Australians And New Zealanders Hellooooooo :)

[nutralady2001]

OK have heard back from my friend she suggests the "Country Life" Gluten free bread the "LOW GI" one (it is marked on the packet as low GI ) and is sold in Woolworths/Safeways (I have seen it in Coles as well) ...........hope that helps!

[Jessica's Grandmother]

Nutralady, Thank you for getting in touch with lady on the other forum. Jessica has had the bread and doesn

[georgie]

Does anyone know of a gluten-free sponge cake or gluten-free Ladyfinger sponge fingers you can buy? I want to make Tiramisu for Xmas ....

[nutralady2001]

Does anyone know of a gluten-free sponge cake or gluten-free Ladyfinger sponge fingers you can buy? I want to make Tiramisu for Xmas ....

Georgie what about a Basco cake mix and making the sponge cake yourself? I'm sure they have sponge am going to Woollies today will check for you

[georgie]

Georgie what about a Basco cake mix and making the sponge cake yourself? I'm sure they have sponge am going to Woollies today will check for you

Thats an idea...Yuk ...baking I have the cake tins already - sort of a mini slice/finger shape in silicone cookware. Any ideas on how to get the correct taste - its not quite like a sponge. Do they have almond meal in them? I will go to check what is in them and try to get a sponge cake to taste the same...

Found it ! Its on the site.

https://www.celiac.com/index.php?showtopic=11174

[nutralady2001]

Thats an idea...Yuk ...baking I have the cake tins already - sort of a mini slice/finger shape in silicone cookware. Any ideas on how to get the correct taste - its not quite like a sponge. Do they have almond meal in them? I will go to check what is in them and try to get a sponge cake to taste the same...

Found it ! Its on the site.

https://www.celiac.com/index.php?showtopic=11174

It looks like a great recipe!! Might try it myself for Christmas

[Dyna]

Hello from Oregon, USA. Just returned from my first trip downunder. Toured both Islands of New Zealand. What a wonderful surprise to find gluten-free menus in nearly all restaurants, both large and small, even in those fast foodie places at the gas fill-up the auto places. Amazing! That is not the case here in Oregon, or indeed the USA.

While in NZ we found a wonderful gluten-free soda pop. It was a GINGER BEER, the name starts with an A, think it originaled in Austraila, most delicious and not found everywhere. When we found some in south island, NZ, we would buy a cooler-full and drink it all day while driving. I was especially pleased that it came in diet style, also. I am an extremely sensitized Celiac, diagnosed in 1995 after 19 years of dashing to the throne room 8 to 20 times per day. I am a diet controlled Celiac, with 58 family members both alive and deceased, with this condition. I now, also have become diabetic, the challenge continues.

Due to my research, many local doctors consult with me and request that I mentor their patients. I can only make suggestions and offer encouragement, of course, not being a professional. I have relatives who are in denial, big time.

About alcoholic beverages----as I understand it, those liquors with flavorings are not for us, Celiacs. We can have tequilla, rum, potato vodka, and gin. I make my own coffee flavored liquor from vodka and coffee beans. Then cook with it. Have many great recipes. Wine only if it is not fortified.

Pasta---the greatest product I have found is Quinoa, which comes in many forms, will not clump us like rice pasta does and does not break apart as corn pasta does. They flavor and texture is better in my opinion then wheat pasta. It gently absorbs the sauce. Left-overs keep well!

Ready made sweets----Hershey candy bars are gluten-free They do not use flour on the conveyor belts in manufacturing. They use cocoa powder on the belt. These bars, plus nuts go into my emergency pouch when I leave home, even for a few hours.

Now that I am on the gluten-free diet, I find I am lactose tolerant. However, there are those dairy products that do contain gluten, as in many brands of sour cream, cottage cheese, ice cream and even yogurt, so do watch your products. I find shopping takes 6 times longer when reading labels. Also be aware that products can sometimes change before they correct the labels.

The world is becoming more and more aware of the Celiac condition, what a fortunate happen-stance.

Every day is an adventure!

Dyna

Allergic to soy, peanuts and almonds, as well as, perfumes

Have PMR for the past 10 years which put me in a wheelchair for 6 years. Now,

being on my feet with a cane I am able to walk 2 to 4 miles a day. I am back to being a world traveler. It has been a bit of a challenge. But, I am game! I do believe the PMR is an off-shoot from being Gluten Intolerant, but one can never really know.

[Joss]

Hi All! About the avatars, if you like them just right click on them and "save picture" in your photos then you can change them whenever the fancy takes you.

Jessica's grandmother, yes I was thinking that juvenile diabeties is a far more serious disease than type 2. Give her a big cuddle from me please.

I am a lifelong asthmatic and I control this condition by keeping to a restricted diet. I have allergies to animal dander, linseed oil, pine trees, fish as well as being casein and gluten intolerant. I too have gained weight since going gluten-free. I want to know how my bone density and feritin levels are going? Hopefully they are improving everyday. Now I have nice poops and I am amazed that they are not as sticky/sandy as they used to be. I am thinking I might do another gluten challenge because my doctor still wants to test me. I am also thinking about visiting an allergist. I drink soy milk and enjoy it, so I would be devestated if it turned out that I had allergies to that too. I am also vegan by choice, so my diet is kind of restricted. I am suspicious of the nightshade family too and I cannot seem to digest nuts at all. Maybe it will improve when I am a bit further along with my gluten-free diet.

Someone asked if they got flack from their family/support group. My daughter is totally disbelieving and has accused me of developing diseases from what I have read on the net. She thinks she is the only one who has any right to be sick. She is stuck in a whellchair and is fast becoming a pain. The last time I saw her she said that "it was scientifically proven that burping and pain was caused by the way one ate their foods and nothing more". I hate to say this, but if she is ever diagnosed with celiac disease, then she will suddenly change her mind and expect everyone to run around after "poor her".

I rarely eat special celiac foods and I don't even eat gluten-free bread these days. I love fruit and vegetables and occasionally I will eat some brown rice too. I think I can eat good quality oats, but I will see how good I am when I stop eating them over summer. I suspect that I will be much improved. but I am still hanging on to them.

I will go and hassle my doctor and start mentioning the S word if she doesn't recognise the validity of the positive testing that was carried out in 2001. She will only believe what she sees for herself.

Anyway enough of my rambling. I hope everyone has a great weekend and I look forward to catching up with your news soon.

Joss

[georgie]

Someone asked if they got flack from their family/support group. My daughter is totally disbelieving and has accused me of developing diseases from what I have read on the net.

Absolutely ! I get the feeling my family are all saying 'there she goes again' .... I am dreading this Christmas. The family are planning to have it at my brothers place and their kitchen would have huge cc issues. We will all take some food anyway - so will have to discreetly take 'my' gluten-free food and sort of mingle without making a fuss or a statement or else I will never hear the end of it

I will do the salads ...does anyone know of good gluten-free ready made mayonaisses, salad dressing etc that are regularly available on the supermarket shelf? Is there a brand that is safe?

Thanks Dyna for your finds and glad you had a good trip downunder. Fantastic that your PMR has improved enough for you to travel. Do you think it was going gluten-free that did that ? I have several autoimmune diseases and I firmly believe that my undiagnosed Celiac was the trigger. I use a cane now too for walking but that is due to permanent damage caused by the late diagnosis of my low B12/ PA condition which led to sub acute combined degeneration of the spinal column. I hope to travel again one day and your story is inspirational.

Has anyone been to the Sydney gluten-free Expo yet ???

[nutralady2001]

Have found a website that makes skin care/laundry/shower/personal care products

Open Original Shared Link

They list their ingredients and although it doesn't mention any gluten in them I emailed them to make sure

I got a reply a nano-second later saying all their products are gluten free, looks like they are based in Qld going by the time stamp on the email they sent back

[nzgirl]

Absolutely ! I get the feeling my family are all saying 'there she goes again' .... I am dreading this Christmas. The family are planning to have it at my brothers place and their kitchen would have huge cc issues. We will all take some food anyway - so will have to discreetly take 'my' gluten-free food and sort of mingle without making a fuss or a statement or else I will never hear the end of it

I will do the salads ...does anyone know of good gluten-free ready made mayonaisses, salad dressing etc that are regularly available on the supermarket shelf? Is there a brand that is safe?

Hey

My mum came up with an idea that the family organises a menu then sends it to me and I check to see if I can eat most of the stuff. Then I can make a few changes and know what to eat and what not to. My family is really understanding but I can still see cc happening. Another thought is to ensure there is a different spoon for each bowl.

I was at a local organic shop that also sells gluten free foods and found Spectrum Naturals Organic Mayonnaise. It is imported from the USA and is gluten free. You might not get it in OZ but its worth looking for cos it actually tastes like really mayonnaise not that fake stuff you get in the supermarket!

Hope this helps!

Alena

[georgie]

Have found a website that makes skin care/laundry/shower/personal care products

Open Original Shared Link

They list their ingredients and although it doesn't mention any gluten in them I emailed them to make sure

I got a reply a nano-second later saying all their products are gluten free, looks like they are based in Qld going by the time stamp on the email they sent back

I have just received the talc, deoderant and shampoos from this range. I haven't tried them all yet but can report that the talcs and deod seem excellent !

Alena, Your family must be great to be that supportive. I will check out the shops for that mayonnaise.

[georgie]

I have just received the talc, deoderant and shampoos from this range. I haven't tried them all yet but can report that the talcs and deod seem excellent !

Happy to report that this deoderant , talc and shampoo is the best 'natural' range I have ever tried ! The deoderant is aluminium free as well as gluten-free and works brilliantly - and believe me - I have tried other 'natural' ones that have not worked at all for me.

[hathor]

Hi, I haven't read through this entire thread yet, though I will. What prompts me to come here is that my husband has talked for decades about wanting to see Australia and New Zealand, but we haven't been able to because he gets only two weeks vacation time and he thinks it would take way longer than that.

He is retiring effective March 1 of next year and I found a four week vacation package that looks ideal for what he would want to see. I can tell he likes it but he is concerned I won't be able to find anything to eat. (A river cruise in Europe last summer was problemmatic -- they could handle gluten-free, they could handle vegetarian: they couldn't handle the two things together and vegan threw them for a complete loop.)

I don't want to be stuck at home worried about food. So how easy would it be to find gluten-free, soy-free, vegan food over there? I'm pretty flexible -- a baked potato or some rice, some veggies, fruit, perhaps supplemented with gluten-free bread, etc. bought at local stores, and I would be happy. Like I said, I don't want to avoid traveling, one thing we're really looking forward to in retirement, just because food might be a challenge. I'll even eat fish in a pinch, what I had to do last vacation to avoid starvation. What is the general awareness level of restaurants as to what gluten is? Can I find gluten-free fare in local stores? How hard is it to stick to a plant-based diet there?

This is where that particular tour goes:

Open Original Shared Link

Thanks for any insight you folks can provide ...

[Mango04]

This is where that particular tour goes:

Open Original Shared Link

Thanks for any insight you folks can provide ...

I've been to some of those places and I don't think you'll have a problem (I'm soy, dairy and gluten-free, and not vegan, but I eat like a vegan most of the time when I travel). I can come back and give you a list of restaurants where you can get vegan, gluten-free food (I know Sydney the best, but also know of some places in Melbourne and Cairns), if that helps.

Here are a couple I can think of right away, to give you an idea of what kinds of options there are:

Open Original Shared Link

Open Original Shared Link

If you're willing to stick to simple stuff, like you mentioned, you won't have a problem at all. There are small health food stores in many locations (nothing big, like Whole Foods), but they have everything you'd need. The big grocery stores, Woolworths and Coles, usually have natural sections where you can get plenty of stuff including fruit, veggies, beans, gluten-free pasta etc. Organ is everywhere and has many vegan options (for crackers, cookies etc) as well.

[Shiba]

Hi, I haven't read through this entire thread yet, though I will. What prompts me to come here is that my husband has talked for decades about wanting to see Australia and New Zealand, but we haven't been able to because he gets only two weeks vacation time and he thinks it would take way longer than that.

He is retiring effective March 1 of next year and I found a four week vacation package that looks ideal for what he would want to see. I can tell he likes it but he is concerned I won't be able to find anything to eat. (A river cruise in Europe last summer was problemmatic -- they could handle gluten-free, they could handle vegetarian: they couldn't handle the two things together and vegan threw them for a complete loop.)

I don't want to be stuck at home worried about food. So how easy would it be to find gluten-free, soy-free, vegan food over there? I'm pretty flexible -- a baked potato or some rice, some veggies, fruit, perhaps supplemented with gluten-free bread, etc. bought at local stores, and I would be happy. Like I said, I don't want to avoid traveling, one thing we're really looking forward to in retirement, just because food might be a challenge. I'll even eat fish in a pinch, what I had to do last vacation to avoid starvation. What is the general awareness level of restaurants as to what gluten is? Can I find gluten-free fare in local stores? How hard is it to stick to a plant-based diet there?

This is where that particular tour goes:

Open Original Shared Link

Thanks for any insight you folks can provide ...

Even the supermarkets here have plenty of gluten-free etc foods.

The good health food stores have freezers stocked with goodies that are gluten-free, dairy free, etc etc.

The big towns like Alice have full on major supermarkets, the smaller towns aren't so good, but in desperate times my husband has grabbed a bag of plain fries - potatoes, salt and vegetable oil. And there are always heaps of fresh vegies and fruit. The Barossa also has some amazing dried fruit on offer.

The Barossa has plenty of places that have gluten-free options.

Breakfast can be a hassle, but you could always carry some of your own food and restock as necessary.

If you were on a tour to more remote places, then you would need to carry a lot of your own food, but that itinerary looks fine.

Most restaurants here will do a specail gluten-free etc meal if they have advance warning. And nearly all of them offer a vegetarian option as part of the standard menu.

Hope this helps - your tour looks very full on, specially for the Australian part.

[hathor]

Thanks! This is exciting news. My husband will be glad to hear of it too. I am saving all suggestions.

I'm not quite sure when we would go yet. I'm obviously at the very beginning of planning. Is there a particular time of year you all would suggest?

[nutralady2001]

If you are going to the Alice/NT definitely the "dry" season..........June-October......can push it to May-November but might strike a bit either end and that would apply to Cairns/top end of Qld as well

[Saz]

Has anyone tired the new berry biscuits from freedom foods? They are only available at Woolworths aprantly but sound like they'd be tasty

I found hot dog buns at an IGA the other day! They are made by Golden hearth. It cost me about $10.50, to expensive to have all the time but I just had to try them - They were quite nice.

Also I recently tired the IGA gluten-free carrot cake, it was delicious, again rather expensive but I rekon u could take to a function or somthing and the gluten eaters would enjoy it. I want to try the chocolate one next.

Also does anyone know of any of the pre mixed alcoholic drinks we can have? Eg: Midori, Breezer etc?

[Saz]

Has anyone tired the new berry biscuits from freedom foods? They are only available at Woolworths aprantly but sound like they'd be tasty

I found hot dog buns at an IGA the other day! They are made by Golden hearth. It cost me about $10.50, to expensive to have all the time but I just had to try them - They were quite nice.

Also I recently tired the IGA gluten-free carrot cake, it was delicious, again rather expensive but I rekon u could take to a function or somthing and the gluten eaters would enjoy it. I want to try the chocolate one next.

Also does anyone know of any of the pre mixed alcoholic drinks we can have? Eg: Midori, Breezer etc?

[georgie]

Hi, I haven't read through this entire thread yet, though I will. What prompts me to come here is that my husband has talked for decades about wanting to see Australia and New Zealand, but we haven't been able to because he gets only two weeks vacation time and he thinks it would take way longer than that.

He is retiring effective March 1 of next year and I found a four week vacation package that looks ideal for what he would want to see. I can tell he likes it but he is concerned I won't be able to find anything to eat. (A river cruise in Europe last summer was problemmatic -- they could handle gluten-free, they could handle vegetarian: they couldn't handle the two things together and vegan threw them for a complete loop.)

I don't want to be stuck at home worried about food. So how easy would it be to find gluten-free, soy-free, vegan food over there? I'm pretty flexible -- a baked potato or some rice, some veggies, fruit, perhaps supplemented with gluten-free bread, etc. bought at local stores, and I would be happy. Like I said, I don't want to avoid traveling, one thing we're really looking forward to in retirement, just because food might be a challenge. I'll even eat fish in a pinch, what I had to do last vacation to avoid starvation. What is the general awareness level of restaurants as to what gluten is? Can I find gluten-free fare in local stores? How hard is it to stick to a plant-based diet there?

This is where that particular tour goes:

Open Original Shared Link

Thanks for any insight you folks can provide ...

Wow - thats a lot of travelling ! Have you contacted the tour operators to ask re gluten-free food ? You will be on a train quite a bit - and need to know if it serves gluten-free food. Or this link may take you to the train company where you can ask Open Original Shared Link

This link shows places to eat in Australia and NZ that are gluten-free. Most places now have vegetarian choices as well. Open Original Shared Link

Most supermarkets have a health food section now and gluten-free food. One thing to consider is the heat - and storage of foods that you are carrying. A cool pack may be needed with a frozen chill container. All food is strictly labelled for ingredients. The best time to travel would be the winter/dry time of year for the Cairns and Alice sections. That is June/ July. Weather is usually mild - even in Winter in the southern states - and probably just a rain jacket needed and layered clothing. Best wishes for your travel!

[hathor]

Thanks for the links, georgie.

I've told my husband about all the information I'm getting and he said he was amazed by how people were going out of their way to help. I keep telling him that this is how this board works -- and why I spend so much time here

[pickles1]

Has anyone tired the new berry biscuits from freedom foods? They are only available at Woolworths aprantly but sound like they'd be tasty

I found hot dog buns at an IGA the other day! They are made by Golden hearth. It cost me about $10.50, to expensive to have all the time but I just had to try them - They were quite nice.

Also I recently tired the IGA gluten-free carrot cake, it was delicious, again rather expensive but I rekon u could take to a function or somthing and the gluten eaters would enjoy it. I want to try the chocolate one next.

Also does anyone know of any of the pre mixed alcoholic drinks we can have? Eg: Midori, Breezer etc?

I'm not sure on Midori or Breezer pre-mixes, but I know we can have Smirnoff Ices and Lemon Ruskis

Is anyone here from Perth or WA?

[nutralady2001]

I bought some hamburger buns (Country Life?) Anyway I toasted them they were good added tomato and cheese and put under the grill

Not too fond of the gluten-free bread was a white bread addict so I usually toast it, the Country Life fruit loaf is yummy

Does anyone make their own bread? If so what breadmaker if you use one /mix do you use? How does it compare to store bought gluten-free bread ?

[georgie]

Does anyone make their own bread? If so what breadmaker if you use one /mix do you use? How does it compare to store bought gluten-free bread ?

My friend does for her daughter. I can find out the brand of breadmaker for you. It is the one recommended by the Coeliac Society. Don't do what I did and just buy any brand .... it didn't work at all.