Month: June 2012

Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Vanilla Frosting

Posted by | Jun 13, 2012 | , |

I have a huge issue with frosting that approximates the consistency of a crayon when chilled. I find it unappetizing and difficult to manage. Until someone makes an aerated palm oil based shortening those who cannot have soy oil are stuck with using something like Spectrum Butter Flavor Shortening which tastes fine but cannot be easily aerated by the home cook. For those of us who can use the Earth Balance aerated (or whipped in marketing terms) products, we have more options. I put off doing a vanilla frosting recipe for years. Early attempts fell apart. One reminded me of that old movie “The Blob” This one is stiffer than I would like and is not as spreadable fresh from the fridge as I would like it to be, but it has no military applications and it tastes just like the real butter buttercream I used to make back when I was totally ignorant about what was wrong with me. As is true with the chocolate frosting swapping out the aerated margarine for a different kind will yield a different result. Ingredients 2 Tablespoons flax milk (or soy or rice or coconut etc.) 2 tsp GF vanilla pinch salt 4 c sifted confectioners sugar 1 c packed Earth Balance Organic whipped buttery spread (in the tubs) Equipment 1 electric stand mixer Measuring cups and spoons A sifter or colander...

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Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Betty Crocker Mix Vanilla Cupcakes

Posted by | Jun 12, 2012 | , |

Once again I found the instructions on the box to yield a less than ideal result. When followed I found the cupcakes had an insufficient vanilla flavor. I also found that you needed truly melted shortening to get the texture right. These contain eggs. I have done an egg-free version, but I am not happy with it yet. Again, this is adapted from the recipe on the box. Ingredients 1 box Betty Crocker Gluten Free Yellow Cake Mix 2/3 cup Good Karma Flax Milk 3 large eggs 4 tsp gluten-free vanilla 1/2 cup Spectrum Organic Butter Flavor Shortening Equipment 1 microwave safe container for melting shortening (ideally this will be a pyrex measuring cup) Measuring cups and spoons 1 electric mixer 1 12 well standard cupcake pan 12 cupcake liners 1 spatula 1 gravy ladle for measuring out cupcake batter Instructions Melt shortening in microwave safe measuring cup. Allow to cool to a temperature that you can comfortably touch, so hot but not burning hot. Put shortening in bowl of electric mixer, turn mixer on low Add eggs to shortening and mix to combine and create an emulsion Add vanilla and flax milk Add cake mix. Mix on low for 30 seconds Mix on medium for a full 4 additional minutes. Do not undermix. At the end it will start to look like cake batter. Preheat oven to the...

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A Good Problem to Have

Posted by | Jun 10, 2012 | |

I am exhausted. My house is a mess. I have frosting in my hair and on my shirt, and I think I might be able to sleep until Thursday. Throwing a gluten, dairy, and nut free birthday party for twenty children is not easy. You have to make all your own cupcakes. You have to triple check every bit of food and you have to find a place that gives you that control over the food. I started baking days ago. But it is so much better than the alternative. Two years ago I did not bother to throw a party. My son was only six months into the healing process and he still had few friends. I invited all three of them to an open house. We had mostly adults…friends and family. He was getting better, but he was still not well. The University of California San Diego has a pediatric gastroenterologist who says it takes a year for a child to heal. I think that is just about right. Now, he has too many friends for me to feel safe with his first choice…a pool party. So we went with his second choice which was ice skating. Yes, now we have too many friends. He invited a small army and despite a perfect pool day and a weekend when a lot of people had other obligations, his...

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The Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Nut-Free Birthday Party

Posted by | Jun 7, 2012 | |

This year we will be having a gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free birthday party. This is the same thing we did last year, but this time its official. I refuse to serve anything my child cannot eat at his birthday party. I also refuse to serve anything that might cause one of his friends to go to the ER. You might be surprised at how easy it is. These are my tips for a safe, fun party 1) Pick a theme that is about an activity. It can be swimming or skating or movies or jumping in a bounce house. It can be mad libs. The idea is that the party is about the people and the activity. It is not about the food. 2) Don’t try to serve lunch. We are doing the party in the afternoon. Its the school age equivalent of a cocktail party. We will have fruit, veggies, chips, dips, lemonade, and vegan sushi. All are easy to find in a big 8 free version. I buy the chips well in advance and the fruit the day before. Kids do eat fruit. Last year I realized that we were walking out with none of our strawberries and virtually all of our chips. 3) Don’t feel like you need to serve pizza or sandwiches. Maybe years ago pizza at a party was a big deal, but nowadays pizza...

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The Wisdom of Big Charlie

Posted by | Jun 6, 2012 | |

When my son was still sick, a child at his preschool came up to me and told me that my son was a “bad kid”. I don’t blame him. If you are four years old then a three year old who bites, pulls hair, won’t talk much, and who walks in circles for half an hour is probably going to seem like a “bad kid”. But not to Big Charlie. Big Charlie was a very tall child who was in his last year at the Montessori school my son attended. When my child was three, Charlie was five. When I came to school to read a book, Big Charlie came up to me immediately and said simply. “Something is wrong with your kid. You need to take him to a doctor.” Big Charlie was wiser at five than most adults I know. What he saw, is what everyone needs to see. Autism, SPD, and ADHD are not behavioral problems. They are medical conditions with biological causes that effect the brain. Period. We may not yet understand the biochemical mechanism that causes these problems (my rant on that is elsewhere) but we know that things like diet, detox, and fever can sometimes cause sudden and meaningful changes in the condition of a child. This does not mean that therapeutic interventions are not vitally necessary. Anyone who has had a family...

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Aunt Donna’s Cole Slaw

Posted by | Jun 5, 2012 | |

Most cole slaw recipes are going to be gluten-free, dairy-free, and nut free as long as you use a gluten-free mayonnaise. Soy free is also easy. Most commercial mayonnaise brands use soybean oil. That said, Hain makes both a canola and a safflower oil mayonnaise which gets one away from both soy and nuts. The canola oil one is non-GMO. Spectrum also makes a canola oil mayonnaise but does not warrant that there are no GMOs in it. Since most canola is GMO, it is something to be aware of as you make your choices. Cabbage and onions are both high in compounds known as sulphoraphanes. Sulphoraphanes are being actively studied for anti-cancer properties as well as their effects on slowing heart disease and their impact on diseases like MS. That said, these compounds are still in trials, and you should check with a doctor before eating any concentrated sulfur compounds. However, eating some cabbage was and is generally a good idea. Check with your doctor, but I haven’t met one yet who recommends against eating vegetables. This particular coleslaw also includes a lot of raw onions which are also very high in sulfur. But mostly, it tastes good and can be made pretty quickly if you have either a food processor or good knife skills. Ingredients 4 c minced cabbage (about 1/2 head) 1 c minced onion 3/4...

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