Entitled, “What You Need To Know About Celiac disease and the Gluten-Free Diet”, this video is presented by the Wm. K. Warren Medical Research Center for Celiac Disease at the University if California, San Diego.

Featuring one of the United State’s leading authorities Martin F. Kagnoff, M.D., Director, Medical Research Center for celiac disease at USCD., you are treated to an in-depth introduction to how Celiac Disease affects the body. (more…)

 Here is a question for you.

What is one thing that land surveying
and gluten free baking have in common?

Answer: Both involve some form of precise measurement.

You can always measure things by what I call “guess-timation” (i.e. estimating distance, time, weight, temperature etc.). If you are good at it, you know that it can be very handy at times. It definitely has its place.

However, whether you are surveying a property, or baking gluten free bread, you want the end result to come out right. You want to have consistency and repeatability. Right?

In order to do this, accurate measuring devices are a must. In the kitchen, one such device that we recommend investing in, is an oven thermometer.

“But my oven already has a thermometer built into it.
Why do I need to get another one?”
I hear you say.

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There’s no need to panic!

Just because a lot of your favorite foods might now be on the “hit list” doesn’t mean you have to starve. …. (quite the opposite).

Let’s go at it step-by-step and soon, you’ll not only get familiar with your new “territory”, but you’ll actually THRIVE in it.

In upcoming posts we’ll go more into it, but here’s some basic points to help get you started in the right direction.
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As I mentioned in Part 1 of this series, effectively communicating your gluten free requirements is key. This post outlines THREE ways you can equip yourself with powerful tools to do just that.

Have you ever had the experience of forgetting a crucial piece of information during an important phone call, only to realize the omission when it was too late?

This is definitely NOT something you want to do when communicating your dietary needs and restrictions to those who will be preparing your food. You do not want to leave anything to chance.

The best option is to have everything
written down before hand.

This applies both in preparation for your first phone call (See Part 1) and/or when you sit down for the first time in the restaurant. Detail your condition and list ALL the ingredients that you absolutely MUST avoid. (more…)

Do you ever feel nervous about eating out because of your gluten free restrictions?

Dining out can feel like playing
Russian Roulette at times,
unless you go about things
the right way.

Fortunately there are steps you can take to greatly minimize any risk.

You have to be diligent, though, in following the steps that lay the foundation for a trouble free dining experience

Effective Communication is the Key

It all comes down to effective communication and building a trusting relationship between yourself and the owner/manager of the restaurant or eating establishment.

Having been a store owner, as well as one who has prepared gluten free foods for the public, I can highlight a few points from that perspective that will greatly increase your chances of success in the shortest possible time. (more…)

Fortunately, I found a way to pull all the gluten free related videos from YouTube.com into one location and incorporate it into a new feature we have just added to this site called the “Gluten Free Video News” page.

It is all set up and can be accessed by clicking the new video graphic in the Right Hand Column of this page. (I’ve included a “click-able” copy of that graphic above, so you know what you are looking for.) Check it out. (more…)

Of the buckwheat that is produced for human consumption, most of it is milled into flour. The whole buckwheat kernels themselves, unfortunately are not commonly available in regular stores or supermarkets.  More often they are quite easily found in most Health Food or Natural Foods Stores.

What you will be looking for is the RAW, HULLED seeds of the BUCKWHEAT plant. Depending on where you live it may be referred to as: (more…)

Guess what!
I’m tired Of Eating Oats. 

Yep, I’ve gotten tired of eating the plain oat breakfast I wrote about in one of my August’07 posts. (CLICK HERE to refer to it) 

Actually, I DO really still love it, it’s just that you want a CHANGE every now and then. You know what I mean?

We’ve been doing some exciting things with buckwheat lately. (NOT the buckwheat flour, but WHOLE RAW BUCKWHEAT), so this gave me a bit of an idea.

Why not use the same procedure used in that whole Oat Recipe but instead ….. make a ….

MIX of 50% whole oat groats + 50% whole raw buckwheat?  

YES!! That sounds great. I’ve never made that mix before. So I got excited, immediately raced to the kitchen, and got the ingredients together to start the process. …….. And you know what?

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This approach is especially valuable for those who are working with food ingredients from a gluten free and allergy perspective. It’s a wholistic approach that has many levels to it, and, if followed with interest and enthusiasm, has only positive benefits to offer.

As you learn the nature and characteristics of whole food ingredients, a greater freedom of creativity and confidence in the kitchen develops. This is a totally different experience than when relying on prepackaged mixes and boxed refined foods.

As we progress along through these blog articles I will continue to emphasize this point and also take the opportunity to highlight points of interest from the rich and diverse backgrounds of our foods. In this way, you will gain a greater appreciation for the wonderful gluten free foods we have available to us. (more…)