Jump to content
This site uses cookies. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. More Info... ×
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.




  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):



    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):


  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Can I Still Bake Regular Christmas Cookies With My Kids?


Krickett

Recommended Posts

Krickett Newbie

Hi - figured I would ask the cooks out there.... I have been recently diagnosed (5 weeks gluten free)... I am wondering if it is still ok for me to bake regular christmas cookies with my kids.... I am not worried about being tempted to lick batter, eat cookies, etc... I was never into cookies/cakes anyway -- so that is not the problem.... I am worried about handling/breathing/being exposed to flour all day..... if I am careful and wash hands regularly and don't touch my face.... do I really have to worry? Also thinking that this is such an enjoyable family tradition... if it does make me sick... would it really set my recovery back that much if I only was exposed to breathing/touching flour...... thank you for being here... I am obviously new this forum and I am finding it very comforting to know that other people have already gone down this path!!! Krickett


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



kbtoyssni Contributor

I would not make regular cookies, mostly because of the wheat flour. That stuff gets all over the place - I don't think you can avoid CC if you use wheat flour in your kitchen.

Try altering your old cookie recipes. Here's what I do: replace wheat flour with a gluten-free flour mix (I use the ones in A Gluten Free Gourmet cookbook, if I remember I can try to post the mixes when I get home. Or search for flour mix on this site - I know I've seen some posted). Then add 1tsp xantham gum to make things stick together and maybe 1tsp egg replacer if you have it (not sure what this does, but I always use it anyway).

Most of the time I can't tell the difference between gluten and gluten-free cookies this way. My mum and I did a lot of experimenting with recipes when we first went gluten-free - some weren't as successful as others, but it was fun to try! My only comment is that gluten-free cookies tend to be more runny than gluten cookies.

rinne Apprentice

I think the previous poster's suggestions were excellent.

I hope you can work out a compromise so that you can keep your tradition. :)

Glutenfreefamily Enthusiast

As mentioned above there is no need to make them with gluten, why hurt yourself when you make them gluten free and no one would know the difference?

This is my very favorite recipe for rolled sugar cookies. I brought them to a christmas party and all the cookies (triple batch was gone!) Mine are not runny and they had the lovely bakehouse cookie texture to them crisp on the outside slightly softer on the inside.

Gluten Free Sugar Cookies or Fruit Pizza Base

1

Glutenfreefamily Enthusiast

Wanted to add a few more things, make sure they stay well chilled it makes a huge difference in how they roll out. I also use powdered sugar sometimes to help roll them out instead of gluten-free flour as they dont get all floury tasting if you use too much.

loco-ladi Contributor

those sound like yummy cookies, snagged the recipe to try out later, THX!!!

as for regular flour in a gluten-free kitchen, nope wouldnt recommed it

Glutenfreefamily Enthusiast

Your welcome locoladi, You can use butter instead of margarine or egg replacer instead of eggs. My mom likes the butter taste from the real butter but to me margarine tastes very similar they have a rich vanilla flavor due to the pudding and usually I use vanilla frosting on top.

I edited it as I left out what ingredients to cream on accident :)


Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



kbabe1968 Enthusiast

NO!!!! Don't do it!!!!

:) You couldn't pay me enough to bake regular gluten cookies. My husband is dissappointed b/c I usually make a good tray of cookies for his coworkers each year. BUT...I've been really perfecting my gluten-free stuff so they will be just fine! :D If not, he can buy some.

Not gonna do it! :D

sparkles Contributor

Some grocery stores sell frozen cookie shapes at Christmas. I used to buy these when my kids were little. After all, it seemed that the most fun part was decorating the cookies with frosting, etc. for me it eliminated the mess of 3 sets of little hands trying to make the cookie batter and we all had a lot more fun when mom wasn't stressed! Of course, you might have more patience than I did but for my kids, decorating the cookies was always the most fun.

NorthernElf Enthusiast

Open Original Shared Link

This is the Gluten Free Girl's website - btw, she has a new book out that is interesting. Some of these recipes aren't "practical" to me - where I live I will never find good quality lemon olive oil, for example. But I have bookmarked some of the recipes to try some holiday baking with my kids. We do Xmas at my parents so I need some treats I can eat safely !

allrecipes.com and recipezaar.com have some gluten free recipes if you search it out, maybe some Xmas ones too !

lonewolf Collaborator

I wouldn't make gluten-filled cookies either. I have 4 kids and even before any of them needed to we made our cookies gluten-free. I won't have wheat flour in the house and haven't for almost 12 years. We make sugar cookies, gingerbread people, Russian teacakes, ginger-molasses cookies, peanut blossoms and spritz cookies. All from regular recipes just substituting gluten-free flour.

I mix up my own flour with 3 C brown rice flour, 1 C potato starch, 1/2 C tapioca starch and 2-1/2 tsp. xanthan gum. (The Russian teacakes take a bit more xanthan gum, so I add an extra 1/2 tsp. to the recipe after I've measured the flour.)

You can still have your traditions and not have to worry about getting sick!

Juliet Newbie

"where I live I will never find good quality lemon olive oil, for example"

Northern Elf - do you have a Trader Joe's nearby at all? They have a great lemon olive oil!

bakingbarb Enthusiast
Hi - figured I would ask the cooks out there.... I have been recently diagnosed (5 weeks gluten free)... I am wondering if it is still ok for me to bake regular christmas cookies with my kids.... I am not worried about being tempted to lick batter, eat cookies, etc... I was never into cookies/cakes anyway -- so that is not the problem.... I am worried about handling/breathing/being exposed to flour all day..... if I am careful and wash hands regularly and don't touch my face.... do I really have to worry? Also thinking that this is such an enjoyable family tradition... if it does make me sick... would it really set my recovery back that much if I only was exposed to breathing/touching flour...... thank you for being here... I am obviously new this forum and I am finding it very comforting to know that other people have already gone down this path!!! Krickett

Hi, I have only been gluten-free since the end of October. I too worried about this so I haven't really done any of that kind of baking for my family. But my daughter is 15 and she loves pizza, well sorta, pizza crust with cheese and nothing else. Kinda spendy to go buy it just for her so I made pizza crust for her the other day and I didn't have any problems. Just washed around the fingernails real well when I was done.

IF you are careful it doens't get everywhere. You can't go through life being afraid of the stuff. Granted I don't want to consume it at all but I refuse to give into not doing what I love ever for the people I love. Touching it doens't make me sick and I doubt it will you either. Try it and find out that is the only way you will know if you can or not.

You have to trust your instincts too.

jerseyangel Proficient

I have a fantastic gluten free sugar cookie recipe that rolls, bakes and tastes just like traditional Christmas cookies. Let me know if you want me to post it :)

bakingbarb Enthusiast
I have a fantastic gluten free sugar cookie recipe that rolls, bakes and tastes just like traditional Christmas cookies. Let me know if you want me to post it :)

I would like it. I am debating what to make this year.

My daughter swears she can tell the difference in the stuff I bake now. HUMPH I doubt it, I think it is mental.

Making something like this might fool her?

bakingbarb Enthusiast
I wouldn't make gluten-filled cookies either. I have 4 kids and even before any of them needed to we made our cookies gluten-free. I won't have wheat flour in the house and haven't for almost 12 years. We make sugar cookies, gingerbread people, Russian teacakes, ginger-molasses cookies, peanut blossoms and spritz cookies. All from regular recipes just substituting gluten-free flour.

I mix up my own flour with 3 C brown rice flour, 1 C potato starch, 1/2 C tapioca starch and 2-1/2 tsp. xanthan gum. (The Russian teacakes take a bit more xanthan gum, so I add an extra 1/2 tsp. to the recipe after I've measured the flour.)

You can still have your traditions and not have to worry about getting sick!

How do you decide how much xanthan gum the cookies need? You mention the russian teacakes take more but how do you know? I have seen some guidelines but meh! What clues should I be looking for in the baked goods to know if I have enough or too much?

tia

jerseyangel Proficient
I would like it. I am debating what to make this year.

My daughter swears she can tell the difference in the stuff I bake now. HUMPH I doubt it, I think it is mental.

Making something like this might fool her?

Hi Barb--

With frosting and colored sugar or sprinkles, these taste like the "real thing" :D

SUGAR COOKIES

1 cup shortening

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups rice flour blend

1 and 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

Cream shortening and sugar--add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Combine dry ingredients and add to creamed mixture and mix well.

Chill dough for an hour, roll and cut as desired. Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.

This recipe doubles easily

blueeyedmanda Community Regular

Thanks for posting the sugar cookie recipe Patti, I have been itching to make those cookies and was unsure how they would turn out...Thanks

kbabe1968 Enthusiast

OH...BTW....try www.landolakes.com They have a recipe for a cut out cookie. Gluten Free. (they have a flour recipe on there that mixes three flours).

My daughter and I made them earlier this year and they were DELICIOUS. A crowd full of gluten eaters ate them up!

They'd be PERFECT for bake and ice Christmas Cookies.

lonewolf Collaborator
How do you decide how much xanthan gum the cookies need? You mention the russian teacakes take more but how do you know? I have seen some guidelines but meh! What clues should I be looking for in the baked goods to know if I have enough or too much?

tia

My normal flour mixture calls for about 1/2 tsp. of xanthan gum per cup of flour. With most cookies, it's just fine. I discovered that Russian Teacakes need a bit more because they "exploded" in the powdered sugar the first time I made them. We nicknamed them "Russian Tea Bombs". I added about 1/2 or 2/3 of a tsp. (sorry, I'm horrible about measuring when I cook and bake) to the flour the next time and they turned out great.

Cookies that are supposed to be crispy or dry tend to need a little more xanthan gum or they'll get crumbly. Cookies that are moist don't need any extra.

So, if your crisp cookies get crumbly, add a bit more xanthan gum. If your moist cookies are too chewy, add a bit less the next time. Sorry I can't be more precise - I do a lot by "feel".

bakingbarb Enthusiast
My normal flour mixture calls for about 1/2 tsp. of xanthan gum per cup of flour. With most cookies, it's just fine. I discovered that Russian Teacakes need a bit more because they "exploded" in the powdered sugar the first time I made them. We nicknamed them "Russian Tea Bombs". I added about 1/2 or 2/3 of a tsp. (sorry, I'm horrible about measuring when I cook and bake) to the flour the next time and they turned out great.

Cookies that are supposed to be crispy or dry tend to need a little more xanthan gum or they'll get crumbly. Cookies that are moist don't need any extra.

So, if your crisp cookies get crumbly, add a bit more xanthan gum. If your moist cookies are too chewy, add a bit less the next time. Sorry I can't be more precise - I do a lot by "feel".

That is how I cook and bake too, by feel. There is very rarely that I follow recipes exactly so gluten-free is interesting! LOL

Last night I found a lemon drop cookie recipe and made it gluten-free. My daughter has been asking for lemon cookies so I thought why not. Big thing is I didn't tell her they were gluten-free I told her they were not! :lol: She almost ate the whole batch (granted it was small but still). I did try a few and they were good but a bit crumbly. I think it was a little under 2 cups of flour and I used about 3/4 tsp xanthan, so since they were crumbly I should increase the amount? I will remember that.

I am just happy she ate them. Not really sure if she believed me but she ate them!

It was a basic drop sugar cookie recipe with lemon and gluten-free flour. I used half butter and half shortening and kept the dough in the fridge for hours before baking. Falling in love with baking again. :D

Sweetfudge Community Regular
That is how I cook and bake too, by feel. There is very rarely that I follow recipes exactly so gluten-free is interesting! LOL

Last night I found a lemon drop cookie recipe and made it gluten-free. My daughter has been asking for lemon cookies so I thought why not. Big thing is I didn't tell her they were gluten-free I told her they were not! :lol: She almost ate the whole batch (granted it was small but still). I did try a few and they were good but a bit crumbly. I think it was a little under 2 cups of flour and I used about 3/4 tsp xanthan, so since they were crumbly I should increase the amount? I will remember that.

I am just happy she ate them. Not really sure if she believed me but she ate them!

It was a basic drop sugar cookie recipe with lemon and gluten-free flour. I used half butter and half shortening and kept the dough in the fridge for hours before baking. Falling in love with baking again. :D

mmm those sound good!

mftnchn Explorer
This is my very favorite recipe for rolled sugar cookies.

Gluten Free Sugar Cookies or Fruit Pizza Base

1

Ridgewalker Contributor
I can't buy instant pudding mix here in China and can't have the milk that is in it either. Can I make a homemade pudding mix (usually that is cooked) and make it work? I'd love to have something like a sugar cookie that can be decorated.

I'm not sure about the pudding question, but I got a recipe from someone on here that we're in love with. I can't remember who posted it, sorry, I'm awful about that. But it doesn't call for pudding, and turned out great!

They tasted like regular sugar cookies even before we frosted and decorated them. I think the ticket is using real butter.

Butter Cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1-3/4 all purpose gluten-free baking flour (I used Bette Hagman's blend and added 1 rounded TSP XANTHAN GUM)

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients; gradually add to the creamed mixture. cover and chill for 1 hour or until easy to handle. On a lightly floured surface, roll out to 1/9 in thickness.

Cut with cookie cutters and place 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheet.

Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on wire racks.

pastorjaysonn Newbie

I know that the question has already been answered over and over, but I figured that I would start off my time here (this is my first post) with a little experience myself.

I used to teach preschool as did/does my wife. I was promoted to a different classroom and took over right away. The previous teacher had a "sand table" which is basically a hollow table where you can store different textured things for the children to feel.

Almost right after taking the classroom, I started having attacks and stomache issues and it appeared as if I was always in a state of gluten poisoning. We started looking around the classroom for a source and found that the teacher before me had put pounds and pounds of wheat flour. Just having it in the room with the air holes at the top had me to the point of pure misery.

I recommend staying COMPLETELY clear of gluten! My wife has gone gluten-free too just to prevent any cross contamination!

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):



  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      131,196
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    Dreamstar
    Newest Member
    Dreamstar
    Joined

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):


  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.4k
    • Total Posts
      1m

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):





  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):



  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Ginger38
      So I recently had allergy testing for IGE antibodies in response to foods. My test results came back positive to corn, white potatoes, egg whites. Tomatoes, almonds and peanuts to name a few.  I have had obvious reactions to a few of these - particularly tomatoes and corn- both GI issues. I don’t really understand all this allergy versus celiac stuff. If the food allergies are mild do I have to avoid these foods entirely? I don’t know what I will eat if I can’t  have corn based gluten free products 
    • Kris2093u4
      Geography makes a difference.  I'm in the West and Trader Joe's gluten-free bread tastes great and is a better price than most gluten-free breads sold elsewhere in my area.  
    • JForman
      We have four children (7-14 yo), and our 7 year old was diagnosed with NCGS (though all Celiac labs were positive, her scope at 4 years old was negative so docs in the US won't call it celiac). We have started her on a Gluten Free diet after 3 years of major digestive issues and ruling out just about everything under the sun. Our home and kitchen and myself are all gluten-free. But I have not asked my husband/her dad or her other siblings to go completely gluten-free with us. They are at home, but not out of the home. This has led to situations when we are eating out where she has to consistently see others eating things she can't have and she has begun to say "Well, I can't have <fill in the blank>...stupid gluten."  How have you supported your gluten-free kiddos in the mental health space of this journey, especially young ones like her. I know it's hard for me as an adult sometimes to miss out, so I can't imagine being 7 and dealing with it! Any tips or ideas to help with this? 
    • Jane878
      By the time I was 5 I had my first auto0immune disorder, Migraine headaches, with auras to blind me, and vomiting, sensitivity to light and sound. I was 5 years old, and my stepfather would have pizza night, milling his own flour, making thick cheesy gluten pizza, that I would eat and the next day, I would have serious migraines, and my mother & stepfather did nothing about my medical problems. When I was 17 in my first year at college, I was diagnosed with my 2nd known auto-immune disorder, Meniere's disease. I was a elite athlete, a swimmer, and soccer player. And once again my parents didn't think anything of understanding why I had a disorder only older people get. Now after my mother passed from Alzheimer's disease she also suffered with living with gluten. She had a rash for 30 years that nobody could diagnose. She was itchy for 45 years total. My brother had a encapsulated virus explodes in his spleen and when this happened his entire intestines were covered with adhesions, scar tissue and he almost lost his life. He has 5 daughters, and when I finally was diagnosed after being pregnant and my body went into a cytokine storm, I lost my chance to have children, I ended up having Hashimoto's disease, Degenerative Disc disease, and my body started to shut down during my first trimester. I am 6ft tall and got down to 119lbs. My husband and I went to a special immunologist in Terrace, California. They took 17 vials of blood as we flew there for a day and returned home that evening. In 3 weeks, we had the answer, I have Celiac disease. Once this was known, only my father and husband made efforts to change their way of feeding me. At the family cabin, my stepfather & mother were more worried that I would ruin Thanksgiving Dinner. It wasn't until one of my cousins was diagnosed with Celiac disease. They finally looked into getting Gluten Free flour and taking measures to limit "gluten" in meals. He did nothing but ask for me to pay for my own food and wi-fi when I came to the cabin to stay after our house burned down. When he informed my mother, they proceeding to get into a physical fight and she ended up with a black eye. The is just more trauma for me. Sam had no interest in telling the truth about what he wanted. He lied to my mother that he had asked my husband if I could pay for "food" when he asked Geoffrey if I had money to pay for my wi-fi. My mother hates when he spends so much time on the computer so he lied and said I could pay for my own food. I will remind you I weighed 119lbs at this time. (At 6ft) that is a very sick looking person. Neither parent was worried about my weight, they just fought about how cheap my stepfather was. As my mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2014. He had her sign over the will to a trust and added his children. He had no testimonial capacity at the time, so she signed without proper papers. Making this Trust null and void. When I gave my brother my childhood home, my mother stated I would be getting an equal part of inheritance to the house on Race. It currently worth 2.0 million $. I got nothing, and my stepfather has since disowned me b/c of my claim and he knows that my mother would never have left it uneven between my biological brother and myself. She sat me and my husband down, as we lived at the Race Street house and treated and took care of it as our own. My brother took over b/c he was going through a horrific divorce and needed a home so he could get a better custody deal with his soon to be ex-wife who was a Assist DA for Denver. She used the girls against him, and he & I were the primary caregivers. We, Judd and I spent the most time with them pre the divorce. Once Judd moved into the house, he threw all of my mother, grandmother and my family heirlooms out to the Goodwill. Nobody told my mother about this as she was going through cancer treatment and had Alzheimer's disease in her mother and her sister. My stepfather and biological brother took advantage of this matter, as I called a "family council" that my brother just never could make it to at the last moment. All of the furnishing, kitchen ware, everything was in the house my brother just moved into. He had had 2 weddings, I chose to elope b/c my stepfather ruined my brother's first wedding by talking about his relationship with my brother in front of my dad and his entire family, insulting him and having my grandfather leave the ceremony. It was a disaster. My stepfather just plays dumb and blames my father for the slight. I was the only child not to have a wedding. So, my mother and stepfather never had to pay for a thing. My mother had had an agreement with my father he'd pay for college and all medical issues with their kids, myself and Judd. So truly my mother never had to pay for anything big for me in her entire life. I am looking for anyone that has had a similar story, where they grew up in a household that had a baker that regularly milled flour and ate gluten. What happened to you? DId you suffer from different auto-immune diseases b/c of living with a baker using "gluten" Please let me know. I have been looking into legal ways to get my stepfather to give me what my mother had promised, and he erased. Thank you for listening to my story. Jane Donnelly  
    • trents
      Possibly gluten withdrawal. Lot's of info on the internet about it. Somewhat controversial but apparently gluten plugs into the same neuro sensors as opiates do and some people get a similar type withdrawal as they do when quitting opiates. Another issue is that gluten-free facsimile flours are not fortified with vitamins and minerals as is wheat flour (in the U.S. at least) so when the switch is made to gluten-free facsimile foods, especially if a lot of processed gluten-free foods are being used as substitutes, vitamin and mineral deficiencies can result. There is also the possibility that she has picked up a virus or some but that is totally unrelated to going gluten-free.
×
×
  • Create New...