Chavella's

My favorite taco spot in Brooklyn. Get it to go, take it to Prospect Park; repeat.

Aguacate con queso taco (avocado and cheese) and papas con chorizo taco (potatoes and spicy sausage.) (MMMmmmm.)

Chavellas, 732 Classon Avenue, soon to be at Franklin & Sterling.

Brunch at Sun in Bloom

When I experience something great, I always try to figure out how I can have it all the time. I think this is referred to clinically as an "addictive personality." But how bad could it if I am addicted to gluten-free, vegan, raw brunch? NOT BAD!

Of course, I should learn to be more in the moment, enjoying these gluten-free apple pancakes for what they are: delicious and warm. [Note: this is a half order of pancakes. I split them with my brunch companion. I have SOME self control.]

I should savor the olives on the tofu scramble... chewing each bite of chick pea with relish and concentration. I did that. I just want it to happen EVERY WEEKEND.

I should take this gluten-free/vegan chocolate chip cookie sandwich for later, instead of opening it up and eating part of it at the table as we pay the bill. No one's perfect, OK?

The point of today's post is that I took these photos last Saturday—and went back again yesterday for more. I ordered pretty much the same thing so I didn't bother to take more pictures... I was too busy enjoying myself.

The brunch menu for Sun in Bloom changes every weekend, but it is always delicious.

Sun In Bloom

On my day off, I had a TON of errands to run. I barely made it past the bank when I realized I was starving. I was just around the corner from Sun in Bloom - a new-ish (January) vegan restaurant I have been meaning to try. When I saw the chalkboard outside proclaiming: GLUTEN FREE PANCAKES, I had to at least stop inside. Just a peek, I told myself, knowing I was on my way to Target and that it is impossible to step inside that glowing center of capitalism without spending at least eighty dollars.

Feigning interest in the to-go menu, I scoped the place out. By the time the waitress asked if I wanted to sit down, I was so worn down by the selection of gluten-free baked goods and the promise of gluten-free bread on the menu I conceded, and took a seat at one of the four wooden tables.

What a nice little place! I asked the waitress what on the lunch menu was gluten-free, and she told me: "everything." Then I asked about the bread (the menu says you can order a side of it, warm, with almond butter). She told me they didn't HAVE IT and haven't had it since she started working there—but they might get it again in the fall. I'm sure my face fell, and she promised me that all the other baked goods (all of them) are gluten-free.

You can order any of the wraps in greens instead of their sprouted wheat wrap—and maybe come autumn, on bread. I ordered the Morning Energizer Burrito which had brown rice. The spicy tofu was delicious—can't complain about an avocado—the only complaint was the black beans were quite dry. I pretended it was a textural decision and chewed away, enjoying the sunny view of Bergen Street, pretending I was in Berkeley.

So I had to get dessert, duh. I tried this carrot cake cupcake with coconut frosting—the texture was to die for. It had a slight taste of (buckwheat, maybe?) gluten-free flour, but the overall experience was great. Last but not least: you feel good about yourself after eating an entirely gluten-free vegan meal. I have to say: I had a super-energetic day and I don't doubt it was the quality and nutritiousness of this food!

It's also a nice place to go by yourself—they have a wide selection of books (about lifestyle, nutrition, etc.) on the shelves if you forget your own reading material. They also have fresh juices ($$$) and coconut kefir and raw mousses for dessert. I'm dying to go back for the brunch pancakes, and the "Create Your Own Miso" soup! I'll bring my veggie roommate! Finally, a place where we can all get along.

Oaxaca Taqueria

Great news: tacos less than 100 feet from my house at Oaxaca Taqueria. (I didn't measure. I just made that up.) Other good news: now all the cops in my neighborhood can take a break from eating pizza. Any gluten-free cops in Crown Heights? Anyway, don't bring crime into this taqueria because you will be arrested quickly, by cops with mouths full of black beans.

Besides being fun to say (oh-hock-a-tock-a-ria!) and close to my house, these enchiladas were pretty good:

And dirt cheap. At $2.50/each (pictured: 2 bean and cheese) you can't really complain. The enchiladas come with guacamole, as you can see, and the green sauce is pretty tasty. My beans were a little dry (just plain beans, not refried) but I enjoyed this tiny meal. Next time I'll try the tacos!

That good, huh?

Except KALE CHIPS.

Alright, then! Fine! Next time I get kale I'm making chips!

[From a (now defunct, it seems) natural foods store on Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn.]

Around the neighborhood...

When I moved to Crown Heights it was impossible to get my hands on a piece of fruit that didn't have flies buzzing all around it. That's not a criticism, per say, I love my neighborhood. But so much can change, in three years. For the better: now I can get a gluten free frozen pizza - coconut milk ice cream - Tofutti bars - hummus - kombucha, all at the 24 hour Korean bodega. For the worse, well, let's argue about gentrification another time.

Gluten-free cones, available 24 hours.

The first time I tried to buy whiskey at my local liquor store, they laughed in my face - through the bulletproof glass, of course. Jameson? What was I thinking? They could offer, instead, a nip of Wild Irish Rose. Now there is a full wine selection, demarcated by region. Spanish, Italian, French, Australian. Sake in the back corner.

The renovated deli by my house offers lower prices on Ben and Jerry's pints - and more selection. And now, this poster, a public service announcement to the neighborhood! Now if only they had a gluten-free roll...

The Macaroon King

My views on carob have changed.

Attention readers. Today is a very special Saturday, indeed. Today is the Saturday wherein I post my exclusive footage and reportage with the elusive Macaroon King himself. Last week I was invited to take a tour of the factory, right here in Brooklyn, NY. The company is planning a move to Pennsylvania to expand, so I hopped on the J train to catch a glimpse before it leaves.

Arnold Badner, the Macaroon King, has been a health food pioneer since the beginning of time. Just kidding! Not that long. He has, however, run over thirty (full) marathons. He eats at least one macaroon per day. What does that tell you?

Here he poses by the largest oven I ever hope to see.

I had a lot of questions for him about macaroons. Who invented such a thing? And how does one become the King of a baked good? Well, the company had its start in fruit cake. In 1919, that was as good a place to start as any. During World War II, a brandy soaked cake was just the gift to send a soldier abroad.

I wonder if it is still edible? Let's not find out. Open this rum & brandy flavored treasure with a secret key.

The company also sold macaroons during Passover. Passover is every gluten-free goyim's favorite time of the year! No flour! (Except matzoh, but who wants that anyway? Not me.)

Arnold: "In 1974, I said, 'fruitcakes are dead.'" So where to go from there? And how to make a business on macaroons alone? Luckily, the product had been snatched up by GNC which marketed the treat as a health food. With only three ingredients, (coconut, honey and egg whites) it was, indeed. Then came the 1980s, when the Center for Disease Control put a ban on coconut on movie theater popcorn. (Hello! Delicious! I will try that some day.) The company took a hit, with coconut proclaimed fattening and dangerous.

Today, coconut is as popular as ever! I am drinking coconut water right now. You can find these chewy treats on your local Whole Foods aisles. And yes, Arnold loves that his image is "antithetical to what they are doing" at the high end supermarket. He's going for the "Orville Redenbacher" look! And when the factory moves to PA, they will begin producing a gluten-free pound cake: original, marble, and raisin. Expect them by September or October of this year. I can't wait!

Excuse me, now, I have to go grab the last can of macaroons from my dining room table. My roommates (or, glutenous correspondents) devoured nearly all of them. Recommendation: flatten two mini macaroons, and spread (coconut milk) ice cream in the middle. Listen. I've had a little bit of time on my hands. It's delicious.

PUPUSA SUNDAY

Like a blend of the words "caboose" and "papoose" but with an "a" at the end, I present to you: the pupusa. Basically it is a corn patty stuffed with cheese. Or spinach, or pork and jalapenos, which is what I ordered. Every weekend, girls in tights and boys in caps head over to the Brooklyn Flea to pick over floral jumpsuits, golden handbags, and shimmering plastic bracelets. Minimum price: $35, for everything.

Pupusas? Two for five dollars, and that includes ALL the toppings:

-sour cream
-raw onions
-pickled cabbage slaw
-jalapenos
-copious hot sauce


They are a classic El Salvedorean dish and they are my friends. Recommended with a tall paper cup full of horchata. And a side of fried sweet plantains, if you are greedy and just went to yoga class.

Little, Everyday Miracles

First of all. Thank god coffee is gluten-free. Can I get an amen?

Last weekend I stopped at Joyce Bakeshop for an iced coffee. They have the most darling little macarons for sale, the lemon is ethereally tangy, chewy, crisp. Also it is lovely to just purchase one tiny beautiful item. And eat it.

The tables at Joyce have wheat in them. It's under glass, don't worry.

In related news, Cafe Angelique (on Bleecker) now serves cookies by This Chick Bakes. I just had the Chocolate Coconut Pecan Chunk - made with coconut flour. Really, really yummy, though delicate and crumbly.

All I'm saying is, sometimes you need to eat a large chunk of something chocolate at approximately three PM. Thank you.

THIS JUST IN:

via text message:

Ortine in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, is now serving gluten-free pizza. Good LORD, readers! This is positively more than I can keep up with!

A hasty Google search revealed nothing, but my trusty text-message confidante is to be... trusted.

Ortine
622 Washington Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11238-3125
(718) 622-0026

restaurant@ortine.com

[Closed Tuesdays]

NEWSFLASH:

EVENT!

Yoga for Celiacs.

I might go. Especially because my salad from Two Boots had mysteriously marinated mushrooms on it.

For twenty dollars they'd better have cake.

Germans, rejoice!

The other night I had the good fortune to visit the Radegast Hall & Biergarten, (113 N3rd Street, Williamsburg, Brooklyn.) It was my second visit, though I will pretend the first visit never happened. Had I been writing this blog back at Visit #1 I would have angrily typed out a vituperative paragraph about the idiocy of bartenders, most specifically the tow-headed maniac who served me a large mug of apple-flavored beer, after I requested a (gluten-free) cider. I am ashamed to admit what I did next. A dangerous mouthful of the familiar and toxic flavor, I panicked, and spit it out... on the floor. Sorry. Sorry everyone. Life or death, nearly, and the good intuition not to ruin a perfectly good beer for someone with a more capable small intestine - by spitting it back into the glass.

I was surprised to find myself back in the cavernous tavern (!). It was very late at night and I was amongst friends, so I did not put up a fight or recount my rude tail of expectoration. Oh. What? They have gluten-free beer? Yes. There it is, a blurry cell-phone picture of my giant mug of New Grist Beer.


I made everyone taste it, and let it be known I was with multiple male people, who, I know, are particular about these things. They thought it was fine. A little sweet.

The excitement is not over yet. Schnitzel, french fries, (which, so far as I can tell are the ONLY fried thing, rendering them gf), a mustard bar, sauerkraut. Oh, and they have root beer floats for dessert. Thank you.

Note: The biergarten will be hosting a ANTI-VALTENTINE'S [sic] DAY CELEBRATION. Just saying. Check website for details.

THIS JUST IN

via text:

Cheryl's Global Soul, in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn has gluten-free muffins today! I am promised there will be fresh ones on Sunday, too, and I will go give them a look-see - and a taste. I'll let you know what I find!

236 Underhill Ave Brooklyn NY 11238
347.529.2855

updated: see above. call ahead to ensure presence of gf muffins before you trek in the rain!