Hooray for GF Off-The-Shelf!

Cooking special treats that don't poison my dear husband are a challenge I'm happy to take on, ordinarily. But when life hands you a succession of lemons, it's time to back off from some of the voluntary challenges. Blogging went by the wayside.

I've not been posting -- or cooking as creatively -- for over a year. In that time we've had a succession of medical situations among our circle of family and friends. Not unexpected when said friends and family range from late 50s to early 90s. But still much sorrow and loss to work through, and new challenges of dealing with health for those who are still with us. 

We have to keep eating, and I want us to eat healthily, so I am profoundly grateful for some new GF products that are out there. 

I'm a big fan of Udi's baked goods, which we find locally at Trader Joe's. Their GF breads and buns actually taste like bread, and spoil like real bread (a good sign, in my opinion). They survive being made into French toast or grilled cheese sandwiches. And the buns have been a great excuse for the occasional hamburger (organic grass-fed beef) or chicken hot dog. Unlike many other GF breads out there, they do not use pineapple, one of my husband's allergens, as a sugar substitute. 

Another fine product we love is The Pure Pantry's Organic Buckwheat Flax Pancake and Baking Mix. Not cheap but good. It's $9.29 at our nearest locally-owned health food resource, Earthbeam Natural Foods in Burlingame.  Draeger's and Whole Foods carry other items in this line, but not this one. When I'm too emotionally wrung out to face all those measuring cups and spoons, this is my go-to breakfast mix. 

Our former favorite mix, a wild rice pancake and waffle mix that worked like a charm, has apparently been dropped by Arrowhead Mills. They now make one GF Mix that approximates the white flour experience. Apparently this is what most people are looking for, and the stores like Whole Foods are simply going with what sells, and cutting back on the variety of options on their shelves, according to their information desk. Another reason for paying a little more at a local business that cares about customers, and will naturally skew toward the preferences of the hippy-dippy granola set like me, rather than what some number-cruncher in the midwest home office decrees. 

Wishing you happy local shopping, and safe and tasty dining. 

The Cheese Tray: A Pot-Luck Strategy

We spent a lovely holiday season catching up with various friends and relations.  As usual, pot-lucks figured into more than one occasion. This year I tried something new: bringing a tray of cheeses for that pre-dinner wait that sometimes takes forever.  Unlike fruitcake, this would work at any time of year.

For persons with multiple food allergies, pot-lucks can be trying. We check in advance with the hostess or other friends, to see what else will be served. Then I plan to bring one complementary dish that is "safe for James" and tasty for normals. This season, my contributions was a large platter featuring sheep and goat cheese, which he can have, along with cow cheese for comparison.

The presentation of the cheeses was instigated by finding adorable white ceramic figures of cows, sheep, and goats: two each plus a pen to write the variety in washable ink at the base of the figure. This led to interesting visits to cheese bars at several local stores featuring a variety of sheep and goat cheeses. You don't need a high-end store to find non-cow cheeses: Trader Joe's now stocks a good variety of Manchgo, Peccorino, Goat Brie, and other cheeses.

Overall, our best finds (all at Whole Foods) were a goat Fleurette, soft and delicious; a "Drunken Goat" with a Gouda-like texture, and a wonderful non-pasturized sheep Manchego. To go with them, I baked a gluten-free whole grain bread from Jacqueline Mallorca, or brought Nut Thins.  The Trader Joe's Basque sheep cheese, Manchgo, and Goat Brie all turned out well too.

The reception varied with just how ravenous people were in the interval before dinner. The first attempt, at Thanksgiving, was devoured in 45 minutes.  Other presentations were nibbled more discreetly.  People enjoyed the animals, although the writing sometimes ran off into the cheese. Only one person flatly refused to go near anything from a sheep or goat, international prizes notwithstanding.

Watching how people deal with cheese, I realized it's not an affectation to use individual planes for each of the hard cheeses and soft knives and spreaders for the soft cheeses. The more expensive cheeses have wonderful, distinct flavors. A little taste goes a long way toward satisfaction.

The project was not as expensive as I'd feared: the cheeses averaged under $5 for a 3-5 ounce cut, which was enough to put out on a tray. And, as with buying wine, you can say up front what price range you are want and the counter person will be able to direct you.

I was happy with the experiment. We learned more about sheep and goat cheeses, most of our friends enjoyed trying some different, and I did not have to knock myself out in the kitchen. Options are good.

Gluten-Free Fair at Draeger's Market

The Gluten-Free Fair at Draeger's Market in San Mateo last Sunday was a great success. There were just enough people to fill the classes and demo spaces but not such a crowd as to render things impassible.

Draeger's Mary Claire had lined up nearly 20 vendors that were scattered throughout the large 2-story building, dispensing bites of amazingly tasty fare. Some were disqualified for James by their buttery and chocolaty goodness; happily many items were dairy-free or vegan.

I'll add more complete details on the products later. Right now I want to be sure anyone who is interested in future meetups can sign up for themselves. So far events have been held at Blackhawk and San Mateo. Draeger's is not cheap but they give good value for your money.



Other great news is that Jacqueline Mallorca's new cookbook, Gluten-Free Italian is out! It was at Draeger's on Sunday and Amazon still thinks it's not released yet. Case in point. I've got my autographed copy in my hot little hand now. Some things are worth paying list price.

Photographic Evidence: These Cakes Are Good Eats

Since I honestly did not expect to win anything when I entered the cooking competition at the San Mateo County Fair, it was quite a pleasant shock to find a blue and a white ribbon gracing my cakes in the display case!

The carob-walnut torte, left, did not turn out as lofty as usual, but it tasted just fine, even after resting overnight. It's based on Jacqueline Mallorca's nifty four-ingredient chocolate-walnut cake in The Wheat-Free Cook, which is probably even better when using unsweetened natural cocoa powder as she specifies. I substitute the unsweetened natural carob powder from Bob's Red Mill, since James is highly allergic to chocolate. This is my go-to recipe when taking a dessert to share with others. It can be made ahead of time, it transports well, and can be cut into small pieces by people who want to sample everything on the buffet.

My adaptation of another recipe from The Wheat Free Cook took third place (left center). As you can see, these gluten-free cakes are not cake mix cover girls. They are low, plain cakes but they have a pleasing texture and good flavor. This is the cholesterol-free walnut-olive oil sponge cake. Jacqueline Mallorca specifies the zest of an orange as the accent flavor, but since James is allergic to citrus, I added chopped ginger instead.


The ribbons are objective testimony that you can eat well despite multiple food allergies, my reason for writing this blog. These recipes are real food that you can serve without qualms to your family and guests. You don't have to make separate food for the person with allergies. My aim in entering the fair was to get some recognition for special diet cooking as a category on its own. Instead, I would up proving my point that you can take these goodies anywhere, and they will be consumed with pleasure.

My other evidence is that James has to watch that the "normals" don't consume his dessert treat before he gets to it, as happened when I took the sherry-walnut cake to a tiki party a few weeks ago. That carob-walnut torte is going to The 25th Annual Gatsby Summer Afternoon this Sunday, along with its blue ribbon. What's a little bragging among friends? County fairs were quite the rage in the 1920s and '30s!