Such a slacker!

With vacation, me being sick, Ken being sick, dad falling and having to go to the ER, work and a few other incidents, I have fallen way behind on my posts!  I will have to sit down and organize myself a bit, but I will say I have continued to find new and delicious gluten free restaurants and food!   

I also stumbled across a gluten free discount card.  It cost $10 and has some discounts for a few places, so I figured, why not!  It arrived this week and I am anxious to give it a try.  They have two separate ones, one for Dauphin county and one for Cumberland.  I bought both since I live in one and work in the other.

http://www.glutenfreebeescard.com/

I finally decided to try something else off the gluten free menu at Piazza Sorrento, as I figured, if they are nice enough to have such a full menu, I should give more than pizza a try.  I had their chicken Marsala over risotto.  It was delicious!   So glad I gave it a shot.   

In Massachusetts, many places were able to accommodate me, and I appreciate the efforts they made.   We hit Guiseppe's Ristorante and Piano Bar, and they had a wonderful gluten free pizza and just a nice atmosphere.  I would so love to go back there.   http://www.giuseppesma.com/

I recently purchased Three Bakers gluten free stuffing and am looking forward to seeing how it tastes.  My hope is that it is close to Stove Tops.  That, would be awesome.   

That is about all for now, until I sit down and organize the things I have been accumulating to add.

frozen pizzas and pizza puffs

I tried two new gluten free pizza's I ordered from the gluten free mall.  Udi's and Contes Margherita pizzas.   Now I LOVE Udi's breads, so I was certain I would love their pizza.  I didn't.  It really didn't have much flavor, which was a let down.   I may give their pepperoni pizza a try, as sometimes, that's enough to spice up a bland pizza.   The Contes was good.  I might still add a little extra flavor to it, but overall, a good frozen pizza.  Nice crust, lots of toppings, and it smelled and looked like a real pizza.  

I did try a new pinterest recipee out last week, for pizza puffs.  It wasn't bad.  I would make it again.   I think though, that I need to find a better pepperoni to put in it, as mine was a little extra greasy.  I know pepperoni is greasy, but this had a little extra which can hurt the tummy.

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs

• 3/4 cup flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 3/4 cup whole milk
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 cup cubed pepperoni
• 1/2 cup store-bought pizza sauce

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 24-cup mini-muffin pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, Italian seasoning; whisk in the milk and egg. Stir in the mozzarella, Parmesan and pepperoni; let stand for 10 minutes.

2. Stir the batter and divide among the mini-muffin cups. Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, microwave the pizza sauce until warmed through. Serve the puffs with the pizza sauce for dipping.

What's in my rice?

Even before the gluten sensitivity diagnosis, rice has been one of my favorite foods.   I especially love brown rice.  In the gluten free world, most everything that is bread or dough related has some sort of rice flour.   Which again, made me happy, as I am down with rice.

Then this week, we find out there are high arsenic levels in rice??? Or , shall I say, higher levels then are permitted in our drinking water.  All because this super yummy food is extra absorbent and sucks it right out of the soil and/or pesticides?

UGH.

Now they are suggesting maybe boiling 1 part of rice in 6 parts of water and drain off the water to dilute the issue.   Interesting.  To me, that seems like the levels are a bit of an issue then.  

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=161393708

Vacation and family

I haven't been feeling well the past week or so, so I haven't been trying or doing much. With that said, I did try a new gluten free ravioli from Conte and it was yummy. Ken said he wouldn't have known it, or the garlic bread I made with Udi's whole grain bread, were gluten free. SCORE! If I wouldn't have been so hungry, I would have taken pics. I also ordered and received some gluten free breadcrumbs recently, and look forward to giving those a shot! They were from Mozzarelli's http://www.mozzarellis.com/gluten-free-bread-crumbs.html. To meet their minimum order requirements I also ordered some frozen pizza dough's. I still have the Gnocchi from the gluten free mall to use, for the mac and cheese recipe from Pinterest with gnocchi's instead of macaroni noodles. Mmmmm, I love fall, or as Ken referred to it when I talked of Crockpot season, the fat season. So be it. :-)

We are going on vacation the first week of October with my family. I am excited to get back to Massachusetts, which we love, but haven't been able to get to in a long time. Also excited to try some of the gluten free places I have already found there. I will have my gluten flam pills with me, as, if Sugar Mags has their carrot cake pancakes I will be partaking! After the past couple of years, losing some relatives that really were some of my favorite people, family medical dramas and everything else that goes on in a day, it will be really nice to get away. And as my Mom says, we never really had family vacations growing up, so this will be good. Although it's 8 hrs in the car with my family. I think I owe Ken big for this one!

On the note of Grandpa's passing, his house goes up for sale next week. I am filled with deep sadness and relief over this. I hate to see it go, and that it really is the final part of it all, and while not everyone understands it, we still have that place to go to right now. It's still a part of him, that's tangible. Once it's sold, it's done. Even thinking about it makes my eyes well up. He built that house for his family. He raised his family there. Watched children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, run freely. Made wine there, holiday meals, memories. So many wonderful memories. Even all the family BS that has come about since his illness and subsequent passing can't make me forget the good memories. Some moments in time, are cherished more than any object can ever be. Even with all that, I am relieved that it’s close to no longer being a tie to the relatives that are so very caustic.

New things

So, I have been wanting to try the soft pretzel recipe out of Nicole Hunn's , Gluten Free on a Shoestring.   The first time, the dough did not rise, and I thought it was because of the temperature of the water.  Not having a thermometer, I just judged the temp based on how it felt in relation to my skin.  I threw that dough out.   I got a thermometer, and measured everything and put it in the food processor, with the correct blade, and I think it may have risen a little. They didn't' roll out as they should and the texture seemed way off.   But I decided instead of scrapping this one, I would bake them out anyhow.   Flavor wise, they weren't bad.   I believe though, the issue with the rise is that I use the Splenda sugar blend, which I read was still good for yeast, instead of regular brown sugar.   I think I will give this a third try and use real brown sugar and if it doesn't rise then, then I am not meant to conquer this recipe.  My goal is to get the dough to rise correctly so I can convert it into pretzel bites and make a cheese sauce and have my own homemade pretzel bites :-)
My mother has bought me a box of a Chia Chocolate Chip Cookie mix to try.   Now, I prefer to make my own, but I wanted to give it a shot.  While they weren't bad, I wouldn't be rushing back to buy the mix.   Just prefer the good old fashioned homemade chocolate chip cookies.  
I am looking forward to trying the family Pizzelle recipe with Better Batter.  I think it will be nice to have some again.  I miss certain family favorites and looking to convert all to gluten free that I can.  Biscotti are next!!
Next week a few girls from work and I that are all Gluten Challenged are ordering out from Wild Tomato for lunch.  I am excited.  I am hoping to get the Mushroom-o-Rama pizza I swear I ordered Friday, but got a regular instead?  Also that same day, a few girls from work and I are having drinks at Flinchy's which has gluten free options.  I am excited.  
Ken and I are also trying to plan a vacation with my parents, as we all need a get away after all that has happened in the family the past two years and my parents really haven't had a real vacation in ages.   I think we are finally heading back to New England.   woo hoo!!!    Ken and I have been wanting to go back there for a few years now and I am glad to be able to get back up there in the fall.  

Labor Day weekend

We went up north to visit Ken's family for the Labor Day weekend and hit up the Grotto while we were there. I must say, I got the gluten free pizza with pepperoni this time, much better than I remembered the last one being. I quite enjoyed it. Unfortunately we didn’t' have time to go to the Dough Company too, but next trip I am sure we will. In fact, I found on the gluten free registry that the sushi place up there, Katana, has gluten free soy sauce, SCORE!
Next week the fellow gluten free ladies and I are having Wild Tomato for a little luncheon of our own. I know, surprise, I am eating Wild Tomato. I can't help it, it's good and they have soooooo many options. One of the ladies at work is also a fan, and I brought in some leftovers for another and she loved it. So I figure, why not expose a few more to it and see if I can keep bringing on new fans? I believe if you like a business, support it. There are so few places that offer not only the options but the care and customer service that Wild Tomato does, that I want to do my part to keep it around.
I also found that Annie's makes gluten free single serves of mac and cheese. I still needed to add more cheese to it to make it creamy, but it was delightful :-)
I plan on trying the gluten free pretzel recipe out of Gluten Free on a Shoestring this weekend. I have been dyeing to try it and make my own cheese dipping sauce. I think, this could only lead to good things!

Pizza and brownies

I tried a new gluten free pizza last week, from Jojo's in Mechanicsburg. The sauce and toppings were great. The crust was similar to most of the places around here. To date Wild Tomato still holds the best crust; well best gluten free pizza hands down award! And I am not just saying that as they are awesome enough to send out a thank you card !! But this was still enjoyable and I would get it again.
I also gave Betty Crocker's Gluten Free Brownie mix a test drive. I have to say, not because it's super easy to find in a grocery store, that I prefer it to the better batter brownie mix. The Better Batter was still damn good. But there was something about that Betty Crocker one that was impossible to tell the difference between it and a glutinous one. It was just scrumptious. And I toped it with peanut butter chips :-) , as we all know, peanut butter and chocolate are one of the greatest pairings known to man!
There are a few places popping up on the gluten free registry for gluten free pizza that I am curious to try. Unfortunately, just because it shows up on there doesn’t mean you can find any info on it when you go to their website. It also doesn’t mean they will reply to your email requests citing said discrepancy. *grumble* but I am still totally looking forward to checking them out.

On a non food related note, we went over to my grandfather's house to look around a bit, take it all in. It was the first time I was able to be in there without all the drama and really take it all in. I can't begin to describe the heartache of seeing a garden that was so meticulously and expertly cared for all those years, weed ridden and so sad looking. To see the house that my grandfather built (designed, whatever) for his family, to be in the process of being gutted for resale, just tears through me. I look in a room and see visions of memories past, and am filled with joy and sadness all at the same time. I went through, room by room, just to try and make peace with all that has happened there. Seeing the room where my grandfather passed away all but brings me to my knees. And I will say that, it makes me extremely uncomfortable that Dad now has that bed. It doesn’t bother him and my aunt though it would be good for Dad with all his spinal issues. While I appreciate her actually doing something considerate for my father, it gives me the hebee geebies. The room across the hall from that in my grandfather's house is where my grandmother passed away. During her final months of battling cancer I think she stayed in that room from time to time. That whole end of the house just hurts too much to be near.
I think what makes this all the much harder to handle, aside from the fact that my grandfather is no longer here, is that this is all happening so soon. Grandpa has only been dead for 2 months, well as of tomorrow it will be 2 months. To see his house almost empty, it just happened so fast.

I guess that is enough emotional rambling for now.