5 Tips for Starting a Gluten Free Diet

Starting a new food or eating plan can be challenging, especially starting a gluten free diet for the first time. For many, it's often not just gluten - it's also learning how to start a gluten free and dairy free diet. 

This can be overwhelming at first. And, if you're venturing down this road as a parent of a child diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, Celiac Disease or similar health concern, this may feel like trying to climb a mountain. 

So, how do you do it? What foods can you eat? What foods can't you eat? Where do you buy the food? It's an endless string of thoughts that frustrate and many times deter starting the diet. 

There is help available to ease this process. And, the first -- and best -- piece of advice is this: DON'T PANIC! This does not happen overnight, nor should it. 

So, here's 5 tips for starting a gluten free diet and I hope they help.

1) TACA: The first place I recommend people go is the TACA website, specifically to the TACA gluten free diet page. There is a great piece on how to phase in the diet over 10 weeks. TACA stands for The Autism Community in Action - and their gluten free diet resources were a tremendous help when we first got started on this road.

2) Lisa Lewis books: These books were super helpful when we first ventured into the world of gluten-free diets and autism spectrum disorders. Even though many, many books have been written since with similar information, I still her cookbooks and the Encyclopedia of Dietary Interventions to be invaluable resources - and in particular, for those looking to start a gluten free and dairy free diet..

3) Find a good online community. Twenty years ago, there weren't too many online communities - a couple via Yahoo and Facebook. Today, there are numerous channels to look for online help, through Facebook groups and other social media channels such as Reddit, Instagram, blogs, etc. Take some time to look around and find one that suits your needs and personality.

4) Use Google to search for a local group that may be able to help and offer support and guidance - especially if you're dealing with an autism spectrum disorder such as PDD or ADHD, or even Celiac.

5) Look for groceries and stores in your area that sell a variety of gluten free, dairy free and organic products. We turned to a local food coop as they sold items in bulk, which reduced our overall cost, and carried a much wider variety of flours, grains, breads, snacks, alternative milks, etc. You can search for a food coop near you online using a directory. Many cities have Whole Foods, Trader Joes and similar stores that sell these products. And, if nothing else, use Amazon to find products like Bob's Red Mill and other brands that market gluten free items.

If you're on a tight budget, don't worry. This still can be done. Buying in bulk cuts food prices down. Shopping at ethnic groceries often is far less expensive than Whole Foods. Look for local farms that sell meat, vegetables and fruit -- you'll likely buy better quality stuff for less than the local supermarket.

For example, I buy meat from a farmers market that's free of hormones and preservatives. I pay about $1 less per pound than I would at the local supermarket.

If money's not an issue, you can find prepared foods that fit the gluten free diet at most larger supermarkets today.

So, if you're just starting a gluten free diet - you can do this! Use these tips as a starting point and keep learning and growing.

Lindsay's Bread - an easy gluten free bread recipe

This is a great, moist, easy to make gluten free bread recipe (also soy/dairy/rice/corn free). It's a variation of Tom's Bread, which you may already be familiar with. I developed this variation for my daughter's lunches. It's a moister bread, for one. She didn't like dry bread. And, second, I didn't want to use the bean flour, nor did I prefer the brown rice flour. So, I tried sorghum flour, which I love for  baking. Please note this is a yeast bread, which I know is an issue for some of you out there. And, it has eggs. I've not tried making this without real eggs, but, I'll bet you could make this using flax egg alternatives. See my recipe for flax eggs to try it out. You'll also note that I use a flax egg in this recipe along with real eggs. 

So, here's how to make this gluten free bread recipe. I hope you enjoy Lindsay's Bread (when she was very young, she called it Salami Bread -- it was the bread we used for her lunch sandwiches).

Lindsay's Bread - Gluten Free Bread Recipe

- 1 cup sorghum flour (I use Bob's Red Mill)
- 1/2 cup potato starch (potato starch is key here -- it adds to the moist texture)
- 1 1/2 cups tapioca starch/flour
- 3 1/2 tsp. xanthan gum
- 1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 3 tbs. sugar (or alternative)
- 1/4 tsp. creme of tartar
- 3 medium eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 flax egg (I use golden flax seeds, ground fine -- you can do this in your coffee grinder, or buy it ground. See directions below)
- 1 1/3 cup warm water
- 3 tbs. oil (I use olive oil)
- 2 1/4 tsp. yeast (I use Red Star)

Make the flax egg -- mix 1 tbsp ground flax with 3 tbsp water. Heat in microwave for 30 secs. Let sit for at least 5 mins.

Meanwhile, mix all other dry ingredients, including yeast. Using potato starch makes a world of difference. I've tried this using corn starch, but it's just not as moist. So, if you cannot use potato, I'd suggest adding more water to the recipe or cutting back on the starches.

Then, mix all the wet ingredients, including flax egg, in another bowl.

Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until blended. Scrape sides to get it all mixed in.

Grease a bread loaf pan -- I use Spectrum organic shortening. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit until it doubles in size -- about 40-50 mins.

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Bake for 40-45 mins until toothpick comes out clean. This rises! So, if too tall, consider cutting off the top. And, next time, don't let it rise so long. Let it sit 5 mins. Then put onto wire rack to cool. It will sort off deflate slightly. It's OK.

Once cooled, slice and eat. This is a great gluten free bread recipe to use for a daily, all purpose bread at home. Enjoy.

Shopping list:

Bob's Red Mill Sorghum Flour

Potato Starch

Tapioca Starch

Xanthan Gum

Flax seeds

Try this gluten free vegetable recipe - Spicy Spinach!

Getting my kids to eat fruits and vegetables is a real chore. I know that many PDD/ADHD kids are fussy with food and it's extremely difficult getting them to try new things - not to mention the challenge of finding allergy friendly vegetable options. So, having a winning gluten free vegetable recipe is a huge deal. 

I've had a little success in this area, mostly by setting clear rewards for their attempts at trying new things. I mostly don't make a big deal out of the new food and I hardly ever call it -- at first -- by its real name. I'll provide this example, since it leads to the very easy gluten free vegetable recipe that follows. One night recently, I served dinner to my kids, burgers and potatoes, and then I sat down with the same food plus a small pile of cooked spinach. My oldest quickly asked, what is that? Without missing a beat, I said, It's spicy spinach. I kept eating. A minute later, she said, Can I try some? I gave her a small bite from my fork. She asked for more. Then, I asked if she wanted some on her plate. She did. Bingo!  

I know, this approach doesn't always work. But, it does sometimes. And, I've learned to use what's given to me as an advantage. My kids love spicy food. So, I make a lot of spicy things. 

And so, here is my quick recipe for spicy spinach - a tasty gluten free vegetable recipe. And, it'd be very easy to modify to your individual taste.

Ingredients

• 1 bag of fresh spinach (8 oz bag) 
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp ground red pepper 
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning or oregano
• 1 tsp oil (I use olive oil)

Wash the spinach and let dry or pat dry. Heat a tsp of oil in pan over low heat.

Mix the dry spices in a small bowl. 

Add the spinach to the pan and let it heat for a couple of minutes. Then, add the spice mix over top and gently stir to mix the seasoning into the leaves. 

Let this cook to your desired texture preference. Then, spoon into a serving bowl and eat!

Very simple. Very tasty. Very healthy.