Loving Flax Crackers-Adventures in Going Gluten-Free

I never really thought that I would be discussing baking and food on this blog.  While the garden and the produce that is gathered from it are a big topic here, not the preparation of food.

At the advice of a friend and after doing some research on the subject, I have put myself under the care of a nutritionist.  This doctor has me on a diet that is supposed to help with my MS symptoms.  It has been a couple of months now that I have been gluten-free, dairy- free, corn-free and, basically, sugar-free.

This new diet has presented all sorts of challenges.  First, I love bread--fresh bread, especially.  My fresh bread.  The one that comes with the fragrance that only a loaf of bread fresh from the oven can deliver.  The one that comes with the delight of the first slice of slightly warm bread covered with a generous lather of cool butter that hints at melting into the curves and grooves of the bread.  If not butter, homemade jam--apricot jam. Fresh bread fills the entire house with a feeling of love.  But now pizza crust, muffins, cornbread, pies--they are off limits.  Can you tell it has been a rough couple of months??  I'm in mourning.

Just this past week, I've been permitted to add millet, sorghum and oat flours to my diet.  All of these grains are gluten-free.  These along with buckwheat are my new bread and baking flours.  I was able to find these flours at the best price on Amazon.  The fancier Whole Foods and Trader Joes type stores are a bit of a drive and I'm not at all sure that these prices can be beat.  It's great to have all this delivered to the door.

I am a bit anxious to try some bread.  All the gluten-free sites I checked warn that this bread will not be what one is used to in the line of bread.  I'll have to prepare myself.

When my mother-in-law died last year, we were thankful to have her Vita-Mix passed down to us.  It sat in the basement for months, but it has been moved to a place of honor on the kitchen counter.  I've been able to grind oats into oat flour, buckwheat groats into buckwheat flour and garbanzo beans into bean flour.  Some things that I've made have not been horrid.  The apple crisp has been good.  The buckwheat pancakes need a different recipe...flat in every way.

While I wait to experiment with new flours, I have tried my hand at crackers.  Since I am allowed seeds, I stumbled on a recipe for Flax Crackers.  I was able to grind up some flax seeds and some sunflower seeds and then use some other seeds to make these delightful crackers.

These little goodies have helped to keep me sane.  They are wonderful with hummus.  (Not so much with peanut butter.)  Good with goat cheese - yes, that's the dairy-free alternative (that takes a bit of getting used to, but it's good--different, but good.  They have a wonderful, savory flavor and appear to have additive properties.  (Yes, that is vintage Tupperware!)

If you are interested, the recipe with detailed instructions and pictures are on this site:  Scratch Love.  You'll find she has other gluten-free recipes to explore.

Each person has challenges they are called to meet.  My hope is that this new diet will help in many ways to get my health a bit more on track.  It is going to take time, I'm told, so we'll see where this road takes me.

Blessings!

Ahhh, Books

I'm becoming increasingly aware that I could become a compulsive book buyer.  Here are my latest purchases.

The top book  is one that I've been working on for the past few months.  With the garden and grass, I've been neglecting the poor thing.  It is a great read.  Those Puritans had some great, spot-on insights.

The delightful bookmark was purchased at the Somerset Historical Society's Mountain Craft Days that we attended in September.  It is tatted with little beads.  We watched the woman make them for quite awhile.  It is an art I might consider trying.  Tatting is such simple, beautiful needlework.

Last fall, I was in a study that looked at John Newton's letters.  This man was amazing.  He, too, had great insights into the heart of men and could explain his deep thoughts in such a witty way.

Evangelism and the Sovereignty of God by J.I. Packer was recommended as a "must-have" for the home library.  No doubt, most of Packer's books would fall into that category.

I enjoy Michael Horton on the White Horse Inn.  His writing style makes the complex easier to understand.  this is my second book purchase by Horton.  The first was an inspiring, thought provoking read.

We'll have to see about Disability and the Gospel.  I read a few pages and I'm not sure it is what I had in mind.  A few pages, though, can't tell the whole story.  It may be awhile before I get back to it, though.

When new books arrive, it is like Christmas.  I love the smooth cover and the newness of the pages.  It is a bit hard for me to crack open a new book and crease the first page.  Since these are paperbacks, the newness fades quickly.  While the book is digested, pages read and reread, bookmarks inserted, margins written in, the contents become a friend.  One with which I can argue, agree, smile or cry.  One that comforts, challenges, enlightens, frustrates.  If I could only figure out how to read and quilt.  To be able to do two of my favorite things at once, would certainly make my winter recreations an even greater delight.

GLORIOUS JEHOVAH, MY COVENANT GOD,
All thy promises in Christ Jesus are yea and amen,
   and all shall be fulfilled.
Thou hast spoken them, and they shall be done,
   commanded, and they shall come to pass.
Yet I have often doubted them,
   have lived at times as if there were no God.
Lord, forgive me that death in life,
   when I have found something apart from thee,
   when I have been content with ephemeral things.
But through thy grace I have repented;
Thou has given me to read my pardon in the wounds of Jesus,
   and my soul doth trust in him, my God incarnate,
   the ground of my life, the spring of my hope.
Teach me to be resigned to thy will,
   to delight in thy law,
   to have no will but thine,
   to believe that everything thou doest is for my good.
Help me to leave my concerns in thy hands,
   for thou hast power over evil,
   and bringest from it an infinite progression of good,
   until thy purposes are fulfilled.
Bless me with Abraham's faith
   that staggers not at promises through unbelief.
May I not instruct thee in my troubles,
   but glorify thee in my trials;
Grant me a distinct advance in the divine life;
   May I reach a higher platform,
   leave the mists of doubt and fear in the valley,
   and climb to hill-tops of eternal security in Christ
      by simply believing he cannot lie,
      or turn from his purpose.
Give me the confidence I ought to have in him
   who is worthy to be praised, and who is blessed for
      evermore.
--Divine Promises from The Valley of Vision

If you wish to purchase The Valley of Vision,  you may try here at Amazon.  Or, here at Banner of Truth

Fall Garden

It is a beautiful fall day.  It's warm--mid 70's--the sun is shining, but the clouds are beginning to appear.  There is a cold front coming in tonight.

Knowing that we are to get into the 40's over the weekend, I figured I better see what I could gather from the garden that the cold is likely to kill.

Here's what I managed to salvage.  A few tomatoes, some peppers, a bit of lettuce and the parsley.  The parsley may very well manage to last awhile in the garden, but I need it for dinner this evening.

There are a few other veggie plants in the garden that have been thriving in the cooler weather that has been with us since September.  This is our first year for kale and other greens.

So far they look great.  From what I understand, these greens should only improve in flavor with the cold weather.

It was an interesting garden year.  Some things did well and other, well, no so much.  The sweet potato crop was another disaster.  Our onions seemed to rot quickly after they were dug.  The beans did well, as usual, the corn was good, except for what the bugger of a coon ate.  The garlic was smaller, but the crop was plentiful.  As always, these are things that are not in my control and it yet it proves, again, that God is faithful to provide what we need.

P.S.  It seems I was delayed in getting this posted.  I was having company for dinner and did not get my Puritan Prayer added until now.  Suffice it to say, the chilly weather arrived today, although it turned out to be a lovely, sunny day.

I continue to slowly work my way through Jeremiah Burroughs's The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment.  Here is a portion of Contentment from The Valley of Vision.

HEAVENLY FATHER,
If I should suffer need, and go unclothed, and be in poverty,
   make my heart prize thy love, know it, be constrained by it,
   though I be denied all blessings.
It is thy mercy to afflict and try me with wants,
   for by these trials I see my sins,
   and desire severance from them.
Let me willingly accept misery, sorrows, temptations,
   if I can thereby feel sin as the greatest evil,
   and be delivered from it with gratitude to thee,
   acknowledging this as the highest testimony of thy love....
Teach me to believe that if ever I would have any sin subdued
   I must not only labour to overcome it,
   but must invite Christ to abide in the place of it,
   and he must become to me more than vile lust had been;
   that his sweetness, power, life may be there....
When I am afraid of evils to come, comfort me by showing me
   that in myself I am a dying, condemned wretch,
     but in Christ I am reconciled and live;
   that in myself I find insufficiency and no rest,
     but in Christ there is satisfaction and peace;
that in myself I am feeble and unable to do good,
     but in Christ I have ability to do all things.

A Visit to the Farmer's Market

Wednesday and Saturday mornings are very special to me.  As I have written in the past, these are the days that the Farmer's Market is open in our little strip mall parking lot.  It has done my soul good to see the booths all bustling and crowded this summer.  If it were up to me,  I would bring a lawn chair and enjoy watching the transactions of the morning.

One can learn a great deal by listening to others as they choose their purchases.  There are elderly women, who still like to can, choosing just the right cucumbers for pickles.   Some folks are seasoned veterans at picking the perfect peppers.  When the sweet corn comes in, the place is very busy with people wanting to taste the delights of summer.  From apples, eggplant and tomatoes to broom corn, fresh flowers and herbs and jellies, there really is something for everyone.  It is one of my happy places.


For the longest time I have wanted to attempt to capture the Market on film.  This past Saturday, I finally remembered the camera.  It was not one of the busier days, but then the season is winding down for some of the vendors.  Most gardens are about done.

This is one side of the area.  Armello's brings fresh Italian bread, pizza shells and rolls from Vandergrift about  45 minutes away.  The baker told me he is up at 3 am so that the bread is fresh for the Market.  And it is.  I've had their bread and pizza shells.  They are so good.  The fresh fragrance when the bag is opened is....well, uh, I guess beyond words.

These folks have quite a variety of wares; from vivid yellow flowers to honey and jams and watermelon.  They even had maple syrup.

The Hooks Family.  This is where I buy most of the veggies that I don't grow myself.  

Mr. Hooks is in the center of the picture in the "Maine" sweatshirt.  He has been very helpful answering my many gardening questions and is delightful to talk with.  His sweetcorn is the best by far.

Mussers Fruit Farm.  My "Apple Guy".  It seems they have every kind of apple, old and newer varieties.  They had pears several weeks ago that were amazing!  Mrs. Musser had blueberries for sale for the first time this spring.  These folks know each variety of their apple's best qualities.  The Mussers know which of their apples are good for sauce, baking or eating fresh.  He is a wealth of apple wisdom.  Since I am on this no sugar diet, I wasn't sure if my normal Cortland apples would be the best for my applesauce this year.  When I asked him about canning sauce with no sugar, he recommended Ida Reds. The result was perfect.  It is nice and thick with a great flavor.  I headed back for another bushel a week later.  For his other apple choices, he says the Cortlands are still his pick for a drying apple.  Empires are his favorite eating apple.  I've seen folks buy quite a bit of their grapes, too.  I can't wait for the cider!  It's pure, unfooled around with, nothing added--or taken away--cider.

There are not many weeks left until just the Mussers will be at the Market.  They will be there until Christmas with apples and cider.  At that point, I wait until the late spring to see the delights of the Market.

O DIVINE REDEEMER,
Great was thy goodness
   in undertaking my redemption,
   in consenting to be made sin for me,
   in conquering all my foes;
   Great was thy strength
   in enduring the extremities of divine wrath,
   in taking away the load of my iniquities;
Great was thy love
   in manifesting thyself alive,
   in showing thy sacred wounds,
      that every fear might vanish, and every doubt be removed;
Great was thy mercy
   in ascending to heaven
   in being crowned and enthroned
      there to intercede for me,
      there to succour me in temptation,
      there to open the eternal book,
      there to receive me finally to thyself;...
Great was thy grace
   in commanding me to come hand in had with thee to the Father,
      to be knit to him eternally,
      to discover in him my rest,
      to find in him my peace,
      to behold his glory,
      to honour him who is alone worthy;...
When thou art absent all sorrows are here,
When thou art present all blessings are mine.

--A selection from Victory, from the book, The Valley of Vision.



 

9/11 and God

For your reading pleasure:  A Shocking Day That Neither Shocked nor Surprised God.

Childhood Memories -- A Craft From the Past

Of course, there is the usual grass cutting, garden weeding and tomato canning, but I've been busy reliving my childhood...

A few months ago, I had delivered a meal to a friend and their puppy promptly chewed two of my old, but loved potholders.  My niece had made some for me a long time ago.  I always loved making these as a kid and when I needed replacements the store bought ones just didn't cut it.  They just don't seem to stand up to the heat from the oven like these good ole ones do.

When I was telling my husband about my dilemma of trying to find decent potholders, he went online and found a kit with the whole works.  Frame, directions, helpful metal weaving tools and enough bright cotton loops to make two potholders.  This is the beginning of the first one that I made.

This is potholder #1!

This project brought back many memories from my childhood.  I loved weaving these--creating patterns with the colors--then, I remembered how difficult they can be to remove from the frame.  That brought back memories, too...the ones when I would get frustrated and yell and want to pitch the whole thing....yeah, those wonderful memories.  I did have to fight with this one getting it off the frame.  The second was a great deal easier.  I had left it on the frame for a couple of days knowing that I wanted time to put up a good fight.  Well, it seems that letting it sit for those two days helped a ton.  No fighting!  Lesson learned.

It was interesting for me to remember my frustrations as a kid and, thankfully, see that I'm no longer so easily frustrated and how God has grown me.

There is one problem, it is not all that big of a problem, really.  There have been quite a few admirers of my new potholders.  I may need to find a larger bag of loops to make some for gifts!  This is potholder #2.

P.S.  I realize that today is the 11th anniversary of the attacks on America on 9/11.  It remains a day of reflection and remembrance.  I cannot forget the horror of that day and how we have all been changed by such an attack.  God, however, was not asleep.  He is sovereign.

"My Father,
Enlarge my heart, warm my affections, open my lips,
   supply words that proclaim 'Love lustres at Calvary'.
There grace removes my burdens and heaps them on the Son,
   made a transgressor, a curse, and sin for me;
There the sword of thy justice smote the man, thy fellow;
There thy infinite attributes were magnified,
   and infinite atonement was made;
There infinite punishment was due,
   and infinite punishment was endured.
Christ was all anguish that I might be all joy
      cast off that I might be brought in,
      trodden down as an enemy
         that I might be welcomed as a friend,
      surrendered to hell's worst
         that I might attain heaven's best,
      stripped that I might be clothed,
      wounded that I might be healed,
      athirst that I might drink,
      tormented that I might be comforted,
      made a shame that I might inherit glory,
      entered darkness that I might have eternal light,
My Saviour wept that all tears might be wiped from my eyes,
      groaned that I might have endless song,
      endured all pain that I might have unfading health,
      bore a thorned crown that I might have a glory-diadem,
      bowed his head that I might uplift mine,
      experienced reproach that I might receive welcome,
      closed his eyes in death that I might gaze on unclouded brightness,
      expired that I might for ever live.

An excerpt from "Love Lustres At Calvary" from The Valley of Vision. (This selection is the favorite of my friend, Bill, who would, at any given opportunity, read from The Valley of Vision during Worship.)


Here is a a selection from "Valley of Vision" a CD of songs inspired by the book, Valley of Visions.  This song is based on this selection.  It is called "How Deep".