Gluten Free Sensations

Driving south from Grand Rapids at the crack of dawn, I noticed a sign on the side of the road: "Gluten Free Sensations." When I finally had access to the internet, I Googled the name and discovered a line of g-f products found mostly in Michigan, though some stores in Indiana and Wisconsin carry them as well. Made with bean, sorghum, rice, and corn flours, Gluten Free Sensations features pancake, waffle, and cookie mixes, cream of brown rice hot cereal and also a variety of gluten-free granolas. Shipping is available if you don't happen to live near any of the locations that are listed on the website.

For more information, as well as a list of stores, go to their website at www.glutenfreesensations.com.

Do you know a good source for gluten-free products in the Michiana area? Please share!

Surfing the 'net

• How Ginger Soothes Muscles, Fights Cramps Some of the many uses of ginger, from Health.com (as seen in the latest issue of Health magazine). I always travel with candied ginger to ease the nausea from motion sickness, and adding a slice or two to a tea of lemon, honey, and cayenne is a warming way to relieve the cough and chill of colds and flus.

• Exploring a Low-Acid Diet for Bone Health (from the New York Times) Not that we need another reason to eat our veggies. Low-acid diets high in fruits and vegetables may be more beneficial for bone health than one high in dairy and meat. Be sure to also read about the best exercises for healthy bones.

• Thinking About Diabetes With Every Bite An insightful blog entry about living with diabetes. From the New York Times.

Gluten-free Pumpkin Cheesecake

Thanksgiving is fast approaching and if you're anything like me you've already planned your holiday menu, ordered your turkey, and getting super crafty with the place settings. Last year I made a wheat-free dinner, using spelt breadcrumbs from New Seasons for stuffing and a gluten-free pumpkin cheesecake that was the hit of the night. It's so good, well, even my friend who doesn't like pumpkin pie raved about the cheesecake. This recipe isn't my own original, I found it on allrecipes.com, just used Trader Joe's Gluten-free Ginger Snaps instead of regular. Easy peasy.

For those of you in the Portland area who are looking for a more traditional gluten-free pumpkin pie, go to New Cascadia Bakery on SE 6th and Market. Their pumpkin tart is absolutely delish, with a flaky I-can't-believe-it's-not-gluten-laden crust. Not sure if you can special order pies for Thanksgiving, but give them a call and ask. Don't forget to pick up some crusty bread for gf stuffing!

GF Pumpkin Marbled Cheesecake

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F°

* 1 1/2 cups crushed gingersnap cookies - Trader Joe’s Gluten-free
* 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
* 1/3 cup butter, melted

* 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
* 3/4 cup white sugar, divided
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 3 eggs
* 1 cup canned pumpkin
* 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1. In a medium bowl, mix together the crushed gingersnap cookies, pecans, and butter. Press into the bottom of a 9" springform pan, going up the sides about 1". Bake 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Set it aside to cool.

2. In a medium bowl, mix together the cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar, and vanilla just until smooth. Mix in eggs one at a time, blending well after each. Set aside 1 cup of the mixture. Blend 1/4 cup sugar, pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg into the remaining mixture.

3. Spread the pumpkin flavored batter into the crust, and drop the plain batter by spoonfuls onto the top. Swirl with a knife to create a marbled effect.

4. Bake 55 minutes in the preheated oven, or until filling is set. Run a knife around the edge of the pan. Allow to cool before removing pan rim. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.

Allrecipes.com/Recipe/Marbled-Pumpkin-Cheesecake/
New Cascadia Bakery

November First Friday Wellness at Holistica

It's time for First Friday Wellness at Holistica Healthcare! Not only will we be featuring our now-famous mini-massages with Dr. Anya Chang (be one of the lucky ones to get an appointment!), but our featured artist this month is...me! That's right, I've decided to show a collection of my drawings from way back in the art school days (that's the '80s, folks) to just a few months ago. I mean, I run the clinic/gallery space, why not show off my own work? All of the drawings are figure studies in charcoal, conté crayon, and pencil.

Stop on by the clinic this Friday, November 6th from 6 - 9:30PM!

ChefMD: John La Puma, MD

I just came across the website of Dr. John La Puma, also known as ChefMD. He is an internal medicine physician and a professionally trained chef who has a weekly show on Lifetime TV. He also has written a cookbook called ChefMD's Big Book of Culinary Medicine and has a comprehensive website featuring healthy recipes for the most common health conditions. Here is an excerpt from the website:

• Use a full fat salad dressing, not a low-fat/no-fat dressing. A bit of healthy fat (avocado, walnuts, almonds, olives) in your salad lets you absorb 7 times more lutein than with a no or low-fat dressing. Lutein helps to prevent macular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness in people over age 65.
• Buy organic when it really matters: when the skin is thin. Over 80% of apples, pears, peaches, potatoes and berries sampled contain artificial chemical pesticides. On the thick side, less than 8 percent of avocados, mangos, pineapples and frozen sweet corn contain them—and onions contain none! Exposure to pesticides worsens asthma and damages the immune system.
• Drink coffee and be happy, as long as you're drinking filtered coffee. Two cups of filtered coffee daily can reduce colon cancer by 25%, diabetes risk by 30%, gallstone risk by 40%, and liver cirrhosis risk by 80%. But espresso and French Press can raise your LDL cholesterol by 8% in a month, because the coffee's chemical cafestol stays inside.

I love a doc who touts the benefits of eating fat and drinking coffee! Check out his gluten-free quiz to see if you have symptoms that may warrant further testing for celiac disease, or just if you should avoid gluten. Reading the recipes on the site, I'm hoping he opens a chain of restaurants!

www.drjohnlapuma.com/
Gluten-free quiz

Ginger Snap Pear Tartin

There are pears galore in my backyard. Still picking them daily and letting them ripe off the tree, collecting untarnished fruit from the ground before the chickens dig in. Like apples, pears are members of the rose family and are a great source of Vitamin C (maybe this is why they are in season at the beginning of Fall—cold and flu season!) They are also full of fiber, which can lower cholesterol, protect against some cancers, and support good colon health. I've been enjoying pears with slices of cheese and in salads, but I've really wanted to make a quick and easy dessert with these fabulous Fall fruit.

Last Sunday I made a lovely gluten-y pear tartin for a friend. I drizzled it with a concoction of sliced almonds, sugar, butter, and sweetened condensed milk that was positively decadent. I'm now inspired to try this g-f version, rehashing my fav crust (from the Thanksgiving g-f cheesecake recipe):

Crushed gluten-free ginger snaps, pecans, butter, mix well and press into tart pan. Peel and slice pears, drizzle with lemon juice, cinnamon, dash of sweetener of choice (sugar/maple syrup/honey), arrange on crust in pan. Bake at 325-350° for...long enough to not burn the crust or pears. Melt butter and sugar in saucepan, stir in sweetened condensed milk. Add nuts (let's add pecans to match the crust), keep stirring, then drizzle on baked tart.

Okay, that's a rough draft. Sounds yum, right? Will work on the final version with guesstimated measurements and get back to you.

What's your favorite way to enjoy pears?

Featured Artist: Cari Carter at Motokitty

Cari Carter is the craft queen. I don't even know where to begin when talking about all of her clever, quirky wearable creations. The naugahyde messenger bags? Or maybe the sparkly Pocket Protectors that keep your money, ID, and keys fashionably in one place. Then there are the colorful earrings made with feathers and the silhouette necklaces...

And this is just a partial list of what she makes. Her store in SE Portland, Motokitty, features not only her work, but that of other Portland, Oregon artisans. She shares the space with Modified, a custom commercial screenprint shop that not only sells their wares at the Division Street shop, but at various other venues in the Portland area.

You can also get custom work from Miss Carter, as has been shown on my blog (the Holistica Teabag Tote!). She even customized a Snuggie for the Lady Arm Wrestling competition/benefit earlier this year.

Is there anything she can't do?

www.motokitty.net
Follow her on Twitter to find out about sales and special offers twitter.com/motokittypdx
Read the Motokitty blog motokitty.wordpress.com/