Tasty gluten-free meals

Written by Salma Khan, nutritionist

Coeliac disease is an autoimmune disease that affects around 1 in 100 people in the UK. It's triggered by the intake of food items containing gluten – found in barley, rye, oats and wheat.

Individuals with coeliac disease are unable to sufficiently digest food containing the gliadin fraction of gluten, which results in damage to the lining of the small intestine and poor absorption of nutrients.

If left untreated, the condition can cause a wide range of symptoms ranging from mild bloating to more serious long-term effects, such as osteoporosis and even cancer.

Other possible symptoms include: diarrhoea, constipation, excessive flatulence, nausea, stomach pain, fatigue, headaches, anaemia, depression and infertility.

While sticking to a gluten-free diet should help control the symptoms associated with gluten intolerance, it's not always an easy task.

Many products contain hidden sources, such as some salad dressings, soy sauce, mustard, mayonnaise, chocolate and even some medicines.

Fortunately, availability of gluten-free products on the market has increased, and you can now find tricky products, such as breads, pastas, pancake mixes, cereals and cookies, in specialist stores and larger chains.

Cooking and eating gluten-free food may seem overwhelming and frustrating at first, but the condition does not have to stop you enjoying your meals.

Nutritionist Salma Khan suggests some delicious gluten-free dishes that are simple and quick to prepare.

Breakfast ideas

Easy muesli (serves 1)

You can change the fruits that you add to your morning muesli.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp quinoa flakes.
• 1 tbsp millet flakes.
• 2 tbsp ground mixed unsalted nuts and seeds (eg almonds, cashew nuts and pumpkin seeds).
• A small handful of fresh blueberries or a tablespoon of chopped, dried apricots.
• 60 to 70ml milk of your choice (eg cows, almond, hemp seed or rice milk).

Method: place the dry ingredients into a cereal bowl and simply add milk. To save time, a larger batch using dried fruit can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container.

Omelette pancake (serves 1)

Try different combinations of fillings.

Ingredients

• 2 freerange eggs.
• 2 tbsp milk.
• 4 baby tomatoes.
• 2 tbsp grated carrot.
• Half a medium sized green pepper.
• 4 or 5 small mushrooms.
• 2 slices of gluten-free bread.
• Extra virgin olive oil.
• Salt and pepper to taste.

Method: whisk the eggs in a mixing bowl with milk, and season with salt and pepper.

Next, cook the egg mixture in a large non-stick fry pan, making sure to cover the whole area of the pan – take care to keep the circle shape when flipping the omelette over.

Next chop the vegetables and lightly cook them in a little oil, then arrange them on top of the omelette.

Roll the omelette over the vegetables, creating a funnel-like shape.

Finally, cut the vegetable-packed omelette in half, place each half on top of each gluten-free slice of toast and enjoy.

Lunch ideas

Chickpea salad (serves 2)

Chickpeas are a great source of protein and shouldn't be reserved only for houmous.

Ingredients

• 1 can of chickpeas.
• 1 medium-sized red onion.
• 2 medium-sized potatoes.
• 3 or 4 medium-sized tomatoes.
• 1 large yellow pepper.
• 1 cup chopped coriander.
• Juice of half a lemon.
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil.
• Salt and pepper to taste.

Method: boil the potatoes until cooked and then let them cool.

Meanwhile place the chickpeas into a salad bowl, add in the thinly sliced red onion, finely chopped coriander, diced tomatoes, yellow pepper and cooled potatoes.

Finally add the lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.

Gluten-free pizza (serves 1 to 2)

Serve with a green leafy salad.

Ingredients

• Gluten-free pizza base (look out for specialist gluten-free brands, such as Dietary Specials, Juvela or GoodnessDirect if you have trouble finding these).
• Garlic infused olive oil.
• 1 tsp dried oregano.
• 100 to 120g feta cheese.
• 10 to 15 green olives.
• 8 sundried tomato pieces.
• 5 or 6 small mushrooms.
• 2 tbsp of sweet corn.
• Small slices of cooked chicken (enough to lightly scatter on top of pizza depending on size).

Method: lightly brush garlic-infused olive oil on the the pizza base, and cover the base with crumbled feta cheese.

Slice and scatter the rest of the ingredients on top of the pizza base and bake until crisp and golden at 200°C for about 10 minutes. Then serve with a green leafy salad.

Dinner ideas

Gluten-free tabbouleh (serves 4 to 6)

This will taste great served with oven baked fish and sweet potatoes.

Ingredients

• 1 large bunch flat-leaf parsley.
• 1 small bunch mint.
• 125g quinoa (a protein-rich grain).
• 2 spring onions.
• 2 large tomatoes.
• Juice of 1 to 2 lemons.
• 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil.

Method: boil the quinoa for around 10 minutes and leave to cool. This is a great replacement grain because it contains all eight essential amino acids.

Next finely chop the remaining ingredients, then combine in a mixing bowl with the cooked quinoa, adding olive oil and lemon juice to taste.

Serve perhaps with oven baked fish and sweet potatoes.

Noodle stir-fry (serves 1)

If you want a meat-free meal, use tofu instead of chicken.

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp sesame oil.
• 60g rice noodles.
• 125g boneless chicken.
• 1 tsp root ginger finely grated.
• 1 cup sliced shiitake mushrooms.
• 1 diced carrot.
• 4 to 5 broccoli florets.
• 1 green pepper.
• Dash of gluten-free soya sauce.
• 1 cup water.
• Salt and pepper to taste.

Method: prepare the rice noodles by soaking in boiling water for five minutes.

In the meantime, cut the boneless chicken into thin strips and cook in sesame oil.

Add in the remaining ingredients, including noodles and cook for a further 10 to 15 minutes.

A healthy and tasty gluten-free dessert

Creamy fruit salad (serves 3 to 4)

Serve cold as a topping for poached fruit of your choice or a tropical fruit salad.

Ingredients

• 50g of raw cashew nuts.
• 4 dates.
• 1 to 2 drops pure vanilla extract.

Method: to make the cream, combine cashew nuts, dates, vanilla extract and water (about 60ml) in a blender and process until smooth and creamy. Refrigerate the mixture (the cream usually thickens further when left to sit for a while).

Serve cold as a topping for poached fruit of your choice or a tropical fruit salad using fruits such as pineapple, passion fruit, mango and blueberries.