Burtons Grill

I have been so excited to blog about my family's trip to Boston, Massachusetts! This is the second time I have really ever been to Boston and I am so happy that I got to go with my whole family. We were there for two days and one night, but that was enough time to check out Burtons Bar and Grill. Since I have not been to the city many times, walking to a restaurant or even taking to the "T" was pretty new to me. So when we decided to walk to Burtons, I was excited to be able to walk to somewhere in general, unlike at home where nothing is in walking distance. (I'm still very into not driving if possible, save gas and pollution). Ohho and did I mention that they have a gluten free menu?... must have slipped my mind!

Interior Design of Burtons Grill

I did not photograph all the gluten free dishes but the burger above is gluten free with a new bun that they just got in that day and my brother was the first one to try them!

It was an amazing feeling being out in a new city, eating at a restaurant I had never been to before, knowing that my brother could get a meal that we would not have to worry about contamination with gluten, and enjoy ourselves!

Check out their website for more information at: Burtons Grill

My Dream of Remodeling Our Kitchen

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For a long time I have been wanting to go visit a Kitchen Appliance Showroom! New shiny stoves and refrigerators make me want to cook up a storm right there in the store. Everything is brand new, its like a new beginning for your kitchen.

Even though I would love to remodel our kitchen, most of the appliances are out of my family's budget. (beauty and shinyness is really expensive). But you can dream right?

I took pictures of some of my favorite stoves and refrigerator and even though I got strange looks from other people in the store, I wanted to show you some of the fancy appliances I would love to have!

My favorite brands (even though I have never used either of them) are Sub-Zero and Wolf. These two companies are actually the same (Maybe that's why I like them so much!). At the bottom of this page I will list some of the brands shown in the pictures and some websites about them to check out.

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~Wolf~

I love this stove because of the six burners and large oven. I love the large chunky red knobs and the push out information screen that sticks out with the nobs. I think it is such a genius idea to have it retract into the stove so it will not get splattered with food and grime.

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~Wolf~

Here is another wolf that does not have the information screen but has a slide out "shelf" right above the oven door. I don't know if I would use it but wouldn't it be fun to say, "yeah my stove has a shelf built right in."

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~Viking~

I love this stove for its two ovens. It is difficult to make dessert when my mom is making dinner since the chance of the oven needing to be at the same temperature is unlikely. This way you can use both if necessary and if you are only heating something small up, you can use the smaller over saving gas and the world. The built in griddle does not do anything special for me, since we have an electric griddle and a large grill pan. But that's not enough to make me not want to buy it!!

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~Viking~

I love the tube shaped handles on this fridge and freezer. Its tall design gives it an elegant feel to your home. I like that the motor is at the top so you don't have to feel the hot air on your feet when you stand in front of it. I like the double doors but it is inconvenient for my house. One side of my fridge is up against a wall not allowing one of the doors to open fully, limiting what you can fit in and easily take out.

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~umm...~

Sorry but I don't remember what kind of fridge this is but I can tell you that I love the handles! They reach all the way to the floor! I also like that it is built into the cabinetry.

~Sub-Zero~

I love this large, glass doored, sophisticated refrigerator and freezer. The right side of the unit is devoted to refrigerating (including the two drawers underneath) and the other side is for freezing (along with the drawers). I love some of the simple things about this unit, from the stainless steel, to the lighting and to the organization. The glass door gives it a deli/commercial look that me and my mom love!

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~Sub-Zero~

This unit is only a refrigerator but has a beautiful, full glass door! And once again there are my long round handles I love so much!

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~TurboChef~

I love this oven for many reasons. The top oven is specially made to cook 15x faster than a normal oven cutting cooking times by a lot! It has a built in computer so you can tell it what you are making and it will cook it at the temperature and time it requires. I love the rounded top oven door and the bright color. You can choose from a few different colors to fit your kitchen. I love the mix between technology and fashion, with the computer screen and the analog clock and timer. To learn more visit the link at the bottom of the page (it's an awesome website)!

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~umm...~

I don't know what kind of oven this is but I took the picture for the handles. I love them for some reason!

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~Aga~

I love the ranch house, old feeling of this oven. The cream color and the black top are really nice together. The handles are like springs or coiled wire. The outside of the main oven compartment has a built in thermometer. The only down side is that it does not have a glass door so you can't see what is happening inside. But that's nothing new to me because my oven is so dirty that you can't even see inside. The sucky thing is that it can't be cleaned off and has been there since we bought the house!!

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~umm...~

I like this one since it has been covered with wood paneling so it looks like it is part of the cabinetry. I don't know if it is really my style but its cool anyway.

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Websites to visit: (I will add more websites to this list as I find them.)

Sub-Zero

Wolf

Viking

TurboChef

Bertazzoni

Aga

Gluten Free Dining Card Giveaway to Promote Celiac Awareness

A few days ago Triumph Dining contacted me telling me about a Challenge they are having this August. Triumph Dining is giving away FREE American Dining Cards until the end of August. There’s absolutely no purchase necessary. http://www.triumphdining.com/freediningcard.aspx to participate and get a free dining card (or click Here).

The purpose of this give-away is to raise money for Celiac Disease Awareness. If 15,000 people sign up for free dining cards, Triumph Dining will make a $10,000 donation in support of a national celiac disease awareness campaign. When they hit their goal, they'll ask you and the gluten free community to help us decide which non-profit(s) receives the donation.

They're trying to build awareness on two fronts: With 15,000 more dining cards on the street, they'll be educating more restaurants about the gluten free diet faster. And, with $10,000 funding behind a national campaign, they can diagnose and educate more Celiacs.
The FREE dining card offer is available at http://www.triumphdining.com/freediningcard.aspx and they'll be posting regular progress reports on their blog at http://blog.triumphdining.com.

This is a great opportunity for the Gluten Free world so don't pass it up! Click on the link (or copy and paste the address into your address or URL bar) and get your FREE Gluten Free Dining Card!
Send this link to all your Gluten Free Friends and get them to help buy requesting a Dining Card, bringing Triumph Dining one card closer to completing their challenge!

Your Fellow Blogger,
Dylan

Tilting Three Flavored Cake

For a long long time I have been wanting to make a huge cake, one that my family would not be able to eat in anything less than 4 days. I wanted to make a wedding cake without the wedding! I designed a basic plan and got the layout together, but for some reason I lost interest and was not enthusiastic about creating this monster cake. Just a few days ago I decided that it would be good for me to do some baking. I started that day! I did not even have all the ingredients I needed, thankfully it was "food shopping Monday" so I was in luck! This cake did not turn out as huge as I had anticipated but I am proud of the way it turned out!
This was the first time I have made three different flavors of cake for the one cake. I have not even tested one of these cake recipes before hand.
The cake consisted of (from bottom to top) two layers of yellow vanilla cake with a layer of chocolate frosting between. Then two layers of chocolate cake with a layer of vanilla butter cream frosting between. Last but not least two small strawberry layers of cake with the chocolate frosting between.

I love this picture because you can see all the layers of cake and icing!

Pictures through the days as the cake gets smaller and smaller!

Recent Cakes

Since I have not blogged in so long, I am going to do a recap of the cakes and crumb orders I have gotten over the past few months.

I got a surprise order for someone for Mother's day. Since it was spring/early summer all the flowers were blooming in our garden giving me the chance to do some heavy decorating. My mom made the funky card from the client wishing her daughter a happy mother's day. This cake turned out really beautiful with the flower decorations and once it was boxed and wrapped with ribbon I attached a bundle of assorted flowers.
This cake was a simple moist vanilla cake with an amazing chocolate frosting!

This cake was not an order but a birthday gift to one of my favorite teachers. I decorated it with spirals in bright pastel colors.
This cake consists of a chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting, which by the way pipes really well!

Every year my school has a Maypole*/Grandparent's day which the grandparents of the community and of the school are invited to a celebratory meal. I was asked to make a cake for the event! That night before I boxed up the cake and got it ready for the trip to the school the next morning. The trip worked out fine without any problem and I got the cake to the Kitchen and was not late for class!
The cake is a lemon sheet cake with cream cheese frosting. (I like my cream cheese frosting!)

*Click on the link for a picture of what a Maypole looks like. Its a kind of dance you do while holding onto a string attached to a pole. And no that's not a picture of our school's Maypole.

The Environment

In the past few months people have been constantly talking about the Environment (as in Global warming) and gas prices. Every day you hear about how gas prices are rising like the sun, and how people are starting to use buses and trains instead of their cars since gas is too expensive. Since Global warming is such a problem for the world today I think I can spare at least one post on my blog devoted to The Environment.

People are starting to realize that we need to do something about the way we live if we want to survive as a species on this planet much longer. I have gotten together a list of simple things you can do to help lower your consumption of Gas and Electricity, shrinking your "Carbon Footprint".

- Turn off the lights in your house when you are not using them
- Replace old light bulbs with new fluorescent lights
- Turn off Electronics when you are not using them. Computers use a LOT of electricity so turning them off will help you and the environment
- Unplug ANYTHING electric that you are not using at the moment. Electronics will still use electricity even if they are not turned on!
- Carpool if possible. I carpool everyday to school with another family that lives nearby.
- Drive as little as possible.
- Buy Local. This will help local business and will minimize your driving and the amount of gas it took to ship certain items.
- Avoid buying items shipped from across the world. Items shipped from Asia, Europe and other far away places leave large Carbon Footprints
- Do Not Buy plastics that can not be recycled. Most places recycle numbers: 1 and 2. If its not a 1 or 2 don't buy it, and hopefully the company will realize that changing to a recyclable plastic will raise their sales.
- Reuse or avoid plastic bags. I reuse plastic bags for my lunch at school every day. Wash them out if they are not too damaged or gross.
- When at a supermarket asks you what you would rather, choose PAPER BAGS and NOT PLASTIC!
- Recycle all paper that is not wet. Including paper plates and food boxes!
- Use a clothes line if possible instead of using a dryer.
- Don't leave the water running.
- Buy Energy Star Appliances.
- Recycle containers and metal cans


There are many movies and books about Global warming and how to save the Environment, like An Inconvenient Truth (movie) and The 11th Hour (movie). I would advise you to see these movies (unless you have already) even though there estimates are drastically off because of the constantly changing status of the world. Even these movies are no longer accurate, they still give you a view of what the world could turn into, and possibly worse.

I am amazed that people think that they can just put this off, like it will fix itself or we will wait till the last minute to come up with a solution. People are still so unaware and even if they see a commercial on TV they still take little notice. We need to spread our knowledge to the people who are not fully aware of the situation! Hopefully this post will encourage people to change their ways (even if it is small) and to spread the word that we need to start acting NOW!

There is a new kind of car from companies like Chevrolet and Honda that does not use any gas and only emits WATER VAPOR! Chevrolet is hoping to put it on the market in 2010 (I don't know if that's the year 2010 or the car model 2010). I think its an amazing feat to make a car that emits nothing but water, the only problem is we need it NOW not in two years. You can drive something like 150 miles before having to fill up again, on Hydrogen (A.K.A Water). Check out more info by checking out these links:
- http://automobiles.honda.com/fcx-clarity/
- http://www.chevrolet.com/fuelcell/

Subaru is the FIRST company that makes vehicles that leaves ZERO waist! This is exactly what we need! Check out Subaru and their commitment to The Environment.

There are many many websites about Global Warming, how to save the Environment and alternative energy, here are just a few to check out:
- http://www.seql.org/100ways.cfm
- http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/environment/article/0,28804,1602354_1603074_1603076,00.html
- http://www.wikihow.com/Save-the-Environment-at-Home
- http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/ah_change_the_world/text/0,,HGTV_30676_65472,00.html
- http://www.usa.siemens.com/answers/en/environment.htm

Check this link out for more websites. If you find a good website email me, or leave a comment with the URL Address and I will add it to the list!
- Google Search for How To Save The Environment
- Google Search for Movies and Books about Globalwarming

UPDATES:

Tuesday July 8, 2008 - Just today I got an email about the use of plastic bags and the problems it causes around the world, after viewing this slide show of pictures and facts it will change the way you think about shopping and using plastic bags! Please watch this slide show and send it (and this post) to everyone you know, together we can stop using plastic bags and change the way we live! PoconoRecord.com

Also check out http://www.freecycle.org/


Saturday August 23, 2008 - Every Friday at 9pm (ET) on the Discovery Channel they have a show called "Project Earth". It is all about peoples ideas of how to save the world with technology. Things from creating more clouds in the sky to reflect the sun, to covering the glaciers with reflective fabric to help prevent the melting. I have only seen one episode but I am excited for the new episode next week! Check it out maybe you will like it just as much as I do!
Click on the link for more info about the show: Discovery Channel's Project Earth

I will be REGULARLY updating this list of websites and things to help save the world, just keep visiting this post. It will be located on my side bar under "Posts of Note", or click on the "Reuse, Reduce, Recycle" picture. It will keep popping up in your conscious and will bother your soul till you decide to join the thousands of other people who have decided to help change the world even if it is in small ways. The little things count!



Spring Pictures

The Essential Gluten Free Restaurant Guide

The Essential Gluten Free Restaurant Guide By Triumph Dining is a must for everyone Gluten Free!

The book is filled with thousands of restaurants that have dealt with gluten free customers, have menus, or are good at making accommodations to your gluten free needs. The book is organized by state, so finding a gluten free restaurant is easy. Each restaurant is given one to three $ signs, telling you the price of typical meals. The book is neatly symbol coded so if it says "100% GF" it means the restaurant is a 100% Gluten Free establishment, along with many others. Each restaurant in the book has a phone number and or website for you to visit if you have questions or concerns.

In the beginning of the book it gives you great advice on picking a restaurant, explaining your needs and ordering. It talks about how if you do not feel comfortable at a particular restaurant, leave.

This book will make you want to take a road trip around the US visiting all the great Gluten Free restaurants. Even if you are not traveling a lot, The Essential Gluten Free Restaurant Guide will help you build confidence in yourself, about living gluten free and explaining your needs to other people.

Triumph Dining has done an amazing job of putting together a book that will help millions of Gluten Free people! I would recommend this book to everyone!

Click here to get your copy of The Essential Gluten Free Restaurant Guide or look at the many other Gluten Free tools Triumph Dining offers!

UPDATE [May 30, 2009]

Triumph Dining has released the fourth edition of The Essential Gluten Free Restaurant Guide and it is on sale now on their website. Click "The Essential Gluten Free Restaurant Guide" link for more info and ordering options.

Lemon and Lime Citrus Cake

For months this idea of a citrus cake has been floating around in my head. I had ideas but never put it on paper till recently. For this cake I knew I did not want to use Pamela's Baking Mix. I wanted something different and new. So I made my own flour mixture for this cake using coconut flour, white rice flour and tapioca flour! The combination of these flours gives this cake a sweet, moist, dense texture to it but the sour fruit fights back making the cake taste light at the same time. And that's how I came up with this sweet and sour cake.

If you like sour foods you will love this cake!

Pre-heat your oven to: 350

You will need:

1/2 cup Coconut Flour

1/2 cup White Rice Flour

1/3 cup Tapioca Flour

1 cup Sugar

1 1/4 teaspoons Baking Powder

2 medium sized Lemons

2 medium sized Limes

2 Eggs

1/2 teaspoon Vanilla

1/2 cup Milk

Butter a 9 inch round spring pan (you can use an 8 inch round spring pan if that's all you have).

In a medium bowl mix the dry ingredients (Coconut Flour, Rice Flour, Tapioca Flour, Baking Powder and Sugar) together with a fork or whisk.

Mix the wet ingredients in another bowl together

Now take the lemons and limes and cut them into circles (you will get about 4 or 5 circles per lemon or lime). Try to get all the seeds out without killing the fruit. SAVE THE ENDS where there is not enough to get another circle from. You will need to squeeze the juice out of them later.

Cut the rind and white part off of the circles leaving as much of the flesh of the fruit as possible.

Cut each circle into 1/4 or smaller if the rounds are big.

If the center has a lot of white where the small individual pieces connect, cut it off.

Its is fine if the chunks are not even or one piece. They will be going inside the cake so you will not see them.

Take the ends of the lemons and limes and squeeze the juices out of them into a small bowl.

Now you get to mix the dry and wet ingredients together (EXCLUDING the lemon and lime juice). Its normal for the batter to be thick.

Once it is well combined, add the lemon and lime juice mixing well until there are no clumps. By now the batter should be a bit thinner.

Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the lemon and lime pieces on top of the batter.

Pour the rest of the batter on top of the fruit. You may need to use a spatula to move the batter so it covers at least the majority of the fruit.

Cook for 50 minutes until it starts to brown around the edges, is pulling away from the edges and is firm in the center.

Let cool till its at room temperature and enjoy!

Gluten Free Chocolate Bread Pudding

A few months ago I found a chocolate bread pudding recipe, made with cinnamon bread.* I did not want to make some yummy gluten dessert with my brother and father around so I edited it and made it 100% Gluten Free!

Pre-Heat your oven to: 350

What you will need:

11 Slices of gluten free bread (I used Glutino's Corn Bread)

4 Cups of Milk

2 Tablespoons of Butter (and some more for buttering the pan)

6 oz Semisweet chocolate

4 Eggs

1 Cup of sugar

1 Teaspoon vanilla

Approx. 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Powdered Sugar for garnish if you wish :)

First Butter a 8 x 12 inch pan (the pan size can be changed but keep it as close as possible or run the risk of all the yummy filling not fitting in the pan.).

Cut the bread, so you should end up with about 9 squares per slice.

Since the bread I am using is not perfectly shaped it will depend on the size of each slice the amount of cubes you get. As you can see the bread that I used is about 4 x 4 inches.

Once you have cut all the bread and buttered the pan place the bread into the pan.

In a large sauce pan heat up the milk, butter and chocolate. Stir the liquid frequently making sure the chocolate does not burn on the bottom of the pot.

This is what the chocolate mixture should look like when fully combined.

While the chocolate and milk mixture is heating up, in a bowl beat/mix the eggs, sugar, vanilla and cinnamon, until well combined.

When the chocolate and milk solution is combined, temper the eggs by adding a small amount of the hot milk into the eggs and mix for a few seconds bring the eggs up to (or close to) the same temperature as the milk. Repeat this step a few times till you have used about half the liquid.

When I made this the first time I did not temper the eggs enough and poured too much of the hot milk in at once. I ended up cooking some of the eggs in the bowl. If you see small bits or clumps of yellow in the mixture, that means you added too much of the hot milk in the beginning, like me!

Tempering the eggs

This is what it should look like when the egg and milk mixtures are combined (the foam depends on how fast you stir).

Pour the liquid over the bread trying to coat every piece while you go.

Carefully carry the mixture to the oven and place on the middle rack. Cook for 40 - 45 minutes. Keep an eye on it, because the top of the bread will burn if you are not careful!

When finished the liquid should have set and firmed but should still have a little movement to it. If you are not sure, its better to take it out sooner than later because it will keep cooking in the pan, and egg does not usually talk that long to cook.

Cool for at least 10 minutes and sprinkle with powdered sugar!

Serve warm or at room temperature and,

ENJOY!!

* This recipe is based on a Martha Stewart recipe, and has been changed to be Gluten Free.

My Birthday!

Just a few pictures from my birthday (November 2007)!!




It was so funny when my mom asked me what kind of cake I wanted for my birthday! That's usually the question I ask everyone else!
This pie was so yummy! It was a peanut-butter custard sort of filling, in a gluten free crust with a chocolate whipped cream on top! Got to find the recipe so I can post it for all you readers!

Hey Karina recognize this?
I got a hoodie for my birthday made by Karina! Help a fellow blogger and get a great jacket, it's a win win situation!
Look at all of Karina's clothing creations here, or visit her food blog at Gluten Free Goddess or her art blog at A Painter's Kitchen