Is this Gluten Free Mac and Cheese also Dairy Free Mac and Cheese?

I never thought I'd be able to make good old macaroni and cheese again for my kids, especially not a good gluten free mac and cheese! Of course, we're on the gluten-free dairy-free diet, but also no soy. 

So, years ago (mid-2000s), there was no good cheese substitute to try - and even those that were soy-based were truly gross.

And, the gluten free noodles on the market then weren't great. My biggest gripe was that they were really mushy, soggy, and even slimy. 

Unfortunately, that meant no gluten free mac and cheese for me!

Then, a couple of then-new products changed all of this, at least for me.

First, I found Tinkyada gluten free pasta. The reason I like Tinkyada gluten free pasta is the firmness of the noodles. This difference was huge for me. I had been avoiding GF noodles, but this brand brought them back into my pantry for good. This texture is important for this particular recipe, too. 

I'll point out that there are affiliate links in this post, which means I may receive a small commission if you click a link and make a purchase. Please know that I only promote products specifically by name and link products that I've personally tried and endorse. I never promote any product that I personally would not feed to my family or endorse to friends. The compensation received is used to support the blog.

And then came Daiya cheese. Similar to the Tinkaya experience for me, Daiya was the first cheese of its type that really had taste and melted in a manner similar to real cheese. And, it had no dairy, no gluten and no soy.

Combined, this meant making a gluten free mac and cheese that also was dairy free mac and cheese was possible.

So, here's the recipe - it's just adapted from a typical mac n cheese recipe.

I promise, this will work. Enjoy.

Gluten free mac and cheese

(... and dairy free mac and cheese)

• 1 cup cooked Tinkyada gluten free pasta
• ¼ cup finely chopped onion
• 1 tablespoon margarine (Try a vegan to avoid dairy and soy)
• 1 tablespoon tapioca or corn starch
• Dash black pepper
• 1 ¼ cup non-dairy milk
• 2 cups shredded American/cheddar Daiya dairy free cheese

Directions:

• Cook the gluten free pasta according to directions.
• In a saucepan, cook onion in margarine until tender. Stir in flour and pepper.
• Add milk.
• Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.
• Add cheese. Stir until melted.
• Stir pasta into cheese.
• Transfer to a 1 quart casserole.
• Bake uncovered in 350 degree oven for about 20-25 minutes – until bubbly.

Now, enjoy your gluten free mac and cheese - and, yes, dairy free mac and cheese!

A handy store-bought soup broth -- free of everything

As you know by now, I like to point out products I come across that help make our lives easier and healthier. It's so difficult finding food that you trust is free of the allergens and ingredients that we, and our kids, are intolerant to. I found Kitchen Basics broths one day at our regular supermarket as I looked for a soup for my kids. Couldn't find one in the organic section that I really trusted was free of MSG, gluten and dairy. (Amazing, isn't it?) So, I glanced without much hope at the soups in the regular soup aisle. And there it was. Clearly marked on the box -- no MSG, no glutens, no dairy, no soy. Wow! I bought it.

I generally make my own broth at home and freeze it for later use. But, it's good to know I can grab this at the local store when I'm in a rush.

Chocolate milk -- without the chocolate

Huh - you might ask? Chocolate without chocolate. Well, this really isn't a recipe. It's just one of those things. You know, a creation, to get around a food intolerance. My kids can't have chocolate, for now. So, I turned to carob to make my chocolate cakes and cookies. And recently, I've been adding a little carob to our milk -- rice milk or DariFree. I've had great success with this.

All I did is pour a glass of your favorite milk alternative. Then, in another cup, add a Tbsp of carob powder and drops of water until it forms a smooth paste that you can spoon out. I spoon just a little into each of their cups, along with a tsp of sugar, and stir. I do the paste thing to prevent the carob powder from clumping in the milk.

What's the harm in milk?

This is interesting stuff, especially for us Autism families avoiding the casein gene.

The devil in the milk molecule

The Press Saturday, 15 September 2007

Has a Lincoln University researcher spilt the milk industry's secret about the potential harm in its product or is it more crank science? JOHN McCRONE investigates the latest fuss over A1 and A2 milk.

Is there a health risk in drinking milk? Has there been a naughty cover-up of the facts by Fonterra and others?

These, bluntly, are the questions raised in the explosive new book by Lincoln University agribusiness professor Keith Woodford, who this week reopened a long-festering debate within the New Zealand dairy industry.

The theory, which has been around a decade, seems incredible to most people: that our brains and immune systems can literally be poisoned by poorly digested milk.

Only a certain genetic strain of milk is to blame – the A1 type. However, that is also our most common milk.

The science, put as simply as possible, is that the A1 strain breaks down to release a tiny bio-active peptide fragment called beta-casomorphin-7 (BCM-7). The other kind of milk, A2, breaks down quite harmlessly.

In people who are susceptible, which could be as many as one in five (although this is still a guess), BCM-7 may trigger a host of diseases: diabetes, heart disease, autism, schizophrenia, infant cot-death syndrome, multiple sclerosis, coeliac disease, inflammatory bowel disease – the woes of the Western world it seems.

Then there is the question of an industry cover-up. Read the rest by clicking the blog headline.