Trader Joe’s has come out with a delicious and low price gluten-free flour on their Baker Josef’s line.

The ingredients are: Whole Grain Brown Rice Flour, Potato Starch, Rice Flour, Tapioca Flour.

Click on Nutrition Facts for more details.

Simple and tasty, this versatile gluten-free flour is perfect for a straight replacement of enriched white flour (wheat) in recipes.

I was impressed with how good this flour tasted in my simple pancakes recipe.

If you or your guests are intolerant to gluten, wheat, or have Celiac Disease, the new Trader Joe’s Gluten Free All Purpose Flour is a reliable flour to have in your cupboard, ready to use for any recipe that requires flour.

Not only is this gluten free flour an acceptable and functioning replacement for white flour, I think the taste is superior too.

For the gluten-free love of your life, I suggest you get a delicious Valentine’s Day treat from the Mariposa Bakery. Mariposa Bakery is local to San Francisco and Oakland, but they do mail many items within the United States!

Pictured here are their Valentine’s Day chocolate donuts, distinguished by their sugar heart sprinkles. They taste like Chocolate Devil’s Food Cake or a rich chocolate cupcake. Like any donut, this is more of a dessert than a start-your-day kind of healthy breakfast.

Mariposa also has, on any given day, a wide assortment of cookies and cakes too. You can call and special order for birthdays or other celebrations.

The main thing I buy are the plain frozen pizza crusts that I prepare in full at home; I will write in depth about that in another article.

Mariposa has some great lunch options as well (pizza, beetloaf sandwich, salad, etc). Everything is delicious here. You can’t go wrong.

I came across Mariposa for the first time many years ago when I was getting my old Volvo serviced. Someone had put a Montclair Auto Tech flyer on my Volvo for their autoshop. They turned out to be the most honest, affordable guys, and I got to hang out at the gluten-free bakery next door… and the wine shop one more door over. It was a three-for. Getting a car tune-up had never been so fun!

In those early days, there were not very many customers or employees at Mariposa. It was quiet.

Over the years, a few other competing gluten-free bakeries popped up in the area with high prices and not great products; they came and went.

Meanwhile, Mariposa Bakery blossomed into a beautiful big prosperous business. These days, they are always busy, have lots of friendly employees, and ship out boxes of products too.

They opened up a convenient storefront at The Ferry Building at the end of Market Street in San Francisco, great for commuters and tourists.

Mariposa Bakery has given me many years of joyful eating. Their prices are only slightly above mass-produced foods, and therefore quite reasonable for freshly baked gluten-free food. Since the day I found them, I have felt blessed to have them in my life.

You can find Mariposa Bakery at:

5427 Telegraph Ave, Unit D3
Oakland, CA 94609
tel: 510-595-0955
OAKLAND HOURS:
Monday-Friday 9-6
Saturday 9-5
Sunday 10-5

~~~

One Ferry Building, Suite 32
San Francisco, CA 94111
tel: 510-595-0955
SAN FRANCISCO HOURS:
Monday-Saturday 8-6
Sunday 10-5

~~~

MARIPOSA BAKERY WEBSITE:  http://www.mariposabaking.com/

If you have a severe case of Celiac Auto-Immune Disease, keep in mind that kissing can be a danger for you, depending on what your partner has been drinking or eating.

If your make-out buddy has been drinking beer, you can still get a big dose of gluten from French kissing him or her, which may cause blisters on your gums and pain for many days.

By tongue kissing alone, not ingesting the beer yourself, you probably won’t suffer any problems further down in your digestive tract, but your mouth may suffer if you are sensitive. Once you have a wound in your mouth, you are more susceptible to all other illnesses.

If your partner is eating regular wheat white flour bread sandwiches, pizza, cookies, or pastries, there will be particles in his or her mouth, stuck between the teeth and floating around, that may come into your mouth when you kiss.

After your partner eats gluten foods, before kissing, suggest a teeth brushing or mouthwash. Flossing would be ideal, but that’s an awkward conversation that doesn’t go over well early in the dating process. A rinse of water is better than nothing.

For beer drinkers, request a water swisharoo if they want to kiss.

Getting people to eat and drink the same things as you is often easier than getting them to wash their mouth, so that is another safe route, especially if you are making dinner.

Days or weeks of pain is not worth one night of kissing, is it?

Ok, sometimes it is.

If your partner doesn’t care enough about you, though, to, at least, rinse their mouth with some water before kissing you, then they are not very clean and maybe they aren’t worth your time anyway.

Some people may in fact have the same intolerance to gluten as you and not know it yet.

By having an honest conversation about it, about the symptoms, about the triggers, you may enlighten someone else, and improve their life. You never know.

If you don’t want to have a conversation about Celiac Disease or gluten, you can avoid mouth kissing and go for the neck.

On a white label with silver and gold lettering, Pure Cider’s stylish modern packaging is like a Kubrick futuristic movie or an Apple Macintosh store. Not new, Pure Cider boasts 130 years of heritage. That’s just what I like: old and new, classic with a modern edge.

I feared Pure Cider would be a hard bitter cider that I wouldn’t like, but it turned out to be a nice sweet flavor similar to Martinelli’s non-alcoholic cider. Martinelli’s is what was always given to the kids in my family on holidays, so Pure Cider brings a positive association with its flavor.

Gluten Free Possmann Pure Cider has 5% alcohol.

The bottle reads: “Simply pure enjoyment from the rich flavor of German apples ripened for the full summer, then picked, pressed and fermented to cider according to the traditional Possmann recipe. Cheers from Frankfurt. ”

I am not sure where you can find Pure Cider in the USA. It is probably easier to find in Europe. It immediately sold out at my store. It is a bit expensive at $9.99, as it has a long journey to make to get to California. At $2.50 a bottle, it is still cheaper than buying a drink at the bar.

If you can find it, Possmann Pure Cider is a nice light gluten free alcoholic beverage to have at your holiday and New Year’s Eve parties. Plus, Pure Cider will look nice next to the champagne and confetti.

My master chef of a mother-in-law loves to find and try new recipes. With my gluten-free needs and her flare for cooking, she has treated me to all kinds of delicacies I would not make for myself. Frankly, I am in the kitchen out of necessity to eat healthy tasty food at an affordable price; I’m not in there for fun, like she is.

Eating well is my pleasure.

She made this carrot cake for us that features pine nuts, almond flour, and mascarpone frosting. It is simply heavenly and I must share it with you. It tastes and feels both light and rich at the same time. I can’t think of anything to which to compare it. It is not fluffy like bread, but more soft and juicy.

If you like to experiment in the kitchen and eat amazing desserts, this Gluten Free Venetian Carrot Cake Carrot Cake Recipe is for you.

This GLUTEN FREE VENETIAN CAKE CARROT CAKE RECIPE is from THE FOOD NETWORK.

www.foodnetwork.com

Ingredients

• 1/2 Cup regular olive oil, not extra virgin, plus more for oiling pan
• 3 Tbsp pine nuts
• 2 Medium carrots, grated (about 2 cups)
• 1/2 Cup golden sultanas
• 1/4 Cup rum
• 3/4 Cup superfine sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• 2 1/2 Cups almond meal/flour
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/2 lemon, zest finely grated and juiced

• 1 Cup mascarpone
• 2 tsp confectioners’ sugar
• 2 Tbsp rum
• 1 springform or other round cake tin (9 inch)

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the base of the springform pan with a nonstick silicone liner or baking parchment. Grease the sides with olive oil. Add the pine nuts to a small dry pan and toast them over low heat.
• Grate the carrots in a food processor or with a coarse grater, and put them on a double layer of kitchen towels. Wrap the towels around the carrots to soak up the excess liquid.
• Put the sultanas in a small saucepan with the rum, and bring to the boil over medium heat. Lower the heat and simmer for 3 minutes.
• Whisk the sugar and 1/2 cup of oil in a stand mixer or by hand, until creamily and airily mixed together.
• Whisk in the vanilla and eggs in a large bowl. Fold in the ground almonds, nutmeg, grated carrots, golden sultanas (and any rum that clings to them) and finally the lemon zest and lemon juice.
• Scrape the mixture into the prepared cake tin and smooth the surface with a rubber spatula. The batter will be very shallow in the tin.
• Sprinkle with the pine nuts and bake until the top is risen and golden and a cake tester comes out sticky but otherwise more or less clean, about 30 to 40 minutes.
• Remove the cake from the oven and let it sit on a rack for 10 minutes before removing the sides. Let cool until ready to serve. Transfer the cake to a serving platter.
• Combine the mascarpone, confectioners’ sugar and rum in a small bowl. Slice the cake and serve with the mascarpone cream.

Make Ahead Note:

• The cake can be baked up to 3 days ahead. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and store in airtight container in a cool place. Will keep for a total of 5 to 6 days.

Freeze Note:

• The cake can be frozen (still on base of the tin), carefully wrapped in double layer of plastic wrap and 1 layer of foil, for up to 3 months. Defrost overnight at room temperature.

Enjoy! Let me know how it goes.

~~~

Below is my cheater, using a box, carrot cupcakes…

Chocolate Gluten Free Carrot Cake Cream Cheese Cupcakes

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And WILD GOAT BISTRO in Petaluma has a killer carrot cake!

Eating Gluten Free & Shopping in Historic Petaluma

For a bite of the old wild west with a nip of progress, you must stop in Petaluma on your way out to the Napa wine country, or the Sonoma Raceway, or camping in the Redwood Forests.

Petaluma is my hometown, but seldom am I able to visit. Planning for my high school reunion, I hunted on the Internet for a fun place to eat that would suit my gluten-free dining needs, not expecting to find one. All my favorite childhood restaurants were Italian and serve pasta and pizza. Even though those restaurants are still there, my health and eating requirements have changed.

Luckily, Petaluma evolved with me.

Somewhere along the way, after I had gone to college, I heard a rumor that Petaluma won a city renovation government grant, perhaps due to its cool historic old late-1800s downtown that was featured in George Lucas’s hot rod movie American Graffiti.

With a big influx of money, Petaluma built a nice movie theater, new plaza, river bridges, and several International style restaurants and cafes. When I was a kid, I never heard any foreign languages around town. After the renovations, people from around the world made their way to my little stinky town; it was really cool.

You know when you have arrived in Petaluma because just outside Novato on Highway 101 heading north, it starts to wreak of cow manure, and the smell wafts throughout town. This is a positive, a reminder that you are out in the country where happy cows graze the grasses of the pastures owned by family and friends, not corporations.

The old families who run the restaurants, saloons, and speakeasys all remain too. See below for more information about them.

After looking at every single new restaurant on Google Maps that was anywhere near the reunion, I finally found Wild Goat Bistro and was totally blown away by them and their special menu  ”Gluten Free”! I made a reservation for me and the gals.

When I was a kid, the Old Mill, where the restaurant is, never really had anything good in it. Today, the Petaluma Old Mill is a woman’s wonderland! It’s a great place for a nice man to treat his lady to a special Pretty Woman day.

I arrived an hour early to check out the Wild Goat Bistro, make sure it was good enough for my best friends. It was beyond ok, the Old Mill location on the river is absolutely charming, as are the friendly staff. A Euro vibe is created by its close quarters and small room made of stone, wood, and copper.  There is seating inside and outside for singles at counters or large groups on long tables. There is something for every type of diet, including organic, local fresh ingredients, and gluten free food options. You can see in my top image a sampling of the food we ate — and the gluten-free carrot cake, delicious!!! They also have gluten-free artisan pizza.

After my long drive, I sought out the Old Mill restroom, which was in the same old spot it always was.

I happened across Sorella, which means Sister in Italian. Sorella is a hair studio and fashion boutique owned by two sisters.

Being a woman, I could not help but be sucked in by all the adorable dresses and sweaters pouting at me from the windows. I had never seen such great fashion in Petaluma. We had Mervyn’s which met our basic needs of underwear and t-shirts, but it wasn’t like this, like shopping in Paris, or London, or New York.

Lexi Radomile, who stocks Sorella’s clothing side and sews herself, has exceptional big city taste. If you want high fashion (MEN! and Women) but don’t want to drive to San Francisco, you must find this hidden little spot inside the Old Mill on Petaluma Boulevard near Washington Boulevard, downtown across from McNear’s Theater and pub. If you can’t make it to Petaluma, you can also shop with her online.

The OLD MILL, Wild Goat Bistro, and Sorella are at 6 Petaluma Blvd North, Petaluma, CA  94952.
Wild Goat Bistro reservations (707) 658-1156
http://www.wildgoatbistro.com/wildgoatbistro/Home.html
Sorella info (707) 769-9983
http://sorellahairandfashion.com/

GLUTENFREE ON THE RUN… If you are on a tight budget or in a hurry, some well known places in Petaluma where you can get gluten-free food are WholeFoods at 621 East Washington Street, Petaluma, CA 94952 or at Aqus Cafe. For a gluten-free snack or breakfast or lunch, Aqus Cafe offers gluten-free bread and other options, good live music, films, and coffee! Everyday Happy Hour 4:30-6:30pm
http://www.aquscafe.com/main/index.php
189 H Street Petaluma CA 707.778.6060

LOCAL DIVES, MUST-DO, & MUST-SEE IN PETALUMA:

Go have a drink in the 1920s speakeasy of Volpi’s Ristorante & Bar. Pass through the front restaurant to the bar hidden in the back. If gluten is not a problem for you, they have good Italian food and a cool old wood floor atmosphere.
124 Washington St Petaluma, CA 94952

To see all the beautiful animals that used to live in the area and the ghosts of hunter enthusiasts past, see the unofficial museum of Andresen’s Bar at  19 Western Avenue, Petaluma, CA 94952. Very small. Very local. Cash only.

If you want to see how the locals GET STUPID since 1938, go to the Buckhorn out at 615 Petaluma Boulevard South Petaluma, CA 94952.
http://www.buckhorntavern.com/

Read the history and see some beautiful photos of Petaluma here: http://www.petalumadowntown.com/welcome.html
There are lots of antiques, restaurants, cafes, and lovely architecture on Petaluma Boulevard. The good ol’ American Butter & Eggs Parade is in April or May. And there is just so much more…

Petaluma is a romantic contradiction of old and new. I love my hometown and hope you do too.

Article & Food Photographs by Jaden Alexander. Jaden modeling Sorella’s clothes, pictures taken by Lexi Radomile. 

My hair is the physical evidence for why I strongly support and encourage eating gluten free, among many other reasons.

If you have Celiac Disease and are still eating gluten, you will be malnourished because your digestive tract is tore up from the floor up my friend.

If you can’t get the food properly into your body and blood stream, it sure isn’t going to your hair.

As a result of this malnourishment due to your damaged digestive tract, you will have several major health problems, from low blood sugar to migraines to mood issues to thin brittle early greying hair.

When I was born, my mom said I had a weird layer of dead skin cells on my head for two years and my hair wouldn’t grow. No doctors were able to help her. Around two years old, I guess, she peeled off the skin from my head and it finally started to grow.

Still, my hair was always thin and brittle and didn’t grow as long as I would have liked.

In my thirties, when I learned I was intolerant to gluten and stopped eating gluten, my hair started to grow in thicker, darker, shinier, and faster! I even had hairs that were grey and kinky  start growing in dark straight and lovely.

When I started eating gluten free, I had a complete reversal of my hair from so-so normal to fabulous.

Now that I am trudging along in my thirties, everyone assumes I color my hair and they make somewhat rude comments to me in reference to when I had lighter less lovely hair. I have even had people think I was wearing a wig!

“Is that your real hair?”

I am happy to point out the few strands of silver hair I have to prove the rest is actually natural dark hair.

List of Best Gluten Free Organic Foods & Vitamins for Healthy Hair

In addition to eating gluten-free, vitamins and gluten-free organic foods that will help your hair grow healthier are…

DAIRY:  Milk without rBST
DARK GREEN VEGETABLES: Spinach, Broccoli
FISH: Salmon, Halibut
GRAINS: Brown Rice, Flaxseed
NUTS: Brazil Nuts, Walnuts, Pecans, Cashews
ORANGE FOODS: Oranges, Carrots, Cantaloupe
PROTEINS: Kidney Beans, Lentils, Eggs, Grass-fed Beef, Free-Range Poultry
VITAMINS: A, B-6, B-12, Biotin, Calcium, E, Folic Acid, Iron, Omega-3, Zinc

FINAL HAIR NOTES

Avoiding sun and hats is important to healthy hair, as both damage the hair and scalp. A loose straw or cotton hat is best if you are going to be in the sun, so your head and hair can breath.

When you are away from the sun, take off the hat, massage your head, lighten up your hair, and give a good water rinse that night.

Likewise, if you ride a motorcycle or are a fireman and often wear a helmet, make sure to give your head some extra love and cleansing to remove the grime. If your hair is blocked, it can’t grow.

Intaking toxins like smoke, drugs, and alcohol are also going to infringe on your overall health and of course affect the outcome of your hair.

When my brother was being pumped with the strongest drugs on the planet to keep him alive for over a month in the hospital, shortly after he recovered, he lost a lot of his beautiful hair and the new hair grew in redder, kinky, and thinner. His hair was permanently damaged by the illness and drugs. As he has just switched to a gluten free diet, we’ll see if that helps his hair any.

What grows out of your head is partly due to genetics, but it is also how healthy you are, what you do, and how you eat.

WARNINGS: Other than Celiac Disease, you may have a different major health issue causing your hair to be brittle or fall out, like Anemia, Diabetes, liver failure, and Cancer, to name a few. If eating healthy isn’t enough to help your hair, you want to make sure you do not have a life threatening illness.

As with poop, hair (particularly for women) is an indicator of how healthy you are — you can see what is going on inside your body by what comes out!

As you quest for the perfect gluten free English Muffin, I will help you by comparing the two gluten free English Muffin brands, Glutino and Food for Life, to Thomas’ English Muffins (the holy grail of English Muffins for Americans).

Glutino’s English Muffins have  a yellow-orange color and when cut open, look like a fluffy light bread. But if you close your eyes, the light taste and texture in the mouth is more similar to Thomas’ English Muffin than the Food for Life brand.

The Food for Life brand of gluten free English Muffin, I enjoy, but I know it is not for everyone. It is a heavier bread and a more pasty taste and texture. The Food for Life brand looks just like a Thomas’ English Muffin, but does not taste like one. As I said, I like it, but it is not for everyone.

The Glutino brand is more of a crowd pleaser, but the ingredients are less healthy.

Click here to see Glutino’s English Muffin ingredients made in Canada.

Click here to see Food for Life’s English Muffin organic ingredients made in the USA.

When it comes to gluten free organic flours, as Food for Life uses, the flavor result can be unique and an acquired taste.

Both English Muffins require some skills to defrost and toast to just the right taste. If the Food For Life English Muffin is not heated long enough, it tastes really bad. So don’t give up on it, maybe you need to warm it longer. Both brands I defrost in the oven on Bake 375. The Glutino brand, after defrosted, I cut open and toast with butter on Broil. The Food for Life brand, being heavier and thicker, tastes better closed with butter inserted, otherwise, it just gets too hard.

I have tried a variation of delicious organic toppings. Butter. Butter and cream cheese. Butter and a fried egg. Butter, cream cheese, avocado, and smoked salmon.

SUMMARY: If all you want is gluten free and good taste, go with the Glutino English Muffin brand. If you are nostalgic for the English Muffin look, want to be as healthy as you can be, and don’t mind trying new flavors, go with the organic FoodforLife brand.