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Jules Dowler Shepard is a prolific gluten-free author, a Celiac patient-expert, the founder of Jules Gluten Free™ flour and baking mixes, a gluten-free cooking instructor, educational speaker, a gluten-free cooking consultant, spokesperson for the University of Maryland Center for Celiac Research and a busy mom. Wow!
Jules has been kind enough to take time away from her hectic schedule to share her gluten-free experiences and tips with us.
Thanks Jules!
Jules, you travel extensively as a Celiac disease advocate and gluten-free cooking expert. What are some of your favorite gluten-free travel foods and how do you maintain a balanced diet on the road, in the air and in hotels?
Ah, too true! My schedule of late is dizzying, so I completely understand the plight of the gluten-free business traveler! I have a few staples that I never leave home without, in the event there is no time to find a restaurant with gluten-free options. I always make a big batch of my banana-blueberry muffins (one of my favorites) or berry scones before I travel. I put them in a large zip-top bag or plastic container and I have breakfast or a snack for the next several days without needing a kitchen, refrigerator or microwave. Fruit like apples and bananas also travel well and I can always find them in the airport if I am without one.
I also travel with a trail mix or party mix, usually made late the night before by dumping any number of things from my pantry into a bag and shaking it up!
Gluten-free pretzels, nuts, berries, seeds, gf cereal ... all taste great mixed together and stay intact if you pack them in Tupperware-type containers. On one trip, my snack mix actually became my dinner, so I am conscious of adding extra nuts and seeds wherever possible to boost my protein intake.
There are also some great gluten-free snack bars that are now thankfully widely available – I always try to have one Lara Bar in my purse or briefcase at all times! It may seem odd, but if I'm staying with friends as I travel, I often bring my breadmaker along. I always have my flour with me and the other ingredients for an amazing, fresh gluten-free loaf are only as far away as the local grocery store. There is no risk of contamination, since I'm mixing and baking in my own machine, and I have a loaf of whatever bread I like with me, made fresh on the trip.
One of your presentations at the Gluten Intolerance Group (GIG) Educational Conference this year was “Easy Gluten-Free Baking Tips.” Can you share your top tips for making the challenge of GF baking easier?
Of course it all starts with the flour. When I was first diagnosed with celiac disease in the 90s, all the gluten-free recipes called for rice flour plus any number of other pretty obscure gluten-free flours plus xanthan gum. Unfortunately, many gf recipes today are equally difficult and expensive to make, requiring a host of different gluten-free flours for every dish.
This situation made baking very challenging for me, not only because it was so time-consuming and expensive to buy, store and use so many different flours, but it also made the “art” of gluten-free baking seem elusive and too hard. I soon gave up on that philosophy of gluten-free baking and decided to create my own all purpose gluten-free flour that I could use in any recipe so I could enjoy success in my baking without suffering through the challenges of traditional gluten-free recipes.
It took me a couple years of experimentation to develop a flour mixture that would work in any kind of recipe, but I finally hit upon what is now my Jules Gluten Free™ All Purpose Flour and my kitchen was open once more! I no longer look dauntingly at gluten-free recipes wondering a) if they'll taste good at all, b) if I have all the right ingredients and c) if I have the time or energy to put it all together.
Jules what is different about your Jules Gluten Free™ All Purpose Flour Mix and your line of Nearly Normal Kitchen™ GF mixes and where can gluten-free cooks buy them?
As a celiac and gluten-free consumer myself, I was constantly disappointed by the quality of the gluten-free flours on the market and was discouraged by how much I was spending on products that I ultimately just had to throw in the trash because they tasted so bad. I decided to spend whatever time it required to devise an all purpose gluten-free flour for my own baking use – a flour I could use for every kind of recipe, every time, and have consistently delicious results.
I finally came up with just such a mix and others enjoyed the results so much that I shared the recipe in my first cookbook, then ultimately began manufacturing it to meet the demands of consumers who didn't want to have to mix it for themselves and rely upon potentially inconsistent results from differing ingredients. My mix is a complete all purpose flour, meaning that you do not have to add anything else like xanthan gum to it in order to use it in all your recipes. It also is made with high quality, gluten-free flours that together offer a taste and texture that is nearly indistinguishable from regular wheat flour. No gritty texture or funky aftertaste – that was really important to me.
The easiest place to get the flour and mixes is still just to go straight to the source: JulesGlutenFree.com however, more and more retailers all over the country are beginning to carry my products due to customer demand, so it never hurts to ask your favorite store to look into carrying the products close to your home.
You recently posted a gluten-free Back-To-School Guide in your newsletter. What are some things parents can do to ensure that their gluten-free children are not left out of food-based activities at school? How can parents subscribe to your great newsletter and get your 3-part Back-To-School Guide?
I always suggest that parents be proactive. Well in advance of the first day of school, they should set up a meeting with the principal and classroom teacher to explain their child's food restrictions. Discuss lunches, field trips, holidays, birthday parties and other class parties.
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