I remember watching a flurry of Food Network stuffing/dressing recipes for Thanksgiving, including Paula’s recipe, which largely seemed to be a batter mixed with about a dozen eggs poured over some bread cubes and liberally laced with twists of butter. And when she was done, she added another layer of butter. There was so much butter I actually stopped salivating and looked on in shock that any industry would promote such extreme butter usage. I wondered if Paula’s show was underwritten by the dairy industry.

(Just in case you were wondering, I think this is the stuffing recipe, though I think she embellished it even more on tv)

Now the news has broken that Paula has type 2 diabetes. Formerly considered “adult onset diabetes” because it doesn’t occur unless at-risk people who eat a consistent diet of highly processed foods such as white starches and sugars tend to develop it as they age, this disease is becoming more and more prevalent in younger people. In fact, current estimations are that one out of three people will develop type 2 diabetes in their lifetime.

It’s easy to point fingers at our modern diet, but we know better at this point: we know that diet is important and can contribute to the risk of developing diabetes, but diet and lifestyle alone does not create type 2 diabetes. People who have a genetic predisposition for diabetes are more likely to develop it over time, and it’s even possible for those people to do so while following a healthful diet.

Paula didn’t “give” herself diabetes, however the lifestyle she promotes through her decadent recipes didn’t improve her chances for not developing it, either. And they also promote an unhealthful diet for people with any health condition risk.

Diabetes is only one of many conditions contingent on a healthy lifestyle. Additionally, we don’t know who is more likely to be susceptible to this disease. The best thing any of us can do is make sure we have a healthy diet of whole grains, high fiber, fruit and vegetables, and lean meats. And don’t forget exercise!

That doesn’t mean it’s bad to have a little butter or sugar here and there because that’s not what’s going to give you diabetes. Keep in mind that your chances of getting type 2 diabetes may be out of our control, but your lifestyle is, and type 2 is fully treatable and even reversible if you eat healthfully and exercise.

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Syndey Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 9,700 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 4 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

During the testing, I had to lie down on a table and the technician brought in a tray of allergens in a theme, such as major or minor foods, then pollens/grasses/trees/molds in various combinations. For some they wanted further clarification, so shots were injected subcutaneously into my arm after the testing on my back was completed.

The skin testing helps determine what you would react to in a severe way, possibly requiring the use of an EpiPen to prevent anaphylaxis if encountered. While I have many adverse reactions to foods, I know that only about 1-3% of adults have true allergies to foods so I wasn’t thinking I would show any positives in those tests. My doctor explained that a person may still have adverse reactions even if they don’t show on the skin test, but that those are not likely to result in life-threatening ways, so other options are available for treatment, such as taking a certain antihistamine cocktail for a few days before trying them out. He really took the fear out of food reactions for me, as most of mine, while fairly unpleasant, only last a couple of days, and I realized that if I was stuck somewhere with no other food source, I would not starve because I would bite the bullet and eat what was given, even if I felt sick for a bit after.

The skin test is a little prickly and then itchy, especially where they poke you with the pure histamine which is used as a control to make sure they are getting a good reaction –  I was instructed to be off all antihistamines, including those for acid reflux, for 5 days before each set of testing as they can interfere with the results. I had to lie there in the little room for 20 minutes each time while I felt all sorts of itchiness occurring and really wanted to scratch my back but instead found something to read to distract myself. The results are determined by measuring the urticaria or wheals that form and then the redness circumference around the wheal, so a positive would have a wheal of >3mm wide and redness >10mm wide, or written as 3/10.

I found out that the only two foods I have a true, skin-testable allergy to are red pepper (3/13) and lobster (6/30 – my wheal for lobster was as wide as the histamine!) Allergy to one shellfish gives a 75% likelihood of being allergic to other shellfish. I was surprised I didn’t have a positive test for oranges, as I have had a reaction in the past after drinking some juice and having some fresh. I did test positive for many pollens from grasses, weeds, and trees, as well as molds, and this can explain why some foods are allergenic when consumed, as some pollens are very similar in structure to food proteins, which may cause a faulty allergic reaction in the body when consumed. An example is being allergic to birch pollen might give you an adverse reaction to apples, peaches, or melons.

With the results in, I am looking at the way I eat food a little differently. I was told by my allergist the more I avoided certain foods that didn’t provide a true allergic reaction, the more sensitive I would be to them, such as potatoes. That instead of eating less of them over time and getting more reactive, I would have been better served to keep eating them to maintain my body’s ability to tolerate them. I’d wondered about that in the past, so am looking forward to future appointments where we discuss strategies to maybe make it possible for me to regain some of those forbidden foods in my diet.

I’m not suggesting anyone do this out there without the help of a doctor, but if you haven’t had allergy testing and have problems with specific foods, it may be worth your while to make an appointment. It’s worth a shot!

People are understandably upset about autism, especially since no one is able to figure out what causes it. So we look for patterns and try to piece it together. This is an anecdotal article about Amish people that claims that only three Amish children were ever vaccinated, and of those, two of them developed autism. I understand the strong desire to explain things, and when things are unexplained, then people want to develop conspiracy theories, but the truth of the matter is without any actual documented data to back it up, you can’t make any conclusions about the Amish as a people and their apparent (at least in this article) lack of autism.

I am posting about this because I am passionate about science and understanding why things work, and every form of research I’ve read indicates there is no connection between vaccinations and autism. I know that there is a similar thought about going gluten-free to reduce the effects of autism, yet there is no science to back that up, either.

I hope that people don’t stop vaccinating their kids because we have already seen the resurgence of whooping cough as a result of this practice. I would hate to see polio and other diseases come back, out of fear that these vaccines allegedly cause autism.

Currently, in my food science class, my group is working on perfecting a gluten-free pretzel recipe and so far they taste very much like fresh, soft pretzels. They look a little funky, so we’re working on the texture. This is just an example of the density changes between two types of flour combinations. They taste really good, but we want to tighten them up a little bit before we really start showing them off.

Also, I’m helping with two research projects, one including gathering data on elementary school student plate-waste at lunchtime, and the other is to find out how allergists work with patients who come in to find out if they have food allergies or intolerances. I’m really excited to be learning about their protocols and how they deal with patients!

Anyway, I would love to hear what people have been up to. And I’ll start posting more as my baking season gets rolling!

My husband, who doesn’t have to eat like this, says it’s very close to the real thing and is tasty, either way. It’s been 12 years for me since I’ve had the real thing, but this most definitely satisfies the itch for red sauce when I get it. I hope you love it!

Here’s how you do it – there are a couple non-IC-friendly ingredients (wine, vinegar) but you can leave those out and still have a tasty sauce. However, if you can tolerate a little bit of those, then give them a try as they add to the body and give it that extra something.

NoMato Sauce

• 2 pounds carrots. sliced
• 3 medium beets (or one package pre-cooked from Trader Joe’s), chopped or sliced (peeled if raw)
• 2 yellow onions, chopped
• 1 good-sized leek (or 2-pack from Trader Joe’), sliced
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced (or more – depends on how much you like your garlic, I’ll use a whole bulb if patient enough to peel it all!)
• 2 ribs celery, sliced
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp salt, and then to taste
• 2 tsp black pepper
• chicken/beef/veggie stock or broth – your choice (at least one of those 32 oz boxes)
• 1 cup red or white wine, if you can tolerate it cooked
• water
• 4 tbsp Bragg’s Liquid Aminos (or other gluten-free tamari/soy sauce)
• 2 tbsp dried basil
• 2 tbsp oregano

Saute onions and leeks in a stock pot with olive oil in the bottom. When they have just started to sweat a little, add in garlic, carrots, beets, and celery. Add salt and pepper, and stir a little longer.

Add liquids, depending on what you like and can tolerate. You will need enough to cover the veggies in the stock pot, so start out with the box of broth/stock. Then add in the wine if you can tolerate it cooked (some ICers can’t handle wine at all, others are fine with it). If this isn’t enough to JUST cover the veggies, add in a little water to bring it to that level, so there are still some pieces of carrot and onion sticking out. You can always thin the sauce later if it gets too thick.

Let simmer on the stove with a lid on it for about 20 minutes. At that point, take an immersion or stick blender, take the pot off the heat, and blend it up as best you can. You can also use a blender or food processor, but hot stuff in those can get pretty messy, so be careful! Blend it up as finely as you can.

Once blended, put back on heat and check the thickness. If it resembles spaghetti sauce, then you’re set. If it’s too thick, then add more broth, wine, or water (or all three). If too watery, then you’ll want the whole thing to reduce, so simmer for a bit with the lid off. You’ll want it to cook a bit longer anyway, to soften up the vegetables more.

Add in the basil and oregano, and then add in a couple of tablespoons of Bragg’s, and give it a taste. If you think it needs more body, add in more Bragg’s. If you can get away with a little bit of acid, then try adding some natural apple cider vinegar, the kind you get in the health food stores (or at Trader Joe’s). You can also saute up a cup of sliced mushrooms and add them at this point.

Let the whole thing simmer for another 20 minutes and then it should all be pretty tender. I like to use some right away but pour the rest in 16oz canning jars while still hot, let them cool, then put in the freezer for later use. It’s been 12 years since I’ve had a real tomato spaghetti sauce, but this stuff comes very close. Add some ground beef for a bolognese-like sauce, great in a crock-pot lasagna, or use in stromboli. You can also omit the Italian seasonings (basil and oregano) and use it as a more general-purpose red sauce. Have fun and experiment!

I used my version of the pizza crust recipe from Living Without Magazine and rolled it out on top of a sheet of parchment, liberally floured with sweet rice flour. Then I built the stromboli by layering my no-mato sauce (recipe to come!!!), mozzarella cheese, salami, sauteed onions and garlic, more cheese, then rolled it up in the parchment to keep its form (fillings are up to you–I overstuffed mine and had a “blowout” in the oven). I baked it for 10 minutes at 425F rolled up, then cut open the paper and misted with olive oil and finished it off for 15 minutes before pulling it out to serve. It was amazing!

Step 1: Roll out dough.

Step 2: Once rolled out, get ready to add the no-mato sauce.

Step 3: First layer of mozz on top of the no-mato sauce.

Step 4: Layer on the salami. Be generous.

Step 5: Now’s the time for the sauteed onions and garlic.

Step 6: More mozz is a must!

Step 7: Start rolling the ends – careful, the dough is very delicate!

Step 8: Roll it all up in the parchment like a burrito, to bake in the oven. Wrap it tight and even give it a little squeeze to form it well.

Step 9: After 10 mins, pull out and cut open the top, mist with olive oil, and put it back in the oven for 15 more minutes.

Step 10: Take out of the oven, unwrap, and cut up to serve! May not be gorgeous, but it is DELICIOUS!!!

Plus, it’s extremely easy to fry up a batch, and if you roast up some brussel sprouts or sweet potato fries, you’ll have double the deliciousness to dip.

Gluten-Free Chicken Nuggets

• 1 1/2 lbs boneless chicken breasts (I prefer to use Rocky chicken, it tastes the best!)
• 1/2 – 3/4 c buttermilk
• flour blend: 1/4 c millet, 1/4 c buckwheat, 1/4 cup sorghum (you can try others, but I’ve found this combo to produce the crispiest crust)
• garlic powder
• salt
• pepper
• olive oil (enough to cover the entire bottom of a non-stick skillet, be a little generous)

Remove the skin from the chicken if it comes with it (this is a special treat for my dogs) and trim the chicken breasts into chunks that are about a 1″ cube or similar size (small trimmed pieces are special treats for my cats – EVERYONE loves chicken nugget night in my house!) and then put all the chicken chunks in a bowl. Pour enough buttermilk over it to cover it and let soak for a few minutes while you mix up your flour mix.

Pour the olive oil in your skillet – I like to use a 12″ one for 1 1/2 lbs chicken. Go ahead and turn it on to medium high heat so it’s ready when you start adding the nuggets.

One of the best ways to get the flour on the nuggets is to put the flours in a bag, add some garlic, salt, and pepper, and then add the nuggets piece by piece (don’t just pour the bowl with buttermilk into the bag of flours). Or you can use a container with a snap on lid. And then shake the heck out of them, until they’re completely coated!

Once the oil is hot (test if you like by sprinkling a drop of water into the pan), you can start laying the nuggets, one at a time, into the pan. Start on the outside and make a ring, then work your way in. Sprinkle them with salt, pepper, and garlic powder after you get them in the pan.

After a couple of minutes, gingerly start turning them over – a fork is really helpful, just don’t scratch the pan. Once all turned over, sprinkle again with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Now you’re just going to be tending them for a couple of more minutes, while they start to brown, so go ahead and make sure the ones that are not browning all around get some attention.

Once done, serve up on a couple of plates (we love them so much that two of us will polish off this amount, but this could also easily serve three with side dishes) and mix up a dip. My favorite is to take 2 tbsp of mayonnaise and about a tsp of dijon mustard, and press a clove of raw garlic into the dip bowl, mix up, and serve. I’m a garlic lover, so that’s my favorite, but make sure you try yours and let me know how you like it!

Easy TJs Chicken Soup

• 1/2 container pre-chopped celery/carrot/onion (mirepoix mix in TJs fridge section)
• 1 bag of broccoli slaw (slivered broccoli and carrots – Mann’s also makes a good version of this)
• 1 pack pre-sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 bag frozen green peas
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• salt
• pepper
• TJs garlic powder
• 2 chicken breasts (frozen boneless/skinless)
• water or 2 cartons chicken broth (make sure gluten-free)

Start off with olive oil in a stockpot, pour in the mirepoix mix and saute. Add the slaw, mushrooms, and peas and stir until evenly coated.

Add 2 cartons of stock or enough water to generously cover the vegetables. Once boiling, throw in chicken breasts whole, turn down the heat, and once the chicken starts floating at the top of the water and looking done, pull it out and slice it up on a cutting board into bite-sized pieces and throw it back in the soup. Give it all a low simmer for another 30 minutes or more, add seasonings to taste, and there you go – easy homemade chicken soup that’ll see you through any cold.

Even non-allergenic folk can make this soup and chuck those sodium-laden, tasteless cans in their cupboards. Nothing beats homemade chicken soup

One of my favorite gluten-free mix providers is Namaste, because they also have many mixes that are nightshade-free (no potato flour/starch, which is a standard in many pre-prepared gluten-free mixes/products). Their pancake mix is a great flour mix to use for baked goods and you don’t have to add leavening or salt. And coconut flour adds moisture, fiber, and a little flavor which is complementary to white chocolate, so I wanted to add a little of that.

White Chocolate, Almond, and Coconut Cookies (GF, NF, IC+)

• 1 3/4 cups Namaste pancake and waffle mix*
• 1/2 cup coconut flour
• 1 cup butter (2 sticks)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup sliced, blanched, toasted almonds (you can use other kinds, that’s just what I chose) or macademia nuts
• 12 oz bag of white chocolate chips

*You can also use Namaste Perfect Flour Blend, just add 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/4 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp cream of tartar.

Start by slicing butter into several slices and throw in a food processor. Add in sugars and pulse a few times. Add in eggs and vanilla and pulse until smooth or a few more times. Then add Namaste pancake mix (or Perfect Flour Blend with leavening) and coconut flour slowly, pulsing. Add the nuts and pulse a few more times to evenly distribute. Dough should be pretty thick.

Place dough in a large bowl and pour in the white chocolate chips and knead to distribute evenly. Then scoop out into balls about the size of a ping pong ball and slightly flatten and place on a cookie sheet (I prefer to use parchement on my cookie sheets).

Put cookie sheets in oven at 375 F for 15 minutes. This made enough for about four dozen cookies and took two cookie sheets. They will be delicate when fresh from the oven so try to let cool as flat as possible – with parchement you can just pull the sheet with the cookies on it right off onto the counter.

And enjoy!