A Corn-Free Kitchen

When cooking from scratch, I find cooking corn-free is one of the easiest things to do; most of the ingredients are easily substituted with something you probably already have in your cabinet. Buying corn free can be difficult. This list tells you ingredients that may be derived from corn and are commonly found in things such as canned food. I prefer to not buy things that have ingredients I can't pronounce, or acids (can be made from corn), so many of the canned foods I use only have 2-4 ingredients (sugar, salt, water, juice, etc., depending on what it is.) Ironically, it is usually the cheapest brands that contain the simple, edible ingredients (Note-cheaper can be better!)

                                         
                                           --A Corn-Free Kitchen--

Iodized Salt- Buy sea salt! Iodized salt contains corn-based stabilizers

Baking Powder- Contains corn starch. Instead, use 1/4 tsp. baking soda + 1/2 tsp. cream of tartar for every 1 tsp. baking powder.

Powdered Sugar- Corn starch. Thankfully, making your own is easy; simply throw some white sugar in the blender until fluffy!

Honey- Buy your honey local. Big honey companies will sometimes mix corn syrup in with the honey during bottling, or they will feed their bees corn syrup. Buying local supports you farmers and means that you can ensure good, pure honey (ask them how they make it, of course)

Xanthan Gum- That's right! Xanthan gum is bacteria grown on corn. You can substitute guar gum, or buy  this corn-free brand.

Sourguhm Flour- Close relative of corn. Don't even go there. Use other flours.

**Notes-
- When buying pre-prepared foods or canned goods, avoid elusive starches (vegetable starch, food starch, etc.) Same goes for oils.
-Utz potato chips are corn free :)


These are simply the ingredients I use the most. Find more info at these blogs:
http://www.cornallergens.com/
http://www.vishniac.com/ephraim/corn-bother.html
http://freeeatsfood.com/2011/02/20/a-crash-course-in-corn-free-baking-and-cooking/

Know anymore substitutes or things to avoid? Leave a comment and share!

Cooking Without Eggs

Eggs make me feel funny and I can't stand them cold. But, all in all, they are really nice in baked goods. After I cut out gluten and corn, I still couldn't handle breads until I eliminated eggs. Poo on egg allergies. So now there's the problem of cooking without them. Corn is easy to eliminate when it comes to cooking from scratch, but eggs...sigh.

When I got Allergy Free Desserts by Elizabeth Gordon, I finally had success with egg-free cooking! Not only had I got my ratios wrong, but the flour I use seems to make a difference (more on that later).

                                                --Egg Substitutes--

There are several different substitutes; bananas, applesauce, flax seed, and chia seeds are some of the most common. Applesauce and bananas add flavor, so I don't use them, BUT you might want to.

1/4 Applesauce in place of one egg

1/2  a Banana in place of one egg

My personal favorite is flax seed. I've not tried chia seeds yet and I'm not sure what the difference would be, if any.

1 Tbsp Ground Flax seed or chia seed  

3 Tbsp Water

Combine and let sit 3-5 minutes until gelled. Use in place of one egg.

**Notes:

 - You should not substitute for more than 2 eggs (or so everyone says. I decided to believe them..for now) 

 - 1/2 Tbsp un-ground flax seed equals approx. 1 Tbsp ground flax seed

 - Do not store extra ground seeds, as they lose nutrition and go rancid quickly

 -Extra flax/chia egg substitute can be stored for up to 3 days in the fridge

Extra Info:

http://lexieskitchen.com/lexies_kitchen/2012/10/2/how-to-make-a-chia-egg-or-flax-egg.html

Got a favorite substitute? Info on how to store, make, etc.? Helpful hints? Substitutes you hate? Leave a comment and share!

Picture Perfect

                              "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth"
                                                                Genesis 1:1

"Then God said 'Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the night from the day and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years' "
                                                                  Genesis 1:14

"The God said 'Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind'; and so it was. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw it was good"

Genesis 1:24-25

                                                

    

"Then God said 'Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth'; and it was so "

Genesis 1:11