Dairy Free Eggplant "Parm" with Ground Beef

I have always loved Italian food. Cheese, carbs, tomato sauce, herbs, oh my! Once I realized I couldn't tolerate gluten or dairy, my Italian cooking become limited. I missed warm creamy, tomato dishes like baked ziti or lasagna. Then, I started a hybrid of the Paleo/GAPS diet. I dreamed of a dairy free, grain free version of Eggplant Parmesan for months before giving  Coconut flour is great for breading, and I figured a nut cheese would work well when baked with some tomatoe sauce. I sure was right about that! It really helps to make your own tomato sauce.

This dish is food for the soul. Especially for those of us who are so restricted. It takes a lot of effort. You can make the tomato sauce in advance. You can actually make all of the items in advance, and then the night of just layer everything and throw it in the oven. This way it only takes a little more than an hour the night of.


Nut "Cheese:"
1-2 cups of of nuts. (I use a mixture of cashews, macadamia nuts, and sunflower seeds or just cashews.)
1-2 TBSP Nutritional yeast
Garlic Powder, to taste
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste

Instructions: 
Soak nuts in water for 1-24 hours. Strain. Blend in food processor, adding water slowly to make a ricotta like paste. Add nutritional yeast, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to taste.

Tomato Sauce:
1 small onion, diced
8 tomatos
dried herbs, like thyme and rosemary
garlic
fresh basil
salt and pepper
a few beef bones, preferably with some meat on them
1 small can tomato paste

Instructions: 
Saute onion,garlic, and herbs for a few minutes until slightly browned. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, beef bones, salt and pepper. Simmer for at least an hour (Move on to the next part of the recipe during this time). Add basil and any other  seasonings to taste and simmer for a few minutes more so the basil will infuse.

Eggplant:
1/2 cup coconut flour
dried herbs or seasoning blend of choice, 1 TBSP
salt and pepper
1 egg

Instructions: 
Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Slice eggplant in either direction, making it thin enough so it will cook through easily. Whisk egg. Dip eggplant slices into egg to coat, then dip in herbed coconut flour. Line the biggest pan that fits in your oven with tin foil and bake each side for 25 minutes, or more, until eggplant is browned on the outside and soft through. If your oven is small like mine, you may need to do two batches, for a total of 50 minutes each, or an hour and 40 minutes, plus extra time for removing one batch and adding the other. It's okay if your tomato sauce is simmering this whole time.

Beef:
1 pound ground beef
1 half small onion, diced
herbs and seasoning of choice

Instructions:
While your last side of eggplant side is in the oven, saute onions and spices and add beef until browned.


Eggplant "Parm"
Layer the sauce, eggplant, beef, nut "cheese." Lightly sprinkle with remaining herbed coconut flour. Bake on 350 or 375 for 30-45 minutes. Broil for 15 minutes to brown the top.

Baking on the GAPS Diet (+ Carrot Cupcake Recipe)

Once I introduced nuts back into my diet, the baking was on! I just have to make sure I don't eat too many cupcakes or slices of "bread" at once, or I do get a little stomach ache.

Almond and coconut flour are the two I most commonly use in recipes. Coconut flour has a tendency to be a bit dry, and almond flour is said to not be so healthy when baked or heated. I personally like to use some of both. I generally don't measure, but I'd say I usually use half and half or 2:1.  Sometimes, I use some ground hazel nut meal as well. It has a great flavor!

My original grain-free/GAPS baking experiments were often oily and wet in the middle, but still pretty tasty. To avoid the oily, I used less oil and more eggs. To avoid the mushy in the middle, I cook lower and longer. A lot of recipes I was finding on the web had baking powder and/or baking soda in them. I avoided those since I was pretty sure they weren't GAPS friendly. Here's why:

Baking powder=baking soda + cornstarch: This obviously has starch, which is to be avoided on the GAPS diet.

Baking soda: Though GAPS legal, since it is very alkaline, it is not recommended for people with low stomach acid (I think that's me).

I learned all this from a great article on The Well Fed Homestead's site. It seems that both baking powder and soda are best avoided for me. However, in such small amounts, it seems that they can't be that bad? The more you "cheat," the harder/longer it is to heal. Honestly, the recipes are much better with at least baking soda. If I don't have yummy baked goods, I might cheat even harder on something else. I'll have to play it by ear. Who wouldn't want to eat these yummy looking cupcakes?

Here's a recipe I adapted from a couple of people for the carrot cupcakes above:

Cake ingredients (makes 12 cupcakes):

 1.5 cups nut flour (I used a blend of coconut and almond)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
4 eggs
4 tablespoons coconut oil
1/3 cup honey
1.5 cups grated carrots
1/4-1/2 cup raisins (old dry ones are best)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Frosting ingredients:
1/2 cup ghee (or butter. coconut oil would probably work too)
1/4 cup honey

Instructions:
Preheat the oven at 350.
Mix the dry ingredients, in a mixer or with a hand held blender to get coconut flour clumps blended.
Add the carrots.
Melt coconut oil, add honey and mix.
Whisk eggs.
Add liquid ingredients to dry, using mixer or blender if necessary.
Place in cupcake holders (works best without paper holders - use silicon or directly in pan)
Bake about 20 minutes.  

Whip ghee/butter with honey.  Use frosting tools or smooth onto completely cooled cupcakes. 

These cupcakes were amazing! You could barely tell they were grain free, let alone gluten free. I'll have to try them without the baking powder and soda and see what happens. The frosting wasn't enough to cover the entire 12 cupcakes, but, it was so intense, it only needed as much as is shown.

 Lately I'm loving listening to Zola Jesus as I get busy around the house, or am just relaxing. Her music is a lovely blend of eerie and soulful tunes. I like all her albums! 

The GAPS Diet - Beginning the Journey

I'm starting the GAPS diet. Not today. Not tomorrow. But the next day. The reason is, I am traveling now, and the GAPS diet is very restrictive. Let me tell you the what, why, how, when below:



What is the GAPS diet? This diet was designed by a doctor named Natasha Campbell-McBride, who made the connection between brain and emotional disorders, and gut health. She developed this diet, to heal the gut, thereby healing the symptoms popping up mentally and emotionally. The gut-brain connection is well documented nowadays, so it makes sense that a compromised gut would have an effect on thoughts, feelings, and behavior. The GAPS  (Gut and Psychology Syndrome) diet aims to heal the gut, restore a healthy ecology and improve nutrient assimilation. 
The GAPS diet is similar in don'ts to the Paleo diet. No grains, carbs, sugars, starches etc. Some exceptions are the GAPS diet allows some honey because of it's nutritional and healing benefits, but does not allow Sweet Potatoes for the starch. More importantly, the GAPS diet specifies certain things that you SHOULD eat to improve health. These are mineral and gelatin rich bone broths, which must be made or purchased from unique purveyors such as Three Stone Hearth which is in the East Bay in California. While fat is villianized in modern nutrition, it is actually essential for assimilating many nutrients, as is the gelatin from bone broth. These broths are also rich in minerals, which are key to reversing the acidifying affects of stress, alcohol, sugars and processed foods. Additionally, fermented and cultured foods are important for increased beneficial bacterias in the gut. 
Why am I doing this diet? I've got a long history of gut issues (IBS type symptoms such as pain and irregular bowel movements), food intolerances, depression, anxiety and insomnia. I'm a typical "GAPS patient." My doctor prescribed me 6 months on the GAPS diet. While that might seem like a long time to you to go without the afore mentioned food groups, this diet is actually recommended for 1-2 years by Dr. Campbell-McBride. While some dairy is allowed on the GAPS diet, especially yogurt, I am actually currently unable to tolerate dairy. Am I lactose intolerant? It seems not. The working theory is that my digestive lining is so compromised because my gut ecology is off, that its the casein, not the lactose that is causing a problem. The general term for my condition is "leaky gut" - un-properly digested food, such as casein, passes from my gut, into my bloodstream, where it acts as a poison. Dairy makes me dairy, foggy brained and depressed, ergo, I do not eat it as well as all the other stuff I have to gut out to heal my gut. 
That being said, it's going to be an epic 6 months. How will I know whether my gut is properly healed? I think I'll be able to feel it. Regular bowel movements, good sleep, reasonable energy and good feelings in my brain. I will also use dairy as a testing point. If I still feel symptoms from dairy after 6 months, I may continue. If I can tolerate dairy after 6 months, I may move to a less restrictive diet, such as Nourishing Traditions, which allows grains, although fermented before cooking. 
I will track this journey on this blog, keeping track of favorite recipes, my progress, strategies for dealing with a restrictive diet in a busy world, and so on. I hope that my friends will follow this blog as a way to understand, encourage and support me. I hope that my journey will inspire other people to commit to healing their own guts, and gut-brain issues! 







Thank you for reading! 

Nopalito, Inner Sunset, San Francisco

Nopalito has delicious, upscale Mexican food, with many gluten free options. Modern remakes of Mexican classics have a refined feel in this ambient space, with prices that are reasonable.

I was apprehensive about trying Nopalito. My friend's boyfriend works there, and he had told me there were many gluten free options. But I'm trying to avoid contamination. And my ideal restaurant has no gluten I it. Fortunately, I learned, Nopalito has very little gluten ingredients. My friend explained to me that only their pork and meatballs have gluten.

I of course, wanted the other thing on the menu that has gluten - the mole has bread crumbs. This is also the source of gluten for the meatballs. The pork is marinated in beer. There is some risk of contamination, but at least it is minimized by the small presence of gluten. Although bread crumbs are a pretty dangerous form of gluten, easily getting all over the place and into my supposedly gluten free food!

I ended up getting the waiter's recommendation, which was something with perfectly cooked salmon, large beans (fava?), and a really yummy sauce. The tortillas are hand made on site, and you can watch the process as the kitchen is on display. This is always a nice perk for Celiacs.

Other treats included delectable champagne with hibiscus (see picture), ceviche on a crispy tortilla, a dairy free chocolate cinnamon paleta (Spanish for popsicle) and another champagne cocktail, this one with ginger and lemon. All of this was fantastic, and I would highly recommend this place to those who are not concerned about contamination. The risk seems minimal, so I may come back. I'll have to ask some more questions about contamination before my next visit.

Apple-berry crisp - Gluten Free and Vegan!

My sister made this fantastic crisp for a dinner party, and being a good sister, she made it gluten-free and dairy-free for me!

It was so fantastic,  I had to make it myself. My sister is quite the baker, (check out her blog here), and she simply made up the recipe herself, to accomodate my dietary needs. Here are the directions she gave me, noting that they were all approximate:

1 bag frozen mixed berries (no strawberries because they are too watery)
1 cup oats
2 Tablespoons coconut oil
Pinch of salt
about 1/3 cup of sweetener
cinnamon

The topping mix should be dry. Cook at 350F until the fruit is bubbling and condensed, and the topping is browned, about 40 minutes to an hour.

Being an improvisor myself, this is what I did:

1 bag Trader Joe's cherry berries
2 small apples, diced into small/medium pieces
1/2 cup certified gluten-free quick oats (I used Bob's Red Mill)
1/2 cup certified gluten-free almond meal (I used Bob's Red Mill)
2 Tablespoons safflower oil (I was out of coconut oil)
a couple grinds of Himalayan sea salt
1/3 cup of sweetener dehydrated maple syrup granules
a few dashes of cinnamon
a few dashes of cardamom
Tablespoon of vanilla extract

I accidentally baked it 450F for the first 25 minutes, and then had to take it out, to go do something. 2 hours later, I baked it for another 30 minutes on 350F. It came out fantastic! 

The cardamon and the vanilla added amazing dimensions to the tart-sweet flavor. I highly recommend using these spices - I use them in pretty much all of my desserts these days!

Variations to try:

• Use ghee! This is not vegan, but you can get ghee that is lactose and casein free. 
• I might try it with a bag each of blackberries and raspberries. I am not the biggest fan of the cherries and blueberries. 
• Add a little more topping. 
• Bake in individual Pyrex dishes in order to easily pack for lunch! 
• Use peaches in the summer, instead of apples. 
•  Try palm sugar, 1/2 a cup, for the sweetener. 

If you try it, please let me know how yours worked out in the comment section!

Pacific Catch, Campbell, California

Pacific Catch is one of the restaurants I found on the Gluten Intolerance Group's Gluten-Free Food Service training.  On Friday, September 14th, I visited their location in Campbell, CA.

The place was packed, hostesses were friendly. We waited at the bar. When we finally were offered a drink and menu, the bar tender was very professional and happily went to get me a gluten-free menu as well. This menu was very short.

The drinks sounded amazing but fell a little flat. My favorite of the three we had was a lemongrass Mojito, which was mostly good because it was super sweet.

When we were finally seated after about 30 minutes, the waiter was very friendly. However, he was not able to answer most of my questions about their food. I was curious as to why the tacos were not on the gluten-free menu, as most tortillas are gluten-free. He explained that he didn't know much about gluten, which was a major disappointment for me (remember, this place has a gluten-free service training). He said something about how the tortillas have white corn, and then pointed out that they made the gluten-free menu for a reason. Point taken. I ordered something off of there.

I do acknowledge that the GIG's website about their Gluten-Free Food Service training only describes their training as having to do with aspects in the kitchen. Yet, as a Celiac customer, I will only feel comfortable with a waiter who is knowledgeable about gluten and the kitchen policies. How am I supposed to be assured of my food's safety if my point of contact, the waiter, is not knowledgeable? And really, what is the point spending effort, energy and money on training in the kitchen, if your waitstaff can't communicate that to customers? Is the GIG supposed to be a substitution for good communication with customers? Not in my opinion!

In the end, my item from the gluten-free menu was pretty good. I got the Salmon Thai curry, with half rice and half lettuce. It had a very pleasant sweet and tangy flavor.

Before going back here, or to any Pacific Catch location, I would talk to the manager first and clarify what gluten-free practices they actually use. I would definitely recommend it for non-Celiac gluten-free people.

Happy Celiac Awareness Day!

September 13th is Celiac Awareness Day.

You might have heard this statistic already: that 1 in 133 people have Celiac disease. That might not sound like very many to you, but if you think of how many restaurants are Celiac friendly, it's more like 1 in a waaaaaaaay too many!

How to celebrate Celiac Awareness Day?

1. Take your favorite Celiac Diva (that would be me for most of my readers!) out to one of the few Celiac friendly restaurants. If you don't know which restaurants can be trusted, you can check out:The Gluten Intolerance Group's list of restaurants that have their gluten-free food service accredidation.
My personal favorite restaurant right now is Asquew Grill.

Or just ask said Celiac Diva and s/he will be happy to tell you.


2. If there aren't any great choices, a home cooked meal is a good way to go. Just make sure all utensils, dishes and surfaces are cleaned well (no bread crumbs). Gluten-contamination is a huge issue even in food items labeled "gluten-free."  To be safe, only cook with raw ingredients or items that are Certified Gluten Free. Items that you might never think twice about, like ketchup, are things that this Celiac diva makes sure to get certified gluten -free. One of my favorite brands is Organicville.

How to continue to support your Celiac friends?


Besides celebrating, let's create more awareness about gluten-free issues! The mainstream knowledge of gluten-free is tainted with an imagine of fad dieters. Often, when I tell people I don't eat gluten, they think I'm doing it for weight loss. The reality is, that Celiac disease is a very serious health condition that requires much stricter adherence to a truly 100% gluten-free diet. Unfortunately, the mainstream idea of gluten-free is more aligned with Trader Joe's (not a Celiac friendly place) clever phrase "no gluten ingredients used." Just because there are no gluten ingredients used, does not make it gluten-free! My new term that I will be using now, rather than "gluten free," is "Celiac friendly." Spread the word!


Stay tuned for future blogs:

• Three Stone Hearth
• Asquew Grill
• Pacific Catch
• Ristorante Bacco
• Mariposa Baking Company
• Pica Pica Maize
• The Northwest Public House (in Portland)

 Thanks for reading and happy Celiac Awareness Day! 

EO Body Products: Certified Gluten Free!

Gluten free body products??!! Wah? Do we really need to worry about that?

I say, any gluten you put in or on your body is not good for Celiacs. Some doctors say that the concentration of gluten that would be found in body products is too low to have an effect. But if I can find good gluten free body products, that makes me happier. There is a good article on this issue at Celiac.com.

Where would one find gluten in a body product? I think the most concentrated source of gluten in body products would be wheat aminos that are often put in hair conditioners. Upon scouring the ingredients of several conditioners and leave in hair treatments, I found that many have wheat aminos. Some just say "aminos," and you have to wonder what kind. Some products do have soy or quinoa aminos. You can't just believe the front of the label though; for example, Aveda's Quinoa hair products actually have more wheat aminos in them than quinoa.

Another common gluten ingredient is wheat germ oil, although this should theoretically have all the gluten proteins filtered out, it's possible it could have some in it. Additionally, oats could be contaminated. 

EO is a brand I've known about for a long time, but never was impressed with their products, mostly because they were expensive and the scents didn't intrigue. I recently bought their lavender lotion, to use lavender to help me relax at night. However, the lotion itself is incredibly silky and luxurious. I can't believe I never tried it!

My most recent purchase is a product that I had tried before, and liked. I bought it again, gleeful in my knowing that it is gluten free. It's a great product, making your hair silky smooth. One key thing, that I think is necessary with lots of all natural products, is to emulsify the hair product before putting it in your hair. I pump out a dime sized amount in my hand, then pour some water and get it all mixed up. Then I distribute it through my hair. The wild lime & ginger scent is one of the EO ones that I do like, though it's subtle.

EO is not paying me to write this review. Certified gluten free products are few and far between, and I want to support them, so they persist and create more demand for certified gluten free.

Nuts for Gluten-Free Nuts at the Farmer's Market

Today at the Upper Haight Farmer's Market, the lady selling a plethora of nuts, flavored, salted etc, looked at me like I was nuts for asking about whether hers nuts possibly were exposed to gluten. As I asked her a few more questions about how the nuts are processed and packaged, she seemed annoyed by me and finally walked away suddenly to help another customer. She clearly thought I was NUTS and didn't want to waist more time with my silly questions.

I walked away without buying anything.

This situation may be due to both our ignorance. I certainly don't know a lot about how nuts are handled, processed and packaged. I have heard that I do need to be careful about that, because sometimes nuts are processed in the same facilities as wheat or other gluten. While I was told raw nuts usually aren't cause for concern, one can never be too careful. The great thing about Farmer's Markets, is you can speak to the employees or owners. You don't always get an immediate answer. At the Inner Sunset Farmer's Market, I asked one of the guys at the nut stand about their nuts, and he didn't know. He said he could check with his boss when she got back from vacation, and I told him I would come back in one of the following weeks.

This guy did mention that at least one of their nut products was seasoned with a gluten ingredient, and I would guess this would be the case for the nut lady at Upper Haight. However, as I walked away from her stand, I found a fruit stand that also sold raw almonds. I asked the cashier if the nuts could have been exposed to gluten. She wasn't sure, so she asked her boss, and he said they went straight from the tree, into the bags, and there was no gluten in the facility. Eureka! I bought a 5 pound bad for $20.

As an end note, some people may think I am NUTS for nit picking over the details about how the food I eat is processed. Well, they won't get my business. My health is not a trivial manner. If these people knew how bad I feel for months if I am exposed to a tiny bit of gluten, maybe they would get it. I do need to make myself more aware about how the foods I want to buy are processed. I welcome any comments - if anyone knows how nuts are generally processed, both for raw nuts and salted nuts. I'm specifically curious about Trader Joe's - one of these days I am going to do research on their policies and procedures and write a blog about that.

Gluten-free vegan Apple bread

This is a documentation of my attempt to make the recipe at: http://www.sheletthemeatcake.com/2010/09/gluten-free-and-vegan-apple-bread/#.T69efL8zJ6F



I had some apples that needed to get used before they went over the edge. While I'm not vegan, only dairy free, I was excited to find this recipe which is not only gluten-free and vegan but very focused on coconut which I am very into these days. No refined sugar is a plus too! I went into this experience knowing this wouldn't be decadent delight, but a good snack or an emergency breakfast.



The recipe given on the website, with my adaptations in parenthesis:

1 1/2 cups gluten-free flour mix (1/2 cup Gluten Free Pantry mix and 1 cup coconut flour)

2 tsp organic cinnamon (have you tasted the difference?)

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp sea salt

2 1/2 tbsp of ground flax combined with 3 tbsp warm water (ground Chia)

1 cup coconut sugar (I used coconut crystals - I think that's what they meant)

1/2 cup melted coconut oil, plus more for brushing

1 cup peeled, shredded apple (I put 1 1/2 apples in the food processors, which was more than 1 cup, all of which I put into the batch)



My batch:

The ground chia seed and water combination was very thick, but mixed okay with the apples. I'm sure ground flax seed would work much better, but I didn't have any. The apples smelled like a great apple cider, the cinnamon was fragrant. I was getting excited about the potential. Once everything was mixed together, the dough was not as I expected. I was never a big baker until I went gluten free and have recently been making muffins and brownies with pre-made mixes. These have been much more liquid. Worried about how dry the dough was, first added 1/4 cup almond/coconut milk. I added another 1/4 cup. Still not as fluid as I thought it should be, but I was afraid to add anything else. At this point I was able to smooth it out in the pan decently, so I threw it in the oven. After the recommended time, I felt it needed more. It started to brown on the edge, so even though it seemed very moist still, I took it out. After my friends and I sampled some, I'd say it's good but amazing. I'd be willing to try it once more using flax seeds.

In-N-Out, Daly City

It's an ironic twist that something seemingly so healthy-nutty such as "the gluten-free" diet, is actually usually best accommodated at chain restaurants. Many charming restaurants in San Francisco are still clueless about gluten-free issues, especially cross contamination issues for those of us with Celiac disease. The fact that chain restaurants are more adequately meeting the needs of the gluten-free crowd than are the mom-n-pop places is probably a matter of numbers - more customers means more people who are demanding gluten-free.

I knew In-N-Out had a "protein-style" burger, which is basically their burger wrapped in lettuce instead of between a bun. Their menu is simple, so fries are the only thing in their fryers - no onion rings adding gluten crumbs to the oil. After researching online forums, I read in-depth details about how many In-N-Out customers had tried to figure out the level of gluten-free-ness of the chain.

The scoop, thanks to one women's hard detective work, is that In-N-Out's only gluten containing item is the bun. The issue of cross contamination comes into play in three places: the surface on which the meals are prepared, the utensils which flip the burger and place it onto the bun, thereby possibly transferring crumbs onto future burgers, and the knife used to spread the special sauce onto the buns. This sauce has relish in it, and cannot be put into squeeze bottles like the ketchup and mustard. The recommendation was to go at a non-peak hour, request clean surfaces and utensils and/or ask for the special sauce in a packet.

I visited the Daly City In-N-Out at 10:30am on a Thursday. I felt confident that was not a peak hour, however, they only had one line, which was long and the cashier was rushed. I prepared my speech in my head, and as soon as the waitress heard no-gluten she told me very knowingly that she would mark my order for gluten-allergy. While this is technically incorrect as I have Celiac disease which is an auto-immune disorder, I was just glad they had a system in place to deal with people who need gluten-free food. I asked her if they could use clean utensils and she kept punching things into her screen and while she vaguely responded, did not give me the reassurance I wanted. She did turn and tell the cook that the order had a gluten-allergy, but she did not tell me what exactly the cook would do differently. I got my sauce on the side.

It was an absolute delight, biting into that charbroiled flavor. Although, I did bite into some paper that got between some lettuce. Not tasty. I never loved their fries, but now that I am gluten-free, fries are such a novelty since most fryers are contaminated. While In-N-Out's system is not perfect, they are doing far better than most places. I probably won't go there a lot, based on this experience, but, it is one of my best options when in a pinch. I hope they will continue to improve the dining experience for those of us with Celiac disease! They may just need more customer service training on the importance of reassuring customers that every measure is taken to avoid contamination.

Minako's Organic Japanese Restaurant, Mission District, San Francisco

For the gluten-free, this place is a gem! The main waitress, whose family runs the place totally "gets it" in regards to being 100% gluten-free. I went there with a party of four, me being the only gluten-free person. She gave me my own Wasabi and ginger dish, so that the others would not contaminate mine with their chop sticks because they were eating some non-gluten-free stuff (it's all gluten-free Tamari there though). It is so reassuring for those of us with Celiac disease when the waitstaff understand details like that. She explained to us that they have two tempura fryers to avoid contamination there, and she even told me Tobiko is not gluten free! I did not know that. It turns out Tobiko is usually processed with wheat starch.

The first time I went there, we mostly had sushi and I was not super impressed, not being a fan of brown rice in my sushi. The gluten free tempura was definitely a disappointment. However, at Minako's is the only gluten free inari I've found so far. So we went back. This time I ordered the gluten free Chicken Katsu and it was AMAZING. I can't wait to go back for more.

One thing that sucks about being gluten-free is that even though restaurants are getting better at coming up with gluten-free options, it's usually a regular menu item without the yummy sauce because the yummy sauce that really makes the dish has gluten in it. I'm pretty sure that this is the only place in San Francisco that has gluten-free Chicken Katsu with gluten-free sauce! YAY! I can't wait to go back for that.

Not only do they accommodate the gluten-free, but they are also very vegan friendly, all while offering plenty of options for those who eat the full spectrum off foods.

On a totally unimportant side note - their bathroom is super cute!

Picaro, Mission District, San Francisco

I had been to Picaro once before a long time ago. It was someone's birthday and I think we got mostly seafood paella. As I'm not the biggest fan of either, I was not impressed.

I recently took a out of town visitor to Picaro after a revelation that tapas might be a good way to get gluten-free items. At Picaro at least, I was right on - while they have some breaded and/or fried items, most of their dishes are cooked simply with olive oil, garlic, wine and some spices. Lots of garlic, lots of lemon wedges to squeeze on top. It was delightful!

My absolute favorite, which I will be going back for more of soon, was the grilled artichokes. The artichokes flowers were sliced thinly and nicely crispy. With garlic. And a fresh lemon wedge.

Did I mention garlic and lemon? Yes!

Also yummy was their tortilla de...I can't remember what the name was but it was basically like an omelet without the cheese and instead potatoes and onions. On the menu they says it's a popular item, and I can see why. Comes with a dollop of mayonnaise.

What is a tapas restaurant without sangria? Their's was good, but perhaps a tad too sweet.

Also of note was that the waitress was very nice about checking the ingredients on everything for me. And that most of it was indeed gluten-free and dairy free was excellent. I'll definitely be going back often.

If you are following the paleo diet, note that some items come with rice, but mostly the dishes are vegetables, meat and seafood, seasoned without sugar.

Masala Dosa, Inner Sunset, San Francisco, CA

Since I've been diagnosed with Celiac disease, I've been very shy of restaurants. Generally the only restaurants I feel comfortable eating at are fancy, expensive ones, because service is top notch and that includes attending to the needs of the food allergy ridden. I also feel relatively comfortable at restaurants with a gluten-free menu becuase they often have a more knowledgeable staff. Now, the latter is tricky because you have to wonder what definition of gluten-free they are operating under. Five years ago, I tried a "gluten-free" diet, because I had heard about how hard gluten was hard to digest, but it never occurred to me that there could be gluten in fish sauce or chicken broth. Even if you read ingredients carefully for gluten-ingredients, there is then the issue of gluten-contamination, which may not be a big deal for your average gluten intolerant person, but for a Celiac, this trace contamination can be as harmful as eating a cookie. How can I be assured that the chefs are aware of these issues? That they make sure not to prepare my food on surface with flour or bread crumbs? The answer is: I can't. But as awareness increases, I can just do my best to talk to the wait staff, and maybe someday get assertive enough to call ahead and talk to the chef and other staff. But for now, I cannot be sure.

With that frame of mind, I agreed to meet a friend at Masala Dosa for lunch with some apprehension. I often find my gluten-free friendly spots with a simple yelp search. Though, sometimes it can be hard to tell how good the options will be. I found a review for Masala Dosa that referred to a gluten-free menu, so I thought there must be something good there for me. Sure enough, the dosa section of the menu noted that all dosas were gluten free except for one kind. Fun! I had options!

Often times in restaurants where the owners and waitstaff do not speak English fluently, I have a hard time inquiring about whether the food is really gluten-free. With a lack of public knowledge of gluten-free issues, plus a language barrier, it can be hard to get the reassurance I need. I asked the waiter, a very nice guy with an accent, about whether any meats were prepared with flour, or if there was any flour added to the sauce. He said no, but he seemed to understand the importance of the questions, and said he would double check with the chef. He came back confirming that all the curries were gluten-free - no flour on the meat or in the sauce. Since I didn't get to talk to the chef, I have no idea if they really "got it." I can only trust that the waiter conveyed the importance.

My friend and I shared a masala dosa with chutney and a spinach and chicken curry. While not the most amazing Indian food I've ever had, they were both very tasty! The flavors were fragrant and rich and the quality of the food was quite good.

As I don't seem to be having a gluten reaction, I think the food was free of gluten contamination. I will definitely be going back to my new gluten-free Indian hot spot!

I can't eat dairy either, though I think it's easy to avoid the creme sauces and the paneer. I wonder about which items include butter that is not stated in the description. I'll have to ask about that next time.

Samovar, August 26th 2011

I have been here a handful of times pre-food-restrictions. I've always enjoyed their menu, particularly their tea services, which run in the 20's but come with a nice assortment of odds and ends plus tea. Their cheese and fruit plate, with honey comb, was always one of my favorite things to order there. For your average diner, this place is a wonderful treat, although a bit expensive. But today I will review it from the perspective of someone dining with food allergies or restrictions.



Today, I already had lunch and mostly came in for the delicious soy Matcha shake. At $8 it's a bit expensive, and you don't get that much. But I was in the mood to spoil myself a little, and cheat from the Paleo diet (soy is a bean, not a caveman food item).







The Gluten-Free Nitty Gritty:

As an Asian cuisine spot, this has a lot of potential to be mostly dairy free and gluten free, but potential gluten traps like soy sauce.



I decided to get a snack too and looked over the food items. To my delight, they had a key on the bottom to indicate which items are vegan and gluten free! Scanning through for item marked with that beautiful g next it, I was sad to see there were only a few. Of those few, some had soy sauce. Great! This must mean they have gluten free soy sauce. As a Celiac, you have to be extra cautious, to the extent where I've read advice on calling and talking to the chef in advance, asking tons of questions, and leaving if you aren't satisfied. Being new to this, I'm taking some baby steps. I pretty much settled on the marinated portabello salad, but in case it was marinated in gluten free soy sauce, I wanted to make sure they had gluten free soy sauce. The waitress, however, did not know. She was nice enough to go ask the kitchen, and I overheard the person she asked, ask another person, who did confirm that they have gluten free soy sauce. I got the portabello salad, thinking that I should have asked specially about that. I did ask the waitress if the salad was already gluten free and she made some show of checking the key. Perhaps this is all very new, and she is learning. Ideally, she would know the answers to most of my gluten and allergy related questions already.





The Dairy-Free Deal



While mostly Asian based, there are some salads, sandwiches etc that come with dairy. They also have a v* marking, that shows that items can be made vegan. This wouldn't mostly be by making without adding cheese. There are plenty of exciting asian style items without dairy on the menu though!





The Paleo Low-Down



There are nice salad options, although most menu items are either sandwiches or grain based meals. Many items come with crackers, and probably wouldn't be too fun wit hot the crackers. Also, soy is of course abundant on the menu. The portabello salad was probably the only purely paleo item on the food menu. Of course, with the teas, you could get almost anything except the Genmaicha, which is a brown rice green tea drink. For a Paleo dieter, I would say mostly come here if you want to have tea. In that regards, they have a wide variety of very high quality teas. I recommend their Earl Grey. It is exquisitely Bergamot flavored.



Ratings



Normal Dining Rating: 4/5 stars.

Minus a star for being a little pricey and pretentious without have whatever it takes (flavor, pizazz) to make it seem worth the price.



Food Allergy Dining Rating: 3/5 stars.

Minus a star for the waitress not have thorough knowledge of the gluten free options.





NOTE:

3/5 is high for the food allergy dining these days! There is must room for the restaurant industry to learn and grow with respect to the needs to food allergies. Restaurants are picking up on this; the change is happening now.

K&L Bistro, August 20th 2011

At 7pm, this place was busy, but we were offered a seat a lone table by the front windows. A small cozy joint, with friendly wait staff and a titilating menu with lots of meyer lemon, I was excited to try the place for the first time.





The Gluten-Free Nitty Gritty

As someone with many food restrictions, any conversation with the wait staff begins by spelling out my food allergies and asking about particular items I am interested in. This waitress "got it." I wanted the tuna tartar, which came with crackers. she pointed out that it has Ponzu sauce (has soy sauce in it) and would ask to have it made without, and also suggested susbtituting the crackers with lettuce. This is the kind of service that I would like for every dining experience! My partner and I had picked out 3 entrees and asked her which was gluten free. Out of the 3, 2 were already gluten free, so we ordered those. Even though the waitress was very knowledgeable, when delivering our food, she informed that she has let the kitchen know about my food allergies.





The Paleo Low Down

We had a steak with cumin fries and sword fish with caponata, a Sicilian cooked sweet and sour salad. The later was the most delicious thing we ordered, their version being made of eggplant, peppers and zuccini among other, with a nice tang to it. As being new to eating steaks, I requested for it to be cooked medium, which was probably a mistake since it was overcooked. The fries and sword fish were good, but not amazing. We also had a nice house red wine, a blend of Merlot and Cabernet. These items all fir into the Paleo diet...although, does wine really? Did cavemen have wine? Sure they had grapes, but goodness knows we can't go without some form of alcohol while fine dining. It goes hand in hand. Beer is clearly out of the question for gluten-free and paleo dining since the base ingredients were not part of a caveman's diet.



The Dairy-Free Deal



There were plenty of dairy free options. Many of the salads had dairy on them. This is usually disappointing to have without, since they often only have a few other items on them. My partner is fine ordering salads without the dairy, but it seems like a bummer to me. Our entrees were both originally dairy free and very satisfying.





Rating



Normal Rating: 4/5 stars

Minus 1 for good but not amazing food. The ambiance and service were good.



Allergy Dining Rating: 4/5 stars

Although it's nice to have the menu clearly marked which items are gluten free, or even to have a gluten free menu, the waitress was so knowledgeable and reassuring that it was ok. Preferably, I would like to be able to talk to kitchen staff in advance, tour kitchens etc. As a novice food critic, I am getting there. As a society we are just becoming aware of the needs of Celiac disease family members, friends, and customers. As this is a learning curve for all of us, I am positive they have room to grow to 5/5 stars.