Gluten & Dairy Free Cornbread

My lovely friend Lucy, over at Mrs Bishop's Bakes & Banter, posted a recipe for Homemade Corndogs last week, and it reminded me of one of our favourite 'treat breakfast' staples, since going Gluten Free.

It's the husband's birthday today, so what better time for a treat breakfast, consisting of homemade granola, followed by crispy bacon, maple syrup and ….

Gluten, Dairy and Sugar Free Cornbread

I've adapted this recipe, from Gluten Free on a Shoestring, which is an excellent resource for gluten free recipes.  There are also a couple of books available, which look really great, so definitely worth a look, if you need to eat Gluten Free.

I've made the GFOAS recipe many times, just as it is, and it has always been delicious.  I now need to be dairy free as well as gluten free though, so I have made some adaptions, and thought I'd share my new recipe with you.

This has been a favourite with us as it's so easy to make, travels and keeps well (for picnics and weekends away in our caravan) and looks impressive for a treat breakfast.  It's also very good served savoury with chilli, or sweet; smeared with jam, or topped with good vanilla ice cream.

Gluten & Dairy Free Cornbread

Ingredients:

2 cups cornmeal or polenta

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)

2 teaspoons baking powder (GF)

1 egg

4 tablespoons coconut oil, melted

1 1/2 cups almond or soy milk

4 tablespoons agave syrup (can also use maple syrup or honey)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 200 decrees celsius (slightly lower for a fan oven).

Preheat a large cast iron frying pan with 1 tablespoon coconut oil, or grease an 8" round or square cake tin.

Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.

Mix the egg, milk and honey in another bowl.  Whisk well and the add the slightly cooled (but still liquid) coconut oil.

  

Add the wet ingredients to dry and stir until just combined.

Pour the mix into the pan and bake in the oven for 20 minutes (possibly more if not using a pre-heated pan - test with a skewer like you would a cake)

The cornbread will be light brown, with darker, golfed brown edges.  If you used a preheated pan, the bottom will be lovely and crispy.

Slice into wedges and serve with crispy bacon and maple or agave syrup.

Enjoy!

Operation 'Get Healthy'

This weekend I've been feeling rubbish. I woke up with a stinking cold on Friday morning and I've got all sorts of random aches and pains. I didn't make things better for myself by having far too many glasses of prosecco with friends on Saturday night. Yesterday was largely spent feeling sorry for myself. I slept until midday and didn't get out of my pyjamas all day. Thank goodness for lovely understanding husbands!!

Last night culminated in this, the ultimate comfort food following a hangover (albeit I had it for tea, not breakfast!)

Not too unhealthy. The bacon was grilled, the hash browns oven baked and the eggs fried in the tiniest amount of coconut oil. But at the same time, there isn't much on that plate that's feeding my body, helping my poor damaged coeliac guts to heal and my body to get better.

I followed up with some pineapple and cherries, but still, if I want to feel better, I need to eat better.

So, this morning, this happened.

That's a much better start to the day - all juiced up and then made into a smoothie with ice and the avocado.

It's the Juice Master's Turbo Express smoothie and I plan on starting the day with it for at least the next 7 days. I'm eating nothing but fresh, raw fruit and veg for breakfast and lunch, whether whole or in juices/smoothies and then we will eat 'clean' healthy meals in the evenings, based on meat and vegetables, no grains, no potatoes, nothing to slow our systems down. We will reassess after a week and see how to go on from there. I say 'We' because they hubby's in on it too.

I'm hopeful that after a week of healthy eating with no dairy, grains or alcohol, I'll feel the benefits enough to be motivated to continue. I'll let you know in a week! For now, back to my smoothie ......

Fancy following my progress? I'll be posting my juices, smoothies and meals over on my Instagram feed. Come and follow me! @Wannyrow

 

 

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October in Pictures

Ok, I'm a bit late, but I thought I'd have a little round up of October, via the photographs on my phone. You'll have noticed that I don't often post photographs of my girls on the world wide web, especially not without having their faces obscured. This month, it seems to have left my photo roll a bit sparse. Either that, or we just didn't do much in October!

I've been busily turning Kitschy Coo's Skater Dress pattern in to princess dresses. I just love these. I spent a very pleasant evening drawing out lots of variations, including superhero versions, and can't wait to make them all. My girls inevitably love Disney princesses. You just can't avoid it, however much you try, but I can't bear to see them running around in those horrible, scratchy, polyester versions that you see every other four year old wearing. They are just as happy in these lovely soft jersey versions. In fact, they love them because I have made them (they are so proud when I have made them something, and tell everyone they see - something I am enjoying every minute of, as I imagine it won't always be the case!) I am happier with these too, because they last better, wash easier, and they can wear them to the supermarket without looking silly!!

I've also been making lots and lots of cushions, using TIDNY colouring book fabric from IKEA. I've been selling these through my Facebook shop and they are really popular. I knew that they were a good idea and would be popular, but I had no idea how much! I ended up buying an entire bolt of the fabric, and I am so glad that I did, because it seems to be out of stock everywhere now. I am just waiting for a break in the cushion making, so that I can make the girls dresses out of it - I think it would be so cool for them to be able to colour in their own dresses!

I have to make up for not publishing photographs of my girls by including pictures of my ridiculously cute cat at every opportunity. Here she is being very helpful while I cut fabric!

I haven't done much baking this month. Partly because we are trying to eat more healthily, but mostly due to the lost mojo that I have previously mentioned. But this almond banana loaf was lovely (GF of course).

It was our 5 year wedding anniversary in October and having never left our children with anyone overnight, and being badly in need of a full night's sleep, we treated ourselves to a night in a spa hotel. I will review the hotel in another post, but enough to say now that it was amazing and catered to my diet requirements really well - even producing a gluten free scone!

I had a really proud mum moment a few weeks ago when, on the way home from nursery, Evie asked if we could 'make her jeans prettier'. Oh my gosh, she was asking to customise her clothes. I was so pleased. So as soon as we got home, I pulled out some odds and ends of lace, some sequins and my glue gun, and we customised her jeans. It was so much fun, she loved it and her jeans look really cool. She was so proud of them too.

Lola loves her big sister so much, she wants to do and wear everything Evie does, so I had to make her a princess skater too. This is Aurora, from Sleeping Beauty.

Our day at the spa allowed me to read more of a book than I have in the last year. I read at least a chapter!!!

While I haven't been baking as such, I have been trying other things in the kitchen. The homemade marshmallows that I wrote about here were delicious. I've been trying out gluten free packet mixes too. My review of the chocolate cupcakes from Helen's foods is coming soon.

This month I had my first ever craft stall. It was a really fun day and I've got another couple booked in the run up to Christmas. I love making gift type items and hopefully other people will love what I make, enough to buy them!

So that was our October. Quite nice and chilled with lots of time at home crafting and pottering in the kitchen. November and December will be busy. We've got lots of weekends away planned, Lola's birthday, and of course Christmas, so it will be hectic. I can't wait!

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Super Squidgy Mega Marshmallows!

Since becoming a gluten free family, a failsafe standby treat in this house has been rice crispy squares.  Not very imaginative for a dedicated baker I know, but I seem to have lost my baking mojo somewhat since going GF.  Previously, no trip away in the caravan would have been complete without a tin of goodies - homemade cakes, bread etc.

My failsafe Gluten Free goodies of chocolate macarons and pistachio fudge are always welcome, but seem a bit rich to be snuck in to the picnic basket!  So, I've been merrily making rice crispy cakes, by melting marshmallows and butter together, adding gluten free rice crispies and whatever random sweets are lying around from party bags etc.  The bright nuggets of crushed up sweets (our favourites are jelly beans) are little explosions of flavour and look like little specks of confetti in the white sticky squares.  I even made a 'Frozen' version for the 4 year old's birthday party, which went down with the parents almost better than the kids!

* Marshmallow crispy squares are ridiculously easy, but if you need a recipe, head to the ever reliable Nigella's recipe here.

This week, it being half term, Grandma came to stay with us.  In anticipation of this, I picked up a bag of marshmallows and one of jelly beans in the weekly shop, ready for a 'bake with grandmother' session.  Well, imagine my surprise (not) when I went to the cupboard to find the bag of marshmallows over half empty!  I suspect the husband, but he's passing the blame firmly down to the girls.

So what does a girl do, when she wants to make crispy squares and doesn't have enough marshmallows?  Well, she hits google of course!  I found most recipes needed corn syrup, which I neither had to hand, nor remembered ever seeing in the supermarket!  I googled a bit more, taking note of the many pearls of wisdom warning me that I was about to embark on a tricky task that would make a bomb site of my kitchen.   Well, those people have not seen my kitchen during the course of a normal day.  It's a bomb site anyway, so we might as well get marshmallows out of it!

I found a couple of recipes here and here that were exactly the same and didn't require corn syrup, so I went with those.

I have got to say, I found the whole thing such a lot easier than expected, and as long as you cover your mixer with a tea towel whilst it's doing it's business, there really isn't much mess.  The recipe was dead quick and easy and the results were delicious!!  You are going to need a decent stand mixer for this though.  An electric hand whisk isn't going to cut it.  Your stand mixer doesn't have to be bright pink of course, but your marshmallows will taste better if it is.

It did make quite a lot of marshmallows and they are very sweet (but oh so much nicer than the shop bought ones, and with none of the nasties) so I did wonder how best to store them all and keep them fresh.   Once again, a bit of googling came up trumps with the suggestion that they can be frozen, very successfully.  Much like my favourite Nigella fudge, they don't actually freeze and can be eaten straight from the freezer!  Brilliant!  They are that little bit more hidden so that you're not as tempted by them on a daily basis, but there when you want to wow some unexpected guests.  That's my kind of homemade treat!

Give them a try.  I promise you won't be disappointed.  They honestly take less than 10 minutes work in the kitchen, and then overnight to set.  Oh, top tip for cutting them in to chunks afterwards - fill a pint glass with very hot water and dip your sharp knife in to it, in between each slice, wiping with a clean towel afterwards.  Your knife will slide through the mallow so much easier if it's clean and slightly warm.  Then dust the cut edges liberally with icing sugar, or do what I did and plonk your squares into a freezer bag, with a tablespoon or so of icing sugar and give them a good shake.

These were almost too good to melt down in to crispy cakes (although we did use some for that purpose) but they were absolutely amazing, melting in to a cup of Jamie Oliver's Epic Hot Chocolate.

If you'd like to read more of my recipe reviews, or any of my other pearls of wisdom, please click the subscribe button, to the right of this post.  You can follow me by email, using bloglovin, or by joining my Facebook page.

Diary of a Glutening

Yesterday, four months in to my gluten-free lifestyle, I glutened myself. Not on purpose, I'm not that much of an idiot, but I am somewhat of an idiot, because I ate something, in this case salmon sandwich spread, without checking the label first.

For those that don't know, 'glutened' is the term used by many coeliac sufferers to describe the act of eating gluten, either knowingly or unknowingly, and effectively poisoning yourself. I have been 'glutened' before of course, but usually it's the symptoms that let me know it has happened, and I have to think back to what I've eaten, and work out what the culprit was. Sometimes, I've been glutened at the hands of others, and sometimes I've done it to myself, but this is the first time I've known at the point of eating (or rather, immediately after) that I've ingested wheat, and therefore can expect some pain to come.

Now aside from making me very cross with myself for failing to read a label, this episode has allowed me to pay attention to what happens as a result of eating wheat, and record my symptoms. Partly so that I know what to expect in future, partly so that I can look back in future and see if my symptoms have changed, but more importantly, so that I can hopefully help to increase awareness of how important if is for those of us with coeliac disease to avoid gluten, and how we can be affected by even the smallest amount.

I probably ate about a tablespoon of salmon paste, which contained wheat. Wheat was clearly not the main ingredient, so in actual fact, I will have consumed very little gluten. Here is my diary of symptoms for the hours and days following. (Times are approximate - I'm not quite sad enough to have noted exact times!)

Tuesday, 1pm

Ate the dreaded salmon paste. No bodily symptoms yet, just the feeling of being an utter imbecile.

Tuesday, 6pm

Feeling more tired than usual, but can I put that down to the gluten? Eyes feel fuzzy. Need to put my glasses on (which I don't often do)

Tuesday, 10pm

Feeling slightly queasy, but nothing that's affecting me too much

Wednesday, 8am

Extremely tired. Tired eyes and again need glasses on (it's pretty unheard of for me to wear my glasses during the daytime unless I'm reading). Made a series of bad decisions. Not thinking clearly - the dreaded 'brain fog'. Really thirsty.

Wednesday, 11am

Well enough to meet friends for coffee, but I can feel trouble coming now. Make even more stupid mistakes. Brain is definitely not working properly! Still really thirsty, although I've drunk loads.

Wednesday, 12.30pm

The dodgy tummy begins. I feel a bit spaced. Would definitely not trust myself to make any major decisions right now! Feel hung over, without the benefits of having had a good night out. Friends will attest to the fact I'm being even more of an idiot than usual. Leaving the car parked far too long, being where I'm supposed to be, but an hour early (that NEVER happens!), leaving the cafe without paying. You know the kind of stuff.

Wednesday, 5pm

Really tired. Bones ache. Limbs feel like jelly. Slightly nauseous and starting to get stomach cramps. Clock watching for husband to come home so that I can go to bed and cuddle a hot water bottle. Stiff neck and shoulders. Still very thirsty, cannot drink enough. Lips have split, although I've been putting blisteeze on then all day. Guess I'm dehydrated. Feels like a hangover, migraine and stomach bug all rolled in to one.

Wednesday, 6pm

In bed with hot water bottle on tummy, heat pack around shoulders and cold pack on my forehead. The migraine is kicking in. I've also got heartburn, and pins and needles in my hands. Feeling alternately sorry for, and cross with, myself. All this for a tablespoon of sandwich paste! Wish it had at least been a donut, or some lovely fresh bread.

Thursday, 7.30am

Just woke up. Slept for 12 hours straight. I've got a stinking headache. Feeling groggy, hung over, pains in stomach and heartburn, constipated, achy all over and legs feel like jelly. Could probably sleep another 12 hours, or at least stay in bed, but no chance of that with two preschool kids around!

All of this for a spoonful of paste! Next time anyone utters the words "oh, a little bit won't hurt, surely?" I will direct them to this post. Or punch them in the face, depending on how much I like them!

** N.B. Of course, I won't really punch anyone in the face ..... But I will imagine that I am **

Friday

Sluggish all day. Dull headache and random stomach cramps. Alternate diarrhoea and constipation. Going out tonight for a friends birthday, but feel more like going to bed!

Saturday

Felt ill all day. Nauseous, achy, headache, horrible cramps and gurgling in stomach. Went back to bed for the afternoon after taking a migraine pill. Got up for long enough to have dinner and watch Dr Who, then back to bed. 11pm and I'm in bed struggling to sleep due to pains and gurgling in stomach and restless legs.

Sunday

Horrible nights sleep with pains and gurgling in stomach. Awake at 6am with diarrhoea

Monday - Wednesday

Feeling generally run down and 'buggy'. No longer having specific symptoms, but can definitely tell that my immune system has been compromised. Apparently it can take my guts 3 weeks to recover from a 'glutening' incident, but since I'm still quite definitely in the 'repair' stage of my gluten-free journey, who knows what effect the incident has had on my overall recovery time. General wisdom seems to be that it can take 1-2 years for the gut to heal once you go gluten-free. Which is understandable, when you consider in my case, I was poisoning myself for almost 20 years before getting a diagnosis! I do hope my spoonful of paste hasn't put me back to square one!

To those fellow Coeliacs out there following my blog, how does my symptom diary compare to yours? And do you have any tips for me on how to get through it quicker or more easily next time?

 

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Ugg Foods Gluten Free Muffins - GF Product Review

Back at the end of May, I had the unpleasant experience of a gastroscopy, which is basically a tube fed down my throat and all the way to my intestines, so that a biopsy could be taken, to confirm Coeliac disease. This was not a pleasant experience at all. I can honestly say that I'd rather go through labour again than have another gastroscopy without sedation, despite the fact the whole procedure took less than 10 minutes. (Although to be fair, my second labour only took 25 minutes!!)

 

Anyway, I digress. Although I haven't had the official biopsy result yet, the doctor saw plenty enough damage to my insides to confirm the Coeliac disease diagnosis and I've been eating gluten free ever since (with a couple of little mishaps, which I'll talk about another time)

 

The day of the biopsy, I felt pretty sorry for myself. The gastroscopy had been horrible and I felt sore. Then I came home and there on the kitchen counter, was the remains of my husbands birthday cake, in all it's gluten-laden glory!!

 

I was tempted to postpone the start of my gluten-free life. Especially since it was my birthday the following week and we were going away for a week in our caravan. Starting GF right away would likely mean no fish and chips whilst holidaying at the seaside. Could I handle that yet? But, I've been feeling pretty rubbish and am eager to get better. A quick poll of my Facebook friends revealed they all thought the same: don't delay feeling better! So, I served up the rest of that birthday cake to the husband and kids and sulked a bit.

 

I've got amazing friends and neighbours. I already know that, but the fact was reinforced when, next time I went out the front door, I found these on my doorstep:

One of my lovely neighbours, who knows an awful lot about nutrition, had left two gluten free ready mixes from Ugg Foods for me. I was so touched. Thanks so much Sheila!!

With all the kerfuffle of birthdays and holidays, I didn't get around to making them right away, but I did this week, and I thought I'd tell you all about them.

I tried the Chia Seed Muffins pack first. I had never heard of Chia Seeds before, but an article on Huffpost revealed that they are full of healthy things like calcium, manganese, phosphorus and healthy omega 3 fats.

The mix was incredibly easy to put together. I whisked together almond milk, eggs and oil and then poured the contents of the packet in. Give it a stir, let it sit for a couple of minutes to thicken, then pour into cupcake cases. Easy.

I found that my cakes needed quite a lot longer in the oven than suggested on the pack, so use your own judgement to decide when they are done. Mine also remained quite flat, not risen, as in the picture on the packet.

Texture wise, they were similar to a poppy seed muffin, due to the chia seeds, but I'd say they were a bit grainier. They felt a little bit greasy on the top, which I have found to be the case quite often with gluten free cakes and biscuits, even shop bought ones.

They tasted great though. I could taste the almond milk, which was good for me, as I love almonds. I wouldn't say they taste quite as good as a great big 'Starbucks style' muffin, but then you don't have to feel guilty about eating them, they are doing you good, full of good nutritious things, and still taste like a treat with your cuppa.

I haven't made the other mix up yet, but I'll let you know when I do.

If you fancy a gluten free, dairy free, paleo friendly, healthy treat, I definitely reccommend giving these a try. A pack in your cupboard, ready for when you need a treat, would definitely help with the 'why has everything I want to eat got gluten in it?" moments!

You can check out Ugg Foods here. There's a ton of information on nutrition on their site, and some yummy looking recipes, which are all gluten and dairy free, paleo and nutritious, so well worth a look.

Before I go, check out my beautiful cake forks. They are from Laguiole and I love them. I love the little bee logo and the beautiful coloured handles. Someday I will treat myself to a full set of this cutlery!!

TTFN!

 

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GF Recipe: Quick Fennel Flatbreads

 

A week in to my Gluten Free lifestyle, and I don't think I've managed a fully gluten-free day yet. I've not deliberately eaten any gluten, but I keep making little mistakes. It's becoming apparent already that rather than keep the rest of the household eating normally and store my gluten-free food seperately, I will need to make my kitchen gluten-free. Probably with the exception of a few things for the kids, purely because otherwise our food bill will bankrupt us! It's awful that I need to think like this, because of the extortionate cost of gluten-free food, but that's another rant for another day.

I need to make packed lunches for the girls at least two days a week and there's no getting away from the fact that sandwiches are by far the easiest food for this. Shop bought gluten-free bread is expensive and homemade bread is not normally great for kids lunchbox style sandwiches, so my way around this is to buy a sliced loaf, make the whole thing up into sandwiches in one go, and then freeze them. I can clean up thoroughly afterwards and remove all traces of gluten and the ready source of sandwiches saves me from the possibility of another episode like this. I can take them straight out of the freezer in the morning and they are defrosted and ready to eat by lunchtime. (Great tip for those of you that take sandwiches to work and end up eating them by 10 am too!)

I haven't gad a go at gluten free bread, loaf-style yet, but yesterday, while warming some nice homemade veggie soup from the freezer (what a picture of domestic bliss and preparedness I paint. Oh, how I wish it was so all of the time!) I felt like I needed something to dunk in it.

My usual quick google search, followed by a combination of recipes, produced these:

They were really easy to make, and perfect to dunk into houmous, or to eat with the curry we had for tea later. They don't keep very well - they go quite hard and dry, but would probably perk up if sprinkled with water and flashed under the grill, as you would naan breads.

It doesn't matter that they don't keep though, because they took seconds to make. They would be great for the kids to make and are perfect for those 'dammit, ran out of bread' moments.

 

Quick Fennel Flatbreads

 

Ingredients:

200g self raising flour (I used GF, obviously)

150g natural yoghurt

1 tbsp milk or water

Salt and pepper

I added a tablespoon on fennel seeds, but you could omit these, or swap them for anything you like: poppy or sesame seeds, cumin, herbs, a smidge of paprika - whatever you fancy.

 

Method:

Heat your grill to high and dust a baking sheet with flour

Stir the dry ingredients together in a bowl

Add the wet ingredients and stir to form a dough

Divide into four balls. Flatten into round discs and place them on the baking tray, sprinkled with a bit more flour

Grill for 3-5 minutes each side, until golden and puffy

Dunk into soup, or dip of your choice.

Yum!

 

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Easy Midweek Dinner: Fancy Fish Pie

A few weeks ago, while shopping, I found these bargains in the reduced section of the supermarket:

I had no plans for them at the time, just stashed them in the freezer. This morning, in an effort to be organised for tonight's tea, I decided to turn them into a fish pie. Good old comfort food! (And Gluten Free, of course!)

I did my usual thing, which is google a couple of recipes for the general idea and quantities, and then made it up as I went along. Ingredients wise, I pretty much went with what was in my fridge and freezer.

First off I peeled a white onion into thick slices, and put it in a pan with a couple of bay leaves and the fish (440g skinless & boneless haddock and 325g salmon, but use whatever fish you happen to have, or find in the reduced section!)

I poured over 500ml milk, added salt and pepper and brought the lot to a gentle boil. I simmered gently for a few minutes and then turned the heat off and left it, with the lid on, to cool. You don't need to worry about the fish not being cooked enough. It will be, and anyway, it's going in the oven again later too!

In the meanwhile, I roughly chopped some potatoes (about 800g) and put them on to boil, for the mash topping. I had red skinned potatoes to hand, so used those. I don't usually peel potatoes for mash. Just give them a wash and cut off any dodgy bits.

After the fish has cooled and infused for at least 20 minutes, drain it, so that you collect the liquid in a jug. Remove the bay leaves and discard.

Now you can transfer the fish to your casserole dish, breaking it into fairly large pieces and checking for bones. I removed the skin from the salmon at this point too. The haddock was already skinless. Some recipes told me to discard the onion, but I chopped it up and added it to the fish. I also scattered over a couple of handfuls of frozen peas. You could use sweetcorn, or any other frozen veg.

Next, in a clean pan, I stirred together 40g butter and 40g (gluten free) flour. I put the pan on a gentle heat, beating the mix until it formed a smooth paste. Now add the reserved milk from boiling the fish. Add it bit by bit, whisking or stirring to combine it with the flour and butter paste, before adding the next bit. Once all the milk is combined, bring to a gentle boil, constantly stirring, and then take off the heat. The sauce should be nice and thick.

Pour the sauce over the fish and veg mixture. I found a little pack of crayfish tails in the freezer and decided to add those too (hence the fancy fish pie) but you could use prawns, or leave it out all together. A bit of pepper, a scrape of nutmeg if you like it, and give the lot a very gentle stir. You want to mix it all together, but without breaking the fish up too much.

Mash your potatoes however you like to do it. I used a nob of butter, a splash of milk, and half a tub of cream cheese that was lurking in the fridge.

Spoon the mash all over the top of your pie, and scatter with some grated cheese. Previously, I'd have scattered some breadcrumbs over the top, before the cheese, so the top went nice and crispy.

That's it. If, like me, you're getting this done while the kids are eating breakfast, you can put the pie in the fridge, to cook later. Either way, when it's time to eat, preheat the oven to 200c/Gas 6. Take your pie out of the fridge to come up to room temperature, or you risk cracking your casserole dish (learnt that one the hard way - RIP beautiful, heart-shaped LeCreuset casserole) and then cook for 25 minutes, until the top is brown and you can see bubbling bits of fish sauce at the sides.

Yum yum. Add some veg, a nice salad, or some crusty bread (snif!) and tuck in!

The pie was delicious. Polished off without fuss by both of the kids, and even the salmon-hating husband enjoyed it. The crayfish tails gave it a really lovely flavour, and they weren't an expensive addition. I found them in little packs in Aldi.

Servings wise, there was definitely enough for six hungry adults. Possibly more with bread and veg. Less than half served our family of four plentifully, with just the addition of broccoli and peas.

 

Ingredients

 

For the filling:

Roughly 800g mixed fish

500ml milk

1 onion, peeled and thickly sliced

2 bay leaves

40g butter

40g flour

150g frozen peas

150g crayfish tails or prawns (optional)

 

For the topping:

800g potatoes

1 Tbsp butter

3 Tbsp milk

100g cream cheese

30g grated cheese

 

Special Diets:

If you need to be gluten free, like me, just use gluten free flour. If you're on Slimming World or just watching the calories, you can use skimmed milk and omit the butter, milk and cheese from the mash. You could use quark or fat free yoghurt in the mash if you like, to make it creamier.

 

Let me know if you try it. I'd love to hear what you thought, and see a pic of yours!

 

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My Coeliac Diagnosis Story - Update

I finally saw a consultant last week, about my Coeliac diagnosis. I only got the positive blood test in November, so you know, that didn't take long at all! The best part of it was, she didn't see why I needed to see her before getting the biopsy and the biopsy wait times are 3-4 weeks, so if someone had applied common sense somewhere, I could have had that biopsy, and stopped poisoning myself, 4 months ago!!

Ok, there's no point being cross now, we are where we are. And that's with a positive Coeliac diagnosis because, as she explained, even in the extremely tiny likelihood that I get a negative biopsy result, after a positive blood test result (assuming I have continued to eat gluten in the meanwhile), my consultant is diagnosing Coeliac anyway, due to the bloods, symptoms, etc. I have already been referred for a long list of tests and appointments, on the basis of that positive diagnosis. This does beg the question, why do I need a biopsy then?, but that's the NHS for you. They need to tick the boxes.

In addition to the biopsy (which I am really looking forward to, because having a long tube fed down my throat while I'm wide awake, sounds like a fun day out!) I now need to have a bone density scan, because existing issues I have with my hip and lower back might be related to this, and indicate that there might be some bone degeneration already.

Then I need to have more tests, because the consultant thinks I probably have thyroid disease and lactose intolerance also. They are commonly linked to Coeliac disease apparently, and I show symptoms of both.

I need to see a dietician, who will explain the restrictions of my new diet to me, and talk me through the foods that I will be able to get on prescription. I also need to have a flu jab every year, and another one that I can't remember the name of, because by that point, I think I had taken too much in.

My biopsy appointment was made right away, for 28th May. So 4 weeks until the start of my new life. A new life where I will become one of those people that is incredibly annoying to cook for! Eating out will become a mission in planning and our 'play it by ear' and 'pick something up on the way' lifestyle will need to change.

I got a taste of this last weekend when, out with friends, plans changed at the last minute (as they frequently do, where kids are involved) and we ended up in a cafe for lunch. I took the chance to have a look around and see what I'd be able to eat there in a month. Guess what? ...... nothing! Absolutely nothing! And that wasn't me being super paranoid and worrying about cross-contamination, there wasn't even a jacket potato or salad option. We had 5 hungry children between us and were in a forest park, so no chance of going elsewhere. It didn't matter, because obviously I am still eating gluten for the time being, but it did highlight to me how much forethought and planning will need to go in to my new life.

There are many cafés and restaurants that do cater for gluten-free diets of course, and with some organisation, I will still be able to enjoy all the food I do now. The difference will be in the planning. We are not big planners. That will need to change. Either that, or I will need to carry a cool-bag of food around with me at all times! Thank goodness for our caravan and the ability to have self-catered, gluten-free holidays whenever we want them.

On the plus side though, and this far outweighs everything else, In a couple of months time, I should start to feel much, much better. I will no longer be increasing my risk of osteoporosis and various other things that come from a severe lack of nutrients. I should start to recover levels of iron, calcium, vitamin D and goodness knows what else, that I am currently low in. Hopefully, that will mean I no longer feel hung over all the time. I should be able to watch a film without falling asleep, get past breakfast time without wanting to go back to bed and recover some kind of medical capacity.

Just in case I can help someone else recognise the possibility of Coeliac disease in themselves, especially if, like me, their symptoms are not typically 'gastric', here's what I hope will go away, once I am fully gluten-free, and my gut has had chance to heal:

Migraines

Mouth ulcers

Random stomach cramps

Nausea

Anaemia

Extreme tiredness

Aching joints and bones

Dry skin and cracked, bleeding hands and feet

Depression and anxiety

Brittle nails and hair

Really useless immune system - someone sneezes in the same room as me and I am ill

Mood swings and general crankiness (this might be wishful thinking. It may turn out that this is just my personality!)

Lethargy

Difficulty in concentrating / thinking properly

Poor memory

I'm listing these things so that I can look back, in six months to a year's time and hopefully see an improvement. But also because, if my friend Gemma, of Coeliac and Me had never written a great post about the improvement in her Coeliac symptoms, post diagnosis, I would never had recognised them in myself and got tested. If you see yourself in either of our lists of symptoms, please head over to Coeliac UK to read more, and ask your doctor for a blood test! Remember that 1 in 10 people have this disease, so it's not that unlikely that you have it!

For now, I'm off to eat some cake, because if I've got to poison myself for another month, I'm at least going to do it with nice tasting stuff!

Come back in a month, and I'll let you know how the lifestyle change is going.

 

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Recipe Challenge

I was talking with my lovely friend Lucy this week about baking (no surprise there then!) and the monthly baking challenge she set herself here. It got me thinking about what would be on my challenge list. I'm not going to set myself a monthly target, but I thought I'd come up with a list, with the aim of trying to complete as much as I can this year.

So, in no particular order, here's my list:

Suet Pudding. I've never cooked with suet before, so I'm actually going to do this one today, using the Hairy Bikers' Layered Beef and Mushroom Suet Pudding recipe. I'll post about it later.

Baked Cheesecake. How have I never made a baked cheesecake? I love them. I reckon this recipe for Peanut Butter and Banana Cheesecake by Eric Lanlard, looks amazing!

Creme Caramel. I love the mass produced kind that comes in a little plastic pot from the supermarket, with the sauce at the bottom, so a homemade version has got to be amazing, especially if Mary Berry's showing you how!

Fresh Pasta. This is something I really need to do with Evie. She loves making her own pizza, or bread rolls, and she loves pasta, so making her own will be great. It's also something that will be really useful for me to be able to make for myself, once I start eating Gluten Free. With that in mind, I think I'll have a go at this recipe from Doves Farm.

Chocolate Fondant. "The road to Masterchef is paved with failed Chocolate Fondants" said Greg Wallace during one episode, and for some reason, it stuck with Joe and I, so that whenever we are faced with a menu containing said dessert, you can bet your life one of us will repeat it, in our best Greg voice. I think I'll try this recipe by Gordon Ramsay.

French Onion Soup. I think I'm going to have to go with Delia for this one.

Gnocchi. Another recipe that will be very useful once we go GF. I've been recommended this recipe from Serious Eats.

 

Bedfordshire Clanger. I was going to say Cornish Pasty, but really, I should keep it local and go for a Clanger!

Staffordshire Oatcakes. While we're talking regional specialities, I should go back to my teenage years and recreate the Staffordshire Oatcake. Delicious for brunch with beans, bacon and melted cheese!

Syrup Sponge. I've never made one of these, but I'm pretty sure my 'anything with custard' husband would love it. Plus, how cute do these mini ones look?

Hash Browns. Luuurve hash browns! The absolute best bit of a McDonalds breakfast! A homemade version is surely going to be healthier and yummier? This recipe on the Wicked Yummy blog looks scrummy!

Potted Shrimps. My starter of choice at Loch Fyne. Felicity Cloake's excellent "How to cook the perfect ...." series in The Guardian featured a recipe here, and I haven't found one of her recipes to fail yet, so I'll be giving that a try.

Stollen. This will probably wait until the end of the year, as Christmas is just not Christmas without Stollen! I'll be Gluten Free by then, so think I'll give this recipe a try.

So there it is, my bakers dozen of food challenges. Will I get them all done by the end of the year? Watch out for blog posts on each one. What would be on your list?

 

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