Dining in Italy with Allergies

I just got back from a wonderful vacation in Italy. Read my blog about my experiences with food and wine in that beautiful country. Ever since my daughter was diagnosed with celiac disease, egg allergy, casein allergy and soy allergies, I have become extremely interested in what ingredients are in foods. She was not traveling with me on this trip but I took note of what would be available for her for future reference.

The Italian restaurants seemed to be more aware of celiac disease than restaurants here in the U.S. I noted a few places with special notations on their menus about gluten-free foods. Languages are my weakness and I could not always communicate fully. The Italians were very eager to please, and accommodated all requests when possible. Very little of their food is processed, almost all is made with fresh local ingredients. It is important to stay away from pastas and pizza. I also found…