"gluten-free" news and stories

The evidence is everywhere: The restaurant landscape is changing as customers demand healthier options. (McDonald's is pushing fruit-filled oatmeal, for pete's sake.) Boston Market has been at the forefront of this push for health, with new lower-calorie options and reduced-sodium recipes. Now they've got some good news for diners trying to avoid gluten -- TriumphDining.com reports that the chain's chicken gravy will be gluten-free as of February 1st. Boston Market already has a number of gluten-free options (including some side dishes and their signature rotisserie chicken), but now gluten-averse diners will be able to smother them in gravy like the rest of us.

• Smell something fishy? Fraud has been alleged at Southern California farmers markets.
• Even so, you'll still want to go -- especially for those Australian finger limes.
• Avgolemono soup: Hard to say, easy to make, "scrumptious" to eat.
• Gluten-Free Girl has turned her celiac disease into a cooking superpower.

For most beer lovers, the worst ailment that can arise from drinking is a skull-splitting hangover. But for an estimated 2 million Americans suffering from celiac disease, drinking a beer can cause stomach-wrenching pain. The culprit is gluten, a protein found in cereal grains such as wheat and barley -- a.k.a. one of beer's chief ingredients.

As a substitute, brewers have turned to the African grass sorghum to create beers such as Anheuser-Busch's Redbridge and Bard's Gold. These are great alternatives, but they're a bit like Xerox copies of beer: slightly different from the original.

"You're trying to create a traditional character that you can relate to in your palate with untraditional grains," explains Pedro Gonzalez, who founded Boulder, Colorado's New Planet after he was diagnosed with gluten intolerance. The brewery's 3R Raspberry Ale (the Rs stand for reduce, reuse, recycle; a percentage of each sale is earmarked for Colorado nonprofits) blends sorghum, corn, natural raspberry purée, orange peel and hops took a year to perfect, resulting in a clear, sparkling potion. It smells delicately of the fruit and drinks crisp and light. There's a smidgen of semi-sweetness, before the close arrives bearing a refreshing twang.

You don't have to dredge chicken in flour to make a buttery, lemony, herb-scented and classically Italian chicken piccata. Whether you're on a gluten-free diet or just want to make a healthier version of the dish, take a cue from blogger simplygluten-free and try this almond-crusted variation. Its nutty coating adds crunch and flavor. And if you want a salty touch, toss some capers or niçoise olives over the chicken before serving it.

For more on living the gluten-free life, along with recipes and resources, see my Kitchen Daily story "What Is Gluten-Free?" You may find you don't miss the wheat one bit.

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America's most popular pizza may be a crisp wheat crust topped with red sauce and loads of Parmesan and pepperoni, but pizza can be anything you want it to be. For blogger sweetbeanandgreen it's a vegan pie made with a gluten-free crust (she uses sweet rice flour) and topped with tofu "cheese" and fresh zucchini and summer squash.

The secret to the cheesy consistency of the tofu-lemon-herb mix, according to the recipe, is agar-agar, a vegetarian gelatin substitute and darling of Asian chefs and molecular gastronomists. Is the tofu blend more complicated than shaving off some nice Parmigiano Reggiano? Sure. But as kitchen alchemist Harold McGee reminds us in his fascinating book On Food and Cooking, creating food is all about science and (calling all kitchen nerds) science is fun.

For more recipes for gluten-free foods, visit Kitchen Daily.

Become a member of the Slashfood Flickr pool to get a shot of having your photos featured in Feast Your Eyes.