Spaghetti Squash

My best girlfriend from high school invited me to a spur of the moment dinner at her house this week. Called and said "plan to stay for dinner - I'll make something you can eat". Gotta love this gal - she's a firm believer that there is nothing that can't be cured by exercise and a good attitude, but she goes out of her way to make sure I always have something that is safe to eat when I go to her house. And more than just a simple salad. Main dishes, sides, the whole nine yards. (I usually take dessert - usually my turtle brownies) This week's dinner revolved around some spaghetti squash she had cooked and frozen last fall. Yum! A little butter, a little maple syrup, and we were good to go with a great side dish that went really well with the ham she heated for dinner. She added in some chopped potatoes sauteed with butter, green and red peppers and onions, and I thought I was in heaven. It sounds so simple, doesn't it? In fact, she sent me home with some of the squash and I'm having it for dinner again today. In other news... I'm going to have a completely gluten free kitchen in a very few days. Getting rid of everything left over by my daughter and her friend who lived here from January to June. The unopened things will be sent to my daughter (she's a junior in college, and always broke) and anything else? Out. Just out. I'm tired of becoming ill because someone else in the house made themselves a meal and didn't clean the pot or utensils completely before putting them away. I know it is hard to get rid of all the gluten, but seriously? Can't you use one of the old pans to make your mac and cheese? Why do you have to use the new pans I got when I received the diagnosis? The whole idea was to never have any gluten ingredients in them, so I would always know they were safe. Which reminds me - If I ever, ever say I'm taking someone other than my daughter in again? Slap some sense into me.

GF Tasting at The Raisin Rack today!

I'll be attending the GF tasting at the Raisin Rack in Canton this afternoon. Should be very interesting - there are so many things out there that I haven't tried! I will be picking up some gf burger buns while I'm there, to accompany the hot dog buns I got last week from The Grainless Baker.

The hot dog bun worked out really well, considering. And by that, I mean I was cooking over a bonfire, so the hot dog (and bun) went onto the cooking stick! Made quite the impression on the rest of the guests. But next time I'll save the seasonings for after the cooking... too much ketchup and the smaller side of the bun got a bit soggy and tried to break away from the rest.

Tasted pretty darned good, though. Nice and warm, a little crusty from the fire, and very good with that hot dog. (I'll heat the hot dog thoroughly before putting it into the bun in the future, though.)

All in all, it was a great evening.

My sister invited me for a cookout at her house this coming Saturday. Now, this is unusual. She lives over three hours away from me. But... she's invited one of her co-workers to come over, and that co-worker is also a Celiac. So I'm bringing the brownies (in a disposable pan, and already baked) and I'm going to grab a few treats for her friend as well. She has been a great help in finding things locally down there. My sister tries really hard to make sure I have things to eat, and that I'm safe in her home. She's sweet. And her friend has been a huge help. Turns out there are GF areas in the Meijer stores, and that Kroger has a lot of gf options as well. (Just not their cottage cheese, for some odd reason.)

So I'm making my turtle brownies (they were a bit hit the last time) and buns and I'll pick u an assortment of little things to take down with me for her. Maybe I'll even take a box of Glutino crackers for her... and I'll absolutely be taking the new Snyder's pretzels. I'm pretty sure she can't get them down there yet... they're still mostly in Whole Foods stores. (My wonderful GIG leader, Denise, got some for the Raisin Rack in Canton. I think it was blackmail...)

Hope all is well with you, and that you're finding lots of great gf eats this week.

Out of the blue

This evening I got a call from my sister in Columbus (well, outside Columbus).

She asked me to come to a cookout on the 18th. That's a little unusual, as I'm over three hours away from there. But then came the really strange thing - she asked me to bring brownies!!

She's inviting one of her friends who is also a Celiac, so I'll bring some burger buns and things as well - some things she might not be able to get way out in the middle of nowhere!

And... I get to miss a baby shower. Not that I don't want to celebrate, but those games make me crazy.

Over a month now

And most of my GI symptoms are gone. Not too bad. Still working on the dermatology stuff, but it seems to be clearing up nicely, too.

Found a gluten-free bakery in Alliance, OH... Kathy's Creations. She makes the most wonderful double chocolate cookies. Huge, and soft and delicious. The pie crust tastes gluey to me, but I imagine I'll get used to it. I was never a big crust fan, anyway. But the fillings are lovely, and when you walk in the door - heaven. It smells the way a bakery is supposed to smell. Like flour and sugar and all things yummy. She is only open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, though. But some of her creations are available at local outlets, like the Raisin Rack in Canton.

She did warn me that they get their deliveries on Thursdays, and are usually out of stock by Friday evenings, though.

Next week is one of the first big tests... I'm going out of town with a friend to a casino for the day. We'll see if I can find anything to eat there. (I am taking some snacks with me, just in case.)