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Hi All~~

I'm not sure exactly what to do about a situation that has come to my
attention and I'm hoping some of you can tell me not only what I should do,
but maybe have insight into "why" this situation occurs at all......

Most of the time, if I want company during meals, I have to cook and invite
people to join me. I've never had anyone decline my invitations and everyone
always seems to enjoy what I cook, almost always wanting seconds. If I tell
them it was GF, they say something like, "I thought there was something
different - not quite what I expected..." I have a friend who is a vegan and
she experiences the same thing; people love what she cooks until they find
out it's vegan.

Not only am I annoyed that my friends know I have to eat GF, they accept my
invitations for meals, then say or act like they didn't *quite* like what I
prepared when I remind them something was GF. I don't like eating alone all
of the time, but eating out very often is too expensive, especially if
friends don't want to share a GF meal. Do I stop cooking for people? And
what, exactly, is going on when people like (even *love*) a dish, until they
learn it's GF or vegan or prepared with ingredients other than what they
thought when they ate it? I understand that everyone has different tastes,
but this seems to be something different. If I out and out lie to my brother
and his family and tell them I prepared the gluten version of [whatever],
they rave about it!

The most telling circumstance occurred when I gave a friend a slice of Udi's
bread to take home and try so she would know what to expect if we ate at
Jason's Deli and shared a sandwich - a whole sandwich is too much for either
of us to eat. I asked her later what she thought and she said, "It was okay.
You know me, I'm used to a yeasty type bread." At that point, I said, "Udi's
bread has yeast." (Keep in mind that this friend knows what gluten is, so
this isn't a case of ingredient confusion) The conversation died there. I
was mad and confused about what was really going on. I've even asked one or
two friends how they can love a meal when they eat it, then not so much when
I say the pasta was GF, or the bread was GF? They never respond - like
*they* aren't certain what's going on either. I could just not mention that
the pasta or bread or dessert is GF, but I think if they loved the pasta or
cake or garlic bread and knew it was GF, they would change their minds about
GF food in general.

Any ideas? I want my guests to enjoy food that I cook for them, but I feel
they're taking advantage of me or not being honest. I'll summarize, as I'm
pretty sure I'm not the only one who experiences this situation.

Thanks for any thoughts anyone is willing to share.

Cheers ~~ Ayn in Kansas

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