Ajax Peak and Allred's in Telluride

Saturday marked 4 years to the day that Dave and I moved to Telluride from Sugarloaf, Maine. We're had a busy four years and haven't hiked too much due to various factors like a broken toe (me, a few summers ago) and a healing leg (Chaos, last summer after a nasty ski injury to his back tendon) and general life stuff.


September 18, 2006

We're leaving for Maine in a week for our wedding and will be driving cross country with the dogs for the event. We're also moving into a new condo and have been packing our stuff up one box at a time. It was a hard day last week when I packed away the pretty pink kitchen aid for the next month. Everything is going into storage and when we return to Telluride in mid-October we will move to our new digs.



our wedding logo- designed by colleen shea



As a gluten-free person travel presents some challenge but I'm feeling prepared and have already checked in with the Portland, Maine Whole Foods to see if they have Udi's for me (yes- they do) and managed to snag two cases of New Planet Tread Lightly for the event and vacation as well. I've mapped out Whole Foods along the route and have been researching options plus packing food. I've got a big batch of Artisan GF Flour made up and ready to travel plus a few other goodies like Bumble Bars to carry me through the 2,600 mile trip.



After all this we are pretty tired and used Saturday not for packing but for playing. We ignored the boxes of stuff, wedding details and travel plans and headed up Ajax. I was up early with last minute hike preparations and we were on the road shortly after 7am. We cruised through town and the 4Runner climbed to the top of Bridal Veil Falls where we began our 6 mile round trip hike. The sun in Telluride is really intense so the early morning helped us summit by 10:40am and enjoy some time watching town park fill with the Blues & Brews Festival folks from 12,785 feet. Mayhem, our  young golden loved the hike and was ready for more while Chaos, who is almost 6 and still plagued by his back tendon did well but was tired by the end of the hike.



September 18, 2010 Ajax Peak overlooking Telluride and the ski resort



Recently a fellow blogger and excellent writer, Peter Bronski came to Telluride and did some excellent reviews on local restaurants. I've dined at both establishments before but Peter's photos and descriptions had Dave and I walking into Allred's on Saturday night. I love it when other people help me rediscover my own town. We were going to sit at the bar and enjoy a quick bite but their happy hour specials had the bar filled and we ended up in the dining room. Both locations offer excellent views of the town of Telluride and the box canyon plus a view of Ajax Peak.



Allred's Dinner

We each had a small fillet Mignon and I had a sage brown butter sauce while Dave had the Chimichurri sauce. My sauce was yummy and melted the steak in my mouth while Dave's had sweet tones of cilantro, garlic, onion and peppers. We shared a side of sweet potato mash and mushrooms.

Sweet Potato Mash

I'm normally not a mushroom fan but these were tasty. Allred's works to source their menu from sustainable sources and I'm certain the mushrooms were on the menu as a result of our rainy summer that spurred growth of fungi in the area. Plus the listing caught our eyes, organic trumpet royale mushrooms with texas wild boar bacon, parmesan

organic trumpet royale mushrooms

It was an amazing meal and we haven't stopped talking about it, plus it was all gluten free.

Dinner at Allred's was a great ending to a perfect day in Telluride.

the road to red rocks and the gluten free trip

Last weekend we left our small box canyon and headed to Denver for the Yonder Mountain String Band show. They're not my fave but Dave enjoys them and I was game for getting out of town.
We left on Thursday night and found the best road snacks at the Sawpit Mercantile as we left town. I was able to try Annie's Gluten Free Bunny Cookies and Glutino Chocolate Covered Pretzels, neither of which is very good for me but fine in moderation. The Bunny Cookies have a bit of a rice flour taste and are great in small amounts while the Glutinos were all that I had hoped for in a GF chocolate covered pretzel since I knew I loved the plain version.

Friday we spent the day at the Park Meadows Mall in Denver which is the second time all summer that I've gone to a mall. I did hit Cherry Creek on my Denver trip in July. That may sound strange but I live 3 hours from the closest mall which is on the small side and ski bums don't have too much need for most mall stores anyhow. We both remembered this on Friday as we walked through the monstrous structure and did some shoe shopping for Dave. The best part about Park Meadows is the proximity to a PF Chang's and that's why we hit it versus Cherry Creek.

 We enjoyed a gluten free lunch with the lettuce wraps I dream about, Chang's Spicy Chicken and ventured out with the Mongolian Beef that quickly became a new favorite. I'm hoping to find a PF Chang as we drive cross country to Maine in a few short weeks.  I've already marked a few Whole Foods that are close to interstate 70 and will make great lunch stops.

In less then three weeks we drive from Colorado to Maine for our October wedding. We're driving so that the pups can join us and we really enjoy the road trip. We're doing a simple day at Sugarloaf and are looking forward to a relaxing trip... which we will need by then as we're also moving. Our new location is yet to be determined so everything will be going into storage until we return to Telluride and find a new home. We'll still beat the rush of the seasonal ski bums coming into town so I'm optimistic that we'll find something that will take us and our two golden monsters.

Two years ago this stress would have wrecked me, I'd be a grumpy mess. Two years ago I was still eating gluten and had felt bad for so long that I didn't even know I felt bad. We had stress then too and I was a wreck.... as was our Tacoma when Dave rolled it that September, it was our only car but we had good insurance. Two years later, again in September, everything is happening at once, some good, some bad, some just challenging. Whenever I hear people say that it's tough to be gluten free I just shake my head and say that it's tougher not to be. While gluten free isn't stress free it certainly helps when challenges come around. The balance I have now is well worth the trip of being a glutard.

Telluride- The Butcher and the Baker

Last summer my favorite stop at the Farmer's Market was to see Cinda who made gluten free cupcakes and cookies. I had to go early as she would sell out. This summer Cinda is no longer at the Farmer's Market as she's part of a new business in town, The Butcher and the Baker (guess which one she is).

I took a day earlier this summer and went in for lunch. I had a freshly made lemonade and loved their glassware that looks like a small glass flower pot.

I had a great turkey and apple wrap which was gluten free of course. The wrap was a bit dry and I made it worse by being picky and omitting the mayo as I didn't know if I'd like the flavor and cheese as I really am trying to be closer to 100% dairy free. I'm hoping to go back soon and give it a second try as I loved the apple and turkey combo. The turkey wasn't your typical deli meat but thick slices.

Dave and I also went for Brunch on Sunday. They make Gluten Free Blueberry Pancakes each Sunday and only on Sunday's as we found out as we cruised town one Saturday looking for breakfast.

I also had a hot cocoa made with soy which was also in a cute mug, although this breakfast couldn't have been 100% dairy free as the pancakes were wonderful. They had a great texture, flavor and a cute presentation. The price is a bit higher then other places in town but they do have high quality food which merits the pricing, I'm looking forward to skiing to town this winter and enjoying some of these on a lazy Sunday.

pink gluten free goodies and phish

A few weeks ago at the farmers market I picked up a couple of beets. Seriously two monster beets that were larger then my fists. I cooked a large bowl of beets then tried to find ways to use them since I can only eat so many and Dave really isn't a fan.
The result- beet hummus, which was just a sweet version of hummus and much prettier but still healthy snack.

we've been a bit busy around here with a small band named phish that came to town and dave is a fan of phish so we hit the shows with our tickets that Dave slept out in a snowstorm to get. We had a few friends hit town as well and it did give us an occasion to make gluten free pancakes for our couch dwellers.

(ok so these aren't pink but they are yummy)

they also are very pretty...

as is Ajax during a sunset...

and my pink shirt and earplugs for the cool mountain night and loud phish show...

I ended up in a down jacket by the end of the night which may seem odd in mid-August but here at 9,000 feet it's a way of life for a cold evening in town park with 8,000 of my closest friends.

Udi's Pizza Crust & City Market Display

My apologies, my droid will take great photos sometimes but then other times they upload like this, but I hope you get the point. Even when you forget your Udi's Pizza Crust in the oven a bit too long it still makes for a great dinner. Here's my version of Thai Chicken Pizza.

Chicken, cubed and cooked in Buffalo Sauce

Matchstick Carrots

Julianned Onions and Green Peper

and this Gabo Gato Peanut Sauce

It was my first Udi's Crust and I loved it. I'm still a fan of the homemade stuff but this saves a bit of time and has a good texture and flavor.

 Also I walked into my semi-local (67 miles!) City Market and found this:

Udi's in the real people bread section! Whoo hoo! I was pretty excited and stocked up

on Bagels to help fuel my Merle's addictions.

Sweet Saturdays for Christmas in July

Last Saturday we had a nice rainy day so we invited some friends over for a Sweet Saturday. We started the day with homemade OJ and gluten free donuts and watched some Christmas movies to celebrate Christmas in July. We made a homemade glaze for the donuts and used a meat injector to make jelly filled donuts.

It was a pretty sweet morning and Dave and Jess ended up in a sugar coma while Jared and I pulled out this new Whoopie Pie Book to create Mocha Flavored Whoopies. We even took it a step further when Jared made our frosting coffee flavored too. It was a great change from a "plain" whoopie and made a rainy Saturday go by much too quickly. The book is great and even has a GF whoopie reciepe but I just subbed GF flour and xanthum gum in for the Mocha Whoopies.

The jelly donut was a winner as was the bacon wrapped donut... however it was hard to touch the...

Gluten Free Oreo Filled Donut with Glaze and Sprinkles.

Life here in Telluride is pretty sweet...

Time to make the Donuts, take 2

The last time we made donuts there was snow on the ground and winter was just beginning. Now as summer is in full swing and we suffer from a heat wave of  temperatures in the high 80's

(ok, it's kind of a joke but when you live in the mountains and at 9,000 feet this is HOT)

We were home after a busy weekends of playing with the dogs and enjoying the Food Network. Kid in a Candy Store was at Kick Ass Cupcakes and they were showing decadent deep fried cupcakes and we were motivated.We were not motivated enough to make cupcakes but we did pull out the Gluten Free Gourmet and revisited the donut recipe. Doesn't everyone want to make donuts when it's hot out?

This time we cut the recipe in half and whipped the eggs in faster to create a better dough.

I also finally picked up a cookie dough scoop which rocked our donut world. It made perfect scoops and reminded me of Dunkin Donut Munchkins.

We also now have a fondue pot that doubles as a donut fryer.

(thanks Kendra, come visit and we'll make you donuts to thank you in person)

It kept the oil at a perfect 375 degrees and had a good shape for making small donuts in.

After letting them cool we shook them in a mix of Cinnamon, sugar, powdered sugar and cocoa then enjoyed. Next time I make cupcakes I may have to coat in this mix and try my hand at deep fried cupcakes but for now I was pretty happy with our second attempt at homemade donuts.

YUM!

Udi's love

Although I haven't convinced Merle's Brown Bag to carry Udi's gluten free bagels yet I still get them to make their creations for me- BYOUB style (bring your own udi's bagel). These are Chaos & Mayhem approved eats on a lazy Friday in Telluride.