Free-from cooking

I was twenty-two when the GP at university said cheese butties were giving me asthma. I'll be honest: that's rather a loose paraphrase of what she really said but you have my condition there in a nutshell. Cow dairy products (but not lactose) and wheat (but not gluten) take my breath away in the non-Top-Gun, not-even-a-little-bit-romantic way.

I also learnt recently that it's been pepper all these years making my throat swell up periodically.

The asthma seemed to settle down a few years back, and I was able to risk a pizza or two, but a month ago, after a sudden resurgence I was told by another GP that if I want a birthday cake at this year's looming thirtieth, it's going to have to come from the special section at Tesco.

And there is the point of my blog. Those of you out there who suffer intolerances or allergies to certain foods presumably feel the same: the prices of safe food are actually intolerable. 

Fair enough, things have got better. When I was first warned off the Warburton's in 2006 my only alternative was the not-too-expensive rye bread (seriously, do not try this at home, folks) or the far tastier potato/rice-flour alternatives the health food shops peddled for about a fiver. 

Now the price has dropped to £3 and it's all available in supermarkets so we can get points! But £3 for a loaf is still galling when this staple can go for as little as 50p (in some shops) for the rest of Britain. 

So, with renewed vigilance, I am spending more on my weekly shop than I previously did on a fortnightly one, and trying to make my own stuff. 

Tonight it was home-made allergen-free shortbread. 

And having tasted some, somehow I don't think £2 for a packet of Freefrom Bakewells from Tesco is that expensive after all....