When going gluten free it is important to find time to do a real deep clean of everything. When we first realized that we had to go gluten free we did the cursory internet searches of what that meant. We didn't, and couldn't fully understand the depths of it all. For us, it meant accidentally making our child sick by placing a piece of gluten free bread into our old toaster. All the little crumbs heated up and attached themselves onto our overpriced bread and made for one very sick little boy. What further amazes me is that my son is so sensitive that a few crumbs that I eat will pass into him and make him sick. Parts per million is no joke, he is that sensitive. More on that in another post.
What needs to be done to ensure a clean and gluten free living space? A lot. Seriously, a lot. Once completed, you will be ever so grateful. Start with the obvious things like going through the cupboards and reading labels. Read every label. You never know where it will hide. I am now even suspicious of items that don't simply say "gluten free" because I have learned my lesson. Did you know that gluten is used in making some kinds of bacon? Yeah, what is wheat doing in my bacon? Hormel brands are all gluten free. Call them to verify your particular product. Some bacons are and some aren't so just make sure you check the back of your package.
Second step- get rid of the appliances that are direct contact. We decided to invest in a dedicated gluten free oven. We purchased the Breville Smart Toaster Oven. While pricey, it was a good investment to make sure that no dirty, glutenous crumbs made their way into our child. After that we deep cleaned every other product. We will also be investing in a new waffle maker.
Third, get rid of the random bits of flour that have dusted all the baking goods. Wash every single piece of baking ware. You know that fine dusting of flour that gets on all the sugar containers, etc..well, that is only one step away from being ingested. Wash hands frequently and don't eat while cleaning, it will just lead to glutening yourself.
That leads me to the fourth step, your hand wash. Check for gluten free varieties. Think I am nuts? Think again. Picture this. Washing hands then playing with baby. Feeling to see if he has a new tooth coming in and then it hits me...I just glutened him. Way to go Mom! Double check your dish washing detergent. Make sure to also empty all your cupboards of pots, pans, etc and vacuum the crumbs that seem to appear in the bottom of cookie rack areas.
Last step...throw away every single jar of jam, jelly, preserves, butter, and other deliciousness. You think you don't need to but you do. You may think that it is just being paranoid but an accident will happen, it is only time. My husband was making us lunch one day and he was so careful to keep our breads separate and use a separate knife for dipping into the jars of condiments. He was being so careful, then he slipped up. He used his bread knife and dipped it back into the jar then used a clean knife to spread my condiments. The little slip up was putting crumbs right into the jar so they would sit and wait until my unlucky day.
We have taken to having condiment jars that have the squeeze tops so there is no utensil dipping.
As a fun side note, all Boar's Head brand meats are 100% gluten free. Every single one. Thank goodness we don't have to research every time we hit that counter.
What needs to be done to ensure a clean and gluten free living space? A lot. Seriously, a lot. Once completed, you will be ever so grateful. Start with the obvious things like going through the cupboards and reading labels. Read every label. You never know where it will hide. I am now even suspicious of items that don't simply say "gluten free" because I have learned my lesson. Did you know that gluten is used in making some kinds of bacon? Yeah, what is wheat doing in my bacon? Hormel brands are all gluten free. Call them to verify your particular product. Some bacons are and some aren't so just make sure you check the back of your package.
Second step- get rid of the appliances that are direct contact. We decided to invest in a dedicated gluten free oven. We purchased the Breville Smart Toaster Oven. While pricey, it was a good investment to make sure that no dirty, glutenous crumbs made their way into our child. After that we deep cleaned every other product. We will also be investing in a new waffle maker.
Third, get rid of the random bits of flour that have dusted all the baking goods. Wash every single piece of baking ware. You know that fine dusting of flour that gets on all the sugar containers, etc..well, that is only one step away from being ingested. Wash hands frequently and don't eat while cleaning, it will just lead to glutening yourself.
That leads me to the fourth step, your hand wash. Check for gluten free varieties. Think I am nuts? Think again. Picture this. Washing hands then playing with baby. Feeling to see if he has a new tooth coming in and then it hits me...I just glutened him. Way to go Mom! Double check your dish washing detergent. Make sure to also empty all your cupboards of pots, pans, etc and vacuum the crumbs that seem to appear in the bottom of cookie rack areas.
Last step...throw away every single jar of jam, jelly, preserves, butter, and other deliciousness. You think you don't need to but you do. You may think that it is just being paranoid but an accident will happen, it is only time. My husband was making us lunch one day and he was so careful to keep our breads separate and use a separate knife for dipping into the jars of condiments. He was being so careful, then he slipped up. He used his bread knife and dipped it back into the jar then used a clean knife to spread my condiments. The little slip up was putting crumbs right into the jar so they would sit and wait until my unlucky day.
We have taken to having condiment jars that have the squeeze tops so there is no utensil dipping.
As a fun side note, all Boar's Head brand meats are 100% gluten free. Every single one. Thank goodness we don't have to research every time we hit that counter.
We got deli sandwiches today and noted that the Boar's Head meat specified "gluten free." Before knowing Alton and my friend's daughter who is gluten intolerant and MSPI as well, I had no idea how careful moms had to be about this stuff!
ReplyDeleteI never knew either. I always ignored that stuff and moved along. Now I am ever so grateful. We are even careful if the label reads "made in a facility that also processes wheat" or the deadliest label for us is "made on equipment that also processes wheat"
ReplyDelete