Reducing the Stress: Gluten-Free Holiday's

Reducing the Stress: Gluten-Free Holiday's

There are many articles, blog posts and articles about the Holiday’s and Gluten-Free Food. So when challenged with the idea of writing an article for the Holiday’s presented itself, I pondered what I should write about.

Food is an integral part of the Holiday’s, therefore being on a restricted diet during the holiday’s adds a lot of stress during an already stressful time. I reflected on my gluten-free/dairy-free journey and realized that I have come a long way. 

My first holiday was Thanksgiving and I was going to family, who was making the meal the "traditional" way. I made an entire gluten-free/dairy-free meal to bring with me, since 4 of us were now gluten-free and dairy-free.  It was a tremendous amount of work and truthfully the food was just okay.  I was tired and a little disappointed.  Not only did I have to eat food that was just average but I had to endure the unsolicited comments from one of the non- gluten-free members that tried the food and was a little unkind about the taste. It hurt my feelings and I become anxious about cooking for others. 

Five holiday seasons later, I have become a much better gluten-free/dairy-free cook and baker. When planning what I will cook/bake, I think about what foods gives me that “feeling” of the specific holiday; I am cooking/baking for. This way I am not overworking by reproducing the entire meal. For example, I don’t care about certain Thanksgiving traditional foods but I love the stuffing and gravy, so I focus on making the best gluten-free and dairy-free stuffing and gravy, I can. To me pumpkin pie is just okay but I love a good apple pie, so that is what I make. 

Though I have tried to please everyone in my “food issue group” it has not worked because it becomes overwhelming. If others in my “food issue group” want a certain food that I am not making, I now let them figure it out rather than trying to do it all for everyone. This way on the day of the holiday I am not burnt out and too tired to enjoy the gathering.

Family and friends now know that there are 2 sets of foods, regular and gluten-free.  The gluten-free is in a separate location that prevents any cross contamination, especially with serving utensils. Believe me when I tell you, it is heartbreaking when you have cooked/baked for days and someone proceeds to take the serving spoon from the regular stuffing and sticks it in the gluten-free/dairy-free stuffing, rendering it uneatable, for those of us who can not have any cross contamination. The first time it happened to me, I cried. 

I no longer care what others think about my cooking or my food choices. If they don’t like it then they don’t have to eat it. I have let it be known that I am not interested in a critic unless I ask for it. Setting boundaries with family and friends helps reduce the stress. It is essential for me to take charge of my food issues and stand proud that I am taking care of myself.

Instead of reproducing some already excellent information, I have listed several places for you to find gluten-free recipes and baked goods for the holidays. These are only a fraction of the options now available to us.

1. Blogs: Holiday Recipes can be found on many blogs such as:

            http://glutenfreeonashoestring.com/

            http://glutenfreegirl.com/

            http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.com/

            http://www.celiaccentral.org/holidayrecipes/

2. Magazines such as:                                                                                                                       Gff Magazine at   http://gffmag.com/                                                                                             Gluten Free Living   at http://www.glutenfreeliving.com/                                                             Gluten Free & More at http://www.glutenfreeandmore.com/                                                      Simply Gluten Free at https://simplygluten-free.com/glutenfreemagazine/

3. Pinterest: Go to Pinterest and enter gluten-free recipes in the search box and 1000’s of recipes will come up. Pinterest sites such as these have many tried and true gluten-free holiday recipes.

            eZ Gluten-Free Life at https://www.pinterest.com/ezglutenfreelif/

            The Roasted Root at https://www.pinterest.com/roastedroot/the-roasted-root/

            JustbYou at https://www.pinterest.com/justbyou/recipes-gluten-free/

Local Bakeries: Here in Southern California there are several good bakery options. When going to a gluten-free bakery please ask if it is dedicated gluten-free bakery. Celiac people should not eat baked goods made in a location that could have cross contamination.
            Cookies con Amore/ Glutenetto: Has a large variety of Italian cookies. Read my post                                                                          for further information. 

            Cloud 9 Bakers:

            San Juan Capistrano -  31654 Rancho Viejo Rd
                                                     San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
                                                     (949) 388-8311

            Sensitive Sweets:  Has 2 locations now:

            San Clemente -         362 Camino De Estrella
                                                San Clemente, CA 92672
                                                (949) 388-5764

            Fountain Valley -       Slater Plaza: 17431 Brookhurst St
                                                Fountain Valley, CA 92708
                                                (714)968-9169

Passover: Yehuda and Gefen are brands that carry gluten-free Passover items. 

Gluten-Free Matzo by Yehuda is really quite good. (I have found this Matzo at Ralphs, Whole Foods, Wal Mart etc. It can be very expensive on line so shop around.)

Amazon has an entire section of gluten-free Passover items. 

If you are up in Los Angeles there are some wonderful bakeries:

            Erin McKenna (once BabyCakes): (Great donuts)

                                                236 North Larchmont

                                                Los Angeles, CA 9004

                                                855-462-2292

            Rising Hearts Bakery: (bagels, breads, treats, etc)
                                                10836 W. Washington Blvd
                                                 Culver City, CA 90232

                                                (310) 815-1800

Cartoon via ToledaBlade.com, www.whatnext.com

HAPPY HOLIDAY'S TO ALL!

Gluten-Free Girl Scout Cookies Are The Real Thing!

Goodbye Gluten! New Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookies are the First Gluten Free Girl Scout Cookie

At ABC Bakers, we believe that everyone should be able to support the Girl Scout Cookie Program.  So we’ve developed a delicious new bite size Girl Scout cookie that’s 100% gluten free – and we’re welcoming a whole group of people to the cookie sale.  ABC Bakers will be working with a select group of Girl Scout councils to pilot the new cookie as part of the 2013-14 Cookie Sale.

About the Cookie: Gluten Free Goodness

Since it’s estimated that three million people have problems when they eat foods that contain gluten*, ABC and our council partners expect this cookie to be a huge success. Our new bite size Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Shortbread cookie:

• Is made with real chocolate chips and real butter
• Contains no artificial flavors, no artificial colors, no
  high fructose corn syrup, no palm oil, and no
  hydrogenated oils
• Is available in a 5 ounce resealable foil pouch with
  12 pouches per case

Do the Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Shortbread cookies meet the FDA’s 20ppm limit?
Yes. Our Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Shortbread cookies actually meet the 5ppm hurdle set by Celiac Sprue Association (http://www.csaceliacs.info/fda_glutenfree_labeling_rule.jsp), which is 75% lower than the FDA’s 20ppm proposed limit. The Celiac Sprue Association Recognition Seal Program is more stringent than the FDA guidelines. Additionally, our cookies are certified by the Gluten Free Certification Organization (http://www.gfco.org/). Products carrying the GF logo represent unmatched reliability for meeting strict gluten-free standards and GFCO is the leading gluten-free certification program in the world.

To find more information on the nutrition for the Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Shortbread Cookie, click here. For frequently asked questions regarding the new gluten free cookie, please visit our FAQs.

Go to the website to find out where they are being sold.

The Road Trip!

We started off early Saturday morning and headed out to the 5 fwy north towards Oregon. Going away for 8 days takes planning. Having a restricted diet takes lots of planning and a little bit of "courage". I made foods, I purchased foods, packed up the bags and searched  findmegluten-free.com, so we could eat on the road with minimal stress.

As we got past Los Angeles we started to see a recurring landscape theme. Dried bush, no greenery and lots of dust in the air. It looks like the "Dust Bowl" of the1930's. There was no let up even past Sacramento.   Mt. Shasta Lake has barely any water in it and it is a huge lake. For those who do not live in CA, it is so hot here during the summer, with little to no rain, that we do not see a lot of green in the hills until fall. Then it stays green until April/May. The drought is most definitely here.

Back to eating: Lunch was sandwiches on homemade bread. Later we stopped in Sacramento for the night. I found "The Farmer's Kitchen Cafe" in Davis, It is a 100% Gluten -free and dairy-free eatery. Excellent baked goods, especially the dinner rolls. We purchased a loaf of bread to make sandwiches on the road. We shared a Caesar salad with homemade croutons and chicken em-pandas with risotto. Their menu is "Plat du Jour" which roughly translated means "food of the day". They make several meals and when you come in you can chose from the 3-5 options. They do a huge take out business.

Breakfast next morning was more challenging. I had made hard boiled eggs and purchased packets of  Gluten-free oatmeal. We had this in our room and planned to travel to Redding for a real breakfast. There were only a few options that appeared safe but when we got there I questioned it. Instead we had  some snacks that I brought with us. Several hours later we stopped for gas and found a Ray's Food Place (grocery store) just at the base of Mt Shasta. They carry Ketschmar deli meats which are gluten-free. We happily made sandwiches and ate them will we drove.

We got to Oregon mid day and headed to Richard's uncles house where were having dinner. I had already had detailed communication with Brooke and she assured me she would cook GF. I knew she is a gourmet cook and knows her way around ingredients but of course I was still concerned. She made an exceptional meal of Morocco Chicken, saffron rice and salad. She had all the recipes books out so I could review the ingredients. The meal was delightful and uneventful (no reaction to the food)

We stayed in Ashland, Oregon that night. I had heard Ashland was a progressive town  and well aware of foods and health. They lived up tot heir reputation. We had breakfast at a place called "Brothers Restaurant".
They use rice oil to substitute for diary, they carry Udi's breads and  are well aware of cross contamination issues.

After a lovely stroll in 32 degree temperatures, we headed back down the 5 fwy to San Bruno. We enjoyed the snacks I had with us. We are now resting here with friends for a few days. I will be checking out several GF bakeries etc and will continue this when we are home.

ARE GLUTEN-FREE BAKERIES ALL CREATED EQUAL?

The simple answer is NO!

In my opinion, the only truly safe gluten-free bakery is one that is 100% dedicated to baking only gluten-free products.  I believe there are 3 kinds of baking facilities we need to review, 100% dedicated facility, a shared facility that follows stringent protocol and those  facilities that may not know the how to properly maintain a safe gluten-free environment.

A gluten-free dedicated bakery or facility is one that only produces products made with gluten-free ingredients and does not ever use any gluten containing ingredients in the facility. There is no possibility of cross-contamination.

Bakeries or facilities that are not 100 % gluten-free, often share a physical space and/or equipment with products produced with gluten ingredients.  This may lead to cross contamination, unless stringent protocols are followed.

Many commercial facilities and small independent bakeries are extremely careful to avoid cross contamination and go through extensive steps to thoroughly clean the equipment and prep area before baking the gluten-free products:

According to The Gluten Intolerance Group (GIG), once flour is used in a facility, it can take up to 24 hours for the flour to settle out of the air and onto a surface. In order to avoid cross contamination, the facilities baking both gluten and gluten-free baked goods need to wait up to 24 hours between baking a gluten item and a gluten-free item. (GIG) For people with Celiacs & Hashimoto’s, even breathing in gluten can set off a reaction.  

The prep area must be scrubbed clean by a “wet cleaning system” before gluten-free products can be baked in the area. Employees cannot bring any gluten food items into the prep area such as; sandwiches, crackers etc. Utensils, tools, and any equipment used to bake gluten-free products need to be carefully stored, in order to avoid exposure to gluten. (GIG)

Not all small mom and pops bakeries are aware of the specific requirements needed to be completed, in order to maintain a safe, cross contaminated free environment for gluten-free baking.

I have come across some mom and pop bakeries that have decided to add gluten-free products in their product list. One in particular started baking gluten-free and dairy-free to increase their sales and knew very little about baking gluten-free and the seriousness of cross contamination. I spent some time talking to the owners, after finding an error on their label for gluten-free rolls. I purchased the rolls from a health food store. My husband loved them, so I went to the bakery to see what else they had.

Much to my surprise and horror, the bakery was filled with gluten products and has been around for many years. Just, being in the bakery made me nervous. They had a small shelf of a few GF products, so I talked with the person behind the counter, who happened to be the person who baked the GF products. I asked about the process they use to bake the GF items.  

Yes, they clean the equipment before baking GF.

Yes, they package the goods before starting to bake gluten items.

No, they do not wait any time between the baking of gluten and GF products.

Next, I asked the obvious question (if you are a GF consultant and a curious person) what ingredients do you use to bake the GF rolls. I realized there was a label on the package of GF rolls, I was holding, but by now I was getting a little concerned.  She kindly rattled off the ingredients. “PLEASE repeat what you just said!” I asked.  “Did I hear the word milk? There is no milk written on the label.” She responded, “There must be a mistake because I use milk to make these rolls.”

This set off a series of phone calls to the owner. At first, the owner denied using milk. By the end of the 2^nd phone call he said, “It is only a little milk, it cannot hurt anyone.” I was shocked and appalled. After we hung up, I wrote a long email to the owners and included several article and websites about dairy allergies and how a drop of dairy can kill someone with serious dairy allergies.

The 2^nd owner called me and we met. She had never heard of Celiacs and did not realize the cross contamination issues that could occur. She had not done any research on gluten issues or allergy related issues. The bakery was failing and she saw gluten-free products as a way to turn the business around. We spoke for a very long time and I gave her as much direction and places to find information as possible. They have since changed the label, use almond or rice milk and have tried cleaning up their act. I see their products in the local health food stores and hope the products are safe for those with food issues.

Many start- up GF bakers need to find a commercial facility where they can bake. Often they partner up with an already existing gluten baker and bake during the off hours. I am very cautious of these bakers because cross contamination possibilities. It is worth contacting these bakers and asking if the use are test kits to test the products for gluten content.  

Until there are stringent rules that can be monitored, it is the consumer’s responsibility to be aware of what they are purchasing and where they are buying it form. 

Please see my post on Dedicated Gluten-Free bakeries in Orange County, CA

Disclaimer:

Persons that are very sensitive to gluten or have other food allergies should review all information in order to make an informed decision