The Big Book of Wheat-Free Cooking: Includes Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, and Reduced Fat Recipes. Antoinette Savill

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      • Skin conditions

      • A craving for foods containing wheat

      • Fluctuating weight despite having a very healthy diet, exercising regularly and drinking plenty of water

      Food intolerance is notoriously difficult to detect because the reaction to the offending food is slow and symptoms are not felt for a few days. It is therefore not easy to connect the offending food to the symptoms it causes. Also, given that the culprit food is usually one that we eat very regularly, the symptoms can be on-going and we often attribute them to something completely different, such as stress. There are certain conditions that are now strongly linked to food intolerance; in particular an intolerance to wheat or dairy. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a prime example – when wheat is removed from the diet the condition often improves dramatically or clears up completely.

      There are various tests available for food intolerance, though generally these should be treated with caution, as many of them are unreliable. Your doctor will be able to arrange for you to see a qualified nutritionist who can oversee accurate tests for food intolerance but this is not a service provided on the NHS in the UK and it can be expensive. The only alternative is to eliminate the suspect food from your diet completely for a period of five weeks and monitor the results. If, on reintroducing the food, your symptoms reoccur then this will prove your guess was correct. However, please make sure that you always consult your doctor, as some symptoms can be indicative of a medical problem.

      If you suffer from many of the symptoms outlined here after eating wheat then you should notice a huge difference if you avoid it for about a month. You should feel energized and clear-headed, rather than exhausted and under par. Do be aware, though, that one of the quirks of food intolerance is that sufferers often crave the offending food and can experience withdrawal symptoms for a short period when the particular food is removed from the diet. However, these symptoms usually pass relatively quickly.

      The good news is that food intolerance, unlike food allergy, is not for life. By avoiding the culprit food for a period, most people find that they can tolerate it occasionally, although problems will generally resurface if it is eaten on a regular basis. Unadulterated organic wheat flour or Spelt can sometimes be eaten by people with mild wheat intolerance – because all the original goodness and fibre is still there – but I have not used these ingredients in the recipes as this does not apply to everyone and such breads and pastas can be purchased from good health food shops.

      There is a real difference between food intolerance and food allergy: Whereas an intolerance causes delayed symptoms, an allergy usually produces an immediate and often extreme physical reaction to the offending substance or food. This is a result of the speed of the immune system’s reaction to the allergen. In some instances the response can be so severe that it results in anaphylactic shock. Thankfully, despite the publicity given to such cases, they are rare and food allergy itself is far more rare than food intolerance. Those with a severe wheat allergy should look out for the * symbol in the recipe, as this indicates a product that may contain a very small amount of gluten – and the source of that gluten could be wheat.

      Unfortunately allergies are very often life-long, as is coeliac disease. In this serious condition, the lining of the colon wall is affected by gluten (found in certain grains such as rye, barley and oats), which causes malabsorption of nutrients, severe pain and symptoms such as diarrhoea. (As mentioned above, any ingredient that could contain gluten is marked with an asterisk and coeliacs should ensure the product they use is gluten free.) The test for coeliac disease is a straightforward one but there are certain people who, although they have tested negative, still find they feel much better if they eliminate gluten from their diet.

      Some Practical Pointers

      Becoming wheat free does require a bit of forethought but this will ensure your diet is both effective and enjoyable. There is no point getting better but feeling deprived and miserable! A little organization will help you have a varied and interesting diet that won’t leave you feeling that you’re missing out. The following tips should help make the transition to a wheat-free diet as smooth as possible.

      • Make a list of the normal foods that you would eat over a couple of days and buy wheat-free alternatives. If you usually have a wheat cereal for breakfast then put wheat-free cereals on your shopping list – for example, gluten-free muesli, porridge oats, cornflakes and rice pops – or if you have toast, add wheat-free breads to your list.

      • If you work in an office, take time to plan your lunch as it will not be easy to buy wheat-free sandwiches. I suggest making up your own delicious lunch box – it will probably be cheaper and less hassle than eating out anyway. You can make up your choice of wheat-free sandwiches or rolls – why not try out some new flavours such as smoked trout and avocado or chicken tikka and roasted red peppers.

      • When you cook, think about making extra portions. For instance, if you are cooking on Sunday make an extra portion so that you can take some into work for lunch on Monday. Equally, if you are having a night in, make a big pan of soup and save some to take into lunch over a couple of days. And don’t forget to keep a stock of emergency rations if you have a sweet tooth. Ready-made cookies or cakes are great for convenience or you can make your own cakes or muffins at the weekend and take them to work over the following days. Some recipes in this book last the whole week, such as the fruit, chocolate or ginger cake.

      • Dinner is of course much easier than some other meals, but it is still important to plan ahead. The last thing you want is to be so hungry that you grab the first thing you can find – which will probably have wheat in it. If you live alone or with a partner who doesn’t mind going wheat free, it’s a good idea to go through your cupboards, refrigerator and deep-freeze and throw out any products containing wheat. If you have a family to feed then it helps to put all the wheat products in one cupboard or one part of the refrigerator/freezer and keep a wheat-free zone for yourself. However, the recipes in this book are designed to be eaten by the whole family – they’re so delicious that no one will notice they’re wheat free.

      • If you are at home with tiny tots and toddlers ensure you are not hungry when you are feeding them, as it is very difficult not to be tempted into nibbling at their food, and fish fingers or cakes, chicken nuggets, sausages – not to mention cookies, cakes or sandwiches – are all full of wheat. If you are going to a children’s party where all the other parents will be tucking in to birthday cake and pastries, take your own special treats so that you can relax and have fun.

      • When you start wheat-watching you are going to have to get used to reading the label on every product that you buy. It is pretty time consuming and boring but you will be surprised by how many foods contain wheat. Try to remember a few of these products and brands each time you shop and the process will soon get quicker.

      • It is worth taking some wheat-free supplies with you when you go on holiday. Some hotels will cater for certain diets but they are unlikely to provide all the products you would like. You will be much more relaxed if you take your own crispbreads, oatcakes, sliced bread, snacks and so on.

      • Use the wide range of resources that are now available to those with intolerances. Because of the increased demand in many countries, plenty of new wheat-free food ranges are now being produced and much more information about food intolerances and allergies is available from medical and alternative practitioners. The Internet also has lots of useful information and a wide selection of recipes from all over the world to help and guide people who wish to become wheat free.

      Many people who initially see a wheat-free diet as restrictive soon come to view it as a form СКАЧАТЬ