Sorry for recent lack of posts.  My computer is having some problems and it will probably be the end of the week before things return back to normal.   In the meantime, here are some Celiac News & Blog Notes I’ve collected.  Enjoy!

• A British Columbia doctor is now urging increased screening for Celiac Disease.  The doctor is concerned with the number of undiagnosed people that are developing serious complications.
• Want to help a food manufacturer develop gluten free products?  You can now offer your input by filling out this survey.  Survey should take less than 5 minutes.

Any news that you’d like to see covered here?  Let us know!

If you spend a lot of time purchasing gluten free products, odds are one of the things you often buy is gluten free bagels. I know I often find myself spending a fortune on these products!

If you’re rather save money than time, one thing you may want to do is consider making your own gluten free bagels. They aren’t easy and have a large number of required ingredients, but it can be worth it in the long run. Here is the information you need to make homemade gluten free bagels:

Wet Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup milk (or milk substitute)
• 2 Tbsp. yeast
• 2 tsp. sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 Tbsp. agave nectar
• ½ tsp. apple cider vinegar (ONLY if using xanthan gum)

Dry Ingredients:

• ½ cup tapioca flour
• ½ cup cornstarch or arrowroot flour
• ½ cup brown rice flour
• 1 cup millet flour
• ½ tsp. baking soda
• 1 TBSP. baking powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• Binder (To be added to dry ingredients)
• 2 tsp. xanthan gum

Additional Ingredients

• Cornmeal, for dusting on baking sheets
• Sweet Rice Flour, for shaping dough
• Egg wash = 1 egg white mixed with 1 tbsp. warm water
• Toppings = poppy seeds, sesame seeds, garlic granules, dried onion, parsley, etc…

Directions

1. Prepare baking sheets with parchment paper or non-stick cooking spray.
2. Sprinkle cornmeal onto sprayed baking sheets.
3. Put hot water on to boil, add several tsp. of salt.
   Keep the water boiling while you are preparing your bagel dough.
4. Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature. To quickly bring eggs to room
   temperature, place them in a bowl of warm water and let sit for about 5 minutes.
   Warm milk to 120 degrees (this takes about 1 minute and 10 seconds in my microwave
   on high.)
5. Make sure to measure temperature with a cooking thermometer.
6. In a small mixing bowl whisk together warmed milk, 2 tbsp. yeast, and 2 tsp. sugar. Set
   this mixture aside to proof.
7. While waiting for yeast to proof, in a medium bowl add the binder you prefer (either
   xanthan gum or chia seed meal and flax seed meal — with these bagels in particular I
   used chia seed meal and flax seed meal). To the binder, add baking soda, baking
   powder, and salt.
8. Add flours, one at a time by using a dry measuring cup.
   To properly measure the flour, overfill the measuring cup. With a butter knife, level off
   flour, until it is even with the rim of the cup.
9. With starches such as cornstarch and tapioca flour, you may have to add more flour to
   the top of the measuring cup several times and level off with the knife, before it is
   properly even with the rim of the cup. Using your knife, tap the flours out of the measuring
   cup into your mixing bowl. When you have added all flours, whisk mixture together
   thoroughly.
10. If it makes you feel better, feel free to sift all the dry ingredients together.
11. Set dry ingredients aside.
12. Now go back and check on your yeast mixture. If it has proofed, it will look puffy and have
    lots of bubbles like this! If it doesn’t look any different than when you started, you need to
    start the process over again with fresh yeast and fresh milk. But our yeast is proofed and
    ready to go, so let’s continue!
13. Whisk in eggs, one at a time, to proofed yeast. Add agave nectar. If you are using
    xanthan gum as your binder, add apple cider vinegar as a dough enhancer. (If you are
    using chia seed meal and flax seed meal as your binder LEAVE OUT the apple cider
    vinegar, as it can lesson the gelling and binding properties of both these seeds!!)
    In your kitchen mixer bowl, add the egg and yeast mixture. Start mixing with your paddle
    attachment on medium speed.
14. Continuing with the paddle on medium speed, add the flour mixture 1/3 cup at a time to
    the wet mixture, until you have added all the flour.
15. Continue to mix on medium speed for 5 minutes. A thick dough will form. If you used
    xanthan gum as your binder, this dough will be extremely sticky! The pictured dough uses
    chia seed meal and flax seed meal, it is less sticky and much easier to work with.
16. On a large flat plate or clean surface generously sprinkle sweet rice flour for shaping the
    dough.
17. Spray a wooden spoon or rubber spatula with olive oil or non-stick cooking spray.
    With the wooden spoon, scrap dough from the sides of the mixing bowl into a large ball.
18. Dust your hands with sweet rice flour and place the dough onto the floured surface.
19. Continuing to use your hands, gently shape the dough into a large ball.
20. Gently pull off a small handful of dough and shape it into a disk. Then using your finger,
    push a hole up through the middle of the disk. Continue to shape the disk until it looks
    like a bagel. Place the shaped bagel back on the floured surface. You should have
    enough dough for 8 medium sized bagels.
21. At this point, you can preheat your oven to 200 degrees. Once it has preheated, cut the
    oven OFF immediately. We will let the bagels rise in the warmed oven after we have
    boiled them.
22. Make sure your water is still at a rolling boil Work with ONE bagel at a time. Using a
    slotted spoon, gently place the bagel into the boiling water bath.
23. Boil the bagel for 20 seconds (ONLY) on each side.
24. Use the slotted spoon to flip the bagel in the water. Because these bagels do not have gluten holding them together, they can fall apart in the water if you let them boil longer than this!!)
25. Pull out the boiled bagel and place it on your prepared baking pan. When you pull the
    bagel out of the water, be extra gentle! The bagel is very fragile now that it has been
    boiled and almost looks like wrinkled hands after a long warm bath!
    Brush the boiled bagels with an egg wash (a mixture of one egg white with 1 tbsp. of
    water).
26. Add the toppings you desire. I added poppy seeds, dried onions, sesame seeds, and
    garlic granules.
27. Place the bagels in the oven to rise for 40 minutes. The bagels will
    probably not double in size during the rise, but they will puff up slightly and appear larger
    than before the rise. Take bagels out of the oven after 40 minutes of rising.
28. Heat oven to 375 degrees.
29. Place bagels back in oven and bake for 15-18 minutes. They will appear golden and crisp when finished baking.
30. Cool the bagels on a wire rack for 30 minutes before eating (if you can wait that long!)
31. Slice the bagels in half and spread with cream cheese, or use for sandwiches or minipizzas!
    At this point, you can slice all the bagels and freeze them for later use.

I’ve had this recipe for awhile and I know I found it online, so I’m attempting to locate where i found it from and give proper credit. Enjoy the recipe!

Ahh, carrot cake. One of those desserts you either love or hate. I am definitely a huge fan of carrot cake, so when I ran across a great recipe for gluten free carrot cake, I figured I had to share! There are two mixes you’ll need to buy, which can easily be purchased at GlutenFree.com.

Gluten Free Carrot Cake Ingredients

• 3/4 cup oil
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1-1/2 cups grated carrots
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1-1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups Pamela’s Baking & Pancake Mix
• 1/2 cups walnuts (optional)

Baking Directions

• Beat oil, eggs, and sugar together.
• Mix in the rest of the ingredients. Batter will be thick.
• Poor into a greased loaf pan (8 x 4) and bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes (toothpick should come out clean), or use a greased 8-inch layer cake pan and bake at 350° for 25 minutes.
• Frost (if desired) with a cream cheese frosting (instructions below).

Cream Cheese Carrot Cake Frosting Ingredients

• 1 bag Pamela’s Vanilla Frosting Mix
• 2 Tablespoons butter or margarine, room temp/no melted
• 6 ounces cream cheese, room temp
• 1 teaspoon water

Directions

1. Soften butter or margarine.
2. Add remaining ingredients and mix together on medium for 1 to 2 minutes or until smooth. If frosting is too thick, add mire water one teaspoon at a time.

As a reminder, you can easily purchase both the Pamela’s Baking and Pancake mix and frosting at GlutenFree.com.

There usually isn’t a shortage when it comes to hunting down gluten free desserts. With that said, finding a good cake can sometimes be difficult.

If you are looking for a good cake, I recommend you check out the following recipe for a gluten free cake:

Gluten-Free Honey, Lemon, Poppy Seed Cake Ingredients

• 3 eggs
• 3 - 4 tablespoons of honey
• grated zest from one lemon
• juice from half a large lemon
• 3/8 cup (100 ml) of oil, preferably a mellow tasting oil
• 4.4 ounces of ricotta cheese
• 3/4 cup of almond flour
• 1 3/4 cup of rice flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 3 - 4 tablespoons of poppy seeds

Recipe Instructions

1. Grease a loaf or cake pan.
2. In a medium-large bowl, whisk together the eggs and honey for a few minutes. Add the oil, lemon zest, lemon juice and ricotta. Stir until well combined.
3. Add the almond and rice flour to the bowl, along with the baking powder and stir for another minute or two or until combined. Stir in the poppy seeds.
4. Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30 - 40 minutes or until the cake is browned and a cake tester comes out clean.
5. Serves 6 - 8 people.

[Recipe found via Lisa's Kitchen]

I’ve always felt that the toughest part of being on a gluten free diet is lunch. Whether I’m traveling, at work, or busy with some other activity, it can often be difficult find something you can take that is gluten free and portable.

If you find yourself in a similar situation, I recommend you check out Sure Food Living’s recent post, 4 Gluten Free Lunch Ideas.

Ideas include:

1. Gourmet on the Go
2. Quick Quesadilla
3. Array of Appetizers
4. Piece of Pizza

Click over to get the full details!