Healthy Living How To

Vanessa Rae Romero

The Dangers of Gluten

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Just what my recipe repertoire needs, another version of healthy gluten-free waffles. Pumpkin waffles this time. At any given time from October to April I have a stocked pantry of pumpkin. In baked goods, pumpkin adds moisture and like applesauce can replace some of the fat in a recipe (making room for more butter on top). This recipe is a little different from the other two; waffles and waffles. What's different? Well the amount of almond flour is reduced, the amount of protein powder increased, the butter has been replaced with pumpkin and for good measure a few tablespoon of flaxseed meal were added. The result is a pumpkin waffle wonderful in flavor and deliciously filling.

The Dangers of Gluten

A recent large study in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that people with diagnosed, undiagnosed, and “latent” celiac disease or gluten sensitivity had a higher risk of death, mostly from heart disease and cancer.

This study looked at almost 30,00 patients from 1969 to 2008 and examined deaths in three groups:

  1. Those with full-blown celiac disease
  2. Those with inflammation of their intestine but not full-blown celiac disease
  3. Those with latent celiac disease or gluten sensitivity; elevated gluten antibodies but negative intestinal biopsy

The findings were dramatic. There was a 39 percent increased risk of death in those with celiac disease, 72 percent increased risk in those with gut inflammation related to gluten, and 35 percent increased risk in those with gluten sensitivity but no celiac disease.

This is ground-breaking research that proves you don't have to have full-blown celiac disease with a positive intestinal biopsy (which is what conventional thinking tells us) to have serious health problems and complications–even death–from eating gluten.

Yet an estimated 99 percent of people who have a problem with eating gluten don't even know it. They ascribe their ill-health or symptoms to something else–not gluten sensitivity, which is 100 percent curable.

To learn more, read this in-depth article by functional medicine expert, Dr. Mark Hyman. Gluten: What You Don't Know Might Kill You

Gluten-Free Baking

In gluten-free baking it is recommended by many to add either xanthan gum or guar gum. Both of these “binders” are used to compensate for the lack of gluten. Gluten gives elasticity to baked products, helps them to rise, as well as keep their shape. Breads rely heavily on gluten, cakes a little less and cookies even less. I have both xanthan gum and guar gum in my pantry and have used them as thickeners in liquids instead of cornstarch or white flour. After doing some research, I decided to start playing with these “gums” a little in my baking as well. Just for fun I added 1/2 tsp. of guar gum to this recipe, I can't say if it improved the texture or not as I have not made this recipe without it.

General guidelines for using xanthan/guar gum:

  • Bread and Pizza Dough – Add 1 tsp. per cup of gluten-free flour
  • Cake, Muffin & Quick Bread – Add 1/2 tsp. per cup of gluten-free flour
  • Cookies & Bars – Add 1/4 tsp. per one cup of gluten-free flour

I made a smaller test recipe and got seven perfect sized waffles. The batter is a little runny, but don't despair, these guys puff up and get nice and crisp on the outside and stay moist on the inside. Every waffle was perfect in size, taste and texture, at a scant 1/3 cup of batter per waffle, making sure the batter is evenly spread and baking for exactly four minutes.

Pumpkin Waffles

Pumpkin Protein Waffles

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 4 minutes
Serves: 2-3

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Sift together dry ingredients.
  2. Whisk together wet ingredients.
  3. Mix wet into dry and let sit for 10 minutes.
  4. Lightly spray waffle iron with non-stick spray* and use a scant 1/3 c. of batter per waffle.
  5. Bake for 4 minutes, serve and enjoy!

*A while back one of my readers commented about using non-stick spray. Her concern was two-fold, how it affects the environment and how it affects health. The propellants in non-stick spray have been deemed safe by the FDA, but that doesn't really hold a lot of weight with me. In addition to the propellants “most” sprays use unhealthy vegetable oils. There are alternatives to vegetable oil sprays, such as Spectrum Naturals Organic Coconut Oil Spray, but this still has propellants. What's the solution? The Misto Oil Sprayer. I have had one of these in the past and had issues with it clogging, but decided I would give it another try. I bought one up and filled it with Macadamia Nut Oil and have used it successfully ever since.