Pavalavadingdong

Australia Day. Celebrations of the lucky country kind.  Lamb. Lamingtons. AND Pav.
No BIG celebrations for us this year.  Just keeping it real  & on the down-low at Hart Central and visiting friends around the corner.

There was going to be a bit of a bake fest happening in my kitchen this Australia Day morning.  I make no apologies for the madness that ensued.  I had the cooking urge and I had it bad.  Lamingtons and Pavlova were on my agenda.  That and Triple J's Hottest 100.

Abb and I needed some sustenance to kick start our Aussie celebrations.  MIGHTYMITE - Vegemite's lesser known distant cousin.  WHAT? OK so it's not the Godfather of the spread world but it IS gluten free and it is Australian (and it actually tastes great not too bad). We eat it a lot actually.

I was on the hunt for the greater good of the gluten free girl (and guy).  I had scoured the Internet for hours OK maybe 10 minutes tops.  I was after some tried and true recipes and found a great one for the Pav.  I was on a mission to find a great lamington recipe.  I wanted to keep things simple.  I wanted to use ingredients that everyone (of the gluten free persuasion) would have in their pantry.  I didn't want anything too fancy schmancy otherwise people can't be bothered.  Let's be honest.  So then, amazingly (I know I need to get out more - <scratches brow> I say this often) my friend Laura sent me a link for those chocolaty coconuty pillows from heaven - it was like she channelled my inner lamington.  The funny thing is, Laura doesn't even have to eat gluten free and yet she is my eagle-eyed scout without even asking (Laura clearly you need to get out more..)

So two fab recipes later and here 'tis  (with pictures) - my baking bonanza, my mixing manifesto, my.. enough already.  Thank you taste.com.au for the Pav inspiration (make sure to use gluten free cornflour not wheaten cornflour if Coeliac or gluten intolerant) and thank you Move Nourish Believe for the lamington love.

Peach Polenta Cake

In the January/February 2013 edition of the Coles food magazine (the free one) there was a recipe just screaming out to be baked.  Nectarine polenta cake.  I made it tonight using peaches instead of nectarines - it's easy, it's delicious and here it is.. ENJOY ! 

Original Nectarine version can be found here - coles.com.au

150g butter, at room temperature, chopped
1/4 cup caster sugar
2 tsp vanilla essence
3 eggs
1 cup polenta
100g almond meal
1 tsp baking powder
200g plain yoghurt
peaches, apricots, nectarines - whatever takes your fancy really - I used peaches :)

1. Preheat oven to 180° or 160° fan forced.  Grease a 20cm square cake tin and line base with baking paper.
2. Using a mixer, beat butter, sugar and vanilla until pale and creamy.  Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Fold in polenta, almond meal, baking powder and yoghurt.
3. Spoon into prepared tin and smooth the top.  Lay fruit pieces on the surface being careful not to press down as the fruit will sink slightly during cooking.  Bake for 55 minutes - until risen, golden brown and just firm when touched lightly in the centre.  I always use the 'if the skewer comes out clean trick' it's cooked.
4. Leave in tin for 5 minutes.  Invert onto a wire rack, remove paper then flip right side up and allow to cool.

We had ours with home made choc-chip ice-cream but you can have it with whatever you like.  Dust with icing sugar, serve with a big splodge of cream - whatever floats your boat.

Best served fresh out of the oven while still warm - as if it would last any longer anyway.. 

Thanks Coles!

* The other day I discovered a packet of polenta that had a gluten warning on the side so be sure to read your labels.  Polenta itself is gluten free but there could be a contamination issue if produced on the same line as other gluten containing foods so be careful. 

Apocalypse? This was a test right?

and so.. Christmas is over, we saw in the New Year with a BANG (fireworks over the back fence - I know, fancy right?) and we are fast hurtling towards Australia Day.  When will it end.. well not 2012 CLEARLY.  Those crazy Mayans.. pffft.. you guys..really? You had me there for a minute.. well played.

So what a year it's been.  Let's reflect.. you know you want to

JANUARY brought the notion that I could perhaps try this blogging thing..  I discovered I actually liked it. A LOT.  I mean it's no secret I LOVE talking, so a vessel to channel this energy gift and go on.. and on.. and on.. seemed like a natural progression.. right?  Right.  Plus good therapy and cheaper than ACTUAL therapy.  Plus gives Garrick a break as I channel it all through the blog.. rather than in in his ear.. bwahahahaha as if.. as if Garrick would get off that lightly.  It also kicked off with a brief  INTRODUCTION to our gluten free world and a whole lot of fumbling in the dark in the blogosphere.  Steep learning curve.

FEBRUARY saw this blogging thing develop into a crazy ride as I ventured out and about discovering new and exciting places and gastronomical delights of the GLUTEN FREE variety and shared them..  A visit here ALTERNATIVE BITES   A visit there GRILL'D  and new food discoveries along the way WHAT'S ALL THE FUSS ABOUT QUINOA? A lot of laundry.

MARCH brought fear and trepidation into our hearts as we embarked on the most scariest of rides - Abbey's OPEN HEART SURGERY 

After 4 scheduled surgeries were cancelled in the preceding twelve months, we mustered the last shred of strength we had left and held each other tight as Abb was wheeled into theatre.  She practically danced through it the cheeky blighter.  Good grief.  So proud of our girl.

APRIL celebrated CHOCOLATE AND LOTS OF IT.  Easter.  My birthday pffft skip that. Some cooking and a lot of some eating.. including a small triumph using quinoa as a substitute for oats in ANZAC Biscuits and more laundry

MAY brought some nougaty goodness by way of a visit to Mondo Mondo Mondo OK not quite Engelbert but just as sickly.. I kid of course, the nougat is wonderful.. sheesh sorry Engie.
A discovery of bacon & egg cupcakes via Sarah from a dynamite blog - sarah wilson then sharing my find and baking them a lot (goodbye waistline).  Spending a bit of time on the facebook page in between blogging GFH on facebook and sharing great resources like the wonderful girls from The Allergy Menu - doing great things and changing lives. Yet more laundry..


JUNE Hmmm I cooked a bit, blogged a bit, facebooked, drank a lot of coffee and pondered more blogging ideas over more laundry..


JULY  Abbey turned 5.  We have a beautiful, gluten free, whole-hearted (get it - no hole anymore plus the whole Heart/Hart thing). Lame.  I still laughed.  How much washing can one family produce? A lot it seems. Maybe I should just sleep in the laundry.. 


AUGUST  Ben turned 2.  Our beautiful blonde haired boy who has quietly observed, taken everything in his stride, was about to turn a corner - and get his own back on Abbey for all the tormenting. Passive no more.  He's reaching developmental milestones.  Next target payback.
Some bread making, fights discussions with a certain teenager about electronic devices,  pizza baking.. one blog post.. this month was action packed.  Sarcasm don't fail me now.  I was in a lull - what do you expect?  It was cold.. brrrr.  Can you be in a lull? I was in one.


SEPTEMBER There's a teenager in the house.  That explains all the laundry..
HAPPY BIRTHDAY J MAN.  This was also the month our great pals from Queensland set foot on WA soil.  We were meeting up. We were SOUTHBOUND.  Abbey made her debut in the Australian Coeliac Magazine telling her coeliac story and made the Sunday Times and Perth Now with her heart journey - ABBEY HART.    Garrick and I also skipped the light fandango and left the house briefly.  Together.  Without kids.  My favourite post for the year - ROCKPOOL


OCTOBER  Garrick's birthday.  Still a spring chicken and a big spunk.  He also wasn't here for it. Bummer.  We bought him a smart TV.  Turns out, it's not so smart.  It hasn't worked properly since we got it.  Still in discussions with Samsung.  After all that coffee, I briefly entertained the idea of tea.  I drank some.  I did enjoy it.  NATURE'S CUPPA.  I am a coffee girl at heart though. Baked a bit,  facebooked, found new gluten free products and spruiked about them on facebook. Ate  a lot a few of Bodhi's Bakehouse fruit buns. Toasted with lashings of butter. What? Abb also made it a trifecta by featuring in the Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation bear facts summer edition.
Going through OMO like a freight train.


NOVEMBER Are the supermarket people going to start questioning my OMO usage?  Is it EXCESSIVE consumption?  Is there some sort of reporting system in place?  I hope not.  Am I running some sort of illegal commercial laundry operation? What?  I feel like 100 eyes are on me as I approach the cleaning aisle..


DECEMBER What! A whole year has gone past. We discovered CAKE POPS  - so easy I can make them without having a conniption.  They are awesome.  We ate a lot of them - just straight out with it, an open admission right there.  The J Man got a good report.  An 'A' in drama - who'd have thought?  A natural progression as an member of the Hart family perhaps? Don't fight it Jai.  Abb also got a great kindy report although clearly a more concerted effort is required for listening on the mat without calling out and also we need to hone in on those 'not interrupting others' skills.. pffft.. times are tough when you're 5.  But they loved her.  She got a certificate to prove it - and I quote "Always a fabulous and dramatically expressive class member".  Ha ha proud moments.  We ventured south again.  On a serious note, we had an unscheduled hospital stay A Tough Lesson .  We bounced back.  We wrote to people to educate.  We got a great response and positive change is being implemented. A win for the gluten challenged amongst us.  CHRISTMAS arrived before we knew it.  We did the family thing.  To our horror we discovered Alby Mangels lives amongst us. We met a lot of people in Wembley.. 

Things I have learnt along the way -
Hit save frequently
Doh! the frustration of losing stuff when you're on a roll and then having to try and be witty all over again.  It loses it's shine the second time around..

Tell the people that matter you love them.  Often.  You never know what's just around the corner.

Standing on die cast matchbox cars and small aeroplanes with sticky- outy-bits, in the dark, in the middle of the night, is comparable to standing on Lego.. in the pain stakes

The pantry and refrigerator are the strongest magnets in the universe for children 5 and under.  Don't fight it.  It too shall pass.

Bad habits I have acquired along the way -
Calling everyone darl.  From the Maccas drive-through kid to Abb's teacher and everyone in between.  Where did it come from? How did it start? I have no idea. Mum doesn't even do it.  I don't know anyone that does it.  It's like a germ I picked up somewhere along the way and can't shake.  A parasite feeding off my normal vocabulary and making me feel like a twit immediately after uttering. Incredibly annoying. Must stop.  

Thoughts to leave you with -

the shinbone is a device for finding furniture in a dark room - unknown

nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realise you're wrong - unknown


Still here? - thanks for stopping by..  Have a great year :)

A tough lesson

If you're Coeliac - don't be complacent.  EVER.

We recently returned from a family holiday to Margs.  We still love you Margaret River but our trip was sadly marred. You see, my daughter got glutened the second day in..
It was so bad she was hospitalised.  The doctor said she had never seen a case so severe.  Those of you that know us or follow the blog will know that when she was diagnosed, she was classified as severe.  'Careful' has become second nature at home and is obviously working for us as we have never seen her have a reaction of this magnitude since she was a baby.  Not too long ago we didn't even know what gluten was let alone Coeliac Disease

It happened like this..

We went out for lunch.  It's all part of the down south pilgrimage.. the lifestyle.. It's what you do.  With so many brilliant wineries, breweries, restaurants and cafes surrounding the Margaret River region, why wouldn't you?  We had earned the chance to go, kick back, relax.. a little too relaxed on this occasion as it turned out.

The kids were having an awesome time of it in the playground which seemed to go hand in hand with many of these places now - awesome concept thought up surely by fellow parents..
Garrick had scanned the menu and reported that they had GLUTEN FREE options available including GF pizza bases.  Awesome.  We decided to get the kids a GF pizza and some chips to share, our eldest (non-coeliac) chose the burger option , I chose a fancy schmancy salad and Garrick also decided on a pizza but of the gluten variety.

We didn't question anything.  Why?  The short answer is.. I don't know.. We never do that.

We enjoyed our afternoon. Garrick had a couple of beers, I was skipper.  We all enjoyed lunch.
We all had a great time.  It was all good.

About an hour after we had returned to our apartment Abb suddenly cried out and ran to the bathroom saying "I'm going to vomit".  It was so sudden and unexpected, we were really taken aback. Moments before, she was laughing & playing and well.

We praised her for being such a good girl and making it to the bathroom in time.  We had no idea what was about to follow.  We initially thought it had been all the running around, eating, treats etc on top of a full stomach.  We suggested she have some quiet time and have a little lay down for a while but the vomiting came with a vengeance and force that took everyone by surprise.  She didn't stop and her slight frame was really put through the wringer with her body trying to purge itself of the offender.  I knew then it must be gluten.  It was very upsetting to see her like this and to helplessly watch on.  We stood her up in the shower recess with the shower running and told her "don't worry baby, it's OK,  just be sick in there" but by this stage she couldn't stand without being held up and she had depleted any energy reserves she had, to the point where she basically collapsed in my arms whilst still retching and her eyes started to roll back.  We were upset and panicky and decided the best course of action was to get her up to the local hospital - and quickly.  

Our eldest came with me, Garrick stayed back with our youngest.  I was the best person to taker her as I was also Coeliac and could answer any questions about history, diagnosis etc.  I told the staff in emergency the series of events that led us here, the fact that we were Coeliac and what I suspected.
They were concerned.  Aside from her obvious condition, her body temperature was low indicating something sinister - they were concerned about sepsis.  They scoured her body for rashes and prepped the backs of her hands for an IV and inside arm for blood to be taken.  I was told they would be transferring her to Bunbury by ambulance as they had better facilities there.  I was thankful for their thoroughness but it scared me even more.  It was at this point that I suddenly felt very unwell.  I had just enough time to tell the nurse "I think 'I'm' going to be sick.."  She whirled around "You?" she said.  That was exactly what happened.   Several times.  I was certain now it was gluten.  I along with our eldest son, had eaten the remainder of the kids' pizza and both boys were well.  Abb was put on a drip - saline & antibiotics were administered.  Blood was taken.  She was sleeping now - exhausted.  I watched over her for a while before swapping places with Garrick back at our apartment to look after our youngest.  Garrick texted a bit later to let me know they would no longer be going to Bunbury.

What a relief.  She was showing signs of recovery.

The next morning I arrived to find our smiley girl had returned.  She had colour back in her face and was her usual happy self.  She had recovered well aside from some residual diarrhoea.  Her system was still trying to rid itself of any traces of gluten - this continued for the remainder of the day but she was allowed to go home. 

The purpose of this post is to let you know what kind of effect gluten can have on a person with Coeliac Disease.  Gluten Free is unfortunately not a diet of choice for some.

I'm not going to name and shame here. That's not the purpose of this post and if anyone is at fault - I am.  The fault is not with the restaurant.  In this case, we didn't highlight that we were Coeliac.
We didn't ask the appropriate questions or request specific food prep.  People don't understand the detrimental effect that gluten can have for someone like Abbey.

As a Coeliac we (meaning me and others like me) should be promoting awareness of Coeliac Disease and the gluten free diet.  Don't expect people to be a full bottle.  They aren't.  Sadly, cross-contamination in a restaurant can be a real concern but it doesn't have to be - if people like me speak up and explain the need for clean pans, grills and utensils when preparing our meals.  Ask about ingredients in menu items, explain that you are intolerant to gluten.  Explain that your need for a gluten free meal has been medically diagnosed.  And if you have done all of this and you are still in doubt, don't eat there.  IT'S THAT SIMPLE.  Really. 

I write this to let people know what can happen.
I write this as a warning to those of you that have Coeliac Disease.

If you are travelling well - good for you - continue to do the right things, ask questions, query food prep and possible contamination issues and don't ever be complacent.  EVER.  If we had of done these things, it would be a different story.  The fault is ours. 

I will however write to the restaurant and let them know what happened to us and highlight the importance of careful food prep, clean utensils and possible contamination issues they may not be aware of.  We found at several eateries for example, that although their chips were gluten free, the oil that they were cooked in was also used to cook gluten containing foods. This means that the chips are no longer gluten free.  I will be writing to these places also.  The point of this exercise is to educate, not to point the finger.

I'm not trying to save the world here, just trying to look after my family and maybe help out someone in the process.  Maybe by speaking up, one small voice can make a difference.  I hope so.