Wendy's Gluten-free Food: One Caution

Use caution when you go to Wendy's Restaurant and order a gluten-free salad with chicken.  A few years ago, I went to Wendy's when a friend named Haylee from our support group worked at our local Wendy's Restaurant.  After I ordered my salad, she kindly got the attention of the employee cutting the chicken for the salad.  She asked them to please change their gloves and thoroughly clean the cutting board where they sliced the chicken.  The worker had been cutting breaded chicken on that same cutting board.

I was grateful for Haylee and her consideration!  It is difficult when you have checked the nutrition chart and it states there are no allergens in certain foods, and then you realize there are more steps in the process of ensuring your food is gluten free.  Tricky!

I didn't learn my lesson well enough and when a favorite restaurant of ours was out of shrimp for my salad, I decided to get a chef's salad.  It looked and tasted wonderful with slices of American cheese and ham, until I started to notice little gluten crumbs on the cheese slices.  Ugh!  This time it was a different restaurant and sweet Haylee wasn't there to remind me about the cutting board cross-contamination problem.  :(  I got really sick from eating just a little of the ham and cheese.

Wendy's saves the day with their wonderful gluten-free chili and baked potatoes.  It is helpful, especially when we are on a trip with our children, to find a Wendy's and know there is a nice selection of filling food.  A burger without the bun and a small side salad just doesn't always satisfy the appetite--and the French fries are cross contaminated--so I love getting chili and a baked potato with a Caesar's side salad without croutons to feel all set and ready to go.

Here is the link to Wendy's gluten-free menu:

http://www.wendys.com/food/pdf/us/gluten_free_list.pdf

Kate Jones and Sara Wells: Delightful!

(Photo source:  deseretbook.com)

Kate and Sara spoke at a Business Summit at a nearby university.  I had the opportunity to meet them.  They are fascinating people with an awesome success story.  After 3 years and 3 months on the web, their blog is getting over 2 million hits a day!  They have visitors to their blog from 191 out of 195 countries.  Amazing!  They presented tremendous tips and great information for the students regarding running a business on the web.

I read an article about Kate and Sara that was enlightening regarding our emotional attachment with food.  They pointed out that our memories and security are often tied to our family mealtime.  "'What I learned from years of family dinners,' says Sara, 'is the kitchen is where people connect.  That's where as a child I felt loved, and safe, and taken care of.  It's where we talked about our days, our friends, our jobs, and our lives.'" 

I think these reasons are what drives me to get good gluten-free recipes to others, so they can also join around the table with good food and good times.  It is kind of like the movie, Ratatouille, where the memory of food from our childhood brings back happiness and love. 

Kate's mom died when Kate was just 9 years old.  Her mom made roast every Sunday before she died, and when her dad made roast for dinner, tender feelings and memories about her mom came flooding in.  "Kate says it was the strong connection she felt between love, acceptance, and food in her own memories that made her want to share it with others."  (See LDS Living, March/April 2011)