Eat Well Guide Helps San Diego Consumers Find Locally Grown Sustainable Food

Photo from GRACE Communications Foundation

Recently, San Diego Magazine writer Troy Johnson stirred up the proverbial hornet's nest with a story revealing the less-than-honest practices of restaurants that claim to serve meals made with locally grown, seasonal products. It's something he and I have discussed and that I've experienced as well. It's bound to make local diners skeptical that what's on the menu is really coming out of the kitchen. The farm-to-fable fraud he wrote about is, as he says, unfair to the reputable restaurants and other food vendors who are working so hard to do what they feel is the right thing in terms of sustainability, our health, and supporting local growers--not to mention the farmers and diners who are being cheated by the unscrupulous.

So I was intrigued when about this time I learned about the launch of a free new website that claims to be the largest curated directory of sustainable food vendors. The Eat Well Guide has some 25,000 listings of restaurants, farms, farmers' markets, and food co-ops across the country. It is produced and maintained by the GRACE Communications Foundation, whose mission, they state, is "to develop innovative strategies to increase public awareness of the critical environmental and public health issues created by our current food, water and energy systems, and to promote a more sustainable future." Originally created in 2003 to help people find animal products from sustainable guides, the guide has evolved and grown. Now the idea for the guide is to make it easy for consumers around the country to find sustainable food vendors for free.

There are eight listing categories: restaurants; farms; farmers markets; stores; beer, wine and cocktails; chefs, caterers, and meal delivery; bed and breakfasts; and organizations.

San Diego is one of the initial 18 cities included. To be listed in the Eat Well Guide, the organization says that vendors must demonstrate a commitment to supporting sustainable agriculture. According to GRACE Communications Foundation's Samantha Sanchez, the organization determines conformation to the standards through the vendor's website, "and if we aren't sure, then we make phone calls, find out about their purveyors, find out more about the chef, look for certifications, etc." And, she emphasized, vendors can't pay to play.

Basically, I think this is a great idea, but it doesn't quite feel like it's ready for primetime. For one thing, it's unclear how they've developed their initial list. Locals will scratch their heads at the inclusion of places like Trader Joe's (love them but local?). The website's info page explains that, "restaurants, markets, food co-ops and other businesses included in the Eat Well Guide demonstrate a sincere commitment to sourcing local, sustainably produced food." So, intent seems to factor high here. If you sell products that include organic ingredients, that may be enough, even if they aren't local or sustainable. As they say, "Our goal is to allow for a spectrum of sustainability, encouraging businesses to adopt increasingly sustainable food sourcing practices as they are able." I worry that that caveat allows for more skeptical consumers.

Another issue I have is that some of the vendors and organizations I found show up only in searches, including searches for other, non-related vendors. Currently, there are only 31 listings on the San Diego home page--all but two are restaurants; those other two fall under beer, wine, and cocktails. However, there appear to be many more local vendors and organizations in the database. For instance, The Wellington Steak and Martini Lounge is on the San Diego page, but not sister restaurant The Red Door--until you do a specific search for it. That search also pulled up vendors like Bread and Cie, Charlie's Best Bread, Trader Joe's, Eat Right Chef Service, and The Counter Burger, as well as Slow Food. Huh? I also did a search for the Little Italy Mercato and it, too, came up independently. The Hillcrest Farmer's Market showed up in another targeted search, but along with several other farmers markets (including one for Tierrasanta, which hasn't existed for years; I know because I live in the neighborhood), Whole Foods, and OB People's Market. Somehow the site hasn't swept them all into the San Diego page and clearly the search mechanism is a bit funky. Hopefully, that will be corrected soon. I also suggest those of us who are knowledgeable, are vendors, and are eager to help this become a more robust offering go on the site and suggest listings.

The listings themselves contain contact information and basics about the vendors and organizations, as well as a map, hours/days open, and other vendors close by--thanks to its incorporation of Google maps. So, as it matures it will be a handy guide for locals, as well as for travelers looking for places to eat that represent what's local and sustainable in the area.



Print Page

Great News Class Benefits JFS Adoption Program

I know we haven't even reached Thanksgiving yet, but for those of us who celebrate Hanukkah, there's a class being offered by Great News cooking school that will also help the adoption program of San Diego's Jewish Family Service.

The class, Celebration of Light - Hanukkah Party for Charity -- is being taught by Great News executive chef Katherine Emmenegger. It features a Jewish-style menu that included Roasted Eggplant and Sesame Lavosh Rolls; Arugula and Orange Salad with Caramelized Shallot Vinaigrette; Yam and Rosemary Latkas with Applesauce; Kasha, Leek, and Wild Mushroom Stuffed Cabbage Rolls; Israeli Couscous with Harissa; and Cranberry and Pine Nut Doughnuts with Citrus Honey Glaze. All of the ingredients used in the class are parve.

The class will be held on Thursday, Dec. 3 at 6 p.m. at Great News in Pacific Beach. The cost is $49 and all proceeds from the class will be donated to JFS Adoption Alliance for programs here in San Diego. Register online at www.great-news.com.

And, on a related note, JFS's Hand Up Youth Food Pantry is getting a boost from a Thanksgiving Food Drive. Sammy's Woodfired Pizza restaurants is partnering with the group to help feed San Diego's hungry this season. The food drive takes place from Wednesday, Nov. 18 through Monday, Nov. 23 at all of the chain's locations.

You're encouraged to drop by any of the Sammy's locations and donate non-perishable canned-food items. In return, you'll get a coupon good for one free giant Messy Sundae dessert.

Print Page

Got the Blues Because I Got Tagged

There seems to be a blue virus circulating and I have it! Jennifer of Chez LouLou passed it on to me. But, that's okay. It seems utterly benign.

Here's the deal. I must share seven blue things in and around my house, with photos, and then tag seven others to do the same. Of course, competing with provincial France from suburban San Diego hardly seems fair, but I do adore blue. Even at its most vibrant it's a cozy, comfortable color. My garden is filled with blue pots. My home with blue pottery. At my desk now, I'm looking at blue pens and hi-liters, blue notebooks, a small rustic-looking blue bowl holding tiny red hots, and a blue leather box holding my fountain pens. Even Mr. Potato Head has his blue shoes on.

I must start with Lily, my bluepoint snowshoe Siamese. She's my shadow--in the office, in the kitchen, wherever.


Followed by the late, great Moses, my oversized blue tabby.

Sorry, but I don't know his name.






Ah, so who's blues would I like to see? Think I'll tag Alice, Amy (I know this will tick her off just a little but maybe she'll go along with it ;), Sean and DPaul, Helen (I want to see some of her South Carolina), Erika, Judy, and Kalyn (an excuse to see details of the remodel).


Print Page

South African Cuisine? Oh, Yes!

When I think about South Africa, what comes to mind, of course, are Nelson Mandela, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Johnny Clegg, and, the large South African Jewish expat community in San Diego. I can't say I've ever given any thought to the food.

What a fool! It turns out that I've been missing out on some wonderful meals, influenced by the British and Dutch, but also the Portuguese, French, and, Indian--South Africa has the largest Indian population outside of India. And, of course, the African tribes.

So, you get Portuguese peri-peri sauce, British sausage rolls and pasties, Dutch bobotie (curried chopped meat) and melkterts, and Indian curries and biryani.

I discovered all this recently at a tiny shop tucked away in an industrial park in Kearny Mesa. Deli-SA, owned by South African Graham Perkett, is nominally a store and more an experience. Yes, there are shelves stocked with packaged goods a homesick South African would crave, but the real delight of Deli-SA is in the homemade dishes Perkett, his wife and staff make. And, the fact that every Saturday afternoon, South Africans longing for a touch of home gather family style around large tables at his barbecues.


Perkett, who had originally had a career in automotive engineering, opened the shop in the spring of 2008. Before that, he had been selling his food and doing catering from his home. It was a return to what he'd wanted to do all along as a young man--cook. The shop is a reflection of his love of his homeland. The walls are painted blue, red, green, and black in the colors of the South African flag, and on the dark blue wall is a large acrylic portrait of Mandela painted by a friend of Perkett, along with framed pieces of tribal art for sale. Against another wall are shelves filled with all sorts of intriguing foodstuff. You'll find cereals, sauces, jams, marmite, pickles, cookies, soda, and candy. And that's just for starters.


I bought a couple of jars of the peri-peri sauce. Peri-peri is a hot pepper used in Portuguese and African cooking. According to Perkett, it makes for a great marinade and barbecue sauce for chicken. I found he was spot on. But I also enjoyed it on a broiled lamb shoulder chop.


Perkett pointed to other South African cooking and snacking essentials--authentic oxtail soup mix, Tennis biscuits--cookies that are used for tarts, Bisto gravy granules, and Milo, a malted milk powder made by Nestle that is just like Ovaltine.


What had me salivating, though, was the case filled with savory pies made by his wife. That day, Perkett had steak and mushroom, chicken mushroom, pepper steak, cornish pasties, and chicken curry. I took the last home. It reheated beautifully at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. The flaky crust yielded small cubes of chicken mixed with carrots, onions, and peas, all enveloped in a smooth curry sauce.


I also enjoyed the beautiful samoosas. You can buy packages of these--chicken, beef, or potato--frozen and ready to reheat in a little oil on the stove.


Perkett makes his own beef jerky, or biltang, and it's nothing like what is packaged in the U.S. Thicker, moister, and powerfully flavored with clove, nutmeg, and coriander, it's a delicious snack. He also makes the hugely popular boerewors, a fresh beef and pork sausage that is grilled, stuffed in a bun and smothered in a tomato sauce.


And, that's what you'll find on the grill behind the shop on Saturdays, along with fish and chips, and bunny chow--a marvelous name for one of the hugest meals I've ever seen on a plate. Perkett makes a curried lamb stew using lamb shoulder pieces. Once it's ready, half loaves of white bread are hollowed out and the stew is ladled inside. The scooped out bread is dunked in the stew juices. It's a hefty and delicious dish.


I tried some of these dishes at one of the Saturday barbecues. Not only was the food very good, but I enjoyed the friendliness of the South Africans who had gathered 10 around a table. Some parties all knew one another. Others met during the meal and compared notes about their lives. All had heard about Deli-SA through word of mouth, including a couple with two young daughters who had driven there from Phoenix. It was their first stop for a weekend getaway in San Diego.

Now you can't end a meal without dessert. You'll find some unusual and all-too tempting options at Deli-SA. These are made on site as well. First Perkett pulled out a melktert, or milk tart. The best way I can think of to describe this lovely custard sweet is rice pudding without the rice, dusted with cinnamon on top and sitting on a light vanilla cake. That, at least, is how the Perketts make it. I've found in doing some research that it's also made with a sweet pastry tart and filled with custard. Either way, it's comfort food.

The koeksisters, with origins from Cape Malay, is not comfort food. It's sheer decadence. It looks like a braided donut, and it is. Kind of. But, it's harder that what you'd expect and drenched in a rich sugar syrup. This is napkin food and only for those with a real sweet tooth.


The lamington squares are a whole other type of sweet. These are Australian, actually, and basically a butter cake dipped first in chocolate and then in coconut. Very nice.

My favorite may have been the tipsy tart, a dense cake with dates and walnuts in this case, but sometimes pecans, baked, then infused with a butter and brandy syrup. This is simply luscious. In fact, it looks very easy to make and come fall, I'll probably try this recipe from Group Recipes.

Perkett also does catering. He has a large contingent of customers from around Southern California and into Arizona. He bragged that one of his clients is playwright Athol Fugard, who lives in Del Mar. While there are people who make some of the sausages and jerky, apparently, Perkett's the only one in the region with a shop and full assortment of South African dishes.

Deli-SA is located at 8360 Clairemont-Mesa Blvd., Suite 112 in Kearny Mesa, just west of Hwy. 163. The phone number is 858-694-0212.


Print Page

Beyond the Border With Art and Food

If you enjoy contemporary art and wonderful food, you'll want to attend the upcoming Beyond the Border International Contemporary Art Fair and its companion event, The Art of Wine and Food, the weekend of Sept. 2 - 4. Both will be held at the Grand Del Mar Resort.


The three-day art fair will include national and international galleries representing over 500 juried works by both established and emerging contemporary artists from around the world, along with curated art installations. We're talking investment-grade pieces, a first for these galleries in San Diego.

In conjunction with the art fair, on Thurs., Sept. 3, The Art of Wine and Food will offer a five-course meal with wine pairings, sponsored by The American Institute of Wine and Food, at Addison, the Grand Del Mar Resort's signature restaurant. Addison's chef, William Bradley, will be one of four featured chefs and two sommeliers.


Joining Bradley will be chef Angela Tamura of Napa's ZuZu restaurant; local chef Javier Placensia of Romesco in Bonita; chef Wolfgang Gussmack of 3 Square in Venice, Calif.; guest sommelier Chris Blanchard of Chappellet in Napa; and Addison's advanced sommelier, Jesse Rodriguez.

The event begins at 7 p.m. with a reception at which champagne and canapes will be served. Dinner begins at 8 p.m. Tickets for the dinner are $200 each or $170 for AIWF members, and can be purchased at the Beyond the Border website or by emailing: info@beyondtheborder-art.com.

Tickets for the art fair can also be purchased on the Beyond the Border website.

Print Page

Enjoying the Big O

Who doesn't love a good burger? I don't eat them as often as I would like, but it's a pleasure when I find one I really enjoy. My friend Alex Hart invited me to join her at O'Brothers at Horton Plaza, so we met there this afternoon for lunch.

Cheers to brothers Derek and Craig Cowling for turning Craig's penchant for great burger grilling into a sleek, hip burger joint. Their hook? Everything, but everything is organic. The meat is local, from Matt Rimel's Homegrown Meats. The buns, the ketchup, the fries, the salad greens, and even the beverages, both sodas and beers and wine, are organic. If you need to drink a Coke with your burger, you'll have to bring it in because they just don't serve it.

The restaurant, on the second level of Horton Plaza, facing Broadway, has been open since February. It's a big shift from the previous family business, Dixieline Lumber. The restaurant business may be new to them, but the food is very good and the ambience, thanks to designer David Robinson (whose previous clients include Stone Brewery, Mille Fleurs, Roppongi, Pacifica Del Mar, and Paradise Grille), is another of a growing number of modernist yet warm environments, complete with an open kitchen. Pull together tables for a group lunch or pull up a stool and sit at the counter to watch your meal being prepared.


The menu is simple and tightly limited. There are six burgers. Well, five if you take into account that the veggie burger is really just a veggie sandwich. There are a couple of salads, including a new grilled vegetable salad, fries, and onion rings. And usually a couple of desserts, made on the premises.

I was told that "The Big O" was their most popular burger, so I tried that. It's a quarter of a pound of meat, cooked a nice pink medium rare, and topped with crisp bacon, cheddar cheese, a slice of tomato, red onion, and thinly fanned avocado. A dollop of ketchup on top was the finishing touch. The burger is, well, good. Really good. Not too big, full of flavor, and mouth friendly.



With the burger comes, not fries, but a nice sized green salad with either ranch or balsamic dressing. I tried the ranch dressing and found the salad to be a solidly tasty addition to the burger. But, of course, we had to order the onion rings.


They looked great, but actually turned out to be disappointing. The crispness was fleeting, and the flavors were just off. Apparently, they've got various Italian spices in the flour and then another set of spices in the breadcrumbs that form the outer crust. They don't mix well, and even Derek acknowledged that the recipe needs revisiting.

On the other hand, the fries were delicious. A beautiful golden brown and crisp on the outside, but with a soft interior. They were just salty enough. And, they were wonderful with the homemade barbecue sauce they were served with.



What would I really like, along with improved onion rings? Well, a milkshake, of course. And, a root beer float. I hope they'll add these to the menu at some point. It sounds, though, that their focus is now on expanding the restaurants -- adding five or six in San Diego, looking at south Florida for up to 20 locations, and then Northern California. So, San Diego, we're the test location. And, really, I couldn't be happier.

O'Brothers is located at 188 Horton Place, above the Levi's store.


Print Page

Summer Israeli Couscous Salad

Last spring I was invited to join the San Diego chapter of Les Dames d'Escoffier. Last night the group had a summer BBQ potluck. I'm not usually a fan of potlucks, mostly because you just never know what kind of food will arrive. But a potluck with dishes by women who are restaurant owners, caterers, cookbook authors, and cooking school teachers? Now, game on.

As it happened, the organizers also enjoy making it just a little competitive, and they had a contest for the best salad. You could also bring an appetizer or dessert, but since I was pressed for time and happened to have the ingredients on hand, I decided to make my version of Mark Bittman's Israeli couscous salad. This salad really takes advantage of the bounty of summer produce. And, I love the impact of the cinnamon, cumin, and preserved lemon.

Anyway, there were a lot of salads on the table last night, each one different, each delicious. Most, like mine, were simply plated in large bowls, but cooking teacher Edie Greenberg made a potato salad in the shape of a hat, decorated with flowers. It was absolutely charming. Another salad, linguini with shrimp, was arranged in a huge margarita glass. Along with the salads was an array of barbecued chicken thighs, pork ribs, and lamp chops. And, I don't have to tell you how delicious the half-dozen desserts were.

Okay, so the salad competition. The newbie won. I was pretty surprised and delighted. And my prize? A stunning plastic tiara. Because, of course, every girl should have one. This Les Dames experience is going to be fun!

Israeli Couscous Salad

Adapted from Mark Bittman’s Israeli Couscous Salad from “How to Eat Everything Vegetarian”

1 8.8 oz. package of Israeli couscous

1 small chopped white onion

1/4 cup plus 2 T. extra-virgin olive oil

Salt and ground black pepper

2 cups boiling water

2 T. sherry vinegar

½ t. ground cumin

1/8 t. ground cinnamon

1 preserved lemon, skin only, sliced thinly

½ small red onion, thinly sliced

¼ cup currants or golden raisins

½ cup drained canned chickpeas

2 T. capers

½ cup pine nuts, toasted

½ pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

½ pint roasted cherry or grape tomatoes*

Kernels from 1 ear of fresh white corn

6 shishito peppers, chopped

1/2 cup chopped parsley

Using a large frying pan, saute the white onion and half of the shishito peppers in 2 T. of olive oil until the onions are golden brown Add the Israeli couscous and stir until the couscous begins to brown. Add salt and pepper, then add two cups boiling water. Cover the pan and simmer for eight to 10 minutes.

Pour the couscous into a large bowl and let cool. Then stir in oil, vinegar, and spices. Add the remaining ingredients. Let the salad stand at room temperature for an hour before serving. Taste and adjust the seasonings if necessary.

*I used Peggy Knickerbocker’s recipe below for slow-roasted tomatoes:

36 to 48 cherry tomatoes, or more

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle

Balsamic vinegar

1 clove garlic, minced

1/3 to ½ cup fresh chopped herbs: any combination of parsley, marjoram, oregano, chervil

Sprinkling of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, optional

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.

1. Cut the cherry tomatoes in half width-wise. Place the halves in one or two baking dishes cut side up in one layer. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Drizzle with the olive oil and a few drops of balsamic vinegar.
2. Bake for three to four hours or until the tomatoes soften and almost collapse. Fifteen minutes before the baking is completed, combine the garlic and herbs in a small bowl. Remove the tomatoes from the oven and sprinkle the herbs and cheese on top of the tomatoes. Return to the oven for the remaining time.
3. Serve warm or at room temperature.

My note: These tomatoes freeze well.

Top Less (in Calories)

If you live in San Diego and are planning a trip to Costco, check out their latest product offering, VitaTops. These two-ounce, 100-calorie "muffin tops" have 6 grams of fiber and only 1.5 grams of fat. I think they're also only one Weight Watchers point. Plus, they have no cholesterol and no preservatives (meaning you'll want to store them in the freezer, defrost, and heat them up in the toaster to bring out their flavor).

But how do they taste? I tried the deep chocolate flavor (they have 15 altogether) and was impressed. Is it like getting your favorite muffin or cupcake from the bakery? No. But I still liked the texture -- perfect when you're watching calories but craving that unique sensation of biting into a piece of cake -- and the flavor was rich and intensely chocolate. Really, it's not a bad alternative to eating rich, fattening baked goods.




Print Page

Weird and Wonderful: Three Spring Treats

I always like a good surprise and this past weekend I found three in the form of produce. Two of them you may have heard of or even tried. I'm pretty sure that the third is something completely new to anyone but the growers and sellers and a few chefs in the area.

First up is a rare treat if you're a garlic lover: garlic scapes. These thick, curly cues of deliciousness are hard to find in San Diego. Last year I found them at First Korean Market on Convoy near Jasmine in Kearny Mesa. They were there just a brief time in the spring and that was it. On Sunday I found them at the Hillcrest farmers market at Sage Mountain Farm's stand and immediately snatched up a bunch, along with some first-of-the-season heirloom tomatoes, elephant garlic and a bunch of lovely multi-colored carrots.

Garlic scapes are the flower stalks that grow out of the garlic bulb. As they grow they begin to curl, and ultimately develop a little bud. They have just a brief season so get them while you can.


Some say they are milder than garlic bulbs, but they can be pretty potent while raw. Once cooked, however -- at least in my experience -- they lose a lot of that garlic flavor. So, my favorite way to use them is to make pesto. Simply chop them into smallish pieces and drop in the food processor. Add grated parmesan cheese, toasted pine or walnuts, salt and pepper and slowly drizzle in really good extra virgin olive oil until the mixture becomes creamy. In this batch above, I also added fresh thyme from my garden and about a tablespoon of fresh lemon zest.

The pesto is terrific on baked chicken, fish, grilled beef and pork. Add it to an omelet or roasted vegetables -- especially roasted potatoes, eggplant, tomatoes or summer squash. And, of course, it's a no brainer with pasta. I chopped some heirloom tomatoes and sea beans (see below for the big surprise), and roasted a couple of Japanese eggplants I bought at the City Heights farmers market.


The result was a wonderful vegetarian pasta dish that made two meals. And it was just as good cold as warm.


Okay, I mentioned the sea beans here and on Twitter. They're definitely a curiosity. I learned about them at Specialty Produce with L.A. food writer Erika Kerekes, who was visiting for the day. Specialty's Kelly Orange was showing us around and we walked by a large plastic bag of these greens on a shelf. They look like little twigs, but have a crispy texture and very salty, really briny, flavor straight out of the sea. Sea beans, also known as glasswort, grow wild on beaches and marshes, including estuaries in San Diego.


Part of the charm of these vegetables is their crispiness so I would use them fresh or maybe pickle them. But, certainly, you can saute or steam them or use them however you would any other vegetable. Make a salty pesto with them. Or just use them as a very interesting garnish. I added them to my pasta and looking forward to experimenting with them further.

While I was at Specialty Produce, I noticed they had pink lemons -- something I'd never seen. So I took home several to try. They're a variety unique to the average Eureka lemon. They start out with a very pretty yellow-and-green variegated skin but the flesh inside is pink and so they're often used to make pink lemonade. As the fruit matures, the skin starts to flush, as you can just see in the photo below. This is the result of lycopene, which also colors pink grapefruit.


Use these lemons just as you would a regular Eureka lemon. I thought they were too pretty to just squeeze and toss, so I made another jar of preserved lemons. If you haven't done this yet, give it a try. All you need are lemons, sea salt and a wide-mouth sterile jar.

First, cut the lemons vertically half-way down on one side, then flip the lemon over, do a half turn and make another cut. Then, stuff the inside of the lemon with the salt on each side.


Fill the jar as you stuff each lemon with the salt and press down to release the juice and make room for the next lemons. By the time you fill the jar, you should have no room for more lemons and they should be sitting in juice. If they don't release enough juice, squeeze more lemons and fill the jar with the juice to the top. Then, all you do is secure the lid and let the jar sit on your kitchen counter for a month to six weeks. Periodically turn the jar over and back upright to remix any salt that's settled at the bottom. If the lemons begin to collapse, you can add more split and salted lemons so the jar remains full.



At the end of a month to six weeks, you'll have a wonderful condiment to include in pastas, sauces, salads and sautes. Keep the jar refrigerated and pull out what you need. Trim away the flesh, rinse the peel and chop it. It adds a wonderful salty, sour flavor. But, remember, a little goes a long way for the best effect.

Print Page

Gluten-Free Eating in San Diego

When I was about 12 years old, I launched into a weird period in which if I ate spicy food and then I ate chocolate my upper lip began to itch and would then swell up to look like what today we would call a horrifying Botox moment. Think Goldie Hawn in The First Wives Club. It was embarrassing and uncomfortable and to this day I try to avoid that combination.

But, lucky me, that—I think—has been the extent of troubles I’ve had with food, beyond loving it too much, of course. Unfortunately, a growing number of people in the U.S.—some 2 million, or one in 133—are having to live and deal with something far worse and debilitating: celiac disease. For these folks, eating habits must be reinvented. They must live without gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye and barley, because their small intestine can’t tolerate it, causing a variety of health problems including gastro-intestinal distress, bloating, fatigue and muscle aches. It’s not easy and not straightforward. They’re giving up more than conventional bread, cookies and pasta. In a world in which so much of what we eat is processed, we don’t know for sure what is added by manufacturers to seemingly safe items. Every purchase of packaged goods at a grocery store can be a potential disaster for someone suffering from celiac disease.

And, of course, for years people suffering from this disease—or from wheat allergies—have either had to avoid dining out or become a server’s worst nightmare, carefully ordering at best a grilled chicken breast and steamed vegetables or something equally innocuous and then still worrying because gluten can show up in the oddest places—bread crumbs that extend tuna salad or chicken salad or a slight teaspoon of flour in an omelet. There can be cross-contamination in a kitchen and the restaurant may use packaged products that contain gluten, including items like soy sauce.

Happily, that’s changing, especially in California. It would be coy to describe this phenomenon as celiac chic, but gluten-free menus are popping up in restaurants throughout San Diego. We’re talking Pizza Fusion and Terra in Hillcrest, Urban Solace in North Park and chains like P. F. Chang's and Sammy's Woodfired Pizza. Markets like Henry’s, Trader Joe's, OB People’s Co-Op and Whole Foods have a large selection of boldly marked gluten-free products. Additionally, we have websites and bloggers focusing on this issue and offering plenty of useful resources and recipes for those whose diet is constrained.

I was on KPBS radio’s weekday morning show These Days on Tuesday, May 26 at 10 a.m. to discuss gluten-free eating, as well as vegan and sugar-free diets. With me was Erin McKenna, a former San Diegan who now operates BabyCakes, a New York City bakery on the Lower East Side that specializes in alternative baked goods. Her new book, BabyCakes, has just been published, so talked about that as well as the new bakery she's opening in downtown L.A.

I’ve been doing a fair amount of research for this so I thought I’d share my findings, although I don't pretend that this is comprehensive. If you or a loved one are newly diagnosed with celiac disease or have wheat allergies, I hope you find it helpful. And if you’ve got a great resource I’ve missed, please leave a comment so others can benefit from your knowledge.

Restaurants with Gluten-Free Menu Items

Urban Solace (printed menu of options)

Sammy's Woodfired Pizza (offers gluten-free pizza)

Ritual Tavern (has gluten-free vegan or meat shepherd's pie and many gluten-free appetizers, entrees, cider and beer)

Pizza Fusion (has gluten-free and vegan options)

PF Chang’s (has gluten-free menu available)

Terra (Chef Jeff Rossman's menu is full of wonderful, clearly-marked gluten-free dishes)

Del Mar Rendezvous (has gluten-free menu with over 40 items)

For more restaurants, check out the lists at Urban Spoon and Gluten-Free SD.

Markets with Gluten-Free Products

I spent some time at Henry’s and found what looks to me to be a wealth of different items, from salad dressings to frozen meals. Everything is well marked by the store and stocked with similar conventional products. In other words, there’s no special GF section you have to find. Here are some examples of products I found:

Frozen foods: Gluten-Free Café’s Lemon-Basil Chicken, Amy’s Asian Noodle Stir Fry and Indian Paneer Tika. Bagels, bread, pizza crusts

Baking: Pamela’s Cake Mix (chocolate and vanilla), Pamela’s Frosting (chocolate and vanilla), Pamela’s Brownie Mix, Chocolate Chip Cookie, Bread Mix, Baking and Pancake Mix. Arrowhead Mills Brownie Mix, All-Purpose Baking Mix, Pancake & Baking Mix. Four Sisters & A Brother Italian Herbed Breadcrumbs. Red Mill’s vast selection of flours, a baking mix and chocolate cake mix.

Pasta: De Boles rice lasagna noodles, multi-grain angel hair, penne and spaghetti noodles. Ancient Quinoa Harvest spaghetti noodles and shells.

Gluten-free penne with string beans, parsley, toasted pine nuts, French feta and Spanish olive oil

Cookies: Pamela’s chocolate chip mini cookies. Mi-Del ginger snaps

Salad Dressing: There was too much here to list, but included a vast array of Annie’s brand, including Natural Raspberry Vinaigrette, Red Wine and Olive Oil Vinaigrette and Artichoke Parmesan Dressing

Ethnic Foods: Thai Kitchen has a large selection of sauces and rice noodles. Patak has some Indian-style sauces including the Korma Curry, which I’ve used in the past and enjoyed.

Trader Joe’s has a wide assortment of gluten-free products. Their house products are labeled and throughout the store I found some surprising gluten-free options, including salad dressings, chutney, marinara and other tomato sauces, dips, brown rice penne pasta, brownie mix, pancake/waffle mix, granola, sausages and flourless chocolate walnut cookies. I saw the same brown rice bread I bought at Henry's, only on the shelf, not frozen, and less expensive. Look on the shelves for blue tags with a "G" "Gluten-Free" on them. And, here is their list of gluten-free store items, edited as of May 20, 2009.

Whole Foods has its Gluten-Free Bakehouse, which they describe here, along with useful links to other resources.

OB People’s Co-Op has a wide variety of gluten-free products and a staff well-versed in helping customers identify what will work for them.

Jimbo’s is another great place to buy gluten-free products and offers an online list of items.

GNI Bakery in Escondido makes a variety of gluten-free bread products that can be bought online or found at Whole Foods, Major Market and Seaside Market.

thepurepantry.com is a website launched by a San Diegan selling gluten-free baking mixes.

Gluten-Free Mall offers a vast selection of products for celiac diets.

Take a look at the big supermarkets, too, but you'll have to look hard. I spent some time at the Ralphs in Hillcrest. They carry a wide selection of Bob's Red Mill products and some Arrowhead Mills gluten-free products. But only one Thai Kitchen packaged meal is labeled gluten-free. Be careful with the Annie's condiments. While the selection that Henry's carries has a number of gluten-free products, read the labels carefully at Ralphs.

Websites

For basic information on celiac disease:

Celiac.com

National Foundation for Celiac Awareness

NIH Celiac Awareness Campaign

Celiac Sprue Association

On Being Gluten Free:

Living Without magazine

WheatFreeAmerica.com

Gluten Intolerance Group of North American

Blogs

Gluten Free in San Diego

Karina’s Kitchen

Artist and cookbook writer Karina Allrich has become a friend and is one of the most knowledgeable people I’ve come to know in this arena. Her blog is filled with wonderful recipes and resources, like her gluten-free cheat-sheet. She recently launched a gluten-free recipe search engine on Google and has put together and hosted a marathon gluten-free Twitter party, which you can find on Twitter by searching #gfree.

Gluten-Free Girl

Shauna Ahern has also been at the forefront of blogging about being gluten free. She’s the author of the book, Gluten-Free Girl. Her blog has a wealth of information and online resources for those with celiac disease. Definitely worth bookmarking.

Vegetarian/Vegan: Some people who are gluten free are also exploring vegetarian and vegan options. Many of these same San Diego markets and restaurants also have vegan options. You can find lists of these at:

All Vegan Shopping website (includes a downloadable PDF of a vegetarian dining guide)

Urban Spoon (includes reader reviews and blog resources)

Happy Cow Compassionate Eating Guide (includes reader reviews)

Basic Tips:

1. Read labels carefully and be on the lookout for wheat, rye, barley, spelt, wheat starch and commercial oats, according to Karina Allrich. “Oats themselves are okay, but those that are commercially grown tend to contain gluten because of cross-contamination,” she explains. “Some small farmers like Bob’s Red Mill are carefully growing oats to give people the option of eating them.”
2. When in doubt about a packaged product, look on the label for the customer care or information number for the manufacturer and call to find out if the product is truly gluten free.
   
3. Shop the perimeter of the supermarket. That’s where you’ll find produce, dairy and meats. It’s the center aisles with processed foods that prove difficult and dangerous.
4. Enjoy grains like quinoa and buckwheat. Try sorghum flour with its lovely, grassy flavor.
5. Ask questions when dining out. Find out if the chef adds anything like flour to egg dishes or breadcrumbs to tuna salad or chicken salad. Many restaurants now have gluten-free menus on request, so be sure to ask if they're available.
6. Don’t assume that because spelt is low in gluten that you can eat it or that someone with celiac disease or a wheat allergy can. Allrich says that the equivalent of 1/10^th of a grain of rice could set off a sensitive auto-immune system. Low gluten isn't no gluten; it doesn’t help and could make someone very ill.
7. Make sure you keep gluten-free items and conventional items completely separate and well labeled so you don’t inadvertently cross-contaminate the gluten-free products.

Note: If you'd like a copy of BabyCakes, please leave a comment below. I have two copies to give two readers. Tell me your experiences with gluten-free, vegan or sugar-free eating, shopping for food and dining out. More resources? Let us know! The deadline is Friday, June 5 at 5 p.m. PDT. I'll randomly select two readers who have left a comment.



Print Page

Too Hot to Handle: The 2008 San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival's Grand Event

If you don't live in San Diego and instead live in a cold climate, I apologize in advance. You're craving warmth, and a chance to walk around in shorts and flip flops. I understand. But, 90 degrees in November just isn't natural and we're fed up with it here. And, it's completely irritating when you attend a large outdoor food and wine festival.


That was the challenge organizers of the San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival faced on Saturday. The Grand Event, held downtown at a gorgeous bayside setting, should have been a breezy stroll from one wine maker's booth to the next, with culinary fortification from some 60 chefs. But the heat wave wilted me before I even got started. I'm a lightweight anyway when it comes to wine but the temperatures kept me from trying any of it. Instead I was relieved to find some beers and the last bottle of water offered in icy tubs.

The food was what I was actually there for so I had high hopes. The quality should have been high. After all, among the restaurants represented were Arterra, Crescent Heights, Currant Brasserie, The Oceanaire, Nobu San Diego, Quarter Kitchen, Cowboy Star, Urban Solace and Sea Rocket Bistro. But, it seems that cooking for thousands at one time is more of a challenge than most were up to, particularly during a heat wave.

One of the first purveyors I hit was Brandt Beef. I was thrilled to see them grilling up a brisket. They had done a splendid job at last summer's Taste of Slow Food San Diego in Old Town. The brisket was like eating candy. This time it was good, but not divine. A bit disappointing.


Not much better was The Oceanaire's seafood shooter. With a raw quail egg, oyster and uni swimming in soy sauce with tobiko caviar, it should have been a winner.


But, while each of these ingredients can shine on their own, together, and particularly in the heat, it was pretty much of a mess going down. Of course, chef Brian Malarkey was having fun tossing sake shots down an ice luge, and he had everyone at his booth completely entertained, as usual.


Saveur Magazine made a big mistake with its cardboard-like slices of pizza.

There were, of course, some culinary highlights. I enjoyed the ceviche from Sea Rocket Bistro. There was a lovely little tamale from Indigo Grill. But, the best, by far, was something unexpected, a sensational grilled lamb chop with tabbouleh salad, punctuated with pomegranate seeds. This was offered at the Mondavi wine tasting and chef demonstration. They also had a lovely piece of seared tuna with a spicy white bean salad.


I also enjoyed the creativity of the folks at Arterra. It was county fair time, what with little root beer floats and bags of duck fat truffled popcorn.



Then, of course, were plump corn dogs.


And, given the temperatures, thank goodness for Vignette sparkling drinks. These non-alcoholic beverages come in three flavors: Chardonnay, Rose and Pinot Noir. I particularly enjoyed the Chardonnay, with its burst of freshness.


And, while I was happy tasting all sorts of wonderful desserts, the ones from Opera Patisserie I found to be simply terrific. The raspberry pastry was melt-in-your-mouth delicious, as were the lovely petite Parisian macaroons.


I think these large events have their place, but my preference is for the smaller tasting events like Celebrate the Craft. The chefs don't have to prepare as though they were fast food joints and can really focus on the ingredients and technique. And, perhaps if the weather had been less of a daunting presence I would have enjoyed the event more and tried some of the wines. But, if nothing else, The San Diego Bay Wine and Food Festival is an opportunity for those unfamiliar with many of San Diego's chefs to get a taste of what they might find in the restaurant.

Print Page