Gluten Free Party Mix

I don’t know why they call this stuff Party Mix. I think it should be called Eat It All Day, Every Day Mix. After all, it’s actually kinda healthy, and the fall season just screams for it!

This is one of the only things I missed when we went gluten free.

Now, though, there are enough specialty products out there and mainstream brands that are taking the hint and removing the wheat starch. General Mills made their Chex cereal gluten free a few years ago, and that’s when this amazing snack returned to my life.

With the addition of a few gluten free favorites, there’s not a thing missing from our party mix. So, dig out your roasting pan for this one — if it’s made for a party, I’m going to make a party-sized batch!

2 sticks of butter or margarine
1/3 cup Worcester sauce
1 Tbsp salt
2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp garlic powder

1 box of Rice Chex cereal*
1 box of Corn Chex cereal*
1 bag of Glutino pretzel sticks
1 box of Glutino bagel chips
1 bag of Bugles (optional)
1 large can of mixed nuts

Directions: Melt butter in large roasting pan at 250°. Add seasoning and stir until blended. Add each item, one at a time, stirring to coat. Bake at 250° for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Let cool completely, then divide into 1-gallon containers.

This should fill about 3 containers. We prefer ice cream buckets, but gallon-sized baggies will work as well. Then, just try to stop yourself from eating it all at once!

*I actually used Meijer Rice & Corn Squares the last time I made this. That’s rice and corn all in one box, for a little less mixing!

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I Don’t Need Your Diagnosis

Last week, the tween wasn’t feeling well. She had a bit of a sore throat but no fever, and it seemed to come and go. On Friday night, she broke out into a strange rash over her eye. We were a little freaked but assumed it was some sort of allergic reaction.

I tried to track back any potential gluten sources, quizzed her about everything she’d eaten that day, and came up empty. We gave her some Benadryl and decided it could wait until morning.

On Saturday, the hubby took her to the clinic for after hours care. The nurse practitioner sent them immediately to urgent care. That doesn’t sound good.

At urgent care, the doctor saw a sinus infection right way — which is clearly what she’d been developing. Then there was the rash. It was either a manifestation of strep throat (aka scarlet fever) or poison ivy. But, since he was already prescribing antibiotics for the sinus infection, he decided to skip the strep test.

We don’t need no stinking diagnosis.

As long as the treatment works, I don’t actually care what you call my disease. I didn’t need a diagnosis 7 years ago, when it was obvious the gluten free diet made all our problems go away. I don’t need a diagnosis now, as long as my kid feels better — and her rash clears up quickly.

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