Food

Gluten-free Weekend Round-Up 5-17-13

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I was chatting earlier this week about websites and showed her mine. Her first reaction upon scrolling the front page was, “do you know how to cook gluten-free?” Well, yeah, I guess. I did a 30 day challenge based upon the prevalence of gluten-intolerance and the rise of food sensitivities. So why not do a little weekend round-up in her honor and for anyone else looking for some ideas on where to start.

Also, if you haven’t noticed, you can click the “gluten-free” tag on the right sidebar to find previous gluten-free recipes.

mosaiced1b74efdff51503451bd27d353c9032e26002e6 Gluten free Weekend Round Up 5 17 13

Gluten-Free Recipe Round-Up

Dessert First

Let’s do dessert first, shall we? You can do sweet and boozy like an Old-Fashion Cupcake (pictured), super chocolaty like a Double Chocolate Meringue Cookie, and don’t forget things naturally gluten-free like macaroons, custards, and ice creams.

Dinner and Lunch

If you decide to actually eat dinner, then why not browse these 10 ideas for great recipes. Don’t forget that if you eat a balanced protein, vegetable, starch plate you don’t actually need to replace anything. Also, the Paleo diet is on the rise and has a lot of gluten-free options. You can even make pizza (pictured), so don’t freak out.

Breakfast

Don’t forget the most important meal of the day either. You can start off with something traditional like eggs and bacon with a side of fruit without worry. Or you can go the baked route like chocolate zucchini muffins or pancakes (pictured). Grains like oatmeal are generally fine for anyone who is eating gluten-free for reasons aside from serious allergies as many foods are packaged where they package other gluten containing items, so be careful. Check your oatmeal container to see the warnings if you need to be very careful.

Booze!

Gluten-free? You can still bring the party! Many gluten-free sites gloss over the issue of whether people with celiacs disease can safely consume alcohol made from grain. The jury is still out, but you’re left with good choices – think potato vodka, rum, and tequila! A lemon-thyme tequila spritzer, a root-beer vodka float (pictured), or refreshing watermelon rum punch.

Enjoy!

Crafts, Knitting

Confessional: My Yarn Stash

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I was good last year. I bought very little yarn, and the yarn I did buy mostly went towards a project immediately. However, that still leaves me with a problem. I’ve been saying I was going to bust this stash for years now. Maybe if I say it out loud, it will become true. So I shall make a proclamation! I am hereby destashing!

So let’s start with a tour, shall we?

100 1537 300x224 Confessional: My Yarn Stash

The sorting process.

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Food

Gluten-Free Double Chocolate Meringue Cookies

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This is also the first real recipe that I’m baking in my new kitchen. I still haven’t figured out the no-countertops, one outlet setup yet. Right now, it’s trying to work on the burners of my stove, a 5″x5″ section of my microwave stand, and a footstool. Very conducive to baking as you can imagine. So, I figured I’d start off with some cookies. No rolling, mis-en-place, just me, three surfaces, and some chocolate.

The cooking triad Gluten Free Double Chocolate Meringue Cookies

The cooking triad.

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Crafts, Fandoms

Weekend Round-Up 5-11-13

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I wanted to be a genius when I grew up. Maybe it was the constant loop of 80s geek movies, but the idea of being able to take an idea and shape it into something both technically challenging and functional was thrilling. Unfortunately  I did not become a genius. Some days, I’m amazed I can successfully navigate a toaster. However, in my own small ways I’ve managed to use crafting and writing to put life to my slightly less technically inclined mind. Last weekend, I dragged my butt out to see Ironman 3 (because Avengers!), which got me thinking about all the gadget inspired projects out there. So for the crafters who’ve got the brains to back up the creativity, or those who want to push themselves, here’s some new tech and science slanted tutorials for this weekend round-up.

Weekend Round Up 5 11 13

Click for tutorial.

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Crafts, Fandoms, Knitting

Avengers, Assemble! (to knit my scarf for me)

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I would apologize in advance to anyone who doesn’t have a fast connection speed, but I won’t because really? Really in 2013?

Every time I tell people that I’m WAY behind on, you know, life because I don’t have cable, they sort of look at me like they’re wondering if I’m serious. How behind can you actually be just because you don’t have cable or read the news. I didn’t know Hurricane Sandy was a thing until after my power went out. Oh look, it’s raining…

So a year after the Avengers come out, I decide that it looks awesome and I must watch it. I think Joss Whedon can do no wrong so I was already inclined to like it, not to mention RDJ and Tom Hiddleston, who by the way is my new fake boyfriend. No one can out-nice him. So I pull together vague memories of Ironman 1, scramble through Thor and Captain America and finally settle in for Avengers.

tumblr mmb7rx43ac1rfkbzyo1 500 Avengers, Assemble! (to knit my scarf for me)

Click for source

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Crafts, Exposition

Step By Step Guide To Getting Into Crafting

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Creating a craft can be a fun way to spend your time, and it can be incredibly satisfying to be able to use or admire something that you have created with your own hands. For some people it is a gift that seemingly comes naturally, give them a piece of fabric and a ball of yarn and in thirty seconds they can reupholster an entire room. Not all of us are that gifted however, and if you are anything like me, your attempt at making that thing you saw on Pinterest is far more likely to come out looking like a three year old’s art project than the beautiful craft you saw in the picture. Once you know a few of the crafting basics however, you can become a master crafter in no time, it’s all about training yourself.

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