Monthly Archives: April 2009

Mail-Ordering Gluten-Free Groceries

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Finding gluten-free food while traveling is an obvious challenge, but I’ve been hearing lately from readers who are having a tough time eating at home. One reader in Canada was appalled when she began to place an order at the online Gluten-Free Mall and discovered that it would cost $34 just to ship a one-pound parcel to her (unfortunately, the Mall doesn’t post its shipping charges on the site, so potential customers are sometimes in for a shock when they reach the checkout stage).

Living in New York means having lots of options, since grocery chains such as Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods carry plenty of gluten-free products, as do independent stores such as Natural Green Market. In other parts of North America, it can be tough to find gluten-free baked goods, pasta, and other essentials. For those who depend on mail-order to get their gluten-free groceries, here’s some advice:

  • Find manufacturers that ship products to customers directly: A few companies, such as Shabtai Gourmet, make this incredibly easy. Shabtai, which makes cakes, cookies, and other treats that are gluten free, lactose free, soy free, and casein free, ships its products anywhere in the continental US — for free. Kinnikinnick Foods ships its celiac-safe bagels, breads, donuts, and other products to Canada and the US; as you order, a tally of charges, including shipping, adds on the upper right corner of the page, so there are no upsets at checkout.
  • Remember to comparison shop: Gluten-free products tend to be expensive in North America, and there are no government subsidies for celiacs, as there are in countries such as Italy and Turkey. I’ve found Amazon to be a great place for deals on basics such as gluten-free pasta. Amazon is a bit like Costco, in that you have to buy in bulk, so instead of purchasing one package of Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free Homemade Wonderful Bread Mix, you need to buy four; in the case of Tinkyada Brown Rice Spirals with Rice Bran, you’d need to purchase a pack of 12. However, when you compare Amazon’s prices to certain sites that market themselves to gluten-free consumers, Amazon’s are great deals. Also, “Gluten-Free” is a major category in Amazon’s grocery department, so products are easy to find — and shipping is free on orders of $25 or more.
  • Read product reviews: It can be tempting to order treats that you’ve been missing, but we know that not all gluten-free products are equally good. In fact, some have the consistency and flavor of cardboard. Unfortunately, with products for delivery, you usually can’t send them back if you don’t like them. Before you order something new, be sure to check out sites such as Gluten Free Food Reviews; Amazon is also useful for its product reviews, even when you’re not ordering from the site.
  • Know that some restaurants do mail-order, too: New York’s Risotteria immediately comes to mind. Have you tried the Fudgie yet? You really should. My favorite local bakery, Babycakes, delivers, too. (By the way, Babycakes has its first-ever cookbook coming out; click on “Recommended Reading” to see it.)
  • Check out the great lists of gluten-free retailers that have already been compiled: Gluten-Free in SD has a great one, and it’s not just for people who live in San Diego. The Celiac Handbook has links to an exhaustive list of companies that ship gluten-free products. A listing isn’t an endorsement, but it’s still a great place to start.
  • Shop locally when possible: Some American companies won’t ship outside of the continental US. However, Canadians have the option of shopping from Toronto’s Specialty Food Shop, which I’ve written about before. The SFS will even ship frozen foods. In Hawaii, Sweet Marie’s (which reader Liisa wrote about here), delivers locally and internationally.

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Just a reminder: there’s a Gluten-Free Guidebook group on Facebook, where members are posting fascinating news, such as the attempt by Australian researchers to develop a vaccine for celiac disease (thanks, Bruno!). Also, I’m now on Twitter, and if you’d like to follow me there, I’m @hilarydavidson.

Gluten-Free Pizza Problems?

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A diagnosis of celiac disease usually means that you’ll have to give up some of your favorite foods… at least until someone comes up with a gluten-free version. While I’m still waiting for someone in New York to bake or import gluten-free croissants (the only ones I’ve found so far were in Spain), I have found one source for celiac-safe butter tarts, and many for delicious pizza.

On my last visit to Toronto, I was delighted to hear that Pizza Nova, a southwestern Ontario takeout pizza chain, had started to offer a gluten-free crust. The popular Pizza Pizza chain began to offer this last year in its Ontario and Quebec outlets, and I’d hoped that the success of the program would inspire others to create products for celiacs. However, when I went to order from Pizza Nova, I found cause for concern. The company provides a helpful PDF document on its website to alert customers to allergens in their pizza toppings and other food products; it’s a pretty comprehensive list, covering peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, milk products, eggs, fish, seafood, soy, sulphites, wheat, and gluten (wheat and gluten are listed as separate categories on the chart). Each ingredient is rated from zero to 3; zero means that the allergen is not present, 1 means that the allergen was present in the factory, 2 means that the allergen was used on the same production line, and 3 means that the allergen is present in the product.

What I noticed on the chart was that there are discrepancies in the ratings for the wheat and gluten categories. Pepperoni is rated 1 for wheat content but zero for gluten, as is the sautéed spinach and the ketchup. The chicken wings and the Hellman’s blue cheese dip get a 2 for wheat, and zero for gluten. The veal cutlets get a 3 for wheat — meaning that they absolutely do contain wheat — and a zero for gluten. By definition, if a product contains wheat, it contains gluten (though the reverse is not true, since a product could contain gluten — say, in the form of barley malt — and yet contain no wheat). I once encountered a product that was made from “gluten-free wheat”, and I know that there’s ongoing research in this area, but I don’t think that’s the issue here.

In the end, I was worried about the information that didn’t add up, and I decided to order from Pizza Pizza instead. If you read my earlier post about that chain’s offerings, you know that you need to think carefully about which toppings to get (since Pizza Pizza’s “classic” pepperoni contains gluten but the New-York-style pepperoni doesn’t, for example). This seems like a great time for a reminder: just because a place offers a gluten-free pizza crust does not mean that all of its toppings and accompaniments are celiac-safe. Food for thought.

Frommer’s Toronto and Food Allergies

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I’ve just signed a deal with Wiley Publishing to write another edition of Frommer’s Toronto. This will be my eleventh edition of the book, and I’m looking for ways to make it more informative and more relevant. In the current edition, Frommer’s Toronto 2009, I’ve included a section in the dining chapter devoted to people with gluten intolerance and/or food allergies, and I wanted to mention some of the places featured there:

  • Camros Organic Eatery: This small spot just south of Yonge and Bloor prepares Persian-inspired dishes, all of which are vegetarian. Everything is gluten-free, and the restaurant lists all ingredients in every dish to help those with food allergies. Thanks to a recent renovation, Camros can now seat 30 diners, instead of 12; [address] 25 Hayden St. [tel] 416-960-0723 [web] www.camroseatery.com.
  • Big Mamma’s Boy: This perennially popular Cabbagetown spot sits in a 19th-century Victorian row house. Its gluten-free menu, includes pizzas, pastas, and traditional comfort-food dishes. (For my post about it, click here.)
  • Jamie Kennedy Wine Bar: A great spot not only for celiacs, but also for anyone with a food allergy. The staff is knowledgeable and helpful: not only can they tell you the ingredients in every dish, they’re aware of potential cross-contamination problems. (For my post about it, click here.)
  • Il Fornello: This Toronto chain is my go-to spot for a hit of gluten-free pasta or pizza. (For my post about it, click here.)
  • Swiss Chalet: This allergy-aware Canadian chain provides precise details about allergens in their food; they’ve created a helpful chart that you can read online, or find in any of their restaurants. The chart has categories for peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, milk products, eggs, fish, shellfish, soy, wheat/gluten, and sulfites. Toronto locations include: [address] 362 Yonge St. at Gerrard St. [tel] 416-597-0101 [web] www.swisschalet.com.
  • Amuse-Bouche: Speaking generally, expensive restaurants are pretty accommodating on the gluten-free and food-allergic fronts (of course, there are exceptions, like the hoity-toity spot where the waiter told me he couldn’t “bother” the chef with my questions). Amuse-Bouche gets a special mention for going above and beyond: if you give them some advance notice, they will bake gluten-free bread just for you. (For my post about it, click here.)

There are some restaurants I’ve written about recently, such as Relish and Four, which deserve to be listed, and I’ll add Pizza Pizza as well. Do you have any suggestions for restaurants that belong in the book? Please leave a comment below. Thanks.