Gluten Free Buffet To Be Held April 1, 2014

I am teaming up with The Glens Falls and Saratoga Celiac Support Group and O’Toole's again for the Second Annual Gluten Free Buffet at O’Toole's Restaurant Pub in Queensbury. The buffet will take place at O’Toole's on Tuesday, April 1 at 6pm.

 

 O’Toole’s was the first restaurant in the area to complete the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA) Gluten-Free Resource Education and Awareness Training (GREAT).

 

A gluten-free diet requires attentive food preparation and handling. O’Toole's is exemplary as their kitchen contains no airborne flour. This program empowers the food industry to provide safe gluten-free options for individuals, businesses, and institutions. I was very happy to work with O’Toole’s and assist them in completing the NFCA GREAT Kitchens Course.

 

"We’ve recently added Angry Orchard Cider to our draft lineup, and we feature it every Friday as the draft special. We will proudly feature it on April 1st for the Second Annual Gluten Free Buffet!" says Steve Hawkins owner of O'Toole's. "In addition, we have a few new items on our extensive Gluten-Free menu… including shrimp cocktails, shrimp fajitas and thin crust pizzas…. We are proud to team up with The Saratoga & Glens Falls Celiac Support Group & Amy Rota-Poulin for this GREAT event! We look forward to seeing you at O'Toole's!"

 

O'Toole's offers a gluten free designated area within their restaurant's kitchen with a separate fryer and toaster. This helps to ensure that you can safely enjoy your french fries while your burger is served on a toasty Saratoga Gluten Free Goods Roll. And, don’t forget, their loaded potato skins are served up hot with gluten free Cabot Sour Cream.

 

The buffet will include a scrumptious appetizer, delicious main entrees, including O'Toole's famous gluten free Chicken Parmesan accompanied by gluten free toast points using NFCA GREAT Kitchen Status Saratoga Gluten Free Good's bread. It will also include coffee or tea.

 

The cost for the buffet will be $20.00 per person. This does include tax and gratuity. Gluten Free dessert and alcoholic beverages will be available but for an additional cost. Reserve your place as soon as possible as last years event was sold out!! For reservations please call O'Toole's Restaurant and Pub directly, at (518)-793-3389. Click here for the official press release. Come join us and be a part of great food, great friends and great memories!!!!!

 

Warmest Regards & Happy Cooking,

 

Amy

www.glutenfreewithamy.com

Busy Days

 It all started a few days ago, getting ready for Easter Sunday on News Channel 13.

It was a GREAT start to three days of living in the fast lane.

This morning Michael Moynihan, of O'Tooles Restaurant in Queensbury NY, and I had the privilege of being interviewed by Benita Zahn from News Channel 13 WNYT. We were very excited to talk about the first ever gluten free buffet in the area. The buffet will take place on April 2, 2013.

O'Tooles is the first restaurant in our area to complete the National Foundation For Celiac Awareness GREAT Kitchens Course. The Gluten Free Buffet is also The Glens Falls Regional and Saratoga Springs Celiac Support Group April meeting.

Mike took Benita on a VIP tour of the O'Tooles kitchen as she interviewed him. Mike and his staff even prepared their famous gluten free chicken parmesan from their gluten free menu.

Here is Benita Zahn's Health Report from tonight's 5:00pm news cast: Click Gluten Free Buffet http://wnyt.com/article/656/

On a side note, Benita is absolutely lovely and truly a sweet person. I thoroughly enjoyed her company.

Next, it was off for a quick cup of coffee on the way to the LOOKTV Studios to meet with David Storey.

It was great to see David again! David and I talked about the Gluten Free Buffet at O'Tooles too! He is genuinely excited about the event. You might even catch him at the bar, enjoying a gluten free beer and a bite tomorrow night.

Here is the interview with David Storey on LOOKTV 5:30pm News: http://www.looktvonline.com/gluten-free-for-dinner


As Benita reported the April 2, 2013, 6:00pm seating at O'Tooles Restaurant for the first Gluten Free Buffet has been sold out.

GOOD NEWS: We are holding a second seating for the Gluten Free Buffet at 7:15pm on April 2, 2013. Please RSVP by calling O'Tooles Restaurant      directly at (518)-793-3389 or by emailing glutenfreersvp@gmail.com

We hope to see you there tomorrow evening!!


Warmest Regards & Happy Cooking,



Amy
www.glutenfreewithamy.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/glutenfreeamy
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cook-Gluten-Free-With-Amy/146394436394

You Are Invited!!

To The First Gluten Free Buffet!!!

You Are Invited to the First Ever Gluten Free Buffet at the NFCA Gluten Free GREAT Certified O'Tooles Restaurant!

The Glens Falls and  Saratoga Celiac Support Group, O'Tooles and I are teaming up for our April meeting on April 2nd at 6:00pm. 

The buffet will offer a scrumptious appetizer, delicious main entrees, including O'Tooles famous gluten free Chicken Parmesan accompanied by gluten free toast points using NFCA GREAT Certified Saratoga Gluten Free Good's bread, and soda, coffee or tea. Come and enjoy GREAT gluten free food and lively conversation in a fun atmosphere.

The cost will be $20.00 per person which includes tax and gratuity. Dessert or alcoholic beverages will be available for an additional costs.

Be sure to reserve your place: RSVP by March 31, 2013. Please RSVP to glutenfreersvp@gmail.com

 

See you there!!

Warmest Regards & Happy Cooking,



Amy
Amy Rota-Poulin
Restaurant Liaison
Glens Falls and Saratoga Springs Regional Celiac Support Groups
www.glutenfreewithamy.com



O'Tooles Restaurant and Saratoga Gluten Free Goods
have completed the NFCA GREAT KITCHENS Course!

It's Gluten Free GREAT!!



Pierre's amazingly delicious dinner at our new favorite
restaurant. Look for more information on this new
mystery restaurant right here! Coming Soon!

 Everyone who knows me knows that I am super strict about gluten cross contamination in my kitchen. My passion for "safe" gluten free cuisine follows me everywhere I go, from my home to the restaurants we frequent.

If you are living a gluten free lifestyle, then you know how hard it can be to find a "safe" restaurant, a restaurant where you can trust to dine. Many restaurants are seeing the green and offering gluten free menus (I have even seen a restaurant that offers a "low gluten" menu.) This can be very deceptive to the gluten free consumer, since it only takes less than 20ppm of gluten to contaminate an entire meal. Many of these restaurants have no training or education in gluten free cuisine. In fact most of these restaurants do not even have any gluten cross contamination procedures in place.

The National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA) has created a wonderfully proactive program for restaurants with the appropriate acronym GREAT. The NFCA's Gluten-Free Resource Education and Awareness Training program "empowers the food industry to provide safe gluten-free options for individuals and institutions."

Here is a list of the available GREAT programs currently available:

         GREAT Business Association is a gluten-free business association open to individuals and businesses. In addition to networking, the association helps food manufacturers uphold best practices for gluten-free food production.

• GREAT Kitchens provides a "Train-the-Trainer" course for chefs and food service managers. Included with the program are tools to educate the entire kitchen staff on safe gluten-free food handling.
• GREAT Dietitians provides similar programming to GREAT Kitchens, but adds specific lessons for the trained dietitian, including an introduction to clinical practices.

As the Restaurant Liaison for the Glens Falls & Saratoga Springs Regional Celiac Support Group, I see first hand how we can help restaurants serve a delicious and safe gluten free menu. (Yes you can have both!) We are instituting a "Restaurant of the Month" program. For a restaurant to qualify they must enroll and complete the NFCA's GREAT Kitchens course. Upon completion of the NFCA's course the restaurant can contact me and together we can develop a delectable gluten free menu that fits that particular restaurant's vision and set up safe gluten free cross contamination procedures. To know when the Glens Falls & Saratoga Springs Celiac Support Group's schedule of meetings please visit http://www.gfceliacsupportgroup.com/

No matter what part of the country you live in, I encourage you to have your favorite restaurant (or a restaurant you would like to be your new favorite restaurant) complete the NFCA's GREAT Kitchens course. Please visit the National Foundation For Celiac Awareness's website, http://www.celiacentral.com/ for more information on all of their fabulous educational programs. Remember that once you have the knowledge you have the power! Take charge of your gluten free lifestyle and love it!


I love the message at the bottom of this menu!

Amy's Recipe of the Day: 

Mediterranean Grilled Chicken Kabobs

Copyright 2010 by Amy Rota-Poulin

Marinade & Savory Sauce:

1 cup plain low fat yogurt

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon brown mustard (gluten free)

2 large sprigs of fresh rosemary, roughly chopped

4 cloves of fresh garlic, finely chopped

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, about the juice of one large lemon

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground sea salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

Kabob Fixings

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1” chunks

18 cherry tomatoes

1 red onion, cut into 1” slices

Bamboo kabob sticks, soaked in water

Marinade & Savory Sauce

Mix together the yogurt, olive oil, mustard, fresh rosemary, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Place half of the mixture in a gallon size bag, and reserve the other half in your refrigerator to enjoy later.

Kabobs Fixings:

Cut the chicken breasts into 1” chunks and place in the plastic bag that has the marinade in it.  Place the bag in the fridge. Let the chicken marinate for at least 30 minutes, however you can leave it in your fridge overnight. Meanwhile place your bamboo skewers in water, and set aside. This process helps the skewers not to burn. Get your grill started on medium/low heat.

To assemble your skewers place a slice of red onion, followed by a chunk of marinated chicken, another slice of red onion, a cherry tomato, a slice of red onion, a chunk of marinated chicken…and so on until each skewer has 3 pieces of chicken and 2 tomatoes on it. Of course you may make them however you like, this is way is just what I have found to be the most flavorful.

Grill the kabobs on medium low heat until the chicken is fully cooked. Approximately 4-5 minutes each side. Make sure to turn your kabobs!  Serve your kabobs piping hot with a dollop of sauce.  With this easy and summery dish the Mediterranean comes right to your backyard. Great Recipe for entertaining! Enjoy!

*Always Read the ingredient labels of each individual ingredient you are using to make sure that, that particular brand is completely gluten free. If you are unsure call the manufacturer or visit their web site, they are usually more than happy to answer your questions. *

This recipe was created by Amy Rota-Poulin author of Cooking Gluten Free With Amy.  Enjoy!

Please visit http://www.glutenfreewithamy.com

These recipes and many more can be found in my cookbook, Cooking Gluten Free With Amy available at the Northshire Bookstore and online!



Upcoming Events You Need To Know About!

Hoover is busy driving to all of these
great gluten free events!

This is just a short and sweet post of a few upcoming events that you might like to add to your calendar:

• On Sunday, March 20, 2011: I will be cooking up a gluten free storm with Dan Bazile & Tim Drawbridge on WNYT News Channel 13 during the Morning Today Show. The show starts at 8:00am. Tune in around 8:30am to see how you can bring Spring into your kitchen!

• On Tuesday, April 5, 2011: The Glens Falls Regional Celiac Support Group will be holding their April meeting at Glens Falls Hospital. The meeting will take place at 6:30pm on the lower level of the Hospital. The Glens Falls Regional Celiac Support Group is excited to welcome this month's guest speaker, Marianne Romano RD and Nutritional Consultant. Marianne will be speaking to us about a healthy gluten free diet.

• On Wednesday, April 13, 2011 from 6:00-8:00pm: Price Chopper will be holding a Gluten Free Food Seminar. I will be happy to answer your gluten free cooking questions! I hope to see you there!
   "Location: Price Chopper/Golub Corporation Corporate Offices, 461 Nott St., Schenectady, NY 12308
  Sample gluten free products and speak with product representatives:
  Elizabeth Barbone author of 2 Easy Gluten Free Baking cookbooks will demonstrate art of baking gluten free breads
  Amy Rota-Poulin author of Cooking Gluten Free with Amy will demonstrate flavorful gluten free dishes
  Tickets $10.00 per person, proceeds to be donated to local Celiac chapter
  Tickets available by sending check made out to Price Chopper to:
  Maureen Murphy, Manager Consumer Trends, Nutrition and Lifestyles, 461 Nott St., Box 204, Schenectady, NY 12308"

Amy's Quick Recipe: Chocolate Raspberry Quesadillas:

2 gluten free corn tortillas
15-17 gluten free dark chocolate chips
1-2 tablespoons of fresh or fresh frozen raspberries

Place 1 corn tortilla in a pan on medium heat, top with dark or bittersweet chocolate chips, then with raspberries. Place second corn tortilla on top. Cook for approximately 1 minute. Carefully flip your chocolaty quesadilla using a spatula, cook for an additional 1-2 minutes. Remove from pan, let cool 1 minute. Cut into 4 pieces and serve! This is one of my all time favorite quick, simple and completely satisfying desserts! You get a chocolaty, fruity & crunchy dessert that is also a fun and easy finger food! YUM!!

Amy's Quick Tip: Feel free to add dried fruit or your favorite fresh fruit in place of the raspberries in the recipe above. You can also make this gluten free delicacy dairy free to by using the gluten free/dairy free chocolate chips which can be found in the gluten free isle at Price Chopper.