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Step 1
Recognize that the comfort foods you used to know and love during cold weather months are now a thing of the past. It’s crucial to avoid contact with any foods containing gluten, for fear of permanently damaging your health.
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Step 2
Purchase comfort foods from reliable gluten-free brands at your local health food store. There are a variety of cinnamon buns, doughnuts, pizza crusts and bagels available in the freezer section, which can be heated and prepared at a moment’s notice. Almost all gluten-free breads and carbohydrate sources taste better if they’ve been heated in the microwave for at least 30 seconds.
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Step 3
Spice up pre-packaged gluten-free comfort foods, by adding your own special twists. Instead of accepting seemingly bland flavors, make sure to add additional garnishes. Try peanut butter on your wraps, gluten-free cream cheese on raisin rolls or jelly on muffins.
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Step 4
Try creating your own gluten-free recipes (if the packaged variety isn’t comforting enough for your tastes). As the temperature drops, try buying gluten-free baking mixes for brownies, breads or coffee cake, and add additional ingredients to recipes for extra taste. For example, additional handfuls of chocolate chips to baked goods or crushed ginger snap cookies to spice cake can go a long way in improving taste and texture.
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Step 5
Use additional recipe substitutions depending upon your allergy needs. If you have a dairy or casein allergy (in addition to wheat and gluten), try using gluten-free vegan butter and vanilla soymilk in recipes (or whipped together with confectioners’ sugar and vanilla extra to make icing). If healthy eating is your goal, try replacing whole eggs and oils with egg whites, gluten-free brown rice syrup (for a chewy texture), olive oil or even applesauce.
