Polenta Stuffing; A Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Treat!

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!! Mine was nice and relaxing. I ate lots of delicious food and got to spend some quality time with family and friends.

My aunt and cousin are both on gluten-free diets so they are always coming up with great recipes to share with me over the holidays and throughout the year. Obviously most stuffing (if not all) contains gluten, so this year my aunt created polenta stuffing! She actually came up with this on her own, but I found a similar recipe online, which you can view here.


It did contain onion, which I typically do not eat because they contain FODMAPs, but I still ate this and tried to eat around the onion. It was delicious! It honestly tasted like stuffing, but better.


I highly suggest this recipe if you are on a gluten-free or wheat-free diet. I think if I ever make this myself I will omit the onion and add squash or pepper instead.

QUESTION: What was your favorite dish this Thanksgiving? For me, other than the stuffing, I really enjoyed my aunt's pecan pie. I just love pecan pie!

Gluten-Free For Better Health and Weight Loss?

Think you should start a gluten-free diet to help you lose weight? Think again! Recently the gluten-free industry was "warned" about the nutritional content of their foods. Read this article for the full details.


Gluten free foods tend to be lower in fiber, protein, iron, and calcium, compared to their gluten-filled counterparts. This is because many of the grains and other ingredients used to replace wheat flour are low in these nutrients.

Think your gluten-free cake or brownie mix is better for you?

Think again.

I've noticed a majority of the gluten-free products actually contain more sugar. No thanks.

The real reason a gluten-free diet may help someone lose weight is pretty clear to me....it automatically restricts a person's food options! Think about it. When you can't have gluten you can't stop at the demo table at your local grocery store to try the latest food craze, you can't eat at a majority of the restaurants (although this is slowly changing), and many times you can't eat foods that are served to you when you're a guest at a dinner party.

So the bottom line is that a gluten-free diet may help you lose weight, but not because gluten causes us to gain weight, it's actually because you will likely end up eating less in the long run (or at least until you get used to the new diet!). Do I suggest this? Not at all, unless you really need to go gluten-free for medical reasons.

The good news for Celiac sufferers is that companies might start using more buckwheat flour (a whole grain, which does not contain wheat) in their products, which will significantly impact the nutrition of these products.

Examples of Gluten-Free Whole Grains
(source: www.wholegrainscouncil.com)

Amaranth

Buckwheat

Corn (whole is best)

Millet

** Oats (oats are only gluten-free if the package indicates they are gluten free) **


Quinoa

Rice (brown is best)

Sorghum

Teff

Wild rice

I recently tried this gluten-free product and was very pleased with the taste, and nutrition profile.

The ingredients in most of Mary's Gone Crackers products contain quinoa, brown rice, flax seeds, and sesame seeds, which all provide some type of health benefit. I highly suggest checking out some of these products!

Question: I don't think anyone should go gluten-free unless they have to, but gluten-free products can still be enjoyed by anyone, so what's your favorite? Personally I really like the above products, and Bob's Red Mill's wheat-free flours.