What is it?  Xanthan gum is a vital part of any gluten-free kitchen. When you look at it as an ingredient, it’s a polysaccharide, which means it’s a complex sugar made up of simpler sugars. This structure is what gives xanthan gum its powerful use in gluten-free cooking in the kitchen: it’s sticky. Imagine you are baking a traditional, gluten-full cake. You mix wheat flour, butter, and other ingredients together to make the batter, pour that batter into a pan, and place the pan into a hot oven. The heat of the oven causes a chemical reaction to take place, where all the flour particles ge ..read more

Whether it’s because of celiac disease, a wheat allergy, a desire to lose weight, or any one of the other numerous reasons why people go gluten free. It’s safe to say that cutting out this omnipresent substance comes with its fair share of challenges. While the selection of gluten-free options in supermarkets, restaurants, and online is bigger than ever and an increasing number of people are aware of the gluten free lifestyle; eliminating it from your diet takes a major adjustment.  Many of us – regardless of our circumstances –often become disheartened at times with the sheer amount of i ..read more

Prepping Your Pantry: 10 Simple and Effective Ideas for Organizing Your Gluten Free Pantry If you’re anything like us, your pantry can go from no-stress to mess in fewer than 60 seconds. Messy pantries can be stressful and sometimes overwhelming to handle, making it more difficult to know exactly what you have in stock and what you need more of. Particularly, if you have family members who need to eat gluten free and some who don’t.  Don’t let organizing your pantry be the stressful task you avoid doing. A well-organized pantry can be a game changer when meal prepping, especially if you a ..read more

Are you gluten-free? Are you an oat lover? If so, you probably eat them pretty frequently. When you do, do you experience gut problems afterward? If you can answer yes to that too, then you’re in the right place.  Oats, gluten free of course,  are commonly recommended to include in a gluten-free diet because of the many nutritional benefits they offer. For individuals with celiac disease or other similar conditions, they are a great natural source of fiber, as well as zinc, magnesium, thiamine, and phosphorus. They can also help to slow down a person’s appetite and reduce inflammatio ..read more

Nearly everyone who has been diagnosed with celiac disease will be able to tell you when, where, and how it happened. The diagnosis comes as such monumental news to most of us that we can’t help but solidify that day in our minds. Afterward, a type of grieving process usually begins and we run through the gamut of emotions from shock to anger to depression, before emerging on the other side with hope. This grieving process is a natural response to any medical diagnosis that significantly affects our lives — it’s how humans process bad news. But how can we make this process easier and less stre ..read more

Life is too short to eat foods you aren’t excited about, and for many of those who are just transitioning to eating new foods due to celiac disease or gluten intolerance this feeling can be dreadful. You may find yourself asking, “What gluten-free foods could there possibly be to eat that I can enjoy?” It may feel very limiting at first, but give it some time. You will come to discover new dishes to love and adapt some of the ingredients in your current favorite recipes. Living gluten free doesn’t mean you have to throw away everything in your pantry and drive to the nearest health food store ..read more

Are you planning to switch to a gluten-free diet? It could prove to be a very good decision and provide several health benefits. A gluten-free diet is recommended for people with celiac disease or those who have gluten sensitivity.  Gluten and gluten-free have become buzzwords over the past 10 years and many of us may not really understand what gluten is. So, let’s start there. Gluten is a protein usually found in grains such as barley, rye, and wheat. Gluten is commonly found in bread and baked goods and it gives these foods a chewy texture with an elastic quality. However, gluten is som ..read more

Whether you’re packing the car trunk with goodies or lugging necessities home on public transport, grocery shopping can often be a tedious task for many of us. The process becomes even more daunting when we’re shopping gluten free for ourselves or our families and need to be especially careful about what we put in our carts. No matter where you are on your gluten-free journey, the following tips should help you more easily navigate the gluten free grocery landscape and avoid the common pitfalls and misconceptions that often come with a gluten-free shopping mission. Know Your Grocery Does and D ..read more

Often, those of us with celiac disease, gluten intolerance, or even gluten avoidance can feel uniquely singled out in families or living situations where those around us are all on that gluten hype. While adjusting to shopping for and cooking gluten-free meals eventually becomes second nature to us, we’re often met with the additional hurdle of navigating a kitchen bursting with gluten-filled items from our well-meaning but rye bread loving friends and family. No one wants to make a family member or friend sick, but the same care and gluten consciousness we possess doesn’t always hold true for ..read more

Celiac disease is a condition where the immune system reacts negatively when gluten is consumed. Predominantly affecting the small intestine, this disease can cause harm resulting in a person being unable to “absorb” the nutrients from their food. Currently, the only treatment for celiac is to eat a dedicated gluten free diet. While 1 in 133 people have celiac, many people go untested or misdiagnosed and untreated, suffering from symptoms and challenges they don’t need too.  The Celiac Disease Foundation reports that there are 2.5 million people in America who have celiac disease but are ..read more