ASHEVILLE – Generally it’s not nearly what goes in a dish however what doesn’t.
At Posana, a diner might begin off with ricotta gnocchi and finish with an espresso and biscotti with out realizing one thing is lacking from the standard substances record – gluten.
It’s somewhat well-known secret and infrequently a shock for diners that not one of the dishes on the menu contains gluten.
In Might 2009, Posana opened with a kitchen devoted to gluten-free meals. Nonetheless, they didn’t inform anybody the dishes had been gluten-free. The element isn’t a lot hidden as it’s simply not extensively marketed in order to not deter company.
“The largest false impression about gluten-free meals is that it’s going to style unhealthy and that psychologically you aren’t going to have a very good expertise with the meals and dinner and eating since you’re lacking out on one thing,” Pollay stated. “Rapidly, while you go off on that mindset, you’re simply not going to have a very good eating expertise. That’s why we don’t inform individuals we’re gluten-free.”
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Common prospects are recognized to carry different household and buddies and permit them to style the dishes with out the preconceived notions, Pollay stated.
“They let everybody order, then on the finish of the meal it’s like, ‘Yeah, all the pieces you simply ate was simply gluten-free,’ and it blows their thoughts as a result of they didn’t know. They couldn’t inform,” Pollay stated. “That’s one of the best ways to indicate somebody that gluten-free doesn’t imply it needs to be horrible.”
Going gluten-free
Gluten is the identify of the proteins present in wheat, rye, barley and triticale that helps meals preserve their kind, in accordance with the Celiac Illness Basis. The proteins could cause an individual to develop into in poor health if they’re gluten-intolerant or delicate or have celiac illness, which isn’t an allergy however a genetic autoimmune illness, stated Leah McGrath, RD, LDN, company dietitian for Ingles.
“It will probably trigger issues like micronutrient deficiencies and issues like vitamin and mineral deficiencies,” McGrath stated. “There are a variety of completely different issues individuals with celiac illness can find yourself having earlier than they’re recognized and earlier than they go on a gluten-free weight loss plan.”
Celiac illness and different diseases linked to gluten aren’t current discoveries, but there may be a lot nonetheless unknown on the topic.
“It is not a brand new factor. It has been round for a very long time. The distinction is that we simply received higher at diagnosing it and there are higher exams and simpler methods to diagnose it,” McGrath stated. “Plus, the medical group simply began understanding that possibly when individuals would current with sure signs that it was one thing to be examined for.”
Pollay is an achieved chef who’s labored for a lot of esteemed cooks and in eating places together with Wolfgang Puck at Granita, Spago Chicago, David Burke at Park Avenue Café, Waldy Malouf’s Hudson River Membership and Larry Levy. Pollay’s concentrate on gluten-free cooking was motivated by the problem of discovering locations to dine out after his spouse, Martha, was recognized with celiac illness.
“My spouse, when she was pregnant with our second baby in 2005, she came upon that she was gluten-intolerant and had celiac illness,” Pollay stated. “At that time, we turned our lives the other way up and went gluten-free. She felt so significantly better being gluten-free.”
It was tougher discovering eating places that supplied gluten-free dishes in Asheville on the time, he stated. Training on gluten was restricted, and there have been many misconceptions. Many individuals didn’t notice how dire it was for an individual with a gluten intolerance to not devour gluten, which made eating out a chance.
“There might need been two eating places we actually felt snug consuming at and a variety of them simply had no concept,” Pollay stated. “And for somebody who must be gluten-free for celiac illness … even the tiniest, tiniest molecule of gluten may put individuals out for days.”
Pollay considers this in the case of vacationers and the way it may have an effect on their travels and expertise within the metropolis in the event that they develop into in poor health.
“Some individuals might need to go to the hospital and a few individuals it’s indigestion type of stuff. They only can’t go away their resort room they usually’re depressing,” he stated.
Cooking challenges
Early on, sustaining a gluten-free kitchen meant avoiding bread and pasta.
“It was type of a different-looking lunch place as a result of we didn’t have sandwiches on the time as a result of we couldn’t good the bread. We had composed salads and entrées,” he stated.
Posana has come a great distance since then. Now, gnocchi and breadsticks – two objects often made with gluten – are two of the bestsellers for the restaurant.
“We had been at all times attempting issues out and experimenting within the kitchen on a regular basis, each single day, and we lastly received a focaccia bread that we preferred, and we began making some sandwiches with that,” he stated.
The culinary workforce has developed recipes for hamburger buns and biscuits and different merchandise recognized to have gluten in them through the years. Focaccia is made in-house and used for breadcrumbs that function the coating for fried inexperienced tomatoes and different dishes.
The dessert menu includes a flourless chocolate torte, which is a chocolate cake with a chocolate ganache with meringue and candied oranges and in-house smoked vanilla ice cream. The cream and the milk are put contained in the smoker to present it a smoky taste, Pollay stated.
“For those who’re adventurous sufficient to have an after-meal espresso drink, we additionally make our personal biscotti that we serve with our espresso drink,” Pollay stated.
Orange chocolate biscotti is among the flavors in rotation.
Taking the additional steps
There are nonetheless some dishes Pollay has but to good, corresponding to English muffins and pizza crust. Posana affords doughnut holes, however the recipe for a conventional doughnut that meets their requirements remains to be underway.
“We prefer to make all the pieces in-house. We’ve an excellent pastry division. They do an incredible job,” Pollay stated. “It’s like a lab – a science venture – again there daily doing all of the bread as a result of gluten-free bread is finicky. The warmth, the moisture, the humidity — something can change gluten-free bread and they are often completely different day-to-day due to that.”
In a restaurant that’s not utterly gluten-free, extra steps have to be taken to keep away from cross-contact, which is why many might keep away from it, he stated. Making ready one dish would require the restaurant’s workers to be skilled on the process, which can contain altering the slicing board, wiping down surfaces, altering gloves and utilizing clear pans and utensils, which turns into a time-consuming job.
“Individuals are afraid of gluten-free within the kitchens as a result of they don’t need to make individuals sick, in order that they go to the intense and simply hold all the pieces out after which they provide you a salad with vinegar and oil as a result of they know that’s secure,” he stated.
Gluten-free meals and drinks are extra accessible than when the Pollay household first began their search, however there may be room for enchancment. It may be a cumbersome effort, however Pollay challenges cooks to make use of their expertise to enhance choices.
“It’s not that arduous. It simply takes some further steps. Everybody could make incredible meals. Are they going to make nice spaghetti and sandwiches and breadsticks? In all probability not. However you don’t need to be that afraid the place it’s simply the naked minimal.”
Consuming gluten-free in AVL
For 21 years, McGrath has been a company dietitian. She’s witnessed the provision of gluten-free meals merchandise enhance on the cabinets at Ingles, but additionally within the Asheville restaurant business.
McGrath referred to as Asheville “a really gluten-free pleasant restaurant vacation spot,” which she credit to eating places like Posana and the Asheville Unbiased Restaurant Affiliation which have offered entry and schooling on the topic.
“Asheville for a very long time has had a variety of consciousness. We labored on it with (AIR) to speak about gluten-free schooling,” McGrath stated.
Different eating places might not have a devoted gluten-free kitchen however are thought of to be gluten-friendly, together with The Market Place, Chestnut and The Nook Kitchen, she stated.
“There are a variety of different eating places on the town which might be very conscious of that and take a variety of precautions and know what it means to cope with meals allergens and cross-contact,” she stated. “They function their kitchens to a level that somebody with celiac illness can really feel assured that they’ll go in and have a secure meal.”
Posana
The place: 1 Biltmore Ave., Asheville.
Hours: 5-9 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday; 5-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Information: To make a reservation, go to OpenTable or name 828-505-3969. For extra info, go to posanarestaurant.com.
Tiana Kennell is the meals and eating reporter for the Asheville Citizen Occasions, a part of the USA Right now Community. E mail her at tkennell@citizentimes.com or observe her on Twitter/Instagram @PrincessOfPage. Please assist help one of these journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Occasions.
