From our Food Goddess, TaMara:
This is going to be a quick one. I didn’t want to leave you hanging a second week, especially since I’m going to be travelling next week and there probably won’t be any recipes.
I asked earlier in the summer for gluten free recipe ideas. There was lots of input, as always you guys rock. One thing I noticed about recipes for bread substitutes the ingredient list is daunting. I thought mixes might be a better route for these items. I wanted to test out some mixes for pizza crust, rolls and bread, but I just haven’t found the time.
If you’ve had success with mixes and would like to recommend some, let us know in the comments. I could use some direction and I’m probably not the only one. Share any other gluten free recipes I may have missed in the first go round. And of course talk about any other recipes you’d like to share.
First up, the links that came from various commenters:
Chewy Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies from Alton Brown, here.
Almond Butter Blondies, from Eat Well, here.
Too easy to believe, Chocolate-Walnut Cookies, recipe here.
Then there is my favorite gluten free cake recipe. I love this cake because not only is it gluten free, but you can change up the ingredients to a variety of fruits including cranberry, clementine oranges, and of course chocolate and mocha.
And if I had to pick a blog, I like Gluten Free Girl, because she emphasizes foods that are naturally gluten free as a place to start, click here to see her journey and great recipes.
I am not gluten sensitive, but years ago realized that wheat flour, among other things, exacerbated my joint pain, so I cut way back. When my friend LFern went gluten free, she recommended a brown rice pasta that I love. It has great flavor and excellent texture, I’ve used it for all kinds of things, including tonight’s featured recipe, I rarely recommend specific products, but this is my exception, it’s Tinkyada Rice Pasta, link here to products, pricey, but worth it.
So that’s a start. I’m sure you have many more I haven’t even thought of and I look forward to hearing about them.
Tonight’s featured recipe I’ve posted before, but not with the gluten free alternative. I wanted to use it tonight because I wanted to show gluten free doesn’t mean it can’t be yummy.
Gluten Free Spinach Lasagna
Sauce:
3-15 oz cans tomato sauce
2-6 oz cans tomato paste
14 oz can diced tomatoes
2 tsp oregano, crushed
2 tsp basil, crushed
2 tsp crushed garlic
1 medium carrot, peeled & finely grated
pinch of sugar (reduces acidity of the tomatoes)
Optional: ½ lb ground beef and ½ spicy Italian sausage, browned
SaucepanAdd all ingredients to saucepan on medium-high, stirring constantly until it begins to boil lightly. Turn to low and let simmer while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
Lasagna:
1 pkg Tinkyada or other gluten free lasagna noodles (16 oz)* – boiled and cooled.
16 oz ricotta cheese
8 oz package frozen spinach, thawed or 8 oz fresh, washed and dried
1 egg
12 oz sliced mozzarella cheese
½ cup parmesan cheese
13×9 baking dish (I prefer glass), lightly oiled*I’ve boiled these and also baked them dry. I prefer the dry method, you’ll need to increase baking time by 30 minutes or until the noodles are cooked through.
To prepare: Mix ricotta, spinach and egg until well blended. Ladle a layer of sauce on the bottom of the baking dish. Cover in a single layer of noodles. Ladle sauce over noodles. Spoon ½ of the ricotta mixture evenly (if you place large dollops evenly like putting cookie dough on a baking sheet, fairly close together, it will spread as it cooks, no need to smooth it). Layer 1/3 of the mozzarella over the ricotta. Repeat: noodles, sauce, ricotta, mozzarella, noodles. On top of the last layer of noodles, add remaining sauce, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes, uncovered – I like to place the baking dish on a baking sheet to catch any spills as it bubbles. Place knife through the center, if it comes out heated through, remove and let stand for 10 minutes before cutting and serving. If it needs more cooking time, you can cover with foil to keep the cheese from burning and cook 10 more minutes. Let stand uncovered before serving.
schrodinger's cat
I don’t get the gluten free fad, first we had low fat, then low carb, now it is gluten free and paleo. How about just eating everything in moderation.
gbear
Did it fit in the toaster?
Jerzy Russian
@schrodinger’s cat:
Many people have some sort of allergy or adverse reactions to gluten.
schrodinger's cat
@Jerzy Russian: That I understand, but how come suddenly so many people attained this sensitivity to gluten.
WereBear
For some people, that doesn’t work.
When I stay off gluten, my thumbs don’t wake me up at three in the morning, screaming for more Advil.
And I make a living with those thumbs!
GHayduke (formerly lojasmo)
@schrodinger’s cat:
Because “everything” is not terribly good for people to eat…especially those who are sensitive to things like gluten.
Lectins and gliadins are especially irritating, and abundant in most grains.
YUCK.
WereBear
@schrodinger’s cat: In the late seventies, they mutated the wheat. It now has quadruple the chromosomes.
Then, Monsanto did it even more, so now it’s got fungicide and herbicide “baked right in.”
GHayduke (formerly lojasmo)
@schrodinger’s cat:
They (we) didn’t “suddenly” become sensitive. The effects of these food chemicals are becoming more widely recognized.
Take for instance, me. I, for five years, had chronic bowel problems (fairly debilitating) I got off of grains, but kept drinking beer with moderate success. I stopped drinking beer, and am now it is all cleared up.
GHayduke (formerly lojasmo)
@WereBear:
Yup. Heirloom grains are supposedly less problematic. Good luck finding them.
SIA
I’m not completely glute free, maybe 80%. I rarely eat bread but do have pasta occasionally. Quitting the bread may have helped generally ( My husband is making spaghetti with meat sauce tomorrow using rice pasta. It’s quite good.
Safe travels TaMara! Hope things are getting better there.
(And thanks Anne Laurie!)
Captain Comrade
The colors in the gluten-free lasagna do not compliment each other well.
schrodinger's cat
TJ has a brown rice pasta which is quite good.
WereBear
Thanks so much for this, Tamara! I must have missed the call, because here’s my current favorite:
Flourless Zucchini Brownies
Don’t be put off by the title; many gluten free recipes can be dry, and brownies are particularly sensitive about texture. These rock!
MTmofo
It’s not a fad.
“Coeliac disease (/ˈsiːli.æk/; spelled celiac disease in North America[1] and often celiac sprue) is an autoimmune disorder of the small intestine that occurs in genetically predisposed people of all ages from middle infancy onward. Symptoms include pain and discomfort in the digestive tract, chronic constipation and diarrhoea, failure to thrive (in children), anaemia[2] and fatigue, but these may be absent, and symptoms in other organ systems have been described. Vitamin deficiencies are often noted in people with coeliac disease owing to the reduced ability of the small intestine to properly absorb nutrients from food.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celiac_sprue
I’ll spare you the gross details about the rashes (not itchy just scabby) and massive, quick weight loss I endured before the doc ruled out cancer and realized it was gluten intolerance. I still don’t have the strength and stamina I had 20 months ago. Just the weight returned at a steady and diet managed pace.
SIA
@SIA: I totally spaced out and didn’t finish my thought LOL. A word picture of the brain process.
schrodinger's cat
Ok no offense meant to people who have allergies and such, just a sudden proliferation of gluten free stuff everywhere makes me a bit skeptical, that’s all.
schrodinger's cat
I have never read Gluten free girl’s blog but she has a forum thread dedicated to her on Get off My Internets.
Jane2
Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Bisquit and Baking Mix for all who have gluten intolerance and those who are just terrified of the latest terrifying food.
WereBear
It’s not just celiac; there also various levels of gluten insensitivity.
Two great books for those interested:
Wheat Belly, current best seller, a cardiologist found that ditching wheat had profound effects on his patient’s cardiac profiles
and
Grain Brain, by a neurologist who follows up on the current research and discovered how many of his patients’ difficulties were resolved when they stopped eating gluten
Use the Amazon link up top, on the left, so Balloon Juice gets a few shekels.
Jane2
@schrodinger’s cat: There’s a great book by Harvey Levenstein called “Fear of Food” that traces the history of terrifying food fads and who benefits (hint: pharma and the food industry). I know there are people with actual diseases who cannot eat gluten, but none of them are demanding gluten free communion wafers like the latest trend in Toronto church practice.
Percysowner
@schrodinger’s cat: The thing is that gluten sensitivity can take a long time to be diagnosed. A friend has a child with celiac disease and she wasn’t diagnosed until she was 5. Sometimes it takes a while for doctors to recognize that certain diseases are prevalent. Once they know to test for them people finally get the help they need.
Jane2
@MTmofo: That’s a real disease. However, when a naturopath tells me gluten is bad because my cells stick together, I roll my eyes.
Heliopause
The weak should die.
gbear
@Heliopause: That’s next month’s fad.
Jane2
@gbear: Thread win!
Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism
@MTmofo:
Not to you. But it is a fad. The same people who were juicing kale and doing cleanses two years ago, who were studying up on blood pH last year, are going gluten-free this year. I suspect next year’s fad might be casein allergies.
schrodinger's cat
@Jane2: Just like I roll mine when people start talking about how quantum mechanics proves their new agey mumbo jumbo.
Punchy
@schrodinger’s cat: It aint a fad. People (like the wife) have some fucked up reactions after ingesting gluten. Fucks up the GI tract too.
Jane2
@Punchy: I’m not saying that there aren’t real issues for SOME PEOPLE with gluten. However, when potato chips are labelled “gluten free” I know it’s hit fad status.
schrodinger's cat
@Jane2: Gluten free with zero trans fat!
schrodinger's cat
@WereBear: Have the cardiologist’s results been subject to peer review or is it just his opinion?
Jane2
@schrodinger’s cat: And no cholesterol!
ETA: Yes I acknowledge that some people have real diseases and real issues, but I am notoriously and unapologetically insensitive to food fads.
Jamey
Whenever I go into Whole Foods, the first thing I do is ask the youngest employee with the most piercings, “where do you keep your gluten?”
WereBear
It would be a fad if we were still “eating the bread they ate in the Bible.”
But we are not eating that wheat. Here’s a good article for the curious:
The Problems with Modern Wheat
Written by a professional endurance athlete who fixed some of his own health problems by going gluten-free.
WereBear
@schrodinger’s cat: They are both by doctors and DENSE with scientific studies.
Like I mentioned before, I had terrible arthritis in my thumbs; just like my father. That’s my gluten sensitivity symptom; never had a digestive issue.
One of the breakthroughs that is sparking so much scientific interest is the realization that gluten problems can manifest in systems other than digestive. Neurological is one of the most surprising… and joint pain is another.
Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism
@schrodinger’s cat: Like most books in its class, it’s primarily anecdotes. The studies he does use are studies of celiac patients, not general population studies.
schrodinger's cat
@WereBear: What I meant to ask was has this research about the “wheat belly” been published in a peer reviewed journal like New England Journal of Medicine or something similar?
TaMara (BHF)
On the wheat front, I actually stumbled across minimally processed, heirloom type wheat flour and I can eat it with relatively few problems. It just means I have to bake my own bread/biscuits/crusts.
Other than that, I’m not stepping into this argument. If it makes people feel better, eat healthier, I’ll do my best to help them. I don’t care what they label it. Whole grain brown rice pasta that tastes
as good asbetter than heavily processed white flour pasta? Sign me up. ;-)WereBear
@schrodinger’s cat: It wasn’t “his” research. It’s based on many studies from peer-reviewed journals, and on non-celiacs.
Celiacs obviously have a problem.
TaMara (BHF)
@Jamey: LOL. AHEM.
KBS
Sigh. So many misconceptions out there!
Some potato chips are labeled gluten free because some other potato chips, like Pringles, have wheat in them. You’d be shocked (or at least I was) by how many things have gluten in them. (Cheese, sausage, soda, etc.)
There are many more gluten free products lately because more people are getting diagnosed with celiac. It is still estimated that over 80% of the celiacs in this country are undiagnosed. That’s down from 97% just a few years ago. I just found out about myself 2 years ago, and I don’t have joint pain anymore. I’m also not anemic, after 25 years of low iron levels that never responded well to supplements.
It’s a real disease. It sucks. Sure, there are a lot of people jumping on the bandwagon, but I’m just happy there are a lot of good products out there now for the people who need it. BTW, I highly recommend Bob’s Red Mill pizza crust mix. I and my non-celiac husband and kids eat pizza made with this every week.
Mnemosyne (iPhone)
@WereBear:
It’s actually been known for a while that gluten can affect arthritis, which is why rheumatoid arthritis patients have been told to try a low-gluten diet for about 10 years now. It wasn’t clear that people with other forms of arthritis could be similarly affected until recently. Heck, there’s still some debate whether or not fibromyalgia is a form of arthritis, but gluten-free seems to help it.
Still, I am in the camp that suspects that people who don’t have a family history of arthritis who are going gluten-free will soon trade it in for the next fad.
WereBear
@Mnemosyne (iPhone): Heck, if you go gluten-free and nothing happens… so what? Eat a whole cake!
When something does happen, it tends to be dramatic and well worth pursuing. It was the gluten-arthritis connection I ran across, and I was suffering enough to try anything.
Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism
@Mnemosyne (iPhone):
This.
I’ve had the IgA tests, and wheat was not one of the things I showed up as sensitive to. The common substitutes for wheat in the gluten-free mixes are on my no list. A Wheat Belly evangelist told me that if I eliminate the wheat anyway, my allergies to potatoes and rice and soy will probably go away.
Not buying it.
Even if she is an MD.
Mnemosyne (iPhone)
@WereBear:
Unless you end up like my co-worker who has decided that ALL grains are poison — including the ones with no gluten — and that I will die if I eat corn on the cob.
This is until she picks up the next fad, that is. Though she does have some genuinely oddball allergies — how many people do you know who are allergic to oatmeal and garlic?
WereBear
@Mnemosyne (iPhone): I understand allergies can be very odd. I was never allergic to anything, I could digest a car engine. So I was surprised, but pleased, to find that I was having trouble with such a common foodstuff; pleased because it was an answer to a very tough question.
A friend of mine is on one of those prescription drugs for her arthritis, and it messed up her stomach, comes with a danger of overthinning her blood, and they are going to have to take her off of it at some point. That’s a real devil’s bargain.
And vegans drive ME crazy. :)
Mary G
Doesn’t work for everybody. I was put on my first wheat-free diet at age 3 or so and have tried no dairy, no gluten, etc. several times. I still had the exact same amount of rheumatoid arthritis I had while I was on the foods. And once it was for two years, so don’t tell me I haven’t tried it long enough.
I am getting so fucking tired of people sending me books, links, etc. about how I could be completely cured if only I ate paleo or gluten-free. No, I couldn’t. Immune system diseases are some of the most complex in the world and there is no fucking easy answer.
/rant
Suzanne
@Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism: I don’t have food allergies, but one hipster gluten-free friend swore to me that my grass and dust allergies would go away if I stopped eating wheat. I wanted to smack her upside the head and remind her that “the placebo effect” IS an effect.she also thinks fluoride in the water will melt your brain and that Obamacare sucks because it doesn’t cover acupuncture.
Besides, pasta is fucking awesome. I will happily accept some sneezing in order to eat pizza.
One of my friends was complaining about pain in his back from an injury at work. One of our mutual friends suggested giving up wheat because it “causes inflammation”. He told her to go fuck herself and I was proud.
esc
My husband has Celiac, and on one hand, the fad is helpful since we can find so many more options at somewhat more reasonable price points. On the other, restaurants are dicier prospects than before since he is suspected of being a bullshitting hipster.
I’d imagine that cutting out virtually all processed, convenience and otherwise fast food would make anyone feel better. It’s a righteous pain in the ass to never be able to Chinese takeout though.
Jim Bales
@Jane2: The list of ingredients for “The Original” Pringles (TM) is:
“DRIED POTATOES, VEGETABLE OIL (CONTAINS ONE OR MORE OF THE FOLLOWING: CORN OIL, COTTONSEED OIL, SOYBEAN OIL, AND/OR SUNFLOWER OIL), CORN FLOUR, WHEAT STARCH, MALTODEXTRIN, SALT, RICE FLOUR AND DEXTROSE.” [emphasis added]
As the parent of a 9-year-old who was diagnosed with celiac sprue before her first birthday, I appreciate the “gluten free” label on potato chips. I’m sorry that the labels that allow me to feed my child without causing her extreme gastric distress offend your anti-fad sensibilites.
Best
Jim Bales
beergoggles
I’ve been eating low carb, not really gluten-free, but in the process came across some great recipes using chickpea flour, which itself is gluten free. It’s high in protein and fiber and I’ve started using it to make pancakes, muffins, crepes (socca) and bread (farinata).
It has amazing flavor and texture. I actually prefer it to real bread now.
Violet
I self-diagnosed my sensitivity to wheat-based cereals years ago, before I’d ever heard of celiac. (Got a rumbly tummy when I ate them.) Only recently did I recognize I would benefit from giving up gluten. I feel a lot better having done so. The amazing thing to me is that I’m not hungry like I used to be. Blood sugar is much more under control.
I had the testing for celiac and I’m negative, although apparently I’ve got one genetic marker for it. That plus my known sensitivity to wheat is enough to convince me I should avoid it.
Thanks for the gluten free recipes, TaMara. I always like learning new stuff.
Jane2
@Jim Bales: Don’t go all offensorati on me and bring up the CHILDREN. I understand that celiac’s disease is very challenging, but that has nothing to do with the current anti-gluten fad.
What did you do before the anti-gluten labelling? I’ll bet you read labels, just as I have to do for certain allergies. And seriously, who considers Pringles to be potato chips, or indeed to be made of potatos?
ETA And if you’re not reading labels, and depending on food industry claims, then you may be putting your child at risk. For example, I got a dairy-free spread that had fricking FISH OIL in it, but for some reason, the non-butter industry has managed to not have to label that.
Gretchen
Thanks, Jim Bales. I have two kids who have celiac, and I get so sick of people just dismissing it as a stupid fad. One reason diagnoses are more common is that, guess what, the diagnostic tests are fairly new. If the test didn’t exist twenty years ago, no diagnoses were made with that test, so people didn’t know what was wrong with them. One of my daughters was diagnosed because she was having terrible stomach pain. The other had no symptoms, but when she got an endoscopy, her stomach lining was just as torn up as her sister’s. So I’m with Jim Bales. Sorry if my daughters’ ability to eat without wrecking their stomachs offends your fad intolerance. But I’m all for those jumping on the bandwagon – they make more choices available for those who really need them.
Gretchen
@Jane2: after the gluten-free “fad” hit, manufacturers started to label products “processed in facilities that also process wheat, soy, nuts”. It’s not just things that have wheat in it that celiacs have to be concerned about. So you go ahead and keep congratulating yourself on your immunity to fads. Those of us who really need this are grateful to the faddish hipsters who are making gluten-free foods available to those who really need them.
jl
@Jane2:
” I am notoriously and unapologetically insensitive to food fads. ”
And luckily for my enjoyment of eating, but not my waistline, I am notoriously and unapologetically insensitive to the food I eat. I can eat any damn thing, nothing bothers me.
But, my mom developed a mild case of celiac disease. Unpleasant symptoms and some stress involved in ruling out scarier things before it was correctly diagnosed.
While in many ways I am a cave man and a boor, and don’t think much of the caveman diet, I have cut out most wheat bread in my diet. I get my grains in the morning mush, and switch between oats, rye barley, buckwheat, quinoa (which I am still not sure how to pronounce) some olde timey varieties of wheat and whatever happens to catch my fancy (tef is cool), and sprouted wheat.
Some things like rye and barely have gluten, but in much smaller quantities than wheat.
I think there is good peer reviewed evidence that a wide variety of grains is better for keeping blood sugar on an even keel.
Stuff made with white wheat flour tastes weird and metallic to me now, unless it is something buried in sugar and fat, like cake or donut, which I gobble from time to time, with less guilt and fewer consequences than before.
Let a thousand whole grains bloom.
Edit: and sadly my mom does not have enough willpower to stay off white flour goodies completely, so episodic complaints and frustrated doctor ensue.
Jane2
@Gretchen: I don’t think you’ve read a thing I’ve said. And you can get all pissy if you want, but I will guarantee that in two years or so, anti-gluten will be a thing of the past.
That has absolutely nothing to do with the very real problems that your children have.
TaMara (BHF)
Sigh, I see everyone forgot my request from a few weeks ago about the recipe threads being drama free and that we be kind to one another. Let’s try again in a couple of weeks…
jl
@TaMara (BHF): I look at the beautiful pictures and can’t get at the food right away. Makes me crabby.
Now, if this were a full service blog, then things would be different.
When will they ever make computers that can cook the food you see on them and stuff it into your mouth?
Gretchen
Sorry, TaMara. I appreciate the helpful information, and it will be useful to us. The celiac diagnosis was really difficult for my bread-and-pasta loving girls. Their dad is a great Italian cook. And having people sneer that it’s just a fad makes it so much harder.
Mnemosyne (iPhone)
@Gretchen:
Actually, no — those things were labelled years ago for people with nut allergies, which was part of the last big scare, “peanuts are going to kill us all!” People who are allergic to tree nuts are often cross-allergic with soy.
Again, no one is saying that celiac disease doesn’t exist or that there’s no such thing as gluten intolerance or allergy. But there are WAY more people with self-diagnosed “allergies” than there are celiacs in this world, and most of them have previously been “allergic” to lactose or sugar or something else faddish before they decided that, no, gluten was the real culprit all along! Until the next fad comes along.
I myself am lactose intolerant, which is one of the reasons I know this. Not much attention is given to it anymore, but I continue to have trouble digesting milk regardless of the latest fad.
WereBear
Like on Star Trek!
TaMara (BHF)
@WereBear: Jetsons. This is so not the future I envisioned. Although their urban lifestyle didn’t have much appeal for me, even at a young age I wanted wilderness.
normal liberal
@beergoggles:
A friend introduced me to an pan-south Asian pastry (soan papdi or patisa) made with chickpea flour, which seems to be called besan in my neighborhood Asian markets. I’ve been meaning to try it out on things other than soan papdi.
Which, by the way, is quite addictive. Besan, wheat flour (so not for celiacs), ghee, milk, cardamom and pistachios. (Recipes abound on the internets – I’ve tended to buy it instead.) It looks like cubes of balsa wood and tastes amazing.
My niece has celiac-related issues (among other things) and the proliferation of gluten-free products has made managing her health much easier.
Jim Bales
@Jane2 writes: “Don’t go all offensorati on me and bring up the CHILDREN.”
I did not bring up “the children”. I brought up my experiences with my child. I have read the labels for 9 years. The vast majority of the time, I catch the gluten ingredients, but not always. So, even though it gives Jane2 something to bitch about, the “gluten free” label is of value to me, even if it enables the food fads that makes Jane2 go “all offensorati” (to use their phrase).
The food fads do not harm Jane2. The labels do not harm Jane2. They provide those of use who need gluten free foods with more options and valuable information. (And they allow the local Episcolpal church to provide my child with gluten-free communion wafers.)
And, while as Jane2 asserts, it is quite possible that “in two years or so, anti-gluten will be a thing of the past”, my expectation is that the labels will persist, and the range of gluten-free foods we can obtain will be greater than before the fad. These are, on the whole, good things for me, even if Jane2 does not approve.
Best
Jim Bales
jl
@Gretchen: I can imagine its tough. My mom got into trouble with oatmeal cookies which she loves. And she said, ‘Well, I looked at the ingredients and wheat was way down there.”
I guess you have to pep talk them on the opportunity to explore new foods. For example, there is an eggplant lasagna recipe I just love. Can eat it until I pass out.
jl
@WereBear: Where is all that Star Trek stuff anyway? We’re halfway to the twenty whatever the show is supposed be set in, right? You know who I blame.
WereBear
@TaMara (BHF): I like wilderness too, but I so wanted the Robot Maid.
jl
@normal liberal:
” pan-south Asian pastry (soan papdi or patisa) made with chickpea flour ”
Thanks. Are those awesome chickpea papadums made from that? I did not know you could make noodles out of it. I will definitely check that stuff out.
TaMara (BHF)
@WereBear: Well of course. Who wouldn’t want a maid like Rosie? :-)
Mnemosyne (iPhone)
@jl:
If she’s willing to bake her own, King Arthur has a good gluten-free flour and if there’s not much wheat flour in the recipe, substituting gluten-free shouldn’t affect the texture too much.
Churchlady
@schrodinger’s cat: GF is not a diet fad but a life necessity especially if you have celiac disease that can KILL you untreated. Many of us are wheat intolerant – I’m one of them – who get horrible stomach and gut cramps, swell up from histamines, and can’t breathe well. It won’t kill you – you just wish it would. It’s not a fad but an absolute necessity for SOME PEOPLE. Because it means giving up ALL flour based baked goods (read everything that exists) it is difficult, and recipes that approximate the ‘real deal’ are a joy. I also use Tinkyada pastas because they are the closest to wheat based ones in texture and taste. Until you’ve lived for over a decade without a sandwich, pizza, pastries, even a lousy cookie, you cannot appreciate how wonderful decent GF recipes are. The really AWFUL GF products out there are about as flavorful as the box they came in, so getting info on living like a real person is great. GF intolerant people ALSO have to give up salad dressing, vinegar, condiments made with vinegar (all of them), rye, barley, oats, and many many other things. Be glad you don’t have to do this. Because untreated celiac causes malabsorption of food, people with it are poorly nourished, have huge digestive upsets, and can get stomach cancer. It’s NOT a fad – it treats a real disease.
THANK YOU FOR THESE WONDERFUL RECIPES AND SUGGESTIONS!
jl
@Mnemosyne (iPhone): My sainted mother is, sadly, a poor cook and horrible baker. I am a miserable baker but the semi disastrous crud I would turn out would probably be better. So, maybe I will give it a try.
Edit: but Bob’s Red Mill has some easy gluten free mixes. Maybe I will look for something that I can throw or substitute some oats into for cookies.
But look at what you can do with chickpea flour:
Chickpea Flour Bread Recipes
http://www.yummly.com/recipes/chickpea-flour-bread
If I try, the chances of unexpected consequences are high, but I will give it a shot.
My main (really only) grain cooking expertise is boiling up some mush in the morning, which is my favorite breakfast, so it is OK.
Churchlady
@schrodinger’s cat: It’s NOT recent. My grandmother had celiac sprue but had no idea what it was until she was in her 80s. She lived in misery and got stomach cancer as a result of its not being treated. There may be an uptick of wheat intolerance since modern forms of wheat (NOT GMO but just varieties) have changed the nature of the grain so much, many people cannot eat it. Celiac is a genetic, inherited disease that has been around for millennia. Wheat intolerance though – pretty much tied to hybridization I suspect.
Churchlady
@WereBear: GMO wheat is not permitted yet in the food chain, but it may have spread so that we do get the impacts if not the intent. Simple hybridization alone has screwed it up for us.
Churchlady
@GHayduke (formerly lojasmo): My one foray into ancient forms of wheat was NOT successful. Spelt is also NOT an option though I can eat it once in a blue moon and not REALLY suffer. But wheat basically is wheat, period.
jl
@Churchlady: I prefer kamut wheat to others. Not sure if things like kamut and farro cause fewer problems. Do you know?
Re your last comment: I remember now I had a college roommate who had celiac disease too. He could tolerate spelt. I guess people go down their wheats to see if they can find one that is OK for them, before they go seriously gluten free.
Churchlady
@Jane2: It is hardly a fad for those of us who have either celiac or severe wheat intolerance. The book “Wheat Belly” is a useful guide for people who have been miserable and don’t know why. But yes, a lot of people think they have a problem, then discover they cannot tolerate a wheat free or gluten free diet and opt either to continue to be miserable or find they just need to cut back or did not actually have it at all. But those of us with real problems REALLY appreciate the GF labels since it just makes life easier. “Modified food starch” is….what? Often it’s potato starch or corn starch – but what if it’s wheat? For those with serious problems, this just helps a LOT. And it hurts others NOT AT ALL.
Churchlady
@schrodinger’s cat: The awareness of wheat or gluten intolerance is quite recent with better testing. Scientists now think 1-2 percent of the population has this problem. We have pressured manufacturers to include this in their labeling, and they did so. It’s important to us. It matters not at all to anyone else.
Mnemosyne (iPhone)
@Churchlady:
SOME people, yes. But not nearly as many as try to claim it.
The problem is that a lot of people with food allergies/intolerances decide that if a food is bad for them, personally, that automatically means it’s bad for everyone, everywhere, at all times. And then they start lecturing the rest of us about how corn is evil and is killing us all (except, I guess, the Native Americans?) when the problem is that they, themselves have a specific problem.
Maybe it’s more clear to me because I live in California, the land of food fads, and have seen many a fad come and go but, trust me, right now, gluten-free is a fad just like lactose-free was. The mania will fade and many of the people declaring that they’re TOTALLY gluten intolerant will latch onto the next Really Bad Food That’s Killing Us All. And, in the meantime, I will continue to be unable to digest milk.
Churchlady
@jl: I think kamut is NOT Ok for GF but might be for wheat intolerance. Farro I understand is fine. I’ve never tried either – will give it a shot, thanks!
Churchlady
@jl: Wow – never knew anyone with celiac who could eat spelt. I used to – but I can do it about once every two months. Miss it – it was SO GOOD compared to the other breads out there! But udi’s and Rudi’s and Canyon and a couple of others are pretty OK if you nuke ’em first before using. WOW baked goods are AMAZING – there is nothing about them that is not competitive with wheat based products. At Christmas they do mint brownies that I give to “real people” who have no clue they aren’t the real deal. They and Mariposa Bakery do excellent things. Of course you have to take out a second mortgage to pay for them…
Gretchen
@churchlady: I didn’t know about vinegar. Why is vinegar bad? I agree that it’s probably been around, undiagnosed, forever. My mother hated bread,flour in gravy, all the things that celiacs should avoid, and so do I. Just thought that was our tastes. Then the GI doc asked me, after seening my daughter’s endoscopy, I know she’s Italian (last name), but what’s the rest of her heritage. I said my side is Irish. He said OOOooohh! I asked what that meant, and he said it’s more common among people of Irish descent, because the traditional diet didn’t include much wheat – too cool and rainy to grow well there. We ate the traditional meat and potatoes, never thought of bread with dinner, and did fine. Then I married an Italian, and two of my kids got the Irish stomach and were raised on the Italian diet. Those two look like me. The two kids who look like their dad are also not celiac.
The two girls now live in NYC, which they are finding a wonderful place – all those gluten-free bakeries, restaurants, shops. One of them can’t come home for Thanksgiving, which will be rough. Even if she gets invited somewhere, the traditional Thanksgiving dinner is a gluten-fest. We’ve figure out gluten-free stuffing, pies, green bean casserole, etc., but she doesn’t know anyone there well enough that they’d make the effort for her that her dad does, and she’s not much of a cook herself.
Gretchen
@churchlady: I didn’t know about vinegar. Why is vinegar bad? I agree that it’s probably been around, undiagnosed, forever. My mother hated bread,flour in gravy, all the things that celiacs should avoid, and so do I. Just thought that was our tastes. Then the GI doc asked me, after seening my daughter’s endoscopy, I know she’s Italian (last name), but what’s the rest of her heritage. I said my side is Irish. He said OOOooohh! I asked what that meant, and he said it’s more common among people of Irish descent, because the traditional diet didn’t include much wheat – too cool and rainy to grow well there. We ate the traditional meat and potatoes, never thought of bread with dinner, and did fine. Then I married an Italian, and two of my kids got the Irish stomach and were raised on the Italian diet. Those two look like me. The two kids who look like their dad are also not celiac.
The two girls now live in NYC, which they are finding a wonderful place – all those gluten-free bakeries, restaurants, shops. One of them can’t come home for Thanksgiving, which will be rough. Even if she gets invited somewhere, the traditional Thanksgiving dinner is a gluten-fest. We’ve figure out gluten-free stuffing, pies, green bean casserole, etc., but she doesn’t know anyone there well enough that they’d make the effort for her that her dad does, and she’s not much of a cook herself.
jl
@Churchlady:
I think most people who have mild celiac disease or wheat intolerance go with spelt if they can tolerate some gluten. Someone was dissing spelt above (was it you?) but I think spelt is just fine. After awhile, with the roomie, I would remember to buy spelt pasta or a baking mix with spelt rather than wheat flour (though that cut down on the choices dramatically, lottsa spelt chocolate brownie mixes got baked and not much else). Seemed just as good was regular wheat to me.
Churchlady
@Mnemosyne (iPhone): I live in CA and will totally agree on the Food Nazis. But they’re just as bad about organic vs. affordable conventional, about “local” or any other damned thing. Those who need to control you are just needing to control you. Met a guy once who recoiled in horror because I, a Midwesterner, put ketchup, mustard, and relish on a hamburger. He was HORRIFIED. Well – I wasn’t making HIM eat it, now was I? They need help, not over the food but over their sense that they Rule the World. I hate farmers’ markets because I get a lecture with every purchase. Just give me my tomatoes and let me get outta here!
Churchlady
@Gretchen: Vinegar like beer (sorry Irish people) is too often distilled or brewed from wheat or other gluten bearing grains. Balsamic I gather is OK. It’s white and cider that they tell celiac folks to avoid. Sorry. I heard there’s a gluten free beer, but I suspect it’s like the breads – not really worth the bother! Your family history sounds familiar – Celts are the group most tending toward intolerance to celiac indeed. Good luck with it all!
Gretchen
sorry for the duplicate – deletion isn’t working for me.
Churchlady
@jl: Oh I don’t diss splet – LOVE IT – but can’t eat it, and my friends with celiac don’t either. Or rye, or oats, or barley. I say if you can tolerate it – it’s fine. Everyone’s body is different. So go for it. Just know I will have my nose pressed to the window watching and envying…
Gretchen
@churchlady: I hear you about the beer – I put off getting tested for fear of having to give up beer forever. I finally did it, and was negative on the antibody test, but you have to be eating a fair amount of wheat to be positive on that, which I don’t. I’ll get the HLA test eventually, and will be astonished if it’s negative. My family has always found me difficult to travel with, because I hate sandwiches (who hates sandwhiches?) so road-food is difficult. Now I have a good reason.
Mnemosyne (iPhone)
@Churchlady:
My coworker who is annoying me right now is pushing a book called “Against All Grains,” which is based on the premise that ALL grains of every kind are bad and we should all substitute nuts instead. Not sure what people with nut allergies are supposed to do but, again, they’re out of fashion right now, so nobody cares.
Gretchen
@Mnemosyne (iPhone): I do get your point about that. I know someone of Asian descent who is lactose intolerant, and she’ll tell you that adult humans weren’t meant to drink milk, and nobody should. I try to tell her that different populations evolved with different food sources, so they’re going to differ on the diets they do best on. Ancient Celts kept cattle and used a lot of dairy products, and little or no wheat, so their tolerances are going to differ. And then everybody moves around the world and starts eating each other’s cuisines, and we run into some difficulties.
normal liberal
@jl:
I don’t know about the papadums but I would guess – it seems that chickpea flour is used pretty routinely for all kinds of things. Who knew chickpeas had a purpose beyond hummus…I’m intrigued at the thought of bread (or, let’s be honest, pancakes) made with the flour.
Trust me to fixate on the recipes that requires lots of ghee and sugar.
scav
My aunt’s certainly gone all wheatbelly, but in her case it’s definitely just the latest magic foodstuff, because we’ve had them all. Power vegetables, vitamin D, mail order vitamins with micronutrients, pomegranates, tomato paste was big for a while, I forget what all else. There are worse hobbies, and I’m well pleased she goes with the foodstuffs and not the pharmaceuticals, except she’s often so worried at mealtimes about maximizing / juggling the benefits (meal conversations can tend toward the chemical and alchemic) and then stunned when all the promised benefits don’t materialize.
Bunt
I figure most people know that ciders such as Angry Orchard and Crispin are gluten free. But tonight at the new bar I work at, I discovered that alcoholic ginger beer is as well. We carry Crabbies, which is amazingly delicious, but all ginger beers seem to be as well. Try them with a lemon slice.
Yatsuno
@Bunt: Mmm…ginger beer.
Where the fuck you been BTW?
Hawes
This just means more gluten for the rest of us. I’ve started sprinkling gluten ON my gluten, because that means more gluten.
Where is your god now?
PopeRatzo
@Bunt: How could cider not be gluten-free? What the hell.
Wait. I don’t want to know.
Xantar
A scientific peer review of Wheat Belly.
Some people genuinely can’t eat gluten. But there is also a food fad going on, and Wheat Belly cites a lot of stuff that is methodologically unsound. One of his studies has a very tiny sample, yet he extrapolates the result to all humans.
organicfarmfood.org
So while most cheese aficionados will wrinkle there
noses at the mere mention of processed cheeses, we have now found some very sophisticated uses for them.
When the Spuds are ready take them from the pan and
drain them well, I usually dab them with kitchen paper at this
point, but maybe I’m just fussy. You can place the pre-packaged cheese in a strong freezer bag,
squeeze all the air out and plop directly into freezer.