lonewolf

  On 4/10/2010 at 6:48 PM, newgfcali said:

ITo say the end result was a disappointment is an understatement. The recipe called for a garbanzo bean flour mix, but the author said that Bob's Red Mill baking mix could be substituted, as it was basically the same as her custom mix. Either way, the basic flour was garbanzo bean. All I can say is YUCK. I'd read on here that the raw garbanzo bean flour batter is awful tasting, so I was prepared. But what I was not prepared for was the smell of it and the taste of the finished cake. It hardly tastes edible. Both the taste and the aftertaste are bitter to me. I certainly wouldn't serve it to company. For that matter, I wouldn't give it to the cat. It's in the garbage now.

So sorry this happened to you. It reminds me of when I was newly gluten free and my sister bought me a bag of Bob's Red Mill Baking Mix. I tried making biscuits out of it. The smell in the house was nauseating. I tried a small taste anyway, but it was absolutely disgusting. We tried giving one to the dog and he ate it and then THREW UP! That was the last time I tried a Bob's product.

  On 3/26/2010 at 1:40 AM, dube said:

I'm going to try this tomorrow...but can you use rice flour? And if so, how much?

I haven't made it with rice flour, but I think it would work fine. I'd use the same amount as almond flour. Let us know if it works!

  On 3/23/2010 at 6:12 AM, Emma4 said:

I will try the flatbread recipe....it sounds pretty good!! However, we are very new at this game(since end of January begining of February) and I feel like am starving or depriving my nine year old who was diagnosed! I realize this is still very new, but I am truely struggling with what to feed her and how to mix it in with our family. No luck on cereals, breads, buns, etc. yet!! Please send your best recipes or recommendations cuz I am truely fruserated.

many thanks!

Emma4

Have you tried Chex cereals? Rice, Corn, Honey Nut and Cinnamon are all gluten-free and kid friendly. The flatbread recipe above is the best bread for sandwiches that I've hdd since being gluten-free, but it's not great just plain. The Ener-G breads are yucky, but the Lite Tapioca is pretty good for things like french toast and grilled sandwiches. Do you know about the super easy peanut butter cookie recipe? (1 C peanut butter, 1 C sugar, 1 egg, mix together, drop onto cookie sheet and bake at 375 for 10 minutes.) Good luck! It takes a while to get used to, but you'll get the hang of it soon.

  On 3/16/2010 at 2:56 PM, digmom1014 said:

I cannot wait to try this recipe. I bake with both almond and coconut flour. Why is it a 1/2 c. of almond flour but, only 2T or coconut flour?

Thanks-

Coconut flour "sucks" up moisture like crazy because it's so high in fiber. You always use less of it in a recipe.

I've found that a simple flat bread works the best. I make this almost every day and we use it for sandwiches, hamburgers, hotdogs and even pizza crust. (Not my favorite pizza crust, but passable if you add Romano cheese to the batter.) It's soft and flexible and has a good taste. My son and I are on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD), so we use almond or coconut flour, but I'm sure it would work fine with a gluten free flour. I would guess that you wouldn't even need xanthan gum.

Soft Flat Bread

4 Egg Whites

2 Egg Yolks

1/2 C Almond Flour (or 2 Tbs Coconut Flour)

1 tsp. honey

1 tsp. butter

dash of salt

Beat egg whites until almost forming stiff peaks. Beat egg yolks with honey, butter and salt. Add yolk mixture to egg whites, sprinkle on flour. Stir gently until well-blended. Spread on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper to make a 12" x 12" square (or 14" square if using extra large eggs). It will be half an inch thick or less. Bake at 350 for 12 minutes. Slide bread, parchment paper and all, off cookie sheet and onto cooling rack immediately after getting out of the oven. Gently peel paper off as soon as it is cool enough to handle.

You can also make individual "buns" by making little 4" circles with the batter and baking as above. It's nice to have something that looks more like a hamburger bun, but they do flatten out a little. All my kids, even the 2 that aren't gluten free like these.

Good luck!

Oh wow, I'd forgotten about this thread. My 14 year old son was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis in July and we've been doing the Specific Carbohydrate Diet. I don't know why I haven't modified this recipe to make bread for him. No grains, but I think I'll try all almond meal. Has anyone tried this without baking powder? He can't have that. Maybe I'll try a pinch of soda to replace it.

I've been making a soft and yummy flat bread with eggs, almond meal, butter, honey and salt and it's good too. If anyone wants the recipe for that I'll post it.

It's too late for your dinner, but here is my "daily bread" recipe that would work for you.

Soft Flat Bread

4 Egg Whites

2 Egg Yolks

1/2 C Almond Flour (can buy at Trader Joes)or any flour would probably work

1 tsp. Butter (or oil)

1 tsp. Honey

Dash of salt

Beat egg whites until they form soft peaks. Then beat egg yolks with butter and honey. Sprinkle almond flour and salt onto egg whites, pour egg yolk mixture on top and gently stir until it's all mixed together. Pour/scrape onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. (This is the best stuff ever invented!) Smooth with the back of the spoon to about a 12" x 12" square, making sure that the thickness is consistent. Bake at 350 for 12 minutes. Remove from oven and slide bread, parchment paper and all onto a cooling rack.

I use a jelly roll type pan (instead of a cookie sheet) that has little holes in it - a pizza pan with holes in it would work well too - that makes it a little drier/crispier on the bottom.

  Chrissyb said:

I have had MS for 10 years now and have been gluten free for 2 years now. I have been improvement in my stomach issues but not in my MS symptoms. I was hoping maybe there would be some improvement but none yet.

Do a Google search for LDN and MS. It might be worth looking into!

Do you have a Betty Crocker cookbook? I use the gingerbread cookie recipe from there and just substitute gluten-free flour. Make sure there is plenty of xanthan gum in it and it mixes up nicely. I've been doing this for 7-8 years and it works great. I got the dimensions for the house online. The trickiest part is cutting the raw cookie dough into the right sized pieces. You might need to trim a bit after baking.

A trick I use to keep the house together is to cut cereal boxes into the same sizes and shapes and then frost the cookie pieces to them. Then assemble the house. It makes the house stay together nicely with no sagging roof.

Good luck!

Pecan stuffed dates. Really easy and yummy.

Make a slit lengthwise in top half of date and remove pit. Put in a toasted pecan half. You can also put a dab of cream cheese in before the pecan.

Have you tried the Specific Carbohydrate Diet? It works for a lot of people who didn't get relief from gluten free or other restricted diets. It's a bit harder, but it can be very helpful.

If you just want bread for sandwiches or to wrap up hamburgers or hotdogs, try this. It's way easier than trying to make a loaf of gluten-free bread. I make it several times a week. You could probably use any type of flour or finely ground nuts instead of the almonds.

Soft Flat Bread

4 Egg Whites

2 Egg Yolks

1/2 C Almond Flour (can buy at Trader Joes)

1 tsp. Butter

1 tsp. Honey

Dash of salt

Beat egg whites until they form soft peaks. Then beat egg yolks with butter and honey. Sprinkle almond flour and salt onto egg whites, pour egg yolk mixture on top and gently stir until it's all mixed together. Pour/scrape onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. (This is the best stuff ever invented!) Smooth with the back of the spoon to about a 12" x 12" square, making sure that the thickness is consistent. Bake at 350 for 12 minutes. Remove from oven and slide bread, parchment paper and all onto a cooling rack.

I use a jelly roll type pan (instead of a cookie sheet) that has little holes in it - a pizza pan with holes in it would work well too - that makes it a little drier/crispier on the bottom.

  foodgirl said:

I am gluten-free, Egg-free, Dairy-free, etc. Traditionally we put egg in the dough so I wondered how this dough stands up to cooking--i.e. does it tend to stay together or is there anything to add in place of an egg such as egg replacer or flaxseed mixture?

Thanks and I can't wait to try this recipe!!!

I've made it dozens of times and it holds together really well. Just don't try to roll it too thin. Also, make sure that there is enough xanthan gum in the dough. If it doesn't hold together before rolling out, there isn't enough x-gum in there.

Being on the SCD has forced me to make several things that I previously bought pre-made. One of those things is crackers. I found and tweaked a recipe that has turned into a family favorite. They are way better than the rock hard nut thins that we used to eat.

2 C finely ground almond flour (I have used almond meal from Trader Joe's or Honeyville blanched almond flour)

1 C finely grated Pecorino Romano cheese (made with sheep milk), press down firmly in cup

1/2 tsp. baking soda

shake of salt

shake of pepper

shake of garlic powder

1 Egg (or 3 Tbs water or liquid egg replacement) I use large eggs.

Put all dry ingredients in Cuisinart or other food processor and blend well. Add egg and process until dough forms a ball. You can add a few drops of water if it's not moist enough.

Divide dough in half. Place one half between 2 pieces of parchment paper. Roll out very thin - 1/8" or a bit less. Remove top layer of paper. Score into cracker sized pieces with a very sharp knife or pizza wheel. Slide crackers/paper onto cookie sheet. Bake at 325 for 10 minutes and then start checking for browning. You want them to brown a little, but not burn - watch them carefully! Slide them, paper and all onto a cooling rack. Let cool and then break into crackers. As soon as they are cool, put them in a ziploc bag - they absorb moisture really quickly.

  ang1e0251 said:

Thanks for sharing that. It sounds so good. We've missed you but I hope all your work is helping your son.

Thanks! I've missed "being" here. The SCD is so time consuming that I have little time for anything besides work, cooking and cleaning. My son was very sick over the summer and it took until the end of July to get a diagnosis. He's lost 34 pounds since spring and can't seem to gain anything back. He is playing HS football (his team is in the state semi-finals on Saturday!) and has PE every day, so it's hard to get enough calories into him. He's doing really well now - just one little symptom that won't go away and having a hard time getting him to gain weight.

I haven't been on here for months because my son was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis and we have been on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet since mid August. (It makes gluten-free seem REALLY easy.)

I discovered an easy bread recipe that I make a few times a week. It makes great sandwiches that travel well in a lunchbox, so I thought I'd share.

Soft Flat Bread

4 Egg Whites

2 Egg Yolks

1/2 C Almond Flour (can buy at Trader Joes)

1 tsp. Butter

1 tsp. Honey

Dash of salt

Beat egg whites until they form soft peaks. Then beat egg yolks with butter and honey. Sprinkle almond flour and salt onto egg whites, pour egg yolk mixture on top and gently stir until it's all mixed together. Pour/scrape onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. (This is the best stuff ever invented!) Smooth with the back of the spoon to about a 12" x 12" square, making sure that the thickness is consistent. Bake at 350 for 12 minutes. Remove from oven and slide bread, parchment paper and all onto a cooling rack.

I have a jelly roll type pan that has little holes in it - a pizza pan with holes in it would work well too - that makes it a little drier/crispier on the bottom.

That was fascinating! The section about kidney disease was especially interesting to me. I was diagosed with a kidney disease back at a time when I was trying to reintroduce gluten grains (spelt, not wheat) into my diet. The disease completely went into remission when I went fanatically gluten-free and I have not had a problem for 5-1/2 years. I've had people tell me that it was just a coincidence, but this article gave my theory about what helped me some credence!

  River* said:

Hi, I think I need to stop eating rice as well as all other grains.

I just need to come up with a replacement food first. I think I am going to try bean flours by Bob's Red Mill.

I've been on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet for 6 weeks and it's going well. I'm doing it with my 14 year old son, who has Ulcerative Colitis. It's a bit of a challenge, but do-able.

I would suggest that you try nut flours - especially almond or pecan - and coconut flour rather than bean flours. The beans are harder to digest. There are lots of good recipes for nut and coconut flours available online. The flavor is good - MUCH better than bean flours.

Pele - Thanks for the comments. I admit it, I'm lazy when it comes to pumpkin. I actually used to grow my own and cook them and make truly homemade pies. But it wasn't as good as Libby's! As for the coconut milk, I'll look into Natural Value. I think it's pretty clear when something like that doesn't have emulsifiers. Since coconut milk is not supposed to be sweet, it doesn't make sense that there would be undeclared sugars in there either.

I'm sure you've been following the debate over on the other forum. I'm afraid I started some of it by asking so many questions about why certain things weren't legal. Others obviously feel the same way about products that Elaine said were legal - some of the info is outdated. When I look on a company's website and see that they make a point to say that there is nothing added to their tomatoes I wonder why I shouldn't believe them. But then I wonder why companies like Muir Glen will only say that their whole tomatoes are safe. I bought some Eden Organics whole Roma tomatoes and haven't been brave enough to try them yet, even though their website looks good. I found large cans for 59 cents at a grocery outlet by my house. But then again, the whole point seems moot when Elaine said you can have bacon that has sugar on the label if it's only once a week. Why can't I have canned tomatoes that might have sugar once a week instead?

I think your earlier comment about the SCD getting away from the original intent - to avoid processed foods - was right on. In a perfect world I would grow all my own fruits and vegetables and can them myself and make every ingredient from scratch. But for most of us, that's not possible. My reality is that I work, have a husband and 4 hungry kids and need to use a few convenience items when I can. There's a difference between buying a can of organic tomatoes to make sauce and buying Ragu.

I think you should find grapes from a farmer, stomp on them yourself and make your own grape juice . That way you would KNOW that you are truly on the SCD.

  pele said:

Hi Liz

I don't have a bread recipe but I was thinking about the canned pumpkin issue. According to the book, BTVC, frozen vegetables are legal as long as they don't have sugar or starch added. So, frozen winter squash is pretty much the same thing as canned pumpkin. Both may actually be Hubbard squash or butternut. So why not use frozen winter squash?

And for canned coconut milk, Natural Value non-organic has no listed additives and is most definitely lumpy and doesn't look emulsified.

I think we all need to be grown ups and make our own decisions on whether to use these products. IMO it is silly to use products like a certain brand of bottled grape juice just becasue Elaine said it's okay despite overwhelming evidence that the product has changed for the worse.

Which leads me to a question: If you use unapproved canned tomatoes, does that mean you are not on the SCD, even if you are drinking Welch's grape juice from concentrate and it makes you sick????

I'm hoping to find a "tried and true" recipe. After years of experimenting with gluten-free breads, I just want something that someone else has had success with. All the good looking recipes call for yogurt or cheese.

Does anyone have a favorite dairy free SCD bread recipe that is fairly easy to make? My son would like a sandwich and I would too! It would make packing lunches a little easier and give him some more calories. Right now he usually takes 2 beef or turkey burgers with ketchup and mustard in a sandwich bag.

Thanks!

Hi everyone. Just wanted to pop in and say hi and see how everyone is doing. I'm on overload trying to get all this cooking done for 6 people and work 4 days a week. It's actually easier to cook SCD for everyone (not that it's easy), rather than try to cook SCD for 3, gluten-free for one and "regular" for 2. We all eat the same thing for breakfast and dinner and the non SCD'ers pack their own lunches. I'm still busy baking muffins and almond butter brownies and planning and cooking everything. I'm trying to get some weight back on my son. He eats at least 3 times what I do and he's not gaining, but I am. Life is so not fair...

As for the question about SCD and "C". I say try it out. I'd be totally amazed if anyone could stay constipated on this diet, unless they stopped drinking water or something.

  pele said:

BTW, no mandolin or anything similar at Walmart. Did you go to a kitchen specialty store?

And I know nothing about coconut water, but I confess to occasionally eating bananas without spots. Once again, no lightening strikes.

My mom got the mandolin for me at Macy's. Probably in north Seattle. She had some super coupon and hit it on a sale day and then got a senior citizen discount and ended up getting it for pretty cheap, apparently. She gave it to me for my birthday, so wouldn't tell me how much it cost.

Apparently there was some huge discussion about coconut water on the other board and people got really upset and argued and had hurt feelings. I can't imagine getting that passionate about coconut. Elaine said it was illegal because she didn't have time to actually analyze it and it wasn't as popular 4-5 years ago when she died. So there are some people who think it should be legal, but because Elaine didn't say it, it can't be. Somehow, there has to be a way to figure out if things are legal or not without Elaine.

Ali - my mandolin makes julienne strips and slices (tomatoes, etc.) in different thickness and makes french fries (chips?) too. It also has a blade to make crinkle cuts in whatever thickness you want. A good one will have several different blades and an adjustment for thin to thick.

Bea - my grandfather played the mandolin and that was the only type I'd ever heard of until a couple of weeks ago. This kind is a nifty vegetable slicer/chopper thing that makes slices and julienne strips. Perfect for this diet!

Pele - they are pretty serious over there. I like it in some ways though - my son really needs to get better and I need to know how to do it right. The GI has brought up surgery twice and he's only been diagnosed for a little over a month.

Sometimes I think they go overboard though on worrying about every little molecule of possible sugar or starch; and Elaine worship. Don't get me wrong, I admire her and am thankful for all the hard work she did for years. She was obviously brilliant. But there are some serious inconsistencies in the diet. Why is it okay to have bacon, which has sugar listed on the label, but not canned pumpkin, when Libby's says there's no sugar or starch added? If you're going to worry about what might be in a product, even though the company says there's nothing else in there, why do you eat what you know has sugar in it? I don't get it. But Elaine said it was okay, so it's okay.

That being said, I appreciate most of the feedback I get there. I'm doing the diet just for moral support for my son, so I'm not too worried for me, but I do want to do it right for him.

Tonight we had honey-dijon chicken with broccoli and zucchini noodles. Delicious! The sauce was fantastic over the "noodles". At least the food is good!

  pele said:

So, Liz, can we talk about bacon? Or soaking nuts?

LOL! What I really want to talk about is coconut water! (I guess I'm not the only one posting on two different message boards!) I'll keep in mind that eating bacon once a week won't kill my son. But it would be nice to find one without sugar.

Bea - the zucchini noodles are easy to make. I used my mandolin to slice the zucchini into lasagna sized "noodles". Then I put them on a cookie sheet, covered with a kitchen towel into a 250 degree oven. Turned the oven off and left them there for about an hour. They weren't totally dry, but much less moist. I put them in a ziploc bag and kept them in the refrigerator until I used them. Another lady on another board dehydrates hers - I'll be asking how long and how she stores them. I also made spaghetti the same way - just used my chopper to make spaghetti sized pieces. They were so good...