Going Gluten-Free on the Road

I spent this weekend (for the third weekend in a row) on a road trip out of town with a group of students that I work with. All this being away from my own kitchen has made me appreciate my own kitchen more than I could imagine. Finding good gluten-free meals in general can be a task at times, trying to find good gluten-free meals while on the road is a real chore.

Though I have my grocery store staples, I take for granted that I live in an urban area where I have a much larger selection of alternative foods available to me. This past weekend I was in a small town west of the Twin Cities and as I looked through the small town grocery store I realized making myself some gluten-free pasta wasn't going to be an option (luckily the group let me change the menu to fajitas!)

Now that I'm home to the comfort of my own kitchen it got me thinking about what it's like to travel gluten-free. Thanks to my friend Google I found THIS website specializing in travel tips for those looking to take gluten-free trips. Glutenfreetravelsite.com is really an interesting concept bringing together information and reviews from gluten-free travelers like myself. In a recent quest to find the most Celiac-friendly travel destination New York City took the win with an overwhelming margin. Looks like I'll have to go take a bite out of the gluten-free Big Apple on my next trip!

FDA Proposed Gluten-Free Regulations

Though the FDA has yet to mandate the identification of gluten as an allergen on food labels (you may have noticed increasingly that food labels now contain a list of known allergens a product contains such as peanuts, dairy, etc.) the FDA does have a working definition of what they classify as being a "gluten-free" food. This is an important step in ensuring that when gluten does become a item that the FDA mandates identification of on product labels that items are not being falsely identified as being gluten-free. The FDA's proposed definition currently states that a food labeled “gluten-free” does not contain any of the following:

• An ingredient that is any species of the grains wheat, rye, barley, or a crossbred hybrid of these grains (collectively referred to as “prohibited grains”)
• An ingredient that is derived from a prohibited grain and that has NOT been processed to remove gluten (e.g. wheat flour)
• An ingredient that is derived from a prohibited grain and that has been processed to remove gluten (e.g. wheat starch) if the use of that ingredient results in the presence of 20 parts per million (ppm or mg/kg) or more gluten in the food
• 20 ppm or more gluten

A food that bears the claim “gluten-free” in its labeling and does not meet these conditions would be deemed misbranded. Foods that are inherently or naturally free of gluten would also be deemed misbranded if the claim does not refer to all foods of that same type (e.g., “milk, a gluten-free food” or “all milk is gluten-free”)

Twin Cities Largest Selection of GF Foods

You don't have to go far to find quality gluten-free foods in the Twin Cities area if you know where to look. If you've been following my blog you probably read about my adventure at Gluten Free Fest hosted by Fresh & Natural Foods. I thought Fresh & Natural Foods deserved a blog entry of their own seeing as they have the largest selection of gluten-free foods in the Twin Cities metro area.

Not only does F&N have a lot of quality GF foods they make shopping easy shopping for the GF customer. Each item is clearly identified as being gluten-free by way of red shelf labels that indicate exactly which items are gluten-free. Now if you are not a regular shopper for GF foods you might not see the significance of this...imagine having to read the food ingredient list for each and every item you consider adding to your shopping cart. Fresh & Natural's red label system makes it easy for the shopper to easily identify with a quick look at the shelf which items are gluten free so you don't waste your time considering items that could be contaminated. If you want to do research before heading out shopping check out their Fresh & Natural's website for their gluten-free food and vendor list and their weekly circular for deals.

To learn more about Fresh & Natural check out this local story

I'll Trade You a Cookie for a Cooqi

My last post reminded me that I had yet to shout my joy over my favorite local gluten-free bakery, Cooqi, located conveniently on the Minneapolis/St. Paul boarder on Marshall Ave. It's interesting how quickly word spreads when it comes to finding great gluten-free food locally. I heard about Cooqi within only a few short weeks of it's opening and have told every Celiac I know that they have to check it out.
While there are other, less expensive, gluten-free products more easily available at your local grocery store the vast majority of GF products on the market currently are made from ingredients that offer little nutritional value. According to Cooqiglutenfree.com many products "list the first two ingredients as white rice flour and tapioca starch. And maybe the third ingredient is cornstarch. Meaning that these "foods" are almost pure simple carbohydrate-in other words, sugar. Considering that most folks who come to GF eating are recovering from digestive disorders, and many are in fact malnourished, it seems strangely punishing to offer them foods devoid of nutrients". But until recently, the focus has been solely on taste and creating foods to resemble lost foods (and, actually, probably those long lost white-flour favorites were not so nutritious to begin with).

Cooqi puts focuses on creating delicious AND nutritious gluten-free options including organic whole grains, free-range eggs, hormone-free butter, organic agave, honey, real maple syrup, or evaporated cane juice, and other good things. They make really yummy things by hand, from scratch, from pure, real ingredients that happen to make amazing gluten-free foods!

Pass on the word to the Celiacs in your life!

Twin Cities Pizza Locale Goes Gluten-Free

Though I'd heard rumor of local pizza establishments starting to carry gluten-free crusts I had to see (and taste) it for myself to really believe it. Thank you to my new friends at Pizza Luce in St. Paul for starting your gluten-free nights! Each Tuesday and Wednesday night Pizza Luce offers a full (not just one or two pizzas!) menu of gluten-free items that rivals their traditional menu that already has a steady following.

In asking the staff at Pizza Luce how they came up with the idea I learned that local St. Paul gluten-free bakery Cooqi actually contacted them with the idea of offering their gluten-free baking services to come up with a Pizza Luce quality crust. Now each week, with increasing numbers, gluten-free families from across the Twin Cities are descending on this St. Paul establishment to enjoy good gluten-free cooking from somewhere outside of their homes. Oh how wonderful to be able to go out with friends again and enjoy a good slice of pizza!

Pizza Luce, I will be back and I will bring all my gluten-free friends!

Top 10 Tips for a Healthy 2009

Recently Celiac.com listed their Top 10 Tips for a Happy Gluten-Free 2009. Here is an abbreviated version of their full list available on their website.
1. Toss out any unsafe foods
2. Restock your kitchen with safe foods
3. Take advantage of sales/specials to stock-up on gluten-free favorites
4. Source products from reliable makers and vendors
5. Stay informed about the latest and greatest in Celiac & GF news
6. Double check safe and unsafe food lists
7. Take part in food planning for 2009 Events so you can insure available safe foods
8. Think ahead: plan and try-out GF dishes in advance
9. Try new gluten-free products, there are great new items out!
10. Spread the word, help spread GF education to those around you

Nearly Normal Cooking

Thanks to a contact in Brainerd I've just learned that the author of one of my favorite gluten-free cookbooks Nearly Normal Cooking for Gluten-Free Eating is going to be holding a gluten-free cooking workshop in the Brainerd Lakes area. If only Brainerd was a little closer, I would be there!
Typically Jules Shepard, author and gluten-free baking expert, can only be seen in her local Washington/Baltimore area. For those us that cannot travel quite that far Jules and the recipes in her book have been featured in a series of news articles and tv specials recently. Jules was recently featured on FoxDC sampling some of her nearly normal gluten-free treats.

Jenny McCarthy & Generation Rescue

I've been noticing a trend in the news lately that suddenly gluten-free diets are all the rage. Or at least people are starting to know what it is. In recent news Jenny McCarthy and her organization Generation Rescue, along with gfMeals, have joined forces to support autism research and treatment. gfMeals is stepping into the role of helping Generation Rescue support families with understanding and implementation of the gluten-free casein-free (GFCF) diet.

It has been found that the GFCF diet is beneficial in aiding individuals in recovering from autism, ADHD and several chronic illnesses that mainly involve gastrointestinal disorders and autoimmune diseases. Who knew?! I learn something new every day...

gfMeals is the leading provider of gluten- and casein-free meals and baked goods that are shipped directly to people’s homes. Generation Rescue is an international movement of scientists, physicians and parent-volunteers researching the causes and treatments for autism and helping thousands of children begin biomedical treatment.

To order GFCF entrees, sides and baked goods from gfMeals, go to www.gfMeals.com,

Purely Decadent Cookie Dough Ice Cream

True to it's name Turtle Mountain's gluten-free/dairy-free cookie dough ice cream is "Purely Decadent"! I have to say I had my doubts...I mean really, how good could a dairy-free ice cream be? REALLY GOOD as it turns out. Who knew coconut milk made for such good ice cream?! The texture is a little different than regular ice cream, smoother perhaps? And there is a bit of unusual sweetness to it that I couldn't quite place. But despite that this is a for sure winner. Even the gluten-free cookie dough chunks tasted like the real thing. My only complaint would be there wasn't much cookie dough in the actual ice cream. That however will not stop me from trying it again!

Go pick one up today at your local health food store. Check out their website for details on locations near you that carry the product and watch for their regular coupons offered through their site.

I've Died and Gone to Gluten-Free HEAVEN!

Every since I heard about Fresh & Natural's "Gluten-Free Fest" I have been counting down the days in eager anticipation. Knowing not everyone would share my excitement to spend a Saturday at a natural foods store I enlisted Backpacker knowing she would be game. After all, on our last vacation together Backpacker did teach me that our produce is not naturally shiny. I'm suddenly grossed out every time I go into the grocery store produce section. Gee thanks Backpacker! (No seriously people, we're all suppose to go read The Omnivore's Dilemma...something about produce being coated in wax and hydrogenated corn syrup among other things, EWWW)

Back to Gluten-Free Fest - when we first entered Fresh & Natural I didn't notice anything special about the store other than it was much busier than an average day. But as we got going through the store I understood what all the hype was. Throughout the store sampling stations were set-up to try the latest and greatest in gluten-free options. AND, much to my delight, many of my gluten-free favorites were on sale for the event. Now for those of you that don't have to buy gluten-free you have no idea how much it costs...take your normal flour-laced shopping bill and double it (at least); a typical loaf of decent gluten-free bread costs over $5 for about 10 slices. And, on top of all the samples and sales Fresh & Natural was giving all customers 10% OFF THEIR ENTIRE PURCHASE! Now that is unheard of!

Even though I didn't win any of the grand prizes from the drawing, and spent WAY more than I had intended, overall I thought Fresh & Natural did a nice job with the event. (Of course being an event planner myself I have some ideas for you Fresh & Natural should you ever want some feedback) I found myself driving home feeling giddy about all my new gluten-free finds...in particular a new gluten-free cookie dough ice cream that is calling my name from the freezer as I write this. If it's any good that may have to be my next post.

Thanks Fresh & Natural for putting on a special day for all your loyal GFs! And thanks Backpacker for coming along!

Twin Cities Deal of the Week

Featured today on KSTP's daily show Twin Cities Live, was one of my favorite Gluten-Free eating establishments, Biaggi's! On today's show Biaggi's chef sampled some items from their menu and announced that Biaggi's would be offering a gift card deal for Twin Cities Live viewers, buy a $25 gift card and get a second one free! Being one that always loves a great deal instantly logged on to snap-up one of these deals, and now, so can you!

Check out the Twin Cities Live Half-Price Page for this deal and each week's special.

Biaggi's in Eden Prairie and Maple Grove offers a complete menu of gluten-free options to their
patrons any day of the week. Just ask for a gluten-free menu from your waiter, or check it online.

Biaggi's gluten-free menu is one of the largest and most comprehensive I've encountered; offering a variety of appetizers, salads, pastas and entrees in the $10-$20 range. One unique aspect of their menu is their clear labeling of all of their gluten-free sauces, often a menu item overlooked for contaminates. One thing to note from their website is that it advises that "you may wish to call ahead for reservations and inform the host that you will need to order from the gluten-free menu. And inform the staff serving your table that your food needs to be wheat, oat, rye and barley-free."

To find a location near you check out Biaggi's website.

Gluten Free Girl

Six year's ago this spring I found out that I have a family history of Celiac disease. So, being a constant seeker of information I HAD to find out everything I could on what that meant. At the time I had a hard time finding much useful information on living a gluten-free life. Since then however there has been a huge rise in information available, research being conducted and, even more recently, regulations on the labeling of common food allergens.
I'm starting this blog to help organize the information I've been collecting, great finds I've made in the Twin Cities for shopping and dining out and some of my favorite gluten-free products.
Take a look at the right sidebar to see my ever evolving list of favorites: favorite sites for learning about Celiacs & what on earth gluten is, great websites for gluten-free products, and favorite local Twin Cities gluten-free shopping & dining.
Any other gluten-free Twin Cities finds and favorites are welcome!