DAFFI - Dawn's Allergen Free Foods, I is Hungry

I've had the pleasure of corresponding with Dawn from KD's Fish Fry regarding her new line of allergen-free foods.

I've written about KD's before - they're a wonderful establishment and one of the few (but thankfully growing) number of restaurants in this area that cater to celiacs. We've made stopping by KD's a tradition before heading up to SPAC for concerts, it's so convenient and a huge treat for us.

A celiac herself, Dawn started cooking up allergen-friendly foods for customers who asked, and has started up a new line of frozen goods along with the fare offered at KDs's. She's put a lot of work and effort into tuning her recipes, so much that after relentlessly campaigning with manufacturers to produce a wheat, gluten, dairy, egg and soy-free margarine to no avail, she now has a patent pending on a vegan butter alternative free of all the allergies listed above. Now that is dedication!

Called DAFFI (Dawn's Allergen Free Foods, I is hungry!), her new line is composed of home-cooked tasting food free of wheat, gluten, dairy, egg and soy and include a diverse menu with foods like chicken or eggplant parmesan, chicken cacciatore, chicken francaise, asian chicken, eggplant rollatini, beef stew, lasagna, and jambalaya - and a ton of mouth-watering desserts: chocolate zucchini bread, pineapple upside down cake (yum!), cookies, apple fritters, cinnamon buns, cupcakes and a cookie cup chocolate mousse - just the sound of that makes my mouth water.

The last time we stopped by, KD's started stocking their freezer. My husband and I can't resist trying new gluten free products, so we tried the chicken parmesan, apple fritters and cinnamon buns, and of course stocked up on her amazing oatmeal raisin cookies! He ended up enjoying the chicken parmesan the next day at lunch - and we shared the desserts. Everything was amazing, but my husband's favorite remains her oatmeal raisin cookies, which are very good (and impossible to tell that they're gluten free). We've gotten to the point where, if we head up to Saratoga we call ahead of time just to make sure those cookies are in stock!

DAFFI will have an official kickoff meeting this Thursday, November 20th, from 5:30 to 7 PM. If you're in the area, stop by KD's Fish Fry (418 Geyser Road, Saratoga) for information and samples. Registration information is located on their page. They're also feeling out the level of interest in a Celiac/food allergy support group in the Saratoga area.

Unfortunately I have other obligations this Thursday and as much as I like to I won't be able to attend the DAFFI kickoff. But I'd love it if some of my readers would go - not only is it great information, and I'd love to hear your feedback on the event, but it's so important to encourage and support the local businesses that are helping make our gluten-free lives that much better.

Please let me know how everything goes! (And when you go, definitely try those oatmeal raisin cookies!)