New gluten free book for kids!

I had the pleasure of meeting local NJ author Heather Spergel at the last meeting of the gluten free support group that meets at the Fine Grind in Little Falls.  She had brought along an advanced copy of her new children's book "Free to be . . . Gluten-Free!".  It's the story of a young boy who becomes ill, deals with the 'gluten monster' and then recovers.  I won't review the book here as I'm a bit too old (it's for kids) and sadly have no children of my own. 

I will however point out some of the highlights of the book.  First, the little boy in the book has a multitude of different gluten related symptom making it much more likely that a gluten free child will find at least one to relate to.  So many other books are specific only to Celiac disease or digestive issues.  Second, there are a number of gluten free recipes in the back of the book (especially useful to those just starting out) as well as other strategies for transitioning to gluten free.  Third, Heather wrote not just about the physical and mental symptoms of gluten issues but the emotional issues of having to eat differently from everyone else.  And, finally, the author, her son and her daughter are all gluten free with a multitude of different symptoms so she's writing from a world of experience.

The book is due out in June and Heather will be making a couple of local appearances including a Mommy and Me Story time at Whole Foods in West Orange (June 19, 11:30am), a meet and great + story time at Barnes and Nobles in Livingston (June 22, 12pm) and another at the Fine Grind Coffee Bar in Little Falls (June 29, 12pm).  [A full list of future and other appearances are on her website here.]

You can get a copy of the book (once released) at the Livingston Barnes and Nobles, or your local book store can order it for you from their distributors.  If you can't find it locally (or don't have a local bookstore to order it for you) you can order it online from Amazon.com.

Product Review: Gluten Free 'Pop Tarts' (dairy free too, contains egg)

I was fairly excited to hear that Glutino would be producing a gluten free toaster pastry (gluten free 'pop tart') and even more excited when I saw them at my local Whole Foods.  (Yes, Eco Planet makes a 'pop tart' style gf toaster pastry as well but I've yet to find them nearby.)  Due to trademark issues, Glutino can't call them a pop tart (since that is Kellogg's brand name) but it is obvious from the shape of the pastry and the box that that is what these are meant to replace.

Glutino's new gluten free toaster pastry - apple cinnamon

While I ate Kellogg's pop-tarts as a kid, I had long lost interest in them before I went gluten free.  I did however sometimes still have a Pillsbury Toaster Strudel.  I mention this because I found that Glutino's gf/df toaster pastries were a nice cross between the two.  They were actually quite a bit more flakey than a poptart but firmer than a toaster strudel.  The kid in me missed the hard icing on the outside (or the icing bag that comes with toaster strudel) but I suspect Glutino was going for a 'healthier' product.  (There is added sugar but it is quite a way down the ingredients list.)

These gluten free toaster pastries come five to a box (individually wrapped) and were $4.99 which price-wise isn't bad for a gluten free product.  They offer both strawberry and apple cinnamon.  The box recommends toasting on the lowest setting (the crust will brown quite a bit if you don't) or microwaving for only a couple of seconds (didn't try the microwave yet).

Overall, they were quite good and I'll definitely buy them again!

Update 5/1/13 - if you can't find them locally, these are now available in cases of six at amazon.com: Glutino Toaster Pastries(but they are quite expensive and require paying for shipping).


If you're looking for other Gluten Free Product Reviews try:

Kinnikinnick Gluten Free Donuts

Gluten Free Rice Krispies

Product Review: Luce's Gluten Free Bread Mixes

I first met Charles Luce a couple of years ago at a Celiac Disease support group meeting.  That evening he was giving a talk on the techniques he had perfected for making a sour dough starter for gluten free sour dough bread (traditionally, sour dough starter is grown in a mixture of wheat flour).  He had brought along numerous loaves of fresh baked gluten free sour dough breads in various flavors.  These breads were good, hearty, crusty breads that didn't fall apart and are sorely lacking on the gluten free market.  He couldn't cut the sample loaves fast enough when it came time to try them!

Luce's Gluten Free Sour Dough
and Gluten Free Italian Breads

I next saw Charles at a gluten free dinner in Jersey City at Uno's Chicago Grill. At this point he was starting to work on pre-made mixes of his breads that you would bake at home.  He had brought along some test samples that we enjoyed with dinner and chatted about the hurdles of getting a gluten free business off the ground.

Well, I'm thrilled to announce that that business has now taken off.  Charles was at last night's Northern NJ Celiac Disease Meetup sampling his breads and selling mixes.  So far he's perfected two varieties: Classic Sour Dough and New Italian - both are amazing.  The breads have a perfect crust and aren't dry or crumbly like so many other GF breads.  The best part?  They couldn't be easier to make.

Each package comes with a pre-mixed gluten free flour blend.  Both are made in a gluten free facility, are dairy free, egg free, nut free, soy free and vegan with no added oil or sugar (the italian bread contains gf oats).  You simply add warm water and mix in a bowl, form the loaf on the included parchment paper, seal in the included oven bag, heat the oven and cookie sheet while the loaf rests, then bake for 85 minutes at 400 degrees!

For now the mixes are only available online at Luce's Gluten Free Artisan Bread.  Considering how good the bread is, it shouldn't be long before they start appearing on store shelves everywhere.

So just how good is the bread?  When the meeting was over and everyone filed out of the room last night, it appeared as if most were carrying a bag (or two) of Luce's Gluten Free Bread Mix home with them!

Event Review: Appetite For Awareness (Philadelphia, PA)

I just got home a short while ago from Appetite for Awareness. [Note, I wrote this last night, added the photos and published this morning.]  I drove down down with a friend of mine (also gluten free, but not fully dairy free) and had a great time sampling the products and restaurant offerings, viewing two cooking demos, watching the NFCA award ceremony for Michael from Gluten Free Philly [if you live in south Jersey, the Philly area or Delaware you should be following his blog], and meeting Erin who writes Gluten Free Fun [an NYC GF blog], writes Gluten Free Globetrotter [a world travel GF blog], and organizes the NYC Celiac Meetup. 

Michael from Gluten Free Philly
accepting his award from the NFCA

There were over 40 vendors and  almost 30 restaurants.  I'll touch on some of the highlights below but keep in mind, since I am dairy free as well I skipped those vendors/restaurants that didn't have anything both GF and DF.  I good number of those I skipped do have dairy free products or menu items (they just didn't have them with them).  As always it was nice to see Udi's and Pamela's but neither had their new product lines with them - once I see those new items in stores I'll be sure to review them.  The full list of vendors and restaurants is on the NFCA website here:  http://www.celiaccentral.org/a4a/.  On to the highlights:



• The show highlight: dense crusty bagels from SweetNote Bakery.  Sadly these aren't in stores (yet?), but they are available commercially to deli's and other restaurants that want to offer their diners a gf/df bagel option.  Their website has a list of where around the Philadelphia area you can get these.

Gluten Free / Dairy Free Bagel samples from SweetNote Bakery

• Casona of Collingswood, NJ was serving an amazing tuna ceviche on a round corn tostada.  Amazing!  This is one of the restaurants on my GF Restaurant list that I have been dying to try.  After tasting this, I need to make an excuse to drive two hours to Collingswood!

• Pasta Pomodoro (Voorhees, NJ) had an amazing GF (and mostly DF) spread as well.  They had a crepe with sweet potato filling and a crab guacamole.  They are also on my short list of must try NJ GF restaurants!

Vegan / Gluten Free Cheesesteak and
GF/Vegan Pizza Crackers from Jar Bar

• Imagine a 100% gluten free and dairy free restaurant and you'd have Jar Bar (ok, technically they're vegan and raw as well but since I can't really handle egg that works for me!)  They had an amazing chocolate mousse (made with avocado which you'd never taste) and both a gf/vegan cheese steak as well as a gf/df pizza (both served at the event on Jar Bar's own flax crackers).  This is a restaurant I'd love to try next time I'm in Philly (even though I love tasty animals)!

• Grandma's Grotto (Horsham, PA) had six different types of cookies (only two were DF), gf meatballs (sadly with dairy) and a pasta dish with chicken and vegetables (dairy free and without tomato sauce).  The snickerdoodle I had was great and I'm glad I picked up a menu.  They offer a tri-fold gluten free menu at their restaurant and even have pre-made frozen items available. 

PB&J bites on Gluten Free Quinoa Bread from Taffets

• Taffets All Gluten Free Bakery and Shop was sampling a number of their breads and cookies (all breads are DF as well).  The bread was really good; and this is another spot I'll try the next time I'm in Philly.

• I also got to catch up with Christine from Sweet Rubino's.  Her specialty Italian cookies are gluten free, corn free, dairy free, soy free and refined sugar free (some are vegan as well).  I'm looking forward to these being available in stores.  (Which hopefully will be soon!)

• 1-2-3 Gluten Free mixes aren't new but I was interested to find out that each of their mixes has dairy free modifications / recipes printed inside the box (the mixes themselves are already dairy free).  (I also like that they prepared one of their four samples using that recipe so those of us who are DF could try them too!)

• Sadly, Pure Tacos wasn't serving anything dairy free today but I did want to mention them since both their Ocean City, NJ and Philadelphia, PA locations are 100% gluten free!

You'd think at this point I'd be in a food coma and wouldn't want to think about more GF food but I'm already gearing up for Sunday's Colin Leslie Walk for Celiac Disease (both the outdoor walk, and the walk around the vendor's hall)!

If I missed any GF/DF options yesterday, feel free to share what I missed in the comments below!

Daiya vs Vegan Gourmet Dairy Free / Vegan Cheeses

I’ve been dairy free for over 20 years now. I had tried DF cheeses in the past and found them terrible. They all suffer from at least one of three problems: 1) they were lactose free not dairy free*, 2) they didn’t melt, 3) their taste and texture when not melted is terrible. (* most alternative cheeses still contain casein (the protein found in milk). I assume this helps them melt as those without it tended not to.)

Vegan Gourmet Dairy Free Cheddar Cheese

A couple years ago, I decided to try an Amy’s Gluten Free Dairy Free Spinach Pizza. The instructions include a couple minutes at the very end under the broiler. The pizza came out great and a light bulb went off in my head. Perhaps that was the secret to getting casein-free non-dairy cheese to melt.

I bought a block of Vegan Gourmet and gave it a shot and . . . it worked beautifully! I did originally slice the cheese but have found it is much better/easier to shred it (by hand or in a food processor). Warning: if the cheese is layered too thickly the bottom will liquefy and not melt properly, you need a thin layer exposed to the broiler.

I also found a hint online to microwave the cheese on high, 30 seconds at a time, until it melts. I recommend cutting it up as small as possible first and mixing/stirring as you go so it doesn’t separate out. This allows you to use the cheese as a topping without having to broil whatever it is on. The downside to this tip is that the cheese re-hardens quite quickly and then doesn’t really re-melt so you have to work super fast.

Daiya Dairy Free Havarti Cheese Shreds

Vegan Gourmet comes in four flavors: Mozzarella, Cheddar, Monterey Jack and Nacho. I really wouldn’t eat it cold or expect it to melt without broiling or constant stirring (it separates out otherwise).

In the last two years, I started to see Daiya Dairy free Cheese shreds showing up in supermarkets and even a handful of restaurants. It claims to melt like cheese but I found that while it melts better than the Vegan Gourmet it still isn’t the same as dairy cheese. It comes pre-shredded which saves a step but, I found it doesn’t microwave well (although Amy’s GF/DF Mac and Cheese uses Daiya and it microwaves up perfectly). It is also extremely sticky, sticking to bowls, plates, utensils anything it comes in contact with while in its melty form.

Daiya comes in three flavors: Cheddar, Mozzarella, and Pepper Jack. It is passable cold but is much better eaten hot/melty. The real advantage it has over Vegan Gourmet is that it is both vegan and soy free.

Daiya Dairy Free Cheese Wedges (cubed)

Daiya also has launched dairy free cheese wedges (Cheddar, Mozzarella, Havarti). These small blocks of cheese are perfect for cubing up for a salad or cheese platter and capture both the taste and texture of cheese. In all the DF cheeses I’ve ever had they are the first to accomplish this! I have not yet tried cooking with these.

In the end, I think Vegan Gourmet is slightly better. As long as you follow the steps above it melts fine. Daiya is a close second however so if you can’t have soy or can’t find Vegan Gourmet it is a ready alternative.

One final thought: actual dairy based cheese is high in protein and calcium while these non-dairy substitutes are not. I use them as a garnish/to add flavor not for their nutritional content (or more accurately lack thereof)!

Dairy Free Recipes using these cheese replacements:

Dairy Free Lasagna (vegan)

Dairy Free Baked Ziti (vegan)

Which Gluten Free Hamburger Bun is Best?

Well barbecue season is in full swing again (or so I hear; I live in an apartment). For me the two main hamburger bun competitors in NJ are Udi’s and Canyon Bakehouse.   Kinnikinnick just launched a new soft bread, hot dog bun and hamburger bun. I’ve included them in the comparison below even though they are still hard to find.

Canyon Bakehouse Gluten Free Hamburger Bun

[There are a couple of other competitors that I've excluded: Rudi’s hamburger buns are hard to find and don’t hold their shape well, Ener-G are a little dry, and Schär’s Small White Roll (used as a hamburger bun on the package photo) falls apart completely (although I hear they reformulated so I may need to try them again).]

All three buns (Udi's Canyon Bakehouse and Kinnikinnick) are about the same size (perfect for the average sized burger) and hold up well. All three contain egg and corn.

Canyon Bakehouse’s bun is more of an artisanal hamburger bun. It is flavorful and hearty and a little denser. It is also a bit more expensive and harder to find. (I get mine at Whole Foods.)

Udi's Gluten Free Hamburger Bun

If on the other hand you are looking to recapture the standard 10-12 pack hamburger bun you remember, then Udi’s has it down. Like their gluten free hot dog bun, I don’t recommend letting them defrost naturally, but rather keeping them frozen until needed and then microwaving wrapped in a paper towel on medium for about 30 seconds. They are less expensive and easier to find than the Canyon Bakehouse (I get mine at Fairway but have also seen them at Whole Foods and at Shoprites.)

Kinnikinnick has the texture of a squishy potato bun and it also holds up nicely. The only minor downside (other than finding them) is that they aren’t pre-cut. Sometimes for a bbq, I just take a bun out of the freezer and go, figuring it will defrost by the time I need it (again, microwave is best, but some places preclude that).


Kinnikinnick Gluten Free Hamburger Bun


In the end it is hard to pick the best. Udi’s and Kinnikinnick have the advantage on price and nostalgia. Udi’s has the best availability of the three and Canyon Bakehouse edges them all out in flavor. In the end I think it depends what you are looking for in your bun. I use and enjoy all three.


If you can't find these buns locally they can be purchased online.  Udi's is available from the Gluten Free Mall, here: Udi's Gluten Free Hamburger Buns.  Canyon Bakehouse is available from the Gluten Free Mall, here: Canyon Bakehouse Gluten Free Hamburger Buns.  Kinnikinnick is available directly from Kinnikinnick, here: Kinnikinnick Online Store. [And in case you want to try them: Schär is available from Gluten Free Mall, here: Schar Classic Gluten Free Rolls (Hamburger Buns). Ener-G is available from amazon.com in a pack of 6 packages (24 total buns), here: Ener-G Foods Brown Rice Hamburger Buns, (Pack of 6). And finally, Rudi's is available from the Gluten Free Mall, here: Rudi's Multigrain Gluten Free Hamburger Buns.]


Other Best of articles:

Best Gluten Free Hot Dog Bun

Best Gluten Free Pasta

Product Review: Turkey Pork Roll (pork free, gluten free, dairy free)

While my two main food issues are gluten and dairy, I am also pork free and coffee free and have lesser issues with tomato, green leafy vegetables, citrus fruit and eggs. I’ve been able to substitute Jennie-O turkey ham for ham and beef cervelat in place of salami. Oscar Meyer (formerly Louis Rich) makes a great turkey bacon. The one pork item I was still missing was Taylor ham (known to some unfortunate souls as pork roll). 

Godshall's Turk Roll (pork free pork roll)
on a Canyon Bakehouse Roll

On a recent trip to Shoprite, I discovered Godshall’s Turk Roll an obvious Taylor ham substitute. I had to wait until I confirmed their lactic acid starter culture wasn't sourced from dairy (it isn’t) and bought a package on my next trip (my next trip being as soon as I found out it was dairy free!).

The Turk Roll is sold in a small box with eight pre-cut slices. (For those familiar with Taylor ham, there is no outer cloth to cut and peel back.) I scored the edges and fried them up on my pancake pan.

Both the taste and texture were great. The flavor was slightly ‘spicier than mild’ which based on my recollection is spicier than Taylor ham was. I had the slices on a Canyon Bakehouse hamburger bun. Once I find a good scramble egg substitute I look forward to making a (pork free) Taylor ham, (egg free) egg and (dairy free) cheese all on a gluten free roll!
This is definitely a product I will purchase again!

Frying up some turkey pork roll!

Other product reviews:

Gluten Free Product Review: Udi's Sub Sandwich Rolls

Gluten Free Product Review: Kinnikinnick Donuts

Suffolk County Gluten Free Vendor Fair: Event Review

Wow!

Simply wow, there aren't many other words to describe the (almost) annual gluten free vendor fair put on by the Gluten Intolerance Group of Long Island. This year they gathered together over 50 vendors for two days of sampling and tasting in Hauppauge, NY. Each attendee received a reusable shopping bag with a couple of samples, an entire box of Glutino's Apple and Cinnamon Rings and a bunch of coupons. I began writing this shortly after I got home and already I can't wait for next year's! [Note, I didn’t finish until today.]

As always, I skipped over any vendors who weren't also offering dairy free but there weren't too many of those. There were some old standbys: Bakery on Main, Bob & Ruth's, Bob's Red Mill, Delight Gluten Free Magazine, Schär, El's Kitchen, Garden Lites, Kettle Cuisine, Namaste, NJY Camps, Really Great Food Company, Rudi's, ThinkThin, and Whole Foods. These are companies that I reviewed as part of the Colin Leslie Walk or since then.

BOLD Organics Gluten Free / Dairy Free / Vegan Pizza

The real stand outs and new releases are below (in alphabetical order):


BOLD Organics – this is brand new line of gluten free and dairy free pizzas. I tried the regular (titled Vegan Cheese Pizza but all four have vegan cheese) and it was quite good. They also offer meat lovers (sadly containing pork based pepperoni), veggie lovers, and deluxe (meat and veggie combined). They were baking four pies at a time for sample yet there was still a line the entire day!

Canyon Bakehouse – they were unable to attend but sent along lots of samples of their breads (I can never seem to find their mountain white), Focaccia, Hamburger buns, and their new Cranberry Crunch Muffins.

Gilbert's Gourmet Goodies New Packaging
for their Gluten Free Cookies

Gilbert’s Goodies – I had a nice chat with the owner about how happy I am that they are offered at the Prudential Center’s Gluten Free Cart. They have a new packaging (see photo) and are looking to expand into other sports and convention venues.

Greek Village Restaurant and Catering (44 Veterans Highway, Commack, NY 11725) - this local greek restaurant is offering a sizable gluten free menu including gluten free pitas from GFL Foods for an additional charge. I was tempted to stop here afterwards for a late late lunch but was still too full from sampling. If I were anywhere near central Long Island, I’d definitely be heading there!

Joan's GF Great Bakes – ah, Joan's is back! For those who don't know, Joan's had a fire at their facility last year and were off line for a number of months. They are back in full force and were sampling gluten free (and dairy free) corn toaster cakes, english muffins, multigrain english muffins, and double chocolate muffins. All of Joan's products are sold ready to bake so one can bake them fresh at home. Not all of Joan's products are dairy free however so it was a real treat that everything they sampled today was!

Kinnikinnick Gluten Free Bread

Kinnikinnick – I spent quite a bit of time chatting with the people from this Canada based Gluten Free (and allergen aware) company. I am already well acquainted with their cookies and donuts (see my review of their gluten free donuts). I had heard that they had just launched a new gluten free soft bread and was a bit skeptical. Let’s face it; everyone claims theirs is the bread that’s so good you don’t need to toast it. Well, Kinnikinnick is the first company to be correct in that assertion! I’m working my way through a loaf of their soft white bread right now and will be reviewing it shortly! They’re making their hamburger and hot dog buns out of this same formula. 

Mostly Myrtle's owner and daughter
and their gluten free / dairy free creations!

Mostly Myrtle’s – they were at the last meeting of the Northern NJ Celiac Support Group and I didn’t pay enough attention to them since they were “only in NY”. Oh, bad move. They’ve got a wide variety of unique gluten free products and are steadily expanding. They’re best known for their biskooky’s but also make some amazingly muffins and brownies as well. I think I’ll stop here and write them a full review later. Just a quick note: not all of their products are gluten free but those that are, are dairy free as well!

Nantucket Pasta Goddess - has a line of fresh gluten free pastas that were quite good.

Naturally Free Food (9 Singer Lane, Smithtown, NY 11787) - a local [Long Island] dedicated gluten free store/bakeshop. They can do dairy free baked goods as well but didn't have any with them.

Pamela's - Pamela's didn't have anything new at this show but was again giving away samples of individual brownie mixes, mini cookies and whenever bars (so good!). I did hear a rumor that they'll be launching five new baking mixes in the fall!

Immaculate Baking Co's New
Gluten Free Fudge Brownie Cookies

Strictly Gluten Free (396A Larkfield Road, East Northport, NY 11731– I didn’t stop at their booth but I did stop into their store on the way home. It is a fully gluten free store with a wide variety. They even offer a couple of samples upfront. It was here that I found Immaculate Baking Co’s new Gluten Free Fudge Brownie Cookies!

SweetieBeans - a brand new line of gluten free mixes, not out in stores yet.

Way Better Snacks – this new chip manufacturer has six different sprouted grain gluten free chips that were great. They should be available at your local Fairway and Whole Foods and hopefully will keep expanding beyond.

Wild By Nature Markets (East Setauket, Huntington, Hampton Bays, and Oceanside, NY) – this small grocery chain had a surprising variety of gluten free and dairy free products. I also stopped here on the way home and bought myself Kinnikinnick’s new hamburger buns, Amy’s Sandwich Rounds, and Solterra’s GF/DF pizza. They had plenty of other products to choose from but these were the ones I knew I couldn’t get at home.

Wild Flours Bake Shop (11 New Street, Huntington, NY 11743) – another local dedicated gluten free bakery that is mostly dairy free. They do have regular cheese for some items but also offer dairy free cheese for the same.

XO Baking Co – they offer a line of gluten free mixes that could be prepared gluten free. I was able to try two of them made with almond milk and they were quite good. They’ll be in Whole Foods in September.



So that’s it. On the way home I did stop off at Ray’s Café in Rye Brook, NY for dinner only to find they had closed and it is now an Elevation Burger. I decided to continue on and try Stir Crazy instead. I’ll post that review later this month.

Event Review: Celiac Awareness Tour: Philadelphia

This past weekend I had the pleasure of attending the Celiac Awareness Tour’s stop in Philadelphia, PA (technically, King of Prussia, PA). There were a number of featured speakers throughout the event but the real treat (at least for me) is always the vendors.

There were over two dozen vendors in attendance. There were some old standbys: Udi’s, Kinnikinnick, Conte’s, Caesar’s, Allergen Free Foods, and Bakery on Main. As well as some local stores/restaurants to the Philly area. (I obviously skipped any vendors that were only offering dairy containing products/samples.) The stand outs from the show were:

Rudi’s Gluten Free - they recently launched very thin sandwich wraps/tortillas. The gentleman manning the booth, demonstrated rolling the wraps without breaking them and how much effort it took to break them up to sample. I’ll definitely be trying these as soon as they are available near me and comparing them to my current favorite wrap.

Daiya Dairy Free Cheese

Daiya Dairy Free Cheese - I had previously seen Daiya’s new products in Wegmans but hadn’t yet bought them. Big mistake! Daiya has managed to produce a block of cheese that can be eaten like real cheese (i.e. without broiling first). They’re called Daiya Wedges and I tried both the cheddar and the Jalapeno Garlic Havarti (kind of spicy) and was amazed. Now, just like other ‘cheese’ substitutes these have little nutritional value (i.e. no calcium, limited protein) but if you are looking to do cheese and crackers plate or and a garnish to a salad cubing up these products can fit the bill. (All three are gluten free, dairy free, vegan, soy free, egg free, peanut free, nut free (contains coconut).) [I’ll be publishing an article shortly with a head-to-head comparison of Vegan Gourmet vs. Daiya Dairy Free Cheeses.]

New Planet Gluten Free Beer (Ale)

New Planet Gluten Free Beer - they were sampling their three beers: Tread Lightly Ale, Off Grid Pale Ale, and 3R Raspberry Ale. I tried the Raspberry just to report back (unfortunately, I can’t handle carbonation either) and it was quite good. If I could drink beer, I would certainly have this again.

Finally, I got to briefly meet Michael from Gluten Free Philly. GF Philly is an amazing resource and one of the blogs I follow. I’ve got a review of the site scheduled shortly, but in the mean time, if you are anywhere near Philly, I highly recommend checking the site out.

After the conference I took a quick tour of Valley Forge and then stopped at PB&U for lunch. PB&U is a quick serve Peanut Butter sandwich restaurant. So far they have locations in Wayne, PA and Moorestown, NJ. That review is also coming shortly too!

For more upcoming gluten free events don't forget to check out my Gluten Free Event Calendar.

Gluten Free Cookie Reviews!

I've finished uploading mini reviews of pretty much every commercial gluten free / dairy free cookie available here in New Jersey.  I've uploaded photos to go with a number of them and listed out other allergens of note as well (if the information was available). 

Gluten Free / Dairy Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've included links back to the manufacturer's website as well as link to where you can purchase online if you can't find them locally (as always, I recommend you try your local retailer first).

Here's the list: Gluten Free Cookie List. For those of you who had noticed this page listed on the left side bar, three manufacturers were added to the final list and some minor tweaks were made.

Enjoy!

Restaurant Review: Energy Kitchen (Hoboken, NJ and Montvale, NJ plus 11 locations in NY and 2 in FL)

I spent quite a bit of time in NYC with some cousins visiting from Spain in December and noticed more than one location of a new quick serve restaurant: Energy Kitchen. I stopped in quickly at one point and found out that they had a gluten free menu. I never did get to try them during those two weeks but was pleased to find out that they had a Hoboken, NJ location.

Sirloin Burger on Canyon Bakehouse Gluten Free Bun
(brought my own) with Gluten Free Fries at Energy Kitchen

Last week I decided to look up the Hoboken address and finally give them a try. I was shocked to find that they had recently opened a location in Montvale (14-A Chestnut Ridge Road, Montvale, NJ 07645) about a mile from my office! Needless to say this has quickly become my new favorite lunch place! [There really aren’t many GF options near work so I bring my lunch almost every day – still it’s nice to have the option to go out!]

They have both a Gluten Free Menu and an allergen chart listing the 8 major allergens as well as which items are vegan in each store. Neither menu is online. Both lists appear to be a work in progress (for example, French fries are new and not listed yet), but this is better than most restaurants.

According to their website none of their menu items contains more than 500 calories and their menu is chock full of healthy options. (When was the last time McDonald’s offered you a black bean and mango salad? Brown Rice? Edamame? Yeah, me neither.) Energy Kitchen even bakes their French fries! (So no contaminated fry oil, they just spray the fries with Canola oil and bake them.) [They have snack bags of Pirate's Booty too, but sadly only dairy containing flavors.]

Overall, the food is good and good for you. The chain is centered around NYC for now, but they appear to be expanding out into the suburbs and also have a couple of locations in Florida. I hope they continue their expansion as it’s nice to have another fast food/quick serve option when out and about.




Other gluten free fast food / quick serve reviews you may be interested in:

Gluten Free / Dairy Free at Chipotle

Dairy Free / Gluten Free at Elevation Burger

And of course, my full list of New Jersey Restaurants with a Gluten Free Menu, my list of Quick Serve / Fast Food / Chains with a Gluten Free Menu, as well as my list of Restaurants with Gluten Free French Fries!

Dairy Free Milk Chocolate Bars

As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve been dairy free for over 20 years now. I first started getting sick when I was 17 and slowly cut out different foods as I identified they were an issue. It took me about 4-5 years to go mostly dairy free and the last holdout was Pizza Hut Pizza! (I’d get together with friends on Sunday night and be sick all day on Monday!) For a couple of years after that I could handle cross contamination and minor amounts of dairy in baked goods. Eventually it got so bad that I cut out dairy entirely.

Chocolate Dream Dairy Free 'Milk' Chocolate Bar

I bring this up since milk is a major ingredient in milk chocolate and at least with American manufacturers an ingredient in dark chocolate as well. This made for a fairly chocolate free couple of decades. Whole Foods carries a couple of dairy free dark chocolate bars and even dairy free chocolate chips. But no Milk Chocolate alternatives.

Over the past year I’ve started to see Chocolate Dream dairy free chocolate bars popping up for sale at more and more locations (I first saw them at Nature’s Pavilion on Rt23N). The bars are made by the same company (Taste the Dream) that makes Rice Dream and Soy Dream non-dairy milks. While they make four dark chocolate bars they also make one ‘creamy’ chocolate bar which is a good substitute for milk chocolate!

If you can't find these locally you can order them from Amazon.com online here: Chocolate Dream Dairy Free Chocolate Bars


Other dairy free snack reviews:

Justin’s Dairy Free Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups

Kinnikinnick GF/DF Donut Review

Product Review: Amy’s Gluten Free Wraps

Dear Amy’s, these are awesome; please make your Vegetable Pie in a Pocket Gluten Free too!

Just a quick warning up front, Amy’s makes a number of gluten containing products so be sure you’ve got the gluten free versions! 

Amy's Gluten Free / Dairy Free Indian Aloo Mattar Wrap

I recently tried two of Amy’s three new Gluten Free wraps – Indian Aloo Mattar Wrap and Teriyaki Wrap. (Haven’t seen the breakfast Tofu scramble but am looking forward to trying it – especially since it doesn’t contain cheese!) [Another warning, all three contain soy.] [And one final item, the printer mistakenly listed wheat in the Allergen statement on some of the Teriyaki wraps. This issue has been corrected, it was only a printer issue, there are no wheat ingredients and never were.]

Amy’s already makes two other gluten free wraps: Gluten Free Cheddar Burrito (contains dairy; soy free) and Gluten Free Non-Dairy Burrito (dairy free, soy free). I haven’t tried the Cheddar for obvious reasons and I think the Non-Dairy may have too much tomato in it for me to handle. (Yes, the Aloo Mattar contains tomato but it was fairly far down the ingredients list and it didn’t bother me.)

Amy's Gluten Free / Dairy Free Teriyaki Wrap

Each wrap is 5.5 ounces so they're more of a snack than a full meal. Both split a bit while baking but this did not lead to any dripping or bursting while eating. The wrap itself is a bit more than an 1/8 of an inch thick and in a lot of the places where the outer surface seemed to crack, the inner didn’t. (Do keep in mind that you still need to be careful with them while eating, no gluten free wrap will hold up to the same abuse as a wheat based wrap.)

I baked both according to the baking instructions. Just a warning here, they require you to pre-heat the oven, then bake for 20 minutes, flip and bake for an additional 25-30 minutes. There are microwave instructions and I’ll try them that way next time. (Spoiler alert, I’ll be buying these again!). You can microwave them start to finish in under 5 minutes (including wait times). Since these bake wrapped in foil they weren’t super crispy when done. Not sure how microwaving will affect them.

Since most Teriyaki sauces contain wheat it is nice to have access to ready-made teriyaki products (Amy’s also does a Teriyaki bowl). I’ve never had Aloo Mattar before but the wrap was really good. It was a touch spicy but still quite mild. I did prefer the Aloo Mattar but that was just personal preference. Both were equally good and as noted above I will be buying them again.

One final thought: I used to love Amy’s Vegetable Pie in a Pockets (warning: contains gluten) and hope they consider making these using the same gluten free wraps!



Other product reviews you may be interested in:

Kinnikinnick Gluten Free Donuts

Product Review: Udi’s Gluten Free Pizza Shells

Company Review: Boar’s Head

I stopped briefly at the table for Boar’s Head products during the Colin Leslie walk and in hindsight wish I had talked with them a bit more. They were doing promotional giveaways (items with their company name/logo on them) and I was much more interested in the food giveaways! (Sorry, Boar’s Head, it certainly didn’t help that you were directly across from Izzi-B’s tower of gf/df cupcakes!)

Boar's Head Gluten Free Dairy Free
Pork Free Turkey Pepperoni

All of their products are gluten free and say so right on the packaging. Their products also note whether or not they contain dairy on the packaging. On their website, they have something called the DigiCatessen – a virtual deli case. All of the items within it are flagged as gluten free and/or dairy free.

It was this “dairy free” flag that convinced me to try their turkey pepperoni even though it contains lactic acid starter culture (which is often sourced from dairy). I gave them a call to confirm and he woman who answered my call was extremely knowledgeable and very well trained on food allergies/allergens. She knew all the answers I needed (cross-contamination, etc) before I even asked! [Their lactic acid is not sourced from dairy, by-the-way.]

As a matter of fact, as of this writing, only four of their meats contain dairy (Mortadella, Chorizo, Pesto Parmesan Ham, and Italian Style Roast Beef with Braciole Seasoning). Oh, and they make these at the end of the day so they are sure nothing else is cross contaminated!

Overall, it seems like Boar’s Head is really committed to being gluten free and allergy aware.

[The photo above is of a gf/df pizza I made using Udi's Gluten Free Pizza Crusts.]

Product Review: Gluten Free Egg Rolls by Feel Good Foods

It was announced last year that Feel Good Foods (the company that brought us gluten free asian dumplings) would be launching gluten free egg rolls in the beginning of 2012. I heard in mid-January that these had hit stores and I checked for them in every GF store in the area.

Feel Good Foods Gluten Free Egg Roll

I finally encountered them this past weekend at Dean’s Natural Foods Market (1119 Highway 35 Ocean, NJ 07712 and 490 Broad Street Shrewsbury, NJ 07702). They come as Chicken, Shrimp or Vegetable egg rolls but Dean’s only had the vegetable ones. Dean’s price was quite reasonable as I’ve seen the Feel Good Foods dumplings fairly highly marked up elsewhere.

The egg rolls come three to a box with instructions for microwaving or baking (or a combination of the two). I baked one up for lunch on Sunday and it was amazing. It came out of the oven nicely browned and crispy. (It did explode a bit out the side as you can see in the photo but no issue there.)

I used some duck sauce I had the in refrigerator but really regret not having any takeout packets of duck sauce (no nearby gf takeout Chinese = no drawer full of gf takeout soy sauce/duck sauce packets). [Duck sauce is that orange dipping sauce traditionally served with egg rolls.]

And this brings us to the only downside I found (and yes it is fairly minor) - there weren’t any duck sauce packets in with the egg rolls. While I’ve found a couple of jarred duck sauces, I’ve never found one as good as the little takeout packets. I certainly understand that this would add to the cost/difficulty in producing the egg rolls, it would just have been a nice-to-have. Of course, now I’ve added a good duck sauce to my quest of missing gluten free foods.

Without tasting them first, I was reluctant to request a store carry them.  Now that I have tasted them, I am confident every store should carry them. I have heard that some Whole Foods in the Trenton area carry them and like I mentioned before I found them in Dean’s. I am going to recommend them to my local Whole Foods (West Orange) and to anyone else who will listen! (Feel Good Foods provides a request form you can give your local GF Store.)

[While I always recommend you frequent your local GF shop (click here for my NJ GF Store List), if you can’t for some reason, then they are available from the Gluten Free Mall here: Feel Good Foods Gluten-Free Egg Rolls, but remember since they come frozen shipping will be expensive.]

If you haven’t tried these already you owe it to yourself to do so as soon as possible!

Gluten Free Super Bowl Weekend!

Wow, what a weekend! It’s been years since I started a weekend on a Thursday night but that’s where this one started when I finally started using my twitter account. I set the account up a week or two ago but wasn’t 100% following the intricacies of using it. I had dinner with a younger cousin Thursday night and he answered the few remaining questions I had. On Friday, I integrated it with my facebook page and I added a feed of my most recent tweets to the left side menu here on Gluten Free / Dairy Free NJ. My twitter is gfdfnj or you can click “Follow me on Twitter” at the bottom of the feed.

Chick-fil-A's New Gluten Free Grilled
Chicken Nuggets and Gluten Free Waffle Fries

On Friday night I was commenting online that Chick-fil-A now has gluten free grilled chicken nuggets. I wrote that I hadn’t tried them yet and as I did, a light bulb went off. I pass a Chick-fil-A on my way home from work every night. I stopped in Friday night. It turns out they sell them in an 8 pack as well as in their kids meals (3 or 6 piece). It was tough to not start on the gf waffle fries in the car on the way home, but I wanted to get a photo first. Eating gluten free at Chick-fil-A is pretty easy as you can see from my previous article.

On Saturday I was planning on meeting a friend of mine at Europa South in Point Pleasant for dinner (more on this later). I figured since I was heading down that way anyhow (it’s about a 75 minute drive) I might as well make some gluten free stops along the way.

My first stop was at Fallon's Gluten Free Bakeshop in Fords.  They are a small dedicated gluten free bakery.  They had a number of items in their display case but if you want dairy free you have to order in advance.  Everything looked delicious.

Gluten Free Egg Roll at Panda Asian Fusion in Freehold, NJ

I stopped off to try the Gluten Free Egg roll at Panda Asian Fusion (335 West Main Street, Freehold, NJ 07728). They don’t have a website so I didn’t have much information going in. The Egg Roll is wrapped in a very thin bean curd wrapper and was very crispy. A bit different from a gluten containing egg roll but it served its purpose – to carry the egg roll innards and my favorite part that orange colored dipping sauce to my mouth! [Full Review coming shortly.]

I stopped at the Wegmans in Englishtown. They had many of the same products I’ve come to expect at a Wegmans but sadly no Sweet Sin desserts. The only new item I saw were Go Raw cookies. GF/DF and raw/vegan. I decided against getting any even though they had interesting looking flavors: Lemon, Carrot Cake, and Chocolate.

Top Tomato in Freehold, NJ seemed to have a large selection of gluten free shelf stable items but didn’t appear to be much if anything in the freezer case. I only stopped in briefly but it appears that their other locations carry gf as well. (Brick, NJ, Freehold, NJ and 4 stores in Staten Island).

And then, right before dinner I hit the jackpot - Dean’s Natural Food Market in Ocean, NJ (also in Shrewsbury, NJ). They have an amazing selection of gluten free brands and items. The highlight of which was that they had Feel Good Foods Gluten Free Egg rolls! This is the first store I’ve seen these in so I bought a box (see below for how amazing they were!) In addition, I also bought Alternative Baking Company cookies, Ian’s GF/DF battered onion rings, and Olive Valley Gluten Free / Vegan Falafel.

Gluten Free Paella at Europa South in Point Pleasant, NJ



And that brings us to Europa South for Saturday’s dinner. Traditionally, Iberian (Spain/Portugal) cooking doesn’t contain wheat or dairy. Europa South flags their GF items on their menu and the two dishes I asked about both were dairy free. I ended up trying the GF Bacalhau A Lagareiro (salted cod fish) which was good. We also had the GF Shrimp in Garlic which was out of this world! [Full Review coming shortly.]

On the way home I stopped at a Whole Foods and found that So Delicious now makes a Coconut milk Greek style yogurt. I never had dairy containing Greek yogurt (not sure it was even available 22 years ago) so I can’t say how authentic or not it is but, if you miss it, it now exists. Personally, I prefer Silk Live Soy Yogurt.

Feel Good Foods Gluten Free Egg Roll



For lunch on Sunday I baked one of the Feel Good Foods Vegetable Egg rolls that I had gotten at Dean’s Natural Food Market the night before. It baked up nice and crispy (but kind of blew out the side a bit as you can see in the photo). I’ll write a longer review later but for now I highly recommend them (and yes, they are good enough that you should ask your local Gluten Free store to carry them!) [Since these come frozen I recommend you purchase them locally, if you can not, then they are available from the Gluten Free Mall here: Feel Good Foods Gluten-Free Egg Rolls, but remember: shipping will be expensive.](One egg roll is hardly lunch so I had some more of my left over Karina’s Chicken Chili with Sweet Potato White Beans and Lime to tide me over until the Super Bowl Party.)

Gluten Free Soft Pretzels (salted and unsalted)

And finally, I decided to bake some gluten free soft pretzels for the Super Bowl party I had been invited to. I used the recipe out of Annalise Roberts’ Gluten-Free Baking Classics.It was already dairy free and I omitted the egg wash (partially to keep them egg free, mostly because I didn’t have any eggs). They look every bit as good as they tasted and everyone at the party loved them – not uncommon praise for Annalise’s recipes. If you don’t already have her baking cookbook I do highly recommend it.




Links to related reviews:

Gluten Free Review of Europa South (Point Pleasant, NJ)

Gluten Free Review of Panda Asian Fusion (Freehold, NJ)

Product Reivew of Feel Good Food's Gluten Free Egg Rolls

NJ Gluten Free Bakeries

NJ Gluten Free Restaurants

NJ Gluten Free Stores

Restaurant Review: Five Guys Burgers and Fries (various NJ locations)

One of the hardest parts of following a gluten free diet is being out somewhere and looking to grab a quick bite to eat on the go. My go-to quick serve restaurants are Chipotle (review), Chick-fil-A (review) and Five Guys Burgers and Fries. [Yes, I’m a huge fan of Elevation Burger (review) but with only 2 locations so far it is just too tough to just find the nearest one and pop-in.]

Burger (that I put on an Udi's Gluten Free Bun)
with Gluten Free fries from 5 Guys Burger and Fries

The big upside to Five Guys is that they only have two gluten containing items on their menu: hamburger buns and hot dog buns. So that means their French fries are fried in a dedicated fryer by default. Their hot dogs are all beef (I can’t tolerate pork). They will gladly make both the hamburger and hot dog bunless (if I’ve planned ahead or do take out I use my own bun). Another aspect that I like is that the kitchen is open to the dining area so I can stand and watch them prepare my food.

The downside is that they are set up like an assembly line and there is quite a bit of opportunity for cross contamination while they prepare your meal. I like to ask that they separate my foil wrap from the others they are making so crumbs from the other buns don’t get on it. They also are willing to change gloves as needed. (If you’ve read my Elevation Burger review you’ll see that EB is much more careful and has procedures in place already.)

One final warning: Five Guys serves peanuts in their dining area (in the shell) and cooks with peanut oil. I wouldn’t even walk past a Five Guys if I had a peanut allergy!



And don't forget to check here for other Restaurants with Gluten Free Fries or here for a list of other Gluten Free Quick Serve Restaurants.