Guest Post: The Gluten-free Diet in Social Settings

I want to thank Wendy Rose from www.CandyHeartsBlog.com for this guest post.  She agreed to share some tips on how her family manages to go gluten-free in social situations without missing out on all the fun!  Please check out her fabulous blog for more great posts on everything gluten-free!

Wendy Rose has been a Registered Nurse for 16 years.  After spending most of her career at the bedside in the Emergency Room, the Post Anesthesia Care Unit, and Labor & Delivery, she currently works from home as a Pediatric Telephone Triage Nurse.

Wendy’s oldest daughter was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in 2005, at the age of 24 months and Celiac Disease in 2008, at the age of 5 years.  Wendy herself was diagnosed with Celiac Disease in 2009.  Balancing the demands of her daughter’s blood sugar management while maintaining a gluten-free lifestyle; on top of her role as wife and mother; in addition to maintaining her nursing career can be a challenge at times.  She documents her family’s journey at www.CandyHeartsBlog.com.

Wendy and her husband, Jason, have been married for 10 years.  They have three daughters, ages 7, 5, and 3.  Wendy also has a 13 year old step-daughter who does not live in their area, but visits once a year.  The family resides in the Sonoran Desert with their rescue dog, Ivy.

Managing a gluten-free diet in social settings can be intimidating.  With a little time and preparation, however, it doesn't have to be.

When my daughter was diagnosed with Celiac in 2008, I was pretty sure we were doomed.  We were already dealing with her diagnosis of Type 1 Diabetes a few years earlier, and I just didn't have the confidence that I would be able to rise to the (gluten-free) occasion.  Fortunately, I was able to connect with some gluten-free veterans right away, and they were incredibly instrumental in helping to get us on track.  I, myself, was diagnosed with Celiac in 9/09.  By then, however, I had tackled the gluten-free challenge and was ready to win at this game.

 

Below you'll find a list of common social situations, along with tips for managing them.  Keep in mind that this is how we do things.  My daughter had a repeat endoscopy 6 months after eating completely gluten-free, and the biopsy result revealed "No Evidence of Celiac."  For both of us, repeated labwork continues to confirm that we have been able to maintain normalcy since returning to acceptable levels.  These accommodations obviously work for us, but you will have to use your own discretion before implementing them into your routine.  So, there's your disclaimer...now on with the show!

  

Classroom and Birthday Parties: I make a batch of gluten free cupcakes using the modified GF Betty Crocker recipe found in THIS blog post.  After they've cooled completely, I frost, decorate, and freeze them overnight in a single layer before putting them into freezer bags the next day.  Then I keep half in the freezer at home and send the other half to be stored in a freezer at school.  Whenever you need a cupcake, you just pull one out and it'll be thawed in about 15 minutes!

 

 

Whenever it's our turn to provide a class snack, I tend to send something in the Fruit Roll Up category.  Not only are these snacks easy for the teacher to pass out, but they come nicely prepackaged with the carbohydrate amount listed (necessary for the management of her blood sugar), AND they're gluten free (BONUS!) 

For birthdays at pizza joints, I bring along our own pizza.  At one of the most popular places in our area, I actually bring an uncooked pizza on a cookie sheet lined with foil, they run it through the oven, and then I slice it using our very own handy dandy pizza cutter.  It works.  And it's always fun!

 

 

Potlucks:  I generally bring the same kid-friendly dishes whenever we participate in a potluck...baked macaroni and cheese using THIS recipe (minus the breadcrumbs and usingJules Gluten Free instead of regular flour) along with a pan of Coconut Chocolate Nirvana Bars(HELLO DELICIOUS!!).  Our family's favorite pastas include Schar and Quinoa, but I'm sure any gluten-free pasta would work well.  By bringing both a main dish and a dessert, I am able to relax knowing that my daughter will enjoy the party with some of her favorite foods!  On a side note, I NEVER have leftovers to bring home.  Everyone raves over these dishes...it's a win-win!  Who needs gluten?

I also try to arrive a little early for potluck-style gatherings, and bring along some GF corn chipsand/or a box of GF crackers or Nut Thins.  I tend to start perusing the various dips and whatnot before the line forms and, unashamedly, scoop out some of the the dips I deem to be GF so I can set them aside before the rest of the party begins contaminating them with gluten containing crackers and such.

 

 

Sleepovers:  We don't have much experience with sleepovers away from home.  The bottom line is that sending Type 1 Diabetes to a sleepover is hard!  There's all that carb counting and insulin dosing...not to mention at least 1 (though usually 2 - 3) finger pricks during the night, plus it's imperative that someone understand how to respond to each blood glucose reading.  Type 1 Diabetes just makes it so complicated.  For this reason, we're usually the ones hosting a sleepover.  

Anything I offer at the party will be gluten free.  Whether it's popcorn with a movie, gluten-free sugar cookies to decorate, or gluten-free waffles for breakfast.  No one ever complains, and there's never any awkwardness because this IS our normal.  

 

Speaking of those sugar cookies, I also wanted to mention that I keep some of that dough on hand in the freezer. You never know when you'll need a sugar cookie, especially around holidays.  It seems that cookie decorating is a popular holiday activity.  I bought a big tub of cookie cutters for every occasion...need a heart shape for Valentine's day?  DONE!  Pumpkin?  Christmas tree?  Kissing Hand, perhaps?  Done, done, and done!  Just pull off a chunk from the freezer, cut out the shape you need, bake and move on.

 

 

Anyway, my daughter has participated in 2 sleepovers away from home.  The first was at a neighbor's house, and the second was with a friend who is also raising a daughter with both Type 1 Diabetes and Celiac Disease.  For obvious reasons, I didn't worry much about the latter, but I did spend a little time strategically planning for the first one.  Fortunately, our neighbor is incredibly accommodating and understanding of the special dietary issues we face.  I sent over a few gluten-free snacks (though she was already prepared with some of her own!) along with a frozen gluten-free waffle AND our gluten-free toaster for breakfast.  What?  Doesn't everyone bring their own toaster to a sleepover?

No matter what social situation you're headed to, gluten shouldn't stop you.  By creatively preparing ahead of time, you're sure to make some awesome memories while enjoying your favorite foods!  Who says you can't have your cake and eat it too?

Monday Menu Plan

Daycare Lunch Plan

Monday: Macaroni
Tuesday: Fish fillet with green beans 
Wednesday: Tacos with corn and salad
Thursday: Baked Pasta with green beans
Friday: Soup with quiche (leftover egg drop soup and frittata)

Dinner Plan

Monday: Chicken drumsticks with mashed potatoes and broccoli 
Tuesday: Egg drop soup with mushrooms and green onions, rice paper rolls
Wednesday: Beans and rice with leftover chicken drumsticks
Thursday: Fritatta with pork sausage and vegetables
Friday: Pizza with side salad

Keeping things simple: I always keep the daycare stocked with frozen fish, hamburger and chicken fingers from home.  The sausages are homemade, my dad makes a batch each year and we freeze them.  For the pizza, I prefer the Kinnikinik single serve crusts; I can make as much or as little as I want, and keep the rest frozen).

Homemade Corn Tortillas with all the fixings

Last night my husband and I went over to a friend's place to participate in an experiment:  make corn tortillas from scratch.  Soaking and grinding the corn, making the dough, pressing and cooking the tortillas.  Very labor intensive stuff, but a lot of fun.  After a few mishaps (note to self:  corn must be DRY before putting through the grinder), we figured it out and pumped out at least a hundred tortillas to serve the guests that were due to arrive at seven.

The meal was not intended to be gluten free; our son was being babysat by my parents, and we were free to eat what we wanted.  I realized later however, that it was indeed a gluten free feast!

Corn tortillas
Refried beans
Ground pork and seasonings
Grilled fish
Guacamole
Tomato, onion and cilantro salad
Shredded lettuce
Bean salad with grilled corn and green onion

The food was filling and delicious, and no one even missed the gluten.  We couldn't have had a better gluten free party if we'd tried!  I think next time though, I'll make the tortillas from pre-ground corn.  Although I have to say it was quite fun to work from scratch.  Definitely something everyone should try at least once. 

Of course we forgot to take photos, or I'd post them here.

Stuffed Peppers

*Updated June 2013

I love this recipe because it's so easy to tweak the recipe to just a little to completely alter the flavours of the dish.  This is the basic recipe, the one that I started with.  Perfect for a cold night, keeps well, travels well and tastes delicious!  I've based the number of peppers on a four person serving of 1 pepper per person.  There will be leftover stuffing, so you could definitely add another pepper or two.

Ingredients

4 bell peppers (red, orange or yellow)
1 cup rice
1 lb. extra lean ground beef (chicken or turkey work well too)
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup frozen vegetables (mix of peas, carrots and corn)
1 cup shredded mozzarella or cheddar cheese (optional)
1 jar tomato sauce

Preheat oven to 400F

Directions

1- Cut tops off peppers.  Trim bottoms so that peppers stand alone, but avoid making large holes in the bottom. Place peppers in a casserole dish.
2- Cook rice according to package instructions.  For more flavour, cook in a gluten free vegetable of beef broth instead of plain water.  Remove from heat and put aside.
3- In a large frying pan, cook ground meat over medium-high heat until cooked through.  Add minced garlic and frozen vegetables and cook for another 3-5 minutes.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Turn off heat and stir in rice.  Mix to combine.
4- Fill peppers with rice mixture.  Cover dish with aluminum foil and bake for 20-25 until peppers begin to wrinkle and look cooked through. Put aside extra stuffing for another meal or stuff extra peppers to freeze.
5- Remove foil and ladle tomato sauce over peppers.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Return to oven uncovered until cheese bubbles.
6- Serve peppers with side vegetables or a salad.

Tips
- To freeze peppers for later, freeze stuffed, but before baking in the oven.  Cook from frozen.
- To use as a side dish, cut peppers in half and lie them on their sides in the baking dish.  Fill halves and serve as a side dish.
-For BBQ peppers, stir in BBQ sauce while cooking meat and omit tomato sauce.
-Vegetarian: omit meat and use lentils instead.

Yogurt mishap

So last night I was all smug and excited.  I had been told by various medical professionals that for some people who have celiac or gluten intolerance that the ability to digest dairy products can sometimes return after being on a gluten free diet for long enough to heal their damaged intestines.  A difficulty digesting dairy is very common for those who also can't process gluten, but apparently just a temporary problem for a lucky few. 

I am lactose intolerant, so I know all about the side effects of consuming too many dairy products.  I am able to tolerate some dairy, however, and I was encouraged to be told from the pediatric allergist that we went to see for my son that some dairy products are better tolerated by lactose intolerant people than others, such as yogurt and hard cheeses.  She suggested that since my son has been on a gluten free diet for a few months now that we might be able to introduce some goats' milk or some regular yogurt and see how it goes. 

So I did, two nights ago.  Organic, toddler yogurt, sweetened with fruit juice.  No gluten.  And yesterday, he was fine.  So I gave him another one last night, thinking that perhaps yogurt could be reintroduced into his diet.  Especially since he has recently decided that he no longer likes the soy yogurt I used to buy him.

I was wrong.

This morning was....unpleasant.  Let me just say that his unhappy bowels sent me a message, loud and clear, that yogurt was not going to be tolerated by my little one.  I feel like a horrible mommy, but he didn't seem too concerned except to point and say "That's ewwww".  Eww indeed.

Lesson learned.

Finding out I was pregnant

I wasn't going to use this prompt, but since the whole purpose of this blog came about due to my son, it actually seems like an appropriate topic.  I found out I was pregnant in the month of June, kind of in stages.  My husband had been working for the government in Ottawa for a few months, and we were making weekend trips back and forth to see each other.  The plan was for me to eventually move there with him on a leave of absence from my teaching job to see if I liked it enough to stay. 

One weekend, we went for a walk along a nature trail just minutes from the apartment my husband was renting.  It was warm outside, not really hot, but for some reason I was sweating and tired and kept making him stop to rest.  We cut the walk short after about an hour of me complaining about how hot and tired I was.  When we finally got back to the apartment, I crashed on the bed for the rest of the afternoon.  Weird.  I thought for sure that I was coming down with something. 

The next week at work, I started realizing that something was definitely up.  I teach on the third floor of the school, and I could run up and down those stairs all day by the end of the school year.  Except that I started noticing that the tops of my feet were breaking out into rashes every time I did.  My colleague, who was very pregnant at the time, looked at them and said "Oh dear.  I think you're pregnant!"  It wasn't a total surprise, because my husband and I were letting nature take its course at that point, but I didn't want to confirm it without him there, so I waited until he came home for the weekend. 

After all that waiting, I took the test and it was positive.  Just as I was about to walk out of the bathroom to tell him, a neighbour knocked on our door and my husband invited him in to hang out.  Stashing the test in the bathroom medicine cabinet, I went into the living room to spend the next couple of hours biting my tongue and dying to let the cat out of the bag.  Finally our friend left, and I told my husband the good news!  His response?

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, why?"

"Because these things aren't 100%.  I don't want to get excited and then find out that you're not really pregnant"

"........"

"Hello?"

"Uh.....do you want me to take another test?"

"Would you?"

My economist by trade, mathematical, statistics loving husband was calculating the probability of the test results being incorrect, while all I could think about was the fact that there was a new person growing inside of me.

I almost threw the first test at his head.

But I agreed to take the second if he agreed that he wouldn't question the results.

So I did.  And he believed it.  And then he actually got very excited and emotional, and it was difficult for him to leave to go back to Ottawa when the weekend was over.  We decided that since my family is in Toronto and his is mostly out ofthe country, that we would stay here to have the baby.  By the end of the 4th month of my pregnancy he had found a new job with the province, leased out the apartment and moved back to Toronto. 

Our son was born in 2009. 

Nut'n Gluten

I live just north of Toronto, so going into the city to find gluten free stuff is an option, but not something that I want to worry about every week.  When I first started looking for gluten free items for my son, I realized that there was a one-stop shop not 5 minutes from my house.  I am not personal friends with the owners and they are not even aware that I am writing this personal post.  The purpose is not to provide a review of the store, but to begin providing some resources for people in my area who are looking for gluten free products.

Nut'n Gluten is a small but fully stocked shop located in Vaughan that carries a wide range of gluten free products.  They are family owned, and after asking the clerk why his family decided to open up such a specialty shop, he told me that one of the owners is celiac, so it's personal to them.  All the staff is friendly and knowledgeable and I didn't feel uncomfortable asking them questions when I was just starting to figure this out.  I loved that I didn't have to worry about what I was picking up off the shelf because it was all gluten free!  Another thing that I found very comforting was the range of products free from other allergens as well, such as dairy and nuts.  The dairy was important to me personally as my son reacts badly to it, and the nut-free requirement was essential for any product that would be going to daycare with my son.

Some grocery/ shelf stable product offerings:
-cereals, cereal bars, granola, muffins
-mixes: pizza dough, waffle and pancake, cookies, brownies, etc.
-chips and cookies
-pastas and noodles, canned soups and boxed meals
-sauces and condiments
All of this is offered in a variety of brands, so I wasn't limited to the one or two choice usually found in a regular grocery store.

Their freezer section contains cupcakes and cakes, waffles, muffins, frozen meals, meats, hamburgers, fish, popsicles and ice cream, and GF bread.

The store also gets fresh bread delivered daily, including GF baguettes, and makes in-house breadcrumbs that I use for everything.  I noticed the last time that I was there that they also had gift baskets.

Their prices are comparable to the local grocery store that I also shop at.  Some products a bit more expensive, some a bit less, but the selection is much better.  And that's saying something, because my local grocery store has a pretty good selection.  I might cover it in a future post.  The store doesn't sell produce or fresh meat, so I can't do all of my shopping in one place, but I'm ok with that.  The kicker for me is simply the convenience.  Everything is in one spot, I don't have to search for a specialty aisle, or read every label I see to know that what I'm buying is gluten free. The peace of mind alone is worth a few extra cents in my book. 

What would I like to see improved?  The website is still very sparse.  Hopefully over time it will expand to allow for better comparison shopping or for online ordering. 

Monday Menu Plan

Although my son still eats some of what the daycare provides when it's gluten free, I pretty much supply the bulk of his meals.  I've decided in January to try out preparing the meals for the week on Sunday, and trying to rearrange our dinner menu around some of the ingredients to make life simpler for myself.  Here's how I tried to work it out for this week!

Daycare Lunch Menu (Each day the lunch is accompanied by vegetables and fruit.  He eats what the daycare provides as I've ensured that they are prepared carefully and without any forbidden ingredients.  The following is what I prepare at home to avoid cross- contamination.  The lunch plan is the daycare's menu for the week.)
Monday: Hamburger and Fries
Tuesday: Chicken fingers and roast potatoes (I'm using turkey breast instead because I have it on hand)
Wednesday: Chicken (turkey) souvlaki with rice
Thursday: Spaghetti and meatballs
Friday: Soup with bagel and cheese.  I'm making quinoa and vegetable soup and adding rice cakes and hummus instead of the bagel and cheese.

I love that I can use the same large turkey breast for both meals and that the same package of ground beef works for two lunches and one dinner as well.  Here's how our dinner menu will break down as a result:

 Dinner Menu
Monday: leftover lentil soup from New Year's eve with oven baked turkey breast and salad
Tuesday: Stir fried rice and vegetables, with any leftover turkey chopped and added in.
Wednesday: Hot hamburger sandwiches on toasted gluten free bread and mixed vegetables
Thursday: Quinoa and vegetable soup
Friday: Spaghetti and salad

The Basics:
1 large package of ground beef, or 2 1lb. packages
1-2 turkey breasts (they were on sale post-Christmas.  I buy and then freeze them wrapped individually)
3 potatoes
1 package of spaghetti and 1 jar of sauce
1 1/2 cups quinoa
1 box vegetable broth
1 package frozen vegetables
2 cups rice
1 lettuce, 1 cucumber and 1 tomato, with oil and vinegar dressing
1 loaf gluten free bread (we always have some frozen, sliced)
1 can GF gravy
Obviously some additional ingredients are necessary, but these constitute the majority of the ingredients.  A much smaller list than I'm used to seeing when I meal plan.  Maybe this coordination thing is worth my time!

**The ingredients from the leftover soup are not included, but the recipe can be found here

10 Naturally Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Portable Snacks for Kids

The snacks at my son's daycare are generally not gluten free, so I've been scrambling to put together some alternatives without having to buy specialty products every time. 

Here are a few quick snacks that he loves that are (mostly) healthy and are naturally gluten free!  Remember to always check labels to make sure that the brand you're buying is gluten free, as product ingredients change.

Updated August 2013.

Happy New Year!

I hope that everyone had a safe and happy new year, and I wish you all the best for 2011!  I just started this blog in December, but I'm grateful for those of you who are following it and I hope to make many more connections in the year to come.

I have accepted the Bloggymoms dare and plan to post an entry every day in 2011.   Am trying not to think too much about what that means, and just focus on things that are meaningful and useful to myself and hopefully to others. If you are clicking here from that site after Jan. 1st please click on the header at the top of the page to get my most recent posts.  I'm new to this, and I posted the link to this first post rather than to the site in general.  Stuff happens.  I will also be completing the bloggymoms challenge each Tuesday and hope to participate in some recipe link-ups with other GF sites.  The part I've enjoyed the most about blogging so far is meeting (virtually) other people who have so many interesting stories to share.  I have even been moved to tears by a few posts!  This is a whole new world for me, and one I can't wait to get more comfortable with in the year to come.

So, being the first day of the new year, and an unseasonably warm one where I live, I'll keep this post short.  I'm off to enjoy a wonderful fresh (GF) pasta dinner with my parents, sister and niece.  I hope that you're able take some time to relax and enjoy the possibilities that a fresh start offers, before the day-to-day business of life creeps back in and tries to veer us off track.  Here's to new goals, new dreams and a brand new year!

Best Wishes!