Category Archives: Gluten Free

GF/DF Quinoa Tabouleh

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I love(d) tabouleh. I didn’t find out I had celiac until I was 26 so I was used to eating it. I literally grew up on it. So, when I had the opportunity to recreate it gluten free, I jumped at it. This is a fresh, healthy, natural salad that can serve as a meal too.

The quinoa to “all other ingredients” ratio is really personal taste. If you find there is too much, cut back. If you like more of the protein so it can stand alone as a meal, add more.

2C Quinoa (cooked, cool rinsed and drained)
2 scallions chopped
2 cucumbers peeled and chopped (could also be de-seeded, if you choose)
2C Chopped fresh mushrooms
16oz can sliced black olives
1 pint grape tomatoes halved
1/2bunch parsley (chopped)
1/4C mint leaves (chopped)
1C lemon juice
1/3C oil (olive, avocado, flavored) I like blood orange flavor from the Olive Branch
1/2C lime juice
Salt/pepper to taste

GF/DF Morning Carb Delight

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Carbs can be so comforting. Not to mention casseroles. Finding a breakfast casserole for allergies can be challenging however, this one involves one of my favorite comfort foods, tater tots. Try it out and see what you think.

Spray casserole dish with non-stick cooking spray (I use trader joe’s coconut oil)
Dump one bag of tater tots (20oz or larger) into the dish
One package pre-cooked chopped ham pieces (I use Kirkland precooked ham steak)
Add one cup shredded Daiya cheese (or regular if you aren’t dairy free)
Add 10 eggs (works best if you crack them in a bowl and whip first but not required)
Add 1/2 cup egg whites (I use them from a container to avoid waste)
Add 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (or your favorite milk)
salt, pepper, onion powder and Wild Tree Rancher steak rub to taste (maybe 1/2t each)

Let set over night covered.
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes and let cool.

Looks great with a fresh sprinkle of cheese on top, hot out of the oven.
And our family likes a little Cholula sauce on top.

Gluten Free Easy Apple Bake

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Easy. Fast. Food. But not fast food. Home made. This is my favorite combo. Check out this one for a treat that your kids will love.

3 apples cored and sliced
(I like pampered chef’s peeler/corer/slicer)
1 packet gf instant brown sugar oatmeal
(there are several great ones, we used Bakery on Main)
1/4 stick earth balance (non dairy) butter cut in slices

Add all ingredients to an oven safe dish and bake for 30 minutes at 350.
Makes enough for 2.

Easy Chicken Salad (GF/DF)

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Either in a bowl or on some gluten free bread, this is a satisfying meal. Kids even like it!

1 Rotisserie Chicken cut-up and deboned (or 4 cooked chicken breasts)
1C Pecans chopped
2 Celery Stalks chopped
2C grapes halved
1/2C “Just Mayo” brand mayonnaise
1/4C dill
1t garlic

Mix and let set to chill.

Cinni-Fun Buns (Gluten/Dairy Free)

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This morning I decided to make a quick breakfast treat for the kids. I don’t have much time in the morning for extras so I put my coffee on to brew and grabbed a box of Chebe Mix.

Chebe’s Cinnamon Roll Mix claims to yield 12-15 rolls but I get about 9-10 from a box.
Like with most mixes, I use their recipe as a guideline. The one below is my twist for keeping it dairy and egg yolk free as well.

Preheat the oven to 375
Grab a bowl for mix ingredients and grease a cookie sheet for rolling.

MIX:
1box Chebe mix
2t baking powder
3tbsp oil
2 egg whites
1/4 c applesauce
2 T almond milk

Knead dough with hands until all dry ingredients are mixed and place it on the cookie sheet. Roll out flat.

MIX:
1/4C coconut sugar
1/4C sugar in the raw
1/4C coconut flakes
Handfull of pecans
1T Cinnamon
1T melted Earth Balance (dairy free) butter

Take above mix and press it evenly into the rolled out dough and roll from the widest edge. Cut about 1.5″ apart and place on cookie sheet. Cook for 15 minutes and watch closely. If they overcook, the outside edge will get very hard. Pull out of the oven immediately.

If you choose, sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Granny’s Gluten Free Tater Soup

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An old favorite can always be made anew and allergy friendly.

It’s a new day. We can take our favorites from childhood and amend to make them safe. Gluten free. Dairy free. Egg free. Peanut free. Rice free. Wheat free. Pineapple free. Those are just ours. Yours might be slightly different but it’s all doable!

I love easy. My recipes don’t usually include a bunch of prep. I like to get going and eat… so, let’s get going!

2 cups pre-cooked cooked ham cubed
1 package button mushrooms
5 large potatoes peeled and cubed (if you prefer skin on, go for it)
1 large onion cubed
1 stick earth balance butter (dairy free)
1 box gluten free chicken broth
2 cups unsweetened unflavored almond milk (or your choice: almond, soy, coconut, etc.)
2T Wildtree rancher steak rub seasoning (or your preferred mix)

Dump it all in the crock pot in the morning on low, enjoy in the evening.
Hearty. Warm. Reminds me of snuggle time at granny’s.

Halloween Fun Mix

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Here we are faced with the night that parents of kids with food allergies loathe, Halloween.

I can’t tell you how many times I have asked my kids if they ate anything without asking me first. Ugh. Not that I’m a huge fan of the extra jolt they get from sugar but I tend to lie awake waiting for one of them to get sick from eating gluten because they just opened it up and popped it in their mouth.

While we tend to fare pretty well with Skittles, smarties, mike and ike’s and similar, we get into pretty deep waters when avoiding chocolate (dairy allergy) and peanuts. Lordy.

Here’s a treat you can make at home, pretty easy. Throw it all in a ziplock and mix “softly” then bake at 250 for an hour. The kids will thank you.

6 cups corn Chex
1.5 cups Gluten free pretzels
6oz roasted almonds (or slices)
6oz roasted cashews (or slices)
6T earth balance butter
2T Gluten free Worcester sauce
1.5T Season Salt
1t onion powder
2t brown sugar (or more to your taste)

For Halloween you might even mix in some candy corn!

Cruising with food allergies

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To travel or not to travel?
This is a common question.

Newly diagnosed people may be fearful of trying it out. I would encourage you to be prepared, take snacks and go. Celiacs and those with varying food allergies should experience life, see the world and travel too. My motto is always “celiacs need sunshine” and that doesn’t often happen in the midwest in January.

There are plenty of travel friendly foods that you can pack your suitcase with, just in case. Of course, the fall back is always salad. No, it may not be ideal but it will be sustenance. I can reference plenty of travels I have had that have pleasantly surprised me with not just good but great eats and I have had those that were emotionally and tastefully upsetting. But traveling is worth the chance and in the end you will not starve.

From the overly abundant oceanside of Seattle with fresh and tasteful options for those with allergies to the hills of Tennessee where everything is breaded and fried, I still managed to eat.

You do have to be cautious, be prepared and use cool apps like “Find me GF” as a source of reference (please note, all restaurants listed are not necessarily gluten free). But with proper planning and a whole lot of communication, you will get to experience something new and feel even more accomplished because of the allergies.

Recently, I took my twelfth cruise. I have had varying experiences on ships as this travel seems to be among the most challenging, due to the confinement and lack of resources outside the norm. I must say Norwegian was not my favorite. They were equipped with gluten free options but frankly, unwilling to get creative. On my first day I located a Sous chef that was willing to make fresh and tasty waffles for the whole family. Sadly, thereafter he was told not to make special arrangements for us and sent us to the dining room. There they were unwilling to make anything from scratch.

Alas, I saw more of the world but I ate eggs and bacon every day. Dinners were better as we took the specialty dining option and paid up to try specialty restaurants where they took good care of me but general dining, as well as room service was a disappointment. For the record, my trips on NCL, Regent, and Holland America fared better in the dining department. Six food allergies is a lot to plan and prepare for. But with the creative culinary expertise they have on ships, it seems they would have been far more accommodating.

Regardless of the degree of culinary satisfaction, I encourage everyone to travel. Occasionally you will be overwhelmed with the warm, understanding expertise of a chef that considers it an honor to prepare something with a challenge and you will be delighted you stepped out of that comfort zone and tried something new.

 

Our path, healing.

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Every person, will have a unique story. It’s a part of who we are.

When I was pregnant with my first child, I was terrified. I was excited. I was elated. I anticipated the arrival of one of the most amazing miracles ever. And I was terrified. I kept asking myself how that child going to get out. Not that I didn’t know. I mean, the mechanics of it were obvious but… how would it happen?

Being it that position early on, the last thing you want to hear is that “women have been doing it for thousands of years” and it all works out. What I didn’t know at the time is a detail that I carry with me every day now. A detail that has applied to so many things in life. Simply put, God’s timing is right. It’s good. And it’s intentional.

You see, by the time that I was ready to give birth I was uncomfortable. I was tired of having another human taking up space in my stomach, on my bladder and between my ribs. I was ready. However it was going to happen, it just needed to. I didn’t have the worry because I was focused on where I was at in the process.

It’s a process. Regardless of what “it” is. When I was newly pregnant, not nauseous and housing a peanut size child in my tummy, I was focused on the end of the process. All of which would be completely irrelevant to my situation ten months later.

Most of our situations in life are this way. Thinking back to when I started my gut healing process, like most people, I wanted to be well. I wanted to feel better. I wanted to eat what I was used to eating. But I couldn’t have it all. Jumping forward ten months I was in a brand new situation. First (an most important) I felt better. Whew! Who cares what food I have to give up if I can feel better.

With renewed energy levels, my head clear of the mushy cloud that had engulfed my previous thoughts, I was renewed. Just like when I held that brand new baby in my arms, it was a new chapter I couldn’t previously see. God creates a plan, a process and it is good. We may not understand how we will get from here to there but he does.

Nothin to it, but to do it.

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It sucks. And it’s hard. Quite possibly the hardest thing you have ever done.

Making the choice to eat gluten free for your health is a big change. There’s no doubt that sometimes people opt for stomach pain and vomiting in order to eat the coveted donut. But at some point, you must realize that the pain inflicted upon your body is voluntary. That’s right, you might as well be poking yourself in the eye with a stick. You are doing it to yourself. Stop it already.

I have countless conversations with people who laugh sheepishly and sigh. Only to say, “my doctor told me I should be gluten free”. Just this week I had a conversation with a friend who was in a ton of pain. Joint swelling. Can’t sleep. Miserable pain. Indeed, her doctor told her to go gluten free.

It’s time. Start small and don’t use the many options for gluten free products on the market. Go old school. Start clean. Eat fruit, veggies and lean meats. Your body needs to recoup and cleanse from years of processed food. This will also give you time to read up on the thousands of names for gluten and all the places it’s hidden.

Even if you can’t see the results immediately, try it. Stick with it for at least three months (without cheating). This isn’t the latest weight craze, cheating will only recontaminate your body and impede the healing process. I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV. However, I do have a smidgen of common sense and I can tell you from personal experience that getting gluten in your body can take up to a week to work itself out.

It’s not for everyone, and I would not suggest everyone go gluten free. It can do more harm than good if you aren’t allergic, intolerant or suffering from Celiac. But if your doctor has told you to try it and you choose to suffer instead, you have one person to blame.

There are amazing resources online, in books and by connecting with people (either online or in your community via support groups) who have Celiac and can lead you through the process. My favorite starter book is the G-Free diet by Elizabeth Hasselbeck. You have a community of people here to support you, we eat like this every day. It is possible and you can do it!