gluten free

[cerigirl]

Anyone here on a gluten free diet? Damien is lactose intolerant and we are finally getting used to not using as much dairy when we cook. I have been doing lots of research about gluten and its possible connection to fibromialgia for my mom. During this reasearch I have come across some interesting info and am considering try to eliminate it from our diets. I am just wondering how any of you have dealt with a gf diet.

 

[bunnychild]

I am on a gluten free/ vegan diet and I really love it. At first it is hard to stick to but once you find recipes you love, it gets much easier.

 

[kmaben]

Hubby has celiacs as well as a few other members on here. There should be some old threads running a muck if you use the searchy thing. Few good recipes as well. The initial phase of quiting gluten is the toughest. After a while it just becomes second nature buying stuff at the store. I always keep a cheat sheet in my wallet just in case!

 

[KittyKatMe]

I'm a vegan but could never be GF... I could never give up bread (well, good bread anyway).

 

[HolyHandGrenade]

I've been gluten free since I figured out I have celiac over 5 years ago. I eat mostly whole foods, not many gfree breads and stuff because they're expensive and I've kinda "outgrown" feeling the need for bread. It's a nice treat now and then when I eat at my favorite gluten free cafe I make "sandwiches" with a pan-warmed corn tortilla with cheese melted on it, deli meat and a pile of spinach, then I roll and eat. It's my favorite quick thing to make at home. For the last 2 holiday seasons, I have held a "Friendsgiving" the saturday after Thanksgiving week is over and make an entirely gfree feast to share with friends. Everyone is always so impressed (especially about the desserts) that I've made EVERYTHING and it's gluten free. I get the treat of being able to eat whatever's on the table without picking and choosing or worrying who's been dipping a crumby bread knife into the butter tub.

 

[kmaben]

ick. Cross contamination. It's the worst. We have a lot of two of everything. This is my peanut butter and this is your peanut butter. I still eat bread.

When the whole thing started my best friend was Gluten Free for dummies. I ordered a gluten free cookbook and joined Celiacs.com Allrecipies.com also has some gluten free recipes as well.

But gluten free for dummies really broke down celiacs and how to shop, certain things to look out for like caramel coloring. Has gluten in it so you have to read ingredients carefully.

 

[cerigirl]

Kmaben, I'll have to look for Gluten Free for Dummies. It's something that I think I want to try. We are huge bread/pasta eaters so I know that it will be hard. I have found a few gf spaghetti pastas that are ok but will have to look for others. I love to make bread so I know that if I can find a gf bread recipie that I like I know that I can make buns from it as well as bread.
After you went gf did any of you notice any attitude/ behavorial changes?

 

[HolyHandGrenade]

Tinkyada is my favorite brand of pasta. It's made from brown rice and comes in several shapes, and doesn't get soggy like some other kinds I've bought. I always recommend it for people who are new to gluten free eating, and no one has ever complained

 

[degrassi]

Quinoa pasta is a good GF substitute. I"m a BIG pasta eater and I didn't like any of the rice pastas but the quinoa pasta I could barely tell the difference.

Pretty much at the start you need to really learn about ingredients and what contains gluten(like caramel coloring,soy sauce etc). Most packaged foods contain some type of gluten in the ingredients. Once you find your favorite "safe" products it makes things easier with shopping etc. Also check to see if your city has a GF store. We have some in my city and then you know everything there is safe.

Once your past the craving bread stage being GF isn't too hard. It was when I tried dairy free(lactose and casein) was when it was the hardest. I couldn't even have soy cheese because it had casein in it and vegan cheese isn't really good. I LOVE cheese!

Good luck

 

[KittyKatMe]

Lol becoming vegan was sooo easy for me because I hate milk and cheese! I like yogurt and ice cream though, so that was hard. I loooove pasta though.

 

[kmaben]

Really the only behaviour changes is my husbands insomnia went away like the first week were GF. For me I had a lot more energy like after a good workout kind of energy. Not to mention our GI tracts went to super awesomely normal.

 

[bunnychild]

I get a lot of my recipes from pinterest which has lots of recipes.

 

[TinksMama]

I have Celiac Disease and a Lactose Intolerance, so I follow a Gluten Free and Lactose Free Diet. I also stay away from packaged/processed foods, Corn, and Soy, so my diet is quite interesting. For the most part I eat meat, eggs, veggies, fruit, brown rice and dairy products made out of whole milk and/or cream. If I eat baked goods I usually make them myself, because I can rarely find ones that I can eat.

Eating out is probably the hardest thing, when I do I ask to see the restaurant's allergen guide, if they don't have one I usually leave and go somewhere else. If I really want to eat at the restaurant I have them check the labels and ingredients of everything that's in the dish I order, you wouldn't believe the things that contain gluten or lactose. Sometimes trying to eat out just gets ridiculous and extremely frustrating!

I get a lot of my recipes from pinterest or food blogs, I also like to convert normal recipes to GF/LF recipes. I bake A LOT, so at first I freaked out, but baking is now sooo easy and everything I make turns out AMAZING!!

 

[Jayme]

I made a GF apple pie for my sister and boyfriend's family, who are all GF, and I think it tasted better than gluten full apple pie! I'm pretty sure this is the one I used, it even tells you how to make the crust http://www.food.com/recipe/awesome-gluten-free-apple-pie-with-crumble-topping-105376

 

[Chrisdoc]

I´ll be doing gf from tomorrow as my sister is visiting and she´s coeliac. I´ve bought in pasta, breadcrumbs, bread, beer, crackers and biscuits for her..she always brings somethings with her. I´ve also found an good chocolate cake récipe for her which I´m going to do as it´s my friend´s birthday so we can all have cake.

I don´t usually stick to it when she´s not here but really enjoy the challenge when she is and I´m so used to now looking on labels to make sure stuff is OK. We do have gf soy sauce as we both like it.