One of the first things I was taught as a Celiac patient was to be wary of food starch as, though it is commonly derived from corn in the US, it can come from wheat and cannot be guaranteed to be gluten free.  As a result, unless the starch, which can include modified food starch, on a product is clearly listed as coming from corn, potato, arrowroot, or some other gluten free source I avoid it or try to find out more about it.
That was the case this morning when I was browsing the ingredient list on a bottle of Powerade ION4 Fruit Punch.  There stood out the generic listing “Modified Food Starch”.   Just below this was Coca-Cola’s customer service number phone number.  A quick call put me in contact with Candice who was able to look up the product information, which included the source of all the ingredients.  I was glad to hear the words “the modified food starch is sourced from corn”.  Yet another product identified as safe for Celiac and Gluten Intolerant patients!

Remember to be safe, check your labels, and contact the manufacturer whenever you have a question.

As if the sting of the Saddleback Catterpillar wasn’t enough, while walking to check on the blueberries recently I looked down just in time to watch my foot descend while my brain said “That looks like a hornet nest in the ground.” followed by the sound of crunching exoskeletons and the sharp pain of being stung on my leg.  Evacuating the area with due haste, having been swarmed in the past, I attended the sting and returned to the investigate the nest.

If you’ve never seen a ground hornet nest it looks like a small hole in the ground maybe an inch to an inch and a half across, with a pile of dirt around the entrance.  They are easy to spot, if one is looking for them and not stumbling blindly around the yard like I was, due to the flurry of activity that occurs between dawn and dusk.  Get down low to the ground and look out across your lawn.  Provided the nest is more than a few dozen individuals, there will be a small cloud of hornets around the nest as they fly in and out.  This nest in particular was very active, counting over 50 hornets on the ground and in the air around the nest.

Usually I leave wasp and bees nests if they are in a location that where we will not bother one another and can live in harmony.  This was not one of those cases, however, as the nest is in a direct line from my porch stairs to the blueberry bushes, a path my youngest daughter takes when she goes to get a snack.  At two years old I can’t trust that she will remember and not wander over it accidentally.

This meant the nest had to be removed so I began searching for options of which there were many.  Some suggested one of the chemical sprays on the market, other folks suggested pouring gasoline or diesel into the nest late at night and then setting it on fire, and others still used a method of mixing boiling hot water and dish soap together to then be doused onto the nest.  This last option sounded like a nice pesticide free option and I went looking for recipes.  That lead me to this:

Don’t try this if you cannot get away quickly or get a direct shot at the nest.

Also, don’t try this on a huge colony since you won’t be able to hit all the wasps or hornets and you will be attacked by the rest. (emphasis mine)

That last part and my previous experiences with ground hornets, including getting stung over a dozen times all over my body, the chemical-light method was abandoned and a can of Ortho Home Defense Max was chosen because it created a foaming barrier to help keep the hornets in the nest as it began to work.  Late last night I doused the nest and a 10s of hornets were killed within a few moments.  As the foam dissipated other individuals tried to return to the nest and also perished.  The Ortho product was more effective than expected and was worth the $5 price tag for the ease of use and peace of mind in effectiveness.

Today I went back and checked on the nest at dawn and there was no activity of any kind and a pile of dead hornets all around the entrance.  If no more activity is seen after another investigation tonight the nest will be considered destroyed.

Though I don’t like using pesticides and other toxic chemicals due to the impact they have on beneficial wildlife in my environment, there is a balance to be struck when choosing an appropriate technology to solve a problem.  Though I used chemicals this year it serves as motivation to try to find a different solution going forward.

Be safe and enjoy your garden.

This little guy, about an inch long in real life, is a Saddleback Caterpillar.  They are of note for two reasons:

1.  They are a general feeders that will munch on a wide variety of garden plants.  In large numbers, which I’ve had this year, can defoliate a 3 year old blueberry bush in a matter of days.  On doing a garden walk two weeks ago I noticed that all four of the blueberry bushes were in various states of becoming denuded.  A cursory glance at noon didn’t reveal anything so I went ahead and started picking blueberries figuring I would find the predators in the early morning or late evening. That’s when it happened.  I got stung.

2.  The sting.  I’ve been swarmed by ground hornets on several occasions, usually because I ran over a nest with a mower, hit by bumble bees, and fallen into thistle, to name a few ways I’ve been injured by nature’s bounty, and nothing compares to the stings I received from the Saddleback Caterpillar.  I didn’t know what hit me but it hurt like the dickens.  I rushed inside to wash my hand and check the damage, thinking I disturbed a wasp.  There were three stings in total, that I could see, all clustered in the soft part of my hand between the thumb and forefinger.  The pain was like an electrical current pulsing into my hand, and yes, I’ve electrocuted myself before too.

A rash raised up across the back of my hand.  Application of ice took out the peak pain and a follow up with a topical anesthetic made it tolerable the rest of the day.  The next morning the rash and pain were gone.  Though it didn’t last long, it did incapacitate that hand while it lasted.

Control:

I have been hand picking them while wearing a heavy pair of leather gloves and then disposing of them.  This has been fairly successful with only a moderate amount of work.  Though I pulled over 40 off of the 4 bushes the first time out after discovering them, and recovered from the sting, in days since I have only picked another half dozen or so.  Manual control looks to work well, is simple, and only takes a few minutes to accomplish.

From researching it a bit, it looks like they are susceptible to BT if you choose to dust or spray with it.  Be advised, however, that BT will also kill butterflies.

However you choose to handle them, wear protective clothing and be careful.  These little guys pack a powerful punch.

I recently saw that the new Cantina Tacos are made with corn tortillas and was wondering if they would be safe to eat for a Celiac or someone with Gluten Intolerance.  Previous to my Celiac diagnosis, an afternoon spent at Taco Bell was a relaxing, inexpensive date for my wife and I.  It was something that we deeply missed.  Thankfully, with a quick search Taco Bell’s Allergen and Sensitivities page came up showed they are indeed gluten free.  We can have our date afternoon back.

http://www.tacobell.com/nutrition/allergens

Remember, however, that there is always a risk for cross contamination.  Be safe and eat well.

It’s been over a year since I became gluten free and this was one of the first cookie recipes I successfully tried.  They are light, crispy, and melt in your mouth delicious. I have no idea what makes these German, but that is how this recipe was passed along to me.

2 3/4c toasted coconut
4 egg whites
1c white sugar
1t ground cinnamon
1/2t almond extract

1,  Toast coconut for 5 to 7 minutes on a cookie sheet in a 350 degree oven.
2.  Lower the oven temperature to 250 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
3.  In a large bowl whip the egg whites until they for soft peaks.
4.  At low speed,  gradually add the sugar, cinnamon, and extract to the egg whites.
5.  Fold in the coconut by hand.
6.  Drop by the tablespoonful onto the parchment, spacing 2 inches apart.
7.  Bake until dry and able to peel off easily, about 20-25 minutes.
8. Move to a cooling rack and allow to cool before eating.

You can find out more information about their campaign in general here:

http://www.liveglutenfreely.com

With a full list of the products here:

http://www.liveglutenfreely.com/products/default.aspx?WT.ac=HomeTab_Products_GetList

From what I saw of the list the most exciting item is going to be the Gluten Free Bisquik.  This was a go to item for quick wholesome meals and has been sorely missed as part of our pantry.  Once we find it in a local store I will post a review for you.

Carrot cake is a favorite in our house and finding a gluten-free recipe has been challenging.  The moistness of the carrots seems to do bad things to the gluten-free flour mixes so when I found this recipe on the Betty Crocker website I just had to share.  For the gluten free carrot cake recipe (and lots of others) go to their website here.

Of all the gluten free baking mixes on the market that we’ve tried, the Betty Crocker mixes are hands down the best.  Not only do they create a taste-of-home kind of baked good, but their ingredients lists are amazing – no weird things we can’t pronounce!

If you want to take their mixes to another level, check out the video on the Betty Crocker website here showing how to make brownie bars and marble cake.  The brownie bars are a mix of their brownie mix and the chocolate chip cookie mix and they definitely look worth making (freeze the extras.)  The marble cake, well, it looks like the chocolate sinks a lot – there is a lot more of it in the bowl in the video than the yellow cake – not sure why.

One thing mentioned in the video is that all Betty Crocker Frostings are now labeled gluten-free.  Good deal.

If you visit the Kemps website, www.kemps.com (home of both Kemps and Greens) you will find a very detailed answer delivered by a most attractive cow.  You see on the Kemps website you can “ask a cow” a question.

I was going to ask the cow if their products were gluten free but someone beat me to it.  You can read the cow’s answer here.  Spumoni lovers I am saddened to report that the color used in Kemps Spumoni is not gluten free.

Two years ago we tried our hands at growing garlic here in Central PA and we were astounded with the results.  Growing was easy, harvesting was fun and eating was awesome!  Scott has shared garlic with many online friends and we’ve gifted some to our family and friends as well.  In fact we had enough that we didn’t need to replant until this year.

We get our garlic from Karen and Mike at www.wegrowgarlic.com. They are the nicest people (actually respond to emails themselves) and boy do they grow great garlic!  We’ve found their prices to be reasonable and their selection outstanding.  The first time around we missed out on many varieties because we didn’t order until September.  This year we ordered a week after their shop opened (in July) and we still missed out on some – this stuff goes that fast!

If you have ever wanted to try garlic, make this year the year and go to Karen and Mike’s website here. We grew enough for two years of eating and sharing in a small plot so you don’t need lots of room. Want to know how to do it?  Check out Scott’s post here on harvesting our garlic and you’ll see our tiny plot.  Interplant with marigolds and you barely have to weed at all.  The only thing you really need is decent sun and the plot should not have standing water – the bulbs will rot.

Come on… give garlic a try!