-Gluten Free Bread-

Gluten free bread is not very nice, the word cardboard springs to mind everytime and the shop bought gf breads have so many additives and that just puts me right off! So I can tell you after lots of trial and error I have found a good one, "Odlums -Gluten Free- Tritamyl brown bread mix", just add water. I also add linseeds, poppy seeds and sesame seeds to jazz it up a bit and even the non glutens think its edible, to make a more savoury loaf you could add crushed garlic and olives:).

I also used the gf brown bread flour mix to make some lovely scones, however doves farm rice flour is fine too..they go very nice with some homemade butternut squash and sweet potato soup which is very easy to make also.

Gluten free Scones

Ingredients

250g/10oz Rice Flour

2 tsp Xanthan Gum

5tsp Baking Powder

4 tbsp Icing Sugar

50g/2oz Butter

300ml/10fl oz Natural Yoghurt

Water

Method

1. Mix together the rice flour, xanthan, baking powder and sugar.
2. Rub in the butter into the flour.
3. Stir in the yogurt and bring together into a soft dough.
4. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and flatten to 2cm/1” thick.
5. Cut into 5cm/2” rounds or rough triangles.
6. Place on a floured baking sheet.
7. Brush the water over the top of the scones.
8. Bake in a preheated oven for 18/20 minutes.

Temperature & cooking time:
220*C/fan200*C/400*F/Gas 6

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Gluten Free News
-  If you are in the UK this show would be really good to go along to and its free!
   http://www.allergyshow.co.uk/london/london-home/

Did you know?

-  Ireland has one of the highest prevalence of Coeliac Disease in the world.

-  Research shows that coeliac disease affects 1 in 100 people in the UK, making it much more    
   common than previously thought. Under-diagnosis is a big problem. Research suggests around  
   500,000 people have not yet been diagnosed.

Tonights dinner was yummy, made some gluten free bean burgers with spinnach and rocket salad, advocado and grated carrot with a homemade balsamic dressing, followed by a gluten free toffee apple crumble at the request of my partner who has a very sweet tooth ! :)

GF Bean burgers...
Ingredients

• 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 green pepper, cut into 2 inch pieces
• 1/2 onion, cut into wedges
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon Thai chili sauce or hot sauce
• 1/2 cup gluten free bread crumbs

Directions

1. If grilling, preheat grill for high heat, and lightly oil a sheet of aluminum foil. If baking, preheat oven to 190 degrees C, and lightly oil a baking sheet.
2. In a medium bowl, mash black beans with a fork until thick and pasty.
3. In a food processor, finely chop pepper, onion, and garlic. Then stir into mashed beans.
4. In a small bowl, stir together egg, chili powder, cumin, and chili sauce.
5. Stir the egg mixture into the mashed beans. Mix in bread crumbs until the mixture is sticky and holds together. Divide mixture into four patties.
6. If grilling, place patties on foil, and grill about 8 minutes on each side. If baking, place patties on baking sheet, and bake about 10 minutes on each side.               

GF Toffee Apple Crumble

175g sugar
100ml cold water
zest and juice of 2 large lemons
3 bramley apples, peeled & roughly chopped
300g gluten free flour (doves farm plain flour is good)
150g unsalted butter, chilled
80g caster sugar

• preheat the oven to 200degrees
• place the sugar and water in a large saucepan over a high heat and bring to a boil.  give it a few minutes to thicken the add the lemon zest and juice and apples to the pan and cook for 5-6 mins. place in a 24cm square baking dish.
• place the flour and butter in a food processor and blitz until smooth. just pulse in the sugar, do not overwork.  carefully spoon the topping over the cooked apples.
• bake for 25-30 mins or until brown.
• serve warm with icecream or custard.

enjoy:):)

gluten free - my story

I am writing this blog because I feel people should be made more aware of coeliac disease and realise that it is not just a gluten free intolerance that you have, or that you are being picky for the sake of it, as if!!

"Ah go on there's only a little bit of gluten in it sure you'll be fine or yes it is gluten free it contains flour"!

ahem, well I was pretty ignorant myself until I had no choice but to change my eating habits a few years ago after being diagnosed with coeliac disease, the doctors at the time were like me getting their information from the internet.  I couldnt believe all the symptoms associated with coeliac disease, simple things like a sore tongue, sore head, tiredness, slugishness which can all be connected to low iron or other vitamin or mineral defiencies caused by coeliac disease...

If a coeliac eats gluten the lining of the small intestine becomes damaged reducing the coeliac's ability to absorb the nutrients from food. This can lead to various symptoms and complications if undiagnosed such as:

• diarrhoea
• constipation
• weight loss
• chronic tiredness
• anaemia
• failure to thrive in children
• chronic mouth ulcers
• stomach pain and bloating
• indigestion
• bone pain
• moodiness or depression
• infertility
• recurrent miscarriages

It’s an autoimmune disease and it’s not contagious. The only treatment is adhering to a gluten-free diet for life after a positive diagnosis has been made. Medicine or drugs are not required.

In the small intestine there are small finger-like structures called villi which absorb the nutrients from food. When the villi are damaged (or atrophic) they can no longer absorb nutrients properly.

Hard to believe 'gluten' could cause this, however when I was diagnosed I was relieved because then I realised it wasnt all in my head as I thought it was, after years of feeling 'exhausted' I now knew it was down to my body not working as well as it should have been.

Gluten free is something I had never been aware of until a few years ago, even though my mother was born with coeliac disease in the 1950's, she didnt know she had it until someone advised they feed 'that very sick child' bananas! (1924 – The famous banana diet recommended by Haas was used extensively for many years until the introduction of the gluten-free diet. During World War II children with coeliac disease were allocated supplies of dried bananas as a supplementary ration). 

Coeliac disease can take 13 years, on average, to be properly diagnosed. It is commonly misdiagnosed as Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) because the symptoms can be very similar, with bloating, diarrhoea, abdominal pain and tiredness. 

Coeliac disease runs in families, the cause is introduction of gluten during weaning, either too much or too early!