Gluten

I have taken a while to get a post together on this because I was wanting to provide some links to good articles and resources that might be helpful. Unfortunately, I haven't found many that I would consider entirely helpful.

Anyways, at the Relief Society Meeting a few weeks ago, there was a question asked about gluten - what it is and why people say its bad for you. I will do my best to answer - you are welcome to ask more questions if I am not covering what you want to know. And sorry for the lengthy post!

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. A bigger list of gluten containing foods here. Developing gluten (by kneading) changes the texture of baked goods, which is why more kneading leads to chewier products (good for pizza and bagels), while less kneading yields tender baked goods. That is also why different there are different flours - bread flours are higher in gluten while cake flours are lower in gluten.

For some people, eating gluten can cause serious health issues. Celiac disease is an intestinal disorder in which the person cannot tolerate gluten - When a person with celiac disease eats gluten, the body's immune system attacks the gluten and damages the small intestine. This can make it hard for the person to absorb other vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. There is a good, short, basic article here about celiac disease.

Some other people may have minor intolerance to gluten - its the same concept as lactose intolerance where some people have full-blown lactose intolerance and some people don't but they have a hard time digesting some dairy products. People who have an intolerance to gluten may have symptoms such as gas or bloating when they eat gluten. If you think you have an intolerance to gluten, talk to your doctor before going on any diets because by going on an unsupervised gluten-free diet, you could be masking the signs that would allow a doctor to get an exact diagnosis and look for related problems.

There are some people that claim that gluten can cause cancer and other health problems, but I have not seen any science that backs that up. I have seen information that those with celiac disease are at higher risk for cancer in the small intestine, so that may be where that claim stemmed from.

Some people claim that you can lose weight by cutting gluten out of your diet, but if you do lose weight it is more likely because you have reduced your overall caloric intake. Here is a pretty good article on gluten free diets and weight loss.

There are some people that say a gluten-free, casein-free diet may help Autism, but there have been no scientific studies to back that claim up. Some people do report a relief in symptoms after following the diet. If you are considering trying this diet to relieve symptoms of Autism, talk to a health-care professional (like your doctor and a registered dietitian) because there can be side effects and potential nutrient shortfalls when a the diet is self-prescribed. For more info here is a short article from the American Dietetic Association.

I apologize again for the length of the post - it was the best way I felt I could pass along the information I found.

~Samantha Rasmussen

Broccoli Bake

If you picked up a Bountiful Basket last weekend, you probably got a couple heads of broccoli. I thought I would share one of the recipes we really like that has broccoli in it.

Broccoli Bake

4 cups chopped Broccoli
2 (10 3/4 oz) cans condensed Cream of Mushroom or Cream of Chicken Soup
1/2 tsp dried Basil
1 Tbsp dried Minced Onion
3/4 cup shredded Cheese
around 2 or 3 cups cooked rice
3/4 cup soft bread crumbs
1 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted

Cook broccoli until crisp-tender. Combine soup, cheese, onion, and basil. Add broccoli to mixture. Coat the bottom of a greased 9x13 pan with the rice. Put the soup and broccoli mixture on top of the rice. Combine melted margarine and bread crumbs and layer sprinkle over the casserole. Bake at 375 degrees for around 20 min.

*Sometimes I add a cooked, diced chicken breast or some cauliflower to the soup and broccoli mixture

If you have a good recipe that uses Broccoli, please share it with us :)
~Samantha Rasmussen

Chocolate Drop Cookies

I made these last night and they were sooo good! I found the recipe here.

Chocolate Drop Cookies

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Shortening
1/2 cup Milk
2 Eggs
1 tsp. Vanilla

2 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 tsp. Baking Soda
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 cup Brown Sugar, Packed
1/2 cup Cocoa Powder
1 cup Chopped Walnuts (If you're not a fan of nuts, you can relpace them with Chocolate Chunks!

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Combine the shortening, milk, eggs, and vanilla until well blended. Add the dry ingredients and stir until well mixed.

Drop the dough by heaping teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet. 

Bake for 10-12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

~Samantha Rasmussen

P.S. I am still working on putting together that information on Gluten - sorry it's taking so long

Questions from last night

I wanted to get you guys some information on some of the questions that were asked last night. I am doing research on the question about Gluten and will put together something on that. In the mean time, here is the article that talked about eating sprouts when you are pregnant: http://www.webmd.com/baby/features/foods-to-avoid-when-youre-pregnant Basically it says that there is a bacteria that can get into the sprouts that may be harmful for a pregnant woman to consume. If you cook the sprouts there is no danger. When you are pregnant, your immune system is weaker and that is why there is no risk to non-pregnant persons.

Anyways, I hope that was helpful to someone. I don't know how much of a danger there really is, but if you are pregnant just be aware and maybe talk to your doctor.

Samantha Rasmussen

More FHE Treat Ideas

These were on the handout that I gave tonight at the Relief Society Meeting. The nest post is a recipe that was on the handout as well. Hope this gives you a few ideas :)

~Samantha Rasmussen

• Gold fish crackers for becoming “Fisher’s of Men”
• Build nachos on paper plates for a lesson on learning “line upon line, precept on precept, here a little and there a little”
• Oreos* with a lesson on the scriptures – sometimes the good stuff is inside
• Animal cookies for a lesson on the creation or Noah’s Arc
• Cut out bread and cheese hearts using a heart-shaped cookie cutter to go with a lesson on love or make heart-shaped sugar cookies for a sweeter treat
• Make a food storage recipe to go with a lesson on preparedness (see handouts from Ashlie or recipes on sites such as http://foodstoragemadeeasy.net/recipes/ or http://safelygatheredin.blogspot.com) 

*Home-made Oreos

2 eggs

½ cup oil

¼ cup flour

1 Devil’s Food Cake Mix

Filling: 2 cups Powdered Sugar, 4oz Cream Cheese, ¼ cup butter (if desired)

Instructions

Mix eggs, oil, flour and cake mix. Drop by teaspoon to form cookies. Bake at 325° for 10 min. When cool (not cold), spread one cookie with frosting and top with another. Keep in sealed container for soft, chewy cookies.

Scripture Cookies

Recipe from: “Kitchen Krafts: Scripture Cookies,” Friend, Aug 1989, 22

To find each ingredient, look up scripture reference and fill in blank. Some clues are subtle, so check list of ingredients on bottom of page before making cookies.


    3/4 cup “The words of his mouth were smoother than ____” (Ps. 55:21)
    1/3 cup “Come unto me all ye ends of the earth, buy ____ and honey” (2 Ne. 26:25)
    1 1/2 cups “To what purpose cometh there to me … the ____ ____ from a far country?” (Jer. 6:20)
    2 “As one gathereth ____ that are left, have I gathered all the earth” (Isa. 10:14)
    2 cups “And Solomon’s provision for one day was thirty measures of fine ____” (1 Kgs. 4:22)
    1 teaspoon “Take thou also unto thee principal spices, … and of sweet ____ half so much” (Ex. 30:23)
    1 teaspoon “Ye are the ____ of the earth” (Matt. 5:13)
    1/2 teaspoon “The kingdom of heaven is like unto ____ (Matt. 13:33)
    3 cups “Nevertheless, … ____ for the horse” (D&C 89:17)
    1 cup “And they gave him … two clusters of ____” (1 Sam. 30:12)

1. Beat first four ingredients together.
2. Mix in remaining ingredients.
3. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet.
4. Bake at 350° F for 15 minutes.

Answers: 3/4 cup butter, 1/3 cup milk, 1 1/2 cups sugar (sweet cane), 2 eggs, 2 cups flour, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda (leaven), 3 cups oats, 1 cup raisins. (This recipe basically makes oatmeal raisin cookies)

FHE Treat Ideas

As I was getting ready for the Relief Society Meeting tonight, I came across 3 websites and a recipe book with some fun ideas for Family Home Evening treats. Here are the links:

http://lds.about.com/od/fherefreshments/a/fhe_recipebook.htm  (the pdf for the recipe book is at the end of the directions) 

http://www.family-home-evenings.com/2008/06/yummy-fhe-treat-ideas.html

http://www.ldssplash.com/fhe/fhe_treats/family_home_evening_treats.htm

http://www.neighborjanepayne.com/read.php?SD=1&SS=129&A=368&SA=389

I hope to see you all tonight at 7:00 at the church! ...and don't forget to bring your favorite Family Home Evening treat to share :)

~Samantha Rasmussen

Relief Society Meeting Reminder

We are excited for our first Relief Society Meeting with the new format!

It will be 7-8:30pm Wed, June 16 at the Church. 

There will be three classes offered, you may attend them all or just the ones suited for your needs. The schedule will be as follows:

• 7-7:45pm - Wheat 101
• 7:45-8pm FHE Treats (Please bing your favorite FHE treat to share!)
• 8-8:30pm Family Home Evening Packets

There will also be a quilt set up for those interested and a nursery will be provided.