Column: Gluten free options hard to find in Paris, famous for its bread

When I first arrived in France and saw how much bread this country consumed, I had to wonder how people who cannot eat gluten survive here.

France is not known to be especially considerate to dietary restrictions, a statement my vegetarian friends here will agree with. For some reason, the word vegetarian to any restaurant will land you a plate of steamed vegetables. That is all.

However, I recently found there is also a girl in my program who is allergic to gluten.
Bread, the saving grace to a crappy vegetarian meal, was automatically not an option for her.

Therefore, I decided I would look into just how gluten-unfriendly Paris is.

Of course, there are options that are naturally gluten free. Macarons, a popular and trendy cookie, are made entirely out of egg, sugar and almond flour.

However rich bakeries are becoming off these little cookies, I bet they would get boring fast if they were the only thing available.

Instead, I wanted to find something that would satisfy that bread craving. Something fluffy and soft, that feels like its made out of wheat flour. Only, it actually isn’t.

So I went in search for gluten-free stores in Paris and discovered two things. They are new, but more plentiful than you might think. People will just have to dig a bit more than if they were to go to their local boulangerie.

Most importantly, they are not quintessentially French. At least not in my opinion.
My group of friends and I were all entranced by the idea of the rare gluten-free food in Paris. After doing a little research, we came across a small Italian grocery store and a new American-style eatery.

I taste tested a prepackaged sweet bread from the first store, and sat down for almond cake and a small cupcake at the second.

While all were delicious, and made out of some form of rice or almond flour, I was left unsatisfied. When I think of French baked goods, I think of the stereotypical
baguette.

What I found was something I could have found much easier in the United States.

Despite minor disappointments, I did reach my goal. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought all the food I tried was made out of wheat.

Also, I keep reminding myself to pull my head out of the tourist mindset. I am American, so eating a cupcake is completely average to me. It might not be so average for a Parisian.

Despite their distaste for us, the U.S. is kind of trending here.

Maybe the French are getting bored of their baguettes and are heading in our culinary direction.

Maybe for them, finding a gluten-free cupcake is a cool new way to eat pastry.

­— audperki@indiana.edu