Garlic Jims GF Pizza and More

The other night my husband and I went out with another couple to a local brewery called Black Raven where we ordered a gluten free pizza to be delivered there. As a side note, as far as I know Black Raven does not have any gluten free beers, but you can order wine there, which I did. The fact you can order pizza and have it sent to the brewery is just brilliant, and the fact Garlic Jims has a delicious gluten free crust is even more brilliant. We got the gourmet garlic and all agreed it was excellent. And here's the kicker, at PCC this week I saw the very same pizza in the gluten free freezer! I am so excited about this! If it is half as good as the fresh version, I'll be thrilled. The only bad thing was that after eating that night my husband's tummy hurt, which caused us to wonder if it is possible to be gluten-free intolerant...? That's just a joke, but really I hope that experience doesn't cloud his future gf experiences b/c I'm sure it had more to do with the combinations of foods and drinks than one thing in particular. The couple we went with are not gluten intolerant by the way, but they do try to eat variety instead of always depending on wheat for bread type items. I think that is great~ different grains means different vitamins and minerals and such. I've started adding more flours in my own baked goods in an effort to boost protein and keep calories down. Plus you can give yourself a food sensitivity just by eating something all the time, which is probably why I can't eat gluten now~ had my quota + in younger years. Which reminds me, I've been wondering, again, if I should put my youngest on a gluten free diet for a week. This is a more daunting task than putting a regular 6 year old on a allergy-test diet b/c he only eats a few things and most of them are made of wheat. I've already started substituting some items, for example giving him Pirate's Booty and apples at snack time instead of cheesy crackers and apples. (He could live on cheesy crackers. That would be his desert island food, for sure, but he hasn't said anything about the switch. Yet.) I have also tried making new substitute items, such as gluten free vanilla scones, like the ones at Starbucks which he adores. I also made them vegan, so in order to try this daring feet, I got out my Flying Apron cookbook and Ree's petite vanilla scone recipe and put on my thinking cap. To be honest, they turned out only so-so, and although my oldest loves them, my target audience, Mr.Picky, does not. I'm going to try again though and hopefully I'll get it right at some point and then post a recipe. Until then I'll just say I followed Ree's example with the vanilla beans, and followed the basic measurements of dry goods to wet goods from a Flying Apron recipe. The results were more iced cookie than iced scone though, except not as sweet as a cookie.  The density was off. I think next time I'll scale back the oil, or maybe not even force the vegan part~ making scones are what butter was invented for, right? We'll see.

Cilantro with a side of lunch

Not everyone loves cilantro. Apparently the herb shares some chemical components with soap, and when people declare they hate cilantro it usually is because it tastes "soapy". The traditional wisdom says that those who grow up in a culture eating the stuff like it, for those who don't it tastes like soap, but that just doesn't ring true in our house. I definitely did not grow up eating the stuff, but I love cilantro with a passion, and my son who eats just about anything and everything could indeed grow up eating it, but he just can't stand it. Maybe if you have a latent Pica gene you automatically are drawn to it, though honestly I don't taste soapiness when I eat cilantro. It is so delightful in my mouth it feels like all is right in the world for at least thirty seconds, then it's time for another bite. Here's how we've been indulging in the herb lately, (I was reminded of this combo when our friends made black bean tacos for us on Cinco De Mayo) though if you are one of the haters, lettuce works, but it will be much less flavorful. For my husband I use flour tortillas, corn for myself, warmed up in a pan on the stove. Next is a bed of cilantro (or lettuce) and I put enough down to look like a real bed of greens, not just a bit of flavoring, but suit yourself. Then the black beans which have been previously prepared (I make mine with a bay leaf, garlic, and cumin) then sliced avocado, topped off with pico de gallo salsa. (I use pre-made Whole Foods brand because I can't imagine making it any tastier myself). It is a simple combination, but really good and healthy too.
Speaking of soap, it seems people are starting to think about what they use on their body day in and day out for years, such as soap, lotion, cosmetics, creams, serums, hair products, etc. There is a new book about the scary chemicals in bath and beauty products called No More Dirty Looks and I heard the authors speak on KUOW.ORG and so can you, just click here. Basically, it is a hugely unregulated industry with questionable ingredients that might not be found in large doses, but instead in small doses in everything you use, daily, for decades. Locally, PCC Markets have taken a look at their products and decided not to carry any companies with certain ingredients. Read which companies they trust, and which they don't here. They admit to the fact that the healthier, cleaner brands are more expensive, but that is no surprise. The authors of the above book, Siobhan O’Connor and Alexandra Spunt, point out that if you look at the ingredients of most body care, you find a lot of fillers, such as water, with a bit of active ingredients. With all-natural ingredients you get a lot more of the active ingredients, and therefore really need to use less product. It is worth looking at the products you use all the time, and seeing if anything can be replaced by something natural and healthier and most likely with results you'll like better.

Mix-up

The other day I was at the park with my oldest when we got separated. (That means he was on his bike going as fast as humanly possible while I tried to catch up on foot.) When we reunited, he said he had gotten confused because he had thought "that boy" was me. I thought, "that boy must have some long crazy hair!" but when he pointed out the kid his head was nearly shaved, about 10 or 11 years old and Latino. Does that sound like me?

But I guess we all make mistakes. So hopefully I will be forgiven for something that happened on the way home from school today. My kids love listening to books on CD in the car and I love the fact they are quiet as mice when they do so, so I am constantly getting them from the library. The pickings are getting slim though so right now we are listening to something just on the edge of appropriate for a 6 and 8 year old~ Judy Blume's Super Fudge. The main character is a 6th grader and a complete whiner, so I haven't been thrilled with it already, but today there was a huge discussion about the validity of Santa Claus. Yikes! The boys were quiet, but then the questions came a minute or two after we were inside. Strangely, my younger one is far more dubious about the whole Santa/tooth fairy/Easter bunny thing. He has already mentioned that he thinks I'm the tooth fairy, probably b/c every time they loose teeth the tooth fairy doesn't come until after breakfast~ after they have awoken to the disappointment of no money. "Oh, she's late again! Must have been a busy night," I'll say and shuffle them off to breakfast while I run around the house looking for coins or dollar bills. Anyway, my older one insists he heard Santa's bells one night so he keeps answering the question that my younger one is asking me this afternoon, "Is Santa real?" So here's a word of warning~ don't listen to or read Super Fudge until the kids are firmly post-Santa.