Gluten-free in Paris.

oh la-la! The idea of Paris is as a land of bread...but actually its so much more...most of the actual meals are flour-free...because everything is made from scratch. I have loved partaking of beef tartare, of duck, of all kinds of wonderful gluten-free meals. With various desserts, fromage blanc, creme caramel, chocolate mousse... les glaces. I just wish I'd taken pics of some of these...even the salads are works of art.

And I found gluten-free pain de compagne and madeleines at Monoprix! I am going to have to find someone to send me this stuff, its that good. Because its not sweet, it tastes like real bread, acts like real bread, and has the chew of real bread...


And don't forget all the wonderful cheeses and fruits, all the stuff from the markets...all fresh, juicy, tasty and delicious.

I don't want to come back, not for all the gluten-free products in the world.

Potato, potato, potato.....

So I´m in Spain, in Madrid. So far, in the past couple of days, I´ve had a lot of potato. There was a marinated potato salad with cukes and tomato the first night, there have been potato tortilla (like an omelet, but room temp, with potato) for breakfast yesterday and today, and for lunch today? (almost didn´t find the question mark) You guessed it! Potato tortilla. I´m going to need a cholesterol test after this summer!

Its still very tasty, last night I had a wonderful salad, with lots of fresh lettuce, tuna, tomato...... I´m not sure what´s for dinner tonight, but I´m sure its wonderful. You can´t let a little thing like a food allergy stop you from experiencing the wonders of another culture. I take a piece of fruit from breakfast every morning, so I know I´ll be able to have a snack. And I have a secret weapon...my choir directors speak Spanish! So just chase them down (or do what I did and ´get lost´so they have to find you!).

I´ll give an update in a couple of days!

Gluten-free, locally.

hmmm, the title rhymes. tsk tsk tsk. Its amazing how popular gluten-free products are becoming, though, which is the inspiration for this post. In some ways, I'm finding more and more gluten-free products that are local. I ran by a health-food store in Simsbury, CT, and found carrot cakes, coconut cupcakes, and other gluten-free goodies, from CT (this is a branch of the main store, where they bake the goodies). I also found Bob's Red Mill Gluten-free oats there too...something Whole Foods refuses to carry, for some unknown reason.

I then went to the farmer's market at Whole Foods, and found this woman:
http://www.shaynabsandthepickle.com

She has all kinds of gluten-free treats. And is willing to take on challenges.
She also suggested a place in Vernon, CT where I can get a gluten-free baguette, called Nature's Grocer. hmmmmmm. That is good to know! Apparently the wife is celiac, the couple was retired, but started a second life as health-food store owners, and bake all kinds of breads.

I just checked out their site. Gluten-free ravioli and tortellini!!!!!!

http://www.naturesgrocervernon.com/new_products.html

I am so happy having more and more options...yay! What are some of your local gluten-free options? (because lets face it, not many people want to bake their own bread during the summer and its nice to pick up something local, and handmade, rather than frozen and bulk-shipped). Even if I have to make a trek for it, its worth it.

For Jeffrey...

So one of our cantors at church has recently gone gluten-free. He was putting two-and-two together and made four. He feels much better without wheat. Its just amazing how you can have an intolerance, allergy, or celiac all your life without realizing.

We had quite a conversation yesterday, I lent him a couple of books, steered him towards a wonderful blog, and talked a little bit about everyday life gluten-free.

He already looks better, no more circles under his eyes... (although maybe he's just a party animal, and with college being out, no more parties).

But for him, I want to write a little primer on living gluten-free:

Most health-food stores have gluten-free lists, some have sections. There is an odd blend of foods available gf, not a lot of whole-grain, and in fact a lot of junque food. There are pies, cookies, even donuts. There isn't a lot in single-serving packages, which pisses me off. There are times I want ONE cookie. Good luck. There are a few items which are whole grain, which are decent. And Whole Paycheck and Trader Joes both have good return policies, if you hate something.

Keep your eyes open. I found gnocchi at W.F. that is gluten-free, in the refrigerated section, nect to all the gluten-filled pastas. I found gf almond torte at Ikea. I found gluten in cheese, in a cheddar with apricots, I think it was. Always read your labels.

To start off with, for gf baking, get a bag of plain gf flour mix. Maybe not Bob's Red Mill, because that is too beany for me, but there are lots of options. Then start branching out into the other little bags.

At receptions, get to the cheese first, before everyone has cut into it, sprinkled cracker crumbs everywhere... There is usually a fruit plate, veggie platter, and plain cheese. Most chocolate things at receptions involve wheat. If in doubt, ask. And lets face it, you won't be able to drink as much because there won't be as much in your stomach.

Dinners out at restaurants...if you know where you are going, call first and let them know. If not, tell the waiter as soon as he/she brings the menu. Try to go at off-peak times. Leave a BIG tip. Go to smaller places, not chain restaurants. There is more room for error at chain restaurants because the chances are that everything is shipped to them, and they will be more rushed/less careful. That being said, there are more and more places that do have gluten-free menus, and more places are training their chefs to be aware of special needs.

I sometimes pack gf rolls so that I know I'll be able to eat something. That was what I did for my reunion. I packed a gf roll, and some cookies. I got a salad with egg salad on top, a yogurt, and my gf roll. For dinner, unfortunately, was pasta. I loaded up on appetizers, salad, and dessert. You do end up eating a lot of veggies and cheese when you go out. Just be aware of this.

Restaurant Review: Barcelona, West Hartford, CT

These people are fabulous for the celiac diner. The manager came over, got me a menu where he'd checked with the chef and noted everything that had wheat. My cousin ended up getting wheat-stuff, but I ended up getting a wonderful gluten-free meal, including dessert! It was a chocolate-hazelnut indulgence, literally! A warm, gooey chocolate thing with ice cream on top....mmmmmmm

Barcelona, I love you! And if the food I get at your restaurant is anything like what I'm going to get in Spain, I can't wait!

My first gluten-free failure..

So I had a pretty good track record for making different things, until yesterdays attempt at making gluten-free cherry-chocolate-oatmeal cookies. I tried them straight out of the oven, and they were good, or so I thought. Put them on a plate and took them to a friend's reception (graduate music recital..he was AMAZING). Saw someone trying to eat one, tried them. Eeeeeek!

They were rock cakes. Literally.

So this morning I started playing with the leftover batter. Added some melted butter and an egg yolk.. and some more cherries and chocolate. You can never have enough cherries or chocolate.

Baked at a lower temp. These are more crumbly... but I just tried a cooled one, and I think they are better. Time to bake them up for the choir....

Product reviews!!

Ok. I've found a few new gluten-free products so here they are, and where to find them:

The wonder of Ikea...they have a gluten-free almond cake in the cafeteria, which you can also buy in their food shop. I also picked up the most addictive marshmallow confection there..the chocolate isn't great, but the marshmallow is everything marshmallow should be. It would make a great addition (almost typed addiction, which it is too) to a 'romantic' evening.... so get the Krusboll Swedisch Marshmallow Confection too. I also found a blueberry 'cake' that looks to be gluten-free. So definitely hit your Ikea Food Shop.

Whole Foods has come out with two new breads: Gluten-free oat bread and Sourdough. They are very similar at first glance on the shelves, both being round. The Oat Bread was fabulous, good flavor, moisture, etc. The Sourdough I am less thrilled with. Its got a tang to it, yes, but its somewhat dry and crumbly. I couldn't find a loaf with an intact top, and it shattered when I sliced it. But if you like sourdough, it is a reasonable approximation.

Lastly, Trader Joes. Ahhh Trader Joes, I love thee, except when you discontinue the stuff I actually like. Now, you all need to go out and buy this so that they never, ever discontinue it. They have made a brown rice tortilla that actually folds. It doesn't shatter, it doesn't fragment, or do strange things. It folds over, and you can actually eat it without having to hold a bowl under your chin for bits of tortilla. Their gluten-free peanut butter cookies are tasty too (in the frozen section)

So what new, strange, gluten-free items have you discovered? Tell me about them!