Another Facebook Switcharoo, Finally: Gluten Explained, a Surprising Superfood and More in Today’s (LATE) Monday Mix-Up 5-19-2014

Good morning everyone, gads it's into the afternoon already, I'm so behind!  Hopefully it's as gorgeous where you are as it finally is here in Michigan today.  I've got a rare quiet moment as I write this, while the kids are at their last homeschool enrichment classes 'til fall, and wow, did I ever need this sanity break after a few days of non-stop running.  Some good stuff like my nephew's graduation open house, some not so good like our friend who is in the hospital, and loads of stuff in between.  Something fun, though, is that I've been purging stuff out of the house like crazy!  Donating some, selling some on Craig's List, because did I tell you I'm going to have my own OFFICE soon?  I'll get to have a DOOR that SHUTS and I won't have to try to work here in the living room anymore where I feel like ‘worst mom of the year' every time I tell the kids, “Stop talking to me for a minute so I can concentrate!”  We're doing lots of room swapping and when it's all done (which will be a while because office furniture is expensive!), I'm going to be one happy momma with my own space.

Here's what I've got for you this week…

• Have I mentioned lately (OK, just last week) how frustrating Facebook is for bloggers like myself who just want you to know when we have a new post up?  We put it on our wall, and it doesn't matter that I have 50,000+ followers, most of you don't see it.  Facebook apparently doesn't have enough money and wants me to pay them to make sure you see my stuff.  Read about their latest switcharoos and shenanigans from Sarah and what you can do about it.  The quick-take is this:  If you go to my page and click the drop-down arrow by the “like” button and click “get notifications”, you'll hopefully see everything then.  Also, the more you like and share my posts, that helps you see more, too.  Even better is if you subscribe to the blog via email and then you won't miss anything for sure:

  1.  Click here to sign up to receive Kitchen Kop posts to your inbox.  (Two boxes will show up there, you can use either one.)  Don't forget to click the link in the confirmation email that will come to your email.

  2.  Click here to sign up to receive monthly updates if you prefer those instead.  Again, don't forget to click the link in the confirmation email that will come to your email.

  Whatever you do, I hope you'll stick around!  🙂

• You've probably heard how beneficial gelatin from grass fed cows is for us.  Whether it's to help our digestion because of how it coats our intestinal tracts, or how it can help get you off of antihistamines, anti-inflammatory medicines, or even anxiety pills – yep, this new book called The Gelatin Secret from Hollywood Homestead can show you how to make recipes, real FOOD, into a superfood, to help you with all of that!  Read more here.

• Off-topic:  Watch the video at this link (it won't let me embed it here) about a new 911 museum at Ground Zero.

• Check out the most awesome photo-bomb ever on Facebook.  🙂

• One more you'll love from FB:  how to tell the difference between a bee and a wasp.  You won't believe this one…

• This one got lots of shares last week:  taste the rainbow.

• Another book to tell you about it…  This is one of two cookbooks that I couldn't put down recently when I was killing time at Barnes and Noble.   First, I am in no way vegan or vegetarian, but sometimes it's nice (and budget-stretching) to go veg for a meal or two.  (Here's my meatless meals list.)  Not only is this cookbook gorgeous (fantastic photography) and creative, but it is surprisingly low in soy-based ingredients. The author also makes use of soaking and sprouting grains, nuts, and legumes to improve digestibility and nutrition.  Although there are plenty of recipes for smoothies, soups, and dips, this is not a cookbook of only blended meals. You'll find super yummy and healthy appetizers, salads, main dishes, and desserts that merely have a blender component to them (such as a sauce or dressing).  This meat, eggs, dairy, and bread-loving girl was very impressed with The Blender Girl's vegan, gluten-free cookbook!  (Check it out at that link – it's 40% off the list price.) 

• One more!  I've been anticipating the release of Nina Planck's GORGEOUS new cookbook, The Real Food Cookbook: Traditional Dishes For Modern Cooks, for a long time. It's release date is June 10th, but you can pre-order it now.

• I thought the following video explaining gluten in simple terms was pretty good until the very end — I didn't click on that part to see what fake food they might be talking about…

• Did you see this post from Kendahl on how to make graham crackers?  I want to try it!

• Sorry for the LATE post today guys!  I'll leave you with this fun video where you'll see that cows actually love jazz!  🙂

Alice pic