Praying for a Christmas miracle

Sorry I haven't been very prolific this week. I flew to Georgia for the holidays, and I just found out that my dad is in ICU and has taken a turn for the worse. I fly out in the wee hours tomorrow morning, and any prayers sure would be appreciated. Have a happy holiday. Eat safe.

When celebrating Christmas means eating gluten-free - Independent Newspapers: Arts And Living

When celebrating Christmas means eating gluten-free - Independent Newspapers: Arts And Living

Check out these gluten-free Christmas ideas.

Deadline for holiday orders from A&J and EvaRuths

The deadline for placing holiday orders from EvaRuth's in Middletown is Dec. 20. Here's the link to their order form: https://docs.google.com/open?id=0ByxePbK9bdxnQ3Q5QXpEa3pjWGs.

The deadline for placing in-store orders at A&J Bakery in Cranston is December 20, and the cut-off for online orders is December 17. Anything ordered online after the 17th cannot be guaranteed that it will arrive by Christmas.Visit the store, or go to www.aandjbakery.net.

A&J is having its First Annual Gingerbread House Decorating contest! It will run through December 30, 2012. All you have to do is submit photos of your fully decorated Allergen Friendly Gingerbread House to A&J Bakery to be considered for an award of Best House and/or Most Unique use of provided decorations. The top two winners in each category and within the three age brackets (Ages 4-7, 8-12 and 13-18) will receive their name placed on a plaque that will be kept in the store in addition to a $30 gift card. E-mail all pictures of your completed house to ajbakery1@gmail.com with the A&J Bakery House Box in the background, along with the person's name, address and age. Be sure to let them know which category you want to be entered into.

So here's my big secret...

DOH! I typed the date wrong. It's the DEC. 20 issue, just in time for Christmas. Now I know I haven't gotten enough sleep lately!

Keep your eyes peeled for the DEC. 20 "Last Minute Gift Guide" in the South County Independent and the North○East Independent newspapers. Yours truly has been allowed to write an article with my gift picks for the Twelve Days of Christmas, celiac-style.

I've had a lot of fun interviewing several local businesses, putting together a list of gifts that I believe would be good choices for someone with celiac disease. I hope you get a chance to check it out and leave me some feedback. You can comment here on this page, or you can post a comment to either my CeliacGirlRI FaceBook page, or to either of the Independent newspapers FaceBook pages (search for South County Independent or North○East Independent). You can even leave a comment on the IndependentRI.com website if you wish.

If you enjoy the article, let the papers know, so hopefully we'll get the chance to publish more GF information.

So that's why I haven't posted that much the past week or so. I've been busy in the community, talking to people for my article. Hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

A few quick notes...

Amazon has another freebie cookbook for Kindle:

Coconut Flour! 47+ Irresistible Recipes for Baking with Coconut Flour: Perfect for Gluten Free, Celiac and Paleo Diets [2013 Edition]

by Donatella Giordano

Don't stress if you don't have a Kindle, you can download a free app for Mac or PC, and read it on your computer!

HOW TO KNOW WHICH ITEMS IN THE PREPARED FOOD DELI SECTION AT WHOLE FOODS ARE GLUTEN-FREE...

I was at Whole Foods Market in Cranston this week to get my calcium-magnesium citrate (a staple for all celiacs), and I saw that they had quinoa-cranberry-sweet potato patties. Since I'm a paranoid son-of-a-gun, I asked the deli guy if there were GF. He shared a sweet trick with me: if it has a purple label on the item, and it says Healthy Starts Here, it's GF! How cool is that! No more feeling like a pain in the butt when you ask them to check ingredients for you.

 

I've got a secret...

I'll share it with you soon. I've been talking to some really great GF sources in the community, and I have some info to share. So stay tuned, and I'll spill it as soon as I can.

Eat safe, K

 

Update on Sugarbird Bakery status...

Just saw this post from Sugarbird Bakery on FaceBook:

Sugarbird Bakery- Rhode Island (Gluten Free!)

Happy Holidays to you our dearest friends!! We have been taking meetings with venture capitalists, landlords, restaurant owners, entrepreneurs, franchise moguls, and even a supermarket chain...all with the intent of bringing Sugarbird back. We promise that we are still doing our best and hope you know how much we miss you. Keep your fingers crossed...next week could lead to GOOD things. LOVE to you all XOXO

Let's hope they get their funding and find a new location. We miss you, Jill and Sugarbird!

Don't forget that Hope Artiste Village Farmers' Market is open tomorrow

I went to the Farmers' Market at Hope Artiste Village a couple of weekends ago, and it was spectacular. Talk about shades of Asheville, N.C.! (For those of you who are not familiar with Asheville, think hippies mixed with yuppies and quite a few vegan / gluten-free restaurants)

ecoRI has a great newsletter

Great family event

Farmacy herbs

Schartner Farm's table was busy

This vendor had GF pork and boar sausage

Fresh veggies from the farm

Farmstead artisanal cheese

Langwater Farm veg stand

The girls from EvaRuth's

Lots of samples to try at EvaRuth's table

Jens Retlev of Jens & Marie

Jens Retlev making veggies burgers

Register for the email list

Food trucks are right outside on the street

I went at the invitation of Jens and Marie's, a local company based out of Hope Artiste Village at 1005 Main St. in Pawtucket. Jens and Marie's produces veggie burgers, and they were offering samples of their newest product, a gluten-free vegan burger made with black bean and sweet potato.

I've never had a veggie burger before, so I didn't know what to expect. Obviously, it doesn't taste like meat. The burger patty is a generous 3.75 ounces, and it is cooked from frozen. Just heat it through for a few minutes on each side. The black bean taste is bold, sweetened slightly with the sweet potato. Two patties cost $5. The folks there are really friendly, and seemed to enjoy talking shop with the customers.

The market has a wealth of amazing produce, as well fresh fish, organic beef and poultry, herbs, handmade soap, artisan cheese and so much more! One vendor had pork and boar sausage that was organic, GF and nitrate-free. EvaRuth's had a table of GF goodies with samples to try.

If you have a chance, you should visit. It's open on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and on Wednesday from 4 to 7 p.m. They accept SNAP/EBT, Fresh Bucks, cash, WIC fruit & veggie coupons, and credit cards. They even have a place where you can drop off your veggie scraps to be composted!

Two free GF cookbooks on Amazon, and one surprise

Amazon has two GF coobooks. Now, when things are free on Amazon, it may last only a day, so move your tail feathers and download your copy of the e-book now. If you don't own a Kindle, no worries. You can download Kindle for PC or Kindle for Mac, and read it on your computer.

Here are the links and cover art:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006X37X1C?tag=kiq-free-e-20

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006V7F9NO?tag=kiq-free-e-20

 

 

 

 

 

Not for free, but for $4.99, an interesting and timely surprise:

http://www.amazon.com/Gluten-Free-Taste-Turkey-ebook/dp/B00A01CR7S

 Enjoy your holidays.

Jens and Marie will be at Hope Artist Farmers Market with samples of their GF veggie burgers

Jens and Marie contacted me last night to let me know that they will be at Hope Artiste Village Farmers Market on Saturday to share samples of their newest GF product, the Southwest Black Bean and Sweet Potato Veggie Burger. The new veggie burger is all natural, vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free. They are selling the 3.75-ounce burgers in a two-pack for $5. They say that they are great "cooked from frozen."

Jens and Marie have office space in Hope Artist Village, 1005 Main St., Pawtucket, site of the Farmers Market. For more information, call 475-9991, or visit www.jensandmarie.com.

Here's a link to their sales sheet, with ingredients and nutritional info. I asked about the maltodextrin in the burgers, and its source is corn, not wheat.
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0ByxePbK9bdxnazg0dWlKSzhLZ3M

Hope to see you at the Farmers Market tomorrow.

Hold the phone...there's a delay in the opening of the new Johnston location of EvaRuth's Bakery

Just got an email from EvaRuth's Bakery, saying that they would have to delay the opening of the Johnston store. I'm at their Middletown location at least twice a week, so I'll keep you posted as to when they will open at their new location on Hartford Avenue in Johnston, at the site of the former Sugarbird Bakery.