On our new adventure of gluten-free living, we have new experiences everyday. We learn a bit more everyday. This will be quite a big adjustment to our family in 2009.
We had our first restaurant experience last night at the Applebee's in Lawton. Our kind waiter wasn't sure what, if anything, was gluten-free on their menu so the manager came to speak with us. They have a waitress on staff with a wheat-intolerance, so together they figured out what little Cameron could eat. Salad without dressing, shrimp without seasoning, sliders without dressings and bun and their baked potato with only butter.
Can you believe that their steamed veggies (squash, carrots and broccoli), all their salad dressings, their french fries and mashed potatoes ALL contain gluten?! I think our country is obsessed with gluten!
Anyway, we probably drove our waiter batty but he continued to give us excellent service. Excellent service ANYWHERE is a dying breed, in my opinion. Kudos to Applebee's.
I cleaned out our fridge and freezer on Thursday. French fries, stir-fry veggies, marinades...gluten is hidden in everything it seems.
I also say "Kudos" to Wal-Mart's Great Value brand. All items that are gluten free are clearly marked gluten-free. I like not having to read all the ingredients, trying to remember which ones are good, which ones are bad. I can look for two simple words and be confident in my purchase.
Another interesting find: IHOP puts pancake batter in their omelets to make them fluffier! So, my dear friends and family, this proves you can never, ever assume that something is gluten free because of common sense. It doesn't work in this arena!
Thanks, Barbie, for suggesting the recipezaar.com. I'm off to find what grand recipes I can whip up for my family.
4 comments:
i have heard that tidbit about the pancake batter in omelets before, but I hadn't thought about the implications until now...
I think the obsession is probably with "modified food starch" which is something they throw in to everything to help with appearance and consistency... which really stinks for the gluten-allergy because then you have to pass those items over and you don't even know if it is gluten... right????
praying for you to remain confident in your search for good foods for your family.
and glad you had good service at Applebee's ;)
are you still in town? i vaguely remember reading somewhere that you were going to be here this weekend...
Interesting what I am learning from you and this adventure. I would have thought veggies would have been fine.
Can he have regular veggies steamed at home???
Sorry we missed you guys.... Logan was kinds veggin' yesterday and today time just got away from us.
We'll see ya'll next time.
hi!!! nice to meet you...and congrats! you won the necklace! send me what initial you would like on the necklace and i can make it for you!
enjoy!
amy
amymichellebell@yahoo.com
Looking at Wal-Mart's frozen veggies, about half of them contain gluten or are processed in a factory that processes wheat (and therefore, is NOT gluten-free). Fresh veggies would almost always be okay...but you have to check on your seasonings.
Modified Food Starch is an evil because there's no way to know if it's wheat or corn or something else. We are just avoiding ALL products that contain Modified Food Starch.
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