Travel Tips for Special Diets!

Howdy y’all!

Guess where I ammm…. I’m in TEXAS!!

I’ve never been! And I love it! 95 degrees and humid as all get-out --- bring it on!! :D

I’m here for my friend’s wedding. It was over the weekend, and gosh, was it ever beautiful! My friend, M, was such a beautiful bride! I’m so happy for them!

I’m writing this from the Houston airport, where I’m about to get on a flight to Wisconsin for my family’s annual 4^th of July reunion at our lake home.

If you’ve been following my blog for a while now, you’ll remember that the other year, there was a FIRE at the lake home, and so we’ve had to completely revamp the place.

It’s all better now, and I can’t wait to spend the week with my fam...and of course, Roxy. J

Party on the Water! :D 

So as I’m sitting here snacking on some grape tomatoes and raw cashews, I decided that I’d do a quick post about traveling while on a special diet.

#RealTalk ... it can be pretty tough if you don’t plan ahead. SO, my #1 advice is BE PREPARED.

When you’re gluten free or vegan, or SCD – or All three like me – then you can’t just swing into the news stand at the airport and pick up a pack of m&m’s if you get hungry, or expect to waltz into a airport eatery and grab a quick bite. No ma’am. Last I checked, there aren’t organic fruit and vegetable stands in the terminals. You’re lucky if you can find a salad with more than one tomato and one limp cucumber slice if we’re being honest. Bleak, friends. Bleak.

BUT – I’ve found a way to enjoy traveling --- food and all! It just takes a little creativity and a little planning!

Here are my tips:

1^st and foremost: EAT A BIG (read: HUGE) BREAKFAST BEFORE YOU TRAVEL

“But I’m not a breakfast person.” Well suck it up sweetheart – today you are…in a big way. I always eat what I would typically have quantity-wise for dinner, for breakfast when I’m traveling. This is called an insurance policy. J

“But my flight’s super early.” Tough nuggets, love. This will be the best chance for you to nourish your body all day, so take advantage. I ALWAYS make my breakfast the night before when I have a flight in the morning. This is a great meal to eat on the mornings of flights because it’s filling, nutritious, and will keep you going for a long time – plus it tastes like pumpkin pie, so it’s like having dessert for breakfast. J 

Funny story: once I brought this in a tupperware to eat on my flight. I was stopped in the security line and had to throw it away because they said I could be hiding something in it! What?!! CRAZY! I was *NOT* a happy camper. --TSA, if you're reading this, that really ticked me off!! :P #GirlsGottaEat

2. BRING LOTS OF SNACKS

#RealTalk ... Aside from my computer and wallet, my huge Vera Bradley carry on is full of food! No joke. Tupperwares with chopped veggies, whole fruit, nuts, homemade trail mix, dried no-sugar-added fruit like dried mangoes or raisins, LaraBars (they’re GF, V, SCD – but not BED). Their ingredients are simply dates, dried fruit and nuts.

I also bring several packets of individual peanut/almond butter packets. Justin’s nut butter sells individual “squeeze packs” that you can put on apples, carrot sticks, bananas, etc. – Just be sure to declare them in your “liquids and gels” at security.

I also always whip up a batch of these energy bites before I go.

They're GREAT to have on hand, and easy to travel with.

Try my apple pie bites or blueberry muffin bites!

3. BE CREATIVE WITH PIT STOPS

When you’re on a car trip, one thing that everyone looks forward to is where to take a pit stop and stretch and get some food. The best trick I’ve found is to stop at the grocery store. They always have fresh food options for you to take advantage of.  Not only that, but many grocery stores have a salad bar in the deli – jackpot!

On that note, if you can find a Whole Foods….you have found Heaven on Earth for a road tripper. Every store has an amazing Salad, Hot and Cold food bar. They label every ingredient on the bars, and will let you know if it’s gluten free, vegan, etc. – and if it includes any of the top allergens like soy, shellfish, etc. I like to check out if there are any WF’s en route, and plan our pit stops accordingly.

Additionally, Golden Corral’s have wonderful salad bars for you to take advantage of, complete with lots of fruit and veggies, chickpeas, etc.

4. GOOGLE IT

When you’ve gotten to your destination, Google the city/town to find any gluten free/vegan eats. You can also look up health food stores. You’d be surprised how many people post about this online…It’s really helpful – that goes for airports too!

5. GROCERY IT UP

Additionally, when you’re at your destination, hit the grocery store. Most hotel rooms have a refrigerator and microwave. You can use these for makeshift dinners if you’re in a pinch!

When I was in Texas, there was a great deli across the street from my hotel called Jason's Deli that had a beautiful salad bar. I went there for both lunch and dinner!

 #bestsaladever!

It was amazing. It had dried fruit and nuts, an organic olive oil/balsamic vinegar dressing, hard boiled eggs, beets, olives, and tons of fresh veggies.

This place, Jason Deli, was known for their salad bar. I really lucked out being right across the street. Apparently it's a chain, so there are other locations. 

I enjoyed it while soaking up some rays at the hotel pool. #thisisthelife

So there you have it sports fans! Those are my tips for traveling! I just got to Wisconsin, so I’m off to the grocery store! Haha #practicewhatyoupreach :)

The main thing is, you’re on vacation! Enjoy the company you’re with and create some special memories. Odds are, unless you have access to a full kitchen, you’re not going to be eating the most exciting things while you’re traveling – to be honest, it will be more like survival mode. But remember the important thing: you’re there to be with the ones you love. So if your food is less than optimal, so be it. It’s only temporary :)

I’ll be up in Wisconsin, where my culinary creative juices flow! So be sure to check back this week for more exciting recipes!

Who’s watching the World Cup today?!

NYC GLUTEN FREE CRUMBS BAKESHOP!!

Hey guys! 

I owe you all a super big apology for my lack of posting last week! Things here are INSANELY busy with the band! If you missed my big news, I'm the new singer in a cover band! It's pop/Latin fusion, so I'm having to learn some songs in Spanish! (I'm channeling my inner Shakira...see below ;) ) But as you can imagine, with rehearsals 3x a week, school, auditions, and just life in general, I have hardly had anytime to breathe, let alone blog! 

But I'm on top of my game now, and back at it. I've got the ingredients in the fridge for a yummy new recipe, and I'm excited to share it with you! 

Well, I hope you had a great weekend!

I know I did! Lots of fun "Halloweeny" things! :) A pumpkin carving party on Friday and then a house warming party last night! I may or may not have stayed out until 4am.... :D

So. Big news. BIG NEWS.

Brace yourselves people.

Crumbs Bake Shop has a GLUTEN FREE STORE!! 

Yes, THAT Crumbs. The incredibly amazing cupcake shop in NYC. 

Friends, they've done the impossible. They opened an ALL GLUTEN-FREE cupcake and bake shop!!!! 

And my mom and I were one of the first people in it! Yep, we stumbled upon this little gem on its second day!

Now, sadly, I couldn't have any of the cupcakes because I follow the Specific Carb Diet (read: grain free...these cupcakes are free of gluten, but still contain Gluten Free grains, like rice flour, chick pea flour, etc.). But my mom had one. Now she's not gluten free, but she said, and I quote, "These were the best cupcakes...ever." She said they were moist and outrageously delicious. She had the red velvet.

But there were SO MANY!! Carrot Cake, Cookies n' Creme, Red Velvet, Death By Chocolate, Classic Vanilla, Vanilla and Chocolate, a "Little Debbie's style" one, chocolate chip...and other decadant cookies and cakes!

And they even had Dairy Free options!! Swoon:)

But look at these babies! All. That. Frosting!! 

And no, you're not dreaming...that's a gluten free cookies n' creme cupcake. 

Have we died and gone to Heaven?! I don't know, but I'm pretty sure there will be one of these shops on Pearly Gate Lane:)

And look at how friendly the employees were. They couldn't wait to share their gluten free goodness with us.


AND WILL YOU LOOK. AT. THOSE. SAMPLES?!!! Legit 1/4 of a cupcake....

Crumbs. Check it out next time you're in NYC. It's in the village...around 5th Ave and 8th St.

Hu Kitchen! An NYC Hotspot!

Holy cow, you guys. I may have just discovered the Holy Grail. And it's called Hu Kitchen.

I just had, hands down, the best restaurant experience -- bar none -- at Hu.

Hu is revolutionary dining. As in -- it's real food. I mean -- check the door: No Tricks. Just food. 

They're setting out to change the way we eat. To bring food back to nature -- the pre-industrial way of eating. . Unprocess it. They want to cook and eat food the way it is found in nature. Hallelujah! 

Their revolutionary food philosophy is summed up in their Eight Hu Pillars. And if you read them carefully, it's not so revolutionary after all --- it's how we're supposed to eat! They follow the same food philosophy I do!

The Hu Pillars: 1) Unprocess. 2) Count ingredients, not calories. 3) Pull plants, push animals (pull fruit and veg to the center of the plate) 4) Minimize grain. 5) Embrace fat (the good fat) 6) Get back to animal (feed animals what they're supposed to eat -- ie: grass -- not GMO pellets) 7) Sweeten wisely (no cane sugar/artificial sweeteners) 8) Eat clean (organic)

And the cuisine here is nearly ALL SCD-Friendly! Yep! You heard that correctly! Everything is gluten free, the majority is grain free and ALL is dairy free!! And if that's not amazing enough, there are a TON of vegan options --- even Body Ecology Diet options! -- and they use organic, non-GMO ingredients! 

I met the owner, Jordan, and he couldn't have been more awesome. He's the picture of good health. He explained that this is the way he eats. He feels so good eating this way that he had to share it with the world! And boy, am I glad he did.

It's a self-service place with a cool vibe. The decor reflects the food -- clean and earthy. Everything is made out of rustic wood and metal -- It's really modern and cool. Airy with a lot of open space.

There's a hot bar, cold bar, bowl station (and for all the BEDer's, there's a quinoa option!!), juice and smoothie bar, "mashable" station (think SCD/vegan Pinkberry/FroYo with all the fixins!!!), grain-free bakery, homemade packaged snack station, and an organic alcohol bar!!!! Pinch me, right?! It's straight from my dreams!!

I felt like a kid in a candy store. There were so many delicious options to choose from! I just couldn't decide. So I did what any good foodie would do: ask the chef what his fav is;)

I had what's called the Grandmaster Veg, a side of their notorious caramelized and grilled pineapple, and a SCD-Legal Hu roll.

The Grandmaster Veg was an incredible grain and dairy-free lasagna. Carrots, cabbage and eggplant were deliciously smothered in the best homemade marinara I've ever had.

But the best part of this lasagna goodness was the layer of cashew cream on top. It had the luxurious taste and consistency of melted cheese. It definitely made the dish.

I really enjoyed mopping up the marinara with their grain and dairy free Hu roll! This little nugget was wonderfully chewy, slightly nutty, and had a great crust.

And finally, I had their "famous" caramelized pineapple with cashew cream. Jordan said that these were a big seller, and boy, do I know why! It was downright sinful how good it was. Pineapple bites caramelized with cinnamon and served warm with a sweet cashew cream. It was sweet, juicy and had a spicy warmth from the cinnamon. It was like dessert! And oh my gosh, the cashew cream was amazing. I wanted to bathe in this stuff! haha 

So as you can probably tell, I'm genuinely freaking out about Hu Kitchen. But you've got to realize, I haven't been able to go to a restaurant and literally order anything off the menu as is in over a year. Perhaps you can relate. So you can imagine how tremendously excited I was to find a restaurant where EVERYTHING is "Happy Tummy Approved!"

I will definitely be back to try more of their fabulous cooking! 

So if you live within a 12 hour drive of NYC, then you should probably hop in the car right now and drive to Hu Kitchen! haha But no....seriously.

It's 78 Fifth Avenue. It's on 5th Ave between 13th and 14th street. See ya there ;)

On another note, I did a really "touristy" thing on Wednesday! I went to the live taping of Kelly and Michael!

I was front row, baby! So fun. 

Want more GFHT?  You can now get my e-cookbook, The Best of GlutenFreeHappyTummy for only $2.99 on Amazon!