Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Those "top Secret Recipes" Books

Nantzie

Recommended Posts

Nantzie Collaborator
Nantzie
Posted

I was looking at my email and was checking out the email I got from Top Secret Recipes. I've been on their mailing list for years now. I've just never bothered with it because (pre-gluten-free) I always figured that it's easier and cheaper just to go buy the thing than to get all the ingredients to make it yourself.

But today, I realized that this is a PERFECT resource for us!!! A lot of stuff that we can't eat in restaurants is stuff that could easily be made gluten-free by substituting or omitting something (like the flour in Taco Bell's taco meat). Or there is so much potential for cross contamination in a restaurant that it's not even worth taking the risk (like KFC Coleslaw).

I went on the site - www.topsecretrecipes.com. They've got a recipes section, and have quite a few free recipes. If you want to buy one of the recipes that isn't free they're only 79 cents each. I think I'm going to just start collecting the books, but I'm going to try some of the free recipes for now. They even have comments for people who've tried the recipe and tweaked it to be even better or closer than Top Secret has it. For example, under the KFC Coleslaw comments, someone says to use Tarragon Vinegar rather than the white vinegar Top Secret calls for and even points out that KFC has it listed in their ingredients.

Here's some of the free recipes on the site that I'm going to try. I'm guessing a lot of the recipes that have flour in them could be made totally fine with cornstarch. My mom always used cornstarch instead of flour to make gravies and sauces. She said she used it because it didn't lump up like flour. Nobody ever knew the difference.

Taco Bell Soft Tacos - (I read in an excerpt of the book on amazon that Top Secret says that it's the same meat as in the crunchy tacos)

KFC Coleslaw and Potato Salad

French's Classic Yellow Mustard

Hostess Twinkie Creme Filling (for the kids... ;) )

Honey Maid Graham Crackers (really missing these - might be good made with Pamela's Baking Mix)

Nancy

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


angel-jd1 Community Regular
angel-jd1
Posted

I ran across the top secret site a few weeks ago. I was so excited. They have a big mac sauce on there. I made it then made myself a tasty big mac minus the bun. It was AWESOME!! It's a fun site that we can use to make some of the things we really miss. Thanks for bringing it up.

-Jessica :rolleyes:

Carriefaith Enthusiast
Carriefaith
Posted

Thanks for the link. I'll have to try some of those recipes!

chrissy Collaborator
chrissy
Posted

we used to own a KFC----i still make my coleslaw like i did back then---only we used red wine vinegar. i'm going to check this site out, sound fun!

christine

kathy1 Contributor
kathy1
Posted
we used to own a KFC----i still make my coleslaw like i did back then---only we used red wine vinegar. i'm going to check this site out, sound fun!

christine

Would you mind sharing the KFC coleslaw recipe?? it's one of husb favorites and we are not likely to be spending much time at KFC anymore!!

chrissy Collaborator
chrissy
Posted

i don't remember the amounts, only the main ingredients. the cabbage needs to be shredded, we used to run it through the shredder twice to get it small enough. i put it in my food processor now, a cheese shredder works pretty good too. the sauce is made with mayonaise, sugar, and red wine vinegar. don't put in too much vinegar to begin with, or you'll end up with a lot of sauce because you'll havae to keep adding mayo and sugar. sorry i don't have more exact proportions. i will have to see if i still have the ingredients listed somewhere for their potato salad sauce---it was pretty good, too.

christine

Rusla Enthusiast
Rusla
Posted
we used to own a KFC----i still make my coleslaw like i did back then---only we used red wine vinegar. i'm going to check this site out, sound fun!

christine

You wouldn't happen to have the old KFC Bean Salad recipes would you?

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


chrissy Collaborator
chrissy
Posted

i don't have the bean salad recipe----i loved that stuff. i think i have seen a recipe somewhere else for bean salad---maybe it was taste of home.

christine

  • 7 months later...
angel-jd1 Community Regular
angel-jd1
Posted

I was just visiting the top secret recipes site and thought I would bump this thread. For those of you who haven't visited the site it is sooooo cool. TONS of recipes for "restaurant" food that you can make at home. Many of the recipes on the site are free of charge. They add a new free recipe each week. Check it out for some fun cooking inspiration :)

-Jessica :rolleyes:

PS. The McD's big mac sauce is quite yummy for homemade big macs

2Boys4Me Enthusiast
2Boys4Me
Posted

I thought Big Mac sauce was Thousand Island salad dressing. I have never eaten a Big Mac in my life, but that's what the fellas put on if we're having homemade Macs.

Nancym Enthusiast
Nancym
Posted

I'd like to be able to replicate the stuff at Chipotle. :)

teebs in WV Apprentice
teebs in WV
Posted

Nantzie - Thanks for the wonderful idea. I have one or two of these cookbooks and it didn't occur to me to use these to take the place of some of the restaurant foods that I used to love. After reading this thread I immediately went to the website that you referenced and we had the Taco Bell meat filling for dinner that night. The recipe calls for flour but I substituted corn starch and it turned out alright. Instead of the soft flour tortillas I fried some corn tortillas that I had on hand and we had crunchy tacos.

Thanks again!

BFreeman Explorer
BFreeman
Posted
Nantzie - Thanks for the wonderful idea. I have one or two of these cookbooks and it didn't occur to me to use these to take the place of some of the restaurant foods that I used to love. After reading this thread I immediately went to the website that you referenced and we had the Taco Bell meat filling for dinner that night. The recipe calls for flour but I substituted corn starch and it turned out alright. Instead of the soft flour tortillas I fried some corn tortillas that I had on hand and we had crunchy tacos.

Thanks again!

Did you substitute the exact same amount of cornstarch? I thought when substituting you went for a 2:1 ratio. (If I make it I want it to turn out right.) :)

teebs in WV Apprentice
teebs in WV
Posted

I substituted the same amount and it was good. Let me know how it turns out if you try the other way.

happy4dolphins Enthusiast
happy4dolphins
Posted

Hello,

I tried to get on to www.topsecretrecipes.com and it keeps telling me to download the latest flash and I did, but still can't read that site. What else can I do to open it?

Nicole

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Join eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):



    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):



  • Recent Activity

    1. Jmartes71
      - Jmartes71 replied to Jmartes71's topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      3

      New issue

      Nope its just me because they can eat wheat and when we use same pans I found out last year thanks to you guys and the autoimmune website im learning,we are not to share though clean, same with sponge. I just wish doctors understood. I am with new gi and new pcp but im falling apart because blood work is fabulous.Im so ANGERY.I have reached out to my local...
    2. knitty kitty
      - knitty kitty replied to xxnonamexx's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      44

      My journey is it gluten or fiber?

      If you haven't noticed a difference yet, bump up your Thiamax. Add in another Thiamax with breakfast and lunch. Increase the NeuroMag as well. You can add in another Benfotiamine, too. Thiamine is safe and nontoxic even in high doses. Taking more is fine. I had to bump mine up several times when first starting. It's a matter of finding what...
    3. knitty kitty
      - knitty kitty replied to hjayne19's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      13

      Insomnia help

      Hello, @hjayne19, About half of the people with Celiac disease react to the protein Casein in dairy the same as to gluten with the inflammation and antibodies and all. Reacting to Casein is not the same as lactose intolerance nor a dairy allergy. Damaged villi are incapable of producing lactAse, the enzyme that digests lactOse, the sugar in dairy....
    4. trents
      - trents replied to hjayne19's topic in Post Diagnosis, Recovery & Treatment of Celiac Disease
      13

      Insomnia help

      You may be cross reacting to the protein "casein" in dairy, which is structurally similar to gluten. People assume lactose intolerance is the only problem with dairy. It is not, at least for the celiac community.
    5. Scott Adams
      0

      Can Your Gut Microbiome Predict Celiac Disease Years in Advance?

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):

  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      133,101
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Steve Olson
    Newest Member
    Steve Olson
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.5k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):

  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Jmartes71
      New issue

      By Jmartes71 · Posted

      Nope its just me because they can eat wheat and when we use same pans I found out last year thanks to you guys and the autoimmune website im learning,we are not to share though clean, same with sponge. I just wish doctors understood. I am with new gi and new pcp but im falling apart because blood work is fabulous.Im so ANGERY.I have reached out to my local representative, in Stanislaus but its just weekly stuff.Im going to need to physical go down there.Any recommendations on what to say and do because this is absolutely ridiculous. If I didn't have my husband though we are really hurting with one income, I would absolutely be one of the homeless population. Thats alarming begging to be heard about a diagnosis that was given as an adult and dealing with this, medical needs to stick to patients regardless of switching insurance or doctor. 
    • knitty kitty
      My journey is it gluten or fiber?

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      If you haven't noticed a difference yet, bump up your Thiamax.  Add in another Thiamax with breakfast and lunch.  Increase the NeuroMag as well.  You can add in another Benfotiamine, too.   Thiamine is safe and nontoxic even in high doses.  Taking more is fine. I had to bump mine up several times when first starting.  It's a matter of finding what works for you.  Everyone is different.   Stick with it.  Some of the health improvements are very subtle and gradual.   Keep going!  You're doing great!
    • knitty kitty
      Insomnia help

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      Hello, @hjayne19, About half of the people with Celiac disease react to the protein Casein in dairy the same as to gluten with the inflammation and antibodies and all.  Reacting to Casein is not the same as lactose intolerance nor a dairy allergy.  Damaged villi are incapable of producing lactAse, the enzyme that digests lactOse, the sugar in dairy.  When the villi grow back, the villi can resume making lactase again.  I react to casein. Keep in mind that part of the autoimmune response to gluten and casein is the release of histamine.  Histamine causes inflammation, but it is also powerful excitory neurotransmitter, causing heightened mental alertness.  Histamine release is what causes us to wake up in the morning.  Unfortunately, excessive histamine can cause insomnia.  Our bodies can make histamine, but foods we eat contain different amounts of histamine, too.  Our bodies can clear a certain amount of histamine, but if overwhelmed, chronic high histamine levels can keep inflammation going and cause other health problems.   I got very weary of playing Sherlock Holmes trying to deduce what I was reacting to this week, so I adopted the low histamine version of the Autoimmune Protocol diet, a Paleo diet designed by a doctor with Celiac, Dr. Sarah Ballantyne.  Her book, The Paleo Approach, has been most helpful.   The low histamine AIP diet cuts out lots of foods that are known to be irritating to the digestive tract.  After a few weeks, when my system was calmer and healing, I could try adding other foods to my diet.  It was much easier starting with safe foods, adding one thing at a time, and checking for reactions than trying to figure out what I was reacting to with so many variables.  I learned to recognize when I had consumed too much histamine from different combinations of foods.  Everyone is different and can tolerate different amounts of histamine in their food.  B Vitamins help us make enzymes that break down histamine.  Vitamin D helps regulate and calm the immune system.  Supplementing with Thiamine helps prevent mast cells from releasing histamine.  Keeping a food-mood-poo'd journal helps identify problematic foods.   I hope you will consider trying the AIP diet.
    • trents
      Insomnia help

      By trents · Posted

      You may be cross reacting to the protein "casein" in dairy, which is structurally similar to gluten. People assume lactose intolerance is the only problem with dairy. It is not, at least for the celiac community.
    • hjayne19
      Insomnia help

      By hjayne19 · Posted

      Hi @knitty kitty  Just revisiting this to get some help. I found after understanding the extent of my anxiety, my sleep got a little better. Flash forward to a few weeks later I have had a few bad sleeps in a row and I feel desperate for a good nights sleep. I understand worrying about it won’t help but one thing I had tied things too was dairy. Initially when I went gluten free I felt great for the first few weeks then started having some stomach pain. So thought maybe I was lactose intolerant. I started eating lactose free Greek yogurt and that did help take the cramping away I guess. Over the last few months I haven’t eaten it every single day and I went a few weeks without it. The last few nights I did have a small amount with breakfast and noticed that was the only new thing I’ve really added to my diet. I had seen a few other posts about this. Is it possible to still react to lactose free? Would this potentially be a dairy allergy? Or something else. 
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.