Since wheat, dairy, eggs, oat, corn, sugar, and pork are out, breakfast is a whole new ballgame. I'd already started to shy away from pork sausage when my digestive issues suggested something was seriously wrong when I ate dairy or wheat.
I began to supplement eggs with hash browns or turkey bacon (Wellshire or Applegate brands). I finally cottoned to the fact that eggs were a problem (sulfur + gas = humiliating public appearances). Now that I know for sure eggs are out, I don't know that I'd whip up a breakfast of hash browns and bacon. Seems incomplete. Gotta check my hash brown brand now, too. So many things to check . . . .
Breakfast cereals
Cereal. No bones about it, I can't eat it anymore. As I mentioned in my bucket list, I continue to look for a brand that is safe, but so far, I've only found two that come close to meeting my restrictions: Enjoy Life Foods Perky's Crunchy Flax and Nature's Path Millet Puffs.
Crunchy Flax is fruit juice sweetened (raisin) and contains honey. I'm not allergic to honey, but my naturopath asked me to avoid this b/c it is considered an inflammatory. I can't say I'm adhering to this precisely, but I'm trying. The anti-inflammatory list further restricts my limited food choices to barely there. I'm picking and choosing what to avoid on that list for now. Allergies trump anti-inflammatories. Sorry, a girl's gotta eat . . . .
The ingredient that worries me more is salt. I can't have regular table salt b/c many brands contain dextrose (corn) and the innocuously-named, anti-caking agent known as yellow prussiate of soda, aka sodium ferrocyanide. I don't know about you, but anything that binds with cyanide doesn't sound like something I should ingest. I'm buying Mediterranean sea salt now. No dextrose. No prussiate. The Crunchy Flax, unfortunately, does not say sea salt. So . . . I think that is off my list for now.
Millet Puffs are . . . okay. Nothing to write home about. They are manufactured in a plant that also processes wheat, but I haven't found this to be a problem. They'll do in a pinch. I'll hunt for more as time allows.
Hot cereals - replacing oatmeal
I miss oatmeal. My favorite breakfast was oatmeal with brown sugar and
home-grown organic blueberries in the morning. I've learned to swap out
Quinoa flakes for oatmeal, and coconut sugar for brown sugar, but
it's not quite the same. I find quinoa a little too earthy. Like dirt earthy. I'm learning to like it. Did I mention I miss oatmeal?
Another option I found recently at Whole Foods is Arrowhead Mills Organic Rice and Shine Hot Cereal. A fancy name for brown rice grits. I don't follow the microwave instructions on the box. I tried - once - and got a soupy porridge of undercooked grits. You're suppose to let it sit to thicken, but I'd be a grandmother before this happened. I kept microwaving it until I got the texture I was looking for. Infinitely more palatable. Feels like I'm making oatmeal - 1/4 C grits, 1 C unsweetened coconut milk, dash of sea salt. Microwave on high for three minutes, add two handfuls frozen blues, a handful of dry-roasted walnuts, 1 tablespoon coconut sugar and zap another thirty seconds. Yum. Hey, my first recipe! This, I can eat.
A couple of other options I found are buckwheat groats and hulled millet. I've already made the millet like you would a side dish - boil in water and let simmer for 20-30 minutes. The taste was good - mild, almost grain-like - but it didn't have the right mouth feel for breakfast. I will try again, this time using DF milk and the microwave, see if I can get it creamy.
Smoothies
This is one of my favorite alternatives. Quick, easy, satisfying. Delicious. I get protein from nut milks as well as a protein powder (Nutribiotic Rice Protein Powder - vanilla flavored) that the wonderful Gluten-free Goddess recommended on her site. My favorite so far has been a pumpkin pie smoothie. I've tried various recipes but haven't found that perfect combo yet. When I do, I'll post.
Granola
Try finding store-bought granola without oats. Or sugar. Or corn (as in starch, dextrose, dextrin or hidden in salt). Ain't happening. However, a lot of vegan websites, especially gluten-free or raw vegans, post recipes for granola. Raw foodies make something called "buckwheaties" which is a dehydrated form of buckwheat groats used as a replacement for oats in granola recipes. As my dehydrator should be here any day now, I look forward to trying this.
Pancakes/waffles
We weren't big pancake or waffle people, so I can't say I miss them. Not nearly as much as eggs. Guess I
need to rethink pancakes. Lots of GFDFEFSYCF recipes out there for
pancakes. And I suppose french toast is totally out. Until I find a sandwich bread recipe sans yeast. And an egg replacer. I used to make a faux french toast for my son using nutritional yeast, coconut milk, cinnamon, sugar, and vanilla extract. Doesn't sound like much but when you can hardly eat anything, it's ambrosia.
That's as creative as I've gotten to date. This is only one of the many food groups to explore and remake in a new, allergy free existence . . . .
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Friday, October 19, 2012
Substitutions - Gluten free flours
Substitutions are a staple in practically food free baking and cooking. Since I have been scouring the internet for weeks and bookmarking like crazy, I now have a monstrous barrage of links that point to so many topics, it makes my eyes cross. Head slap. Must organize this mess into a manageable format, by topic, in one place. Another reason to blog. As if a writer needs a reason to write.
There's an abundance of suggestions for substitutions, some I remember from the old days (ten years ago) of gluten, dairy, and egg-free baking. Many are new, however, and novel ideas. I'm pretty pumped to try them out.
This is just the tip of the iceberg, I'm sure, but it's a start.
About.com provides the basics regarding the role of gluten in baking as well as tips on how to bake with GF flours. It's geared toward Celiac's disease, but most resources tailored for those afflicted with Celiac's are currency for GF bakers.
TACA (Talk About Curing Autism) has many wonderful resources for starting the diet, including their GFCF Articles page, which points to even more fabulous links on everything from food allergy testing, how to read labels, and a flour substitution page. This, in turn, points to a ton of other baking subs as well as a variety of flour blends. Since many people who access this site also are soy-free, a lot of these links are very helpful. You won't get bored here.
One of my favorite blogs is the aptly titled Gluten-Free Goddess. Karina Allrich is truly that, a goddess, for creating a blog that is a must-see for allergy sufferers desperate for information and baking tips. Her link describing GF flours also provides one of her GF flour blends, a self-rising blend recipe, and a word of advice when using brown rice flour. Her GF cheat sheet gives a quick and dirty explanation of what flours are - and are not - GF, including a comprehensive list of GF flours and starches. She also has a page explaining how to begin your GF life, which isn't as hard as you think. Her wonderful baking tips are here. You can spend all day perusing this site, it is filled with that much information. Her substitution page includes subs for all items: flour, starch, eggs, dairy, sugar, yeast, peanuts. Check it out.
Cybele Pascal is an experienced cook and award-winning author with a terrific ingredient smarts page. It is all inclusive, but a great resource for all kinds of substitutions. Page down to get to the GF flours and flour blend.
Gluten free Mommy has a GF Grains 101 page that talks about subbing GF flours and points out these substitutions vary depending upon the baked product. She also gives a run-down on her favorite GF flours.
The Daily Dietribe - love the title of this blog - has a handy page describing textures and tastes of the various GF flours.
Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free has an all-inclusive substitution page as well as an extensive recipe index.
Gluten-Free By the Bay has several different flour blends at the bottom of this link page. Page down to find them.
She Let Them Eat Cake is a wonderful site filled with delectable GF recipes. She doesn't have a specific page set aside for subs, but just pointing to this site is help enough for people with a sweet tooth. :) Her own personal flour blend is here.
Ginger Lemon Girl has a nice GF Baking 101 page on her website. Plus a bunch of recipes.
Ricki Heller's Diet, Dessert, and Dogs is a neat little spot that contains sugar-free, vegan, and GF recipes. Her substitution page is small - eggs, binders, milk, and oil - but helpful. She wasn't specifically GF when she started, but her page contains a link to her GF blend.
Six Food Intolerance Living has a great explanation of the role of gluten in baking and how GF flour blends can be substituted for wheat flour in recipes. Her site points to a link for GF blends on the Celiac Sprue Association website.
Chef Jamie Oliver has a page on all types of flours, but gives some details on GF flours; how to combine them and how to make some (specifically nut flours).
Living Without is a magazine for people with allergies and food sensitivities. Their substitution page includes subs for multiple allergies, including some GF flour blends.
Gluten Free Cooking School has a link page to a couple of GF flour blends. They contain soy and corn, but also provide substitutions for both.
Just found this neat little gem called The Dusty Baker. Her page on gluten free flours has some unique flours I've never heard of plus a couple of gluten free flour blends. Not to mention some neat recipes.
There's an abundance of suggestions for substitutions, some I remember from the old days (ten years ago) of gluten, dairy, and egg-free baking. Many are new, however, and novel ideas. I'm pretty pumped to try them out.
This is just the tip of the iceberg, I'm sure, but it's a start.
Gluten Free Flours
Here's the skinny on gluten-free (GF) flours: they work best in creative combinations as a replacement for wheat. I'm hardly an expert yet, but here are a heap of posts that I've found very helpful in my quest to become a better baker.
About.com provides the basics regarding the role of gluten in baking as well as tips on how to bake with GF flours. It's geared toward Celiac's disease, but most resources tailored for those afflicted with Celiac's are currency for GF bakers.
TACA (Talk About Curing Autism) has many wonderful resources for starting the diet, including their GFCF Articles page, which points to even more fabulous links on everything from food allergy testing, how to read labels, and a flour substitution page. This, in turn, points to a ton of other baking subs as well as a variety of flour blends. Since many people who access this site also are soy-free, a lot of these links are very helpful. You won't get bored here.
One of my favorite blogs is the aptly titled Gluten-Free Goddess. Karina Allrich is truly that, a goddess, for creating a blog that is a must-see for allergy sufferers desperate for information and baking tips. Her link describing GF flours also provides one of her GF flour blends, a self-rising blend recipe, and a word of advice when using brown rice flour. Her GF cheat sheet gives a quick and dirty explanation of what flours are - and are not - GF, including a comprehensive list of GF flours and starches. She also has a page explaining how to begin your GF life, which isn't as hard as you think. Her wonderful baking tips are here. You can spend all day perusing this site, it is filled with that much information. Her substitution page includes subs for all items: flour, starch, eggs, dairy, sugar, yeast, peanuts. Check it out.
Cybele Pascal is an experienced cook and award-winning author with a terrific ingredient smarts page. It is all inclusive, but a great resource for all kinds of substitutions. Page down to get to the GF flours and flour blend.
Gluten free Mommy has a GF Grains 101 page that talks about subbing GF flours and points out these substitutions vary depending upon the baked product. She also gives a run-down on her favorite GF flours.
The Daily Dietribe - love the title of this blog - has a handy page describing textures and tastes of the various GF flours.
Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free has an all-inclusive substitution page as well as an extensive recipe index.
Gluten-Free By the Bay has several different flour blends at the bottom of this link page. Page down to find them.
She Let Them Eat Cake is a wonderful site filled with delectable GF recipes. She doesn't have a specific page set aside for subs, but just pointing to this site is help enough for people with a sweet tooth. :) Her own personal flour blend is here.
Ginger Lemon Girl has a nice GF Baking 101 page on her website. Plus a bunch of recipes.
Ricki Heller's Diet, Dessert, and Dogs is a neat little spot that contains sugar-free, vegan, and GF recipes. Her substitution page is small - eggs, binders, milk, and oil - but helpful. She wasn't specifically GF when she started, but her page contains a link to her GF blend.
Six Food Intolerance Living has a great explanation of the role of gluten in baking and how GF flour blends can be substituted for wheat flour in recipes. Her site points to a link for GF blends on the Celiac Sprue Association website.
Chef Jamie Oliver has a page on all types of flours, but gives some details on GF flours; how to combine them and how to make some (specifically nut flours).
Living Without is a magazine for people with allergies and food sensitivities. Their substitution page includes subs for multiple allergies, including some GF flour blends.
Gluten Free Cooking School has a link page to a couple of GF flour blends. They contain soy and corn, but also provide substitutions for both.
Just found this neat little gem called The Dusty Baker. Her page on gluten free flours has some unique flours I've never heard of plus a couple of gluten free flour blends. Not to mention some neat recipes.
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Our new allergy free life
Good news and bad news.
My husband and I recently got diagnosed with a laundry list of food allergies. We arrived at these challenging prognoses while dealing with sudden, persistent disparate medical issues.
I chalked mine up to peri-menopause and the delightful symptoms this phase of life deals a woman. Wrong! That's the good news. And the bad news.
Our blood draws revealed similar, though not identical, food allergies reeking havoc on our immune systems. Similar enough that much of what I'm learning to cook we can both eat. The bad news is I'm learning how to cook. Again. After twenty plus years of marriage and a child diagnosed with a score of food allergies early on, you'd think I had this pretty well in hand.
Not so. I choose to prepare two separate meals much of my son's life. Not such a good idea. Had my husband and I made the adjustment to much of my son's allergies, rotating foods as I did for him, we might not be dealing with such an epic list of food problems.
They include the fab four: gluten, dairy, corn, and eggs. Deviations which make life even interesting: I can do soy but my husband and son can't. My husband can do oats but my son and I can't. My son and I can't do sesame, but my husband can. I can't do yeast. Or cane sugar.
Sugar! I had no idea how many foods contained sugar. I thought living without eggs and dairy were hard. Sugar is a killer. I've been chowing down on dried fruits thinking I was the healthiest creature on earth. They riddled with cane sugar! Sob. I started reading labels. Condiments, salad dressings, tomato sauce, tomato paste. I can understand processed foods and sauces, but tomato paste? Ugh.
Here is a little good news, though: there is so much more information available online then when I first tackled food allergy issues almost ten years ago. The websites and blogs and recipes are endless and wonderful. I owe a small portion of my sanity to several blogs I have already discovered, of the knowledge these ladies have, and the recipes they so generously share.
This blog is as much a homage to these ladies as a log of all the wonderful recipes I will try, track, and recommend. There are more resources than blogs and websites, but I'm pretty lazy and find it easiest to hop on my computer for a quick fix. That will probably change, but as long as these ladies are out there posting, I will be out there surfing.
Welcome to allergyland.
My husband and I recently got diagnosed with a laundry list of food allergies. We arrived at these challenging prognoses while dealing with sudden, persistent disparate medical issues.
I chalked mine up to peri-menopause and the delightful symptoms this phase of life deals a woman. Wrong! That's the good news. And the bad news.
Our blood draws revealed similar, though not identical, food allergies reeking havoc on our immune systems. Similar enough that much of what I'm learning to cook we can both eat. The bad news is I'm learning how to cook. Again. After twenty plus years of marriage and a child diagnosed with a score of food allergies early on, you'd think I had this pretty well in hand.
Not so. I choose to prepare two separate meals much of my son's life. Not such a good idea. Had my husband and I made the adjustment to much of my son's allergies, rotating foods as I did for him, we might not be dealing with such an epic list of food problems.
They include the fab four: gluten, dairy, corn, and eggs. Deviations which make life even interesting: I can do soy but my husband and son can't. My husband can do oats but my son and I can't. My son and I can't do sesame, but my husband can. I can't do yeast. Or cane sugar.
Sugar! I had no idea how many foods contained sugar. I thought living without eggs and dairy were hard. Sugar is a killer. I've been chowing down on dried fruits thinking I was the healthiest creature on earth. They riddled with cane sugar! Sob. I started reading labels. Condiments, salad dressings, tomato sauce, tomato paste. I can understand processed foods and sauces, but tomato paste? Ugh.
Here is a little good news, though: there is so much more information available online then when I first tackled food allergy issues almost ten years ago. The websites and blogs and recipes are endless and wonderful. I owe a small portion of my sanity to several blogs I have already discovered, of the knowledge these ladies have, and the recipes they so generously share.
This blog is as much a homage to these ladies as a log of all the wonderful recipes I will try, track, and recommend. There are more resources than blogs and websites, but I'm pretty lazy and find it easiest to hop on my computer for a quick fix. That will probably change, but as long as these ladies are out there posting, I will be out there surfing.
Welcome to allergyland.
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