Baking

[mpmarker]

hey everyone,

another question for you. I have celiac and my hubby and 2 steps at home don't. Can I still bake things for them that are not gluten free? And what is the thing about getting rid of teflon pans and cutting boards? I need to know, I may be sabotaging myself.

thanks, mp

[Ursa Major]

It would be better if you wouldn't bake things with flour in your kitchen. Some of the flour will definitely get into the air, and you will breathe it in. It will settle on your mucous membranes, and you will swallow it eventually, glutening yourself. NOBODY is allowed to bake with regular flour in my kitchen. In fact, gluten flour is banned from my house.

Gluten can hide in the scratches of old Teflon pots and pans, and you should therefore not use them for your gluten-free foods. The same goes for old wooden cutting boards and wooden cooking spoons.

Toasters can't be cleaned well enough to be safe for your gluten-free bread, and the same goes for plastic colanders. Gluten is VERY sticky (glue is much of the time made from gluten, even industrial strength glue), and you just can't get anything with little corners (like a plastic colander) clean enough to be safe for you to use.

You can bake great cookies, and even cakes and pancakes gluten-free, and I can guarantee you that most of the time those will taste every bit as good as the 'real' thing. Your family might not even notice the difference.

It would be counterproductive for you to cook two different suppers, one for yourself and one for your family. You will feel left out if you eat different food, not to mention wear yourself out with all that cooking.

Gravies can be thickened with cornstarch, arrowroot flour or light buckwheat flour (that's what I use, and nobody knows unless I tell them). Potatoes or rice, meat and vegetables are naturally gluten-free already. You can cook gluten-free pasta (Tinkyada is a good choice, but there are other brands I like out there), and it is just as good as wheat pasta.

I cooked lasagna with rice lasagna noodles last time we had the whole family for supper (including some pretty picky eaters), and everybody loved it. They didn't know it was gluten-free (I did tell the daughter with the wheat allergy, to let her know it was safe for her), and praised my excellent cooking.

[Lisa]

mp welcome:

You need to check out your Teflon pans and make sure that they are not scratched up, gluten can hide there waiting for you. I thew away all my wooden spoons and got metal or rubber and a wash in the dish washer cleans them well enough.

A separate toaster is a must. You can't clean out gluten crumbs from a shared toaster.

All my meals that I fix for my husband and family are gluten free. He has his cereals and he has his regular french bread and sandwich bread.

I am not a baker and have a few gluten free bread that I like. Kinnikinnick White Sandwich Bread and English Muffins satisfy my bread cravings and I have found them to be the best.

Many people here have a bread machine and have adapted recipes to make bread that the whole family can enjoy.

Preparing gluten free meal is not difficult at all. In fact, we eat so much better, healthier and with most taste. I'm one of the lucky ones, I never did like pasta.

Hope this was helpful

[CarlaB]

I'm one of the lucky ones, I never did like pasta.

I did, but I find that Tinkyada is as good as the real thing! I make it for my whole family, not just the gluten-free ones. It actually holds up better in recipes than regular pasta.

[Lisa]

I did, but I find that Tinkyada is as good as the real thing! I make it for my whole family, not just the gluten-free ones. It actually holds up better in recipes than regular pasta.

I think this is very strange. I never liked beer, pasta or breads (except for a few that had cheese and olives and other stuff). Eating pasta was like eating glue = flour and water

Another reason to listen to our bodies.

[CarlaB]

I think this is very strange. I never liked beer, pasta or breads (except for a few that had cheese and olives and other stuff). Eating pasta was like eating glue = flour and water

Another reason to listen to our bodies.

I never liked beer, but I did like pasta and bread ... until gluten-free bread, that is.