More GF baking success...

So things are coming together to make Gluten Free Gourmet come to fruition! :) I've been looking into all the costs, licensing fees, certified kitchens, etc. All that I need to be a legal business. I've spoken with the Dept. of Agriculture about labeling and possibly turning my kitchen into a certified domestic kitchen. Not too much work and cheaper in the long run than renting another kitchen. I've met with another local gal who does gluten free baking and she's been a wealth of information! The funny thing is we grew up in the same neighborhood in CA. Small world!

My bread is still a HUGE hit with my friends and a couple people are already asking for it weekly! I also have a local health food store that is interested in my products to carry in their store! I'm off to a great start and I haven't even started yet! :)

Living the GF lifestyle has been an adventure but is slowly getting easier. I know which restaurants are the easiest to eat at. (IE: they know what on their menu contains gluten) I've found the pre-made products that don't taste nasty and I've been making a lot of my own things: Bread, pizza crust, cookies, brownies, I'm even going to try cupcakes this week. Thanks to my WONDERFUL friend Emilie I know which everyday products contain gluten! Which brands of peanut butter and soy sauce I can eat, which hidden ingredients are actually wheat derivitives that I need to stay away from... I feel like I'm in a full blown nutrition class! But it's all worth it! I've felt much better... I'm sleeping MUCH better and my skin is clearer.

Ok... off to get some bread rising for tomorrow! I feel like a Walton! :)

I'm the GF baking queen!

Well... that isn't my new official title but I'm pretty proud of what I've accomplished so far! My basic sandwich bread recipe turned out amazing! You can't even tell that it's gluten free! I've contacted the company that produces my magic flour and they are going to sell it to me wholesale. My friends gave me a few web domains for a birthday gift to get my business off the ground! I'm also working on my business plan with a potential financial backer.

It looks like GF Gourmet is getting off the ground! I'm very excited about this little adventure and I'm DYING to get my next shipment of flour so I can play with more creations! YAY!!

The gluten free lifestyle

Though this whole gluten free thing is a total pain for pre-bought goodies it's not as bad as I thought it would be! It helps that I am a baker and love to cook!

But here are the pluses:
- I've lost 5 lbs
- I reconnected with some of my cooking tools
- My digestive system is more normal
- I have more energy
- I'm sleeping better
- I don't have as much stomach pain.

There are quite a few restaurants that know about gluten in their products and it's been pretty easy to eat out without going without... though no more Olive Garden breadsticks!

blah! I have the crud...

So after nursing my husband and Chloe back to health I caught the crud! YUCK! I feel like my lungs are going to pop out everytime I cough... not fun! I was hoping to rest in bed today but we are FINALLY having Chloe's birthday party tomorrow and the house needs a little attention. C'est la vie?! I'll take some good cold medicince and hunker through it.

I was also hoping to make another GF baking attempt but I think I'll put that one on hold until I'm feeling better. I'm still MADLY in love with my magic flour by Tom Sawyer's Gluten Free Flour... it freakin' rocks! I'll keep you posted on that front!

GF Soft Pretzels are a success!!

Last night I made gluten-free soft pretzels per Emilie's request... oh man alive! They were good! Not quite the same as their gluten filled companions but the same texture and overall flavor. This will definately be something that is added to the gluten free gourmet menu! Now I just have to figure out a price point. Tonight I'm going to use my magic flour in a cinnamon roll recipe I have... we'll see how they turn out! I'll keep you posted!! :)

Gluten free dairy free cookie attempt...

SUCCESS!!! Yesterday I made yummy craisin oatmeal cookies that were gluten, dairy and egg free. I had a good friend Jenna Tso test them out! (She's very allergic to all dairy products and eggs... oh and she's in 5th grade!) She LOVED them!! Her dad took one and she got really mad... according to her mother at least.

I love that I am finding these new avenues to explore with my culinary talents! The next venture will be soft pretzels and pizza dough. I may even try a basic sandwich bread in the next week. I'm going to need more of my favorite flour before I run out of the one bag I bought to try it all out!!

Have I mentioned that I'm LOVING this!! YAY!! Gluten-free success!! :)

Pics of the "Alien Child"

So here are a couple pics from Chloe's recent EEG test. The first is of her getting all the electrodes put on... it took 3 hours! THe second is of her at the end of the day wearing her recording pack with all her "do-hickeys". Overall it wasn't a bad experience!

Gluten-Free Gourmet...

SO... in my recent baking endevours I've decided to experiment with gluten free flours in the hopes to create some yummy goodies for my close friends who have celiac disease. It happens that with the recent health scare they've found that I too am sensitive to wheat so the timing couldn't be better!

Last night I made DELICIOUS craisin oatmeal cookies that are completely gluten free! My favorite flour I've tried so far is from a company called Tom Sawyer... I'm going to have buy stock! I love love love it!! Needless to say the cookies passed the test with Parker (who's 2) and his mom and I'm now adding it to my offical list of GF gourmet goods... by the way did I mention I'm starting a business creating Gluten free goods to sell locally?! I've chosen the name Gluten Free Gourmet. Kinda catchy huh?

Anyhoo... that's an update on my baking adventures! Off to create more GF yumminess! :)

stress, stress, STRESS!?!

So I was hositalized for 5 days this week having seizures and fainting spells. It was a very scary experience but the Dr's chalked it all up to Stress in my life. My body was aparently reacting to my stress level! So I'm making some major dietary and lifestyle changes and I hope to be 100% soon!
My wonderful family is giving major support and encouragement... I'm so grateful to have them all!!