El Monterey Taquitos

El Monterey Chicken or Cheese Taquitos are, according to the El Monterey Customer Service line, gluten free. My family enjoys these taquitos for parties, quick lunches/dinners, or when we are on the go. They are quite tasty and a welcome addition to the growing variety of foods we can eat.

Gifts of Nature, Inc. Rolled Oats

Gifts of Nature, Inc. sells certified gluten-free rolled oats! I had been wanting oatmeal cookies, apple crisp, and just a bowl of oatmeal sometimes...that this find was fantastic! I have found this product on The Gluten Free Mall, Wild Oates, and a local bakery in the Colorado Springs area--Outside The Breadbox.

Wilderness Fruit Pie Fillings

I recently had a craving for some apple crisp and was unable to find many fruit pie fillings without modified food starch marked on the label. I contacted Birdseye, maker of the Wilderness brand fruit pie fillings, and according to their consumer phone line all of the fruit pie fillings in this line are gluten free. The modified food starch identified on the label is from corn. So enjoy.

Hormel Natural Choice Deli Meats

It had been a long time since I had enjoyed a good deli sandwich, until I discovered a few safe deli products. One such product is the Hormel line of Natural Choice Deli Meats. I have so far tried the turkey, chicken and roast beef...all are very good. Again, Hormel is one of the best companies in its labeling practices as the products are clearly marked "Gluten Free."

Hormel Original Pepperoni

Hormel Original Pepperoni, according to its label, is gluten free. I enjoy this product in a variety of ways including: topping my Rice Crust Amy's Cheese Pizza, on sandwiches, as a snack with cheese and crackers.

I have thus far identified a few Hormel products that are gluten free, and I have to say that Hormel is by far one of the best companies in identifying its gluten free products. Just look on the packaging of their products and it will say "Gluten Free" if it contains no gluten products. It is easy, smart, and a great labeling practice.

Albertaco

Albertaco is a Mexican restaurant that is located in Colorado and, as far as I know, California. My wife enjoys the Breakfast Burritos without the tortilla. Yes, the workers there look at you funny the first time you order without a tortilla but they have gotten used to the order. She can also enjoy the red and green hot sauce and has not had an outbreak. The Breakfast Burritos are great and are enjoy often as they have become our default breakfast when we go out to eat.

Wendy's

Wendy's restaurants offer a handy brochure providing the ingredients, nutritional and allergen information for their menu items. It is through this brochure that I identified some of my favorite gluten free fast foods.

A couple of things to know about Wendy's restaurants that I have found to be consistent across many states: the hamburger and chicken is cooked on a dedicated section of the grill and the French fries are cooked in dedicated oil. So the hamburger and chicken meat, as well as the French fries are gluten free. Wendy's is also one of the best places for honoring your request to substitute items (e.g. When ordering a cup of chili, request a package of almonds instead of the crackers. I know this may seem a little odd, but you can't eat the crackers anyway and the almonds make a great snack later.).

Some of the things I like at Wendy's so far are:

• Chicken Cesar Salad (substitute almonds for croûtons)
• Southwest Salad (everything that comes with this salad, including chips, dressing, sour cream, chili is gluten free)
• Baked Potato
• French Fries
• Grilled Chicken Sandwich (without the bread)

Disclaimer: Ingredients, preparation techniques, menus items, etc. may change at restaurants without notice, therefore you must ask questions, request a gluten free menu, and/or read labels to confirm that the food you order is gluten free every time you visit the restaurant.