What to eat when you can't eat anything - Good substitute foods

Before starting my new eating plan there was another issue I wanted to sort out - substitutes for some of the main staples of my diet, so that alterations wouldn't seem too extreme.

Here are some of the products that I have included in my kitchen to make life a little easier:


Wheat: Dove's Farm do a great range of gluten-free flours, you may need to add a little extra 'wet' ingredients, as baked goods can turn out a little dry.

Milk: There are a vast range of dairy-free drinks available from healthfood shops and larger supermarkets which include soy, oat, quinoa, rice, coconut, hazelnut and almond milks to name but a few! They just take a little getting used to after a lifetime of cow's milk. There is also goat's milk if you can tolerate that. Here's a handy chart to help you:

Butter: There are a range of dairy-free spreads that are soy, sunflower and olive oil based. Just read the ingredient list carefully as many butter substitute spreads (like Dairygold and Flora) still contain dairy products. I'm using Sunlite at the moment, it's a sunflower spread that tastes great and is currently available for only 55c in Dunnes Stores.

Cheese: There are a range of dairy-free 'cheeses' available in healthfood shops. I'm not a fan as I find them expensive, and they don't taste quite right to me. Engevita Nutritional Yeast is a good source of Vitamin B12, and when added to white sauce it makes a good cheese sauce substitute. Available from healthfood shops. 

Bread/ Wraps: BFree range of products include wheat and gluten free wraps. Many supermarkets including Aldi, Dunnes and Tesco stock gluten and wheat free breads.

Ginger: Galangal (available dried from asian shops) can work as a good substitute for fresh ginger in savoury dishes (use sparingly though), and allspice is a good substitute in baked goods, or where powdered ginger is required.


Soy sauce: Braggs Aminos (available from healthfood shops) is a good non-fermented, gluten-free substitute for soy sauce.

Mustard: As commercial mustard is another fermented food, you can make your own by adding warm water to mustard powder which is available in healthfood shops.