Does anyone have any ideas/tips/recipes for gluten-free foods for a 5 year old Celiac? I would appreciate any insight from a kosher (Chalav Yisroel) perspective as my child was recently diagnosed.

HI Ahuva

Firstly, where are you - I know about products in South Africa and in Israel. Also, Israel has a gluten free society that gives out recipes, if you are a member of their organisation.

Let me know where you are and I can give you more info if applicable.

Have a good day

I am aware of the Celiac support groups and organizations, but I wanted tips from a Frum mother's perspective.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Ahuva,

I'm sorry, I can't help you with that, I don't have kids yet! But I'm sure there's someone else out there who can help. Do you know what products are available?

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Originally posted by Ahuva:
Does anyone have any ideas/tips/recipes for gluten-free foods for a 5 year old Celiac? I would appreciate any insight from a kosher (Chalav Yisroel) perspective as my child was recently diagnosed.

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Shalom Ahuva,
I am a native SAfrican with good contacts. Happy to direct any research on the south african end, should you still require assitance.
Referencing Leora's response to your orignal post. B"H Lippman

so am i s african! do you have info you can forward me?

quote:

Originally posted by Ahuva:
Does anyone have any ideas/tips/recipes for gluten-free foods for a 5 year old Celiac? I would appreciate any insight from a kosher (Chalav Yisroel) perspective as my child was recently diagnosed.

Hi. I am gluten intolerant. I think the best thing I can tell you is that it's not such a terrible thing to not be able to eat gluten. I eat MUCH, MUCH healthier than I ever did before I was diagnosed. I don't eat very many processed foods. I eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, salad, dairy, and (not so much) meat. My personal opinion is that you shouldn't try to replace all of the gluten-containing foods with gluten-free ones (it takes a lot of energy), you should substitute fruits & vegetables instead. I think trying to find good-tasting gluten-free substitutes is hard and expensive. You can buy fruits and vegetables anywhere, and they're very nutritious.

I think there a a few things that would make it easier on your daughter. Keep snacks ready for her--cut up fruits, vegetables, chips, and dip. If you can manage, make your whole house gluten- free. That'll put an end to any complaints about wanting to eat something you're eating that she can't have. Find some yummy gluten-free cakes and cookies to give her on Shabbat. Find a basic gluten-free cracker she likes, and order it by the case. My favorite is by a company called ENER-G. They are plain crackers that I think taste just like unsalted saltines. The name of them is called "Wheat-Free Crackers." The company is American, but the crackers are actually a product of Israel.

This is what I typically pack for my daughter when I send her to daycare: 1 banana, a small cup of mandarin orange slices, a small cup of grapes, a cup of strawberries, chicken or scrambled egg, chick peas, broccoli, and a small cup of dried cereal.

There are plenty of companies that sell great gluten-free foods and even a few that sell delicious gluten free desserts that are Kosher for Passover. Shabtai Gourmet is one of them. (They arelocated in the Five Towns at 874Lakeside Dr, Woodmere, NY 11598. The phonenumber is 516-374-7976. They can also be reached at877-SHABTAI. Certification is by the OK. )

You can even get gluten-free matzo. It's too late for this year, but save the website for next-- http://www.ubaccess.com/oatbuy.html

These are just a few websites that sell gluten-free foods:
http://www.glutensolutions.com/store.asp
http://www.glutino.com/english/index.cfm
http://www.glutenfree.com/

For recipes, if you go to google.com and put in "gluten-free" and "recipes" as your search terms, it will come back with over a million sites to look at. Good luck.

Thanks for the tips!! I have found the Ener-G brand to be great. My son loves the pizza crusts and pretzels. It's very hard to go completely gluten-free. The other children need bread for lunch--school policy to wash and bench, not to mention the expense. We tried the gluten free Matzos this year. Aside for the fact that it was basically matzo meal, the matzos were terribly broken, my son absolutely did not like them! I personally did not taste them, but my sister did and agreed with my son.
Since I first posted asking for tips, I've learnt to live with the whole deal pretty much, and it isn't as bad as I first thought it to be. Yes, it is difficult to make 2 pots of pasta, 2 colanders, etc., so I just make more rice and potatoes and less macaroni. Now it's more of a specialty to have macaroni and cheese in our house. Now, on Pesach, I got so used to being basically Pesach'dik, I hardly feel that I am missing anything! The best part about pesach is that I don't have to worry about what my son eat--he can have anything without Matzo or matzo meal. That's alot easier to explain to everyone, especially being that we don't stay home for Yom Tov!! Chag Kasher V'Sameach!