Category Archives: Gluten free coffee

Gluten free D.C., Pt. 4

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There is so much amazing gluten free ground to cover in D.C…. I didn’t scratch the surface of what they have to offer but I still managed to find some great eats!

There are distinctly areas of town for dining gluten free that provide more than chain type express joints, Alexandria proved to be one of those for us. We popped by on our way out of town and found these gems:

At Del Ray Pizzeria @delraypizzeria  they offer all of their pizza’s gluten free at the 10″ price. The crust is made locally by The Happy Tart. They were reasonably priced, great service and in a really cute eclectic part of town with free street parking. Bonus!

Like any reasonable family, we cruised over to Alexandria Cupcakes #alexandriacupcakes afterward to pick up dessert. They offered vanilla and chocolate gluten free cupcakes in a dedicated container, separate from the other cupcakes and they also offered a gluten free, vegan cupcake that was raspberry filled for my son. The cupcakes were made of coconut flour, they were moist and the icing was perfect (not too sweet).


What goes better with a cupcake than an iced matcha? A couple doors down from the cupcakes I found Killer ESP (Espresso, Sorbet and Pie). @killeresp   Not only did they have matcha lattes but I scored a raspberry turnover that was full of flavor, held together while I ate it and, oh, did I mention it too was gluten free? Today was a good day. 

On my way to the car I stopped in Misha’s Coffee House. @mishascoffeehouse  I love the inside of coffee houses, stores and bistros. There is always such a relaxed, inviting atmosphere and it’s always on my agenda to see if they have anything  gluten free. 


They had this rack of safely wrapped, individual portions of @katebakesbars treats which are not only gluten free but vegan! (I hear they have paleo versions too 😉

I wish I could spend a week in Alexandria alone. Love the town. Love the eats! 

Gluten free D.C. Eats, Pt. 2

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If you are headed into downtown D.C., you will quickly notice that all of the buildings house a federal office of some sort.

Interestingly, you will not see places to eat. It’s actually very bizarre. It took us a few hours touring to realize that snack shacks were owned by The Government and food trucks lined the streets because those are the only options for refreshment, outside cafeterias in respective buildings, until you get outside the boundaries of DC and move into the neighboring cities housing businesses.

In need of some really good food, we ventured out to GCDC Grilled Cheese Bar and landed on a winner! The gluten free grilled cheese were made on @risebakerygf Rise Bakery bread. They are native to the DC area, and as I quickly found, supply many of the restaurants. They also made tots in a dedicated frier and you could get them with many different gluten free toppings, including chili.

 

Immediately after, we took a visit a couple streets over to the @wickedwaffle  Wicked Waffle. I could eat there every day! The waffles were light and fluffy, cut in half and topped with pretty much anything you can think of. They cooked ours on a separate tray and called out gluten free when they served it, for that extra peace of mind. They also had gluten free bars near the register for a take away quick snack.

 

Next we popped by one of my favorite bakeries (which we also visit in Chicago) @lepainquotidien Le Pain Quotidien USA, “the daily bread.” I found the triple chocolate cookies that the kids love and picked up a lemon poppyseed muffin for myself. This proved the be the best breakfast the following morning.

 

Last, I stopped by Pret Organic Coffee and tried one of their almond matcha lattes. While they didn’t offer any gluten free baked goods, they managed to shift my thinking when it comes to almond milk in my matcha. This was a distinct improvement in the ones I have tried in the past and I would highly recommend giving it a try!

For more info, check out pt. 3!

Coffee: Gluten Free or Not?

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As a purveyor of the gluten free diet, I like to read up on research, ideas and points of view on what others view as gluten free, naturally gluten free and totally unsafe territory.

It’s often difficult to determine, at first glance, if a food is truly gluten safe. In fact, some people choose to view all things as unsafe, until proven otherwise. I get it. Once you have been poisoned, you tend not to take these things for granted.

Recently, I was reading some posts about the controversy of coffee. Hot or cold, pour over or cold brew, the writers perspective was that most coffee was not gluten free. This got me to wondering… is it?

I sat down for a quick cuppa and chat with Tony and Debbie Zancanaro, Owners of The Well Coffeehouse in Fishers, IN and asked them some questions about the nature of coffee and what would make it gluten free… or not.

As physicians, they were both familiar with celiac disease and the application of a gluten free diet. They even explained how they make available gluten free pastries in their coffeehouse, outsourced by a baker who exclusively makes gluten free treats and delivers them in plastic containers, only housing gluten free goods.

They shared that their beans come from a single source, grown at high altitude (where growing cross-contamination is not an issue) on a bush, are harvested from the pit of the cherry (which would be protected by it’s outer shell). Then the pits are laid out and dried, stored in plastic bins (that only house these beans) and shipped in bags. Their beans do not have anything sprinkled on them either.

Like anything, all coffee beans are not created equal. I’m going to continue searching and will be posting more as I discover processes, sourcing, roasting and flavor norms. Keep an eye out for more info and in the mean time, feel free to stop in at The Well Coffeehouse for a gluten free cup of coffee and scone!