Gluten free diabetic gourmet
May 29, 2022 8:03 PM Subscribe
My son is bringing his new girlfriend home from college. She has celiac disease and type I diabetes, is mostly vegetarian besides, and follows my insta, where I post a lot of pictures of cake.
Give me delicious things to make for this girl. Bonus points if they are somehow delicious baked goods. Extra bonus points if they don't use fake sweeteners.
Give me delicious things to make for this girl. Bonus points if they are somehow delicious baked goods. Extra bonus points if they don't use fake sweeteners.
If she has celiac disease then being gluten-friendly is likely not going to quite cut it. Anything plastic, wooden, nonstick or coated has gluten adhering to it and shouldn’t be used to cook for someone with celiac. We have an entirely separate set of bakeware for cooking gluten free that is stored inside a sealed bin and is never used for anything gluten containing. We also use a fresh sponge to clean it, as gluten sticks to everything including sponges. If you have stainless steel or aluminum it can generally be cleaned to have no gluten hiding in cracks. You’ll want a new silicone spatula for scraping!
If she can eat coconut there’s a number of lovely chocolate cake recipes made with coconut flour that are extremely decadent.
posted by Bottlecap at 8:54 PM on May 29, 2022 [2 favorites]
If she can eat coconut there’s a number of lovely chocolate cake recipes made with coconut flour that are extremely decadent.
posted by Bottlecap at 8:54 PM on May 29, 2022 [2 favorites]
Best answer: This banana bread is gluten free, low GI and delicious
posted by kinddieserzeit at 9:14 PM on May 29, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by kinddieserzeit at 9:14 PM on May 29, 2022 [1 favorite]
As a matter of practicality - think about buying a set of cheap silicon/plastic bowls/implements in the kitchen of a particular colour - say blue. (In one case, husband chose his wife's favourite shade of blue)
These are the GLUTEN-FREE items to be used when preparing/cooking/serving - and if there are no BLUE items to do what needs to be done - she gets to decide what happens next. Which may involve a quick excursion.
posted by Barbara Spitzer at 12:01 AM on May 30, 2022 [2 favorites]
These are the GLUTEN-FREE items to be used when preparing/cooking/serving - and if there are no BLUE items to do what needs to be done - she gets to decide what happens next. Which may involve a quick excursion.
posted by Barbara Spitzer at 12:01 AM on May 30, 2022 [2 favorites]
My experience as a parent of a child with Type 1 says that the most useful thing you can do when cooking for somebody who has it is not to avoid cooking with sugars and starches, but to keep track of the carbohydrate and protein quantities in the ingredients you use, and then calculate as precisely as you can how many grams of carbohydrate and of protein will be in each serving of whatever you make. This lets your diabetic accompany what they eat with an insulin dose that doesn't require guesswork to size properly.
Low carb and/or low GI is a bonus, but the main thing is making it as easy and accurate as possible to know what to compensate for.
posted by flabdablet at 12:54 AM on May 30, 2022 [8 favorites]
Low carb and/or low GI is a bonus, but the main thing is making it as easy and accurate as possible to know what to compensate for.
posted by flabdablet at 12:54 AM on May 30, 2022 [8 favorites]
Do you want food and dessert options or just dessert?
posted by joycehealy at 1:20 AM on May 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
posted by joycehealy at 1:20 AM on May 30, 2022 [1 favorite]
The minimalist baker has pretty good gluten free (plus vegan; if wanted) cakes and desserts.
posted by genmonster at 5:07 AM on May 30, 2022
posted by genmonster at 5:07 AM on May 30, 2022
Not a specific recipe, but I'm including this link in case it helps with meal planning. flabdablet is spot on about keeping track of carb and protein quantities. A recipe search that breaks down those numbers is the ADA Food Hub.
You can filter recipes for gluten free options. Some are definitely better than others, but this takes a lot of the guesswork out of the equation.
Signed, someone still learning the ropes. My fella was recently diagnosed with Type 2 (and got his numbers down fast, yay!)
posted by Orange Dinosaur Slide at 5:17 AM on May 30, 2022
You can filter recipes for gluten free options. Some are definitely better than others, but this takes a lot of the guesswork out of the equation.
Signed, someone still learning the ropes. My fella was recently diagnosed with Type 2 (and got his numbers down fast, yay!)
posted by Orange Dinosaur Slide at 5:17 AM on May 30, 2022
Best answer: I don't know anything about diabetes, so filter through that, but my first thoughts for a mostly-vegetarian celiac (which I'm going to read as sometimes eating fish, knowing the mostly vegetarian folks in my life):
- I use Bob's Red Mill Cup for Cup for everything - waffles, baked goods, rouxs - and it's yet to fail me.
- GF lasagne and pasta has come a long way; my preferred lasagne noodles are Mueller's no bake
- if you have a Costco membership, these frozen pizzas are excellent and work out to $5 apiece, which is about right for a good quality frozen pizza anymore
That said, I wouldn't muck about with substitutes too much if you don't normally cook GF; it's going to lead to frustration, just fix food that's GF by default.
Check out Dinner: a love story (also her substack), she does this whole weekday vegetarian thing, has a lot of no-fuss GF options, and a lot of great thoughts about how to get dinner on the table that meat multiple dietary needs with not much work.
If it were me, I'd put on the menu:
- taco night with beyond burger for the taco filling, could do on taco shells or on salad and veg, Chipotle bowl style
- this lasagne is a show stopper and a ton of work but makes a lot and folks can eat the leftovers for days
- bibimbap (there's a billion recipes for it online, look to find one you like, you don't have to grill unless you feel like futzing with it)
- enchiladas with corn tortillas, make one pan with vegetables and one pan with whatever the meat eaters want, just read the label on the sauce if you do canned sauce
- nachos (we eat a lot of Mexicanish food, but again, super easy to do one pan with beans and one with chicken or whatever)
- baked salmon, rice, and a veg, again assuming she eats fish; she can eat as much or little rice and she wants
- grilled cheese on a day that she feels like she has the carbs for the bread; all GF bread is pretty decent these days but I favor Udi's or Canyon Bakehouse and they're available pretty much anywhere at this point
- this quiche is also divine without the bacon, also a little fussy to make but makes a ton of leftovers
- curry
- taco soup
- fish tacos (let's work on that bag of flour)
- hummus breakfast tacos, corn tortillas, but also works in a bowl on top of zucchini or cauliflower or whatever
- butter tofu
- burger night, just ask her what her preferred brand of veg burgers is, everyone likes different ones :) If she really doesn't care, Beyond is always good (a lot of veg burgers are stuffed full of wheat, read the labels)
- crab rangoon mushrooms, regular mayo will do just fine, you don't need the kewpie. Get the kids to help stuff these, because they vanish fast.
- sweet chile jackfruit, I didn't bother pickling the collards and it was great, you should be able to get canned jackfruit at your local international market or online
- crunchy Thai quinoa salad
- spicy sesame zoodles and tofu
Keep in mind, I don't eat beans (bad Southerner, I am), so if the girlfriend does, that makes everything a lot easier too. Dinner: A Love Story has lots of great bean recipes (not affiliated, just a big fan of her approach to food).
A lot of my vegetarian and vegan gotos are full of carbs, which as other folks have pointed out, might not be a problem for her if she can plan ahead, but I'm trying (and failing) to not be like "here, have all the noodles and grits". If carbs if she can plan ahead are okay, I can make more suggestions, and if she likes shirataki noodles (and not everyone does, some folks have texture issues with them), then that opens up a whole ton of bowl food recipes.
I'm pretty useless vis a vis dessert, I eat real sugar and a lot of it, but if that's okay to an extent I can make a couple of suggestions for GF desserts that will turn out well every time for you. Also, nice cream is always an option depending on how much fruit she eats.
posted by joycehealy at 8:36 AM on May 30, 2022 [6 favorites]
- I use Bob's Red Mill Cup for Cup for everything - waffles, baked goods, rouxs - and it's yet to fail me.
- GF lasagne and pasta has come a long way; my preferred lasagne noodles are Mueller's no bake
- if you have a Costco membership, these frozen pizzas are excellent and work out to $5 apiece, which is about right for a good quality frozen pizza anymore
That said, I wouldn't muck about with substitutes too much if you don't normally cook GF; it's going to lead to frustration, just fix food that's GF by default.
Check out Dinner: a love story (also her substack), she does this whole weekday vegetarian thing, has a lot of no-fuss GF options, and a lot of great thoughts about how to get dinner on the table that meat multiple dietary needs with not much work.
If it were me, I'd put on the menu:
- taco night with beyond burger for the taco filling, could do on taco shells or on salad and veg, Chipotle bowl style
- this lasagne is a show stopper and a ton of work but makes a lot and folks can eat the leftovers for days
- bibimbap (there's a billion recipes for it online, look to find one you like, you don't have to grill unless you feel like futzing with it)
- enchiladas with corn tortillas, make one pan with vegetables and one pan with whatever the meat eaters want, just read the label on the sauce if you do canned sauce
- nachos (we eat a lot of Mexicanish food, but again, super easy to do one pan with beans and one with chicken or whatever)
- baked salmon, rice, and a veg, again assuming she eats fish; she can eat as much or little rice and she wants
- grilled cheese on a day that she feels like she has the carbs for the bread; all GF bread is pretty decent these days but I favor Udi's or Canyon Bakehouse and they're available pretty much anywhere at this point
- this quiche is also divine without the bacon, also a little fussy to make but makes a ton of leftovers
- curry
- taco soup
- fish tacos (let's work on that bag of flour)
- hummus breakfast tacos, corn tortillas, but also works in a bowl on top of zucchini or cauliflower or whatever
- butter tofu
- burger night, just ask her what her preferred brand of veg burgers is, everyone likes different ones :) If she really doesn't care, Beyond is always good (a lot of veg burgers are stuffed full of wheat, read the labels)
- crab rangoon mushrooms, regular mayo will do just fine, you don't need the kewpie. Get the kids to help stuff these, because they vanish fast.
- sweet chile jackfruit, I didn't bother pickling the collards and it was great, you should be able to get canned jackfruit at your local international market or online
- crunchy Thai quinoa salad
- spicy sesame zoodles and tofu
Keep in mind, I don't eat beans (bad Southerner, I am), so if the girlfriend does, that makes everything a lot easier too. Dinner: A Love Story has lots of great bean recipes (not affiliated, just a big fan of her approach to food).
A lot of my vegetarian and vegan gotos are full of carbs, which as other folks have pointed out, might not be a problem for her if she can plan ahead, but I'm trying (and failing) to not be like "here, have all the noodles and grits". If carbs if she can plan ahead are okay, I can make more suggestions, and if she likes shirataki noodles (and not everyone does, some folks have texture issues with them), then that opens up a whole ton of bowl food recipes.
I'm pretty useless vis a vis dessert, I eat real sugar and a lot of it, but if that's okay to an extent I can make a couple of suggestions for GF desserts that will turn out well every time for you. Also, nice cream is always an option depending on how much fruit she eats.
posted by joycehealy at 8:36 AM on May 30, 2022 [6 favorites]
As someone with celiac disease, I am incredibly surprised that she is willing to eat anything that comes out of your kitchen given that you regularly cook with flour. It is going to be nearly impossible to avoid cross contamination in your kitchen. I’d recommend reading guidebooks for living gluten free from the Canadian celiac association or similar versions for whatever country you’re in (since food labeling works differently in different places) before cooking anything. This will probably involve buying lots of new cookware and ingredients. https://www.celiac.ca/living-gluten-free/newly-diagnosed/
It’s possible that she’s relatively asymptomatic in her presentation and just ignores cross contamination - which isn’t good for her, but is a common strategy for those who can get away with it. She might also just feel too awkward to talk about the level of care that has to be taken around food for folks with celiac disease.
posted by congen at 1:30 PM on May 30, 2022 [3 favorites]
It’s possible that she’s relatively asymptomatic in her presentation and just ignores cross contamination - which isn’t good for her, but is a common strategy for those who can get away with it. She might also just feel too awkward to talk about the level of care that has to be taken around food for folks with celiac disease.
posted by congen at 1:30 PM on May 30, 2022 [3 favorites]
Best answer: My good friend is gluten intolerant but not celiac, so I haven't needed to think about cross contamination. Still, to be honest, I would have no problem going to IKEA and buying a set of kitchenware to accommodate her needs. That said, what if I take out a part of my kitchenware and run it on the sterilize program of my dishwasher?
Things I cook for her are:
Galettes (buck wheat pancakes), stuffed with spinach and mushrooms, or peas and onions. They need a creamy sauce for the filling, but you can either just reduce actual cream, or use corn starch to thicken oat milk if she is vegan. Not only my friend, but also my gang of hungry omnivore tasters claim that this is just delicious.
Soba noodle salad, with buckwheat noodles. You may have to buy the noodles online, I do. I love this, with some sort of seaweed, cucumber, maybe mushrooms, and sesame seeds, in a dressing based on lime, sesame oil, soy sauce (watch out for wheat content!!) and perhaps a bit of rice vinegar.
Italian parmigiana, with no breading. I'm making this right now, the best comfort food that ever existed.
Kung Pao mushrooms -- an other dish I regularly make for myself, despite being an omnivore.
Fish-fragrant Eggplants, probably one of the best dishes in the world (serve with rice, and perhaps a salad).
My friend is an omnivore, so there are some dishes I am leaving out.
Regarding desserts, last summer we tried just blending canned pineapple with coconut milk, and then running it in the ice-cream machine. I'm not a dessert person, but those who are enjoyed it as a sweet with no added suger or artificial sweetener. I love to have just a bowl of berries as my dessert, or a pear and some cheese.
posted by mumimor at 12:48 PM on May 31, 2022
Things I cook for her are:
Galettes (buck wheat pancakes), stuffed with spinach and mushrooms, or peas and onions. They need a creamy sauce for the filling, but you can either just reduce actual cream, or use corn starch to thicken oat milk if she is vegan. Not only my friend, but also my gang of hungry omnivore tasters claim that this is just delicious.
Soba noodle salad, with buckwheat noodles. You may have to buy the noodles online, I do. I love this, with some sort of seaweed, cucumber, maybe mushrooms, and sesame seeds, in a dressing based on lime, sesame oil, soy sauce (watch out for wheat content!!) and perhaps a bit of rice vinegar.
Italian parmigiana, with no breading. I'm making this right now, the best comfort food that ever existed.
Kung Pao mushrooms -- an other dish I regularly make for myself, despite being an omnivore.
Fish-fragrant Eggplants, probably one of the best dishes in the world (serve with rice, and perhaps a salad).
My friend is an omnivore, so there are some dishes I am leaving out.
Regarding desserts, last summer we tried just blending canned pineapple with coconut milk, and then running it in the ice-cream machine. I'm not a dessert person, but those who are enjoyed it as a sweet with no added suger or artificial sweetener. I love to have just a bowl of berries as my dessert, or a pear and some cheese.
posted by mumimor at 12:48 PM on May 31, 2022
Best answer: Something else: I know you want to make this a treat and special, but for two weeks, you may think about making a routine as well. It will make it easier for you, but also for the young people. It can be very stressful for anyone if they feel they are causing a lot of work.
In my family, but also in a lot of cultures across the globe, dinner and lunch had a lot of repeated items, in Italy, Japan, the Middle East, China, or India (and Denmark where I am) there can be a spread every day that is the same, and just one or two things change. So perhaps every day there would be rice, some sort of pickles, some sort of raw salad, some sort of stew/curry that can be reheated and then apart from cooking new rice every day, there would be one special that you focused on. I'm pointing to Asia here because it is simpler to do with your restrictions. You could create a vegetarian, gluten free Viking feast, but for most people, sourcing the produce would be a challenge.
That said, I forgot a recipe above, one I am making alongside my parmigiana right now. Cauliflower salad:
Cut four spring onions into tiny bits.
Mix them with mayonnaise, yogurt or skyr, salt, pepper and mustard to make a dressing. How much of each is a question of taste, but lets say a half cup of mayo and a half cup of yogurt and then you decide the seasoning.
Separate all the flowers from a head of cauliflower and put them into the dressing. Let it all marinade for 30 minutes, and then decorate with halved cherry tomatoes and chopped parsley. Maybe lumpfish roe if you have it in the fridge, but who does?
posted by mumimor at 2:51 PM on May 31, 2022
In my family, but also in a lot of cultures across the globe, dinner and lunch had a lot of repeated items, in Italy, Japan, the Middle East, China, or India (and Denmark where I am) there can be a spread every day that is the same, and just one or two things change. So perhaps every day there would be rice, some sort of pickles, some sort of raw salad, some sort of stew/curry that can be reheated and then apart from cooking new rice every day, there would be one special that you focused on. I'm pointing to Asia here because it is simpler to do with your restrictions. You could create a vegetarian, gluten free Viking feast, but for most people, sourcing the produce would be a challenge.
That said, I forgot a recipe above, one I am making alongside my parmigiana right now. Cauliflower salad:
Cut four spring onions into tiny bits.
Mix them with mayonnaise, yogurt or skyr, salt, pepper and mustard to make a dressing. How much of each is a question of taste, but lets say a half cup of mayo and a half cup of yogurt and then you decide the seasoning.
Separate all the flowers from a head of cauliflower and put them into the dressing. Let it all marinade for 30 minutes, and then decorate with halved cherry tomatoes and chopped parsley. Maybe lumpfish roe if you have it in the fridge, but who does?
posted by mumimor at 2:51 PM on May 31, 2022
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posted by shadygrove at 8:08 PM on May 29, 2022