Going Against the Grain by: Nuccia Ardagna review and giveaway

Book Description:

This two-part book is a vital adjunct to any home attempting to be gluten-free. The first part guides you through early diagnosis and is an essential guide for any beginner diagnosed with celiac disease or some form of gluten sensitivity. You will learn how to identify symptoms of the disease, how celiac disease is diagnosed, and the consequences if left untreated. It will help you to understand how to read labels and how to manage your gluten-free home in a shared environment. It outlines practical advice for parents of children with celiac disease as well as tips for eating out and dealing with social settings such as special occasions or when traveling. Honorary foreword provided by renowned Dr. Peter HR Green, MD - Celiac Disease Center at Columbia University.

Growing up authentically Sicilian, Nuccia Ardagna thought that getting rid of gluten meant giving up her favorite traditional foods, but that could not be further from the truth! Nuccia combines her passion for eating amazingly Italian with her new dietary needs to bring you scrumptious, traditional Italian (and Sicilian) recipes. From simple, classic appetizers to decadent desserts you thought you could never enjoy, every recipe is easy-to-follow and offers beautiful full-color pictures throughout. You can feel confident about entertaining guests and family with these mouth-watering recipes. You can eat healthier, feel better, and truly enjoy living gluten-free while never having to sacrifice great taste! In this book, Nuccia not only shares her personal story with celiac disease but also the recipes she grew up with at home and uses to entertain guests. Look for the bonus section at the end of the book along with a section dedicated to her favorite links and resources.

We hope you enjoy the book and find it helpful in your journey.

Author's Bio:

Nuccia Ardagna loves to travel to the place of her roots: SICILIA! Being Sicilian, she grew up with mamma, nonna and all her zie learning all the tricks of the trade and creating DELICIOUS Italian food from scratch. When diagnosed with celiac disease she was forced to learn new habits and, now, after trial and error and experimenting, wants to share her exquisite culinary creations with you.

She IS a true Italian to the core.

Connect with Nuccia: Website  ~  Twitter  ~  Facebook

Guest Posts and Interviews:

What Makes This Book Unique in my Humble Opinion

by Nuccia Ardagna

Let’s come right out and say it. There is no shortage of books out there! There are self-help books, romance novels, cookbooks, thrillers; in fact, there is truly something to tantalize any mind, young or old. The biggest part of deciding to write a book for me had to have been the genre and topic. I knew I wasn’t creative enough to write a romance novel, however I hoped that my life experiences would help someone in some way. I felt that even if I could help just one person I would have accomplished something. So deciding on the topic, as well as who my target audience was, was the most challenging part of this whole project.

Then, shortly after deciding to write a book, I was diagnosed with celiac disease so writing a book dropped in my list of priorities. That became a huge part of my life and I remember the extensive research I had done on the subject not to mention trying to adapt to a gluten-free lifestyle at the same time. The food lover in me was not going to settle for just living. I wanted to continue to eat deliciously well! Being Italian, that was not going to be easy, but I was on a mission. When the dust settled and I had a handle on my new life AND felt I was eating as well as before my diagnosis, the desire to write a book resurfaced, only this time, I had the perfect topic!

I decided that this book would be a great ‘starter’ for anyone who was newly diagnosed with celiac or any other form of gluten sensitivity. Not only did I want it to help provide the necessary answers to common questions but I also wanted to share some of the more traditional recipes I grew up with but now modified to fit with my new dietary restrictions.

Therefore, this book is not a biography or story about living with my diagnosis. It is not a guidebook about celiac. It’s not even an Italian/Sicilian cookbook. It’s all three. I wanted to put myself in the shoes of someone who was just diagnosed and needs some practical guidance.

I remember when learning about celiac, the many resources I had to consult on many different sites in order to get answers. I remember writing tons of notes on dos and don’ts with regard to my new lifestyle. I also remember working hard on trying my old recipes with new ingredients or just tweaking some so that I could still enjoy them today after my diagnosis.

So if you’re curious about how I suffered prior to my diagnosis, or what you need to know if you’ve been diagnosed, or need direction on how to jump-start your gluten-free life with some great recipes then this is the book for you. You don’t have to buy 3 books. It’s all there for you in one comprehensive book. With regards to the recipes, some are basic, some are traditional and some didn’t even need to be modified but one thing is for sure. They are delicious and gluten-free. I hope you enjoy my story. My book.

Where to buy the book:

Amazon

My review of Going Against the Grain by: Nuccia Ardagna
Wow anyone who thinks they may have a problem with Gluten needs to grab this book, and if not grab this book for the recipes. I personally pretty much ruled out celiac disease, as my stomach problems from this book, it is a wealth of information. I have heard about celiac disease and Gluten sensitivity, but never had a good understanding of it. I have a really good understanding now. I really loved how she explained it all in laymans terms instead of medical mumbo jumbo I cannot understand. 
 I never knew you had to be so strict when on a Gluten free diet, but Nuccia really lays it all on the line for you. I would of never thought to toss the toaster out or re-season my cast iron cookware.
  I continued to read this book until I go tot part 2. Then I started DROOLING!!  The pictures are TORTURE!! Oh my everything looks so yummy. I have tried a few of the recipes so far, and well they are AMAZING. Even though I do not have to be gluten free, I did not miss anything i the recipes I tried.  The Funghi Ripieni (stuffed mushrooms) are to die for and so easy to make.  The Risotto ai funghi Misti (Risotto with Mixed Mushrooms) is delicious. Can you tell I love mushrooms? Let's not forget desert, Panna Cotta ai Mirtilli (Gelatin-Free Panna Cotta with Blueberries) is just amazing.

​Giveaway:​

​Prizes: ​ Win one of 2 copies of Going Against the Grain

. (Open to USA & Canada) Ends May 30

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Glow Stick Bracelets - 100 Bracelets Review

What kid doesn't love glow sticks? My 4 kids always did and my 11 grand kids really do. We had fun at a family picnic with these, also we cut them upen and poured them into jars with some glitter and shook them up to make little lights.
  Glow sticks are great on Halloween to keep track of your kids and to make your kids easy to see by drivers. There are lots of things you can do with these, string several together and make a garland. Stick them in balloons and make them glow. Put them into plastic Ester eggs, for a night time Easter Egg hunt. Lots of things you can do for evening parties. Or just give a handful to the kids and let them come up with tons of ways to play with them.
  These come in a tube of 100 bracelets and the connectors. The tube kept them all safe, instead of like the ones that come in the little plastic bags, half of them are usually already broken so they do not light up. With 100 the ideas are really limitless.
  I was given mine in exchange for an honest review.

Check the out on Amazon

Grilluminator BBQ Grill Light Review

My Grill at night

My Grill at night with Grilluminator

I live in the sticks, so to speak, there are not many street lights and none in my backyard so as you can tell by the 1st picture when it's dark outside it's really dark. I was given the Grilluminator BBQ Grill Light in exchange for my honest review and am really glad that I was. This sucker is really bright. It takes 3 AA batteries which come with the light. It has a screw on connector. It goes on the handle of the grill, the light head is fully adjustible so you can move it where ever you need the light aimed at. The switch is  touch switch, there is no real button just rub your finger across the circled area and the light comes on or goes off. This is a great item and will make grilling during the winter months, when it gets dark early easier.  I live in Florida and grill year round.

Check it out on Amazon

Ice Ball Maker & Sphere Ice Mold by Bar Brat

This Ice Ball Maker is one more Great product by Bat Brat. I have used several of Bat Brats products and they are all quality and innovative products.

The Ice Ball maker is made out of silicone, and I love silicone products. You get one set of 2 pieces. There is a bottom and top. The set makes 4 ice balls. These are smaller then some other ice ball makers I have, but I really like these because the others I have do not fit into a lot of smaller glasses. These fit great into 2 inch glasses. By using the ice balls they do not melt as fast as regular ice cubes so in turn do not water down your drinks.  I love to add them to my water bottle, they keep my water colder longer then regular ice cubes. 

I was given my set in exchange for an honest review. 

Check them out on Amazon

Quick Sweat Dice by Stack 52 Review

  

This set of dice is an amazing workout tool. You will get a different workout every time you play. There are 7 color coded dice. Red = core, Blue = cardio, Green = chest, Yellow = legs, Orange = arms, and the white one is the number die. 
  You roll all of the dice, the number die will tell you how many reps to do each exercise, the color dice will tell you which exercise to do.  The directions tell you not to stop in between exercises go from one to the next. You can play it as a game, you get 1 point per rep you complete, You can play by yourself or also play with a group. 
   You can take these dice anywhere with you, since there is no equipment needed for any of the exercises. The exercises are very easy to learn and they are all demonstrated on the stack 52 website.
   These dice were created by By Army Sergeant Mike Volkin for the Army. The US Army awarded Sergeant Volkin the Army Commendation Medal for the fitness programs he designed for the troops while stationed overseas.
  There is also a deck of cards. The website says if you can find just 5 minutes a day you can get in shape. With these dice. The website is an amazing tool to really help you with these workouts. 
  I was given my set of dice in exchange for an honest review.

View the website to learn all about the program

Check it out on Amazon

Majestic Pure Coconut Oil Review

It may not be a miracle oil but it's pretty close. You can use it on your hair, your skin, your nails, you can mix it with other oils. There is no scent to this oil. It comes in a very large plastic bottle, with a pump or you can leave the lid on and just pour it. Fractionated Coconut Oil can be used in lots of body recipes on the web for making lotions and more. You can use it straight out of the bottle or add some scented oils to it to give it a scent. Is a great massage oil also. This bottle does say external use only, so I wouldn't try it in toothpastes or lip balms. It is non greasy feeling, I like to put it on after a shower and add a little to my hair, and it does help with my dry, brittle, frizzy hair. I was given this in exchange for my honest review and I will be buying more when I run out of this bottle.

Check it out on Amazon

Vegetable & Fruit Julienne/Peeler By DHD Culinary Review

I was chosen to receive and try this Dual Julienne vegetable peeler in exchange for my honest review.

 The peeler has dual blades one side it for peeling the other is for julienning. It is made of stainless steel and seems to be very sturdy. It has a hook on the end for hanging. There are 2 nubs one on each side for digging out potato eyes or bad spots. The blades seem to be extremely sharp and peeled very quickly without having to put loads of pressure on it. I do think the julienne side made the pieces a bit thin though. 

It is very easy to clean up just swish around in some hot soapy water or toss in the dishwasher.

The company offers a no haggle money back guarantee. Which I don't personally think you will be needing. 

Check it out on Amazon