As I sit here typing this, my mother-in-law is making beef stroganoff and it smells heavenly. I love it but the floured beef and the egg noodles are no bueno for me this month. Sure, I could put it over rice but I’d still have to figure out how to replace the flour that coats the beef. So… I thought I’d talk about the “company foods” I need to learn how to make gluten-free.
-beef stroganoff
-beef burgundy
-“Jimmy” chicken (a family recipe — it’s a twist on chicken parisienne that my dad created 45 years ago)
-goulash and spaetzle
-lasagna (actually, this one wouldn’t be hard but I still need to think it through)
What are “company foods” you would have to alter?
Oh yes… I was emailed by the 31 Days people last night and there’s a giveaway that you can enter as a reader of a blog where someone is doing the 31 Days. It starts tomorrow and I’m looking forward to it!
When I went to Girl Scout camp as a camper, CIT, and then counselor, there was a grace we used to sing:
In back of the bread is the flour.
In back of the flour is the mill.
In back of the mill is the wind and the rain
And the Father’s will.
There’s even a YouTube video of it:
Anyway, I’ve been thinking about Jon’s parishioners in Montana who were wheat and barley farmers. With all the crap going around the Internet about the dangers of eating wheat and how gluten-free life is superior, I think about them because the way I’m eating at the moment would mean the loss of livelihood if people gave up eating wheat on a larger scale. It’s why I haven’t read all the Wheatbelly stuff which smacks of new-agey Oprahesque science — cutting carbs is all well and good but there are people who raise organic wheat out there (I know many of them!) and aren’t dousing their field with pesticides. The Wheatbelly craze has the potential to affect them negatively and I’m not chill with that.
And again, I find the Wheatbelly stuff to be good medicine inasmuch as the quack Dr. Oz is good medicine, which is to say. NOT AT ALL.
Outside my window… dark. I have no idea what temperatures were here because I was gone from Friday morning until tonight but I heard something about triple digits. Yuck!
I am thinking… about whether I would have stood up and proclaimed my Christian faith had I been in the room with the Umpqua Community College shooter. I probably would have done so… which I’m pretty sure would scare the pants off my non-believer parents.
I am thankful… for Promise FM. I’m in the midst of making some hard decisions and it was really helpful to have songs outlining God’s promises for my life while I was driving through central California today!
In the kitchen… didn’t cook today but probably some gluten-free mac n’ cheese tomorrow.
I am wearing… green shirt and capri sweats.
I am going… to be playing “catch up” tomorrow after being gone for four days.
I am wondering… about a lot of things right now.
I am reading…Furiously Happy by Jenny Lawson.
I am hoping… school goes well for Daniel tomorrow.
I am looking forward to… Bible study on Wednesday!
I am hearing… nothing.
A Daniel story for today… Mr. Boy usually comes and crawls onto my bed around 11 pm or midnight and he even tucked himself in tonight.
Around the house… silence — everyone but me is asleep.
A favorite quote for today… “Do one thing every day that scares you.” — Eleanor Roosevelt. I chose this one because my mom quotes it to me frequently. (Dealing with social service agencies is not for the faint-hearted!)
One of my favorite things… discovering new artists or lesser known works by established artists of the musical variety.
A few plans for the rest of the week: catching up on errands and paperwork tomorrow, Bible study and probably a quiet service on Wednesday, soccer practice on Thursday, and Matt’s Run on Saturday before Daniel’s soccer game.
A peek into my day… Some of the new songs I heard this weekend:
I was half-craving Arby’s today and saw one I could go through while I was on I-5 heading home. I was all prepared to go through, order 2 Jr. Roast Beef sandwiches to dissect and remove the beef when I saw that they only served Pepsi products. As a Coke drinker, this is blasphemy and besides… Pepsi tastes like chemicals!!!
I was feeling all good about myself for feeling mindful of my eating and not wasting food until I ended up at Carl’s Jr. for dinner… and ended up dissecting the lettuce wrap they made me because I hate lettuce and could not stomach the thought of using it as a bun. Yeah Jen… way to not waste food!
Anyway, my adventures in *NOT* eating gluten have made me aware of what I *could* be eating on the road and why I should be avoiding it. Now to put it into practice…
One of the serious cravings I am having at the moment is for bread. It’s funny because I normally don’t eat much of it but I think the fact that I can’t have it is making me want it more. It’s severe enough that I almost mugged my mom for her sandwich yesterday!
The bread products I am missing are…
sourdough bread
potato bread
tortillas
buns (for fast food)
I head home from northern California tomorrow and I’m trying to come up with ideas for fast food on the road that don’t involve bread. Easier said than done!
Just a heads-up: salad dressings are sources for gluten as well. I’m thinking my headache might be related to the ginger-miso dressing on my salad tonight.
