Getty Villa - Outside views . . .

 As amazing as the artifacts housed at the Getty Villa are, the villa, itself, is also fantastic. It is modeled after an ancient Roman villa. You walk through the covered pathways, view the pools, fountains and start to wonder about the people of that time and how they actually lived.

Gluten-Free Bake Day at My House . . .

 Someone's friend was just diagnosed with celiac and is a bit down about not being able to grab a cookie or treat without thinking about whether or not it has gluten. Frankly, I've looked at a lot of commercial gluten-free products and the cookies and crackers don't look all that great. If I'm going to add calories to my day, I'd prefer they be on the slightly decadent side. So, to help out the friend, I spent the day baking some gluten-free crackers and cookies. Considering my first efforts at the beginning of the year, I'm doing pretty well. I've mastered chocolate chip cookies and brownies! My saltines and common crackers are tasty for snacking, too. Anyway, I have a couple of tins filled with treats for the 'new celiac'. Not really a chore and a good excuse to bake during Lent!

A Reason to Visit the Getty Villa!

 Just about thirty years ago, my husband and I first met at the Getty Villa in Los Angeles County. Today, we went back with our nineteen year old son. He had a school project to work on and we enjoyed seeing all the changes that come about in the space of 30 years. There was quite a lot as the Getty Villa was actually closed for almost ten years for renovations. Basically, we couldn't find too much that we recalled but thoroughly enjoyed viewing the ancient artifacts in the actual replica of an ancient Roma Villa.

Walnut Cookies

Although this recipe is not gluten-free, my brain is already thinking about how to turn it into a gluten-free recipe one of these days. Fortunately, we aren't celiac and don't have to worry unduly over wheat but a recipe challenge remains a part of my future!

Walnut Cookies
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup finely chopped walnuts.

If you have time and are thinking ahead, before you chop the walnuts, toast them in a 350 degree oven until just fragrant, cool, and then chop. It really add a nice dimension to the cookie.

Preheat over to 300 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cream the butter until it is light and fluffy. Add 1/4 cup of the sugar and continue to beat until well combined. Stir in the flour, vanilla, zest, cinnamon, and walnuts.

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets about an inch apart to allow for spreading. Flatten slightly and bake for approximately 20 minutes or until golden. Transfer baked cookies to a wire rack set over another baking sheet and sprinkle with remaining sugar and let cool.

Adding poison to our milk?

http://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/aspartame-with-milk-may-trigger-brain-seizures/

This was a scary article and from all the remarks and other mentioned articles, something to be aware of these days. I mean, what next? How many times as parents have we chided our children with, "Finish you milk, it is good for you!" Seems from this article that it might not be so true. And you have to wonder why the milk companies are allowed to dictate laws to the FDA.

One reason for the extra sweetening is that children aren't drinking enough milk. The thought is to make it sweeter and entice more children into consuming it thus raising the revenue of the dairy companies. Think about it . . . It doesn't end if you merely stop serving milk to your children. The aspartame is showing up in ice cream (made from dairy), milk drinks at our favorite coffee haunts, shakes when we grab a hamburger, even the cheese on our hamburger.

We were roundly chastised by both sides of the family when our children were small because we never put out glasses of milk at dinner time. Our thinking was that milk has a lot of fat and calories and we would rather the children fill up on protein and vegetable items, first. We considered milk a treat. We did get a pat on the back from the pediatrician when she found out our 'rule' as she did not advocate too much consumption of milk.

Another consideration regarding this addition of aspartame to the milk supply . . . many people have mild to severe allergies to aspartame. My husband found this out when he got a massive vertigo attack and had to be taken by ambulance to emergency. After we figured out the problem, we religiously avoided anything that showed any kind of artificial sweeteners in the ingredients. It wasn't enough. We were out and about, one day, and treated ourselves to an ice cream cone at a popular ice cream place. Won't mention names here! My husband got chocolate and within an hour, he got a bad vertigo attack. He had asked if there were artificial sweeteners in the ice cream and the clerk assured him they were only in the diet blends. A little research revealed that aspartame and such are often added to non-diet foods to enhance the sweet taste and, as in this case, not part of the labeling.

You have to wonder what the milk board and companies that knowingly use daily products containing aspartame are thinking? Even with the bad effects, my husband's allergy to aspartame is minor compared to other people. Don't they worry about lawsuits if someone gets sick because the information wasn't forthcoming? What about small children? Will the future bring about severe problems because they got a sweet treat as toddlers?

My family used to laugh at me because I didn't care for potlucks as I didn't know under what circumstances the food was prepared. The FDA seems to be turning our country into a potluck nightmare.

Hope this ruling doesn't pass or that the information is exaggerated but how much or how little aspartame is really okay?

The Year of the Snake . . .

I heard it was the Year of the Snake and it did not have anything to do with our politicians currently in power! Since my son lives overseas, we tend to think more along the lines of anything Asian. I put my embroidery machine to work but only had a pattern for a Chinese dragon - a snake with legs, perhaps?

My son is all-American but currently became a co-host on a couple of radio programs in Taiwan. It was fun to find his first hosting performance on-line and listening to how he did. From a mother's point of view, he was perfect. Although he is fluent in Chinese, the station deals with an international audience and it is in English. It was amazing to hear the call-in audience and learning they were from all over the world including several state in the US. You never know where the baby they put into your arms ends up in the world!

Wheat Flour Need Not Apply . . .

The first thing that comes into mind when you think 'gluten-free' is how will I ever bake, again? The next thing, if you adventurous, is to heat up the keyboard as you search for ways and means to get around the one missing ingredient. There are many versions of what to use to replace wheat and everyone has success with one or the other. Making dough without wheat is a different process and texture change. It is not, however, impossible. Right now, my favorite blend is pretty simple to make and the ingredients are easy to come by without breaking the bank.

Simple Gluten-Free Baking Mix
2 1/4 cups white rice flour
1/4 cup potato starch
2/3 cup tapioca flour
3/4 cup glutinous rice flour (sweet rice flour)
1/3 cup cornstarch
2 teaspoons xanthan gum

Mix the ingredients and store until you use it. The 'sweet' rice flour isn't really sweet, just has a slightly different effect on the overall mixture. You will find that a pound of xanthan gum will run around $11 but don't succumb to sticker shock. It lasts a long time as you only need two teaspoons for this mixture. If you are making a recipe using brown rice flour, alone, you will add about the same amount, too. One pound goes a long way . . . and if the recipe calls for it, you need it!

Compared to about five years ago, a google search will turn up a multitude of recipes for baking cookies and cakes. My best advice when deciding on a recipe is to read all the remarks in the comment section following most recipes. That way, you get input from people who have actually made the recipes and get insights into what really worked in the long run, possible changes, or suggestions.