Chocolate cake!

There is nothing better than chocolate cake, except maybe a chocolate cupcake. Thanks to Pamela's Luscious Chocolate Cake Mix, you can enjoy one of the best chocolate cupcakes you've ever eaten, GF or not. My husband, who is usually somewhat critical of my gluten-free creations (he is far better at the baking/cooking thing than I am), called a cupcake made from this mix "even better than regular cupcakes." I've seen this mix at both the Kroger on NC-54 in Durham and the Whole Foods on Wade Avenue. I have also tried Pamela's Classic Vanilla Cake Mix, and it is also delicious (but not quite as amazing as the chocolate).

These mixes are so good that you don't need frosting, which is a good thing, because it is difficult to find pre-made GF frosting. Even though some of the regular frosting brands don't list "wheat," they do contain modified food starch, and I have had bad reactions to both a Duncan Hines and a Pillsbury frosting that didn't list any gluten ingredients. Pamela's also has frosting mixes, so it is best to use one of those or make your own homemade frosting.

The Weathervane

The Weathervane gets two thumbs up!

The Weathervane, the restaurant attached to A Southern Season in Chapel Hill, is one of the few restaurants I've run across around here that cater to the GF crowd. I've eaten there several times; sometimes, they even have a vegan/gluten-free menu printed up. This weekend, they didn't have a separate print-out, but our server was well-educated about GF diets and went through the menu with me and pointed out which dishes were safe. The other wonderful thing about the Weathervane is that usually 8 out of 10 of their dinner entrees are GF. They make a great brunch as well, and there are always plenty of GF options.

As icing on the cake, The Weathervane uses local and organic ingredients when possible.