Celiac Support Network

Still looking for that perfect gift for the Celiac or Gluten Intolerant person in your life?  I’m here to give you some more recommendations!  Today’s topic is Gluten Free Gift Baskets.  I found several companies that sell these specialty gluten-free gift baskets and the nice thing is that we’re all familiar with Amazon and it’s a company we know we can trust.  While the companies selling the baskets are independent sellers, there is a bit of implied trust in dealing with Amazon as the middleman.  These baskets can be shipped anywhere that Amazon delivers.

Gluten Smart Gluten Free Gift Basket

Product Description:  A gift basket perfect for: Autism and Food Allergies – Special Diets for Children with Autism – Nutrition and Autism – Biomedical Treatments for Autism – GFCF (GF/CF) – Gluten Free Autism Diet – Autism Children – Casein Free Autistic – The GFCF Diet – Gluten Free Casein Free Food – Wheat Free Dairy Free. A gluten-free casein-free diet (or GF/CF diet) eliminates foods that contain gluten (found in wheat, barley, and rye) and casein (found in milk). The Autism Research Institute and other advocacy groups recommend the GF/CF diet as a treatment for autism and related disorders. The Centers for Disease Control reports significant increases in Autism and ADHD – both affecting primarily boys. The CDC estimates that 1 out of 175 children (age 4 to 17) currently have Autism. Before 1985, Autism occurred in less than 1 out of 2000.

ADHD is much more common in that it affects 4.4 million U.S. children (age 4 to 17). Common to both of these conditions is the negative impact of certain foods – especially milk products and glutens such as wheat. One of the challenges that parents face is coping with children who have picky appetites and crave the very foods that affect their behavior, focus and development. The other challenge is finding ways to get their children to eat healthy foods and improve their nutritional status. GlutenSmart is proud to present a special gift basket to help introduce your child to the Gluten Free/Casein Free lifestyle.

The Casein Free, Gluten Free Gift Basket Contains:* Bakery on Main Cranberry Orange Cashew Granola, Glutino Pretzels 2.6 oz. bag, Mrs. Mays 2 oz. Coconut Almond Crunch Snack Bag, Mrs. Mays 2 oz. Cran-Blueberry Snack Bag, Gluten Free Pantry Chocolate Truffle Brownie Mix, Cherrybrook Kitchen Chocolate Cake Mix, Cherrybrook Kitchen Chocolate Frosting Mix, Enjoy Life Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, Road’s End Organics Mac & Cheese Mix, Glenny’s Brown Rice Chocolate Marshmallow Treat Bar, Ener-G Foods Gourmet Onion Crackers, and more.

Chatila’s Bakery Gluten Free Gift Basket

Product Description: Delicious Gourmet Assortment of our freshly baked gluten free, sugar-free treats! This beautiful gluten-free gift-basket is filled with cheesecakes, cookies, pastries, and chocolates! Perfect for anyone on a special diet as all of our items are also low sodium, low cholesterol, and high in fiber!

Price includes basket, beautiful holiday gift wrap and bow, and your message on a personal card. All items should be refrigerated or frozen upon receipt. Please note** Customers in the following states must select expedited shipping as ground shipping to these states takes a full week: CA, WA, AZ, UT, ID, OR, NM, ND, SD, TX and NV.

Well Baskets Gluten Free Gift Basket

Product Description: Our Gluten Free Gift basket for Christmas is filled with delicious, gourmet gluten-free treats. Perfect for those with gluten sensitivity.

Includes: Dr. Lankin’s Awesome Almonds® Flavored Almonds, (2) Betty Lou Gluten Free Vegan Bar or Krispy Bite Lesser Evil Flavored Popcorn Gluten Free Cookie with all-natural & organic ingredients, Sensible Foods Dried Fruit Mix Boomi Bar, Glenny’s Organic Soy Crisps Gluten Free Plantain Chips, Handmade Basket

A Bountiful Harvest Gluten Free Gift Basket

Product Description: Decadent freshly baked gluten free gift basket filled with 2 gluten free loaf cakes, gluten free brownies, gluten free muffins & gluten free cookies. Baked in our dedicated facility fresh to order.

It should be noted that each of these companies have several baskets available on Amazon, so if you don’t see what you want right away, just click on the company link near the top of the Amazon page.

I have to tell you.  I received a gluten free gift basket for my birthday last year and it was a wonderful gift!  I enjoyed having such a choice of goodies that I could  confidently reach into and grab whenever I wanted a little something.  I highly recommend a gluten free gift basket as a GREAT gift for the gluten-intolerant individual in your life–for Christmas, a birthday, or “just because.”

I would like to make some recommendations for some gifts that may be very welcomed by the Celiac or person with Gluten Intolerance in your life…even if that’s you!  (Hey, who says we can’t give ourselves a gift at Christmas?)  Today’s recommendations include a couple of magazines that I have come to love and read faithfully over the past several years.  And what’s even better is that they are a great price for a subscription–quite a bit cheaper than buying them individually at the store!

The first one is Living Without Magazine, which I have been reading for over three years now.  The information is always timely and relevant to those with food allergies, but specifically for those who can’t tolerate Gluten, Wheat, and Dairy.  Living Without is published every two months and it is currently selling for $23/year.  The publisher description reads:

Living Without is a lifestyle guide for people with allergies and food sensitivities. It provides guidance, direction, products and encouragement for people living on a gluten-free or other restricted diet. Living Without can help you open the door to living abundantly with your special needs. It isn’t about minimizing the challenges of living with allergies and intolerances…It’s about learning to live well while living without.

My second recommendation is also a great magazine for those who can’t eat gluten.  Gluten-free Living focuses most specifically on the issue of gluten, but helpful general information can also be gleaned for those with other food allergies.  This magazine is pretty new to the industry–just a couple of years old, but a very fun magazine to read each time.  This magazine is published quarterly and is currently going for $34/year.  The publisher description reads:

Gluten-Free Living is a national magazine for people who have celiac disease and follow a gluten-free diet. Since the writers and editors are living with celiac disease, they understand the challenges faced by those who must follow a gluten-free lifestyle. Issues offer practical advice and tips, information on how to decode mystery ingredients, and lessons about what celiac disease is all about.

If you read the reviews on Amazon, you will notice that both magazines have had some issues with timely publication and delivery in the past.  As far as I can tell, these have been resolved.  I did notice these issues, myself, but not in the past year or so.  Both magazines are worth the money, in my opinion.  For those new to eating gluten-free, they are great educational tools and for those who have experience, there are plenty of recipes and stories to keep me interested–and I’ve been gluten-free for over three years now.

Our friends at Once-A-Month-Cooking have put together a free download of a Holiday Cooking cycle and most of the recipes are Gluten Free!

From Mary Beth Lagerborg, author:

We asked our consultant who checks the recipes for us and she says that with the exception of the Chicken Almondine recipe in this one-week holiday cycle, all the recipes are gluten-free (checking labels on ingredients, of course).

The download link is: http://once-a-monthcooking.com/includes/HolidaySamplerFinal.pdf

Be sure to sign up for their newsletter while you’re there to receive notices of new specials like this one in the future!

It’s our annual celebration for our gluten-free friends! Join us for all kinds of great activities and samplings … Gluten Free Sensations (cookies & granolas!), Celiac Specialties (donuts and more!). We will also have local restaurants (Pasta Pasta, Erbellis and FireBowl Cafe) that offer gluten-free menu items! Bike Raffle and other great gift baskets and giveaways!

Gluten Free Tips

…to avoid contamination in the kitchen!

• Purchase separate jams, peanut butter, and mayonnaise to avoid bread crumbs in the shared jars.
• Purchase a separate toaster for gluten free breads. Or- use a toaster oven that can be cleaned between uses, or place tinfoil on the rack to avoid contamination.
• Clean counter tops and cutting boards often to avoid contamination.
• Cooking utensils, colanders and pans need to be cleaned carefully after each use and before gluten-free cooking.

Jill’s Pick!

Our “staff pick of the month” is Jill’s new favorite … gluten free, soy and dairy free Coconut Bliss Bars! They are delicious! You would never know that they are gluten and dairy free! Because they are agave sweetened they are low glycemic! To top it off they are organic and use fair trade ingredients!

Due to illness, the meeting is canceled tonight.  Local group-please check your email for more details.

I would like to take a minute to congratulate Irene (@glutenfreeirene), who is the winner of the Once-A-Month-Cooking: Family Favorites book contest!  The winner was randomly drawn by my son.  Irene showed that she really wanted to win–she signed up for the mailing list, tweeted about the contest, commented on the post, and signed up for our Facebook group!

For those of you who didn’t win this time, thanks for playing along!  I will be sending out a little something special to the mailing list in the next couple of days to thank all of you for your participation!

Oh, and if you didn’t win, you can always pick up a copy of this book by clicking on the link above.  I’d also love to hear your reviews about it, so let me know if you write one, please!

Mary Beth Lagerborg, one of the authors of “Once-A-Month-Cooking: Family Favorites, has been kind enough to answer some questions that I had regarding the gluten-free meals in her newest book.  Here are the responses from that interview:

Q:  Mary Beth, what inspired you to include a gluten-free section in your latest book?

A: We have been asked many times over the years to include menu cycles for special diets. This is the one that really seemed to make sense, given the growing number of children and adults with gluten-intolerance.

Q:  What research have you done on your recipes to ensure that they are gluten-free?  What is your training in this area?

A: We composed the gluten-free cycle and then sent it to two consultants to help us adapt the recipes to be gluten-free. When the menu cycle was completed, we then had it tested by two women who are gluten-intolerant.

Q: Are the recipes that you’ve included “brand new” recipes or adaptations of “old favorites”?

A: Most are adaptations of “old favorites.”

Q: Are the recipes formatted to mix flours, Xanthum gum, etc. or are they more “simple” in their approach?

A: As I recall only one of the recipes calls for flour, and we used rice flour.

Q: Do the gluten-free recipes freeze as well as the “regular” recipes?  Are there special preparations that need to be made to keep the integrity and flavor of the gluten-free items? The gluten-free recipes freeze every bit as will as the “regular” recipes. We made no special provisions for freezing them.

Q: Have you had people with Celiac or gluten-intolerance taste-test the recipes?  What was their response?

A: Yes, and they were pleased with them. Our goal was to find recipes that both the gluten-intolerant and other family members would enjoy, so that the family could eat the same meal together.

Q: Can you give us a sample of one of the recipes (and perhaps a photo) to entice us?

A: Yes! The Vegan Creamy Tomato Soup recipe was created by consultant Lori Baird, who gives classes on eating gluten-free at Whole Foods Market.

Q:  Do you plan on including gluten-free cycles in future books…or perhaps doing a strictly gluten-free book?

A: It is very likely we would continue to offer a gluten-free cycle in each future book.

Q:  When and where can we purchase this book?

A: Both Once-A-Month Cooking and the new Once-A-Month Family Favorites are widely available in bookstores and on Amazon. Currently they are available in Sam’s Club and COSTCO.

Marybeth, thank you so much for your time–and for being sensitive to the needs of the gluten-intolerant!  We’ve had a great time learning about your book this week!

Readers–Don’t wait to sign up for the drawing for a copy of this great book!  I will be posting the winner on Monday, so follow the instructions to enter!

I’m so pleased to share a recipe with you today from the “Once-A-Month-Cooking: Family Favorites” book that we are giving away!  The allergy consultant for this book was Lori Baird from Eating Allergy Free.  Lori has Celiac, in addition to a host of other food allergies.  Lori demonstrates how easy this recipe is in the video below.

Here is the recipe for this amazing soup:

VEGAN CREAMY TOMATO SOUP               * Serves 4 in 45 minutes

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 14.5 oz. can unsalted white beans, rinse and drain
1/4 cup onion, ,finely chopped
1 teaspoon dried tarragon crushed
1 large clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 cup shredded carrot
1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked black pepper
2 14.5 oz. cans unsalted, diced tomatoes, undrained

Tip: If you do not have lemon on hand, use 1 teaspoon distilled vinegar or rice vinegar.

HEAT oil in large stock pot on medium high heat.

SAUTE onion with 1/8 teaspoon of salt until tender, but not brown; for 1-2 minutes.

STIR in garlic.

ADD carrots.  Sauté vegetables until tender for 1-2 minutes; stirring occasionally.

STIR in tomatoes, beans, and tarragon; bring to boil.

TURN heat to low and simmer for ½ hour; stirring occasionally.

ADD lemon juice, zest, cracked black pepper, and 1/8 teaspoon of salt.

PUREE until smooth.

ENJOY soup hot or cold!

Serving suggestions: Try this with a pinch of cayenne and stir in some fresh finely chopped spinach or watercress before serving.

This recipe is free from: Gluten  Wheat  Lactose  Casein  Dairy  Soy  Yeast  Corn  Egg  Nuts  Seafood and  Shellfish.  Also is low in sodium and no add sugar.

I recently had an opportunity to interview Mary Beth Lagerborg, one of the authors of “Once-A-Month-Cooking: Family Favorites” regarding the gluten-free section of her latest cookbook.  This is part one of the interview; I will post the rest, along with a free recipe from this book, later this week!

Q:  Mary Beth, what inspired you to include a gluten-free section in your latest book?

A: We have been asked many times over the years to include menu cycles for special diets. This is the one that really seemed to make sense, given the growing number of children and adults with gluten-intolerance.

Q:  What research have you done on your recipes to ensure that they are gluten-free?  What is your training in this area?

A: We composed the gluten-free cycle and then sent it to two consultants to help us adapt the recipes to be gluten-free. When the menu cycle was completed, we then had it tested by two women who are gluten-intolerant.

Q: Are the recipes that you’ve included “brand new” recipes or adaptations of “old favorites”?

A: Most are adaptations of “old favorites.”

Q: Are the recipes formatted to mix flours, Xanthum gum, etc. or are they more “simple” in their approach?

A: As I recall only one of the recipes calls for flour, and we used rice flour.

Q: Do the gluten-free recipes freeze as well as the “regular” recipes?  Are there special preparations that need to be made to keep the integrity and flavor of the gluten-free items?

A: The gluten-free recipes freeze every bit as will as the “regular” recipes. We made no special provisions for freezing them.

Q: Have you had people with Celiac or gluten-intolerance taste-test the recipes?  What was their response?

Yes, and they were pleased with them. Our goal was to find recipes that both the gluten-intolerant and other family members would enjoy, so that the family could eat the same meal together.

Thank you, Mary Beth!  I can honestly say that the meal I made already from this book was really, really good!  I can’t wait to try the others!  Readers, be sure to sign up for our mailing list (top of right sidebar) for your opportunity to win a copy of this book!  The winner will be posted next week, so be sure to sign up by Friday night!  Extra points for tweeting (use @kimsmith in the tweet), sharing with other social networks, etc.  If you help spread the word, leave me a comment and let me know!

I should also mention that you can sign-up at www.glutenfreehomemaker.com to win a copy of this book, as Linda is also giving away one copy to a lucky reader!

Meet the authors:

Mary Beth Lagerborg and Mimi Wilson’s original bestseller Once-a-Month Cooking™ started the bulk freezer cooking phenomenon from recipes made for their own families. Both live in Colorado and continue to share a passion to help today’s cooks save time and money while building family relationships over delicious meals.

Mary Beth is the creator of the website dwellingspace.com, providing tools on creating a home full of acceptance and creativity. She is also the former media director for MOPS International (Mothers of Preschoolers). Mimi travels extensively to regions like Jordan, Ecuador, and Rwanda, and teaches Once-a-Month Cooking principles and benefits internationally.

Find out more at the official Once-a-Month Cooking website, or join our bulk freezer cooking discussion on facebook.

The following is an interview with the authors, but it is a “general” interview, not gluten-free specific.  The interview more specific to the gluten-free aspect of this cookbook will follow later this week, so stay tuned!

You were the first to publish a book about bulk freezer cooking, and many others have come after you. How did you think of this concept—and what made you feel it would work for so many women?

Mary Beth: Mimi developed this method at a time when we were writing articles together. She wanted me to call The Denver Post to see if they wanted us to write an article about it. I thought Mimi was crazy, and asked her to call. When the paper sent a reporter and photographer to her home within a week to do a food feature, we knew we were on to something. We’ve found over the years that Mimi’s three reasons for creating the strategy—to save time, money, and make possible good times at the table —resonate with most families.

Mimi: As a mother of three young children, I wanted to streamline my life without taking away from the things I loved. At the time, I was working with Hmong refugees in Denver, trying to sell their handwork.

I studied my days by writing down how I spent my time in 15-minute increments. And I found I was wasting the most time in the kitchen. I remember the day I decided I would cook until I ran out of the food I had on hand. I put all the dishes I had prepared on the dining room table. When I counted 30 meals I was ecstatic, because I knew I didn’t have to cook dinner again for a month. Every month for the next year I used the method, once for me and once with a friend, so I was able to perfect it. If someone was having a baby, I’d say “You buy these groceries, and I’ll prepare you a month’s meals.”  It became the gift I gave my friends.

What are your top three favorite recipes in the new Once-a-Month Cookbook Family Favorites—and why?

Mary Beth:

1. Country-Style Ribs (This slow cooker entrée provides great aroma-therapy!)
2. Corn Soup with Basil, Avocado, and Crab (This delicious soup proves that frozen entrees can be both elegant and delicious.)
3. Penne in Cream Sauce with Sausage (My son Drew keeps asking me when we’ll have this one.)

Mimi:

1. Lemon Chicken (It’s so fast and tasty! Great for unexpected guests; it can be on the table in ten minutes.)
2. Uptown Joes (Great for picnics or ballgames in wide-mouth thermos.)
3. Beef Pot Roast (I love this one for its smell. There’s nothing like coming into a house that smells good.)

What wisdom could you offer to the busy woman who has never tried this method?

Mimi: Even preparing two of any entrée at one time will show you how much time this technique can save! In the beginning, try this technique with a friend who can help you with the many tasks, even just answering the door, the phone, taking care of the kids, and making sure the ingredients are ready. The first time you try this, I’d recommend trying the free, downloadable one-week cycle from our website once-a-monthcooking.com or a two-week cycle from the book to get used to cooking in bulk. And don’t try to shop and cook on the same day if possible, to conserve your energy.

You say that anyone with a side freezer can implement the Once-a-Month Cooking plan—how do you make it work?

Mary Beth: I’ve frozen even the month’s-worth of entrees without a separate freezer. But I have to clean out the freezer before my cooking day, and I freeze most entrees in plastic bags, which can be squished flat or wedged into corners.

Beyond the obvious rewards of reducing food prep time, hassle, and grocery bills, what are you hoping Once-a-Month Cooking Family Favorites will do for busy families?

Mary Beth: My hope is that this technique will make it possible for families to spend more meals together around a table. The family dinner is a simple concept with profound, measureable advantages for children and parents. We relinquish it too easily to busy schedules. I want other families to discover that a warm meal and good conversation are simple, valuable gifts that anyone would enjoy. Mimi: and I truly believe there isn’t any other family activity that is more meaningful or productive.

If you haven’t entered the contest yet to win a copy of this book, it’s not too late!  Just sign up for our mailing list (look to the top, right sided of this page).  You can get extra entries by also following the instructions listed in this post.  Please be sure to tell your network of connections about this contest!  Let everyone know, so maybe we can spread awareness about Celiac Disease and gluten intolerance.  The more people that know, the better off we will all be!