Two Critters were stirring along with the mice. Off to Sedona for rest and relaxation after a wonderful and long holiday season. We are joining good friends for hiking, mediating and fun.
Richard and I just decided to leave technology behind so I will not be posting or emailing to the 1st of the year.
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!
Marian
eZ Gluten-Free Life
Saturday, December 27, 2014
Sunday, December 21, 2014
Last Minute Christmas Gift Idea
Looking for a last minute gift. Gluten-Free Living 101: A Step by Step Guide can help anyone who may be considering trying an alternative way to eat. Check it out on Amazon: just click on the title above.
Saturday, December 20, 2014
CNN report about Caramel apples linked to fatal listeria outbreak
Please go to CNN to read the article about the listeria outbreak with commercially packaged caramel apples.
Caramel apples linked to fatal listeria outbreak
By Jen Christensen, CNN
updated 5:57 PM EST, Fri December 19, 2014
http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/19/health/caramel-apple-listeria/
Caramel apples linked to fatal listeria outbreak
By Jen Christensen, CNN
updated 5:57 PM EST, Fri December 19, 2014
http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/19/health/caramel-apple-listeria/
 |
| Caramel Apple cause fatal listeria outbreak by CNN |
Tuesday, December 16, 2014
Gluten- Free Labeling In Restaurants and Bakeries
With the holiday season in full swing, I thought I should clear up a few things about eating out.
 |
| Eating out during the holiday's |
The FDA added supplemental ruling to the August 5, 2014
gluten-free labeling ruling by including restaurants and bakeries. Though this is
a guideline and not a law for restaurants and bakeries, it is a 1st
step towards gluten-free regulations.
Below I have posted the FDA rules. What is clear by reading these rules and talking directly with bakery and restaurant owners is that there has been no education to teach them how to be gluten-free safe and no one is monitoring the restaurants. It is still up to you to talk to the chefs/owners to be sure it is a safe place to eat.Be sure that there is a dedicated place in the kitchen to prepare your gluten-free food if you have Celiac.
Many restaurants that serve gluten-free food are putting disclaimers on their menus that states that though they serve gluten-free food is not meant for people with Celiac or severe gluten issues.I believe most of these places are trying to avoid potential lawsuits.
From the FDA website: www.fda.com
Given
the public health significance of “gluten-free” labeling, we encourage the restaurant industry to
move quickly to ensure that its use of “gluten-free” labeling is consistent with
the federal definition and look forward to working with the industry to support
their education and outreach to restaurants.
In
addition, state and local governments play an important role in oversight of
restaurants. We expect to work with our state and local government partners
with respect to gluten-free labeling in restaurants. We will consider
enforcement action as needed, alone or with other agencies, to protect
consumers.
Currently
there are no inspections or reviews of this policy in restaurants and bakeries.
Reporting Adverse Effects and
Misuse of Labeling: The FDA has set up a reporting system for misuse of
gluten-free labeling.
Health
Effects: Anyone who becomes ill or experiences adverse health effects that
they believe are associated with having eaten a particular food, including
individuals with food allergies and those with celiac disease, should first
seek appropriate medical care.
Afterward,
FDA encourages individuals to report the incident to the Center for Food Safety
and Applied Nutrition’s Adverse Event Reporting System by calling 240-402-2405.
Labeling
Issues: Consumers and manufacturers can report any complaint they may have,
such as potential misuse of gluten-free claims on food labels, to an FDA
Consumer Complaint Coordinator in the state where the food was purchased.
A
list of FDA Consumer Complaint Coordinators is posted at FDA’s website: http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/ucm074201.htm
A
list of FDA Consumer Complaint Coordinators is posted at FDA’s website: http://www.fda.gov/Cosmetics/GuidanceComplianceRegulatoryInformation/ucm074201.htm
Blog post by ezglutenfreelife.blogspot.com / Marian Z
Geringer
I used the photo of Pancho's in Mahattan Beach, CA for the image not because it is gluten-free. I am not endorsing it or reviewing it.
Monday, December 15, 2014
Cookies con Amore: Gluten-free Christmas Cookie Assortment
 |
| Glutenetto: Holiday Christmas Cookie Assortment |
Gluten-Free Holiday Assortment
You can’t have Christmas without cookies! We’re baking an assortment
of some of our favorite gluten-free Italian cookies for the holidays
including the Amaretti, Cuccidati (fig), Ricciarelli, Wedding and
Raspberry Linzer.
Hand-baked and delivered to your door, this festive assortment is full of amore and dolce to share with your friends and family. It also makes a great hostess gift.
We also bake a traditional Italian cookie assortment for the holidays.
Note: we bake and ship our cookies to order. If you plan to enjoy your cookies on Christmas Day, please make a note in the comment field at checkout and we’ll deliver accordingly.
Hand-baked and delivered to your door, this festive assortment is full of amore and dolce to share with your friends and family. It also makes a great hostess gift.
We also bake a traditional Italian cookie assortment for the holidays.
Note: we bake and ship our cookies to order. If you plan to enjoy your cookies on Christmas Day, please make a note in the comment field at checkout and we’ll deliver accordingly.
Glutenetto
I am Italian! So when I had to give up gluten and dairy, I also had to give up so many food traditions and memories. Holiday tables filled with homemade pastries and cookies. When relatives visit in New York they never come empty handed. Usually they would stopped by the local Italian bakery, breathing in the aroma of freshly baked Italian cookies, bread and pastries.
I have tried to reproduce Italian treats by reworking the recipes so they are gluten-free and dairy-free but they just come out okay. Okay is not good enough considering all the labor that goes into making them.
So until Sunday, at the Natural Products Expo West, I just thought that I would never have a chance to taste these delectable treats again.
It was my second and last day at the Expo and we had been there for hours. We were exhausted and ready to leave but decided to go to the 3rd floor where the "newbies" were. Our arms were hurting from carrying the bags filled with flyers, booklets and product and our feet were screaming for relief. We decided to leave. The floor was crowded with people, so we walked around the back of the room. There out of the corner of my eye was 2 beautiful Italian woman surrounded by boxes of outrageous looking Italian cookies.
I look up and was taken back by their sign. It said, "GLUTENETTO CERTIFIED GLUTEN-FREE ITALIAN COOKIES." Being diary-free also, I did not put much hope into the signage. So I asked, "Is there any diary-free cookies also." "YES" they answered. Next question, "Are your cookies baked in a dedicated facility." "YES" they answered.
For a beautiful description and ingredients, please go to the website.
Amaretti - almond and macaroon flavor: Dairy-free
Pignoli- Also flavor of almond and macaroon with pine nuts: Dairy-free
Ricciarelli- Tuscan wedding cake style : Dairy-free
 | |||||||||
Noninne - Lemon zest flavor: contains dairy
Rigenette - Sesame and lemon flavor with orange zest: contains diary. 
Cuccidate Fig: contains dairy
Raspberry Linzer- shortbread cookies with raspberry jam contains dairy.
Gluten-Free Wedding Cakes: contains dairy.
 |
| Gluten-free Wedding Cakes |
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
Loving This Hoilday Season!!
I have been having lots of fun the last few weeks and have not posted this week. My apologizes. Truthfully jet lag got the better of me. I usually do not suffer this long from jet lag but this NY trip was different. It took 5 days to recuperate from the trip. I am finally back on CA time and feeling alert and creative again. I now have the energy to continue my holiday adventure.
As a child, I loved the holiday's. For me, it meant the smell of homemade cookies, meat sauce brewing on the stove for hours, the sounds of gifts being wrapped and joy... Family gathering together for days, laughing, talking, and playing games are all memories I carry with me. I have taken many of these traditions into my adult life. This year is no different.
We spent Thanksgiving in New York with friends and family. I could write a screen play about the week. My loving dysfunctional family's antics filled the air. (I am no exception). We celebrated a wedding, Thanksgiving, birthdays and adventures. I used to see these dysfunctions as a bad thing but this visit was different. I watched and listened with so much love for these people that the craziness I once viewed as a negative thing just felt like home.
Why the shift in perception? I felt so loved from everyone. The care my family took to ensure that Richard and my food was gluten-free and dairy-free was so touching that I could tear up right now as I write about it.
This is my 2nd NY trip since changing the way I eat and I am very impressed with how much everyone has learned since the last visit. There was no celery (I am deadly allergic to it) in anyone's home this trip. The chicken broth used in some of the meals was the brand without celery. Meals were made with gluten-free and dairy-free options, and the gluten-free food was displayed separately.
The sweetest act of love, was on Thanksgiving! We were staying at my niece's house. I prepared some GF/DF side dishes as well as GF/DF dessert. My niece's (now husband) planned to fry the turkey. He purchased 2 turkeys and borrowed a second fryer so we could have a regular turkey and a gluten-free turkey. You can not get any more caring then that.
Thank you to all of my friends and family for your heart felt love and concern!
Photo by: http://ezdecorating.blogspot.com/2012/11/delightful-christmas-ornaments.html
As a child, I loved the holiday's. For me, it meant the smell of homemade cookies, meat sauce brewing on the stove for hours, the sounds of gifts being wrapped and joy... Family gathering together for days, laughing, talking, and playing games are all memories I carry with me. I have taken many of these traditions into my adult life. This year is no different.
 |
| Loving This Holiday Season |
We spent Thanksgiving in New York with friends and family. I could write a screen play about the week. My loving dysfunctional family's antics filled the air. (I am no exception). We celebrated a wedding, Thanksgiving, birthdays and adventures. I used to see these dysfunctions as a bad thing but this visit was different. I watched and listened with so much love for these people that the craziness I once viewed as a negative thing just felt like home.
Why the shift in perception? I felt so loved from everyone. The care my family took to ensure that Richard and my food was gluten-free and dairy-free was so touching that I could tear up right now as I write about it.
This is my 2nd NY trip since changing the way I eat and I am very impressed with how much everyone has learned since the last visit. There was no celery (I am deadly allergic to it) in anyone's home this trip. The chicken broth used in some of the meals was the brand without celery. Meals were made with gluten-free and dairy-free options, and the gluten-free food was displayed separately.
The sweetest act of love, was on Thanksgiving! We were staying at my niece's house. I prepared some GF/DF side dishes as well as GF/DF dessert. My niece's (now husband) planned to fry the turkey. He purchased 2 turkeys and borrowed a second fryer so we could have a regular turkey and a gluten-free turkey. You can not get any more caring then that.
Thank you to all of my friends and family for your heart felt love and concern!
Photo by: http://ezdecorating.blogspot.com/2012/11/delightful-christmas-ornaments.html
Thursday, December 4, 2014
I am Frustrated With Dermatologists!
I am Frustrated With Dermatologists!
I have skin issues; itchy scaly spots near my eyes, in my ears and on my elbows. These annoying spots come and go. They are itchy and irritating. I have been trying to get answers for several years. I usually get the typical answer that it is eczema yet eczema is not caused by allergic reactions. Today I was told that it is Seborrheic Dermatitis. Have you ever heard of "cradle cap"? Well, this is the adult version of it.
(Cradle Cap is a condition that infants get. The baby's scalp becomes flaky and scaly. For a complete definition please click here.)
According to my new dermatologist's handout, "Seborrheic Dermatitis is a benign skin disorder which can be considered widespread severe dandruff. It generally appears as red flaky, sometimes itchy patches of skin. Commonly this involves any or all of the following areas: scalp, eyebrows, nasal creases, the ears and chin..." " Recent information suggests that seborrhea may be related to an allergic reaction to yeast organisms normally found on the skin."
The frustration comes when the doctor prescribes medication and creams without the slightest knowledge or concern with my gluten sensitivity. It has happened before with different doctors so I should not be surprised. Yet it still angers me. I have been doing research and the medication appears safe but the creams are not. I used the internet and then went to my book, Is Gluten Hiding in Your Shampoo? to look up all the chemical names for gluten found in personal care products and medications. When are these doctors going to learn about gluten and the affects on the skin.
I do not plan to start with the medication because I prefer to try natural remedies first. Now that I have a place to start, natural remedies may just work. Anyone out there have any suggestions for a natural way to try to cure this?
Photo found at: http://www.health-writings.com/seborrheic-dermatitis-face_9379/
 |
| Marian's eye with Seborrheic Dermatitis |
(Cradle Cap is a condition that infants get. The baby's scalp becomes flaky and scaly. For a complete definition please click here.)
 |
| Seborrheic Dermatitis |
The frustration comes when the doctor prescribes medication and creams without the slightest knowledge or concern with my gluten sensitivity. It has happened before with different doctors so I should not be surprised. Yet it still angers me. I have been doing research and the medication appears safe but the creams are not. I used the internet and then went to my book, Is Gluten Hiding in Your Shampoo? to look up all the chemical names for gluten found in personal care products and medications. When are these doctors going to learn about gluten and the affects on the skin.
I do not plan to start with the medication because I prefer to try natural remedies first. Now that I have a place to start, natural remedies may just work. Anyone out there have any suggestions for a natural way to try to cure this?
Photo found at: http://www.health-writings.com/seborrheic-dermatitis-face_9379/
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