I was lucky enough to win this giveaway done by Babyfro at Living Without Wheat. I am so excited about this. Now I just have to figure out some gluten & dairy free casseroles.
We went to visit my Grandmother and parents over the holidays and it was the first time we have traveled while trying to completely stick to our diets.
Oh boy.
In some ways it was so very hard but in others it was actually easier.
In my family, we bake. Cookies, cakes, pies, candies are everywhere. It is a dieter's nightmare but almost all of it was loaded with gluten and dairy and was off limits (we did have some gf-df brownies that were good but that is pretty much it as far as the sweets went).
For me, there wasn't any of this "should I / shouldn't I" wishy-washy-ness. There wasn't any (or at least very little) "just one tiny piece won't hurt." I am feeling better than I have in months, I was not about to blow it on a piece of cake.
Even the kids seemed to do really well with it. Junior would ask if it had flour in it when he was offered a piece of something. That is really impressive for a 6 year old.
On the other hand, I didn't know what to bring with us. I also have a very, very small list of substitutions I can cook (like hoe cakes instead of pancakes) and I hated to try something new when there wasn't something to fall back on if it didn't work. If it was just me, it wouldn't have been such a big deal but I don't want the kids to feel more deprived than they already are.
I did learn what would make it easier. If there is a meal plan in place (something my Dad would really prefer to have) then I can plan accordingly - if we are having hamburgers than I need to bring buns or the stuff to make buns. We were able to get a bread mix from the local health food store that made a fairly decent loaf (Bob's Red Mill). I think I let it rise too long, but it was still pretty tasty.
We did eat out a couple of times which was rather nerve-wracking. We ate at a Italian place where I ordered 2 main dishes to share with my two kids - and asked that both have the pasta left off because we need to eat wheat free. I had never before realized how filling the pasta part of the meal was before that, I was still somewhat hungry. But then I saw a piece of spaghetti noodle on the plate. Like maybe they had started to load the plate with the pasta, then realized they shouldn't and took most of it off. My stomach did seem to be a bit more irritable after that but it wasn't bad.
It was just a reminder that the ones most concerned with my health and my children's health will be us, not the waitress or cook.
But now, I am just looking forward to getting back into the kitchen and learning.
We went to visit my Grandmother and parents over the holidays and it was the first time we have traveled while trying to completely stick to our diets.
Oh boy.
In some ways it was so very hard but in others it was actually easier.
In my family, we bake. Cookies, cakes, pies, candies are everywhere. It is a dieter's nightmare but almost all of it was loaded with gluten and dairy and was off limits (we did have some gf-df brownies that were good but that is pretty much it as far as the sweets went).
For me, there wasn't any of this "should I / shouldn't I" wishy-washy-ness. There wasn't any (or at least very little) "just one tiny piece won't hurt." I am feeling better than I have in months, I was not about to blow it on a piece of cake.
Even the kids seemed to do really well with it. Junior would ask if it had flour in it when he was offered a piece of something. That is really impressive for a 6 year old.
On the other hand, I didn't know what to bring with us. I also have a very, very small list of substitutions I can cook (like hoe cakes instead of pancakes) and I hated to try something new when there wasn't something to fall back on if it didn't work. If it was just me, it wouldn't have been such a big deal but I don't want the kids to feel more deprived than they already are.
I did learn what would make it easier. If there is a meal plan in place (something my Dad would really prefer to have) then I can plan accordingly - if we are having hamburgers than I need to bring buns or the stuff to make buns. We were able to get a bread mix from the local health food store that made a fairly decent loaf (Bob's Red Mill). I think I let it rise too long, but it was still pretty tasty.
We did eat out a couple of times which was rather nerve-wracking. We ate at a Italian place where I ordered 2 main dishes to share with my two kids - and asked that both have the pasta left off because we need to eat wheat free. I had never before realized how filling the pasta part of the meal was before that, I was still somewhat hungry. But then I saw a piece of spaghetti noodle on the plate. Like maybe they had started to load the plate with the pasta, then realized they shouldn't and took most of it off. My stomach did seem to be a bit more irritable after that but it wasn't bad.
It was just a reminder that the ones most concerned with my health and my children's health will be us, not the waitress or cook.
But now, I am just looking forward to getting back into the kitchen and learning.
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