Asparagus and Quinoa Salad

Now that spring is here, I start to think about salads, but sometimes salads can be boring. One of the best ways to jazz up a salad is to not use lettuces. Now, I've always had the mind set that a salad isn't salad if it doesn't have something green and leafy in the mix. Nonetheless, some people call anything a salad. I know some people who call jello a salad. I know there are chicken and potato salads that don't have anything to do with lettuces either, but when I serve them I often stick a leaf of lettuce underneath anyway.

When I discovered quinoa it changed my out look on salads. Here is a grain that is a protein, but it's a grain. It has very little flavor of it's own and goes with just about anything. I love doing big salads for a whole meal, and with quinoa I can dress it up with some veggies and add a nice dressing to it, but still get a good source of protein. About half of our meals are vegetarian, so I'm always on the look out on ways to dress up a veggie or use quinoa with veggies. It's kind of pointless, I think, to mix quiona with meat. I've done it before, but it always seems odd to me. So here is a recipe that highlights a great spring time veggie, asparagus, and a great protein packed grain. 


Asparagus and Quinoa Salad
1 cup of quiona
1 bunch of asparagus cut into 1 inch pieces
juice from 1/2 a lemon
zest from 1/2 a lemon
1 clove garlic
4 green onions sliced partly up into the green part
1 tsp mirin
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste


Cook quiona as directed or see my how-to here. In a frying pan add olive oil and heat over medium. Add the asparagus and saute for a minute or two. Add lemon juice, lemon zest, garlic, green onions, mirin and salt and pepper. Continue cooking till bright green, reduce the heat to low. Once the quiona is cooked add it to the asparagus and mix will. Add a drizzle of olive oil. Serves 4-6.

Communion

From: Stock.xchng

 Good Friday is here, that means many people are going to church sometime this weekend and many will be take communion to honor the death and resection of Jesus. Taking communion for a celiac can be a difficult task and even embarrassing, because we know that if we take the bread we will regret it later, but if we refuse to take it we may be looked down upon. Some churches carry gluten free crackers and if you go to a church like that, that is great, but not all churches do. As nice as it would be to take the bread and be part of communion like I once use to, I don't mind that my church doesn't offer gluten free communion crackers.

At first it use to bug me. I would take it anyway only to feel sick later, so I stopped and just took the cup, and I tried not to let the odd looks get to me. Jesus knows and understands why, so I shouldn't worry about what others might be thinking. I am now on the media team for my church and we serve ourselves or someone takes it upon themselves to serve the rest of us. So now I'm kinda free to do communion my way. I always try to bring my own crackers, but I always forget. Then I realized I was putting too much focus on the physical bread and not the bread. Let me explain.

		The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me."
		In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me."
		For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.
		Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.
		A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup.
		For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.
		That is why many among you are weak and sick, and a number of you have fallen asleep.
		But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment.

~1 Corinthians 11:23b- 31

What Paul is trying to say here is that when you mindlessly take communion and don't really meditate on what communion truly represents you are hurting yourself. God is still the same God of yesterday, today and tomorrow. All those great amazing things that went on in the Old Testament can and do still happen today. So not taking communion seriously is a big problem. King Saul did things his way when it came time to do the sacrifices God required, and because he did it his way - in a half-hearted attempt to please God - God rejected him as king (1 Sam 15:23). That same God reigns today.

So when it comes time to take communion I take time to ask God for forgiveness. I name all the sins that I know that I have made and confess them, then I ask God to search my heart for any that I have missed. Then instead of taking the bread I think about the bread, i.e the body of Christ. I visualize how Christ's body was broken, beaten, flesh torn and hung on a cross to die for my sins. That should be my body up there, it should be my body beaten, broken, and my flesh torn for my sins. Then I thanks God for taking my place on the cross and taking away my sins. I think about that scene in The Passion when Jesus is being beat by the soldiers and the cat of nine tales rips his flesh. By the way the actor who played that role, really did have his flesh ripped by the cat of nine tales, that was his own flesh being ripped that you see in the movie. When it comes time to take the cup, I do the same thing. I think about how they pierced his side to check if he was dead yet. I think about the verse in I John 5:6-8. I think about how Jesus fulfilled the covenant. 

Have you ever taken the time to read Leviticus? It's a book about a bunch of rules the Jews had to obey when it come time to offer their scarifies to God. It can be kinda a dry read, but if you take the time to think about what all has to be done for each kind of offering and all the different kind of offerings there were, it's really puts things into a new perspective. Those priests were like butchers. They had to know how to kill and take apart many different animals. They had to be strong enough to life those bulls and rams up onto the alter, and they had to know how to preform each offering just so or else, Lev. 10:1-2. We often picture these men in fine white robes and looking grand, but that is the Sunday school version. Those guys were a bloody mess. Before they go into the most holy place in the temple they had to wash up. This was serious business and if Jesus had not come and died for our sins and the sins of the whole world, we would still be required to make those kind of offerings. There were offerings for sin and all the different kinds of sin, there were offerings you had to make after sex, child birth, and arguments with neighbors. Then there were the offerings just to give thanks and friendship offerings, for the harvest and so on. I don't know about you, but between the giving thanks offerings and the sin offerings, I would be back at that temple every two hours. Ok, that might be a bit of stretch, but you get the point. I am thankful that Christ came so I don't have to butcher an animal to make atonement for my sins. I can just simple ask and it is done.

The important part about communion is remembering what Christ did and all that he went through just for us. He didn't have to, but he did. So whether or not you can take communion crackers at your church, the main thing is to keep the focus on Christ and not on what you can and cannot do.

Easter Egg Treats

Easter is right around the corner, so I've been busy getting ready for it. I hate buying holiday treats. The frustration is mostly for my daughters sake. She is allergic to nuts, mainly peanuts. She has a mild allergy so if something has been made in a factory containing peanuts she will be fine, but the nut or nut butter itself is the problem. I love seeing all of those cute holiday candy holder gift items, but it is so frustrating trying to find something that list the ingredients on those things. Either the gift item is in the way of the list or the packaging is done is such a way that the list becomes unreadable. I can't stand it when a product says "Assorted Candy," because I have no idea which ones, if any, contain nuts. If so many people are allergic to nuts, especially peanuts, why hasn't the candy market gotten on the ban wagon and switched to using Sunbutter? Their profits would go up, because more people could eat them that couldn't before.  So for me, it's easier just to make stuff then to hassle with buying something I'm not sure is safe. These are treats that I made the other day. I got the idea when I saw these egg shaped treats in a parenting magazine. Normally when you see rice treats they are squares, but what a cool and fun way to redo the traditional snack. Rice Krispies' has the original recipe, but I changed a few things.

Egg Treats

When making these egg treats, just follow the recipe that is on the web site. It's just like making normal square treats, but in a different shape. As you can see I use a different cereal. Rice Krispies haven't come out with their new gluten free version of rice cereal yet, at least not in my area. So I use Koala Crisps instead. I mean, what is the harm in a chocolate egg? I rather my daughter dine out of these then a real chocolate egg.

I only made six eggs with my plastic egg molds, but they came out pretty big. You have to grease your eggs and hands really well when packing in the cereal. I also found it easier to stuff the bottom part of the egg full then fill the top part mostly full, jam in my candy and then let the bottom part seal it up. For the candy I used mini dark chocolate eggs. I put the left over cereal mixture into a glass dish and cut them into squares.

When taking the ones in the egg molds out, it can be kinda tricky. You don't want to leave them in there for a long time, just a few minutes is all they need to take egg shape. To take them out of the molds I rolled them around, almost like cracking a hard boil egg, to loosen the shell. This way I could take the eggs out in one piece. Also if your egg mold halves are attached, it will be very difficult to take the cereal out. I suggest breaking or cutting the little plastic that holds them together.

Strawberry Ice Cream

I've been seeing signs all over town for Blue Ribbon ice cream. I'm sure it is good ice cream, but for someone who can't have dairy, I just don't get the point. Especially since I make my own ice cream, which I'm sure is better then anything you can buy. It's so easy to do and so cost affective. With spring finally here, I get to make ice cream using fruit, my favorite ingredient.

 

I love that strawberries are in season because that means I get to make (and eat) strawberry ice cream. Strawberries are my favorite fruit. I have found memorize of picking strawberries in our back yard during the summer, of course many of them didn't make it back to the house. So combing two of my favorite things -ice cream and strawberries- is just natural. I like using real fruit in my ice cream because it's yummy and I can lower the amount of sugar I use. 

Strawberry Ice Cream

1 quart dairy free milk (I used hemp, but soy and rice works too.)

1 1/2 cup purred and strained strawberries

1 1/2 tsp xanthun gum

3/4 cup of honey or brown rice syrup

dash of salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

Clean and puree the strawberries. Using a strainer, over a bowl, and stain the strawberry puree to remove most of the seeds. If you want you ice cream to be completely seedless, place cheese cloth over the strainer. In a blender, mix up the milk, syrup or honey, salt, vanilla and xanthun gum. Add the strawberry puree and blend till thick. If you are worried about sugar content, you can add the strawberry puree to the blender before adding the honey or syrup. Taste the mixture to see how sweet it is and then adjust the amount of sweeter accordingly. Add mixture to your ice cream maker and follow the directions by your manufacture.

The Correct Response

 As a Celiac I am always on my guard when it comes to buying and ordering food. Making sure the people understand what I can and cannot eat is vital to my health and my daughter's too. Food is the first defense to making sure that we stay well and feel well; however, this defense can be too defensive. While it is important to make sure the server at the restaurant knows how our food must be handled and prepared, it is also important that my body language, tone and word choice not be offensive.

If you know me at all, you know that I am a hot head. I have red hair for a reason. It's God's way of warning everyone about my temper, like a skunks stripes. Now, having a temper issue isn't a good thing and it is something that God has been working on with me for a long while and there is still work to be done. It is easy for me to stomp my feet and get my way when it comes to something I don't like. However, that isn't God's way. As it says in Matthew 5:44-45 "But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." We are to love our enemies, because God loves everyone. He loves those who are gluten free and non gluten free. He loves those who are Christian and not Christian. A gluten free life style isn't more "righteous" then somebody else's , God doesn't favor people based on diet. So the way I treat someone about my gluten issues are important. While eating gluten free is vital for the health of my family, it is more important that I represent Jesus first, family second and celiacs third.

 It is easy for us to jump on any kind of bad news about celiacs and gluten free food and to defend our life style. However, how we respond is important. Recently a man stated on his facebook about what he thought of celiacs and not in the nicest way either, while claiming to be a chef. Unfortunately, his profile was public and it wasn't before long that bloggers and the news had access to this guys profile and were posting it all over the web. Within the same time frame people were writing bad reviews on the places he had worked to ensure that other gluten free people didn't touch those restaurants and to bring down their rating. Then more press was put on the topic and this man's work history only to find out that he wasn't a chef. Now all of those bad reviews out there are written based on a lie, all because so many people didn't take the time to find out the truth. Was this guy in the wrong for what he said? Yes, but the whole world can see our responses online. Those reviews are all over Yahoo and Urban Spoon. People posted like crazy about this guy on blogs and news sites. Other people can read these responses and make up there own mind about celiacs.

"If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her" John 8:7b. 

Celiac's already have a hard enough time getting through the world with judgments on why we eat the way we do. We do not need to add to the fire by acting poorly in response to our serve not knowing what gluten is or family members think we are hurting ourselves by not eating whole wheat. Celiacs are people and we need to remember that we are just as human as everyone else, we are imperfect.

I made the mistake once of responding harshly about a gluten comment on facebook. Before I knew it I had a full on argument with three people. I felt attacked. I had just read an article in a popular magazine that ticked me off on the topic of food allergies, then to see my friends make a statement about gluten was like a disaster waiting to happen. I should have bit my tongue, but didn't. I honestly thought that my comment wouldn't attract that much attention and cause me to damage friendships and to even lose a friend, and all because of something I said. As I look back, I realize now how my comment wasn't worth it and it didn't help anybody on any level.

So the next time someone makes a comment about gluten, try understanding their reason why from their point of view. Take the time to find out the facts before making quick judgments. Also, remember that your behavior will affect the next celiac or Christian that that person comes in contact with.

"Pursue peace with all [people], and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: Looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled" Hebrews 12:14-15.

Homemade White Mac n Cheese

Gluten free mac n cheese, I have to say this simple basic food that is the standard meal for kids in America has been a battle for me. It has been a battle for me because right before going gluten and dairy free I perfected homemade mac n cheese. Now I still make this recipe for moms who just had babies as a quick and easy meal that I can serve for them, but a dairy free version for myself just seemed out of the question. I would try to trick myself in thinking I could eat the boxed gluten free mac n cheese. I would by the box kind, and add my Earth Balance butter and yogurt to it and try to make it as dairy free as I could, but then I found out that yogurt doesn't agree with me and that no amount of organic powdered cheese is going to cut it with my digestive system. So I gave up on the mac. I still bought it for my daughter, and for now she has no issues with dairy. I make up a box every week and she has it for lunches as the week goes by. It's a great cheap meal for her and it lasts us a long time. Now my daughter has gotten into this thing that she has to eat white mac n cheese only. Before going gluten free for her, I would by only white mac and I did that because it doesn't stain like the yellow kind. When she went gluten free it was good to know that they make white gluten free mac since she won't touch the yellow kind still.

Tonight a stroke of genius hit my brain. I could make my own white mac n cheese and I bet I could make it in a way that I can eat it too.  So I put it together and it worked beautifully. Now, my recipe has white cheddar in it and I know some of you will think, "why did she make a big stink about dairy when she has cheddar in this?" I'll tell you why. I can digest aged cheese. Cheddar is an aged cheese and I can eat it just fine. I have the test results to prove it. So in my recipes you will see cheddar as my main cheese, but of course you can use what ever dairy free cheese you like.

Homemade White Mac n Cheese
1 bag of elbow pasta
1/2 of an 8 oz tub of tofu cream cheese 
2 cups shredded white cheddar cheese or your favorite dairy free cheese
1/4 cup hemp milk
salt 

In a large pot bring salted water to a boil and cook the pasta* (see note below for how to cook gf pasta). Pasta is done when it is still a bit firm, drain and set aside. In the same pot, now on low heat, add the tofu cream cheese and hemp milk. Stir together while the tofu cream cheese melts. Add the pasta back to the pot and add the shredded cheese. Keep stirring till well mixed and the cheese is melted. Add salt to taste. Serves 6. 


* To cook gluten free pasta is a bit different from gluten full pasta. I drizzle in some olive oil soon after I add my pasta to the boiling water and stir it all together. Normally you wouldn't do this with normal pasta, but I have found that gluten free pasta is extra starchy and will stick together in a terrible way. So by adding a little more water then I normally would to the pot and olive oil, it keeps the pasta from sticking.