✨  Part Three: Good Food, More Accessible Diets, and True American Dreams

🍴  When Knowledge Meets Good Food

After all these millions of years, one thing has fortunately changed: today, we do not have to hunt Tyrannosaurus for a good meal. All we need is a good cook.

That is why we were especially pleased that Luka Gorše has gathered 170 recipes from around the world in his book *Superfoods for Superpeople*. He developed, tested, and refined every recipe over several years, so that the book now offers something far more important than a fashionable diet: delicious, balanced, reliably gluten-free food.

We therefore begin our American journey with one of the best-known dishes of the American Southwest.

🌶️  Chilli with Meat - *Chili con Carne*

Although most people now associate it with Texas, the dish has its roots in Mexico. It was brought there by working-class Mexican women and developed from the older dish *carne con chile*, made with dried beef and chillies.

True chilli enthusiasts still like to joke: ‘Real chilli contains no beans. And certainly no tomatoes. It contains only meat and lots - really lots - of chillies!’ Fortunately, cooking, like travelling, allows a little creativity.

🥞  An American Breakfast, by Luka Gorše

After an excellent dinner, it is time for an American breakfast. When most people think of American pancakes, they picture tall pancakes made with white flour, drizzled with maple syrup or sweet toppings.

Luka Gorše has taken a different approach. His banana-and-peanut pancakes prove that an American breakfast can be delicious, nourishing, and entirely gluten-free. Instead of white flour and added sugar, the leading roles are played by eggs, ripe banana, and peanut butter. The result is soft, succulent pancakes with such rich flavour that they scarcely need any extra sweetness.

Add a handful of fresh fruit and you have a balanced meal with more protein, more fibre, and natural sweetness.

This is also one of the hallmarks of *Superfoods for Superpeople*. Luka Gorše did not want to write just another cookbook. For almost ten years, he developed recipes that show a gluten-free diet is not about deprivation, but an opportunity for creativity, quality ingredients, and excellent flavours.

🌽  From Indigenous Fires to the Modern Table

As we walked the former paths of the Ute people, we remembered another interesting story. In *Superfoods for Superpeople*, Luka Gorše explains that corn bread, or cornbread, has its roots in North American Indigenous communities. The first versions were made from cornmeal, water, and salt. Later, European settlers adopted the tradition, especially in the southern United States, where cornbread was often baked in a cast-iron pan. Over time, milk and eggs were added to the recipe.

That story also inspired Luka’s recipe for Simple Cornbread, which can be found in the book.

📖  More than a Collection of Recipes

*Superfoods for Superpeople* is the result of almost ten years of developing, testing, and refining dishes. It shows that a gluten-free diet can be delicious, nourishing, and simple to prepare.

Inside, you will find 170 recipes from around the world, united by a shared philosophy:

• gluten-free,

• soy-free,

• free from unhealthy fats,

• free from artificial sweeteners,

• higher in protein and fibre,

• lower in carbohydrates,

• with five ingredients or fewer,

• quick to prepare in under 30 minutes,

• suitable for beginners too,

• with an emphasis on anti-inflammatory eating, excellent flavour, and appealing presentation.

With his recipes, Luka Gorše does not wish to portray a gluten-free diet as a limitation. On the contrary, he wants to show that it can be varied, creative, and so good that even people without coeliac disease will enjoy it.

Luka and Urša Gorše will also present *Superfoods for Superpeople* at Gluten-Free Expo Slovenia. Visitors will be able to discover, browse, and purchase the book, as well as speak to them in person.

🍞  Bread and Circuses ...

When we arrived in America, we expected the selection of gluten-free bread to be almost endless because of the country’s size. But that is not the case. After several weeks, we can confidently say that Slovenia’s selection of gluten-free bread is at least comparable and, in some places, even better than that in many American shops. We can be justly proud of that.

Unfortunately, the similarity ends quickly when it comes to price. Gluten-free bread is considerably more expensive than ordinary bread in America too - just as it is in Slovenia.

Nearly two thousand years ago, the Roman poet Juvenal wrote the famous words: ‘Bread and circuses.’ We have more than enough entertainment today: in sport, on television, and sometimes in politics as well. But when it comes to bread, the story is rather different for people with coeliac disease.

Slovenia is one of the few countries in Europe where adults with coeliac disease receive no systematic financial support for the only effective treatment: a gluten-free diet. Most other chronic illnesses are treated with medicines that are fully or partly covered by the health system. For coeliac disease, however, our medicine is gluten-free food - often two, three, or even more times as expensive as comparable ordinary food.

Professional estimates suggest that only a small proportion of all people with coeliac disease have been diagnosed. About 80 per cent are thought to remain undetected, meaning many people live with the condition without even knowing it.

To put it a little playfully: if there really are around 30,000 people with coeliac disease in Slovenia, we could form our own political party. We might not win an election, but we would surely ensure that coeliac disease was discussed more often in parliament. We are not asking for privileges - only for the sole effective treatment to be more accessible to everyone who needs it.

🚗  Safety Is No Accident

After driving several thousand kilometres through Colorado, you begin to notice something interesting: the traffic is calm. Drivers generally observe speed limits, readily stop for pedestrians at crossings, and there is almost no needless rushing or anger. A similar culture of sharing space prevails on cycle paths and hiking trails.

It often made us think of a Slovenian cycle path. Almost every hiker knows the moment when a cyclist comes speeding past and loudly tells everyone to move aside. They seem to feel as though they are in the Tour de France, while the rest of us step to the edge of the path with our children. Fortunately, such incidents are far less common here than they once were.

💚  Slovenia - a Safe, Green Country

When we tell local people that we are from Slovenia, they almost always smile. They know our athletes, admire our nature, and many also know that Slovenia is considered one of the safest countries in the world. We can be justly proud of this.

Peace and safety are not to be taken for granted. They are the result of the work of many people and institutions that help us live in a safe society. We sincerely thank them.

🍫  And Finally, Something Sweet: Chocolate Fudge

After all the kilometres walked, mountain trails conquered, and new experiences gained, there comes a moment when one says: ‘Now I have earned something sweet.’

Luka Gorše has prepared another pleasant surprise. His chocolate fudge has an interesting history. As he writes in *Superfoods for Superpeople*, fudge comes from the United States, more precisely Baltimore. It arose entirely by accident towards the end of the nineteenth century, when a confectioner spoiled a batch of caramel. From a culinary mistake came a dessert that later won over America and the world.

Luka has given this American classic a modern, more nourishing twist. The main ingredient in his recipe is avocado, which creates a creamy texture and adds nutritional value. Thanks to the cocoa, almost no one recognises its flavour. It is another fine example of the book’s philosophy: with a little creativity, dishes can be not only delicious but more nutritionally rich as well.

❤️  American Dreams, Slovenian Style

When we set off for America, we took a few fears and many questions with us. We will return home above all with new friendships, unforgettable memories, and another confirmation that life with coeliac disease is not a limitation.

We need only a little more planning, plenty of good will, and, above all, the right knowledge. Let this blog be an invitation to everyone: do not be afraid to explore the world, taste new dishes, and discover new cultures.

Perhaps these are the true American dreams, Slovenian style: not seeking a perfect world, but discovering, through knowledge, respect, and good people, how beautiful life can be even with the challenges that coeliac disease brings.

💌  P.S.

If you have reached the end of this blog, thank you sincerely. Now it is your turn.

Share your experiences, interesting adventures, questions, and suggestions with us. Perhaps your story will help us write the next blog together - we never run out of ideas.

For example:

• Why is Colorado a real ‘nightmare’ for smokers?

• Let there be room for us everywhere too - we also want to travel, eat, and enjoy life without worry.

• And finally, I know that some people are also very afraid of flying. It is not an easy fear to overcome. In the next light-hearted comic strip, we will not pretend to be experts on conquering it; I only hope to raise at least a wry smile. After all ... the aeroplane is still the safest means of transport ...