Tag Archives: gluten-free

February 18, 2010 · 11:59 pm

Gluten-Free Dining in the Rainforest

rainforest cafe

I’ve always turned up my nose at the Rainforest Cafe. Eating mediocre food among timed thunderstorms, bellowing elephants and mechanized apes beating their chests, all with the smell of chlorine wafting from the waterfall? I’d take my eats elsewhere.

However, I am now a big fan, albeit in limited doses.

That’s because Rainforest Cafe is super-accommodating for a gluten-free diet, making it a great destination for gluten-free kids.

Although Rainforest Cafe doesn’t have a specific GF menu, a manager comes to your table to discuss the gluten-free or allergy-free options. While they do not stock specifically gluten-free foods (so no GF pasta or GF pizza), they will make every effort to modify their menu items to make them safe for diners. They’ll even cook special orders not on the menu.

Last night, since our kitchen cabinets were still wet with paint, we headed to the Rainforest Cafe in the dreaded tacky tourist zone in downtown Chicago. Wednesdays are family nights — meals from the kids menu are $1.99 with purchase of an accompanying adult entrée.

Initially, I planned to order the quarter rotisserie chicken for the 5-year-old, thinking it would be gluten-free. But the manager was unsure of the spices used, so they grilled a chicken breast for her instead. I thought it was bland, but the 5-year-old ate it up.

Their fries are made in a dedicated fryer (one that’s not used for breaded items like onion rings or chicken tenders, which would be unsafe for celiacs). Unless you’re a gluten-free kid, you don’t know the joy of finding fries that are gluten-free.

A specially prepared gluten-free entrée, with fries, for $1.99. That’s something to bellow about.

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February 12, 2010 · 3:48 pm

Homemade Chocolate Truffles and Chocolate-Covered Strawberries

chocolate truffles

Homemade Chocolate Truffles

For me, Valentine’s Day is all about chocolate.

Most chocolate is gluten-free. Some chocolates, however, contain barley malt, like Lindt’s Lindor chocolate truffles, making them off-limits for celiacs. (For another discussion on gluten-free chocolates, see the Triumph Dining blog.)

For Valentine’s Day, the kids and I made homemade chocolate truffles dusted with coconut, cocoa, cinnamon and ground almonds. These sophisticated truffles look complicated but are easy to make — and even easier to eat!

If kids can roll a ball of Play-Doh (which is not gluten-free, by the way), they can roll truffles. It is messy, though. My 8-year-old’s hands were quickly covered in chocolate — and I feared for what would happen next — so she put on a long-sleeved art smock.

After rolling a bunch of truffles, we used the rest of the chocolate to make chocolate-covered strawberries. Yum!

I once went to a mom’s night out at Whole Foods where we made truffles and drank wine. This recipe is adapted from the one we used that night.

Click for the recipe

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February 11, 2010 · 9:30 am

Field Trips

school bus

The 5-year-old had a school field trip to the Adler Planetarium yesterday. In the morning, I had a brain flash and quickly dashed off this email to her teacher: “Just a quick reminder for the field trip. If you pack snacks for the class, please grab something for [my daughter]. Thanks!”

It was a good thing I sent the note. I ran into the teacher in the hall after drop-off and she said they were packing bagels and cream cheese for the kids. She said she hadn’t thought about bringing a gluten-free snack for my daughter, but she was happy to grab a bag of Glutino pretzels out of her GF snack box.

I learned from experience. My daughter had gone on a field trip during camp last summer. The counselors had packed snacks for the kids but had forgotten to bring a gluten-free snack for her. To their credit, they stopped the bus at a gas station and bought her a banana. The 5-year-old was thrilled that they stopped the bus for her!

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February 9, 2010 · 12:00 pm

Two-Way Three-Bean Chili

Three-Bean Chili

Two-Way Three-Bean Chili

For Super Bowl, we usually make chili. It’s our tradition, even though we don’t have a Super Bowl party and barely watch the game.

We made this chili recipe on Super Bowl Sunday. A rare thing happened. Almost as rare as seeing the Chicago Bears play in the championship. Both girls ate their whole meal and didn’t complain at all. That’s a huge victory, as there’s usually fussing over dinner.

We’re not big meat eaters, so we usually make a vegetarian chili loaded with an assortment of hearty, healthy beans, tomatoes and spices. Any combination of beans works well.

Just before I add the spicy seasonings, I remove a portion for the kids in a separate pot, so they get their own mild chili. The adults get the spicy version, with smoky chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. (Find canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce in the Mexican aisle of your grocery store.) Thus, I’ve dubbed it two-way chili.

Now, if you know anything about Cincinnati chili, you know that two-way chili means something totally different. But I live in Chicago, not Cincinnati, so that’s not what I’m referring to.

For the record, Cincinnati chili is a saucy, meaty chili with unusual flavors of cinnamon and chocolate. Two-way Cincinnati chili consists of spaghetti topped with chili. Three-way chili is spaghetti, chili and shredded cheese. Four-way is spaghetti, chili, shredded cheese and diced onions. Five-way is spaghetti, chili, shredded cheese, diced onions and beans.

To make the Gluten-Free Nosh Two-Way Three-Bean Chili even more kid friendly, set out a few ramekins with a selection of garnishes. My kids love choosing their own toppings. It makes them feel more vested in the meal and more likely to eat it.

For a Cincinnati touch, serve the chili over gluten-free spaghetti. A guaranteed victory!

Click for the recipe

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February 3, 2010 · 11:07 pm

High-protein ideas

We’ve been told (see previous blog post) to add more protein and calories to the 5-year-old’s diet. Her weight has slipped from the 15th percentile to the 5th, but thankfully her blood tests came back pretty good. The only thing off was her prealbumin, which measures protein in the blood and is used to assess nutrition. Her prealbumin was 20, but it should be 21 to 41.

We’ve been advised to make every bite count. Since she tends to pick at her food, we need to make sure what she does eat has high protein and nutrition.

It’s a little difficult, because while we need to add calories for the 5-year-old, we don’t need to add them for her sister or her parents (that would be me). So we’re focusing more on healthy high-protein ideas, rather than things like ice cream and milkshakes.

Here are some suggestions we’ve received. If you have other ideas for gluten-free high-protein or high-calorie snacks and meals, please add them in a comment.
Click for high-protein ideas

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January 20, 2010 · 1:41 am

Tu B’Shevat Orange and Walnut Salad

tu b'shevat orange walnut salad

Tu B'Shevat Orange and Walnut Salad

Next week is the Jewish holiday of Tu B’Shevat, which is the New Year of the trees. On this holiday, trees are counted as another year older. Also, in Israel (certainly not in Chicago), trees are beginning their new fruit-bearing cycle.

We celebrate Tu B’Shevat by eating fruit and planting trees.

In school, my 8-year-old was assigned to learn about orange trees. As part of that, she asked me to create a gluten-free recipe with oranges.

The following Tu B’Shevat Orange and Walnut Salad is sticky sweet, which is why she liked it, though the sweetness is offset by tangy fresh lime and ginger. It can be served as a side salad accompanying a savory chicken entree or nestled on a bed of greens.

Click for the recipe

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January 13, 2010 · 1:21 am

Dark and White Chocolate Pomegranate Bark

Dark and White Chocolate Pomegranate Bark

This chocolate bark is so good that my oldest (non-celiac) daughter asked me to make it for her school birthday treat, even choosing it ahead of gluten-containing cupcakes and brownies. She also suggested that it be the first recipe featured on this blog!

I’ve had peppermint bark before but thought it would be fun to add pomegranate instead. The result is a colorful bark that’s great for festive get-togethers, especially since it’s naturally gluten-free. The dark and white chocolate combination provides a yin-yang contrast. And the gems of pomegranate give a juicy burst.

Although this bilayered bark looks impressive, it’s really quite simple. Since it doesn’t require stovetop cooking, it’s a great confection to make with kids.

Indeed, the hardest part is taking the pomegranate seeds out of the fruit. So here are some tips to make that process easier and a lot less messy:

Start by cutting off the top of the pomegranate, about a half inch below the crown. You will see membranes separating four to six sections of the fruit. With a knife, score the outer rind at each section. Submerge the pomegranate in a large bowl of water to prevent spattering. Separate the sections with your hands.

With your hands still in the water, loosen the seeds from the rind and membrane. The seeds will drop to the bottom and pieces of white membrane will float. Discard membrane and drain the seeds. Please note that the whole seed is edible, including the crunchy white part.

Click for the recipe

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