A simple gluten-free quiz

Here's a simple quiz from the author of an upcoming book called "The Complete Guide to Living Well Gluten-Free."

I got a 100% on the quiz and those of you who have been living with the gluten-free diet for any length of time will probably get a perfect score as well.

But it's a short quiz, so try it just for fun:

app.snapapp.com/glutenfreeiqquiz

The book by author Beth Hillson is due out next month.

A look at gluten-free air travel

I've pretty much given up on the idea of eating on an airplane, even on the rare flight where a meal would be served. What are the chances you can find a gluten-free meal?

Fortunately, I found this great summary of gluten-free options on airlines from the web site Gluten-Free Jet Set. This is the most comprehensive list I've ever seen on the topic:

www.glutenfreejetset.com/gluten-free-airlines

I've found that my best bet is to eat before I travel, or bring my own food. Even when you have a layover, it's difficult to find gluten-free options in airport terminals.

Smart Flour pizza products can be found in Jacksonville

I recently got an email from a representative of Smart Flour foods asking if I would like samples of their gluten-free products. I was expecting to receive bread, so I was surprised to find a box of frozen pizzas packed in dry ice at my door.

Smart Flour sent me both their classic cheese and uncured pepperoni pizzas. They were both pretty good, as frozen pizzas go.

I haven't been able to find these pizzas in stores, but Smart Flour tells me the pizzas should be available in the two Native Sun stores in Jacksonville.

Another interesting thing about Smart Flour is that the company is providing its gluten-free pizza crusts to Mellow Mushroom restaurants. As I've written before, the crust at Mellow Mushroom seems to have definitely improved, and this seems to be the reason why.

Smart Flour does sell the crusts retail, so I'm really hoping to find the crusts available for sale. Although, as I've said many times, I'm not much of a cook, I really do enjoy making my own pizza at home with ready-made crusts.

Happy FDA Day!

In case you weren't aware, today is the day that the FDA's gluten-free labeling regulations officially take effect.

This means, basically, that if a food product you buy is labeled as "gluten free," it had better actually be gluten free, or the FDA can take action against the manufacturer.

The definition says a food can be labeled as gluten free if it contains less than 20 parts per million of gluten.

If you have questions about the safety about that definition for celiacs, you may want to read the column I did on this in the Times-Union last year. I am absolutely confident that food is safe if it falls below 20 ppm.

I'll have more on the labeling rules in a Times-Union column next Thursday, the 14th.

Larabar introduces gluten-free granola snacks

Larabar, which offers a wide range of gluten-free snack bars, is introducing a new gluten-free granola snack called Renola.

The company said Renola is made from non-GMO ingredients and is not only gluten-free, but also grain-free, soy-free, dairy-free and kosher. It comes in three flavors: cinnamon nut, cocoa coconut and berry.

The company sent me a cinnamon nut Renola pack to sample and it was pretty good. The most appealing aspect of it, for me,  is that the 1.25-ounce pack only has 8 grams of sugar. Many of its Larabar snack bars, which range from 1.6 to 1.8 ounces, have more than 20 grams of sugar.

The Renola bars are available at select Target stores and a number of grocery stores, with a suggested retail price of $1.79.

A weekend of gluten-free sweets

I normally try to avoid sweets but this past weekend, as I was spending time with family, I indulged and found a couple of interesting gluten-free items.

First was a cake in the Whole Foods bakery. I rarely visit Whole Foods but we were in the neighborhood so I wanted to stop in and see if I could find something for dessert.

This was called Chocolate Confetti Cake, and was basically a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and sprinkles. The label said "gluten free" but gave no other information, and certainly didn't carry a certified gluten-free label.

Even though I was leery, I really wanted to eat the cake so I went ahead and had a piece. Actually, I had two pieces. I haven't had cake like that in a long time and it just seemed so good.

After I finished, I looked into this on Whole Food's website. I know the rational thing to do would have been to look this up before I ate but, come on, how many of us are completely rational on our gluten-free diet?

Anyway, I found that Whole Foods does have a dedicated gluten-free bakery in North Carolina started by a baker who has celiac himself. So it all sounds pretty good. I don't know why they don't have more info on the label.

That brings me to my second indulgence of the weekend. The following morning I had gluten-free cinnamon sugar donut bites that I found in the bakery section of Native Sun. The label on this package said it was "made in a gluten-free bakery" but didn't say exactly where. And just like the Whole Foods cake, it was not certified gluten free.

I've been looking for fresh gluten-free donuts for a long time, so of course this sounded good, and it made for a good breakfast.

All this stuff is of course delicious, but I know I shouldn't be eating so much sugary stuff. Hopefully, this will be my fill of sweets for a while. And I plan to find out more from both stores about their gluten-free safety procedures for the baked goods.

Top gluten-free colleges

Here's an interesting list from Udi's: their top 10 gluten-free colleges.

Actually, I think most colleges are becoming more accommodating to celiacs, especially after the U.S. Justice Department got involved in 2012 when one college wasn't doing its job.

I wrote about that and the gluten-free programs at JU and UNF last year in a Times-Union column. I felt like JU and UNF are doing a pretty good job, and I hope it's continuing.