General Mills is continuing to expand their gluten-free foods line by adding Gluten-free Bisquick and Hamburger Helper. These products will be debuted at the Celiac Disease Foundation Annual Education & Food Faire in Los Angeles on May 15, 2010.

The event starts at 8:00 AM and goes until 4:00PM. On the agenda:

FEATURING TOP NATIONAL SPEAKERS

Peter H.R. Green, MD Professor of Clinical Medicine, College of Physicians & Surgeons Columbia University, New York
Director, Celiac Disease Center Columbia University

Sheila Crowe, MD Professor of Medicine, Gastroenterology/Hepatology and Researcher University of Virginia Health System

Daniel C. Adelman, MD Senior V.P. & Chief Medical Officer Alvine Pharmaceuticals

Shelley Case, BSc, RD Registered Dietitian, author, speaker, and leading international nutrition expert on celiac disease and the gluten-free diet

Anne Lee, MSEd, RD, CDN Registered Dietician, Certified Diabetes Nutritionist, Director of Nutritional Services for Schär USA food products

&
Back by popular demand
Frank Baldassare, “The Missing Ingredient”

Also featuring

Question and Answer

Peter H.R. Green, MD and Sheila Crowe, MD

Cooking for Kids with Celiac Disease and Food Allergies

Lunchbox options and enticing gluten-free family meals
Elizabeth Kaplan, Chef

Parents of Celiac Children

Marc & Melissa Riches

CDF Connections & Chapters

Meet local support group leaders and members

Young Adults & Teens Get Together

Presentation of the 2010 Champion of Celiac Disease Awareness Award

Meet the Authors – New Books Sales & Signing

Dr. Green – Celiac Disease: A Hidden Epidemic Revised and Updated
Dr. Crowe – Celiac Disease for Dummies
Shelley Case BSc, RD – Gluten-Free Diet A Comprehensive Resource Guide – Revised and Expanded

Gluten-free Pancake Breakfast and Luncheon*
Gluten-free Goodie Bag with each registration
Raffle
Extensive vendor displays with gluten-free food samples and sales

* Please contact the CDF office for dairy free or vegetarian meals

Registration information can be found here. There is still a discount until April 30, 2010, so if you are interested in going, register soon!

It is important to know that the Gluten-free Bisquick & Hamburger Helper will not be available in stores at this time. The Hamburger Helper, which will come in 3 different gluten-free varieties: Chicken Fried Rice, Cheesy Hashbrowns and Beef Fried Rice, will be available beginning at the end of May. The Gluten-free Bisquick will not be available until July. Due to lags in shipping times, there may be a delay until these items are commonly available in stores. Please visit Live Gluten Freely for the most recent information.

When I shared the General Mills news on my Facebook Fan Page, there was quite the discussion that blossomed. Anne Steib, my colleague at Celiac-Disease.com, wrote about the new products last week. There was a lot of mention of how the new products are highly processed and aren’t we, as a country, trying to get away from processed foods. The sodium levels were also mentioned as a concern. While these products may not be for everyone, they will certainly be filling a void in the market. There are specialty companies that make baking mixes and the helper type mixes, but no mainstream company, such as General Mills, has taken on such a task.

If you follow a gluten-free diet should you start eating the Cheesy Hashbrowns for every meal? No. Just as with everything else in a healthy diet, moderation is key.

What purpose do these mixes serve then? They provide safe options for those needing a fast meal. When I say “safe”, I mean gluten-free. I don’t necessarily mean low-fat, low-sodium or full of only healthy ingredients. I am strictly referring to the gluten-free status of this product.

Can you make the meals healthy? I think that the meals can be rounded out nicely by added some fresh steamed veggies, salad and maybe even some fruit for dessert. Again, maybe not something to have on a regular basis, but it will certainly be useful for many.

As far as the Gluten-free Bisquick goes, while I have not seen the ingredients, I can’t see this as being much different from something like Pamela’s Baking & Pancake Mix.

What are your thoughts?