lonewolf

I can't find Chebe in my area, so I did a search online for the traditional Brazilian recipe. It looks really easy to make, not much harder than buying the more expensive mix from Chebe, actually. I am going to try it as soon as I can get out to get some plain tapioca flour.

Has anyone that uses Chebe tried it without eggs - using gelatin and egg replacer or something? I'm allergic to eggs and milk too. Milk is easy to replace, but eggs are trickier. (If there was ONE food I could get back, it would be eggs!) I'm going to try this recipe as is for my kids, but want to try it DF, EF for me later.

Tapioca bread with Cheese (Pao de Queijo)

Recipe found at: Open Original Shared Link

Yield: 30 small cheese breads

2/3 cup vegetable oil

2 cups milk

4 cups tapioca flour

2 eggs, beaten

1 1/2 cups grated parmesan cheese

Combine the oil and milk in a pan and bring to a boil. Put the tapioca flour in a bowl, add the boiling mixture and mix well with a wooden spoon. Let the mixture stand for 10 minutes.

Add the beaten eggs and the parmesan cheese and mix well again. You will get a gooey, sticky mass.

Put a little oil on each of your palms and make small balls, 2 inches in diameter, (make sure when forming the balls that your hands are always lightly oiled). Place on a buttered baking sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven for about 15 - 20 minutes or until the top is light brown.

Like many Brazilian foods, Pão de Queijo is tricky to prepare. It is difficult to make the balls rise. Also, the rolls can harden very easily if left overnight. You could cheat by adding 1 tablespoon yeast to the flour."

Thanks,

Liz

I edited my lefse recipe. I somehow remembered that I had said that the dough should be like play dough. I think I made too much pie crust around Thanksgiving. Lefse dough should be a little softer and less dense than that. Hope you see this before trying it!

Liz

  jenvan said:

good to know welch's is gluten-free. i think my church may use it for communion!

You bring up a good point - communion. This Sunday will be my first communion since discovering I can't "cheat" by having even little bits of gluten. I usually take the smallest crumb I can find, but I think I shouldn't do that now. Hmmm... I wonder if we can get some gluten-free communion bread. The Ener-G brand has soy, which I am terribly allergic to. So, do you just pass the bread by?

Liz

I love baking cookies! I have 2 pretty easy gluten-free recipes that I make a lot around this time of year. My kids call the Russian Tea Cakes "Tea Bombs" because the first time I made them I didn't put in enough xanthan gum and they "exploded" when I tried to roll them in the powdered sugar.

Russian Tea Cakes (Adapted from Betty Crocker's Cookbook)

1 C Butter or margarine, softened (but not melted)

1/2 C Powdered sugar

1 tsp. Vanilla

2 C + 2 Tbs. gluten-free flour

1 Tbs. Xanthan gum

1 tsp. Ener-G egg replacer

1/4 tsp. salt ONLY if using unsalted butter

3/4 C chopped nuts (optional)

Powdered sugar

Heat oven to 400. Mix butter, 1/2 C powdered sugar and vanilla. Sift flour, xanthan gum, egg replacer and salt (if using) together 3 times. Stir flour mixture and nuts into butter mixture until dough holds together. Shape into 1" balls and place about 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake until set, but not brown, 10-12 minutes. Cool slightly, roll in powdered sugar. DO THIS VERY CAREFULLY! Cool completely and then roll again in powdered sugar. Makes about 4 dozen.

Soft Molasses Cookies

2 C gluten-free flour or brown rice flour

3/4 tsp. Xanthan gum

1/2 tsp. Ginger

3/4 tsp. Cinnamon

1/2 tsp. Salt

1 Tbs. Ener-G Egg replacer

1/4 C Canola oil (or any oil - even melted butter)

2/3 C Molasses

1/3 C Honey

Heat oven to 375. Sift all dry ingredients together 3 times. Stir wet stuff together and then add to dry. Mix well. Drop by spoonfuls onto cookie sheet. (I usually spray little spots for the cookies with non-stick spray.) Bake for 10 minutes. Makes about 3 dozen. If you sprinkle a little powdered sugar on them right before they're completely cool it makes them more festive looking.

These taste similar to Pamela's ginger cookies, but aren't so spicy.

I hope other people have cookie recipes to share! We can do an online cookie exchange.

Liz

  broncobux said:

Does anyone have a decent gluten free meatloaf recipe?

I am now hungry for meatloaf....

I don't measure everything precisely, but my ground turkey meatloaf is gluten-free and egg-free.

1-1/2 lbs ground turkey

about 1 C Barbara's Brown Rice Crisps

about 1/2 C Ketchup

about 3 Tbs. dried minced onion

1/4 C water with 1 Tbs ground flax seed mixed in to replace egg (optional)

Garlic powder

Pepper

Dash of Worstershire sauce

Mix it all up with your hands, form into meatloaf shape, put in greased dish and bake at 350 for about 55 minutes.

We haven't had beef or eggs in meatloaf for several years and we all like this.

Good luck!

Liz

Okay, feeling better today, much less frustrated. Talked to my husband and explained, patiently, that I have to be even more careful now. He was a bit more understanding. We came up with a plan to keep bread crumbs, etc. out of my food.

My 14 year old daughter is going gluten-free for at least a week, because she is scared of needles and wants to see if the diet helps rather than getting blood tests. Among other things we got our own jar of jelly and labeled it "gluten-free". This morning I made gluten-free pancakes for everyone except me - made them with eggs so they would work, but I can't do eggs. Anyway, everyone liked them, so I don't have to contaminate my griddle with spelt flour after the thorough cleansing I gave it.

I do enjoy cooking, so I will post some recipes in the appropriate section. I need to recheck all my ingredients before making anything else. I specialize in cookies, they seem to be the easiest thing to adapt. And if anyone is also allergic to chocolate my carob brownies are easy and delicious. I did just post a recipe for Lefse (Scandivian holiday flat bread.)

Thanks for your encouragement. I think I am regrouping and will be okay.

Liz

This is the recipe that I have used for years, worked great with wheat flour and has adapted well with gluten-free flour. You might want to try it once before making it to serve. It's a little tricky, even with wheat flour, but well worth the effort. I don't know how well it keeps. I've never had a batch last more than 3 hours. My gluten-loving kids devour it as fast as I can get it off the griddle. Last year I wanted to take some to Christmas Eve at the in-laws, but it was all eaten before I could get a piece hidden!

Potato Lefse (adapted from "Covenant Kitchen Treasures" church cookbook)

3 C riced or mashed potatoes

3 C gluten-free flour mix

5 tsp Xanthan gum (you may need even more, depending on your flour mix. If there is xanthan gum already in your mix, then adjust accordingly. This is the key to getting it to work.)

1 tsp salt

1-1/2 Tbs Sugar

1/4 C Butter or margarine

1/4 C Cream, milk or rice milk (I use rice milk and it works fine.)

Mash potatoes, measure 3 C and add butter while potatoes are hot. Mix well. Cool completely, but don't refrigerate. Sift flour with xanthan gum 3 times. Add cream or milk to potatoes, stir well and add 2 C of flour with sugar and salt. Mix well with spoon. Add flour a little at a time until dough is firm and smooth. It should be just firm enough to roll out, not too thick. You might have to play around with it, adding 1-2 tsp. more cream or milk and a Tbs of flour at a time until dough seems right. Depending on your flour you might have to add more liquid. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Take about a ping-pong ball sized piece and roll out VERY thin on a well-floured board or cloth. I use potato starch or tapioca starch to flour my rolling cloth and rolling pin.

Put on a hot (375-400 degrees) UNGREASED griddle (pancake griddle is great) for about 1-1/2 minutes on each side. You don't want it to brown. It takes a while to get the hand of it, but you'll get into a rhythm. I cook one side while I roll out another piece, I can get 2 pieces on my pancake griddle.

This should make about 24-30 little lefses. Stack them up on a plate under a tea towel. Eat warm or cold with butter and cinnamon sugar, cold turkey, butter and honey or jelly or almost anything. Keep in refrigerator sealed in a large ziploc bag.

This sounds a little complicated, but it really is worth the trouble. Give yourself a whole afternoon or long evening to get it all done.

Good luck and happy cooking!

Liz

Thanks for the responses. I can't figure out how to work the "quote" feature, so please bear with me.

I have had food allergy testing done. That's why I said I was "allergic" to wheat/gluten, soy, eggs and dairy. That was done 10 years ago. I am NOT going to eat gluten for 3 months to get an official diagnosis. I would just about die after the first day or so. I do understand the difference between being allergic or sensitive and having celiac disease. I think I must have both. Gluten was off the charts on the food allergy testing results, but the doctor said it really wasn't that big a deal, just avoid wheat. One of my main frustrations is that no one figured out that I had celiac disease or am simply totally gluten-intolerant before now. It sounds like lots of people have had the same experience, diagnosed with IBS, told it was all in their heads, etc. I am waiting on a call from my naturopath to see if she does the gene testing for celiac disease (for me). All 4 of my kids will be tested (blood tests) as soon as I can figure out which doctor and how to get the insurance to pay for it.

I have LOTS of experience cooking with these allergies and making yummy food. Just last night made gluten-free, egg-free, dairy-free, chocolate-free brownies. (They are delicious if you choose to like carob.) My frustration is redoing my cooking AGAIN and eliminating things like bread crumbs from the almond butter jar and cube of butter. Finding out that the cereal I thought was gluten-free has caramel coloring in it and realizing that lots of products I have (condiments, etc) aren't totally gluten-free is throwing my cooking off a bit. I'm more feeling sorry for myself than anything. (Shame on me, I'm too old for that!)

Thanks again for your "listening" ears.

Liz

I've spent the last 10 years coping with being "allergic" to wheat/gluten, soy, eggs and dairy. I won't even go into all the health problems I had before finding this out and the ones that have still managed to pop up after eliminating all this from my diet. Believe me it has not been easy cooking for my family and trying to find a balance of things I can eat that they like and not "cheating" when I make them something I can't eat. I have 4 kids and a husband who all like to eat lots of stuff that I'm allergic to. I work part-time too, so most of my "free time" involves cooking.

I have been on lots of Celiac websites in the past 10 years getting recipes, but never looked at any other information until a couple of weeks ago when I was trying to find some good Thanksgiving recipes in the baking tips forum here. After reading posts in several forums it hit me that THIS is what's "wrong" with me. I'm NOT crazy! I have had undiagnosed celiac disease for probably my whole life. My dad probably had it too and at least one of my brothers must have it too. Patronizing doctors who suggested I need counseling or to accept my minor health problems as "just part of getting older" were the crazy ones. (I'm only 42 - I'm NOT old.)

Now the frustrating part. I have been ignorant of how to completely eliminate gluten from my diet. I did go for a period of time where I ate spelt regularly, but soon realized that it bothered me. I haven't eaten anything else obviously containing gluten, except for a few slip-ups for almost 10 years. But I am just now finding out that I must eliminate all the hidden glutens. I was aware of them, but thought since I didn't have celiac disease, that I didn't need to worry. Trying to find food that is completely gluten-free without soy, eggs and dairy is harder than I thought. I really don't want to go back to cooking "my" food and "their" food every day, but I'm wondering what else I can do. I already spend an arm and a leg on food as it is. Everyone already eats low-gluten, low-egg, minimal dairy and almost no soy, but it's a big jump to 100% gluten-free.

Now, my husband thinks I'm over-reacting (I wouldn't eat the sausage at breakfast because it has "flavorings" and "spices" and doesn't say gluten-free). My in-laws think I'm even more crazy than before. They all eat anything and everything and think it's all in my head. And I'm mad at myself and my doctors for not figuring this out before. I'm having a hard time coming to terms with not being able to go out to dinner with my family to our favorite restaurants, all that I had thought were safe, but realize that there must be a lot of cross-contamination. I'm dreading holiday get-togethers with family and friends where I have to be even more picky than I was before. Arrgghh - I'm just having a frustrating day!

I'm just whining now, sorry, but had to vent. After reading hundreds of posts, I came to the conclusion that "these people will understand me". I hope I'm right. Thanks for "listening".

Liz

I have multiple food allergies and have just figured out that I have to go completely gluten-free, rather than "gluten light" as someone else put it. I have spent a ton of time and money trying to get my health back (pretty successfully) and have made sure my kids have eaten "healthy" food, but not gluten-free. Now I'm concerned about all of them. I want to have them all tested, but what do I say to a doctor without him/her thinking I'm a hypochondriac? And how to make sure the insurance pays for it all? Our insurance only covers doctor visits and tests if the child has a specific problem to be checked out. And there's the problem of non-cooperation with a couple of the kids. I wish I had done this when they were little!

I have 2 boys and 2 girls. My oldest (14 yo girl) is terrified of needles and says that she'll go gluten-free for a week to see if anything happens. She is healthy, but has horrible PMS and debilitating cramps 1-2 days every month. There are a few other minor issues with her and she doesn't tolerate dairy or eggs well. My 12 year old daughter is very fiesty. She won't go gluten free unless she has a test to prove she needs to. She's good about eating my gluten-free food at home, but would cheat anywhere else. She has a chronic stuffy nose and wild mood swings, but no other apparent health problems. My 10 year old son is allergic to milk, is a tiny bit overweight, can't stop bed-wetting and complains about stomach aches a lot. I'm most concerned about him. My youngest is adopted, but has dark circles under his eyes (actually, we all do, except my husband) and really bumpy, rough skin. I wouldn't leave him out of the testing.

Any suggestions on how to get a doctor to order tests? I'm interested in the gene test for myself, since I'm not going back to gluten anyway. Has your insurance paid for all this testing? And, any suggestions on how to convince a strong-willed 12 year old that mom isn't crazy, just trying to take care of her?

Thanks,

Liz

Hello,

I just discovered this website a couple of weeks ago and am constantly amazed at what I have learned here. I found out that I am "allergic" to wheat/gluten (as well as eggs, dairy and soy) almost 10 years ago. I never gave a thought to the possibility that I had celiac disease, until now. I can't believe that so many other people have multiple food sensitivities, thyroid issues, weight problems, dental enamel issues as children, skin problems, etc. Wow! (And interesting to find out that being Irish could be a contributing factor - I'm Irish, Scottish and English).

I have 4 older siblings, all of whom have various degrees of health problems - most have "stomach troubles" of some sort or the other. I'm thinking that they probably all have either celiac disease or gluten sensitivity too. Would it be possible for 5 siblings to all have it? Do any of you have siblings with celiac disease? My brothers and sisters are all in their 40's and early 50's (MUCH older than I am!) and already think I'm half crazy for being on my strict diet, but I feel like I have to at least mention to them that they could have this too. Does anyone know of a good article I could print out that discusses how common it is among siblings?

Thanks,

Liz

I saw an old post from last year about Lefse. There weren't any recipes ever posted, so I'm wondering if the poster ever got a recipe or if there's any interest. I have a decent recipe, better than anything I've seen online. Anyone interested?

Liz

My family makes a gingerbread house every year. The last couple of years we've done it gluten-free. I follow the recipe from Betty Crocker, with a few modifications. It works fine, just make sure your flour has plenty of xanthan gum mixed in. My 4 kids love eating it after Christmas.

Gingerbread People (Adapted from Betty Crocker's Cookbook)

1 Cup packed brown sugar

1/3 Cup butter or shortening

1-1/2 Cups dark molasses

2/3 Cups cold water

7 Cups gluten-free flour (make sure xanthan gum is mixed in - at least 7 tsp for this much)

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground allspice

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp ground cinnamon

Mix brown sugar, butter, molasses and water. Stir in remaining ingredients. (Start with 6 cups flour and add last cup slowly, only add as much as needed to make thick dough.) Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

Heat oven to 350. Roll dough 1/4 thick on floured board. Cut with cutters into desired shapes. Place about 2 inches apart on lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake until no indentation remains when touched, 10-12 minutes. Cool.

Good luck!

Liz

Thanks for your responses. I had food allergy testing done several years ago, which is why I am gluten-free, egg-free, soy-free and dairy-free. I KNOW that I need to avoid all these things. I just wonder sometimes if it's all in my head that I have to be super careful, especially with gluten. Those of you with spouse/children (I have 4) who can eat anything know how hard it can be to cook separately. I make mostly gluten free everything for all of us, even though it's more expensive, just because I don't want to have to cook 2 separate meals all the time.

The thought of having to eat gluten for 3 months is enough to make me forget about the idea of testing. I'm not "sick" right now, but I have a kidney disease that is in remission (going on 2 years now) and I have psoriasis that I can't seem to control unless I completely fast for long periods or take prednisone.

I think I'll just stick to gluten-free and be more diligent.

Liz

I've been mostly wheat/gluten free for about 9-1/2 years now, as well as dairy-free, egg-free and soy-free. I have never had any testing done for celiac disease, but am starting to wonder if I am more than just "allergic" to gluten. I have not been good about eliminating all the "hidden" glutens lurking around and every once in a while slip up and eat a spelt pancake or something. I never have immediate problems, but enough to tell me that it's a mistake.

I am REALLY tired of going to doctors and being tested for stuff. I've had almost 2 years of pretty good health (hmmm, corresponding to being more careful about gluten) and have enjoyed no blood tests for anything. I'm surprised my naturopath hasn't recommended being tested for celiac disease, although I think she figures I already don't eat gluten, so it's not a problem.

My question is, do I have to eat a bunch of gluten for all the tests to be accurate? I don't know if I could handle that. I would almost rather assume that I have celiac disease and do a better job monitoring my diet. On the other hand, it would be nice to know for sure so I don't deprive myself uneccessarily.

Thanks for the help.

Liz

I don't try to make my own bread with the original mix, but I have great luck making almost everything else with it. I add about 3/4 tsp xanthan gum per cup so recipes won't turn out crumbly. Try it in cookies, quick breads, biscuits or pie crust (just use a recipe from any cookbook and substitute the flour). I go through 5 pounds of flour pretty quickly this time of year, so if you bake at all it shouldn't be a problem. My family can't tell the difference between most of my gluten free baking and regular stuff, so I don't waste my time making two sets of treats - we all eat gluten free cookies, etc.

Good luck,

Liz

Turkey gravy is easy to make gluten-free. And it doesn't get lumpy!

I don't have a specific recipe, but I just mix white rice flour with water, just like you would with wheat flour, and add it to the turkey broth. Stir just like any other gravy recipe until it boils and it's done! My mom and even my gluten-loving sister-in-law now always make their gravy that way because it's easier than using wheat flour. I serve it to company without even mentioning it.

Good luck!

Liz

I have a good no-bake pumpkin pie recipe that I have adapted to be gluten-free, egg-free, milk-free and soy-free. (I can handle butter, so I use that in the crust.)

Crust: I follow a regular pie crust recipe, just substitute my gluten-free flour. Bake the crust according to the cookbook directions. Cool completely before trying to fill.

Filling: 1-1/4 C Milk (Rice milk, goat milk...)

1-1/2 Envelopes Knox unflavored gelatin

2/3 C Maple Syrup

1 tsp Vanilla

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1/4 tsp. Ginger

1/4 tsp. Nutmeg

1/2 tsp. Salt

1-16 oz. Can Pumpkin

Sprinkle gelatin over milk in saucepan. Let stand 1 minute to soften. Stir over low heat until gelatin dissolves - about 2 minutes. Add maple syrup and spices and continue stirring for 1-2 more minutes. Blend in pumpkin, cook/stir 2 additional minutes. Cool almost completely. Before it sets up, pour into pie shell. Chill at least 3 hours before serving.

I usually double this. I have to fight to keep my family out of it. It has the consistency of something between regular pumpkin pie and jello, but the taste is great.

Good luck!

Liz

I do almost all of my cooking/baking from scratch. I make biscuits once in a while and they aren't quite like "normal" , but my kids and husband will eat them without complaint. I think the key is to have a good gluten free flour mix ready to go. I don't waste my money on anything pre-mixed, since all the mixes cost so much. I am not celiac, but am allergic to gluten as well as eggs, soy and milk.

Here's my recipe: (also works for fast pizza crust when desperate)

2 C Gluten free flour mix

1/3 C + 1Tbs Butter

2-1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp Ener-G egg replacer

If using unsalted butter - 1 tsp. salt

Blend all ingredients with pastry cutter until butter is well distributed and in tiny pieces. Then add:

3/4 C Milk (Goat milk, rice milk work too)

Stir really well until dough forms a ball. Let sit for a few minutes. Drop by spoonfuls or roll out and cut with a biscuit cutter. Bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes.

My gluten free flour mix is 2 C Brown rice flour, 2/3 C Potato starch flour, 1/3 C Tapioca flour and 2-1/2 tsp Xanthan gum. Sift at least 3 times. I usually make 3-4 batches of this at once and keep it on hand so I can just measure out the flour I need.

Good luck!

Liz

Hi, I'm new here, but couldn't resist answering a Russian food question.

I make homemade pelmini quite often. The dough is pretty much the same as for pierogy. My youngest son is adopted from Russia and he loves it - doesn't even know it's gluten free. It's really easy and rolls out just like regular dough.

For a large batch:

1-1/4 C Brown Rice Flour

1/2 C Potato Starch

1/4 C Tapioca Flour

generous 2-1/2 tsp Xanthan Gum

1 Tbs. oil

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4+ C Water

Sift dry ingredients 3 times. Add oil and water. You will probably need to add a little more water, but do it slowly. Stir until dough forms a ball. Make sure it is not dry! It should be smooth and almost creamy. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Roll out on board dusted with Tapioca flour.

  maryann said:

Hi everyone,

My newly diagnosed daughter is handling the new diet pretty well. However, one of the first comments she made when she realized the scope of the diet was---What about Christmas Eve Dinner? You see, we always have homemade pierogies among other things. I promised her that I would try to find a good recipe for the dough. Can anyone please help me? I know that there are many alternate flours out there but I don't know what combination would be best for pierogies.  Also, do we have to adjust the cooking time? Thank you all so much. I have learned so much from this site.

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