Replace High Chair (And Other Things)?

[SPJandE]

When you get a celiac diagnosis, do you replace the highchair? We have an older high chair that I looove. I am sure it's had gluten on it many times over the years. There are some scratches on the tray. It's been washed and wiped down a lot since we've had it, but will that get rid of it all or do we need to replace it? Little one is really sensitive to gluten touching him (has DH), but the highchair doesn't seem to cause any problems. I'm a little torn, so figured I would see what others did.

Also, pots and pans...they need replaced, right? Is it possible to get all the gluten off/out of a non-stick pan or do we just suck it up and buy new ones? We have several pretty new pans that I really don't want to give away, but ugh. All plastic cooking utensils and bowls need to go too? Glass is okay though, right? The kids plastic plates will need replaced too, I am assuming. Sooo not looking forward to this...I am the cheapest person alive!

Anything else we need to get rid of?

[Mom2J112903]

I didn't get rid of ANYTHING, just had specific kitchen tools for the little man. I also sterilized, SUPER hot water and bleach, some things.

[SPJandE]

Thanks for your reply!

I guess I should elaborate a bit more. I forgot I hadn't posted on this board yet. We're all going to go gluten free soon. My 7 year old is being tested and if it's positive (I'd be shocked if it isn't), we'll also test the 6 year old. Even if it's just the baby though, it'll be easier to just keep it out of the house because he's so sensitive to it.

If anyone touches him with unwashed hands (after eating) or he touches anything that's had gluten on it (like if the bigger boys forget to wash their hands and then touch the couch and then he does OR we have crumbs or something on our shirts, etc.). We just block him from the kitchen because we can't keep every single crumb up and he breaks out if he crawls through there. He's a mess!

[Takala]

Think of it as a shopping opportunity.

Plus, somebody out there may need your old stuff.

Suck it up and replace the non stick pans. Stainless steel is your new very best friend and will last a very long time. The one essential is the good size frying pan, so you know you have something you can always cook gluten free safely in. If you have cast iron, either replace it or put it in the oven cleaning cycle to burn off the old finish, scrub it out, then re season. I clean dedicated cast iron with a paper towel with water, pure gluten-free cider vinegar, and baking soda, no soap, no sponges. WATCH OUT for new "pre seasoned" imported cast iron which may be seasoned with who knows what sort of mystery oil. The plastic, bowls, spatulas, especially the storage containers, needs to go, too. Glass is okay. Corelle china dishes are very sturdy for everyday plates, the only problem with it is it does not break, , and you may be stuck with it forever, so try to pick a pattern you can live with. They have outlet stores: Open Original Shared Link

Warning. The "new" pyrex glass wear is not your mother's pyrex glass, and it comes with a ridiculous amount of warning labels as to never put the hot pyrex on a hard surface, never put water on the warm pyrex to clean it, don't bump it, etc. My favorite was the woman who left an empty pyrex dish on her oven top, turned on the oven to bake, and the thing exploded on her and sliced her achilles tendon when her back was turned. %$#@*&^(!!!! I have paper towels always laid in my microwave glass bottom turntable, so this crappy pyrex does not get clinked against glass, incase I have a senior moment and forget to swaddle it with a protective layer. I put an oven potholder down on the counter top to receive the warmed pyrex item. I wait until it is cooled before even thinking of going near the sink with it.

You said you were cheap, just watch out for the pyrex glass. There are OTHER brands of ceramic which may be more expensive, but they are much safer. When it says "melt butter," I use the corelle. I do a lot of microwave baking of single and double serving gluten free quick breads.

The rolling pin (if you use one) will either need to be replaced (they do make non porous ones, I got a ceramic one last year) or you can use a drinking glass and roll out dough between two sheets of waxed paper. Wooden spoons, say good bye and replace.

Colander needs to go. This is where it gets fun, as colanders used to be "just colanders," and now they come in all different sizes, from small enough for one piece of fruit to medium to large, and in all different COLORS and patterns, such as enameled, so they are pretty enough to leave on the kitchen counter.

Wooden cutting boards need to go. Wood was actually proven to be more sanitary than the plastic ones. I like to go to our local fairs vendors (we have a LOT of this in CA) and find a local craftsperson making stuff right here, and then getting a handcrafted item. When I got my cutting board the maker told me all the different kinds of wood in it (besides what oil he used), which was really interesting, as he had taken what is too small for other things and made really stunning results out of it.

Take a sharpie pen (these are also now your best friends) and as you start to accumulate nice new cooking tools, you are going to mark on them (such as the cutting board) GLUTEN FREE or "gluten-free" only, to keep the barbarian hordes from slicing regular bread on it.

In the meantime, you take paper towels and lay them on a ceramic plate and can use that as a cutting board.

Toaster needs to go. I prefer a toaster oven with a removable rack and crumb tray, so if you mess up and have a round of cross contamination or discover an allergic or intolerance reaction to what was in it previously, you can take the rack out and scrub it off. This happens even with us longer time experienced people, I had to do this today as I had been waiting for my spouse to finish off a batch of gluten free stuff I had made but could not eat. If you have a mixed household, mark the dedicated gluten free toaster as such. You may want to put the gluten free toaster in a different location from the regular one, so somebody does not get in a hurry and mess it up.

Wooden butcher block knife storage, probably better to get rid of that, who knows what flour or crumbs are down in those slots. Cleaner to store knives in something else.

Electric hand mixer, it is really hard to get all those little crumbs out, may want to replace that. Some people swear by their heavy duty stand mixers, as they bake a lot of really sticky gluten free doughs. I tend to do quick breads which do not need to be beat up as much.

Take and run your oven mitts and potholders thru the washing machine, to get rid of all the gluten residue on them when you grabbed something out of the oven made with wheat flour. These are also fairly inexpensive to replace if they are too far gone.

You may want to try cooking with ground nut meals sometime, it is very easy to grind nuts in the blender, and it is cheaper if you can find gluten free nuts. I prefer the sturdy Oster as it is very basic, made of glass, keeps chugging along, and easy to clean. I do not need a programable 27 speed plastic piece of junk which will last only a year.

Counter top cruet dispensers: to save time, save money, and to always have a quick salad dressing available, I have glass cruets on the counter top, that have extra virgin olive olive oil and safe gluten free vinegar (pure apple cider) in them. Then they can be quickly sprinkled on any salads or vegetables that need dressing, or used to dispense oil for cooking pans, or vinegar for baking. Tastes better, too.

[Takala]

Forgot to add, if he is that sensitive, if you have any pets, you should switch them to gluten free, barley free, oat free (regular oats are cross contaminated) pet foods. On this you have to read the label. With some brands, I have seen a LOT of mis- labeled pet foods, where the front of the bag proudly proclaims "Gluten Free !" as a marketing gimmick, and the ingredients are blatantly NOT. For example, a sneaky and cheap way is to put leftover beer brewing by products in it, which would be derived from malted barley, and calling it grain byproducts. Pet food labeling standards are pretty lax here in the USA, compared to human foods. Pet food manufacturers do not use the medical definition of gluten free. They can also change ingredients on batch runs and not have to change their ingredient list immediately. There are companies that are better at this, than others.

My largest inside/outside dog is extremely sensitive to wheat and cross contamination, and his reactions are very strong, so we have found out the hard way that it is not even "safe" for me to give him most table scraps, and I must be a vigilant label reader, every time. If he gets cc'd, he is more vulnerable to flea bite reactions. He was also getting cross contaminated by the cat, who insists on drinking out of his water dish, so we put her on gluten free food, also.

[sa1937]

Sorry I can't give you any advice on the high chair...is it wood, plastic or metal? Wood could be refinished. I guess I mention wood as I had a wooden high chair for my kids (many years ago).

My general rule of thumb was that if I could get something clean, I kept it. If not, out it went. I did replace cutting boards, wooden spoons, colanders and bought a new toaster...basically just using common sense as my guide. I kept my Calphalon pots and pans as they were in good condition. I replaced some non-stick that should be been tossed out a long while ago. I also got rid of some Tupperware but also kept some depending on condition and what it was used for (it was ancient).

Also you need separate condiments for your little guy to prevent cross-contamination like crumbs in the butter, mayo, peanut butter, jelly, etc. Hope this helps a bit.

[sa1937]

Think of it as a shopping opportunity.

Truer words were never spoken! I started shopping and haven't quit yet!!!