I was happy to receive my sample kitchen labeling kit yesterday from Simply G Free, containing a few “gluten-free” metal tags, stickers and wrist bands! (See our Giveaway below!) I just finished applying all the stickers and metal tags where I needed to … my dedicated Gfree toaster, spatula, condiments, flours, freezer shelf, etc.). Generally I use round colored stickers on my condiments, etc., but when my husband dipped into my peanut butter jar not too long ago, explaining he thought the colorful label had been put on by the store, I was thinking it was time for a better labeling system, so the Simply G Free labels arrived just in time! I made good use of the labels which come in a bright green color and are clearly marked “gluten-free”, so now everyone in my family, and my visiting relatives, will know without a doubt which items are for this celiac only!

Simply G Free offers a Kitchen kit, which is a great starter kit and includes:  6 metal tags for pots and pans, 25 large sized star stickers, 25 rectangle food marker stickers and 2 gluten-free wrist bands. ($19.99 plus shipping).  You can also order a sample kit for $1.50 (includes shipping) which consists of: 1 metal kitchen tag, 1 star sticker and 1 rectangle sticker. Personally, I would just spring for the larger quantity, as you will be able to make good use of them.

Attention bakery, café and restaurant owners!  These labels/tags would be great to use to label your gluten-free pots and pans, ingredients and designated gluten-free cooking areas to keep your celiac and gluten-intolerant patrons safe.

Visit Simply G Free’s website which offers some great tips on how to gluten-proof your pantry, freezer, kitchen utensils and pots and pans: http://www.simplygfree.com/shop/page/7?shop_param=

*read “What is Gluten – How Much Gluten will cause small intestinal inflammation?

Camille’s CritiqueCorner

(See more Camille’s Reviews)

xx Giveaway xx

Simply G Free kit containing:

15 Rectangle Adhesive Stickers (great to stick on food, utensils, pantry items)

10 Star Stickers (oversized star shaped – adhesive)

3 Star Metal tags (star shaped use on pots, pans, utensils)

plus – 2 bright green Simply Gfree wrist bands

Giveaway Rules:

1. Please comment below why you Simply must have these handy GF labels in your home!
2. Like CeliacCorner on Facebook, and be sure to leave a comment on FB that you have entered Giveaway! (we check)
3. Follow CeliacCorner on Twitter
4. Follow Simply G Free on  Twitter
5. Share with at least three people, via twitter or facebook

GIVEAWAY ENDS: Monday, May 21^st at 5:00 pm – good luck!

Giveaway open to US and Canadian residents only

Nutritional deficiencies are an important topic in the celiac disease and gluten intolerance community. When left untreated or undiagnosed celiac disease and gluten intolerance can lead to severe vitamin and nutritional deficiencies. These are usually a result of intestinal damage that hinders the body’s ability to absorb vitamins and minerals. Such deficiencies can lead to a multitude of health problems such as: weight gain or loss, anemia, osteoporosis, neurological symptoms, and more.

Once on a gluten free diet nutritional deficiencies can be reversed. It is extremely common when first diagnosed to feel like you cannot get enough to eat. As your body begins the healing process it will start to absorb nutrients and vitamins. During this process you may feel like you are starving. Eat as much as you want as long as it is healthy gluten free food. The majority of people will either gain or lose weight and end up at their ideal weight, primarily because their body is no longer starved of essential nutrients.

It has been widely marketed that the gluten free diet is one that lacks vitamins and nutrients. It is true that the label gluten free does not automatically equal a healthy product. There is such a thing as gluten free junk food and few gluten free products are enriched with vitamins and minerals. It is believed in the medical community that a diet without fortified products will leave a person deficient in vitamin B, calcium, fiber, and vitamin D. I, however, believe that the gluten free diet can be one of the healthiest diets a person can live by. My personal recommendation is to maintain a diet that is in rich in vitamins and minerals from natural sources. What does that mean? Eat lots of fruits, vegetables, lean fish, protein, nuts and seeds. It’s all about choices. Which sugar do you bake with? Is it refined cane sugar? Molasses? Pure maple syrup or honey? Do you choose white potatoes or do you mix it up with nutrient dense sweet potatoes or yams.

Even on a nutrient dense gluten free diet it can still take months and sometimes years for a body to heal completely. Therefore, it is essential for people with celiac disease and gluten intolerance to take some form of nutritional supplements. Before starting any supplement regiment it is important to sit down with your doctor and discuss the best plan for you. General supplements that I often recommend for celiac patients are; multi-vitamins, fish oil, vitamin D, calcium, magnesium, and zinc. Due to intestinal damage it may be difficult to absorb nutrients in a hard tablet form. Therefore, I recommend that these supplements be taken in liquid or capsule form.

Most importantly, listen to your body. Our bodies are very dynamic systems and often will tell us when things are not right. Please take note if you are hungry all the time or crave a specific food; it may be a sign of nutritional deficiencies. If you are concerned, I recommended speaking with your doctor and inquiring about routine blood work. Currently I recommend the following baseline blood work to my patients: Complete Metabolic Panel, Complete Blood Count, Total Iron-Binding Capacity, B12, Lipid Panel, A, E, D, K and a Bone Density Test.

To read all CeliacCorner articles

Do you or someone you know have Celiac Disease?

Are you currently following a gluten-free diet, but still experiencing symptoms when gluten is ingested, whether intentionally or inadvertent?

Are you interested in contributing to research which could ultimately benefit the Celiac community?

If you answered “yes” to the above questions, then consider becoming part of an important clinical trial sponsored by Alba Therapeutics.

First, you will need to complete a short Survey to determine if you qualify. You may qualify if you:
- are between the ages of 18 and 75 (male or female) and have been diagnosed with Celiac disease
- have Celiac disease proven by a biopsy and positive serology test results for 12 months (or more) before                    study entry
- have been on a gluten-free diet for 12 months or more before Study entry
- are still experiencing symptoms when exposed to gluten
- have positive serum anti-tTG (IgA or IgG) antibodies at screening
- are willing to maintain a current gluten free diet for the duration of the Study
- satisfy other inclusion criteria

To take the Survey, contact http://www.celiacteam.com or call toll-free 855.323.5422. Once the Survey is completed and it is determined that you qualify, you will be connected with a Study site near you. There will be sites located throughout the US and Canada.

Without human volunteers, advancements in research and subsequent therapeutic treatments would never be possible. Consider volunteering for yourself, or for someone you love living with Celiac Disease.

Alba Therapeutics is a privately held, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products to treat autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. They are based in Baltimore, Maryland. http://www.albatherapeutics.com/ (contact http://www.celiacteam.com if interested in participating in the Study)

The purpose of the Study is to evaluate if an investigational medication is effective and safe when given to people with Celiac Disease.

For more information on the study: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01396213?term=%22alba+therapeutics%22&rank=6

note: this is a paid advertisement for our sponsor.

Convenience is a word which is not often synonymous with celiac and the gluten-free lifestyle. When planning a trip we need to think about packing gluten-free snacks or meals in our purses, backpacks and coolers to stave off starvation at any give time! Well, one company has made the lives of celiacs & others with special dietary needs (vegan, vegetarian, kosher), a whole lot more convenient! Gopicnic ready-to-eat meals had the ingenious idea of filling portable boxes with delicious and healthy gluten-free snacks. They don’t require refrigeration or pre-heating which makes them even more convenient to take along! I was first introduced to gopicnic at the Phoenix airport a while back. It was a connecting flight and I didn’t have any gluten-free snacks left to take on the next flight. Assuming I would just grab a bag of chips at a kiosk, I happened to find the gopicnic boxes at one of the shops, which I quickly grabbed up and later devoured on board!

I was thrilled to recently receive a variety of gopicnic ready-to-eat meals to review (and we get to share some with you – see our Giveaway below!). They couldn’t have arrived at a better time as my family was planning to travel by air soon, so I was able to pack one box in my carry-on to enjoy in-flight, and also packed a few in my suitcase which I later enjoyed during my vacation.  While hubby and kids were lacklusterly snacking on wee packages of peanuts and pretzels, I was enjoying my turkey pepperoni, Asiago cheese spread and crackers, dried cranberries and pineapple, and sweet ending of buttercrunch toffee …  yes I did eventually share!

Gopicnic snack boxes are filled with a variety of delicious snacks from companies offering healthier and mostly allergen-free options: Sunbutter, Crunchmaster, Niagara Naturals to name a few. Though they are considered “snacks”, you really feel as if you’ve eaten a meal, because they contain a good quantity of snacks and the portions are plentiful! The All-Natural Sunbutter & Crackers meal contains for example Sunbutter Creamy Sunflowerseed Spread, Crunchmaster Multi-Grain Sea Salt Crackers, Enjoy Life Seed & Fruit Trail Mix, Niagara Naturals Tropical Fruit Bites and an Enjoy Life Double Chocolate Cookie, and which in addition to being free of gluten, are all natural, vegan and free of most common allergens. Other gopicnic meals include such savory items as: the gopicnic brand of Chili Lime Salmon Spread, Seapoint Farms’ Dry Roasted Edamame, Wild Garden’s Hummus Dip, Brown & Haley’s Almond Roca Buttercrunch Toffee! I’m just saying … yum!

At approximately 290 – under 500 calories per box (depending on variety), the elimination of artificial flavors and colorings, and the addition of protein and fiber, the meals are a healthy choice for a snack/meal! So, next time you are planning a trip which requires air travel, pre-order a few boxes to take with you! They are also great to pack in kids’ lunchboxes, because they contain well-balanced, nutritional options. Kids will also enjoying reading the Fun Food Facts written “inside” the box! (Did you know that lemons were used to redden the lips of the women of Louis XIV’s court? Just learned by reading the box!) I would also think the meals would be great for college students to have on hand during classes or even to take with you during a hospital stay.  And of course, they would be great to pack for a picnic!

FYI: Gopicnic has a gluten-free “Variety Pack” available which includes 6 assorted snack meals for $26.99, so worth it! Individual boxes sell for $4.99 each on their website. CeliacCorner visitors will receive a 10% discount for on-line orders by entering Coupon Code CS10 at check-out!

Why we also love gopicnic ready-to-eat meals:

Snacks chosen are free of trans fat, high fructose corn syrup, msg, artificial flavors and colors

Once you finish consuming the snacks, you can open up the box which contains a Sudoku puzzle, nice to have on hand during a long flight!

Though the gopicnic gluten-free meals are processed in a facility that also processes wheat, they are tested to ensure they contain 20 ppm or less. (We hope the company will continue to work with even more partner foods that are certified-gluten-free)

Company is environmentally-friendly (according to website – they try to use recycled material when possible)

They offer the convenience of a meal subscription plan to have them delivered directly to your door.

If you have a favoriate go-picnic snack  item (including both GF & others containing wheat), you can order it individually via their website

Notes:

1. Just be sure to select the right meal for you (i.e. read allergen labels), as not all of gopicnic products are gluten-free.
2. Read Frequently Asked Questions from their website: http://www.gopicnic.com/Frequently-Asked-Questions-about-GoPicnic
3. Can’t find gopicnic in your favorite store, you can order on-line, but there is also something you can fill out and hand to your store manager (see FAQs).

Visit gopicnic’s website: http://www.gopicnic.com/

Camille’s CritiqueCorner

(To see all Camille’s critiques)

xx GIVEAWAY xx

Enter to Win 4  (gluten-free) gopicnic ready-to-eat meals

(1 turkey pepperoni & cheese, two sunbutter & crackers, 1 salmon & crackers )

Giveaway rules:

1. Leave a comment below telling us why you would love to win these delish ready-to eat meals.
2. LIKE our Facebook Page:  http://www.facebook.com/CeliacCorner, and be sure to leave a comment on our FB page that you entered Giveaway! we check
3. LIKE gopicnic’s Facebook Page http://www.facebook.com/GoPicnic?ref=ts
4. If you tweet, follow CeliacCorner https://twitter.com/#!/CeliacCorner
5. SHARE with at least 3 people




6. Giveaway ends Friday, May 11 at 5:00 pm (CONTEST CLOSED – Congrats to Veronica!)

GOOD LUCK! If you haven’t tried gopicnic, now is a great time – you will love them!

Open to US and Canadian residents only

Throughout the month of May, Celiac Awareness Month, Rudi’s  Gluten-Free Bakery is giving back to the celiac community by donating up to $30,000 to various celiac organizations, via their SPREAD THE BREAD campaign! (Also see Celebratory Giveaway below!)

All you have to do is visit Rudi’s Facebook page and select one of four celiac organizations – Celiac Disease Foundation (CDF), Celiac Sprue Association (CSA), Gluten Intolerance Group (GIG) and the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA) to receive a one dollar ($1.00) donation from Rudi’s. Visitors will also be able to download a $1.00 off coupon for any Rudi’s product … so basically you will be getting $1.00 for giving $1.00 to a celiac organization of your choice!

Rudi’s Spread the Bread campaign is a great way for you to give back to the celiac community, by asking Rudi’s to make a donation to a celiac organization.  Just click and choose, and don’t forget to download your coupon.

Continue to spread awareness during Celiac Awareness Month!

Rudi’s has also generously offered one lucky CeliacCorner winner a fantastic celebratory package! (See Giveaway Details below)

xx  GIVEAWAY xx

Rudi’s Celebratory Package Full of Smile-worthy Goodies

(Apron, Gfree Coupons, Reusable Shopping Bag, Tee-shirt, bread clips and … Gluten Free on a Shoestring cookbook by Nicole Hunn - WOW!

Giveaway Rules:

1. Leave a Reply BELOW telling us why you would love to win this fantastic Apron, Coupons, Shopping Bag, Bread Clips and Gluten Free on A Shoestring Cookbook! (note: your comment will not show up immediately as it awaits moderation)

2. Go to Rudi’s Facebook page, Like it,  and be sure to select a celiac organization to receive Rudi’s $1 donation!

3. Then go over to CeliacCorner’s Facebook Page, and Like it.  Leave a Comment on our FB page that you entered our Rudi’s Giveaway (don’t forget to also leave a reply below)!

4. Follow Rudi’s and CeliacCorner on Twitter, if you are a tweeter!

5. Please SHARE this post.

That’s it!  Good luck! Giveaway ends:  Thursday, 24 May at 5:00 pm

Open to US and Canadian residents only

Celiacs, the gluten-sensitive and inflammatory bowel disease sufferers can add migraine headaches to their list of related symptoms. According to a recent study, there is an increased prevalence of migraine headaches among this population. Alexandra Dimitrova, M.D. and her team at Columbia University Medical Center set out to study the migraine association, aware that European studies have previously concluded the increased prevalence.

In the Columbia University Medical Center study, 502 patients (188 with celiac disease, 111 with inflammatory bowel disease, 25 with gluten-sensitivity and 178 people in the control group) completed a survey which included medical history, medications, alcohol, caffeine and drug use, celiac and IBD diagnosis details, duration of gluten-free diet, and headache details (type/how often).  The team used a ID-Migraine screen to diagnose migraine and a Headache Impact Test (HIT-6) to indicate severity of headaches.

Dr. Dimitrova and her team found 30 percent of celiacs, 23 percent of IBD population, 56 percent of the gluten-sensitive, and 14 percent of the control group reported having chronic headaches. Adjusting for confounding variables, celiacs, the gluten-sensitive and IBD showed an increased prevalence of migraines versus the control patients (odds ratios, 3.79, 9.53 and 2.66 respectively). In the celiac disease group, the severity of headaches (measured on the Headache Impact Test) was significantly increased compared with the gluten-sensitive and IBD groups.  Dimitrova commented that many patients reported improvements in the frequency and severity of headaches once they started a gluten-free diet.

 Based on their study findings, Dr. Dimitrova and her team concluded that migraine is a common neurologic manifestation in all three groups, and suggested “future interventional studies should screen migraine patients for celiac disease, particularly those with treatment-resistant headaches.”

This  study was presented recently (April 21 – 28th 2012)  at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) in New Orleans. For more information on this event visit: http://www.aan.com/go/am12

To read more articles/blogs by CeliacCorner: http://celiaccorner.com/celiac-news/articles/

An artist at heart, Laura brings the same creative energy that she uses in her studio into the kitchen. She believes in whole food cooking. “Whole food” meaning a focus on natural or minimally processed ingredients. Think fresh, farmer’s market, seasonal produce. If the food is packaged, no unhealthy additives or unpronounceable chemicals. Join Laura in her culinary adventures as she brings bold flavors from around the world into your kitchen, making them nourishing and gluten-free too!

Mac & cheese without wheat or dairy is, well …

Actually if you take my usual mac & cheese recipe (from my pre-gluten- free, dairy-free days) and remove the wheat and dairy, you’re left with Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper. Hmmm, you’re not feeling very hungry today, are you?

Luckily, with a few secret ingredients a creative cook can make a delicious, comforting, and healthy mac & cheese dish. Do you thirst to know our secret ingredients? (Random bit of trivia: I’m a BIG Iron Chef fan in spite of the fact that I can eat almost nothing that they cook.) The secret ingredients are: Tinkyada Brown Rice Pasta-Fusilli; Daiya Cheddar Style Shreds; and Fresh Butternut Squash!

Ingredients

• 3 cups butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and chopped into 1″ cubes*
• 1 16-ounce package Tinkyada Brown Rice Pasta – Fusilli
• 1 8-ounce package Daiya Cheddar Style Shreds
• 1-1/2 tablespoons grape seed oil (or other mild-tasting oil)
• 1 teaspoon gluten-free Dijon mustard
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground pepper
• 1 pinch freshly ground nutmeg
• Smoked paprika
*A small butternut squash weighs about 2 pounds. You will probably use about half a small squash, or you can buy a bag of pre-cut butternut squash. 3 cups of squash cubes will cook down to about 2 cups.

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°. Put the butternut squash and grape seed oil in a roasting pan and toss to coat. Roast for 20-25 minutes until tender. Stir the squash pieces halfway through the cooking time.

2. While the squash is roasting, bring a large pot of water to boil. Add 1 tablespoon salt and brown rice pasta when the water boils and cook pasta 10-12 minutes according to package directions. Reserve 3/4 cup of the pasta water before draining. Rinse the cooked pasta well with cold water.

3. Place the roasted butternut squash and reserved pasta water into a blender and blend until smooth.

4. Put the butternut squash puree into the empty pasta pot. Add the package of Daiya Cheddar Style Shreds and Dijon mustard. Stir to combine. Add sea salt and pepper to taste. 1 teaspoon of sea salt and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper is a good amount to start with. Add the pinch of nutmeg. Be careful not to overdo the nutmeg. Nutmeg can easily overpower the sauce. Stir to combine all ingredients.

5. Gently fold in the drained pasta to coat it with sauce. Warm the noodles and sauce in the pot over medium heat until the Daiya Cheddar Style Shreds are melted and the pasta is heated through. Gently stir occasionally to distribute the heat evenly and prevent sticking. Place a lid on the pot while warming to quicken the heating process, if desired.

6. Sprinkle with smoked paprika before serving.   Enjoy!

Thanks Laura for sharing your recipe with CeliacCorner as a Guest Food Blogger!

Love Quilting? Check out Laura’s other blog “Adventures of a Quilting Diva”: http://blog.laurawestkong.com/

To view all CeliacCorner recipes!

(These are just a few of the flavors)

I had a really tough day today.

I sat down with 5 bags of tortilla & kettle cooked chips and had to sample them ALL! Pretty darn grueling! Yes, I’m kidding, and it so happens the chips were sent from one of my favorite companies, and there were new flavors that I hadn’t even tried, so I guess you could say I was looking forward to it!

Food Should Taste Good’s chips have been a favorite snack of mine, since I first started to scour through the store shelves looking for tortilla chips that were both safe to eat and healthy, soon after my celiac diagnosis. FSTG’s chips were among the first few bags I brought home and they have continued to be a go-to snack for me ever since. The black/white lettered bags are a welcomed site wherever I see them … whether at my relatives’ homes who like to keep them on hand for when I visit, or most recently in a vending machine at my doctor’s office! Yay, something I can eat! I enjoy the tortilla chips, the sweet potato chips (which are great if you can’t eat corn), and also the rice crackers, all of which come in a variety of flavors and geometric shapes, and hold up well when scooping or dipping into my favorite salsa or hummus!  Honestly, most of the time I just eat them on their own. There are so many yum new flavors (chocolate!), and the best part, Food Should Taste Good chips are free of artificial flavors and preservatives and filled with nutrient-rich ingredients, so I don’t have to feel guilty when snacking (which I due in moderation - most of the time).

Food Should Taste Good offers a line of deliciously crunchy stone ground corn & sweet potato TortillaChips, swirly Kettle Cooked Sweet Potato Chips (kettle are more like a potato chip texture though a bit heartier), and also Brown Rice Crackers. Each come in a variety of unique flavors, and include ingredients such as flaxseed, quinoa, sesame & sunflower seeds, oat fiber (depending on flavor) making them a healthier, not to mention less greasy, alternative to other chips. The sweet potato chips alone offer Vitamin A, Fiber, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, and Potassium!

I taste-tested the following, and have to say enjoyed them all for their distinctive flavors – some salty, some sweet, different textures – but all yum.

Tortilla Chips (Kettle Corn) – a combination of sweet and lightly salted, more sweet than salty.

Original Sweet Potato Chips (Kettle Cooked & reduced fat) – seasoned with sea salt.  All of the sweet potato chips have a mildly sweet flavor, and these have a hint of salt. They are much heartier (& healthier) than a plain white potato.

BBQ Sweet Potato Chips (Kettle Cooked & reduced fat) – seasoned with tomato, molasses, garlic, onion, and vinegar, light BBQ flavor, not too overpowering. I’m not a big fan of BBQ, unless it is smothered on a piece of poultry, but if you are a fan of anything with BBQ flavor, you will love these!

Salt & Pepper Sweet Potato Chips (Kettle Cooked & reduced fat) – seasoned with sea salt and black pepper. Nice peppery flavor.

Salt & Vinegar Sweet Potato Chips (Kettle Cooked & reduced fat)– seasoned with sea salt & vinegar.  So good.

Food Should Taste So Good chips are a delicious snack for not only celiacs, the gluten-sensitive, vegans (some flavors), but anyone looking for a crunchy chip to snack on. I pack the smaller snack sizes in my kids’ lunch all the time and they love them too!

Foods Should Taste Good products are:

The FSTG company offers consumers a healthy product, without preservatives & other yuk stuff, and they continue to give back to the community (by not only donating bags of their chips, but also monetarily to various organizations).

Be sure check out the full-line of of flavors of Tortilla chips, Sweet Potato Chips (Kettle Cooked) and Brown Rice Crackers on their website.  They also give recommendations for accompaniments to their chips. For example the “Olive” tortilla chips are recommended for an Artichoke Spinach Dip and Hummus, and the “Lime” flavored chips would be great for for dipping into a Basil Mango Pesto or Guacamole, and the “chocolate” … how about apple butter! Of course you can dip them into anything your heart desires!

[Food Should Taste Good is a recipient of numerous awards from magazines/committees such as: Eat This-Not That, Fitness, Vegetarian Times, Good Housekeeping, Women’s Health, Health, Self, Natural Products Expo East among many others.]

Website: http://www.foodshouldtastegood.com/#/home/ (click on the $1.00 off button)

Camille’s CritiqueCorner

(See All of Camille’s Reviews)

!!!   GIVEAWAY   !!!

NOW CLOSED

The nice people over at Food Should Taste Good will send one lucky winner a variety box of 5 different flavored bags of chips (4.5 oz)! The lucky winner will be able to choose their top 5 favorite flavors to receive! If you haven’t tried them, this is a great opportunity to get introduced! If you are already a fan, you may want to choose a flavor you haven’t tried yet!

Contest Rules:

1. Leave a comment BELOW telling us why you would love to be the lucky winner!

2. LIKE Food Should Taste So Good’s Facebook page

3. LIKE CeliacCorner’s Facebook page and also leave a comment on FB that you have entered Giveaway

4. Consider following CeliacCorner on Twitter if you are a tweeter!

5. Share here with at least 3 people!

Contest open to US & Canadian residents only.

Contest ends: noon on April 27^th, 2013 – Good Luck!

Place an on-line order for pick-up at any P.F. Chang’s location on Tax Day, Tuesday, April 17th 2012 and receive a 15% discount!

So file your taxes (whew), and then relax at home with a delicious take-out meal from P.F. Chang’s!

For more details and to place your on-line order: http://www.pfchangs.com/Orderonline/

Gluten-free heaven has a name. Twist Bakery & Café,  which opened this past December in Millis, Massachusetts, was recommended by a neighbor whose daughter has celiac. Sure I expected to see a few gluten-free offerings … the usual wrapped muffin or chocolate chip cookie, located on top of the plexiglas case filled with a lovely assortment of gluten-filled scones, muffins, pies and cakes, all of which are, alas, off-limits to me.  Indeed, Twist had several plexiglas cases, and yes they were overflowing with colorfully frosted cupcakes, scones, muffins, brownies, macaroons, lemon squares, and even bread pudding. But the “twist” – the difference – is that all of them are free of gluten and other common food allergens.  Yes, you could say Twist is my gluten-free heaven.

I’m happy to say, Twist’s food is not just good for being gluten-free, it is just plain good! My breakfast companion, who isn’t required to eat gluten-free, thoroughly enjoyed everything she ordered. I had a delicious breakfast sandwich on a roll, with egg, melted cheese and bacon, and since we lingered over coffee I later enjoyed a delish orange and ginger muffin.  In addition to the artfully prepared bakery items, Twist’s menu offers breakfast items of oatmeal, egg sandwiches, and fresh fruit.  For lunch and dinner, there is a variety of sandwiches (pulled pork to name one), salads and freshly made soups. Also available are platters containing a variety of meat, chicken, and roasted veggie dishes, and even chicken pot pie!  All of Twist’s products are prepared daily on site and you can tell the ingredients are fresh.  Also for sale, are loaves of homemade gluten-free bread ($11.95) and rolls (plain and poppy seed) – the same bread/rolls used for the sandwiches. The lunch & dinner items change daily and may include such savory dishes as Chicken with lemon, garlic and thyme, Chicken fried rice, Risotto cakes, Lasagna, Tourtiere, Chicken parmesan, Coconut-Mango chicken, to name a few. I saw several people walking away with large take-away bags.  Twist offers a nice variety of teas and the coffee station stocked several spices and even lavender sugar for added flavor and sweetening. Twist’s interior is bright and cheery with its verde wall, and large chalk drawn wall art. In addition to the casual dining area, there are a few comfy leather chairs in the front area just beckoning for you to sit down with a cup of coffee or tea, and that well deserved gluten-free scone!

I noticed the lack of window signage touting Twists allergen-free offerings, so I asked the owner, Kathryn Ernst, of the neighboring town of Holliston, why she isn’t advertising this in bold letters. Ernst explained her desire is for Twist to appeal to everyone, not just those with special dietary needs. The fact that the food does not contain gluten, or a variety of other food allergens, should be “irrelevant”, according to Ernst, who has been gluten free for five years, and has other food allergies. She believes Twist’s allergy-friendliness will spread among the gluten, dairy, and peanut-free community. I suspect this is true, and it will happen fast!  Kathryn has witnessed a few people break down in tears upon seeing what allergen-free delights were available to them (no doubt a few were newly diagnosed Celiacs!).

Kathryn Ernst is getting Twist involved in the gluten-free community as well and the bakery will be providing food for an upcoming Metrowest Healthy Villi celiac support group meeting. Of the approximately 22 Twist employees, I met at least one with Celiac. Ernst says she likes to hire individuals who understand the nuts and bolts of allergen-free food preparation and living.

On my way out, I thanked Kathryn for offering me something different … an opportunity to walk into a café/bakery where 100% of the items were available to me. Very unusual for a celiac, and yes, very much appreciated.

New York City may have Tu-Lu’s gluten-free bakery, and Paris has Helmut Newcake, but now Metrowest/Millis has the “deliciously different” Twist Bakery & Café located at 30 Milliston Road, Millis, MA 02054 (off Route 109, in the plaza near Roche Brothers).   If you live in Boston, it is definitely worth the 19 mile drive out to Millis!  Meet you there!

Website: http://www.twist-bakery.com Telephone: 508.376.1163

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