Let's Get Started!

I was diagnosed with Celiac's Disease in 2014.  Having to change my diet was difficult but not as difficult as trying to cook for two people when only one needs to be gluten-free.  My hunny, Seth, puts up with my constant "new recipes" and is always more than willing to try them.  While it isn't always easy to cook for us both, I've learned a lot of things these last few years that I want to share so I can help many people in my situation.  So, let's get started!

Cross-Contamination

When you live on your own, it doesn’t matter if you double-dip in the peanut butter or if you cook pancake after pancake... after pancake.  But what happens when you live with someone who doesn’t have guts that will churn at the site of a crumb of “real” bread?  For many people, it is recommended that you and your housemate(s) have separate foods, such as a peanut butter jar for you and a peanut butter jar for me.  Other foods that are recommended to separate are butter, jelly, and mayonnaise--basically anything that might risk contamination of crumbs or anything else with gluten.  I have been very lucky (knock on wood) that cross-contamination isn’t something that kills my guts like it does many other people with Celiac’s.  Seth and I share the above foods; however, I don’t double-dip if I make him a sandwich, so I keep the food crumb-free. 

Something else that most people don’t consider separating is the toaster or waffle iron.  When you want to make breakfast for dinner, which we often do, it can be a hassle to keep things separate.  I have my own toaster.  There’s just too many tiny pieces of gluten floating in his to risk putting my safe bread in.  If I want homemade waffles or pancakes, however, I’ve discovered that I only I only have to keep the batter and utensils separate.  The trick to avoiding cross-contamination here is to cook the gluten-free waffle or pancake first.  The only downfall to this is I wait until everyone’s food is done cooking before I eat, so sometimes my waffle isn’t as warm as I want it to be.  

Living with someone who has Celiac's Disease will be a struggle at first.  Knowing how to avoid microscopic crumbs hiding in your mayonnaise is just the beginning of the learning how to dine with a Celiac!

What is something you learned early on when having to transition to a gluten-free diet?  Please share in the comments below!

Thanks for following!
Brittany