Well said!

I don't know how, after years of enjoying Ms. Ahearn's writing, I missed this article.

It is one of the best descriptions of gluten-free baking and eating I've ever read, and is enormously helpful in explaining the different types of flours. If you are new to the gluten-free ride, this article is for you. If you've been on it for awhile, you probably won't pick up anything new, but, like me, you will want to leap from your chair and shout, "Amen! Preach it, sistah!"

Also, the first of her "secrets" is one of the first things I always say to people going gluten-free:

"Focus first on foods that are naturally gluten-free. There is so much bounty." Shauna Ahearn

I always tell people to make a list of foods familiar they love that are already gluten-free; steak and potatoes, spinach salad, eggs with cheese, Snickers bars, Breyers mint chocolate chip ice cream, whatever. Then, armed with the list, try to eat only those foods for a couple of weeks, with a stop at Outback Steakhouse for a Chocolate Thunder from Down Under along the way. It will make the transition insanely easier.

I promise you this: You do NOT have to live on rice and chicken for the rest of your life. True, you may never get a good piece of crusty, chewy bread again. I'll be honest about that. But you'll survive. Thrive, actually, because you will be WELL. And with all of the incredible and delicious foods out there that we are so blessed to have at our fingertips, you will rejoice.

Why doesn't my food look like that?

Bea has yet another beautiful clafoutis recipe over at La Tartine Gourmande. Defintely try making it, because it is sure to be yummy, but don't expect yours to look like hers! Utterly incredible, that woman is. How does she find such perfectly congruous strawberries?

Huh

I just ate the crappiest hot dog in the world. No, seriously, it was awful. I think sweet husband bought them at Walmart. Or maybe from the sewer. Either way, it was gross, but I was starving because I had the worst day ever at work and only ate about 4 bites of gluten free spaghetti all day, so I ate the whole thing.

Anyway, case in point: The sewer dogs, made of probably rat (although they said "chicken," which wasn't in quotes, but should have been) actually said GLUTEN-FREE on the label. Good job, America! We're gettin' good at this here labelin' thang!

Also, I would just like to say that I made steak on the grill last night, while tonight, my hubby made rat dogs. I win!That photo just made me nauseaous. It made my thoughts a little too real. So, I made it teeny tiny. I think that helps.