Just when I thought I was on the right track, eating all organic, no soy, no dairy… etc. I found out most of the almond and rice milks I have been drinking (along with other things come to find out) have this toxic additive called carrageenan in them. Learning about this has just motivated me further, and hopefully will move you too, to opt for natural foods or ingredients that I can pronounce and/or know what they are.

Carrageenan is extracted from red seaweeds, has multiple forms and is used in cooking and baking. Similar to gluten, carrageenan works as an emulsifier and thickener keeping ingredients from separating, and while once was a natural additive, has become a highly processed additive. Carrageenan is known to cause gastrointestinal inflammation which disrupts the digestion process which can result in Inflammatory Bowel Disease, IBS, and even scarier there are links to colon and breast cancer. Although it is naturally derived from algae, studies since the 1930′s have questioned the safety of carrageenans. Despite the fact that some forms are “deemed safe for human consumption by the Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives” and FDA, there is a LONG history of debate of the safety of carrageenans.(1)

Through my research I found a very interesting website that caught my attention because it discusses both the health concerns and politics of carrageenans. Further confirming my point that we should always be aware of what we are consuming and a reminder that these big food industries DO NOT have our good health in their best interest! Just one example of what I read is that after a long and lucrative relationship between the Philippines (who became one of the main exporters) and the United States, it was not “until 1984, when the United States’ FDA questioned the safety of a Philippine product called “Semi-Refined Carrageenan” (SRC) and banned it from use in ‘the lucrative food additives market in the U.S.’ Not surprisingly, this ruling (which was also enacted by the WHO and the United Nations’ FAO), severely handicapped the Philippine economy. Then, in 1990, the FDA reversed its ruling and allowed SRC back into US food products.”(2) Scary!!!!

While the FDA and JECFA have approved carrageenan, the USDA’s National Organic Standards Board was said to vote at the end of May on whether it should be removed from the list of approved ingredients in organic foods.(3) In the meantime I wanted to list some commonly ingested foods or used items that you might want to be aware may contain carrageenans: desserts (cakes, ice creams, gelatins, pies, biscuits), dairy based foods, beer, toothpaste, shampoo, soy and almond milks, diet sodas, infant formulas, flavored milks.

Ever Onward,

Jennifer Esposito

1. wisegeek
2. scdrecipe
3. cornucopia

Other informative websites I found:

• fda
• wikipedia

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays!!!! The stuffing, the sweet potato souffle with melted marshmallows, the biscuits, everything that I loved!!!!! The first gluten free Thanksgiving however was difficult to say the least. All those favorite dishes now had to just pass by me as all I could get now was get a whiff. HORRIBLE! Well at least I could eat the turkey, right? Not so fast.

It wasn’t until last year when I started to reconfigure and create all these new recipes so that I could enjoy one of my favorite holidays again. I recreated everything, the sweet potatoes were now made without butter and with gluten free marshmallows, the stuffing was made without bread …  but what about the turkey? I had read somewhere that some turkeys were injected with stock or preservatives that most likely contain GLUTEN! REALLY? Even in our turkeys? So I did some research and came up with some options for your fear free Thanksgiving!

Here are a list of brands that offer all natural gluten free turkeys. You could also check by calling the company that you normally buy from. One would never think that turkey has gluten but unfortunately some of them do. So be safe and eat well. Happy Turkey Day!

• Mary’s Free Range
• Shelton’s
• Foster Farms
• Aaron’s Best
• Butterball
• D’Artagnan
• Honey Suckle White
• Jennie-O
• Shadybrook Farms
• Smithfield Farms
• Wellshire Farms

Ever Onward,

Jennifer Esposito

Summer over soon!!???? Crazy how fast time flies.  I remember when I was a kid time seemed so long. The time between seasons was an eternity. Especially waiting on Christmas and the end of the school year.  As soon as that last day of school and summer vacation was inevitable i was psyched!!!!!!!!!!!!! It seemed to go on forever!!! Playing outside with friends, pool parties, barbeques, sleep overs, up late nights sitting outside watching the stars and the most important the ICE CREAM man!!!!!!!!!  I would hear those bells ring from the ice cream man’s truck for blocks, maybe even miles away.  It didn’t matter  what I was doing at the time, when those bells went off, I went running.  One of my favorite treats was a creamsicle.  That mix of vanilla and orange just made me so happy. To this day, I smell those flavors and immediately I’m a kid again standing on my stoop in Brooklyn with my sister.  As many of you know I try to not feel deprived by this ever lovely disease that has joined my life.  Any way of capturing the love affair from yesterday with a certain taste, texture or smell, and make it into something I can have today has always been my goal.  And of course not just good taste, but must be nutritious as well, as always.  I always believe that shopping for fruit and vegetables is best when it’s seasonal.  Buying what nature is giving you at that moment in time is simply the healthier way to eat.  Think about all the man made adjusting, I will be nice and say adjusting, that has to be done to a piece of fruit to keep its color or make it taste sweet when it really doesn’t want to even exist at that particular time.  So before those gorgeous oranges leave the farmers market grab a couple and some fresh vanilla bean and taste the last bit of summer.

Oranges.  When they’re fresh and juicy I cannot stop singing the praises of these juicy little gems. With their plentiful stores of Vitamin C, fibre and phytonutrients (which have an anti-oxidant effect, hunting down those free radicals in your bloodstream and boosting your immunity) not only do they keep your heart and colon happy, but did you know they can have an effect on your mood?  Studies have linked Vitamin C deficiency with fatique and depression, with the addition of Vitamin C to the diet having mood boosting effects.  How’s that for a delicious pick-me-up?  Plus, poppyseeds have a decent dose of calcium and phosphorus, two essential components of building our bones.  With that I share with you this delicious and nutritious muffin recipe.

Orange Vanilla Poppyseed Muffin

2 cups my all purpose gluten free flour or 1/2 cup quinoa flour, 1/2 sorghum flour, 1/2 brown rice flour, 1/2 cup starch. I would mix potato/arrowroot or tapioca/arrowroot.

1tsp baking powder

1tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp himalayan sea salt. You can use other salt i just love this salt. The taste and the benefits it brings, awesome.

1/2 cup date sugar or coconut sugar, maple sugar, cane juice sugar

3/4 tsp xanthan gum

1/3 cup grapeseed oil or olive oil

1 tsp fresh vanilla bean, then another splash for dressing top

1 tsp cinnamon

3/4 cup rice milk or almond

1 cup applesauce unsweetened

half of a very ripe banana

2 tbsp of fresh squeezed oj

1 tsp unwaxed orange rind

1/4 cup poppy seeds

Directions

Preheat oven to 350

Whisk together all dry ingredients and set aside

Mix all wet ingredients except rice milk

Add dry a little at time to wet ingredients alternating with rice milk, don’t over mix.

Fold in poppy seeds

Put into muffin cups and bake for about 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean

Let cool

can enjoy as is or combine some powdered sugar, (i make my own out of evaporated cane juice and arrowroot starch) some orange juice, and some vanilla until a thick consistancy appears then drizzle on top of muffin for an extra CREAMsicle expierience!!!

enjoy!!!

I love these. I called them wishing flowers when I was a kid. We used to close our eyes, make a wish and blow. If all the seeds blew off, your wish would come true.

September has always felt like a new beginning to me.   Maybe it’s old memories of getting back to school,   or the end of Summer bringing the new start of Fall.  Whatever it is, it brings a sense of starting again, a chance for renewal, which I absolutely love.  Well, I’m going to take liberties with this feeling of renewal right here.  As many of you already know, my dedication to bringing understanding and information to the celiac community or anyone struggling with their health has become  a life mission for me.   While I’ve been doing just that at my bakery every day and working to finish up my book; with such massive undertakings, sadly this blog has been neglected.  No Longer.  There have been so many things I’ve wanted to share over the past few months with you. Stories about some amazing people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting at the bakery, recipes I’ve wanted to share, and oh yeah my new TROOP!  I recently welcomed a golden retriever puppy named Brooklyn Magoo to my brood.  (Pics soon).  But before I spill the beans on all these happenings I wanted to kick of September with a story of strength and starting fresh.

About a week ago I was out in the Hamptons by the beach for some rare down time.  Even more rare was the opportunity to do dinner with my sister (who is also celiac), her husband and my niece and nephew.  We went to an uber cool place that in the past had done ok by my sister and I, but this was during the day. For a girl with Celiac Disease, going to a restaurant in the middle of the summer, by the beach, on a super busy weekend night can be nothing but scary. Belittling. Humbling. Scary.  Regardless, we all sat down, had a bit of wine and my sister deferred to me to do the ordering.

For us, I picked a salad with absolutely no dressing and the branzino with roasted tomatoes.  We had this before and had no trouble.  I could see the waiter was busy and distracted as he took the other orders at the table.  When he came to me I told him: “I am a severe celiac and cannot have any gluten and absolutely no dairy.”  I always make sure to look them straight in the eye and follow up with this statement: “I don’t have an allergy and I’m not on a diet. I have a disease and if there is gluten in this dish I will wind up on the floor, right here in the restaurant.” I always say it very nicely, but you can tell I’m dead serious.  I then said to him to please check with the chef if it would be ok to do PLAIN olive oil and lemon for dressing.  He scribbled some words down on his pad and said, “That dish is fine”  I replied “Do you mind just checking with the chef?  I’d appreciate it.”  He said “fine”.  I could see he was a bit rushed so I stopped him before he fled away. “Please let me know if it’s too busy to accommodate me, it’s no problem really”.  He scurried away, and when he returned a minute later he said it would be fine.

Minutes later a salad was placed in front of me as shiny as a new quarter.  I looked at the supposedly plain salad and immediately knew that was not the case.  Without hesitation I sent it back and my boyfriend went to get the manager for me.  A very nice woman came to the table and when I explained the story about my disease she stated her grandmother had celiac and she totally got it.  I said “I dont mean to be a pain but I will be extremely ill.  It’s not a diet for me.” The waiter then stated that ” about half the people that come in now request gluten free so not everyone can be celiac, I think it gets the kitchen confused”. She assured me she would take care of it.  This statement made me so ill of course. For all those choosing gluten free to be cute or in “fad” or whatever, you are not making it any easier for those with an actual disease!  But ok, on with the story. Salad course complete, now on to the main.

The main course finally arrived and my sister took one bite and told me not to eat it.  She said she could taste something not right.  For my sister to speak up in this instance is unlikely.  She usually just eats it and suffers for weeks.  Of course I was already suspect of everything, but my sister had just confirmed it.  Was this really happening again?

Now here’s the transformative moment folks: instead of calling the waiter over and insisting they prepare it again, or getting upset, or eating it and suffering,  I put my fork down and pushed the dish away from me. When the waiter came over and asked if it everything was ok, a sense of calm came over me.  I wasn’t going to feel bad, or get mad, or try and make him understand something he really had no desire to, I was going to simply and honestly state what I felt. I looked him straight in the eyes and said without apologizing first or after, “I’m not going to eat it.  I don’t trust it and I refuse to be ill”.

The waiter was taken aback.  He said “the chef said it was fine”.  I said, “I’m sure he did his best but I will not be eating it, thank you.”  As I sat there and the manager came over as well I kept my story the same.  Brief, calm, pointed and at peace.  I sat there and watched everyone eat and enjoyed the conversation and realized how empowered I felt.  In this situation I had always apologized or felt bad or felt like a pain but this time I didn’t.  I felt like I honored myself and my body in a way that it needed to be.  So much of this disease renders you powerless at times.  The autoimmune disease, as celiac is, is the one in charge every day.  So taking back a moment of power was a moment that lasted and lasted. I had a lovely evening with my family that night, I wasn’t sick from anything that I might have eaten and I walked out of the restaurant feeling proud.

At this time of new beginnings I ask you to take your power back as well and stop apologizing for the disease you did not ask for.  Honoring yourself and your health tastes much better than anything you could ever possibly eat.

I will be speaking with you soon

be well

jennifer

I am here!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So much to say I don’t even know where to start!!!! I will start with where on earth I’ve been. Bahamas? No. Italy? No. Lower East side NYC? YES! Not as glamorous as you might think – but for sure more rewarding. As most of you know I opened a gluten free, dairy free, soy free, and peanut free bakery that is mostly vegan, organic and a SAFE ZONE for people like us. Yes I’m actually there baking away! Its been a long, long road getting this passion project off the ground and MOST of the time well worth it. Yes, there are times when I question what the hell I was thinking? Then a weary person comes in who has allergies to everything like me and is use to seeing things they can not eat and realizes that the chocolate chip cookie looking back at them is SAFE! Their eyes light up, a smile, sometimes even tears, and all the work is somehow worth it. Or the dad that brought his little boy in the bakery, sat him on the counter and told him he could have whatever he wanted. It would be the boys FIRST COOKIE EVER!!!!!! The boy looked at me like I was Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny all wrapped up in one. There have also been countless conversations with customers, celiacs and non celiacs alike, who just want cleaner food. We discuss everything from the difficulties from this lovely disease, to the current state of the gluten free world. The bombardment of so called “gluten free” products are now everywhere and just getting worse. The list of ingredients in these products are deplorable. Not to mention every nonsense book, article and ill informed “journalist” spewing just more inaccuracies to hurt the celiac community even more. Yes I was the one who screamed while getting dressed for the bakery one morning to see the word celiac spelled WRONG on screen of the Today Show and wrote to Gluten Dude and tweeted immediately. I also am aware of the recent opinion about dating a gluten free eater from Hota Kotbe. I was so shocked, horrified and saddened. I’ve met her twice and she seems like a lovely person. I seriously don’t think she realized how hurtful her comment was. Either way when you have a platform as she does to reach millions you have a responsibility to choose your words carefully. Which brings me to an issue that i wanted to talk about about with this disease. Yes another one. Discrimination.
Yes discrimination. I have never seen people with an illness, such as the celiac community, have to keep begging for understanding, people to listen, and to have to keep explaining their existence and severity, as this one has to. The fact is people still do NOT think Celiac is an actual DISEASE. I’m sure you have all heard being called an allergy or better yet now i’m hearing and reading articles that are stating that Celiac disease is all a state of mind. REALLY? And I’m sure you have all gotten the looks and sneers from a waiter or even a doctor. Or how about the even less than understanding WORKERS (CBS should still be sued) and even worse, family members not understanding. It’s sad but true. People just do not understand this disease and in my opinion, many don’t care to. Most are just interested in making money off us with their new “gluten free” product. Case in point, I walked into this new chain of burger shops here in NYC that claims in big bold letters to have gluten free options. Yet when you read the fine print it says “not recommended for people with gluten allergy due to cross contamination” REALLY!!!????????? Who the F%$# is it for then? THe hipster who wants to be gluten free because its the new “fat free” fad??????????? Or how many times have you had to fight with your pharmacist stating that most generic drugs contain gluten! When i do have to take some kind of prescription (which I hate to do) I have to constantly argue that I can NOT have the generic version of the drug due to the gluten used in it as filler. They argue with me then always say, fine but the brand is expensive. Oh yeah then your insurrance won’t pay for the brand either, thats always a fun day. But its the recent discrimination that just literally had me speechless.
About a month ago I received an email from my landlord, who I’ve maybe seen and spoken to three times in a year, that my lease was up on my rental apartment and he was not renewing for another year. WTF I thought!! Why? What Why HUH? I fixed this place up and made it home??! I’ve always paid my rent and have been an ideal tentant. Never really home, at the bakery most of the time and quiet when I am home. I’ve also never bothered him about the drafty windows, sinks that don’t drain properly, the mice that come to visit or the list of other problems in the building. I’ve lived in small run apartments for close to 20 yrs in NYC and know that getting a landlord to do anything is like getting blood from a stone. It isn’t happening. So I did what I always do, took care of everything myself and went on my way. So when I was being asked to leave, and without explanation, I was confused to say the least. I emailed and called to no reply. I wrote his realator as well and she said she had no idea why I was being asked to leave. Running a bakery, finishing a book and dealing with this disease is enough of a challenge. Adding moving to the list was just not in the plan. I decided to call the realator who rented me the place just a year prior to try and make sense of it all. We decided to meet. As she walked up to greet me she was on the phone and gave me the wait a minute sign. She was standing in ear shot of me and I could hear everything being said on the phone. I figured out quickly it was the landlord. He went on to say to her that he googled me and read that I was no longer working on “that show” because of a disease and didn’t want to deal with me possibly not being able to pay rent in the future because of it. He then whet on to say he checked my finances and didn’t think I was suitable anymore for his apartment. My favorite line, “between you and me” came next. My realator and I just stood there stunned. Disgusting? yes. Unimaginable? yes Illegal? YES. Do I have the time, money or constitution to fight him about this? No. Believe me I am so deeply disgusted by this I can’t even explain. BUT I need to spend the energy I do have on doing something positive, like the bakery and the book. If I spent time on every negative thing that came along with this disease I would be overwhelmed to say the very least. My point in telling you this story? Well to vent to a community who “gets it’ but more importantly, to say, I AM STILL HERE AND WILL CONTINUE TO TRY AND MAKE THING BETTER FOR THIS COMMUNITY!!!!!!!!!!! The road is obviously long but I am dedicated to trying my hardest to change things for us in some way. If even just being another voice in a crowd for now! It’s times like this that I think about that little boy that was able to have his first cookie at my bakery that I hold on tight too and know that its the small steps that will pave the road to something better. I’m hopeful.

Be Well
Jennifer

When the going gets rough or scary or stressful I wind up in the kitchen. Which for me is a wonderful place because I get to zone out, be creative and it becomes a place for me to relieve my stress. I know it might sound odd but cooking and baking really helps me feel like I have some control over my health. When I get in the kitchen I don’t feel restricted, I’ll make something that is good for me yet I feel like I’m still a “normal person” who is eating “regular” food. If you have celiac disease or other health conditions that restrict your diet, I suggest you get in the kitchen and make something delicious that you CAN have (even if you don’t normally like to bake or cook). It really gives you a sense of control and pride and happiness. It does for me anyway!

On my latest journey (this eye lash journey) and in my attempts at cutting out most allergens from my diet I wanted to see what else I can create using the fruits and groceries I had on hand. I came up with an apple ginger breakfast bar that I absolutely love! The recipe is really so simple and so quick and so yummy and so very good for you!! Most importantly get in the kitchen and make something for yourself that is healthy and makes you feel happy inside while getting control over a part of your life that you didn’t choose to lose. Eat away and feel happy!!

Apple Ginger Breakfast Bar

preheat oven 350, 8×8 flat baking dish

Ingredients:
2 cups almond flour
1/4 cup arrowroot flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp molasses
1/2 cup sprouted gluten free granola cereal (I used Lydia’s Organics Sprouted Cinnamon Cereal)
1 tsp minced fresh ginger
2 apples peeled and diced
1 ripe banana
less than 1/4 cup olive oil or grape seed oil

Directions:
1. Add all dry ingredients.
2. In separate bowl mash bananas, add oil and molasses, and stir.
3. Combine wet and dry ingredients.
4. Once combined mix in the apples and ginger.
5. Spoon out mixed batter into the flat baking dish and spread evenly.
6. Cook for 25-30 minutes depending on oven (and less time if use bigger dish).

And! The next round of “What Do You Miss” will end on June 15 so please send me your stories and most missed food item!!

Ever Onward,

Jennifer Esposito

I have been reading all your comments and questions. I love all of them –  keep them coming! A running question I keep coming across is the expense of gluten free food and how to make this lifestyle work on a tighter budget. I HEAR YOU. Believe me, this whole process and learning experience has hit my pockets as well. A gluten free, HEALTHY, gluten free life is not always easy. In effort to prove this lifestyle is possible on a budget me and The Troops decided to do some investigating. While Franklyn and I took to the market, Boop stayed behind to do further research.

Detective Franklyn preparing for “price investigation”

Boop in research mode

We came out with some suggestions and even a recipe  for you and/or your family to make tonight!

First lets talk an inexpensive and healthy way to get protein. Beans!!!!!!!!! Low in fat and high in soluble fiber which can lower cholesterol. They also have insoluble fiber which combats disease such as colon cancer, constipation, and many other conditions of the intestinal track. We know how important a healthy digestion is, especially with celiac disease or a gluten allergy. Please note, sometimes you can go through a tough time with your digestion, in which case you may want to stay away from too much fiber. With Celiac your digestive system is working hard to digest as it is, that adding even more work with heavy fiber content may not be right for you at that moment. If your not experiencing digestive issues then beans are a wonderful, nutritious and inexpensive way to eat gluten free.

At the market, Franklyn and I found there was a sale on LENTILS (loaded with calcium, iron, folic acid and vitamin C). I remembered a soup my grandfather use to make when I was a kid. It was lentils with pasta and veggies. I would climb up on the counter to look into the pot (I must have been 7 or 8). I would watch all these wonderful colors blending and cooking. When it was done I would put half a pound of Parmesan cheese on top and dip in my crusty Italian bread in to the dish. OH GOD YUM!!!!! Well, this recipe comes from those wonderful days watching my grandfather cook. I made my version with rice instead of pasta and eliminated the dairy. But I did make a delicious crusty gluten free bread to boot! That recipe I promise will come later. For now enjoy this beautiful, healthy, gluten free, dairy free, vegan pot of love. Just like my grandfather use to make!! The best part besides eating it, is the whole meal cost only $12.00 and can easily feed 4.

Here is what you will need:

1 cup green lentils

1 med onion

2 carrots

2 celery stalks

3/4 cups of mushrooms (I used a mixed assortment)

2 cups spinach and or kale (I used fresh but frozen can be more cost effective and just as nutrious)

1 bay leaf

1 tbls of salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tbls olive oil

5 cups of water

2 cups rice or gluten free past optional! (cook rice or pasta separately)
Add to dish upon serving

Cut up onion, carrots and celery and put in a med stockpot with the 5 cups of cold water, lentils and bay leaf. Cook on a medium heat for about 30 minutes. Add salt, pepper, spinach (or kale) and olive oil. Reduce heat to low and stir a few times. When the spinach starts to wilt down (about 10 minutes) turn heat down to a simmer and let sit for another 10 minutes. Serve hot over rice, gluten free past or alone. I drizzle a little more olive oil on top as well. You can top with Parmesan cheese if you are not dairy intolerant. Great the next day as well, if you have any left over. Just add some more water and heat!! Enjoy!!

Ever Onward,

Jennifer Esposito