GLUTEN for Sale

"Gluten Free" is so hip these days.  It's on everything.  You know what's not normally advertised?  Gluten.  Pure gluten.  Except in Queens.

I was walking down 30th Avenue in Astoria this weekend and passed a Thai restaurant. I picked up one of their takeout menus to check out just for fun.  They have silly sayings next to some of their dishes such as "You got to love this dish" and "The sweet chili paste still rock".  It wasn't until later that I noticed they offer Gluten as one of their topping additions.  You know, like Pad Thai with tofu, veggies, chicken, beef, shrimp, or gluten.

Huh?  What does that even mean?  How do you put "gluten" on top of Pad Thai?  I was feeling a bit sassy so I called to ask.  The conversation went a bit like this:

Lady: Yajai

Me: Hi.  I picked up your menu today and I'm wondering what the "Gluten" is you offer.

Lady: Huh?

Me: It says I can get Gluten on some of your dishes.  What is that?

Lady: You want Gluten?

Me: No, I'm wondering what it is.  It says I can have Pad Thai with Gluten.  What is the Gluten?

Lady: You want Pad Thai with Gluten?

Me: No.  What is Gluten?

Lady: Oh. Uhhh. I think tofu and beans...

Me: Oh...

(Ladies talking in background.  Seems to be some confusion.)

Lady: Oh uhhh...it's wheat.

Me: So you put wheat on the Pad Thai?

Lady: You want Pad Thai with Gluten?

Me: No thanks.

This left me a bit confused but it later occurred to me what they probably meant.  They have mock duck on their menu and I figured it was made out of Seitan.  Seitan is used to make a lot of the "fake meat" products out there and it's basically just a big hunk of wheat protein (wheat gluten).  I.E.: DANGER.

I think it's pretty funny that Gluten is so proudly displayed on their menu.  Has anyone else been offered "Gluten" before?  Are people starting to eat pure gluten just to spite us gluten free folks?

Georgetown Cupcakes

Georgetown Cupcake was started by two sisters in DC who quit their corporate jobs and started a cute cupcake shop in 2008.  For that, I am eternally jealous.  The shop was so cute, and their cupcakes were so good, that they got their own show on TLC.  I've seen the show a few times and they did one episode where someone wanted to special order GF cupcakes.  The sisters didn't offer GF cupcakes at the time, but they stayed late after the shop was closed and all the utensils were cleaned and made a batch of GF cupcakes.  Everyone was very happy.

Fast forward to now.  I was walking in SoHo with my brother recently and walked past a Georgetown Cupcake.  Apparently they just opened a location in NYC.  Remembering the show and how they didn't normally offer GF cupcakes, I didn't bother going in.  A few days later I happened to read somewhere that Georgetown cupcakes does in fact offer a GF flavor: Gluten Free Lava Fudge.  Clearly, I had to try it.

Coincidentally, I was back in SoHo with my brother on Monday.  It was his half birthday (yes, that's a thing) and we decided we needed some cake.  A perfect time to try Georgetown Cupcake!  Let me tell you, the store is adorable and the gluten free cupcake was amazing.  Not only was it amazing (top 3 GF cupcakes I've ever tried), but the staff was so considerate.  They asked if I was ordering the GF because of an allergy. When I confirmed that I was they changed their gloves before handling it and put it in a separate box than my brother's.  Between the cute shop, the delicious cupcake, and the conscientious handling of my cupcake, these people win big time.  Go try them.  Immediately.

Wow Baking Company

I was at LaGuardia Airport last week and came across some gluten free cookies from Wow Baking Company in the Cibo Express. They had individually packaged chocolate chip, peanut butter, ginger molasses, and snickerdoodle cookies. I had a hard time deciding between the chocolate chip and the peanut butter but finally went with the peanut butter because it looked so soft and chewy. It was really good.  Surprisingly good for a prepackaged cookie.

When I got home and looked this company up I found they use all natural ingredients with no hydrogenated oils or refined sugars. In addition to individually wrapped cookies they have bags of cookies, cookie dough, and cake mixes.

This was a great gluten free treat to find in the airport. My only problem with it was it was marked as being two servings. Who, besides my dad, eats half a cookie? Other than that, if you see these cookies in the airport, or elsewhere, I suggest you give them a try.

Celiac Awareness Month

May is Celiac Awareness Month.  Good work on making yourself more aware by reading this.

If you think I've been really lazy and haven't been posting lately, you are correct.  I could make up a bunch of excuses, but really, I have none.  I have been writing for other people's blogs though!  In honor of Celiac Awareness month I did a guest post for Gluten Free Globetrotter about my Pennsylvanian travels.  Check it out.

Also for Celiac Awareness Month, Mile End Bakery is offering 10% off all orders by entering the code CELIAC2012 at checkout.  If you haven't ordered cookies yet, now is the time.

Ok, off to the airport now.  Vermont, here I come.

peacefood cafe

Located on Amsterdam and 82nd, peacefood cafe is a vegan restaurant with many gluten free options.  They describe themselves as having healthy and delicious food with seasonal and locally grown ingredients when available.  I've been a few times and agree that they have healthy and delicious food.  I'll take their word on the seasonal and locally grown part.

I like getting the vegetable plates.  They have japanese pumpkin, chinese eggplant, zucchini, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, broccoli, choyote squash, kale, and baby boy choy.  You can choose two or four.  Or you can get two with a cup of soup.  Last week I had some butternut squash soup with zucchini and brussel sprouts.  It was really good and I felt good eating it.

Other gluten free options include fluffy quinoa salad, raw lasagna, raw pizza, raw sushi, potato salad, chickpea fries, and vegetable tamales.  There is also a case of desserts with several gluten free options including cookies, pies, and cheesecake.

This bustling casual restaurant has a really friend staff and the kind of owner that will give you samples of smoothies while you sit at the counter reading a book and eating some butternut squash soup.

Bloom's

There is a diner two blocks from my job that has gluten free pancakes.  I've never been because diner food, in my opinion, is for weekend brunch or late night burgers.  Neither of which usually happen near my office. But, tomorrow is my 26th birthday and I thought I'd treat myself to some gluten free pancakes for breakfast this morning.  I didn't have high hopes, but these were pretty good.  They were light and fluffy and everything pancakes should be.  My only qualms were the $10 price tag and the fact that they didn't have real maple syrup, but most diners don't.

Bloom's is on 39th and Lexington in Midtown Manhattan.  They serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner 7 days a week.  Their extensive gluten free menu includes gluten free pancakes, french toast, and gluten free toast to go with egg dishes in the morning.  Sandwiches are served on gluten free bread and burgers are served on gluten free buns.  They also have salads, entrees, and desserts typical to diners.

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.

Joan's GF Great Bakes

I've been hearing about Joan's for a long time now but hadn't had the chance to try her products until recently.  Not only was I able to finally give her products a try, but I was able to meet Joan in person at Whole Foods a few weeks ago.  I was there for a book signing, but there were also a lot of gluten free vendors around the store giving out free samples.  Joan was one of them and Erin, the leader of the NYC Celiac Meetup Group and author of Gluten-Free Fun, told me I had to go try some of Joan's products.  I'm glad I did!

I sampled Joan's Corn Toaster Muffins, English Muffins, and Double Chocolate Muffins.  They were all amazing.  I ended up going home with the Corn Toaster Muffins and Multi Grain English Muffins.  The English muffins make a great addition to breakfast and the Corn Toasters are a nice evening treat.  Next I'd like to try Joan's pizza.

Not only were Joan's products really good, but she was very nice herself!  Overall, a winning combination.  Nice work Joan, and thanks for the great products!

Pappardella

I stole this picture from the internet.

My brother doesn't really go above mid-town Manhattan.  In fact, he generally tends not to go above Union Square if he doesn't have to.  But tonight I convinced him to meet me for dinner on 75th and Columbus.  Way out of his comfort zone, but since we have eaten at most of the restaurants with gluten free menus in the city, it's always nice to have somewhere new to try.

I learned about Pappardella on twitter a few weeks ago and have been excited to try it ever since (see, twitter can serve a purpose).  I've been meaning to eat healthier recently, but tonight I accidentally ate gluten free garlic bread, gluten free bruschetta with a fava bean spread, gluten free pasta bolognese, and flourless chocolate cake with hazelnut gelato and caramel sauce.  Oh, and my brother had the gluten free salmon dish and I tried some of that too.  Oops!  Don't worry, we shared it all but the pasta.

But here's the thing, with all their gluten free options, I had a hard time deciding.  The gluten free menu was huge and covered everything from appetizers and salads, to pizza and pasta, to meat and fish, to dessert.  They use Schar for their pasta, and I'm pretty sure their bread as well.  The gluten free substitutes were pretty good, but next time I would be interested in trying one of their naturally gluten free dishes such as their grilled rack of grass fed Austrailian lamb with caramelized cipollini onions, and creamy parmesan polenta, or the grilled NY strip steak served with a port wine reduction and garlic mashed potatoes.  And after that I'd like to try their pizza.

Go ahead, go to the Upper West side and give it a try.  Then let me know what you think.

4 Ingredients Gluten-Free Cookbook

I was at Whole Foods this week for a cooking demo and book signing by Kim McCosker of 4 Ingredients.  Kim McCosker and Rachael Bermingham started their cookbook series 4 Ingredients a little over 4 years ago.  The concept is simple: hundreds of recipes with four or less ingredients.  Recently, Kim and Rachael realized the need for a gluten free version and voila, here it is.

I love the concept of this book.  The recipes are pretty basic, but sometimes that's just what you need to get dinner going.  There are over 400 recipes in the gluten free version including condiments and dips, breakfasts, appetizers, light lunches, sides, mains, desserts, drinks, and recipes for kids.

It was fun to meet Kim at the event.  She was very nice, engaging, and gave lots of tips.  I was able to try her BBQ beef stir-fry, guacamole, chocolate covered marshmallows, and another dessert I don't remember the name of.  I'm looking forward to trying the Chicken Tikka Masala made with just chicken, tikka masala paste, condensed GF tomato sauce, and plain yogurt.

The only question I had in the book was about the ingredient gluten free self rising flour.  Apparently, this is something they have in Australia where Kim is from, but not really in the US.  When I asked her about it, she told me to just add a teaspoon of baking powder to a regular all purpose gluten free flour blend to make it "self rising".  Easy.

I've been in a bit of a cooking rut lately and I hope this book is just the jump start I need.