I learned of a wheat allergy over 20 years ago when I did my allergy testing. At the time, the products of there were not great. Mushy pasta, bread that tasted like cardboard, and crackers that were tasteless. I am asked fairly often by people new to this for recommendations, so here are a few. Since my issue is a wheat allergy, I eat gluten free mostly. There is gluten in things that are fine for me because there are no wheat ingredients and occasionally I find a product that can be labeled gluten free, but still has wheat that doesn't work for me (Costco Fiber). These products are not all certified gluten free, but have no wheat ingredients.
Baking is very easy with a good gluten free flour blend. Cup 4 Cup is my favorite. I buy it from Sprouts or Amazon. Use the regular recipe and substitute this flour. Voila. Other good options: Bob's Red Mill 1 for 1 Gluten Free Baking Flour (Target) and King Arthur Measure for Measure Flour (Vons)
The first pastas I tried were made of corn and were gross. Fortunately Trader Joe's was working in the kitchen to create this
Brown Rice Quinoa Pasta. It is our go to for all pasta dishes. My only warning is that, while this is good fresh, it doesn't make for great left overs. I buy it at Trader Joe's. I havne't tried anything else since I found this, but if I didn't live near a Trader Joe's, I would try
this version from Rizopia.
Trader Joe's has
Savory Thin Crackers (and minis!) that are good for snacking. The soy version is made with tamari, keeping it gluten free.
There are so many gluten free mixes out there, some good, some not. Here are some hits. Trader Joe's brings out their
gluten free cornbread mix every fall (it is seasonal, stock up!).
Our favorite brownie mix is the
King Arthur Ultimate Fudge Brownie Mix. It has been harder to find locally lately and it is pricey ($8-9 a box), so we also have used Open Nature Brownie mix. It is almost as good and closer to $5 a box.
I am open to bread ideas since I haven't found one I love. I do eat Trader Joes Multigrain Gliten Free Bread and it is fine. I don't eat a lot of bread (I do have friends who can tolerate sourdough bread made with wheat because the bacteria changes it enough. I might try this soon.)
I will update here as I think of other things that are tried and true favorites. Do you have any gluten free products you love?
