New To celiac disease- Please Point Me...

[azagave]

in the right direction. Its frustrating and difficult being a mom of 3 under 16. Everyone wants what I cant have...unless I want to be sick for days and stuck to the bathroom. My hubby is still skeptacle but tring to adapt. Can you point me to some books, webs, etc that can show me how to have a balenced diet that is gluten-free and dinner suggestions for the family along with recipies? My story in short: have always had problems with grains...wheat in paticuar. I was in hospital for bad abd. pains, nausia, diarehha, some vomit etc. They said that they believe I had celiac disease but since I couldn't afford a biopsy they listed it as "gastritus". Ha ha...I went to my ND and he took me off all grains but rice. I felt better- my stomach got better in about 5 days...then I tried to have a cinnamon roll and other wheat stuff with my family...BIG MISTAK!!! Next 2 days were spent in BAD pain in abd, stomach ache and diarehha and headache...again. I won't make the mistake again....so I found this board and am asking you whom are expierenced with this...where do I go from here???? Thanks so very much!

[mamaw]

Hello & welcome

Life does get better but it will take time.

I'm a gluten-free mentor but here are a few suggestions ( if you want more then pm me so as not to tie up the foum).

Pamela's pancake mix will do alot for you , you can make breakfast, & coffee cake & more from Pamela,s mix. Open Original Shared Link has a wonderful flour blend & tons of excellent recipes on the site. If you order please tell them Sande G. sent you.

For suppers you can have beef, chicken, fish or any meats plain (not marinated or with sauces)just add your own spices. McCormick spices are clearly labeled.Same goes for fruits & vegetables. Salads with grilled chicken added. Chili, beef stew, potatoes, broccili salad are good for suppers.

Go to the cooking section on here & you can find many excellent recipes.

I think first you need to supply your cupboards with gluten-free items needed for menu planning.

ie: corn starch ( argo),arm & hammer baking soda, rumsford baking powder,xanthan gum or guar gum ( health food stores have these). I use several flour blends: authenic super fine brown rice, & super fine white rice to blend to make Annalise Roberts flour blend. She has two cookbooks that are wonderful. Betty Hageman has featherlight flour blend & a four bean blend both good. I also use Domata Living Flour, we love their seasoned flour, & the pizza flour. Order online. Tom Sawyer is also a good flour blend. Depending on where you live some of these items could be at your local health food store.

Gluten Free Trading Company is a mailorder I sometimes use as well as Amazon plus you can order from this site. They have a large selection as well.

There are many great cookbooks. Some are: Baking Classics by Annnalise Roberts, Shai Sanderson's cooking with Kids, Robin Ryberg has two cookbooks, Carol Fenster has several.& so many more but these are a few of our favs.

many things you still can buy from the grocery shelf! examples

cheese whiz,philly cream cheese, philly swirls,progresso beef & chicken broth, herb-ox, progreeo soups: creamy mushroom, chik & veg, chik & rice, lentil, clam chowder.

pure maple syrup,heinz ketsup, french mustard, jello,rice,ragu, contadina tomato products,oberto beef jerky ( not all varieties but some), Kraft clearly labels, General Mills has a couple of chex that are gluten-free.Plus there are a few sugery cereals available .Ercih Sausage, Kahn's weiners, Bell & Evans gluten-free chicken nuggets, strips, mozzarella patties & garlic & parmesan breasts. Amy's gluten-free mac & cheese. Amy's has several soups. all heinz vinegar except malt vinegar. Doritos & lay's are clearly marked. Popcorn,edwards rice crackers.Yoplait yougurt without crunchies added. Fleischman unsalted margarine.

pepsi, 7-up, a&w root beer, virgil's root beer.fruity pebbles,cocoa pebbles, little einstein cereal, Malt o Meal --- puffed rice,fruity dino bites. Cream of rice. Ortega is gluten-free, Ore Ida fries are gluten-free

And so much more.

Conte' from Vineland, NJ sells pierogi, gnocchi, & ravioli plus pizza that is gluten-free & excellent.

Against the grain sells rolls for burgers, sloppy joes & more

Anna's bread mix is wonderful

celiac specialities has gluten-free donuts to die for.

Scahr has good gluten-free foods.

Pamela's has many fine products loved by many.

I think this will keep your head reeling for awhile so I'll stop now. there is so much more.

If there is some recipe you are wanting let us know as one of us I'm sure will get it to you.Hth

blessings

mamaw

[Takala]

Hi and welcome. You will need to avoid wheat, rye, barley proteins, as all of them can cause a reaction to those sensitive to gluten. Many people need to also avoid oats, not only because of cross contamination, but in some people, oat proteins set off a reaction, others can eventually eat them. Other culprits are lactose in dairy milk (this may go away after a few months, and you will be able to eat non lactose dairy such as safe gluten-free yogurt and hard cheese) and some people react to soy. There are many alternative milk products such as rice and nut milks in the health food stores. Avoid Soy Dream, as it is sadly cross contaminated. Vinegars- avoid malt vinegars. Some people react to distilled grain vinegars even if they are supposed to be safe, so real apple cider vinegar is always safe.

Some people try to just go ahead and immediately try to substitute all gluten free items for what they were eating, and discover that they get upset tummies because there is something else that does not agree with them they don't know about yet. A time where you eat more fruits and vegetables and good fats and proteins, and less grains, may work better during the transition period.

Don't forget lotions, soaps, some lipsticks may also contain gluten. Ivory bar soaps, and Dove soaps are safe. Coconut oil is a fantastic moisturizer. Apple cider vinegar mixed 1 part vinegar to 7 parts water is a great hair rinse.

You can still learn to bake and cook gluten free goodies for the rest of your family even if you are not eating them yourself yet, because then at least you are not risking contaminating yourself. I have found these three subforums to be the best help:

gluten-free Baking and Cooking tips:

https://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/index.php?showforum=27

gluten-free Foods, Products, shopping & Medications:

https://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/index.php?showforum=32

gluten-free Ingredients & Food labeling issues

https://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/index.php?showforum=30

With gluten free baking, smaller pans are better as the gluten free grains react differently than wheat when baked.

You need to ditch things like wooden cutting boards, plastic colanders, baking pans, get your own new baking pans for gluten free baking. I would highly recommend you get a new muffin pan to experiment with. Most normal people will still eat anything resembling a muffin or cupcake left on the counter even if they pretend they don't like it, and they bake faster.

Everybody screws up gluten free yeast bread once in a while. It's a rite of passage. You too can learn to make cinder blocks and styrofoam frisbees. Tell us about it when it happens because this can be both hilarious and educational. Remember, most dogs adore these mistakes so you also need a pet.... oh yeah, the pet, you may want to feed the pet gluten free so it doesn't make you sick. I actually have two and now maybe three pets that can't eat wheat anyway, as I just adopted a pound pet with a skin condition which is responding beautifully to a homemade diet the vet told me to try, so this is oddly enough working out for all of us. They also make commercial wheat free pet foods if you research carefully.

Quick breads are a good way to experiment with gluten free flours. Baking soda and cider vinegar and egg can leaven anything with the correct technique.

Rice pasta is your friend. Lundberg makes good rice cakes. Quaker rice cakes are cross contaminated and not gluten free.

If you can eat potatoes, they're good.

If you can eat corn, Mission makes gluten free corn tortillas that are a good staple.

Use the search function liberally. If you have a question about something, type in "gluten free name of item" in the search box and chances are somebody has written about it already.

For grocery shopping, avoid as many processed and prepackaged boxed foods as possible, unless it is labeled "gluten free" until you know how to read and interpret a label.

If you eat mayonnaise, jelly, peanut butter, butter, and you don't have a gluten free household, get your own, label them, and keep them separate so the rest of the family doesn't cross contaminate you by dipping a crumby knife into the jars.

[sbj]

Open Original Shared Link has a wonderful flour blend & tons of excellent recipes on the site. If you order please tell them Sande G. sent you.

Is this company offering a referral reward? I have been urged several times via PM to check this site out . . .

[happygirl]

SBJ - I don't know if they do, as I have only purchased it in the store.

[swbailey]

First of all, just hang in there. It does get easier I promise. I know some foods are tempting, but just try and find substitutes. This Forum is a great place for that.

I have two kids (teen and preteen), and I just got married this past fall. I started getting sick right after that. So I understand how you feel that you have to keep going to help everyone else no mattter how you feel. Ask for help in anyway that you can. Every little bit will help.

I also have a document that might help you determine what ingredients you can have and not have. I found this very frustrating in trying to find out what I could eat. Let me know your email and I will send it to you. I have it laminiated and carry it with me everywhere!

Just start out simple, and then just keep adding different foods that are safe and different receipes that look good. I went to the library and checked out gluten-free recipe books, and looked online. I know have more recipes that I have time to cook.

Hang in there!

[CeliacMom2008]

Something that helped me tremendously in the beginning with meals was to make a list of the things I knew how to make and then see what could still be made either the same or with some slight or even major modifications. I was surprised to find that I could make everything I used to be able to and now can make twice or three times as many dishes as I used to. Some things we like:

Roast with potatoes, carrots, green beans, and mushrooms. This is nice because it's naturally gluten-free and you can take the leftovers and make stew very easily which makes for a great lunch the next day. If you're feeling adventuresome add gluten-free cornbread or other gluten-free bread or gluten-free muffins.

Spaghetti with gluten-free noodles

Fried Rice (also makes great lunch in a thermos)

Tacos, quesadillas, nachos, burritos (corn tortillas or gluten-free tortillas)

Pamela's pancakes - for breakfast or for PB&J sandwiches

Crustless quiche with ham, broccoli, cheese, mushrooms, etc. Or quiche with a gluten-free pie crust if you have the time. We always ate it crustless pre-celiac, so that was easy for us.

Ham and sweet potatoes. Then make ham and bean soup from leftovers. Or split pea and ham soup.

Anything grilled - steak, chicken, seafood, etc. And you can marinate, you just have to make your own or be sure that the marinade is gluten-free. LaChoy Soy Sauce is gluten-free and can be used for terriyaki. Wishbone Italian dressing is also gluten-free and make a great marinade for chicken or steak.

Pizza - we've gotta have it!

Back to that list I mentioned. In the beginning we'd use the list on the weekends to plan out the upcoming week's menus and shopping list. This really helped me with the shopping and planning. I am a huge believer that the gluten-free lifestyle is different, but not definitely not bad. We are food snobs at this house - we like to eat and we like to eat good! I think we eat 1000 times better than we used to in terms of taste and nutrition. We used to eat out many times a week. When I think back to what we thought was good food I shudder. I do miss the convenience of being able to eat out occasionally, but certainly not the food!

[curlyfries]

This site was extremely helpful to me

Open Original Shared Link

[mamaw]

SBJ

betterbatter does not give me any kick-backs nor I'm I employed by betterbatter,it is just a good flour blend with lots of recipes at the site & also easy to work with..I taste test for many . When I first went gluten-free I had no one to help me or to tell me what was worth buying. I wasted thousands of dollars on gluten-free stuff that the dogs would not even eat. I never want anyone to have to do that. I was in marketing for years as a job for years & retired . So I try to help people find the cream of the crop & not waste their hard earned money on something that they can't swallow! I keep updated on all the new goodies & know many of the bakers/vendors & they do send me things to sample & give feed back but that is all. When I find good things I let everyone know.....

blessings