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Newsletter Roundup
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Compiled by Jim Lyles
This section contains excerpts from newsletters produced by other
celiac groups.
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: :
: Excerpts from _CNY Celiac Newsletter_ :
: ------------------------------------- :
: Oct.-Nov. 1997 Amy D. Eliezer, editor :
: Central New York Celiac Support Group :
: 4 Firtree Lane :
: Jamesville, NY 13078 :
:..........................................................:
Diagnosis of CD in the USA is more difficult, according to Dr. Alessio
Fasano<1>. One reason for this is that many symptomatic people go to
allergists and are put on a wheat-free (along with egg-free and
milk-free) diet without a proper diagnosis. Also, many HMO's will not
pay for a biopsy [of the small intestine, which is necessary for a
medically-accepted diagnosis of CD-ed.]
-=-=- -=-=-
Tips from Bette Hagman:<2>
* Use bean flour in your recipes. It makes wonderful products and
is very nutritious.
* Carry a gluten-free (GF) powdered soup mix for a portable meal.
Also, carry other portable GF food items in a Tupperware-like
container wherever you go.
* If traveling carry a letter from your doctor, so foreign
countries will allow you to bring your own food.
* If you must follow a milk-free diet, you can order a milk
substitute from Ener-G foods: either a powder called Lacto-Free,
or a liquid milk substitute called Farm Rich.
* Do not buy food from open bins in a store because of the danger
of cross-contamination.
* Make your whole home GF.
* Always carry medication for diarrhea (such as Lomotil, Immodium,
Cantil, etc.).
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: :
: Excerpts from the Greater Philadelphia CS Support Group :
: ------------------------------------------------------- :
: newsletter: Sep. 1997 Phyllis J. Brogden :
: 6318 Farmar Lane :
: Flourtown, PA 19031 :
:.........................................................:
From the Food Chain (Gang): Four members set out with the goal of
preparing, evaluating, and objectively rating gluten-free (GF) mixes
and recipes. They rated each mix/recipe in five different categories
(easy to make, taste, texture, serves well, and aftertaste), using a
scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most favorable.
* Bette Hagman's Tapioca Bread, from the Gluten-Free Gourmet, pg.
29. Ratings: 4-5-5-5-4. Comments: This is a great everyday
bread. It's light enough to eat with anything. It stores,
freezes, and travels well. It's great plain or toasted. Use 1/2
tsp. less xanthan gum to improve the aftertaste.
* Authentic Foods Bread Mix. Ratings: 5-3-5-5-2. Comments: This
is a flavorful, hearty bread that can be served with winter soups
and stews. It stands up against any cheese or spinach dip you
can muster. It is a darker bread that slices, stores, freezes,
and travels well. We do NOT recommend toasting this bread. It
has a full, hearty, nutty (but not heavy) flavor.
* Scones using Pamela's Pancake Mix and Baking Mix. Ratings:
*** 5-5-5-5-5 ***. Comments: These are a real treat, especially
for a fast breakfast. Serve warm with melted butter; you'll
think you've died and gone to heaven. They freeze well, too. We
suggest that you increase the amount of Pamela's mix by 1/4 to
1/2 cup.
* Pizza Crust using Pamela's Pancake Mix and Baking Mix. Ratings:
5-3-3-3-5. Comments: This pizza crust was very fast and easy.
It only has one 30-minute rise time required and only takes about
20 minutes to put together. However, in our opinion it wasn't a
"real" pizza crust. It was flat, had a non-pizza nutty taste,
and wasn't the best use of Pamela's Mix. Also the crust crumbled
and had a grainy rather than doughy texture.
* Bette Hagman's Yeast-Rising Thick Pizza Crust, from the
Gluten-Free Gourmet, pg. 163. Ratings: 4-5-4-5-4. Comments:
This crust was crispy and good-tasting, but didn't have the
"chewiness" we were looking for. It certainly tasted better than
other rice crusts we've tasted. Our test baker felt there was a
lot of "prep" time involved in this recipe.
* Carol Fenster's Pizza Crust, from Special Diet Solutions, pg. 19.
Ratings: *** 5-5-5-5-5 ***. This is the pizza you've been
waiting for! This is the genuine article. Though it is a little
work, this pizza dough is worth every minute in the kitchen. It
makes a fabulous chewy, tender, crispy pizza crust that you won't
believe is gluten-free. It has no aftertaste at all.
* "Perfect Pie Crust" made with the Gluten-Free Pantry's French
Bread/Pizza Mix. Ratings: 5-5-4-5-5. Comments: This delicious
pie crust is tender, flaky, and easy to make. It had a slight
graininess but sliced well and did not crumble or fall apart. It
had no aftertaste.
* Lily's Gluten-Free Pie Crust. [This recipe originally appeared
in the Summer 1996 issue of Lifeline, on page 5. It also
appeared on the recipe page in the July/August 1996 issue of _The
Sprue-nik Press_.--ed.] Ratings: *** 5-5-5-5-5 ***. Comments:
This recipe makes the best gluten-free pie crust we've ever
tasted-- bar none! The crust was flaky and tender. It sliced
and served beautifully. There was not a hint of graininess in
the texture and no aftertaste. It is an easy crust to make and
handle, and is excellent for beginning bakers.
* Donna Jo's Dream Crust, from Bette Hagman's More From the
Gluten-Free Gourmet, pg. 146. Ratings: 5-5-4-3-5. Comments:
This crust was easy to make and handle. It rolled out easily
between layers of plastic wrap and didn't mind being worked and
shaped. The taste was great and there was no aftertaste. The
crust was not as light as we expected, and it broke apart when we
sliced and served it.
* Bean Flour Oil Crust, from Bette Hagman's The Gluten-Free Gourmet
Cooks Fast and Healthy, pg. 161. Ratings: 5-5-4-2-5. Comments:
This recipe is very easy to prepare. When using bean flour we
strongly recommend that you use Authentic Foods bean flour for
its lighter taste. Our test baker recommends using this crust
only for open face pies OR shells, mainly because you have to pat
the dough into the pie pan. This crust does not roll out well.
This crust tasted like a cookie crust rather than a pie crust.
The pie fell apart as soon as it was lifted out of the pan. It
looked great and tasted good, but was hard to handle.
-=-=- -=-=-
Special Bread Machine Offer: The Gluten-Free Pantry has a special on
until supplies run out. Their Zojirushi Home Bakers Super Model
BBCC-Q20 is being offered for $169.50 (incl. shipping). According to
their catalogue, the Q20 kneads like a charm and bakes a delicious 2
lb. loaf of bread without the "bells and whistles". The touch of one
button produces great breads in under 2 hours. This is perfect for
those who want a simple, basic machine that just bakes great bread.
To order by phone call 1-800-291-8366.
The Gluten-Free Pantry also has those great GF pretzels. Due to high
demand, there is currently a limit of 6 bags per order. The cost is
$2.49 per bag plus $5.25 shipping. For 6 bags, that works out to be
$20.19 total.
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: :
: Excerpts from _Lifeline_ :
: ------------------------ :
: Fall 1997 (Vol. XV, No. 4) Leon Rottmann, editor :
: CSA/USA, Inc. :
: PO Box 31700 :
: Omaha, NE 68131-0700 :
:......................................................:
Too Much Vitamin D (as well as too little) disrupts normal calcium
metabolism which then often results in a loss of calcium from the
bones. Reports in two national journals (Annals of Int Med, Aug.
1997; Healthnews, Aug. 1997) plus several recent inquiries at the CSA
office related to men and women who lost bone mineral density from
taking too much vitamin D. All patients were taking dietary
supplements containing 3600-5000 international units (IU) of vitamin
D, well over the generally accepted range of 200-800 IU. Once
patients stop taking excess vitamin D, their bone density typically
returns back to normal over a 2-3 year period.
-=-=- -=-=-
SIPAL is NOT GF: SIPAL is an organic sweetener that is advertised as
being gluten-free (GF). However, it is actually a wheat-based
sweetener! False advertising? No, not exactly: The international
standard for a product to be termed GF allows for up to 0.3% gluten
for all proteins, and SIPAL has only 0.11% gluten. But
never-the-less, celiacs should avoid using this product if they truly
want to be on a GF diet [which we strongly advocate--ed.].
-=-=- -=-=-
Date Sugar refers to ground dried dates. It is often used in bread
doughs as a sweetener and is excellent on rolls, muffins, and coffee
cakes.
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: :
: Excerpts from the San Antonio CS Support Group :
: ---------------------------------------------- :
: newsletter: Oct. 1997 Lynn Rainwater, Secretary/Treasurer :
: 1023 Cloverbrook :
: San Antonio, TX 78245-1604 :
:...............................................................:
More From Kraft: The printed list of Kraft gluten-free (GF) products
(dated July 1997) contains additional products that were not in the
list printed on the internet. [See the July/August 1997 issue of _The
Sprue-nik Press_, pg. 10] The following Baker's brand products are
GF: Angel Flake coconut (bag & can), Premium Shred coconut, Real Milk
chocolate chips, semi-sweet chocolate flavored chips, semi-sweet
chocolate bar, bittersweet chocolate bar, unsweetened chocolate bar,
white chocolate bar, and German's sweet chocolate bar.
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