Friedman's Lunch NYC!

I've eaten at Friedman's a couple of times and absolutely love it! The staff is really friendly and they have a ton of gluten free options. They even pride themselves on preventing cross contamination. If you are in the city, you definitely need to stop at Friedman's. And no matter what you get, you have to ask for their apple butter and toast. It's out of the world! Just remembered they don't take reservations and it fills up quickly, so if you have some other things to do before you plan to eat, stop at Friedman's and put your name on the list. 

Bistango NYC!

A few weeks my boyfriend and I went to dinner at Bistango. After months of drooling over their website menu I was beyond excited for this special date night! Bistango is certified gluten free and is absolutely fabulous. As soon as the sever comes to the table he/she asks if anyone has a food allergy. The menu clearly identifies the gluten free options although the entire menu can be gluten free. They even serve gluten free Italian bread. It had been over a year since I had Italian bread at a restaurant (at Yamanja in Aruba) and it was AMAZING! Light, fluffy and delicious. I believe they order their bread from Everybody Eats in Brooklyn. For dinner I had the gluten free spinach ravioli in a pink sauce. My boyfriend ordered the pork chop (gluten style) and we shared coffee gelato for dessert. This was the best dinner I've had at a restaurant in a long time and I can't wait to go back. I highly recommend Bistango. You won't be disappointed!

Gluten Free in Poughkeepsie!

I was recently in the Hudson Valley for my alumni weekend! When I was in college I was not on a gluten free diet, so I was happy to find several restaurants with gluten free options while I was visiting.

Baby Cakes Cafe

This is a cute cafe close to the Vassar campus. Baby Cakes is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. A few weeks ago a friend and I stopped here for lunch. I ordered the Chicken Chipotle sandwich on gluten free bread, but without the chipotle mayo and I added avocado. Unfortunately, the cafe does not make the mayo themselves and could not guarantee that it was gluten free. I ALWAYS question dressings and marinades on my meals. It's better to be safe and ask than end up with a tummy ache! My meal was a little bland, but since I did not get sick this lunch was a success. My none gluten free friends always love their meals too.

Amici's

This is a restaurant I have dined at many times while in college; especially when family was visiting. I have never met anyone (including myself) who has had a bad meal here. When I as back in Poughkeepsie for alumni weekend my friend and I ate here for dinner. The server was very knowledgeable about their gluten free options. Amici's offers gluten free pasta along with several other dishes that they can make gluten free. (Tips: always remember to question the sauces when ordering a pasta dish) I ordered gluten free penne with white wine clam sauce and it was excellent! Gluten free or gluten lover, Amici's never disappoints!  

Shadow's On The Hudson

Shadow's was a favorite of mine while in college. My friends and family always loved going here for dinner. I did not eat here while visiting for my alumni weekend, but I did notice they have a new gluten free menu! Shadow's is another restaurant I have never had a bad meal at, so I highly recommend trying their gluten free menu if you are in the area. The restaurant is also right on the Hudson with beautiful views. 

P.S. I was VERY happy to find that Darby's carries RedBridge! That made me one happy alum!

Views From the Walkway over the Hudson.

Mahi-Mahi Tacos!

To kick off my vacation week my cousins and I made Mahi-Mahi tacos with a corn salad. I found the recipe on Pinterest from Women's Health Magazine. Click here to follow the recipe I used! Since going gluten free I have not found a brand of soft-shell tacos that I enjoy, so we used hard corn shells. In the future I think I would prefer to find a gluten free soft-shell taco for this dish. We used 1 1/2 lbs of fish like the recipe calls for and it was enough for the three of us. The recipe also calls for blackening spice - I used Old Bay's which is gluten free. Mango is another ingredient in this recipe. Even though the directions call for 1 mango, I bought 2 just in case. Mango can be a pretty difficult fruit to cut because it gets slippery and sometimes does not amount to much edible fruit. Instead of coating the fish in oil for grilling we just used a Smart Balance cooking spray. All Smart Balance products are gluten free! 

As a side dish we also made a grilled corn salad which I also found via Pinterest. Click here for the recipe! This turned out to be a delicious and easy dinner! When we were finished we decided we might like the grilled corn salad on the tacos instead of the mango topping because the corn dish had a little spice to it. I love when I am able to find recipes that are naturally gluten free or are easily adaptable because it makes dinning with friends and family much more enjoyable!

I have been gluten free for just over a year now and I have realized how helpful it is when other people share their tips or a good recipe with you. Keeping a gluten free lifestyle is by no means easy, but if you are in the same boat as me and gluten free is the only way to live a healthy (and pain free) life remember to share your tips! With that being said - if you have found a brand of gluten free soft shell tacos/wraps please leave it in the comment section of this post! 

Update 10/11/13: Rudi's Gluten-free wraps are awesome! 

5 Napkin Burger NYC

5 Napkin Burger is another one of my favorite gluten-free-friendly restaurants in the city. I have found the staff to be very knowledgeable and understanding of gluten allergies. I have even had a server who was gluten-free himself! 5 Napkin offers gluten free buns, beers and fries! What more could you ask for?! They have a pretty big menu with a good variety. I recommend looking over the menu and selecting a few meals you are interested in then ask our sever if they can be prepared gluten-free. My favorite burger is the Avocado-Ranch (minus the ranch because it's not gluten free!) with a New Grist beer. 

Gluten Free Mexican in NYC!

Dos Caminos has become my go-to Mexican restaurant in the city. The servers are very knowledgeable and understand gluten sensitivities. As always, it's important to notify your server of your gluten allergy when you are seated. Almost everything on their menu can be prepared gluten-free! The kitchen even puts a label on your plate to indicate a food allergy, so there is no mix up! I have been told that they try their best to make sure the corn chips (for the salsa and guacamole) are fried separately, but they can't 100% guarantee there aren't any slip ups. Instead, you can ask for veggies to eat with your guacamole. I have only been to the Dos Caminos on 3rd  Avenue, so make sure to discuss your gluten allergy with the staff at their other locations. I recommend the chicken or mahi-mahi tacos! And of course a Margarita!

Gluten Free in Aruba!

At first I was a little worried about vacationing with a gluten free diet. With this being my fifth trip to "The Happy Island," I was really looking forward to some delicious dinners. In the months leading up to my vacation I was constantly researching gluten free restaurants in Aruba. I found Trip Adviser and other blogs to be very helpful, but emailing a restaurant prior to my trip was the most helpful. To my surprise many restaurants in Aruba were more than willing to accommodate my food allergy. When you make a reservation remember to mention your allergy and always communicate with your waiter. Unfortunately, gluten free beer has not made its way down to Aruba, but the grocery stores offer many gluten free items! Here are the restaurants I dined at while I was away:

The Jolly Pirates Sunset Sail

Texas de Brazil

My family ate here on the first night and I was amazed by the staff's knowledge of gluten. Our waitress completely understood my gluten allergy and arranged for a chef to show me around the salad bar. For those of you who have never been to Texas de Brazil I will explain the serving style of the dinner. First, guests visit the salad/appetizer bar for the first course. Next, you sit back down at your table flip your card to green ("yes, I would like more food!") and servers come around with a variety of meats that are carved right onto your plate! The chef walked me around the salad bar and told me all of the dishes and dressings that contained gluten. He also reminded me of which meats I would not be able to eat for dinner. For my entire dinner our waitress kept an eye on me and reminded me of which meats I could not sample. She even knew to avoid vodka in my drinks! I highly recommend going to Texas de Brazil while you're in Aruba gluten free or not! Our dinner was awesome!

Smokey Joe's

In the past this restaurant has been one of my favorites while in Aruba. The ribs here are amazing! My family ate here twice during our trip. Unfortunately (and not to my surprise) the ribs are not gluten free. The first night my waiter did not understand my allergy; he actually thought I said I was allergic to glue, so he brought the manager over. I ordered plain grilled chicken on a salad with oil and vinegar dressing. Although the salad was not nearly as satisfying as the ribs I was wishing I could have I did not get sick. The second night our waitress told me the dry-rub ribs did not contain gluten ingredients, so I decided to give them a try. After watching my family devour delicious saucy ribs early in the week I was green with envy. Although the dry-rub wasn't as good as the BBQ ribs I had years ago they were still tasty. Afterwards, I did have a bit of an upset stomach, but nothing too terrible. In the future I would just stick to the salad and suggest others do the same, especially if you have Celiacs.

Linda's Pancakes

One night my family decided to order in, so I picked up a gluten free pizza with peppers from Linda's. I was definitely one of the best GF pizzas I've had. One of my cousins even said he thought it tasted just like regular pizza. Unfortunately, I got a stomach ache pretty quickly. Although several other blogs raved about Linda's gluten free dutch pancakes I was too hesitant to go back after trying the pizza. The rest of my family stopped at Linda's for breakfast one morning and loved it. 

Yemanja Woodfire Grill

Amazing! Amazing! Amazing! Yemanja is the only restaurant I found with an actual gluten free menu. Most of their dishes are gluten free to begin with so I was able to choose from the same dishes as my family. They even brought me fresh, fluffy and delicious gluten free bread!! This night I had grilled mahi-mahi and was able to eat the family style side dishes that were put on the table. I highly recommend dinning here if you have a gluten allergy! 

Gianni's

Definitely put this restaurant on your list if you are looking for excellent Italian food. Although they do not have a gluten free menu they offer gluten free pasta and a knowledgeable staff. All but two pasta sauces are gluten free. We actually ate here twice because the food is so good and they could accommodate my allergy.The first night I had gluten free penne with carbonara sauce. It was so good I had it the next time as well, but the gluten free pasta of the night was fusilli. Both nights my waiters took great care in noting my gluten allergy. 

Chalet Suisse
When my cousin made our dinner reservation this night he actually spoke directly to the chef. The chef informed him that many of the restaurant's dishes did not contain gluten and he would be more than willing to accommodate my food allergy. I had the delicious filet mignon special with spinach, mushrooms and a baked potato. 

At the end of my trip I ate lunch at the Marriott's Aruba Ocean Club when my waitress told me I could have asked the front desk to make note of my allergy in the computer. She said all of the restaurants on the grounds  would be able to see my food allergy in the computer when processing our meals. I will definitely remember this for next time! I hope this helps all of you gluten free readers who may be traveling to Aruba! 

Gluten Free Italian

     Since going gluten free I have found pizza and pasta to be much less enjoyable. Recently, I found a fresh spinach linguine from Whole Foods that is awesome! Costco also sells a brand called Felicia which I also like. This brand is a corn, rice, buckwheat and quinoa mix. I personally think all-rice pastas aren't very good. Lately, I've really enjoyed having gluten free linguine with homemade marinara sauce or garlic and oil. 

      This past weekend I visited Boston for the first time! I stayed in the North End which is a  "Little Italy" type of area. I have never seen so many restaurants in one place. There has to be at least 100 Italian restaurants, 1 Mexican restaurant and 1 Chinese restaurant. My friends and I had dinner at Benevento's. Not only was everyone's food delicious, they offered both gluten free pasta and pizza! I had the option of at least 6 different sauces served with gluten free pasta and about 12 pizzas. I was in gluten free food heaven!! I chose the "Vodka Classic" pizza. One of the waiters recommended choosing vodka sauce because it would balance out the sweetness of the gluten free dough. I think the pizza would have been delicious regardless of what was on it. I also liked how my pizza was cooked on a disposable aluminum tray (avoiding cross contamination). And of course, their beer options included Redbridge - one of the best gluten free beers I've tried. 

*Update 7/13/13* This post was written early on in my gluten free life. In the future I would be more cautious of the vodka used in the sauce. Not all vodkas are gluten free therefore it's important to discuss this with your server. 

Honey Tequila & Lime Shrimp!

My first post- college blog post! I actually made this meal the first weekend I came home, but haven't got around to sharing it until now. This dinner was so quick and easy - a perfect start to summer! Grilled shrimp marinated in fresh honey, lime and tequila with brown rice and homemade guacamole. 

Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 pounds of shrimp (I thawed frozen, de-veined shrimp)
- 1/2 cup of tequila
- 1 tsp of lime zest
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1 lime, to serve on the side
- 1 tbsp of pure honey
- 2 cloves of garlic, miced
- 1-2 tbsp of cilantro, finely chopped
- kosher salt and fresh black pepper

Click HERE for my guacamole recipe!

Directions:

Whisk together all of your ingredients in a large bowl then add in the shrimp. Make sure all of the shrimp is coated in the marinated and let it sit for about 20-30 minutes. I used a grill pan on my stove; the shrimp quick fast, so keep an eye on them. You'll known when the shrimp is done when they begin to curl up (probably no more than 3 minutes total). Serve with fresh lime slices on the side, brown rice, homemade guacamole and gluten free corn chips!

*My best friend is allergic to shrimp, so I used the same marinate for grilled chicken.

Pesto & Sundried Tomatoes!

Tonight I made a yummy pasta dish and even had some pesto left over.

Ingredients 

-2 ounces of fresh basil
-1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
-1 medium clove of garlic
-1/4 cup Pignoli (pine) nuts
-about 1/8 cup of extra virgin olive oil
-1/4 cup sundried tomatoes
-1 cup of whole wheat penne

Directions

In a small food processor add basil, garlic, cheese, nuts and drizzle in oil. Add your ingredients in a little at a time until you have used them all. Don't add too much oil at once because your pesto will become too watery. On the other hand, if your pesto is too thick you can always add in a little pasta water later on. Slice up the sundried tomatoes and warm them up in a small pan. Mix together your pasta, pesto and sundried tomatoes and you're done! This meal took no more than 20 minutes.

Turkey & Apple Panini

First post of the fall 2011 semester! Tonight I made Paninis with oven roasted turkey, granny smith apples and Munster cheese.

Ingredients
-Sliced oven roasted Turkey (I used Nature's Promise pre-sliced package)
-1 tablespoon of butter
-1 teaspoon of sugar
-1 granny smith apple, sliced
-6 slices of deli style Munster Cheese
-2 Ciabatta rolls
-Panini press

Directions

Melt butter in a medium sauce pan then add sugar. Once combined, add apple slices and cook on low heat until soft. My turkey was not fresh out of the oven, so I heated it up in a large pan on low heat. Slice the rolls in half. On the bottom slice place 2 pieces of cheese then the turkey. Next add on the apple slices followed by another piece of cheese. Place in the Panini press until cheese is melted.

Quick Chicken Quesadilla

Ingredients:
2 thin-cut, cleaned chicken cutlets
1 green bell pepper
1 small tomato
1 cup of shredded Mexican or taco cheese
1/4 large white onion
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 whole wheat wraps
salt and pepper to taste

Makes two quesadillas

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice the green pepper and onion. The size depends on the size of your wrap. If you cut your veggies too big it won't be easy to fold the quesadilla in half. On a non-stick pan sprinkle chicken cutlets with salt and pepper. Then bake in the oven for 13-15 minutes. While chicken is baking, heat oil and chili powder in a medium size pan on medium heat. Add green peppers and onions; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cover until softened, mixing occasionally. When the chicken is done cooking cut it into strips. 

On medium heat spray a small pan with cooking spray then place one wrap flat on pan. On one side of the wrap add cheese followed by slices of tomato, chicken, veggies and a little more cheese. The cheese needs to be on the top and bottom because it acts like glue. Fold the other half over so your quesadilla is a half-moon shape. Press down with spatula then cover with lid for about 3 minutes. If the cheese has melted flip it over to brown the other side of the quesadilla. Serve with salsa. 

Perks of Marinades

Tonight was just a quick easy dinner. I marinated chicken in sesame ginger marinade for about two hours. I baked it in the oven using a disposable aluminum tin. As sides I made steamed broccoli and brown rice. (Perfect for a tummy ache day) Sesame ginger is definitely one of my favorite marinades! My Aunt Laurie uses when she makes skirt steak which I have also made at school. Over the past few months I've learned that using different marinades is one of the easiest ways to change up your meals and keep things form getting boring. They are also very convenient when you don't really feel like cooking...marinate the meat for a few hours then pop it the oven and voila! A lively meal. 

As a side note: Sometimes it is quicker and easier to cook a small serving size just for yourself, but when you don't have a lot of spare time for dinner cooking larger meals that make leftovers is the way to go. For example, tonight I could have made four to five chicken cutlets with extra rice and had enough meals for dinner this week. 

Light Alfredo Sauce

For dinner tonight I made whole wheat penne with spinach and Alfredo sauce. This isn't one of my favorite sauces, but it's nice to eat something a little different. Between the whole wheat pasta and the sauce it's very filling. 

Ingredients:
-1 tablespoon unsalted butter
-1 clove of garlic, minced
-1 teaspoon lemon zest
-3 teaspoons of flour
-1 cup of light cream
-3/4 cup Parmesan cheese
-3 teaspoons of dried parsley (I didn't have fresh)
-1 teaspoon ground black pepper
-2-3cups of spinach (I used fresh & steamed it, but frozen is probably easier)

Directions:

Melt butter in medium pan on medium/low heat. Then add garlic and lemon zest cooking until garlic softens. Next, add the flour and whisk until mixture thickens. Then add in the milk and keep whisking for about 4 minutes until the mixture thickens. After whisk in cheese followed by parsley and pepper.If you use fresh spinach let it steam while you're making the sauce. I mixed the pasta, sauce, spinach and about a cup of pasta water in one of the pots. I recommend adding in a little pasta water after you mix everything else together. I would have liked my sauce to have stayed a little thicker, the water made it a little looser than I had intended.

At first I didn't think that 3 teaspoons of flour would thicken the sauce, but it did! This sauce was so much better than my first attempt a few months ago.

My homemade Sauce :)

All of my housemates can vouch for my hatred of jarred tomato sauce. Never have I ever eaten jarred sauce and I probably never will. Salsa is probably the only sauce like mixture I will eat  out of a jar and that is probably stretching the term sauce a little too far! Tonight for dinner I am making  whole wheat spaghetti with tomato sauce.

My Sauce:

In a medium pot sautee two chopped cloves of garlic in two tablespoons of oil on low heat. Only about three minutes, be careful not to burn! Then add diced onion, tonight I used about a 1/4 of a medium sized onion. Stir and let simmer until onions are transparent. (Note to my readers: my mother would like you all to know I did this wrong. You're supposed to sautee the onions first then add the garlic. I haven't burned my garlic my way though!) Then add one can of crushed tomatoes and stir. Next, dried basil, oregano and parsley. This is definitely where personal taste preference comes in. I used about a tablespoon of basil, tablespoon of parsley and half tablespoon of oregano. Oregano is my least favorite of the three. I also add fresh basil and then let the sauce simmer on low for at least an hour. My oven/stove at school is awful and gets entirely too hot. I leave the pot partially covered with a lid so no one gets splattered on.

I planned on making mini strawberry shortcakes for dessert, but when I got home from the food store I realized I forget whipped cream. I suddenly had the "brilliant" idea to make my own. A cup of cream and a tablespoon of sugar, easy right? WRONG I usually only buy light cream and I quickly realized why heavy cream would have been better. I also thought using a whisk would work just fine...wrong again. I gave it one last attempt and used an electric mixer. I failed again. As I'm frantically trying to whip the cream & sugar Mike walks in. He tells me I'm crazy, "Alyss you can buy whipped cream why would you make it?!" I was about to say "You like whipped cream! That's why I'm making it!" And then I realized Mike doesn't like strawberries to begin with! Looks like I'll just be having plain strawberries for dessert.

My first blog! Blackberry pork chops!

Since tonight's dinner wasn't anything special I am going to flashback to last Wednesday. I made a Paula Deen recipe for blackberry pork chops. I usually don't care for pork chops because I think they're dry, but they were delish! I altered the recipe a little - CLICK HERE! for Paula's and my changes are below:  

I didn't use the bone-in pork chops, I got small bone-less pork chop that were not very fatty. I also only used 3 (college portions remember?!). My dry white wine probably doesn't meet the drinking standards for most of the people in my family...Chateau Riviera Chardonnay from College Deli, Poughkeepsie courtesy of Mike after the liquor store closed, but hey it did the trick! I also left out the thyme because I don't care for the taste. This recipe was SO good! I will definitely make it again after I tackle some new dishes. I made it with a side of green beans that I marinated in balsamic vinegar.