Meal plan: check

I know I said I was going to stain the bed frame yesterday or today, but that hasn't happened yet- I've been busy working on a meal plan and shopping list to use after we move. I've done very little cooking in the last 2+ years, so cooking every single day is going to take some getting used to. I'm not a fan of complicated recipes with tons of ingredients. Simple, quick, and easy is the what I go for.  In the interest of making a smooth transition, I'm starting out with a bunch of crockpot recipes (which are quite easy and don't use lots of ingredients), and then we'll go from there.

When I made up my meal plan I used a lot of recipes from Make it Fast, Cook it Slow by Stephanie O'Dea. I also used a few from The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone and some from The Flexitarian Diet by Dawn Jackson  Blatner. The crockpot recipes were already gluten free, and I picked naturally gluten free recipes from the other two books. The recipes I picked use a lot of fresh produce and very little processed items, so hopefully they'll be healthier than some of the meals I've cooked in the past.

The meal plan I made is for seven weeks of dinners (each a unique recipe, allowing one night per week for leftovers or pizza), but I only did the ingredient and shopping list for the first two weeks. Since the recipes are ones I haven't used, I really don't know how they'll turn out or if there will be lots of leftovers or none. Hopefully after two weeks I'll have a better idea of how well things are working and what changes need to be made. I also have a list of breakfast and lunch recipes, but I didn't chart those out for x number of weeks, so there's a lot more flexibility with them. I did make an ingredient and shopping list for all of them, though.

It was all quite time consuming, but being the OCD control freak that I am, I do feel more prepared to jump back into daily cooking.

On another subject:
Mr. M heard from the company he was working with this fall - they have a couple positions available that they think he might be a good fit for. Too funny that everyone's got openings now that he's a got a job. The one he took is the one we wanted, so at least there's no buyer's remorse (or the equivalent).

'Make it Fast, Cook it Slow' and 'The Kind Diet'

In my search for new gluten free healthy recipes I've been reading quite a few cookbooks. Two I recently read are 'Make it Fast, Cook it Slow' and 'The Kind Diet'.

'Make it Fast, Cook it Slow' by Stephanie O'Dea is a book of crockpot recipes that originated in the author's goal of making something in her crockpot every day for a year. I found it interesting- they weren't all meat and potatoes recipes, and they weren't all dinner recipes either. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, even a few crafty ideas. A big bonus for me is that the author has celiac, so the recipes are all gluten free already- I wouldn't have to do any tweaking. I don't plan on trying them all, but there is a good number of recipes I'd like to try.

Another book I've read recently is 'The Kind Diet' by Alicia Silverstone. She has lots of information about the environment and why veganism is the way to go, and does a good job of documenting where she gets her information. However, she does make the statement that celiac is very rare and uncommon (and doesn't document a source for that statement), and basically brushes off gluten intolerance. I wish it were that easy.

In any case, the real reason I checked out the book was for the recipes, not the philosophy. I've been looking for healthy bean recipes and recipes that use a lot of veggies and aren't full of refined crap. I knew I'd find those in a vegan cookbook, and I did. I'm definitely not going vegan (I like my meat and dairy products too much), but I don't mind using recipes that are healthy, regardless of whether they come from a mainstream cookbook, a vegetarian cookbook, or a vegan cookbook.

Next up: using all the recipes I've found to make up a preliminary menu for a month or two of meals and a shopping list to go with it. That way I'll be ready to cook healthy meals for us as soon as we move, and not 2 or 3 weeks later, during which time we've been eating whatever I can find or whatever Mr. M talks me into getting from restaraunts (not cheap or healthy).

Books I've read recently

Easy Gluten Free Baking by Elizabeth Barbonne

The recipes in this cookbook look really good- can't wait to try them. There's good pictures, and the book is hardcover with an internal spiral binding- perfect for laying on your counter as you bake.

I also like that she lists the dry ingredients in one column and the wet ingredients in another. She said she did this so you could pre-make the dry mix of the recipes you use frequently and then all you'd need to do is add the wet ingredients. How cool is that? Measuring out 4 or 5 flours for a single recipe can be a bit of a pain, so why not do up a bunch of mixes all at once?

She also doesn't have a one-size fits all flour mix, but tweaks it depending on what is being made. Hence the idea of mixing ingredients ahead of time...

At the end of the book is a section titled 'Tastes Like', which has recipes for name brand things like oreos, twinkies, thin mints, graham crackers, etc. This is a section I'm eager to try out!

The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook by Elana Amsterdam

Like the title says, the recipes call for almond flour instead of wheat or rice flour. The recipes look good, but again, I haven't had a chance to try them yet. I think the first one I'll try is the cheddar cheese crackers.

This cookbook isn't just baked goods, there's also recipes for dishes like chicken pot pie, turkey burgers, salmon dill burgers, Thai fish cakes, and broccoli pizza.

The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey

My friend recommended this one, and I have to agree, it's a great book. We're not in a position to do anything with the information right now (no job= no money to pay down debt), but as soon as Mr. M gets a job (hopefully soon, right now he's working with a contracting company on finding a position) and we have a steady income coming in, we'll be using the steps Dave talks about in order to get out of debt, get money into savings, and get our retirement funds fully funded.

Can't wait till we can get going on that- just need to be patient for awhile longer.

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

It was finally my turn to check this out from the library, and it was worth the wait. This is the sequel to the Hunger Games, and is just as good as the first. The thing I didn't know till the last page is that there is a third book planned, so we get left hanging on some pretty crucial details.

Not sure how long the wait will be for the next one.

Another great gluten free cookbook

I found another really yummy-looking gluten free cookbook! It's not just baked goods- there's recipes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner too. The author is Australian, so there are some terms that need to be looked up (sago anyone?), and while the measurements are in grams, they also have them in ounces. Can't wait to start trying these recipes!

Two really good books I just read

Gluten-Free Baking Classics by Annalise G. Roberts

Awesome book! There are so many yummy-looking recipes. The recipes for pumpkin bread, gingerbread, oreo cookies, cream puffs, apple cider doughnuts, cinnamon bread, French bread, soft pretzels, and fresh pasta dough (I could make ravioli!) are the ones I'm really looking forward to trying.

The author has given cooking classes, and put a lot of effort into making good gluten free versions of a lot of common recipes. They sure sound good, and she gives detailed instructions on how to make them good (not crummy). I haven't tried any of them yet, but they look sooo good.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Good read, interesting, fast paced, no problems getting into it (unlike with Inkheart). Can't wait to read the second book- I'm on the hold list at the library, but it will still be awhile before it's my turn.

Books and links for learning about gluten intolerance

I've shared this info with a few siblings, and I've posted some of it before, but I thought I'd bring it all together for anyone who's interested in learning more about being gluten free.

Here's the 3 most helpful books I've read so far, in order of most helpful.Healthier Without Wheat: A New Understanding of Wheat Allergies, Celiac Disease, and Non-Celiac Gluten Intolerance
by Stephen Wangen
****This is the one written by a doctor with celiac disease, so he really understands the issues.
The Gluten Connection: How Gluten Sensitivity May Be Sabotaging Your Health - And What You Can Do to Take Control NOW
by Shari Lieberman & Linda Segall
****This one talked about the myriad of symptoms that can be associated with gluten intolerance.
The First Year: Celiac Disease and Living Gluten-Free: An Essential Guide for the Newly Diagnosed
by Jules E. Dowler Shepard
****This one has good recipes and good basic info.

There's lots of good websites out there, too.
For celiac/gluten intolerance info:www.celiac.org

For recipes and coping strategies:glutenfreegirl.blogspot.com recipes, and she wrote a book about her experience with celiac diseaseglutenfreemommy.com this one has lots of good recipes, as well as links to other good sites.glutenfreeda.blogspot.com this one also has good recipes
I just recently came across a few more websites that seem really good, though I've only looked through them a little bit.
glutenfreecookingschool.com I found this when I was looking for a gluten free flat bread recipe. Since I can't eat yeast products, I need a good substitute for regular bread.
glutenfreemom.com I found this one when I was looking for a gluten free mac and cheese recipe. There are boxed gluten free mac and cheese options, but the sauce always tastes off. And homemade mac and cheese is sooo good...

Here's some others I recently came across and haven't looked at much, they seem to have recipes, news, etc.
elanaspantry.com
holdthegluten.net
holdthericecakes.com
glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com
celiacchicks.com
glutenfreeforgood.com
I've been experimenting with different gluten free foods that you can find in the grocery store, some are worth the money, some not. My favorites:

For breakfast
*Vans gluten free blueberry frozen waffles (kind of expensive, but worth it)
*Yoplait yogurt
*Eggs
*Corn or Rice chex (They're even labeled gluten free now! They recently switched from barley malt syrup to rice syrup as the sweetener)
*Gluten free rice crispies (I've tried various 'alternative' gluten free cereals, and have to say they were all disgusting. It's nice to be able to find 'normal' cereals that are gluten free.)
*Cottage cheese
*Gluten free pancakes with unsweetened applesauce (there's several brands of mix, so far, they're all pretty good)

For lunch
*Leftovers from dinner the night before
*Tuna on Glutino cheese or vegetable gluten free crackers (the original and multi grain are disgusting)
*Egg salad on crackers
*Plain yogurt with frozen berries, sliced almonds, and agave nectar
*Fruits and veggies

For dinner
Most recipes can be fairly easily adapted: take out obvious sources of gluten such as pasta, bread, flour tortillas, etc. Less obvious ones to be careful of are soy sauce and canned soups. A lot of canned soups have wheat flour as a thickener, and a main ingredient of soy sauce is wheat. Luckily, there are pretty good gluten free versions of most food items. Tinkyada rice pasta is quite good, and there is some decent gluten free bread, hamburger buns, etc out there as well. I haven't found a really good flour tortilla yet, though I just found one in the freezer section that was a lot better than the only other variety I've been able to find locally. The only other one I've found locally is a plastic-y rice tortilla. I found a recipe to make my own, so I plan on making my own tortillas soon.

Snacks/desserts
Here's where you run into a lot of things that aren't worth the money. The ones I will buy are:
*Sweet Potato tortilla chips from Food That Should Taste Good (so yummy!)
*Rice Works tortilla chips
*Lara bars (apple pie are the best!)
*Most of the crackers I've tried aren't great; the Glutino cheese crackers and vegetable crackers are the best, but they're not absolutely delicious. Some of the cookies are ok, but again, not great. This isn't actually a bad thing- I'm trying to lose weight, so not having crackers and cookies to eat is just fine with me.
I can still eat chocolate (is that a good thing or a bad thing?). Ghirardelli chocolate is ok, but Lindt chocolate is not- it's sweetened with barley malt syrup, which gets snuck into a lot of foods. So I can't eat the Lindt Lindor truffles (except the white ones), but I can eat the Ghirardelli milk chocolate peanut butter squares (sooo yummy).

Fast food options
There are some options for eating at fast food restaurants, but not a lot. Cross contamination is definitely an issue to watch out for. I've checked out websites for menu items that are ok, and the best fast food options I've found so far are Wendy's and Chipotle, and for sit-down restaurants, Outback and P.F. Changs are the best so far. I've made up a list of gluten free items available at the mainstream restaurants- if anyone wants a copy, let me know.