According to Debbie Adler Owner of Sweet Debbie’s Organic Cupcakes and Author of Sweet Debbie’s Organic Treats Going gluten-free can be a dietary choice or it can become a necessity due to celiac disease or food allergies. Either way, it’s best to keep your dining choices basic, until you and your family get used to the menu makeovers.
So how can you and your brood begin a gluten-free diet? Adler’s suggestion is to start off by choosing mostly whole foods that are naturally gluten-free.
#1 Incorporate more fresh produce into your daily meals : When my young son was diagnosed with severe and life threatening food allergies, my first instinct was to incorporate more fresh produce into our daily meals, ” says Adler. “There are so many ways to make vegetables and fruit into wonderfully satisfying meals. The internet can be an easy and great source for ideas.”
#2 Eat more Protein. Since you can’t live on lettuce alone, meat and fish are both naturally gluten-free as long as you don’t use seasonings that contain wheat. That’s where label reading is imperative.
#3 Go for the POTATOES. For side dishes you can use potatoes. She prefers sweet potatoes and yams since they are more nutrient dense than white potatoes.
#4 Switch up your grain intake. The grains that I like to use are naturally gluten-free such as millet, quinoa and teff. Quinoa is a protein unto itself so you can make an entire well-balanced meal incorporating just quinoa and vegetables. Oats are naturally gluten-free, but since they are usually grown in fields with wheat, there is the problem of cross-contaminations. I suggest you buy oats in packages that are labeled gluten-free. Bobs Red Mill is one of the companies that do this.
Adler promises that you will find yourself delighting in the culinary possibilities once you take on the challenge of living a gluten-free lifestyle. Your cravings for gluten will pass quickly once you find all the delicious alternatives that are yours for the taking (and baking and cooking!) and shares three of her ORIGINAL Gluten-free recipes!Fudgey Fig-a-Mama-Jig Bar : Makes 25 bars
Must Have
Sheet of parchment paper slightly larger than15 x 10 inches
12 dried Calimyrna figs, de-stemmed and cut into ½-inch pieces
3 tablespoons water
4 cups gluten-free oats
1 ½ cups all-purpose gluten-free flour
¾ cup raw pumpkin seeds, roughly chopped
â…“ cup cacao powder
1 teaspoon guar gum
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup coconut oil
½ cup coconut nectar
¼ teaspoon stevia powder
Must Do
Preheat oven to 300 °F. Line a 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan with the parchment paper, with a little extra over the sides.
Place the figs and water in a food processor or blender and puree.
Mix together the oats, flour, pumpkin seeds, cacao powder, guar gum and salt in a large bowl.
Microwave the coconut oil and coconut nectar in a 2-cup measuring cup for 60 seconds. Add the stevia and stir to combine. Pour the coconut mixture into the oats mixture. Fold in the fig puree.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and smooth it into the corners and on top with a wet baking spatula to cover the pan evenly.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the oats are a dark golden brown and look dry. Rotate the pan halfway through baking.
Remove the pan from the oven to a wire rack and let sit for about 15 minutes before putting in the freezer for at least 1 hour.
Transfer the parchment paper to a cutting board, and cut into 25 bars.
Wrap each bar individually in parchment paper or bakery tissue paper, place in a sealable plastic bag and keep frozen until ready to pack or eat.
Nutrition Information Per Serving (1 bar): 150 calories, 8 g total fat, 0.0 mg cholesterol, 27 g carbohydrates, 40 mg sodium, 4 g fiber, 3g protein, 6 g sugars
Stoned Fruit Muffins Makes 12 standard-size muffins
*Sweet Truth:
Stoned in this context means “stones have been removed.” Just as pitted means “pits have been removed” and gutted means . . . oh, never mind.:)
Must Have
12 standard-size paper baking cups
2 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour
2 teaspoons sodium-free baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¾ teaspoon ginger powder
½ teaspoon guar gum
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
¼ cup grapeseed oil
¼ cup coconut nectar
¼ teaspoon stevia powder
â…“ cup apricot, peach, nectarine or plum puree
1 cup unsweetened plain rice milk
1 cup diced apricots, peaches, nectarines, or plums
Must Do
Preheat oven to 350 °F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper baking cups.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, ginger, guar gum, cardamom and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the middle.
Add the grapeseed oil, coconut nectar and stevia and stir to combine. Add the fruit puree and rice milk, and stir until the liquid is absorbed and the batter is smooth.
Add ½ cup of the diced fruit and stir to distribute evenly.
Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tin, dividing it evenly. Each cup should be about two-thirds full. Top each with the remaining ½ cup of diced fruit.
Bake the muffins for 17 to 18 minutes, or until they are a light golden brown and bounce back slightly to the touch. Rotate the muffin tin from front to back halfway through baking.
Transfer the muffin tin to a wire rack and let sit for 10 minutes before removing the muffins to cool completely.
Keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or wrap and freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition Information Per Serving (1 muffin): 150 calories, 5 g total fat, 0.0 mg cholesterol, 26 g carbohydrates, 160 mg sodium, 2 g fiber, 2 g protein, 5 g sugars
Gourmet Dark Chocolate Brownies
Makes 16 brownies
Must Have
Brownies
Grapeseed oil, for greasing the pan
1 1/4 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour
½ cup cacao powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon guar gum
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup grapeseed oil
1/3 cup coconut nectar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
⅜ teaspoon stevia powder
½ cup water
Chocolate Frosting
3 tablespoons coconut oil
2 tablespoons coconut nectar
¼ cup powdered erythritol
3 tablespoons cacao powder
½ tablespoon warm water
â…› teaspoon stevia powder
â…› teaspoon fine sea salt
Must Do
Preheat oven to 325 °F. Grease an 8 x 8-inch square baking pan with grapeseed oil.
Whisk together the flour, cacao powder, mesquite powder, baking soda, guar gum and salt in a large bowl. Make a well in the middle.
Add the grapeseed oil, coconut nectar, vanilla and stevia and stir to combine. Next add the water and stir until it is absorbed and the batter is smooth.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and smooth down with a wet baking spatula or the back of a wet spoon.
Bake the brownies for 9 to 10 minutes, or until the batter starts to pull away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached. Rotate the pan from front to back after 7 minutes of baking.
Remove the pan from the oven to a wire rack and let sit for about 30 minutes before cutting the brownies into 16 squares.
To make the frosting, mix together the coconut oil and coconut nectar in a small bowl. Add the powdered erythritol, cacao powder, warm water, stevia and salt and stir until smooth and well combined.
Frost the brownies when they are completely cool.
Keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or wrap and freeze for up to 3 months.
Nutrition Information Per Serving (1 brownie): 130 calories, 8 g total fat, 0.0 mg cholesterol, 16 g carbohydrates, 80 mg sodium, 1 g fiber, 1 g protein, 6 g sugars
For even more delish recipes check out Debbie Adler’s Book Sweet Debbie’s Organic Treats.
