PF Chang's

I love Chinese food.  When I first moved to the city I survived almost solely on steamed vegetable dumplings.  I've been mourning the lack of Chinese food in my life for the last three years.  When PF Chang's reached out to me recently to let me know about their new summer menu and ask if I'd like a gift card to try their gluten free options I promptly replied back with a Heck Yes.  I knew there weren't any PF Chang's in the city, but a quick Google search told me there was one not too far away in New Jersey.  Enter my good friend Mallory from over at Total Noms.  Not only does Mallory love food as much as me, but she happens to live in Jersey City and own a car.  Perfect date for some PF Chang's taste testing.

I made the venture to Jersey last week and let me tell you, it was worth it.  I scoured the gluten free menu before hand and there were so many dishes I wanted to try I had a hard time pinning down exactly what we should order. In the end we decided to order from the PF Chang's for Two Menu which is a $40 four course meal of deliciousness. We got: egg drop soup, Chang's Lettuce Wraps, Chang's Spicy Chicken, Mongolian Beef, and a Flourless Chocolate Dome for dessert.  In addition, we tried the Summer Vegetable Quinoa Fried Rice.  Everything was gluten free and each thing was better than the next.

The Summer Vegetable Quinoa Fried Rice is part of their special Summer menu and is only around for a limited time.  It was a really good accompaniment to our other main dishes.  We used this as our base instead of the plain rice they brought with the entrees.  The chicken lettuce wraps were really good and so was the spicy chicken.  The Mongolian beef though...I'm still craving it a week later.  The sauce on that is amazing.  We definitely didn't need any dessert but we had to try the flourless chocolate dome in the name of research, right?  It's a good thing we did, because it was a little dome of chocolate heaven.  Served with fresh berries, it was the perfect end to our meal.

Thank you, PF Chang's for a great meal.  I would definitely visit again at this location or any of the other locations located across the country.

Another Gluten Filled Cocktail Party

Picture stolen from here.

Why is everything at cocktail parties either wrapped in, or on top of, gluten?  Everything.  Except chicken on a stick.  No one likes vegetables anymore?  Cheese?  Meet and vegetables together?

Tonight I was at the same event I wrote about last year, except this year they didn't have the salmon or the tuna.  They did have chicken on a stick though.  How many pieces of dry chicken on a stick can you eat?  More than you'd like to, that's how many.

Ok, I won't complain anymore.  I had a snack before I went and a snack when I got home.  And several pieces of chicken on a stick in between.  Phew, thanks for listening.

All Inclusive Resorts - Gluten Free

This was the view from our room.  It's ok to be jealous.

I just got back from a week in Jamaica.  It's relatively warm in New York City this winter, but compared to the 85 degree days and 75 degree nights of island life, I'm sitting here wrapped in blankets and pouting profusely.  Gone from Saturday to Saturday, it's a good thing I had today to pull myself together before heading back to work tomorrow.

Last year my man friend and I went to Mexico.  It was my first vacation gluten free and I was kind of nervous about it.  I quickly realized that with so many options available at a resort buffet, eating gluten free was easy.  I had a similar experience this year, which is why this post is about eating at all inclusive resorts, rather than Jamaica.

Whether the resort is big or small, they are feeding so many people that there will always be gluten free options.  I don't mean gluten free pasta or bread. That you certainly won't find.  But there will always be a plethora of fruits and vegetables, along with fish, meat, and rice.  This covers lunch and dinner, and for breakfast there are always eggs, potatoes, fruit, and yogurt.

This trip I didn't knowingly eat any gluten or take nearly as many chances as last time.  I still let a few things slide that I wasn't positive on like jerk chicken and curry goat (the sauces being the potential problem), but I didn't get sick once.  I can't speak on cross contamination, and while I'm pretty sensitive and was fine the entire time, this might be a cause for concern for some.  However, the staff at these places are usually pretty great, and if you want to take the time to ask, I highly recommend it.

All in all, with all the food options at all inclusive resorts, eating gluten free is easy.  You might not always get what you want to eat, but at least you aren't going to starve.  Have some lunch and go drink a pina colada on the beach.  No problem.

Ruby Foo's - Times Square

As I think you know, my brother and I try to go to dinner once a week.  There's an endless supply of restaurants in New York City and we have tried many of them.  These days we tend to eat only at restaurants with gluten free menus.  But, after a year of this, we've pretty much run through them all.  All the ones I'm aware of anyway.

Tonight we decided to try Ruby Foo's in Times Square.  I heard of Ruby Foo's awhile ago but hadn't tried it yet for two main reasons: 1) it's pretty expensive, and 2) I hate Times Square.  Anyone that lives in New York avoids Times Square at all costs.  Full of tourists walking really slowly, there is pretty much nothing a person living in New York needs to do there.

But, wanting to try somewhere new, my brother and I decided to give it a try.  The gluten free menu has three appetizers, three entrees, three sides, and two desserts.  We shared the Chicken Lettuce Wrap for an appetizer and I got the Mongolian Orange Chicken for my main dish.  They were both fine.  I wouldn't recommend Ruby Foo's for people living in NYC, but it is a good option for people visiting the city that may be in Times Square anyway.

I'm always looking for new restaurant suggestions in NYC and elsewhere.  Let me know if you have any gluten free recommendations!

Oh Hi

Sorry I've been missing.  I've been pretty busy with stuff I'm not quite ready to share with you yet.  It's big though, just you wait.  I have been cooking and baking up a storm though.

There are two things I'd like to recommend you make.

First, I made this chicken salad last Monday from With Style & Grace.  I mixed it with greens and had it for lunch every day last week.  It was a nice change from whatever it is I usually eat for lunch.  Next time I'll use grapes instead of raisins.

From With Style & Grace

Next, this weekend I made blueberry scones.  I had never made scones before, but I really like them.  Scones often get a bad rap, but they are perfect with a cup of tea.  They are also, as you may remember, a large part of the reason I got fat in college.  Oops.

From Celiac Teen

Lauren used currants, but I don't like currnts so I used blueberries.  This recipe was another reason I needed a food scale.  If you don't have one, I'm sorry, because I have no idea what this would be in cups.

Ok, back to my busy life now.