The cravings of pasta, pizza, and soft baked cookies are endless during the first few weeks of converting my diet to gluten free. Most people don’t even know how many foods gluten can be found in; anything made with wheat flour is made with Gluten. So goodbye sweet, sweet Chick-Fil-A chicken nuggets (thank god your fries are gluten free). Adios Bojangles hangover biscuit. Farewell to my friendship with the guy at Campus Calzones that has me on a first name basis. Bread has been there for me for so long and now we have to part ways. My first grocery shopping trip as a newly diagnosed “gluten intolerant” eater took me two and a half hours. Three grocery stores later and I still left without the gluten free bread that no store in Greenville seemed to carry. I now find myself shopping in places I grew up avoiding, like Food Lion, and…Walmart. Gluten is hidden in everything, more than most people realize. Like imitation crab… Who knew a California roll could be so unpredictable?
Although making adjustments to my favorite foods has been an intense measure of my will power (which I didn’t think even existed) it really has already made a huge difference on my health. The best advice I can give to a new gluten free eater is to not feel overwhelmed. I promise there ARE actually an abundance of foods you can eat. I have been living off of Annie’s Mac and Cheese and Smartfood Cheddar Popcorn for a while now and I’m still doing just fine, and my daily cheese cravings are still going strong. For those of you with a sweet tooth, I highly recommend Chao Bella sorbet and Udi’s cookies.
I also want to give a major shout out to the awesome restaurants that are now providing gluten free menus. As Mellow Mushroom’s gluten free menu so sweetly informed me the last time I was there, “You are no longer a second class citizen.” And for that I thank them for the wonderful confidence booster and also for their wonderful pizza creations. Carrabba’s gluten free pasta is wonderful and no different from their regular tomato-y heaven. Never be afraid to ask the wait staff if a gluten free menu is available.
Another thing that’s really important for you to remember is that gluten free is no longer a foreign concept. There’s a major rise in the number of gluten free eaters, including those who do it just because they find it a healthier way of eating. There’s even a few companies making gluten free beer. Thank god wine is gluten free, or Wednesday’s would no longer have purpose in my life.
Cooking was never something I intended to experiment with, let alone enjoy, but as my diet requires these changes, I find myself clinging to my recipe board on Pinterest. While I wait for all my favorite brands and restaurants to hop on the bandwagon of gluten free eating, I will embrace something I never thought I would be able to find: my inner chef.