Having recently been diagnosed with Celiac Disease, I started hunting for some books to help me out in my quest
to know how to cook, what to buy, and how to balance my diet.
For those who are unaware of what Celiac Disease—sometimes called Celiac Sprue—is, it is the inability to process the proteins found in wheat and other grains like rye, barley and oats. Some Celiac patients are also lactose intolerant, too, but that’s a whole different issue.
Looking at different books about Celiac Disease is confusing to say the least, but flipping through Shelley Case’s Gluten Free Diet most definitely is not. As one of the world’s leading professionals on Celiac Disease, Shelley knows what she is talking about, and updates this book every two years.
Shelley Case leads you through the definition of gluten, and where to find it in almost any food that you can possibly imagine. As she leads you through the book, Shelley teaches you about recipes, cooking hints and
substitutions, while still maintaining a balanced diet. She even teaches you to use guar gum and TVP—texturized vegetable protein—to make breads with in combination with rice and potato flours, or other types of flour.
Meal planning is not impossible for a celiac
patient using the Gluten Free Diet, and Shelley Case’s advice. Inside this wonderful book, you will find a number of delicious recipes to use. None of these recipes will make you feel as if you are missing out on anything—there’s even a recipe for making pizza!
Listing the Recommended Daily Allowances of what each food provides, Shelley helps the average person understand how to balance a celiac diet—and still eat what they like. Looking on page 206 of Gluten Free Diets, you will even find a sample Shopping List to use for trips to the grocery stores/farmer's markets to get started on the gluten-free diet. How many books will provide shopping lists for a diet like this? Not many...
At the same time, in Gluten Free Diets, Shelley provides the reader with a list of specialty food companies, and websites that can be used.Checking out those companies, websites, and even the retail grocery stores that are listed in Gluten Free Diets—that’s something that any celiac patient must do. The benefits are great—although gluten-free foods are more expensive—but, finding such easy accessibility makes the life of any celiac patient much more simple.
As one final resource for the celiac patient, Gluten Free Diets provides a list of different societies worldwide that patients can gain access to via phone, mail or the World Wide Web. Shelley Case is a veritable fountain of information on celiac disease, and her book Gluten Free Diets, proves it.
Take the time to check out Gluten Free Diets by Shelley Case. It’s definitely worth your time!