CeliacChicks

Gluten Free Ireland: Dublin Part I

Dublin (photo courtesy of Lyra at Ces't La Vie Events)

Please welcome guest blogger Christine Carty. An Irish girl in her late twenties, Christine was diagnosed with celiac disease at the age of 24. She currently lives in Dublin. She loves to play Gaelic Football (Ireland's national sport), travel and discover new and fun places to eat gluten-free.

 

Many visitors come to Ireland with that dreamy look in their eye. Whether it’s to research their ancestors or to sample the local black stuff, Ireland has something for everyone. As a native of the midlands of Ireland, I grew up on a diet of potatoes, cabbage, boiled ham and my mum’s homemade brown bread. My mum is the ultimate “Irish Mammy” and I’m glad for all the years I've enjoyed fabulous traditional Irish food.

 

Being Gluten-Free In Ireland

 

I was 24 and had just finished college when I discovered I had celiac disease. Some years on I’m realizing that it’s so easy to be gluten-free in Dublin. In Ireland celiac disease has become increasingly prevalent in the past five to ten years. In fact, it’s got to the point where it’s common to be either intolerant to wheat or to have full blown celiac disease. The Irish celiac community is also a great knowledge base of what’s going on in Ireland, and good reviews and reports spread like wildfire. I would sincerely recommend logging onto the forums prior to your visit in order to set your mind at ease. So without further ado, here’s some tourist info and the gluten free scoop on my city.

Celiac Disease Information

 

Gluten-Free Ashville, North Carolina: Posana Cafe

 

Please welcome guest blogger Elyse Sparkes. She has been living gluten-free for 5 years. As a personal trainer, she advocates health and wellness in NYC through SparkesWellness. Elyse loves to discover new naturally gluten-free restaurants in NYC and abroad.

Posana Cafe
One Biltmore Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801
828.505.3969

I had the pleasure of stumbling upon the Posana Cafe recently while I was traveling in Asheville, North Carolina. Well, I can't actually take all the credit. Usually when I travel I do a little gluten-free restaurant research beforehand to know what my eating options will be when I arrive. This year, however, due to pre-vacation chaos I didn't do my homework before I headed off to a five-day dance festival in Asheville. Due to the intense schedule of the festival I figured I would make a grocery store stop and stick to my staples like carrots, hummus and rice cakes.

So naturally, I was shocked and delighted when my boyfriend (who had arrived the day before) picked me up at the airport with a gluten-free muffin in hand! He had walked into Posana Cafe just looking for a cup of coffee when he saw a small sign for gluten-free baked goods. (Isn't it great to have gluten eaters looking after us?) Check out this Trail mix scone he bought!

Gluten-Free Spain Guide: Barcelona

Contributed by Christine Carty. Christine is an Irish girl in her late twenties, who was diagnosed with celiac diseas at the age of 24. She currently lives in Dublin. Her favorite things to do are play Gaelic Football (Ireland's national sport), travel and discover new and fun places to eat gluten free

I knew very little of what to expect from Barcelona.  I've heard such amazing things about it, but also a definite "watch your bags for the pick pockets". Barcelona is similar to Dublin in the sense that it doesn't really do high rises, but never have I seen a skyline with such varying structures. After one weekend there I finally understood why Gaudi was considered to be left of field, and I am now ever more grateful that not all of mankind has chosen to live as sheep.

 

Using  our stealth direction (OK maybe a map and turning down a few random streets) we found our hotel. The Acta Atrium Palace on Gran Via de la Catalanes is a 4 star boutique hotel, which surprisingly manages to fit in a small pool and a jacuzzi. There couldn't be any more than 60 rooms in this little gem of a hotel, and as well as being a perfect spot in Barcelona, the service is impeccable. On entering our room, we were presented with what can only be described as the best stocked room I've ever been in; a bathrobe and slippers for use when taking the lift to the pool, the biggest variety of toiletry essentials from a comb to a toothbrush, as well as soap and shampoo and two fluffy pillows each.

 

Gluten-Free Scotland: Glasgow's Cafe Andaluz

Please welcome today's guest blogger Christine Carty. Christine is an Irish girl in her late twenties who was diagnosed with celiac disease at the age of 24. She currently lives in Dublin. Her favorite things to do are play Gaelic Football (Ireland's national sport), travel and discover new and fun places to eat gluten-free.

Glasgow is severely underrated as a destination, as it's quite often overlooked for it's more picturesque sister Edinburgh.

Owing to family who live in Glasgow, I have visited now on average once a year. My brother and his wife have a love of food, and go explore the food delights that Glasgow have to offer. They are also extremely conscientious of the fact that I have celiac disease and every time I come to visit there are gluten-free breads and snacks added to the weekly shopping from the local Sainsbury's. (If you end up staying in an apartment, Sainsbury's has a specific "Free From" range of food.)

Some years ago, they stumbled upon Cafe Andaluz and have been regulars ever since. They have a love of Spanish food and Spanish wine, so it has become a haunt of theirs and upon discovering the little GF symbol after the tapas on the menu, they decided it was the perfect place for me.

I was very excited the first time I went to Cafe Andaluz. I had only recently been eating the gluten-free way at the time and was excited by a menu I could relax about for once. Upon learning I had celiac disease, the staff was quick to reassure me that they understood what it was all about. Most of the most popular dishes there are suitable for celiacs, which means for once you are spoiled for choice.

Gluten-Free India

Please welcome today's guest blogger who has chosen to be identified as the mysterious Gluten-Free Family Of Four In Boston. ~Kelly

We are just back from a trip to India, specifically the Golden Triangle comprising the cities of Delhi, Agra (location of the Taj Mahal), and Jaipur (the capital of Rajasthan.) We are a family of four, with two gluten free girls, ages 8 and 11. Complicating matters is that one of the girls is mostly vegetarian and the other is a ravenous carnivore.

Overall the food in India is fresh, unprocessed, gluten-free and delicious. The majority of food (with the exception of the obvious breads naan, chapati, and puri) is gluten-free. It is much simpler in India because you are not dealing with processed food so there are few hidden ingredients. A lot of the food is lentil and chickpea based and is almost always served with rice. 



Many meals, particularly in restaurants, start with papadam, which is made from lentils. This is great because so often my girls don’t get anything to eat until the main course and have to sit watching others eat bread sticks, etc. In India they ruined their appetites with papadam and I happily let them. Another great appetizer is pakoras. Pakoras are similar to vegetable tempura but with chickpea flour (aka gram flour.)