Wheat Free Eating

You’ve been asked to stop eating foods containing wheat… what else is there, you cry?

While changing over to a wheat-free diet does take some adjustments, it is becoming easier and easier to eat this way as food manufacturers, health food shops and even supermarkets are making and stocking more and more wheat-free products.

If you experience digestive problems when you eat wheat, (eg. bloating, flatulence, diarrhoea, reflux, constipation, sore tummy etc) there are various herbs that can help heal and restore gastrointestinal balance. These herbs include Meadowsweet, Lemon Balm, Ginger, Licorice, Peppermint and Chamomile. Beaming with Health’s tisane Settle Petal contains these healing herbs, and tastes delicious! Drink a cup after each meal. If your symptoms are more skin related (eg. acne, eczema, psoriasis etc) then Glow is the tisane for you.

Below are a list of foods that contain wheat and also some suggestions on foods you can use instead. Please note that wheat-free eating is not the same as gluten free eating. While gluten-free foods are also wheat-free, you are still able to eat some grains that contain gluten (rye, oats, barley and so on).

Contains Wheat

• Breads: white and wholemeal breads and rolls, most rye breads, pizza bases, biscuits, crackers, scones, pretzels
• Cereals: most commercial cereals include wheat, for example Bran Flakes, Wheeties, Weet-bix, Vita-brits, Special K. Also wheatgerm, wheat bran and many mueslis
• Flours: plain, self-raising and wholemeal flours, some corn & rye flours contain wheat
• Pastries and desserts: most cakes, cookies, doughnuts, pies, puddings, some chocolates and candy bars.
• Pasta: spaghetti, lasagne, macaroni, cannelloni are all made from wheat
• Couscous & semolina
• Beverages: ovaltine and milo
• Soy Sauce: soy sauce and shoyu are both made with wheat
• Baking powder: many supermarket baking powders contain wheat
• Miscellaneous: Crumbed and battered foods; gravies; icecream cones; most sausages, stuffing, pancake and cake mixtures, sauces, some yeasts, thickening in some icecreams, waffles, powdered and some canned soups, lots of fast foods
• Noodles: Hokkein, udon and many buckwheat noodle brands

Wheat Free Alternative

• Most health food shops and speciality bakers sell wheat free bread including rye, buckwheat and rice – make sure they are
• 100% wheat free. Wheat free cakes and biscuits are becoming more widely available.
• Original ryvitas are 100% rye.
• Some corn flakes, rice bubbles and many mueslis are wheat free. Oat, rice and polenta porridges. Cooked brown rice with yoghurt, honey and fruit is a great alternative.
• 100% buckwheat, rye, soy, rice, potato flours
• Many health food shops now sell wheat free cakes.
• Use brown rice, make risottos.
• Experiment with wheat free pastas – the corn pasta is generally better than the rice ones.
• Use rice, millet or quinoa
• Have hot chocolate, herbal tea, dandelion “coffee” or chai teas
• Tamari is a wheat free soy sauce, you could also use miso
• Look for rice noodles and 100% buckwheat noodles
• Some commercially available baking powders are wheat free, try using bicarbonate of soda
• Wheat free alternatives to many of these things are available from health food shops; wheat free sausages can be bought at many butchers

Meal Suggestions

Breakfast

• Wheat free toast with avocado and tomato; ricotta and honey; tinned sardines and cucumber; baked beans; nut butter and vegemite; banana and jam; hummous, rocket and tomato.
• Fruit and yoghurt and a sprinkling of nuts and seeds.
• Oat porridge with banana, honey and sultanas.
• Cooked brown rice mixed with yoghurt, sultanas and stewed apple.
• Buckwheat pancakes with strawberries and honey.
• Make up your own muesli with rolled oats, puffed rice, sunflower seeds, dried fruit, almonds, rolled rye flakes.
• Poached eggs on wheat free toast.

Lunch

• Homemade hearty soup.
• Salads: rice salad, Greek salad, make up your own big bowl with lots of raw fresh vegies, avocado, hummous and chicken.
• Original ryvitas with avocado, tinned fish, tomato and rocket.
• Wheat free bread sandwiches.
• Sushi and nori rolls (without the soy sauce, but take your own tamari).
• Jacket potato with baked beans; or coleslaw, grated beetroot and grated cheese; or chilli beans

Dinner

• Grilled/baked fish with steamed vegetables
• Hearty big stews on brown rice or millet
• Vegie and tofu stir fry with garlic, ginger, chilli and tamari
• Risottos
• Mushroom omelette with a big pile of salad.
• Yummy, healthy nachos with corn chips

Snacks

• Tamari coated nuts and seeds (available from health food shops)
• Fruit and yoghurt
• Smoothies with yoghurt and fruit
• Sago puddings
• Mixed dried fruit and nuts
• Rice crackers with hummous