Reality TV Shows are Including the Reality of Celiac Disease

Celiac disease has been a topic on not one but two TV shows in the past few days. I hardly watch television, so I'm fortunate to have learned about these episodes from a fellow blogger, the Gluten-Free Optimist.

First, the cable network BBC America’s reality show Last Restaurant Standing had an episode (#13) in which competing restauranteurs were required to come up with food for celiac guests (and other “tricky customers”) without advance warning. This episode will be replayed; the schedule is posted on the BBC America site.

Also, on NBC’s Celebrity Apprentice (episode 4), the task was to create a new healthy frozen meal. Contestant Annie Duke suggested turkey meatballs with gluten free pasta, which turned out to be the winning meal. You can watch the episode online, and you can see the recipe on Annie Duke’s blog. (The frozen meal contest comes up in the second half of the show.)

As long as I’m blogging about TV shows, I’ll also mention that last month, chef Emeril Lagasse devoted an episode of Emeril Green to Gluten Free New Orleans Style, showing viewers how to make Chicken Etouffee with a rice flour roux, a tasty skillet cornbread, traditional stewed tomatoes and okra, and New Orleans style pecan pie with a gluten-free crust.