I absolutely love having a main-stream chain restaurant experience that clearly spells out what's in the food and which clearly wants ME to eat at their restaurant. I would not trust the cashier at a place like this to be able to answer questions about gluten and what's in the soup base, but I trust this label. And here's a thing that would likely turn off an unrestricted diner: I know that their soups come in big plastic bags from the Mother Ship. I've seen it with my own eyes. They are not creating them from scratch in the kitchen. And because they aren't, I have a high level of confidence that they can successfully pour a GF soup from a bag into a crock pot thing without cross-contaminating it.
And, I like their soups. This curried lentil and rice number was very enjoyable, if not terribly memorable. It was perfect for a fast weekday work lunch with a colleague. My meal of soup and a small soda was around $7.50 -- I think the soup itself was $5. Since I usually take my lunch, it was a splurge for me, but quite affordable. (Also, since it's counter service, no tipping.) Like Whole Foods, it looks like someone in the back room of Trader Joe's is hand-making gluten-free shelf tags. Whole Foods actually has way more GF products that TJ's, and for way more money. TJ's has products that look like they should be free of gluten but which have a suspicious-sounding CYA disclaimer about the possibility of allergen sneaking its way into the product. Even the GF markings on some products are accompanied by the statement "No gluten-containing ingredients," which is different than making a gluten-free claim and which leaves the door ajar for worrying about possible contamination.
All that said, the pre-fab Indian food pouches at TJ's are inexpensive and tasty, so I buy them despite all that. And I'm glad they now carry Udi's, though the price is just as high as everywhere else. Over the past 10 weeks I had four transfusions of iron to bring my hemoglobin level up from paltry 9.4 to low-normal 12.3. Actually, the 4th transfusion happened on the day that my numbers came back in the 12's, so hopefully I'm holding at even better numbers. So my big question was: If I've been as strict on the GF diet as I think I have, why is my anemia still here? My hemotologist said I needed to talk to the GI people to explore it. So, between my first and second visit to the hemotologist, I talked to my care providers at Jefferson's Celiac Center and came up with a plan to do additional blood tests to see how my folate and B12 levels were doing, since I was deficient in both when I was first diagnosed and since they are absorbed in the same part of the small intestine as iron. We also decided to re-test for the antibodies that are present in active celiac disease.
I had a couple of theories about my anemia. The first was that I am extremely sensitve to gluten, and that the chance contact I get in my own home from crumbs on countertops or rinsing my veggies or beans in a clean colander that was set in a sink that had previously had pasta water in it was keeping my intestinal enteropathy going. The second was a possible issue with lectins, which are proteins found in a lot of the foods I eat, and which from what I've read can set off all the same markers as Celiac disease. The third was that all of the doctors for the last 25 years were right, and that I am anemic because I bleed every month and my celiac is a weird coincidence and that the anemia is really a blessing because it brought about my diagnosis. The fourth is that there is something else going on. My blood tests came back perfect, except for the iron. B12 and folate were normal, as were the celiac antibodies. So either something else is going on, or I'm anemic for some other reason. Sounds like a job for the hematologist. Or WebMD. Either way, I'm going to continue getting my iron levels monitored and get topped off with a transfusion before I get really low again. I've felt so much better since my iron levels have been boosted and I don't want to slip back again. This chili is really tasty. I made modifications of course: Instead of a can of kidney beans, I used seasoned chili beans, and instead of a cup of chunky salsa, I used a can of fire-roasted diced tomatoes. For the corn, I used less than called for and subbed in Trader Joe's fire roasted frozen corn. I also added a teaspoon of cumin (how can you have chili without cumin? Seriously?). And the zucchini I had on hand was a Costata Romanesca squash, an heirloom summer squash that is a little different, but very good. I left the pot mild to accommodate the palettes of the younger set in the house, but I liberally doused my servings with cayenne and a little extra salt. I skipped the optional lime wedges and corn chips, since I didn't have any.
Even with all those changes, it WAS pretty true to the recipe and I liked it so much I went back for seconds AND thirds. I'm very full now. It was a healthy, fiberful, flavorful dinner and I'm very happy. Thanks, Genevieve! Check out her book. She's gluten intolerant and putting her master's degree in nutrition to work in helping people explore and enjoy gluten free living. Her cookbook puts some interesting grains to good use. It even makes me want to acquire millet, tef and buckwheat and give them a try. I also like it that she has plenty of grain-free recipes which are naturally gluten free. Hopefully it will reinforce with anyone who is newly diagnosed with Celiac disease that there is plenty of food in the world that is naturally gluten free and that you don't have to have a gluteny look-alike at every meal. Blue-est Corn Cakes from Gluten Free Warrior Yes, they are an alarming color. The muffins I made with this flour also were a little freaky to eat. My son thought they were chocolate they were so dark.
Color aside, I was in the mood for some sort of GF baked good this morning. I had been meaning to try a recipe or two from the Gluten-Free Warrior cookbook, written by Genevieve Sherrow who lives in Philadelphia and whom I've had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know a bit. For the recipe, I substituted her recommended corn meal and flour for the brands I had on hand, which can be a little risky, since GF flours don't necessarily substitute at 1-1 ratios or act the same with the other ingredients. Since I was essentially making pancakes, I wasn't worried about whether the cakes would rise. In fact, for pancakes, I prefer them thin. In addition to the ingredient substitutions, I decided to cut the recipe in half, since I knew I'd be the only one eating them. It's kind of hard to measure half of 3/4 of a cup of almond milk, and I wasn't about to add only half an egg, so I knew I was introducing a lot of wildcards to the mix. I was a little worried when I tasted the batter, which had a slightly bitter aftertaste. I carried on, and despite flipping a half-cooked one face down on the counter, I managed to plate a nice serving of corn cakes, which I buttered and ate with maple syrup (Genevieve suggests using jam, which didn't appeal to me). They were very good and I ate them all. Corn cakes, by design, are a little heavy and dense, but these were fairly light and fluffy. My alterations and substitutions were apparently okay (except I think I will blame my "flipping incident" on the extra half an egg.)The flavor was good, they were easy to make, and I had all of the ingredients on hand. I'd call that a homerun! |
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January 2024
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