Take Aways from the Gluten & Allergen Free Expo (2012)

Just one of the presenters at the 2012 Chicago GFAF Expo, Laura B. Russell

April marked another great display of all things gluten and allergen free at the GFAF Expo, held in Lombard, IL this year.  This is the 5th year for Jen Cafferty and her crew presenting the Expo and they did not disappoint!  I was volunteering on Friday for the Nourished Food Blogger Conference and again on Saturday with the GFAF Expo cooking classes.  It was a joy assisting really great chefs as they presented the “how to’s” on some of their favorite recipes!  Laura Russell, author of “The Gluten Free Asian Kitchen”, did a fabulous job teaching several Asian recipes from her cookbook… including pot-stickers!  Laura has had an amazing journey with peripheral neuropathy that brought her to healing through a gluten free diet.  You may want to check out her website, Notes from a Gluten Free Kitchen, to find out more.  Then, Iggy and Jerry from DaLuciano’s had a great presentation on gluten free Italian offerings from their table.  If you have not been to their restaurant in River Grove, IL you are missing out!  Check out the gluten free menu offerings on their website.  After the comedy of Iggy and Jerry, Jen Cafferty herself took the stage and taught class attendee’s a knock-out Tiramisu that no one would suspect was gluten and allergen free!  The dairy free whipped filling she made to assemble the Tiramisu was so amazing!

I am always so grateful that these chefs, restauranteurs, cookbook authors and bloggers are so willing to stand up and give their time and experience to those who need to learn about gluten and allergen free dining.  Just to hear Iggy and Jerry answer questions from the crowd, explain how things work in a restaurant kitchen and how easily cross-contamination can happen was invaluable to those in the room.  While this was the last year for the cooking classes, the Expo will still have presenters available on stage to provide this type of learning.  Thanks Jen!  I feel so blessed to be a behind the scenes part of what you do!

So, what were my favorite take-aways this year?  After walking the aisles of vendors at the Expo, there were a few stand-outs this year that I want to make sure you don’t miss…

Eco Planet Organics Gluten Free Instant Hot Cereal – with 7 whole grains this has been my favorite instant hot cereal.  It is great to travel with and just as easy as to prepare as the Quaker Oatmeal variety that is not gluten free.  Plus, it is not just GF Oats!  With the addition of amaranth, quinoa and millet this hot cereal is very tasty.  It comes in several varieties.  While not “new” to the gluten free scene, this hot cereal is still on top!

Sunbutter – I know I have mentioned them before, but I cannot leave them off my list!  As a replacement for any of the Nut butters, Sunbutter is a winner every time.  I have discovered their Organic Unsweetened Sunflower Seed Butter that is so delicious… I asked the team at the Expo why this is not sold in stores (currently I can only get it online) and they encouraged me to continue asking the store managers to order it.  Seriously, with some jelly you will not miss the sugar!  If you are allergic to nuts, this not-nut butter spread is perfect.  They also sell individual serving packs which are awesome for lunches, traveling, camp, … and more!

Mary’s Gone Crackers Sticks & Twigs – I have been enjoying these pretzel like sticks for quite a while now… the sea salt version that is.  At the Expo, Mary’s team had the Chipotle Tomato version available for tasting.  Wow!  I’ve been missing out!  While I am not much for a spicy kick, I really liked these a lot… so, don’t pass them up.  With all the new gluten free pretzel offerings, Sticks & Twigs are chock full of organic gluten-free ancient whole grains including brown rice, quinoa, amaranth, and millet, as well as tasty and nutritious seeds including flax, sesame and chia seeds – without any starches. It is a really good pretzel of a different sort!

Against the Grain Gourmet was there serving their pizza’s.  Coming from a pizza lovin’ and restaurant owning family… pizza was one of the first foods I learned to convert to gluten free.  I wish this group had been around way back then!  Their pizza crust is very good.  It’s that simple!  They may not use whole grain, but you won’t find any grains at all in this pizza shell!  Using only tapioca starch (and not the modified stuff), they have managed to keep their ingredients very simple.  Their motto “all grain free, corn free, soy free, yeast free, tree nut free, peanut free, no added sugar, but NOT TASTE FREE”.  I think you will agree… their pizza is great to have on hand in the freezer!

Beanito’s – I love this chip simply because there is NO CORN!  If you are at all like me, corn does you no favors… all kinds of things go wrong when I eat something made from any number of corn products.  I can finally have nachos again!  Beanito’s are loaded with non-GMO vegetable fiber, 4 grams of complete protein and are rich in Essential ALA Omega 3’s. Each variety of chip are always free of corn, wheat, soy, potato, trans fat, cholesterol and are verified non-GMO, gluten free, lab tested and certified low glycemic & kosher!

O.N.E. Coconut Water Kids – Now, I did not see any vendors with this product at the Expo, but I found it so recently I had to share it here.  I have been looking for a single serving “juice box like” drink for my littlest one that we can grab and go with. Something that other kids would “relate” to… and it comes with a straw!  At our local Fruitful Yield, I found these coconut water individual box servings.  They not only taste great, but they have no added sugar!  In addition to containing electrolytes, such as Potassium, this coconut water uses fruit juices for flavor and is free of corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, stimulants, flavorings or colorings. Coconut water is a natural source of hydration, with much lower calories then many other fruit juices.

I hope these take-aways have been helpful!  Please continue to ask for products you do not see at your local grocery.  There are so many new gluten free and allergen free finds available today all because those who need such products use their voices!  As always, if you have more than just gluten intolerance, please read the ingredients of any product to determine it’s safety for your individual dietary needs.