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Charlotte Celiac Connection - Event #13!
When? April 22, 2006
Time? 1:00 pm
Where? Carrabbas Italian Grill on Independence near 51 (Matthews, NC)
RSVP: 4-20-2006
When? April 22, 2006
Time? 1:00 pm
Where? Carrabbas Italian Grill on Independence near 51 (Matthews, NC)
RSVP: 4-20-2006
Carrabba's Italian Grill
1400 E. Independence Blvd.
Matthews, NC 28105
(704) 844-0464
~ gluten-free menu is available online
www.carrabbas.com
Directions: It is near the Independence & 51 intersection!
1400 E. Independence Blvd.
Matthews, NC 28105
(704) 844-0464
~ gluten-free menu is available online
www.carrabbas.com
Directions: It is near the Independence & 51 intersection!
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Summary
Hi Everyone!
The Dining Experience:
First order of business is to always tell everyone about our dining experience! Carrabba’s is always at
the top of our list when thinking of which restaurant to visit, they not only have one of the best gluten-
free menus but they truly get it! From the minute you enter the door there is a sense that you belong –
that you are a member of their family. They genuinely care and treat you like royalty and they let you
know this from the minute the Hostess greets you to the warm welcome you receive from the manager
and your personal servers. We will ALWAYS keep Carrabbas at the top of our list even if hundreds of
restaurants start providing a gluten-free menu. We love you Carrabba’s!!! Thank you Dan and Team!!!
The Bread
Of course, when choosing Carrabba’s that also means I need to make the “Bread from Anna” – it’s now
TRADITION! I always time it so the bread comes fresh out of the oven just prior to lunch and wrap
in tin foil. Carrabba’s will then slice it, put it in fresh linen lined baskets and serve it with plates of
fresh olive oil and herbs. Did I just take you back to your pre-celiac days? Yes, it is that GREAT and
Carrabba’s added personal service make the experience unspeakable. I made two loafs but it seemed
like they took us back to the miracle of feeding the multitudes, bringing out baskets over and over
again!
I tend to go on about Carrabba’s but I need to give LOTS of credit to Anna as in the “Bread from
Anna”. She is also a miracle worker!!! She truly has developed the only bread in our celiac world that
does NOT need to be toasted. Everyone wrote down her web-site and will be placing an order! Mind
you, this is the 4th time I have made her bread and I have yet to follow directions (sorry just too busy)
… but the point is no matter what I do, Anna’s bread comes out PERFECT!! I simply mix all the liquid
ingredients and then mix the dry with the wet.. and I did NOT even mix it for the suggested 3-1/2
minutes. Her bread cannot fail you!!! You probably would have to bake it for 3 hours to screw it up (I
may even try this as a test - smile)!!! So order it today – you will not be disappointed! Go to: www.
glutenevolution.com Our servers even tried the bread and made a point to mention how wonderful it is!
The Desserts!!!
I have to tell everyone that the gluten-free companies we have serving us are simply the best and the
most generous. Since I started up this support group, I have had so many companies reach out to me to
send samples of their products. Yes, I work in corporate America and I know this makes good business
sense… but it’s different. They have all been more than generous, instead of just one package they send
many! In addition, they all know we are a small start up group but their hearts are really big! This
month, Gluten Free Essentials (www.gfessentials.com) sent me a big box of products. This was more
than we could make or use for one meeting but I believe if they go out of their way to send so much
then the least I can do is make some of the items to share. Well, this month GF Essentials sent me
mixes for lemon poppy seed muffins, brownies, spice cake, several breakfast rice meals, waffles, tea,
etc.! I made the muffins and brownies; so, after our wonderful lunch everyone enjoyed an incredibly
delicious dessert! I always pass around the empty package so you can see the packaging and ingredients.
Everyone especially loved the brownies … shhh…the secret might be in the real chocolate chips included.
I think I’ve already told you how busy I am (o.k. no more)… but the GF Essential mixes are the easiest
in the world! You just add melted butter, egg, applesauce and maybe water and mix. That’s it!!! I did
this on a Friday night after a very long and busy week. O.kay, so NO more complaints about “I don’t
have time to bake” coming from me, it was soooo easy. Thank you Gluten-Free Essentials for your gift
to the celiac community!!! It’s so nice having a mix (just as in days of old) that you just need to add a
few simple ingredients and make a delicious fresh dessert! Can you imagine a scoop of ice cream with
hot fudge dripping over one of these brownies…:>)
Another Miracle!! Celiac Youth Group – COMING SOON!!!
Suzy is new to the Charlotte area and has a son, Ryan, who is 10 and has celiac. Ryan suffered for four
years before finally getting a diagnosis. This time, all credit goes to Columbia University! It has been
3 years and Ryan is doing much better these days. Ryan has a brother, Jared, who is 3 but not celiac.
Mom did the right thing and got everyone tested and so far, the rest of the family are fine. Suzy will
make sure the entire family gets periodically retested.
Suzy and I sat by each other and, well, one thing lead to another but Suzy is eager to get a children’s
support group up and running here in Charlotte. Suzy is the most caring person and has such a
wonderful and bubbly personality – I know you will absolutely love her! Also, Suzy also is very
conservative in her approach with Ryan – a very ZERO tolerance approach. I support her 100% in her
views and I believe, as Suzy, it is better to be safe rather than sorry.
Suzy is very active, I think she said in 8 other committees, but firmly wants to help get a children’s
celiac group going here in Charlotte. She wants to help make life better for celiac children. I told her
several of our members have expressed interest but it’s been difficult getting someone to take the
lead! She eagerly wants to take the lead; so, look forward to more information coming out on our new
Celiac Youth Group!!! We all thank you Suzy from the bottom of our hearts! Although I do not have
children, my heart goes out to the children. For as difficult of a time I have communicating to adults
about celiac, I just really can’t image going through this life as a child with celiac. Peer pressure
cannot be any easier in these days!
I will be sending Suzy a list of all our members with children so if you want to be included in this
children’s group make sure to send me all the important details (name, ages, email address, phone
number, anything else). Also, pass this information on to any parents of celiac children you know in
Charlotte and let’s get this thing rolling (it’s long overdue)!!! Ryan seems so well adjusted and although
he and I had a heart to heart, he acknowledged he thinks about celiac a lot. This was after I asked him
if he ever cries and he said no but he got very solemn. I told him I still break down and cry especially
if I’m hungry and see a commercial on pizza – my own personal pity party. Ryan is so sweet and loveable
and I’m so happy he finally got a right diagnosis! Ryan needs to be with other children with celiac to
feel the same benefits us adults feel when we meet with each other. Maybe even more so, soooo let’s do
everything we can to help our celiac children feel normal and learn to be confident successful human
beings! We definitely have the right person to chair a children’s support group!!! Thank you Suzy!!!
New Members
In addition to Suzy, Ryan and Jared, Ruth also joined us. Ruth was diagnosed about 3 years ago and
comes from a long family history of celiacs. Her mom and several aunts have celiac. Ruth is very well
adjusted but she’s a nurse so she knows the importance of managing one’s health! Ruth works for
Presbyterian Healthcare and, when she and I had a discussion on hospital celiac care, she pointed out
that the Presbyterian dietitian is very knowledgeable on celiac! YEAH, this was great to hear!!
Rebecca Says:
O.k…this was a really really bad month for me (too much yard work, fundraising, gluten exposure, and
well maybe brain fog set in) so I forgot to get our “Rebecca Says” this month!! However, I’ll improvise
a little and let you know that in addition to Rebecca’s dream of becoming a doctor she is already a full
fledge “model”. Mom, Carol, showed me a picture and it was gorgeous. Rebecca has already had
professional modeling jobs. So, I told Rebecca forget Med School – make your millions modeling, buy and
run a hospital - then get any doctor you want (smile). However, the level headed Rebecca said “nahhh” –
so, I think one day you will see a hugely successful doctor because she is driven for the right reasons!
Let’s all coax her to help Suzy with the new children’s support group because she will absolutely be the
best role model…:>) We all love you Rebecca!
Side Trip to New York
Carol, mom to Rebecca, had a great idea of chartering a bus to New York for the weekend. Since Carol,
Steve and Rebecca are native New Yorkers they have a great Italian restaurant that they say is simply
the best in the country when it comes to gluten free dinners/service… so good that it’s worth a special
bus trip there! So, Rebecca agreed to do some preliminary project planning to figure out how much it
would cost each us to charter a bus on a Friday night (we would sleep that night on the bus) then spend
all day in the city, go to their famous restaurant, sleep over at a nice hotel and then head back on a
Sunday! So, look forward to more details on this and if you’re interested, just pass me a note saying
yeah or nah. We’re thinking sometime in the summer when school is out. The price may be less if we
get more people interested.
Thinking of a Cruise?
Karen said she just went on a “Celebrity” cruise and had a wonderful experience. It was not a gluten-
free cruise but she wrote the Director ahead of time to let them know of her dietary challenges.
Although, their response letter did not sound so appetizing (very basic grilled food), when she arrived
on board, the entire chef team went out of their way to work with her and their menu. Karen said she
had the most wonderful meals and that they even had ordered gluten-free bread for her! They made her
cream brulee several times even when it was not on the menu for that evening.
New Labeling Law Warning!
On a more serious note, I had to share with everyone my accidental exposure from my Easter Ham. I
think I let the new labeling law get the better of me and I let my guard down. I checked the label very
well and I guess I made an error in thinking that since wheat was not listed on the label, it was safe.
After all, I bought the ham in the fresh section of the meats and it is April (4 months after the law
went into effect). It had to be safe, right? Well, after day one I had extreme abdomen pain. I should
have stopped there but then I spent 8 hours doing painting and yard work the day before, so who wouldn’
t be in pain? The next day I still ate it and the pain only intensified. It was gluten but how unfair is
this? My mom, the ever so wise woman she is, said maybe the store put out hams that were frozen. The
lesson here is let’s give the new labeling law some time before we fully trust labels that are not
clearly marked with the new coding!
2006 International Celiac Walk:
I would like to thank all of you again who have sponsored me in the upcoming celiac walk! I am so
grateful for your generosity. I think everyone knows Dr. Fasano has made the most difference in each
and every one of our lives. Dr. Fasano never rests so I’m sure we can expect even more great things!
If you are not aware of all of his successes, just let me know and I’ll send you tons of information. It
is so important to carry on this torch of trying to help make this world a better place not only for us
but also for our next generation! If you haven’t contributed yet, it’s not too late – click on the link at
the top of any of my web pages, it will take you to the walk web-site.
Closing Note:
I don’t always get to talk with everyone since it’s a short time, we’re getting so much larger and a
restaurant setting is not always conducive to mingling around. So, thank you for your understanding
and for coming and participating to help make your life and the life of your fellow celiacs better! As I
often say, we are stronger together and we need each other to learn, heal and grow!
Don’t forget to mark your calendar’s for May 13th! We are all so excited that Dr. Peter Green is
coming to Charlotte!! He will be speaking at the Carolinas Medical Center Auditorium and will bring
copies of his newly published book (see link on my home page). Dr. Green is an expert on celiac in the
medical community and is the “first doctor” to write an authoritative guide (i.e., book) for us celiacs (in
layman terms)! Bring your questions and make sure to buy his book (if you haven’t already) and just
maybe we could hold him hostage until he agrees to set up practice here or start a gluten evolution?
(Sorry Anna… got lost in the fantasy).
Our next luncheon has been moved to May 20th and since I will be back in Michigan (participating in the
celiac walk), Carol will be hosting our event at the Red Bowl. We will send out details in a few weeks.
Note, there will not be a summary after the May luncheon; so, if you want to know what happens, you
just need to be there:>) Carol is not only a working mom (to our Rebecca) but she has diabetes and they
are also in the process of getting ready for a move. So, when you think you have it difficult remember
there are always those who have it more difficult!
Have a great month and I hope to see everyone on the 13th!
Warm Regards, Janet
Hi Everyone!
The Dining Experience:
First order of business is to always tell everyone about our dining experience! Carrabba’s is always at
the top of our list when thinking of which restaurant to visit, they not only have one of the best gluten-
free menus but they truly get it! From the minute you enter the door there is a sense that you belong –
that you are a member of their family. They genuinely care and treat you like royalty and they let you
know this from the minute the Hostess greets you to the warm welcome you receive from the manager
and your personal servers. We will ALWAYS keep Carrabbas at the top of our list even if hundreds of
restaurants start providing a gluten-free menu. We love you Carrabba’s!!! Thank you Dan and Team!!!
The Bread
Of course, when choosing Carrabba’s that also means I need to make the “Bread from Anna” – it’s now
TRADITION! I always time it so the bread comes fresh out of the oven just prior to lunch and wrap
in tin foil. Carrabba’s will then slice it, put it in fresh linen lined baskets and serve it with plates of
fresh olive oil and herbs. Did I just take you back to your pre-celiac days? Yes, it is that GREAT and
Carrabba’s added personal service make the experience unspeakable. I made two loafs but it seemed
like they took us back to the miracle of feeding the multitudes, bringing out baskets over and over
again!
I tend to go on about Carrabba’s but I need to give LOTS of credit to Anna as in the “Bread from
Anna”. She is also a miracle worker!!! She truly has developed the only bread in our celiac world that
does NOT need to be toasted. Everyone wrote down her web-site and will be placing an order! Mind
you, this is the 4th time I have made her bread and I have yet to follow directions (sorry just too busy)
… but the point is no matter what I do, Anna’s bread comes out PERFECT!! I simply mix all the liquid
ingredients and then mix the dry with the wet.. and I did NOT even mix it for the suggested 3-1/2
minutes. Her bread cannot fail you!!! You probably would have to bake it for 3 hours to screw it up (I
may even try this as a test - smile)!!! So order it today – you will not be disappointed! Go to: www.
glutenevolution.com Our servers even tried the bread and made a point to mention how wonderful it is!
The Desserts!!!
I have to tell everyone that the gluten-free companies we have serving us are simply the best and the
most generous. Since I started up this support group, I have had so many companies reach out to me to
send samples of their products. Yes, I work in corporate America and I know this makes good business
sense… but it’s different. They have all been more than generous, instead of just one package they send
many! In addition, they all know we are a small start up group but their hearts are really big! This
month, Gluten Free Essentials (www.gfessentials.com) sent me a big box of products. This was more
than we could make or use for one meeting but I believe if they go out of their way to send so much
then the least I can do is make some of the items to share. Well, this month GF Essentials sent me
mixes for lemon poppy seed muffins, brownies, spice cake, several breakfast rice meals, waffles, tea,
etc.! I made the muffins and brownies; so, after our wonderful lunch everyone enjoyed an incredibly
delicious dessert! I always pass around the empty package so you can see the packaging and ingredients.
Everyone especially loved the brownies … shhh…the secret might be in the real chocolate chips included.
I think I’ve already told you how busy I am (o.k. no more)… but the GF Essential mixes are the easiest
in the world! You just add melted butter, egg, applesauce and maybe water and mix. That’s it!!! I did
this on a Friday night after a very long and busy week. O.kay, so NO more complaints about “I don’t
have time to bake” coming from me, it was soooo easy. Thank you Gluten-Free Essentials for your gift
to the celiac community!!! It’s so nice having a mix (just as in days of old) that you just need to add a
few simple ingredients and make a delicious fresh dessert! Can you imagine a scoop of ice cream with
hot fudge dripping over one of these brownies…:>)
Another Miracle!! Celiac Youth Group – COMING SOON!!!
Suzy is new to the Charlotte area and has a son, Ryan, who is 10 and has celiac. Ryan suffered for four
years before finally getting a diagnosis. This time, all credit goes to Columbia University! It has been
3 years and Ryan is doing much better these days. Ryan has a brother, Jared, who is 3 but not celiac.
Mom did the right thing and got everyone tested and so far, the rest of the family are fine. Suzy will
make sure the entire family gets periodically retested.
Suzy and I sat by each other and, well, one thing lead to another but Suzy is eager to get a children’s
support group up and running here in Charlotte. Suzy is the most caring person and has such a
wonderful and bubbly personality – I know you will absolutely love her! Also, Suzy also is very
conservative in her approach with Ryan – a very ZERO tolerance approach. I support her 100% in her
views and I believe, as Suzy, it is better to be safe rather than sorry.
Suzy is very active, I think she said in 8 other committees, but firmly wants to help get a children’s
celiac group going here in Charlotte. She wants to help make life better for celiac children. I told her
several of our members have expressed interest but it’s been difficult getting someone to take the
lead! She eagerly wants to take the lead; so, look forward to more information coming out on our new
Celiac Youth Group!!! We all thank you Suzy from the bottom of our hearts! Although I do not have
children, my heart goes out to the children. For as difficult of a time I have communicating to adults
about celiac, I just really can’t image going through this life as a child with celiac. Peer pressure
cannot be any easier in these days!
I will be sending Suzy a list of all our members with children so if you want to be included in this
children’s group make sure to send me all the important details (name, ages, email address, phone
number, anything else). Also, pass this information on to any parents of celiac children you know in
Charlotte and let’s get this thing rolling (it’s long overdue)!!! Ryan seems so well adjusted and although
he and I had a heart to heart, he acknowledged he thinks about celiac a lot. This was after I asked him
if he ever cries and he said no but he got very solemn. I told him I still break down and cry especially
if I’m hungry and see a commercial on pizza – my own personal pity party. Ryan is so sweet and loveable
and I’m so happy he finally got a right diagnosis! Ryan needs to be with other children with celiac to
feel the same benefits us adults feel when we meet with each other. Maybe even more so, soooo let’s do
everything we can to help our celiac children feel normal and learn to be confident successful human
beings! We definitely have the right person to chair a children’s support group!!! Thank you Suzy!!!
New Members
In addition to Suzy, Ryan and Jared, Ruth also joined us. Ruth was diagnosed about 3 years ago and
comes from a long family history of celiacs. Her mom and several aunts have celiac. Ruth is very well
adjusted but she’s a nurse so she knows the importance of managing one’s health! Ruth works for
Presbyterian Healthcare and, when she and I had a discussion on hospital celiac care, she pointed out
that the Presbyterian dietitian is very knowledgeable on celiac! YEAH, this was great to hear!!
Rebecca Says:
O.k…this was a really really bad month for me (too much yard work, fundraising, gluten exposure, and
well maybe brain fog set in) so I forgot to get our “Rebecca Says” this month!! However, I’ll improvise
a little and let you know that in addition to Rebecca’s dream of becoming a doctor she is already a full
fledge “model”. Mom, Carol, showed me a picture and it was gorgeous. Rebecca has already had
professional modeling jobs. So, I told Rebecca forget Med School – make your millions modeling, buy and
run a hospital - then get any doctor you want (smile). However, the level headed Rebecca said “nahhh” –
so, I think one day you will see a hugely successful doctor because she is driven for the right reasons!
Let’s all coax her to help Suzy with the new children’s support group because she will absolutely be the
best role model…:>) We all love you Rebecca!
Side Trip to New York
Carol, mom to Rebecca, had a great idea of chartering a bus to New York for the weekend. Since Carol,
Steve and Rebecca are native New Yorkers they have a great Italian restaurant that they say is simply
the best in the country when it comes to gluten free dinners/service… so good that it’s worth a special
bus trip there! So, Rebecca agreed to do some preliminary project planning to figure out how much it
would cost each us to charter a bus on a Friday night (we would sleep that night on the bus) then spend
all day in the city, go to their famous restaurant, sleep over at a nice hotel and then head back on a
Sunday! So, look forward to more details on this and if you’re interested, just pass me a note saying
yeah or nah. We’re thinking sometime in the summer when school is out. The price may be less if we
get more people interested.
Thinking of a Cruise?
Karen said she just went on a “Celebrity” cruise and had a wonderful experience. It was not a gluten-
free cruise but she wrote the Director ahead of time to let them know of her dietary challenges.
Although, their response letter did not sound so appetizing (very basic grilled food), when she arrived
on board, the entire chef team went out of their way to work with her and their menu. Karen said she
had the most wonderful meals and that they even had ordered gluten-free bread for her! They made her
cream brulee several times even when it was not on the menu for that evening.
New Labeling Law Warning!
On a more serious note, I had to share with everyone my accidental exposure from my Easter Ham. I
think I let the new labeling law get the better of me and I let my guard down. I checked the label very
well and I guess I made an error in thinking that since wheat was not listed on the label, it was safe.
After all, I bought the ham in the fresh section of the meats and it is April (4 months after the law
went into effect). It had to be safe, right? Well, after day one I had extreme abdomen pain. I should
have stopped there but then I spent 8 hours doing painting and yard work the day before, so who wouldn’
t be in pain? The next day I still ate it and the pain only intensified. It was gluten but how unfair is
this? My mom, the ever so wise woman she is, said maybe the store put out hams that were frozen. The
lesson here is let’s give the new labeling law some time before we fully trust labels that are not
clearly marked with the new coding!
2006 International Celiac Walk:
I would like to thank all of you again who have sponsored me in the upcoming celiac walk! I am so
grateful for your generosity. I think everyone knows Dr. Fasano has made the most difference in each
and every one of our lives. Dr. Fasano never rests so I’m sure we can expect even more great things!
If you are not aware of all of his successes, just let me know and I’ll send you tons of information. It
is so important to carry on this torch of trying to help make this world a better place not only for us
but also for our next generation! If you haven’t contributed yet, it’s not too late – click on the link at
the top of any of my web pages, it will take you to the walk web-site.
Closing Note:
I don’t always get to talk with everyone since it’s a short time, we’re getting so much larger and a
restaurant setting is not always conducive to mingling around. So, thank you for your understanding
and for coming and participating to help make your life and the life of your fellow celiacs better! As I
often say, we are stronger together and we need each other to learn, heal and grow!
Don’t forget to mark your calendar’s for May 13th! We are all so excited that Dr. Peter Green is
coming to Charlotte!! He will be speaking at the Carolinas Medical Center Auditorium and will bring
copies of his newly published book (see link on my home page). Dr. Green is an expert on celiac in the
medical community and is the “first doctor” to write an authoritative guide (i.e., book) for us celiacs (in
layman terms)! Bring your questions and make sure to buy his book (if you haven’t already) and just
maybe we could hold him hostage until he agrees to set up practice here or start a gluten evolution?
(Sorry Anna… got lost in the fantasy).
Our next luncheon has been moved to May 20th and since I will be back in Michigan (participating in the
celiac walk), Carol will be hosting our event at the Red Bowl. We will send out details in a few weeks.
Note, there will not be a summary after the May luncheon; so, if you want to know what happens, you
just need to be there:>) Carol is not only a working mom (to our Rebecca) but she has diabetes and they
are also in the process of getting ready for a move. So, when you think you have it difficult remember
there are always those who have it more difficult!
Have a great month and I hope to see everyone on the 13th!
Warm Regards, Janet
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