Throughout my years in the restaurant industry I've seen a significant increase in the number of people with dietary restrictions. One that seems to have become prevalent is a sensitivity or intolerance to gluten.
Gluten is a naturally occurring protein found in wheat, barley and rye. You might think that avoiding products containing flour would eliminate the problem, but soup mixes, broths, deli meats, salad dressings and seasonings may also contain gluten. Therefore, people with a gluten intolerance need to be creative, cautious and well-informed.
Several alternatives to flour are readily available. The first is sorghum flour, but because it doesn't have a naturally occurring binder (gluten is the binder that gives dough its elasticity), one will have to be added: xanthan gum, cornstarch or tapioca starch will work. Sorghum flour and xanthan gum are available at health food stores.
A second alternative to wheat flour is almond flour, which can be purchased in the refrigerated section at health food stores. It is best used in quick-bread recipes because it doesn't knead well. Recipes using almond flour will also require a binder.
For those who don't want to go to the trouble of blending with binders, PEI's Duinkerken Foods makes a range of gluten-free flour, bread, muffin and other mixes. Check out the options at duinkerkenfoods.com.
For a good source of regional, traditional recipes that are gluten free, check out Living and Eating Gluten Free (Going Against the Grain Publishing Company, $23.95) by Alyce Feindel. In addition to offering 200 recipes, some created by chefs, the Chester, NS, resident provides a guide to products that can make gluten-free cooking easier; there's also a list of supermarkets and health food stores that carry gluten-free products.
Another good bet cookbook is 100 Best Gluten-Free Recipes (John Wiley & Sons, $19.95) by Carol Fenster.
And some bakeries and cafés - for example, Nourish in Paradise, NL; Crumbs in Truro, NS; Schoolhouse in Mahone Bay, NS; and Rosie's in Shepody, NB - cater to the gluten-free crowd. Good to know that you can still have your cake and eat it too.