Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Honey Roasted Red Potatoes



Ingredients:                                                          
1 pound red potatoes, quartered
2 Tablespoons diced onion
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 Tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 pinch of table salt
1 pinch of pepper

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly spray a 11x7 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray.
2. Place potatoes in a single layer in dish and top with onion.  In a small bowl, combine melted butter, honey, mustard, salt and pepper; drizzle over potatoes and onion.
3. Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes or until tender, stirring halfway through the cooking time.



I got this recipe from allrecipes.com. After reading comments from other people, I followed some advice and made these changes:
  * I cut each quarter in half so they were more bite-sized pieces. Then before putting them into the baking dish, I boiled them for 3-5 minutes. This makes them more tender and helps them absorb the honey flavor (if you boil them more than 5 minutes, they will be too mushy after they bake).
   * I put a layer of foil on the bottom to help keep cleaning easier. Then I put the potatoes into the dish in a single layer.
   * I did more than a pound of potatoes, so I did 3 T onion, 5 T butter, 3 T honey, and 1 T mustard. I did not have dry mustard, so I just used regular mustard and it worked great.  Also, I added A TON of salt, and it still wasn't enough. So add a lot but remember you can always add more when you eat it. (After making it and going back and looking at other comments, I noticed that some people said they coated the potatoes with the honey mixture in a large bowl instead of putting the potatoes in the pan and then drizzling the mixture over the potatoes. I will definitely do this next time since it would coat the potatoes with the mixture a lot better. As you can see in the picture below, "drizzling" does not coat them good at all.)


    * I then put them in the oven and stirred them every 10-15 minutes just to make sure they were coated well with the sauce. Otherwise they would have not absorbed the mixture good enough and would have been to bland. I ended up cooking them for about 45-55 minutes before they were done.
    * When they were tender, I broiled them for about 3 minutes and that caramelized the honey and made them a little crispy.
 

     My husband and I were very impressed with this recipe and will definitely be eating it again soon. Even my two kids loved it! It is very delicious and goes very well with almost any dish.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Unsafe Gluten-Free Food List

Abyssinian Hard (Wheat triticum durum)


Alcohol (Spirits - Specific Types)

Amp-Isostearoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein

Atta Flour

Barley Grass (can contain seeds)

Barley Hordeum vulgare

Barley Malt

Beer (most contain barley or wheat)

Bleached Flour

Bran

Bread Flour

Brewer's Yeast

Brown Flour

Bulgur (Bulgar Wheat/Nuts)

Bulgur Wheat

Cereal Binding

Chilton

Club Wheat (Triticum aestivum subspecies compactum)

Common Wheat (Triticum aestivum)

Cookie Crumbs

Cookie Dough

Cookie Dough Pieces

Couscous

Criped Rice

Dinkle (Spelt)

Disodium Wheatgermamido Peg-2 Sulfosuccinate

Durum wheat (Triticum durum)

Edible Coatings

Edible Films

Edible Starch

Einkorn (Triticum monococcum)

Emmer (Triticum dicoccon)

Enriched Bleached Flour

Enriched Bleached Wheat Flour

Enriched Flour

Farina

Farina Graham

Farro

Filler

Flour (normally this is wheat)

Fu (dried wheat gluten)

Germ

Graham Flour

Granary Flour

Groats (barley, wheat)

Hard Wheat

Heeng

Hing

Hordeum Vulgare Extract

Hydrolyzed Wheat Gluten

Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein

Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein Pg-Propyl Silanetriol

Hydrolyzed Wheat Starch

Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein

Kamut (Pasta wheat)

Kecap Manis (Soy Sauce)

Ketjap Manis (Soy Sauce)

Kluski Pasta

Maida (Indian wheat flour)

Malt

Malted Barley Flour

Malted Milk

Malt Extract

Malt Syrup

Malt Flavoring

Malt Vinegar

Macha Wheat (Triticum aestivum)

Matza

Matzah

Matzo

Matzo Semolina

Meringue

Meripro 711

Mir

Nishasta

Oriental Wheat (Triticum turanicum)

Orzo Pasta

Pasta

Pearl Barley

Persian Wheat (Triticum carthlicum)

Perungayam

Poulard Wheat (Triticum turgidum)

Polish Wheat (Triticum polonicum)

Rice Malt (if barley or Koji are used)

Roux

Rusk

Rye

Seitan

Semolina

Semolina Triticum

Shot Wheat (Triticum aestivum)

Small Spelt

Spirits (Specific Types)

Spelt (Triticum spelta)

Sprouted Wheat or Barley

Stearyldimoniumhydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein

Strong Flour

Suet in Packets

Tabbouleh

Tabouli

Teriyaki Sauce

Timopheevi Wheat (Triticum timopheevii)

Triticale X triticosecale

Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Flour Lipids

Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ Extract

Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ Oil

Udon (wheat noodles)

Unbleached Flour

Vavilovi Wheat (Triticum aestivum)

Vital Wheat Gluten

Wheat, Abyssinian Hard triticum durum

Wheat amino acids

Wheat Bran Extract

Wheat, Bulgur

Wheat Durum Triticum

Wheat Germ Extract

Wheat Germ Glycerides

Wheat Germ Oil

Wheat Germamidopropyldimonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein

Wheat Grass (can contain seeds)

Wheat Nuts

Wheat Protein

Wheat Triticum aestivum

Wheat Triticum Monococcum

Wheat (Triticum Vulgare) Bran Extract

Whole-Meal Flour

Wild Einkorn (Triticum boeotictim)

Wild Emmer (Triticum dicoccoides)



The following items may or may not contain gluten depending on where and how they are made, and it is sometimes necessary to check with the manufacturer to find out:

Artificial Color4

Baking Powder4

Caramel Color1, 3

Caramel Flavoring1, 3

Clarifying Agents4

Coloring4

Dextrins1,7

Dextrimaltose1,7

Diglycerides4

Dry Roasted Nuts4

Emulsifiers4

enzymes4

Fat Replacer4

Flavoring6

Food Starch1, 4

Food Starch Modified1, 4

Glucose Syrup4

Glycerides4

Gravy Cubes4

Ground Spices4

HPP4

HVP4

Hydrolyzed Plant Protein4

Hydrolyzed Protein4

Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein4

Hydrogenated Starch Hydrolysate4

Hydroxypropylated Starch4

Maltose4

Miso4

Mixed Tocopherols4

Modified Food Starch1, 4

Modified Starch1, 4

Mono and Diglycerides1, 4

Monoglycerides1, 4

Natural Flavoring6

Natural Flavors6

Natural Juices4

Non-dairy Creamer4

Pregelatinized Starch4

Protein Hydrolysates4

Seafood Analogs4

Seasonings4

Sirimi4

Smoke Flavoring4

Soba Noodles4

Soy Sauce4

Soy Sauce Solids4

Sphingolipids4

Stabilizers4

Starch1, 4

Stock Cubes4

Suet4

Tocopherols4

Vegetable Broth4

Vegetable Gum4

Vegetable Protein4

Vegetable Starch4

Vitamins4

Wheat Starch5



1) If this ingredient is made in North America it is likely to be gluten-free.

3) The problem with caramel color is it may or may not contain gluten depending on how it is manufactured. In the USA caramel color must conform with the FDA standard of identity from 21CFR CH.1. This statute says: the color additive caramel is the dark-brown liquid or solid material resulting from the carefully controlled heat treatment of the following food-grade carbohydrates: Dextrose (corn sugar), invert sugar, lactose (milk sugar), malt syrup (usually from barley malt), molasses (from cane), starch hydrolysates and fractions thereof (can include wheat), sucrose (cane or beet). Also, acids, alkalis and salts are listed as additives which may be employed to assist the caramelization process.

4) Can utilize a gluten-containing grain or by-product in the manufacturing process, or as an ingredient.

5) Most celiac organizations in the USA and Canada do not believe that wheat starch is safe for celiacs. In Europe, however, Codex Alimentarius Quality wheat starch is considered acceptable in the celiac diet by most doctors and celiac organizations. This is a higher quality of wheat starch than is generally available in the USA or Canada.

6) According to 21 C.F.R. S 101,22(a)(3): [t]he terns natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof. Whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.

7) Dextrin is an incompletely hydrolyzed starch. It is prepared by dry heating corn, waxy maize, waxy milo, potato, arrowroot, WHEAT, rice, tapioca, or sago starches, or by dry heating the starches after: (1) Treatment with safe and suitable alkalis, acids, or pH control agents and (2) drying the acid or alkali treated starch. (1) Therefore, unless you know the source, you must avoid dextrin.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Iodine Aiding in Dermatitis Herpetiformis

The Gluten Intolerance Group of North America on Iodine and Dermatitis Herpetiformis


The the connection between iodine and dermatitis herpetiformis is briefly described by the following excerpt from a resource guide of the Gluten Intolerance Group of North America:

Iodine can trigger eruptions in some people (with dermatitis herpetiformis). However, iodine is a essential nutrient and should not be removed from the diet without a physicians supervision.

Iodine does not contain gluten. Iodine can worsen the symptoms of skin lesions in patients with dermatitis herpetiformis.

When the deposits of IgA have been cleared from the skin over time by following a gluten free diet, iodine should no longer present any problem for dermatitis herpetiformis patients.

As background, for those who are not familiar with Dermatitis Herpetiformis, the following description comes from a resource guide of the Gluten Intolerance Group of North America:

Dermatitis herpetiformis (dermatitis herpetiformis) is a chronic disease of the skin marked by groups of watery, itch blisters. The ingestion of gluten (the proteins gliadin and prolamines contained in wheat, rye, oats, and barley) triggers an immune system response that deposits a substance, IgA (immonuglobin A), under the top layer of skin. IgA is present in affected as well as unaffected skin. dermatitis herpetiformis is a hereditary autoimmune disease linked with celiac disease. If you have dermatitis herpetiformis, you always have celiac disease. With dermatitis herpetiformis the primary lesion is on the skin rather than the small intestine. The degree of damage to the small intestine is often less severe or more patchy then those with only celiac disease. Both diseases are permanent and symptoms/ damage will occur after comsuming gluten.

When my husband was diagnosed with dermatitis herpetiformis last November, he went to visit a expert in dermatitis herpetiformis, Dr. John J. Zone, at the University of Utah (USA). The written instructions Dr. Zone gave him included the following statement:

*The mineral iodine is known to make the disease (dermatitis herpetiformis) worse. For this reason, foods and supplements high in iodine should be avoided. Table salt which is not iodized should be used. This can be found in most grocery stores with the other salts. Avoid kelp and other seaweed products, and do not use sea salt. If you take any nutritional supplements, examine them carefully to avoid any iodine containing ingredients.

It is not necessary for dermatitis herpetiformis patients to eliminate iodine completely from their diet, merely to avoid foods high in iodine as described above. Dr. Zone also explained that dermatitis herpetiformis patients need not avoid iodine indefinitely. Iodine is an important mineral for our bodies. dermatitis herpetiformis patients can stop avoiding iodine when their rash symptoms clear up which can take anywhere from a few months to a couple of years on a gluten-free diet.

More about iodine:
Intake of large amounts of inorgana iodide is known to exacerbate symptoms and a few patients have been reported to improve on low iodide diets. However, this is not a mainstay of treatment and need only be considered if patients are consuming excessive iodide in the form of vitamin pills, kelp, or seafood. Likewise, some patients have reported exacerbation with thyroid hormone replacement therapy and thyrotoxicosis. In such cases, excessive thyroid replacement should be avoided and thyrotoxicosis treated appropriately.

*Dermatitis Herpetiformis, John J. Zone MD, Curr Probl Dermatol, Jan/Feb 1991, p36

*Dermatitis Herpetiformis is considered a rare skin disease.

*The true incidence and prevalence of dermatitis herpetiformis appears to vary in different areas of the world and may vary within the same country. During 1987, 158 cases of documented dermatitis herpetiformis were identified in the state of Utah out of a population of 1.6 million, a prevalence of 9.8 per 100,000.

*Dermatitis Herpetiformis, John J. Zone MD, Curr Probl Dermatol, Jan/Feb 1991, p15