Wheat and dairy allergies

[momoftwoboys]

Hi, I'm a 31 year old mom of two boys, ages 7 and 9. I was diagnosed with allergies to wheat and dairy about a little over a year ago. I use to get very severe ear infections. I just joined to meet some others with the same issues as I have and get some ideas of some new foods I can make and enjoy eating. It was really hard in the beginning and still is at times. I've lost about 20 pounds since finding out I had the allergies. I'm finding it very hard to just find something good to snack on or finding something I can eat quick when I'm in a hurry. Any ideas would help...thanks!

[aklap]

Hi Mom,

Welcome to the board! Sorry to hear you have to wrestle with this.

Just to clarify - you have a true allergy to wheat and dairy? Some people will you the term "allergy" went describing celiac disease. While it's easy for people to understand "allergies", they are really two separate issues.

What kinds of things did you like to eat before you were diagnosed? Perhaps we can find some alternatives for you.

Nuts make great snacks [assuming you don't have a nut allergy as well].
Raw veggies
Fresh fruit
Hard boiled eggs
_________________
Al

“We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love.” Mother Teresa

[Gus's Mama]

Hi there, Mom!

I hear ya. My little guy is gluten and dairy free, but we're doing okay as far as snacks go. He won't eat fresh fruit (a sensory thing), but he'll eat fresh bananas. I can also get away with giving him "baby fruit" to get fruits into his system.

Snacky stuff that I almost always have on hand:
plain tortilla chips with salsa
Silk brand soy yogurt
rice crackers (read the ingredients--some flavors are unsafe for us)
plain potato chips
Lara Bar snack bars
Envirokids crispy rice bars
Kinnickinick (sp??) chocolate chip cookies
peanut butter and sesame rice crackers
plain or salted rice cakes (read the ingredients here VERY carefully)
hard boiled eggs
apple sauce singles
baby carrots
celery sticks with peanut butter


Also, just about all of my own homemade dinner recipes were easily converted to GF/CF. We love my curried chicken, american chop suey (with tinkyada pasta), fresh basil pesto (no cheese), meatloaf, roasted chicken with all the fun stuff (stuffing, gravy, etc), even pizza (no, it isn't the same, there's no mistaking one for the other, but it works). Most sauces and gravies can be made with white corn flour instead of wheat flour. Process is just the same, you just use less of the corn flour.

I also make a bunch of stuff that never had any gluten to begin with:
black bean soup, chili, lentil soup, chicken cacciatore (no added cheese, and use tinkyada pasta), chicken soup, pan-fried fish (if you must dredge, seasoned garbanzo flour works great for this)...gosh, I can't think of anything else at the moment. We use plenty of tofu, too. You can get pretty creative with tofu (you can puree it and hide it in a lot of different stuff, like creamy roasted butternut squash soup--don't tell my daughter ).


You should take a look in the recipes section, too. There's lots of good stuff in there!

Welcome aboard, and have fun trying out some new foods.
_________________
Deb
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SPD Little Boy, Gus: Getting better by the day! Improved digestion, skin issues clearing, able to focus and follow instructions, talking (the boy is TALKING!!!)

[Fidissimus]

Finding healthy, grab-and-go snacks can be challenging for the gluten-free eater. Gluten is pervasive in most packaged snack foods. Whole foods that are naturally gluten-free like cheeses, fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds, and grains make wonderful snacks when combined. Listed below are 25 combinations of gluten-free whole foods to meet some of your snacking needs. (I took out the snacks that included dairy... mostly they had things paired with cheese.)

1. Corn tortillas with hummus and sprouts
2. Smoked salmon on rice crackers
3. Blue corn chips and salsa fresca
4. Bananas and cashew butter
6. Make your own trail mix: raw cashews, raisins, almonds, hazelnuts, dark chocolate chips
7. Soy yogurt with maple syrup, cinnamon, and apple slices
9. Hard-boiled egg with sea salt and crushed black pepper
10. Honey crisp apple slices and peanut butter
11. Dark chocolate squares and fresh strawberries
12. Black bean dip with yellow corn chips
13. Next day rice with crushed nuts, seeds and tamari
14. Fresh blueberries and soy whipped cream
15. Avocado and cherry tomatoes
16. Canned tuna fish, carrot sticks and sweet pickles
20. Warm corn tortillas with smoked salmon, tahini and greens
21. Edamame (soy beans)
22. Tofu chive spread on Mary's Gone flax crackers
23. Sliced deli meat and avocado on a brown rice tortilla
24. Van's whole grain GF waffle with honey and hazelnut butter
25. Air popped popcorn mixed with crushed dried nori, garlic salt and pepper

Genevieve Sherrow, Candidate Master's of Science in Nutrition and Samer Koutoubi, MD, PhD, Professor and Core Faculty, Department of Nutrition and Exercise Science
_________________
Cheers!
Jenn

GF BD: Feb. 2001
Free of wheat, barley, rye, oats, dairy, eggs, almonds, pineapple and brewers yeast.
http://graindamaged.blogspot.com/