Follow-ups: Babycakes and Purely Decadent

I told you last month about the scorchingly hot New York Babycakes Bakery and the cookbook it released. The cookbook, let me remind you, is vegan and wheat-free, but uses spelt so it's not gluten-free.

Babycakes owner Erin McKenna talks about the difficulties of gluten-free baking and gives some tips on making vegan baked goods work in an interview on Express Night Out.com.

Earlier this year I also talked about Turtle Mountain's new line of coconut milk-based non-dairy frozen desserts from their Purely Decadent label. Carrie Forbes on Examiner.com gives her very positive reviews of three flavors.

Jean Duane GFCF Videos

Jean Duane bills herself as the Alternative Cook. Her latest discovery is that some people are gluten intolerant and dairy allergic.

The press release said:

The Alternative Cook helps those who have been diagnosed with Celiac Disease, Autism, Crohn's Disease, IBS, ADD, ADHD, gluten and dairy intolerance. Children with Autism reportedly improve on the Spectrum when following a gluten-free, casein-free diet. Nursing mothers can reduce colic in their babies when following this type of diet.

Sounds good. Unfortunately, there's more that I'm not so enamored of:

Casein is a protein found in dairy products. People who think they are lactose intolerant may actually be reacting to the protein rather than the sugar (lactose) in dairy products. Protein reactions can be severe and can cause long-term health problems.

It's true that some people mix up lactose intolerance and milk protein allergy, but that's probably a very small percentage of the whole. GFCF is the latest fad diet and is probably unnecessary for many people. Her intolerance quiz is one of those pseudoscience compilations that ascribe all sorts of common, everyday complaints - low energy, aches and pains, an "unclear" mind - to whatever ailment they're purporting to clear. And it doesn't matter what the doctors say:

Even people who pass all of the doctor’s tests report that they feel significantly better and loose [sic] weight on a gluten-free and/or dairy-free diet.

Heads, you go on my diet. Tales, you go on my diet.

However much nonsense the rest of the site might be, I suppose it's worth presenting to you because it's certainly helpful to have more good milk alternative and substitute recipes available. Check out her Alternative Cook website and the video streams page for the recipes and cooking instructions.

Interactive Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free Meal Planning Website

Just announced via press release, an interactive website that promises those with our special diet needs not just menus that they can use, but complete grocery lists and shopping plans.

Preparing allergy-friendly meals that are healthy and well balanced is quick and simple thanks to MealPlansWithout.com from Seattle entrepreneur NJ Shelsby. The interactive website takes the stress out of planning, shopping, and cooking wheat free, gluten free and dairy free dinners. With flexibility to fit everyone's unique needs, users can plan meals for the week in 15 minutes, shop once a week, and cook great tasting specialty dinners in about 30 minutes.

"NJ has created one of the most useful websites around," says Angela Pifer, Creator and Owner, Nutrition Northwest, Corp. "I regularly refer my patients to her website for easy to follow healthy recipes. They always return from their experience with glowing reviews."

Meal plan options include:

• Allergy-Friendly - Free of common allergens, such as wheat, dairy, corn, and soy. Most recipes are also gluten free.
• Lighter Fare - Less filling, focuses on veggies, seafood & chicken.
• Healthy Balance - Based on the American Heart Association's® Heart-Healthy Diet guidelines, incorporating lots of whole grains and portion sizing.

Users logging in to MealPlansWithout.com are presented with five completely customizable suggestions for the week. Nights may be switched around, dishes replaced with personal favorites, and portion sizes changed. After tailor fitting the menu to meet each user’s schedule and needs, recipes and shopping lists are automatically updated.

Merging recipe directions into one easy-to-follow set of instructions ensures that a healthy dinner makes it onto the table as quickly as possible. Most dinners are designed to be prepared in 30 minutes or less.

Of course there's a catch. MealPlansWithout.com costs money.

For only $24.95 a month, you get a meal plan every week featuring naturally healthy meals comprised of fresh vegetables and herbs, whole foods, and unrefined grains like millet and quinoa.

There are also allergy-friendly options with recipes that are wheat free and dairy free. Use the plans “as-is” or change them easily to fit your family: move dinners around, pick other dishes from our recipe database, or change serving sizes.

Still, the convenience and guidance might be worth the cost to you. Let me know what you think.

A Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Dinner

Those with celiac disease often become lactose intolerant because the disease affects the inner lining of the intestine where lactase is made. Gluten-free dinners usually are good for both groups, therefore, although they might take just a bit of extra attention and planning.

Wendy Cohen takes these issues into account with her article on planning a a full gluten-free Thanksgiving dinner at celiac.com. She's an RN who:

helps others as a Celiac Disease/Gluten Intolerance Educator. I work one on one with people on meal planning, shopping, cooking and dining out gluten-free. I will also work with children who have behavioral issues related to gluten or other food sensitivities. My book "Gluten-Free PORTLAND" is a comprehensive resource guide to the gluten-free diet and is available on my website www.glutenfreechoice.com. My other website is: www.WellBladder.com.

Here are a selection of tips from that article. Go to the link given above for the complete set of advice along with recipes for gluten-free pie crust.

• Most commercially produced turkeys contain gluten in the broth used to inject them full of flavorings, salt, and fat. It is important to avoid eating gluten with your conscientiously prepared meal by choosing a gluten-free turkey as your centerpiece. Check the label and it should say no MSG and no gluten on the front or under the nutrition label on the back.

• Gluten-free stuffing is easy, just buy or make the best gluten-free bread, cube it and dry in a low temperature oven. ... You can also make a wild rice/brown rice and dried cranberry pilaf style stuffing, which can be cooked separately, or used to stuff the bird.

• Use sweet rice flour to replace the traditional wheat flour in thickening gravy. If it's not quite thick enough you can add a little tapioca or potato starch.

• For pumpkin pie, all you really need to do is make a killer pie crust and make sure your filling is dairy free if necessary. You can substitute Earth Balance for regular margarine—it's gluten-free and dairy-free, or if you tolerate dairy products, use butter. Or, you can use oil to make pie crust. ... To replace milk in your pumpkin custard for the pie, there are many options to choose from: rice, soy, almond, hazelnut, or hemp, but for extra richness, try coconut milk—it has a very mild taste and won't overwhelm the pumpkin flavor.

The Government Still Wants Your Vegan Recipes!

I still don't know whether it's a warning or a sign of progressive thinking, because the link gave me no information, but seeing "The Government still wants your Vegan Recipes!" on a site sure opens my eyes.

The UK's Vegan Society has a big, active, and recently redesigned website. I guess they're still getting the kinks out because some of the front page links don't do much of anything useful.

Some of the content looks good, though.

For example, the Vegan Catering for All link takes you to a 36-page color .pdf brochure that gives guidance for the beginning vegan and those who want to prepare vegan foods.

If you don' have a color printer, you can order copies from the Society via the contact information on their fron page.

They're also doing a Vegan Catering Challenge 2008, though you wouldn't know it by the website, which has no information on it.

A work in progress.

Learn to Make Soymilk at Home - From YouTube

How many kabillion videos are there on YouTube? I'm sure not even the YouTubers know, because while you just read that sentence another jillion or so were uploaded.

It didn't occur to me to turn to YouTube for getting cooking demonstrations, but then I'm probably the last American never to have seen a show on the Food Channel either.

But a random link alerted me to videos about making soymilk at home. And a quick search showed that some two dozen options are available.

The first one to come up is from a blog, The Daily English Show, which describes itself as "The Daily English Show is the world's first daily online English language show."

Anyhow, show #424 is titled, simply, How to make soymilk.



The Everyday Dish people also have one called Homemade Soymilk. Don't you love informative titles? Everyday Dish is a vegan cooking show that shows its audience how to prepare "meals with whole grains, beans, fresh fruit and vegetables, along with tofu, tempeh, seitan and to die for desserts."