Gluten Free

[peggy]

Veg's bothered my sister as well, before she found out she was gluten intolerant. They even took out her gall bladder before finding out! She was to the point where if there was even a little diced pepper on her pizza, it gave her problems. Well, we didn't know at the time it was really the giant hunk of bread under all that pizza topping that was giving her the real problem. After she went gluten free, she can now eat all veg's , as far as I know.
By the way, chex corn and rice cereals are gluten free. Look on the box though. some say gluten free and some don't. Don't really know the difference except maybe the gluten free ones are processed in gluten free dedicated areas. There might be some corn flakes that are as well, but not sure about that.
Frito's are gluten free!
Most of the jarred white sauces for pasta, like alfredo and such, are gluten free, so there is something to put on your pasta. Read the label.
Quick comfort meal, bed of fritos or tortilla chips, Hebrew national hot dog (gluten free), stag chili (gluten free, as well as Hormel with beans), grated cheese and diced onion, put in oven at 350 for about 15 minutes....coney island! Yum!

[fidgiegirl]

Mmm, peggy, another meal to add to my list! I will share soon. I stole Rosemary's from her blog and added all your suggestions from this thread.

I can't eat: apples, any lettuces or greens like spinach, cabbage, etc., oranges, some tomato sauces, broccoli, celery.

I am really, really hopeful that I can eat them again . . . . I know I am undernourished. I can feel it. I just know it.

[fidgiegirl]

Did it. Did my first day. I was particularly proud that I was on the verge of having a cheat, I even BOUGHT the cookie, but then I couldn't bring myself to eat it. It's out in the car. I couldn't serve myself up another failure at starting this thing. And I have been thinking, how much of a treat is it if it's hurting me? Making me sick? I can't just be willing to take pills and expect my issues to go away. They will not. I have to do this.

Today:
Yogurt/banana/granola for breakfast
Chobani for morning snack
Chili, gluten free crackers and olive tapenade for lunch
Chicken and sweet potato oven fries for dinner (did not keep me full)
Nuts, chips and hummus for snacks

[Rosemary]

You can do it, Fidgiegirl! Great start - be sure to eat enough and the temptations will be less. Maybe keep a package of GF cookies in your apartment for "emergencies," or bake some and put them in the freezer. But I think after a few days you'll be likely to see differences that will keep you going. I suggest you get rid of that non-safe cookie! Give it to someone or throw it away. Or put it way far back in the freezer for a gluten test far into the future.

My GF, no flour, no sugar day yesterday was -
breakfast, leftover black-eyed pea soup with turkey
lunch, mixed greens with grilled salmon (at a restaurant; I usually just have soup or a non-elaborate salad for lunch)
dinner, homemade mu shu pork, no rice for me, lots of cabbage
snacks, apple, fresh pineapple, walnuts, and yogurt. The yogurt was sort of a second breakfast since I had an exercise class and a very late lunch planned.
This was more meat than I eat most days. Just ended up that way.

Today,
breakfast, more of the soup
lunch will be my leftover enchilada filling with zucchini layers
dinner is at a friend's, and I know there will be lentil soup, frittata, and a Mediterranean dip that are all GF. Non-GF items will be pita bread for the dip, so I'm bringing cut veggies for that, and a cake. I'm bringing salad and pear crisp made without flour or sugar (slice pears, mix with cinnamon & other spices and chopped almonds, bake until soft, then top with my homemade granola).

[IshbelRobertson]

In the UK, diagnosed coeliac sufferers can get GF bread and certain foodstuffs, like flours, free on prescription. My friend didn't like ANY of them and prefers to forgo the chance of baking cakes and biscuits that she could eat and just bake for her family! The only thing she makes that she and the rest of us really enjoy is her flourless chocolate roulade - or her flourless cheesey/olive or smoked salmon/cream cheese filled roulade.

I can no longer eat .... many, many things that once I loved... it's amazing how quickly you adapt when you have to! Doesn't mean I don't pine for some of those foods, just that I'd rather keep living than not...! Chin up.

[creaker]

Did it. Did my first day. I was particularly proud that I was on the verge of having a cheat, I even BOUGHT the cookie, but then I couldn't bring myself to eat it. It's out in the car. I couldn't serve myself up another failure at starting this thing. And I have been thinking, how much of a treat is it if it's hurting me? Making me sick? I can't just be willing to take pills and expect my issues to go away. They will not. I have to do this.

Today:
Yogurt/banana/granola for breakfast
Chobani for morning snack
Chili, gluten free crackers and olive tapenade for lunch
Chicken and sweet potato oven fries for dinner (did not keep me full)
Nuts, chips and hummus for snacks

Good job! Just a warning on the subject of "cheats" and food sensitivities. Once your body gets some recovery time, you may find you react more strongly to the foods you are sensitive to. Which can make cheats a very unpleasant experience.

On the upside, sensitivities can also cause cravings, and these may lessen over time.

[JaneV2.0]

Also, hunger is often driven by over-production of insulin, which can be kicked off by high-carbohydrate meals. If you base your meals on fat and protein, you'll likely stay full longer. I think you're on the right track. More and more researchers are coming to the conclusion that gluten grains are problematic for most of us.

[EarthSky]

Fidgiegirl - so sorry to hear this, as I've been down this road. (Though I constantly remind myself that having Celiac is far better than Crohn's disease, for example, as it can be controlled entirely by diet.) If you truly need to go gluten-free, you will start feeling better in a week or two, although it can take 4+ months for the intestines to heal. (I am one of the supposedly 'lucky' ones, as my symptoms are so intense, and I get so sick on just a 'wee bit' of even hidden gluten, I have no desire to 'cheat'!) You might also want to be checked for possible chronic malabsorption issues of critical vitamins and minerals. For example, I have chronic Vitamin-D deficiency, probably related to my (most likely decades of undiagnosed) Celiac disease.

Also, you'll find you have to read labels on everything - soy sauce, salad dressings, anything processed. My best foods have been rice, potatoes, fruit & veggies. And Udi's GF bread is one of the few that doesn't taste like cardboard! 'GF Natural's cookie dough' is also wonderful - took me a long time to find cookie dough that had very similar consistency to regular cookies!

Good luck!!

[Rosemary]

Modified my plans for the GF, sugar-free dessert I'm taking today. Baked pears with a hazelnut-currant filling, which contains a tiny amount of butter and maple syrup, baked with a little Riesling.

[peggy]

Lite soy sauces are usually gluten free. Most canned beef broth has gluten but the boxed kind, like Rachael Ray and the like, are not. (go figure!)
A good comfort food, and you need these to keep you going:
Brown some ground beef, add a can drained diced tomatoes (I like rotel with peppers...adds a little spice) and one small can tomato sauce. cook just a bit, add some cooked pasta, like the brown rice macaroni or the corn ones (can't remember the name) spirals, mix, top with grated cheese and cover just long enough to melt the cheese. Super yummy, and quick! This is the kind of recipe that tells you, yes, you can do this! I made this just last night and had the leftovers for breakfast.

I would suggest you try to cook as you normally do while on this trial. I mean, eat the kinds of things you normally eat so you don't feel deprived and fall back on gluten. Don't try to go gluten free, and change your way of eating all at once. First go gluten free, get comfortable with the way of eating, then adjust to make it healthier or whatever. Don't worry about trying to lose/gain weight, go vegetarian or whatever. Going gluten free is enough of a change and you want to be successful in this one. This change will save your life and make you feel so much better. If you need help in tweaking your usual recipes, just post them here and we'll help.