Sharing Gluten Free Advice

A friend had asked for any words of wisdom I had in going gluten free. The email be came quite lengthy, and I thought other people may find it helpful.

Email:
The first step in going gluten free is to understand what gluten is. This list: http://www.celiac.com/articles/182/1/Unsafe-Gluten-Free-Food-List-Unsafe-Ingredients/Page1.html goes through all the names gluten can be hidden under. Be very suspicious of anything with "natural flavors". If your friend has a smart phone, I recommend downloading an app like evernote, and saving this document there. When reading the ingredient list in the store, and I come across unfamiliar items I search the document to see if its gluten-related.

Next, I suggest your friend go through the cabinets, fridge, and freezer and identifying what has gluten in it. I put stickers or a mark on them to signify which aren't safe. Depending on how much processed food there is, she may find lots or little gluten. She also has to look through her make up, lotions, anything that can go in or on her body. I have been glutened from face cream, mascara, lip gloss, and its a dickens of a thing to figure out.

The key to being successful at living without is to focus on what you still can eat. Lots and lots of fruits and veggies! All fruits and vegetables are naturally gluten free. Alternatives to wheat, like rice, or quinoa, milk, eggs, butter, coffee. Every GF-er has product preferences. I prefer Udi's gluten free products (bread, granola, etc), Tinkyada Pasta Joy (aka the GF pasta with a bunny on it), and King Arthur's flour/mixes. It is very expensive to replace "regular" foods with GF alternatives. For example, the cheapest I've found Udi's bread is $5 per loaf, and the loaf is smaller than traditional packages. Its seems much smarter to me to find breakfast alternatives. My favorite breakfast is rice, beans, a touch of cheddar, a sunny side egg and some avocado.

Eating out can be difficult, she has to be a staunch advocate for herself. Allergyeats.com is a great website (and app) to navigate peer reviewed restaurants. I find the most success, with restaurants that don't have GF menus, to review the menu to find the most likely GF items, and then review with the server what my needs are. Often the manager comes over to clarify, and will typically bring my plate. The best chains I can suggest are Not Your Average Joes, Joe's American Bar and Grill, Wagamama, and the hot food bar at Whole Foods. Remember, its her health, she is the only one with something to lose in the process.

I would also recommend collecting data. There is a bias that can occur when we try new diets that documentation can clear up. I would recommend starting with a summary of symptoms, including duration, in as much detail as possible. I came to be gluten free through a juicing diet. I had been feeling miserable for years, and had developed acute symptoms. Once I started reintroducing foods I found the symptoms to reappear with gluten, dairy and soy. Many people who have gluten intolerance/allergy often have multiple food issues (my mother has Celiac's disease, as well as intolerance for fish and sea food, but my grandmother has just Celiac's). If your friend has some remittance of symptoms but not a full recovery after a month of clean (no accident) GF living, she may want to look at these other allergens as well. The top six allergens are gluten, soy, dairy, fish, tree nuts, and peanuts.

I hope this information helps your friend. Its not an easy transition, but I do believe it saved my life. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help!
/End Email

These are my suggestions, and should not replace medical advice.

Vegan dinner for Meatless Monday

Black beans with daiya cheddar "cheese", white rice, and slices of avocado.




Delicious Meatless Monday meal. Inspired by Celia's Breakfast Bowl at Mother's Market and Kitchen.

GF/DF/SF Pineapple Fried Rice

As I've spoken of before I have food intolerances to gluten, dairy, and soy, and a sensitivity to nuts. One of the things I've missed is eating out, especially Thai food. A little internet searching, a little creativity and I have Meg-safe pineapple fried rice!

I used the recipe I found here, with a bit of modification.

Its very exciting to have delicious, nutritious and safe food!

Photos and tips behind the break...

284. Irregular produce

245. Garden Growth

I have my first flower in the garden - veggies will be here so soon!!!

235. Gore House - Farm flora (Needs Photo)

190. Sprouting

I had planted some seeds a while back, which were eaten by some sort of animal. Lo, to my surprise, I still have some sprouts!

170. Winter Dinner to Warm

Pea soup with whole grain toast and non-fat milk makes the perfect dinner to warm up on these cold New England winter nights.

166. Preparedness.

This semester has been tough on me in regards to finding time to precook my meals. Today I had the day off, and ended my semester so I was able to prepare my meals for work. Its a nice feeling to have my meals ready to go, to make sure I am able to eat healthy meals. These lovely vegetables were bought from Russo's in Watertown, MA.




Two servings of soup (carrots, potato, turnip, onion in chicken broth), Two servings of carrots, broccoli and potato, one serving of purple potato and smushed sweet potato, two servings of spaghetti squash with sauted green peppers, crimini mushrooms, onions and eggplant.



Spaghetti squash with sauted green peppers, crimini mushrooms, onions and eggplant.

Carrots, broccoli and potato.

It is quite a blessing when my biggest concern is fitting things into the fridge.

164. Bounty

Since moving from the South Shore to the Metro West I've been expanding my food shopping experiences. I accidentally happened upon Russo's about a month ago, and absolutely love it. They have the freshest produce, and let you buy what you need not the amount they want to sell you. Need four mushrooms? Buy four mushrooms. Need a small squash? Buy a small squash! Their variety is also impressive. I saw dragonfruit and lemongrass in its fruit/veg form for the first time in my life.

To top it all off, I got all of those nutritious vegetables for $9. (Four types of squash, two types of potatoes, two carrots, half a pound of shitaki mushrooms, a turnip, and a sweet potato)

115. Community Garden