Wonderful Rice Chex

One of the mainstays in my pantry had always been bread crumbs.  Seasoned or unseasoned, bread crumbs were always there.  I use them in meatloaf, meatballs, hamburgers, and on top of casseroles.  Once I had to part with those crumbs, I was lost.  Here in Wyoming it is hard to find GF bread crumbs on the grocery store self.  Sometimes you may hit a gold mine but most of the times it is a bust.  I feel that spending $7 for a loaf of bread is nuts but I will.  However I will not spend $7 for a loaf of bread so that I can make GF bread crumbs.  This problem lead me to the good old Rice Chex.  Rice Chex is gluten free and even states it proudly on their boxes!! Bread crumb problem is solved.  Toss Rice Chex into the food processor and you have GF replaced bread crumbs.  You can even add some GF Italian seasoning and you have seasoned Chex crumbs! Average cost of Rice Chex $3.40 for 12.56 ounces.  So much better than making that $7 GF bread into crumbs. 

Gluten free lasagna

The first thing I wanted after I was diagnosed was a big fat piece of lasagna.  It seems that when one is told you can't do gluten, you start wanting things that you wouldn't have considered.  But it becomes like this burning need to get the taboo item.  Tinkyada brown rice lasagna noodles are wonderful and no one will know they are gluten free until you start to eat lasagna.  I'm lucky enough to be able to eat dairy sometimes.  Dairy only bugs me if I've had too much dairy during the day or if I have had some gluten or cross contamination during the day.  This lasagna can be made to fit those with the lactose intolerance as well. Just replace the items you would use instead of cheese and ricotta.

Gluten free lasagna

1 pound GF Italian sausage
1 pound GF ground turkey
4 cups mozzarella cheese
2 boxes brown rice lasagna noodles
2 jars of GF spaghetti sauce  or homemade sauce
16 ounces of skim ricotta cheese
1 egg
Cook noodles according to package directions.  Brown sausage and turkey.  Once browned, drain and add pasta sauce.  Cook on med/low for 15 minutes.  Mix egg, ricotta and 2 cups of mozzarella cheese together.  Begin layering noodles in lasagna pan or in 13x9 pan.  Place in this order:  noodles, meat sauce, 1 cup ricotta mixture, repeat.   Repeat until all ingredients are used.  Top with remaining mozzarella cheese.   Cover and bake in 350 degree oven for 40 minutes.

Gluten...what?!!!

Imagine if you woke up tomorrow and someone told you that you couldn't eat your favorite food.  Would that food be a cheeseburger, pizza, or ham sandwich?  How hard is it try and avoid one little tiny grain protein? Really hard if you are new to the gluten free game.  I applaud those that have been GF for years before many GI doctors knew how (sometimes I think they still don't know how) to diagnosis this condition.  My road seems a little bit easy or rough than some that celiac has destroyed the small intestine.  While there have been many advances in CD not much is known why, how, who or what about it.  Unlike some, I had abnormal biopsies but my blood serum was only a few small (1-2) away from celiac.  Gluten intolerance doesn't have abnormal small bowel biopsies and therefore, fellow CD people with beginning celiac are left in the irritable bowel/gluten intolerance category.  Unlike a gluten intolerant friends, we still can't eat wheat products, never ever.  I may not get as sick as some but I still get sick.  Will I take another blood test?  I do not want to gluten load for 3-4 months when I know if I do not eat gluten I do not get sick.  Frankly, I like sleeping on my stomach, which is something I haven't been able to do in about 9 years.  While I can't point it out for sure, but I believe the stress of pregnancy is what started by road to celiac.  However, my grandma was a closet celiac at a time where it wasn't ever talked about because it was a rare condition.  This blog is for my benefit and to post some great recipes I come across or ones that I fix into the GF fashion.  I'm not doctor but just the gluten free nurse that now knows what it feels like to get the diagnosis.