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You may have read all about gluten
intolerances, and are now ready to go GF (gluten free). It all
seems a bit overwhelming and you don't know where to start.
A good place to start is to join the GFCFNN
Yahoo group for Gluten and Casein free recipes with a native nutrition
(whole food) slant. This
is a very supportive group for anyone suffering from gluten, casein
or other food allergies. You'll find a sympathetic ear, practical
advice and ways to help your healing. (There are lots of other GF
websites and information around, but most of the them are still
relying on refined flours, just not GF ones, and may contain other
undesirables, like sugar and vegetable oils.)
If you've been medically diagnosed as a coeliac, there will be
a Coeliac (or Celiac) Society for your country that you can join.
In some countries, this may entitle you to financial rebates on
GF food. Even if you haven't been diagnosed and can't join, they
mostly have useful websites, with loads of helpful information,
such as food manufacturers databases. Here are some of the societies
- this is not a comprehensive list and there may be more, including
some local areas:
Get your mind around what contains gluten and what is safe to eat.
There is a list of common sources of gluten
at the bottom of this page. It has been estimated that as few as
30% of diagnosed celiacs are 100% gluten free, as gluten is hidden
in so many places. They often feel that they are being so compliant,
but are still having health problems.
Start learning
new ways to cook. To start off with, it may be easier to just substitute
GF bread for bread, etc. But then you may find you actually are
fine without bread (or pasta, or pizza, or cake) at all. To get
you going, GFCFNN
has lots of tips. There is a list of some good
flours to use, further down the page. And there are lots of
gluten free recipes in my cooking course.
Here are some sample recipes:
Search out some
easy to buy GF foods, so that you always have some thing to fall
back on. If your previous diet was high in wheat products like pasta,
bread and pizza, you may want to keep a packet of GF pasta in the
cupboard, and some sliced bread and a pizza base in the freezer
so you can always make a quick GF meal. A lot of the GF foods available
may not be whole foods,
but better to be able to buy a GF cake for your child to take to
a party, then have him eat wheat when he gets there. Or to be able
to treat the family to pizza on a special occasion, when you might
not have time to prepare a base from scratch.
~
For those in NZ, check out the Aug
05 newsletter for some brands. ~
Decide whether
you want to go cold turkey straight away, or whether you want to
gradually replace wheat products with GF ones. You need to be aware
that you may suffer withdrawal symptoms, and it can feel pretty
bad. These can range from fairly mild to severe - flu like feelings,
headaches, etc. This should pass within 3-6 days and you should
start feeling better. If you gradually wean yourself off the suspected
foods, to let your body adapt, the withdrawal symptoms will be less
severe, but will go on for longer.
At some point,
you will probably want to ban gluten from the house completely.
There are several reasons for this:
- For some
gluten intolerant people, even miniscule amounts can cause a reaction.
So even having it in the house for others can cause contamination.
- If one member
of the household has a reaction to gluten, chances are it will
be harmful for others, even if not diagnosed.
- It's easier
to prepare the same meals for everybody, than to have one person
on a special diet.
- If the whole
family eats the same, the "allergic" person doesn't
have to feel like a freak, or deprived and left out.
Now clean out your kitchen. Throw away all foods that contain gluten.
Throw away any foods in open containers, or that may have been contaminated
with flour in the air. Buy a new toaster, and clean everything else
that may have come into contact with gluten in any form.
You'll need to get into the habit of reading labels and cross questioning
the waiting staff at any restaurants you go to. This will probably
be a bit uncomfortable at first, but become more second nature after
a while.
Another vital habit will be carrying food with you. In time you
may be able to build up a network of places you can safely eat,
while at work or out and about. But it's not easy, and sometimes
it's a matter of take your own food or go hungry! I've started compiling
a page with bakeries, cafes, restaurants and accomodation in NZ
that offer GF alternatives. But since I can't travel the whole country
searching them out, and the page is still quite small, please email
me if you find somewhere good in your area. There are also other
similar lists around.
In NZ, Gluten Free Goodies are a company who supply GF baking mixes
and recipes. They have a great
links page with a lot of useful information.
GF
flours
Gluten
holds moisture and binds food, so when you remove this, things start
to unravel. This is why it is so important to include a binder so
the end result will be successful. It seems to be best to use 2
or more gluten free flours together when substituting them from
wheat flour. A mixture of GF flours gives a better texture and flavour
than just one on its own. When baking it is good to have 2 grainy
or crumbly flours and a binding one. But there are some recipes
that will work well successfully with only one flour.
| Choose
2 of the crumbly or grainy flours: |
Add
a binding flour: |
And/or
use 1-2 of these binders: |
Add
1-2 of these for flavour & texture & lower carbs (opt): |
- Amaranth
- Coconut
- Corn
- Rice
- Millet
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- Buckwheat
- Arrowroot
- Tapioca
flour
- Potato
starch
- Potato
flour
- Pea
or pulse flours
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- Egg
- Pectin
- Guar
gum
- Xantham
gum
- Flaxseed
"gel"
- Sago
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- Ground
sesame seeds
- Ground
flaxseed
- Ground
"crispy"
nuts
- Ground
almonds
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1 -
Good flavour for cakes, biscuits and pancakes. Always needs
a binding flour with it. Needs to be soaked overnight in something
acidic, like yoghurt, or lemon juice and water.
2 - This
is a fairly new flour that’s not yet available in NZ.
You can make your own, by getting fine dessicated coconut
and processing in a food processor
3 - Cornmeal
needs to be soaked in lime water, rather than acids. Corn
starch or flour can be blended with cornmeal to make corn
breads or muffins. Corn is a common allergen.
4 - Some
people find brown rice hard to digest. White rice is often
used as it's easier to digest and fairly low allergy. It is
pure starch and not high in nutrients. Either brown or white
is good for thickening
gravies, sauces, and cream pies.
5 - Tends
to make breads dry and coarse so don't use more than 1/5 of
the flour mixture. |
1 -
Buckwheat groats can be sprouted, dried and then ground into
flour that doesn’t need further soaking. But if you
use ready bought flour, it will need to be soaked in something
acid. Use in small amounts as it has a strong flavor and is
sometimes difficult to digest.
2 - Easy
to digest, and the most nutritious of the white flours as
it is not refined. A superior thickener.
3 - Imparts
the "chew factor", excellent used in small quantities.
Also good for coating anything that's going to be fried. Again
a refined starch and not high in nutrients.
4 - Excellent
for baking when used with other
flours. It is a good thickening agent for cream soups. A refined
starch and not high in nutrients.
5 - Potato
flour is different from potato starch. As far as I know, it's
not available in NZ.
6. Use
in small quantities only, as they are better soaked. |
4 -
Some people react to guar gum, so xantham is better. If you
also react to that, try pectin. If still no go, try without
it, it will just be a little heavier.
5 - Good
egg replacer in baking: Simmer 1/4 cup flax seeds in 3/4 cup
water for 5-7 mins, till thick. Strain the seeds out in a
cheesecloth lined strainer - you'll need to squeeze it. Use
4 Tbs for 1 egg. For extra lightness, whip the "gel"
and fold through at the end of mixing. |
1 -
Makes a nice pizza base, with some flaxseed and beaten eggs.
2 - Small
amounts are nice in GF bread
4 - Many
gluten free recipes use ground almonds, but they are not soaked
so the anti-nutrients aren’t neutralised. "Crispy"
nuts ground yourself are better. Macadamias and almonds
are good for a neutral flavour. |
GF flours that are not recommended |
Quinoa
Although
quinoa is an excellent whole grain, it needs thorough rinsing,
and at least 8 hours soaking before being cooked.
As quinoa
flour has not been treated in this way, it can taste bitter,
and may have some toxic elements. |
Soy
Many gluten
free recipes use soy, but we do not recommend soy flour, as
it hasn't been fermented. |
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A couple of
my favourite combinations:
- 1/2 cup each of amaranth (soaked), white rice flour, coconut
flour, arrowroot
- ground crispy nuts, coconut flour, arrowroot
Some other possibilities,
not commonly available in New Zealand, include:
- teff
- sorghum (excellent
for all baking purposes, the best general purpose gluten-free
flour)
- montina (Indian
rice) and
- mesquite
(which is low carb)
Some
people are only wheat intolerant, not gluten intolerant, and can
have kamut or spelt. For 1 cup wheat flour, use:
- 1 cup kamut
flour (the gluten is more delicate and needs less kneading)
- 3/4 cup
spelt flour
Some possible
substitutes for 1 cup of wheat flour, that other people have used
successfully:
- 7/8 cup rice
flour
- 1/2 cup arrowroot
starch
- 5/8 cup
potato starch flour
- 5/8 cup
tapioca flour
- 1 cup corn
flour
- 1 cup teff
flour
- 1/2 cup rice
+ 1/2 cup maize
- 1 cup maize
+ 1 tbsp millet flour
- 1/2 cup rice
+ 1/4 cup buckwheat + 1/4 cup chickpea (good for cakes and muffins)
- 1/2 cup
buckwheat + 1/2 cup potato
- 1/2 cup quinoa
+ 1/2 cup potato
- 3/4 cup
amaranth flour + 1/4 cup potato flour
- 3/4 cup
Amaranth flour + 1/4 cup tapioca starch
- 3/4 cup Quinoa
+ 1/4 cup tapioca starch
- 3/4 cup
Quinoa + 1/4 cup arrowroot
General tips:
- Not all baking
powders are gluten free. A suitable replacement for 1 tsp baking
powder is ½ tsp cream of tartar, plus ¼ tsp baking
soda.
- Non-gluten
flours are heavier than those with gluten and take longer to cook.
To help them rise, add 1 tsp guar gum, xantham gum or pectin for
each cup of flour.
- When using
a combination of GF flours it is essential to mix them thoroughly
first before adding other ingredients
- Certain
combinations of flours work differently from recipe to recipe.
A certain combination may work well in a pancake recipe, but may
not be as successful in a spongy cake.
- GF mixtures
need to be wetter for cakes and muffins and drier for biscuits
- GF baking
sticks to the baking surface so use baking paper or grease tin
well
- GF products
are better when baked at a slightly lower temperature for a longer
period of time.
- When making
biscuits chill the mixture for 1/2 hour before cooking and they
will be easier to handle
- When making
pastry press the dough into the dish instead of trying to roll
it out, this saves time and frustration!
Common
sources of gluten
The sad truth
is that even foods that look gluten free may not be. They may have
been prepared in a facility that also uses gluten, and may be contaminated.
Many people think they're completely gluten free and wonder why
they don't feel better. It's the hidden gluten. One test found that
many GF products were actually contaminated. The only way to be
really safe is to prepare eveyrthing yourself. This isn't always
possible though, so here are some common sources of gluten.
- Grains, flours, cereals:
- Wheat, rye, barley, semolina, triticale (a rye/wheat
hybrid), spelt, kamut (aka pharoah’s flour), triticale
- Technically, oats don’t contain gluten, so
some consider them to be safe. But they are often contaminated,
so it is safer to avoid them.
- Grains that DON’T have gluten are
corn, rice, millet, buckwheat, amaranth, quinoa, sorghum
- Other gluten free flours include arrowroot,
potato and tapioca
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- Breads and baked goods:
- All bread containing wheat, oats, rye, barley, spelt,
kamut, triticale.
- Most crackers, croutons, bread crumbs, wafers, biscuits,
doughnuts, graham crackers, soda crackers, flour tortillas
- Even some rice crackers
are not gluten free, as they may contain soy sauce.
Look for those which just have rice, vegetable
oil and salt. Plain are often the only
safe flavours, though sesame seed flavour is sometimes
OK.
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- Pasta:
- Any regular pasta - dry, canned, fresh.
- Look for GF pastas made from corn, quinoa
or buckwheat - but be aware that some
buckwheat noodles also contain wheat.
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- Food Additives:
- Glucose syrup - can be derived from either wheat or
corn
- Rice Syrup - may contain barley malt
- Dextrin - could be wheat, unless listed as 'corn
dextrin' or maltodextrin which, ironically, is corn
- Malt - derived from barley
- Flavour enhancers - could be malt
- Flavourings & Extracts - most use grain alcohol.
- Caramel Colour - could be malt
- Modified Food Starch - could be wheat.
- Starch that isn't identified - In the U.S. this is
usually corn, but elsewhere could be wheat
- Binders, fillers, excipients, extenders - if not specified
- Fu = dried wheat gluten
- MSG = monosodium glutamate. Note that yeast extracts
(eg Marmite) contain MSG
- HVP (Hydrolized Vegetable Protein) - could be wheat
based, ask manufacturer
- HPP = hydrolized plant protein
- TPP = textured plant protein
- TVP = text. veg. protein
- Gums such as xantham, guar and pectin,
which are used to replace gluten in GF baking, are safe
from a gluten viewpoint, but many people with damaged
guts find them difficult to digest.
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- Soups:
- Most canned soups, dry mixes, bouillon which has Hyd.
Veg. Protein
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- Condiments:
- Some curry powder, some mixed spices, grain-distilled
vinegar (could be using a gluten based grain alcohol),
some catsup, some prepared mustards, most soy sauces
and things made with soy sauce - teriyaki, etc.
- Check the labels. Some are OK. Look for wheat
free tamari instead of soy sauce, for
eg.
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- Desserts:
- All pies, cakes, cookies, etc. with wheat, rye, barley,
oat flours, pudding mixes, ice cream cones, prepared
cake mixes.
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- Sweets:
- Some candy, marshmallow cream, cake decorations, marzipan,
licorice
- Candy may have hidden gluten - conveyor may be dusted
with wheat flour
- Grain sweetened chocolate - usually has barley malt
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- Fruits:
- Any canned fruit with gluten thickening. Tinned fruit
in syrup - check to see what the sweetener is. Tinned
fruit in juice, frozen fruit and
fresh fruit should be OK.
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- Vegetables:
- Creamed, breaded, escalloped, some baked beans, some
prepared salad mixes
- French fries & hash browns - could share oil with
gluten (at restaurants). Some frozen ones are coated
with wheat, look for those with just potato
and lard or palm oil.
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- Meat, Fish, Poultry, Eggs:
- Surimi - imitation seafood may contain wheat starch
- Eggs in a gluten based sauce, some hot dogs and luncheon
meats, some fish in vegetable broths, self-basting turkey
with HVP.
- Eggs & hamburger patties at restaurants - make
sure griddle isn't shared with pancakes or buns (baps)
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- Dairy:
- Malted milk, artificial cream with gluten ing., some
chocolate milks, some ice creams, flavored yogurt
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- Beverages:
- postum, ovaltine, some flavored coffees and herbal
teas.
- Instant or powdered coffee - flavours may have gluten
(English coffees are the worst)
- Decaf coffee - affects celiacs unless water processed
- Tea - okay unless instant
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- Alcoholic Beverages:
- Beer, ale, gin, grain vodka, whiskey (bourbon), scotch,
rye
- There are some gluten free beers available, but check
ingredients carefully. Even most rice beers are made
with barley malt, though not all. In NZ, you can buy
GF beer from The
Twisted Hop
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- Hidden Gluten:
- Prescriptions - can contain wheat starch as filler
- Envelopes - glue can have gluten - use a wet sponge
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- Possibly contaminated things:
- Your toaster
- Your butter, jam, peanut butter, etc - things that
got spread onto gluten foods
- The sugar container that you used the last time you
made something with wheat flour
- Bulk bins at stores (may not have been washed out
well)
- Bakeries that bake both gluten and non-gluten foods
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Other
pages about gluten:
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