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Tuesday, March 25, 2014
27 Reasons Why You Could Go Gluten-Free
Dear Joe Satran and HuffPost Taste,

I saw your post on HuffPost Taste yesterday which highlights the "27 Reasons [You] Could Never Go Gluten-Free." I am sorry you lost your patience with your father over his gluten-free vodka choice rather than support his decision. I am sorry you feel that lives are so limited by being gluten-free. While I appreciate you acknowledging with "reverence and respect" the approximately 3 million Americans with Celiac Disease, I am sorry that you made the gluten-free lifestyle sound so depressing and limited.

I have been living with Celiac Disease for almost 33 years and do not feel deprived at all. I actually feel quite lucky at times. I get to treat my "illness" with food. How great is a diagnosis where your medication is (gluten-free) food?

In your post you pointed out twenty-seven things you would miss if you went gluten-free. Well, Mr. Satran, you clearly didn't do much research. You said going gluten-free would "entail forsaking a huge swath of the most delicious foods known to man!" Not true, Mr. Satran. Not true at all.

I would like to challenge your post with my post which highlights the food you feel you would need to give up if you went gluten-free. Here are my 27 "crucially important reasons" you actually could go gluten-free and not miss out on a thing. You could eat delicious food, drink beer, and even gorge on French bread if you chose to do so. And what that I present you with my counter list of:

27 Reasons Why You Could Go Gluten-Free

  1. Gluten-Free Foccaccia from Krumville Bakeshop (bakery)
  2. Gluten-Free Ramen at Ippudo NYC (restaurant)
  3. Gluten-Free BLT at Friedman's Lunch (restaurant) 
  4. Gluten-Free English Muffins from Joan's Gluten-Free (online store)
  5. Gluten-Free Biscuits from King Arthur (online store)
  6. Gluten-Free Donuts at Babycakes NYC (bakery) 
  7. Gluten-Free Everything Bagels from Joan's Gluten-Free (online store)
  8. Gluten-Free Pork Buns from Viet World Kitchen (recipe)
  9. Gluten-Free Aloo Paratha from Hint of Saffron (recipe)
  10. Gluten-Free Pita Bread at Roti Mediterranean Grill (restaurant)
  11. Gluten-Free Scallion Pancakes at The Rice Barn (restaurant)
  12. Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies from Tate's Bakeshop (online)
  13. Gluten-Free Chocolate Babka at Blackbird Bakery (bakery)
  14. Gluten-Free American Apple Pie from Katz Gluten-Free (online store)
  15. Gluten-Free Boule from Glutinelle (online store)
  16. Gluten-Free Matzo Ball Soup from Elana's Pantry (recipe)
  17. Gluten-Free Birthday Cake at Pip's Gluten-Free Cakery (bakery)
  18. Gluten-Free Brioche French Toast from Better Batter (recipe)
  19. Gluten-Free Soup Dumplings from Delights and Delectables (recipe)
  20. Gluten-Free Beer from Bard's Tale Beer, Green's, New Planet, Redbridge, Celia Saison, and so many more
  21. Gluten-Free Spaghetti Cacio e Pepe at Casa Lever (restaurant)
  22. Gluten-Free Linguine con Vongele at Papazzio (restaurant)
  23. Gluten-Free Lasagna at Del Posto (restaurant)
  24. Gluten-Free Palmiers from Glutabye (online store)
  25. Gluten-Free Shortbread Cookies from Schar (online store)
  26. Gluten-Free Brownies from By the Way Bakery (bakery)
  27. Gluten-Free Pizza at Keste, Don Antonio by Starita, Pala Pizza, Risotteria, and that's just New York City! (restaurants)

What do you think readers? From this list, we don't look very deprived at all. I actually feel rather pleased that we do have all of these gluten-free options available to us! 

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9 Comments:

Blogger jervo said...

I'm very glad you took the high road on this, because my first reaction to that article was to want to punch the author in the face 27 times.

Anonymous Katherine said...

Some of the things on his list are rather unique. And the fact is I'm tired of baking anyway. I eat a lot of rice. I must enjoy rice, I have 8 varieties in my cupboard and a rice cooker full of ready-to-eat rice at all times.

But brownies? He has to eat the brownies with gluten in them? Because, why? There's like no difference between brownies with and without gluten.

And I have reacted to distilled spirits.

Blogger ackdavis said...

Bravo! Spot on, Erin. GF is a maintenance diet that's a healthy lifestyle for many, especially when it's a form of medicine for those of us truly gluten intolerant. Shame on anyone not supporting someone GF. Would they stuff salt onto one with heart problems or sugar on a diabetic?

Blogger ackdavis said...

Joe is ignorant about what gluten free involves or he could not display such emboldened ignorance in his column. As I scanned through his 27 reasons in pictures, it was obvious he does not recognize almost (I allow for recipes I have not made or tasted gluten free) every one of his menu items he lists as reasons not to be GF can be made gluten free simply by using GF ingredients. He speaks loudly as an example of those who do not understand what it means to be gluten free. Spot on, Erin. Thanks for speaking out for all of us. Many who are GF MUST be GF. Their other choice is to be sick most of the time. Who wants that?

I thought this was a great response, BUT—what would you have said if he were complaining about puff pastry or phyllo dough? Where's my gluten-free phyllo dough?! :)

Blogger Unknown said...

Amen Sista!! You are so right - he didn't do his research and needed a little help. I hope your response goes wide and far so people can quit being so scared of the words "Gluten Free".

Blogger Julie Rosenthal said...

Yes yes yes!!!!! I am so glad you wrote something! I tweeted my response on his obnoxious article based with zero gluten free accuracy and no response. His article was cocky and downright incorrect. Lots of my fb peeps are pissed. And rightfully so!!

Blogger cheryl said...

Oh, for heaven's sake! I have celiac disease and DH. So,Why do we need all those specialty stuff so we don't feel deprived? I don't feel the least deprived and I can go for weeks without touching a specialty product. How? Well, there's meat, fish, poultry, veggies, fruit, potatoes, beans, rice, dairy, eggs, nuts, peanut butter, homemade puddings and custards, flour-less cookies I can bake, canned goods of all sorts, foods that are GF at regular prices. I have a menu list of 31 meals only 3 of which require specialty foods (2 use pasta and one uses GF cornmeal for my cornbread). Let's hear it for eating plain ol' nutritious food.

Anonymous Maria said...

Great response! I still get fired up about this article. I hope he has accepted the opinions of others and has educated himself in the months since he first published it.

http://thegreatandpowerfulwife.wordpress.com/2014/03/25/a-response-to-mr-joe-satran-and-a-request-to-food-critics-everywhere/

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