When the opening of Food for Life in Cedar Park was reported earlier this year (2009), the concept of a business providing gluten-free/casein-free individually prepared meals or family-sized entrées to purchase for later enjoyment at home sounded very interesting. As I live in San Antonio, however, it was not a matter of just jumping in the car and driving over to explore the concept and the food. Then, in June, Food for Life’s Web site announced that on-site dining was now an option, as booths had been added to the retail space. More reason to visit! So, when I was in Austin for several days in July, a stop at Food for Life was definitely included on my itinerary.

Now, I couldn’t have been farther away from the location, as I was staying on the extreme southern edge of Austin, but MoPac was close by, and it did not take all that long to drive up Loop 1 to US 183. The important thing to remember is to take the “Last Free Exit” off 183 before the Toll Road. Then turn left at the second traffic light onto S Lakeline Blvd and follow it to Cypress Creek Road. Turn left onto Cypress Creek and just past Sun Chase you will see the Cypress Bend Shopping Center on the right. Jumping out at you from the listing of stores in the shopping center is “Gluten Free” in black on a white background, and then again a big sign saying “Gluten Free” outside the store. I loved it! Through the store windows an indoor sign is visible with the “Food for Life” name.

We were greeted inside by the founder, Sherrie Kjar (pronounced “Carr”). Sherrie gave us a warm welcome and cheerfully satisfied my curiosity about this business with a different focus. Some eight years ago her son was diagnosed with autism at the age of two. Naturally, she explored the various options for treatment, and it was not long before she heard of the gluten-free/casein-free diet. Although there were many stories from parents who had seen improvement in their autistic child from the diet, the lack of studies meant that many doctors would not recommend the diet. Also, it was not claimed that the diet was effective for all children with autism (it has been said that about 30% of those who go on the diet benefit). However, Sherrie decided that it was a healthy diet and worth trying. The results were dramatic, and Sherrie became a strong advocate of the gluten-free/casein-free diet.

Those of us with gluten sensitivity know that the gluten-free diet is not an easy one. There is a steep learning curve as we explore the foods that are safe and unsafe for us. So it should not be difficult for us to understand that adding another forbidden element, such as the casein found in dairy products, multiplies the complexity of the diet and the problems encountered in providing nutritious, tasty, and safe (no gluten, no casein) meals. Sherrie went through the learning process and had as her reward the vast difference the diet has made for her son. In talking with the parents of other autistic children, however, she noted that all-too-often the diet was abandoned or not followed strictly because the parents just found it too hard. She wanted to share what she had learned and make following the diet easier for these people. She came up with the idea of Food for Life, a place where parents could find gluten-free/casein-free meals for their autistic child or, indeed, entrées for the entire family.

Rumors about this soon-to-open business spread, and not just among the parents of autistic children: the celiac and gluten-intolerant community also took note. In fact, since the opening, Sherrie says that she has had more gluten-sensitive customers than she has had from those needing a gluten-free/casein-free diet.

Food for Life offers both a breakfast and a lunch/dinner menu. Both of these are growing and evolving. The breakfast menu includes such things as pancakes or waffles, breakfast tacos, biscuits and gravy, muffins, French toast, English muffins, and oatmeal that is certified gluten free.

Prepared individual meals and family entrées ready for you to take home with you are either in a refrigerated case or in a freezer case. The refrigerator items are dated by the preparation date. If they are not sold within five days, they are removed from sale. (The meals are good for five to seven days from the date made.) It would not be practical to try to stock all of the entrées on the menu in the refrigerator/freezer cases, but the most popular items are there, ready to take home.

But you are not limited to taking home the items in the refrigerator/freezer cases. I asked if the new menu items that are listed as “New menu items for dine in” could also be taken home, and Sherrie replied that “All items are available now for both carry-out and pick-up. We recently added those items and now have the packaging for all entrées.”

To take home for supper, I chose the refrigerated spinach lasagna, which came with green beans and creamed corn. A sheet of instructions for final preparation was included with the order. The lasagna and sides were in a microwavable plastic tray, and all they needed was a couple of minutes on High for the meal to be ready to serve. (Microwaves vary. Food for Life recommended 45 seconds to 1½ minutes, but mine needed a bit more heating time.) I don’t know what they used in place of dairy cheese in the spinach lasagna, but whatever it was, it worked. And the seasoning worked, too. I am not a fan of creamed corn, but I was pleasantly surprised when I tried Food for Life’s version; it was quite good. All in all, a most satisfactory eating experience. For another meal, I selected a refrigerated chicken pot pie. This comes in a pie tin with crimped edges holding a cardboard lid in place. After removing the lid, the instructions say to heat the tin in the oven for 20-40 minutes until the contents are done. (I found that it took closer to an hour to brown the crust.) There is enough pot pie for several people. I don’t think you will find a pot pie of comparable quality in supermarket freezers.

Food for Life encourages their customers to call ahead for take-out curbside service. You can get a copy of the menu to take home with you and use for ordering. Since not all items are kept in the refrigerated/freezer cases, calling beforehand is definitely the way to go to make sure your favorite items are prepared and ready for you to pick up, although Sherrie assured me that “Most things are already prepared and available within the time it would take to check out a customer. If it is a special order 24 hours would be appreciated.”

Food for Life has four gluten-free/casein-free flour blends for sale: muffin, flour (to substitute when a recipe calls for flour), pancake/waffle, and cake/cupcake. Sherrie told me that she developed these blends using both traditional flours (white rice flour, potato starch, and tapioca starch) and whole grain alternative flours, depending on which produce the best results. Concerned about what your child can take to school for lunch? Food for Life offers pizza kits, turkey wraps, chicken nuggets, mac and cheese, and grilled cheese for lunch boxes. The new flours and school lunch information are from Food for Life’s monthly e-mail. Do sign up to receive the e-mail each month so that you can keep on top of what’s going on.

Sherrie has been listening to those customers who live further south in the Austin area. In addition to picking up your gluten-free/casein-free meal orders from the store in Cedar Park, orders phoned in or made online may be picked up at two additional locations, listed with the store information. (OM 09/09)