Keeping up with your favorite topics on the web has never been easier. The variety of methods continues to grow with blogs, twitter search, various RSS aggregators and much more. One of my favorite ways to keep up on Gluten Free articles, recipes and foods is to set up a Google Alert. If you are not familiar with Google Alerts let me give a quick overview.

The idea behind Google Alert is to keep you up-to-date on new happenings around the web that involve a topic you are interested in. As Google indexes articles, blogs and other writings it stores the information so it can be searched easily. With Google Alerts, you set up a keyword or phrase for the topic you are interested in and Google compiles the information on that topic when it is made available.

As an example, I have a Google Alert for “gluten free”. As new information is indexed by Google about things gluten free I receive an email with a list of links and a short snippet of each article. So instead of scouring the web looking for gluten free information, I have that information coming to me.

There are a few settings you can choose to make the information available to you. You can choose to have it appear in an email within your Gmail account or you can have it pass to a feed reader such as Google Reader.

For topics that are getting written about frequently I would recommend using the feed reader to aggregate the information into a nicely formatted list. For topics that receive less frequent updates or topics that are very important to you you might want to have the aggregated links sent to your Gmail. Another nifty setting for Google Alerts is the frequency you gather the updates. By changing the “How often” setting it is possible to receive updates as-it-happens, once-a-day or once-a-week. Lets face it, we are inundated with information daily and sometimes we do not need to know everything right away about a particular subject.

I am sure there are “Alert Power Users” out there that can offer other benefits or techniques in using Google Alerts. If you don’t already have a Gmail account get one and utilize the wonderous Alerts system.

There were some highs and lows today. The lows were when Tom and I went to the “1st Annual Chris Doherty Ping Pong Tournament”. Naturally we expected some level of disorganization and we were not disappointed. They announced that 150 participants had signed up for the tournament and obviously they were a little shocked by the turn out. The tournament began and there were games being played by each age bracket including the “Open”. We signed up in the Open bracket and after watching other players in the bracket we realized with went in a bit over our heads. Those players were very good. Anyway, we sat and waited to play while our bracket was slowly being neglected so we left before either of us got to play…three hours later. Other players were upset with the organization of the event but hopefully it will be better planned next time. Ok, enough of that rant…

Supper club was at the Rootes house this month and it was the high of the day. Sue attempted to make rice in the crock pot but for whatever reason it was not done by the time we had to leave. I dropped Sue and the boys off at the Rootes and ran to the nearest Chinese food joint to get some rice…3 quarts of rice. Bobby Jo put together a great meal of tacos, southwestern chicken soup and margaritas. Annette brought chips, salsa and taco fixings. Elisa made some cupcakes decorated with icing in the Mexican flag colors. Sue made up a sour cream dip for chips and some ice cream cupcakes for dessert.

Following the meal we went for a walk down an extra secret path from the Rootes home that led to the area high school’s outdoor basketball court. After almost being run down by a rogue 4-wheeler we played games of four square, P.I.G and some Tip-in game I was not familiar with. Oddly enough we never broke into our customary rounds of Knock-out. Everyone seemed to be gearing down for the evening so we headed back to the house for a little dessert and discussion. Nathaniel and Bobby Jo were great hosts and Supper Club was another success.

Kids playing in the sandbox. Hannah not keen on the paparazzi.

Tom averting his eyes as he plates up.

Elisa and Chuck conducting a soccer clinic.

A little chaos at the high school hoops. Tom, are you playing defense in a game of P.I.G.?

Sometimes we need a mortality check. Just a wake up call so we know there are things bigger than us and we are not going to be here forever. A few years ago my sister-in-law Pauline was diagnosed with cancer. Pauline is thirty five years old…the same age as me. Her recent prognosis is that she only has a handful of months left with us. You can read her story at our store Beads and Quilts – Pauline’s Story.

We all like to think that we are in difficult situations each day but I can not imagine being in the same situation as Pauline. Since she was diagnosed I sometimes vicariously put myself in her position and it almost brings me to tears thinking about all the things I might miss. Things like my boys growing up, growing old with my wife and enjoying some of my ‘golden’ years. When you are young it is difficult to digest such a situation.

With Pauline’s guidance we developed a bracelet that shows the continued “Hope” Pauline and our family members have that she will overcome the cancer. All profits and donations from the bracelet will go directly to the Pauline Benefit Fund that will be used by the family for medical expenses and other needs. See Pauline’s “Hope” Bracelet at our store. The bracelet would make a great Mother’s Day gift.

We thank you for your prayers and any contributions you can make.

I really knew nothing about gluten or eating “gluten free”. When my son Ryan was diagnosed with a gluten allergy we immediately started research on the web. Thankfully there were a number of sites that had information and links to alternate foods we could try. Look for some resource links at the end of this post.

I worked in food service for eleven years, some as a cook and some as a manager. Throughout my career I have come up against others with dietary requirements. One of the most common requirements was a vegetarian diet. I never had someone require a gluten free diet.

There was a point where I had to limit my diet because my gallbladder was giving me trouble. For a few months I had to avoid fatty foods until my gallbladder calmed down so it could be removed. After that I got to enjoy the foods I had to avoid and for the most part felt great. So why did I just recently change to a gluten free diet?

1. It’s Healthy -
When you embark on a gluten free diet the foods you replace are usually much healthier. Breads and other baked goods contain lots of white flour which is generally an unhealthy and cheap way to produce these products. Gluten free breads are made with healthy flours such as white rice flour, potato starch and tapioca starch among others. On a gluten free diet you tend to eat more fruits and vegetables as your snacks and fillers during meals. We already eat too few of these so why not take advantage of the opportunity to introduce more into our diet. Another healthy plus is you start paying attention to labels more. With all the quick and easy meals out there now people forget to be health conscious with their choices. In addition to removing gluten you can also focus on reducing things like sodium and fat in your diet.

2. Family Members Must Do It Why Not you? –
If you have a family member that is on a gluten free diet for whatever reason, why not jump in and try it yourself? This is the way I started with the diet. My son has been on the diet for a few years and my wife and I made the decision to give it a try for a week to better understand what he goes through. We found that it is easier for us to just cook a complete gluten free dish than two separate dishes each meal. Since making the change it seems to have brought our family even closer. There is no long a disconnect we had by eating foods in front of Ryan that he may never get to eat.

3. Cooking is an Adventure -
When Ryan was on the gluten free diet himself he would stick to his ‘old stand-by’ meals of fluffer nutters with ricemellow and soy nut butter on tapioca loaf. Since the family made the move to gluten free we have been experimenting with numerous recipes. We first had to filter through ingredients that do not contain gluten. Once we had our list we got recipe ideas from magazines, cookbooks and websites. We are continuously adding the recipes we create or find to this blog under the tag Gluten Free. Not only have we created some great tasting foods but we have been creating a small library of foods everyone in the house loves.

Overall, going gluten free has been an easy transition for us. Over the past few weeks I have been feeling better and lost a few pounds in the process(not that I need to). One thing to be conscious of is to make sure you get your vitamins and minerals. As was said earlier you will and should eat more fruits and vegetables in addition to varying your diet. With so many great recipes coming to the web daily your meals should be the equivalent of non-gluten free in taste but healthier.

Resources:
Gluten Free Mall – Great place to get all the ingredients you need for healthy gluten free meals.

The Gluten Free Mommy – An assortment of great recipes that have never failed us.

Ener-G Foods – Wonderful product list of gluten free breads, cookies, pastas and more.

Our local grocery store had some turkey sausage that was completely allergen free for my son including gluten.

We used Barkat Animal Shapes Gluten-Free Pasta as the pasta which came out a perfect al dente. The feature of the meal though was the turkey sausage. The flavor it delivered to the dish made your mouth consistently water for another bite. We removed the casing from the sausage and cooked it up in a frying pan with some diced onions.

To plate it up just put a bed of pasta on the plate, spoon the turkey sausage and onion mixture on top and cover with Pecorino Romano cheese. A very flavorful and filling dish.

We are known to frequently have breakfast for dinner. Eggs, French toast and sometimes cereal when we are not feeling up for spending too much time in the kitchen. This Broccoli Cheese Quiche recipe turned out amazing. This recipe serves 4 people.

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small onion chopped
• 1 large crown of broccoli chopped
• 3 potatoes chopped small
• 1/4 tsp salt and pepper
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 4 eggs
• 2/3 cup milk
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/2 tsp parsley
• 2 Tablespoons shredded parmesan

Directions
Sauté onion in the olive oil. Partially cook the potatoes in the microwave for about 5 minutes. Add broccoli, potatoes, salt, pepper and garlic to the sautéd onions and cook for approx. 5-7 minutes. Mix eggs, milk, cheddar cheese and parsley in a bowl. Spray a 9 inch pie dish with cooking spray. Spread potato and broccoli mixture in the bottom of the dish. Pour the egg mixture over the potatoes and broccoli. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 25-30 minutes.

Optional: You may wish to add chopped ham or sausage for an even more hearty meal.

As time goes on you really start to realize your limitations both physical and mental. At some point you can not do the things you used to without acquiring some aches and pains. Not that I had the best memory to begin with but the memory seriously starts to dwindle. You end up not worrying about remembering things that there’s a slight chance you won’t need to repeat again.

There is also a point where you do not wish to remember your birthday because the years are piling up. Heck I honestly struggle to remember how old I am as it is and I’m only 35…or is it 36? I think it was almost 10 years ago that I was asked my age as a bouncer was looking at my ID and I honestly couldn’t remember. Didn’t Einstein not know his own phone number?

Anyway, my wife and boys surprised me on my birthday with some Pittsburgh Penguin clothing including this awesome authentic jersey. Talk about a surprise! Now I can get geared up each time we park ourselves in front of the TV to watch the Penguins.

Go Pens!!

Not only did this dish come out tasting amazing but 2 days of left overs for the entire family tasted just as yummy. The recipe came from Gluten Free Mommy Easy Chicken Pot Pie. It really is an easy recipe and honestly seems ‘dummy’ free.

Natalie has some incredible tasting recipes which we have been trying out periodically. This recipe is one that will be requested over and over. It had a wonderfully light crust and was chock full of vegetables and chicken.

Using a bit of natures bounty we have been enjoying a very simple and delicious dessert…Chocolate Covered Strawberries. Our local grocery store had a huge flat of strawberries on sale. If you can I would see if you can sample the strawberries first before you buy to make sure they are flavorful and sweet.

Instructions:
Rinse and dry your strawberries. Melt Enjoy Life Foods Gluten-Free Chocolate Chips in a microwave safe bowl or measuring glass. Approximate how much chocolate you need per number of strawberries you have. Using a spoon scoop the chocolate from the bowl and lather onto the strawberry leaving the stem uncovered. Place finished strawberries on a plate covered with wax paper and place the plate in the refrigerator until serving time.

This dish is my wife’s creation and it came out amazing. Here are the ingredients:

• Cooked Chicken (chop in food processor)
• Hummus (or just chick peas and garlic mashed)
• Mission® Corn Tostadas (Estilo Casero)
• Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Lay the gluten free corn tostadas on a baking sheet. Spoon the hummus mixture onto the corn tostadas spreading it to the edges. Next put a layer of finely chopped cooked chicken about 1/8 of an inch. Sprinkle shredded cheddar cheese as thick as you like and put the baking sheet in a 325 degree oven until the cheese is melted. Pull the “stackers” out of the oven and place on a rack to cool a bit. When you plate them you can top them with Newman’s Own Salsa, sour cream, lettuce, tomato, olives or just eat them plain.