Atlanta Home-Finding Expedition: Gluten Free on the Go

My Marine was committed to a time-consuming motorcycle safety course all weekend (he has had a retro bike for a year that he isn't licensed to ride yet), so I packed up some Glutino pretzel sticks and crackers, Lara Bars (pb&j, peanut butter cookie), apples, Bunny Organic fruit snacks, and leftover Starburst jelly beans and jetted off to Atlanta. Once here, this perfect little inn Seth booked for me has a mini fridge and microwave, so I stopped at Trader Joe's and picked up some grape tomatoes, goat cheese, and carrots. For $69 a night they have a free gym, parking, and internet, all of which cost extra last time at the pricier Midtown 'W' Hotel. This place rocks!

Spent day one touring trendy Buckhead apts and relishing the 75 degree sunny weather (pleasantly absent of humidity I was expecting) in the popular and updated Piedmont Park- such a tranquil gem with the water and magnolia trees, but look up and the skyscrapers are peeking from behind the trees, reminding you that you're in a city!

I ate the Trader Joe's fare the first night in my cozy hotel room. The second day, I worked out and ate an apple, then had a mango "tea freeze" at SanFranCoffee, which was dee-lish! (I am fully aware how calorie dense these things can be, so this was lunch.) After an awful day (I got a ticket for failing to stop at a sign I didn't see when I was oogling mansions at "tuxedo row", had itchy mosquito bites all over from the park, carefully navigated to appointments where I got stood up to not see 2 homes, and just when I was calling my boyfriend to whine, a giant locust-like bug with excellent timing fell out of a tree and hit me hard), driving around and learning that Virginia Highlands was out of our housing budget, my pal from middle and high school picked me up to go to a crawfish boil with her family for dinner. They were out of crawfish! She is so sweet-she must've researched gluten free-because she said Moe's Southwest Grill has gluten free food! The gluten free items are marked on the menu, so she insisted that she order for us while I watch her baby. My first time not ordering food for myself! This took trust! So, even as they shared nachos and burritos family-style, I had a pork rice bowl and it was spicy and filling! And I didn't get sick. :)
Mission accomplished! The following day I found and put a deposit on a house that is simple, yet homey and spacious, in a neighborhood that's easy to hop on the freeways and full of large trees (near my hotel that I'd gotten familiar with driving all weekend)! We'll move soon and Seth's commute will go against the flow of traffic, so I hope we truly enjoy it there!

I tweeted what I ate that day (highlighted by Wildfire dinner)and plan to eat somewhat the same today, then back to VA until it's time to move here! Oh yeah, he passed the motorcycle licensing test. oh. joy...ahem.

My review of the Gluten-Free Grocery Shopping Guide by Matison

My Marine's mother gave me this guide as a gift. She is a retired teacher and seems to think we need lots of guides...and guidance, wink, wink. He's an only child. Need I say more?
I appreciate the gift as I'm too cheap to have purchased the $25 item myself. It is the size of a thick paperback and we wondered if it would be more useful than the gluten free iphone apps we have tried and rarely use (they usually lack in quantity of products or are outdated). We usually just use our phone to do a web search to verify whether or not a product is gluten free as we stand in the aisle in the store (our home is gluten free and Seth eats gluten free at home--however, occasionally he'll reheat a gluten-laden leftover in the microwave).
We have taken the book to the store with us a couple of times. Since we are familiar with many of the usual suspects on our grocery list, I mostly used it to find stuff I am normally afraid of trying, or brands that were questionable, unknown, or cheaper. It did help me find cheaper microwave popcorn, another brand of chicken, chicken broth, and another brand of breakfast sausage. (I discovered there are many brands of chicken broth gf, but the beef flavor of same brands aren't gf.) However, I noticed that some gf items must be excluded, because the hot cocoa I usually purchase was not listed. Although it includes many store brands, it didn't list Harris Teeter, our store.
In sum, I'll probably keep it because when we move to Atlanta we will have the joyful experience of finding new grocery stores and even old faves, like Trader Joe's and Whole Foods carry completely different products in each store. So, I'll get new store lists from them. And life will be good again. Gluten free good!

Devil Dog and Celiac Move to Atlanta! (Home search and gluten free diet and dining research in full swing!)

That's right! As you know, after 13 years of living la vida del sol, teaching in Southern California, and purchasing my home there, I met a dashing and debonair Marine Corps Officer who promptly got transferred to the East Coast. Surprising all my friends and family, after dating this ginger-haired gent less than a year, I took a leave of absence from my established career, rented out mi casa, and set out for the D.C./Virginia area with him to see how we'd get along once reality set in.
After ten months, reality didn't bite, but the love bugs did and now we've put each other in the "For Keeps" bucket. There aren't many Marines in Atlanta, and I'm not sure how many celiacs, but we're excited about the move. In Feb., we enjoyed a romantic house-hunting mission with a realtor who'd been a military wife and a teacher (she spoke BOTH of our languages, and gave us a book on how to speak Southern!). We didn't match with a home, but the sun was out, we rendez-vous'd with our old middle/high school pals, and got a feel for the area.

The inevitable gluten free diet issue came up as his friends insisted on taking us to their favorite rib joint, D.B.A. Barbeque, but it turned out to be serendipity! We had less luck getting gluten free pizza at Mellow Mushroom, but better luck at Buckhead Pizza Co. And mes amis picked us up for lunch and I handled/dodged my celiac issue by texting her that I need a gluten free diet nowadays, and she just did a search on her phone and chose Jason's Deli, which turned out delightfully well for all.
Since then, I have been researching gluten free dining in Atlanta and have some places I'm dying to try on my next house-hunting expedition: Fresh2Order, Saba, Urban Pl8, Yeah Burger, Ecco, The Brickery, and Metro Fresh.

Gluten Free Easter Cupcakes

Make Gluten Free Easter Cupcakes

I wonder why I've been plumping lately...? Who can resist the bimonthly gluten free potluck? I made these and only ate one, but they were pretty good. I also indulged in strawberry shortcake someone made, along w chicken and cauliflower. Its always nice to chill with gf peeps, not the marshmallow ones!

Grasshopper taco from Oyamel Restaurant- gluten free!

grasshopper taco a photo by Gluten Free Breeze on Flickr.

It was spicy, crunchy, and tasty!

Udi's Gluten Free Bagel

What to eat for a gluten free breakfast?
bageL a photo by Gluten Free Breeze on Flickr.

Udi's Gluten Free Cinnamon Raisin Bagel with Philly Strawberry Cream Cheese and sliced berries on top- Mmmm, mmmm, great!
The bagels come pre-sliced. They toast or microwave to a great texture- not crumbly at all, and chewier than regular bread. I've also had the plain version, which is also great! Lovin' these!

Eating Grasshoppers at Gluten Free Restaurants and Organic Food Goodness (scroll down to see what I've been eating on the homefront)

Since moving to the DC/Virginia area, Oyamel is a chow champion of mine, since it's near the museums (I left my car in California-no snowy driving 4 me). Not only do I volunteer at one of the Smithsonian Museums, but I set a goal to see as many of the museums/sights in this area as possible during our year here.
Let's tangent to a museum/tourist list:
So far, I've toured : Pentagon, Gettysburg, Newseum, Library of Congress, Spy Museum, G.Washington Masonic Memorial, Freer Gallery, Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Castle, Nat'l Building Museum, Nat'l Geographic, Gadsby's Tavern, Torpedo Factory, Mount Vernon, Amer. History, Hirshhorn, Christ Church (G.Washington's), Nat'l Harbor, Baltimore Harbor, Nat'l Mus. of the Marine Corps, Carlyle House, Ramsay House, Arlington Nat'l Cemetery, Dulles Air and Space (not on mall), Postal Museum, Natural History, Air & Space (on mall), American Indian, Portrait Gallery, Kennedy Center, Fredericksburg, and that's all I remember so far.

My faves are: Library of Congress, Dale Collection at Museum of Art, Mount Vernon, and the giant Washington statue at the Masonic Memorial, and Iwo Jima. Newseum, FDR Memorial, and Gettysburg surpassed my expectations. I had already been on the city tour in '05 with the Capitol, embassy row, and white house.

I have several museums yet to see: Black History in Alexandria, African American Smithsonian, Basilica, Nat'l Cathedral, inside White House, inside Wash. Monument, Colonial Williamsburg, Lee-Fendall, Ft. Ward, Anacostia, Nat'l Botanical Garden, Nat'l Zoo, Renwick, Arts & Industries, Nat'l Design, Women's, Cherry Blossom Festival, Dumbarton Oaks, and I'm sure there are more.

Back to FOOD:
Call it serendipity, but Oyamel is almost next door to Red Velvet Cupcakery, which without fail has gluten free cupcakes (usually the delectable, crispy-topped, "black velvet" flavor, which is fudgy but with a dark depth to its taste, with a perfect texture, not crumbly or dense) and the cupcake elves are aware enough to put on a clean glove to grab it with.

I dig Oyamel because they have a separate and lengthy gluten-free menu. Plus, you can get single plates (similar to Spanish tapas) of $4 items to build your own meal. I get the various tacos, soup, or tamale, all freshly made on daily homemade corn tortillas and guacamole. Today I had 2 fish tacos which were deceptively filling, and felt adventurous enough to go for the chopped grasshopper taco. It was spicy and crunchy and orange-colored. I liked it. Next time I'll try the cow tongue and maybe a dessert (chocolate flan with pomogranate gel on top). Mexican food is hard to please me with, after living in SoCal. Their salsa is the real deal and everything is fresh and back-to-basics. I only wish we could have the chips!!
It is no fun to watch other people chomp on chips when I can't! Even if I brought my own, they wouldn't be warm. Boo hoo.
Rosa Mexicano and Legal Seafoods are a matter of blocks from there, so I'm lucky to be able to eat out! There are lots of places all over here, but I've had many times where I've eaten successfully at an establishment, only to return and get sick. I guess it just depends on who is working and how tidy they are back there in the prep/cookin zone.


At HOME here is what I've been grubbing on:
Morning Mealdom:
Udi's Cinnamon Raisin Bagels with Philly strawberry cr. cheese and fresh sliced strawberries on top and they come pre-sliced!
Homemade Quaker Grits- My Marine went to Tulane, so he enjoys Southern stuff and he's capable of whipping it up himself
Chobani yogurt (cheaper, giant tub of plain) I add flax seed, fresh blueberries
Egg Sammich: Udi multigrain bread (toasted), with egg and rhubarb/straw jam
Jimmy Dean turkey sausage
Bisquick pancakes with bananas or Ghirardelli milk choc chips and syrup
canteloupe
apple with peanut butter
(not all at the same time)

Lunchy-love:
Progresso Split Pea & Ham Soup
Sargento Provolone Grilled Cheese (on Udi)
GlutenFreeda's microwaveable burrito- chicken n cheese or bean n veg
Lara Bar- peanut butter cookie, apple, or pbj, or cashew cookie (these bars were an acquired taste, I hated them at first and still detest the chocolate flavors)
Veggies and Hummus

No GLut-in din-din:
Bisquick Recipes: Amazing Chicken Fingers and Chicken Pot Pie-My Marine Marvels!
Allrecipes: Coconut Curry with Tofu (I added chicken, water chestnuts, & baby corn cob)
This was my first time cooking and eating BOK CHOY! Thumbs way up! My Marine did all the veggy chopping, since I have carpal tunnel, so it was a fun, team project! Served it over a boxed Taste of Thai yellow curry rice marked gluten-free
Allrecipes Lasagna with Pepperoni and ground beef- amazing, but expensive--(we splurged on the fancy $11.99 Romano Cheese last time, but this week we got the Kraft kind so we'll see if it measures up)
Pad Thai- From box Taste of Thai (cheap) and not enuff sauce rendered it bland
Edamame
Schar Dinner Rolls- nice, smooth exterior, with nice texture inside. No need to freeze. Yum!

Super Snack-a-licious
EnviroKids Krispy Rice bars- Peanut butter choco drizzle- pretty good, crunchy and chewy at the same time, not too dry, decent flavor, hint of a strange aftertaste like fakey chocolate items sometimes produce
Schar crackers- a bit on the dry side, but crisp and desirably doughy in the mouth, and nice with toppings-not overly crumbly
Schar breadsticks- crunchy and hard, with a buttery flavor, as they are intended











Andes mint chocolate wafers
Snickers almond
GummiSavers Bursts- we stealthily sneak em to the movies
Swiss Miss Hot Chocolate with Kraft mini mallows-I never knew if SM was gluten-free, but I had been drinkin it as a newbie (before I knew it could be questionable) and never reacted
Blackberries and blueberries (fresh) when they're on sale
veg n hummus
Lara bar-acquired taste, tread carefully
fruit salad with cool whip
Fritos- took em on a day trip
Peanuts
Craisins


Shopped and ready to try: Shepherd's Pie with Manwich (Manwich was on sale cheap and I saw a recipe on a blog, and my Scottish Marine LOVES Shep pie--wish me luck)

Keep your gluten free focus, live lovely and lovingly, and may the gluten free breeze blow gently your way! Besos!