… or gluten.  This blog is to document (mostly for myself and family) my experiments and variations, what worked and what did not, and what should NEVER be attempted again! I dream in muffins and believe everyone deserves a cookie.  My children are my food muses. They will be with me in the kitchen, underfoot covered with flour licking the beaters, making suggestions and coming up with great ideas (some will not be used—we do not have a trained monkey to streamline pizza production or a teleporter and minivan outfitted with rockets to get to the store and back faster.)  If it helps others along their journey to a gluten and dairy–free life, so much the better.

 

We have been gluten-free for five years and dairy-free eleven.  I do not regret the road we must travel (although a really GOOD pizza that I could just pick up or my family could go out for occasionally instead of having to make it myself each time wouldn’t hurt).  I have met interesting people along the way, shared food, exchanged recipes, discussed the merits of bean vs. rice flours, and heard my child tell me she loves me for the first time with her own voice.  Due to being gluten-free, our family has watched one of our children grow from undersized with very little speech ability, sickly and sad into a lovely child with a hug and smile for everyone, a deep love of her friends and meatloaf, who I need to ask to STOP talking occasionally.

 

We understand the need to economize and this diet isn’t always inexpensive, but I hope to share some recipes, menus, shopping tips and ideas along to way so that others who have just started to be gluten and dairy-free will have a starting place that might help them.