Gluten Free Expedition

Vaccine Trials for Celiac Disease

According to an article in The Australian, Nexpep will be starting their phase I study of a vaccine for Celiac Disease in April.  Phase I trials are done to find out if the vaccine is safe.  They will be enrolling 40 people in the study in Australia and following them over 11 months of therapy.  If it proves to be safe, they will move on to a phase II trial in which they will examine if the vaccine is actually effective.

The vaccine is administered by injecting very small amounts of gluten peptides into a person and increasing the concentration over time.  This is similar to the way allergy shots work; by desensitizing a person to the particular peptides so that over time they don't have a reaction when exposed to the environmental trigger (gluten). 

Nexpep also has an interest in looking at this type of treatment for other autoimmune disorders such as diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis.

In related news, the Celiac Disease Awareness Campaign in their Winter 2009 newsletter reports that researchers in Great Britain have found several links between celiac disease and type-1 diabetes.  The researchers found genetic markers linked to celiac disease that can also be associated with type-1 diabetes and factors linked to type-1 diabetes that can also be associated with increased risk for CD.

Gluten Free at the Airport

In my travels to Pittsburgh I ended up having a layover in both Minneapolis and Detroit.  There aren't very many places I can get to directly from my small airport!  I was in Minneapolis for lunch on the way out and Detroit for dinner on the way home.

While there are many people that bring their own gluten free snacks and meals to the airport, I am not one of them.  I do bring a few bars (both Larabars and Oskri bars) in case of emergency, but I tend to think that surely I can find something decent anywhere I am.  Of course one time that was a bag of potato chips for lunch.  As gluten free gets more recognition and becomes more "mainstream" you can find good options at the airport. 

First up, lunch at the Minneapolis airport.  I had read that the French Meadow Bakery had gluten free products available at their Cafe and their online lunch menueven had a few gf items marked.  I was a little disappointed when I asked the hostess at the airport Cafe if they had a gf menu and she said no.  I didn't actually look at the menu, so I don't know what's on it.  They did have gf brownies and cookies, so I had to get a brownie - hey, you've got to support the gf products when they're offered!  Their brownies are delicious and I later found them at the grocery store near my parent's house.  They also had really fresh pre-made salads which is what I had for lunch.  It seems the company is very aware of the gf free market as well as vegan and organic eating.  Hopefully as they get more exposure to the gf travelers they will be able to bring more gf options to the Cafe.  I'm hoping they'll see their way to making their gf pizza crust or Italian rolls available in the airport!  Wouldn't that be a treat?  So the next time you fly through Minneapolis inquire about gf options at the French Meadow Bakery and Cafe.

On the way home I had time to stop by the Online Cafe Bar and Grillat the Detroit Airport for dinner.  This was one of 2 restaurants I had found online with gf potential - the other was a sushi place called Sora, which I want to check on my next trip through.  I asked the hostess at Online Cafe about gf options on their menu and she first told me about a man who regularly stops there and gets the Bunless Burger as his gf option.  Then she went in back to talk to the chef about what else was available gf.  They had quite a few salads, the burger plus some other menu items that were gf.  The burger actually sounded quite good, so I settled on that.  Unfortunately the fries weren't gf, so I got a salad instead.  The waitress also informed me that they have pre-made gf brownies in their carry-out case.  Unfortunately they had ran out earlier in the day!  I'm glad to see people were buying them!

The other exciting part of the trip was that George Clooney happened to also be at the Detroit airport the same day.  He was filming a new movie.  I didn't actually see him, but according to one source (some guy going down the escalator while I was going up) I walked right past him without even knowing it.  Oh well...sorry I didn't notice you George!

Gluten Free Banana Bread

Here's another use up what you didn't eat recipe.  We had 2 very sad looking bananas in our fruit bowl, so I decided to try to convert a recipe.  It's a pre-Celiac favorite recipe straight from my grandma.  I've made it gluten free and also a little healthier (I replaced the oil with unsweetened applesauce).  It actually turned out even better than I remember.  Both kids are enjoying slices at the moment!

Gluten Free Banana Bread

1 cup ripe bananas, mashed (2-3 bananas, whatever you have)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup sorghum flour
1/2 cup rice flour
1/4 cup sweet rice flour
1/4 cup potato starch
1/4 cup tapioca flour
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 eggs
1/2 cup pecans (chopped)

Put bananas and sugar in bowl of the mixer, mix together.  Add the flours, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda and salt and mix well.

Add the applesauce and eggs and beat again.

Fold in the pecans and pour batter into a greased and lightly floured bread pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes until browned and pulling away from the edge of the pan.

Gluten Free Biscuits

We love biscuits in the GF Expedition house!  We usually have them about once a week with dinner.  I've been searching for that great gf recipe to replace those wonderful Bisquick biscuits I remember.  Light and fluffy is the goal. 

This recipe is close, the inside is deliciously fluffy and soft.  The out side is a little too chewy however.  I'm not sure what's making it that way - maybe it's just the gf flours.  I welcome any suggestions. 

Gluten Free Biscuits

1 cup white rice flour
1/2 cup potato starch
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup sweet rice flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp Kosher salt
1/4 tsp xanthan gum
4 Tbls butter
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 egg white

Whisk together flours, starches, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt. 

Grate butter into flours and toss with your fingers.  Break up any big chunks of butter until you have pea sized pieces. 

Add egg white and buttermilk and mix until ingredients just come together. 

Shape small mounds of dough into circles and place on a cookie sheet.  Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.

Cauliflower with Tahini Sauce and Smokey Turkey Burgers

Do you ever buy an ingredient just for a recipe and then you don't know what to do with the rest of it?  I have a whole jar of tahini just sitting waiting for some culinary inspiration.  Now, I know you can make falafels or baba ghanoush, but the Husband likes meat.  I will definitely have to try making hummus with it sometime.

However, I thought something along the lines of a side dish would be an appropriate use.  Tahini is used quite often in a sauce for various meats or veggies.  Usually it is mixed with lemon juice and garlic.  I thought I would try it on cauliflower.

Anyone have other great ideas for tahini?

Cauliflower with Tahini Sauce

1 head of cauliflower
1 Tbls canola oil
1/2 Tbls sesame oil
2 cloves garlic
2 Tbls tahini
Juice of 1 lemon
1 Tbls soy sauce

Chop the cauliflower into bite-size pieces and then steam until desired tenderness.

Saute the garlic in canola/sesame oil until it starts sizzling. 

Add in the tahini, lemon juice and soy sauce.  Mix until incorporated and pour over cauliflower.

Along with the cauliflower we had one of my favorite burgers adapted from Rachel Ray - as a working out of the home mom I love those 30 Minute Meals!  Sorry for the picture, I was hungry.  Just think of it as a burger autopsy a la Serious Eats.

Smokey Turkey Burgers

1 lb ground turkey
1 Tbls cumin
2 tsp Spanish paprika
1/2 medium onion, grated*
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/3 cup parsley, chopped
olive oil

Mix together all ingredients except olive oil.  Form into 4 patties.  Heat olive oil on medium heat in a skillet big enough to hold all 4 burgers. 

Cook burgers about 5-7 minutes on each side until done.

The Husbands ate his on a hamburger bun.  I used buttered gf toast.  The Boy ate his plain and the Girl had an apple.

*This is a really great technique I got from RR.  I always grate onion into our burgers now.  You get that good onion flavor without chunks of raw onion, which I don't like.

Gluten Free Apple Crostata

This was one of those spur of the moment things that turned out great.  I had some very soft apples that I knew we wouldn't eat and I wondered around the Internet for ideas about what to do with them.  I came across a recipe on the Betty Crocker website for an apple crostata and thought it was a great last minute, sort of rustic idea.  I was also running very low on some of my gf flours, so I didn't have a lot to work with. 

Despite the last minute, low flour way this came together, it was delicious! 

Gluten Free Apple Crostata

For the crust:
1/2 cup rice flour
1/4 cup sweet rice flour
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 Tbls sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 cup cold butter, grated with a cheese grater*
4 Tbls cold water
1/4 tsp vanilla

For the filling:
1/2 cup sugar
3 Tbls rice flour
3-4 apples, sliced thin

For the topping:
1 Tbls sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cardamon

Mix together the flours, almond meal, cornstarch, sugar, salt and xanthan gum.  Cut in the butter using the grating technique (or a pastry cutter, your fingers, whatever) until the pieces are pea size. 

In a small bowl mix the water and vanilla.  Sprinkle this mixture over the flour and mix with a fork until everything is moistened.  You may need to kneed it a little with your hands. 

Gather the dough into a ball onto a piece of plastic wrap.  Flatten the dough into about a 5 inch round and wrap the plastic wrap around it.  Put in the refrigerator until firm.  Note: I left mine in for only 30 minutes and it was a little tough to handle still, I would recommend at least an hour. 

With a floured rolling pin, roll the dough into a 12 inch circle.  Place on ungreased cookie sheet - be sure to use one with a lip - it's hard to seal the gf dough well enough so nothing leaks out; I got apple pie filling burnt to the bottom of my oven!

Mix together the sugar and flour (3 Tbls).  Stir in the apples until all coated.  Mound the apple mixture in the center of the circle to within 2 inches of the edge.  Fold the edge of the dough over the filling (if you need to break some dough off areas where there is extra to cover any holes). 

In a small bowl, mix the 1Tbls sugar, cinnamon and cardamon - sprinkle this over the apples and dough. 

Bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes, until the crust is browned.  Enjoy!

* I learned this great butter grating trick from Kate at Gluten Free Gobsmacked.  I now use it every time I have to cut butter into flour!

Adopt a Gluten Free Blogger: Hey, that tastes good!

This months marks the one year anniversary of Sea's Adopt of Gluten Free Blogger.  I really like participating in this monthly event because it gives me a kick in the pants to try a new recipe, one that's already been tested by a fellow gf blogger!  I have a whole binder full of printed recipes just waiting to be made.

This month I choose Jill of Hey, that tastes good! fame.  Every time I read her blog I find a new recipe I'm just dying to try.  Everything I've made from her recipes has turned out amazing!  There are literally dozens of dessert recipes that I want to try out from her; and while my taste-buds are ready, my waistline is not.

Things I have made include her Lemon Layer Cake (which I brought into work for someone's birthday and everyone thought it was amazing!), Biscuits (used for biscuits and gravy - YUM), Fried Okra, Black Bean Soup, Mustard Breaded Pork Chops, along with many others.  It makes me hungry just looking at her site!  It's always nice to go there if I need some inspiration for a side dish, or meal. 

For the Adopt a GF Blogger, I made Jill's Spicy Peanut Noodles with Thai-Style Meatballs.  These are incredible.  I added a little more chili garlic sauce than the recipe called for because it's a favorite ingredient of mine!  The Boy loved the meatballs and the Girl even ate some of the noodles.  It was enjoyed all around. 

If you haven't check out her site yet, go there now!  Thanks Jill for another great recipe.  And thanks to Sea at Book of Yum for hosting another great Adopt a GF Blogger!