This content has been archived. It may no longer be relevant
Good new:s Addendum 9th Nov 2010.
Genius GF bread is brilliant. Tesco’s own label GF bread is just as good. GREAT.
Gluten Free introduction – What is “Gluten Free?”
Gluten is a protein found in wheat flour, oats, barley, spelt, bulgur, rye, couscous, semolina. It is therefore also in any processed foods which includes any of these, including vinegar, mayonnaise, pasta. It is also used in all sorts of odd places eg dried fruit (flour is used to stop the fruit sticking together), it’s in breadcrumbs, batter, bought in chips,
It is not in cornflour. Cornflour is wonderful stuff.
Please use your existing recipes with changes as follows:
– fresh ingredients as anything already prepared is at risk and you don’t know what is included
– cornflour, rice flour, gram flour or potato flour, instead of wheat flour, oats, barley, spelt, bulgur etc
– rice vinegar, balsamic vinegar, red or white wine vinegar, cider vinegar rather than malt vinegar
– for carbohydrates in your menu use potatoes, rice, quinoa, sweet corn, beans, or gluten free pasta (breakfast can be a bit of a challenge!, but I have bacon and egg with fried potatoes and beans – the more proteins the better)
– rice noodles
– buy-in gluten-free pasta, GF mayonnaise, GF soy sauce, GF curry sauces, GF soups, GF cakes, GF biscuits, GF bread where absolutely vital,
– butter and margarine are fine though olive oil and rapeseed oil may be better for your guests
– if you are buying anything that includes ‘modified starch’ that is also fine (UK)
The cultural jump you probably need to make is that modern cuisine also expects pastries and cakes whereas gluten free needs to be for example, desserts made from eggs and sugar and fruit combined with cream, Fromage Frais or yoghourt. Ice cream sometimes includes wheat and gluten. Fresh and cooked fruit with meringue is wonderful.
Don’t worry about creating anything exotic, GF people just love to KNOW that ALL the food is Gluten Free. Then they can relax and enjoy the party. For the solutions to your party, dinner and BarBQ nightmares – ‘Feed My Guests’ provides a way for guests to inform you what their dietary needs, likes and dislikes are. Visit Feed My Guests
Cliff
PS, Wild rice is not rice at all, it’s a grass and therefore contains gluten.