Yesterday, Sunday August 12th, I had the privilege of being a vendor at the FIRST Raleigh, NC Gluten/Allergen Free Expo! The event is coordinated by Nikki Everett of ECHO Event Solutions. I plan on sharing a post later this week with all of the highlights of the event, but I wanted to mention today that the event was just awesome!
Nikki did a fantastic job planning the event. It was in Cobblestone Hall in downtown Raleigh, NC. Honestly, I was a bit hesitant at the beginning, because as long as I've lived near the Raleigh area, I had never heard of Cobblestone Hall. But I was pleasantly surprised by the beauty of this little jewel in downtown Raleigh. The facility was beautiful, it was a great location, surprisingly there was parking in and around downtown that was pretty easy to find!
I had the pleasure of visiting many fellow gluten-free bloggers and friends and meeting a lot of people in the Triangle area who are new to being gluten-free. I received many hugs and smiles and loved meeting people who actually live in the same area I do. I can't wait to share about all the wonderful vendors and bloggers that I met there!
If you ever have an opportunity to attend a gluten-free expo near you, go! It's worth the money, you'll not only get endless amounts of delicious and safe gluten-free foods and beverages, you'll get a chance to meet a huge variety of people who share similar gluten-free struggles and yet celebrate their healthy gluten-free lifestyle!!
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| A used bookstore SCORE this weekend!!! I've been wanting a paper copy of Well Fed for about 6 months! I couldn't believe it when I saw this used copy for $12! Also, I almost bought a copy of Cake Wrecks a few weeks ago at a major bookstore, but it was nearly $28 dollars... this used copy? SIX dollars!! |
Michael and I also spent the first part of the weekend travelling to Roanoke to see my Dad. The Star City was beautiful as always, and even though it was a very quick overnight trip, we had a REALLY good visit with my Dad. He's looking better every time we see him. He is facing months of recovery, so I know that at times he's frustrated with all the obstacles he faces in the next few months... but overall he just seemed to be in good spirits and I'm thankful we were able to go up and see him! Thank you all for continuing to ask about him and for constant thoughts and prayers.
I didn't have a lot of time to prepare a menu on Sunday. This will be a slight challenge, as we really need to "shop from the pantry and freezer" this week... so we're gonna get creative around here!
This Week's Menu
- Monday -- Leftover pork carnitas from dinner out on Sunday (would love to try to make them from scratch with this recipe)
- Tuesday -- A hugely modified, gluten-freed version of this recipe for Moravian Chicken Pie -- I used a "Gillian's" wheat-free and gluten-free frozen pie crust, served with a romaine salad dressed simply with salt, pepper, oil, & raspberry balsamic vinegar
- Wednesday -- bunless ground beef burgers served on romaine lettuce with a side of steamed carrots
- Thursday -- slow braised lamb shanks served with baked sweet potatoes and creamed spinach
- Friday -- out to dinner for a girl's night out with friends! Hubs will have to fend for himself!
- Saturday -- leftover slow cooked beef stew from the freezer
