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1. )  Think pretty seriously about how you eat and how you cook: are you actually going to cook, or are you more likely to eat out?  Are you just cooking for you, or for a family? Would you rather cook and have leftovers, or would you rather have fast recipes–or some combination of the above?  Supposedly, Americans throw out 40% of the food they buy. If you can avoid food waste, you’ll stop seeing dollars with wings, because you’re gluten-free.

2.)  Stop eating red meat and chicken. It’s cheaper, and you won’t stay sick: according to Scientific American, saturated fat can change your gut bacteria so much that it creates colitis if you’re prone to it.  Chicken has become a major source of food poisoning in the U.S., so much so that people like the New York Times’ Mark Bittman recommend that no one eat it. (Eggs, turkey, fish, kefir for the probiotics, and cheese from grass-fed cows seem to be safer sources of animal protein.)

3.)  Each week, cook a pot of rice, and then cool it in the refrigerator.  You can use it throughout the week to make stir fried rice, Indian biryanis, and rice salads, or just use it as breakfast cereal or the carbohydrate for any meal.

4.)  Stop trying to reinvent the wheel baking gluten-free bread. Udi’s has that covered, and it’s a lot less expensive than a cupboard full of slightly questionable flours.

5.)  Canned beans, specifically Bush’s, are your friend. They’re all gluten free, and about a dollar a can. If you’re looking to buy dried beans that are certified gluten-free, and not cross-contaminated, they’re rare, expensive, and usually involve shipment from places like Canada.

6.)  Buy protein that is gluten-free and does not spoil easily:  Mori-Nu tofu in shelf-stable packages is gluten-free–not all tofu is.  Frozen fish without seasonings is gluten-free;  with seasonings, even small amounts of wheat-containing spices can mean you’re not eating gluten-free fish.

7.)  Find your food allergies: many people with celiac or gluten-intolerance have other food intolerances; that may mean you won’t eat what you buy; hard cheese and kefir are very low in lactose; lactose intolerance is common in people with celiac; nightshade vegetables like potatoes and tomatoes can cause immune responses–polenta makes a good substitute for potatoes, and tomatoes are a lot less lethal, uncooked; red meat can cause an ongoing autoimmune response that equals staying sick, for many people with digestive autoimmune disorders; omitting it can be the difference between recovering, or not.  If a food is making you sick, subconsciously you’ll probably avoid it, and it will wind up in the trash.

8.)  Find a good bread substitute made from cheaper flours, that can be made out of pantry staples: Brazilian Pao de Quejo uses three ingredients; tapioca flour, eggs, and cheese; corn fry-bread takes a few ounces of Maseca Masa, some cooking oil, and a small cast iron pan.  The ability to make your own bread from just a few ingredients will keep you away from expensive health-food stores.

9.)  Stop eating junk: “gluten-free” under the current rules for the definition means that a lot of cross-contaminated stuff gets under the radar; staying sick is expensive.  (Corn chips are the worst offenders–they should be gluten-free, but they’re frequently cooked in cross-contaminated oil.) You will be healthier if you eat more food that is naturally gluten-free–rice, vegetables, fish, beans, hard cheeses, and corn tortillas are your friends.

10.)  The only thing that you should buy in bulk is dry spices.  I can’t count the times I’ve had to throw out fresh mint, basil, or parsley, because I couldn’t get to it fast enough.  (McCormick single ingredient spices are gluten-free.)  The dry stuff will last for years, and although it’s not as pungent, it will be there when you want to use it.  (And you’ll get to stop envisioning dollars with little jet packs.)