Stress. It's all around us.

We are living in a 24-hour, plugged-in and every-changing environment. On the bright side, the world is at our fingertips. On the flip side, the ever-flowing information from our Smart phones and laptops never escapes us and can feel like a far stretch from the modern "convenience" it was intended to be. At no time is this dilemma more evident than during the holidays. And as I always say, special diets make it THAT MUCH more stressful.

So, this holiday season, I'm thinking ahead and utilizing my resources. I'm also trying not to make things too complicated. It will be a combination of taking it easy and taking advantage of the information that streams to me.

Easy: Make dinner simple. Pizza night with steamed broccoli. We like Buddy's if we're out, Amy's (at most grocery chains, but find the soy cheeze variety at Meijer and Hiller's) and Kinnickinnick crusts with sauce and cheese (such as Vegan Gourmet found at Whole Foods). Another easy dinner solution? Breakfast for dinner. Pull out the pancake mix, add some pumpkin puree left over from Thanksgiving or some applesauce for extra sweetness and nutrition. Make a smoothie and some scrambled eggs and enjoy an easy and cheap meal reversal.

Resource: My sister-in-law is a wonderful mother and aunt. During a holiday gathering, she handed me a bag of chocolates from Amanda's Own Confections for my picky eater. My niece has a peanut allergy and she went out of her way to order chocolates for the occasion that they all can have: nut free, dairy-free, gluten-free. Check out the website here. Also check out the Chocolate Emporium for a special gift for someone. I know I appreciated it!

Easy: Expecting a rough week? Think ahead during any downtime, be it a Sunday, afternoon or after-bedtime adult time. Cook up a batch of chili or bake some muffins. You will thank yourself when you are rushing the next day. Check out this very simple and delicious recipe from Rold Gold Tomatoes, a local company that uses tomatoes grown at a variety of Michigan farms. Here is what they sent me about their product: "Red Gold generally does not contain wheat, oat, barley, or rye. Ingredients containing one of these, such as flour, would be identified on the back panel. They also do not use corn sweeteners in their canned tomatoes, which can contain corn gluten." Very easy.

Think-ahead Chili
2 cans (14.5 ounces) Rold Gold Diced Tomatoes Chili Ready with Onions
1 (15 ounces) can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 ounces) can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 10 ounce package frozen kernel corn
2 teaspoons chili powder

Directions:

• In large saucepan, combine tomatoes, garbanzo beans, black beans, corn and chili powder; mix well.
• Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat; cover and simmer about 10 minutes. Cool and store in individual storage bowls, or in a large bowl for a meal the next day. Goes well with Bob's Red Mill corn muffins.

Resource: Get yourself a cookbook for the holidays! I recommend "The Cake Mix Doctor Bakes Gluten-Free." This one is a resource you will go back to. Anne Byrn takes gluten-free mixes from Better Crocker, King Arthur, Whole Foods and others and makes them into masterpieces. There's gads of photos and directions for dairy-free versions of frostings, cakes, cookies, muffins, bundt cakes and everything you would ever want to bake in an easy-to-use format with room for notes on what worked and tips that you learned along the way. There is advice at every step, even how to share and freeze your goodies.

Easy: Don't bake it yourself! Kevin Brand of Breadsmith of Bloomfield Hills recently sent me home a sample of Gluten Free bread (photo at top) from his shop. I sliced it up and froze it for toast and sandwiches, but it could easily be served with appetizers at holiday gatherings. The shop takes extra steps and tests the bread to assure there is no gluten contamination. He says the products are dairy-free but do contain eggs. Brand says the bread is: "available fresh baked from my shop every Thursday by advance order only. Orders must be in by 2 p.m. Wednesdays. The advance order is for two main reasons. First I'm trying to keep the retail price affordable since this product is a need not want. Second, seeing as that we are a gluten facility I can't have the product sitting in my store and therefore I don't want any extra other than what is ordered for that day." Check out the Breadsmith at Maple and Lahser or here.

Resource: Use that phone of yours! Look up restaurants, call them and ask about gluten-free menus. Take photos of things you enjoy or dislike while out and about and take notes. Write down shopping lists, look up sales, look up recipes and of COURSE, for everything you need there's an app for that. Get gluten-free recipes, lists of restaurants and my favorite is the GlutenScan iPhone application that offers a gluten-free safety status, complete product and ingredient information and allergy warnings. GlutenScan allows you to call a product manufacturer at the touch of a button. Searchable by product name, category or UPC, GlutenScan gives users unprecedented access to a database of over 30,000 food products and more than 10,000 manufacturers when they need it most – while shopping at the store. Check out a really good list of apps here.

I like this new age -- and it stresses me out. But hopefully in the thick of things I will find clarity. Happy holidays!