Recently, a friend of mine was told to go on a gluten-free diet from having too many sinus infections. It’s amazing what gluten can do to a body. I used to have the same issues and now, I get sick maybe once or twice a year, mainly due to sleep. Whether you are just starting out or need a reminder, here are some of the suggestions I provided her. Please feel free to comment with your own suggestions as well!!
Baking Cookbooks
- Blackbird Bakery Gluten-free
- Gluten-free Baking with the Culinary Institute of America
Blogs with recipes
http://finecooks.com/ – my cousin’s site
http://socialladydiaries.com/category/recipe-box/
http://glutenfreegirl.com/
http://www.glutenfreediva.com/
http://simplygluten-free.com/
Gluten-free brands to use
- Udi’s bread – can be found in the freezer section
- Betty Crocker makes an amazing line of gluten free chocolate chip cookies, brownies and cake mixes
– baking section - Bob’s Red Mill – their pancake mix is the best – substitute water for milk for thinner pancakes – baking section
- Bob’s Red Mill – all-purpose flour – great for baking anything!
- Glutino – their pretzels, cookies and crackers are the best (located in a gluten-free aisle or snack aisle)
- Amy’s frozen pizza – it comes in two – spinach and cheese (both great!) – frozen pizza aisle
- Ancient Harvest Quinoa pasta line – they come in teal boxes and are in the pasta aisle. They are amazing and do not taste any different. They cook a bit quicker than normal pasta
- DeBoles also has a great gluten-free pasta line, along with Bionaturae – both in the pasta aisle
- Classico has their jars of pasta sauce marked gluten-free
Restaurants/Shops in D.C.
- Red Velvet makes the best gluten-free cupcake line
- Georgetown Cupcake only makes one gluten-free cupcake (lava) – it’s okay
- Wildfire in Tysons has a legitimate gluten-free menu with gluten-free breads
- Mon Ami Gabi has a legitimate gluten-free menu with gluten-free breads
- Il Fornaio has a gluten-free pasta
- Cafe Milano can make any italian dish gluten-free with their gluten-free pasta
- Mie N Yu has a great gluten-free menu
- Fireworks pizza in Courthouse has a whole line of pizzas that are gluten-free
- Chima’s entire menu is gluten-free, including those cheese rolls – they are rice-based
- Short list of GF-friendly restaurants in DC – http://www.urbanspoon.com/t/7/1/DC/Gluten-Free-Friendly-restaurants
- Harris Teeter – their gluten-free products are mixed throughout the store but the products are marked with large green and pink tags
- Giant – they have a whole aisle dedicated to non-frozen goods. In Vienna, they opened a whole wing
- Whole Foods – it’s mixed throughout
Cooking tips
- If you need a thickening agent, use corn starch or Xantham gum (that can be found at whole foods)
- You can have rice – not sticky white rice but jasmine, brown, etc.
- Potatoes are fine, most fries are not. Oddly enough, most restaurants use a flour batter to fry in
- Frozen bread can be put in the microwave for 30-45 seconds and then toasted. It will not go mushy.
- Pasta cooks quicker
