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Celiac.com 09/25/2014 - Every year, life seems to get more hectic. There is never enough time to get the things done on the ever-growing “to-do” list, let alone find time to relax. Then you are diagnosed with celiac disease and suddenly realize you can no longer stop at Subway for a hoagie sandwich on your way home. You get a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach as you acknowledge that you will have to actually cook most of your own meals at home! There is no need to panic. There are many shortcuts that can help you get in and out of the kitchen faster. Here are just a few: Make a list of all the items you buy at the grocery store. Make your list very specific, organized by aisles at the store. Print off multiple copies. As you run out of things during the week, put a check mark next to the item on your list. When it is time to go shopping, most of your list will already be done. Keep a “basic pantry.” These are items you should always have on hand. Not only does this include spices, household cleaners, paper products, and canned goods, but a back-up pantry meal is always good to stock as well. This can be anything from cans of beans for a bean salad, gluten-free pork and beans or a can of tuna fish, to gluten-free spaghetti and gluten-free spaghetti sauce. Make extras. If you are making soup, chili, spaghetti sauce, marinated chicken breasts, cookie dough, etc., make two or three times the quantity you need; freeze the extra portions so you have meals that just need to be popped into the microwave on the days you don’t have time to cook. Use disposable foil cookware for those really messy recipes. Also, dish out dinners in the kitchen, from pot to plate; that way, you won’t have serving dishes to wash. Soak whole potatoes in hot water before baking them—they will cook much faster. When potatoes need peeling, peel them after they are cooked when they are cool enough to handle and the skins will slip right off. Use leftovers to make a different meal. Open a bag of ready-to-use lettuce and top it with last night’s leftover corn, taco filling, diced tomatoes, and sprinkle with gluten-free cheddar cheese. Or top the salad with thin slices of the leftover roast beef, diced leftover asparagus spears…you get the idea. You can also chop leftovers into bite-sized pieces and place them in a resealable freezer bag, and the next time you have leftovers toss them in. When the bag is full, open a large can of gluten-free chicken or beef broth, add the contents of the bag, and voila—you have Recycled Soup! Save the crusts. If you can’t get the kids to eat their crusts, trim them from their bread and store them in a resealable freezer bag (gluten-free bread is too expensive to buy and too time-consuming to make to throw out the crusts!). When the bag is full, let the crusts dry out for 24 hours, then run them through a food processor or blender, adding spices like dried parsley, garlic powder, paprika, and/or Italian seasoning, and make breadcrumbs. Use a crock pot. There are many meals that can be made in crock-pots, such as the recipe that follows. Cut up your leftover veggies and meat from the night before. You can also cut up potatoes ahead of time and soak them in cold water in the refrigerator. In the morning, layer everything in the crock pot, add some liquid (gluten-free barbecue sauce, gluten-free spaghetti sauce, tomato sauce, gluten-free broth, or salsa), turn the temperature to low or slow cook, and eight hours later your meal is ready. With a little practice and planning, you can enjoy healthy, quick, gluten-free meals. Planning ahead is the key to saving time. Plan your meals for the week, including how you are going to use up the leftovers. There definitely is time for “life after cooking” on a gluten-free diet. You can find more quick meal ideas in my book, Wheat-free Gluten-free Cookbook for Kids and Busy Adults. Connie Sarros’ Crock Pot Pork Chops This recipe takes only 4 minutes to assemble! Ingredients: 2 pounds pork chops 1⁄2 teaspoon garlic powder 3 tablespoons gluten-free soy Sauce: 1⁄2 cup gluten-free Italian dressing 1 small bottle gluten-free barbecue sauce Directions: The night before, wash chops then pat them dry with paper towels. Sprinkle garlic powder on both sides of the chops, and then place them in a resealable plastic bag. Pour in soy sauce and Italian dressing; seal bag and refrigerate overnight. In the morning place chops and marinade in a crock-pot, add the barbecue sauce by lifting the chops with a fork to distribute it evenly. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. This recipe serves 4-6 people.

Celiac.com 12/31/2021 - Having your children help out in the kitchen has many benefits. They will learn far more about cooking through hands-on experience than by watching Mommy or Daddy prepare everything. It will nurture their learning about the gluten-free diet and they will take a more active roll in watching what ingredients are used. It provides excellent bonding time and, as they get older, it will free the parent(s) from some of the kitchen duties. While parents concentrate on when and where to eat, kids usually decide how much and whether to eat! One of the best perks of having your kids help in the kitchen is that they are more likely to eat the things that they prepare for themselves! Since each child is different, it is important for parents to consider the developmental level and abilities of each child when assigning kitchen duties. Generally, children under 10 years old do not fully understand what ‘danger’ means, so they should not use the stove, electrical appliances, or sharp utensils, nor handle hot dishes. Never leave a child alone in the kitchen. Impress on them that they must never leave anything cooking on the stove unattended; that is the number one cause of house fires. By the time a child is 3 years old, they love to play cook and get ‘messy’ with kitchen foods. Direct that interest by letting them help with the preparation of breakfast, lunch, or dinner. It can be simple tasks at first, like laying cheese slices on a piece of GF bread for a toasted cheese sandwich, or sprinkling some grated cheese over salads. While you are preparing the bulk of dinner, fill up the sink with water and let them play with plastic measuring cups, filling the cups up to see what sinks and what floats. Between 4 and 5 years old, your child can wash fruits and vegetables, snap green beans, set foods on a relish platter, spoon drop cookies onto a cookie sheet, mix foods with their hands (meatloaf, tossed salads), stir ingredients together in a bowl, and sprinkle colored sugars on cookies. They can shape yeast dough and wrap potatoes in foil for baking. Give them raisins or sliced grapes to make ‘faces’ on their bowl of cottage cheese. With mini chocolate chips, let them create smiley faces on cookies. They love to peel hard-boiled eggs and oranges, and mash bananas. Wash their rounded childproof scissors with soap and water and let them cut breads into fun shapes for their sandwiches or cut green onions and parsley for a salad. They are able to handle a butter knife for spreading peanut butter and jelly or cheese spreads. It is also at this young age that it is important to introduce a large variety of foods into your child’s diet. Ask your child what he or she would like for dinner, suggesting two or three vegetables to pick from for a side dish. Remember—when a child helps in the preparation of a new food they will be more likely to taste it. Between 5 and 10 years old is the perfect time to let them help plan the meals and tell you what ingredients need to be added to the shopping list. This is the prime time when they will start to take an active role in their gluten-free diet. You can teach them the importance of reading labels and how to plan a well-balanced meal. Get them a gluten-free kids cookbook so they can begin to select the foods that they can prepare for themselves. Show them the importance of washing their hands before cooking and after handling meat or fish. They love to use cookie cutters to cut shapes out of dough and then decorate the cookies. Let them measure and sprinkle the spices for marinades, salads, and cookie mixes. Squeezing lemons and oranges is always fun, as is breaking eggs into a bowl. They can even pound down on a self-contained chopper to chop vegetables or nuts. By the time kids are 10 years old, they can use simple appliances like a blender, microwave and even a toaster oven. It is at this point that you need to impress upon them the correct usage of each appliance along with the potential dangers. They can shred cheese with a hand grater. Let them read their own recipes and follow the instructions and measure the ingredients without your help. They can take a more active part in the shopping experience and read labels themselves (although you should still double check to make sure the product is gluten-free). While at the store, ask your child to choose a new vegetable or fruit, from two to three choices, for a weekly “try-a-new-food” night. If you bribe your child to eat his spinach so that he can have a yummy dessert, you inadvertently reinforce the idea that sweets are better than nutritious food. Instead of rewarding your children with food, reward them with attention (hugs, kisses, and smiles) and playful activities. From age 12 and up, they can use a paring knife, electric can opener and stovetop burners. Let them flip pancakes, place a tray of cookies in the oven, and cut the vegetables for a salad. Show them how to use caution when draining spaghetti into a colander. They are old enough now to plan a meal on their own, including listing the ingredients needed. Think about having one night a week where they plan the meal, shop for the ingredients, and prepare the meal on their own—and oh yes, clean up the kitchen afterwards. Do you remember licking the bowl after your mom made chocolate frosting when you were a kid? Kids still like to do that. The kitchen can be the focal point of learning and bonding if you nurture that. Your children will learn far more about their special diet by helping out in the kitchen and going grocery shopping with you than they ever will through lectures. No matter the age of your child, there is something they can do to feel that they have contributed to the meal. Make helping in the kitchen a fun activity, not a chore that must be done. Gluten-Free Cherry Whip A kid-friendly recipe from the ‘Wheat-free Gluten-free Cookbook for Kids and Busy Adults. Ingredients: 1 can (10 oz.) crushed pineapple (undrained) 1 can (21 oz.) gluten-free cherry pie filling 3⁄4 tsp. almond extract 3⁄4 cup chopped walnuts 1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk 1 container (8 oz.) gluten-free nondairy whipped topping, thawed Directions: In a large bowl, stir together the pineapple with its juice, pie filling, almond extract, walnuts and condensed milk with a rubber spatula. Fold in the whipped topping until completely blended. Cover and chill for 3 hours. Makes 8 (3⁄4 cup) servings. Note: In place of the cherry pie filling and nuts, you can substitute peach pie filling and coconut. Calories: 250; Total fat: 8.6g; Saturated fat: 5g; Cholesterol: 8mg; Sodium: 58mg; Carbohydrates: 37g; Fiber: 1g; Sugar: 34.9g; Protein: 3.2g

Celiac.com 09/30/2014 - If you're a fan of granola, you'll want to try this unique product. Each 10 ounce bag is freshly made using organic honey, three different kinds of nuts, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, olive oil, and sea salt. The most unique thing about this granola is that is is grain-free. It's so good, I have never tasted anything like it. This granola also comes in four different flavors and lasts up to six months when refrigerated. I love it that chef Jason Kahn has created a product that is healthy and absolutely delicious!

Celiac.com 07/10/2015 - Ready for a revolution in healthy fast food? Amy's Kitchen thinks so. Looking to be more than just a frozen food company, food-maker Amy's Kitchen is staking a bet on healthy fast food by opening a healthy all vegetarian drive-thru restaurant in Rohnert Park, California. Amy's Drive-Thru will offer vegetarian burgers, burritos, pizzas, salads, macaroni and cheese, as well as milkshakes and vegan non-dairy shakes," according to the official company press release. Each menu item can be ordered vegan or gluten-free and every ingredient is non-GMO. Nearly all products are organic, and most ingredients are locally sourced. All meals are made from scratch, in under three minutes. "The heart of the Drive Thru menu is The Amy, a veggie burger the company developed over the course of over a thousand recipe taste tests," Amy's said in a press release. The restaurant opens in July, and will serve lunch and dinner, with plans to eventually serve breakfast. Diners will have a choice of meals that are gluten-free or dairy-free, and the pizza comes in either a rice or wheat crust. More than 95 percent of the products are organic, with many locally sourced. Source: FOOD WORLD NEWS

Celiac.com 09/05/2011 - The rise in celiac disease awareness and the explosion of foods for people who must eat gluten-free is generally a good thing. However, when companies rush products into the gluten-free market without a well-practiced and comprehensive plan, they can easily make mistakes. Consider the case of California Pizza Kitchen. In June, the company proudly announced the debut of a gluten-free pizza crust. Then, in August, the restaurant chain quietly pulled the crust from its menu, in what appears to be a re-evaluation of its gluten-free preparation process. This is a good thing, since numerous customers complained of symptoms of gluten-contamination, and the company itself acknowledged that their preparation process allowed possible cross-contamination from their standard pizza crusts. Many in the celiac community have pointed out that even though the crust is gluten-free, it is being prepared in the same areas as the gluten-containing crusts. So the pizza could be cross-contaminated with wheat, which has adverse health effects for people with celiac disease and gluten-sensitivity. On the California Pizza Kitchen Twitter feed, the company said that it is reviewing its preparation procedures, while leaving open the possibility that it might once again offer gluten-free pizza. Efforts by companies like Walt Disney, and more recently by Subway, show that it is possible to consistently deliver a safe and satisfying gluten-free dining experience to large numbers of people. However, it takes awareness of needs of the gluten-free community, and a comprehensive preparation and delivery plan to do it consistently well. Ideally, California Pizza Kitchen will learn and grow from this experience, and return from the drawing board with a plan to deliver safe, gluten-free versions of their unique and much-loved pizzas. Until then, stay tuned...