Chocolate Gingerbread, Gluten-Free Goddess StyleThe wind is roaring through the forest next door today. The wood stove is lit, warming our bodies and our spirits. I put on my holiday playlist and stir cocoa-laced batter with a wooden spoon,...
Chocolate Gingerbread, Gluten-Free Goddess Style
The wind is roaring through the forest next door today. The wood stove is lit, warming our bodies and our spirits. I put on my holiday playlist and stir cocoa-laced batter with a wooden spoon, imagining my fellow gluten-free bakers- all of you- out there- standing in your own humble kitchens, beating strange flours and non-traditional ingredients with a hefty dash of hope.
By Winter Solstice I will celebrate another gluten-free anniversary. NUMBER 21!
December 19, 2001 was the day I decided to shun gluten forever. What timing. Right before Christmas. I could have waited until December 26th (Christmas cookies!). Or even the New Year (Trifle!). But I didn't. I couldn't.
As soon as I connected the dots- from my plague of symptoms to their instigator gluten- I couldn't wait to begin my new life. If I had eaten my very last buttery croissant, so be it. If I had unknowingly crunched my last Milano cookie, so what. I was done.
Few of us have to make such choices.
Millions of Americans can eat pizza and bagels and Fruit Loops till the cows come home. Donuts and Ding Dongs and frozen pie crusts? No problem. Gluten isn't on their radar, never mind in their daily nomenclature. It's a "Eww yuck" punch line in a TV sit com. Something chefs and foodies either kvetch about or flirt with, eyeing the growing gluten-free awareness trend as a dietary bandwagon. Or maybe an opportunity to garner a little extra revenue. They're mildly interested, but non-committal.
As soon as I connected the dots- from my plague of symptoms to their instigator gluten- I couldn't wait to begin my new life. If I had eaten my very last buttery croissant, so be it. If I had unknowingly crunched my last Milano cookie, so what. I was done.
Few of us have to make such choices.
Millions of Americans can eat pizza and bagels and Fruit Loops till the cows come home. Donuts and Ding Dongs and frozen pie crusts? No problem. Gluten isn't on their radar, never mind in their daily nomenclature. It's a "Eww yuck" punch line in a TV sit com. Something chefs and foodies either kvetch about or flirt with, eyeing the growing gluten-free awareness trend as a dietary bandwagon. Or maybe an opportunity to garner a little extra revenue. They're mildly interested, but non-committal.
And those of us with celiac-prone genes and blunted villi, and itchy wheat-induced rashes will still be here. Living gluten-free. Baking gluten-free. Wheat-free. Day after day. Wrestling with creative ingredients and conjuring kitchen magic for our kids, our families, or ourselves, or our newly diagnosed best friend.
We'll survive.
Keeping the faith, one recipe at a time. So Here's to You, Dear Reader.
Stay safe this holiday season. Take care of each other.
Love + peace,
Karina xo
Note from Karina (originally posted 12 years ago):
Note from Karina (originally posted 12 years ago):
December is more than a winter holiday month, for me. It is the month I went 100% gluten-free. And changed my life (no more misery!). The year was 2001. Time, indeed, does fly...
On my tenth gluten-free anniversary I salute YOU- dear reader. The home cook. The intrepid baker. The mother of a celiac child. The loving parent of an ASD angel. The undiagnosed but obviously sensitive to gluten cake maker. The wheat intolerant cupcake lover. The brother, the sister, the Dad, the grandmother looking for a way to include your celiac loved one in on the festivities, welcoming everyone to your table.
This anniversary recipe is for you.
A rich dark gingerbread infused with cocoa.
Karina xo
This anniversary recipe is for you.
A rich dark gingerbread infused with cocoa.
Karina xo