Spoon-glutened

[miles2go]

Hi all,

This was my third attempt at a gluten-free Thanksgiving away from home and the first time that I've been glutened. My family is wonderful and even though the dressing was cooked away from the turkey, the gravy was made from my "special" flour, my gluten-free foods were gobbled up and gluten-free at our house tasted more like dessert, what with the sweet potatoes, the jello mold, the pies, the cranberry jel, what is that anyway?? (hey, who can complain?) and mom asking about how to cook ALL the Christmas cookies gluten-free, I still managed to get glutened from the spoon that was used for the gluteny stuffing and the gluten-free gravy. Nothing too serious, but it will be another nine days or so to sort things out. In the meantime, I'm so grateful for this silly incident for a number of reasons, as I'm not officially diagnosed.

a. my pots, pans and kitchen utensils are just fine

b. my family doesn't think I'm a kook anymore, at least over my dietary needs

c. no need for Enterolab

d. they are trying, but like everyone else, don't get it exactly right every time.

I wish that we didn't have to get it exactly right, every time, but hey...I should mention that that was one in five meals over the course of the holiday that did not go off without a hitch.

Hope everyone had a great day, whatever you did!

My question: did anyone else get glutened and if so, do you know what went astray?

[PeggyV]

I did, and it was my fault. I have been gluten free a little over 1 year. Every year I bake dinner rolls for the holidays (the yummy gluten kind) My family loves them and I enjoy working with gluten dough. I have gotten very sensitive to gulten now, I dont know why, but the longer I go gluten free the easier it effects me. This year I wore latex gloves when baking my rolls so I wouldnt get the dough under my nails and was very careful, but it still got me, I have read that flour have done that to others on this site. I baked on Wed and had a reaction about 2 hours after. I am bummed, I will try a dust mask next time. I love baking rolls and dont want to stop unless I have tol

On Thanksgiving I did all the main dishes.. Turkey, glutten free corn bread stuffing, sweet potato, etc. so I would get sick. I had my mother in law bring the pumpkin pie and green bean cassarole. When I heated up the green beans in the micorwave, I stuck my finger in it to see if it was hot and then licked my finger! Talk about feeling stupid! Sure enough about 2 hours later I looked like I was 5 months pregnant. Between getting gluten 2 days in a row, I was pretty useless Thursday night and Friday. Felt sick, bloated etc ...you all know the rest, but at least I didnt get the lower back pain this time. Just hoping I dont get a dh outbreak.

[Yellow Rose]

I did, and it was my fault. I have been gluten free a little over 1 year. Every year I bake dinner rolls for the holidays (the yummy gluten kind) My family loves them and I enjoy working with gluten dough. I have gotten very sensitive to gulten now, I dont know why, but the longer I go gluten free the easier it effects me.

You are more sensitive because your gut is healing and now you are absorbing more so reacting more. I did the same thing with rolls and my family loved them but I warned them this is the last year and I will be sending them the receipe. There was flour all over my kitchen and I didn't get glutened but it was a pain cleaning it up. I did use a mask that my husband brought me and my DD mixed the flour for me and after the mixing I took over. I also used gloves so it wouldn't get under my fingernails or into any small cuts on my hands. Feel better soon.

Yellow Rose

[PeggyV]

You are more sensitive because your gut is healing and now you are absorbing more so reacting more. I did the same thing with rolls and my family loved them but I warned them this is the last year and I will be sending them the receipe. There was flour all over my kitchen and I didn't get glutened but it was a pain cleaning it up. I did use a mask that my husband brought me and my DD mixed the flour for me and after the mixing I took over. I also used gloves so it wouldn't get under my fingernails or into any small cuts on my hands. Feel better soon.

Yellow Rose

Yellow Rose,

So you were able to make the rolls with a mask? I dont mind the clean up, I use paper towel or throw the sponge away after I am done. I think it was the flour flying around that got me. I only want to make the 2 or 3 times a year, it is a tradition in our family. I will try the mask at Christmas, if I get glutened again, I will give up.

[debmidge]

Spoon glutening is high hazard when eating at other person's house. This was one of the rules my mother in law could not get used to. That's why we had to stop having meals/holiday meals at her house. As she got older (80's) there was no way she could learn to do it differently. It became a "Russian Roulette" eating there.

[buffettbride]

Spoon glutening is high hazard when eating at other person's house. This was one of the rules my mother in law could not get used to. That's why we had to stop having meals/holiday meals at her house. As she got older (80's) there was no way she could learn to do it differently. It became a "Russian Roulette" eating there.

My biggest fear is also the "gluteny spoon" when eating at our family member's houses. They get Celiac Disease and WANT to get it right, but unless you really live it every day it's easy to make those mistakes. Our biggest problem is with my husband's step mother and my husband's grandmother. They are very attached to a lot of their old recipes and just have a hard time letting go of them.

[miles2go]

My biggest fear is also the "gluteny spoon" when eating at our family member's houses. They get Celiac Disease and WANT to get it right, but unless you really live it every day it's easy to make those mistakes. Our biggest problem is with my husband's step mother and my husband's grandmother. They are very attached to a lot of their old recipes and just have a hard time letting go of them.

How do you handle the social aspect of things, such as they are?

Same, here!

[Cath4k]

This was our first Thanksgiving gluten-free. My mom always does Thanksgiving and she worked SO hard to get it right for us!! Mind you, we have to be gluten free, casein free, Feingold (which means no aspartame, artificial colors, artificial flavors, BHT, BHA, or TBHQ). We also cannot do corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, or MSG. WHEW!

She made two separate chickens rather than turkey and did not stuff ours with stuffing, just veggies. She made mashed potatoes, corn, and broccoli without any dairy or seasonings (we added our own.) She made us our own gravy from our chicken using cornstarch rather than flour. She set out all the salad fixings so everyone could assemble their own. We brought our own salad dressings, butter (for the one child who can do casein), and cake. My mom didn't even make rolls because she knows how much my 4 yo loves them and didn't want him to see them and not be able to eat them! She wouldn't let us do anything else for the meal as she wanted to do it all! Amazing!

We did not get sick. But you know what then happened? We put up our Christmas tree that evening and made a special eggnog substitute drink (very yummy) and the darn Pacific Almond Milk which was labeled gluten free was contaminated and glutened us!! After all my mom's hard work, we glutened ourselves that night!

We know it was the almond milk, because we could chart our milder symptoms back through the week to each time we had small amounts of it in our tea. Then we had a large amount that night and got really sick. UG!

I am SO done with processed food!

I'm sorry you got glutened!

Cathy

[buffettbride]

How do you handle the social aspect of things, such as they are?

Same, here!

Well, sometimes we let our daughter have a meal before we go somewhere to eat, like a family member or friend's house, so she's not as hungry and make sure there are a few items there (usually we bring them) that are gluten free and very yummy.

The biggest disappointment is this year on Christmas Eve my husband's step mother is making gumbo and she wants to use her traditional recipe with regular flour and not gluten free flour. (My husband has made that recipe gluten free several times and it is indistinguishably as good). Sadly, gumbo is one of my daughter's favorite foods so instead of the alternative she offered of turkey and rice soup (which she eats a few times a week anyway), hubby is going to make her gluten-free gumbo to have.