Windy City Blogger Wed Dec 16 2009

Windy City Blogger Wednesday: Gluten Free Betsy

By Whitney Merritt

I hope y'all are staying warm out there! This week I would like to introduce Betsy of Gluten Free Betsy.

What brought you to Chicago?
I was born and raised on the south side of Chicago, Evergreen Park to be exact. I've lived in the Beverly and Ukrainian Village neighborhoods and apparently love Chicago too much to leave. Every winter I say I'm moving to the west coast where it's warm, and then every summer I fall back in love with the city. It's a love/hate relationship.

What do you do when you aren't blogging?
I'm an Administrative Assistant in an environmental consulting firm. I like doing this job because it pays the bills and I don't have to bring my work home with me. When 5pm rolls around I'm off to do whatever and not have to worry about a thing. "Whatever" can be defined as cooking, yoga, or running. I'm actually training for a half marathon (January in Phoenix) so there is a lot of running done in my free time. I'm excited...and scared.

Favorite restaurant in Chicago?
This is hard! There is a LOT of good food in Chicago and I haven't even experienced a lot of it yet.

A couple places that stick out are La Piazza Bella in Roscoe Village. They have a bruschetta burger that is simply phenomenal! I can't eat the bun since I'm gluten free, but I order it without bread and it's still to die for, so I can only imagine how ridiculously good it is served "regular".

Picante at Dame and Division Street has aMAZing tilapia tacos. Their pico de gallo is one of the best I've had ever. They also have this layered dip with black beans, guacamole, sour cream, tomatoes, and cheese. So good!

Favorite restaurant in Chicago, if you aren't paying?
If I wasn't paying, I'd hope to be somewhere super fancy that I haven't been before. Otherwise I'd definitely have to say Carnivale. I was there for a "Lisa Cooks Allergen Free" Safe & Sound dinner and was blown away. I wish I were a bottomless pit, because I would have kept on eating all night. I love the atmosphere too - very fun!

Favorite recipe and/or post
My Buffalo Chicken Lasagna is pretty popular with my friends and family. Sometimes when I cook or bake, I get a lot of "Oh, it's gluten free? No thanks." But this stuff is practically inhaled when I serve it (with brown rice lasagna noodles). I've had so many people ask for the recipe, so I know it's good!

I also have to mention my Pumpkin Pie I made this past Thanksgiving. I made it entirely from scratch (something I've never done before) and experimented a bit. It turned out so scrumptious, so I'm pretty proud of it.

How do take your coffee?
I like it black with cinnamon or with So Delicious French Vanilla coconut milk creamer. Yum!

Cubs or Sox?
Oh Sox, hands down!! I'm a south side girl for sure! When I lived in Ukrainian Village my family would tease me saying, "You're moving up north, what, are you gonna become a Cubs fan now too?" I told them they could take the girl out of the south side, but they can't take the south side out of the girl.

What is the one thing/place/restaurant that you recommend to your out of town guests?
If you're coming to Chicago you have to have pizza. It's the law. I think Giordano's has awesome pizza. If you're on the south side you must eat Palermo's or Rosangela's pizza. (Fond memories from my pre-gluten free days)

One (or two) things that you can't live without in your kitchen
I love my measuring cup spoons. Super handy for scooping ½ cup or whatever measurement needed.

Catch up on all the previous Windy City Bloggers here.

Do you have a favorite Chicagoland based food blogger? Email drivethru@gapersblock.com with [food blog interview] in the subject line with the name and URL of the blog and I will check it out!