Erika's Gluten-free Kitchen

This Friday is cold and gray here in San Francisco. But unfortunately, it’s due to the Camp Fire in Northern California, not just the changing of the seasons. My heart goes out to all the folks in Paradise and the surrounding areas who are affected.

If you’d like to help the fire victims, here are a few ways to do so:

• Shasta Regional Medical Center in Redding.  They are requesting blankets, pillows, warm clothing, lotion, shampoo, conditioner, soap, towels and washcloths, socks and underwear, brushes, toothpaste, toothbrushes, air mattresses, and food gift cards (I suggest Target gift cards since that can help with all of the above). Check the Facebook post in the link for more details and updates to the list for what they must urgently need.
• The North Valley Community Foundation is accepting financial donations. 
• The Salvation Army is taking financial donations. Specify you are donating for the Camp Fire.
• Donate non-perishable food, clothing, bedding and toiletries to the shelter at Bidwell Presbyterian Church, 201 W. 1st St., Chico. 
• AirBnB  is matching people who want to donate stays at homes in and around Butte County for free for evacuees to use their platform to do so.
• Contact Haven Humane in Redding,Chico Animal Shelter, and Butte Humane Society to see what supplies they may need to care for the influx of animals.

It can be difficult in the best of times to be someone suffering from food allergies. But when a disaster strikes, it’s rare that the relief organizations have allergy-free foods on-hand. Please consider donating some through the above organizations if you can! And if you know of additional resources, let me know—I’m happy to add them to the list.

This Week’s Low FODMAP Recipes

• It’s not Thanksgiving without Pumpkin pie. This low FODMAP pumpkin pie recipe from Fody Foods has an interesting cinnamon seed crust.
• I love a great breakfast hash during the colder weather. I can’t wait to try this burnt sage breakfast hash recipe. 
• If you’re looking for a protein-packed, vegetarian low FODMAP dinner idea, check out this greens and bell pepper puff from FODMAP Everyday. 
• It’s tough to find a perfectly cheesy bread when you’re on the low FODMAP diet. This gut-friendly cheese rolls recipe from Jessica Cox looks like a winner.
• So excited to see that Manu’s Menu put her low FODMAP wontons to good use in this low FODMAP wonton soup recipe! 
• I can always use a new chicken recipe—this peri peri chicken with spicy rice from Becky Excell will be fun to try out.
• Kate Scarlata’s peanut butter muffins with chocolate chips would make a great afternoon snack or on-the-go breakfast.
• Tomato soup is a frequent lunch for me during the Winter. Try this recipe from Karlijn’s Kitchen for a spicy take on the classic.

Non Perishable Low FODMAP and Gluten Free Pantry Staples

If you’d like to donate some nonperishable food and houseware items and aren’t sure where to start, check out my Amazon store for some ideas. You can have Amazon deliver directly to the shelter if you’re not in the area to drop it off yourself.

Happy Friday!

I’ve been daydreaming about baking some spooky Halloween cookies. I love all the fun Halloween cookie cutters and decorative toppings. It’s been a few years since I’ve made up a batch of Halloween cookies, but I have a feeling that’s going to make it onto this weekend’s activities list. Here’s a photo from the last time I went all-out with decorating Halloween cookies.

View this post on Instagram

#halloween cookies in progress. #baking #nofilter

A post shared by Erika Heald | Consultant (@misserikasf) on Oct 17, 2015 at 6:18pm PDT

I think I’ll need to head over to Sur La Table to pick up some spooktacular decorative accents this afternoon.

While the Halloween decorations that have popped up everywhere is part of the reason for this urge. It’s also probably because I’ve been doing a really good job of being mindful about making healthy eating choices this week and haven’t really indulged in any sweets.

I’ve started using Noom, which is an app that helps you track what you’re eating to ensure you’re making healthy choices and not eating more than you need. I’ve gained some weight over the past two years as I’ve struggled with my thryroid, and wanted to motivate myself to take an active look at my exercise and eating. 

In years past, I’ve done Weight Watchers. It worked well for me when I had a meeting in my office building, and had colleagues also working through it with me. But now that I’m self-employed, and can’t eat a lot of the low-calolrie high-fiber food that helped me be successful with them, I needed a different approach.

Thanks to having done a habit assessment, I understand what kind of foods—in what proportions—I need to feel energized and keep going throughout the day. But the Noom app holds me accountable with daily weigh-ins, prompts to log my meals, and motivational tips and quizzes.

If you want to check out Noom for yourself, you can use my affiliate link to save 20% off while giving me a small commission. To learn more about affiliate links, read my privacy policy.

And now, on to this week’s low FODMAP recipes!

Low FODMAP Recipes

• Craving a curry? This sweet potato curry from GF Jules hits the spot. But stick to one serving and skip the cauliflower rice to keep this low FODMAP.
• If you can’t get enough curry, you’re in luck! This week Becky Excell shares a new spiced coconut chicken curry recipe.
• If you love breakfast for dinner why not try breakfast for dessert with this pumpkin baked oatmeal from Living Smart Girl?
• I’ve been in the mood for soups and am looking forward to making a pot of this ginger, coconut and butternut squash laksa with chicken from Love Your Gut.
• Turkey larb makes a healthy low FODMAP lettuce wrap filling in this recipe from Fun Without FODMAPs.

Find Your New Low FODMAP Favorites

You deserve a treat. Check out my Amazon store to find your new favorite low FODMAP foods, cookbooks, kitchen tools and more.