A Cornell Dining Experiment
Made with 100% Awesome. No Gluten. ‘Nuff Said.
Lunch yesterday was at the Ivy Room in Willard Straight. Normally I like to go with the burrito station, so I was wondering what I would find here without gluten. It took me very little time to find a quality bowl of rice noodles, chicken broth, tofu, and assorted veggies! Yum!
“Finally Friday” has even more meaning for me than usual, as it’s the last of 5 Days eating all my meals and snacks without gluten. This has been a tremendous education for me, and I can tell from the dozens of other blog posts this week that it has been for my colleagues in Cornell Dining, as well.
No bun? No problem!
For my last 5 Days lunch, on such a nice day, I decided to head to West Campus and 104West!, Cornell’s remarkable multicultural dining room. It’s not just Kosher but Halal, as well, and I’ve enjoyed my meal every time I’ve been there. Best of all, Friday is burgers and dogs day!
Unfortunately, unlike some of the eateries I’ve been to this week, 104West! doesn’t have any gluten-free alternative bread, such as hamburger rolls, available. There is such a thing as Kosher gluten-free bread, but that may be too niche a market for Cornell Dining to stock it. No worries, I’ve had a burger without a bun before! This time, I topped the delicious hand-ground beef patty with some tomatoes and fresh guacamole.
One nice thing about eating Kosher meat is you know there are no fillers added. This was a great burger! Veggieburgers are available, too, but those are labeled as containing wheat, so that’s out for today.
Great salad bar at 104West!… but none of these faux “bacon” bits or crispies for me!
I also availed myself of 104West!’s extensive salad bar, which includes tofu and hard-boiled eggs to boost the protein of your meal if you’re not having meat. But wait! Are those bacon bits?! Bacon wouldn’t be Kosher even at a meat meal, such as Friday lunch here, so the 104West! salad bar features soy “bacon” bits! I was curious to try these, but since they’re processed or manufactured food, I figured I’d better ask if they were gluten-free. Sure enough, they’re not. They contain wheat flour.
The dessert table also had lots of temptation, including some beautiful-looking baklava, but I had to pass. I’ll come back for some of that baklava another time, though. Of course, I realize hundreds of people on the Cornell campus can’t just stop eating gluten-free, the way I can after this week. I’m lucky, and after 5 Days, much better informed.
A couple days ago, I got the chance to eat at Synapsis… but what can a person with a gluten intolerance eat here? I took the advice of my fellow teammates from their experience the day before and went with the pasta bake prepared with pasta lacking gluten. I must say that I was impressed with the quality of the penne! Food science has come a long way over the years in improving on the textural experience with gluten free pasta. In the past, I have experienced lesser products- ranging from grainy to rubbery, but I can honestly say that I didn’t miss the wheat this time.
In our quest for gluten AND dairy free foods, we discovered that everyone needs to read the ingredient labels because gluten, especially, is an ingredient in everything from salad dressings to chicken stock to ground meat products. It’s not just in the obvious cookies, bread and pasta. Here, staffer Dagmar Ryan recommends 2 sweets that are labeled gluten-free, but are also dairy-free. Staffer Brian Santos and I read the label for turkey burgers. They were “clean”–no gluten or dairy.
Dagmar checks labels on sweets
Brian Santos shows me the label for burgers.
My turkey burger and fries turned into a patty, lettuce, mayo, NO bun, and NO Fries because the fries are coated with a flavoring that contains wheat/gluten.
No fries or bun for me–boo hoo.
Members of the “Gluten & Diary-free Team” and the “Vegetarian” team trying to have lunch and test the staff’s knowledge in WSH. What an eye-opening experience the 5 DAY experiment has been.
Levon Brewer, Susan Whitaker, & Therese O’Connor dine in the Ivy room on day 5.
Probably 7 different salad dressing are offered at the salad bar in the Ivy Room. Staffer, Tim (Smiley) Austin points out all the options. Can I have any of them? YES, all except the Sesame-Ginger dressing whose soy sauce contains wheat products. Keep smilin’, Mr. Tim.
Smiley points out all the dressing options that might work.
🙂
Staff member, Rodney Denard and student Alex tried to help me get a gluten and dairy free option from Rojo Grande in the Ivy room. Thanks, guys!
Rodney and Alex offer suggestions at the Mexican station.
To be Gluten and Dairy free you HAVE to be a detective!!
As a child my favorite book series was that of the adventures of “Incognito Mosquito, Private Insective” and with the 5 Day Challenge I’ve found that all the investigative training from way back then has come in very handy!
My team is Gluten /Dairy free and the challenge has been a real test. Gluten is hidden in most everything. Dairy is a clearer villain to track. Reading all ingredient labels and asking question after question is absolutely necessary before popping anything into my mouth. It must be a continuous struggle to remain true to this dietary restriction and I am in awe of those that have it as a way of life.
I will not be deterred however, if you see someone creeping around in a long trenchcoat looking food items over with a magnifying glass, no fear – it’s just me “Susan Sherlock, Super (Gluten/ Dairy) Sleuth!
More Beans Please! That’s right, I chose more beans for lunch on Day Four of the 5 Days Challenge. Not only was this Burrito Salad from Martha’s vegetarian, but it was vegan and gluten free! So, many of my fellow participants could eat this delicious option. It’s kind of like a Burrito, without the tortilla. Or like a Taco Salad, without the chips. Thus….a Burrito Salad! Layers of beans, rice, lettuce, tomato, and jalapenos were topped with tofu. The gluten free could choose beef or chicken too.
(I added a bunch of tabasco sauce to bump up the spiciness).
