It's been really busy here at Guaranteed Gluten Free. We've been baking, cooking and working with a lot of new clients. The cakes have been so much fun and I promise we'll get some pictures up here real soon. My followers on Facebook have given us a lot of great feedback. It's been a hot summer and with the oven on, baking seems like an endurance sport. So when Andy sent me the link to the video below, I knew I'd have to share with all of you. I hope it gives you as big a smile as it gave me. Enjoy and stay cool! Tell me what you think of this creative fun piece, I'd love to hear what you think of this fellow New Yorker!

        

(June 10, 2010) The Celiac Sprue Association (CSA) continues to advocate and "take a stand" for individuals and families dealing with celiac disease and dermatitis herpetiformis. With the issue of health care as a priority in Washington D.C., CSA works with our elected representatives and current legislation to improve the lives and be a representative voice for individuals with celiac disease.

Recently the House of Representatives passed HR Bill 2749 taking a step toward putting stricter FDA regulations upon America’s food sources. The Senate is now considering the Senate bill S510, which would activate similar regulations. Currently S510 does not include "gluten sources as related to celiac disease." Passage of this bill would require record keeping in the food industry of potential health hazards.

With the inclusion of those seven words to the bill, many individuals affected with celiac disease will be able to find foods that are acceptable to their diet much easier than content information today, affording the same protection as to those with allergies. The Celiac Sprue Association has requested the support of more than twenty Senators on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee (HELP), requesting a "Managers Amendment" to S.510, the FDA Food Safety Management Act to include the hazards affecting the food choices of those with celiac disease. Celiac disease, is an autoimmune disease, thus excluded from the food allergy aspects of the bill. A Manager’s Amendment would recognize this hazard and protect the 1% of the population coping with this autoimmune disease. 

It is not always possible to determine the RISK of a food being free of wheat, barley, rye, common oats, their crosses and their derivatives either directly as an ingredient or through cross contact. Such information is rarely available. The lack of documentation creates a health hazard for those requiring gluten–free foods and an unclear liability for food companies.

Because *no safe gluten threshold has been established for those with celiac disease, *the FDA regulation for volunteer gluten-free food labeling is pending and *the gluten–free segment of the food industry grew 74% between 2004 and 2009 and is projected to continue growing at a rate of 15–25% per year, according to the Nielson Company. CSA has requested the efforts of the Senate’s Health, Education and Labor Committee to assist in this "Manager’s Amendment."

Senators who have been personally contacted by CSA to assist in this labeling issue include. Tom Harkin (IA), Chris Dodd (CT), Barbara A. Mikulski (MD), Jeff Bingaman (NM), Patty Murray (WA), Jack Reed (RI), Bernard Sanders (I) (VT), Sherrod Brown (OH), Robert P. Casey, Jr. (PA),Kay Hagan (NC), Jeff Merkley (OR), Al Franken (MN), Michael Bennet (CO), Michael B. Enzi (WY), Judd Gregg (NH), Lamar Alexander (TN), Richard Burr (NC), Johnny Isakson (GA), John McCain (AZ), Orrin G. Hatch (UT), Lisa Murkowski (AK), Pat Roberts (KS), Tom Coburn, M.D. (OK) With the help of these Senators, CSA continues to advocate awareness to our government leaders and Congress on issues pertaining to celiac disease as "Celiacs helping Celiacs." For more information on the S510 Bill visit the CSA website at csaceliacs.org or email executivedirector@csaceliacs.org or call toll free at 1-877-CSA-4-CSA.

        

The turnout for this past Sunday's technique class was a pleasant surprise, in that there were so many people for whom this was their first technique class.  I put a great deal of time and energy into preparing my classes and nothing makes me happier than the kind of positive feedback I received this week from my "regulars" and "newbies" alike.

        

My works hours were changed so the notes from this weekend's class won't be posted until late this evening or tomorrow.  As always, if you need something ASAP, just send me an email or post a comment to this blog and I'll get back to you.

        

        

This will be a short post since I don't want to miss any of today's game.  Every year I look forward to serving a few family favorites on Super Bowl Sunday.  If the Jets win today there will be even more reasonz to serve up a feast - LET'S GO JETS!!

        

Happy Halloween. I hope you enjoy this day dedicated to all things frightening!  

        

Yesterday I taught the Knife Skills Technique class at the Williams-Sonoma near my home on the upper East side. I really appreciated seeing familiar faces in the nice size crowd huddled around the cook top eager to learn and taste whatever goodies we produced as a result of the lesson. For some, a chicken recipe might seem like a strange conclusion to a class titled "Knife Skills", but the journey seemed logical to me, but then, that might be the issue - it's logical to me! 

As a result of this class, I produced a lot of vegetables in a variety of shapes - crudité anyone? Of course, you can't teach knife care and maintenance without discussing cutting boards - use the wrong surface and you'll never be able to keep your knives in good working order. And of course I'd be totally remiss if I didn't discuss cutting board sanitation!! 

By now I hope you can see it isn't much of a leap from knife skills to a chicken recipe. We ended class by showing off one of my favorite boards for raw foods; it's the best of all worlds for safely working with raw animal products – it looks good, doesn't warp, has two usable sides, it feels more like wood under my knife than most options but, and here's the big one, it's able to be cleaned and sanitized like only a non-wood board can be, in a dishwasher.  Mike, I hope you'll get to read this and can follow my logic - crudités plus chicken can only add up to one thing - the bar food favorite - spicy chicken wings!

It's chilly here in NYC today; it definitely feel like fall. So whether you're planning to settle in tonight to watch Dancing with the Stars or the Jets on Monday Night Football, there's no need to wait with Linus for the “Great Pumpkin” to appear; with this recipe you can make a Great Pumpkin recipe appear anytime.  Pronounce it Pea-Con or Pea-Can, either way, when you serve my fun, tasty and healthy seasonal spin on traditional wings, you'll score one in the win column .... even if your team is a no show in the winner's circle.

Linus's Great Pumpkin Pecan Wings 

Ingredients: 

3-4 lbs Chicken wings (or wingettes)

Toasted Sesame seeds to garnish 

Sauce: 

1 jar of Muirhead Pecan Pumpkin Butter

2 small lemons

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 T minced fresh ginger

1 T Dijon mustard

1 T Gluten Free low sodium Tamari sauce
      (if NOT GF, you can use low sodium soy sauce)

1 T Worcestershire sauce

Hot sauce to taste (optional)

Directions:  

Preheat oven to 425°F. 

Combine Pecan Pumpkin Butter,  the zest and juice of both lemons, garlic, ginger, Dijon mustard, Tamari,and Worcestershire sauce in a large bowl (you'll need one big enough to hold all the chicken too). Let the flavors in the sauce develop while you work on the rest of the recipe. Add hot sauce (optional) to taste just prior to tossing it with the chicken. 

Cover sheet pan with aluminum foil. (I like the non-stick variety)

Cut off wing tips; save for stock or discard if you don't make your own stock. Cut remaining wing into two parts at joint. Season with salt and pepper. 

Place the wing sections on the foil-lined pan. Do not crowd the pan - there needs to be some room between each wing to render out the fat so they will get crisp.

Bake wings, approx 25-30 minutes (internal temp 165°F). The juices need to be clear when you cut into the wing all the way to the bone.  

Carefully add the cooked wing sections to the bowl with the sauce. 

Toss chicken and sauce, coating well.

Place sauced-wings back on the foil lined pan. Broil for a few minutes JUST to heat the sauce and crisp the edges for the perfect finish.

Remove from pan, arrange on a platter and sprinkle with the toasted sesame seeds to garnish.

Serves 4 (or 2 hungry teenage boys)

I never cease to be amazed at how much my teenage son can eat and stay so slim!

Practice your knife skills by serving these with perfectly cut vegetables; top-off the presentation by adding the tomato rose you learned in class to the platter!

NOTE: The Pecan Pumpkin Butter used in this recipe is available at Williams-Sonoma (hint: take advance of the special pricing when you buy two at the same time) as well as directly from Muirhead Foods in Ringo, NJ. A quick call to Muirhead this morning confirmed that their product is gluten free. They told me that they received so many calls on this subject that they are planning to add that information to their website and perhaps even the label.  I can't tell you how much I appreciated their commitment to "wholesome ingredients using no added preservatives, gums, or colors" and telling me that their spices are pure, meaning no-anti caking ingredients have been added.

I'd love to get your comments on this recipe. Don't be shy - leave me a comment!

        

I've always thought it was lovely that some languages don't have an exact translation for the word goodbye.  I like the sentiment behind phrases like, 'see you soon' or 'until we meet again'.  Goodbye is so final, but goodbye is what it must be for a magazine that has been the source of culinary inspiration for so many, myself included. Condé Nast, publisher of Gourmet Magazine, just announced it will be closing the doors on this publication plus three others.  They will be missed.

        

As a New Yorker, I “go to the beach” when I lived in New Jersey, I went “down the shore”.  In either location Labor Day meant the end of the summer.   Using that logic, if summer was over, Fall had begun.  In reality, Labor day occurred weeks ago but yesterday was the official first day of Fall and I for one am glad it's here. Warm days, cool nights and low humidity – what’s not to love about Fall. But for me, Fall means comfort food and that makes me VERY happy!

In a recent conversation with a client, I found myself in the middle of a soliloquy extolling the virtues of a perfectly roasted chicken. When I hear the all-too-often phrase, “Not chicken again!”, I cant help but wonder how we have gotten to this place. I have enough chicken recipes committed to memory that even as often as I serve it, my family has never said, “What, chicken again?” Chicken does not need to be your family's Groundhog Day.

My students have heard me say, “Think technique, not recipe”. By mastering techniques, you will never be at the mercy of a recipe again. Today's recipe is a family favorite that required only minor adjustments to make it Gluten Free and the technique used in this recipe is one you'll use over and over again.

Pollo alla Cacciatore (Chicken Cacciatore) is a “hunter” style braised dish. The dish probably didn't start out as a chicken dish but over time as fewer families relied on a hunter for their meat, chicken became synonymous with this dish. There are as many recipes for this dish as there are Italian grandmothers; this is the one I grew up with. Back then, my mom cooked it in a large cast iron skillet. I use a large “everyday” pan which can be brought to the table for an informal meal.

Pollo alla Cacciatore (Chicken Cacciatore)

Ingredients:

3 pounds chicken pieces (I suggest thighs, but if you prefer white meat, use free range split breasts)

½ C olive oil

¼ C FINE brown rice flour

¼ C potato starch

1 small onion, diced

¼ C carrot, chopped

¼ C Celery, thinly sliced

1 clove of garlic, minced

½ C dry wine*

1 28 oz can San Marzano crushed plum tomatoes

1 bay leaf

3 springs of fresh thyme

Salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Strain the tomatoes through a fine mesh strainer. Reserve both the pulp and the liquid.

2. Pat dry the chicken pieces – damp meat won't brown!

3. Salt and pepper the chicken

4. Mix the potato starch and rice flour together

5. Dredge the chicken into the flour/starch mixture, shaking off the excess

6. Heat a small amount of oil in a large pan

7. Brown the chicken in the hot oil on all sides. Do not crowd the pan – the chicken pieces should not touch each other while browning; work in batches if necessary. It MAY be necessary to add more fat to the pan as you go along. Do not over do it, you are NOT deep frying the chicken.

8. When well browned remove the chicken pieces to a plate; they will be added back into the pan later.

9. Add the onion, celery and carrots to the pan, stirring often, cook for about 5 min. Add the garlic and cook another 1- 2 min. Do not let the garlic burn.

10. Add ½ cup of wine to the pan. Bring the mixture to a boil and reduce by half. Lower the heat to bring the sauce to a simmer.

11. Add the canned tomato pulp. Taste the sauce: salt and pepper to taste.

12. Add the parsley, bay leaf and thyme.

13. Add the chicken to the pan and add ONLY enough of the reserved tomato juice to cover the chicken. Cover the pan.

14. Keep and eye on the volume of liquid. Add more liquid, if necessary, to keep the chicken barely covered.

15. Cook 30 minutes or until the chicken is tender.

16. Remove the bay leaf before serving.

17. Serve over polenta, rice or your favorite gluten free pasta.

*A note about the wine. This recipe has been changed over time. Originally it called for white wine, but growing up we rarely had left over white wine, so red wine was used. I like it either way. Use what you like.  Just don't use wine that you wouldn't drink since the flavors will be concentrated during the reduction process.

        

Teaching classes for Williams-Sonoma's customers is one of the things I love most about my job.  This past Sunday I had the opportunity to teach a technique class on Olive Oil. The difficult part is that I never know how many people to expect, their level of knowledge or their expectations.  That is the challenge that drives me to find the best way to both meet the class objectives - the reason Williams Sonoma is paying me - and to find a way to relate the subject so it has relevance for the participants, whomever they might be.

 

When I teach a technique class, it's just that, and NOT a recipe class.  If it were a recipe class I'd hand out copies of a recipe and walk people through how to make that dish.  What I hope to do is teach you something that you can apply more generally to your cooking.  I want you to play with your food; to experiment with flavors, textures and techniques to arrive at a style that suits you.

William-Sonoma's goal for this class was to educate customers as to why extra-virgin olive oils are special and when to use them.  My goal for the class was to effectively show the diversity of olive oil by sharing not only a savory dish but also showcasing olive oil's sweeter side by sharing a family recipe for Sicilian Olive Oil Cake.  Lifestyles here in Manhattan are very different from those in the sprawling suburbs where I spent my youth.  I'm the oldest of 5 and most of my friends were also part of what would be considered a large family here in Manhattan.   I wanted to see if I could come up with a dish would work for both large and small families as well as singles.   Williams-Sonoma "required" a pesto dish for the class and suggested serving it on crostini.  While I love the delicacy of a Genovese style basil pesto, I was hoping to do something a little different and combine it with one of my favorite staples - pasta.

Sometimes life just decides it's time to cut you a break and apparently Sunday it was my turn.  The ingredients necessary for the cooking class were not in the store’s refrigerator as I had expected.  So a quick trip to the market was in order.  I was told to get basil and whatever cheese I’d need to make the traditional pesto from the recipe I was handed, but when I got to the market they were out of basil!  I didn't have time to go to another store, so I happily picked up some parsley and arugula to whip up my favorite pesto. 

Before I give you the recipe for this pesto, I wanted to share a bit of information about this wonderful sauce pesto.  The passage below was copied directly from the Williams-Sonoma website:

Originating in Genoa, in the Liguria region of Italy, pesto is an uncooked sauce made from fresh basil, garlic, pine nuts, Parmigiano-Reggiano or pecorino cheese and olive oil. Pesto is traditionally prepared by hand using a mortar and pestle (pesto, from pestare, means to pound). Back in the days of seafaring merchants and explorers, sailors knew they were almost home when they smelled the sweet scent of basil wafting from the hillsides above Genoa, where the aromatic herb flourishes. 

Today, pesto is made with a variety of other ingredients besides basil. Roasted red bell peppers, arugula, mint and olives are all wonderful foundations for the sauce, as you will discover with the recipes featured here. Often tossed with cooked pasta, pesto is also delicious served on crostini, spooned onto grilled seafood or chicken, or tucked inside steaks before cooking.

There are two very different reasons why I love arugula pesto - first, I love the peppery zing of arugula (translated this means "rocket") and the second reason is a practical one. Basil is a tender herb and turns rapidly from it's lovely natural green state into a blackish mess rather quickly. I was a single mom for a while and had to watch every dime.  Basil doesn’t hold up in the refrigerator and was way more expensive than other items I could use.  I started substituting other greens for basil more than 15 years ago and I’m not about to stop anytime soon!

Baby spinach also makes a lovely pesto and was a great way to get greens into my young boys.  The three of us didn't finish a pound of pasta for dinner (thankfully they weren't teens yet!) and I found that other greens remained appetizingly green the next day making it a welcomed cold lunch for me the next day.

Why bring up these points?  If you happen to be single or only cooking for two, it's great to cook a whole pound of pasta and not have to cook again the next night or worry about what you'll bring for lunch - especially when you work a lot of hours or it's too hot to cook like these past few days.

So before I give you my arugula recipe. promise me you'll experiment with other herbs and leafy greens!  The TECHNIQUE remains the same no matter what greens you choose.

I’ll mention that I don’t usually measure, unless I’m baking, so all these measurements are approximates.  I always use a mini food processor to make pesto, but if you have the time/energy to use the traditional mortar and pestle, more power to you.

 

Family Friendly Pesto

 

Ingredients:

Approx 3 oz by weight or 2 cups by volume - baby arugula - washed and dried in a salad spinner

1 large bunch flat leaf Italian Parsley - washed and died in a salad spinner

2 to 3 T of Pine nuts

2 to 3 cloves garlic depending on size and your tastes

Juice of 1/2 a large lemon

1/2 cup – ¾ Cup of a high quality Extra-Virgin Olive Oil *

1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1/4 cup shredded Pecorino cheese

1/2 cup of reserved pasta water or home-made salt-free chicken stock**

1 pound pasta of your choice

 

Technique:

In a 4 cup mini food processor place equal amounts of arugula and parsley leaves (tender stems are okay – but avoid using the tougher “main stem” of the parsley) in the bowl

Add the garlic cloves, lemon juice and about 1/4 C olive oil.

Pulse the food processor until the leaves are reduced to a fine mince.

Add both cheeses and approx. another ¼ C olive oil

Continue to pulse, add olive oil if necessary to get the desired consistency 

Toss the pesto into well-drained pasta while the pasta is still warm.

This is also delicious served cold as a pasta salad.

Feel free to toss in cubed left over roasted chicken to change things up.

 

* My favorites are Organic Ravida from the Southern coast of Sicily (described as intensely green in both color and flavor, slightly fruity with a hint of almond, finishing up with a sharp pop of pepper at the end) or the Nicolas Alzieri from the south of France (described as buttery, fruity (lemons and apples), with some light grassy notes reminiscent of artichokes)

** Since good extra virgin olive oil is very flavorful and not the least expensive of items, I tend to add my own homemade chicken stock in place of any additional oil to achieve the consistency I like when dressing pasta.  This also serves to save a few calories. Should you choose to use chicken stock be sure your not adding a lot of extra sodium since the cheese is plenty salty!!

As mentioned in class, a thicker pesto is lovely served with either meat or fish.  Try it instead of butter on a baked potato.  I also “stuff” it under the skin of a chicken prior to roasting so it can flavor the meat.  In a thinner preparation, with cilantro, it makes a great marinade for steaks.

If you took my class, I hope I succeeded in helping you gain some new appreciation for olive oils, especially Extra-Virgin Olive Oils and when you think pesto, I hope you’ll think technique, not recipe.  I encourage you to find your own combinations and your favorite ways to serve this delightful sauce.

 

        

I love teaching classes and doing demos for Williams-Sonoma not only because it allows me to share my knowledge with others but because I meet so many interesting people.  I promised the folks from this past Sunday's class that I would have a post done by this evening which would include some recipes from class.

I knew I would be busy all day Monday and out until nearly midnight, but at the time I thought I would have the entire day today to ponder my entry in the comfort of my air conditioning until the heatwave was over.  My life rarely goes that much according to plan and today was no exception.  My morning began agreeing to add something else into my plans.  A simple request;  a special item for a client to surprise her young relative who can't eat gluten.  Yes, she'll be arriving this afternoon.  How could I refuse?  So on went the oven and out I went into the heat.  I won't go into all the details save to say, the cake was delivered on time, but the promised blog post wasn't so fortunate.

It will however be posted by late evening tomorrow.

        

I'd like to thank everyone who attended the cooking class this past Sunday (All-American Summer) at the Williams-Sonoma store in Chelsea.  I had a wonderful time and look forward to working there again in the future.

The baked beans recipe was not in the handout, but can be found on the WIlliams-Sonoma website.  As promised, I've posted it here for your convenience.

Although this recipe calls for a 6 qt. electric pressure cooker, it can easily be adapted for a stove top model.  For safety reasons, be sure to follow the directions for your particular make and model.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups dried pink or pinto beans
• 8 cups water
• 1 tsp. salt, plus more, to taste
• 1 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 2 Tbs. dark molasses
• 2 tsp. dry mustard
• 1/4 cup brown mustard
• 2 Tbs. apple cider vinegar
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1/2 lb. bacon, cooked until crispy and chopped
    into 1/2-inch pieces

Directions:

Pick over the beans and discard any misshapen beans and stones. Rinse the beans and drain.

In an electric pressure cooker, combine the beans, water and the 1 tsp.salt. Cover and cook on high for 50 minutes according to the manufacturer's instructions. Release the pressure according to the manufacturer's instructions. Transfer the beans and their liquid to a large bowl. Set aside.

In a Dutch oven over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the onion and cook until soft and translucent, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the brown sugar, molasses, dry mustard, brown mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper and stir until the brown sugar has dissolved. Stir in the bacon.

Strain the cooked beans into another large bowl, reserving the cooking liquid. Add the beans to the onion mixture and stir to combine.Slowly stir in 2 to 2 1/2 cups of the reserved liquid. Set the Dutch oven over low heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 1hour. Partially uncover the beans and continue simmering, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has thickened, about 30 minutes more; do not allow the liquid to evaporate completely.

Serve immediately**

Serves 8.

Williams-Sonoma Kitchen.

** For the class, we made the baked beans the day before. They were reheated in a 350 degree oven for one hour just prior to the class.

        

Picnics are all about portable food items that can be easily served cold and no picnic is complete without a sweet dessert.  By that definition, cupcakes are perfect picnic food.  I've been working on a new recipe and it was finally ready for a big public debut. Today in Central Park I handed out 150 mini cupcakes to the loyal fans "on the hill" that regularly gather to support my friend David Ippolito's music.  The cupcakes disappeared so fast that I didn't have a chance to get any pictures, but I think this recipe is a real winner!

More details to come!

        

Even the most prolific writers experience dry spells. For those of us that find writing difficult even in the best of times, a dry spell can easily turn into a full-blown case of writer's block; such is state I've found myself these past several weeks. I can tell you when it began; the exact moment I felt crushed under the weight of my success; when half-written posts began piling up on my desk, all stuck in a cycle of endless edits waiting for the moment when they were finally "perfect".  It seems silly now, but it began simply enough. 

I was unable to answer a simple but fundamental blogging question, ‘how many readers do you have?’ I truly had no idea how many people were receiving RSS or email updates but based on the limited number of comments thus far, I assumed my audience was still very small. The GoDaddy representative was very patient as he explained what each report was designed to show and how to interpret the data.  I was totally unprepared to learn that over 4,000 people had subscribed to the blog's RSS feed and that's when the writer's block began. I felt I owed my readers more than I thought I was capable of delivering. Four weeks went by and still not a single post felt right.

A talented song writer I know says that (song) writers don't always get to write the song they want to write; sometimes they have to write the next song that needs to be written.  I've heard that line many times (it's on one of his CDs) but until recently I never appreciated the truth in it.  How does this figure into my blog and my writer's block?  David, if you're reading this, you should know that this isn't the article I intended to write, but it is the one that needed to be written.

April 23rd, I read an article in the Wall Street Journal titled Paid to Pitch: Product Reviews By Bloggers Draw Scrutiny. The article really upset me. I tried to ignore it. I couldn’t get it out of my mind and I couldn’t put it on the recycling pile either.  I tucked it in my tote bag and read it over and over again until finally I just “got it”.  The fact that I felt the weight of “journalistic” responsibility so viscerally as to cause writer’s block and that I found this article so disturbing told me what I needed to know: I have the desire to write and I have something even more important; I have the ethical and moral fiber to do “the right thing”.

There's one word that keeps coming to mind when I think about that article: transparency. Transparency may not solve everything, but I think it's a good start. I pledge to always tell you if I receive ANY kind of perk in connection to a post I write, a product I recommend or a product or service I review.

Now that I have that off my chest, you should know that nothing has stopped me from eating well! The writing may have stalled but I've tried a few new Gluten-Free restaurants, and my culinary muses have been working over-time. I will be serving up a new recipe to the members of the Writing Workshop I joined. That way I’ll be ready with a new Gluten-free goodie for the Cupcake Social 2.0 this Thursday. I’m looking forward to my first Meetup for Cupcakes take the Cake.

Look for pictures from the Meetup, and a new recipe next week. It feels good knowing I already have something to write about thus ending my “Dry-Spell”.
 

        

It seems every magazine I pick up has an article on how to save money on your grocery bill.  Some of the tips are pretty basic but  the tip about using coupons isn't so "basic" for those on special diets.  I use coupons for lots of non-food items like trash bags, tissues etc, but coupons for Gluten Free items aren't exactly plentiful.

Fortunately the folks at Shop Organic sent me a discount code to share with  my readers! Be sure to check out their Gluten Free section.

Upon checkout, enter discount code GREATFOOD and get 10% off your first order!

        

There are so many events in New York that it's impossible to keep track of them all, but even if you could, who has the time and energy to attend everything that piques their interest?  I love to read, so book events, especially book events that have to do with anything culinary, get priority status.  This week, I'm looking forward to a reading and reception for "A Homemade Life" being held Thursday evening at Idlewild Books in Manhattan. Idlewild Books is even offering 10% off if you place an advance order for the book, but don't worry, if you can't make it to the reading you can get the book on Amazon

If you'll be there let me know through Twitter, Facebook or just leave a comment on my blog.  I'd love to connect to those of you that will be there!

        

Rarely does a recipe jump off the page, slap me in the face and demand a spot on my weekly menu, but this egg recipe came pretty darn close!  Each time I opened the April 2009 issue of Everyday Food it seemed to open right up to the recipe for "Baked Eggs in Tomato-Parmesan Sauce".  Because I don't eat meat on Fridays during Lent, I’m always looking for interesting meatless recipes.  I confess that I didn't follow the recipe to a T.  I added mushrooms because mushrooms have a lot of nutritional benefits.  I scaled the recipe from 2 eggs per person down to 1 egg and used a smaller ramekin to account for the change in volume.   The recipe is simple and very tasty.  I'm sure this would even be good with your favorite "chunky" style bottled sauce.  The magazine's picture was much nicer, but I thought you might like to see what my breakfast looked like.

Baked Eggs in Tomato-Parmesan Sauce

Serves 4

1T olive oil
4 garlic cloves; thinly sliced
1 tsp crushed dried rosemary
2 -15 oz cans diced tomatoes in juice
1- 15 oz can crushed tomatoes
1/4 C grated Parmesan
Coarse salt and ground pepper
8 large eggs

Preheat oven 350.  Set 4 - 12 oz ovenproof bowls or ramekins on a large rimmed baking sheet.

In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat.  Add garlic and rosemary; cook, stirring until garlic is golden, about 2 min.  Add diced tomatoes (with juice), crushed tomatoes, and 2T cheese, bring to a boil.  Reduce to a simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally until slightly thickened 2 - 4 min.  Season sauce with salt and pepper.

Divide sauce among bowls, reserving 1 cup for later.  Crack 2 eggs into each bowl.  Dividing evenly, top with reserved sauce and remaining cheese.  Bake until egg whites are just opaque (yolks should still be soft) 24-28 minutes, rotating half way through.

        

I've been told more than once that I'm nuts, and while that might be true, I am sure  that I'm crazy about nuts!  Which is a very good thing if you've tried the SCD diet. Tonight's  Good Eats episode was all about nuts.  Making your own cashew butter is easy, and if you haven't tried it because you like having a recipe in front of you, check out his recipe listed within the Cashew Sauce recipe. Of course there are several other recipes there too!

        

Sometimes the best way to start the day is with a little indulgence. My homemade grapefruit body scrub will have your skin glowing and won't dent your wallet.   With just a few ingredients, which you probably already have in your pantry, you too can make this fragrant exfoliating body scrub.

You'll need one grapefruit, kosher salt, and sugar; raw honey, ground fresh ginger and cinnamon are optional but they give the scrub added benefits. I've made the scrub with and without the last three ingredients and while I like the scrub both ways, I prefer it with these extras.

Zest the grapefruit. Cut it in half.  Eat one half and juice the other half.  To the juice add equal amounts of the salt and sugar till you get a loose, but not runny paste.  Stir in the zest, 2 T raw honey, 1/4 tsp of fresh grated ginger and 1 tsp ground cinnamon.  I usually get a yield of about 3/4 of a cup.

Place a dry hand towel on the floor of the shower so you won't slip.  On DRY skin, massage the scrub from the soles of your feet up your neckline.  Don't scrub this into your skin; gently massage the skin and then rinse.  Follow your usual shower routine and be sure to moisturize when you get of the shower while your skin is still slightly damp.  You'll be surprised how silky smooth your skin feels and how much this little indulgence can lift your mood!