Photo courtesy of Teri Lee Gruss
When I was growing up in a small town in the panhandle of Florida, the arrival of St. Patrick’s Day meant I had to wear green to school (or risk being pinched) and that we decorated home room doors with shiny cardboard shamrocks. That was about the extent of it. It was not until I moved to Atlanta that I found out St. Patrick’s day was a big holiday for many and that some places even had parades to celebrate it. Who knew that the first St. Patrick’s Day parade was in American and not Ireland? History.com is full of interesting details about this holiday.
The very first year I lived in Georgia, we went to Savannah for the holiday. The sleepy Southern town made famous by the book “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil” is arguably the location of the biggest St. Patty’s Day celebration in the Southeast. When the locals say they’re going to paint the town green, they are not kidding. Not only was the beer green, the river was green. They dumped coloring into it to make it so. The river there is kind of gray otherwise – not blue, green or even blue-green. At least it was the times I’ve been down there. Obviously, since my St. Patrick’s Day visit to Savannah was almost 30 years ago, I was not on the gluten-free diet. It would be interesting to know if they now have any gluten free beer available so that gluten-free folks can enjoy the celebration with the rest of the crowd.
During our last visit there, we discovered a lovely café (Gallery Espresso) that serves up fresh gluten-free pound cake and cheesecake daily. I didn’t find Savannah itself to be particularly gluten-free friendly in terms of gluten-free dining options, but I have been to Paula Deen’s restaurant, after all. Paula Deen was only famous in Savannah back then. Often times I’ve thought how it might be a great thing for our community if someone like Paula Deen had to start eating gluten-free. Don’t misunderstand me – I would not wish celiac on anyone but 1 in 100 Americans have it. IF someone like Paula Deen had it, it could benefit our community in a big way. You know that woman isn’t going without her fried chicken, buttermilk biscuits or macaroni and cheese. Paula would surely come up with some of the most amazing gluten-free dishes on the planet – or at least in the South where what flour still reigns supreme in so many restaurant kitchens – including hers.
For those of you looking for some tasty gluten-free St. Patty’s Day recipes, here are some that you might find interesting. I’ve not made any of them but might have to make some Irish soda bread one of these days.
It you want to enjoy an Irish coffee on St. Patty’s Day, make it with pure distilled Irish whisky. If the whisky is distilled and there are no flavors added to it, it is considered gluten-free. *
Let us know if you have a favorite gluten-free recipe to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day!
*References : Gluten-Free Diet: A Comprehensive Resource Guide.
Gluten-free Blueberry Pancakes
Since there are only two of us in the house, it never made sense to by multiple flours and make my own baking mix. Shortly after my celiac diagnosis, I purchased a gluten-free cookie mix and I’ve been using various mixes since then. Baking with gluten-free mixes for several people in a household – or an entire family – can get quite expensive. One of our readers inquired about gluten-free recipes for pancakes, white and chocolate cakes.
Below are some offerings I found from various websites and gluten-free blogs. For those who also like using mixes, I’m including some some products that make tasty gluten-free food. The product list is not conclusive and only includes mixes that I’ve personally tried and can vouch for. Obviously, I can not taste test every mix from every product line available.
Gluten-free Pancake Recipes:
Gluten-free Pancakes Mixes:
Gluten-Free Naturals, Pamela’s Products, Namaste, 123 Gluten Free, Orgran
Gluten-free Pineapple Upsidedown Cake
Gluten-free White Cake Recipes:
Gluten-free White (or yellow) Cake Mixes:
Gluten-free Naturals, Pamela’s Products, Gluten-free Pantry, Sylvan Border Farms (lemon pound cake), 123 Gluten Free, Betty Crocker
5 Minute Chocolate Cake
Gluten-free Chocolate Cake Recipes:
Gluten-free Chocolate Cake Mixes:
Pamela’s Products (sour cream version), Betty Crocker, Namaste (also makes excellent spice cake mix), Cherrybrook Kitchen, Bob’s Red Mill (we use chocolate milk and margarine for this mix)
Many gluten-free flours don’t have a very long shelf life and some go rancid much faster than wheat flour. For that reason, it’s important to contact the manufacturer of the products to find out how best to store them for longest shelf life. It’s fairly common for people to purchase too many gluten-free flours only to throw them out before using them up. Snapware containers are the best I’ve found to store flours and gluten-free snacks like crackers, pretzels and cookies. The largest size (sold at my Target) will store the entire 5 lb. bag of Jules Gluten Free flour. It took me just over three months to use that much flour and it never went rancid being stored in that container, in the pantry.
Since all gluten-free flours are not created equal, it’s smart to do some research to find out which products are the best suited to your tastes. Some flours are grittier than others and some products will say “finely ground” right on the package. Some people don’t care for bean flours in dessert recipes. For instance, the bean flour flavor in a chocolate cake tends to give way to the chocolate flavor. The same is usually not true of a white cake mix that contains bean flour. Everyone is different and has different taste. Check out this helpful information about gluten-free flours to learn more about the many types of flours out there.
When I was diagnosed with celiac disease, there were not that many places that had gluten-free menus. P.F. Chang’s was one place that did have one and for a long time, if I wanted to eat Chinese food out, it was my only option. We were never restaurant chain people are we still aren’t. However, all the gluten-free meals I’ve had at P.F. Chang’s were excellent and absolutely gluten-free.
With my favorite Chinese place being just around the corner, we don’t really go to P.F. Chang’s anymore, but it’s great that the chain recently responded to customer requests for more gluten-free options. According to this press release, the expanded gluten-free menu (click on Gluten-Free on this page to see full menu) rolled out this week. The new menu includes gluten-free fried rice and several other exciting entree items!
One of the best things that P.F. Changs does, that no other chain does to my knowledge, is serve the gluten-free meals on a special plate. It’s a different color than the “normal” plates and the P.F. Chang’s logo is on it. Therefore, it makes it easier to tell a gluten version of a dish from a gluten-free version. Gluten-free soy sauce looks exactly the same as gluten sauce when it’s out of the bottle, after all. Once the meals are prepared, it would be fairly hard to look at the dishes and determine which of them is the gluten-free meal.
The Chicken Lettuce Wraps are not a new menu item, but they are out of this world delicious. I’ve had people (who can eat gluten) tell me they can’t tell the difference between the gluten and gluten-free version of this dish. The only ingredient change is the soy sauce and that is true of many of the gluten-free dishes offered by P.F. Chang’s. Chocolate lovers might want to save room for the decadent GF Flourless Chocolate Dome. It’s one of the richest chocolate treats served in our area and glutenoids enjoy it as much as we do.
One word of caution about some of the locations of this chain that we have encountered in the Atlanta area. During extremely busy times the servers we’ve had seemed a bit overwhelmed when trying to accommodate gluten-free patrons. For example, the soy sauce that is always on the tables there is not gluten-free. Someone new to the restaurant that must eat gluten-free might or might not know this. Servers don’t always remember to tell the gluten-free guests not to use the table soy sauce. Upon request, gluten-free soy sauce can be brought out and it’s not in the same type of container as the table soy sauce that contains gluten.
This problem is not unique to P.F. Chang’s or chains in general, of course. Personally, we don’t like to eat out during peak busy times at any restaurant. The busier a place is, the more of a chance someone has to mess up my meal. We even plan vacations around not having to dine out on Saturday nights if we can help it. If we eat out on Friday night when traveling, we’ll go out super early in order to avoid my meal being messed up.
Thanks to P.F. Chang’s for listening to their customers and kicking their gluten-free menu up quite a notch! There are many locations of the chain listed in our Gluten-Free Restaurant Guide.
General Mills rolled out their gluten-free website, Live Gluten Freely, a couple of months ago. At that time, there were 200 products on the gluten-free list including, but not limited to, the gluten-free Betty Crocker mixes, some Progresso soups and Larabars. The company recently added several items to the gluten-free list, bringing the total to over 250 products!
The fact that Betty Crocker introduced gluten-free baking mixes might be the most exciting news since the introduction of gluten-free Chex cereals. However, the fact that 20 different flavors of Betty Crocker frostings are now labeled gluten-free is pretty great news for people that are not interested in making frosting from scratch. There are both “Rich & Creamy” and “Whipped” frosting versions available. Before I was diagnosed with celiac disease, I never made homemade frosting or baked much. When I found out that most canned frostings contained gluten in the form of wheat, I had a hard time believing it. Wheat in frosting?
So far, I’ve seen at least 10 flavors of the gluten-free labeled frostings on store shelves in my area. The Coconut Pecan version is much tastier than I expected it to be. Actually, since I had no choice for several years but to make my own frosting, I not only got used to making frostings, I actually enjoy it now. Nothing from a can is going to compete with homemade frostings, of course. Still, it’s nice to know that there are so many safe choices for ready-made frostings these days. From lemon to chocolate to strawberry to cream cheese – they’re all available gluten-free now!
Other additions to the General Mills line up are Valley Fresh Steamers from Green Giant and over 20 new flavors of Yoplait yogurt. That brings the total number of gluten-free yogurts to over 100. Remember when it was hard to get an answer about what yogurts were gluten-free? Unless it’s frozen and chocolate flavored, I don’t really care for yogurt, but I think I’m going to try something like “Key Lime Pie” or “Strawberry Shortcake” yogurt from Yoplait just for the heck of it. Oh the times they certainly are changing – indeed!
Some broths and soups were added to the Progresso gluten-free list, including “Chicken Rice with Vegetables” and “New England Clam Chowder”. There is no added MSG in the newly formulated soups and every type I’ve tried has been wonderful! The only item that is no longer on the General Mills gluten-free list is Strawberry Chex, which were discontinued due to poor sales. Some people in our area reported finding that cereal flavor but I never found it at any grocery or big box store. Personally, I think it hurts sales from mainstream consumers when companies splash “‘gluten-free” on the front of the box as was done with the Chex cereals. I know people that will not buy the cereal now, due to that term being in bold on the front of the box. Unfortunately, the misconception that gluten-free equals taste free is alive and well and probably will be for a while.
Gluten-free Turtle Brownies
Don’t forget about the gluten-free recipe page on the Live Gluten Freely website. They are always adding new recipes to use with their gluten-free Betty Crocker mixes and Chex cereals! Try this gluten-free turtle brownie recipe (made with the Betty Crocker Brownie Mix) for a truly decadent treat!
Special thanks to all the readers who left a comment on Kay’s post about the Live gluten Freely website, to encourage General Mills’ efforts to cater to our market!
Before I was living gluten-free I never made lasagna at home, ever. Once I started the gluten-free diet, I always yearned to order lasagna at Italian restaurants. When the gluten-free dinner club in our area had a gluten-free lasagna event, almost fifty people showed up – a record for the group at the time. Sugo hosted that dinner and it was a magical night, no doubt. Gluten-free lasagna is not on the Sugo menu but it was really amazing when they made it as a special for the group!
Even though it’s fairly difficult to find a place to dine out that offers gluten-free lasagna, making it at home is easier than you think. I use a basic recipe as a reference and sub Tinkyada pasta for the noodles. Most of the time I use ground turkey (no sausage) omit the eggs and dried spices, use both ricotta and cottage cheeses and use sauce from a jar that I doctor up a bit with the Italian Blend from Alchemy Spice. To save time, I boil water and pour it over dry uncooked noodles and soak them for 15 minutes. The noodles will finish cooking in the oven. Instead of following the baking instructions in the recipe (that I use more as a reference), I bake the lasagna at 350 for about an hour, covering with foil when the cheese starts to turn golden brown. Baking the dish for 30-45 minutes would not ensure the noodles would cook thoroughly, but you could always cook them ahead of time, of course.
Gluten-free lasagna recipes are plentiful on the web and it was hard to narrow the options down to list here.
At our house garlic bread goes with lasagna – always. Luckily, we usually have baguettes from Everybody Eats in the freezer. This is our favorite bread to make garlic bread with. It’s crusty on the outside and fluffy on the inside. Doesn’t sound like gluten-free bread, right? It’s not only gluten-free, it’s also amazingly delicious! People don’t usually believe the bread is as good as everyone says it is until they try it for themselves. It’s simply different – in a great way – than a lot of other gluten-free baguettes out there. In fact, it’s good enough to impress discriminating glutenoids!
The best gluten-free lasagna noodles that I’m aware are available in the U.S. are Tinkyada, though I’ve not looked for other versions in a while. Tinkyada is sold in many health food stores, some mainstream grocery stores and online at places like Amazon.com and The Gluten-Free Trading Company. Since the meat, sauce and cheese flavors overtake the actual taste of the pasta, gluten-free lasagna is one of the best things to serve a gluten eating crowd. Unless you tell people the dish is gluten-free, no one will be able to tell the difference between “normal” lasagna and a gluten-free version.
Check out Sarah’s post for even more tasty gluten-free lasagna recipes!
Recently, Shelley Case took the time to explain a lot of what was discussed at a very important celiac conference in Chicago. Shelley attended and spoke at the event last fall. If you missed the first installments on the topic, you can read about problems with the blood tests here and an update on biopsy issues here.
Enzyme supplement therapy was discussed and it seems to be a somewhat promising treatment for celiac. Presently, there is no substantial evidence that one could use such a treatment and order a large pepperoni pizza from Dominos. It might end up being more of a cross contamination protection type therapy instead of a magic celiac pill. The same can be said of some other drugs being tested to treat the condition. Many people are hoping for a much more impressive treatment – one that will allow them to consume a “normal” diet again.
The detoxification of wheat was a topic at the conference. Just as wheat was modified to be different than the wheat of our ancestors, some scientists believe that it might be possible for wheat to be redesigned to the point that it would be considered gluten-free. The problem with this idea is that the properties of gluten, what makes it so great in baked goods, would likely also not be present in modified wheat. By the time gluten-free wheat becomes available (if it ever does), food manufacturers will have perfected baking with gluten-free grains. Many smaller companies have unlocked the secret to baking exceptional tasting foods without gluten so it’s only a matter of time before the bug guns in the food manufacturing game do the same.
When gluten should be introduced to infants at risk of developing celiac disease is being studied, but the results of the long term study won’t be ready for quite a while. In the meantime, here is what is believed about the issue presently (that was discussed at the conference).
- Breastfeeding is likely to reduce the risk of celiac disease and/or to delay its onset and influence the presenting symptoms.
- Introduction of gluten during breastfeeding reduces the risk of celiac disease and/or significantly delays its onset.
- Celiac disease children who were not breast-fed at the time of gluten introduction during infancy seem to be more likely to develop typical gastrointestinal symptoms.
- Early (less than 3 months of age) introducing gluten increases the risk of celiac disease.
- Introduction of “large amounts” of gluten increases the risk of celiac disease.
Shelley reports that “a large multicenter trial in the US is currently being planned aimed at understanding the role of infant nutrition and environmental factors on the development of celiac disease in at risk infants ( those with a family history of celiac disease)”. For more information on this topic, check out the Canadian Celiac Association’s views here.
One of the most exciting things Shelley mentioned is that non celiac gluten sensitivity is finally being looked at by celiac experts. For years many people in the medical community didn’t believe that such a condition even existed. Finally, there is a discussion about it and doctors are looking into how it differs from celiac disease. It is not presently believed that non celiac gluten sensitivity left untreated will result in the same complications of celiac disease, including but not limit to certain cancers. However, the investigation on the issue is just beginning in earnest. Who knows what researchers will find out about the non celiac condition.
It seems clear that strides are being made in the medical community regarding testing, diagnosing and treating celiac disease. They are probably not changing fast enough for a lot of us, but change is slow in any industry. If the general mindset about celiac disease in the medical community changes substantially in the next ten years, it will be a great accomplishment. I routinely hear stories of patients being told quite recently that celiac is extremely rare and affects about 1 in 5000 people. The condition actually affects almost 1 in 100 people so there is a lot of work to be done to re-train untold numbers of misinformed doctors on the realities of celiac disease.
Special thanks to Shelley Case for taking the time to share this most interesting information with me so I could share it with our readers. Shelley’s newest book edition is now available for those in need of learning the many intricacies of the gluten-free diet.
Kettle Cuisine Chicken Chili
Trouble finding gluten free soup? When someone first starts the gluten-free diet, something that usually surprises them is the fact that most mainstream soups contain gluten in the form of wheat. At one time Campbell’s said about five of their soups were gluten-free, but these days they won’t confirm the few that are made without gluten ingredients are gluten-free, due to the way they are made. Some Swanson broths (made by Campbell’s) are gluten-free. If you would like to see some gluten-free soups offered by Campbell’s, consider calling the company to let them know. The toll free number is 1-800-257-8443. You can also contact them via their website here.
Up until recently, many Progresso soups also contained gluten, thought that seems to be changing since the company introduced their new Live Gluten Freely website a while back. The growing list of gluten-free soups is now up to 14. The Chicken with Rice and Vegetables is wonderful and the delicious Chicken Cheese Enchilada soup is very versatile. The Creamy Mushroom soup from Progresso has been gluten-free for a long time and now it’s finally labeled as such.
Here are some of the product lines that make gluten-free soup. Some are labeled as such and some are not. As always, people need to choose the products that they feel comfortable consuming. I’ve had gluten-free offerings from all the lines and am thrilled to have so many soup options these days.
- Amy’s Kitchen - gluten-free options are labeled as such.
- Bear Creek – manufacturer does not label gluten-free options but at last check.
- Fantastic World Foods – some soup cups from this line are labeled gluten-free.
- Frontier Soups – gluten-free options are labeled as such
- Imagine – gluten-free options are labeled as such; over 20 gluten-free soups/broths available from this line.
- Kettle Cuisine – ALL 10 soups in the line are gluten-free; some are also dairy-free.
- Pacific Natural Foods – gluten-free options are labeled as such; over 30 gluten-free soups/broths available from this line.
- Progresso – gluten-free options are labeled as such.
- Thai Kitchen – gluten-free options are labeled as such; company makes instant rice noodle soup mixes and many are also dairy-free.
Fantastic World Foods makes soup cups which are great for travel, though there are only a few that are gluten-free. The Potato Leek soup cup is pretty good and all you need is a microwave, water and a spoon to have hot soup in about five minutes. The Kettle Cuisine soups are in the freezer and take 4-6 minutes to cook in the microwave. The Chicken Chili is my favorite from that line. The gluten-free soups and broths from Progresso are clearly labeled now and there is no added MSG in the products either.
For the more ambitious people out there who like to make their own home made soups, here are a few interesting soup recipes we found in the gluten-free blogosphere:
Even though we enjoyed temperatures of over 60 degrees last weekend, the cold weather has returned and it’s likely we have a good month (or more) before soup season is over here. While soup can be enjoyed all year long, when it’s 95 in Hotlanta with 80% humidity – and it’s not raining – the last thing I’m interested in eating is piping hot soup.
UPDATE: Thanks to Brook for sending us this information about Health Valley Soups. It appears the manufacturer no longer states some of their soups are gluten-free. Therefore I have removed them for the safe soup list above. It sure would be nice if we had a gluten-free labeling law in this country! Alert from Clan Thompson’s website: http://www.celiacsite.com/res_news_alerts.php3
There are almost 30 companies that make gluten-free soup, soup mixes and stews listed in the Triumph Dining Gluten-Free Grocery Guide. Let us know if your favorite soup isn’t listed above.
Reading labels is important. Companies often change their recipes or manufacturing methods. It’s a sad day indeed when something we thought was gluten-free turns out to contain gluten.
But then there are those occasions where the opposite occurs, like with Oikos yogurt from Stoneyfield. At press time for the third edition of the Essential Gluten-Free Grocery Guide, Stoneyfield’s gluten-free list stated it was NOT GF. (Our editors suspect it was GF all along. Perhaps they did not want to state as such until they had time to complete GF testing, but we were unable to get the complete scoop from the company.) But now the results of testing are in and, as many customers in the dairy section have been happy to find, we now know that Oikos does not contain gluten! But with all of the yogurts out there, how does Oikos compare?
I’m a bit of a yogurt fiend, so I was happy to investigate for Triumph Dining when Stoneyfield offered us samples.
Oikos is a Greek yogurt, so don’t expect the semi-liquid texture of the average American yogurt. This stuff has a thick, almost chunky texture similar to cream cheese. Greek yogurt has more protein than regular yogurts and is very healthy. Oikos is also fat-free.
I tend to prefer plain yogurts, and I was happy to find that even the flavored options (like blueberry, honey and vanilla) let the yogurt taste shine through. For a fantastic breakfast, exercise recovery snack, or dessert option, I recommend mixing in your favorite gluten-free cereal, chunks of fruit, or some dark chocolate chips.
But Oikos yogurt can be the star at dinner as well. Add garlic, mint, and grated cucumber to plain Oikos, and you’ve got gluten-free Tzatziki sauce. Make it a gyro night with gluten-free pita bread and your choice of meat and toppings. Who needs take out?
Another great gluten-free Greek-style yogurt is Chobani. Kay buys hers at Costco for less than a $1 a package.
Granted, both brands are a little pricer than regular yogurts, but the high-protein content makes it a cheap, filling snack.
Redbridge gluten-free beer is made by Anheiser-Busch. It was introduced in late 2006 in certain markets and available nationwide in the Spring of 2007. In most markets, Redbridge was the only gluten-free beer game in town and therefore was fairly well received by the gluten-free consumer market in the U.S. Bard’s Tale gluten-free beer captured a much smaller percentage of the market but that’s mostly due to the fact that unlike Redbridge, Bard’s Tale was not widely available. In late 2008, Bard’s Tale became available in the Atlanta market and sales really took off. Bard’s Tale is sold in Whole Foods stores in the area and served at several Atlanta area restaurants.
Last month rumors started up about the possibility that Redbridge was being discontinued, but Anheiser-Busch stated (and continues to state) that there are no plans to discontinue the beer at this time. Please note that historically, Anheiser-Busch has not shouted from the rooftops when they have chosen to discontinue any products. No companies do that because they want all the existing products to sell out of the market and much product is often in the market place long after a product has been discontinued. Only time will tell what the real deal is with Redbridge. Maybe it’s here to stay and maybe not.
In the Southeast, Publix is a major player in the mainstream grocery store business, with over 1000 stores in five states. Each January, the company redesigns the massive beer display in their stores and the 2010 line up does not include Redbridge. The sales were not there to support the shelf space so Redbridge, the only gluten-free beer sold at Publix, didn’t make the grade. Once Bard’s Tale was available here, many people spent the extra money to buy it over Redbridge, even though most people live closer to a Publix than a Whole Foods store – currently the only place to purchase Bard’s Tale except for restuarants. On average, a six-pack of Bard’s Tale costs $2.50 more than Redbridge.
After not being able to find Redbridge at any Publix in my area for almost two months, and hearing complaints that others could not find it either, I finally spoke to the manager of a store near me to find out exactly what the deal was. As I expected, he confirmed that Redbridge did not sell well enough to continue to be kept on the shelf at Publix. This is a corporate wide decision – no Publix stores are stocking Redbridge with chilled beer now. However, customers can contact the manager of their store and request the product be brought in just for them. That is, it can be brought in as long as the local distributor carries it and the manufacturer makes it. Publix carries Woodchuck cider and all the flavors in that line are gluten-free.
Whole Foods stores here sell Bard’s Tale, Greens (from Belgium) and New Grist gluten-free beer. Kroger reports that they carry Redbridge in their stores presently. No company should continue making a product that they aren’t making money on, and no store should have to sell something that’s not profitable for them. Companies are not making gluten-free products to “be nice” to gluten-free consumers. Like any business, manufacturers are only interested in making profitable products. Retailers are interested in selling products they can make a decent profit on and the products have to turn quickly enough to justify the shelf space they take up.
Unfortunately, Redbridge might end up falling into the category of failed gluten-free products. Redbridge is considered by some people to be the “Budweiser” of all gluten-free beers, but it’s the only one available in many markets. For that reason, it will really be unfortunate if the product ends up disappearing from all store shelves eventually. Let us know if you like Redbridge, or if you prefer other gluten-free beer brands.
Sweet potatoes are one of the healthiest things we can eat. The mighty sweet potato is by far the healthiest potato in existence. They are loaded with protein, fiber, calcium and potassium – among other things. During the holidays we always had candied yams that my Grandmother made. The dish was syrupy, buttery and decadent. When you pulled the leftovers out of the fridge you could see the butter congealed. Over twenty years ago, I spent Christmas with my now husband’s family and we had sweet potato casserole. It was so delicious that I didn’t mind not having my traditional sweet potato dish of candied yams at all. To this day I’ve not made the casserole myself, but get to enjoy it when my sister-in-law makes it during the holidays.
