Finally! A YUMMY grain-free pancake!

Up to this point the only grain-free pancake I've been using is a coconut pancake, that is mostly eggs with a little bit of coconut flour mixed in.  They're not really that good.  They're flat, and they taste a bit like sandpaper.  I've tried adding a little milk & some almond flour, but not much improvement.  I've just put up with them, because I've figured they're better than no pancakes.

This morning I decided to try a recipe I found on the plantoeat.com blog:  Moist and Cakey Almond Flour Pancakes.    They based the recipe on one they found on elanaspantry.com:  Pancakes Revisited.  I mostly followed the ingredients on the first recipe, but it is helpful to look at both and see the differences.

Ingredients

• 4 eggs
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups almond meal
• 3/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Butter or coconut oil for frying

Directions

1. In medium bowl mix dry ingredients. In a separate, small bowl mix wet ingredients. Pour wet ingredients into dry until just combined. Set batter aside to set up. (*in the elana's pantry recipe they recommend 15-20 minutes!)
2. Meanwhile, heat a skillet over medium-low heat until hot. Once heated up add 2 tablespoons or so of batter to the pan to make each pancake. The pancakes should be no wider than 2 inches or they will not hold together well. The batter is fairly thick so you can spread it out a bit to thin out the pancakes.
3. Cook until bubbles start to form in the pancakes and underside has browned. Flip and repeat. Serve with butter, syrup, jam, or other favorite topping.

The pancakes were AWESOME.  So good!  Definitely a keeper.  Today I made regular wheat/white pancakes for my kids, but I'm excited to try this new recipe on them next week.  I think they'll really like it.

2/20/12 UPDATE:  I made the pancakes today for my kids, and YEA!  They were a hit!  I used coconut oil instead of butter because I was out, and I had a harder time flipping them than I did with the first ones I made.  I had to wait longer for them to cook so they were firm enough to flip, but then by that time they were almost black on the one side.  They still tasted good, but they didn't look so great.

I Miss My Oats.

I've gone mostly wheatless when I cook for my family, so it takes more creativity in deciding what to cook for them.  Breakfast is usually rotated between oatmeal, scrambled eggs, yogurt and fruit, and coconut flour crepes.

Today was oatmeal day.  I haven't been eating oatmeal because although it doesn't have gluten, it is commonly cross-contaminated with gluten as it is processed with the same equipment as wheat.  I decided to give it a try, because it looked so good.  I was hoping that people didn't know what they were talking about & it would only affect those with celiac's, not just the gluten intolerant like me.  Result:  stomach pain.  Shoot- they were right.  I'm glad that I'm in tune enough with my body that I can tell that it's reacting to it.

As a kid I HATED oatmeal.  I liked oatmeal cookies and granola bars, but not the cereal.   It wasn't until I was in my 20's that I figured out that I actually like oatmeal, I just can't stand the mushy "instant" quick cooking oats that my mom used to serve.  Once I figured it out, I bought "old fashioned" oats, and have enjoyed eating oatmeal.  Today I've decided that enough is enough.  I'm going to give in and buy gluten-free oats.

I'm being stricter with my budget this month and trying to bring it down from the crazy amounts it got to (I'm too embarrassed to say right now... once it's under control I'll let you know how I did it :), so I searched around for the best deal.   I didn't want to spend hours at it, so in my 30 minutes of research I've decided that AMAZON is the best deal. 

First I looked to glutenfreeoats.com, giftsofnature.com, glutenfree.com, and glutenfreemall.com.  They were all pretty similarly priced ($9-$16 for around two pounds), but then you have to add on the shipping: anywhere from $7-$16!

On Amazon, I can get the same products, but avoid shipping costs through Amazon Prime or do the subscribe & save, in which I'll save 15% on the order, plus free shipping. 

I ended up buying four bags of Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Oats with ship and save for $4.64 per 2 lb. bag. I will need to double check my local health food stores & see if they can compete in price.  I'll shop locally if they're within a dollar.  I still need to go to Azure Standard and see what their price is on gluten-free oats.  The only problem with that is they deliver monthly, I would have to go pick up the order in Utah County, and they charge a delivery fee that would make it less of a good deal.  I want my oats now, but will do some more research on it for next time.

Do you like oatmeal?
I love it now- I hated it as a kid.

Do you like to shop online? 
I LOVE it!  I live in a smaller city that doesn't have a lot of good shopping options.  I love having things dropped off at my doorstep.  Very convenient!

What is your favorite thing to buy online?
Anything and everything.

*What about you?  I'd love to get your comments.

Sour Dough- Could This Be IT?

For those new to my blog, I found out in August that I am sensitive to gluten.  I seriously had no idea!  I was also told that I had an incredibly high Candida level, and I was sensitive to milk.  Basically I went off of most grains, all sugar (both processed and natural), and most milk products (except butter & eventually raw milk).

Once I had been off of wheat for a few weeks I could feel a reaction to it when I would have it.  Part of our sacrament at church is eating a small piece of bread (like the size of my thumb-nail), and my throat gets tickly when I eat it (I could have something gluten-free if I wanted, but I haven't thought it was worth the hassle).  This reaction, though, has been enough to make me pretty cautious.  I've been pretty good about not eating gluten (although I've strayed a bit more with the sugar!).

I've heard that some people who are gluten sensitive can handle sour dough or soaked grains with no problem (thanks, Kelsey via comments on THIS entry), so I decided to give it a try.  Kelsey also suggested going to http://www.gnowfglins.com/, which I had never even heard of before.  I LOVE this site!  So much great info. 

Well, one thing led to another, and one of my sweet friends surprised me by bringing over a pint jar with a sour dough start in it on Saturday night.  The timing was perfect, and it made my day!

I quickly started the gnowfglins foundation course, then jumped to the course on sourdough, because I wasn't even sure what to do with it, or how to feed it. 

My friend also gave me a recipe for sour dough pancakes, so I decided to try them on Sunday morning.
[I was going to post the recipe, but my ds cleaned up the counter, and I'm not sure where he put the recipe card!  I hope not in the trash.  I'll post it when it's found]

I ground some wheat and got the dough soaking the night before.

In the morning I added the rest of the ingredients, and the pancakes turned out amazing!  Much better than my standard whole wheat pancakes.

I ate a couple with Greek yogurt (with a bit of cinnamon and stevia).  It was SO yummy!  But soon after.... bummer!  Itchiness!  My throat itched, my skin itched, and I started getting a slight headache.  So, guess I won't be eating sourdough breads, either!  Bummer.  I'm still going to make them for my family, though, because they are really missing bread.

My friend also gave a cute little loaf of bread.  She didn't say it was gluten-free, but said it was made out of a bunch of grains like spelt & millet, and I can't even remember the rest.  I decided that since I had had the pancakes that morning, then I was going to eat the bread, too.  It was SOOOO good.  I need to get the recipe from her.  But of course, more itchiness.  This time I could see a faint read lacy reaction on the undersides of my arms.  It went away pretty quickly, but still.  Oh well.  None of that either.

Oh... and few other things that I noticed after having the pancakes/bread:

*  I get out of church at noon, and eat lunch by about 1:00 pm, and yesterday I was VERY hungry by lunch time.  Much hungrier than I have felt in a long time.  On my low sugar/gluten diet I don't feel those hunger pangs.

*  This morning when I woke up I was HUNGRY.  When I first started this diet in August I was worried I would feel hungry all the time, and thought I would wake up starving.  But I NEVER did.  Not once.  It's kind of comforting to have that full feeling, and not be anxious about eating again.

~This post is linked to Monday Mania at The Healthy Home Economist.com~

Lesson I Learned with Soba Noodles

One of my family's favorite meals that I make is homemade chicken noodle soup.  It's not that difficult- I use Organic Better Than Bouillon (Reduced Sodium) Chicken Base, 2 1/2 quarts of water, carrots, onions, celery, chicken breast, and seasoning salt, and Country Pasta (a yummy egg noodle). 

I realize that some might think these ingredients are too processed, but one step at a time, right?  I have these in my cupboard & I'm going to use them up.  Anyway, earlier in the week I decided to make this soup for my family, with a few adjustments for my diet.  I started off with Kirkland Organic Chicken Stock, and added the vegetables & chicken as normal. 

When the veggies were tender I took enough for me out of the pot & put them in a bowl.  In a separate pan I boiled some Buckwheat Soba Noodles to add to my soup, while in the main pot I added more water and some of the OBTB Chicken Base.  When it came back to a boil I added the Country pasta to their pot, while I added the soba noodles to my bowl when they were tender.  We ate together as a family, basically eating the same meal.  It was great!

Now, fast forward to Thursday.  I had arranged a small luncheon for a few ladies in my home, and I decided to make the soup again since it worked so well before.  I thought it would be nice that I wouldn't vary that much from what they were eating, so it wouldn't draw attention to myself. 

This time I decided to save a step, and instead of boiling the soba noodles in a separate pot, I threw them in with my chicken broth & veggies, just like I do with the Country Pasta.  Well, instead of cooking up nicely, it turned into a grey, gloppy mess. 

I have no idea why the chicken stock & veggies caused such a reaction!  What a change!  And no, I didn't throw it out!  Are you kidding?  This one small pack of Soba Noodles cost a fortune!  My kids said it looks like I'm eating prison food.  Yuuuuummmm.  Lesson learned:  Cook Buckwheat Soba Noodles in water.