homeSunday, 6 May 2012
May is Celiac Disease Awareness Month. What better way to kick that off then to attend a gluten-free expo! I told Kayla we were going somewhere that would have a lot of food and she wouldn't hear me tell her, not even one time, "No Kayla you can't have that, it has wheat." I told her she can try every.single.thing. that she wanted to eat there. She got very excited, said 'thank you!' and gave me a big hug and kiss.
I was right, I didn't tell her that she couldn't have something because it had wheat... but I did have to tell her to slow down and stop stuffing her face! I had to tell her not to have another sample of this or that because we were only 1/4 of the way around the room and there were still so many other tables to get samples from! I think she was so excited that she was allowed to eat whatever she wanted there.
It was a great expo as we found out about some companies I hadn't heard of before.
Against the Grain was the first vendor we sampled from. The pesto pizza was delicious. One of the best gluten-free pizzas I've ever tasted. We tried the nut-free pesto and the kids had a couple slices each. There was also garlic bread made from their baguettes. Kayla must have missed having that style bread. She probably had 6 or 7 samples! Even after we made our way around to the other side of the room she ran back a few times to that table! All of their products are free of gluten, grain, corn, soy, yeast, tree nut and peanut and no added sugar. All natural ingredients.
1-2-3 Gluten Free had so many yummy samples to try. Joe and my favorite was the Pan Bars; Kayla and Lucas really enjoyed the brownies. These products are also made in a facility free from gluten, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, and soy.
Whole Foods has their own dedicated Gluten Free Bakehouse and had several products to sample from ... this was about the time I was trying to slow Kayla down on seconds and thirds! The pies and cheddar cheese biscuits were really good. The ladies were so nice - they gave us a whole pie, packages of muffins, scones, and cheese biscuits to take home! So thankful!
No Gii was started by Elisabeth Hasselbeck. The vendor was very generous with the samples and we've got plenty of the Kids Bars (which will come in handy when traveling!)
Taste of Gluten Free had a huge selection of samples from their products. I was glad that the samples were in the little cups with lids so we could take them home to try them. Otherwise we probably wouldn't have made it through sampling all of the products they had! We also tried their pizza and it was also a big thumbs up. So tasty that we bought a bag of the pizza mix (it makes 3 10-inch pizzas) for only $5. Five dollars! For 3 gluten-free pizzas. Can't beat that price. All of their bagged mixes are only $5. We also bought the banana cake. Oh yummy goodness! Very similar to banana bread but moister.
Joe usually makes breakfast on Sunday mornings. One of the dishes he used to make was sausage and biscuits with gravy. Kayla enjoyed it too. Since she was diagnosed I don't think he's made it. We sampled a sausage gravy from For Full Flavor and promptly picked up two packages of the Cream Soup which can be used for several different recipes. They have gravies and sauces too.
Rudi's Gluten Free had a new product out to try - plain and spinach tortillas. I think these will taste great baked up in the oven for tortilla strips. Vendor was also generous to us and sent us home with a package of each!
Glutino's had out their pretzels (which Kayla already eats and loves!) and a new product (at least I think it is new, I only recently saw them at the Commissary) - bagel chips. The cinnamon and sugar flavor were really good.
We're already a fan of Udi's Gluten Free (it was the first GF bread I could make Kayla a grilled-cheese sandwich with! And Jason's Deli uses this brand for GF sandwiches, so I know it's a place Kayla can eat.) Another generous vendor who sent us home with some extra goodies!
I'm so thankful that Kayla was diagnosed with Celiac disease at a time when so much more is known about it, when so many other companies are making an effort to produce gluten-free products, and when restaurants are starting to be more accommodating by adding gluten-free items to their menus.
I was right, I didn't tell her that she couldn't have something because it had wheat... but I did have to tell her to slow down and stop stuffing her face! I had to tell her not to have another sample of this or that because we were only 1/4 of the way around the room and there were still so many other tables to get samples from! I think she was so excited that she was allowed to eat whatever she wanted there.
It was a great expo as we found out about some companies I hadn't heard of before.
Against the Grain was the first vendor we sampled from. The pesto pizza was delicious. One of the best gluten-free pizzas I've ever tasted. We tried the nut-free pesto and the kids had a couple slices each. There was also garlic bread made from their baguettes. Kayla must have missed having that style bread. She probably had 6 or 7 samples! Even after we made our way around to the other side of the room she ran back a few times to that table! All of their products are free of gluten, grain, corn, soy, yeast, tree nut and peanut and no added sugar. All natural ingredients.
1-2-3 Gluten Free had so many yummy samples to try. Joe and my favorite was the Pan Bars; Kayla and Lucas really enjoyed the brownies. These products are also made in a facility free from gluten, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, and soy.
Whole Foods has their own dedicated Gluten Free Bakehouse and had several products to sample from ... this was about the time I was trying to slow Kayla down on seconds and thirds! The pies and cheddar cheese biscuits were really good. The ladies were so nice - they gave us a whole pie, packages of muffins, scones, and cheese biscuits to take home! So thankful!
No Gii was started by Elisabeth Hasselbeck. The vendor was very generous with the samples and we've got plenty of the Kids Bars (which will come in handy when traveling!)
Taste of Gluten Free had a huge selection of samples from their products. I was glad that the samples were in the little cups with lids so we could take them home to try them. Otherwise we probably wouldn't have made it through sampling all of the products they had! We also tried their pizza and it was also a big thumbs up. So tasty that we bought a bag of the pizza mix (it makes 3 10-inch pizzas) for only $5. Five dollars! For 3 gluten-free pizzas. Can't beat that price. All of their bagged mixes are only $5. We also bought the banana cake. Oh yummy goodness! Very similar to banana bread but moister.
Joe usually makes breakfast on Sunday mornings. One of the dishes he used to make was sausage and biscuits with gravy. Kayla enjoyed it too. Since she was diagnosed I don't think he's made it. We sampled a sausage gravy from For Full Flavor and promptly picked up two packages of the Cream Soup which can be used for several different recipes. They have gravies and sauces too.
Rudi's Gluten Free had a new product out to try - plain and spinach tortillas. I think these will taste great baked up in the oven for tortilla strips. Vendor was also generous to us and sent us home with a package of each!
Glutino's had out their pretzels (which Kayla already eats and loves!) and a new product (at least I think it is new, I only recently saw them at the Commissary) - bagel chips. The cinnamon and sugar flavor were really good.
We're already a fan of Udi's Gluten Free (it was the first GF bread I could make Kayla a grilled-cheese sandwich with! And Jason's Deli uses this brand for GF sandwiches, so I know it's a place Kayla can eat.) Another generous vendor who sent us home with some extra goodies!
I'm so thankful that Kayla was diagnosed with Celiac disease at a time when so much more is known about it, when so many other companies are making an effort to produce gluten-free products, and when restaurants are starting to be more accommodating by adding gluten-free items to their menus.
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