Article by Anna Wilde
Being gluten free can be easy once you know how. A gluten free food list can help you discover delicious recipes and alternatives to gluten containing products. It can feel overwhelming to discover some of your favorite foods contain gluten. Maybe you love muffins, cookies, Panini’s, and pizza on a Friday night? Suddenly these foods are out of bounds. Breathe out, relax and take a little time to acquaint yourself with a gluten free food list made easy. Then discover a world of possibilities; you can make your beloved meals gluten free with some simple ingredient changes.
The number one suggestion for making the transition easy is to go for more whole food products, and less processed food. What does this mean? Whole foods are foods that remain as close as possible to the original ingredient from land or sea. This includes fresh vegetables, fruits, seafood, meats, nuts, seeds, and gluten free grains. When you buy and eat whole foods you know exactly what you’re getting, with no hidden surprises. From there you can go ahead and make your special gluten free meals with the original raw ingredients. Many processed foods contain additives and fillers that originally came from wheat. Processed foods are usually the ones in packets with a long list of weird sounding or numbered ingredients. These gluten containing by-products of wheat might have names like malt, modified food starch, food starch, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, stabilizers, fat replacers or substitutes.
Some favorite gluten free grains are brown rice, quinoa, millet and buckwheat. These are easy to prepare and are great substitutes for old favorites: e.g. quinoa makes a great gluten free tabouleh. Other carbohydrate options include: amaranth, corn and popcorn, tapioca, yams, and potatoes. There are many varieties of gluten free pasta and breads. Explore your health food store. Gluten free cakes, muffins and cookies are easy to make with soybean or tapioca, rice, corn, buckwheat and quinoa flours. You may like to add a teaspoon of Xantham gum, which will help the gluten free flours to rise. I spend many happy hours creating new delicious gluten free baking and dessert recipes; my favorites are buckwheat pancakes and coconut cookies. You will find your own specialities and it gets easier every time you have a go!
When you don’t feel like cooking, there are some healthy products that are especially gluten-free. I like the ‘Eatright’ cookies from New Zealand, available at Wholefood stores in the US. They are made of rice flour, topped with chocolate, and perfect for that special occasion sweet craving! Look for products marked “gluten-free.” There may be a special section at your supermarket. Health food stores are wonderful for ‘research’ and staff will have lots of helpful ideas. Get on the net and discover a world of gluten free recipes. An easy gluten free food list
Vegetables FruitSeafoodMeatEggsDairy food (fresh and natural; check label for suspect additives)Condiments: spices (check label), herbs, slat, pepper, fresh chillies, garlic, ginger Vinaigrettes: Dressings made with healthy oils (olive oil is great) vinegars, lemon juice and herbsWheat free soy sauce Creamy dressings: Home made mayonnaise or yoghurt dressingSpreads: Tahini sesame paste, nut butters, honey, jam (check label), hummus, avocadoGrains and flours: brown rice, quinoa, millet, buckwheat, amaranth, corn, tapioca Carbohydrate rich vegetables: yams, potatoes, pumpkin, carrots, parsnipNuts and seeds
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Author: Anna Wilde
New Zealanders Anna and Roger Wilde inspire people who want healthy food to be easy, delicious and great value. See their website for gluten free yummy recipes like Gluten free buckwheat pancakes
