It’s comfort food season, but comfort food can be a challenge for those on gluten-free diets. Well, local chef Roxanne Riccardi has come to the rescue with her selection of premade gluten-free entrees to heat and eat at home.

Riccardi’s gluten-free pasta already is on the menu at Cyprus Cafe and several other local restaurants. Now, gluten-intolerant home cooks can plan meals and place orders online.

The resourceful cook works her gluten-free magic in the commercial kitchen at the La Plata County Fairgrounds. A weekly email menu is sent to folks who sign up on the website. Riccardi said she usually sends the changing menu out on Sundays and requests that orders be placed by noon Wednesday for pick-up Thursday at the Fairgrounds.

Nature’s Oasis also carries several varieties of Riccardi’s ravioli, including The Italian, featuring chicken with spinach, sundried tomatoes and garlic. Three additional flavors – Cheesy, Butternut and Bella Boleta – also are chock full of fresh ingredients from garden and pantry.

Cooks looking for “almost homemade” can purchase 12-inch pizza crusts ready to dress. Spaghetti, fettuccini and fully cooked meatballs and fowlballs made with a combination of beef, pork, turkey and chicken, are seasoned with what you might expect, but these treats are gluten-free. Many selections, such as Riccardi’s “Pink Lasagna” are both dairy-free and gluten free.

Expect some creativity in her attempts to mimic old favorites. The “Alfredo” sauce is made with almond milk, rice flour, a soy-free butter spread and seasonings.

Also available to order online is a selection of baked goods from Wildflour Bakery, an arm of the Intolerant Italian. Wildflour’s grain-free nutty bread, gluten-free and grain-free focaccia, a white bread and a muffin of the week all can be pre-ordered through the website.

For gluten-free comfort paired with convenience, go online to www.intolerantitalian.com, where you’ll also find complete lists of ingredients, along with serving suggestions, such as sauces.

In other news, at 6 p.m. Saturday, Riccardi is teaming up with Jess Kelly of Durango Nutrition and Linda’s Local Food Café for a special “celebration of ____ free diets.” The three-course dinner will be gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, local and organic. For more information , call Linda at 259-6729, or for reservations call 317-0383.

Karen Brucoli Anesi