Saturday, November 27, 2010

A Restaurant Review: 99 and Houlihans.

I recently spent several days in Pennsylvania, just outside of Philadelphia.
While there, my family suggested that we visit a restaurant called Ninety-Nine.
(Address: 500 Easton Road, WarringtonPA 18976  215-343-8099)
My family members stated that they had ate here several times in the past and that the food was good. My family  (this is my extended family) knows that I have a gluten intolerance and is used to dealing with my diet.
My cousin told me that they had a gluten free menu. I was skeptical, since at many other places the offerings are usually things that don't usually contain gluten (steak, salad, etc.) I was surprised to find that they offered a Gluten free Cheeseburger. After being seated, I made the waitress aware of my food needs and she presented me a gluten free diet menu. They have a small, but impressive, selection of foods.

I enjoyed (and devoured) the Gluten Free Bacon and Cheese Steakburger. This actually came out on a GF Bun. Something I have never seen in a commercial restaurant. The burger was delicious, the bun itself was a little crumbly, but still good. The best part about it, was that you couldn't really tell that I was eating something different and the texture was fine. For desert, we enjoyed a hot fudge sunday. Yum.

The dining experience was wonderful. The service was great and the waitress was understanding and took the time to talk with me regarding my needs. I give them an A+ all around.

On the flipside of this wonderful dining experience is Houlihans.
(Address: Houlihans Restaurant
27 W. Chocolate Ave
Hershey, PA )
On our way home from Pennsylvania, we stopped in Hershey so that my children could experience Chocolate World (I recommend it to anyone. I used to love going there as a child!). My mother in law saw the sign for Houlihans and said that she'd been to one before and the food was great.
I was game, as I looked them up on my phone and saw that they had a gluten free menu.
After being seated, I informed the waitress that I would need a gluten free menu and that I was a gluten free diner.
The atmosphere was nice and we had ample room at our table. That was the best part about our dining experience.
The disclaimer on the menu reads: "We are not a gluten-free environment but items indicated by a G, have gluten-free ingredients."

My husband (who is not a GF diner) and I ordered Chicken Skewers (with mint yogurt & cilantro-peanut pesto) and waited patiently while our food came. I was at a table with six other people (including two children). The other people at the table got there drinks and salads while I patiently waited for my food. TWENTY FIVE minutes later (while my family was eating there main course) I finally got my appetizer. Since I had never ate at this restaurant before, I had no clue what to expect my dish to look like. The waitress finally brought out a dish with chicken and some sort of noodle on it. After finally flagging her down, I asked her if the noodles were gluten free and she said "oh, do you need a gluten free meal?".
Why yes, yes I do. I did afterall tell you that when I ordered (although I didn't actually say this, I really wanted to.)
After telling her that I did need a gluten free appetizer, specifically the one that I ordered, she took away the noodle one and said she'd be right back.
She never came back with my appetizer.
Ever.
Finally she came back with my entree. (Or as the menu says, "Big Small Plates"). My entree was the Grilled 4oz Petite Filet Mignon with French Fries. (Which was cold). At this point, my family had finished the appetizer and the entree and was working on dessert. The filet mignon was good, but cold. I was afraid to ask her to warm it up, since she took the appetizer and never brought another one, so I just ate it that way. I'm sure that it would've been better if it was served when it should've been.

After finishing the filet, she presented me the check and I was floored to see that not only did she charge me for my appetizer (you know, the one I NEVER GOT!), but also for the one that she brought to the table. She then proceeded to argue with me about it. She stated that I never told her I was a gluten free diner (although my husband and mother both heard her) but that since the appetizer was brought to the table, I was charged for it because they couldn't recycle it. At this point, I probably had steam coming out of my head. I'm normally a very even keeled person, but at this point I was pissed, hungry and this was the culmination to a very emotional weekend (we'd traveled to bury my only remaining grandparent) I ripped into her.

I walked out of the restaurant with a free meal and the apologizes of the General Manager. My family said that the food that they received was well cooked and tasty. I'd like to say the same about mine, but can't. I'm not sure, if given the opportunity, I would step foot into another Houlihans. Nor will I recommend it to anyone that I know, gluten free diner or not. Because of my family, I won't give them an F, (they afterall enjoyed the food that they received) but for the gluten free diner, and paying customer, I'll give them a D-.

I'm hoping that 99 will come to the Richmond area soon. I'm not hoping the same for Houlihans.

Monday, August 9, 2010

Giant Chocolate Chip Muffins (Gluten Free)

So I recently purchased a nook. It's something that I've been wanting for a long time and I finally took the plunge. I downloaded several gluten free cookbooks to try, one of them being Gluten-Free Quick & Easy by Carol Fenster. If your interested it's available from Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

The first step in the Giant Chocolate Chip Muffin recipe is to make the Muffin mix skeleton.
I didn't use the suggested flours that are in the book, because I was unable to find the ones that were suggested. What I did do however is purchase Bob's Red Mill GF All-Purpose Baking Flour which contains all the ingredients that are recommended for the flour in the book.

Ingredients:
Bob's Red Mill GF All-Purpose Baking Flour (the entire bag)
3 cups cane sugar
8 teaspoons baking powder
6 teaspoons xanthan gum
4 teaspoons table salt

Take a sieve and sift the ingredients together over a storage container. Sift 2 cups flour blend, 3/4 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the xanthan gum and 1 teaspoon salt. Do this three times.

Seal the container and shake the contents

To make the muffins:
Ingredients:
3 cups of the above mix
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I used Hershey's).
2 eggs at room temperature
1 cup milk
1/2 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup chocolate chips
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup white chocolate chips (this is not part of the original recipe, I added it myself 'cause I like white chocolate).

You are going to need a LARGE muffin pan. I had to go to Bed, Bath and Beyond and get one. It cost me $19.00 and was made by Chicago Metallic.
I greased the muffin pan using canola oil and set my oven to 375.
I mixed all my ingredients together and 'tasted' the batter before placing it in the muffin tin. This is where things got a little sketchy. The batter tasted horrible. A cross between chocolate flavored beans and a strong metallic taste. At this point I started adding sugar, salt and xanthan gum incrementally until the batter tasted good. I placed the batter in the muffin holes and cooked it for 30 minutes at 375. I took it out and it was still liquid in the middle so I turned my over down to 200 and cooked them ten minutes longer.
After taking them out and letting them cool I got my 'testers' (aka my two oldest children, my niece and nephew and my father-in-law) to try them. They were pretty good, for a first try. I'm not sure what they would've tasted like if I hadn't altered the batter, but I wasn't willing to take that chance.

Here are the end results:

More Gluten Free Items found.

I hate grocery shopping, I most especially hate doing it with my children. My four year old thinks that she needs everything that we go by, and she's very slick with putting things in the cart that I don't see. She's a sneaky one.
So while I was at Wal-Mart yesterday, I happened to be walking down an aisle and found a box of Biscuit mix, with the words 'Gluten Free' on the front. I have yet to use the mix, but I was just excited to actually find it that I had to tell everyone.

Also found in my local Wal-Mart (and not any other grocery store to date) was the new Chex. I love Chex cereal. I like it better than any of 'special gluten free cereals' that you find at Whole Foods, etc. I'm absolutely ecstatic about that face that there are two new flavors (apparently there's five, but I"ve only ever seen the two new ones). In addition to Rice and Corn chexs that are plain, there are now Cinnnamon Chex and Honey Nut Chex. I haven't tried the Honey Nut yet, but I have tried the Cinnamon and they are delicious. Yum-o. I highly recommend them and at my store they are $3.00 a box, which is the average price for cereal that's 'regular'.  There is apparently a GF Chocolate Chex, but I have yet to be able to find it. I'll keep looking though.

Next up, Muffins. I'll let you know how they turn out!

Sunday, May 9, 2010

General Mills releases list of 250 gluten free products.


What a great idea from General Mills. They've recently introduced a variety of gluten free (some were already gluten free) products. There are over 250 products on the list. What this means is that us people living gluten free don't have to shop for products at specialty stores anymore (for the most part). One of my most favorite foods to eat, Yoplait, is on the list. So go ahead and enjoy these products that General Mills have introduced.

BETTY CROCKER® DESSERT MIXES
Gluten Free Brownie Mix16000-27793
Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix16000-27794
Gluten Free Devil’s Food Cake Mix16000-27792
Gluten Free Yellow Cake Mix16000-27791
BETTY CROCKER® RICH & CREAMY FROSTINGS
Butter Cream16000-38060
Cherry16000-45890
Chocolate16000-45840
Coconut Pecan16000-41239
Cream Cheese16000-45960
Creamy White16000-16166
Dark Chocolate16000-45860
Lemon16000-45850
Milk Chocolate16000-45900
Rainbow Chip16000-46070
Triple Chocolate Fudge Chip16000-52440
Vanilla16000-45830
BETTY CROCKER®WHIPPED FROSTINGS
Butter Cream16000-32990
Chocolate16000-32320
Cream Cheese16000-37420
Fluffy White16000-37460
Milk Chocolate16000-37410
Strawberry Mist16000-37400
Vanilla16000-37430
Whipped Cream16000-41777



FRUIT BY THE FOOT® FRUIT SNACKS
Berry Berry Twist 6 Ct16000-19400
Berry Blast 6 Ct16000-29453
Berry Tie-Dye 6 Ct16000-27700
Berry Tie-Dye/Color by the Foot Value Pack16000-16710
Boo Berry 6 Ct16000-14965
Color by the Foot 6 Ct16000-38500
Franken Berry 6 Ct16000-14964
Razzle Blue Blitz 6 ct16000-27728
Strawberry 6 Ct16000-49300
Tropical Twist Ct16000-29454
Variety Pack 14 Ct16000-41923
Variety Pack (Monsters) 28 Ct16000-41399
Variety Pack (Strawberry, Color by the Foot/Berry Tie-Dye)16000-19430
Variety Pack 28 Ct16000-50660
Variety Pack 42 Ct16000-19999
Watermelon 6 Ct16000-36780
FRUIT BY THE FOOT® MINIS FRUIT SNACKS
Berry Wave 10 Ct16000-17374
Wicked Web Halloween 28 Ct16000-27299
FRUIT GUSHERS® FRUIT SNACKS
Blue Raspberry 6 Ct16000-13394
Flavor Shock 6 Ct16000-15835
Halloween Tropical Mix 12 Ct16000-43436
Mouth Mixers Punch Berry 6 Ct16000-40508
Strawberry 6 Ct16000-49120
Strawberry/Tropical 28 Ct16000-28161
Triple Berry Shock 6 Ct16000-24370
Tropical 15 Ct16000-17643
Tropical Flavors 6 Ct16000-24070
Value Pack (Strawberry/Tropical) 12 Ct16000-14707
Value Pack 14 Ct16000-41924
Variety Pack (Strawberry/Watermelon/Tropical) 6 Ct16000-15910
Watermelon Blast 6 Ct16000-32830
FRUIT ROLL-UPS® FRUIT SNACKS
Around the World 10 Ct16000-44158
Blastin’ Berry Hot Colors 10 Ct16000-35510
Blastin’ Berry Hot Colors 25 Ct16000-19713
Blastin’ Berry Hot Colors 48 Ct16000-13055
Bonus Value Pack 22 Ct16000-41922
Crazy Pix Cool Chix Berry Wave 10 ct16000-42188
Crazy Pix Wild Ones Blastin’ Berry 10 Ct16000-42189
Flavor Wave 10 Ct16000-15360
Scoops Fruity Ice Cream Flavors 10 Ct16000-43448
Simply Fruit Variety Pack (Wildberry/Strawberry) 42 Ct16000-28856
Stickerz Berry Cool Punch 8 Ct16000-26297
Stickerz Mixed Berry 8 Ct16000-17436
Stickerz Tropical Berry Flavor 8 Ct16000-17435
Strawberry 4 Ct16000-39480
Strawberry Sensation 10 Ct16000-35540
Tropical Tie-Dye 10 Ct16000-39700
Value Pack (Strawberry/Berry Cool Punch) 20 Ct16000-12709
Value Pack Stickerz (Mixed Berry/Tropical Berry) 32 Ct16000-42142
Value Pack Stickerz 48 Ct16000-42141
Variety Pack (Strawberry/Tie-Dye/Wildfire) 10 Ct16000-18910
Variety Pack Stickerz16000-42307
FRUIT ROLL-UPS® MINIS FRUIT SNACKS
Strawberry Craze 18 Ct16000-17313
Wildberry Punch 18 Ct16000-17314
FRUIT SHAPES® FRUIT SNACKS
Care Bears 10 Ct16000-17731
Comics 10 Ct16000-16174
Create-A-Bug 10 Ct16000-28139
Create-A-Dino 10 Ct16000-28478
Dora the Explorer 10 Ct16000-26133
Easter Fruit Flavored Snacks16000-28793
Halloween 30 Ct16000-26048
Halloween 42 Ct16000-28648
My Little Pony 10 Ct16000-17110
Nickelodeon 10 Ct (NEW)16000-26674
Scooby-Doo 10 Ct16000-23760
Scooby-Doo 25 Ct16000-19712
Scooby-Doo 4 Ct16000-11080
Scooby-Doo 46 Ct16000-40939
Shark Bites 10 Ct16000-39110
Spiderman 10 Ct16000-14114
Sponge Bob 10 Ct16000-26134
Sunkist Mixed Fruit 10 Ct16000-27784
Transformers 10 Ct16000-28089
Valentine Hearts 20 Ct16000-17143
Valentine Hearts 42 Ct16000-19487
Value Pack Sunkist 24 Ct16000-27129
Variety Pack Scooby-Doo/Looney Tunes 20 Ct16000-18280
FRUIT SNACKS VARIETY PACKS
Gushers (Tropical) /Fruit by the Foot (Strawberry) 26 Ct16000-17626
Gushers/Fruit Roll-Ups/Fruit by the Foot Variety Pack 16 Ct16000-17065
Gushers/Fruit Roll-Ups/Fruit by the Foot Variety Pack 8 Ct16000-17067
Mystery 16 Ct16000-40507
Scooby-Doo Fruit Roll-Ups/Fruit Shapes 8 Ct16000-26828



Chocolate Chex®16000-27473
Cinnamon Chex®16000-26344
Corn Chex®16000-27558
Honey Nut Chex®16000-27531
Rice Chex®16000-27559

VALLEY FRESH STEAMERS™
Valley Fresh Steamers Broccoli Cuts20000-27332
Valley Fresh Steamers Chopped Broccoli20000-27333
Valley Fresh Steamers Cut Green Beans20000-27334
Valley Fresh Steamers Extra Sweet Niblets Corn20000-27335
Valley Fresh Steamers Mixed Vegetables20000-27337
Valley Fresh Steamers Niblets Corn20000-27336
Valley Fresh Steamers Select Baby Sweet Peas20000-29016
Valley Fresh Steamers Select Broccoli Florets20000-29015
Valley Fresh Steamers Select Sugar Snap Peas20000-29018
Valley Fresh Steamers Select White Shoepeg Corn20000-29017
Valley Fresh Steamers Select Whole Green Beans20000-29014
Valley Fresh Steamers Sweet Peas20000-27338




LÄRABAR® BARS (16 CT PACK / BAR UPC)
Apple Pie21908-45302 / 50927
Banana Bread21908-45301 / 50926
Cashew Cookie21908-45304 / 50925
Cherry Pie21908-45315 / 50924
Chocolate Coconut Chew21908-45314 / 50923
Cinnamon Roll21908-45313 / 50922
Cocoa Molé21908-45312 / 50921
Coconut Cream Pie21908-45311 / 50919
Ginger Snap21908-45309 / 50918
Key Lime Pie21908-45305 / 50914
Lemon Bar21908-45308 / 50917
Peanut Butter & Jelly21908-43265 / 50932
Peanut Butter Cookie21908-45307 / 50916
Pecan Pie21908-45306 / 50915
Pistachio21908-45303 / 50913
Tropical Fruit Tart21908-43264 / 50931
Minis Variety Pack (Apple/Cherry/Cashew) 12Ct21908-47138
LÄRABAR® JŎCALAT™ BARS (16 CT PACK / BAR UPC)

PROGRESSO® BROTH

Chocolate21908-45318 / 50912
Chocolate Cherry21908-45319 / 50907
Chocolate Coffee21908-45317 / 50911
Chocolate Hazelnut21908-45321 / 50906
Chocolate MinPROGRESSO® SOUP
Beef Flavored Broth41196-42121
Chicken Broth41196-42122
Reduced Sodium Chicken Broth41196-21223
PROGRESSO® RICH & HEARTY SOUP
Rich & Hearty Chicken Corn Chowder41196-91416
PROGRESSO® TRADITIONAL SOUP
Traditional 99% Fat Free New England Clam Chowder41196-91184
Traditional Chicken Cheese Enchilada41196-91513
Traditional Chicken Rice with Vegetable41196-01000
Traditional Manhattan Clam Chowder41196-91111
Traditional New England Clam Chowder41196-01112
Traditional Potato Broccoli Cheese Chowder41196-91138
Traditional Southwestern Style Chicken41196-91504


GO-GURT® YOGURT
Banana Split/Strawberry Milkshake70470-00564
Berry Blue Blast/Chill Out Cherry 16 ct.70470-19654
Cool Cotton Candy/Burstin' Melon Berry70470-00567
iCarly Special Edition Rad Raspberry/Paradise Punch70470-00571
Ro-Gurt Special Edition Shaggy's Like Cool Punch & Rawberry70470-00596
Sponge Bob Special Edition Strawberry Riptide/Bikini Bottom Berry70470-19801
Strawberry Banana Burst/Watermelon Meltdown70470-00572
Strawberry Kiwi Kick/Chill Out Cherry70470-00573
Strawberry Splash/Berry Blue Blast70470-00570
Strawberry Splash/Cool Cotton Candy 16 ct.70470-47804
TRIX® YOGURT
Strawberry Banana Bash/Raspberry Rainbow70470-00720
Strawberry Kiwi/Cotton Candy70470-00719
Strawberry Punch/Watermelon Burst70470-00723
Triple Cherry/Wildberry Blue70470-00721
Very Berry Watermelon/Berry Bolt70470-00639
YOPLAIT® YOGURT FRIDGE PACK
Light Key Lime Pie and Vanilla70470-40767
Light Strawberry and Light Blueberry Patch70470-29533
Light Strawberry and Light Harvest Peach70470-42398
Original Strawberry and Original Harvest Peach70470-29423
Original Strawberry and Original Mixed Berry70470-29422
Original Strawberry and Strawberry Banana70470-43231
Original Strawberry70470-29421
YOPLAIT DELIGHTS™ PARFAIT
Chocolate Raspberry70470-17706
Crème Caramel70470-00712
Lemon Torte70470-00710
Triple Berry Crème70470-00710
YOPLAIT® GREEK YOGURT
Blueberry70470-17706
Honey Vanilla70470-00712
Strawberry70470-00710
Plain70470-00710
YOPLAIT KID® YOGURT
Banana and Vanilla70470-17706
Strawberry and Strawberry Vanilla70470-00712
Strawberry Banana and Peach70470-00710
YOPLAIT® LIGHT YOGURT
Apple Turnover70470-00638
Apricot Mango70470-00658
Banana Cream Pie70470-00657
Berries 'N Cream70470-00648
Blackberry70470-00636
Blueberry Patch70470-00652
Boston Cream Pie70470-00661
Harvest Peach70470-00655
Key Lime Pie70470-00665
Lemon Cream Pie70470-00664
Orange Crème70470-00641
Pineapple Upside Down Cake70470-27104
Raspberry Cheesecake70470-27106
Red Raspberry70470-00651
Strawberries 'N Bananas70470-00654
Strawberry Orange Sunrise70470-00647
Strawberry Shortcake70470-27101
Strawberry70470-00650
Very Cherry70470-00653
Very Vanilla70470-00643
White Chocolate Strawberry70470-00668
YOPLAIT® LIGHT THICK & CREAMY YOGURT
French Vanilla70470-17878
Key Lime Pie70470-18082
Lemon Meringue70470-18083
Mixed Berry70470-18084
Orange Crème70470-18085
Peaches 'N Cream70470-18086
Strawberry70470-18081
YOPLAIT® ORIGINAL YOGURT
Banana Crème70470-00335
Blackberry Harvest70470-00330
Boysenberry70470-00309
Cherry Orchard70470-00303
French Vanilla70470-00323
Harvest Peach70470-00307
Key Lime Pie70470-00321
Lemon Burst70470-00306
Mango70470-19659
Mixed Berry70470-00310
Mountain Blueberry70470-00302
Orange Crème70470-00319
Pina Colada70470-00312
Pineapple70470-00308
Red Raspberry70470-00301
Strawberry Banana70470-00313
Strawberry Cheesecake70470-00325
Strawberry Kiwi70470-00317
Strawberry Mango70470-00329
Strawberry70470-00300
YOPLAIT® THICK & CREAMY YOGURT
Blackberry Harvest70470-00135
Key Lime Pie70470-00107
Peaches 'N Cream70470-00123
Royal Raspberry70470-00101
Strawberry Banana70470-00115
Strawberry70470-00100
Vanilla70470-00112
YOPLAIT® YOGURT WAREHOUSE CLUB MULTI PACK
Light 12 multi pack (6 Boston Cream Pie, 6 Key Lime Pie)70470-26283
Light 15 multi pack (10 Strawberry, 5 Harvest Peach)70470-18818
Light 15 multi pack (5 Strawberry 5 Peach 5 Blueberry)70470-41936
Light 18 multi pack (6 Strawberry, 6 Harvest Peach, 6 Blueberry)70470-18819
Light 24 multi pack (8 Strawberry, 8 Harvest Peach, 8 Blueberry)70470-18822
Light 24 multi pack (12 Strawberry, 6 Peach, 6 Vanilla)70470-28836
Original 15 multi pack (10 Strawberry, 5 Peach)70470-18823
Original 15 multi pack (5 Strawberry, 5 Peach, 5 Blueberry)70470-41935
Original 18 multi pack (18 Strawberry)70470-18826
Original 18 multi pack (6 Strawberry, 6 Peach, 6 Blueberry)70470-18824
Original 24 multi pack (12 Strawberry, 6 Peach, 6 Vanilla)70470-28837
Original 24 multi pack (8 Strawberry, 8 Peach, 8 Blueberry)70470-18817
YOPLUS® YOGURT
Blackberry Pomegranate70470-15988
Blueberry Acai70470-15989
Cherry70470-19762
Peach70470-19752
Strawberry70470-19753
Vanilla70470-19754
YOPLUS LIGHT® YOGURT
Honey Vanilla70470-28431
Key Lime Pie70470-28434
Strawberry Banana70470-28435




A complete list of gluten free foods can be found  here.