Author Archives: Cheryl Harris, MPH, RD, LD

Nana Skillet Bread Recipe

In the past, I’ve called this my lazy day skillet bread.

 

I thoroughly love this recipe. It’s not a traditional banana bread, and it’s not a cake, per se, I suppose it’s best compared to a cornbread. I tend to make things that pop up in my head, and then try to figure out how to explain it. Generally, if someone asks what something is, I tell them to taste it and figure it out that way! I’ve had it for brunch, as a snack, as a dessert with chocolate chips, and it could be used (sans nuts) with chili instead or as a side for, say, a BBQ!

Read More »

Gluten in Medications: FDA Wants to Hear from You!

Cheryl Harris Gluten Free Works

The FDA opened a 90 day comment period on gluten in medications. One of the things we learned from 1 in 133 is that when we make it clear how many people care about gluten labeling, movement happens.  Let’s give the message that we feel this is important!

Gluten in Medications:

We know that most packaged foods on the grocery shelf in the U.S. will have straight-forward labeling, at least for ingredients containing wheat. However, this is not the case for medications, and finding accurate and timely information is much more challenging.

Standard prescription labels include only the active ingredients. So if your Read More »

Banana ‘Scream with a Kick Recipe

Cheryl Harris Gluten Free Works

Life has been busy—issues with construction, permits, fire hazards and the like.  And our oven broke.  So lately it’s been all about the quick and easy.

And what’s quicker and easier than Banana ‘Scream?  It takes about 2 minutes from start to finish, simple, and totally customizable to pretty much any diet (except a banana allergy).  We tend to have browning bananas go to freezer heaven, and the lucky ones are found and made into dessert before they become a mass of ice crystals.

1 banana, frozen, chopped into 5-6 chunks
1 TBSP liquor (chocolate liquor, Frangelico, whatever) Read More »

Easy and Amazing Holiday Classics List

Cheryl Harris Gluten Free Works

gluten free candy canesWe’re lucky that there are more and more recipes out there that taste just like the real thing. But for many people, it s easier to make some desserts that happen to be gluten-free, rather than gluten-free adaptations of “normal” foods.

Foods that are naturally gluten free avoid the expensive specialty flours. Personally, I am not a fan of spending a lot for specialty flours when I’m sharing with many non-GF folks. This avoids the inevitable complaints of friends or family who won’t even try GF foods just because they’ve decided they won’t like it.

There are a lot of treats which just happen to be GF, or mostly GF. You can find recipes in normal cookbooks, or maybe you have Read More »

Gluten-Free Turkey List 2011

Cheryl Harris Gluten Free Works

gluten free turkeyIt’s about that time of year! I always get so many questions from clients about which brands of what are safe, and so for the past 5 years I’ve put it all together to save you all the work!

Wishing you all a happy and healthy Thanksgiving,

Cheryl

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This list was last updated on Nov 3rd, 2011. Please let me know if there are any broken links!

General turkey tips:

  • Fresh, plain turkeys that are not stuffed are naturally gluten free
  • All regular stuffed turkeys contain gluten, even if you don’t eat the Read More »

FDA Gluten Free Labeling Update

Cheryl Harris Gluten Free Works

The FDA is finally moving on regulating the claim “gluten-free” on packages, which is fantastic news!  Lots of people have put in countless hours to make this happen.  We’ve got 1 month left to comment—until October 3rd—and YOUR comment is vital to getting the law YOU want.

During the Aug 2nd teleconference, we heard that the comment period was re-opened and we might have a law by late 2012.  Several prominent researchers, including Dr. Alesso Fasano and Dr.Stefano Guandalini, spoke in favor of the new proposed legislation. “This is a standard that has been in use in Europe for almost two decades, & the science supports the U.S. adopting it as well,” commented Dr. Fasano.  I posted highlights of the teleconference, but upon reading the 90+ page safety assessment, I had a lot of questions! http://1.usa.gov/r4NDLA

The safety assessment suggests that for the most sensitive Celiac, Read More »

Gluten-Free Labeling Update: Big News!

Cheryl Harris Gluten Free Works

Could it possibly be?  At long last, there’s some movement on the behalf of the gluten-free labeling movement.

nutrition labelThis is REALLY big news for people who are gluten-free in the U.S.!  The FDA has re-opened a comment period for 60 days to solicit opinions from health professionals, scientists and the public on a potential ruling for defining gluten-free as less than 20 ppm.

Why 20ppm? According Michael Taylor at the FDA at stakeholder teleconference on Aug 2nd, it’s the lowest amount that can be accurately quantified, and many leading experts believe it is a safe amount. Europe has used it for 20 + years.  Several prominent researchers, including Dr. Alesso Fasano and Dr.Stefano Guandalini, spoke in favor of the new proposed legislation. “This is a standard that has been in use in Read More »