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    Jefferson Adams
    Did You Miss the Gluten-Free Fireworks This Past Fourth of July?
    Celiac.com 08/14/2018 - Occasionally, Celiac.com learns of an amusing gluten-free story after the fact. Such is the case of the “Gluten-Free Fireworks.” 
    We recently learned about a funny little event that happened leading up to Fourth of July celebrations in the town of Springdale in Northwest Arkansas. It seems that a sign advertising "Gluten Free Fireworks" popped up near a fireworks stand on interstate 49 in Springdale. 
    In case you missed the recent dose of Fourth of July humor, in an effort to attract customers and provide a bit of holiday levity, Pinnacle Fireworks put up a sign advertising "gluten-free fireworks.” 
    The small company is owned by Adam Keeley and his father. "A lot of the people that come in want to crack a joke right along with you," Keeley said. "Every now and then, you will get someone that comes in and says so fireworks are supposed to be gluten-free right? Have I been buying fireworks that have gluten? So then I say no, no they are gluten-free. It's just a little fun."
    Keeley said that their stand saw a steady flow of customers in the week leading up to the Fourth. In addition to selling “gluten-free” fireworks, each fireworks package sold by Pinnacle features a QR code. The code can be scanned with a smartphone. The link leads to a video showing what the fireworks look like.
    We at Celiac.com hope you and your family had a safe, enjoyable, and, yes, gluten-free Fourth of July. Stay tuned for more on gluten-free fireworks and other zany, tongue-in-cheek stories.
    Read more at kark.com
     
    Jefferson Adams
    Stress-Related Disorders Associated with Higher Risk for Autoimmune Disease
    Celiac.com 08/13/2018 - It’s not uncommon for people to have psychiatric reactions to stressful life events, and these reactions may trigger some immune dysfunction. Researchers don’t yet know whether such reactions increase overall risk of autoimmune disease.
    Are psychiatric reactions induced by trauma or other life stressors associated with subsequent risk of autoimmune disease? Are stress-related disorders significantly associated with risk of subsequent autoimmune disease?
    A team of researchers recently set out to determine whether there is an association between stress-related disorders and subsequent autoimmune disease. The research team included Huan Song, MD, PhD; Fang Fang, MD, PhD; Gunnar Tomasson, MD, PhD; Filip K. Arnberg, PhD; David Mataix-Cols, PhD; Lorena Fernández de la Cruz, PhD; Catarina Almqvist, MD, PhD; Katja Fall, MD, PhD; Unnur A. Valdimarsdóttir, PhD.
    They are variously affiliated with the Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík, Iceland; the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík, Iceland; the Department of Rheumatology, University Hospital, Reykjavík, Iceland; the Centre for Rheumatology Research, University Hospital, Reykjavík, Iceland; the National Centre for Disaster Psychiatry, Department of Neuroscience, Psychiatry, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden; the Stress Research Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden; the Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; the Stockholm Health Care Services, Stockholm County Council, Stockholm, Sweden; the Astrid Lindgren Children’s Hospital, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden; the Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden; the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; and the Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts.
    The team conducted a Swedish register-based retrospective cohort study that included 106, 464 patients with stress-related disorders, 1,064 ,640 matched unexposed individuals, and 126 ,652 full siblings to determine whether a clinical diagnosis of stress-related disorders was significantly associated with an increased risk of autoimmune disease.
    The team identified stress-related disorder and autoimmune diseases using the National Patient Register. They used Cox model to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% CIs of 41 autoimmune diseases beyond 1 year after the diagnosis of stress-related disorders, controlling for multiple risk factors.
    The data showed that being diagnosed with a stress-related disorder, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, acute stress reaction, adjustment disorder, and other stress reactions, was significantly associated with an increased risk of autoimmune disease, compared with matched unexposed individuals. The team is calling for further studies to better understand the associations and the underlying factors.
    Source:
    JAMA. 2018;319(23):2388-2400. doi:10.1001/jama.2018.7028  
    Jefferson Adams
    Gluten-Free Bacon-Wrapped Chicken Breasts
    Celiac.com 08/11/2018 - Need a quick, easy, reliable gluten-free dish that will satisfy everyone and leave the cook with plenty of time to relax? This recipe is sure to do the trick. Best of all, it's super easy. Just grab some chicken breasts, season them, hit them with a sprig of rosemary, wrap some bacon around them, and chuck them on the grill and call it dinner. Okay, you can add some rice and veggies.
    Ingredients:
    4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves 4 thick slices bacon 4 teaspoons garlic powder 4 small sprigs fresh rosemary salt and pepper to taste Directions:
    Heat an outdoor grill to medium-high heat, and lightly oil the grate.
    Sprinkle 1 teaspoon garlic powder on a chicken breast and season with salt and pepper. 
    Place a rosemary sprig on each chicken breast. 
    Wrap the bacon around the chicken and the rosemary. 
    Hold bacon in place with a toothpick or extra rosemary stem.
    Cook the chicken breasts until no longer pink in the center and the juices run clear, about 8 minutes per side. 
    Keep an eye out for any grill flare ups from the bacon grease. 
    Remove the toothpicks and serve with steamed rice and your favorite vegetables for a winning meal.
    Connie Sarros
    Five-Minute Healthy Breakfasts
    Celiac.com 08/10/2018 - You’ve heard for years that it’s wise to start your day with a healthy breakfast.  Eating food first thing in the morning gets your metabolism revved so you have energy throughout the day.  There’s also the issue of incorporating healthy foods into your first meal of the day.  Ideally, every meal should include fiber and foods from a variety of food groups.  But the reality is that most people don’t have time in the morning to create an involved meal.  You’re busy getting ready for work, packing the kids’ lunches and trying to get everyone out of the door on time.  
    Don’t fret.  The task of preparing a healthy breakfast just got easier.  You can make 5-minute breakfasts and, with a little bit of planning, you can sneak fiber into those meals without spending a lot of extra time with preparation.  An ideal breakfast will include whole grains (from gluten-free cereals, breads, muffins, or uncontaminated oats), a low-fat dairy item (1% milk, low-fat yogurt, or low-fat cheese), and a source of protein (such as peanut butter or eggs).  Adding fruit is a plus.  
    If you can tolerate uncontaminated oats, make a bowl of oatmeal and add a little extra fiber by stirring in chopped walnuts and dried cranberries.  If you like scrambled eggs, toss some fresh spinach (sliced into thin strips), 1 chopped canned artichoke heart, two tablespoons crumbled feta cheese, and a dash of Italian seasoning to the egg as it cooks.  
    If you have time on weekends to make healthy gluten-free pancakes (which  means that you added perhaps flax seed meal or shredded apples or something that qualifies as fiber to the batter), then freeze the pancakes between sheets of wax paper, place them in a freezer bag, and freeze so they’ll be handy on busy weekday mornings.  If you don’t have time to make them prior to need, you can always use commercial frozen gluten-free pancakes.  In a bowl, mix together a few raisins, half of a chopped pear or apple, a few dashes of cinnamon and a couple of tablespoons of chopped walnuts.  Spoon this mixture down the centers of two toasted (or microwaved) pancakes, drizzle each with 1 teaspoon of pancake or maple syrup, then fold in the sides of the pancakes to make two breakfast sandwiches.
    Brown rice is brown because the bran layer is still on the rice, and the bran layer is the part that’s so high in fiber.  White rice is much lower in fiber and has less nutritional value.  Brown rice isn’t just for dinner anymore.  It offers a nice breakfast alternative from traditional hot cereals.  The next time you make brown rice for dinner, make a little extra and save some for breakfast the next morning.  In the A.M., mix the rice (about 1 cup) with a few chopped pecans, a few raisins, 1/2 cup milk, 3 tablespoons pancake syrup, a dash each of vanilla and cinnamon, then microwave the mixture for 1 minute, stirring once after 30 seconds.  Let it sit for 30 seconds to thicken before eating.  Or stir together 1 cup cooked brown rice, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 navel orange diced, some chopped dates, dried cranberries, and shredded coconut; heat this in the microwave and then top it off with 1/2 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt.
    Just a note about using the microwave—it’s not an exact science.  Different ovens have different power levels so what cooks in 30 seconds in one person’s microwave may take 45 seconds in someone else’s unit.  Unless you want the food to splatter all over the sides of the oven, you’ll need to cover any liquids or soft foods with waxed paper.  
    There will be days when you don’t have time to sit down at the table and enjoy a leisurely breakfast.  On these days, make a “grab-and-go” breakfast that you can take with you.  Gluten-free wraps keep for several weeks in the refrigerator and they make great fill-and-go containers on busy mornings.  Spread a wrap with peanut butter, sprinkle some fortified gluten-free dry cereal on top, then drizzle with a teaspoon of pancake syrup; roll up the wrap and you have the perfect dashboard dining breakfast to eat on the way to work.  Or scramble an egg, spoon it down the center of the wrap, and then top it off with a little salsa and pepper-jack cheese before rolling it up. If you only have three minutes before you have to leave the house, spoon some low-fat cottage cheese into a cup, stir in a dash of cinnamon, top with a little low-fat gluten-free granola or fortified dry gluten-free cereal, sprinkle berries or chopped peaches over the top, grab a spoon, and you’re ready to go!
    Smoothies can be made in literally one minute.  Toss some frozen raspberries into a blender, add a 12-ounce container of low-fat lemon yogurt, a little milk, and two teaspoons of vanilla; blend, then pour the mixture into a large plastic cup.
    If you oversleep, don’t panic.  Have some back-up foods on hand that you can grab and eat en route to work, like a gluten-free protein bar and a banana, or a bag of nuts and dried fruit, or flax seed crackers with a handful of cheese cubes, or toss some gluten-free granola over a container of yogurt and grab a spoon to take along.
    All of the above suggestions can be made in five minutes or less.  Take the time to start your day off with a healthy breakfast—you deserve to do that for yourself and for your family.
    Apple English Muffins by Connie Sarros
    This recipe is from my newly-released book Student’s Vegetarian Cookbook for Dummies.  While this isn’t a gluten-free cookbook, most of the recipes are naturally gluten-free or can very easily be converted to gluten-free.  
    Preparation time:  4 minutes.  Cooking time:  30 seconds.  Yield:  1 serving
    Ingredients:
    1 tablespoon peanut butter  1 gluten-free English muffin, toasted  1/8 large apple, peeled, cored and sliced thin ½ teaspoon butter  ¾ teaspoon brown sugar 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon Directions:
    Spread peanut butter on one toasted English muffin half.  Lay the apple slices on top. In a small microwave safe bowl, heat the butter in the microwave on high for 15 seconds.  Stir in the brown sugar and cinnamon then nuke for another 15 seconds.  Stir until smooth.  (If necessary, pop it back into the microwave until the brown sugar melts).   Drizzle the cinnamon mixture over the apple slices then place the second half of the English muffin on top. Note:  If you’re out of apples, use a pear, ripe peach or nectarine, mango, or even a banana.
    Jefferson Adams
    Can a New Gluten-Free Cricket-Flour Cookbook Turn Americans on to Eating Bugs?
    Celiac.com 08/09/2018 - Whatever one might say about crawfish, shrimp and crustaceans in general, Americans don’t typically eat bugs. Can a former Ralph Lauren marketing executive turn the world on to flour made from crickets?
    Over the last few years, Americans have been presented with a buffet of alternative proteins and meals. Robyn Shapiro’s company, Seek, has created all-purpose, gluten-free, and Paleo blended flours, which can be used cup for cup in any recipe calling for flour. 
    The company, which makes pure cricket powder for smoothies, ice creams, and other liquid-based foods, is now selling cinnamon-almond crunch cricket protein and snack bites. To get the public interested in its cricket protein and cricket flour products, Shapiro has collaborated with famous chefs to create recipes for The Cricket Cookbook. 
    The book’s cast includes La Newyorkina chef Fany Gerson, a Mexico City native known for her cricket sundaes; noted Sioux chef and cookbook author Sean Sherman; and former Noma pastry chef Ghetto Gastro member, Malcolm Livingston, among others.
    Other companies have sought to promote the benefits of insect protein, including Chapul, which makes cricket protein bars and powders, and Exo, which makes dairy- and gluten-free cricket protein bars in flavors like cocoa nut and banana bread. These companies, along with others in the business tend to aim their products at Paleo dieters by promising more protein and no dairy.
    Seek’s chef-focused approach makes it unique. By pairing with noted chefs who already use bugs and bug protein in their cooking, Shapiro is looking to make the public more comfortable and confident in using bugs to cook and bake. So far, the response has been slow, but steady. Seek has already raised nearly $13,000 from 28 backers, well on its way toward its $25,000 goal. 
    Seek’s cricket flours and other products will initially only be available via Kickstarter. If that goes well, the products will be sold on Seek’s website. Early backers will get a discount and a chance for a signed copy of the book. Seek hopes to debut their products nationwide starting in the fall. 
    Could gluten-free cricket flour and the new cookbook be the next big gluten-free Christmas gift? Stay tuned for more on this and other gluten-free stories.
    Source:
    grubstreet.com