The Art and Science of Gluten Free Cooking

There really is a huge movement to find ingredientsidentified. We know that this disease is 100 times
that work well in replacing wheat flour (barley andmore common than was thought and this has been
rye as well) where it has always held the monopoly inconfirmed by researchers around the world, with no
taste and texture. What in the not too distant pastcontinent being spared. The disorders develops when
was tough to find, is now readily available for botha person exposed to gluten, also has a genetic
the home cook and the ready-to-eat purchaser.susceptibility to celiac disease and an unusually
Gluten intolerance and the more serious conditionpermeable intestinal wall or a "leaky gut". What is
known as celiac disease has been with us sinceamazing is that this trio, an environmental trigger, a
antiquity but not understand and often misdiagnosed.genetic susceptibility and a "leaky gut" seems to be
Research has intensified in the past 10 years and thisthe basis for other autoimmune disorders as well.
situation is now recognized as a swelling problem inThis is very exciting news! This could have enormous
the gluten ingesting populace. Although most don'timpact on creating new treatments when we
know what is wrong with them, about 1 percent ofconsider that type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis and
the world population has celiac disease, scientistsrheumatoid arthritis not to mention Krohn's Disease
claim. Anyone dealing with the misery and continuousand inflammatory bowel disease are all autoimmune
symptoms knows firsthand the ramifications of whatdisorders.
is now being labeled as an autoimmune disease.Removing gluten from the diet allows the intestinal
A recent issue of Scientific American written bytract damage to heal and prevents continued
Alessio Fasano, MD, professor of pediatrics, medicinecomplications from nutrients being hijacked. Many
and physiology and director of the Mucosal Biologypeople have poured their efforts into creating a
Research Center and the Center for Celiac Researchwonderful array of gluten free recipes and gluten
at the University of Maryland School of Medicinefree cooking that will be highlighted in this blog. What
shares some important facts he and his team havepleases our palates will also soothe our stomachs!