0 Back to School when your child is gluten-free

When August 1st comes around most of us are thinking about getting our kids ready to go back to school.  I am located in the Northeast and we do not start school until September 4th! For you southerners "back to school" is literally around the corner.
So what do you do when your child or children have a dietary restriction such as Celiac Disease(CD)?  My immediate answer is to be very prepared and organized.  As a mother of 2 children with CD I want to share with you what I have learned over the last 10 years.

Organization:

• Set up an appointment with your child's classroom teacher, nurse and principal before school starts. Exchange cell phone #'s and email addresses with the teacher and nurse ahead of time.
• Provide school personnel with  a brief synopsis of CD and what foods contain the gluten protein.
• Ask questions such as how do they celebrate holidays and birthdays.  What food related events will your child participate in?  You will be surprised to find out that food is a major part of your child's school functions especially in the preschool and elementary school years.
• Ask your child's teacher if you could send home a letter to all of the parents, in your child's class, requesting that they contact you when they are bringing in a food treat for a birthday party.  Do not hesitate to ask  what the item is.  This way you are able to duplicate the treat so your child does not feel left out.
• Keep a detailed calendar of events so you are prepared for your child. 
• Ask your child's teacher if it is possible to keep cupcakes, cookies, brownies...etc in the freezer in the "Teachers Lounge".  This is a very convenient alternative especially for the working parent who is unable to swing by school to drop of a GF treat for their child.

Be Prepared:

• Talk to your child ahead of time about situations that might arise in school. If they are unsure if a candy or other food item contains gluten  they should ask an adult.  If the adult is unsure then it is best to just stay away from that item. 
• Teach your child about CD early on when they are 1st diagnosed.  Eventually they will be on their own. Early education will lead to an independent, confident child.
• Always have the GF ingredients or GF mixes on hand just in case a last minute party arises. I highly recommend freezing extra cookies, brownies, cupcakes for these spontaneous parties.
• 504 Plan for Celiac Disease:  In schools, a 504 plan is a way of making sure that the teachers and other staff understand the ramifications of a child’s medical condition or disability and the need to help the child with special challenges and protect the child from risks.  Go to http://celiacdisease.about.com for more information on 504 plans.

Most of all relax, have fun and enjoy watching your child grow and learn!

0 New Blog Author: Julie

Hi everyone!

I hope everyone has been having a good week thus far. I'd like to announce a new collaboration on No One Likes Crumbley Cookies with Juile of Just Ask Josh. Check out her website, and her twitter profile at  @glutenfreejosh.

I'm super excited for this collaboration. Every 3rd Wednesday of the month, look for a new post from Julie here. Her first post tomorrow is going to be on the topic of the beginning of the school year with gluten free children. I'm excited for some of the ideas and topics we're collaborating on, so look forward to more posts coming!

73 Recipe Adaptation: Gluten Free Gooey Chocolate Cake

Hey everyone, recently I tried adapting a recipe on the back of a Ghiradelli baking bar. I didn't have to change much to make the recipe gluten free, as it only has 1 tablespoon of flour in the recipe! I recommend you try this out by substituting the 1 tbsp flour with 1 tbsp sweet rice flour or potato starch.

Original Recipe:
Ghiradelli Soft Center Cakes
Substitute the flour with 1 tbsp sweet rice flour or potato starch

Enjoy!

6 Peachlove: Gluten Free Peach Angel Food Cake

Hey everyone, its time for the foodlove bloghop again! This month the theme is peaches, and I'm definitely excited to make peach recipes this month. Yesterday I posted a recipe for Gluten Free Peach Angel Food Cake, and I'm excited to add it as my first peach recipe of the month. Thank you to all the other co-hosts for your work this month:

Blog	Host	Twitter Handle
Baking and Cooking, A Tale of Two Loves	Becky Higgins	N/A
Elephant Eats	Amy	@elephanteats
Java Cupcake	Betsy Eves	@javacupcake
No One Likes Crumbley Cookies	T.R.	@TRCrumbley
Oh Cake	Jessica	@jesshose
Pippi's in the Kitchen Again	Sheila	@shlylais
Rico sin Azúcar	Helena	@ricosinazucar
Savoring Every Bite	Linda	@spicegirlfla
That Skinny Chick Can Bake!!!	Liz	@thatskinnychick
The Spicy RD	EA Stewart	@thespicyrd
The Wimpy Vegetarian	Susan Pridmore	@wimpyvegetarian
Teaspoon of Spice	Serena	@tspcurry

Here's the link to my recipe this month, Gluten Free Peach Angel Food Cake!

Please join in on the #peachlove fun by linking up any peach recipe from the month of August 2012. Don't forget to link back to this post, so that your readers know to come stop by the #peachlove event! The twitter hashtag is #peachlove

14 Ratio Rally: Peach Angel Food Cake

Hi everyone, its time for the Gluten Free Ratio Rally! This month our recipe is angel food cake! I've had a relatively busy 2 weeks with work, so this post will probably be a little short today. Angel food cake is a spectacular baked good that has a comparable ingredient list to meringue. The biggest difference between the two is angel food cake has flour, hence producing a more-cake like texture. Angel food cake has a wonderful, airy texture and is the perfect vehicle for baked or poached fruit with a little whipped cream. The ratio for Angel Food Cake is:

3 : 3 : 1

egg white : sugar : flour

Caleigh is the host for this month, thank you to her for all her hard work this month! Please visit her post for all of the co-hosts and their recipes this month. http://www.glutenfreekblog.co.uk/2012/08/angel-food-cake.html

Tip: Be sure to prepare all of your ingredients before whisking the eggs. This will ensure ultimate volume in the cake, and will be less stressful to prepare.

Serves: 1 Bundt cake or 6 4" springform pans
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Bake Time: 40 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 2 hours


Ingredients:
12oz egg white (about 9-10 eggs)
12 oz sugar
2 oz sweet rice flour
2 oz tapioca flour
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp lemon
zest of 1 lemon
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

2 peaches, pitted
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup sugar

Steps
Prep: Preheat the oven to 350F. Measure the egg whites into a medium mixing bowl. In a food processor, add 6oz of sugar and all the flour, and then blend it together. Measure out remaining ingredients.

Active Steps: Beat  the whites for 1 minute, until the begin to foam. Stir in cream of tartar, juice, vanilla and zest. Beat for another 2 minutes or until the mix is very foamy. Add the sugar gradually and whip until soft peaks form. Soft peaks are when the peaks are not well defined, but do not melt away back into the eggs for about 5-10 seconds. Fold the sugar flour in, and distribute the batter into ungreased pans. Bake for about 40 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Invert the cakes to a cooling rack and let cool completely.

Topping: Slice the peaches up, about 1/4 inch thickness. Place them in bowl and stir with sugar and wine. Transfer them to a warm pan, and cook over medium heat or until the wine has reduced into a sauce. Top the fresh cakes with the peaches and whipped cream.

Enjoy!