Gluten-free birthday cake

You can still have a cute cake on your special day even if it must be gluten-free.

March is Gluten Free Pizza Month at ZPizza

I just received the following email from the owners of the Triangle zpizzas.

March is gluten-free month at zpizza. To celebrate, come in all month long and enjoy a delicious small gluten-free pizza for half off when you purchase a small pizza at regular price (of equal or greater value). Come in to any of our 3 locations (421 Fayetteville St, Downtown Raleigh. 96 Cornerstone Dr in Cary, or 9630 Falls of the Neuse Rd, North Raleigh).

Thanks for your positive feedback on our food, and to those of you that travel great distances to dine with us. Join us on Facebook and let us know where you are coming from. Someone will win free pizza!  Thanks, Steve and Dan, zpizza.

www.zpizzatriangle.com

Whole Foods Cary - Gluten Free Tour - March 14

Wednesday, March 14th

Gluten Free Tour

6:30 pm FREE

Are you or members of your family needing to switch to a gluten-free diet? If you're looking for help navigating the many choices we offer, let our Healthy Eating Educator guide the way. She will show you all kinds of options that will help you on your dietary path. Pre-register at customer service.

http://wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/cary/store-calendar/#72043

Red Robin. YUMMM!

Red Robin in Cary has always been very accommodating to our family's gluten intolerance. They clearly take it seriously, always asking, when we order sandwiches without buns, and fries without seasoning, whether there is a gluten allergy. I love that they will lettuce-wrap a burger, and it always makes me really wish other restaurants would catch onto this simple workaround. And now, making Red Robin highest on my "family date night restaurants" list, they recently began stocking a gluten-free hamburger bun.

The manager came over to our table one night, after noting that our order had an allergy alert on it (most likely checking on how the staff handled it). He informed us of the new bun, and asked if we'd like to try one. I haven't asked who makes it, but the bun is delicious! It is so incredible to go out locally and be able to eat a sandwich on a bun, at long last. Thanks, Red Robin!

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers
2260 Walnut St., Cary, NC 27511

Centrum at Crossroads

(919) 854-5415

Tom Yum Thai -- Restaurant Review

For over a year I've been meaning to share this hidden gem with Cary celiacs and their families. Located in the Village Square Shopping Center on Cary Towne Blvd., near the mall and Cary High School, Tom Yum Thai has no gluten free menu, but the friendly and attentive owner will recommend dishes and ensure your food is prepared with gluten free soy sauce, if you speak with him directly. The pleasing atmosphere, with dark cherry and jade colored furnishings, soothing East Asian background music and nature sounds, and plenty of room between tables, makes for an enjoyable business lunch or dinner out before movies at the neighboring Galaxy Cinema.

Our family had dined at Tom Yum in pre-diagnosis years, and shortly after my daughter received her celiac diagnosis we brought our own bottle of gluten free soy sauce and cautiously asked the owner if there was anything he could prepare without wheat. As always, we explained that even the smallest amount of cross-contamination would make her sick. Tom Yum, it turned out, had another customer who was also gluten free, and the owner was familiar with the intolerance. He recommended several of the stir-fry dishes (available with a choice of chicken, beef, pork, tofu, vegetables, or shrimp), which he said he could prepare with the gluten free soy sauce. For months, we brought our own gluten free soy sauce with us each time we went to Tom Yum, but now the restaurant keeps gluten free soy sauce in stock especially for their GF clientele.

Our daughter has stuck mostly to two dishes she loves: chicken with fresh ginger shreds prepared with chicken, peppers, baby corn, mushrooms, onions, scallions, carrots, and ginger; and chicken with Thai cashew nuts, made with chicken, scallions, carrots, peppers, nuts, and celery. Non-celiacs would be remiss not to try some of the delicious but non gluten-free curries and authentic Thai soups, but I think it's important to say that we've been to other restaurants that have promised to prepare gluten free food and our daughter has gotten violently ill from hidden gluten or cross-contamination. We've been to Tom Yum once or twice a month for almost two years, and she's never gotten sick afterwards. What's more, we've always enjoyed our meals there.

Tom Yum Thai

Village Square Shopping Center

685 Cary Towne Blvd.

Cary, NC 27511

919-463-5523

www.tomyumthaicary.com

Hours

Monday-Thursday	11:00AM - 2:30PM 5:00PM - 9:30PM
Friday	11:00AM - 2:30PM 5:00PM - 10:00PM
Saturday	12:00PM - 3:00PM 5:00PM - 10:00PM
Sunday	5:00PM - 9:30PM

Directions

Gluten Free Evening @ Whole Foods

Monday, September 19th

Gluten Free Evening 5-7:30 FREE

Are you gluten free? Dont miss out on your opportunity to taste some of our gluten free products and take a gluten free tour of the store. Tastings start at 5 and the tour is at 6:30. We have made some changes to where our GF products are so this will be a good refresher for some of you regular gluten free shoppers. Sign up at customer service or just stop by.

Cary, NC Bloggers Needed

Live in Cary, NC?

Live the Gluten Free Lifestyle?

Interested in helping others in your city?

If you have any questions or interest writing about Cary, NC please email me.

Gluten Free Tour @ Whole Foods Cary

Thursday, July 14th

Gluten Free Tour

6:30pm FREE

Learn to Shop Gluten Free! Sign up at customer service or just stop by.

http://wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/cary/store-calendar/

Gluten Free Tasting and Tour at Whole Foods Cary

Tuesday, June 21st
Gluten Free Tasting and Tour Tastings start @ 4 Tour @ 6:30
FREE

Need help shopping Gluten Free? Join us for an evening free of Gluten with tastings and meal ideas from Demo team member Bob, and a store tour by our Health Starts Here Specialist Anna Maria. Sign up for the tour at customer service or just stop by. While you are here enter to win a Gluten Free gift basket courtesy of Smart Treats.

http://wholefoodsmarket.com/stores/cary/store-calendar#46820

Tribeca Tavern

I recently tried to be festive with a friend and visited Tribeca Tavern in Cary. They were serving green beer and corned beef for the St. Patrick's Day holiday. The place was packed and had a 45 minute wait as the weather was warm and sunny and they offered outdoor seating. I tried to be a trooper and not subject my friend to the same dining establishments, yet again, that offered a separate gluten-free menu. I thought to myself ahead of time, "I can handle this. I can successfully manage to order a gluten-free meal from the menu, enjoy it, and not get sick." Well, my experience did not match my original thoughts. Our waiter had no idea that gluten-free beers existed and told me that past diners had just ordered hamburgers without a bun. If I had just been recently diagnosed, then I might have made the same mistake. But, I have been on the gluten-free diet for over four years now, so I knew better. I asked the waiter if he would check with the chef about the specific ingredients in the menu items - I thought I would tackle the issue of cross-contamination and the grill separately. He assured me that there was no gluten in the chicken salad served on lettuce. I hesitantly opted for that option and proceeded to get sick. I sincerely hope that the restaurant will reach out to someone in the gluten-free community for advice on how to properly service our needs. We represent a rapidly expanding market that is very profitable for those who address our needs carefully.

Cary Whole Foods Market Gluten Free Festival - March 19th & 20th

Cary Whole Foods Market will host a Gluten Free Festival - March 19 & 20^th

Where: Cary, NC Whole Foods Market

     102 B New Waverly Place

                 Cary, NC 27511

When: Saturday, March 19^th – Tastings, 11:00am - 3:00pm

                              Grocery Isle Tours, 12pm & 1:30pm

  Sunday, March 20th – Tastings, 12:00pm – 4:00pm

                             Grocery Isle Tours, 1pm & 2:30pm

Details: There will be product sampling from several gluten free vendors including the WFM Gluten Free   Bakehouse. Lee Tobin from our GF Bakehouse will lead GF grocery isle tours. We will discuss strategies for adapting to the GF diet as we walk the store isles highlighting a variety of GF options. Please register for these 1 hour tours at the customer service desk, or call 919-816-8830

Please let me know if you have any questions. Sorry for the short notice on the Cary event. We just finalized the schedule this week. Thanks,

Lee Tobin

Team Leader

Whole Foods Market Gluten Free Bakehouse

2800 Perimeter Park Dr Suite C Morrisville, NC 27560

919-467-1602

http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/products/gluten-free-bakehouse.php

Super Bowl, Gluten-Free Style

Family get-togethers and parties of all shapes and sizes are always fun, but can be a veritable torture chamber for anyone struggling with a gluten intolerance, allergy, or Celiac's disease. With it being Super Bowl weekend, I thought I'd share some good recipes and places to get the ingredients for you football loving fans.

Dessert first, because really, if you're going to have a party you should go all out. Betty Crocker makes some really great baking mixes including the yellow cake mix and the brownie mixes. Wal-Mart, Super Target, Harris Teeter and Whole Foods all carry these, which is fantastic. The brownies can be a bit dry, so I always add some Reeses peanut butter chips, which add moisture and a great surprise to them. The yellow cake mix is okay on its own, but it has amazing potential. If you follow this recipe (ignore the cupcake bits, and don't put in the sugar) with the cake mix and bake it for 27 minutes then let it sit in the fridge for 1-12 hours you can make the world's richest most delicious gluten-free red velvet cake (and your gluten eating friends will love it to, I promise).

But, what's the Super Bowl without snacks, appetizers, and junk food, right? But just because you can't go out and buy the average frozen meatballs and wings doesn't mean you can't have delicious snacking food. Ian's make really great chicken nuggets, fries and pizza for kids and kids-at-heart. Nachos is an easy choice, seeing as most Tostidos are gluten-free. Kiddie friendly with just shredded cheese or add meat, olives, lettuce and you can have a taco salad that's quick, easy, and your gluten-eating friends will love, too! One of the best things to do when you're on a GF diet is to think outside the box. Don't discount recipes with gluten in them before figuring out how to do it yourself with your GF ingredients.

Also, when traveling to friends' house for a party you can bring your own things, surely, but don't feel bad telling them your concerns! They won't mind, especially because if they know you, they know you're GF and they'll be lost if you don't give them a few tips on what to do. Think about how confused you were when you started!

Finally, for you guys who just want to hit a sports bar or restaurant for the game, here are some great places in Cary and the surrounding areas:

Cafe Capistrano isn't really a sports place, but it is delicious and with corn tacos that are to die for and the flam that's sinful you can't go wrong, plus the owner there is very willing to change things around to make more things on the menu GF.

Chili's has a great GF menu, so friends looking to just "chill" come game time can all gather there.

Rosie's Plate is a dedicated GF and other allergy free kitchen, so you'll know you're in good hands. You can order these things and they'll be ready the following day at 3:00- this makes parties and dinner easy as GF pie!


Have a great Super Bowl everyone!

Keep eating!

Gluten-free for less

It is becoming increasingly easier to find gluten-free items. The good news is that our food is now available in more locations with varying price points. One of the new alternatives is the grocery aisle at the Target in Cary on Walnut Street. I was completely amazed when I visited recently and found lots of gluten-free bakery items, pancake mixes, cereal, frozen Kinnikinnick products, and lots more! Many of the items cost considerably less than you would find at Whole Foods or even Kroger. I encourage you to check it out and add it to your list of weekly grocery shopping destinations.

Carolina Hurricanes: 2010-2011 Gluten Free Update

I have previously written about Gluten Free options at the RBC Center during Carolina Hurricanes games over the last couple seasons.  See below for the 2010-2011 season update.

Whole Foods Gluten Free Tour - 10/14/2010

Check out the Cary Whole Foods for an upcoming Gluten Free Tour!

Thursday, October 14th
Gluten Free Tour

6:30 p.m. free pre-register

If you suffer from gluten sensitivity or Celiac Disease, or you just want to know about our gluten-free products, then this tour is for you! We will show you where to find our various gluten-free options, as well as direct you to other resources. Along the way we will stop in our different departments to sample some yummy and satisfying gluten-free nibbles. Everyone who takes the tour will be sent home with a goody bag of our gluten-free products. Space is limited so we ask that you pre-register at our customer service desk.

Store Information
102B New Waverly Place
Cary, NC 27518 USA
Phone 919.816.8830
Store hours:
7:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. seven days a week.

Hurricane Prep, Gluten-Free Style

With Hurricane Earl closing in on the East Coast and evacuations underway in parts of the Outer Banks, here in Cary it's time to mad rush the grocery stores. All forecasts predict we'll be far from Earl's wrath, but we're properly trained in better-safe-than-sorry and won't be caught off guard without the essentials: water, flashlight, batteries, blanket, radio, bread??? Hmmmm. How different should our emergency kit look now that we have a daughter with Celiac disease?

My husband and I have talked about this at length since V was diagnosed this past January, although we've never come to any real conclusion. If we had to evacuate, not necessarily due to a hurricane, but for whatever reason, the chances that we would find gluten-free food "along the way" would be next to nil. So what portable GF foods should we pack and how much do we need in the emergency kit?

I always keep a spare case of Kind Bars in the house. Resembling granola bars at first glance, they come in a variety of fruit and nut combos with or without yogurt; they're high in protein, low on the glycemic index, and of course gluten-free (not to mention tasty). But are twelve energy bars enough food to get a child with Celiac through a real evacuation? Have your thoughts about emergency preparedness changed since Celiac entered your life? What's in your gluten-free emergency kit?

Stay safe and dry...

Whole Foods Cary - Gluten Free Tour

Thursday, July 22nd

Gluten Free Tour
6:30 p.m. Free, pre-register

If you suffer from gluten sensitivity or Celiac Disease, or you just want to know about our gluten-free products, then this tour is for you! We will show you where to find our various gluten-free options, as well as direct you to other resources. Along the way we will stop in our different departments to sample some yummy and satisfying gluten-free nibbles. Everyone who takes the tour will be sent home with a goody bag of our gluten-free products. Space is limited so we ask that you pre-register at our customer service desk.