S'no Problem

By Dori Molozanov

A frigid winter weekend in the mountains is a great way to relax, exercise, and spend time with family and friends. But for some of us who hit the slopes, even a short ski getaway requires thorough meal planning. Thankfully, several resorts located within a few hours of Philadelphia offer gluten-free options for sensitive diners.

The terrain park at Shawnee Mountain Ski Area

At Shawnee Mountain in the Poconos, skiers can enjoy gluten-free foods in all dining areas. Shawnee works closely with gluten-free purveyors, including OMG...It’s Gluten Free, to build a special menu that features sandwiches, burgers, pizza, pasta, sweets and snacks. “We have families who come here every weekend because they know there are safe things for them to eat,” says Shawnee Mountain food and beverage director Tamy Galfo.

Camelback Mountain Resort, also in the Poconos, has seven dining locations and addresses common food sensitivities with gluten-free and other items. Jack Frost and Big Boulder don’t have regular gluten-free menus, but are able to accommodate groups with gluten-free options such as salads and chicken strips, using dedicated equipment and utensils. Although Montage Mountain Ski Resort in Scranton only offers a gluten-free menu in the summer during water-park season, they are flexible and allow families to bring their own food and supplies for birthday parties.

In the Lehigh Valley, Blue Mountain is able to serve gluten-free diners, while The Grille at Bear Creek Mountain has a gluten-free version of its traditional menu.

Over in New Jersey, Mountain Creek now offers gluten- and lactose-free choices at The Market, its cafeteria-style dining location.

For skiiers looking to venture outside Pennsylvania and New Jersey, Hunter Mountain in New York is accommodating to gluten-free guests. The resort has over a dozen dining locations and many options for gluten-free customers, including pizza at VanWinkles Restaurant. Hunter Mountain’s kitchens take precautions for various dietary restrictions and also provide customers with copies of manufacturers’ ingredient labels upon request.

News & Notes: January 25, 2013

New to Mt. Airy is Goat Hollow (300 W. Mt. Pleasant Ave., 267-428-5672), an American brasserie that serves burgers and sandwiches on gluten-free bread. Other dishes on the menu are or can be modified to be gluten free, and New Planet's pale ale and Magners cider are available in bottles.

Keating's River Grill, the house restaurant at the Hyatt Regency on Penn's Landing (201 S. Columbus Blvd., 215-521-6509), notes gluten-free items on its menus, including almond yogurt pancakes served at breakfast.

Dice's Creative Cakes in Boyertown (30 N. Reading Ave., 610-367-0107) bakes gluten-free sweets on different days using washed utensils and bakeware. Options include sugar and chocolate chip cookies, pumpkin and zucchini breads and apple dumplings. Cakes can also be made to order.

Those hungry for a nostalgic Philly nosh can go to Levis Hot Dogs in Abington (966 Old York Rd., 215-572-1895) for a frankfurter on a gluten-free bun and Champ Cherry soda.

I Got Chills, They're Multiplyin': Another Shake Shack is coming to town - this one on the campus of Drexel University at 3200 Chestnut St. It should be open in time for the fall semester. Meanwhile, Jules Thin Crust will be bringing its gluten-free pizza to Ardmore at a location to be announced soon.

Panera Bread has a double-secret "hidden" menu - six protein-centric, low-carb options that are prepared without gluten ingredients. According to the company's blog, "you won't find these items on banners in our cafes, or even on the menu board. Here's how you get the dishes - just tell one of our associates that you're ordering from the "Hidden Menu," and they'll take care of it from there." Of course, there is lots of bread-baking going on at Panera, so cross-contamination is something to keep in mind.

Feb. 14 is the last day of operation for Ralic's Steakhouse in Haddonfield.

On Tuesday, I wrote about Sweet Megan, an allergen-friendly bakery in the suburbs that just debuted a creative mini dessert called MegansSpoonfuls.

Three of Contessa's new World Cuisine frozen convenience meals are gluten free: Chicken Fried Rice, Shrimp Fried Rice and Paella.

Registration is now open for CHOP's annual pediatric Celiac disease event on Sun. March 17 in Philadelphia. Breakfast and lunch will be provided and kids of all ages are welcome. The event is free but space is limited.

If you haven't already done so, please cast a vote for me in the Epikur magazine writer's competition. Voting closes Feb. 1.

Also, don't be shy about emailing me with information on accommodating restaurants, new products and the like, and follow me on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.

Have a great weekend!

- Michael

Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)

"Silver Linings Playbook" star Bradley Cooper isn't the only Philly-area presence at Hollywood's award ceremonies this year. Sweet Megan, a gluten-, dairy- and soy-free bakery in suburban Philadelphia, debuted its MegansSpoonfuls treats in the swag bags for the Golden Globe Awards attendees last week. The bite-size sweets will also be among the gifts for stars at the upcoming Screen Actors Guild Awards, Grammy Awards and the Oscars.

Sweet Megan's Vanilla Cupcake

Sweet Megan is run by Pattie Lerner and her daughters Cara and Dana, and was started last year to honor the memory of Pattie's niece Megan Griffith, who lost her fight with brain cancer in 2008. Recently, Cara developed allergies to gluten and, out of concern for her daughter's health, Pattie began to develop gluten-free desserts made with all-natural, healthy ingredients. Her gluten-free baking led to the creation of a family business.

MegansSpoonfuls brownie

Pattie makes birthday and any occasion cakes and cupcakes in three flavors plus a flavor of the month. Her newest creations are the MegansSpoonfuls, which are bite-size truffles, cakes and brownies each attached to a spoon.

The Lerners plan to donate a portion of the proceeds from sales to charities such as the Dream Foundation, which helped Megan fulfill her wish to meet comedian Ellen DeGeneres.

Sweet Megan products are sold at Bunn’s Natural Foods in Southampton, Grapevine Natural Grocery in Newtown, and Just Loaf'n at the Newtown Farmers Market; they'll soon be available at Sara's Homemade Sweets in Langhorne and the Richboro Shop n Bag. All of the sweets are available for online ordering.

News & Notes: January 18, 2013

There are two more weeks left in the voting for Epikur food-and-wine magazine's Best Writer competition; please vote for me and spread the word to friends and family.

Down on the farm, Bob Evans Restaurant now has a gluten-free menu that includes breakfast, lunch and dinner options. The chain has nine locations in the Delaware Valley and hundreds of others throughout the Midwest, mid-Atlantic and Southeast U.S.

South Philly Mediterranean Kris (1100 Federal St., 215-468-0104) serves an eggplant parmesan with an egg and parmigiano batter (no breading) with fresh mozzarella and tomato basil marinara. It's accompanied by polenta gnocchi, also gluten free. Other menu items either are or can be prepared gluten free.

Add the Nino's Pizza locations in Wilmington, New Castle, Middletown, Bear and Smyrna to strengthen my belief that Delaware has the most gluten-free pizza options per square mile of any state. Nino's outposts in West Chester, Pennsylvania and Cecil County, Maryland also have gluten-free pies. The pizzas come on their own tins and are prepared with separate sauce and cheese. Several locations offer gluten-free ravioli as well.

Also in Delaware, The Greene Turtle Sports Bar & Grille has opened a location in Newark (250 Elkton Rd., 302-454-1592) with a gluten-free menu.

Reader Jared G. let me know that Chez Elena Wu in Voorhees (910 Haddonfield-Berlin Rd., 856-566-3222) has gluten-free soy sauce and can prepare many protein and vegetable dishes gluten free.

Nearby, Marlton's Ragazzi (44 Rt. 70 E., 856-810-8810) offers gluten-free ravioli, gnocchi, grilled eggplant and wraps.

As I wrote on Tuesday, there are gluten-free options at Lucky Strike, Dave & Buster's and North Bowl, boutique bowling centers in Philadelphia.

Udi's Gluten Free has announced several new products: three varieties of granola bars (Cranberry Almond, Chocolate Chip and Ancient Grains), 6" and 9" plain tortillas, Spinach & Feta pizza and personal-size three-cheese pizza.

One more addition to the new Van's gluten-free products I mentioned a few weeks ago: Ancient Grains waffles, made from brown rice, millet, teff, buckwheat, amaranth, sorghum and quinoa. The waffles are also egg and dairy free.

Natural-foods chef Heather Esposito will be teaching a gluten-free and allergen-friendly cooking class called "Cooking For Detox" at Food For All in northwest Philadelphia (7127 Germantown Ave., 267-297-7122) on Sunday, Jan. 27 from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Cost is $50. RSVP by Jan. 23 by calling Food For All.

Be sure to check out the Events page at the blog for a list of kids' and adult support group meetings, meet-ups and cooking classes.

Have a great weekend!

- Michael

Bowls and Dishes

Bowling has become - dare I say it - hip, as the drab neighborhood relics of youth have been superseded by flashy, urban digs. The food landscape associated with bowling alleys has changed as well. Staples like hot dogs, fountain sodas and vending-machine candy have been displaced by creative small plates and craft brews.

Lucky Strike's Green Chili Tacos

Philadelphia is no exception to this "boutique bowling" trend. Steps from City Hall in Center City is the multi-level Lucky Strike Lanes & Lounge (1336 Chestnut St., 215-545-2471), one of 18 U.S. locations. Many choices on the dinner menu are gluten free, including Grilled Jerk Skewers and Spinach & Artichoke Dip appetizers, grilled wings (with buffalo, BBQ and garlic parmesan glazes and all dipping sauces), and three kinds of tacos. A manager told me that the tortilla chips and fries are prepared in a separate gluten-free fryer; I recommend confirming upon your visit.

Northern Liberties' North Bowl

Opened in July 2006, North Bowl in Northern Liberties (909 N. 2nd St., 215-238-BOWL) is situated at a former mechanics' garage that was transformed into a 21,000-square-foot nightlife spot. The bi-level structure includes a cafe, bar and lanes downstairs. Upstairs offers four additional lanes, a second bar, pool table, arcade games and lounge. The menu features three varieties of gluten-free mac-and-cheese dishes and Spanish import Estrella Damm Daura in bottles.

The Northeast Philadelphia outpost of entertainment center chain Dave and Buster's (1995 Franklin Mills Circle, 215-632-0333) has an 18-lane bowling alley. D&B's gluten-free menu includes two under-600 calorie options (Mango Citrus Shrimp Skewers and Cajun Sirloin) along with Black Jack BBQ Chicken, Fire Grilled Salmon and the unusually named Lawnmower Salad. D&B's other locations in South Philadelphia (325 N. Columbus Blvd, 215-413-1951) and Plymouth Meeting (500 W. Germantown Pike, 610-832-9200) don't offer bowling, but do have billiard tables and plenty of arcade games.