As most of my readers know, I do not have to follow a gluten free diet. However, in January 2008 my then-fiance was diagnosed with celiac disease. We had just finalized the menu for our wonderful wedding at Glen Sanders and went to our cake tasting at Villa Italia when he found out that flour - among other ingredients - was off the menu for good. My Italian fiance was crushed - his favorite foods were (and still are) pasta, pizza, pasta, cookies, pasta, Italian bread... I could go on and on.
Now, any of my family, friends, or co-workers will tell you that I tend to get a little, ah, immersed in new projects. I spent hours if not days Googling. I purchased a handful of books - both general books about celiac disease and the gluten free lifestyle and recipe books. I started e-mailing and calling restaurants and food companies obsessively. I memorized all sorts of intimidating ingredients to look for in labels, conversion measurements for different types of flours, etc. I purchased a boat load of gluten free goods to try - and even more tools like hot dog bun pans, hamburger bun pans, Italian bread pans, and the like.
After our first gluten free shopping trip, spending about $300 on a whole bunch of staples and new gluten free products, I took on his diagnosis as a challenge. We spent so much money on sub-par food it wasn't even funny - I would find or learn how to make substitutes for all of his favorite foods. I started this blog that winter in order to not only keep track of my thoughts and learning process but also share my hard-earned knowledge.
As fortune would have it (quite literally!) we received a lot of great gifts for my bridal shower - new non-stick pans (because I had read that gluten can reside in the scratches), a new toaster (designated gluten free), a bread machine, loaf pans, utensils, airtight flour containers, and countless other items that I was unbelievably grateful for! Still, it was a learning experience - I experimented with different bread/cookie/cake recipes for weeks before finally finding the recipes that I wanted to use. Not all of my concoctions turned out good - some of them were downright awful and others turned out amazing. I haven't blogged about all of them (I don't know if I can be sued for posting about reverse engineering famous restaurants' recipes) but I have shared some.
Then, I started grad school on top of a full time job. Posting became sporadic (especially when working on large projects and papers) and I noticed a shift from mostly recipes to mostly restaurants and products. It is what it is, I suppose, though I keep meaning to do more with this blog "when I get a spare second or two."
So.... here goes. My list of nominees for "An attitude of gratitude."
I would love to list all of my friends here - I have a great, supportive group of friends who have made an effort to learn what my husband can and cannot have so they can invite him into their home and serve him food that he can have without fear. And they don't own blogs that I know of but I'm also grateful for Glen Sanders and Villa Italia for being so accomodating at our wedding and making it truly special - and gluten free.
Now, here are the blogs.
First I'd like to thank Lisa. I know it's a boomerang nomination, but I'd like to thank her for two reasons. First, she's the first "online" person who's reached out and contacted me after I started my blog and that encouraged me to keep at it! Secondly, she has some pretty great information, most recently about where to find gluten free Corn Chex and Bell and Evans chicken (incidentally, which I also just found back in Latham Price Chopper, yay!)
Second, I'd like to nominate A Gluten Free Guide. This is a great blog for "gluten free scoops." I found out about gluten free Betty Crocker mixes first from the Guide!
Third, I'd like to also nominate Elizabeth Barbone from Easy Gluten Free Baking. Her recipes and tricks are so useful and I love reading her blog.
Fourth I'd like to nominate Rachel from the Crispy Cook. She has great meatless or seafood recipes, and has so many ideas for veggies and herbs that I would never think of!
That's about all I can think of right now - but these are great blogs and well worth reading. Thank you for all you've done for the gluten free community!
For those of you who have been nominated, your instructions are:
* put the logo on your blog or post
* nominate at least 10 blogs that show an an attitude of gratitude (*note* I was only able to come up with four, but they are a fantastic four...don't you think?)
* link to your nominees within your post
* comment on their blogs to let them know they’ve received this award
* share the love and link to this post and the person who nominated you for the award
* tell us how you’ve come to have an attitude of gratitude
When Life Gives You Lemons...Make Lemonade!
Thank you again!!!!!!
2 comments:
Kat - Thank you so much! :)
Thank you for this kind award. I will have to give this some thought and report back on my other blog picks.
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