Down the rabbit hole to a GF Wonderland

Where has the year gone? It’s coming up to my first year wedding anniversary which got me reminiscing about the lead up to our wedding and it brought back some very happy memories. 

One of the best food related memories was my kitchen tea. My two beautiful sisters and mum threw me a kitchen tea to remember. Knowing how much I loved Alice in Wonderland, they themed the event as the Mad Hatters Kitchen Tea Party. 

They transformed my parents living room into my very own wonderland! With huge playing cards, teapots full of flowers, hanging lanterns and they even had a digital projection of the original animation on the wall! 

Guests were told to wear their maddest hat, my sisters dressed up as the white rabbits and of course I dressed up as Alice. 

There was an abundance of gluten free food and all the desserts were to die for. But the highlight of the day was my themed cake. It was shaped as a Mad Hatters hat - moist orange syrup cake on the inside with a velvety purple icing on the outside. King & Queen playing cards were placed on one side of the hat and cute little mushrooms surrounded the base. All my guests - gluten free or not - loved it!

My amazing Mad Hatters cake!

Chocolate mousse with orange mascarpone

If you are looking for a good gluten free cake maker, I highly recommend Carol Medcalf at Cake Plus. She made this amazing creation for my Kitchen Tea and also made the top layer of my wedding cake.

Carol Medcalf
(02) 94391171
info@cakesplus.com.au
www.cakesplus.com.au

Guests were asked to sign my very own Wonderland DVD cover

Lilli and Loo – Gluten Free Chinese in NYC

American’s are famous for their Chinese food. We see it all the time in the movies… take away food in those cute little white boxes. But as most of you know eating gluten free Chinese food can be a bit of a hassle. A lot of their food is coated in flour and most of their sauces are thickened with flour too. Not to mention the use of sauces such as Soy sauce and Oyster sauce, which are a hidden source of gluten. So when I heard about Lilli and Loo I had to try it!

Lilli and Loo is a fantastic Chinese restaurant located in mid-town Manhattan. Not only do they understand gluten free dining but they also have an entire separate gluten free menu! The love began with one of the business partners daughters, diagnosed with coeliac disease. So the owners wanted to create a safe gluten free environment while still keeping food flavoursome and exciting for their customers.

Now with such a large menu the problem was deciding exactly which dishes to choose! Two things caught my eye in the starters section… dumplings and spring rolls. Dumplings are very rare to find as the dough usually contains gluten, however there are a few places in Sydney which I have tried gluten free dumplings. However did somebody say spring rolls?! I have not touched a spring roll since I was diagnosed nearly three years ago! Naturally I ordered both. And they were both delicious!

For main I ordered the sautéed beef with vegetables. Another great dish… the beef was tender, the vegetables crunchy, and the sauce was thick and very tasty.

And then for dessert, my favourite… Coconut sorbet served in a shell. Absolutely amazing, the perfect way to end a delicious meal!

Lilli and Loo have a great variety of Chinese dishes, including meat, seafood, vegetarian, rice and noodles. Or if you feel like something lighter, a selection of sushi, sashimi and hand rolls are also available.

I highly recommend paying a visit to Lilli and Loo if you are ever in New York. I know I’ll be back!

Lilli and Loo

792 Lexington Avenue, New York

www.lilliandloo.com

Little Italy NYC

It wouldn’t be a true New York experience if we didn’t visit the historical Little Italy. Little Italy was once larger and was known for it’s large population of Italians. Today it revolves around one main street – Mulberry Street – full of restaurants, cafés, cake shops, souvenirs and street vendors selling gelato and mini cannoli.  

The aromas of home cooking greet you as you walk along the narrow streets, beneath the fire escapes. It is a destination for many tourists, including ourselves, but we were here primarily for a good feed!

As we walked by, restaurant staff beckoning us to enter their restaurant because it is the ‘best’ in New York, we scanned the menus searching for any sign of gluten free food. It didn’t look promising. So we asked the question “Do you have anything gluten free on the menu?” The answer. “Yes we have gluten free pasta”. Did somebody say pasta?! Oh how I missed a good bowl of pasta!

We decided to test this theory and see what the next restaurant had to offer. They too had gluten free pasta! And the next! And the next! This was unbelievable. Now the problem was which one to choose. They all offered gluten free options… except one restaurant who claimed that there was no way I would find anywhere in Little Italy that offered GF pasta!

We took a seat at a restaurant called ‘Giovanna’s’. I decided on a basic fresh tomato and basil sauce, tossed with bocconcini cheese. And all I can say is YUM! It tasted just like home made pasta and was exactly what I needed.

Needless to say we went back a few days later, this time to ‘Caffe Napoli’. The food was just as delicious and fresh! I ordered another bowl of pasta with prawns and zucchini, a dish that the chef threw together just for me!

So if you ever find yourself in NY, a trip to Little Italy is definitely worth it and you don’t have to worry about not finding anything gluten free, there are plenty of restaurants to choose from.

Here is a recipe similar to the pasta I had at ‘Giovanna’s’. It’s quick and simple to make and I’m sure you will all enjoy it.

As the Italians say, buon appetito!

TOMATO AND BOCCONCINI PASTA (Serves 4)

400g gluten free pasta of your choice

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 tin of whole peeled tomatoes, crushed

1/4 cup roughly torn fresh basil

2 medium-sized bocconcini cheese

Salt and pepper

1. Cook the pasta in a saucepan of salted boiling water, following packet directions, until tender. Drain and keep warm until required.

2. Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a frypan over medium-low heat and cook the garlic until browned. Add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes or until liquid is reduced and the sauce has thickened. Add the fresh basil and stir through.

3. Add the drained pasta to the frypan and toss until the sauce coats the pasta. Turn off heat.

3. Add the bocconcini cheese and stir through the pasta and sauce. Serve hot.

Babycakes NYC

Babycakes has been on my wish list since I discovered I was coeliac. So when I was planning my trip to the US and researching where I could find gluten free goodies, Babycakes NYC was on the top of my list! I wasn’t coming home unless I visited their original store.

Babycakes is a gluten, dairy, egg, and soy free bakery. However, some goods do contain spelt flour (not gluten free) so be careful when making your choice. To avoid cross-contamination, Babycakes NYC uses separate pans, sinks, spatulas, measuring cups, cleaning utensils and bowls. Ingredients used are natural, organic and vegan. And most products are sweetened with Agave nectar, so really… it’s a healthy treat right?!

I have to admit, it was a struggle to find (due to our fault alone!). On the first day, we forgot the address and were hoping to just “stumble” across it. Come on, it’s NY, do you know how big their blocks are? Huge! So we gave up quite easily that day and decided to go shopping in Soho instead – this wasn’t a very hard decision to make!

The next time we found ourselves exploring China Town and Little Italy, we decided to wonder down to the famous bakery – this time I had memorised the address (or at least I thought I had). We walked and walked, but no bakery in sight. We even asked a local if he knew where it was and nothing. So we headed back to Little Italy to ponder and have a coffee at the famous Ferrara’s – an Italian patisserie (with no gluten free sweets). The coffee was not fantastic, but it still set me back $6 (plus tax and tip). They sure saw me coming! But on a positive note they had Wifi… thank god for free Wifi! I immediately googled the Babycakes address and made sure to write it down this time!

We set back on our journey, address in hand, and what do you know… we were headed in the right direction in the first place. In fact we were only one street away before we turned back around! Oh well the more walking we did, meant the more cakes we could eat!

Finally, there it was… the famous Babycakes NYC store… and I was standing in front of it! I was so excited! Now I understand why not even the locals knew about it. The store is tiny and on the outside the sign reads BAKERY, it is not until you look at the bottom of the windows that you see ‘Babycakes’ written. Although I think the smallness of this store adds to the charm and character. The setting is adorable and I loved the mood it projected. The décor is vintage style and the girls behind the counter wear retro 1950’s style uniforms.

As I squish past the other customers, I see it, the glass cabinet full of sweet delights! I’m in sugar heaven – now the question is what should I get? I can’t go past the red velvet cupcake and I have to try the doughnuts. What the heck – you saw how long it took me to get here – I decided to get a selection of 6 sweets! Clearly I didn’t eat them all in one sitting or I would have been violently ill!

Once I selected my treats, bought my cookbook, and made sure I had told everyone just how far I had travelled from Australia to try these cakes, I took my cake box outside and sat on the little wooden table for a quick bite – I just couldn’t wait any longer! The cupcake was delicious – moist cake with a creamy frosting (pretty good for dairy free!). The doughnuts on the other hand were a slight let down. Don’t get me wrong they were just as delicious as the cupcakes! But they lacked the consistency and dough like taste of a traditional doughnut. It tasted more like a cupcake in the shape of a doughnut. Would I get it again? Yes. The flavours were still delicious – and with all that natural goodness in it, I didn’t feel so bad gobbling down my treats!

Once the cakes were eaten, at least I had the cookbook to take back home with me. I choose the newest one, ‘Babycakes covers the classics’ by ‘Erin McKenna’, for two reasons. One, I hadn’t seen this one in Australian stores. And two, unlike the first cookbook – which was mostly gluten free recipes, this one is 100% gluten free! I can’t wait to try them all.

So, the first recipe I decided to try from the book was Snickerdoodles (a special request from one of our readers). A snickerdoodle, I learnt on the weekend, is a sugar cookie with a cinnamon kick. While I was baking the cookies, my kitchen was engulfed with a cinnamon aroma. Absolutely delicious! Try it yourselves…

 

SNICKERDOODLES

1 1/3 cups plus 1/2 cup vegan sugar (I used castor sugar – sorry!)

3 tablespoons ground cinnamon

2 cups rice flour

1/4 cup ground flax meal (or linseed meal commonly known in Australia)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons melted refined coconut oil or canola oil

1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce

2 tablespoons vanilla extract 

1.Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Line 2 rimmed trays with baking paper and set aside.

2. In a shallow bowl, whisk together the 1/2 cup sugar and 2 tablespoons of the cinnamon until evenly incorporated. Set aside.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the 1 1/3 cups sugar, the flour, flax meal, baking soda, xanthan gum, salt, and the remaining 1 tablespoon of cinnamon.

4. Add the coconut oil, applesauce and vanilla and mix with a rubber spatula until a thick dough that resembles wet sand forms. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.

5. Working in batches, drop the dough by the teaspoonful into the cinnamon-sugar mixture and roll around to coat the dough all over. Place on the prepared baking sheets, about 2.5 cm apart. Gently press each cookie with a fork to help them spread.

6. Bake for 7 minutes, rotate the baking trays, and continue baking for 7 minutes more, or until the cookies are crispy around the edges. Let stand on the baking trays for 15 minutes before serving.

Babycakes NYC

248 Broome Street (Btwn Orchard & Ludlow) 
New York City, NY

www.babycakesnyc.com

Taking a bite out of the Big Apple

Times Square, NYC

New York City… It’s a city that never sleeps, bustling with yellow cabs and people on sidewalks. It’s full of bright lights, high-rise buildings and souvenir shops on every corner.

It was night when we arrived in the Big Apple – our hotel in the heart of Times Square. Walking around in awe… lights blazing, sirens blaring and horns honking… we looked at each other and smiled. We were finally here! Although our stomachs weren’t as happy and demanded food! Not knowing where everything was situated, we walked around and hoped for the best, finally deciding on a traditional American diner, TGI Fridays. Our waiter was lovely, telling us places to go and shows to watch. So I decided to take a stab in the dark and ask the big question… “Do you know if anything on the menu is gluten free?” Instead of the blank look I was expecting he replied, “Sure, let me get you the allergy menu.” I instantly fell in love with New York!

A whole rack of ribs at TGI Fridays... and yes I ate them all!

We kept ourselves busy and jam-packed our 10 days with loads of outings! Unfortunately it rained 8 out of the 10 days we were there. Yes we got caught in the rain multiple times. Yes we bought dodgy umbrellas on the side of the street that broke by the time you got to the next corner. Yes we still had an amazing time! We went to China Town, Little Italy and Soho. We braved the Subway and got on the wrong train many times. We walked across the Brooklyn Bridge, saw the Statue of Liberty, and watched a Broadway show. We climbed the 'Top Of The Rock', took a horse and carriage ride through Central Park, and spent some wonderful time catching up with family. And in between all of this we shopped up a storm!

Central Park, NYC

NYC is full of places to eat… There’s street food, diners, pizzerias, fast food chains, takeaway stores and 1000’s of restaurants to choose from! So where does one begin on their search for the best gluten free food?

Well, first of all let’s start with breakfast. Most hotels offered daily Continental breakfast. Unfortunately the choice was limited and you end up with fruit and yoghurt (if you’re lucky). My advice is to buy a box of cereal and take it with you to breakfast and use the hotels milk and fruit. I discovered a gluten free variety called Chex, which I bought from the local supermarket. I had the Rice Chex but it also comes in Corn, Honey Nut, Chocolate and Cinnamon (yum!).

Yummy GF cereal found in a local supermarket.

Lunch options were a little bit easier. After yet another rainy day, we stumbled across a great soup place, which is exactly what the doctor ordered. Hale and Hearty offers soups and salads, and pretty much all their soups are gluten free – just ask for no add ons like pasta or couscous. They have a great variety of soups including Vegetarian, Low Fat and Dairy Free options. It’s not the famous Soup Nazi from Seinfield, but it’s a great quick eat for lunch!

Japanese is also usually a pretty safe bet for lunch or dinner. There are loads around NYC. One in particular that we tried was Tenzan. The waiters were very helpful with gluten free options, and I was even told that some customers bring their own GF soy sauce for the chefs to cook with.

In the West Village you will find Taïm Falafel & Smoothie Bar. Taïm means ‘tasty’ in Hebrew. All their falafels are gluten free and – true to their name – delicious! I admit this was my first falafel experience, but I loved every minute of dipping those cute little flavoursome bites into homemade hummus… What a treat!

During the 'Sex and the City' tour we visited Buddakan restaurant, where Carrie and Big had their rehearsal dinner in the first movie. Unfortunately we didn’t get a chance to go back for dinner as we ran out of time, but I spoke with the Maitre d and she assured me that they can cater for gluten free needs. Buddakan is modern Asian cuisine, and if you’re looking for somewhere special this is a great place to be! 

For more Asian delights, Lilli and Loo on Lexington Avenue is a great Chinese restaurant with a gluten free menu!

If you have a craving for gelato, head to GROM. This gelato originated from Italy so you know it’s going to be good! GROM collaborates with the Italian Celiac Association and all of their gelato is gluten free except for a few which are marked up on their menu. I couldn’t go past my favourite gelato flavour, Coconut. It was creamy and delicious!

For all you sugar lovers, Babycakes is the place to be! It is dessert heaven!

While we are enticing our sweet tooth I need to tell you about my very exciting trip to M&Ms World! For all my Australian readers, you will know that M&Ms are a no go as they contain wheat starch. Well for some reason the Americans have changed the recipe to make them gluten free. Yes you heard me. M&Ms are gluten free in the USA!!! So make sure you stock up!

Look at all the different flavours of GF M&Ms!!!

Here is a list of a few more places that I didn’t get a chance to get to while I was in NYC.

• Gray’s Papaya – the Hotdogs with no bread are gluten free.

• Mozarellis – gluten free pizza, pasta and desserts.

• Pappardella – gluten free appetizers, pizza and pasta.

• Risotteria – this place sounds amazing and I am so disappointed I missed out! Not only is it a restaurant, but they also have a bakery and frozen food selection to take home. The menu is clearly labeled as gluten free. Starting with GF breadsticks for starters, they offer a range of GF appetizers (including meatballs!), salads, risotto, pasta, panini, pizza, cupcakes, desserts and even beer. So if you’re in the Greenwhich Village, be sure to check it out and let me know what it was like!

• La Bottega – offers a huge variety of panini and many can now be made on gluten free panini! There are quite a few locations and each have a slightly different menu, however all menus are marked clearly which items are gluten free.

• PinkBerry – Frozen Yoghurt. All Pinkberry frozen yoghurt flavours and the Pinkberry Fruit Parfait are gluten free.

• Lula’s Sweet Apothecary – Natural, vegan and dairy free ice cream with lots of gluten free options. Rumours are they even have gluten free ice cream cones!

• Popbar is a frozen eatery serving high quality gelato, sorbetto, and frozen yogurt on a stick! You can create your own ‘Pop’ combinations with toppings and ‘poppings’. All popbars are Kosher, gluten and preservative free! However add on ‘Poppings’ such as granola and brownies contain traces of gluten. So be wise about your choice and speak to a ‘Popologist’ in store.

5 Avenue, NYC

I hope this helps anyone thinking of going to NYC or has enticed you to travel overseas. If you have any questions, don’t be afraid to ask, that’s what we are here for!