Home Cookin'

When we decided to try Art on a gluten-free diet, we had suspected for some time that there was a correlation between what he ate and how he felt. Five years ago, I don't think I had ever heard of Celiac's disease before. We just noticed that he was experiencing gastric distress and increased inflammatory problems when he ate certain things. As we began to learn more, we uncovered an entire bevy of symptoms, ranging from  chronic diarrhea, weight loss, abdominal distention to symptoms potentially affecting any organ or part of the body system. The disease is often atypical, or even silent, with many case going undiagnosed an leaving the patients exposed to long-term complications such as osteoporosis, infertility, or even cancer. The incidence of Celiac's disease was thought to be about 1 percent; current estimates indicate that its prevelance is actually even higher than that. Although many think of this condition being a pediatric ailment, we are now aware that the disease may appear after years of silent intestinal damage following years of exposure to gluten. Often  diagnosis can be extremely challenging and currently relies on sensitive, specific tests that allow the identification of different manifestations of the disease. Treatment requires a lifelong diet eliminating all food products which contain gluten. On the surface, that seems as if it is a simple enough solution, but as one discovers, embracing a gluten-free diet is not an easy enterprise. One of the first awarenesses we had was that wheat and gluten are in many of the convenience foods that we come to rely on in our society. What CAN you eat, you wonder.

I hope that this blog serves as encouragement to you as you seek more information about this lifestyle change, and that you will also find the recipes exciting and fun!  I know that Art has really enjoyed the fact that I'm trying to feed him food that he enjoys, and that he doesn't have to feel deprived and all "whole-foody" and "earth daddy" about everything! I enjoy the challenge of coming up with the best possible ingredients that we can afford, and feeding us as well as we can!

This week, he was craving something from his childhood, something deliciously Southern! What could be better than Mississippi Catfish Nuggets and Hushpuppies? Why, serve it with some Fresh Mustards Greens, and you've got a fantastic feast of home cooked goodness!

One of my favorite sources of flour goods is Domata Living Flour, http://www.domatalivingflour.com/ is the web site, (phone: 417-276-7789) and I'll tell you what I love about it the most: it makes gluten-free living so much easier. I recommend their regular flour, seasoned flour, and pizza flour. It's great! I use the regular flour, cup for cup, in baking homemade bread, biscuits, and even pie crusts. Just follow a good recipe. I'll provide some for you here soon, if you need them.  The seasoned flour is great for fried chicken, or in the this case, fried fish. And I also used it for the hushpuppies. Finally, pizza! Wow, this crust is so great and I love it! We have pizza at least twice a month, and I don't think anyone could tell the difference! So check them out, and try these great products. I'm a huge fan of the convenience and quality that Domata represents and will be for life.

Mississippi Catfish Nuggets

2-3 farm raised catfish filets, cut into one 1/2 inch nuggets
1/2 cup milk
1 cup Domata Living Seasoned Flour
1 cup yellow corn meal
1 pinch gray salt
fresh ground pepper to taste
3/4 inch total oil for skillet (peanut oil is best, but I used 1/2 olive oil and 1/2 canola oil...worked fine)

Preheat oil on medium high heat while you are soaking your catfish nuggets in the milk. Mix flour and meal, salt and pepper well in a large bowl. Place catfish nuggets in bowl a few at a time, and turn with large spoon, coating lightly with mixture. Place into hot oil in skillet, and turn after about 2-3 minutes. Continue to cook until golden brown, about 2-3 more minutes. Remove onto paper towel lined plate to drain. Serve hot with homemade cocktail sauce or tarter sauce and lemon wedge.

Hushpuppies

I prefer to cook these first and then adjust oil and cook my catfish  in the same oil. Just cover and keep warm.

1/2 cup seasoned Domata flour
1/2 cup plain Domata flour
1 cup corn meal
3 tablespoons chopped onion
2 tablespoons chopped cilatntro
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Stir ingredients together, and allow to sit for several minutes.

Drop by teaspoon into hot oil; turn after a couple of minutes. Do not over-cook. They should be golden brown. Remove to paper towel lined platter and cover to keep warm while you cook your fish.


Mustard Greens

Clean mustard greens well by soaking, pulling from water, dumping water, and soaking again. Repeat process. Remove stems. In a large Dutch oven, heat 4 slices of chopped bacon and 2 tablespoons of onion until onion is clear and bacon has begun to brown. Chop greens and add to pan, stirring. Add water to cover greens, reduce heat and simmer for about 1 hour.