Saturday, July 22, 2006
The quest for gluten free convenience food....
Haven't commented on this for awhile, but I've been trying to expand my dietary repertoire within the confines imposed by diabetes, gastroparesis and celiac disease. I'm also trying to find ready-made or stuff that requires very little preparation as I'm trying to keep the kitchen tidy for showings until the house sells. Right now, I live in a metropolitan area of approximately 2 million people, so I have plenty of choices, but when I move to Sioux Falls, healthy food is going to be hard to come by, so I want to have tried enough of it that if I end up having to resort to mail order, I will already know whether or not I like it.
Here are some basic guidelines for those unfamiliar with these ailments. Celiac disease is triggered by eating wheat, rye, barley and oats, so I have to avoid all foods that contain them. Gastroparesis is paralysis of the stomach muscles. I can't tolerate any of the medications used for it, so the only remedies are diet and gravity (remaining upright for at least three hours after a meal). A gastroparesis diet consists of easy to digest foods. And diabetes is best controlled with a diet consisting of a proper balance of protein and carbohydrates.
Here's where it gets complicated. If celiac disease were my only problem, I would just stick to unadorned fresh fruits and veggies and meat prepared without seasoning or sauce. Yummy, right? And to modify for diabetes, I would just make sure my meats were low fat, that the carbs didn't exceed 45 grams per meal, and that the meals were evenly spaced throughout the day. Still pretty simple. But gastroparesis puts a monkey wrench in everything. The very foods that are healthiest for the other two ailments are strictly forbidden by the gastroparesis diet because they are so difficult to digest. So I'm not supposed to eat citrus or cruciferous (broccoli, cauliflower, etc.) at all, at least not raw. Big salads, large quantities of steamed veggies, and my meat intake are all sharply limited. And then there's the question of timing. Because I'm relying on gravity to move food through my body, my largest and most difficult to digest meals must be early in the day, to give them time to process, so to speak. So going out to a restaurant in the evening is not a good idea. Lunch, maybe. But by 8pm, I need to be eating eggs and cream of rice, not a steak and salad. The gastroparesis diet is the most difficult to follow because it is very bland, contains very little nutrition or fiber, and gets boring damned quick. So I must admit to cheating at times. Nothing outrageous, just some dark chocolate here and there, small portions of lean meat from time to time, a few bites of salad or cooked broccoli every once in awhile. And maybe I'll eat the slice of lemon in my tea if I'm eating out. Ok, so the chocolate is more than occasionally. It doesn't really seem to bother my stomach at all, and I think I'm entitled to one food weakness.
So what is safe for me to eat? When I was first diagnosed with gastroparesis, my gastroenterologist told me I'd be living on baby food and rice. As a result, I do consume quite a bit of rice, rice pasta, rice crackers, and cream of rice. You get the idea. For protein, I do a lot of dairy, including reduced fat cheddar, mozzarella, yogurt, cottage cheese, feta. I eat eggs probably four times a week or more. For variety, I sneak in some broiled chicken breast, very lean ham. I can do potatoes of any kind as long as they aren't fried (I'm not supposed to eat fried food at all). Tomato sauce is my friend as it provides some nutrition without too much trouble with digestion. As for other veggies, it depends on how I feel. I tend to stick with cooked, small portions, preferably pureed or in a soup. Fruit? Lately, I've been sticking to canned peaches and pineapple, small portions. I wish decent fresh papaya could be had here, because I tolerate that really well, but I think I'd have to move to Hawaii to get that. Tofu is pretty good for me, but I can't find it in many ready made dishes that don't contain wheat-based soy sauce. When I get moved, if I can find it at all, I'll probably start experimenting with recipies that I can modify.
What do I get to eat when I'm too sick/too busy to cook? That's where the challenge comes in. I keep a supply of Boost in the house at all times. Yes, I know it's full of sugar, but it also contains some nutrition, and when I'm really sick, I can't keep anything else down. The gastroenterologist told me she'd rather have me drink Boost than go without a meal. But as for actual food, it has been a real adventure finding stuff that fits all my restrictions, so sometimes I stretch the rules a bit. I've had the most success with frozen foods and canned soups.
I'm not in the habit of endorsing specific brand names, so when they are mentioned, keep in mind they just illustrate what can be found in the store. Soups, for instance, have gluten free varieties made by many companies, but there happen to be only two that make stuff I personally like. One is called Simply Asia. Basically, they are a variation on the old instant ramen noodle soup, except they use rice noodles and more of an Asian flavor to their spices. I like the Sesame Chicken and Spring Vegetable. Read the labels carefully because they also make wheat noodle versions of the same soups.
Either the Amy's company is expanding their line of soups, or my local stores are just carrying more of their products. Either way, I'm happy. Their gluten free soups come the closest to "normal" tasting; even Dan likes them. Probably the best soup is Chunky Tomato Bisque, although the Cream of Tomato ain't bad either. They make a delicious, low fat Chunky Vegetable, and I love the Corn Chowder (although I have to watch my corn intake a bit). Didn't care much for the vegetable broth, and while I do like the Black Bean Vegetable, I quit buying it for some reason. Maybe it had too many carbs? I'll have to check the next time I'm in the store. I eat the Potato Leek pretty regularly because it is the easiest on my digestion. I have a can of the Southwestern Veggie in my pantry but have not tried it yet. I did try their Medium Chili this week and had mixed feelings about it. While it is nutritious because it contains tofu in place of meat, I prefer the turkey chili I make myself. Still, in a pinch, it does provide a very handy full meal. There may be others I haven't tried yet, but I'll get to them in time. They also make soups containing wheat for those of you without restrictions.
Amy's Kitchen has also been a staple for me in the frozen food department. They make comfort food like gluten free mac and cheese, which I highly recommend for anyone. They also make some gluten free Italian. Probably the best of these for me is the rice veggie lasagna, which contains pureed veggies mixed in with the ricotta cheese. They recently changed the recipe, though, and I don't like it quite as well, which bums me out as it was my absolute fave. They make Mexican dishes that are quite good, although I do have to keep an eye on the fat and carb content of those. I haven't bought them for awhile but might start again. My favorite Mexican dishes are the cheese enchiladas and the Santa Fe bowl. They also make Indian food, but I tried one a long time ago and didn't like it. Can't remember which one it was, so maybe I'll take a peek again. Read the labels on the frozen foods carefully as your grocer might not be too careful separating the gluten free from the stuff containing wheat.
My biggest adventure lately, though, has been the frozen Indian food. The cool thing about Indian food is that most of the sauces do not contain wheat, and when you're a celiac, you know that is a very rare thing. I had been buying Green Guru's Palak Paneer, which is pureed spinach with cheese and spices. The previous version had a side dish of rice, and the overall meal had a nice mix of protein and carbs. But they switched to a huge portion of the spinach and no rice, which kept it low on the carbs, but doubled the amount of fat because of the cheese. So I started looking elsewhere. Turns out Ethnic Gourmet makes Palak Paneer with the rice and less fat, so I started buying that. And then I saw that my regular grocer was carrying Chicken Tikka Masala. Jackpot! Chicken in a smooth sauce with rice on the side, enough for a light meal, or you could add fruit for dessert (mango would be excellent if you could find it). Delicious! Then this month, one of the local health food chains put ALL of Ethnic Gourmet's Indian food on sale! Yayyy! I was so excited to find gluten free food, though, that I failed to check carb content, so I bought a few that were too high for me. I ate them a bit guiltily and promised myself to be more careful next time. I got to go back Thursday and get more. Here are the ones that work for me: Vegetable Korma, Chicken Korma, Chicken Tandoori with Spinach and of course the aforementioned Palak Paneer and Chicken Tikka Masala. All taste good, are spicy without being hot, and are a fair sight more nutritious than, say, your local fast food. Ethnic Gourmet also makes Thai food but, alas, most of it contains regular wheat-based soy sauce.
I found two kinds of frozen gluten free waffles that I like. Actually, it was the buckwheat (believe it or not, safe for celiacs) waffles that I liked most, but I stopped buying them because they contained too many carbs. Now I get Van's Wheat Free Waffles. I eat them for supper with a bit of fruit spread and a piece of cheese on the side.
Here's a huge challenge for a celiac: finding a pizza crust that tastes decent. Most of them are rice-based and are wafer thin, crumbly, hard as a rock, and taste like cardboard. I tried several brands and very nearly gave up. Then, at a small mom-and-pop health food store, I found individual-sized frozen crusts made by Kinnickinnick. These are soft, as close as you can get to thick/doughy, and they are Italian seasoned. Another jackpot! They come in packages of four. I buy them once a month and try to ration myself to once a week. I top them with organic spaghetti sauce, canned sliced mushrooms, and shredded mozzarella cheese. They are awesome! Good enough to share with a non-celiac friend or relative.
I reported a while back on my search for decent gluten-free bread. By far the best tasting turned out to be a mock rye made locally at a gluten free restaurant/bakery. I've been sorta pinching pennies and haven't been out to the restaurant for awhile, but I am planning a trip there soon if for nothing else but to buy some bread. When the house sells, I'm gonna need something I can make sandwiches out of so I can have something portable to eat on the road to Sioux Falls. Plus, Dan left me with a bottle of mustard in the fridge and two in the pantry, so I have an excuse to make some ham sandwiches so I don't waste mustard, heh heh. Even a p, b and j would taste pretty good on mock rye.
All this talk of food has naturally made me hungry. Think I'll go downstairs and make some rice pasta with chopped ham and homemade dressing. And maybe just a bit of dark chocolate for dessert.
And then I'll go to the grocery store.
Here are some basic guidelines for those unfamiliar with these ailments. Celiac disease is triggered by eating wheat, rye, barley and oats, so I have to avoid all foods that contain them. Gastroparesis is paralysis of the stomach muscles. I can't tolerate any of the medications used for it, so the only remedies are diet and gravity (remaining upright for at least three hours after a meal). A gastroparesis diet consists of easy to digest foods. And diabetes is best controlled with a diet consisting of a proper balance of protein and carbohydrates.
Here's where it gets complicated. If celiac disease were my only problem, I would just stick to unadorned fresh fruits and veggies and meat prepared without seasoning or sauce. Yummy, right? And to modify for diabetes, I would just make sure my meats were low fat, that the carbs didn't exceed 45 grams per meal, and that the meals were evenly spaced throughout the day. Still pretty simple. But gastroparesis puts a monkey wrench in everything. The very foods that are healthiest for the other two ailments are strictly forbidden by the gastroparesis diet because they are so difficult to digest. So I'm not supposed to eat citrus or cruciferous (broccoli, cauliflower, etc.) at all, at least not raw. Big salads, large quantities of steamed veggies, and my meat intake are all sharply limited. And then there's the question of timing. Because I'm relying on gravity to move food through my body, my largest and most difficult to digest meals must be early in the day, to give them time to process, so to speak. So going out to a restaurant in the evening is not a good idea. Lunch, maybe. But by 8pm, I need to be eating eggs and cream of rice, not a steak and salad. The gastroparesis diet is the most difficult to follow because it is very bland, contains very little nutrition or fiber, and gets boring damned quick. So I must admit to cheating at times. Nothing outrageous, just some dark chocolate here and there, small portions of lean meat from time to time, a few bites of salad or cooked broccoli every once in awhile. And maybe I'll eat the slice of lemon in my tea if I'm eating out. Ok, so the chocolate is more than occasionally. It doesn't really seem to bother my stomach at all, and I think I'm entitled to one food weakness.
So what is safe for me to eat? When I was first diagnosed with gastroparesis, my gastroenterologist told me I'd be living on baby food and rice. As a result, I do consume quite a bit of rice, rice pasta, rice crackers, and cream of rice. You get the idea. For protein, I do a lot of dairy, including reduced fat cheddar, mozzarella, yogurt, cottage cheese, feta. I eat eggs probably four times a week or more. For variety, I sneak in some broiled chicken breast, very lean ham. I can do potatoes of any kind as long as they aren't fried (I'm not supposed to eat fried food at all). Tomato sauce is my friend as it provides some nutrition without too much trouble with digestion. As for other veggies, it depends on how I feel. I tend to stick with cooked, small portions, preferably pureed or in a soup. Fruit? Lately, I've been sticking to canned peaches and pineapple, small portions. I wish decent fresh papaya could be had here, because I tolerate that really well, but I think I'd have to move to Hawaii to get that. Tofu is pretty good for me, but I can't find it in many ready made dishes that don't contain wheat-based soy sauce. When I get moved, if I can find it at all, I'll probably start experimenting with recipies that I can modify.
What do I get to eat when I'm too sick/too busy to cook? That's where the challenge comes in. I keep a supply of Boost in the house at all times. Yes, I know it's full of sugar, but it also contains some nutrition, and when I'm really sick, I can't keep anything else down. The gastroenterologist told me she'd rather have me drink Boost than go without a meal. But as for actual food, it has been a real adventure finding stuff that fits all my restrictions, so sometimes I stretch the rules a bit. I've had the most success with frozen foods and canned soups.
I'm not in the habit of endorsing specific brand names, so when they are mentioned, keep in mind they just illustrate what can be found in the store. Soups, for instance, have gluten free varieties made by many companies, but there happen to be only two that make stuff I personally like. One is called Simply Asia. Basically, they are a variation on the old instant ramen noodle soup, except they use rice noodles and more of an Asian flavor to their spices. I like the Sesame Chicken and Spring Vegetable. Read the labels carefully because they also make wheat noodle versions of the same soups.
Either the Amy's company is expanding their line of soups, or my local stores are just carrying more of their products. Either way, I'm happy. Their gluten free soups come the closest to "normal" tasting; even Dan likes them. Probably the best soup is Chunky Tomato Bisque, although the Cream of Tomato ain't bad either. They make a delicious, low fat Chunky Vegetable, and I love the Corn Chowder (although I have to watch my corn intake a bit). Didn't care much for the vegetable broth, and while I do like the Black Bean Vegetable, I quit buying it for some reason. Maybe it had too many carbs? I'll have to check the next time I'm in the store. I eat the Potato Leek pretty regularly because it is the easiest on my digestion. I have a can of the Southwestern Veggie in my pantry but have not tried it yet. I did try their Medium Chili this week and had mixed feelings about it. While it is nutritious because it contains tofu in place of meat, I prefer the turkey chili I make myself. Still, in a pinch, it does provide a very handy full meal. There may be others I haven't tried yet, but I'll get to them in time. They also make soups containing wheat for those of you without restrictions.
Amy's Kitchen has also been a staple for me in the frozen food department. They make comfort food like gluten free mac and cheese, which I highly recommend for anyone. They also make some gluten free Italian. Probably the best of these for me is the rice veggie lasagna, which contains pureed veggies mixed in with the ricotta cheese. They recently changed the recipe, though, and I don't like it quite as well, which bums me out as it was my absolute fave. They make Mexican dishes that are quite good, although I do have to keep an eye on the fat and carb content of those. I haven't bought them for awhile but might start again. My favorite Mexican dishes are the cheese enchiladas and the Santa Fe bowl. They also make Indian food, but I tried one a long time ago and didn't like it. Can't remember which one it was, so maybe I'll take a peek again. Read the labels on the frozen foods carefully as your grocer might not be too careful separating the gluten free from the stuff containing wheat.
My biggest adventure lately, though, has been the frozen Indian food. The cool thing about Indian food is that most of the sauces do not contain wheat, and when you're a celiac, you know that is a very rare thing. I had been buying Green Guru's Palak Paneer, which is pureed spinach with cheese and spices. The previous version had a side dish of rice, and the overall meal had a nice mix of protein and carbs. But they switched to a huge portion of the spinach and no rice, which kept it low on the carbs, but doubled the amount of fat because of the cheese. So I started looking elsewhere. Turns out Ethnic Gourmet makes Palak Paneer with the rice and less fat, so I started buying that. And then I saw that my regular grocer was carrying Chicken Tikka Masala. Jackpot! Chicken in a smooth sauce with rice on the side, enough for a light meal, or you could add fruit for dessert (mango would be excellent if you could find it). Delicious! Then this month, one of the local health food chains put ALL of Ethnic Gourmet's Indian food on sale! Yayyy! I was so excited to find gluten free food, though, that I failed to check carb content, so I bought a few that were too high for me. I ate them a bit guiltily and promised myself to be more careful next time. I got to go back Thursday and get more. Here are the ones that work for me: Vegetable Korma, Chicken Korma, Chicken Tandoori with Spinach and of course the aforementioned Palak Paneer and Chicken Tikka Masala. All taste good, are spicy without being hot, and are a fair sight more nutritious than, say, your local fast food. Ethnic Gourmet also makes Thai food but, alas, most of it contains regular wheat-based soy sauce.
I found two kinds of frozen gluten free waffles that I like. Actually, it was the buckwheat (believe it or not, safe for celiacs) waffles that I liked most, but I stopped buying them because they contained too many carbs. Now I get Van's Wheat Free Waffles. I eat them for supper with a bit of fruit spread and a piece of cheese on the side.
Here's a huge challenge for a celiac: finding a pizza crust that tastes decent. Most of them are rice-based and are wafer thin, crumbly, hard as a rock, and taste like cardboard. I tried several brands and very nearly gave up. Then, at a small mom-and-pop health food store, I found individual-sized frozen crusts made by Kinnickinnick. These are soft, as close as you can get to thick/doughy, and they are Italian seasoned. Another jackpot! They come in packages of four. I buy them once a month and try to ration myself to once a week. I top them with organic spaghetti sauce, canned sliced mushrooms, and shredded mozzarella cheese. They are awesome! Good enough to share with a non-celiac friend or relative.
I reported a while back on my search for decent gluten-free bread. By far the best tasting turned out to be a mock rye made locally at a gluten free restaurant/bakery. I've been sorta pinching pennies and haven't been out to the restaurant for awhile, but I am planning a trip there soon if for nothing else but to buy some bread. When the house sells, I'm gonna need something I can make sandwiches out of so I can have something portable to eat on the road to Sioux Falls. Plus, Dan left me with a bottle of mustard in the fridge and two in the pantry, so I have an excuse to make some ham sandwiches so I don't waste mustard, heh heh. Even a p, b and j would taste pretty good on mock rye.
All this talk of food has naturally made me hungry. Think I'll go downstairs and make some rice pasta with chopped ham and homemade dressing. And maybe just a bit of dark chocolate for dessert.
And then I'll go to the grocery store.
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