The land mine of gluten free eating

For those of you with celiac disease, eating out can be akin to roller skating through a mine field. My hope is that I can let you know of restaurants in Omaha that are saavy about celiac disease and know how to prepare food that is not contaminated. Those of you who are extremely sensitive know the dread you feel after eating a meal out that you have been assured is gluten- free only to have your whole body indicate otherwise within a short amount of time. And then there are the helpful waitstaff who assure you they know what you are talking about when you mention wheat-free eating and that don't really have a clue.........again glutenized and miserable for several days thereafter. Next post I will talk about a good restaurant in Omaha offering gluten-free alternatives. But my first recommendation is this: ask to talk to the manager of the restaurant.........you will have much better luck right out of the gate!

And the other issue is gluten- free products........some good, some mediocre and some positively awful. I will try and steer people clear of really awful products and focus on the good stuff! Now I love to cook, but I don't have a lot of time and now that I have to eat gluten-free I am not very interested in recipes that require you to purchase 3 or 4 different flours in order to make a loaf of bread.....or a batch of muffins....not me..........too expensive and not enough time. I have found a gluten-free all-purpose flour that I really like. You can use it cup for cup in any recipe that calls for regular flour........and that to me is fantastic!! The product is: Beth's Gluten-free All-purpose Flour by Gluten-Free Pantry. It comes in 16 oz. packages which probably is only a little over 2 cups but it is a very good product and it is not overly expensive. You can find it at Baker's and most HyVees in Omaha. I believe you can order on line in larger quantities. Give it a try and see what you think!