If this is going to be your first or second Christmas holiday with a Celiac diagnosis, you are in for quite the ride!   With that said, however, after careful planning and taking the proper precautions, having a gluten free Christmas can be a breeze!

Kelly Courson of the BlogHer network recently published a great post about Navigating Celebrations and Special Occasions Gluten Free which I recommend those who are new to Celiac Disease read.    Some of the tips included are creating choices for yourself, remembering the benefits of good health, hosting events/eating at home, and carrying gluten free snacks with you.   Great post Kelly!  

Have any tips you’d like to have for surviving the holidays on a gluten free diet?

Thanks to a heads up from Gluten Free Homemaker, it looks like Jelly Belly candy canes are in fact gluten free.  According to the packaging, it looks like in addition to being gluten free, these candies are peanut-free, fee of tree nuts, milk-free, egg-free, and wheat-free. They also confirm that the candy canes have been manufactured on dedicated equipment.

If you are candy shopping this holiday season, remember to support the companies that are taking the time to make sure their products are gluten free!

Have a child in school who is dealing with Celiac Disease?    Christmas can be a very exciting time for most children, but for a child with Celiac Disease, that isn’t always the case.  It is inevitable that the school holds a Christmas Party and treats are provided, most of which the child cannot eat. 

So, how do you help your child successfully navigate the Christmas season while maintaining a gluten free diet?  My Gluten Free Child recently published some great ideas for helping your child through the holidays that you may want to check out.

Will you be shopping for someone with Celiac Disease this Christmas?   I suppose as long as you weren’t planning on buying them food, you thought you’d be just fine, huh?   Well, for someone with Celiac Disease, there are a lot of GREAT Christmas gifts you could give that would make their difficult life a little brighter and better.  

The team over at Triumph Dining recently put together a great collection of Top 10 Gluten Free Gifts for 2008, which provides a great list of ideas for that friend or family member suffering from Celiac Disease.    You’ll find things like a bread machine, cupcake maker, gluten free gift baskets, gift cards, etc.

Here is a gluten free recipe for a healthy version of a Christmas Cake in case anyone is interested.  It was created to be sugar free and salt free.  Enjoy!

Gluten Free Christmas Cake Recipe

Cake Ingredients:

• 170g Pitted Dried Dates
• 140ml Water
• 115ml Sunflower Oil
• 30g Ground Almonds
• 5ml Mixed Spice
• 3 organic eggs or Egg Replacer
• 55g Rice Flour
• 55g Soya Flour
• 55g Corn Flour
• 455g Mixed Dried Fruit - can be raisins, muscatel raisins, currant, sultanas, or why not try cranberries, Blueberries or cherries!

Cake Directions:

1. Dates should be chopped into small pieces and placed in a pan with the water.
2. Bring to the boil and simmer for until dates are soft. Allow to cool.
3. Mix together the dates, sunflower oil, ground almonds, spice, eggs (or replacer) and all the flours.
4. Stir in you selection of mixed dried fruit and mix well.
5. Place mixture into a lined, greased 18cm cake tin.
6. Bake for 30mins at 170c, then another 45mins at 145c.
7. Allow to cool for 10mins then turn out, removing lining paper.
8. Allow to fully cool and store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

[Recipe Courtesy of Goodness Direct]

Have a friend or family member that is on a gluten free diet?    For these people, Amazon has made your shopping simple.   Whether you are looking for a gluten free Halloween gift basket, a gluten free Christmas gift basket, a gluten free Valentine’s Day gift basket, or even a year-around gluten free gift basket, Amazon has you covered!

Check out Amazon’s selection of gluten free gift baskets.