Being a Blessing - GF style

One of the biggest blessings that can come someone's way usually comes by way of food, at least it does for me.  Whether it's inviting a family over for some fellowship time or taking someone who is ill a meal, cooking for someone else can be a big blessing, but it is also a big responsibility.  This is magnified when it's cooking for someone who has dietary restrictions.  It's not just about the ingredients, either.  It is the entire process, from washing to utensils to serving platters and everything in between.  I'll do my best to put a lot of information in here without making things too complicated, but I wanted to run down some things to think about if you decide to cook for someone with dietary restrictions, specifically gluten-free since that is my experience.

Why not start at washing?  It seems so simple to think that you wash a dish, then it's clean, right? Well, not exactly.  For the sake of simplicity, I'll just explain a bit of what I keep from and what I do.  When I eat something that has gluten in it, I rinse the dish so well right after, you'd think it was clean.  I remove ALL bits of food from it.  I typically do this with my hand, which will make more sense in a minute.  Since we don't have a dishwasher, I then set it aside until I wash dishes.  (If I had a dishwasher, I would do the same but then place it in the dishwasher.  Once it's full, turn it on and job's done!  Unfortunately, I do not so I have a few more things to think about.)  When I prepare to wash dishes, I wash the sink out really well with a dish wand whose only purpose is to wash the sink.  I do not use this sponge on dishes.  Why?  Sponges will retain bits of whatever it touches.  If I were to wash something with gluten on it with this then wash my dishes, it's as good as washing Sophie's sippy cup with a piece of wheat bread.  It may be cleaning off germs and such, but gluten is not a germ and therefore will not wash off the same by being killed by coming in contact with soap.  It must be washed off.  Continuing on, after I wash the sink and rinse it very well, I then grab a clean, freshly laundered dish rag.  I never reuse them because of the same reasons as the sponge: it could be holding onto gluten I cannot see.  I wash them with our gluten-free laundry detergent (which all of P&G laundry products are) when I do laundry once a week.  I then proceed to washing dishes at this point, much like you probably would if you were doing dishes.  :)  Another thing to keep in mind is the type of soap you're using.  Is it gluten-free?  I don't know all of them because I just checked the one that I like to use and it turns out it is gluten-free so I stopped there.  I can let you know that all Dawn soaps are gluten-free, in case you want to know one that for sure is.

The next thing to keep in mind is things you come in contact with in the kitchen.  I'm not just meaning the foods you use or touch either.  What all have you wiped on that dish towel?  Did you use it to clean up a mess from your sandwich?  If so, then you do not want to dry your hands on it before making a gluten-free meal.  You will then have gluten on your hands and contaminate the entire meal if you touch any of the food or food preparation areas.  (Starting to see the trickiest part of Celiac yet??)  I very frequently will rotate my towels in the kitchen and pay very close attention to how others are using them.  If you're in doubt or want to just make sure, I suggest using paper towels for drying or wiping your hands on, which then you can just throw away.

Since I mentioned food preparation areas, let's discuss that.  If my husband pours a bowl of gluten cereal and gets some on the counter (which he never does...*cough*), then I follow behind him and put something of Sophie's there, she has a very high chance of getting contaminated, therefore being sick for almost 3 days.  Before I do any cooking or food prepping for Sophie, I always clean my countertops.  Some people I've heard will designate a countertop for only GF food prep, but I do not.  If you're wondering what to use, I just use 409 All Purpose Cleaner and paper towels.  Seems to work great for us in getting the job done.  I'm sure there are other things, but that works for us and I like to do what I know works.

Now, what about those dishes and cookware?  If you just made Hamburger Helper in that pan last week, can you use it for gluten-free cooking today?  I say yes, if it's cleaned well.  If it is something with a porous material, such as a cast iron skillet, then I would say a very large NO!  Porous surfaces will retain what it touches, which is why you are not supposed to use a variety of things on one cast iron skillet or wash it with soap.  It could make your foods taste like other foods or taste soapy.  Apply that same theory to what we're discussing here and it could make something you try to cook GF contaminated and therefore no longer GF.  Other things to keep away from are wooden spoons, wooden cutting boards, and things hard to clean really well, such as colanders, toasters, muffin tins, bread machines, grain grinders, etc.  Some people do buy all new dishes, pots, pans, utensils, and basically everything in their kitchen, but others can't do that (like us!).  So I just replaced our toaster, colander, wooden spoons, and continue using the rest, just making sure to super-duper clean it all very well (with my clean dish rag and GF soap).  I also make sure to line my cookie sheets and toaster oven tray with foil, which not only helps to prevent cross-contamination, but also makes for easier cleanup! (I've heard some debating on Celiac forums about non-stick cookware being porous and possibly containing gluten.  I use non-stick cookware and have had no trouble.  Like I've said a thousand times already, I wash everything really well and I have not had any trouble with my cookware.)

Now comes what would make the most sense when cooking GF: the ingredients.  This alone can be a headache, but doesn't have to be impossible.  Every bit of food that crosses paths with the meal you're wanting to make must be completely gluten-free.  Really narrowing down what is gluten-free and what isn't could take an entire book (and some people make money on doing just that!), so I can't really go into detail, but I'll try to help a bit.  Make sure that the non-stick spray, condiments, spices, and EVERYTHING not only has no gluten in it, but hasn't touched anything with gluten in it.  If you're wanting to use the butter you just used to butter your toast, you need to skip it.  (Walk through it with me: you put the knife in the butter, wipe the bread with butter, get more butter with the same knife, then finish spreading the butter.  I can guarantee you that you just successfully made that butter a gluten item with the crumbs from your bread, thus making it useless for GF cooking.)  To help in this, if you need it, I highly recommend a permanent marker in your kitchen.  When an item in the kitchen is used on both gluten and non-gluten foods, I recommend buying 2 and labeling one in a really obvious way that it is GF only.  If you don't want to buy 2, then make sure to only use clean utensils to get anything out of it.  NEVER double-dip it when you are putting it on something containing gluten.  It's not just butter, either.  It is everything in your kitchen.  Did you touch the ketchup to your hamburger bun?  Jelly containers?  The spoon for the marinara inserted back into the jar after spreading it on a gluten pizza? (I concentrate on that last one every week when I make pizzas, one gluten and one GF.  Let's just say I sometimes go through a lot of dishes!  But it's worth it to have a meal safe for my Celiac girl to eat.)

If you are wondering about specific ingredients and don't feel like contacting every manufacturer, then I recommend contacting someone who is familiar with GF cooking.  I am always open to helping, but if you know someone else I can almost guarantee you that they will be, too.  They will be very appreciative for your questions regarding gluten.  I know I always am.  If you don't know anyone, then you can contact a local Celiac group, usually called Gluten Intolerance Groups.  You don't have to be a member to contact them.  Just get an email or phone number for anyone in the group and they will be more than happy to help you determine what you can use and what you can't for what you want to make if you are unsure. 

Is your brain spinning yet?  It is a lot to take in, but if you want to make a meal for someone with some type of dietary restriction, this is reality on what you need to make sure of when putting that meal together.  I don't want to keep anyone from that blessing, so please don't think it's impossible to do!  If you really want to be a blessing but think you'll somehow not do it correctly and end up making someone sick on accident, there are things you can buy that are already GF or whatever it is that the family needs to keep away from!  Whole Foods Market, Central Market (in Texas), and almost every health food store now carries foods that meet most restrictions, whether it be GF, nut-free, dairy-free, vegetarian, vegan, etc.  You can buy a meal ready to go and take it to them.  I'm sure it will still bless them and be delightful!  If you decide to make it at home, just remember this word: CLEAN, CLEAN, CLEAN!  That's the easiest way to keep from contaminating the meal.  I hope this helps in some way!