Gluten Free Gingerbread Houses!!!

Call me a kid, but I can't help but get a tinge... a HUGE TINGE of nostalgia everytime I see my little niece's gingerbread house.  I think back to going over to friends houses in grade school each winter to erect and decorate those lovely little houses with frosting and gum drops.  Holidays always bring my thoughts back to those carefree days before being gluten-free. 

Then, I realize, that there are lots of kiddies out there who haven't been able to enjoy those moments at all up till this point.  For those kids, A + J Bakery, a nut-free and gluten free bakery of Rhode Island is making their Christmas wishes come true this year!  They've introduced their allergen free gingerbread house kit, which is available to ship nationwide!

photo credit: Flickr user wendycopley

It's GORGEOUS, and allows all kids the joys of Christmas that the rest of us remember.  =)

Becoming Gluten Free- The Diagnosis

I was thinking, it might be time to tell my story from the beginning.  I think that there are a lot of people out there, who have been newly diagnosed with gluten intolerance or Celiac's Disease who might need to hear another person's story.  I remember first reading Shauna James' story in the first chapters of Gluten Free Girl, and being flooded with such intense emotion, having just gone through such similar experiences myself.

So, here I am to share a little more of my story with you.  Although I was diagnosed 4 years ago with gluten intolerance, I probably started to feel ill, and started to feel symptoms of my illness about 5 1/2 to 6 years ago.  At the time, I was doing my undergrad, studying Architecture, which is an intense study (if any of you ever knew an "archi" in college, you'll know what I'm talking about).  It wasn't uncommon to pull all-nighters in the architecture studio several times a month in order to meet project deadlines... which lead to a very unhealthy lifestyle for most of us students.  Particularly, I felt that there wasn't enough time to eat real meals during "crunch time"  (which was pretty much ALL the time), so I ate COOKIES and drank COPIOUS amounts of COFFEE, in order to avoid going back to my apartment and "wasting time" to cook a meal.  I would eat 2-3 cookies, the size of my FACE from the cafe at the architecture school, and drank 2 cups of coffee in lieu of a meal during these periods of pulling all-nighters at school.

Gluten Free Survey by FDA

Help your fellow gluten free community by filling out this FDA Survey which will affect the way food is labeled!

The questions are relatively comprehensive, covering your personal experiences- degree of sensitivity to reading of food labels.  In addition to helping the FDA, it can help to make you self aware of your decision making process when seeking out gluten free food options as well.  Thanks@gfliving for sharing this survey!

Here I am! Grungry at the WORLD!

I love spring in Los Angeles!!!... it's beautiful and green here after a few days of much needed rain. The smog has cleared and made way for a bright, BLUE SKY! 

Anyhow, welcome!  I'm Angela, and I love my food, ALL OF IT.  I especially LOVED my carbs, up until 4 short years ago, when I was diagnosed with Gluten Intolerance.  I was devastated at the discovery of my illness, more for the loss of cookies and beer in my life than anything else.  For some time, I was in denial, thinking that "cutting down" on my cookie and beer intake would be sufficient...  until I met the man who helped me to love a gluten free lifestyle, and even more importantly, taught me to COOK!  My kitchen was once a bewildering place, where only fried egg and cheese sandwiches were ever made... but over the past few years, I've had an amazing journey with my man and my kitchen to discover all that's possible + delicious in a gluten free diet!

Join me as we dine in, dine out, and explore the world of food.  I'm GRUNGRY, Let's Eat!...