Gluten Free / Vegan Voyage

I don't have to live a gluten free life, which is such a blessing to me because I don't really think I could if I tried.  This makes it more important to me to be able to create something so very delicious and authentic tasting for someone who is not quite as fortunate.
There are so many people affected by celiac who have to live a life free of wheat and other glutinous grains.  This makes it a challenge to create breads, cakes and cookies with that texture and flavor we all know and love.
Gluten makes dough pliable and fluffy and gives body to breads and cakes.
Wheat flour gives a lovely crunch to cookies.
Gluten is the magic that makes stuff good.
Or is it?
Likewise, vegans eliminate from their diets the very ingredients that also lend to the perfection of the finished product when it comes to cakes, pastries and breads.  What is egg challah without eggs?  What is a sponge cake without egg whites?  What is the custard in a Boston Cream Pie without cream and eggs???
And what happens when you combine these two restrictive diets and try to make stuff taste really delicious and authentic??
It came as a great surprise to me that I was actually able to conjure up some pretty delectable treats without the use of these products.
The more I study food, the more I realize how simple it is to come up with alternatives.
I have always had to observe a special diet of my own.  Since I was raised ultra orthodox, I had to observe the kosher dietary laws.  When cooking a meal containing meat, we couldn't use dairy ingredients...so making a steak with a sauce mounted with butter was just not an option.  And using lardons or bacon or any kind of pig product was strictly forbidden.  So we had to come up with alternatives.
I truly believe that this experience has made it easier for me to find alternatives in other areas of cooking and baking.