Interesting reading, all of this. I think as long as people approaching middle age and beyond look for a diet regimen that can essentially reverse the aging process--- more energy, fewer to no health problems--- preventing any new illnesses and reversing the lifetime effects of what they've eaten up to that point, there will be studies, books, and food products to satisfy the market. Today's wonder diet or food is usually tomorrow's carcinogen. But alternative (this free, that free) and organic---- if a universal standard is ever adopted--- markets are the fastest sectors of the food industry, so at the least all this specialization is growing the economy :-) Don't you wonder, though, if this will be the next human rights issue.....if the affluent are sure that certain foodstuffs are dangerous long term to human health, how can we allow the poor to consume them with no protections?

I have a small farm with a gluten free bakery and sell at the local farmers market. Nothing I make has corn syrup, artificial flavors or colors, or weird chemicals. I estimate that of all the visitors we get at the market, 20% buy from me and they are not all celiacs or have a true wheat allergy. Some of my customers have jumped on the bandwagon, so to speak, of the GF fad. They include those with autistic children, or arthritis, cirrhosis, IBS, lupus, or chemotherapy reactions. Many have other allergies that I also create tasty treats without - dairy, eggs, soy, tree nuts, peanuts. Others just say they feel better and I do agree that they are probably looking at what junk they have been eating and are making changes overall to their diet. That is a good thing and we little local farmers are benefiting from that - not the conglomerates. Some people just buy from me because it all tastes good, and don't care if it is GF or not. As for the GF stuff on the shelves that the major food mfg are producing they are using just different chemicals than their regular chemically enhanced wheat based stuff. Truly most are awful. But, having been working on baking GF for 5 years, I have developed quite a few treats that taste good and are equivalent to their wheat counterparts. Because I can eat wheat, what I make has to taste like it does and believe me I have thrown out lots of inedible GF baked goods. However, white GF bread will never, ever taste like Wonder Bread, but there are good tasting white breads while the sourdough and quasi-rye GF breads do taste quite similar to wheat/rye breads and waffles and pancakes are very close, especially when you add pecans. There are also many treats that have been out there for many years that never had wheat in them anyway and are just now being labeled as GF - Pavlova and meringues, Brazilian butter cookies (Maizena), and all candy and fudge. etc. I have a theory that the wheat I ate as a kid in the 40's and 50's was not what is growing in the fields today. Hybridization, chemical fertilization, tinkering with GMO's, and a raft of questionable long term effects of pesticides and herbicides have produced a wheat that is not at all what it once was and genetically has been proven to be just that - not "wheat". Something I tell people who ask what gluten free means is, "All those lovely vegetables, fruits, meats, eggs, and cheese you are buying at the farmers market do not contain gluten so you are already buying gluten free without knowing it. But, when you add bread, cupcakes, muffins, pizza, pasta, sub rolls, beer, and the famous Southern biscuits with breaded fried chicken, you are consuming wheat and that contains the gluten that some people are avoiding by eating gluten-free." I do hope people are becoming more conscious of gluten free eating, if nothing more than to be aware of how much junk is on the grocery shelves and in the restaurant's and fast foods' meals. Gluten free eating out is impossible as there is a lot of cross contamination with wheat in restaurant kitchens - residual on pans and in bowls, and even floating in the air, so it is just not safe for those with celiac disease. Nancy Annie - you will never have a good brownie that is made from black beans. It is just not a good substitute and beans belong in soup and tacos, not treats. My recipe uses cornstarch instead of wheat or beans so try this - GF Fudgey Brownie Recipe Altered from the recipe in the book Ready for Dessert by David Lebovitz Line 8"sq pan with sprayed foil or parchment with overhang on both sides to lift out. Micro 6Tblsp butter with 12oz chocolate chips for 2 min, stir with wooden spoon and micro another 1 or 2 min until partially melted. Stir with spoon to complete the melting - do not over micro or it will be stiff and off tasting. Stir in 3/4 C sugar, 1tsp vanilla extract. Then, beat in 3 eggs just to incorporated. In a bowl mix together 1/3C cornstarch, 1/4C unsweetened cocoa powder, 1/2tsp cinnamon, 1/2tsp salt. (I also add a couple shakes of fine black pepper because I like that tang with all my chocolate treats.) Stir dry ingredients into wet, about 2 minutes, using a wooden spoon not a hand mixer. Option: Add 1C coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts. Bake 350F 20 minutes and check with toothpick - if it looks wet continue baking checking at 5 min intervals until toothpick is mostly dry but don't over bake or they will be hard. Touching the top with fingertips to test does not work with this recipe as it is not springy like cake. Let cool in pan on a rack, then lift out to cool completely before cutting (using a pizza cutter makes nicer edges than a knife). Nancy

plllog, I learned to bake GF because my BF is allergic to wheat and he lost too much weight when he could no longer eat the stuff he loved. One of the best starting points is the King Arthur Flour website recipes for gluten-free baking. Their GF pizza dough recipe is awesome! their GF sandwich bread recipe is better than the "best" GF bread you can buy -- and if you want to make better GF bread, definitely get their recommended bread pan! And definitely use their recipe for an all-purpose GF flour mix as a decent starting point for anything you want to convert! FWIW, I've only baked the GF biscuits separately. I'm not sure how they'd work out if you baked them on a wet filling... Here is a link that might be useful: KAF GF recipes

Please, let me know how your bread turned out. Because I make so many breads to sell weekly I buy my flours at a nearby co-op in bulk - like 25# and 50# bags, xanthan by the ounce, fresh baking powder, almond meal, dry milk powder, and yeast in bulk, plus dried fruit, chocolate, nuts and honey, etc. They do offer on-line sales, you don't have to be a member to order, no minimums, and have thousands of products. The Grain Mill Grocery Cooperative www.grainmill.com; you can pick up in Wake Forest NC or Myerstown PA, or have it delivered to you. You may want to check locally for food co-ops or call your County Extension Agent. You might be surprised to find one quite close to you. Another on-line store I like is Barry Farm Foods (www.barryfarm.com). You can buy some of their products on Amazon but going to their website to order is less expensive and much more comprehensive. You can buy a huge variety of flours in 1# or discounted 5# bags but they also have an abundance of cooking and baking ingredients, and all gluten free things are clearly marked and verified. When you buy cornstarch locally check the price per pound. The fancy yellow plastic packaged containers cost $1.59 to $2.39 per pound - for the same stuff as the plain white box off brand box for $1 at my local grocery store. It pays to check prices on everything gluten free because it is a "fad" so a lot of places have inflated their prices. I'd be cautious buying from stores like Trader Joe's, Fresh Market, and Whole Foods. Yes, the things are available but I find prices quite high relatively, so even if I buy on-line and pay shipping it's cheaper, especially if you buy in larger quantities than the little 22 ounce pre-packaged bags. GF flours keep a very long time, unlike wheat flour, so buying in bulk saves you money, and you know you are going to use it in the near future. A little advice for storage - buy some good food-grade storage containers for your bulk flours. The disposable Glad, Rubbermaid, Zip-lock, Hefty bags and boxes, even plastic wrap and freezer boxes breathe. Pantry pests can get in along with oxygen that degrades them quickly. Containers that are rigid plastic, or glass, that are noted as air-lock and/or spill proof are best - Snapware, Glasslock, Pyrex, Cambro, even my favorite - Mason jars. For big quantities I use food grade 5 and 7 gallon buckets with very tight lids from the restaurant supply store, where you can also buy good smaller storage containers. Never use your vacuum sealer bags to store flours or other loose ingredients - they make them taste and smell funny. Using the sealer on Mason jars is a better option to remove the air in the jar. Nancy