There are lots of great sources of information on eating gluten free (GF) and celiac disease. We recommend researching multiple websites and books to get the most complete picture from several perspectives. Listed below are our favorites, but there are many more...
GF
Cookbooks | Food Books | Lifestyle
Books | Information Websites
GF Product Websites | Local
Markets | GF Recipe Websites
Cooking Supplies | Seattle Restaurants |
Medical Professionals
The
Best-Ever Wheat- and Gluten-Free Baking Book,
by Mary Ann and Mace Wenniger. [2005, Fair Winds Press, ISBN 1-59233-131-9]
And it is! Best breadth of selection and flavor, but beware of the ocassional
typos in the recipe directions.
Cooking Gluten-Free! by Karen Robertson. [2002, Celiac Publishing, ISBN 0970866011] A very pretty book on "a food lover's collection of chef and family recipes without gluten or wheat." Does not focus on baking flour-substituted recipes, but instead lots of healthy and tasty vege and meat dishes to make you forget about being wheatless. Almost more of a whole-foods cookbook. Excellent information section. Local author.
Gluten-Free Baking, by Rebecca Reilly. [2002, Simon & Schuster, ISBN 0-684-87252-8]. Some creative concoctions and useful tips.
On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen, by Harold McGee. [2004, Scribner, ISBN 0-684-80001-2] A layman's food science bible. Supremely fascinating (ok, we're biased). Excellent for explaining the why and how behind every ingredient and process in the kitchen. The original 1984 edition has some different information than the updated edition, so both are useful.
Living Gluten-Free for Dummies, by Danna Korn. [2006, For Dummies, ISBN 0471773832] Author Danna Korn explains the medical problems associated with gluten and shows you step by step how to make the transition to a gluten-free lifestyle - and love it! Discover how to understand what you can and can't eat. Shop and decipher food labels. Excellent information resource, but she admits she is not a Real Cookbook Author, and the recipes are too "Sandra Lee." If you only want to buy one book, this is it.
Gluten-Free Girl: How I Found The Food That Loves Me Back & How You Can Too, by Shauna James Ahern. [2007, Wiley, ISBN 978-0470-13730-7] Seattle writer Shauna James graduates from blogspot to book. She engagingly tells the story of her struggles and amusing tales of adjusting to GF life. Lets the reader know that she/he is not alone in their journey. Especially interesting with the Seattle connection and references. Sprinkled throughout with recipes and lots of advice on how to deal with GFcooking in your own kitchen.
GlutenFreeGirl is a blogspot hosted by Seattle Foodie and literary diva Shauna James Ahern. She writes about her new life eating gluten-free with supreme artistry of word and literary grace. The account of her romance with The Chef is totally enthralling, making your heart just glow. The site's entry page lists a multitude of links for gluten-free living.
Gluten.net is the home of the Gluten Intolerance Group, in Auburn, WA. They sponsor the big annual medical conference on celiac research (back East, of course), and a local intro class to the disease.
Glutenfree.com is the home of Gluten Free Pantry and sells GF products and hosts Celiac Forums.
CeliacForums.com, a topical bulletin board and events calendar.
Celiac.org, the official website of the disease.
Celiac.com, the less official website, and somewhat commercial. Has a topical bulletin board.
Bob's Redmill. [www.bobsredmill.com] Northwest folks with a huge selection of alternative flours, processed in a dedicated gluten-free facility. Their certified products are laboratory-tested to be gluten-free. Available by internet/mail-order or a limited selection in most grocery stores' health food sections.
Gluten Free Oats. [www.glutenfreeoats.com]. Drumroll, please! A Wyoming farm-raised celiac family whose business markets GF oats. They contract with growers and processors to handle the oats with regard to keeping wheat away from the oats at all phases of the operation. And they have the lots tested via immunoassay to ensure that they are GF. By Internet order.
Van's GF Waffles. [www.vanswaffles.com]. Tasty and inexpensive, widely available, even in health food section of major markets. They also have wheat versions, so make sure you are grabbing the right box off the shelf.
Kinnikinnik Foods [www.kinnikinnick.com] of Canada has wonderful frozen english muffins. Also other bread products reported to be the best of the pre-made GF products. Not a very user-friendly website, but you can do mail-order to choose from their extensive product line. At Manna Mills and other co-ops.
Amy's Foods [www.amys.com] makes a multitude of tasty frozen entrees and canned soups. They've expanded from simply natural and healthy, to accomodating various diets--including many products formulated gluten-free. Widely available in all supermarkets in the healthy frozen and canned foods sections. Great for packing a hot work lunch. New products include rice crust cheese or spinach pizzas!
Dr. Praeger's [www.drpraegers.com] potato-crusted frozen fish sticks, california burgers, and spinach and potato pancakes. Some products contain oats, others are totally GF, so make sure you check out both their regular and GF lines to find products that will work for you. Excellent flavor. Burgers can be found at Trader Joe's, and Food Emporium stocks a wide selection. We like the Tex Mex flavor burger over the California flavor--but that one has been winning vege burger taste tests around the country.
Local Markets Stocking Gluten-Free
Products (North Puget Sound):
Central Market. [www.central-market.com] I wish I had one of these closer! Located in Shoreline, Mill Creek and Bainbridge. Whole foods, health foods, bulk, and Asian. Get anything you need to eat healthy here (without the Whole Foods Market pricing...well, but close). Mill Creek does a wonderful job of stocking (and noting on the shelf tags) GF product flours and mixes in the baking section, as well as snacks, and several flavors of Ener-G breads in the bakery. They carry Teff flour and grain! Shoreline's Asian section is a good place to get rice-based noodles, snacks and flours, plus "exotic" vegetables. Excellent organic produce and fish counters, very fresh and wide selection. Great sushi counter at the Millcreek store. I'm always happy when I'm there—Central Market fills the Foodie's heart with love! xoxoxox
Trader Joe's. [www.traderjoes.com] Awesome grocery store with great prices. They have a list of their gluten-free products to help with shopping. Not a huge GF selection, but so many other good products that you forget about no wheat. Great place for ground almonds at a good price, and they now carry sweet rice flour. Excellent brown rice pasta. And they carry Nature's Path granola, which is wheat-free if you are ok with oats. They even have gluten-free bread—but as much as I love TJ's, I still couldn't bear to try it. North metro locations in Lynnwood, Everett and Totem Lake/Kirkland.
Food Emporium. The last remaining Olsen family grocery, located where the Mukilteo Speedway crosses Hwy 99. Health food section just got rolled into rest of store (like all the QFC's did), so it's harder to find GF things now. But they do have a decent number of Bob's Redmill Products. Great deli, wines, sushi, gifts, and meats. Manager makes an effort to stock gluten-free products.
Manna Mills in Mountlake Terrace has organic foods and local produce, bulk flours, and an extensive selection of pre-packaged gluten-free mixes. Their aim is to be a GF headquarters, so they have a lot of freezer case baked goods.
Skagit Valley Co-Op in downtown Mount Vernon. Large selection of local organic produce and packaged goods. Not the most extensive dry GF selection, but have frozen baked goods. Deli and tables (not sure if have GF items on menu). Better prices than Seattle.
Sno-Isle Natural Foods Co-Op in downtown Everett at 2804 Grand. They also have a organic foods and local produce, bulk goods, and a wide selection of gluten-free products. Fresh deli and wine section too.
Fred Meyer carries a small selection of Bob's Redmill products and has small gluten-free shelf. Local QFCs also carry a small number of GF items and supplies. Keep your eye on Freddies, because they do seem to be expanding their GF line. The newly-remodeled store in Everett has a good selection.
Whole Foods, Larry's and PCC are also great choices, but are sorely absent from the north Puget Sound (News Flash: PCC recently opened up a branch in downtown Edmonds!) Whole Foods corporate R&D apparently has dedicated much time and energy to developing a whole line of GF baked goods. Haven't been down to either the Seattle or Bellevue stores to see if our West Coast stores carry those products yet...
Check the two bulletin boards mentioned above for reader's recipes...
J.Matheson. [www.jmatheson.com] A great kitchen-supply shop in downtown Everett, just north of the intersection of Colby and Everett Ave, on the one-story block with all the cute shops. If she doesn't have it, she can order it! She also has a great giftshop just 3 doors down where you can find the right gift for any occasion.
Chef's Catalog. [www.chefscatalog.com] Best mail-order/internet source for cookware, electronics and gadgets.
Bed, Bath & Beyond. Only local superstore left after LNT closed. They carry an adequate selection, and do have 20% off coupons in the mail a lot.
Target. Yes Target, the red bullseye people. Their focus has shifted to the trendy home, and Foodies on a budget can rejoice. Their cookware section is much improved in recent years, and they did a thoughtful job on selecting quality basics. And of course, good prices.
Costco Business Store. This is the branch in Lynnwood, just north of 196th St. SW, on Hwy 99, across from PetsMart. They carry restaurant supplies here, including discounted Kitchen Aid Mixers, and Sitram stainless steel cookware. Not open on Sunday. Open to anybody, not just "businesses."
DaVinci's. ("Wheatless in Seattle") This is Kali's new restaurant in the Greenwood area. Formerly Kali's Kitchen in Edmonds. Good sandwiches and salads.
Wild Ginger. My very favorite restaurant in Seattle--I usually end up here on my birthday. They truly understand GF and food allergies. All the dishes and sauces are made fresh, so even dishes with soy sauce they can make for you with GF tamari instead. For those missing something breaded and fried, they have a heavenly Thai Fried Catfish, done up simply with egg wash and taro root starch, and presented with a fragrant and spicy coconut milk and Thai basil sauce. At Third and Union, right across from the symphony hall. Make reservations way in advance.
Cafe Flora. In Madison Park, just beyond the Arboretum. A Seattle vegetarian institution. A fair number of items are marked GF on the menu. Heavenly. Gets very busy.
P.F. Chang's has a GF menu upon request. Choices are limited because they make their sauces ahead of time, not to order. Haven't tried it yet, but heard good reports. Busy locations at Alderwood Mall and Bellevue Square.
Olive Garden (Lynnwood and Everett) has a GF menu (but try the roast pork entree from their regular menu--yummy), and the Outback Steakhouse and the Bonefish Grill (in Bothell) also have GF menus by request.
Emory's at Silver Lake (Mill Creek/Everett) has consulted the GIG to devise a gluten-free menu, available upon request, with a relatively extensive number of choices. Reports are that the food is good.
I've also had good luck eating the red pud thai at Lanna Thai in south Everett (on Evergreen Way); rancheras enchiladas (#28, their green sauce, and shared with my husband!) or chile verde at Sabor a Mexico in Mukilteo (on the Speedway, we eat here every week); and both Arnie's and Ivar's Mukilteo Landing in old town Mukilteo did a good job of understanding and accomodating my GF needs. One student reports that she had her best GF meal at Lombardi's Italian restaurant in Everett (on Evergreen Way).
Medical Professionals:
Doctors are listed for informational purposes
only, Cooking Wheatless has no personal knowledge of their practice and
suggests you make your own judgement after doing research.
Stephen
Wangen, ND
IBS Treatment Center/Center for Food Allergies
www.IBSTreatmentCenter.com
www.CenterforFoodAllergies.com
in Seattle
206-264-1111
(He is on the board of the Gluten Intolerance Group)
Kathleen
Janel, ND
Natural
Gastric Medine
www.gastricmedicine.com
728 Second Street
Mukilteo, WA 98275
425-423-0878
Kelly
Morrow, RD
A very with-it nutritionist/registered dietitian who graduated from Bastyr
www.kellymorrow.com
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by Cooking Wheatless Culinary Studio and Heidi Marks, 2006-2012.
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