Week 3 Observations

I have now completed 3 weeks of my new gluten-free lifestyle. And what have I noticed? Have I noticed any difference yet? Here are my observations so far...

• I have lost a shed load of weight! Particularly from my bottom half. And now none of my trousers/jeans fit! I was quite slim before but now I look skeletal and there is no way that I would ever choose to lose weight by dieting so this is out of my control. My ribs and hip bones and collarbone are also more visible. I want to know, is it normal to lose so much weight in such a short space of time on a gluten-free diet? I haven't actually weighed myself yet to see exactly how much weight I have lost but it is really obvious to me (and now others) that I have lost the weight. 

• I have found that I am not as hungry as I used to be in between meals and don't need to snack as much (this can only be a good thing, surely?)

• I get full a lot quicker when eating a meal and my portion sizes have therefore got smaller as a result. (Again not necessarily a bad thing).

• I am also craving sweet things. I never used to be a sweet or dessert person, I always craved savoury foods like crisps and bread but now I am the complete opposite and only want sweet foods. I am discovering a whole new taste sensation that I never knew I possessed. Maybe this is because a lot of gluten-free products do contain quite a lot of sugar, I don't know, but it's definitely something new to me.

Now I know everybody is different but I am keen to hear other people's experiences in the first few weeks of going gluten-free. Is this normal? Do let me know.

I am also quite disappointed that I haven't really noticed a big change yet in my symptoms, for example, the tiredness and exhaustion, but I know these things take time. I am finally seeing a dietician next week so I am hoping that they will be able to give me some proper help.

That's all for now!

E



Las Iguanas - muchos gracias

www.iguanas.co.uk/

Following on from Saturday's cupcake success I was feeling brave and found myself in Manchester on Sunday night to watch a gig. We needed a quick bite to eat before the concert started and so we decided to give Las Iguanas' gluten-free menu a try (yes, they have a whole gluten-free menu!) 

Having searched the Coeliac UK website beforehand, using their very handy venue guide, I had decided this was the best place to go for my first gluten-free meal out in Manchester (Deansgate) . It also happens to be my favourite type of cuisine and one of my favourite places to eat ever, and the fact that they also have a gluten-free menu was definitely a bonus. Their chilli is possibly the best chilli I have ever tasted (pre gluten-free) and yes I would consider myself to be a bit of a chilli connoisseur.

Upon arriving at the restaurant I made myself known to the waitress and explained that I required a gluten-free menu, no big deal was made of it, no fuss, I was just given the gluten-free menu instead of the normal menu when we got to our table- no problem. I think the staff here are pretty used to this kind of thing.

The gluten-free menu is basically a selection from their main menu that the chefs have adapted to be gluten-free. The gluten-free options are also on their main menu marked with a 'GF' by the side but it is handy having your own gluten-free menu and that way you don't have to trawl through the rest of the menu just to pick out the gluten-free options. There is a good selection to choose from (sadly no chilli option) and I found that there was something on the starter, main and dessert menu that tempted me. I opted for the Feijoada de Vaca (a Brazilian stew with beef, chorizo, and black beans in a red wine sauce) and I must say it was absolutely delicious!

To view their gluten-free menu click here

Although I am still new to gluten-free eating out I think Las Iguanas are certainly up there with the forerunners in Coeliac dining out. The fact that they have taken the time to produce their own gluten-free menu which means that you can see exactly everything that you can eat just shows how accommodating and aware of Coeliac Disease they are. I did worry that going to a restaurant for the first time with a special dietary requirement would be embarrassing and I might be made to feel like an inconvenience or one of those  'fussy eaters' but this simply wasn't the case with Las Iguanas. Asking for a gluten-free meal was about as normal as asking for a vegetarian option. The waiting staff are friendly and knowledgeable about the food and were keen to recommend a dish if you are unsure what to have.

It must be noted that I visited the Deansgate, Manchester Las Iguanas and although I'm sure the other restaurants within the chain across the UK will offer the same kind of experience, I have only commented on their Deansgate venue.

Muchos gracias Las Iguanas for a very enjoyable fuss-free gluten-free dining experience. First meal out - in the bag!

Cupcake Cafe & Bakery

Today I had my first ever gluten-free eating out experience. This was a really big step for me. My friends and I decided to visit the Cupcake Cafe and Bakery in Leek, Staffordshire and this is where I sampled my first gluten-free cupcake.

The Cupcake Cafe is a small, friendly cafe situated at the end of a cobbled courtyard in the centre of town. Although slightly off the beaten track (it's behind another building) it's well worth the visit. You can either sit in or take-out and they also do celebration cakes and special orders if you have a birthday or occasion and need to buy in bulk. The cafe provides a wide range of delicious cupcakes and cakes all home made on site (and also sandwiches and soups) but in the past year have also introduced a dairy and gluten-free cupcake of the week. Every week the flavour changes and this week the cupcake of choice happened to be Bakewell - I therefore couldn't wait to give it a try.

Check out the beautiful vintage-style china too!

I have to say this is one of the nicest cupcakes I have ever had and as it was my first ever taste of gluten-free cupcake I was pleasantly surprised to find that I really couldn't tell the difference between a normal cupcake and gluten-free. The sponge was lovely and light, yet moist, with a jam centre and the vanilla icing (dairy free) was rich and creamy - topped off nicely with a cherry - perfect. I enjoyed it so much that I had to buy a second cupcake to take home for later!

If you are ever passing through Leek I would definitely recommend you stop at the Cupcake Cafe and give their tasty treats a try. I wonder what the flavour next week will be...

www.cupcakecafe.co.uk/ or www.facebook.com/CupcakeCafeandBakery

Everyone loves a bit of free stuff

So going gluten-free is a bit scary and in my first week I have to admit I've found it tough. I seem to have been to the supermarket about 4 times this week alone, which I wouldn't normally do, trying new products and planning what to feed myself and my non-Coeliac husband, not to mention spending a heck of a lot of money on groceries. 

But as it's my first week I wanted to be able to experiment and find out which products I like and which I don't so I will let myself off just this once! I know things are going to get easier as the weeks go by but at this stage I am still very much the nervous newbie when trying out new foods. I just don't want to make any mistakes and accidentally eat something containing a trace of gluten and make myself even more ill.

I must have also spent hours reading the back of food labels and trawling the internet for help and guidance.

But there is help out there. Lots of help. The internet especially can be so useful. I decided to sign up to Coeliac UK as a starting point (membership is free until April 2013) and a few days later they sent me an information pack which also contained a Food and Drink directory (you can also access the directory on their website). The directory lists thousands of food and drinks that are safe to eat for Coeliacs. It's handbag size and will certainly come in very handy when I next visit the supermarket. I have used it a few times already. If you are unsure about a product you can flip to the right page and find out if it's safe. Excellent!

I also signed up to Glutafin and I was utterly gobsmacked when I received this in the post on Thursday...

An amazing hamper of goodies, which included 2 loaves of bread, bag of pasta, boxes of crackers and bread mix, all gluten-free and completely free of charge! Thank you so much Glutafin! I love getting free stuff! Can't wait to try the brand. Be sure to check out future posts for product reviews.

And so my research continues but hopefully there are more companies that are offering free samples because after all, what's the point if we can't try before we buy - how will we ever know what products are out there, what products we can afford, and which brands are the best. Every little helps. Keep them coming!

Let's go gluten-free

At the weekend I attempted my first ever gluten free shop at Sainsbury’s in preparation for Monday (my first day gluten free). It did seem a little daunting at first walking in to the supermarket clutching my shopping list and not having a clue where to start. But as I had made a list of exactly everything that I needed to get me through the first few days (breakfast, packed lunches for work, and a couple of evening meals that me and my non-Coeliac husband could both eat) there was no way I was going to stray from the list. 

The first thing I can say is the shop took me about twice as long to do because I was reading every single label on every item I wanted to buy but I did expect this. Surprisingly I found pretty much everything I needed and it was nowhere near as stressful as I thought shopping might be. With a bit of practice I'm sure I'll be zooming around the supermarket once I know what I like and can eat.

The price of gluten-free bread, however, is a killer – I paid £2.90 for a half loaf of Genius bread, which, compared to a full size loaf of ‘normal’ bread which I could have got for roughly 80p (supermarket own brand) seems daylight robbery to someone who has no choice but to buy this type of bread. I am therefore going to attempt to make my own bread from scratch at the weekend to compare the taste and cost between the two. Any recipes would be muchly appreciated!

To view the full Genius range see their website for more info

I am now 4 days in to my gluten-free lifestyle and feeling optimistic. My husband made a beautiful gluten-free chilli with rice on the first night (it happens to be my favourite meal) and the only thing we needed to change from our original recipe in order to make it gluten free was use a gluten-free beef stock. We decided to use Knorr’s stock cubes as Oxo cubes are a definite no-no. Look out for a recipe in future blog posts.

All hail Sainsbury's!

I happened to be visiting my brand new local Sainsbury's store the other day and was extremely pleased to find that they have quite a large 'free from' section. This range covers gluten-free, wheat-free and lactose free products. As you can imagine, as a newly diagnosed Coeliac, I very nearly jumped for joy at the sight...

I was pleasantly surprised to find there was so much choice and a great range of products. Thank you Sainsbury's! I am looking forward to trying out these products in the coming weeks and of course I will review my findings in future posts, so watch this space.

Click here to visit Sainsbury's website to find out more