How To Go Gluten Free!

So, Someone Gluten Free is Coming Over for Dinner

I read a statistic that as many as 30% of the population may have a gluten-intolerance.  If that is true than over the next ten years gluten-free will become a household phrase.  Until that happens, I thought you might appreciate some pointers on how to look out for a gluten-free guest.  When I am going to dinner at someone’s home I try to give a brief education without stressing the person out.  Believe it or not you CAN cook gluten-free for people without a ton of education.

Here is what I like to tell people to help a gluten free guest have a good meal:

• Keep it simple.  Adding lots of sauces and spices complicates matters for someone living gluten-free.  Every ingredient potentially has gluten in it so the more ingredients, the greater the possibility of contamination.
• Leave sauces and salad dressings on the side.
• Avoid casseroles.  Again you have the “keep it simple” going on here.  A gluten-free person will be better off if instead of doing that chicken and broccoli casserole if you serve all the ingredients separately.  That way they can skip the ingredients that have gluten in them and eat the ones that don’t.
• Keep ALL ingredients handy for the gluten free person to reference.  We become expert at reading packaging ingredients.
• Watch out for pre-prepared foods.  Marinades, spices, and food starch are just a few places that gluten likes to hide in and that means less food for the gluten free.
• Thicken with cornstarch instead of flour.
• Put croutons on the side of the salad.  I find that people are so particular about their salads that ALL guests tend to prefer the option of putting ALL of their own toppings on.  It takes a few more bowls on the table but everyone is happy.
• Try to call the gluten free guest and run down the menu with them.  Some people are less sensitive (those with celiac can’t have any exposure to gluten) so allow the guest to let you know what will and won’t work for them.
• Keep the buns and meat separate.  If the hotdogs or hamburgers aren’t already put on buns, the gluten free person will have a much easier time eating.
• Keep dessert simple.  Most ice cream, especially the higher quality brands, is gluten free.  Do a container of vanilla (some of the additions can have gluten) and a container of a soy cream option (there are some really tasty ones out there) so people who are dairy free can indulge too.  Include some cut up fresh fruit and maybe other fun toppings so everyone can create their own dessert.  There are also some really good gluten free packaged foods available like brownie or cake mixes.  I have found these to be about as easy as other traditional mixes and quite tasty for both the gluten free and regular folks.
• Make sure you avoid cross-contamination.  Wash all pans, knives, measuring utensils, containers, or cutting boards that had something with gluten on them (like bread, soy sauce, flour, etc.) before using for something else.
• Don’t feel bad that you are serving a few things that contain gluten.  Most gluten free folks understand that the world enjoys gluten-containing products.  As long as there is enough to fill out bellies, we are happy.  If the meal is actually balanced where we can enjoy an appetizer, veggie, carb, protein, and dessert…it is our lucky day!
• Know that the gluten free person may have other food issues too so it is helpful to consult with them (and really with all guests) so you don’t inadvertently avoid gluten but put in something else that can be equally harmful or that they plain don’t like or don’t eat for religious reasons.  Many people have allergies to particular tree nuts, dairy, preservatives, artificial colorings, or tropical fruits.

Here are a few things to make sure you avoid, keep completely separate, or ask the gluten free guest if they have a gluten free version they can bring along for the meal.

• ALL wheat flour and products containing wheat flour (enriched, whole wheat, cracked wheat, white flour, all of it)
• soy sauce (this one surprises most people)
• multi-grain chips or packaged, pre-seasoned rice dishes
• pastas
• spelt, barley, rye, graham, kamut, semolina, durum, triticale grains or flours
• licorice (another surprise)
• oats (some gluten free folks can tolerate them)
• beer (there are gluten-free options, some taste horrible; I like “Red Bridge”)
• breadings/coatings
• cereals
• vegetarian meat substitutes
• self-basting poultry

Know that “wheat free” does not mean gluten free.  Here is a simple menu you can see as an example of what to serve:

Appetizer: Veggies and dip (keep the container handy), hummus with corn chips (keep the container handy), guacamole with corn chips

Beverages: Wine, sparkling water, and fruit juice

Main meal: Baked chicken with fresh herbs, salt, and olive oil; mashed potatoes and gravy (thickened with cornstarch); steamed broccoli with butter, salt and pepper; spinach salad with toppings and dressings on the side.

Main meal #2: Mexican feast with plain refried beans, non-seasoned chicken strips, and seasoned ground beef (keep the seasoning ingredients handy), corn tortillas, taco shells, and all your favorite toppings on the side so folks can build their own.

Dessert: Poached pears or baked apples.

Dessert #2: Fresh fruit with real whipped cream.

You likely already serve gluten-free meals and don’t even know it!  If you like to experiment, ask your guest for recipes or try converting some of your own.  Have fun and go easy on yourself.  Having guests for dinner is about enjoying time with you or guests, not stressing over the meal!

Technorati Tags: cooking gluten-free, gluten free guest

You are Gluten Free and Have a Dinner Invitation

When those of us who are gluten-free find ourselves in social situations that can be awkward.  For example, you are newly gluten-free and you are invited over to a friend’s home for dinner.  Or you have a company function to go to that involves food.  Or the holidays are coming and the highlight of the meal contains gluten.  It can get tricky to navigate while not starving or “gluten-ing” yourself.

When I was initially diagnosed as gluten-free I was told by my doctor to see how much gluten I could tolerate.  Initially I could tolerate small quantities of bread or soy sauce, but the longer I went without wheat in my diet, the more it affected me when I did have it.  So now I am almost 100% gluten-free.  The times I get gluten are purely accidental and I can tell by my body’s reaction within 24 hours.

Let me clarify that for those with Celiac they need to be 100% gluten-free (not “almost” as I said I am).  The places I am the most likely to get exposed to gluten are from cross-contamination (the restaurant uses the same prep space for a sandwich as for my lettuce wrap; a fellow guest puts the humus directly on their pita pieces and some bread crumbs end up back in the humus) or from small quantities of gluten in a dish that you wouldn’t think would have wheat in it (enchilada sauce frequently contains wheat; a little granola mixed in a yogurt parfait; nutritional yeast in vitamins or food).  For people with Celiac, they must be extremely careful l to not allow even the smallest amount of gluten into their diets so they need to be extra careful when eating at someone’s home.

When you have a dinner invitation to someone’s home, I suggest the following:

• Tell them right up front, “I have a serious food allergy, would you mind if we connected on the menu to make sure I know ahead of time what I will and won’t be able to eat?”  I have never had a host turn me down on this request, they always ask for more information.
• Try not to overwhelm them.  You are giving the “Cliff’s Notes” for ONE meal, not so they can cook gluten-free for the rest of their lives.  I never ask a person to have an entirely gluten-free meal (some friends choose to out of love, interest, and empathy, but I never ask).  I just try to make sure that there will be enough food there that I can eat without drawing attention to myself.
• Give simple suggestions and focus on the menu the host is planning on: Have all the ingredients for the salad separate so each person can put what they want on their serving and the croutons won’t contaminate the rest of the salad; Prepare my non-marinated chicken in the pan first (or on a separate dish) so it doesn’t get cross contaminated; Let me give you a bottle of some gluten-free soy sauce that you can use; Do you mind saving the packaging from prepared foods that I can look at before the dinner to check ingredients?; Could you put the cheese and crackers on separate plates?  On a side note, just because someone says, “I know all about gluten-free cooking because…”, still clarify your own gluten-free needs.  A friend once glutened me with spelt noodles because she thought gluten-free people can tolerate spelt.
• Offer to bring a dish, especially one that usually has gluten.  If you have a bread recipe you enjoy, offer to bring bread.  I often bring dessert too because so much dessert has gluten in it.
• Eat before the dinner party.  Even the most considerate hosts make mistakes and I find it better to arrive to a dinner party with a semi-full belly and eat less there than to be starving and get there to find croutons ON the salad and that all the meat got marinated in regular soy sauce.

It is important to be proactive and gracious.  We don’t want the host to go through a bunch of extra trouble for us but hosts want all of their guests to have a great time.  So speak up and help out the next time you are invited to someone’s home for dinner.

Technorati Tags: avoiding gluten, gluten free dinner invitation

Gluten-Free Beer: Good News and Bad News

I am a beer drinker.  Not often, but I enjoy a beer about once a month and when I realized this was one more area of my life that was to be affected by my gluten-free diagnosis, it was a bit annoying.  In my dad’s final weeks one of the things he enjoyed doing was sharing a beer with one of his kids.  He gamely shared a gluten-free beer with me but he didn’t care much for it.  Poor guy…I wish I could have been more accommodating.

Pretty much all beers, ales, and lagers contain gluten.  Those pesky grains are just so excellent at creating beer that I would say 99%+ of all beers on the market contain gluten.  Here is a bit of good news…manufacturers of beer are realizing that this market is growing larger every year and they are rushing to answer our need.  Large breweries, like Anheuser-Busch have answered the call with Redbridge (a gluten-free beer that I liken to Killian’s) and small breweries are also bringing to market artisan gluten-free varieties as well.  Speak up when you go to your local brew pub and let them know that you would purchase a gluten-free beer if it was available. 

A warning about the gluten-free beers available: some of them taste terrible.  I am a “regular” beer drinker which I consider puts me in the “average joe” category that I like beer that isn’t too strong (like Guiness) or bitter.  I used to drink Killean’s, wheat beers, an occasional flavored beer (like pumpkin in the fall or berry in the summer) and I enjoyed a good Corona with lime on a hot summer day. 

As with all foods, everyone has different tastes so it is important to keep an open mind and try a variety.  For example, when I first went gluten free I bought a six pack of Redbridge and a six pack of New Grist and shared them with my gluten-free siblings.  I was the only one who liked Redbridge and no one liked New Grist.  However I had a party a few months later and one of my non-gluten-free guests really liked the New Grist (I sent the last unopened bottle home with her).  I have heard “Temptation” is a good choice as well, although it may be a bit pricey (I haven’t been able to find it at my local grocery stores as even Whole Foods stopped selling it).

I have found for the days I want more of my “Corona experience”, I take my Red Bridge and add about 50% water and a slice of lime to create a lighter beer…it works for me and stretches out the enjoyment.

Other brands on the market (I have not found them in the Ann Arbor area) are:

• Bard’s Gold
• Green’s Discovery Amber Ale
• Green’s Endeavour Dubbel Ale
• Green’s Quest Tripel Ale
• Sprecher Brewing Mbege
• Sprecher Brewing Shakparo

As you are no doubt aware, an open mind and sense of adventure will serve you well in your gluten-free journey.  Raise your gluten-free beer in a toast to those wonderful breweries looking out for us and helping us to enjoy a good bottle of beer from time to time.  Cheers!

Technorati Tags: gluten free beer

Gluten Free Bagels

Have you tried store-bought gluten-free bagels?  Hard, un-tasty, and unappealing are just a few adjectives that come to mind.  In my pre-gluten-free days I never did much baking of bread and rolls so I don’t venture as quickly into that area.  Well I am here to tell you that there ARE gluten-free bagels that you can make at home that aren’t difficult and they are quite yummy!

This recipe comes from the October/November 2009 volume of “Living Without” a magazine for people with food sensitivities, especially gluten, dairy, and eggs.  My wonderful sister, Elaine, gave me a subscription for Christmas this past year and every recipe I have tried from the magazine has turned out well and this one was no exception.

Make sure you have a substantial mixer to use that is designed to create bread and you will also want parchment paper (you can find this in higher-end grocery stores or specialty baking stores).

The gluten-free multi-grain flour blend (makes 9 cups) contains:

• 1 and 1/4 cups garfava flour (I think this is a blend of garbanzo and fava bean flours)
• 1 and 3/4 cups superfine brown rice flour (can use food processor on regular brown rice flour if you can’t find superfine)
• 2 cups potato starch (or arrowroot flour or chestnut flour)
• 2 cups cornstarch or potato starch
• 1 cup tapioca starch/flour
• 1 cup sorghum flour or armaranth flour

Blend ingredients together and store in a tightly sealed container in the fridge until used.

“Best Bagels” by Rebecca Reilly (Living Without, Oct/Nov ‘09)

• 3 cups gluten-free multi grain flour blend (recipe given above)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons flax meal
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons egg replacer
• 1 Tablespoon xanthan gum
• 1 Tablespoon yeast
• 2 Tablespoons honey
• 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
• 1 and 1/4 cups warm water
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• brown rice flour for rolling bagels
• cornmeal for dusting pan
• optional toppings of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, etc
• optional egg white for brushing on the bagels before placing toppings on them

1. Line baking pan/cookie sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle with cornmeal.
2. Line second baking pan/cookie sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle with (extra) brown rice flour.
3. Whisk together (in mixing bowl) multi-grain flour blend, salt, flax meal, egg replacer, xanthan gum, and yeast.
4. Using a separate bowl, whisk together honey, oil, cider vinegar, and 1 and 1/4 cups warm water.
5. Using the paddle attachment of the mixer, slowly incorporate the liquid mixture into dry ingredients.  Add more warm water, if necessary to create a smooth consistency.  Mixture should be quite thick.
6. Beat on medium-high speed for three (3) minutes.
7. Shape the bagels by using a large spoon to scoop out the batter and place on cookie sheet lined with rice flour.  Lightly roll dough in the flour to coat it and then shape into a ball.  Flatten the ball slightly and then create a hole in the center (using your index finger) that will be large enough that the hole won’t close up while raising.  (Smaller than my thumb, about the size of my middle finger.)
8. Repeat shaping (step 7) until all dough has been used.
9. Place each bagel on the baking pan sprinkled with cornmeal.
10. Lightly cover bagels with an oiled piece of plactic wrap and place pan in a warm place for bagels to rise (about 20-30 minutes).
11. Bring a skillet (I’m not sure why she says skillet, it must be that this is supposed to be a more shallow pan of water) of water to boil.  Add 1 teaspoon of sugar to the water (the sugar helps to create a shiny crust).
12. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
13. Drop a few bagels into the boiling water.  Simmer for 30 seconds, turn over and cook for another 30 seconds.
14. Using a slotted spoon, remove bagels, drain away excess water, and put bagels back on the same baking pan.
15. Optional: brush them with a wash of 1 egg white and 2 Tablespoons cold water beaten together then sprinkle with your choice of toppings (examples: poppy, sesame or caraway seeds, toasted onion, raw garlic bits, salt, etc).
16. Once all bagels have been boiled, bake them for 25 minutes in preheated oven then cool on a rack.

The recipe makes eight (8) bagels with nutritional content of (not counting toppings): 262 calories, 5 gr total fat (0 saturated, cholesterol or trans fats), 303 mg sodium, 51 g carbohydrate, 2 gr fiber, 4 gr protein. 

I wasn’t sure how to find a warm place for the bagels to raise and my mom suggested a pan of hot water in the oven on the bottom shelf with the tray of bagels on the top shelf.  That worked out very well.

I was pleasantly surprised at the ease of the recipe and the tasty results.  Plan a few hours to make them but remember you will have 20 – 30 minutes of rising time and another 25 minutes of baking time.  Enjoy the results (and they do freeze well too).