Vermont's Independent Voice
Browse News
Browse Arts + Life
Browse Food + Drink
Browse Cannabis
Browse Music
Browse Movies
Browse Events
Browse Classifieds
Browse Personals
At West Meadow Farm Bakery in Essex Junction, Lois Blaisdell mixes up bagels, muffins and coffee cakes as well as berry pies and pecan “Tassies.” But her recipes leave out one ingredient most people take for granted: wheat.
In 1997, Blaisdell was diagnosed with celiac sprue, a condition that makes eating certain grains — such as wheat and rye — both painful and damaging to long-term health. The diagnosis was hard for the enthusiastic home baker to swallow.
So Blaisdell began experimenting with wheat alternatives, and the members of The Celiac Support Group of Vermont enjoyed the results. In 2003, she started selling her treats to area health food stores — current customers include Sweet Clover Market, Healthy Living and Hunger Mountain Co-op. Right before Christmas, the baker moved her wholesale operation out of her home and into its Park Street location.
This Saturday brings another change: For the first time, West Meadow will open its doors to the public as a retail business.
To achieve the proper texture and flavor, Blaisdell makes most of her products from blends of different flours, such as rice, sorghum, tapioca and garbanzo bean. She says many of the sweets, including the coffee cake, muffins and cookies, are “very similar to what people would be used to.” So similar, in fact, that they are “good enough to pass as regular, so I think they’ll be enjoyed by a general audience.”
By contrast, Blaisdell’s loaves aren’t much like traditional bread. “The gluten in wheat gives that nice stretchy structure to the bread. We have to replace that with xanthan gum and gelatin,” she explains. A NECI intern is helping her seek creative solutions. “He’s really skillful at adapting recipes,” Blaisdell enthuses. “He’s developed a really good French bread recipe; the flavor is great.”
More By This Author
Speaking of Food, side Dishes
-
King's Corner Deli Owner Plans Pop-Up Breakfast Event
May 7, 2020 -
School Distribution Sites Provide Food, Toys for Burlington Kids
May 6, 2020 -
An Early Morning Grocery Store Routine, and Still No TP
Apr 14, 2020 -
Restaurants Rescued Me When I Was Down
Mar 18, 2020 -
Summer Food and Drink Bucket List
Jun 18, 2019 - More »
Comments
Comments are closed.
Since 2014, Seven Days has allowed readers to comment on all stories posted on our website. While we’ve appreciated the suggestions and insights, the time has come to shut them down — at least temporarily.
While we champion free speech, facts are a matter of life and death during the coronavirus pandemic, and right now Seven Days is prioritizing the production of responsible journalism over moderating online debates between readers.
To criticize, correct or praise our reporting, please send us a letter to the editor. Or send us a tip. We’ll check it out and report the results.
Online comments may return when we have better tech tools for managing them. Thanks for reading.
