Planning For Gluten Free Diet

[Swthrtpookie]

Hi I haven't been diagnosed celiac, but I am getting ready to try the gluten free diet if I don't get any answers soon. Luckily my husband is supportive and is going to try it with me. My problem is he packs his lunch and needs things he can just grab and eat while he is working. He also snacks all day so he packs a lot of stuff. Usually he packs two sandwiches but won't be able to do that cuz of the bread. We don't have good gluten free bread here and I'm not a baker. Also he usually eats granola bars, german chocolate cookies from little debbie, I think those are the only other things he won't be able to continue packing. His other snacks are string cheese and an apple. I'm sure the gluten free snacks won't be a problem. I just don't know what he should pack in place of the sandwich that would be easy to eat while he is driving or working. Thanks for any advice you can give!!

[johnsoniu]

Hi I haven't been diagnosed celiac, but I am getting ready to try the gluten free diet if I don't get any answers soon. Luckily my husband is supportive and is going to try it with me. My problem is he packs his lunch and needs things he can just grab and eat while he is working. He also snacks all day so he packs a lot of stuff. Usually he packs two sandwiches but won't be able to do that cuz of the bread. We don't have good gluten free bread here and I'm not a baker. Also he usually eats granola bars, german chocolate cookies from little debbie, I think those are the only other things he won't be able to continue packing. His other snacks are string cheese and an apple. I'm sure the gluten free snacks won't be a problem. I just don't know what he should pack in place of the sandwich that would be easy to eat while he is driving or working. Thanks for any advice you can give!!

Hello and welcome

You can try wrapping the sandwiches with lettuce( romaine works well) or in corn tortilla shells. The only problem with the tortillas is they are pretty stiff and need to be warmed up. I've done it both ways, and even unheated, they are edible.

Assuming you do have celiacs, you might consider investing in a bread machine. They aren't too expensive and you don't have to be Betty Crocker to make your own bread. Heck, I even figured out how to use one( under my wife's close supervision of course )

Good luck, hope you get things figured out and feeling better soon.

[RiceGuy]

Biscuits are easy to make, and work well for sandwiches. I'd like to think something like pancakes could work too, so that would be super easy and quick for a sandwich type thing.

I'm sure you'll get plenty of fine suggestions from the many helpful members here.

[simplicity66]

I can completely understand the "dine on a dash" i work 12hr shifts at a printing company and had to over come the question "what do i take for lunch?" my work schedule i do have half-hour for lunch but taking it is the problem....i have used tea biscuits for a "sandwich" and it works quite well....i think he being in a truck a "lettuce" type maybe to messy for him and he would only get frustrated..... more on his lap them in his mouth...LOL....i have thought of rice paper and making a spring roll type....havent tried it yet...beware though some rice paper have gluten in them...in canada i have came across a brand cant think of it right now though...a crepe ( thin pancake ) may be a good thing to try as well....

Tea Biscuit

8 cups gluten-free flour

3/4 cup powdered milk

1/4 cup baking powder

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 cup shortening/lard

blend these ingredients together....use 2 cups of batter and 1/2 to 3/4 cup milk and blend

drop onto cookie sheet ...bake at 400 for 12mins

gluten-free Flour

Rice flour 6 cups

Potato starch 2 cups

Tapioca flour 1 cup

This can be doubled as well and kept in a seal-tight container

I always make alot to keep on hand...sames time

Hope this is helpful to you...u think of any ideas please post them....

[Tritty]

I haven't tried it yet - but my nutritionist said that one of her patients uses waffles to make sandwiches! And to make mini-pizzas!

[hez]

Fresh fruit and vegies, gluten-free pretzels, gluten-free snack bars (lara bars, glutino fruit bars, bumble bars), gluten-free crackers and cheese, peanut butter gluten-free cracker "sandwhiches", nuts and chips.

It is a difficult mind set to work around not relying on sandwhiches. It takes thinking out of the box. Something I am not good at!

Hez

[Nantzie]

If you find that you do see improvement on the gluten-free diet, I'd say get yourself a breadmaker with a gluten-free setting. We have this breadmaker Open Original Shared Link and it is really easy.

We like Pamela's Wheat Free Bread Mix and use it for everything from toast to sandwiches to french toast. It's soft and bendy and works great for sandwiches. There are a few other bread mixes that are really popular here too. It's just a matter of finding something you like.

The three companies that make life easier for me are Kraft, Frito-Lay and McCormick. All of those companies will list any gluten (or any allergen for that matter) clearly and in plain English in their ingredient lists. You have to read the whole ingredient list, but if gluten isn't listed, it's safe.

It's surprising how many brands of products are actually made by Kraft - Open Original Shared Link .

Frito-Lay is another one of the big brands that sometimes you don't realize makes so many things - Open Original Shared Link If I'm in a pinch and need to eat, I can stop just about anywhere and grab a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos to get me through.

McCormick makes spices and seasonings, so you don't have to worry that they use gluten as a filler if it's not listed. I use their Original Taco seasoning and make taco meat for taco salad or regular tacos all the time. I just used their Enchilada sauce mix a couple days ago too.

Thai Kitchen also makes a lot of gluten-free stuff. They have some products that come in their own "just add water" containers, which would be nice to take to work. I always keep a couple of these in my car just in case.

Tinkyada pasta has also become very easy to find. Of the four mainstream grocery stores I go to frequently, only one doesn't carry it. It's usually in the health food section, or sometimes with the diabetic foods.

Just make sure you always, always, always read the ingredients on everything. Ingredients can change at any time and they don't usually announce the change. Apparently, up until a few years ago Kellogg's Corn Pops were gluten-free, then all of a sudden they weren't. Same thing happened with Trix. Not gluten-free for a long time, then gluten-free for about six months. Now they're not gluten-free again. Sigh...

For the sweet tooth, try some of the products from www.kinnikinnick.com . My favorite things from there are the chocolate donuts, the cinnamon rolls and the chocolate chip cookies.

Good luck on trying the diet. I pretty much did the same thing. My tests were borderline/negative, but I tried the gluten-free diet anyway. It totally changed my life. I've been gluten-free since Jan 06 and I've never felt better. I even had symptoms that I had since I was a young child that went away. It's always interesting to see how people improve.

If you don't improve on the gluten-free diet, keep trying other foods. Soy, dairy, corn, MSG, yeast, and several other things can cause problems for people. Also keep in mind that while some people see almost immediate improvement on the gluten-free diet, others don't see a change for months. There are a lot of people here who have additional food intolerances, and some who have found that something else other than gluten was causing their problems all along. You've found a very friendly and helpful group of people here.

I hope you feel better soon.

Nancy

[tarnalberry]

I generally take leftovers - and they don't always have to be reheated.

Fruit and veggies (more than one variety) often make it into my lunch as well, sometimes with hummus or bean dip.

Muffins (homemade) made a good snack on occasion as well, and rice cakes can be a good grab-n-go snack as well.

[ravenwoodglass]

I don't work so I don't have to worry about this but my DS calls almost every weekend so I can walk him through a recipe for something to cook to take for his lunches in a thermos. We do chili and various varities of stews. I like the hour long phone calls and he likes just being able to warm something up and having what he calls real, worry free lunches that the rest of the guys drool over.