When my daughter Stephanie was first diagnosed as having coeliac disease several years ago, the difficulties seemed insurmountable. As with many others, when people become aware of their gluten intolerance, it can be disconcerting at the very least. What is one to eat without including wheat, rye, oats or barley in the diet? No longer are the luxuries of delicious bakery goods available, and eating out is a veritable nightmare. The limited range of gluten-free bakery products readily available for a time many years ago had the texture of cardboard with the added grittiness of sand. And time spent shopping needed to be significantly increased because of the necessity to read food labels fastidiously.
Life is becoming much simpler for those who are gluten intolerant, however. Most supermarkets, even the smaller country ones, now stock a minimal range of gluten-free products, usually at least gluten-free plain and self-raising flours. An ever-increasing range of other products are now clearly labelled as gluten-free, such as soy sauce, custard powder and cornflour to name but a few.
The focus of this book is on home-cooked gluten-free food, made interesting by easy-to-prepare recipes. Partly, this has come about through ongoing consultation and collaboration with our Stephanie, but also through a chance meeting with a stranger at a book signing. He had just been diagnosed as a diabetic, and felt that his life in the future would be dominated by dietary deprivation and devoid of any of his former pleasure in food. He asked me if I could write a book about diabetes with a different perspective, focusing on what can be enjoyed. This would be a new way to eat, and one that was every bit as culinarily exciting, where food preparation and menu planning would be a pleasure rather than a trial. I have never forgotten his words and applied this philosophy to the context of gluten-free eating. By using easy recipes with fresh, readily available ingredients, anyone who is gluten intolerant need never feel deprived. It can be a happy and healthy way to eat, with the boundaries being expanded constantly.
The recipes in this book have been designed to have universal appeal so that they can and will be eaten willingly by all family members, whether they are gluten intolerant or not. I hope you enjoy preparing them as much as I have enjoyed bringing them together.