Joan's GF Great Bakes now open for retail

Joan's GF Great Bakes is one of my favorite places. Their gluten-free bagels and English muffins are delicious and their holiday sugar cookies were a big hit with my family. I am happy to report some exciting news! Starting with Saturday, February 7th, Joan's will now be open for retail customers 6 days a week. Their new hours will be Monday through Saturday, 9AM - 5PM. If you are in the neighborhood, please stop in!

1905A Bellmore Ave.
Bellmore NY 11710
516-804-5600 (ph)
516-804-5602 (fax)

http://gfgreatbakes.com

Gluten-Free Fun now on Alltop

Alltop is an "online magazine rack" that aggregates RSS feeds about popular topics. I have recently been added to their Celiac feed page. You can find links to my blog, Gluten-Free Fun, and many other gluten-free and celiac-related sites here: http://celiac.alltop.com/

Organic Gluten-Free Dinner at GustOrganics

I am very excited to announce our next NYC Celiac Disease Meetup event. Please join us for a gluten-free, prix fixe dinner at GustOrganics on February 24th at 6:30pm.

GustOrganics is the first and only certified organic restaurant in New York and America’s first restaurant to use 100% USDA certified organic ingredients. We will be joined during dinner by Alberto Gonzalez, the founder and CEO of Gustorganics, to discuss gluten-free dining, organic ingredients, and sustainable living. Mr. Gonzalez’s everyday goal is to satisfy his customer’s taste buds while also sustaining our environment’s resources. He is very passionate about his restaurant so I am thrilled he will be joining us for dinner on
February 24th.

To read more about GustOrganics, please visit: http://www.gustorganics.com/

To RSVP to this dinner, please visit the NYC Celiac Disease Meetup calendar.

Gluten-Free Fun on Gluten Free Fox

Hurry over to GlutenFreeFox.com to see that shout out to yours truly at Gluten-Free Fun and to see the recipe below.

YAY!!!

Gluten-Free Super Bowl Recipes

Here at Gluten Free Fox, we believe that Super Bowl Sunday should be a day of eating, yelling at the TV, actually laughing at commercials and, did we mention eating? We scoured the gluten-free web for easy and delicious gluten-free Super Bowl sustenance and contacted a couple of gluten-free experts. Enjoy Life Foods sent over an exclusive and very easy Sunny Trail Mix recipe, while Erin of Gluten-Free Fun cooked up a mouth-watering Mexican Lasagna. (read more)

Gluten-Free Super Bowl

This year I got invited to a Super Bowl party at the house of a dear friend. I usually go to the gym during the Super Bowl since it is one of the few nights of the year that there are almost NO guys grunting and stinking the place up. But since I got the invite and then was approached by GlutenFreeFox.com asking me what I was making for the Super Bowl I figured I would go to the party and bring a yummy, gluten-free dish with me next Sunday. Tonight I did a trial run of a gluten-free Mexican lasagna and since it has refried beans and lots of cheese it still fits into my tradition of junk food during the Super Bowl. Did I mention it was delicious!? To me, the whole purpose of the Super Bowl is to watch commercials, see nip slips during the half-time show, and to eat junk food... this fit the bill. Super Bowl Sunday, here I come!!


Gluten-Free Fun's Mexican Lasagna

1 lb of ground beef or turkey
1 can of diced tomatoes with chilis
1 can of refried beans
1 package of gluten-free taco seasoning (be sure to check the ingredients!)
1/2 cup of corn kernels
1/2 cup of diced onions
2 cups of grated sharp cheddar cheese
10-12 gluten-free corn tortillas (I use the 6inch kind)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Brown ground meat and drain excess fat.
3. Add can of tomatoes, corn, onions, and taco seasoning to the meat.
4. Add can of refried beans and bring this thick mixture to a slight boil.
5. Put a layer of the meat mixture into a 9X12 baking dish, followed by a layer of corn tortillas, and then a layer of cheese. Repeat with one or two more layers meat, cheese, and tortillas. Number of layers will depend on the size of your baking dish.
6. Top off with the rest of your cheese.
7. Bake for 30 minutes.
8. Enjoy!

Happy Super Bowl.

Who is playing? ;-)

A Gluten-Free Taste of Thai

A Taste of Thai is a company that produces multiple products including: Coconut Milk, Curry Pastes, Noodles/Pad Thai, Rice, Sauces, Seasonings, Soups, and Quick Meals. As of October 2008, all of the A Taste of Thai products are gluten-free. This is great news especially considering the widespread availability of their products, at least in the tri-state area. Most mainstream supermarkets have many of their items on their shelves at reasonable prices.

For a complete list of A Taste of Thai allergens, please visit: http://atasteofthai.com/pdfs/specifications.pdf

As if being 100% gluten-free isn't exciting enough, A Taste of Thai also has a very comprehensive website that includes cooking videos, cookbooks available for download, and links for both store locations and online shopping of their products. Visit A Taste of Thai at: http://atasteofthai.com

Uno Chicago Grill Rolls Out Gluten-Free Pizza Nationally

Last week, Uno Chicago Grill sent out this press release to announce their new gluten-free pizza.

UNO CHICAGO GRILL® ROLLS OUT GLUTEN-FREE PIZZA NATIONALLY
Positive Consumer Response Prompts Earlier Introduction

Boston, MA (January 13, 2009) – Following a highly successful market test, Uno Chicago Grill® will offer its new, gluten-free pizza nationally. Uno® is the first national casual dining chain to offer a gluten-free pizza and received very positive feedback from guests who suffer from celiac disease, which affects approximately one percent of the population1.

In fact, word-of-mouth reaction from the gluten-free community during the northeastern market test prompted the company to advance the timetable for a national roll-out.

“Food allergies are a very serious, sometimes life-threatening, issue for many Americans,” notes Uno CEO Frank Guidara. “Pizza is our signature product, and we wanted to offer a gluten-free pizza so all of our guests could enjoy it when dining at Uno.”

“Consumer reaction was so positive, and the chatter so strong on gluten-free blogs and websites, that our restaurants began receiving requests to carry the new pizza,” noted Richard Hendrie, senior vice president, marketing, Uno Chicago Grill. “Because the demand was so strong, we decided to pull out all the stops to get the gluten-free pizza into our 200 plus locations as quickly as possible.”

Recently lauded as America’s Healthiest Chain Restaurant2, Uno has added gluten-free cheese and pepperoni pizzas to what is already one of the most extensive gluten-free menus available for a casual dining chain. This is good news to the estimated three million Americans diagnosed with celiac disease, as well as an additional seven million Americans who have a wheat intolerance or allergy and rely on gluten-free foods. While awareness of celiac disease is rising, an estimated 97 percent of those who have it remain undiagnosed3.

Guidara explained that it took over a year of research and development to find just the right recipe for a brand that is known for its iconic pizza. “While we want to meet the needs of guests with allergies, we never forget that we are about great taste and choice, and that means developing new dishes that are healthful without sacrificing great flavor.”

The company that was the first to develop deep-dish pizza in 1943 is still full of innovation. Uno Chicago Grill works closely with its Nutrition Advisory Board, which meets quarterly to discuss trends and solutions to improve the quality and nutritional value of its menu. The board includes world-class physicians with expertise in coronary disease, weight management, and other food/health related issues. Guidara oversees the Advisory Board and brings his expertise as a member of the Harvard School of Public Health Nutrition Roundtable.

The gluten-free pizza was originally tested at Uno Chicago Grill locations in Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Massachusetts (excluding Worcester and Springfield/Holyoke).

According to the Gluten Intolerance Group, surveys show that about 15 to 25 percent of consumers report looking for gluten-free products, far more than need to.

Uno boasts a number of healthy firsts, including being the first national restaurant chain to eliminate artificial trans-fats and to increase menu and nutritional transparency via nutrition information centers located in their restaurants. The company’s gluten-free menu has 20 items ranging from entrées, salads, sides and desserts. For guest convenience and safety, Uno clearly labels menu items with ingredients that are linked to the most common food allergies, such as fish/shellfish, soy, tree nuts/peanuts, egg, milk and wheat/gluten. Diners can also preview the menu and nutritional information online via the company’s website at www.unos.com.

The company has invested more than $2 million in nutritional advancements since 2005 and, according to Guidara, will continue its commitment to providing delicious, fresh and healthful menu options for its guests.

About Uno Chicago Grill:

Based in Boston, Uno Restaurant Holdings Corporation includes more than 200 company-owned and franchised full-service units located in 29 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, Honduras, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. The company also operates a consumer foods division which supplies airlines, movie theaters, hotel restaurants and supermarkets with both frozen and refrigerated private-label foods and branded Uno products. For more information, visit www.unos.com.

Sanjay Gupta for Surgeon General

As noted in the media this week and as blogged by Gluten-Free NYC, "Dr. Sanjay Gupta is Barack Obama's top pick for Surgeon General." As Gluten-Free NYC rightly reported, Dr. Gupta, CNN's Chief Medical Correspondent, is a colleague of Heidi Collins, CNN news anchorwoman and the spokeswoman for the National Foundation of Celiac Awareness. This "six-degrees-of-separation" (well, two) between Heidi and Dr. Gupta is promising. At least Dr. Gupta knows of Celiac Disease, probably more than most politicians and political correspondents.

After a little investigative reporting of my own, I discovered Dr. Sanjay Gupta participated in the Atlanta NFCA Cooking Spree in October 2007. Bringing Dr. Gupta on as Surgeon General could be a great thing for the Celiac Disease community. "The Surgeon General serves as America's chief health educator by providing Americans the best scientific information available on how to improve their health and reduce the risk of illness and injury." (http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/) The Obama administration with Dr. Gupta in that key medical role might just bring the awareness we need about the prevalence of Celiac Disease in this country and hopefully help us gain support from the US Government.

Gluten Free Snowshoeing Weekend

Gluten Free Snowshoeing Weekend at Cranmore Mountain Lodge

This is your chance to escape from your routine and come for a gluten free Winter getaway at Cranmore Mountain Lodge, in association with Rafferty's Restaurant and Pub and EMS Adventures, Treks and Trails. We propose you a unique package, including lodging, all GLUTEN FREE meals, and outdoor activities!

Arrive on Friday afternoon and after checking-in with us, have a great gluten free dinner at Rafferty's Restaurant and Pub (serving until 11 pm), just down the street from us.

Wake up Saturday morning and after a gluten free breakfast (which includes French Toasts, Pancakes, omelets...), you will be given a Gluten free bagged lunch and snacks (provided by Rafferty's) and meet with your EMS guide right in our lobby, at 9 am. After reviewing the plans for the day, you'll leave for a 5 hour snowshoe trip in the White Mountains.

When you'll get back to the Lodge, unwind in our outdoor hot tub, or warm up by our fireplace in the living room, before getting ready to go out for dinner at Rafferty's with your snowshoeing group, and enjoy another wonderful Gluten Free dinner!

This package includes:
- 2 night-lodging at Cranmore Mountain Lodge, Friday & Saturday on selected weekends*
- 2 full country breakfast cooked-to-order-Gluten Free
- Friday dinner at Rafferty's Restaurant & Pub-Gluten Free-including entrée, tax & tips
- Saturday dinner at Rafferty's Restaurant & Pub-Gluten Free-including appetizer, entrée, dessert, tax & tips
- Gluten free bagged lunch and snacks provided by Rafferty's Restaurant & Pub
- 5 hour group snowshoeing trip with an EMS guide.
- All equipment such as snowshoes, trekking poles... provided.


*Winter 2009 Dates:
· January 30 & 31
· February 27 & 28
· March (to be determined) - This last Winter weekend will combine a snowshoe trip and a Celiac Disease informational session.

Group size: 4 person minimum
If the minimum number is not met, the trip will be either cancelled or each participant will agree to pay an additional fee.

Price:
Double occupancy: $552, all inclusive
Single occupancy: $390, all inclusive

For more information or to reserve your spot, contact Cranmore Mountain Loadge at:

Cranmore Mountain Lodge
859 Kearsarge Road-PO Box 1194
North Conway, NH 03860
(800) 356-3596 or (603) 356-2044
Thelodge@North-Conway.com
www.cranmoremountainlodge.com

Niagara Falls Gluten-Free Getaway

NIAGARA FALLS, CANADA mini GLUTEN-FREE GETAWAY
May 31 - Jun 3, 2009

Niagara Falls is awesome anytime of the year. The power; the forever cloud of mist; the constant roar - you have to see it - feel it - hear it - to fully appreciate it. Spring is a great time to also enjoy the beautiful landscaping on the Canadian side of the Falls.

We'll experience the Falls via a not to be missed - up close and personal way on the Maid Of The Mist boat ride. Check out the Victorian City of Niagara-On-The-Lake- including attending an offering of the Famous Shaw Festival, a Winery Tour and Gourmet Dinner.

Ah Yes - the food - Gluten-free and Great!

Check our website for all the details http://bobandruths.com

We must have at least 25 people participate by March 15, 2009 to make this mini Getaway a GO! So please make your reservations as soon as possible.

The Canadian Celiac Association Annual Conference is being held in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada this year beginning on May 29th and ending on the 31st by noon. Bob and Ruth will be speaking and exhibiting at this very informative conference and encourage you to check it out at http://www.celiac.ca and consider attending.

Gluten-Free "Play Doh"

Did you know that Hasbro's Play-Doh is made with wheat? Well, now there is a gluten-free alternative called Soy-Doh. It is a gluten-free, non-toxic, and non-allergenic alternative to the children's toy.

As seen in the New York Times on December 24, 2008.


Gluten-Free Child’s Play
By KATE ZERNIKE

Like so much about college, it started with beer. Not drinking it; making it. A professor at Purdue University mentioned that she couldn’t drink beer because of intolerance to wheat gluten. So Sawyer Sparks and two other students in the agricultural economics program there started experimenting in their off-hours to see if they could make a gluten-free beer. They borrowed beer-making supplies from a neighbor who had made it something of a hobby, and mixed soy flour, gluten-free yeast and water on Mr. Sparks’s stove.

The result didn’t look anything like beer. “It looks like Play-Doh!” one of them said. But Play-Doh, that squishy staple of preschool years, can be a problem for children who are intolerant to wheat. (Hasbro, Play-Doh’s manufacturer, won’t say exactly what is in it but does say that it contains wheat and can cause a reaction in allergic children.)

Mr. Sparks, 21 and a junior, had already started a small company that markets alternative fuels and animal feed made from sunflowers around southern Indiana. He saw another business opportunity in the stove-top creation. Some estimates put the number of people intolerant to wheat at one in six. “It’s a big thing for parents,” he says.

Mr. Sparks decided to sell his mixture as a wheat-free alternative to Play-Doh, calling it Soy-Doh. He created a dozen colors, and scented each to smell like fruit or foods — one is root beer. It is nontoxic and nonallergenic. Mr. Sparks says you can eat it (and he has). He says he has sold hundreds of containers to schools, at $2 a pop.

It is essentially the same mixture he discovered in his beer-making venture (since abandoned), only now, for economy, it includes some rice flour as well as soy. But he is still producing it from his house.

Gluten-Free Pizza Round-up

Glutenfreeda.com put together an awesome list of gluten-free pizzas, pre-made doughs, and mixes. Here is a round-up of their suggestions.

Tom Sawyer Gluten-Free Products: GF flour

Still Riding Pizza: Frozen GF pizza crusts

Gluten-Free Naturals: GF mixes including bread mix, muffin mix, cake mix, pizza crust mix, brownie mix, cookie mix, and pancake mix

Better Batter: GF flour

Rustic Crust Pizza: GF Frozen Pizza

Pamela's: GF bread-mix (for pizzas) and many additional GF products

Tastefully Gluten-Free: GF pizza crust mix, and other mixes including chocolate chip cookies, sugar cookies, bread and roll mix, chocolate cake, all-purpose cookies, and brownie mix

Bob's Red Mill: GF mixes and tons of other gluten-free products

Namaste Foods: GF pizza mix and other gluten-free products

Amy's Kitchen: Frozen GF pizzas including rice crust, rice crust spinach, and non-dairy rice crust (Amy's had always been my favorite pizza but I always found myself eating a whole pie in one serving. Lately, heir prices have been outrageously high at Fairway so I haven't been buying them. It also keeps me from eating a whole pizza in one serving.)

Orgran: GF pizza and pastry multimix and many other gluten-free products

Dad's Gluten-Free Pizza Crust: GF pizza crust

Glutino: various GF pizzas (Currently my pizza crust of choice!

Everyday Health Magazine

Did you know that you can view back issues of Everyday Health Magazine for FREE on the Orgran Natural Foods website? Orgran is an Australian-based company that specializes in products that are gluten free, wheat free, dairy free, egg free, yeast free, GMO free, and vegan.

"Everyday Health Magazine is a magazine focused on helping people with allergies, food and health issues. With three editions a year, Everyday Health is packed full of information on how to have a healthy diet and lifestyle without compromising on the things you love. [Everyday Health] recipes aim to provide delicious alternatives to satisfy wheat free, gluten free, dairy free, yeast free and vegan diets. They are also perfect for those who just want a healthier lifestyle!"

Currently, their magazine is available by subscription only in Australia. Check out their archives today! (Adobe Acrobat required.)