This past month I had the honor to participate in this year’s annual DC Metro Regional Conference and dinner. Each year this conference seems to get bigger and better! The speakers were great, the food was great and everyone who attended seemed to have a great time and gain a lot of valuable information.

Glutenfreeda.com was invited to provide a two hour cooking class during the conference. The primary focus of this class was to show people that living on a gluten-free diet does not mean that you have to throw flavor out the window or that you have to prepare unusual food that the rest of your family will not touch! During this fun class we prepared a springtime salad of Mesclun with Pears, Feta & Caramelized Pecans, a creamy Mushroom Risotto topped with sautéed vegetables and last, but not least (also one of my absolute favorite dishes) Blackberry Cream Cheese Crepes. I hope that everyone who attended left with the understanding that eating gluten-free actually means great food choices, quality ingredients and authentic tasting foods!

I also had the pleasure of spending about an hour with the kids who attended the conference. Christine Ewing did a wonderful job organizing a fun-filled lecture series for children, parents and young adults. Nancy Patin Falini, MA, RD, LDN put on a wonderful children’s educational workshop — teaching kids to not be tempted by the "gluten bug" along with other helpful tips and exercises to help children understand what gluten is and how to avoid it. Nancy was a tough act to follow! I spent my time with the kids discussing all the food choices they have from breakfast and lunch to snacks, dinners and even desserts. The kids had so many wonderful suggestions on what they could eat (and enjoy eating!). We finished our discussion by making mini polenta pizzas and chocolate chip brownies with ice cream and whipped cream (yum!). I hope the kids had as much fun as I did during this session!!!

Unfortunately at the conference I was busy with my classes but here’s what I heard about this year’s lecturers:

Dr. Peter H.R. Green (Professor of Clinical Medicine at Columbia University) gave an informative talk on Celiac Disease and its relationship to mortality rates, its autoimmune connection, fertility complications and related neurological problems. Everyone I spoke with who attended Dr. Green’s lecture found it very informative!

Dr. Margaret Gill, (Mayo Clinic — Dept of Family Medicine), lectured on her personal experiences with Celiac Disease and how to master the diet. She also gave helpful guidelines for health care providers on monitoring the health of Celiac patients and other preventative issues.

Anne Roland Lee, MSEd, RD, Nutritionist (Celiac Disease Center Columbia University), spoke about her Nutritional Assessment Tools developed for dietitians to use while counseling patients with Celiac disease along with a discussion on different healthy gluten-free grains available at the market.

Lee Tobin, chef & baker at Whole Foods gave a lecture on "The Basics of Gluten-free Baking" along with an exciting announcement of a new Whole Foods facility which is currently being built that will produce only gluten-free baked goods! How exciting!!! If that isn’t a sign of good things to come in the world of gluten-free, I don’t know what is!

All in all, this conference was a huge success. I’d like to thank Dan DuBravec for putting together such a wonderful event. If you get a chance next year to attend, I encourage you to do so — it is definitely worth it!

- Glutenfreeda