If you’re in Seattle and a baseball fan, get pumped. We’ve been hearing a lot of talk recently about MLB stadiums serving gluten-free concessions – there’s the Mets’ CitiField in New York, Nationals Park in DC, and a handful of other ballparks now catering to their gluten-free fans. Tomorrow, for one night only, add the Seattle Mariners to the list of gluten-free friendly major league baseball teams.

On Tuesday, August 31^st, for their game against the LA Angels, the Mariners and Safeco Field will be offering a full gluten-free menu, including hot dogs on gluten-free buns and Redbridge beer, at the concession stand near Section 347.

And that’s not all! Gluten-free ticket prices have been slashed! Tickets for the special gluten-free section are just $11, down from the regular section price of $20.

So, take me out to the ballgame, take me out to the crowd….buy me some gluten-free concessions – because you can!

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Image Courtesy of http://annmah.net/2007/12/07/five-items-porcupine-meatballs/, where you can find another GF meatball recipe.

The first thing that comes to my mind when I think of gluten-free meatballs is gluten-free spaghetti. And, after thinking really hard for something clever to say about spaghetti, all I can come up with is that horrible camp song, “On top of spaaaagheeeetti, all covered with cheeeeeese/I lost my poor meeeeaaatbaaaall…” The song where every stretch of vowels is as long as your list of symptoms before you started your gluten-free diet. Gluten-free spaghetti is a funny food: it’s slimy and dangly, and supposedly you can squirt it out your nose. Gluten-free meatballs are not as funny, but then again, I’ve never seen that movie…Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (I know, I’ve failed my inner child).

Making basic gluten-free meatballs is pretty easy. It’s not like bread, where you have to reconfigure all the ingredients and then watch it all fall over and sink under in a soggy mess a few times before you get it right. All you have to do is find a decent replacement for breadcrumbs.

Michelle and our readers came up with some great ideas for breadcrumb alternatives in her gluten-free meatloaf recipe: make your own by cutting up gluten-free bread or use quinoa flakes, chia, ground flax, cereal crumbs from Chex and corn flakes, or crumbled tortilla chips.

The Grocery Guide, which lists 11 different brands that sell various types of gluten-free bread crumbs, says that Hol-Grain and Ener-G make gluten-free bread crumbs if you would like to buy premade bread crumbs.

This is a classic meatball recipe adapted from Blog Chef.

Meatballs: Easily Made Gluten-Free!

Ingredients:

1 ½ lbs lean beef or pork

¼ cup parmesan cheese

1 large slightly beaten egg

½ cup gluten-free breadcrumbs (or alternatives from above)

2 tbsp minced garlic

2 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

½ cup milk

1 tsp dried oregano

2 tsp dried parsley

• Preheat oven to 350ºF
• Mix all ingredients in a large bowl.
• Shape mixture into small- or medium-sized meatballs (about 2”)
• Place meatballs on a baking sheet
• Bake for 25 minutes.

And, since you’re a Gluten-Free Champion of the World (Yes, you have to deal with the gluten-free diet – Every. Single. Day. You get to be a champion), you’ll also need several options for serving your meatballs:

1. On top of spaaaagheeeeeetti…gluten-free spaghetti, of course.
2. Skip the pasta and serve the meatballs with rice and tomato sauce.
3. Skip the pasta AND the rice, and serve it as a meat dish to go along with some vegetables.
4. Make a meatball sandwich using gluten-free bread, slices of parmesan cheese, and tomato sauce.

So, how do you make your meatballs?

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Oh, the delicious face of modern America: TV, maybe a Playstation, kids running around, just back from hockey practice or piano lessons, and of course, the time crunch. Too much to do in too little time. A possible, partial solution, as offered by 1950s post-war culture? The microwavable meal. All I can say is, my stomach’s not exactly grumbling for a soggy peas-and-carrots mixture. But there is something to be said for microwavable meals, even if it’s only, “They’re so eeeasy. And quick.” We don’t always have time to cook start-to-finish meals. (So sue us! We’re busy!) And, to be fair, many microwavable meals are now reasonably healthy and flavorful. Of course, the problem is with brands like Lean Cuisine or Healthy Choice is that many of them also contain gluten or cannot be guaranteed to be gluten-free because of the high risk of cross-contamination.

But!

Some dedicated gluten-free companies are working to make gluten-free microwavable meals for the gluten-free community. Ian’s Natural Foods makes a wide selection of gluten-free frozen meals from French Toast Sticks to a Chicken Finger Kids Meal. Contessa makes Paella, Jambalaya, and various shrimp meals, all gluten-free. Other facilities, like Empire Kosher or Bell and Evans, are not dedicated gluten-free but still work to provide gluten-free microwavable meal starters. According to the Grocery Guide, there are at nearly forty brands that make gluten-free microwave meals or sides!

If your supermarket doesn’t carry gluten-free ready-made meals, or the prices are more than your monthly budget, OR if you just want something a tiny bit closer to homemade, you can make your own microwave meal. You can cook nearly anything in a in your microwave in a time comparable to many store brand microwavable meals. Want proof?

The following recipes come from the 2005 The Microwave Convection Oven Cookbook from General Electric.

Acorn Squash with Cranberry Filling

Ingredients:

2 medium acorn squash (about 2 lbs)

1 16-oz can whole cranberry sauce

1 tbsp honey

3 tsp Allspice (If you’re unsure about finding a gluten-free allspice, you can either check the Grocery Guide or just substitute your favorite spices that you know are gluten-free. One of my favorite combinations is cinnamon, brown sugar, and nutmeg.)

• Prick squash several times with a fork to allow steam to escape during cooking.
• Place on a microwavable plate or tray and microwave at HIGH 15-20 minutes until soft when pricked with a fork. At 9 minutes, turn squash over and finish cook time. Let stand 5 minutes.
• Cut each squash in half and remove seeds. Place cut side up in a 10-inch pie plate.
• In a small bowl, combine cranberry sauce, honey, and spices. Spoon into squash halves.
• Microwave at HIGH 4 to 5 minutes until heated through.

Baked Fish with Cheese

Ingredients:

1 lb fish fillets (whatever is on sale)

1 tbsp tarragon

½ tsp sea salt

2 tbsp butter

¼ cup sour cream

1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

Arrange fish in a 2-quart oblong glass baking dish. Sprinkle with tarragon and seasoned salt. Dot with butter; cover with wax paper. Microwave at HIGH 2 to 3 minutes. Combine sour cream and cheese; spread on fish. Cover with wax paper and microwave at HIGH 2 to 3 minutes more until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.

Of course, keep in mind that microwaves, like kids and pets, all have their own temperament and “high.” Keep an eye on your foods to make sure they aren’t, you know, on fire.

How many times a week do you cook dinner in your microwave?

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The website slogan for Moore’s Marinades & Sauces is “Meat Lovers Love Moore’s,” which makes me their target audience. What can I say, I enjoy my proteins way more than I should. So when Moore’s sent us some free samples of their gluten-free marinades and sauces, I took it as the perfect excuse to cook up some steak, chicken, and wings (but not all on the same night!). How did Moore’s gluten-free products fare with this meat lover?

Moore’s Original Marinade

I love that this marinade only takes half an hour – no need to soak my steak overnight! It’s a very thin marinade, so it seeps into the meat easily. One confusing point: Although the packaging alleged that the marinade is now made with less sodium, it tasted very salty. And upon inspection of the label, I noticed that one tablespoon of the marinade accounts for 29% of your daily sodium. I like salt, so I enjoyed my steak nonetheless, but next time I would not add any extra salt to the meat, only cracked pepper. Aside from the saltiness, the marinade had a light hickory flavor which complemented the steak well.

Moore’s Honey BBQ Wing Sauce

Let me just go out and say it: Moore’s Honey BBQ Wing Sauce is one of the best wings sauces I’ve ever had. And I’ve eaten a LOT of wings. The sauce perfectly balances a spicy kick with a sweet sticky flavor, just how I like it. This sauce definitely leaves a slow (but not too intense) burn on your tongue after eating. But this is me talking, and I can’t handle any salsa hotter than mild, so don’t fear – this is not an alarm-bell hot sauce. It also glazed up beautifully during broiling. I was going to save half of my wings  for lunch the next day…  but I ended up eating them all before I went to bed (whoops).

Moore’s Teriyaki Marinade

The Teriyaki Marinade was also quite good. The bottle said it could be used on vegetables, so I threw the marinade on some zucchini, as well as chicken breast. This marinade was thicker than the Original Marinade, but like the Original Marinade, it needed only 30 minutes of marinade time, which was really convenient. The marinade had a classic teriyaki flavor which I especially enjoyed on my zucchini!

Overall, I really enjoyed Moore’s marinades and sauces, and I especially recommend the Honey BBQ Wing Sauce. Their GF products include the Original Marinade, the Teriyaki Marinade, the Honey BBQ Wing Sauce, and the Buffalo Wing Sauce. All of the GF products are clearly marked “Gluten Free” on the packaging, so there’s no second guessing. You can visit Moore’s website at www.mooresmarinade.com.

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Courtesy of www.history.org.

Everybody likes a little bit of history with their dinner…sometimes.

And sometimes, it seems that Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia is filled with actors speaking in dubious colonial accents and tourists asking directions from the College of William & Mary’s freshmen (mistake, may I say, especially in August), but it is nevertheless one of America’s most beautiful towns. Springtime is my favorite season in Williamsburg because foxgloves and tulips constantly bloom along white picket fences, but the end of summer and fall are just as beautiful, with colorfully blossomed trees and late-burning lanterns. A living monument, Colonial Williamsburg boasts museums, performances, and, of course, tavern fare.

Interest in Colonial Williamsburg has picked up in the past couple months due to an increased interest in revolutionary history (believe it or not!). Your kitchen can take a tip from history and Williamsburg’s firebrand flavor, too. To demonstrate, I’ve assembled this 3-course supper from 1981’s The Williamsburg Cookbook, published by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation. For most authentic (and quaint) results, serve your meal with a mug of warm apple cider.

Appetizer:  Cristiana Campbell’s Tavern Cabbage Slaw

Seated a little beyond the Capitol building, the Cristiana Campell’s Tavern is best known for its seafood, but this gluten-free slaw goes well with any type of dish.

1 large (2-2½ lbs) head firm cabbage

1 tbsp red pepper, diced

1 tbsp green pepper, diced

½ cup cider vinegar

½ cup vegetable oil

2 tsp sugar

1 ½ tsp salt

¼ tsp white pepper

¼ tsp celery seed

• Remove the hard core from the cabbage head and discard it. Shred the cabbage.
• Add the diced red and green pepper.
• Combine the vinegar, oil, and seasonings and pour over the cabbage. Toss lightly.

Main Course:  Crabmeat Ravigote

Although often an appetizer, the ravigote makes nice light meal.

1 lb regular crabmeat

¼ cup tarragon vinegar

3 tbsp pimiento (small, sweet red pepper), drained and chopped

2 tbsp chives, snipped

2 tbsp sweet pickle relish

2/3 cup mayonnaise, divided

Salt and pepper to taste

Cleaned crab shells or lettuce (optional; for serving)

Capers (optional; According to the Grocery Guide, B&G makes a gluten-free version)

Pimiento (whole)

• Pick over the crabmeat and discard any bits of shell or cartilage; marinate in the vinegar for 15 minutes.
• Drain the crabmeat and add the chopped pimiento, chives, relish, ½ cup of mayonnaise, and salt and pepper to taste.
• Divide the mixture evenly into 6 cleaned crab shells or crisp lettuce cups/leaves; shape into domes.
• Spread with a thin coating of the remaining mayonnaise.
• Sprinkle some well-drained capers over the top and garnish with the pimiento.
• Serve very cold.

Desssert:  Fresh Strawberry Mousse from the Luxurious Williamsburg Inn

This dessert was served in honor of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip when they visited in 2009.

1 pint strawberries (or 2 10-oz packages frozen strawberries. Omit the sugar if frozen berries are used)

2 3-oz packages strawberry gelatin

¼ cup sugar

1 pint whipping cream

• Crush the strawberries and drain the juice; reserve. Add enough water to the juice to make 1 ½ cups.
• Bring the juice to a boil and stir in the gelatin; dissolve and cool.
• Add the strawberries and sugar.
• Whip the cream until it stands in soft peaks and fold it into the strawberry mixture.
• Pour the mixture into a 2-quart ring mold or a 1 ½-quart soufflé dish with a 2-inch collar. (Or if you don’t need the fancy shape, a bowl will do.)
• Chill several hours or overnight.

www.history.org

Ever been to Colonial Williamsburg? Do you have any other old-fashioned recipes for us to try? Please share!

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To those of you who bought our new restaurant guide, thank you. And I hope it’s treating you well. Are you drowning in options? Are you blissfully distracted by shiny flashy visions of 6,800 gluten-free restaurants and 120 gluten-free lists and menus from major chain restaurants? Have you found the courage yet to branch out, live a little further toward the edge, eat somewhere new? Do tell us – how do you like your experience?

If we didn’t convince you last week that this tool will change your gluten-free life (for the better, the much better, for the best), well, I do apologize for not being clear. This tool will change your gluten-free life (for the best). And if numbers (numbers like 6,800 and 120) don’t convince you, here are five (oops…some) more reasons to try it out:

1. People. Certainly you have people who matter to you. And almost as certainly, not all of those people eat gluten-free. They don’t want to dine out at the restrictive vegan restaurant two hours away (although those meals are sometimes surprisingly tasty), and, if they care about you, they probably don’t want to go out to a restaurant just to watch you eat a plain baked potato. So get the guide, open it up, and find out where you and your loved ones can eat together and happily. Very happily.
2. Travel. That business trip to Chicago. The hiking extravaganza outside of Boulder. Driving twelve hours up the coast to help your 18-year-old move into a college dorm. Any of these can be daunting when you’re gluten-free. But gluten-free does NOT mean you have to forfeit the business contract, watch the new season of Man Vs. Wild instead of experiencing You Vs. Wild, or fight with your new-adult daughter over dining options, just moments before you leave her alone for the first time. With gluten-free restaurants in all 50 states, you’ll find something for everyone, and you’ll find it everywhere.
3. Choices. You like your freedom, so reclaim it. Choose where you dine out rather than letting your gluten-free diet dictate where you eat. This guide gives you 6,800 choices – that’s almost 18 restaurants per day for a whole year! You’ll never make it to them all, so take this opportunity to take back your freedom and choose where you eat.
4. Time. Sometimes you just can’t sift through pages of Yelp results, or take the time to have an in-depth discussion with a chef to really make sure he or she knows everything necessary about gluten-free. When making this guide, we did that for you! And then we wrote it down, and we organized it by state, so your research is quick and easy. Even at restaurants that don’t have gluten-free menus or gluten-free specialty items, you’ll find that your ordering process takes half as long – because we’ve already checked to make sure these people know what they’re talking about when it comes to gluten-free.
5. FREE SHIPPING. Oops, sorry, this reason is a repeat from last week. But it’s probably important enough to list twice. In fact, I’m sure of it. Because this deal is good only until next Wednesday, August 25^th. Save by ordering soon! And, you can apply the free shipping to your whole order, so your grocery guide and dining cards will be sent for free, too. Just use COUPON CODE MK958BL.

So come on, open up your gluten-free world. Give the Restaurant Guide a try. If you don’t like it, we’ll take it back. Guaranteed.

Psst! Do you want the numbers but missed last week’s post? Check it out.

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Just the name “potato chips” is a beacon of hope for those with Celiac who constantly crave salty snack foods. Made of crunchy fried goodness, potato chips were invented in 1853 by chef George Crum, who made them one day to spite a customer’s complaints about being served soggy potatoes. Today, chips are one food that, thankfully, come in many easy-to-find, gluten-free iterations. And almost all of them are available at your local grocery store (yes, even if its not a Whole Foods or other specialty store)! Here are a few of the best brands of readily available gluten-free chips around (keep in mind that there are many more where these came from in The Essential Gluten-free Grocery Guide):

Lay’s Gluten-Free Potato Chips. When most of us think of potato chips, Lay’s is the first to come to mind. Lucky for you, most flavors of these classic potato chips are gluten-free according to the Lay’s website. Gluten-free flavors include but are not limited to: Balsamic Sweet Onion, Cajun Herb & Spice, Cheddar & Sour Cream, Chile Limon, Classic, Dill Pickle, Garden Tomato & Basil, Hot & Spicy Barbecue, Light Original, Lightly Salted, and Kettle Cooked Sea Salt & Vinegar.

Kettle Brand Gluten-Free Chips. If you’re looking for a gourmet step up from Lay’s, check out any one

of Kettle Brand’s potato chips, which are processed in a gluten-free environment, free of all risk of cross-contamination. Kettle takes pride in using natural ingredients, making chips with absolutely no trans fats, and avoiding the use of GMO’s, or genetically modified foods. Flavors include Sweet Onion, Sea Salt & Vinegar, Tuscan, Honey Dijon, and more.

Food Should Taste Good Gluten-Free Tortilla Chips. Here at Triumph Dining, we couldn’t agree more! As it turns out, all this company’s chips are certified gluten-free by the Gluten Free Certification Organization. Examples include the Sweet Potato (enhanced by a hint of cane sugar), Jalapeno, and even Multigrain (made with flax, sunflower, and sesame seeds, in addition to

quinoa and other gluten-free grains).

Any Brand: Pure Corn Tortilla Chips are naturally gluten-free! You’ve got a good dip, but you need a good chip. And Triumph Dining’s choice for best gluten-free corn chip is:

Tostitos Natural Blue Corn (Naturally Gluten-Free)Tortilla Chips! Put them in some guacamole or fiesta dip (see recipe below) and crunch, crunch, crunch away. We love the wholesome taste of these blue chips as a side dish, for nachos, or for light snacking.

Bonus Recipe! Gluten-Free Fiesta Dip:

It’s simple, easy, and will keep you snacking all day long. Spread a layer of sour cream over a platter. Then, spread a layer of salsa over the sour cream. Next, sprinkle copious amounts of cheddar cheese over it all, and stick it in the oven until the cheese melts. The result is a dip so delicious that you won’t be able to leave it alone. Grab those gluten-free chips, because that dip isn’t going to eat itself!

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And, if you order by August 25th, you can get free shipping, too! Just use coupon code MK958BL when ordering.

Whether you’ve already owned The Essential Gluten-Free Restaurant Guide or not, now’s your chance to buy the biggest, best version yet. We’ve added just a slew of restaurants located all over the country, and we’ve even added 50% more chain menus.

Why try the new guide? We’ve got at least five (spectacular and gluten-free) reasons:

1. MORE Choices. We added 1,511 new restaurants to this edition. Over 800 of these additions have gluten-free menus or gluten-free specialty items (think pizza, muffins, CUPCAKES, and more!). That makes over 6,500 total restaurants for you to choose from!
2. Covers All 50 States. Live in North Dakota or Oklahoma and think this guide might not quite be for you? Think again! We worked hard to get even broader coverage of the whole US. Heck, we found 13 gluten-free restaurants in Bozeman, Montana. Just imagine how many we found in your neck of the woods.
3. Even More Gluten Free Lists. There are now over 120 gluten-free menus from the nation’s most popular chain restaurants. Find gluten-free lists for Wendy’s, Chili’s, Panera, and many more!
4. Hassle-Free Money Back Guarantee. We’ve been in business since 2005, and we’ve sold tens of thousands of guides. We take our jobs seriously, and it shows. Give the 5^th Edition of our Restaurant Guide a try. If it’s not the best gluten-free resource you’ve purchased, we’ll take it back. No questions asked.
5. Free Shipping! You can get in on this deal until 8/25. Just use coupon code MK958BL.

Enough for you? Go here to get the new guide now! And enjoy!

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