Gluten Free Lunch Ideas   

by Melind Knight

Without a proper lunch, getting through a busy afternoon can be a struggle. When you're on a gluten-free diet (which excludes wheat, rye, and barley), it's important to find healthy lunch recipes that give you the calories, protein, and vitamins you need to feel great all day long. If you're interested in learning more about tasty and nutritious lunch ideas, you'll enjoy these easy-to-prepare, economical ideas; most of them rely on clever substitutes of some popular, wheat-based breads and food products:

Rice Noodle Stir-Fry - What could be healthier than a base of rice noodles, topped with a selection of lean beef or chicken, red peppers, onions, and carrots? By picking up a bottle of wheat-free Tamari soy sauce, you can enjoy the salty kick of this Asian condiment - without worrying about glutens. Simply stir-fry your favorite meats and veggies (or gluten free tofu, if you're vegetarian) in a little vegetable oil, minced garlic, and Tamari sauce - if you want more spice, add some red pepper flakes. Meanwhile, boil some rice noodles and drain. When you're ingredients are ready and cooled, fill a plastic container with a base of noodles and a healthy portion of toppings - if you like, add a little more Tamari for flavor. You can eat this delicious lunch hot or cold, and it provides lots of essential carbohydrates and nutrients. Add a bottle (or two) of pure water to your meal to balance the sodium in the dish.

Classic Peanut Butter & Jelly Bagel - Sometimes, comfort food can be just right for certain days. If you've always enjoyed peanut butter and jelly on bread or a bagel, you can still have what you want - all you need to do is find gluten free bagels in a plain flavor. Most health food stores will stock these - you may also have a gluten free bakery right in your own town or city. Once you've found your bread product, look for natural peanut butters and organic jams and jellies - there are some terrific gluten free choices in the marketplace. If you're looking for a mainstream brand of peanut butter that is safe to eat, you might enjoy Skippy Natural Creamy Gluten Free Peanut Butter; Smuckers brand fruit preserves are also completely gluten free.

Soup With Legumes - Pouring some hot, satisfying soup into a microwave-safe container or Thermos can be a great way to enjoy superior nutrition on a cold or rainy day. If you make lots of soup in advance, you'll be able to freeze your leftovers and use them for easy lunches. To make great soup, choose a gluten free broth, or simply do things the old-fashioned way by boiling up a chicken along with onions, chopped carrots, and a spice bouquet garni. Once you've boiled the chicken, tear off the excess meat and reserve; then, strain the broth to remove bones and vegetables. If you like, cool overnight and skim off fat before using. Adding any food items you have lying around can be a great way to use up leftovers - consider drained chickpeas or kidney beans, rice, sliced carrots and onions, shredded chicken, and diced potatoes. If you love pasta in soups, use brown rice pasta shapes to add heartiness to your soup. Spices such as curry, tarragon, or hot sauce can give your soup a more exotic feel. 

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The Challenge of the Gluten-Free Menu   

by Walter Sigmore

The label "Gluten Free" is making its way to the supermarket shelves, and food manufacturers are, one by one, bringing dedicated gluten-free (GF) products into their product lines. While there is a recent trend towards a gluten-free diet for non-medical reasons, many people have turned to these products out of necessity after having been diagnosed with celiac disease, or an allergy to wheat. 

While all food allergies are difficult to live with, there are few core ingredients that are as common as wheat flour. That widespread use as a basic ingredient can make the prospect of living gluten-free appear challenging, or even impossible. While the health-conscious may glance at the calories when they pick something off the grocery store shelf, most people spare very little attention to the list of ingredients. For those with a food allergy, however, reading the ingredients can mean the difference between a normal day and one spent being sick, or even landing in the hospital. A number of companies, though not all, have begun adding wheat to the list of possible allergens, alongside the better known ones - soy, peanut, and lactose.

The challenge for someone with celiac disease, however, is that wheat flour is used everywhere. Cream of mushroom or chicken noodle soup, for example. Lasagna, crackers, pretzels, brownies - all use or include wheat flour as a basic ingredient. Further, wheat gluten is common as a base in first stage ingredients that are then used in the final product, and as such may not be included on the ingredient label or may be under a different name. Soy sauce, for instance, is often made with wheat, and while the ingredient "modified food starch" can mean that it was made with corn, potato or tapioca starch, it can also mean that wheat starch was used or included.

Even without specific wheat-derived ingredients, food that was prepared on the same surface as a wheat-derivative can cause a serious reaction to someone with a severe gluten allergy. Walking down the grocery isles and attempting to put together a single gluten-free meal, much less a weekly grocery list, may seem like an insurmountable challenge. While it is difficult, though, it's by no means impossible. Research and pre-planning are vital steps in first knowing what products are gluten-free and what gluten-free alternatives exist for common foods. Health-food stores and the health-food/organic section of the local supermarket frequently have a dedicated gluten-free section (or at least label known GF foods as such). Sandwich bread, because the GF ingredients do not stay fresh as long, can be difficult to find. While national grocery stores may stock limited types of GF bread for that reason, local independent bakeries are seeing the demand for fresh gluten-free bread. While they may not carry it in stock, many will take orders for a weekly or bi-weekly baking run in which they can produce high-quality gluten free breads.

By knowing what products do and do not contain wheat gluten, and knowing where to get quality alternatives, a visit to the grocery store can be significantly less difficult. The possibility for cross-contamination, however, may be severe enough that it cannot be risked with foods that were prepared in a dedicated gluten-free facility. In that situation, ingenuity and flexibility in ingratiates, combined with a willingness to be your own cook, is a must-have. A bread machine can be used with a number of certified GF pre-made mixes, allowing for fresh sandwich bread. Rice, potato, corn and tapioca flours can be used in place of traditional wheat flour. It's also worth picking up cookbooks of world cuisine, as there are many cultures in which wheat has traditionally not been a significant ingredient due to its low availability.

Traditional Latin-American, east-Indian and Asian cuisines are filled with recipes based around corn and rice, the primary grains of the area. Anyone who has adopted a gluten-free diet, either for medical or other reasons, can attest to its difficulty. As a food allergy, gluten sensitivity is still an uncommon diagnosis, and while the recent trend towards a GF lifestyle for other reasons has brought some much-needed light on the subject, finding quality ingredients and alternatives to common household stocks remains challenging. Through research and pre-planning as well as being flexible in the home menu, however, it's a lifestyle that many have been able to adapt to successfully. Many forums and groups of these individuals exist across the internet and are welcome places to seek advice and assistance. By tapping those forums, as well as engaging local resources such as independent bakers and grocers, the challenge of living gluten-free can be overcome and the impact to ones day-to-day life can be easily minimized.

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