From a reader:
I have heard from several people now that these cakes and cupcakes a really good. They come in lots of flavors and are great for a party or catered event.
The Four Seasons Aviara is now having a monthly gluten free buffet for $29. It is on the first Saturday of every month. The buffet includes an appetizer bar, a salad area, hot entrees, cold entrees and a fabulous dessert bar. EVERYTHING is gluten free (unless marked otherwise). When I went, there were just a couple of sandwiches that were marked as containing gluten, otherwise, everything else was gluten-free. The dessert bar must have had about twenty items on it ranging from flourless chocolate cake, to all kinds of cookies, to chocoloate-covered strawberries, to creme brulee and more! Go and bring your appetite, but not your thirst. A small bottle of coke will run you $5 with no refills!
I have missed my morning oatmeal since I became GF. I'm pretty lazy so the little packets of oatmeal that just require adding water and microwaving are perfect for me. I found eco-planet's 7 Whole Grains Hot Cereal in Apple Cinnamon flavor at Whole Foods the other day and I am so glad I did. It tastes really good and is good for you. Unlike traditional pre-packaged oatmeal, it does not have too much sugar, only about 8g per serving and it has fiber and lots of other good things. 
"Yesterday I went to The OB Noodle House. It was the most amazing gluten friendly restaurant I’ve been in. If you like Vietnamese food (especially pho or bun), run there! Even the egg rolls are made with homemade rice wrappers. Except for the soy sauce on the table (which they are working to change), almost everything on the menu is naturally GF. The service was excellent and helpful, and the food was beyond delicious. Check it out."
2218 Cable St
San Diego, CA 92107-1317
(619) 450-6868
They have yummy gluten free pizzas and gluten free pasta with a variety of sauces. Also, you can start your meal off with gluten free bread served with butter or marinara sauce for dipping. Finally an Italian restaurant with multiple GF items on the menu!
Many BBQ places are off limits to gluten free folks due to the gluten contained in the sauce. However, the owners of Bubba's say that their "smokin' hot" sauce is GLUTEN FREE but the sweet sauce is NOT gluten free.
Via Italia Trattoria in Encinitas makes all of their pasta on site at the restaurant. They also make their own gluten free pasta and gluten free gnocchi! Just request gluten free when you order.
I like Mary's Gone Crackers regular crackers so I thought I would try these new "Sticks & Twigs." They have the same seed-heavy texture as the crackers and are very crunchy. I tried the curry flavor, which was good. However, the sticks & twigs are a little too hard-core for me. I think I would need to dip them into something to lessen the hardiness of them. However, they are pretty good. They were $3.50 for a bag from Jimbo's.
Cafe Pasta Pronto in Del Mar offers several gluten free dishes and desserts every day. I went today for lunch and sat in their large outside patio. It is at the back of the restaurant away from the cars and traffic. I ordered the baked ziti for $9.99. It was a huge portion and came with fresh veggies on the side. It was delicious and tasted exactly like regular baked ziti - even my husband liked it, and he is not gluten free at all. There was also a quinoa salad and a quinoa risotto on the gluten free menu today. You could also add grilled shrimp or chicken to any entree for an additional charge. For dessert, I had the flourless belgian chocolate cake which was very rich and delicious. I would definitely go back here - the food and ambiance were excellent.
If you can't eat corn, these tortilla chips from Riceworks are an excellent alternative. They are crunchy and flavorful - they come in sweet chili, sea salt, salsa fresca, parmesan, wasabi and baked cinnamon flavors. I tried the sea salt and sweet chili flavors. Both were really good. Overall, I still prefer regular corn tortilla chips, but these are an excellent alternative.
http://www.carrabbas.com/carrabbas-menu.aspx
It should not be a surprise that a steakhouse can offer gluten free menu items, but it is nice that they have an official gluten free menu so you know exactly what you can order and how to order it. For example, the chilled seafood appetizer is okay, but not the cream mustard sauce on the side. The steak sandwich should be ordered without the soy chili glaze.
If you like Licorice and have not been able to eat it since becoming gluten free - here is your answer: Candy Tree Organic Licorice. It comes in both the black and red licorice variety as well as vines, ropes etc.
If you like ginger snaps, these ones are for you! They taste exactly like regular ginger snaps, I don't think anyone could really tell the difference. They are light and crunchy and have a good ginger flavor. And for $1.99 a bag, how can you go wrong?
I tried Kinnikinnick cookies the other day at the CSA picnic. The ginger cookies were pretty good - the flavor was good - they were very light, almost too light, but they were okay. The chocolate chip cookies were more disappointing. I thought they needed a lot more chocolate chips and were too airy to be chocolate chip cookies in my opinion. They weren't bad, they just weren't great.
My non-gluten free, bread loving sister was visiting and almost ate an entire loaf! Yes, it still tastes best when it’s toasted or warm, but it has the feel and texture of “real” hearty bread. Typically, after the loaf cools, I slice it, put some wax paper between the slices, and put it in the freezer since I usually only eat one piece a day. That way it doesn’t spoil."
Thanks for your review Cat!
I found this breadmaker on sale at Amazon.com for $214 with free shipping.
This carrot cake bar seems pretty nutritious, it has no saturated fat, 3g of fiber and 9g of protein per bar. It is available through the company's website in a box of 12 bars for $19. I got mine as a free sample at a gluten free event. Since it contains walnuts, I couldn't eat it, so I gave it to my gf mom to try. She wasn't crazy about it but didn't really say why. They also come in dark chocolate and trail mix flavors. I would be interested to see what others think - they look good to me - if only they were nut-free!
People complain about English food and I can't say that I blame them for the most part, however, when it comes to their grocery stores, they win the prize!! I was so surprised when I went into Tesco and they had a HUGE gluten-free section with much more of a variety than they have here. They sell FRESH (not frozen) gf bread, buns, muffins, cakes, cookies etc. They sell lots of things that we only get mixes for. Since I am lazy when it comes to food, I would much rather buy a ready-made gf cake, then a gf cake mix. Also, their bread was much lighter than most of the gf bread found here. And to top things off, gluten-free seemed to be more of a familiar concept to people over there than here. So if you are heading to the UK, stop by the grocery store when you arrive and you will have plenty to eat throughout your trip!
