So… I'm a coeliac

[OrangesAndMelons]

Hmm… Not suitable for people with wheat allergy? Does that mean I can eat it? Or not? I don't have wheat allergy, but that means it might or might not at some point have touched something that has something to do with wheat ?

Am I gonna have to roast my own nuts?! ? Which I've done before, but isn't exactly quick'n'easy compared to grabbing a bag off the shelf at the supermarket ?

[kareng]

Yes that means you probably shouldn’t eat that brand.  There are other brands that don’t say that.  You will find that people/ companies often say “ wheat allergy” when referring to Celiac & actual wheat allergy.

[OrangesAndMelons]

11 minutes ago, kareng said:

Yes that means you probably shouldn’t eat that brand.  There are other brands that don’t say that.  You will find that people/ companies often say “ wheat allergy” when referring to Celiac & actual wheat allergy.

Oh marvellous… ?

They're required by law to list possible allergens including cereals containing gluten but they list it as people with an allergy to wheat and it's all so stupid and confusing.

Thanks for the info

[OrangesAndMelons]

Apologies for the fuzz-o-vision; this website seems to heavily compress images ?

[GFinDC]

11 hours ago, OrangesAndMelons said:

If someone tells me roasted salted almonds have gluten in them I am gonna go SO MAD ?

Hmm, well, about those almonds.... 

Actually, over here in the USA we have a brand called Planters.  Planters is good about labeling anything with gluten ingredients.  So it's easy to check their nuts and know if there is gluten in them.

Nuts do sometimes have gluten though.  You need to check them, especially ones that are flavored with something.

Don't be surprised if after you go gluten-free that you become more sensitive to it and have stronger reactions to gluten.  That seems to be a common change that people notice.

Recovery from celiac damage can take up to 18 months or longer.  But you may notice improvements in symptoms you didn't think were related also.

Eating gluten-free can be pretty simple really.  You go to the grocery store and pick up things like fruits, nuts, eggs, meat and veggies to eat.  Learning to cook is not optional with celiac IMHO.  You need to put the effort into learning basic cooking at least.  Frying a burger or some fish, making a salad, etc is not that hard.  Hard boiled eggs are good for snacks.  It's also possible to carry around an apple or some nuts to eat.  It's good to have some snacks on you when you go out so you aren't tempted to eat things you shouldn't.

Emotional acceptance is something that comes in time.  It may take a while but once you are used to eating gluten-free it's not a big issue.

 

 

 

[OrangesAndMelons]

38 minutes ago, GFinDC said:

Hmm, well, about those almonds.... 

Actually, over here in the USA we have a brand called Planters.  Planters is good about labeling anything with gluten ingredients.  So it's easy to check their nuts and know if there is gluten in them.

Nuts do sometimes have gluten though.  You need to check them, especially ones that are flavored with something.

Don't be surprised if after you go gluten-free that you become more sensitive to it and have stronger reactions to gluten.  That seems to be a common change that people notice.

Recovery from celiac damage can take up to 18 months or longer.  But you may notice improvements in symptoms you didn't think were related also.

Eating gluten-free can be pretty simple really.  You go to the grocery store and pick up things like fruits, nuts, eggs, meat and veggies to eat.  Learning to cook is not optional with celiac IMHO.  You need to put the effort into learning basic cooking at least.  Frying a burger or some fish, making a salad, etc is not that hard.  Hard boiled eggs are good for snacks.  It's also possible to carry around an apple or some nuts to eat.  It's good to have some snacks on you when you go out so you aren't tempted to eat things you shouldn't.

Emotional acceptance is something that comes in time.  It may take a while but once you are used to eating gluten-free it's not a big issue.

 

 

 

Oh dear… I knew this would happen ? It always does! — I've put a great deal of effort into learning to cook and I find it harder than anyone seems to be able to understand, and I now have a (very) limited repertoire of things I can do if I'm feeling on top form, like putting things in the oven at the right temperature for the right time (e.g. pizza, oven chips),  scrambled eggs on toast, baked beans on toast, and pasta with a jar of sauce. Each one takes a few weeks to learn even if it's very similar to others e.g. scrambled eggs vs. baked beans. It's an *extremely* slow process; being able to get frying a burger right, reliably, without damaging anything including the food, the equipment, or myself would be another few weeks. Then I'd need to learn again with sausages. My current project is omelette… ?

It's much the same with things like learning to use a washing machine, or take a bus. Over the course of a few months I learnt to take the bus to my nearest town at home, but it would take as long again to learn how to take a bus in my uni town. It's frustrating, but I've kind of accepted that it takes me a lot longer to learn some things than it does other people.

Luckily I'm not keen on flavoured nuts, just raw or roasted and salted.

It does seem a little counterproductive on the current-symptoms front to go gluten free, if there's a risk that all it does is make you go from feeling slightly rubbish quite frequently to feeling deathly ill occasionally ??

It's going to be hard to stick to this diet just for the sake of the long-term effects, but I guess we just have to do what we have to do <shrug> Temptation shouldn't be the worst part; I've always managed fine with the things I have to avoid because of diabetes. I find moderation much harder than complete avoidance. 

I've heard of Planters… I think one of the supermarkets here carries Planters peanuts. Food labelling regs here are generally pretty good tho, so hopefully most stuff should be easy to tell.

Thanks for your post ?

[kareng]

I would say not to waste your time trying to make omelets.  A pretty one requires the perfect pan and some skill.  But you can get the same flavors by scrambling the eggs and adding the cheese or veggies to them.  If you have a muffin pan, you can scramble (mix well) some eggs in a bowl , pour in the greased muffin tins, then add some stuff like cheese or peppers.  they  then bake in the oven and you can freeze them and pop them in the microwave.

Hamburger tastes just as yummy if you fry small chunks of burger.  And they cook faster and you know they are cooked in the middle.  You can pile on a bun and add cheese, just like a regular burger.  

Simple cooking shouldn't be so difficult.  You might watch some simple cooking shows or videos.  

[Ennis-TX]

6 minutes ago, OrangesAndMelons said:

Oh dear… I knew this would happen ? It always does! — I've put a great deal of effort into learning to cook and I find it harder than anyone seems to be able to understand, and I now have a (very) limited repertoire of things I can do if I'm feeling on top form, like putting things in the oven at the right temperature for the right time (e.g. pizza, oven chips),  scrambled eggs on toast, baked beans on toast, and pasta with a jar of sauce. Each one takes a few weeks to learn even if it's very similar to others e.g. scrambled eggs vs. baked beans. It's an *extremely* slow process; being able to get frying a burger right, reliably, without damaging anything including the food, the equipment, or myself would be another few weeks. Then I'd need to learn again with sausages. My current project is omelette… ?

It's much the same with things like learning to use a washing machine, it take a bus. Over the course of a few months I learnt to take the bus to my nearest town at home, but it would take as long again to learn how to take a bus in my uni town. It's frustrating, but I've kind of accepted that it takes me a lot longer to learn some things than it does other people.

Luckily I'm not keen on flavoured nuts, just raw or roasted and salted.

It does seem a little counterproductive on the current-symptoms front to go gluten free, if there's a risk that all it does is make you go from feeling slightly rubbish quite frequently to feeling deathly ill occasionally ??

It's going to be hard to stick to this diet just for the sake of the long-term effects, but I guess we just have to do what we have to do <shrug> Temptation shouldn't be the worst part; I've always managed fine with the things I have to avoid because of diabetes. I find moderation much harder than complete avoidance. 

I've heard of Planters… I think one of the supermarkets here carries Planters peanuts. Food labelling regs here are generally pretty good tho, so hopefully most stuff should be easy to tell.

Thanks for your post ?

The cooking thing does take time, a timer, scales, and temperature probe help a lot. I used to always have to set timers on meats, eggs, etc. After about 20-50 tries I would learn the "look" so now instead of using a timer to tell when to flip the burger, turn the sausage, flip the egg etc. (I still cook bacon in the oven on parchment paper for consistency sake) Now  I can do it by instinct and observance.  >.< I still hate doing American skillet omelets, rather just mix up the ingredients and do a crustless quiche in the oven then mess with flipping and folding in the skillet. I also cheat and use Nordicwares omelet makers in the microwave, sometimes a bit messy so I do it on a plate with a splatter cover and got the closing and times quicker.
I also have a machine that makes omelets on a stick, and I do market sells with them at a tent/booth set ups.
Other funny aspects, I HATE inconsistencies, so I do everything by the gram, and very methodical.

Almonds...yeah I go through 25lb cases every 2-3 months, I bulk buy almond flours, and slivered almonds from a family owned company out of California. I make almond butter, and baked goods from cookies, cakes, to bagels and bread. >.> I also tend to blend messed baked goods with eggs and bake into those quiches. 

Roasting almonds, here it depends on what you like I take slivered almonds, for snacking I roast at 300F (148-150C) for 22-24mins on paper lined baking sheets. For butter, I do blend almonds roasted 22min at 270F and 18 mins at 300F then use a stone mill to make 5lb batches of almond butter I later flavor and sell at markets. 

[kareng]

And another thought- when you see the dietician - ask if she knows any simple cooking classes you could take.  

[OrangesAndMelons]

35 minutes ago, Ennis_TX said:

The cooking thing does take time, a timer, scales, and temperature probe help a lot. I used to always have to set timers on meats, eggs, etc. After about 20-50 tries I would learn the "look" so now instead of using a timer to tell when to flip the burger, turn the sausage, flip the egg etc. (I still cook bacon in the oven on parchment paper for consistency sake) Now  I can do it by instinct and observance.  >.< I still hate doing American skillet omelets, rather just mix up the ingredients and do a crustless quiche in the oven then mess with flipping and folding in the skillet. I also cheat and use Nordicwares omelet makers in the microwave, sometimes a bit messy so I do it on a plate with a splatter cover and got the closing and times quicker.
I also have a machine that makes omelets on a stick, and I do market sells with them at a tent/booth set ups.
Other funny aspects, I HATE inconsistencies, so I do everything by the gram, and very methodical.

Almonds...yeah I go through 25lb cases every 2-3 months, I bulk buy almond flours, and slivered almonds from a family owned company out of California. I make almond butter, and baked goods from cookies, cakes, to bagels and bread. >.> I also tend to blend messed baked goods with eggs and bake into those quiches. 

Roasting almonds, here it depends on what you like I take slivered almonds, for snacking I roast at 300F (148-150C) for 22-24mins on paper lined baking sheets. For butter, I do blend almonds roasted 22min at 270F and 18 mins at 300F then use a stone mill to make 5lb batches of almond butter I later flavor and sell at markets. 

I've made almond butter… SO nice! Almost as nice as the cashew butter.

I use timers — my entire life is run by schedules and reminders and timers on my phone ? I don't know what I'd do without it! And scales are standard in UK kitchens. My partner has a temperature probe but I haven't yet got onto foods that need that. Will definitely use it when I get to that stage — thanks Don't have a microwave or room for one at home, unfortunately, but if I get nowhere with omelettes I'll try your suggestion.

It's *so* frustrating when people can't/won't understand my issues with cooking and why learning takes me so long.

[OrangesAndMelons]

50 minutes ago, kareng said:

I would say not to waste your time trying to make omelets.  A pretty one requires the perfect pan and some skill.  But you can get the same flavors by scrambling the eggs and adding the cheese or veggies to them.  If you have a muffin pan, you can scramble (mix well) some eggs in a bowl , pour in the greased muffin tins, then add some stuff like cheese or peppers.  they  then bake in the oven and you can freeze them and pop them in the microwave.

Hamburger tastes just as yummy if you fry small chunks of burger.  And they cook faster and you know they are cooked in the middle.  You can pile on a bun and add cheese, just like a regular burger.  

Simple cooking shouldn't be so difficult.  You might watch some simple cooking shows or videos.  

Thanks — cooking shows don't help, videos do sometimes if I rewind and repeat them a lot, but my kitchen is inevitably different and only has one chopping-board-sized prep area so it can be tricky to adapt stuff.

Cheese is out, unfortunately (or fortunately, because I don't like it), because of the tyramine.

The muffin tin tip is good; thanks. How do you avoid them going rubbery?

32 minutes ago, kareng said:

And another thought- when you see the dietician - ask if she knows any simple cooking classes you could take.  

It would have to be one for people with learning disabilities (I think Americans call it intellectual disability?), probably, and I never qualify for those because I don't have a learning disability, just ASD ? I went on a learning-to-use-the-bus course for people with learning disabilities and it was too difficult…

[Ennis-TX]

1 minute ago, OrangesAndMelons said:

It's *so* frustrating when people can't/won't understand my issues with cooking and why learning takes me so long.

Yep, I always have had a 5-10 year mental back step (my mind ran like someone 5-10 years younger than me). Actions have to be repeated more often for me to memorize them than most people (the exception being traumatizing events). Bunch of quirks that are just life...few others but I will only mention them with other aspies or those that understand personally. 

[kareng]

baking scrambled eggs is like quiche.  You can add a little milk/cream to it if you want ( maybe just a small spoonful for a couple of eggs).  I like to add frozen shredded or small square potatoes in it, too.

have you every kept a few of your oven French fries and added them to your scrambled eggs?  YUM!  Just cut in bite sized pieces and throw in the pan with the eggs.

[OrangesAndMelons]

3 minutes ago, Ennis_TX said:

Yep, I always have had a 5-10 year mental back step (my mind ran like someone 5-10 years younger than me). Actions have to be repeated more often for me to memorize them than most people (the exception being traumatizing events). Bunch of quirks that are just life...few others but I will only mention them with other aspies or those that understand personally. 

Yeah same — one example of my cognitive crapness: I have a complete lack of sense of direction (e.g. my parents moved to a new house and despite me visiting them several times a year for a week at a time, I still managed to get lost in it for around ten years — things like turning the wrong way at the bottom of the stairs) and when I try to explain, people do a tinkly laugh and say "Oh me too, I'm dreadful!" no matter how much I try to make it clear that I really *really* have no sense of direction. I'd lived in my town for well over a decade when I got lost going to the library from the central car park because I thought I could manage on my own ? It's a small town and the library is at the end of one of the main streets. I ended up three miles out of town and having to phone to be rescued ?

1 minute ago, kareng said:

baking scrambled eggs is like quiche.  You can add a little milk/cream to it if you want ( maybe just a small spoonful for a couple of eggs).  I like to add frozen shredded or small square potatoes in it, too.

have you every kept a few of your oven French fries and added them to your scrambled eggs?  YUM!  Just cut in bite sized pieces and throw in the pan with the eggs.

I haven't tried that… that would involve leftover chips and I've never encountered that ?

[kareng]

1 minute ago, OrangesAndMelons said:

 

I haven't tried that… that would involve leftover chips and I've never encountered that ?

Well... of course!  You have to make 3 extra and immediately set them aside when they come out of the oven!  ?

Canned baked beans/ pork and beans taste great on a baked potato or fries.  Just to change up what you know how to make.

do you have someone that could fix a few things for you?  Like maybe cook some chicken you could add to your pasta sauce or a bag of salad greens?  Or someone to show you how to make something simple?  I think you are in the UK?  A bit far for me to come over and be “ Mama” & show you how to cook veggies!   Lol 

[Ennis-TX]

3 minutes ago, OrangesAndMelons said:

Yeah same — one example of my cognitive crapness: I have a complete lack of sense of direction (e.g. my parents moved to a new house and despite me visiting them several times a year for a week at a time, I still managed to get lost in it for around ten years — things like turning the wrong way at the bottom of the stairs) and when I try to explain, people do a tinkly laugh and say "Oh me too, I'm dreadful!" no matter how much I try to make it clear that I really *really* have no sense of direction. I'd lived in my town for well over a decade when I got lost going to the library from the central car park because I thought I could manage on my own ? It's a small town and the library is at the end of one of the main streets. I ended up three miles out of town and having to phone to be rescued ?

I haven't tried that… that would involve leftover chips and I've never encountered that ?

Well I have a base recipe for crustless bacon and spinach baked quiche saved I can share >.> I also thicken mine with nut meals and psyllium husk or pork rinds but that is something else to play with.

My direction is good but very different. I do not see things by numbers and names.  Directions and places for me are marked in my head by shapes and landmarks. You tell me a street name I will look at you like your crazy,  it is more like a mental image of a building and knowing to turn at it. >.< they have done remodeling, tearing down a house, or cutting down a tree before and I have gotten completely lost. NOW getting lost normally involves trauma, and when I am scared lost I end up memorizing a paths. 

[frieze]

On 5/30/2019 at 9:37 AM, OrangesAndMelons said:

Thanks — cooking shows don't help, videos do sometimes if I rewind and repeat them a lot, but my kitchen is inevitably different and only has one chopping-board-sized prep area so it can be tricky to adapt stuff.

Cheese is out, unfortunately (or fortunately, because I don't like it), because of the tyramine.

The muffin tin tip is good; thanks. How do you avoid them going rubbery?

It would have to be one for people with learning disabilities (I think Americans call it intellectual disability?), probably, and I never qualify for those because I don't have a learning disability, just ASD ? I went on a learning-to-use-the-bus course for people with learning disabilities and it was too difficult…

non aged cheese is ok on a low tyramine diet.

[OrangesAndMelons]

11 hours ago, frieze said:

non aged cheese is ok on a low tyramine diet.

Yep, but non-aged cheese tends not to have the desired effect in recipes like that. I eat mozzarella, cream cheese, mascarpone, stuff like that but avoid things like cheddar. But I don't really like aged cheeses anyway so that's okay ?

It can get a bit awkward sometimes because if people need to feed me, in order to avoid giving them a biology lesson or an overly-complex set of rules, I mention a couple of the most common things they might normally use, like cheese or soy sauce or salami. But I worry that if they later see me tucking into a pizza (with nice safe mozzarella only) or Chinese food (with a brand and quantity of soy sauce I know is okay) they're gonna think I'm a bullshitter.

[OrangesAndMelons]

On 5/30/2019 at 2:54 PM, kareng said:

Well... of course!  You have to make 3 extra and immediately set them aside when they come out of the oven!  ?

Canned baked beans/ pork and beans taste great on a baked potato or fries.  Just to change up what you know how to make.

do you have someone that could fix a few things for you?  Like maybe cook some chicken you could add to your pasta sauce or a bag of salad greens?  Or someone to show you how to make something simple?  I think you are in the UK?  A bit far for me to come over and be “ Mama” & show you how to cook veggies!   Lol 

I'm hoping to learn how to do baked potatoes in the microwave next term, but that will mean getting hold of a microwave for the shared kitchen at college (I can't get one at home because there's nowhere to put it). I'm loath to run an oven for several hours for one potato… ? I love baked potato with baked beans, though. I have it for lunch from the canteen or the cafe on the lecture site for at least 50% of my lunches cause it's safe and tasty and cheap and tolerably healthy (if you ignore the amount of butter I put on the potato ?) Not everything in Cambridge is caviar and champagne ?? (though there's a fair bit of fizz around at the moment when people are celebrating finishing their exams…)

My partner cooks when I'm at home. He's tried to teach me but he's almost as bad a teacher as I am a student ? I can definitely buy cold meat and stick that in salad or whatever, though. Salad can be made edible by judicious application of mayonnaise. I find most things can.

There's a couple of coeliacs at college who say the canteen gluten-free food seems safe. I asked the kitchen staff about gluten and they said the kitchen is treated as gluten free with a gluteny area, rather than having a gluten free area within a gluteny kitchen. I think they do the same with nuts? The main gripe people have with it (apart from major lack of choice) is that they don't say what's gluten-free on the menu they email out; you have to come into college and look at the allergen info they write up on the menu board for that day's food. Okay for me because I'm in onsite accommodation, ignoring the fact it means I can't plan in advance when I'm going to be eating in hall, but some people are a brisk 10 minute walk away or even more.

[OrangesAndMelons]

They write it up like this. That's also a salad bar, but, well. You're trusting the hundred people before you in the queue. So the only thing I would've been able to eat that day would be broccoli florets. Which, like all brassicas, I hate ??

I took a photo that day because it was a particularly bad menu for a coeliac diabetic.

[OrangesAndMelons]

On 5/30/2019 at 2:55 PM, Ennis_TX said:

Well I have a base recipe for crustless bacon and spinach baked quiche saved I can share >.> I also thicken mine with nut meals and psyllium husk or pork rinds but that is something else to play with.

My direction is good but very different. I do not see things by numbers and names.  Directions and places for me are marked in my head by shapes and landmarks. You tell me a street name I will look at you like your crazy,  it is more like a mental image of a building and knowing to turn at it. >.< they have done remodeling, tearing down a house, or cutting down a tree before and I have gotten completely lost. NOW getting lost normally involves trauma, and when I am scared lost I end up memorizing a paths. 

Psyllium husk; there's an idea… I was using that for a while to try and sort out my useless gut. I think I still have an enormous tub of it somewhere. Also some capsules. They're by the Fybogel, loperamide, metoclopramide and mebeverine… (why yes, I *did* automatically say "no" when my GP asked me if I had GI issues when he got my surprise tTG-IgA result because it's just totally normal to me to need this stuff… ?)

[Ennis-TX]

5 hours ago, OrangesAndMelons said:

Psyllium husk; there's an idea… I was using that for a while to try and sort out my useless gut. I think I still have an enormous tub of it somewhere. Also some capsules. They're by the Fybogel, loperamide, metoclopramide and mebeverine… (why yes, I *did* automatically say "no" when my GP asked me if I had GI issues when he got my surprise tTG-IgA result because it's just totally normal to me to need this stuff… ?)

I use it in a few bread recipes for loaves to thicken it up, it gives a chewier texture to doughs for pizza and cinnamon rolls when you can not use starch, I also have used to to help with porridge, and a few egg dishes, and to make my  vegan cheese of proerpetual melt  (Literally makes a gooy cheese that holds a melted texture even when cold)

[OrangesAndMelons]

1 hour ago, Ennis_TX said:

I use it in a few bread recipes for loaves to thicken it up, it gives a chewier texture to doughs for pizza and cinnamon rolls when you can not use starch, I also have used to to help with porridge, and a few egg dishes, and to make my  vegan cheese of proerpetual melt  (Literally makes a gooy cheese that holds a melted texture even when cold)

My partner is a keen and experimental breadmaker and has spent years learning to make different kind of bread… we have a big bag of gluten in the kitchen ? (or did; perhaps he's thrown it away by now). Great stuff for texture… he's been experimenting with gluten-free baking while I'm away. The loaf he brought up for me to try when he visited wasn't too bad.

I'll mention psyllium to him.

[Beverage]

You should really read the newbie section in here. Contamination of cooking devices like bread makers is a real problem. Also if you have non-stick cooking pans or any cast iron (unless enamel coated like Le Creuset), they should be donated to somebody else, as they hold onto glutens of the past and are not safe for you.  I donated my panini maker and waffle iron and pasta maker and many other devices and pans to a local charity drive, so they at least went to a good purpose.  Also wooden cooking spoons.  Stainless cooking pans and implements without non-stick are ok, just give them a really good scrubbing and wash, of course with fresh sponges so that you aren't just putting the gluten back on them. 

[OrangesAndMelons]

UK guidelines seem to be a lot less strict… https://www.coeliac.org.uk/gluten-free-diet-and-lifestyle/recipe-database/cross-contamination/

These are all the kinds of things I'll be asking about at the education session if they're not covered.