Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Off the Menu: Brick Oven Restaurant

Yum, yum, yum...that's all I have to say! They even make their meatballs gluten-free if you ask. They change up the pastas sometimes but all of the below is legit.

Red Bridge or Bards Gluten Free Beer
Our Wine is Gluten Free

Appetizers (Add $1.00 to menu price)
Bruchetta
Portabella Mushroom
Spinach and Artichoke Dip
Garlic Bread (toasted rice almond gf bread)
All Salads

Medium Pizzas
As priced on our menu with a $4.00 up charge
Pizza crusts are from Gluten Free Kneads dedicated kitchen
 Substitute lean ground beef for meatball topping

Pastas
$1.50 upcharge
We offer Pasta Rustica, Chicken Rigatoni, Pasta Primavera, Capellini Pomodoro, Spaghetti Marinara or Meat Sauce.
We use Tinkyada rice pastas
We will use spirals for most pastas so there is no confusion in our kitchen or by our wait staff and sauces are thickened with corn starch.
Gluten Free Garlic Bread is served with each Meal.

Desserts $4.50
Carrot Cake and Brownies
We also make Mac and Cheese and Grilled Cheese Sandwiches for kids. $4.95
Chicken, Turkey and Veggie Sandwiches are available too! $5.95

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Livestrong Article - Gluten: Friend or Foe?

The Livestrong e-newsletter came out today and their big, front page, article is about eating gluten-free and whether it is a diet option (to lose weight). Obviously that is not why I eat gluten-free but they examine some of the science and nutrition behind it and touch on Celiac Disease as well. It's a helpful read so check it out:


Imagine a life in which your favorite comfort foods, such as pasta, bread, cereal and cookies, could cause you to become violently ill. This is reality for an estimated 3 million Americans who have been diagnosed with celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder that involves a severe reaction to foods containing gluten. Growing awareness of the condition, combined with consumer demand, has brought an increasing number of gluten-free products to store shelves in recent years. While people with celiac disease have little choice but to avoid gluten, others may be avoiding gluten in an effort to trim pounds. That may work -- but it may not be the best way to lose weight.
If someone just substitutes gluten-free versions of typical gluten-heavy foods (such as waffles, cereal, dessert mixes or baked goods), long-term weight loss is unlikely.

Where Gluten Hides

Gluten is the common name for the proteins found in specific grains, and it is found in all forms of wheat. Ashley Koff, a Los Angeles-based registered dietitian, uses the acronym "BROW" (barley, rye, oat and wheat) to help clients remember where gluten is found.

Examples of gluten-containing foods include breads, cookies, crackers, cake mixes, cereal, ice cream, packaged meats and cold cuts, pasta, and even soup broths and bouillon cubes. Koff says anyone with celiac disease must also be cautious about purchasing products that were manufactured in facilities that also process gluten products. They're often labeled with statements such as "contains wheat ingredients" or "made on shared equipment that also processes wheat."

Oats do not naturally contain gluten, but they're on Koff's "BROW" list for a reason. They're often grown near fields of wheat and rye, and farmers may rotate the fields, said Marlisa Brown, a registered dietitian in New York and author of "Gluten-Free, Hassle Free" and "Easy, Gluten-Free." She recommends that people who need to avoid gluten eat oats only if the oats are from certified gluten-free sources.

A Battle Within the Body

When a person with celiac disease eats foods containing gluten, his immune system attacks the small intestine. The resulting damage to the small intestine impairs the body's ability to absorb certain nutrients. The condition can cause fatigue, weight loss, abdominal pain, bloating, constipation or diarrhea.

In addition to those with full-blown celiac disease, some people have non-celiac gluten sensitivity. "Symptoms can be the same as someone with celiac, with the most typical symptoms being gas, bloating and irritable bowel syndrome," Brown said. "It is estimated that there are more than 20 million [people] with a non-celiac gluten sensitivity."

Other conditions may also involve a gluten reaction, at least in some individuals. "Diseases in the autoimmune class, such as fibromyalgia, Type 1 diabetes, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and rheumatoid arthritis, have also shown positive results when removing gluten from the diet, so many now follow that protocol," said Koff, adding that anyone suffering from irritable bowel syndrome might also want to consider a gluten-free diet.

No Weight-Loss Magic

With all the talk of gluten's negative aspects, people who aren't particularly sensitive to it but are simply looking to lose weight may give up foods containing gluten in hopes of shedding pounds. But does a gluten-free lifestyle automatically mean a smaller waistline? Experts say it depends on what gluten-free foods you eat.

Brown says that if a person goes on a gluten-free diet, giving up all pasta, packaged foods, cereal, desserts, bread and thickening agents such as gravy, and opts instead to consume more fruits, vegetables, lean meats, fish and low-fat dairy products, then, yes, weight loss could result.

But she points out that if someone just substitutes gluten-free versions of typical gluten-heavy foods (such as waffles, cereal, dessert mixes or baked goods), long-term weight loss is unlikely. In addition, many gluten-free foods are lower in vitamins and fiber than the foods they're replacing. When you're looking for gluten-free alternatives, consider adding healthful choices such as amaranth, buckwheat, legumes, teff, quinoa and sorghum.

Koff recommends replacing what she calls resistant-starch content (such as certain types of rice and potatoes) with whole foods for a greater chance of dropping pounds.

It Isn't All Bad

If you don't have a medical condition that requires you to avoid gluten, keeping gluten in your diet while improving the quality of foods you eat will make eating out and shopping for foods a lot easier. Some pros of gluten include being able to eat whole-grain breads and cereals that offer necessary fiber and nutrients such as B vitamins.

Bonnie Modugno, a registered dietitian in private practice in Santa Monica, California, points out the challenges of eating a gluten-free diet if you don't have to.

"You'll spend a lot of time reading food labels," she said. "You might get the same effect by limiting your starches and sugars. Moderation takes a lot of skill and discipline. My recommendation is to stick closer to the earth with beans, legumes, starchy vegetables, nuts and seeds."

Side Item:

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Article: The Future of Celiac Disease

In the line at Whole Foods I saw the newest edition of Gluten-Free Living magazine and decided that I should catch up on the newest happenings. One of the articles really interested me. The writer interviewed Dr. Fasano, director of the Center for Celiac Research at the University of Maryland School or Medicine about the future of the disease. I chose some of the questions and answers below to highlight:


Q: In our last in-dept interview in 2003, we talked about a cure for celiac disease. Are we any closer now?

A: Seven years ago a cure was just a theoretical discussion. There has been a steady increase in research, especially since 2005. In 2003, we knew it was technically possible. In 2010 there are 35 projects completed or in the pipeline related to the diagnosis, treatment or prevention of the disease

Are we close to a cure or treatment? We are much closer than we were when we discussed the first time. Now we see steps that are really possible. Keep in mind that whenever you talk about development of a tool, like a drug, you are talking about 10 to 15 years of study and close to a billion dollars. So it takes time and a tremendous amount of resources.


Q: Has more of the change we've seen with celiac disease since 2003 occurred in the gluten-free marketplace than the medical world?

A: Everyone who has experienced the changes in the marketplace is really benefiting from the changes in the medical world. Those who are newer to gluten-free may not be aware of what the medical world was, say, five years ago. The awareness of celiac disease was so low, it took a long time to be diagnosed, and even when you were diagnosed, you knew more than your physician. When you know this, you realize there has been a tremendous change int he medical arena. People are benefiting from the efforts of the centers and others to increase awareness.

We went from a situation where celiac disease was completely neglected to a point where the Centers for Disease Control considers celiac disease a public health threat because it is unique in that so many are not diagnosed. With type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis, there is no way you will have symptoms and not be diagnosed. Not with celiac disease. Ninety-plus percent of the people with the disease are not diagnosed. They consume the heath care system.

So now celiac disease is a topic of discussion at the National Institutes of Health, the FDA and the CDC. It's remarkable. If you are new you might think it was always like this. All you know is you don't have to go to a special store for food. You can go to Safeway or Giant and find gluten-free products.

Q: What about eliminating the need for the biopsy to diagnose celiac disease?

A: Confirming the diagnosis to a rigid set of rules, which, by the way, I contributed to wrongly, does not reflect the real gluten world out there. We know there are clinical cases of celiac disease in which not all the criteria are there. We published a paper that said let's be a little more flexible. Let's set five major criteria and say you have to fulfill any four of the five:

1. You have to have symptoms we know are related to celiac disease - diarrhea, anemia, whatever
2. You have to have the autoantibodies we use for diagnosis - anti-tissue transglutaminase and antiendomysial antibodies
3. You have to have HLA-DQ2 and/or HLA-DQ8
4. The biopsy shows damage
5. Your symptoms have to resolve when you go on a gluten-free diet

In this formula, if you have symptoms, the autoantibodies, the HLA genes and symptoms that go away, you can avoid the biopsy.

If you don't have the genes then you fulfill 3 of the 5 and it's not enough. If you don't have the genes, you have to have the biopsy. If the biopsy does not show the damage, then you don't fulfill the criteria. So the genes are no longer necessary. It is rare, but 2 to 3 percent of the people who are diagnosed with CD are HLA-DQ2/DQ8 negative. In these cases, the biopsy would be essential.

Final Q: Will there ever be a test that can diagnose celiac disease in patients who have already put themselves on a gluten-free diet?

A: No. When people give up gluten, they don't give their physician the tools to identify which part of the spectrum they are on, meaning do they have celiac disease or are they gluten sensitive? One thing that is not changed, and will never change in my opinion, is that you need to understand which part of the spectrum you are in before you try the diet. You can't treat the disease before the diagnosis, in my humble opinion.

Some other quick facts:
- Recent study found a doubling of celiac disease every 15 years since 1974
- A final definition from the FDA on what "gluten-free" really means on packaging should be complete by the end of this year
- The new generation of chefs think gluten-free is a challenge and they do not accept that the food cannot taste the same
- The $1.7 billion gluten-free market now grows 20% per year
- 60 million buy gluten-free products but only 200,000 in America are clinically diagnosed with CD

Sunday, February 13, 2011

New Brand: evol!

So, I was walking through Whole Foods the other day, I can't remember which one because I'm there constantly, but I noticed a new sign that said "Gluten-Free". As usual I will always check that out, and I found a whole freezer section full of microwavable meals by evol!

Their website can be found here: http://evolfoods.com/

It seems as if their major marketing angle is that they are "green" and environmentally friendly but the front page boasts the new g-free items so that's what I'm giving them credit for. So far, I've tried the chicken and cheese enchilada bowl and it was fantastic...however I would suggest putting the meal in a regular dish when it is done cooking. I attempted to eat it out of the environmentally safe bowl but it ended up falling apart and I'm pretty sure I ate some cardboard in the process. This is not a deal breaker but definitely something to be aware of!

Please note that not all of their products are gluten-free but enough are that it's worth trying them out, especially since they can be microwaved (yay for us non-cooks) AND they come with a free sticker in every package! I'm a huge fan and wanted to share it with others (Celiac or not) because they are definitely worth a purchase.

Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Friday, February 4, 2011

V-Day gifts for the Celiac in your life...

Well...fancy dinners out and other gifts that tend to fall into the V-Day realm (and any other holiday really) are a little sad for those with Celiac disease...it's not near as fun or exciting, but there are options...

http://celiac-disease.com/gluten-free-gifts/
http://www.glutenfreeceliacweb.com/2011/01/19/gluten-free-valentines-day-3/
http://www.celiac.com/gluten-free/topic/4938-candy-for-valentines-day/ - Candy for V-Day

Edible Arrangements is a great option, they send fruit bouquets, along with chocolate covered fruit which is normally just fine.

Of course, I have my places, none of which are super fancy (much easier to get a table on the big day) so check out some of the Italian restaurants I've reviewed! Wine and pasta are always romantic :)
 
Of course...there are ALWAYS flowers too :)

Austin Gluten-Free PizzaFest

Hi readers! Although I will be out of town that night (very disappointing) I wanted to share the media release regarding the the Austin Gluten-Free PizzaFest that will be taking place:

For Immediate Release - Contact: atxglutenfree@gmail.com


AUSTIN, Texas – February 3, 2011 - Come rub elbows with Austin’s gluten-free thought leaders and local pizza industry insiders to see how the gluten-free lifestyle is impacting the community, and what it means for the future of pizza. Follow up the event with 10 days of gluten-free pizza recipes on: ATX Gluten-Free.

Jessica Meyer (ATX Gluten-Free), Karen Morgan (Blackbird Bakery) and Rachelle King (Blinded Bite) have joined forces to bring you the ultimate Gluten-Free Pizza Fest Party.

Join us Thursday, February 24, 2011 (7– 9pm), as we taste a variety of gluten-free pizzas. The gluten-free crusts will be provided by Blackbird Bakery and Gluten-Free Kneads.  The event will be held at:
 
Parkside Restaurant
301 East 6th Street
Austin, TX 78701
With over 20 million Americans suffering from gluten intolerance and Celiac Disease, restaurant owners are taking notice and adding gluten free options to their menus. It’s revolutionary.

Others are encouraged to join in on the fun by contributing one or more of the following to ATX Gluten-Free between February 7-11 and February 14-18.  Find out more about online participation here.

·         Gluten-Free Pizza Recipes
·         Gluten-Free Pizza Restaurant Review (Only if you live in Austin, Texas)
·         Gluten-Free Pizza Product Reviews

Your contribution to Pizza Fest will be as a blog post on your blog.  After the event is over, Jessica Meyer will write a summary blog post with links to everyone’s pizza post.
Participants are invited to follow tweets, add comments and share thoughts utilizing the hashtag #GFpizzafeston Twitter.

With more than 100 pizzeria’s and pizza centric restaurants in Austin, what a great event to attend to learn more about gluten-free pizza and gluten-free dining options!


Contact:
Jessica Meyer
ATX Gluten Free
(512) 658-0635
atxglutenfree@gmail.com