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Baking is something I've loved to do my entire life. My favorite memory as a little girl was standing on my tip-toes so that I could peek over the counter to watch my mom bake cookies for us. My love for baking turned in to a way for me to show the people in my life that I cared. Around the time I started high school, I started struggling with unknown pain. Sometimes I would be completely fine for weeks, and out of nowhere I'd be so sick I could hardly get out of bed to go to school. After a few months of tests, I learned that my love of baking (and of trying the things I'd made) was hurting me. My perfected apple pie was the culprit, or should I say the gluten in the crust of that apple pie was.
Some of you may not know what celiac disease is, but that's what I want to talk to you about today. Celiac is not usually the first thought when diagnosing the symptoms I had. Because of this, I went undiagnosed for over a year. Celiac disease is a chronic autoimmune disorder. The consumption of gluten (found in wheat, barley, rye, oat and other grains) causes a negative reaction. For those who struggle with celiac or gluten sensitivity, they will tell you the symptoms can be different for everyone. The longer it is left undiagnosed, the bigger chance of more severe reactions over time.
But I'm here to tell you, your DNA does not predetermine your destiny. We all inherit traits from our parents, our grandparents, and even our great-grandparents. But there are steps we can take to defy the ones we want to change.
If managed well, celiac symptoms can be controlled even with age, but there are some things that happen as we get older that we can't prevent. Wrinkles will appear, our hair follicles will shrink, our eyesight may get worse. But there are always different ways to combat these things as best we can! Moisturizing can keep those wrinkles at bay, a healthy diet can help our eyes stay healthy, and using Rogaine when you notice a thinner mane can help keep your hair looking fuller and younger. Our DNA isn't the one in control, we are!
Gluten-free has become a bit of a buzzword these past few years, but it wasn't always so prevalent. In high school and some of college, I struggled to find options that I could be sure were gluten-free. I stopped baking almost entirely. But while in college, I got tired of having to play detective on every dessert menu at every restaurant my friends and I went to. Who better to control the ingredients than myself? I started researching gluten-free recipes and found treasure troves on blogs, forums and in recipe books. I defied my DNA by finding my own way around an obstacle that I had let get in the way of one of the joys of my life. I found my love of baking again.
With the holidays around the corner, I wanted to share one of my favorite gluten-free recipes. Whenever I bring these out at Thanksgiving or around Christmas, they are always a huge hit.
I don't have a mandolin, but I find the slicing work to be relaxing and I don't mind taking the extra time to prepare the apples (if my knife skills can do it, I promise yours can, too). I also recommend using King Arthur Gluten-Free Flour. It is one of the best I've found for getting that flakey pastry dough while still being gluten free.
I have learned not only how to cope with a hereditary trait, but also how to thrive despite it. Learning to defy your DNA doesn't have to be a challenge or a battle. It's all about learning how to work with what you're given and to make it even better. Every day-to-day step makes a difference.
How do you defy your DNA?
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