Gluten Free Baking
The first question is ?what is gluten? and ?What does it do for baking?. The answer is ?Everything? ? it?s what makes the bread, more so than the flour or any of the other ingredients.
Gluten free baking without thought can bring problems. Gluten is the sticky, elastic, protein element in wheat flour that reacts with the yeast or starter and gives the bread its airy, spongy consistency. The protein combines with water and forms thin strands whilst the dough is being kneaded. When the dough is left to rise, the yeast reacts with the tepid water and produces carbon dioxide ? these gas bubbles are then trapped by the protein strands and enables the dough to expand and rise. When the bread is baked, the gluten strands are solidified into place, much like the reaction of an egg when it is cooked. So, gluten is what holds the dough together when you come to knead and mould it into the shape you wish to give the finished product and you need think about this in your gluten free baking.
There are 2 kinds of wheat flour; weak and strong. Weak flour contains lower amounts of protein, hence it doesn?t rise so much. This flour is suitable for making cakes, muffins etc. Strong flour is more suitable for making breads as the protein content in these flours are higher and hence the dough can expand more. You can also control the production of protein in the dough. For example, fats (i.e. butter or oil) will shorten the protein strands and cause less expansion. This is why cake recipes call for a much higher percentage of butter or oil in the recipe. Likewise liquids (water, milk) aid the absorption and expansion of the protein strands. This is why piecrust recipes have limited amounts of liquid in them, whereas bread recipes call for more liquid.
Breads made with gluten free flours (i.e. rice, corn, soy buckwheat) do not hold together very well and could be tha Achilles heel of gluten free baking. They are dry and crumbly, don?t rise very well, don?t brown and are certainly not spongy or springy to the touch or taste. So, adjustments need to be made to gluten-free bread recipes in order to achieve the look, feel and taste of ?regular? bread. However, this does depend on the person eating it. For example, our daughter (a coeliac), who has been on a gluten-free diet since she was 15 months old, actually likes dry crumbly bread. She has never eaten any other bread and hence doesn?t miss the consistency of regular bread. However, if you are an adult when starting the gluten-free diet, then obviously you will want to adjust your gluten-free baking more to mirror what you previously enjoyed eating!
So, how can we trap those gas bubbles in the absence of the protein strands produced by gluten in gluten free baking? Whipped eggs whites, agar-agar, and xantham gum can create a matrix of trapped air in the dough which will mimic the behavior of gluten-containing dough and enable you to get back into the kitchen and enjoy the smell and taste of freshly baked goods ? gluten-free ones this time. You will need to experiment with your gluten free baking and try different ways and methods. Be prepared to fail a few times, until you find a solution that works for you. Don?t give up and Good Luck!
Gluten Free Teenagers
The teenage years and can represent a problem for parents with children who have coeliac condition and gluten free teenagers are not the easiest to live with. It is at this time in life that your child grown and comes to challenge accepted reason and the need to maintain a gluten free diet is one truth that is not readily accepted.
When your child was a baby and was first diagnosed with coeliac condition, requiring a gluten free diet, the responsibility for maintaining this regime was yours. Whilst no doubt the responsibility weighed heavily on your shoulders the decisions were yours to make and no doubt you have brought your child up reasonably gluten free and thriving.
Having seen the impact on gluten on your child’s health there was no debate as to whether a gluten free diet was required. Indeed most parents are so pleased to understand that the solution to their child’s coeliac condition is merely the discipline of exclusion of gluten from their diet that they just move straight on to the new way of life.
Unfortunately, your teenager will not remember the impact that gluten had upon them when they were a baby. They will see that the food regime of gluten-free teenagers is restrictive and they will want to rebel against this. Now let battle commence.
Sometimes the medical requirements for a gluten challenge test will come to your world. As coeliac condition is difficult to diagnose in babies you may find that your doctor will want you to undertake a coeliac gluten challenge to fully establish that gluten was the cause of your baby’s problems and not some other food product such as milk. The symptoms of lactose intollerance are similar to coeliac condition and gluten intolerance. The period of a gluten challenge can extend from two weeks up to six weeks and feeling unwell for this period of time no doubt will bring your gluten-free teenagers back to their senses.
If there is no requirement for a gluten challenge in the teenage years you will just have to to accept that your teenager needs to experiment and come to understand the impact of gluten on their health. Sometimes the more you become involved and stress what is sensible the more unproductive the discussions are.
Gluten-free teenagers are not easy dinner companions but rest assured after a few years they develop into sensible gluten-free adults.
Gluten Free Tips
This site is dedicated to those that have coeliac disease, or who suspec they may have this condition, and need to maintain a totally gluten free diet. Living gluten free, with zero tollerance of gluten in your food, means a normal life full of energy and vitality. Not being gluten free exposes someone with coeliac condition to the side effects of an allergic reaction and tiredness with a bloated feeling as a first stage.
Why do we write on this subject, well we have the honour of having one of our children with coeliac condition and as such we meet the challenge of being gluten free, as a family, daily. And we are pleased to state that we win the battle allowing our daughter to grow and enjoy life to the fullest.
There are many articles in this site, which gives guidance and tips on maintaining a gluten free lifestyle. Please read on, you will come to realise that the only problem is that of discipline. Gluten free tips are many fold and most are very easy to follow if you are disciplined. “It will be all right” is never all right and exposure to just a few specks of gluten can produce an allergic reaction so it is zero tolerance from this point forward.
We wish you success with these gluten free tips but remind you that we are not medical practicioners and give this information based on our experience and contacts not as medical advisors. If you have any doubt consult your doctor.
Childrens Gluten Free Tips
These are some of our best gluten free tips for children.
Birthday parties. When your child is invited to a birthday party it is important that they are able to join in the birthday meal and not appear to be different from the other children. Telephone the party host to in advance and ask what is going to be on the menu. If you ask early you will have a good chance of influencing the food selection to be gluten free. If there are going to be some standard children’s party fare items such as sausages or cakes make sure that you supply some similar gluten free items or, prepare some in advance which your child can take with them. In this way your child will be able to be a full member of the birthday team and the event will not cause them distress by highlighting any differences in theire eating habits versus the other children.
Sandwich boxes. Rather than being seen as different and disadvantaged make sure that your child appears to be the special, advantaged one whenever there is a picnic. Children are far more concerned with the packaging of foods and the Sandwich box they arrive in rather than the actual content of the food. Whilst, at times you might feel slightly restricted in what you can prepare as a sandwich for your child to take to a picnic there are no restrictions on the sandwich box they will take. Get the latest, trendy sandwich box and pack it full of gluten free items. Listen carefully at the picnic and you will hear the other children asking their parents why they can’t have the latest sandwich box rather than asking why can’t Little Johnny or Mary cannot eat gluten.
Gluten free snack packs. If your child is invited round to a neighbour or friend to play make sure you prepare a gluten free snack pack for them to take. This relieves the pressure from the host parent from wondering what they can prepare by way of a snack for your child and removes any barriers to setting the play date. You can also relax when your child is away from home knowing that, if they are hungry, they will be eating gluten free food rather than having a gluten accident.
Gluten Allergy Gluten Intolerance
Although the treatment for Gluten Allergies and Gluten Intolerance is the same ? a diet completely eliminating gluten-containing foods, the symptoms and diagnosis do differ. I will attempt to describe each, as it is important to be able to differentiate these. It is believed that more than 1 out of every 200 people (children and adults) has a gluten allergy or intolerance. Despite this large number however, most are unaware of the conditions because their symptoms are not severe, and hence they associate the symptoms to other conditions, such as irritable bowel syndrome, stress, depression, iron deficiency, etc.
A gluten allergy can be a temporary condition, and children may grow out of it, especially during periods of rapid growth or significant changes (i.e. puberty). Adults may develop the allergy later in life, as the gut grow older or during the onset of the menopause. Symptoms of a gluten allergy include hives, bloating, abdominal cramps, nausea and vomiting. The symptoms vary according to the degree of sensitivity of the patient to the gluten ? in extreme causes the symptoms may be life threatening. Diagnosis of a gluten allergy can be done by way of a skin prick test or a blood test. Treatment of the gluten allergy varies from medication or injection for the mild cases, to gluten-free diet for the more severe cases.
Gluten intolerance is a hereditary condition that affects the immune system. The immune system regards gluten as ?an invader? and starts to produce anti-bodies to attack this unfamiliar gluten matter. The body also cannot produce the enzyme that breaks down the gluten. If gluten is continually ingested, the villi (tiny hair-like structures in the lining of the small intestine) are eroded away and the small intestine is unable to absorb nutrients and nourishment from the food. The un-absorbed, partially digested food then enters the large intestine; it is unable to deal with this and expels it via the anus out of the body. This leads to the symptoms of gluten intolerance: diarrhea, swollen abdomen, cramps in the abdomen, constipation and foul-smelling stools. Weight loss and anemia are also symptoms of a patient with gluten intolerance.
Diagnosis of a gluten intolerance is via a blood test ? the anti-gliadine test. The blood is cultured during 2 weeks and the results awaited, it does take a while for the test results to come back to be communicated to the patient. If the blood test comes back positive for gluten intolerance, then another follow-up test is performed ? and endoscopy ? where a small piece of the small intestine (the jujenum) is extracted and analysed to confirm the diagnosis. This extra test is necessary, as the gluten intolerance is a life-long condition ? and before prescribing a life-long gluten-free diet it is important to have confirmation of the diagnosis.
Coeliac Condition Two Adults Story
I am a mother with a coeliac child ? she was diagnosed with the condition over 8 years ago; and we?ve settled into a routine at home, school, church, eating out and on holidays and cope with her gluten-free diet very well. During the past 2 months, two mums at school who?ve recently been diagnosed with Coeliac Condition have approached me.
As our community is small, they were aware of my daughter having the condition and they contacted me to seek advice on how to cope with the condition ? especially everyday questions. Herewith follows some background, observations and anxieties experienced by these 2, 40-something ladies.
Lady A is Irish ? working mum ? 3 children and husband. On a recent trip to Paris, she struggled to keep up with the rest of the family whilst walking around Paris and couldn?t join them on a climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower. Upon her return, she was advised a blood test by her GP ? she was anemic, and was prescribed iron tablets. The blood was also tested for coeliac condition and the blood test came back positive for this. An endoscopy later confirmed the condition.
Lady A loves bread, cakes etc. , so is finding the adjustment to gluten-free bread and baking rather daunting. However, she has felt much better since starting the gluten-free diet and more energetic, so this is motivating her to continue with the regime. I pointed out to her that ?food is her medicine? and she needs to treat it as such. Lady A had 2 practical concerns ? going on holiday and receiving communion hosts at her local church.
Lady A and husband are celebrating a significant birthday this year, so they planned a European city trip to mark the occasion. She is concerned she may not be able to find or communicate her need for gluten-free food adequately ? I believe they were going to Italy. I suggested she use a printout, in the local language, explaining the coeliac condition and gluten-free diet. She can then show this to the hotel, restaurant waiter, waitress or cook; so they can read and absorb this information in their own language, in their own time. I also suggested she take with her some bread and crackers, as these items are often not readily at restaurants or shops abroad.
Gluten-free communion hosts are available from many church-suppliers. I?ve ordered them via the phone; and they are posted within days to your address, in plastic ziplock bags with 50 in each. They differ in appearance from regular hosts, in that they are square and white; so easy for the priest to distinguish.
Lady B is a Scottish lady ? stay-at-home mum with 2 children and a husband who travels abroad for his work. She has suffered from irritable bowel syndrome ever since she was a teenager ? she was often prescribed milk of magnesia by her mother and told ?to get on with it?. Lady B is in her forties, but ?feels like she?s 80? and has been passed from specialist to specialist at the local hospital. Recently, she had an operation ? however her anemia and irritable bowel syndrome symptoms have not disappeared. She?s been anemic for many years and is on a constant prescription of iron tablets. She recently ended up with a gastro-specialist and an anti-gliadine blood test was done. It came back positive and this was followed up by an endoscopy ? a biopsy of her small intestine was examined and confirmed the coeliac diagnosis.
Lady B is relieved and feels ?liberated? now that she finally knows what her condition is. Lady B is also a devout catholic, and shared the concern about the communion hosts. I gave her the phone number of the church-supplier which I use to order gluten-free communion hosts. Lady B goes to the same church and mass as we do, so we now sit together so that both she and my daughter may be close in line with each other as they go up for communion.
I hope this article illustrates on the importance of a network group for newly diagnosed coeliac patients. Although the support at hospital, by the dietician and consultant are encouraging, nothing replaces the advice from parents of patients or other patients who have the condition and who live and eat with it every day, 3 times a day!
My last piece of advice was to have the children tested for the condition, as it may be that they too may have the condition ? symptoms may be very slight or hidden in other ailments. For their long-term health benefits, it is important to find out whether they too may have the condition. Also, catering for 1 more coeliac in the family is no more problematic than catering for 2 ? it probably makes it easier and it ensures that items of food remain fresher as there is more than 1 eating the same diet.