether the environment affected the amount of food eaten. The participants were also placed in a darkened meeting room and watched a slideshow, again with popcorn close at hand. The researchers found that less popcorn of both stale and fresh varieties was eaten in the meeting room than in the theatre.

Now, this really doesn't have much to do with gluten free eating, I just thought it was an interesting idea. After all, even if you are being healthy by eating gluten free, it won't do much for you if you can't control how much gluten free food you put in your mouth.

Yogurt - Homemade is best

When you think about the things that you make from scratch, yogurt doesn't tend to be on the list. However, if you are on a specific carbohydrate diet (SCD) like Evan, then if you eat yogurt you only eat the homemade kind.

Before I met Evan, I had no idea that yogurt could be made at home. I figured that it was some complicated process that milk had to go through in order to become yogurt and that it was best left to the "professionals." And, I'll admit that I prefer store-bought yogurt. However, after reading up on the subject, I'll be working to change my tastes.

Now, obviously this thinking is quite flawed. Before the mechanization of the food system there was yogurt, and the people that made it got along just fine without any fancy equipment. And, according to one article, they were better off for it.

In spite of catchy advertising and sophisticated equipment for making yogurt, the big companies like Yoplait and Dannon are getting it all wrong. Some store-bought yogurt is fermented for only one hour! This isn't nearly enough time for all the lactose to be broken down and for the probiotic cultures to grow. Instead, yogurt should be fermented for a full 24 hours if you want to see the full benefits - but you won't find these benefits in a store.

One of the best wedding gifts we received was from Evan's parents. They gave us a wonderful Yogourmet yogurt maker, which is the same one they bought when Evan went on the SCD 10 years ago. They found out about the Yogourmet yogurt maker through a lady named Lucy. Lucy maintains a website called Lucy's Kitchen Shop, which contains products especially for the specific carb diet.

Now, making your own yogurt is actually incredibly easy. The yogurt maker comes with specific directions, so I won't detail them here. However, if you have a digestive disease, I highly recommend purchasing a yogurt maker in order to replenish the good bacteria in your digestive tract. It will do you a world of good.

Larabars

One of the things I have come to realize is that making a quick lunch on a gluten free diet is not easy. Most people can throw together a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and toss some crackers into their lunch bag and call it good. Obviously, gluten free eaters aren't free to do this. We have to be much more creative, or we have to be willing to spend a bit more money on decent gluten free bread.

One product that Evan and I love as a supplement to a sack lunch is Larabars. These fruit and nut bars are not only gluten free but also dairy free, soy free, vegan, kosher AND non-GMO. The best part is that the contain only things that are good for you - there are no preservatives; they are 100% fruit and nuts.

Evan and I first discovered Larabars at a small snack shop on our college campus. Evan read the ingredients and became very excited because they were something he could actually eat. He was also excited because each bar contains about 200 calories. Because of his diet, it is very difficult for him to gain weight, so high calorie snacks are always a bonus for him.

Now, for those of you who are on a gluten free diet and are worried about your snacks having calories, don't be. Because of the composition of these bars, they provide you with good fats, have no cholesterol and have at least 4 grams of protein. The benefits of eating these bars definitely outweigh the number of calories. Besides, in going gluten free you eliminate some of the most useless calories from your diet - cookies, cakes, doughnuts, bread, refined pasta...I could go on and on, but I won't.

If you are interested in trying Larabars, I'd recommend purchasing a single bar first. Their flavor takes some getting used to, and some flavors are better than others. Be warned - stores will charge up to $2 for a single bar. However, the most cost-effective way to purchase them is buy them at Costco. The box contains 15 bars in three different varieties and costs about $15, saving you up to $1 per bar.

Fusilli with Mahi Mahi and Broccoli

When I got home from class today, I was having a craving for Mexican food. However, since we didn't have any diced tomatoes with green chilies, I thought I should figure something else out (I love to mix refried beans with diced tomatoes and green chilies).

Well, since I couldn't get Mexican food out of my head, I decided to thumb through a cookbook that my aunt gave me a few years ago. I haven't cooked much out of it because many of the recipes require either a lot of ingredients or a lot of time, and I generally do not have either of those things.

Luckily, I stumbled across a pasta recipe that sounded simply delightful - Fusilli with Monkfish and Broccoli. I scanned the ingredients, and I realized that I had all the ingredients to make the recipe with a few modifications.

Upon completion of the recipe, Evan and I sat down to eat. With the steaming pasta sitting in front of me, I felt like life was complete. It has been a long time since I made pasta with homemade sauce other than spaghetti sauce, so I was very excited to try something new. We were amazed at how my experimentation yielded such a delightful dish.

So, I've decided to pass along the recipe with my modifications to you. It's a wonderful combination of gluten free whole grains, fish and vegetables. By the way, the picture is of the leftovers. I'm sorry that I don't have a more appetizing shot for you! I was more focused on eating it that photographing it when it was done!

Ingredients

4 oz broccoli, divided into florets

3 tbsp olive oil

12 oz mahi mahi fillet, skinned and chopped into bite sized pieces

2 garlic crushed, crushed

Salt and pepper

1/2 cup dry white wine

1 cup plain yogurt

1/2 cup corn starch

14 oz brown rice fusilli

Parmesean cheese

Directions

1. Divide broccoli into small sprigs. Boil broccoli for 2 minutes. Drain and refresh under cold running water, set aside.

2. Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add mahi mahi, garlic and add salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring frequently for about 5 minutes or until fish is opaque. Pour in white wine, yogurt and corn starch. Cover and cook until sauce has thickened, stirring occasionally. Stir in broccoli.

3. While the sauce is cooking, cook brown rice fusilli according to package directions. Drain and place back into cooking pot. Add sauce and stir. Serve immediately.

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

One of my favorite things to do on a rainy day with my friends was always to bake. We'd make cakes and brownies from boxes of course, but our favorite was homemade chocolate chip cookies. Obviously, the recipe found in the Betty Crocker cookbook doesn't work very well if you're on a gluten free diet. Luckily, I have been given a recipe that, in my opinion, is much better than old Betty Crocker.

These cookie bars are soft and chewy, and because they contain honey rather than sugar as a sweetener, they taste even better than your average chocolate chip cookie.

I have just a couple of notes about this recipe. First, I refer to the cookie mixture as batter, not dough, because prior to baking it really has more of a batter consistency. Second, these cookies are VERY soft, and really don't hold together that well after baking. However, if you place them in the freezer for a few hours prior to serving, they hold together much better and have more of the consistency of a "normal" cookie. I don't typically do this because I like my cookies really soft, but it's simply a matter of preference.

Anyway, here is the recipe! Enjoy the gluten free cookie goodness!

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter

1 cup honey

3/4 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2 1/2 cups rice flour

3/4 tsp baking soda

1 12 oz package gluten free chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1. Cream the butter, honey, vanilla and eggs in a large mixing bowl.

2. Mix in the flour

3. Mix in the baking soda

4. Add about half of the chocolate chips and mix

5. Pour cookie batter into a 13x9 inch baking pan

6. Sprinkle as many chocolate chips as desired on top of the batter

7. Bake for about 10 minutes. Check at 5 minutes by sticking a toothpick or knife into the middle to see if it comes out clean. If it does, they are done!

Laguna Cafe

Yesterday, Evan and I celebrated our first anniversary. Since we went to Hawaii in May, we didn't do anything extravagant. However, we did treat ourselves to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II in IMAX 3D, which was beyond epic, along with an amazingly delicious dinner at the Laguna Cafe.

Prior to our experience last night, we had been to Laguna Cafe a few times, always with friends. Upon our first visit, I admittedly was not expecting much, since the reviews generally stated that the food was overpriced for what you get.

They were wrong.

The prices (I think) are quite reasonable, especially for a locally owned and operated venue that uses local, fresh ingredients. They are very comparable to other dinner restaurants. And of course, they serve up some delightful dishes, many of which are gluten free. Their burgers are divine, and their seafood is top notch. Their steaks are infinitely hard to forget.

Last night, we began with a light seafood crustini, a creamy mix of crab, shrimp and white fish (3rd picture). Normally, it is served on a crisp crustini, which is a type of cracker, but we requested some gluten free dippers. We were pleasantly surprised when we were served with a plate of tortilla chips, along with cold, fresh red bell peppers, avocado and cucumber. The vegetables paired wonderfully with the seafood mixture, and it was the perfect way to open our meal.

Next, we were served our entrees. Both of our meals were preceded by a light spinach salad. Still, with weak resolve, I ordered the portobello mushroom ravioli with sweet red pepper alfredo. Obviously, nothing about this dish was gluten free, except the aged parmesean cheese that topped it. Evan's entree, however, was obviously gluten free and is probably of much more interest to you as a reader.

Evan ordered the coho salmon, which was served with a fresh mango salsa, Laguna's signature rosemary potatoes and fresh vegetables (2nd picture). The salmon was seasoned and cooked to perfection, while the salsa added a summery touch. Also, I normally think of potatoes as "filler" when they are included with a meal. However, the roasted rosemary potatoes served by Laguna Cafe are a wonderful compliment to any entree. Evan drank a glass of Old Vine Zinfandel (recommended by our waiter) which enhanced the flavors of his meal.

Finally, we arrived at dessert (3rd picture). Now, one of Laguna's downfalls is that they do not have many gluten free dessert options. However, the one they do have is to die for. It is an apple pie sundae, composed of apples prepared as they would be for a pie, top notch vanilla ice cream, warm Ghirardelli caramel and whipped cream. Upon a simple description of this dessert, we knew we had to order one. We could not have been more satisfied with this choice. The sumptuous flavor of this dessert enveloped our tongues from the very first bite. Our waiter also provided us with a tasting glass of a sweet madiera wine which rounded out this delectable treat.

Laguna Cafe is a wonderful stop for anyone looking for a relaxed, upscale yet affordable dinner with a friendly waitstaff and great atmosphere. The restaurant does not have a website, however you can purchase gift certificates on Restaurant.com to make your dining experience even more budget friendly.

Website: http://www.restaurant.com/rdc/laguna-cafe-spokane-american-restaurant-rid=352040?&mcn=00055092

Adaptation for Pancakes

Quite some time ago, I posted a recipe for gluten free banana pancakes. If you've tried them, you know they are delicious. However, there is a small adaptation you can make if you are out of bananas, or simply don't like them. Instead of using a banana to bind the pancakes together, you can substitute a teaspoon of tapioca flour. When you make this switch, the pancakes are still totally gluten free, but they don't take on their own flavor. This is ideal if you're looking to add your own ingredients, like strawberries, blueberries or chocolate chips.

I hope you'll use this adaptation to create your own favorite pancake type!

Thai Bamboo

Thai food. Just writing the words makes me think of rich flavors, diverse seasonings and delightful desserts. Last night, Evan and I enjoyed a lovely dinner at Thai Bamboo's new restaurant location. They recently moved a few blocks north of their original location, to 5406 N Division St and an entirely new building. We watched the building go up over the course of almost a year, and though the outside looks a little goofy, the inside is just wonderful. They have a banquet room, a lounge and patio seating. Their main dining area is adorned with "bamboo" chandeliers with birds gracing the branches. The ceiling is embedded with hundreds of fiber optic cables to imitate the night sky when you look into your granite topped table. Also, the ceiling is lit in such a way that it changes color. It goes from pink to purple to green in about a minute. All this makes for a wonderful dining atmosphere.

Now onto the food, which I'm sure is why you're even reading this post. The menu boasts of 14 different categories, including drinks and desserts. Though the curry list is small, they make up for it in their diverse noodle, noodle soup and rice options. Plus, they have several house specials which never fail to please.

On this particular visit, I ordered rahd nah, a kind of stir fry consisting of wide rice noodles, carrots, pineapple, broccoli, cabbage and zucchini cooked in the chef's special sauce. I chose to have mine with chicken, but you can also have it with beef, pork or prawns (an extra $2 is added to the bill for this option). Upon being served the dish, I immediately dug in. The noodles had been cooked to perfection. They wonderfully tender and had absorbed the flavor of the sauce very well. The veggies and the pineapple all added a great flavor, though I would have appreciated more pineapple in this dish because it was complemented well by the sweetness of this particular sauce. That being said, I should have ordered the dish with at least two stars of spiciness because it was almost too sweet.

Evan ordered the chicken cashew nut, which, according to the menu is very popular. This was a delectable dish of chicken, cashews, bell peppers, green beans and onions sauteed in a sweet chili sauce. The chicken had picked up the flavor of the sauce and had a great texture. The cashews added a nice crunch, while the onions and the bell peppers added a distinct flavor that I can't quite put my finger on. Overall, I thought Evan's dish was a bit tastier than mine, but it was an entirely different concept.

We did not order an appetizer or a dessert, though we have in the past. For a delicious gluten free dessert at Thai Bamboo, I recommend the mango white sticky rice. The combination of warm and sweet sticky rice with coconut milk, toasted sesame seeds, palm sugar and mango is unparalleled. The black sticky rice pudding is also good. Stay away from fried banana. The banana is wrapped in a spring roll wrapper, which is definitely not gluten free. As for appetizers, the satay skewers are always a delicious and safely gluten free choice.

All in all, I have very much enjoyed my experiences with Thai Bamboo, though this was my first visit to their new location. They have always had a very friendly wait staff, quick service and great food. I will be back soon, and I hope they add a happy hour menu to their new lounge.

Website: http://www.thaibamboorestaurant.com/

This post is featured in Dine in the 509! (http://dineinthe509.tumblr.com/) Check it out!

Eating out in Spokane

As many of you gluten free eaters know, eating out is not easy when you're trying to keep your diet. Generally you have to get creative, like by using your hamburger buns as handles rather than a food item. Many restaurants don't offer have many gluten free alternatives. However, as "gluten free" becomes more in vogue, more and more restaurants are jumping on the wheatless train. Spokane, of all places, has a plethora of restaurants boasting some delicious gluten free options. Some even have entire gluten free menus.

I'm planning on starting a series of blog posts about dining out gluten free in the beautiful Spokane, Washington, as well as pitfalls to look out for when it comes to maximizing your options at not so gluten free restaurants.

So, stay tuned for some amazingly delicious gluten free dining options!

Sweet Marie's

Going gluten free on Kauai hasn't been as difficult as we originally thought! I'll admit, I've been eating the buns on my hamburgers, but we've found several places that offer delightful eats for relatively low prices that he's been able to enjoy gluten free.

A few days ago, we visited the Pono Market for lunch. They serve up some amazing local food. We had pork lau lau and ahi poke. The poke was basically a raw fish salad, but MAN it was tasty! (Raw fish is not something that we venture to eat on a regular basis.) Lau lau is meat wrapped in spinach leaves and then cooked to perfection.

Then, two days ago we were on our way to a hike and were planning on eating breakfast at a sit-down restaurant. We drove right past it on the highway, lucky for us! We ended up grabbing some delicious muffins at this small gluten free bakery that I noticed on our way into Kapa'a from the airport. It's called Sweet Marie's Hawaii, and it was a great find. Even if you don't plan on coming to Kauai anytime soon, she has a small selection of wonderful baked goods that can be purchased from her website. If you live on Kauai, she has a variety of services, from catering and wedding cakes to cooking classes.

Needless to say, we will return to Sweet Marie's before our trip is over.

Gluten free vacation

Yesterday, Evan and I flew into Hawaii for our very long awaited honeymoon. Needless to say, we are beside ourselves with excitement. However, it is amazing how difficult it is to eat gluten free while you're on vacation. The airline gave us a complimentary breakfast, but it was a very sugary blueberry muffin and a ham and cheese breakfast sandwich. Both tasted okay, but they were certainly not the kind of fare you eat while trying to maintain any kind of diet, let alone a gluten free one.

This morning, we had a simple breakfast of eggs and pineapple. The pineapple was some of the most delicious I have ever tasted. It was perfectly formed, with wonderfully green leaves and that wonderful brownish-green outside. The inside was a delightful yellow, and simply flowed with delectable pineapple juice. Breakfast was easy. The hard part will be lunch.

As Spring comes...

In spite of the rainy weather, I can't help but look forward to the coming of Spring. I suppose technically it's already here, since March 21 is the first day of Spring, but you would know it with the rain, cold and lack of leaves on the trees.

But, it's amazing how just one small thing can give you hope for better times. Today, as I was riding my bike to school, I noticed leaf buds on the deciduous trees! That means that slowly but surely Spring is indeed on it's way.

I feel like this is how God helps us through tough situations sometimes. He lets us feel the full force of the consequences of our bad choices (and even sometimes the choices of others), but gives us glimmers of hope to let us know that he is still there, still listening. And, he reminds us that sometimes we have to go through bad things to develop into who we are supposed to become. He is constantly refining us, as gold is refined in fire.

I know this doesn't have much to do with living gluten free, but I think it's something we all need to keep in mind. After all, we all need encouragement sometimes, especially when we are making difficult lifestyle changes, like going on a gluten free diet. It always helps to have support, and it's wonderful knowing that you have the support of an all-loving and all-knowing God.

Excuses, excuses

It's amazing how easy it is to make excuses. I'm not going to go to the gym because I need to clean the kitchen. I am not going to do my homework because I feel tired. I am going to have candy, dessert and more dessert because I've got family in town.

You've probably guessed what I did this weekend. I ate a gigantic amount of sugar, and some gluten. I'd like to think I'll stop making excuses, but the truth is, it's so much easier to make those excuses. All there is really for me to do is to lean in Christ's love and trust that He is forming me each day to be better than I was before. I have to allow Him to teach me how to be a better steward of what he's given me, from my skills, to my money, to my body. I have to allow Him to teach me how He wants me to use these gifts.

After all, their not really mine anyway.

Pizza!

So I had been doing really well eating COMPLETELY gluten free, even when we went out to breakfast our last day at home. I'm a sucker for perfectly cooked pancakes, so this was really tough. Anyway, yesterday I was so hungry at work I felt lightheaded. A coworker had some goldfish crackers. Needless to say, I couldn't resist. I mean, who could, with their cute orange color and smiley faces? Just kidding. I should have stuck to the communal carrots. But, I have noticed an improvement in my energy levels even in the past couple of weeks of eating like this. And, I also noticed when we went out to eat (before my resolution, of course) and I got a heaping plate of pasta, I was unusually tired and grumpy the next day. This, I am certain, is no coincidence.

Now for the good stuff. Evan and I discovered a great recipe for gluten free pizza dough! We have yet to perfect the bake time on our pizzas to get the thin dough to be nice and crispy, but it still tastes delicious. This recipe is relatively easy to make, and you can find the ingredients at your local grocery store. No need to go to a specialty foods store!

Gluten Free Pizza Crust

Ingredients:

2-1/2 cups rice flour

2-1/4 tsp gluten free quick rise yeast

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp Xanthan gum

3 tbsp olive oil

1-1/2 cup warm water; divided

1 tbsp honey

Directions:

Combine flour, yeast, salt and Xanthan gum in a large bowl. Stir in 1 cup water, olive oil and honey. Next, use hands to work the dough. Use the remaining water (as much as needed) to hold the dough together. Knead the dough for five minutes then cover and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Lightly grease a 12 inch pizza pan and flatten dough into the pan. Press the dough into the pan and against the sides to make the outer crust. Top as desired and bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Isn't it amazing how quickly we can fail? I've already eaten some gluten. Yesterday, Evan, my sister and I went to Royal India (an amazing Indian restaurant) and we ordered garlic naan. Of course, I ate some. It is just so delectable to dip it in the Indian curries - simply irresistible. At least to me. Like I said, I have very little willpower when it comes to eating gluten in social settings.

But, today is a new day. Today I can try again to be completely gluten free. Today, I have another chance. So far, I've succeeded. I haven't eaten anything yet.

New Year's Resolutions

At church this morning, the pastor did a sermon on New Year's resolutions. Supposedly, half of the people in America make New Year's resolutions and the top two resolutions are to lose weight and to save money.

I normally don't make New Year's resoltuions, because they are those things that people make on January 1st and forget about by January 7th. However, I think this year I'm going to give the resolution thing another try. You probably know that I've been eating (mostly) gluten free since Evan and I got married. I eat gluten every once in awhile, like when we go out to eat. So, I resolve this year to eat completely gluten free. That means no bread when we go to restaurants, no Olive Garden (for some reason, they haven't gotten the gluten free pasta message) and no cakes or cookies.

This will be REALLY hard for me. It's not difficult when we're at home because we don't keep gluten in the house. But, when we get into social settings, like parties and family get togethers I have very little will power. So, we'll see how this goes!