Teaism DC – Fool me once

Posted on June 21, 2011 | Leave a comment

Last weekend I had a lovely dinner and a movie lady date with a friend.  Dinner was at Teaism in Penn Quarter (they also have locations at Lafayette Park and Dupont Circle).  I was initially excited because they have a menu for dietary restrictions, some great reviews from a decade ago, and they were featured on Rachael Ray’s “40 Dollars a Day”.

I opted to get the shrimp ochazuke – a soup made with leftover brown rice, carrots, cabbage, and a big dollop of wasabi.  A pot of green tea comes on the side, which you pour over the main ingredients to make it soup.

Silly me – but I thought that there would be more to the soup than just what it looks like at face value.  But it tasted exactly like what it sounds like – brown rice with tea.  Hardly any flavor, except for the bit of heat from the wasabi – which I thought was kind of a weird addition anyway.

My friend got the salmon bento box, which looked wonderful, but sadly isn’t gluten free.  The tuna and veggie ones are though, with slight modification (no dressing on the tuna bento and no soy sauce on the veggie).  So, maybe I’ll try that next time.  Although there probably won’t be a next time, unless someone forces me.

Pic c/o wayfaringchocolate.wordpress.com

They were baking something in there that smelled like cinnamon amazingness, but none of their baked goods appeared to be gluten free 😦

Luckily watching Midnight in Paris made me forget about this forgettable meal, plus a little Pitango gelato for good measure.

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Gluten free running fuel

Posted on June 20, 2011 | Leave a comment

After 14 years of ballet, I never thought that I would run.  I still don’t consider myself a “runner”, but since I usually run about four times a week, others might.

Since I picked up some new kicks from The Running Company in Georgetown this weekend, it got me thinking about the food that fuels runners.  Most people associate pre-run meals as being carbo-loaded, spawned from high school pasta parties before track meets and pre-marathon bagels.  When I started running I realized that it really does make a difference what you eat before a run.

Obviously you can use gluten-free replacements for pasta, bagels, and pizza (although go with the rice or corn varieties instead of the brown rice ones, since whole grains can cause digestion issues while running).  But here are some alternate choices for pre and post run snacks.

A few pre-run gluten free meals:

  1. Low fiber fruits and vegetables (zucchini, tomatoes, olives, grapes, and grapefruit)
  2. Soy milk with non whole-grain cereal (like Leapin Lemers)
  3. Greek yogurt with honey or granola

And for post-run:

  1. Coconut water (for electrolytes)
  2. Skim chocolate milk (for carbs and a little protein)
  3. Bananas, apples and berries (reduce inflammation)
  4. Nuts
  5. Eggs
  6. Raisins
  7. Sweet potatoes or potatoes

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Think thin?

Posted on June 19, 2011 | Leave a comment

I’ve been thinking a lot about Think Thin bars since I watch this video on their website about why they make their products gluten free.

Gluten Free Diet Facts: Video by ThinkThin from ThinkThinTV on Vimeo.

The CEO of Think Thin has been gluten free for 12 years, and I love that the company is expanding and products are available in more and more stores.

Think thin bars also recently went through a label makeover, from this:

Old label

to this…

New label

Love the new look since it makes it much easier to determine which flavor you’re picking up; I can hone in on the blue icon to find my favorite white chocolate chip ones.

These are a great meal replacement, post-workout, or big snack option for me, since they have no sugar and 20 grams of protein.  Similar to Larabars, they are amazing frozen as well.  The Think Thin Bites are even better, since they’re half the size and usually I only want to eat a few bites of the big ones at a time.

The only thing that I have to complain about with Think Thin bars is that their marketing strategy seems off to me.  As far as I know, they are the only true gluten free protein bar (besides things like Kind bars that have natural protein from nuts in them).  But by marketing themselves as “weight management” bars, I think that they are actually a turn off to the gluten free community.  Maybe it’s just me, but I get immediately turned off when gluten free products try to hand hold with weight loss products.  I don’t want to “think thin”, I just want a dang snack that will fill me up and not make me sick.  It also seemed off to me that the CEO said that Think Thin was based off of “food that brings back her Italian heritage” and cooking in the kitchen with her grandparents? I don’t know when I ever cooked with protein blend isolate or maitol with my grandma.  But I appreciate the sentiment.

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Gluten Free Beer Map – Washington DC

Posted on June 15, 2011 | 2 comments

Check out my new page! It has a Google map that I created with restaurants and stores that sell gluten free beer. I love it when I’m surprised and a menu has a gf beer on it, but it’s also nice to be able to plan ahead where to go in your neighborhood.

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Gluten free beauty products are a hoax

Posted on June 15, 2011 | 5 comments

A few months ago I splurged and bought a lovely bottle of Origins “Checks and Balances” face wash that cost an arm and a leg, but smelled amazing and was really highly rated.  Oh how I loved it so.  Every time I washed my face it was like a little moment of luxury.  Then I started reading about gluten free beauty products and started getting paranoid about if any of my shampoos, moisturizers, etc. contained gluten.

Long lost love

Of course, one of the ingredients in my prized face wash was actual “Wheat Protein” (say what?!).  I didn’t really see anything happening to my face since using it, but I figured to be safe I should stop using it.  And when I moved I gave it a tiny funeral in my head as I threw it in the trash can.

But THEN…

I stumbled upon the Washington Area Celiac Sprue Support Group Newsletter published in May.  And apparently the Mayo Clinic just discovered that the whole “gluten free beauty” trend is a complete sham!  Unless you actually ingest the product, it won’t do anything to you.

I feel so gypped!

The only thing that you have to look out for are products that go on or in your mouth, like toothpaste and lip balm.

Can someone please refund me $18.50 plus tax?    : /

*Note: I have heard of people having skin reactions to gluten in skincare products.  It might be a coincidence, or a DH reaction that manifests at the same time  (a rash/blistering of the skin that is caused by eating gluten), but some may say “why take a chance?” and choose to avoid gluten in products.  More power to you!  I think that going forward I’m going to try to avoid anything that screams “contains wheat protein or wheat germ”, but I’m just not going to be as anal about checking and Googling every ingredient in my shampoo.

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How to not break gluten free wraps

Posted on June 14, 2011 | 2 comments

This question has actually come up twice in the last 48 hours, so I figured it must be something that people are wondering.  I eat gluten free wraps a LOT – specifically the Food for Life brown rice tortillas.  I dip them in hummus, fill them with tuna salad, and make them into quesadillas.  When you get them from the frozen section of the grocery store, they are hard as a rock and sometimes covered in little ice crystals…not very appetizing.  I usually break off half of one since they’re pretty large, and put the rest back for later.

So, here’s the magic trick to getting the wrap not to break when you use it…

Treat them like corn tortillas and use one of these two prep methods.

Method A:

  1. Wet hands with water
  2. Rub both sides of the tortilla
  3. Put on a plate and microwave for 12 seconds
  4. If it’s still a bit too wet, flip it over and add 5 seconds more

Method B:

  1. Quickly run a paper towel under water
  2. Mush it into a ball so the entire thing is a bit wet
  3. Ring it out so the towel is just damp all over
  4. Wrap tortilla in paper towel
  5. Microwave for 15 seconds

If you use one of those two methods, the wrap will definitely not break on you. Now, it isn’t going to stay totally moist and wonderful forever.  But it will definitely stay like that for your meal.  If I’m packing one for lunch, I try to put a layer of hummus on it in the morning (then fill with whatever you want), which seems to keep it moist until lunch.

Hope that helps!

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Oh snap! (and crackle and pop)…Rice Krispies go gluten free

Posted on June 13, 2011 | Leave a comment

I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time.  Rice Krispies have finally eliminated the malt barley from their recipe and gone gluten free! Check out the Rice Krispies website for more info on the cereal, which they’re branding as “a gluten-free option with the same beloved sound”.

Can’t wait to go on a scavenger hunt to find these around DC.  I’ll update when I find them!

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Match up: Fruit Leather vs. Fruit Strips vs. Fruit Rollups

Posted on June 10, 2011 | 2 comments

Whenever I’m in line at Whole Foods, I’m enticed by the 49 cent fruit strips they have near the check out.  I’ve gotten a couple, so I figured I should put them to the test.  The contenders are a more “crunchy” version, Kaia Fruit Leather, and the classic kids treat, Fruit Rollups.

First up: Kaia Foods Gogi Orange Fruit Leather

Ingredients: Orange, bananas, gogi berries

Before I ate this, I didn’t see that there were bananas in it.  They probably use nanners to give the leather some sweetness, since there’s no added sugar.  I appreciate the simplicity of the ingredients, but not the way it tasted.

Kind of like eating a really thin, dirty orange peel.  It was definitely fun to eat, and good for me, but not necessarily the tastiest thing I’ve ever had.

Next up: Whole Foods 365 Organic Blueberry Fruit Strip

Ingredients: apples, organic natural flavor, fruit juice concentrate (blueberry and lemon)

Image from mandysmeals.com

There are a ton of varieties of the Whole Foods strips (those that I can think of off the top of my head = peach, berry, strawberry, blueberry, cherry, apricot).  All of them have apples listed as their first ingredient, but due to the fruit juice concentrate in them, they have a strong taste of whatever fruit flavor is in them.  They’re not as chewy as either Kaia or Fruit Roll-ups, but they feel more natural that way (like, fruit shouldn’t be impossible to get out of the grooves in your teeth).  They have a bit of texture to them, but are generally a great small snack for pre-workout, or when you just need a little sugar.

And the hometown favorite: Fruit Roll-ups, made by Betty Crocker (who knew?)

Ingredients: a whole lot of stuff.

I was impressed when I saw the clear “gluten-free” label on the front of the box.  That Betty Crocker really has high gf awareness.

That said…Fruit Roll-ups were not like I remembered them to be.  When I was a kid each one felt almost like a blanket of chewy fruit goodness.  You could punch out shapes in them, stick your tongue through one, and amuse yourself for hours on end.  As an almost adult, it was just kid of…ordinary.  The colors are blinding (especially the unappetizing blue/green one), it gets stuck in your teeth, and it takes me about 45 seconds to eat one.

And the winner?

Whole Foods 365 Fruit Strips! 

I would choose these even over my old childhood staple Fruit Roll-ups, and I would choose just about anything over the Kaia ones.  So, stock up…they are only 49 cents each, after all.

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Gluten Free Pizza Quest – DC

Posted on June 10, 2011 | 9 comments

So excited to post my first official eating out entry from Washington DC!

When I moved to DC I knew that one of my first orders of business was to find some decent gluten free pizza, since that is one of my favorite things to eat out.   In NYC I tried a ton of pizza (Risotteria, Mozzarelli’s, Slice, Naked Pizza), and narrowed it down to Pala Pizza as my favorite.  The first place that I tried in DC was Ella’s Pizza.

Pluses = they have a number of unique toppings (caramelized onions, gorgonzola and rosemary), they have gluten free beer (Redbridge and St. Peter’s)

Minuses = when you add $2 for the gf crust, it can get expensive for a 10 inch pizza, so I would recommend sharing.  But the biggest minus is that the crust is kind of bready and soggy.  I know it seems odd to describe something gluten free as “bready”, but it was.  I prefer my pizza thin and chewy though, so if you like a thicker crust you may like it.

Ella's margherita pizza

We also got the mini eggplant, parmesan and ricotta rolls as an appetizer.  These were alright, I guess.  They tasted good, but nothing that’s going to blow your mind.

Ella's eggplant rolls

Now, the second place that I tried might be the overall winner – trumping Pala Pizza in a surprising underdog victory.  What is this drool-worthy pizza?

Open City

First of all, I love that you can eat outside here and enjoy a Redbridge with a scenic view.

They also have a lot of other gf options on their gf menu that look amazing – like the Grilled Salmon with Coconut creamed corn & sautéed spinach.

And lastly, every Wednesday night they have a Gluten Free Pizza Party (squeal like a little girl).  When all of their gluten free pizzas are half priced.

The pizza is truly to die for.  It’s one of those things that make you stop and question for a second if it could really be this good and gluten free.  Then you just forget about it, push that thought out of your head, and shove another piece in your mouth.

Next time I’ll have to take a better picture…

Phone picture fail

This time I got the Julienned Vegetable pizza with zucchini, squash, carrots, pesto, parmesan & mozzarella.  I shared it with a friend and I still had a piece left over to take home.  This one was great – very cheesy and a good amount of EVOO spread throughout.  The thing that I love about this pizza is that it has that really great crust that is a bit hard to bite through, and then takes awhile to chew thoroughly.  I asked for a side of marinara to dip in, and next time I think I’ll get a tomato based pie.  Plus then I can take a better quality picture 🙂

Update (8/2/2011):

I went back to Open City with the Gluten Free Grazer, and got a traditional cheese pie with broccoli added. Even though it was no doubt a healthier alternative, I still preferred the greasy and cheesy julienne vegetable one 🙂

 

Ella’s Pizza

901 F Street NW, Washington DC

Gallery Place, Chinatown Stop Yellow, Red & Green Lines

Open City

2331 Calvert St. NW

Woodley Park, Red Line Metro

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Kookie Karma

Posted on June 7, 2011 | Leave a comment

I love when a gluten free company is also hip.  I haven’t seen cookies from Kookie Karma in many places, but they are some of the best gluten free cookies I have ever had.

They’re better than Lara Bars cookie dough…

They’re better than Enjoy Life’s cookies…

And they are certainly better than Glow chocolate chip cookies (although I do appreciate their design sense) …

Kookie Karma holistic chocolate chip cookies are ridiculously moist (probably due to the almond butter) and have great texture (due to the coconut and chia seeds).  Plus the dark chocolate chips are big (and if you put them by your computer fan, like I did, then they are also melty).  Plus with 8 grams of protein these are a much better alternative to Betty Crocker.

 

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