Every time I turn around these days there seems to be a new gluten free product or a new restaurant now offering gluten free food.
This is a little hard to read, but it is a sign in the Microsoft cafeteria offering Gluten and Wheat Free Products.
What can be bad about that?
Not much at first glance but I had two bad experiences last week that I want to share as a warning.
It was the Middle Child's tenth birthday - she does not need to eat gluten free. She is tall, healthy and full of energy. Nevertheless, she wanted a gluten free birthday cake so the entire family could join in her celebration. I normally make my birthday cakes, but a new company was offering gluten free birthday cakes and I just had to try it. I called ten days in advance to order the cake and went over the fact it had to be gluten free etc.
On the morning of her birthday I go to pick it up, and thank goodness I asked, but they had not made it gluten free! It was a beautiful cake but deadly to half of the family.
That same week, I decided to try out a new restaurant. Not only did this new restaurant offer gluten free menu items, they had a separate printed gluten free menu.
I was worried from the beginning when my waiter had a hard time with english - I do not mean this to be derogatory in any way, but it is hard to communicate your special dietary issues when you cannot communicate at all. I asked for the manager but she was not there yet. So not feeling terribly confident, I went ahead and ordered.
My lovely entree came out with a glutenous wheat spring roll plopped right in the middle!
All of this is to say, that yes it is wonderful that so many gluten free options are newly available, but I honestly worry that some places are just popping a gluten free label on things without taking the time to really learn about cross contamination and other issues such as hidden ingredients.
We are our own advocates so wherever you see something offered that is "gluten free" it is up to you to confirm that they truly know what they are doing and that the offered item is safe. If we all take the initiative to offer a little on the spot training, the gluten free world will be safer.
Now the buyer beware lecture is over and her are some new products that we found and have added to our list of favorites:
Applegate Farms Gluten Free Chicken Nuggets -
Applegate Farms is now producing a gluten free chicken nugget. The chicken is organic and antibiotic free and breaded with a blend of rice and corn. I have to admit that my kids love chicken nuggets and I love the convenience of being able to pop a quick dinner in the oven every so often. My favorite nuggets are by Bell and Evans but that is because they are more like breaded chicken breast than nuggets. I have to say that the kids loved the Applegate Farms nuggets - we tried one box warmed in the microwave. Two minutes until dinner was ready. They were fine this way, but much better when we took the time to warm them in the oven.
As to the warning above, thank you to Applegate Farms for taking the initiative to ensure the gluten free status of their nuggets. According to their website:
What procedures are in place to ensure that Applegate Farms can validate its gluten-free claims?
The gluten-free breading used on our chicken nuggets will be tested for gluten before entering our plant and will be accompanied by a Certificate of Analysis. The finished product will be tested for gluten again before leaving our plant, and will be held until an analysis determines that the product meets our gluten level specifications.
A winner all of the way around.
Sjaak's Organic Chocolate Bar -
We are in love with Sjaak's chocolate bars! I guess you would describe them as gourmet organic chocolate bars. I love them because they taste wonderful for starters, but they are also produced in a gluten free facility. In some ways these bring back the romance of chocolate - eating one of these reminds me of "old days" when you could not find Hershey's on every corner in every convenience store. When eating a chocolate bar was a special treat at Christmas or after church (okay maybe I have read too many Laura Ingalls Wilder books with my kids). My kids love the gold wrapping. The Middle Child liked it so much she did want to open hers. We had them for dessert on Mother's Day and they brought back that feeling that chocolate is a special treat. The Gluten Free Teen loves the Raspberry Truffle Bar. I am crazy for the Dark Chocolate with Almonds which is also casein free. You can order them on the Sjaak website or check out Organic Vegan Chocolate Bar Assortment
Earth Balance Natural Peanut Butter -
Yes I know that most peanut butter is naturally gluten free, but I like this peanut butter for the other healthy attributes and the taste. Earth Balance has blended peanuts with flax seed and agave syrup to produce an easy to spread and tasty natural peanut butter.
GlutenFreeda Gluten Free Burritos -
I have not tried these yet, but the makers of the delicious Real Cookies GF frozen cookie dough is introducing a frozen single entree gluten free burrito. In addition to being gluten free, they are made with natural ingredients and without any of nasty GMOs, trans fats etc. Can't wait to try them.
What new favorites have you found lately?
