My Friend Is Coeliac, What If She Decides To Eat A Piece Of Cake?

[kellynolan82]

Also is it possible that the damage could take up to a year to fix, even if she remains on a strict gluten free diet for the year??

[Skylark]

OMG the poor thing! No, she won't be damaged for a year. Don't panic.

I take immodium if I have diarrhea and pepto-bismol for the stomachaches. (Name brand Pepto is gluten-free). For me a bad glutening is like getting a stomach flu. I'll also sometimes suck on candied ginger for nausea but you have to be fond of ginger.

I pretty much do what doctors say for stomach flu. Nothing but clear fluids for 48 hours. Be sure she gets plenty to drink as long as she can keep fluids down. Gluten-free broth, Jello, a little Gatorade if she had diarrhea. It's best to mix it with half water. Herb-Ox bullion is gluten-free, and you can check the labels on canned broth. This is the one time I drink full sugar soft drinks, because the sugar gets some calories into me and keeps me from getting too light-headed. Again, I go for ginger beer or ginger ale because I find ginger so helpful.

Once my stomach settles completely and my appetite is back, I'll go onto very mild foods for a couple days. I often stew a chicken and have the broth with white rice and a little bit of the mild, boiled meat. Sometimes I make egg drop soup for the extra, easily digested protein. Applesauce is good too, or rice crackers.

[notme]

Also is it possible that the damage could take up to a year to fix, even if she remains on a strict gluten free diet for the year??

define strict. it's not just cake, bread & croutons that contain the poisonous gluten. and, yes, a crumb *will* make alot of us sick. or, in my case (early on) absentmindedly licking my fingers that had regular soy sauce on them <made from wheat! while i was fixing lunch for the kids. i explain it this way: you can't see a germ but it will make you sick. same with gluten and to heal will take probably 6 months to 2 years. i hope she stays gluten free and vigilant so she can heal good luck!

[cap6]

I can't imagine why your friend would even consider eating anything with gluten. From my experience and accidental glutening soon after going gluten-free made me sick for only one evening. Now, 15 months later,an accidental glutening will make me sick for a week or more. My point - everyone is different in how they respond to gluten. Some people know if they ate gluten and some don't. Everyone's insides are damaged. Would you pick a scab off of a sore that is finally healing?

[sandsurfgirl]

Hopefully your friend learns her lesson. Painful, horrible lesson but what she did was pretty crazy. Taking a bite is bad enough but eating a whole piece of cake. That's like swallowing a whole bottle of bleach or eating a box of rat poison as far as I'm concerned.

It's always amazing to me when people cheat. I live in fear of crumbs. I made my 3 year old gluten free because she kept glutening me and my son with her cracker crumbs. My husband had to go gluten free because of crumbs getting us sick. I cannot imagine any circumstance where I would eat gluten on purpose.

I am so scared of accidentally eating gluten, if I was a prisoner of war they could use gluten as a torture device and I would crack so fast.

I don't get it at all because there are SO many amazing gluten free products out there and you can make almost everything. The only thing I haven't found a great sub for are flour tortillas (the ones at Sprouts are gross) and wontons. I just ate a scrumptious soft and moist chocolate chip muffin from Glutino that was so decadent. I made an incredble cake for my son's birthday with chocolate fudge filling, buttercream icing and marshmallow fondant that was to die for.

Why cheat when you can pretty much have what you want anyway? You may have to wait. Maybe you won't eat that particular cake at that particular event, but you CAN get decadent chocolate cake. I just don't understand it. To me it's not worth getting so sick, but I guess for some it is.

[kellynolan82]

I can't imagine why your friend would even consider eating anything with gluten. From my experience and accidental glutening soon after going gluten-free made me sick for only one evening. Now, 15 months later,an accidental glutening will make me sick for a week or more. My point - everyone is different in how they respond to gluten. Some people know if they ate gluten and some don't. Everyone's insides are damaged. Would you pick a scab off of a sore that is finally healing?

She was never this bad when on a gluten-containing diet years and years ago. I think, as you mention, symptoms can often become more pronounced once a gluten free diet is being followed and one is glutenned.

[kellynolan82]

Why cheat when you can pretty much have what you want anyway? You may have to wait. Maybe you won't eat that particular cake at that particular event, but you CAN get decadent chocolate cake. I just don't understand it. To me it's not worth getting so sick, but I guess for some it is.

She tells me that she never EVER wants to eat a gluten free cake again. 'They're totally inferior to their wheaten equivalents.'

It's sad, and as I said the cake looked so good (it wasn't just the average birthday cake) and so thoughtfully made it looked like perfection in many eyes. Even I had a slightly hard time resisting. But of course I did. She figured on just this one wedding occasion when it looked so good, it was worth all of this and she just told me if she had to do it all over, she'd do it again.

[Skylark]

It's sad, and as I said the cake looked so good (it wasn't just the average birthday cake) and so thoughtfully made it looked like perfection in many eyes. Even I had a slightly hard time resisting. But of course I did. She figured on just this one wedding occasion when it looked so good, it was worth all of this and she just told me if she had to do it all over, she'd do it again.

Your friend must have a bit of a self-destructive streak. How unfortunate.

[Harpgirl]

She tells me that she never EVER wants to eat a gluten free cake again. 'They're totally inferior to their wheaten equivalents.'

It's sad, and as I said the cake looked so good (it wasn't just the average birthday cake) and so thoughtfully made it looked like perfection in many eyes. Even I had a slightly hard time resisting. But of course I did. She figured on just this one wedding occasion when it looked so good, it was worth all of this and she just told me if she had to do it all over, she'd do it again.

I use to play for a tea room that had the most fantastic looking cakes. One was a princess castle with turrets and flags, the whole nine yards! Maybe you can find a gluten free bakery that would be up to the challenge of making an elaborate cake and have her try it. It sounds like it's her eyes giving her the trouble really. It may be expensive, but could be worth it in the long run if it convinces her that gluten free is just as good.

I have no idea if this suggestion helps. I've only been 2 weeks gluten-free and haven't tried the cake yet, so I'm a bit in the dark on this one.

[kellynolan82]

I use to play for a tea room that had the most fantastic looking cakes. One was a princess castle with turrets and flags, the whole nine yards! Maybe you can find a gluten free bakery that would be up to the challenge of making an elaborate cake and have her try it. It sounds like it's her eyes giving her the trouble really. It may be expensive, but could be worth it in the long run if it convinces her that gluten free is just as good.

I'm really going to be looking into it for her and already have posted some requests for some frosting recipes. I think the outward appearance of the cake may possibly be the enticing part and it is usually easy to adapt the frosting recipe to suit.

I know there are certain gluten free flour blends that work extremely well for certain cakes and I'm contemplating investing in a really good gluten free cook book that just came out.

[Skylark]

I've never seen a frosting recipe that has gluten in it. Is Betty Crocker distributing their gluten-free cake mixes in Australia? My gluten eating friends ate cupcakes I made from the Devil's Food cake mix happily. They probably wouldn't have even known they were gluten-free except that everyone knows I'm celiac.

Aha! I found them, but the price looks a little high. I think I pay around $5 US, which is still a lot for a cake mix.

Open Original Shared Link

If you know how to use a pastry bag, the Wilton icing recipes are really good for piping. Use buttercream for decorations you'll eat like edgings, and royal icing that gets hard for piping flowers. Open Original Shared Link

[sandsurfgirl]

Betty Crocker mixes are great. So are Gluten Free Pantry. Marshmallow fondant tastes great over buttercream icing and it gives it that professional appearance.

Marshmallow fondant recipe

Put one bag mini marshmallows in a big bowl with a tablespoon of water. Melt in microwave about 30 seconds at a time until they are all melted and you can stir them.

Start adding powdered sugar until you have about a pound incorporated into the marshmallows. It will be a crumbly mess but don't freak out. Just start kneading it in the bowl. You can grease your hands with oil or cooking spray if that makes it easier. Eventually it will form a ball. Transfer it to greased parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Once it has a nice smooth consistency, roll it out with a rolling pin.

I pick it up with the silicone mat and then place it over the cake. You can put food coloring in it while you are kneading if you want it colored, or you can buy that food color spray and just spray the fondant once it's on the cake.

Your friend is crazy. There is nothing on this God's green earth that would make me eat one teeny tiny bite of gluten on purpose. No cake. No cookies. Nothing in this world is worth the sickness and destroying my intestines. I'm only a year and a half gluten free but I'm positive this will not change.

[love2travel]

gluten-free cakes, brownies, cookies, etc. are very simple to make gluten-free and taste totally normal. The only frosting I have seen that contains gluten is cooked flour frosting - delicious but most are naturally gluten-free such as buttercream (which I make a little too often). I have so many wonderful baking recipes so if interested ask. My favourites are Coconut Layer Cake with Coconut Buttercream, Chocolate Truffle, Angel Food, Red Velvet, basic white with orange creme...endless.

[cap6]

She tells me that she never EVER wants to eat a gluten free cake again. 'They're totally inferior to their wheaten equivalents.'

It's sad, and as I said the cake looked so good (it wasn't just the average birthday cake) and so thoughtfully made it looked like perfection in many eyes. Even I had a slightly hard time resisting. But of course I did. She figured on just this one wedding occasion when it looked so good, it was worth all of this and she just told me if she had to do it all over, she'd do it again.

I'm not trying to sound mean but if a piece of food is worth risking your health & possibly (in the long run) your life then have at it. There are too many things in life that are worth far more than food.

[kellynolan82]

gluten-free cakes, brownies, cookies, etc. are very simple to make gluten-free and taste totally normal. The only frosting I have seen that contains gluten is cooked flour frosting - delicious but most are naturally gluten-free such as buttercream (which I make a little too often). I have so many wonderful baking recipes so if interested ask. My favourites are Coconut Layer Cake with Coconut Buttercream, Chocolate Truffle, Angel Food, Red Velvet, basic white with orange creme...endless.

I'd love some of your chocolate ones and any of your favourites if you'd be willing to share.

Unfortunately I myself have limited time to devise anything overly impresive of my own at this time.

[GFinDC]

If your friend buries her head in the sand her problems will just go away, a scientifically non-proven fact. for sure. Otherwise if she is an adult she might want to conside4r changing her ways to suit reality. She seems to be living in de Nile at the moment, and hurting herself because of that. I hope she wises up soon before more auto-immune diseases appear and make her life less enjoyable. I can't see a piece of cake being worth arthritis, lupus, fibromyalgia, cancer, ataxia, dementia, misery. But different people have different standards of living I suppose. Give me cake or give me death! Your friend seems to want both. And she may get both.

[kellynolan82]

Aha! I found them, but the price looks a little high. I think I pay around $5 US, which is still a lot for a cake mix.

Open Original Shared Link

I'd be interested in hearing from more people on their thoughts on the Betty Crocker gluten free cake mix. I'd love to try their golden one I think - I liked the texture looking at the packaging.

Also if any of you had some tips on how to make it turn out best please let me know... I'm all ears

[sandsurfgirl]

I'd be interested in hearing from more people on their thoughts on the Betty Crocker gluten free cake mix. I'd love to try their golden one I think - I liked the texture looking at the packaging.

Also if any of you had some tips on how to make it turn out best please let me know... I'm all ears

It's my favorite cake mix. Use real butter and it will turn out fine.

[ravenwoodglass]

I'd be interested in hearing from more people on their thoughts on the Betty Crocker gluten free cake mix. I'd love to try their golden one I think - I liked the texture looking at the packaging.

Also if any of you had some tips on how to make it turn out best please let me know... I'm all ears

I just made a marble cake with this mix this week. Although the box says to use 3 eggs I use 2 whole eggs and just the white of the other because I think it is too 'eggy' with all 3 yolks. I also use real butter and for the chocolate 'marble' part I put about 1/2 the batter in the cake pan then I mix Now Instant Hot Cocoa mix (about 1/2 cup) into the rest of the batter and blob it onto the yellow mix in the pan then draw a knife through to marble it. I don't like frosting so I ate it with fresh blackberries and whipped cream on top.

Gluten Free Pantry also makes some really good cake mixes. My favorite is the Chocolate. I also love their French Bread mix for making pizza crust although it does seem weird to have to spread pizza dough with a spatula rather than forming it with my hands.

[kellynolan82]

It's my favorite cake mix. Use real butter and it will turn out fine.

I hear Americans often use the term 'real butter'. What does this mean? Should I avoid using butter out of spreadable pots when baking?

[kareng]

I hear Americans often use the term 'real butter'. What does this mean? Should I avoid using butter out of spreadable pots when baking?

Real butter is stick butter not margarine. Spreadable butter usually has some stuff added and isn't good for baked goods.