Wheat & Gluten Allergies (Celiac Disease)

Bethany - posted on 02/22/2010

A friend of mine has a horrible gluten allergy, so she knows how to make all kinds of gluten-free baked yummies. Here is one... it sounds strange but is delicious. =^)

1 cup canned garbanzo beans, drained
1 cup canned fava (or northern) beans, drained
1/2 cup green or unripe tomato, pureed (you can sub 1/2 cup diced tomato - canned, drained)
4 eggs
1 t cherry flavoring
2 T cornstarch
1 cup brown sugar
3 T cocoa powder
1 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda

Preheat oven to 350*f. Grease 8 inch square pan. (Personally, I make cupcakes).

Separate the eggs, placing the whites in a large bowl to beat separately. (This step may be eliminated, but it makes a far lighter cake.) If you wish, add the eggs one at a time at the place I suggest adding the yolks. Beat after each addition.

In a food processor (I use my blender actually - holds more), puree the beans with the tomato puree until very smooth. Add the egg yolks and beat until smooth. Add cherry flavoring.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornstarch, brown sugar, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda. Add to the egg mix and beat only until well blended. If whipping eggs separately, beat only until soft peaks form, and fold gently into batter.

Spoon into the prepared pan and bake for 50 minutes (less with cupcakes) or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

Serve warm or cool, garnished with whipped topping, or frost with your favorite icing.

Makes 9 servings.

Nutrients per serving: calories 220, fat 3g, cholesterol 85 mg, sodium 140mg, carbohydrates 42g, protein 7g.

Recipe is from "Gluten Free Gourmet Makes Dessert" by Bette Hagman. (No special ingredients section of the book, page 350)

This cake is worth the effort - it's REALLY REALLY good and unless you tell folks it was gluten free - no one will ever know. . . they just liked how moist and chocolate -y it was. . . .

has a tendency to flop in oven - so frosting it is a good idea, though to make the top look better when serving to guests. I usually make a sour cream or cream cheese frosting for it ('cause I just like cream cheese *grin*)

Rabaab - posted on 04/29/2009

hi, try All recipes.com., there are many recipes which are Gluten free and wheat free.. i understand completely about school lunches, as well..

Judith Kennedy - posted on 12/23/2008

The only thing I can add is a supplement called Juice Plus. Fruits and veggies with no gluten. I don't have any recipes tho...

Erin - posted on 11/24/2008

My brother and his mother-in-law are wheat and gluten sensative too. It is do hard finding things they can have. I like to buy rice noodles in the Asian food section. if you follow the directions on the package, they turn out nicely and they can be reheated easily with a good result. Rice crackers are a good snack too with cheese and meat. If you have a recipie that you like, replace the wheat flour with a mixture of rice gluten flour, tapioca flour and barley flour. To thicken sauces, use corn startch instead of flour. It makes a good sauce. If you bake bread at home with rice gluten flour, tapioca flour and barley flour, you can slice it up for lunches. If your husband has access to a microwave the noodles will work well for him. Also corn tortilias. You can make encheladas with corn tortillias and a bunch of sauces are gluten free for that. Just be careful of the soy sauce that you put on any Asian food! It has wheat in it! There are some manufactures that make it wheat free. Potatoes are a good side with meat and they are gluten free too. Just read labels as I am sure, by this time, you are used to doing. I am lactose intolerant so I know what you are going through! Nothing is free of dairy! I cook from scratch a lot. It is hard but it can be done. Good luck!

Lori - posted on 11/21/2008

Hi Jaclyn! I have a son that was tested for Celiac's Disease but it came out neg. We were so sure that is what he had that we bought a GREAT recipe book that had a lot of great information! If you are interested I could mail it to you. E-mail me and let me know! willardlori@hotmail.com! :)