It’s that time of year…college admissions letters are going out, reminding me yet again how thankful that I am not going through the college selection process, which seems to become more and more rigorous each year.

For those high school seniors with gluten intolerances, celiac or a food allergy, this can be a very scary time.  Going away to college means putting your health and well being into the hands of a food service company, not your parents.  Most likely, if you are living in a freshman dorm, you will not have access to your own kitchen for at least a year, if not four.  This restriction is terrifying to people like me who live with a limited diet.

For guidance, thoughts and sympathy, check out the following posts:

• I wrote the post, “Dorms, Tailgating and Cafeterias: Gluten-Free College Advice” about navigating the college world on a gluten-free diet.
• Last year, a former student of mine, Lucy Glaize, wrote this post as a guest blogger, entitled “Living Gluten-Free in the College World.”
• Lucy was also recently quoted in the article, “Gluten-Free Trends at UVM,” where Lucy discusses the importance (and difficulty) of having variety in her gluten-free diet on a college campus.

This year, I have two former students who both have celiac disease and are first years in college.  (That’s what we call it at UVA…we don’t say freshmen.)  They braved boarding school on this diet but I know, even though they are used to living away from home, it has been tough to get adjusted to the gluten-free life in the college world.  Change is always hard, whether changing school, location or even kitchen.  It’s a learning process.  I know they will love having their own kitchens next year in off grounds apartments.  (And we say ‘grounds,’ not campus.)

Do you know of any college campuses that work especially hard to accommodate dietary restrictions?  Is advocacy work being done on your campus to raise awareness?

Best of luck to all of you making your college decisions.  College is a wonderful time and you should be able to enjoy it just as much as your gluten-eating roommate.

Just remember,  Natty Light is not worth getting sick for, even late night at a fraternity party.  Or should I say especially late night a fraternity party? (Even though Natty Light is watery, doesn’t mean it doesn’t have gluten.)

The day before the earthquake and tsunami hit Japan, I celebrated my (yikes!) 29^th birthday.  As I spent the day feeling special, and well loved, we had no idea that in less than 24 hours, natural disaster would occur.  It’s a bit eerie to reflect on my birthday and how wonderful it was and how unaware we were, but I’m thankful we didn’t yet know what was to come.

The morning started in the best way possible, with gluten-free chocolate chip pancakes.  The commissary on base sells Bob’s Red Mill pancake mix so Alden stocked up.  Chip didn’t want any of this nonsense of sugar at breakfast, but Rob, Alden and I enjoyed the yummy pancakes.  At home we use Pamela’s for pancakes, but Bob’s worked really well too.  They were a little thick but Pamela’s can be that way too.  (I prefer my pancakes to be thick and cake like as opposed to thin and crispy.)

Birthday morning hug from Chip

Rob took Chip to the zoo on my big day so Alden and I had a lovely morning out, shopping at Homes in Yokosuku.  We bought bento boxes, chopsticks, nautical striped shirts (just make sure to buy two sizes bigger) and pencil cases.  Pete accompanied us and did very well on his first shopping spree.  We swung by the naval base on the way home to buy wine, People magazine, M&Ms, and other necessities.

For my birthday dinner, Alden made the most delicious chicken tikka masala.  I’ve mentioned before that chicken tikka masala is one of my favorite meals, but I’ve never made the dish from scratch.  Alden used the recipe from Cook’s Illustrated and even put her fish grill to work for cooking the chicken.  Tikka is actually the perfect Japan dinner because it doesn’t require an oven.

Alden did all of the work and served us a delicious, yummy dinner.  Perfect.  The only thing that made the evening better was dessert!  Alden’s friend Lauren, who lives on base (translation: has an oven) made me a gluten-free birthday cheesecake.  I had only met Lauren once before but she spent an entire morning making me a cake.  Her kindness meant so much to me and the cake was such an unexpected treat.  Needless to say the cheesecake was divine.  Lauren used pecans in the crust which really added a nice texture and distracted from the often dense, gluten-free baking mix.  She used Barefoot Contessa’s recipe for the filling.  (I’m going to get the actual recipe for the crust and filling from Lauren and will report back to you.)  We enjoyed our cheesecake while watching Top Chef. Perfect!

Pete & my birthday cake

And, as if all of the festivities weren’t enough, Rob and Alden gave me a wonderful birthday gift.  My very own ramen bowls, chopsticks, and chopstick holders.  It’s fitting that the bowls are decorated with rabbits as 2011 is the Year of the Rabbit, marking my historic trip to Japan and the birth of my nephew Peter “Rabbit.”  (Get it?)

Thank you, Alden, Rob, Lauren, Pete and Chip for a wonderful birthday and a great trip to Japan.  I wouldn’t take it back for anything.  Seriously.

PS: After the earthquake, tsunami warning and evacuation, Alden and I decided we should be eating cheesecake at every meal.  So true.

Birthday Chicken Tikka Masala (Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated)

Ingredients:

Chicken Tikka:

• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon ground coriander
• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

Masala Sauce:

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 medium onion, diced fine
• 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons fresh grated ginger
• 1 serrano chile (ribs & seeds removed), fresh minced
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 tablespoon garam masala
• 1 20 oz. can crushed tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro leaves

For the chicken, combine cumin, coriander, cayenne, and salt in a small bowl.  Sprinkle both sides of chicken with spice mixture, pressing so it sticks to the chicken.  Put chicken on a plate and cover with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate 30 to 60 minutes.  I a large bowl, whisk together yogurt, oil, garlic and ginger.

For the sauce, heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium heat until simmering.  Add onions and cook, stirring frequently, 8 to 10 minutes.  Add ginger, garlic, chile, tomato paste, and garam masala.  Cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 3 minutes.  Add crushed tomatoes, sugar, and salt.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Stir in cream and return to simmer.  Remove pan from heat and cover to keep warm.

While sauce simmers, adjust oven rack to upper-middle position (about 6 inches from oven’s source of heat) and heat broiler.  (Note: for those in Japan, cook chicken in fish grill.)  Using tongs, dip chicken in yogurt mixture, coating chicken in a thick layer of yogurt, and put on wire rack of oven in a foil rimmed baking sheet or broiler pan.  Broil chicken between 10 and 18 minutes, when the thickets parts are 160 degrees.  Flip chicken halfway through cooking.

Let chicken rest 5 minutes, then cut into 1-inch chunks and stir into warm sauce.  (Do not simmer chicken in sauce.)  Stir in cilantro, taste, add needed salt, and serve.

A great recipe that is naturally gluten-free, tested by Cook’s Illustrated’s test kitchen, and delicious.  Enjoy!

Japan has been on my mind a lot in the last week.  It’s been exactly one week since I returned to the States, but it feels like a lifetime ago that I spent spring break in the Pacific.  Only in the last couple of days, is Japan no longer the first subject in my New York Times news feed.  Nuclear threat, tsunami and earthquake have slid farther down the page.  I’m not sure whether this is due to the media losing interest, Libya taking its place, or that the situation in Japan is too sad right now, with so many questions remaining, that the media is leaving it alone.

I am finally able to begin writing about, and processing, this experience. Maybe it’s because I can breathe more easily as of 2:22am this morning when I received the email from Alden that started out “Home again, home again, jiggety jig.”  That’s right.  Alden, Pete and Chip are back in the United States, safe and sound, in Lawrence, Kansas, by way of Okinawa, Taiwan, Los Angeles and Dallas.  (NBD: 36 hours of travel with a newborn and a 21-month old.  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Alden, you’re my hero.)

In debriefing my time in Japan, people want to hear about the horror and moments of panic, where I saw my life flash before my eyes.  The news jumps at the opportunity to capture the disturbing images and videos (most of which I still have not let myself see) of earthquake aftermath and uncontrollable waves.  It’s a shame that so often we learn about other parts of the world only when something terrible happens.  Most of my students didn’t know where to find Japan on a map before March 11^th or that Japan uses nuclear power as a major energy source.  As with Thailand in 2004, we now associate Japan with destruction, confusion and despair.

Japan is a beautiful country.  I never would have imagined that I would visit Japan, let alone twice in six months.  I don’t regret my trips for one minute, earthquake, tsunami and all.  Yes, I have scary memories of three days of uncertainty, shaking ground, and an unimaginable fear of water, but in the forefront of my mind, I hold the beauty of this country, a beauty which still exists in many places.

The graciousness and kindness of the Japanese people is quite possibly one of the most emotional memories for me, from March 11^th.  A neighbor did not hesitate to invite us in her car to go to higher ground.  The five of us were welcomed with open arms into the apartment of strangers in the midst of chaos.  Water and food were shared with us and toys given to Chip for distraction.  Even their cat put up with Chip’s fascination with an ‘indoor pet.’  As I fell asleep that night, I was scared but felt so loved.  Covered in blankets and curled up with the cat, for the first time since 3:00, I finally thought everything might be alright.

We should not ignore the devastation and the struggles that this nation has faced and continues to face.  Tens of thousands of lives have been lost and people remain lost.  Rebuilding has not even begun, but it will, and in a very orderly, efficient way, as the Japanese always do.  But while you pour over CNN and the New York Times, I hope you’ll take a minute to look at some of these images of Japan, specifically Hayama and Zushi.  I don’t have photos of the people that helped us, welcomed us, comforted us, but I hope that these photos will reflect the warmth of Japan that I felt.

Yesterday I landed in Atlanta with an even greater appreciation of family, friends, and the good ole USA than I did just 12 days ago.  For those of you that don’t know, I flew on March 3^rd to Japan to spend time with my brother and his family, and help out with my new nephew, Pete and his big brother, Chip.

Chip on a morning walk in Hayama

Pete and Big Brother.

The beach, just 100 yards from Rob and Alden's home in Hayama.

Our first week was amazing, spending time as a family, with mornings full of reading stories with Chip, cuddling with Pete, afternoon outings, and great conversations over coffee and home cooked meals.  On the afternoon of March 11, our time in Japan completely changed.

In the midst of the earthquake, tsunami, evacuation, after shocks, and nuclear explosions, I did not have much time to process what was happening and how I was feeling.  We had to be strong for each other and the boys, not allowing ourselves to cry, scream or hide.

Alden and I found ourselves using the phrase, “Too Soon” any time one of us tried to make a light hearted comment about the ordeals we’d faced or if we dared to think we were in the clear on natural disasters.  (The minute we felt a sense of calm, a tremor would remind us that mother nature wasn’t finished just yet.)  At this point, it’s ‘too soon’ for me to write about the last week’s events.  I’m still working through my feelings and emotions, but I do know that I love my family so much, I am greatly fortunate and that there is too much suffering in this world.

While it’s too soon for me to put words on the screen, Alden wrote this lovely post 12 Days, on her blog, Wattsabi. I hope you’ll check it out.  Alden wonderfully articulates the horror of the events, but also the beauty of family, children and the amazing kindness we experienced from the Japanese during a time of chaos, confusion and language barriers.

Thanks again for everyone’s thoughts, prayers, emails and posts.  Your words of concern and encouragement made home not seem so far away.

I’m heading back to Japan this morning to be with Rob, Alden, Chip and my new nephew, Pete!  I can’t wait to see them, especially because it means I’ll be done with the 14-hour flight.  (Thank goodness for direct flights to Japan!)

Here’s what I wrote about my December trip:

Yokusuku & Change of Plans

Things I Didn’t Know Until I Went to Japan (This post has been very popular with the Japanese…I now get hundreds of hits a day from Japan.)

Reflections on World Travel

Bon Voyage!

Thankfully, I stayed healthy the entire time I was in Japan.  Pretty impressive for my first trip outside of North America since my diagnosis.  My sister-in-law, Alden went to great lengths to make sure that I had plenty of food options in their home (rice cakes, peanut butter, Chex, M&M’s) and she even researched dining options out.

At work in the kitchen.

There is something a little sad about no longer being able to be a culinary adventurer when I travel.  I miss being able to say “Sure, why not?” when something is put down in front of me.  Now there is lots of research to be done, questions to be asked, and restraint to be used.  I have never been tempted to eat gluten or break my diet.  I remember how miserable I was when during the height of my illness so no piece of pizza or cookie is worth purposefully feeling crummy.  In Japan, I was pitifully unadventurous in my cuisine, when dining out.  For the most part, I stuck with cucumber rolls, pickled plum and shrimp sushi, with my GF soy sauce.  Nothing fancy but still yummy and at least felt a little “Japanesey”.

Just because I couldn’t partake in all of the sampling fun, didn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy watching every plate go by me on the sushi conveyor belt at a restaurant.  And one of the highlights of the trip for me was going to a department store in Tokyo and taking in all of the sights in their version of a ‘food court.’  Did I know what anything was?  Nope.  Were any ingredients listed?  None in English.  Could I try it?  No.  But that’s ok.  Glass case, after glass case, full of beautiful dishes was still a sight worth seeing.

Just a taste of a Tokyo department store food cart. No Sbarro here.

At home we ate delicious “ovenless” meals, and one night we even made our own version of ramen, using rice noodles that Alden thoughtfully purchased.  We followed Gluten Free Girl’s recipe for Spontaneous Pork Ramen.  We made a few changes, but for the most part stuck to the original recipe.  It was yummy!  I was particularly proud of myself because I navigated the Hayama grocery store, solo, to pick up some of the ingredients for the dinner.  You should have seen me trying to identify pork and bok choy with no English for guidance.

We spent our last two days of the trip in Tokyo, and on our final night, we went out to an amazing dinner at Nobu.  That name might sound familiar to you because this high end restaurant has locations in New York, San Diego, Dallas and other cities.  I brought my card that explained celiac/gluten in Japanese and the folks at Nobu were very receptive.  (They even made a photo copy of the card and brought me back my original copy!)

Nobu

At Nobu, we shared some veggie rolls and for my entrée, I ordered the salmon, which was delicious, and one of the most perfectly cooked pieces of meat I’ve ever eaten.  The dish came with a mango salsa rice and the flavors complimented the salmon perfectly and uniquely.  The staff was so attentive, clearly explaining everything to me, my options and what substitutions they would make.

For dessert, we shared the trio of crème brulees: green tea, brown sugar, and black sesame.  The crowd favorites were brown sugar and black sesame.  Green tea seemed a little too much like spinach.  (Side note: green tea is a very popular flavor in Japan.  Hagen-Daas even makes a green tea ice cream.)

Our dinner at Nobu was the perfect finale to our Japan trip.  A beautiful, delicious meal that kept me healthy.  Success!  While I left Japan without trying many of their staples, I boarded the flight back to the States with a full, and healthy, belly.  You can’t ask for more than that!

Over Christmas, my mom and I ventured across the globe to visit my brother, sister-in-law and nephew.  After 17 hours of sitting on a plane, we landed in Narita, greeted by my brother, Rob.  I was exhausted,  only to learn that we still had a 2-hour drive to their home in Hayama, an adorable beach town full of Japanese surfers, carp, and shrines.  As I pretended not to sleep in the backseat, we headed towards their home.

Hayama

Rob & Alden's House in Hayama

Selling veggies in Hayama

Rob & Alden's one-way street

Rob, Alden and Chip are living in Japan because of my brother’s navy career.  I get claustrophobic after five minutes on a ship, so I can’t imagine embarking on that career choice, but Rob continues to be very successful at his job on the seas.  More importantly, he has a supportive wife who is willing to be a part of the adventure and put up with the unexpectedness of the navy.

Rob & me in front of the USS Fitzgerald

On the Fitzgerald, unsuccessfully trying to get my camera to work.

Speaking of unexpected, Rob was called out to sea, 36 hours into our visit.  Stupid, North Korea!  It was really sad to see him go, especially as Rob is the tour guide extraordinaire, but we still had a wonderful time with Chip and Alden, exploring Japan.  Fortunately, before Rob left, we were able to see the navy base where Rob works, and go on his ship, the USS Fitzgerald.  I’m always amazed (and nauseous) when I go on one of these ships.  The use of space, managing of people and simple daily functioning while a ship is deployed, is pretty incredible.

Tight quarters on the Fitzgerald...do I look like I'm going to be sick?

The naval base in Yokosuka, not only holds ships, but is basically a city in itself.  Grocery stores, McDonald’s, apartment buildings, houses, a gym and even two movie theaters.  And a Starbuck’s.

Before Rob left, we all enjoyed a late afternoon on the beach, allowing Chip yet again, to be our main source of entertainment.  On a clear day, you can see Mt. Fuji.

Who knew a boat trailer could be so much fun? Chip must take after his grandfather.

We also watched a wedding in a hotel, overlooking the beach.  Perfect location!

The next day Rob received his orders to leave, early in the morning.  While it was sad to see him go, we were glad to get that time with Alden and Chip, and were thrilled to find out that Rob would get back in time for Christmas.

We missed you, Rob!

-       Throwing away trash can be stressful.  In Japan, sorting trash is taken very seriously.  You must separate your trash into one of five different categories.  In order to do this properly, you must sometimes take apart the particular piece of trash.  Tea bags were particularly confusing: paper, tea, string, yikes!  If you mess up your trash sorting, the trash man will leave your trash with a nasty note for all of your neighbors to see.  Each day of the week belongs to a different ‘type’ of trash.  But, at least the trash man plays a nice little tune from his truck as he drives down your street.

-       Heated toilets…amazing. Why hasn’t the U.S. thought of that?  Yes, there are heated toilets and lots of special buttons to press.  Think bidet but fancier and more useful.

-       Japan has gorgeous beach towns.  Rob and Alden live in Hayama, and their house is a 5-minute walk from the beach.  Even in December, you can find people fishing, scuba diving, and wind surfing.  The people in the town do have an odd obsession with Hawaii though.

Hayama

-       Extra-hot skim latte, please. There’s something comforting about enjoying Starbuck’s in a foreign land. (I know that’s terrible, but I have to admit it.)

Even Chip likes trips to Starbucks.

-       Emperor Hirohito loved fish.  The man responsible for the bombing of Pearl Harbor was obsessed with classifying fish and sea life.  You can visit his old palace and see some of his own finds.

-       Carp are huge and ugly fish.  I think they’re the squirrels of the sea.

-       Japanese love Patagonia and puffy jackets.  Even though it was a balmy 60 degrees in December, you would have thought we were gearing up for a blizzard based on what people wore.  In Hayama, Patagonia seemed to be the hottest trend.  Shoot.  I left my Patagonia gear at home.

-       Tokyo Traffic=no fun…traffic is traffic and no matter what country you’re in, it still totally stinks.  The scenery might be different, but it’s still traffic.

-       Convenience stores make for a great lunch spot. Sure, we’ve all seen the 7-11 “All-Beef Big Bite” but we don’t typically seriously consider getting a pre-packaged lunch at a convenient store.  Lawson’s, a popular Japanese convenient store (ignore the fact that the name is English), sells delicious lunch options: Rice balls, sushi, and mini Haagen-Das.  

-       I am a giant.  Pretty much everyone and everything in Japan(well, except for the huge Buddha in Kamakura) makes me feel huge.  Even the grocery store shelves only came up to my shoulders.

Daibutsu: At least he was bigger than me.

-       American children have rockstar status: Going anywhere with my adorable nephew, Chip, meant that he would get oohed and aahed over.  The Japanese love him.  (I love him too!)  Japanese people are always prim, proper, and silent, especially when on public transportation, but the minute they see Chip, they light up, smile, and chatter away.

Chip's pretty darn cute.

-       Ovens are overrated. Since Rob and Alden live off base, they don’t have an oven, just like their Japanese neighbors.  We ate delicious food during our trip, including noodles, chili, beef stew and other yumminess.  Who needs an oven?  Alden has even learned how to make skillet pizza and lasagna.  Very impressive.

That may look like an oven, but it's not...

This is just a glimpse of my amazing trip to Japan.  I have more details to share with you.  Unfortunately on Day 1 of our trip, my camera decided to go on the fritz.  It was heartbreaking.  Fortunately, my mom is a professional photographer, so I’m ‘borrowing’ from her photo collection from the trip.

It’s hard to believe that we’ve already rung in the New Year and 2011 is here.  I don’t want to move on to 2011 without giving 2010 the attention it deserves.  2010 was an eventful year for me, with many unexpected life changes, trips and events.  Here are my top  highlights, in no particular order.

Highlights of 2010:

10. Spring Breaking it in San Diego, CA and Naples, FL with great friends

Jen and me bringing down the average age in Naples by about 62 years.

Night out in San Diego with Brittanny

9. Standing with my friend Becky as she and her new hubby, Peyton, shared their vows.

Becky on her wedding day

High School Friends enjoying Becky's Big Day

8. Cooking with some of the freshest, most beautiful veggies.

7. Meeting Carlo Petrini and volunteering at the ‘Slow Food Family Dinner’ at Watershed.

6. Endless adventures in Montana and Wyoming with David and friends

Beanie: Expert Fly Fisherwoman

Gamble: Montana Wilderness Extraordinaire

Hiking in MT with Stew

5. Hosting Thanksgiving for the first time

4. Deciding to call Atlanta home and buying a house

Enjoying our front porch at our new home

3. Getting published in a national magazine

2. Traveling to Japan with my mom to visit my brother and his wonderful family

Who knew in Japan you can buy hot 'corn potage soup' in a vending machine? Don't think it's GF.

1. White Christmas on the Eastern Shore

What a year!  Thank you, 2010.  It’s been a pleasure.

I’m ready to go!  This time tomorrow, I’ll be heading to the airport with my mom, jetting off to Tyokyo.  It’s only a 14-hour flight.  NBD.

I’m actually looking forward to having some uninterrupted reading time.  So, what am I taking with me to read?

First, I’m going to finish The Thousand Autumns of Jacob deZoet which my sister-in-law, Alden, sent me in August and I’m embarrassed that I still haven’t completed it.   This beautifully written book is about Japan in the late 1700s, a Dutch merchant, Jacob deZoet, and his Japanese love interest.  Very fascinating read.

I still haven’t read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo so Elaney has let me borrow her copy.  Am I going to be freaked out if I read it?  I figure this book (and the entire series) is such a part  of pop culture right now, that I need to read it.

To feed my fascination with prisons, I’m going to read the memoir, Orange is the New Black, about a woman who spends a year in prison and her experience.  Nothing beats prison non-fiction.  (Yes, I love prison documentaries on the Discovery channel too.)

And finally, for a good laugh, I’m bringing Squirrel Meets Chipmunk, the newest book by my favorite humor writer, David Sedaris.  While I do have an irrational phobia of squirrels, I’m hoping this book will make me a little more sympathetic (and less terrified of) those awful creatures.  Maybe this read will be scarier than Dragon Tattoo for me.

I’m probably being a little overly ambitious with this book list but whatever I don’t read en route to Japan, I’ll devour when I’m on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, recovering from jet lag.

What are you reading on your vacation?  Any good reads to recommend?

Have a wonderful holiday!  See you in 2011!