Gluten Free Recipes - Elana's Pantry

Frequently Asked Questions

almond flour

Almond Flour Question #1
Q. Why do you use almond flour in the majority of your recipes?
A. Here are a few reasons why I use almond flour:

  • Almond four is high in protein, especially in comparison with other flours
  • I feel much better on a higher protein diet
  • Given that 15% of celiacs have diabetes (which is twice the rate of the regular population), I am also prudent of my glycemic index as well as my sugar/carbohydrate intake
  • I love the taste and texture of almond flour!

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Almond Flour Question #2
Q. What brand of almond flour do you recommend?
A. I have tested my recipes with various almond flours (per taste, texture and cost), I recommend purchasing from Honeyville or Lucy's Kitchen Shop.
I have found that Bob's Red Mill almond flour does not work in my recipes- the results are extremely poor when using this brand.
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Almond Flour Question #3
Q. Why don't you recommend Bob's Red Mill almond flour for your recipes?
A. Bob's Red Mill almond flour has been tested in my recipes numerous times and the results are consistently poor. Its coarse texture yields runny results. It is also more expensive than any of the almond flours that I recommend.
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Almond Flour Question #4
Q. Will your recipes work with homemade almond flour?
A. No, these recipes will not work with anything other than the brands of almond flour recommended on my ingredients page. Making your own almond flour is extremely time consuming and does not result in the type of product that I recommend for these recipes. It is much more cost effective to purchase almond flour.
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Almond Flour Question #5
Q. Are almond flour and almond meal the same?
A. All my recipes call for blanched almond flour. blanched almond meal, blanched almond flour and blanched almond powder are the same thing, just different names. The recipes will not work with an almond flour, meal or powder that has not been blanched.
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Almond Flour Question #6
Q. Do you know the official gluten free/cross contamination status of the Honeyville blanched almond flour you use?
A. According to Caroline Gonzalez at the Honeyville facility in Rancho Cucamonga, CA., Honeyville purchases the almonds from various growers out West and packages it at their California facility. At that facility it is on a separate dedicated gluten free line. They cannot label it as 100% gluten free because it is in the same facility as other flours that are not gluten free. I have not had any problems whatsoever with the Honeyville product and I am extremely gluten-intolerant. I like Honeyville because their product is both the best quality almond flour out there and the cheapest. However, you may find that there is one that works best for you, if you are concerned about getting an almond flour that is certified gluten free.
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other ingredients

Other Ingredients Question #1
Q. Are you concerned about the quantity of eggs in your recipes?
A. I'm not concerned about using eggs. In fact, I see them as a good, reasonably priced source of protein, which lowers the glycemic index of many of my recipes.
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Other Ingredients Question #2
Q. Why do you avoid soy?
A. I avoid soy because it is highly estrogenic and some forms of estrogen are not good for people with autoimmune conditions. We have enough xenoestrogens in the environment without adding more via food; my take at least.
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Other Ingredients Question #3
Q. What is yacon?
A. Yacon is a perennial plant grown in the Andes for its crisp, sweet taste. This root, sometimes called "apple of the earth", is composed primarily of water and Fructooligosaccharide (FOS). These short chain sugars have a lower caloric value (as they are digested anaerobically) and high fiber content. FOS is a functional food that is also considered a prebiotic and extremely helpful to the digestive tract. In fact, it is often added to other foods such as yogurt to increase nutritional content.
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Other Ingredients Question #4
Q. How can I find the nutrition content in your recipes?
A. Eating healthy is a passion of mine, however, you may notice that I don't provide nutrition information for my recipes. While some might find this odd, even a paradox, I find that calculating the nutrition information for my food is not of interest. For me, this exercise is not necessary and I don't see how it would aid my enjoyment of a meal or digestion.

Of course, I respect those who are in a position that requires them to know exactly what is in their food. For this reason, I provide a link to calculate nutritional content. Feel free to share your results with us in the form of a comment on any post or my forums.

Please note: If you are trying to calculate the nutrition for almond flour, you will need to enter "almonds", then select "almonds, blanched" from the list.
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Other Ingredients Question #5
Q. When eating gluten free, should all grains be avoided?
A. I really think that it is up to each individual to figure out what works for them. I went through several elimination diets to come to the food plan that I now follow. I know my digestive process and energy level are much better without grains, however, I do feed gluten free grains to my boys; so it's a case by case type of thing.
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Other Ingredients Question #6
Q. Why do you use grapeseed oil and coconut oil
in the majority of your recipes?
A. I am following a dairy free diet for now and have found that grapeseed oil has a neutral flavor that closely approximates the texture and taste of butter in baked goods. Coconut oil is full of lauric acid, a medium chain fatty acid that purportedly has various health benefits.
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Other Ingredients Question #7
Q. Why do you use agave? I heard it's not a good sweetener.
A. First off, there really is no perfect sweetener, so I recommend everything in moderation!

We often take sugar and other sweeteners for granted, forgetting that they were not widely available to humans until the modern era (excluding of course, those living in the tropical regions feasting on mangoes and pineapple). Processed sugar was invented between the Medieval Period and the Enlightenment (roughly 500 years ago), it became more widely available during the 1400 and 1500's. By 1750 (with the advent of the Industrial Revolution and the invention of sugar mills) sugar became wildly popular.

So if we really think about it, up until a couple of hundred years ago, the majority of the human race (at least those living in colder climes) only experienced the taste of sweetness by eating fruit when it was in season (or when nursing, of course). The fruit that was eaten was not the overly ripe, super sweet fruit that is bred today. Think of wild blueberries --they are tiny and tart. The fruit we eat today has been cultivated for its juicy, sweet flavor.

I think the spike in diabetes and other diseases we see today may partially be due to the fact that humans are not accustomed to eating large quantities of sugar and are not able to efficiently metabolize this substance. Sugar is sugar. Agave is sugar. An apple is sugar with some good vitamins, minerals and fiber. Basically, many of us (especially those with celiac) would be prudent to monitor our intake of sugar in any form (celiac and diabetes ride on the same HLA gene, so the presence of one increases the likelihood of the other).

While I do use agave in my dessert recipes, I am very cautious about my overall intake of this (and all other sweet substances) because I find that unfortunately, I am one of those whose body rebels against too much sugar. Of course, my husband and children can eat a lot more of this substance than I do and still feel great. That's what keeps me baking like a fiend. They want their treats and they do just fine with them.
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Other Ingredients Question #8
Q. Do I need to adjust the recipes and baking time for various altitudes?
A. I think it's because these recipes do not use yeast and therefore do not have a rising time, that they work equally well at high altitude and sea level without any adjustments.

I have baked them at 5000 feet, 9000 feet and sea level (both my mother and mother-in-law live at sea level, one at each coast and I bake veraciously when I'm with each of them).
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substitutions

Substitution Question #1
Q. Can I switch one ingredient for another in your recipes
A. I love getting your substitution questions and wish I could test each and every one of them. Because this just isn't possible, I encourage you to be adventurous, experiment and play with the recipes. Just be sure to leave a comment or stop by the forums to let us know how it all came out.
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Substitution Question #2
Q. Do you have any suggestions for replacing eggs in your recipes?
A. Given that I strive to take in a lot of protein (helps in rebuilding of cells, such as damaged intestinal tissue) I use eggs in my recipes quite freely and haven't experimented with replacing them. If you want to eliminate eggs you might try substituting them with a nut milk (almond milk or cashew milk maybe?) or ground flax seeds mixed with water (a common binder in vegan baking recipes). I haven't tried this so if you do, please let us know your results in the forums.
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Substitution Question #3
Q. Can I substitute coconut flour for almond flour?
A. Almond flour and coconut flour have completely different properties and cannot be used interchangeably; the recipes will not work if you substitute one for the other.
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Substitution Question #4
Q. Is it necessary to use celtic sea salt as opposed to other salts in your recipes?
A. I only use celtic sea salt. The recipes do not turn out as well without it.
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Substitution Question #5
Q. Can I substitute honey for agave nectar in your recipes?
A. I am not sure how this would work, since I stay away from honey given its high glycemic index.
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Substitution Question #6
Q. Do you have a formula for replacing one ingredient with another? I want to change this regular recipe into one that is gluten-free (dairy-free, nut-free, etc.).
A. I wish I had answers for all of your recipe conversion questions. However, I don't have a formula, I create my recipes by experimenting, often repeatedly. I encourage you to do the same.
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the gluten-free almond flour cookbook

The gluten-free almond flour cookbook question #1
Q. Are the recipes in your book different from those on your website?
A. About 90% of the recipes are new and 10% of them are slightly refashioned recipes from my website.
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The gluten-free almond flour cookbook question #2
Q. Is your cookbook vegetarian?
A. There are 83 vegetarian recipes in the book.
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The gluten-free almond flour cookbook question #3
Q. Is your cookbook vegan?
A. There are 29 vegan recipes in the book.
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The gluten-free almond flour cookbook question #4
Q. Are the gluten-free recipes in your cookbook also casein free?
A. There are 88 casein free recipes in the book.
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The gluten-free almond flour cookbook question #5
Q. How many recipes in your book are dairy free?
A. There are 88 dairy free recipes in the book.
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The gluten-free almond flour cookbook question #6
Q. Is your book available in hardback?
A. The book is only available in paperback.
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The gluten-free almond flour cookbook question #7
Q. What is the cake pictured on the front of your book?
A. It is my Chocolate Cake (pg. 84) with Marshmallow Frosting (pg. 125).
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The gluten-free almond flour cookbook question #8
Q. Does your book provide nutritional information?
A. This book does not contain nutritional information for recipes, though it does have some nutritional information for the ingredients.
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products

Products Question #1
Q. Can you recommend a source listing products that celiacs should avoid?
A. This website has lists identifying gluten free products. I also recommend contacting manufacturers directly about gluten in their products.
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Products Question #2
Q. Is it true that Papadini lentil pasta you recommend is being discontinued? If so, can you suggest a similar brand?
A. The rumors are true. The Papadini lentil pasta has been discontinued. There is an online petition to bring the Papadini lentil pasta back!

If you have any other suggestions we'd love to hear them over in the forums.
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Products Question #3
Q. Where do you buy glass jars and other products?
A. I purchase many of my products locally, however, they are often available at amazon.com.
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international

International Question #1
Q. Do you have any advice on how to convert your recipes from Fahrenheit to Celsius?
A. I would recommend looking at this handy conversion tool chart over at smittenkitchen.com.
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International Question #2
Q. Do you have any advice on finding your essential ingredients in the UK and other international countries?
A. In England (and Europe in general) almond flour is typically referred to as almond meal or almond powder; make sure you always purchase the blanched type (skin removed/peeled) for my recipes.

Here are some links to purchase ingredients from the UK online:

If you are trying to purchase these ingredients from other international countries I would recommend the international section of amazon.com.
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International Question #3
Q. Do you know who can ship blanched almond flour to Canada?
A. Yes! Nuts Online and Manna Harvest Health Foods both ship blanched almond flour to Canada.
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celiac

Celiac Question #1
Q. I've recently been diagnosed with celiac disease. Do you have any advice to get me through this difficult time?
A. Make food as enjoyable as possible so as not to deprive yourself. Also, know that it can take up to 6 months to get your digestive system on track once you eliminate gluten from your diet. The following supplements might also help:

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Celiac Question #2
Q. What type of probiotic do you take?
A. I take this gluten free, dairy free formula by Jarrow.
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Celiac Question #3
Q. How do you handle being invited to parties/friends homes for dinner?
A. Here is an article I wrote for the Denver Post which addresses this issue to some degree.
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Celiac Question #4
Q. What do you order when you go out to eat in restaurants?
A. I usually order salad with fish or chicken, because I have other allergies in addition to gluten.
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classes

Classes Question #1
Q. Do you offer any gluten free cooking classes?
A. Yes! I offer classes in Boulder, Colorado a few times a year; please visit my classes page for more information.
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support

Support Question #1
Q. How can I print your recipes so that they are formatted correctly?
A. Just click the text at the bottom of the post that says 'print this post' - the post and recipe will be formatted automatically for your printer.
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Support Question #2
Q. How can I share your recipes online with my friends and family?
A. There is text at the bottom of each post that says 'share''. When you click it you will be able to bookmark and share that post with multiple social media websites.
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Support Question #3
Q. How do I subscribe to your recipes by Email?
A. There are a few places where you can do this. There is a form at the top of my side bar, text underneath each post and even an email subscription page (I use feedburner.com for managing my email subscriptions). Just enter your email address to start receiving my latest recipes.
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Support Question #4
Q. How do I sign up for the forums?
A. It's easy. Go to www.elanaspantry.com/forums and click the text located in the top left hand portion of the page that says 'Register'.
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Support Question #5
Q. How can I have my picture associated with my comment on this site like you?
A. To associate a photo with your comments on elanaspantry.com you need to sign up for an account at gravatar.com with the same email address you used to leave your comment here.
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Support Question #6
Q. I have another technical support question concerning this site/the forums, how do I contact you?
A. Please start a topic in the support section of my forums.
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Support Question #7
Q. I'm thinking of starting up a blog, which software do you use?
A. I use WordPress and had a theme custom built to my specifications. You can download the software (there's a handy guide for installation) and choose a theme at WordPress.org.
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Support Question #8
Q. I really like your photos, I was wondering what kind of camera do you use?
A. I use a Nikon D200 with a 60mm lens.
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Support Question #9
Q. I have an idea for a cookbook and was curious as to how you got your book deal?
A. The first step is to find an agent who will support and guide you through the process of getting your book published. You could also try hiring a consultant to work with you.
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