CeliacChicks

Hey, Guess What?! It's The International Year Of Rice!

Check it out!
http://www.fao.org/english/newsroom/news/2003/24159-en.html

FYI: Rice is gluten-free and is often a staple of the celiac diet.  Kim and I use rice flour often as a substitute for wheat flour.

Perfect for the Gluten-Free Snack Attack

Carole's SoyCrunch

I stumbled upon this yummy treat (literally, while tripping over a shopping cart) in my local health food store, The Garden, in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.  Great store ...  they stock plenty of GF products as well as fabulous organic produce.  So I spotted Carole's SoyCrunch and decided to give it a try, even though we've all "given it a try" many times with new found products, ending up disappointed and several bucks poorer.  Kelly and I plowed through the bag with delight.  The flavor was Cinnamon Raisin, and we immediately thought how great this would be for kids.  They're like Cracker Jacks®, but better!  And healthier!  And no crappy toy!  Oh, and don't worry, no peanuts.  Even though there are other flavors which we have not yet tried, we couldn't wait to tell everyone.  You can order them from the website.  When we receive our shipment of all flavors, we will give you the final word.  And then I will beg The Garden to carry them all!

Let Them Eat Gluten-Free Cake In Portland, Oregon

Piece of Cake
8306 SE 17th Ave.
Portland, Oregon  97202-7307
(503) 234-9445

While back home for a visit, I discovered a bakery that bragged about their gluten-free cakes.  My mom and dad excitedly tagged along to watch me check out this possible new haunt for the CeliacChicks crowd. (Note to self: Next time, duct tape mom's mouth.)

First of all, Piece of Cake is a piece of work! Scattered about are vintage items ranging from furniture to collectible toy ovens, as well as a large cake lid collection. The personable owner, Marilyn Devault, has been in the business since 1979 and is a very enthusiastic baker. She described herself as, "... totally vintage in regards to everything including our cars and not because it's popular but because it's fun -- we are fun." She continued, "We believe we are the forerunner in the area for GF baking and in addition to that we are the only vegan bakery that Whole Foods buys from." 

Marilyn comes from a family of cooks. Family restaurants are in her blood. "My father won the 1970 Crab Olympics in San Francisco where James Beard was one of the judges and House Beautiful was there to report." Like most bakers, Marilyn got her gluten-free start due to the desperate requests of celiac wannabe-patrons. After all, Piece of Cake was voted Best Cake by Willamette Week (Portland's equivalent to the Village Voice). Who wouldn’t want to be their patron? Marilyn so kindly consulted her “guru consultant on gluten intolerance” at the local Wild Oats store and began experimenting. GF cakes currently available:

6” single layer chocolate cake $15.95
6” double layer chocolate cake $26.95
9” single layer chocolate cake $26.95
9” double layer chocolate cake $41.95
…and the adorable individual mini cake for $4.29

All cakes are topped with your choice of raspberry jam and/or fluffy to-die-for vanilla cream frosting, which is vegan but not corn-free.

Marilyn is happy to take requests and has been working on some new recipes including a pineapple-ginger-lemon cake!