And say, firmly, that gluten free is not flavour free.
That if you are gluten intolerant, or Coeliac, you can still eat well and enjoy food with flavour.
If that makes sense? (I wanted to put flavoursomely, but spell-check had a hissy fit.)
Anyway... to continue.
Some people are of the opinion that any food with the crossed grain symbol—whatever the colours used—means lacking taste or flavour.
(Source... pinterest)
How wrong can they be?
Gluten free foods have come a long way in the last twenty years. It's not just rice cakes and a bread so heavy, that, if thrown would kill a sparrow at two hundred yards. A lot of g-f food tastes exactly the same as gluten full.
For instance, I do not have gluten-full flour in my house. I bake g-f and that's what any visitor gets. Can they tell the difference?
No!
Of course I'm sure if I put two slices next to each other one g-f and one with gluten, some would (or might guess) but in general, no they wouldn't. I only have g-f sausages, burgers, bbq ribs etc. I use g-f pasta, cornflakes and gravy granules. The lovely husband eats the lot with no complaints.
Which evidently is unusual because the one thing that he says is different is the pasta. But not much else. (Either that or he's got used to it)
However it made me wonder when someone told me they had picked up g-f sausages in a very well shop that has an excellent food department, and they said they were horrible. She'd shopped there for years and never had horrible ones before. As all the meat sausages in the shop in question are all g-f and have been for several years...????
(Source, pinterest)
(I've eaten all mine)
Gluten-free definitely has a stigma. People who have to follow a g-f diet are often told it's a fad, they are being awkward, it won't harm them...
Wrong.
Yes, okay, for some it might be a fad, a diet thing, but for most people it is not.
If you're coeliac and eat gluten, apart from feeling like something the cat's dragged in, (making friends with the loo, stomach pains, mouth ulcers...) you're harming your health. It's a long term, life threatening condition.
Enough of the lecture.
It's not always easy. Do you know how fiddly it is to make Scotch Eggs or picnic eggs? Having to dissect a pack of sausages to make the sausage meat, because it's nigh on impossible to find the g-f version of the stuff unless it's near Christmas? Making your own bread and whatever covering? (I use g-f cornflakes home made rice flour and g-f bread for mine) It's worth it in the long run, but we don't have them very often. Life is too short!
Yes, I did make them. And the cooling tray must be an antique. It was my mums and I always remember it at home. It was either a wedding present for her and dad or a house moving present. Which makes it over 70 years old! None of which is relevant to gluten free foods, except I also cool my cakes on it.
Also totally irrelevant to all this except, this is in Cote and absolutely gorgeous
Things like pastry you can now buy chilled and pre-rolled! YES!!!!!
Some fish is g-f breaded or battered. Some is great, and yes some is horrible. It's trial and error. Ditto pies and puds.
But please don't dismiss it all.
A lot of food is gluten-free because it just doesn't have gluten in it. No barley, wheat, oats and rye. It's not always marked as such. If it is processed food make in a factory that does have gluten in it, it will say so.
But most unprocessed is naturally gluten free. (I've put most to be on the safe side) Meat, veg, fruit...Rice, quinoa, nuts...
I'm a champion at label-reading.
And rice cakes are your friend. And mine. Especially the chocolate covered ones.
Happy Eating,
love Raven xxx
P.S I do have several g-f heroines...
(and I do write about cake)
