My name is David I’m 61 yrs old and was diagnosed Coeliac (Celiac) when I was 57.

I didn’t know what was happening to me at the time I was so sick I had lost 56 pounds in weight in the space of three months,

Constant Vomiting and Diarrhoea had left me weak and exhausted, I thought I was going to die.

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After many doctors visits, and a long stint on a waiting list to see a Specialist, I couldn’t wait any longer (scheduled  appointment was 6 months away)

I was afraid that at the rate I was losing weight  I’d be dead before I got to see the Specialist.

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So the family used every contact they had at their disposal, I spoke to all the local politicians’ lobbied doctors and councillors.

Eventually I got to see the specialist, had blood test and an Endoscophy. The results came back positive I had Coeliac/Celiac Disease.

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I was later to discover that my cessation of smoking after about 40+ yrs triggered the onset of Adult Coeliac Disease.

 REFERENCE:  Smoking Prevents the onset of Adult Coeliac Disease

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I met a Dietician and they suggested a Gluten Free Diet for Life, no regular bread, pasta, cakes, biscuits (cookies).

No Fast Food ( Fish and chips, Curries, Pizza) also I had to be careful about ‘Gluten’ in Products.

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So I  tried:

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Gluten Free Bread (Tasted like Saw-Dust)

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Gluten Free Cakes (loaded with sugar to disguise the gritty aftertaste)

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Gluten Free pizza Bases (I’m sure cardboard boxes would taste better)

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That did it,….I knew I couldn’t hack it!  having to eat all that rubbish was a fate worse than death.

So I had to change the way I lived  OR  just live on Veg, Meat, Fish and Nuts.

The thought of never having any sort of goodie again, drove me to do something about it.

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I was at a loss, I could just barely cook, baking was way out of my league, I literally didn’t have a clue!

So I set about teaching myself, I read a lot of recipe books (regular and GF) and started to watch the food channels on TV

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Most GF Recipe books used so many different types and mixes of flours that it was overwhelming.

I did try in the beginning to use their flour mixes, but found it way to costly and time consuming,

at one stage I had four flour bins in my kitchen with different flour mixes.

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Having tried all the usual flours available that were recommended by The Coeliac Society of Ireland and using the suggested recipes on the packets,

I found that when they were used alone they left a lot to be desired, there was something definitely lacking.

They were too dry, crumbly, gritty and were only edible if

toasted and disguised with butter and jam or something with a strong flavour.

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So I set about creating my own recipes from scratch, using readily available vetted GF flours and ingredients.

I tried using the most popular gluten free flour for baking, but was not tolerant to the Codex Wheat Starch that was contained in it.

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So now after a lot of trial, error and experimentation.

I can bake near normal bread that you can eat happily without anything spread on it    .......Bet you can't say that about regular GF bread!

Cakes are indistinguishable from the real thing so moist and tasty that Non-Coeliacs can't tell the difference  ...........................WOW! 

Pizza bases that would pass for takeouts from any Pizzeria and biscuits (cookies) that taste real and crisp ............................YUMMIE!

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My bread has lasted for about 4 - 5 days in an air-tight container at room temperature.

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Some of my cakes (because of butter and alcohol) have lasted for more than 3 weeks also stored at room temperature.

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Cookies retain their crispness and don't go soggy once stored in a container.

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Acting as Guinea Pig for my own creations means that I’ve put on weight, but who cares, the goodies taste great and I can bake….Yippie!!

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I feel so sorry for people who can’t or don’t want to bake and have to rely on commercially available Gluten Free Goodies,

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Boy you’ll  NEVER   know what your missing.

I will be adding further items on baking, showing what each ingredient does in the baking. what substitutions / changes in amounts or type of ingredients does and how it effects the overall finished item. SEE BAKING++++ What you need to know!

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