Boulder's Gluten Free Bistro finds the right ingredients

Company offers healthy pizza, pasta options

By Scott SchlaufmanFor the Camera

Posted: 08/01/2010 09:00:00 PM MDT

Read more: Boulder's Gluten Free Bistro finds the right ingredients - Boulder Daily Camera http://www.dailycamera.com/business/ci_15641947#ixzz0vSsfJHjq
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The owners of The Gluten Free Bistro of Boulder are the first to admit that most gluten-free products aren't always appetizing.

"Texture was lacking, taste was lacking, nutrition was lacking and I really got sick of buying products and throwing them in the garbage," said Julie McGinnis, who founded the company with Kelly McCallister and Barb Verson.

All three are gluten intolerant and simply wanted to be able to go out to eat with their families.

The company got started in April 2009, launching its first product last summer with a sale to Boulder's Radda Trattoria. From there, The Gluten Free Bistro has continued to grow, selling pizza crusts and pasta to more than 30 restaurants, most of which are in the Boulder area.

The Sink, located at 1165 13th St. on University Hill, has been carrying the pizza crust for nine months, according to chef Scott Baptist. Baptist isn't gluten intolerant, but enjoys the taste of the crust. That taste, he said, separated The Gluten Free Bistro from the competition.

"As soon as they walked in the door, I knew it was a great product," Baptist said. "I had already tried somebody else's (crust) and it was OK, but this is much better."

That taste comes from hours spent in the kitchen trying out different recipe variations, the company's founders said. While the experimental process led them through ingredients like corn, dried milk and almond flour, the three owners ended up with a product that uses no major allergens.

In the kitchen, they discovered coconut flour as a replacement for the dairy and nut flour that would be allergen-free. The coconut also gives a much-needed texture to the food.

"What it was with the coconut flour is that it's so absorbent," McCallister said. "It really draws in the moisture and gives a textural component to it that a lot of other gluten-free products are missing out there."

In addition to taste, McCallister and her colleagues focus on cutting down the time it takes to make the gluten-free dishes. The pizza crusts are partially baked and then frozen to cut down on baking time, and their pasta cooks in one-fifth of the time that it would normally take.

In the coming months, the owners are hoping to move their products into the retail market, but currently both the pizza crusts and pasta can be bought from the company's Web site.

The crusts are also available at Radda Trattoria, Nick-N-Willy's at 801 Pearl St., and all of the Pasta Jay's locations.

McGinnis and Verson have backgrounds in nutrition, so they said their products are not only good tasting, but good for the body.

"This is full of B vitamins and minerals. It's high in protein and fiber and it's just really well-balanced," McGinnis said. "You'd want to give your family this."

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