Six Gifts for the Recently Diagnosed Celiac in Your Life

Friends and coworkers seem to be coming out of the woodwork lately asking me what they can feed/give a recently diagnosed celiac relative (amazing how many of us there seem to be wandering around). And seeing as the holidays are fast approaching, I decided to write up a  list of several things that can be incredibly helpful gifts for a celiac just starting out on a gluten free diet.

1. Celiac Disease: A Hidden Epidemic – Did you know that Sweden had an epidemic of celiac disease among children born in the 1980s and 90s? This book tells you how and why it happened. Did you know that celiac patients are at higher risk for Lupus and Diabetes? This book goes over the research. This book was first on the list of resources my celiac doc gave me (and first in this list I’m making) because it gives a superb big picture overview of Celiac Disease.
2. Gluten Free Living Subscription – I recommend this one because I know how much I want it 🙂 It’s a quarterly magazine covering the gluten free lifestyle, the latest medical developments, recipes, events…
3. A Gift Certificate to Gluten Free Mall or Glutenfree.com – gluten free foods are often hard to find, and nearly always more expensive than their gluten full counterparts. This kind of gift can be a huge help. In addition to the financial side of it, it also shows that you get it. You understand how hard the lifestyle is and you want to help out. And do tell them I sent you (because referral points make my baking flours cheaper!).
4. Bob’s Red Mill Bakers Bundle – Bob’s Red Mill has several gluten free bundles, but this, in my opinion, is the best of them. It’s certainly the most versatile, containing several of the standard gluten free flours: white rice, brown rice, tapioca, potato, and sorghum. There’s also the all purpose flour, which I’m not so fond of thanks to the bean flour content, but it works for savory dishes. For those who are less into alchemical baking than I am, they also have a bundle of their more popular gluten free mixes. I haven’t tried most of those, so I can’t say how good they are.
5. Triumph Dining Gluten Free Guides and Cards– Triumph puts out two of the most comprehensive gluten free guides out there. One for restaurant dining, one for grocery shopping. Both are lifesavers. They also have a set of dining cards that allow you to communicate your dietary needs in several different languages.
6. The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook – This is one of my favorite gluten free cookbooks. The chocolate chip cookies are amazing. Thus far, every recipe I’ve tried from this author, I’ve liked. The book focuses on almond flour; a lot of gluten free cookbooks use starchier flour substitutes. For those who are concerned with blood sugar, diabetes, or keeping their carbohydrate intake low, this is great. The almond flour is much higher in protein and not likely to spike your blood sugar. (Side note – this is also great for people on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet for Crohn’s disease, just sub in honey for the agave nectar).

I have affiliations with Amazon, Triumph, and Glutenfree.com, but none with any of the other vendors on the list.