Tasty Recipes from Recipe Wizards

Superman fans know that kryptonite was deadly for this otherwise super hero. That’s how registered dietitian Kimberly Tessmer describes gluten – a group of proteins in wheat, rye, and barley – for people with celiac disease.

In her book, “Tell Me What to Eat if I have Celiac Disease” (Career Press, 2009), Tessmer says gluten “is kryptonite” for the digestive system of people with celiac disease – also known as gluten intolerance, gluten-sensitive enteropathy, and non-tropical sprue. In these people, gluten triggers an inflammatory attack on the lining of the small intestine that destroys the ability to absorb nutrients and causes a variety of symptoms, including stomach pain, abnormal stools, and weight loss.

How do you know if you have celiac disease? Get thee to a gastroenterologist – a specialist in diseases of the digestive system. Blood tests for specific antibodies can show how your body responds to gluten. The most conclusive test for celiac, say experts is a biopsy – taking an actual look at a small sample of intestine.

What is the treatment? Avoid gluten like it was kryptonite … for the rest of your life. That is the only way the intestinal tract can heal. Symptoms often begin to improve within days of eating “gluten-free.”

And therein lies the nutritional challenge – to totally avoid all foods that contain wheat, rye and barley. Semolina pasta, couscous and tabouli are no-no’s. So is triticale (a cross between wheat and rye), spelt and kamut (wheat-based grains). Even malt such as in malt vinegar, contains gluten.

What about oats? Most experts say people with celiac disease can tolerate limited amounts of oats (no more than 1/2 cup per day). Look for oat products that have not been contaminated with wheat products, however.

Foods that are naturally free of gluten include rice, corn, millet, nuts, legumes, potato, sorghum, soy, tapioca, and quinoa. So is buckwheat, believe it or not. (Just be sure it doesn’t have wheat flour added to it.) Other gluten-free foods are milk (liquid and dry), fresh fruit and vegetables (unless they are coated with a wax or resin that contains gluten), unprocessed meats, fish and poultry, 100 percent fruit juices, eggs, lentils, nuts and seeds, sugar and honey.

The problem lies in products that have been thickened, sauced, or gravied with ingredients that may contain gluten. How can you tell? Good question. Under a new labeling law known as FALCPA (Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act), products that contain wheat must clearly say so on the label. And the Food and Drug Administration will soon issue a final rule to define what foods can and cannot be called “gluten-free.” In the meantime, manufacturers may use this term on their products if they truly are.

Here’s the crazy thing … the only effective treatment to avoid chronic health problems for people with celiac disease is medical nutrition therapy. Yet many health plans, including Medicare, do not provide for this treatment by a nutrition professional … Superman, where are you?

Barbara Quinn is a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator at the Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula. Email her at bquinn@chomp.org.)

Everybody gets so jittery about the caffeine content of coffee. So they forgo their cup o’ Joe and often substitute some other libation they believe won’t give them the caffeine shakes.

But the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently reported that caffeine derivatives often are liberally used in energy drinks and dietary supplements. Let’s take a look at three of the more popular “botanicals” that’ll give you a buzz.

1. The Agricultural Research Service says an 8-ounce cup of coffee contains 95 milligrams of caffeine. Of the 53 energy drinks and dietary supplements the agency studied, how many of those products met or exceeded coffee’s caffeine content?

a) 13

b) 33

c) 53

d) none

2. Guarana, a plant found in the Amazon basin, is the most frequently added caffeine-alternative extract. According to a study in the journal Pharmaceutical Biology, how much more caffeine does guarana have than coffee beans?

a) same amount

b) twice as much

c) five times as much

d) 25 times as much

3. Yerba mate, a species of holly from South America, contains about one-third of the caffeine of coffee, according to a Health Canada study. Which celebrity has NOT touted yerba mate as a supplement?

a) Madonna

b) Moby

c) Matt Dillon

d) Miley Cyrus

4. Among the claims that yerba mate enthusiasts cite is that it helps to … what?

a) restore youthful hair color

b) jump-start the male libido

c) whiten teeth

d) improve long-term memory

5. True or false: Green tea contains no caffeine.

6. For those who want the biggest buzz for the buck, which energy drink contains the most caffeine per ounce, equivalent to downing a maximum strength No-Doz tablet?

a) Red Line Power Rush

b) Blow

c) Ammo

d) Charge! Super Shot

ANSWERS: 1: c; 2: b; 3: d; 4: a; 5: false (35 mg in 6 oz.); 6: c (171 mg per oz.).

Sources: U.S. Department of Agriculture; www.nutritiondata.com; Health Canada; www.brainready.com.

“Not Becoming My Mother: and Other Things She Taught Me Along the Way” by Ruth Reichl; Penguin (128 pages, $19.95)

Sometimes, we get a second chance to right a wrong. In Ruth Reichl’s case, she required four.

Finally, though, she paid up on the debt to her mother that had been accumulating since her first memoir, “Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table,” in 1998. Two other memoirs followed, “Comfort Me With Apples: More Adventures at the Table” in 2001, and “Garlic and Sapphires: The Secret Life of a Critic in Disguise” in 2005. Each was her story, but inevitably her mother Miriam’s story, as well – with Miriam being her punch line, her scapegoat, her shame and her quandary.

Now, in her latest memoir, “Not Becoming My Mother: and Other Things She Taught Me Along the Way,” Reichl owns up to ill-using her mother. Sort of. Of her initial memoir, she writes that “the first time I held the printed book in my hand I winced. I could not keep from thinking that I had betrayed my mother. It was not a good feeling and I wanted to make it up to her.”

But then the second memoir came out, with more tales of the eccentric mother who cooked experimentally, apparently with a guardian angel of food poisoning on her shoulder, and who took a buffet of medications for what eventually was diagnosed as manic-depression. Tellingly, Reichl writes that she never would have shared these stories while her mother was alive. Yet came the third memoir, “each time getting deeper into my mother’s debt. Someday, I kept saying, I’ll write Mom’s book.”

Here it is, then, and it provides a fuller picture of the woman whom Reichl’s readers have gaped at as a sort of absurdist homemaker and parent to the always searching, always passionate, always too-cool-for-school daughter. The book turns on Reichl finding a box of her mother’s letters, notes and clippings. As she read them, she found a woman who had little in common with the comi-tragic foil of the earlier memoirs.

Instead, she found a woman whose marriage was not always happy, who wondered what she could expect from life, who hoped her daughter could support herself. “She was more thoughtful, more self-aware and much more generous than I had ever appreciated,” Reichl wrote. It turns out that Miriam herself had a mother whom she could never please. She was all too aware that a life on pills was no life at all, yet also “came back to life” as she turned 80.

As Reichl writes: “When she found that (my brother) and I could not keep from treating her like the sad old Mom she used to be, she simply cut us loose. She did not need that. For the happiest years of her life, Mom relied almost entirely on herself.”

The book goes on like that for most of its 110 pages, which proves a welcome brevity. Perhaps Reichl, 61, could not have written this book any earlier in her life, discovered letters or not. That’s why they call it maturing.

Still, for those who read her earlier memoirs with a discomfiting sense that she was using her mother’s foibles as a sort of literary prop, it’s grim comfort to read that she suspected the same of herself. Unfortunately, the result is a book through which a vein of guilt runs crookedly, like mold through Roquefort. Read the book, but not for Reichl’s sake. Read it for her mother.

Everyone knows about beer-can chicken.

Everyone but me.

I “discovered” this recipe for the first time a few weeks ago and just about flipped. There’s something about cooking chicken on top of a can of beer that satisfies my inner Homer Simpson. I was so excited I just had to tell my co-workers here at The Bee.

No one shared my enthusiasm, not even the folks whose culinary aptitude is limited to making Ramen noodles in the microwave. Seems my colleagues, along with the rest of the world, have been making beer-can chicken for years.

My suspicions were confirmed when I e-mailed the recipe to our testers. Within minutes, a flurry of replies started – each with a tester’s favorite beer-can chicken recipe.

Use stout, one tester said. Put garlic and onions in the can, said another.

It seems they all knew about beer-can chicken, and they all had their own methods for making it.

Next, I checked online and got lost in the world of beer-can chicken, which has been elevated to an art among foodies. One cook secures a half-pound of bacon to the top of his chicken with toothpicks before cooking it. Another, who prefers not to use alcohol, uses half a can of apple juice.

Since I was a beginner, I picked the most basic version of beer-can chicken I could find. Then I sent my husband shopping. (It wasn’t tough to convince him – he was almost as excited as I was at the prospect of barbecuing with beer.)

Because he went to the store, he had to make the decision: What beer should we use for this all-important adventure?

We didn’t get cheap beer – we wanted to taste the flavor in the chicken. But a lot of high-quality beers don’t come in cans. We ended up with a six-pack of Heineken.

Putting the chicken on the can was easier than I thought, even though the bird was slippery from the vegetable oil and the barbecue rub. I gently carried it out to the grill and gingerly set it on the grate.

I held my breath, and – guess what? – it didn’t topple over.

We could smell the chicken cooking as we played with the children in the blow-up pool. I checked it after about 45 minutes, and I’m glad I did. The skin on one side was burnt black. Next time I make this, I’ll be more careful where I place the chicken and how high I turn the flames.

Still, the chicken seemed to be cooked through. I took it off the barbecue using hot pads and put it on a platter. Then I brought it into the kitchen and proceeded to try to pry the beer can out of the – uh – bottom of the chicken.

This is a delicate process. I’ve since read that you are supposed to hold the base of the can with an oven mitt, then use tongs (grabbing the chicken in the neck cavity) to pull the chicken off.

I’ve also read that, instead of a beer can, you can buy a “beer-can chicken stand,” which isn’t really a can at all. Seems like cheating to me.

Anyway, we let the bird rest and then cut into it. The meat was more tender than anything we’ve barbecued. It didn’t taste like beer, but it did have a certain flavor, sort of a slight tang.

So much for my inner Homer Simpson. And my “discovery.”

Still, I’m glad I ran across this. I know we will make it again and again.

BEER CAN CHICKEN

Serves: 4

This recipe is from www.foodnetwork.com.

Ingredients:

1 (4-pound) whole chicken

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 tablespoons salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

3 tablespoons of your favorite dry spice rub

1 can beer

Instructions:

Remove neck and giblets from chicken and discard. Rinse chicken inside and out, and pat dry with paper towels. Rub chicken lightly with oil then rub inside and out with salt, pepper and dry rub. Set aside. Open beer can and take several gulps (make them big gulps so that the can is half full). Place beer can on a solid surface. Grabbing a chicken leg in each hand, plunk the bird cavity over the beer can. Transfer the bird on the can to your grill and place in the center of the grate, balancing the bird on its two legs and the can like a tripod.

Cook the chicken over medium-high, indirect heat (i.e. no coals or burners on directly under the bird), with the grill cover on, for approximately 11/4 hours or until the internal temperature registers 165 degrees in the breast area and 180 degrees in the thigh, or until the thigh juice runs clear when stabbed with a sharp knife.

Bee staff writer Kerry McCray can be reached at 578-2358 or at kmccray@modbee.com.

Whether they’re watching their wallets or their waistlines, more consumers are getting their coffee at home these days.

According to the National Coffee Association’s 2009 Coffee Drinking Trends survey, 5 percent more of us are brewing beans at home this year – resulting in the highest level since 2003.

This summer, be your own budget barista when it comes to icy-cold coffee drinks. Start with good beans and good water, plus a few tips from the experts.

“The serious coffee drinker doesn’t need to spend a lot of money on equipment,” said Michael Turback, author of “Coffee Drinks” (Ten Speed Press, 2008, $14.95). “You can buy a French press. … It will make coffee as good as any expensive machine. A decent grinder can be found for $20. The money you save on equipment means you can spend more on great beans.”

There’s one main mistake people make when fixing iced coffee, Turback said. “Many people will brew hot coffee at double strength, then pour over an equal amount of ice or cold water. In my experience, the cold steep method is superior and less acidic.”

At Anodyne Coffee Roasting Co., 2920 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., where iced coffee and iced lattes top the list of summer sellers, “We use the Toddy Brewer (a cold brew system) to make our iced coffee,” said Matt McClutchy, the shop’s founder. “It does a great job.”

His tip: “Even (using) the cheapest grinder is better than buying pre-ground coffee.”

Your Own PerksHere are a few suggestions for creating your perfect perk:

-Iced coffee

Coffee shop cost: $2

Home brew: Cold steep method. Pour 1 pound ground coffee into a non-reactive container. Slowly add 10 cups cold water. Cover and let steep at room temperature for 10 hours. Strain well. Store coffee concentrate in refrigerator. Serve over ice; add milk or sweetener if desired.

Also try: Toddy Cold Brew System, $33.95 to $37.50, available at Alterra stores and www.toddycafe.com

-Iced latte

Coffee shop cost: $2.65 to $3.50

Home brew: Fill cup with ice. Add 12 ounces cold milk and 2 shots of espresso. If you don’t have an espresso maker, try the cold steep method (above); add 8 ounces milk to 3 ounces coffee concentrate.

-Iced chai

Coffee shop cost: $2.75

Home brew: Try Oregon Chai Tea Latte Concentrate ($4.79 for 32 ounces). Mix equal parts chai and milk; add ice and serve. Available at Woodman’s, Target.

-Iced tea

Coffee shop cost: $1.45 to $2

Home brew: Try Rishi Organic Caffeine-Free Iced Tropical Crimson Tea ($7 for five pitchers) or Tazo Iced Tea ($4.79 to $4.95 for six pitchers). Brew at double strength (two filter bags) and pour over ice. Rishi available at www. rishi-tea.com or Whole Foods; Tazo teas at Target; Tazo Passion Iced Tea sold only in Starbucks stores.

-Frappes/blended coffee drinks

Coffee shop cost: $3.50 to $4.75

Home brew: Try mixes available in the coffee aisle. For stronger flavors, add syrups or frozen cubes of coffee. Vanilla, caramel and hazelnut are among the most popular flavored syrups from Torani, $2.99 to $6.99, available at Pick ‘n Save and Cost Plus World Market.

Also try: Devin Alexander’s “Mocha Frappuccino Blended Coffee” (from her “Fast Food Fix” cookbook): Combine 1/2 tablespoon instant coffee and 2 tablespoons water. Microwave for 1 minute or until coffee is dissolved. Add 1 teaspoon sugar. Stir until dissolved. Transfer to mixing bowl. Add 6 ice cubes. Add 1/2 cup fat-free half and half and 2 tablespoons chocolate syrup. Put in blender, blend on high speed. Top with whipped cream.

Sources: www.toddycafe.com, www.coffeegeek.com, National Coffee Association. Coffee shop prices reflect a range of Milwaukee-area stores.

Kathy Huschka loves Chinese chicken salad, but she wanted to lighten up her recipe for it.

“The dressing scares me. Can you slim it down?” she wrote me. “Half a cup of oil sounds like so much.”

I started by adding more vinegar to the dressing and reducing the amount of oil. Baking the chicken with some soy sauce and a bit of toasted sesame oil pumps up the salad’s flavor so that the dressing doesn’t need a lot of oil. I also substituted Splenda for the sugar and cut out the extra teaspoon of salt because the chicken seasoning packet comes loaded with sodium already.

Many Chinese chicken salads include a generous amount of almonds for extra crunch, but I use some shredded carrot instead to cut hundreds of calories and more than 50 fat grams from this recipe.

My alterations to Huschka’s dressing cut the calories by 63 percent and the fat by 68 percent.

You can have a serving of my Chinese chicken salad for 314 calories and 11.4 grams of fat.

KATHY’S CHINESE CHICKEN SALAD

For salad:

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts

1/2 head Napa cabbage, thinly sliced

1/4 head red cabbage, thinly sliced

1 large carrot, shredded

3 scallions, thinly sliced

1 (11-ounce) can mandarin oranges packed in water, drained

For dressing:

1 packet chicken seasoning from package of ramen noodles

2 tablespoons Splenda

1/2 cup white vinegar

3 tablespoons canola oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine soy sauce with sesame oil and brush onto chicken breasts.

Arrange chicken breasts in a glass dish and bake until juices run clear, about 15 minutes. Remove chicken from oven, cool completely and cut into \-inch slices.

In a large bowl, combine cabbage, carrot, scallions, mandarin oranges and chicken. In a small bowl, whisk together chicken seasoning, Splenda, vinegar and canola oil. Pour dressing over salad and toss to combine. Divide evenly among four bowls.

Serves 4.

Per serving: 314 calories, 750 mg sodium, 11.4 fat grams, 69 mg cholesterol, 30 g protein, 18 carb grams, 3.3 fiber grams

I’LL SLIM IT DOWN FOR YOU

Do you have a favorite food or popular recipe that you’d like to see made healthier? Send your ideas and recipes to me at:

dontsaydiet@gmail.com or

Don’t Say Diet

P.O. Box 780865

Wichita, KS 67278