Drooling Over Gluten

[someday]

OK, so my ever thoughtful husband agreed for us to go to his mother's house for dinner. The last time, I was sick in bed for days. So this time, I told her sorry, I would bring my own little micro meal since I am a teacher and CAN NOT be sick this week. She wasn't happy that I wouldn't trust her, but life goes on. When we drive ALL the way to her house (really only 20 mintues) her power is out and I end up sitting and watching everyone eat. Still no biggie, better than being sick. Then the kicker... My brother-in-law made a cheescake (Oh man I can remember that taste!) for dessert. I of course can't have any, but I don't complain when everyone else eats my favorite dessert in front of me. THEN, my husband asks if he can take some home. I mean, come on! Aren't we going a little far now??? So as I come home at lunch to grab my quick baked potato gluten free lunch, I actually had to move that delicious looking cheesecake covered in chocolate out of my way! AAAAAGGGHHH! I actually started trying to figure out how I could call in sick tomorrow just so I could eat it! But, luckily, I pulled it together and ate my good ol' potato. Then I threatened hubby to never do this again and that if it was still there tomorrow it was going in the garbage! Am I asking to much here???

Thanks for listening to me vent! I feel much better already!

(Still a little hungry for cheescake though)

Rachel

[gfpaperdoll]

No you are not asking too much !!!! Hubby was very inconsiderate to bring it home & OMG covered in chocolate. I cannot eat chocolate now & it is awful... He should have at least taken it with him to work... I would have thrown it out at lunch time - but then again I have a quick temper for stuff like that... He was not very thoughtful towards you but I think you were very thoughtful in not trashing it.

BTW, if I had arrived & not lights I would have gotten in the car & driven somewhere to eat & left hubby there. NO ONE should sit there & watch other inconsiderate people eat. I would have at least gone to a movie or something, anything. Someone could have dropped hubby back home. But I would have made my polite greetings & mumbled an apology about my weak nature when it comes to delicious homemade food and exited. Really no one should put up with abuse of that kind. There are options take them...

[ElenaDragon]

I understand completely. I have trouble even walking into anywhere that smells like fresh bread (like a deli). It can be really tough watching other people eat something that looks soooo good. The fact that I can't eat some things just makes me want them more! Luckily my husband tries to be supportive and sympathetic and doesn't torture me with what he eats. He'll jokingly pretend something he's eating tastes terrible. It's still rough though.

I have started to do more cooking/baking for myself and finding good substitutions. Maybe you could make a gluten free cheesecake for yourself? I don't do dairy, so cheesecake is out for me, but I have been trying out recipes made with pudding and gelatin - not quite cheesecake, but they are yummy and much healthier.

[GFDahlia]

OH my gawd - I totally know this feeling!!!!!!! You are not overreacting. I am from a huge Italian family....all about the bread and pasta! You would think that I was killing the Pope because I can't have either when I visit. They will get over it. But, I know I drool too!!!! I also can't have refined sugars so even the deserts without crust kill me!!!!!

Hang in there and stay strong sister!!

Dahlia

[hathor]

I faced a similar temptation at Thanksgiving and ate the cheesecake. I was sick for a week. The up side is that I will NEVER be tempted by it again I wish I could transfer that experience to your mind -- that cheesecake could sit there in your fridge for a week without a single tempting thought in your mind.

[imsohungry]

I'm so sorry you couldn't enjoy the cheesecake...like others have said, it takes a lot of willpower to avoid our "old favorites." I get very sick after eating gluten, but I still have the temptation to eat it.

Here is a thought...it may not help, but I'm gonna toss it out there anyway.

I purchased inexpensive pie/cake/food covers. The covers I bought were meant to keep food from popping everywhere in the microwave. They were dirt-cheap, and I can't see through them. These covers don't latch on to anything...it's more like a round tent (they just sit over the plate). When my hubby has something yummy that I can't eat, I simply put one of these tinted plate covers over it! I also push it behind other food in the fridge/freezer so that I don't have to look at it everytime I open the refridgerator.

Obviously, this isn't gonna solve your (or my) cheesecake or other gluten food craving. But it's a cheap and helpful solution to avoid having the food right in front of us!

Hope this is helpful. Take care. -Julie

[JNBunnie1]

You could also make your own crustless cheesecake, it would be much easier and faster than figuring out a good gluten free crust. Maybe make a bunch of mini ones and freeze them so you can have one when you're tempted by everyone else's food? And so hubby doesnt feel the need to bring things home that you can't have? I'm in hathor's boat, I get so bloody sick that I'm not even tempted by the gluteny stuff anymore.

[NoGluGirl]

Dear Rachel,

My relatives are very inconsiderate, too! My parents often get Chinese takeout, and it always makes me want to cry. I also miss cheesecake, because I am also lactose intolerant. However, I could get some Lactaid. My father says it is too expensive, and that is crap. I am freakin' getting some! He sits there and eats pie, cookies, cake, and everything else in front of me.

The good thing is, most of the recipe my great-grandmother used is gluten-free. The only thing I need to replace is the graham cracker crust. There are gluten-free graham crackers. Grandma J's recipe was:

1 pkg. Lemon Jell-O, dissolved in water according to package directions

2 8 oz. packages Kraft Philadelphia Cream Cheese

3 Tablespoons Lemon Juice

1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk such as Nestle

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup sugar

Basically, you just dissolve the Jell-O. Next, you set it aside temporarily while in another saucepan, melt the cream cheese into the condensed milk, sugar, and add the lemon juice and vanilla as well. Next, you combine it with the lemon gelatin.

You then set that aside for a minute to take the gluten-free graham cracker crumbs (I think the Gluten-Free Mall has them) which is about 2 cups, and combine it with 1/2 cup butter or margarine and pat down in the bottom of a 9 X 13 X 2 pan. Reserve about 1/4 a cup of the crumbs to sprinkle on the top. Now, pour the cream cheese mixture into the pan on top of the crust. Sprinkle remaining crumbs on top. Refrigerate for at least several hours before serving. Usually, it is best when chilled overnight. This is the best cheesecake ever!

Sincerely,

NoGluGirl

[sickchick]

Here I made this yesterday!

I have been experimenting!

Lemon Mascarpone Tart with Almond Crust

(If you don't want to make a crust you can get some gluten free shortbread cookies and smash them up and add butter I think like you would with graham cracker crumbs...)

For one 9-inch tart pan

1 cup almond meal

[NoGluGirl]

Dear sickchick,

That sounds delicious! I put that in my gluten-free food file. Is mascarpone low in lactose? I do not tolerate it well. I am going to get some Lactaid to use sparingly. It would be nice to eat ice cream once in a great while. This tart sounds like it is company special!

Sincerely,

NoGluGirl

[tarnalberry]

Ok, I'll be the dissenter and say that I think you are overreacting. Each of us having celiac disease shouldn't mean that our friends and family shouldn't have their favorites, even bringing them home, unless you have a *STRICT* "no gluten in the house at all" policy. of course, if it's only been a few weeks you've been on the diet, it would be considerate to practice some abstention, but I wouldn't even say it's a hard and fast rule.

Talk to him, in a friendly way, about how you want to deal with future incidents and come to an agreement you can both live with in such a way that you both understand how each other feels about the issue.

[sickchick]

Dear sickchick,

That sounds delicious! I put that in my gluten-free food file. Is mascarpone low in lactose? I do not tolerate it well. I am going to get some Lactaid to use sparingly. It would be nice to eat ice cream once in a great while. This tart sounds like it is company special!

Sincerely,

NoGluGirl

Hey Doll, I am checking that out for you right now

Kay Mozzarella, Ricotta and Mascarpone have the highest levels of Lactose.

NOOOO!!!

You can use Cream Cheese if you can toletate that?

lovelove

[NoGluGirl]

Dear sickchick,

Thank you for checking that out for me! That is all the more reason to get some Lactaid! I will have these things often, but it would be nice on rare occasions. I can tolerate cream cheese. I ate skim mozzerella from Kraft before and did alright, but it had 0g lactose on the package. Unfortunately, it also had yeast added to it. Since I have Candida, that really complicates things! They sure sneak it into a lot!

Sincerely,

NoGluGirl

[sickchick]

Ack! I have Candida too!

I only "cheat" on Sunday.. the rest of the week I have to watch myself or I pay the price for it.

Hope you can try it GluGirl!

lovelove

[Mango04]

Bringing your own meal in that situation can be a good idea, but you might avoid such disapointment if instead you make one or two really great gluten-free dishes that you can bring and share with everyone. I especially like to bring desserts. It makes me feel included and shows people that my gluten-free diet isn't all that weird.

Watching people eat things you can't have doesn't have to be a big deal if you know you're not deprived of great food (which you're not on a gluten-free diet).

You should make yourself a gluten-free cheesecake

[NoGluGirl]

Dear sickchick,

The Candida has been really messing up my system. Killing it off is hard. I cannot limit my carbs due to low blood sugar. They say you need to limit your carb intake to between 60 and 80 grams a day. That is just not doable.

I am trying to cut out sugar. It is not easy. I desperately want to stop eating it, but my body particularly craves chocolate. I have been so ill, that it is difficult to get through a day at times. Chocolate has magnesium, and someone suggested that could the trouble. I might be deficient in a number of things.

Dear Mango,

I agree that it really helps to have your own tasty stuff. I do that, too. I do not let others rain in my parade if I can help it. My father even thought some of my gluten-free cookies were the best I ever made! I had my own recipes before going gluten-free. So, I just adapted them.

Sincerely,

NoGluGirl

[Guest Happynwgal2]

I'm so sorry you couldn't enjoy the cheesecake...like others have said, it takes a lot of willpower to avoid our "old favorites." I get very sick after eating gluten, but I still have the temptation to eat it.

Here is a thought...it may not help, but I'm gonna toss it out there anyway.

I purchased inexpensive pie/cake/food covers. The covers I bought were meant to keep food from popping everywhere in the microwave. They were dirt-cheap, and I can't see through them. These covers don't latch on to anything...it's more like a round tent (they just sit over the plate). When my hubby has something yummy that I can't eat, I simply put one of these tinted plate covers over it! I also push it behind other food in the fridge/freezer so that I don't have to look at it everytime I open the refridgerator.

Obviously, this isn't gonna solve your (or my) cheesecake or other gluten food craving. But it's a cheap and helpful solution to avoid having the food right in front of us!

Hope this is helpful. Take care. -Julie

I like your solution!!!! Where did you get those plate covers, by the way????

[Guest Happynwgal2]

OK, so my ever thoughtful husband agreed for us to go to his mother's house for dinner. The last time, I was sick in bed for days. So this time, I told her sorry, I would bring my own little micro meal since I am a teacher and CAN NOT be sick this week. She wasn't happy that I wouldn't trust her, but life goes on. When we drive ALL the way to her house (really only 20 mintues) her power is out and I end up sitting and watching everyone eat. Still no biggie, better than being sick. Then the kicker... My brother-in-law made a cheescake (Oh man I can remember that taste!) for dessert. I of course can't have any, but I don't complain when everyone else eats my favorite dessert in front of me. THEN, my husband asks if he can take some home. I mean, come on! Aren't we going a little far now??? So as I come home at lunch to grab my quick baked potato gluten free lunch, I actually had to move that delicious looking cheesecake covered in chocolate out of my way! AAAAAGGGHHH! I actually started trying to figure out how I could call in sick tomorrow just so I could eat it! But, luckily, I pulled it together and ate my good ol' potato. Then I threatened hubby to never do this again and that if it was still there tomorrow it was going in the garbage! Am I asking to much here???

Thanks for listening to me vent! I feel much better already!

(Still a little hungry for cheescake though)

Rachel

Hi Rachel,

That's one of the things that is so cool about this message board: you can get your frustrations out, and be understood!!!! That is SO important!

Perhaps you should ask your husband (and mother-in-law???) to eat something that will make him (her) very sick once: say, something turned green in the back corner of the fridge that is ready to walk off by itself...

The pain would be very similar to what I have felt a thousand times when eating gluten before I knew I was a Celiac...

I am sure your husband (mother-in-law) is a good man (woman), but even good men (women) have their faults....

I LOVE cheesecake... sigh... I love good cakes... My oldest daughter is 25, and she loves to cook. She and my 5 year old granddaughter has had to start eating gluten free, and my daughter is going to wonderful extremes with cooking.... I LOVE IT. I never liked to cook, because whatever I cooked I would get sick from. So now, especially when I need a good cake, I ask my firstborn! Smart mom, huh??? (That's her with her brother on my picture...)

On this coming Friday I am becoming a citizen of the United States after living here for over 26 years. I have "ordered" a marzipan covered cake with Cool Whip, no eggs, no dairy, and filled with seedless raspberry low sugar jam. Yes, it is to die for, and if I can get her to give me the recipe, I will post it here.

Of course, you have to like marzipan to love this cake... I do, so this cake is just as good as any cheesecake to me...

Oh, I am looking forward to Saturday the 8th when we celebrate...

[someday]

Thanks for all of the advice. I love the idea of asking them to eat some food that will make them sick! Not that they would, but just the thought made me smile!

I do need to make a nice BIG gluten-free cheesecake to make myself feel better. Thanks for all of the recipes, I will definately try them out when I am having my junk food cravings. My dear old husband knew he had messed up and said he knew I was going to be upset, but he couldn't resist either. Oh well! We don't have a gluten free house, but since I do most of the cooking, the only things I have in the house with gluten are premade junk like bread and crackers for the kids. All the meals I cook are gluten-free and I don't think any of them ever even notice the difference.

Thanks again everyone!

[imsohungry]

Glad you're feeling a little better Someday...by all means, make that cheesecake!

Happy Gal,

To answer your question about the covers, I think I purchased them at Wal-mart or one of those type stores. I found my cover at the microwave gadgets section. Most of that stuff is useless, but I always like to see what they have in the kitchen section. They also probably make pie/cake/food covers specifically designed for that purpose and Tupperware might have something.

I just picked mine up because it was so cheap (about $2). Here's a little tip: They also sell an "amazing" plastic microwave egg cooker for about two bucks...yeah, um...don't buy that.

-Julie (currently planning a yard sale...anybody need an "amazing" egg cooker?)

[Guest Happynwgal2]

Glad you're feeling a little better Someday...by all means, make that cheesecake!

Happy Gal,

To answer your question about the covers, I think I purchased them at Wal-mart or one of those type stores. I found my cover at the microwave gadgets section. Most of that stuff is useless, but I always like to see what they have in the kitchen section. They also probably make pie/cake/food covers specifically designed for that purpose and Tupperware might have something.

I just picked mine up because it was so cheap (about $2). Here's a little tip: They also sell an "amazing" plastic microwave egg cooker for about two bucks...yeah, um...don't buy that.

-Julie (currently planning a yard sale...anybody need an "amazing" egg cooker?)

I am having my daughter take me to Wal-Mart today to check this out, even though I am still sick with a virus... just have to get out of the house for a while... Thanks for the tip...

Will Wal-mart forgive me for spreading my germs at their store????

[Guest Happynwgal2]

Thanks for all of the advice. I love the idea of asking them to eat some food that will make them sick! Not that they would, but just the thought made me smile!

I do need to make a nice BIG gluten-free cheesecake to make myself feel better. Thanks for all of the recipes, I will definately try them out when I am having my junk food cravings. My dear old husband knew he had messed up and said he knew I was going to be upset, but he couldn't resist either. Oh well! We don't have a gluten free house, but since I do most of the cooking, the only things I have in the house with gluten are premade junk like bread and crackers for the kids. All the meals I cook are gluten-free and I don't think any of them ever even notice the difference.

Thanks again everyone!

I love this quote from your post: ""All the meals I cook are gluten-free and I don't think any of them ever even notice the difference.""

Sneaky mom! Good for both them and you! Keep it up... I have to say, though, that gluten free foods can be just as good tasting as food full of gluten...

[NoGluGirl]

Dear Happynwgal2,

ROTFLMAO! I sure have suggested similar things to my family members who are inconsiderate. They deserve it. My mother got sick again today due to eating ice cream last night. I told her lactose is bad for her. Then they expect you to feel sorry for them when they are idiots! I do not want to sound cold here, but when you did not receive emotional support from others in the Celiac situation, how can they expect you to feel bad for them when they are victims of their own stupidity?

Your idea is great! Your daughter is just a year older than me! I told my brother I would bake cookies or a pie every week for him if it meant he would do the gluten-free diet. Debbie Cakes are what he wants most. Let's see...Debbie Cakes and Intestinal Cancer, or gluten-free and no Diabetes, Intestinal Cancer, osteoporosis, or neurological problems. Can you say DUH?!

Dear Someday,

One thing your husband should keep in mind. If he eats that stuff, you cannot kiss him. It will make you sick. The gluten particles hang around in the mouth a while. You might have to tell him "Give up the glu, or I cannot kiss you!"

Dear Julie,

Thank you for the tip! I might have to go get some of those covers! Sorry to hear about your egg maker experience.

I have gotten some things that were not all they were cracked up to be, too. One that really is terrific though is the Magic Bullet. It really does what it is supposed to!

Sincerely,

NoGluGirl

[imsohungry]

One thing your husband should keep in mind. If he eats that stuff, you cannot kiss him. It will make you sick. The gluten particles hang around in the mouth a while. You might have to tell him "Give up the glu, or I cannot kiss you!"

"Give up the glu, or I cannot kiss you!"

HA! I love it Girl! A catchy little rhyme that will make a hubby think twice about gluten.

Good stuff. -Julie

[emcmaster]

Ok, I'll be the dissenter and say that I think you are overreacting. Each of us having celiac disease shouldn't mean that our friends and family shouldn't have their favorites, even bringing them home, unless you have a *STRICT* "no gluten in the house at all" policy. of course, if it's only been a few weeks you've been on the diet, it would be considerate to practice some abstention, but I wouldn't even say it's a hard and fast rule.

Talk to him, in a friendly way, about how you want to deal with future incidents and come to an agreement you can both live with in such a way that you both understand how each other feels about the issue.

I agree. It doesn't seem like the OP's MIL or husband was being difficult and giving her a hard time about not eating gluten, they just didn't provide any good dessert that was gluten-free.

I understand how frustrating it is. I don't eat corn or sugar on top of no gluten, so there are really no desserts I can have. I have a sweet tooth like no other - I could probably put away an entire cheesecake myself! Last night, my MIL made her famous key lime pie and she, my BIL, and my husband ate it in front of me. Should I have asked them not to eat it just because I was there? I think that would be incredibly inconsiderate.

As hard as it is, there isn't anything we can do about the fact that most of the loved ones in our lives aren't going to eat gluten-free. Expecting them to is as inconsiderate (even more, IMO, since there is no medical reason for them to do so) than them expecting us to eat gluten.

It doesn't change how much it sucks, though. Sorry you had to forego the yummy cheesecake!