Gluten Free

     I’m pretty sure that you’ve at least heard about gluten free food. In case you don’t know, gluten is a protein that is found in foods containing wheat and other grains like barley or rye. I won’t get into all of claims and counter claims about the benefits and drawbacks of going gluten free, because I haven’t had to consider that. I was diagnosed as having Celiac Disease about seven years ago, and as a result going gluten free wasn’t a choice, but a medical necessity.

     One of the benefits I have discovered from going gluten-free is that I actually lost a significant amount of weight (about 60 lbs. in about eight months) and have managed to keep it off. Let me be clear on this point, though. I don’t attribute my weight loss to any magic found in gluten free food. It’s more of a matter of being forced to consider carefully everything that I ate. I haven’t eaten at a drive through window since my diagnoses. Don’t get me wrong, you can go gluten free and still eat a terrible diet. For instance, many of the specially marketed prepackaged foods contain more sugar than their gluten filled counterparts. Also, many of these foods are pretty expensive. Since I was a poor college student when I was diagnosed I had to get creative. This basically meant that I had to take the advice of Food Guru (and generally insufferable TV chef) Jamie Oliver. I did most of my shopping along the outside edges of the supermarket selecting fresh, non-processed, or lightly processed foods. I then had to take them home and cook them. This led to some incidents that were frustrating at the time (pro tip: don’t try to make soup from scratch when you have exams the next day) but are pretty humorous in retrospect. As time passed, I learned a few shortcuts and I’m happy to pass them along. So now that you’ve indulged my prattling, let me share a recipe for spicy Thai noodles with you. I stumbled across this online and have tweaked it to fit my needs. I hope you enjoy.

Spicy Thai Noodles:

-1 box of linguine or angel hair pasta (I used brown rice noodles, but feel free to go with what’s convenient)
-1-2 TBSP crushed red pepper (Only go with 2 if you’re really into spicy)
-¼ cup vegetable oil
-½ cup sesame oil
-6 TBSP of honey
-6 TBSP of soy sauce (I went with Tamari soy sauce because many standard soy sauces aren’t gluten free)

These garnish bits are optional but I wouldn’t omit the peanuts:
-½ cup green onions
-2 shredded carrots
-½ cup of cilantro 

-¾ cup of peanuts (I give the peanuts a slight crush, you don’t want them to be dust but whole or half peanuts can be a little cumbersome)

-Sprinkle of sesame seeds to taste

 Directions:
-Boil noodles and strain
- Heat oil and crushed red pepper in a small sauce pan over medium heat ( at the first hint of a boil remove to prevent scorching)
-Strain pepper from oil
-Mix oil, honey and soy sauce and stir until blended
- Toss pasta with oil mixture and refrigerate until cold ( I usually go with overnight, but a few hours should suffice)
- Add garnishes and serve