canela's kitchen

About

 

Hi! I’m Sinnamon Love. I’m a stay at home mother of 3, currently living in Brooklyn, NY raising a teenaged daughter, and a 21 year old son with Autism. I'm also the grandmother of a beautiful baby boy. I’m a writer, relationship columnist, radio personality, super foodie & retired adult star. I’m lucky enough to be the girlfriend of a brilliant chef and lyricist, Jarobi White (ATCQ/ EvitaN,) who is my culinary guru and inspiration. In November, 2012, after 4 months of being extremely ill, losing 40 pounds – and 3 trips to the emergency room, I finally sought out holistic care. I discovered the culprit was a gluten allergy.

During this time, I also began to read more about eliminating gluten as a treatment for Autism Spectrum Disorders. Being that my son is high-functioning, (he has a diagnosis of Aspergers Syndrome,) he possibility of “curing” his symptoms with diet was very exciting for me as I have used diet for to aid in recovery from ovarian cysts as readjusting my hormones after surgery for ovarian cancer in the past.

 

Initially, the discovery of what I could and couldn’t eat was daunting and overwhelming. Thankfully, my other half is a chef and together we set out to conquer the world of gluten free. Since I do all the cooking at home, our kitchen quickly turned into a gluten-free test kitchen. With the expert help of my partner, I began to re-learn how to prepare standard Southern & Creole fare I grew up on as those are the recipes engrained in my head. The interesting part of doing this, is Southern dishes tend to be very heavy with flour, and gluten-free flours simply do not react the same way as wheat ones. We’ve stumbled a bit along the way, but many of my favorite comfort foods quickly began to transform into gluten-free bliss! My grandfather would be so proud!

One of the things I discovered as I started searching recipes, was many gluten-free options tend to also be dairy or egg free. As I don’t have allergies to either, I was determined to create recipes which still enabled me to enjoy the foods I loved without needing to eliminate everything I love. (I was a macrobiotic vegan for many years and have returned to being an omnivore in my old age.) With lots of patience, research & practice, I’ve developed some pretty good recipes that my family, friends and fans seem to enjoy a great deal. With so many people recently becoming gluten sensitive or intolerant, I began to post recipes and gluten news on my website earlier this year. Shortly after, I began receiving requests for private chef work and advice from other suffering from gluten or other dietary restrictions. My food blogs have quickly taken a life of their own and have outgrown my main blog… requiring a space of their own.

The result, is Canela’s Kitchen!

 

Canela in Spanish means Cinnamon. And though my stage name has nothing to do with this spice, many friends have lovingly referred to me as Canela over the years. I’m so happy to be able to let my journey towards gluten-free bliss be your gain! I’m pleased to announce that we’ve seen a huge improvement in my son’s health and Autism symptoms since he began to eat more gluten-free as well. He isn’t “cured” of his Autism, but we’ve certainly seen a huge improvement in his symptoms over the last 8 months!

Enjoy my recipes and please share your comments, pics and my site with others! Even if you aren’t allergic to gluten, if you are just looking for delicious, healthy meals for you and your family, I’m sure you’ll enjoy everything about the food you find here. :)

 

All the best,

Sinnamon Love