This gluten-free, raw bread recipe comes from David Minkoff. Enjoy with nut butter and jelly or mustard, turkey, and avocado, or in a tuna melt. Yummy!

INGREDIENTS:

Flaxseeds

Sesame seeds

Dried cranberries or cherries (optional)

Sunflower seeds (optional)

Salt, to taste

Cinnamon, to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Soak flaxseeds and sesame seeds (also dried cranberries or cherries) in water in a big bowl). (We don’t measure.) Sometimes we’ve added sunflower seeds.

2. Soak for 6-8 hrs in fridge or out.

3. Place in batches in a food processor with salt and cinnamon (we don’t measure) and grind until you achieve the consistency you like.

4. Then spread on dehydrator shelves.

5. Turn on dehydrator for 12 hrs.

Miranda Jade Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.

I am often asked by my readers and radio show listeners how I manage to stay energized and stress-free with my busy work schedule. I’m not going to lie to you—it’s pretty tough. Over the years, I’ve figured out, though, that the secret to feeling good is taking care of yourself. I depend on a well-balanced diet, healthy supplements, and exercise to keep me going during the day. That’s why when I heard about gluten-free RelaxZen products, which are designed to promote emotional and physical well-being without drugs and caffeine, I knew I had to give them a try.

I tried both the Day and Night formulas, which are the two most popular RelaxZen products. RelaxZen Day contains herbs, vitamins (including Vitamins B6 and B12), and amino acids. This formula made it easier for me to concentrate on my work and kept me perky even in the late afternoons when I tend to slow down.

Since RelaxZen Day was such as success, I tried RelaxZen Night. I don’t suffer from any sleep problems, but after a busy day, it can be hard to unwind and get myself in “sleep mode.” I have been taking the Night formula as I get ready for bed and have found that I’m much more inclined to go straight to sleep, instead of thinking about the day that just passed and the next one to follow. I wake up feeling refreshed after a deep, peaceful sleep.

In an age where there are tons of caffeinated, sugar “energy drinks” to give people a quick buzz that later makes them crash, it’s refreshing to find a company like RelaxZen which gives its customers health and happiness-promoting products and does this without gluten. If you’re stressed out, need a pick-me-up, or are having trouble sleeping, I’d go the RelaxZen route and see what this company is capable of doing for you.

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.

Resource:

RelaxZen: RelaxZen for Every Day http://www.relaxzenshots.com/daynight

Apple pie is a classic dessert, perfect for any special occasion or holiday. This gluten-free, grain-free version is made from raw ingredients and is dairy-free. Make sure to top it off with some delicious dairy-free Coconut Whipped “Cream.”

Step 1: Pecan Crumble (Prepare first.)

INGREDIENTS

1 ½ c pecans (pieces or whole)

2 tsp honey

1 ½ tbsp cinnamon

1 ½ tbsp carob powder

½ tbsp date sugar

DIRECTIONS

1. Grind ingredients in a food processor until finely textured, but don’t overgrind or else they’ll release too much moisture (about 15-2o seconds grinding depending on equipment).

2. On a Teflex dehydrator sheet, lay out the mixture so that it is as thin and evenly spaced as possible.

3. Dehydrate for 4-5 hours.

4. Reserve crumbles for later use.

Step 2: Apple Piece Sauce

INGREDIENTS

½ tsp clove, ground

2 tsp cinnamon

¼ tsp allspice

2 tsp vanilla extract

½ c cashews, soaked 3 hrs

1 tsp orange peel, fresh or dried (You can find it dried in spice sections of most gourmet markets.)

¼ tsp cardamom

¼ c currants (or raisins)

¾ c water

1tbsp agave (or date paste)

½ tsp salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Using a very high-powered blender, blend all of the above until very smooth.

2. Keep the mixture reserved in the blender for later use.

Step 3: Coconut Whipped “Cream” (Prepare third.)

INGREDIENTS

3 medium young Thai coconuts, meat only (3/4 to 1 c meat total)

½ c coconut oil, firm

1/8 c agave

2 tbsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Blend all the ingredients in a high-powered blender until very smooth.

2. Place into a storage container and refrigerate for later use. (Stays good for up to 3 weeks.)

Step Four: Apple Filling (Prepare last.)

INGREDIENTS

4 medium apples, cored and cut into large pieces (optional: soaked in Kahlua or rum)

½ tsp sea salt (brings out the sweetness)

1 tbsp lemon juice

DIRECTIONS

Just before serving, pulse the ingredients listed above a few times in your food processor just to roughly chop the apple pieces to a chunky consistency.

Step Five: Apple Pie Assembly

1. Re-blend the apple pie sauce on a continuous run for 1-1 ½ min. to warm the mixture.

2. While blending, in a serving casserole dish (1-c size) or large ramekin, place the pulsed apple filling leaving about an inch from the top for the crumble.

3. Spoon 2-3 tbsp of the crumble over the apple.

4. Add a dollop of the Coconut Whipped “Cream” over the center of the crumble.

5. Garnish the dish with some chopped fresh mint or some nutmeg!

Enjoy!

Miranda Jade Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.

In making a kitchen safe for celiacs, I recommend purchasing a new toaster specially designated for gluten-free use, which can be invaluable in avoiding cross-contamination. But what about when you’re traveling or eating over at someone’s house?  Now you can avoid cross-contamination with an innovative product called Toast-It Reusable Toaster Bags, which are convenient not only for toasting but for grilling gluten-free foods.

The bags are Teflon® and 100% non-stick. You can use them for heating up all sorts of foods, such as sandwiches, burgers, pizza slices, and garlic bread, in toasters and toaster ovens and on grills. Each bag is reusable up to ten times and comes two to a package.

Follow the link below to order a package:

http://www.glutenfree.com/index.cfm/manufacturer/IMCG/959069-___-Toast-It-Bags.html

Miranda Jade Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.

Beth Hillson is a name you hear often in the gluten-free community. When I was sent her new gluten-free cookbook to review I was very excited. Who exactly is this gluten-free master Beth Hillson? That’s the exact thought I had. Before reading Beth’s cookbook ” Gluten-Free Makeovers” I got to get a few of my questions answered about Beth.

Read below for the interview and stay tuned for the review in two weeks!

When were you diagnosed with celiac disease?

I was diagnosed in 1953 and again in 1976.  I was a small child when I was diagnosed the first time.  They took away all my food and fed me bananas for several weeks, or maybe it was months.  Gradually, my mother introduced new foods – - leaving starches including corn, rice and potatoes – - until the very last.  I was on this diet for 3 ½ years.  When everything was added back, the doctor told me I was cured.  No one mentioned the word, “gluten.”   When symptoms returned,  I went from doctor to doctor complaining about my stomach.   Each one diagnosed me with a different ailment – - “nervous stomach,” psychiatric problems, lactose intolerance, and IBS.  It took several years and a second biopsy before I was rediagnosed with celiac disease.  This time the doctor knew that gluten was causing the problem but he didn’t fully understand the diet.  Corn Flakes and Rice Krispies were on the list of foods I could eat.  He even told me that beer was fine.  So I educated myself.  I went to culinary school to understand how foods are prepared and how to replace the gluten in the recipes.  It was my only choice unless I wanted to eat baked potatoes and naked burgers for the rest of my life.

What was the hardest part for you switching over to being gluten-free?

There was nothing available by way of products or resources when I was diagnosed.  My cravings motivated me to teach myself how to cook and bake gluten-free.  If I wanted a cake, I had to recreate it with gluten-free ingredients.  But I always viewed this as a challenge rather than a liability.  A positive attitude and a good support system turned this from a dire prognosis to a culinary adventure.   It’s a journey I’ve been on ever since.

How has the gluten-free community changed since you were diagnosed with celiac disease?

We’ve gone from zero to sixty miles an hour in this industry since I was diagnosed.  I can’t even begin to describe all the changes.  But here’s an example.  When I created Gluten-Free Pantry in 1993, we were still thinking that 1 in 1,000 people had celiac disease.  The possibility that many others had gluten sensitivity was not even in the picture.  I often said I could stand on the street corner in Manhattan with a plate of my Chocolate Truffle Brownies and never come across another celiac, even if I stood there for a full day.  Today, I can’t go anywhere without running into half a dozen people with celiac disease and another dozen who are gluten intolerant.

You took the gluten-free world by storm, baking out of your own home and evolving into a successful business. Tell us in your own words what this whole process was like for you.

I guess I was a pioneer.  The business came out of a need.   I was making baking mixes so I could quickly whip up a bread or pancakes or a quick bread when I wanted something good to eat.  (After all, freshly baked has always been the way to go.)  Then it occurred to me that I could save some money on ingredients if I bought a 50 pound bag of rice flour.  Once it arrived, I knew I had to find a few other people to share the mixes with or I would never use up all that flour.  I had no idea the business would take off the way it did.  For the first three years, I was working night and day just to keep up with demand.  I couldn’t imagine marketing my products proactively.  The company was growing more than 30% per year just by word of mouth.  That’s amazing when you’re a little business.

What was your purpose in selling your first gluten-free company?

I became disheartened when so many entrepreneurs began copying my products.  Mix companies were showing up everywhere.  There must be over a hundred of them today and each one has a sandwich bread, a pizza mix, a brownie, a cupcake, and so on.  They all  claim they started the business because there was nothing good out there.  But honestly, there are plenty of great mixes now.  When I started Gluten-Free Pantry there truly was nothing else available for gluten-free consumers.   I wish people would copy the pioneering spirit instead of copying each other and create products that are a unique and fill a void in our lives.

When I created the company, I was a lifeline for our customers.  The first time we moved to a larger location, the phone lines were down for nearly a day and people freaked out, fearing we had gone out of business!  I’ll never forget when a customer called the local police to check on us and someone came to find me.  I had that kind of connection to our customers and I felt I had a commitment to help them live well on a gluten-free diet.  But, by the time I sold the company, I did not feel that way.  I knew our customers had other choices.  I didn’t feel like I was letting people down.

What did you do with your “free time” after that?

I spent time with my elderly parents until they passed away.  Then I went back to school to get an MFA in creative writing and wrote a memoir as my thesis.  It’s still in process, but I hope to publish it one day soon.  And then I wrote a cookbook, “Gluten-Free Makeovers.”

On your website, glutenfreemakeovers.com, you have a section called “baking basics” where you help many people who are having trouble baking gluten-free. You must enjoy helping others be successfully gluten-free in their own kitchens. What inspired you to start glutenfreemakeovers.com?

I think “makeover” is my mantra.  I have always looked at ways to recreate favorite foods so we can enjoy them.  It was the concept that led me to create the GF Pantry and the recipes in the cookbook and on the web site.  I really do enjoy helping people.  This is a challenging lifestyle, but not impossible, especially with all the variety these days.  As long as people view this as a challenge and understand the rewards are delicious, safe foods, they will happily embrace the gluten-free lifestyle.  I can’t begin to describe the feeling I get when I see someone smile because they baked something delicious or tried something yummy that I fed them.  This is as good as it gets.

You have quite a record of cooking and baking. Was this something you always had an interest in?

Coming from a childhood where I ate bananas seven different ways, I have always been hungry for good food and great variety.  I think that childhood experience heightened my culinary curiosity.  When I was a kid, I trolled the neighborhood looking for handouts, for things that were not allowed on my diet.   I visited my friends’ homes and checked out their refrigerators.  I asked the mothers what they were serving for dinner and hinted boldly that I might like a taste.  I bought candy at the penny candy stores in my neighborhood.  (Sugar was another thing I couldn’t have.)  Food became intensely interesting to me.  That hungry still persists.

You recently published a gluten-free cook book “Gluten-Free Makeovers” published by Da Capo Press . What inspired you to do so?

I have gathered so many great recipes since I started Gluten-Free Pantry and then after selling it and writing recipes and articles for Living Without Magazine.  I wanted a place to organize them.  And, frankly, they are good recipes.  I wanted others to enjoy them, too.  By the way, I cook from my own cookbook all the time and so does my sister who was diagnosed with celiac disease seven years ago.

How did you choose which delicious recipes would be included in your cook book versus those which would not be?

I picked recipes that filled a void – - favorite family traditional dishes, wonderful cakes and cookies that I thought we should all have.  After I set up an outline and chapters, some of the recipes had to be shelved.  I had way too many.  But that’s good news.  Now I have enough material for another book someday.  In addition, people are always sending me their recipes to make over.  That’s fun, too.

You have come up with so many gluten-free recipes, any plans on another cook book in the future?

Perhaps I will do another cookbook.  I think the big deterrent is that there are so many cookbooks out now.

Anything else you want to share?

Lots of people are intimidated by gluten-free cooking and overwhelmed by the diet and lifestyle.  I encourage people to give it a try and not be discouraged.  Take baby steps at first.  By that I mean start with a couple of mixes from a company you’ve heard about and trust.  Become accustomed to the way gluten-free flours handle and branch out slowly.  Find a cookbook (hopefully mine!) and try one or two recipes just to get started baking from scratch.  Next thing you know, you’ll be making your own flour blends and making over mainstream recipes just like I do.  Just keep a positive attitude.

Miranda Jade Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

I like to make these at barbecues and in place of French fries as a healthier alternative. They are gluten-free and grain-free. They also make a great side dish.

INGREDIENTS:

½ c orange juice

¼ c oil

(optional) ½ tsp of:

ground ginger

garlic

salt

pepper

Cayenne pepper to taste (optional)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

2. Combine orange juice and oil and reduce by simmering over the stove.

3. Add seasonings.

4. Thicken over the stove. Add cayenne pepper if you’d like.

5. Cut sweet potatoes into “fries.”

6. Bake approx. 25 mins on a greased dish. Toss halfway through with ingredients.

Miranda Jade Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.

According to a news article on Medscape Today, the incidence of celiac disease (CD) has markedly increased over the past three decades, by even as much as four times, and studies are showing the incidence may actually be higher than 1% of the population, which is the current estimate.

According to Medscape, the Mayo Clinic has confirmed increase in CD incidence, which was reported in Discovery’s Edge, the Mayo Clinic’s research magazine. Joseph Murray, MD, and colleagues analyzed stored blood samples from Air Force recruits in the early 1950s for gluten antibodies. With approximately 1% of today’s population celiac, it was assumed that 1% would be positive; it turns out the number of positive results was far smaller, indicating that CD was “rare” in the early 1950s, according to Dr. Murray.

Dr. Murray and his colleagues compared their results with two more recently collected sets from Olmsted County, Minnesota, with the conclusion that, according to Medscape, “CD is roughly 4 times more common now than in the 1950s.” Dr. Murray says that the increase has affected young and old people and suspects the marked increase is due to a pervasive change “from the environmental perspective.”

As alarming as the statistics are regarding the increasing rate of CD, celiac expert Dr. Ludvigsson, MD, of the Karolinska Institute and Orebro University Hospital in Sweden, tells Medscape that the methods of diagnosing celiac disease are improving. For those who test positive for the disease, the only method of treatment is a gluten-free diet, a simple and effective treatment, although it can require some challenging lifestyle adjustments. In the future, we may see other treatments such as gluten-digesting enzymes or even the genetic modification of the structure of gluten in wheat so that it will not generate an autoimmune reaction in celiac patients.

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.

Resource:

Medscape Today: Celiac Disease Diagnosis Up 4-Fold Worldwide

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/726127

What a delicious springtime treat! This recipe comes from Laura Waldo, author of the blog, Living Gluten and Grain Free (http://ourplacelivingglutenfree.blogspot.com). Make some extra strawberry filling and serve it as a parfait, topped with whipped cream and some fresh strawberry slices, in stylish glasses.

Serve it for dessert after having this amazing recipe! Flank Steak with Chimichurri sauce

Strawberry Filling

INGREDIENTS:

2 c fresh organic strawberries, tops removed, sliced

1 c raw cashews

2 tbsp gluten-free vanilla extract

½ c raw honey

1 pinch sea salt

1 c coconut oil, melted

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place all ingredients into a blender in the order listed and blend until smooth and creamy (approximately 3 mins).

2. Carefully pour into your favorite cooked pie crust and refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.

Laura’s Favorite Grain-Free Crust

Laura’s favorite grain-free crust was developed by Dr. Bruce Fife. She says this fast and easy pie crust doesn’t require a mixer or food processor and makes a perfect 9-inch pie shell.

INGREDIENTS

½ c sifted coconut flour

½ c almond flour

2 eggs

½ teaspoon raw honey (optional)

¼ c butter, melted

¼ tsp sea salt

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a medium mixing bowl, whip the eggs.

3. Add all other ingredients and mix until well-incorporated.

4. Using your hands, press dough into a 9-inch pie plate forming a crust.

5. Pierce pie shell all over with a fork, or use pie weights if desired.

6. Bake 15 mins, until the edges start to brown.

7. Remove from oven and cool.

Thanks again to Laura Waldo, author of the blog,

http://ourplacelivingglutenfree.blogspot.com

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.

For a fun family night make hamburgers and it is a treat for the whole family! Make them as spicy as you like.

INGREDIENTS:

Enough ground beef for 4 medium sized hamburgers.

1/4 onion chopped up very small.

2-3 tbs (depending on how spicy you like your food) Cajun Choice blackening spice.

DIRECTIONS:

Put all meat into a mixing bowl (make sure your meat isn’t frozen at all!)

Add onion and mix well.

Add all of the Cajun choice blacking seasoning and mix well.

Divide the meat evenly and make 4 round burgers. Make sure burgers aren’t too thick or else you will have a hard time cooking them. When you cook burgers they get thicker naturally so you can make them pretty thin.

Heat in a pan over medium heat about 1tbs olive oil.

Once oil is warm add all hamburgers.

Cook for 2 min on medium heat on 1st side.

Flip all burgers onto the other side and cook on medium heat for another 2 min.

After this turn your heat down to low and let the burgers cook through.

Cooking the burgers on high on both sides will trap in the flavor and make your burgers juicier.

If you are really into spicy food like me you can sprinkle some more of the blackening spice on top of the burger after you flip it onto its second side.

Depending on how thick your burger is and how you like your meat (medium, medium rare, etc) the time will vary.

If  you are new to cooking and aren’t sure take one of the burgers off onto a plate or cutting board and cut into it from the center to one of the sides. this way you can check to see how pink it is in the inside.

Make sure all your burgers are the same thickness so they cook evenly.

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.Info

k.m.

A salad staple in my family, balsamic and oil dressings are easy to make and good for you too. Try with this amazing lamb chop recipe for the main course

INGREDIENTS:

1 sprig fresh oregano

1 sprig fresh thyme

1 c olive oil

¼ c balsamic (or red wine) vinegar

DIRECTIONS:

Combine and enjoy.

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

k.m.