Dr. Tim Says....

On Being a Patient:
Diagnosed with Celiac Disease, III

April 3, 2009

Lunch. Now sort of weird. I used to take a sandwich and put it in the fridge but the breads we've tested are pretty horrible for that. I would also take a granola bar for later and to get a bit of fiber in a snack.

Neither are going to work and I've been experimenting. The Lundberg rice cakes take the place of granola, but I just don't know what to do about the sandwich. Some days I could take leftovers, but at the same time my work has changed and I don't have the access to a refrigerator. I'm taking fruit and nuts on those days. People know I like to eat healthy and now I think that they'll look at me like an old fashioned "health nut."

Ah well. No real choice and trying to explain is just weird. My sense in reading is that a lot of Celiacs feel the need to talk about their condition. Since I am not "out" right now about it, I'm not talking about it.

I do continue to feel better.

Gnocchi. What holds the potato together? Flour. Will others work? Should because most flours are "sticky." Maybe not like gluten containing flours but rice flour and tapioca are good candidates. Next week.

April 4, 2009

Played with crawfish and made a version of shepherd's pie [Crawfish Pie]. Really great with the whipped potatoes. The thing is that starches are not really limited but I have to identify them. If I write a book about living and eating gluten-free, this will really a lot of the focus. What and how to substitute for starches.

That seems simple but the fact is that it is really just that simple.

April 11, 2009

Been a while since I wrote but getting settled into a rut as it were. It is what it is.

Gnocchi!

Worked great. Have been doing a lot of reading on flours while thinking about baking and breads. People use a lot of different flours but I have used both rice and tapioca flours in other recipes so they seemed a good choice.

I actually think that this makes better gnocchi. The challenge with gnocchi is that you need some flour to help bind the potato. Over working the dough will make it tough but under blend it and the taste of the raw flour comes through. Using the rice and tapioca flour has the same binding effect but there's no raw flour flavor.

Very excited about this. I love gnocchi and will be able to eat it easily.

April 18, 2009

Oh, my. I have been on this for a pretty short period and feel so much better. The bike is going to be a really good barometer I think. The power meter has been my enemy for some time. I have felt so frustrated. The most I've been able to muster is an average of about 140 watts. That's not a lot and the last month has been pretty amazing. Today I hit 182 watts and just shy of 17.5 miles per hour. Amazing! This is the new standard.

Tested some rubs for pork tenderloin.

April 25, 2009

Finished working on the pork. Great Chili Rubbed Pork Tenderloin. Simple. Not eating out has been a bit of a struggle and Morgan's been great about the whole thing. I do miss our Tuesdays at either pizza or the Thai place. I'm cooking a lot more and have done a lot of experimentation with gluten free pastas.

There's more than enough info now to know that the only thing worth buying is the quinoa pasta. They are much better from the standpoint of bite. They have texture that the brown rice pastas don't have. Cook the rice pastas for a second or two too long and, boom, they're fragmented.

The quinoa pastas are really hardy. They take longer to cook and have to be stirred almost continuously but there's something left when they are cooked instead a pile of goo.