5@5 is a daily, food-related list from chefs, writers, political pundits, musicians, actors, and all manner of opinionated people from around the globe.

The fourth Thursday of November is typically a flour-heavy feast – from roux gravy to bread stuffing to pumpkin pie.

To some, this is a mere delicious afterthought. Flour schmour. To others who suffer from a gluten intolerance or sensitivity, like Vanessa Phillips, it’s a bona fide culinary nightmare - and the Thanksgiving buffet just turned into an edible war zone.

Phillips and Tryg Siverson are the owners of Friedman’s Lunch, located inside of New York City’s Chelsea Market. As a teenager, Phillips was diagnosed with a gluten intolerance, a condition that requires her to nix all gluten products from her diet – and yes, that means on holidays too.

Because of this, the couple is here to offer a host of tips and gluten-free recipes so that all may safely gorge themselves into a turkey coma this Thanksgiving.

Five Tips to Cooking a Gluten-Free Thanksgiving Meal: Vanessa Phillips and Tryg Siverson
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Why yes, we do pay quite a lot of attention to our commenters (even the ones who take time out to call our editor a "self-entitled rube" with a "horrible name" - a lovely way to start the day) and we're always happy to show off the ones who take time out of their day to share smart thoughts on hot-button topics.

Boomer Barkeep is one of 770+ readers who had a thing or ten to say about Alie Ward and Georgia Hardstark's recent 5@5 on the topic of not pissing off your bartender.

Sir, the floor is yours - when you get a chance.

I tend bar in a business-class hotel near a major airport and have some thoughts on the points in the article.

"WHEN YOU GET A CHANCE..." doesn't bother me at all. That puts the guest into my mental queue of things to be done, and I will get to them as soon as I can. That's better than them wanting or needing something, and getting frustrated because I'm not reading their mind (or maybe can't see that the glass they're clutching to their chest is empty).

What irks me are the people who just start barking out their order as I'm on my way to do something else or serve another guest. I'd much rather have someone say, "When you have a chance, I'm ready to order" than bark out "I'll have a rum-and-Coke...." as I'm hustling to the other end of the bar to deliver a drink.

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From the top pumpkin-producing state to presidential pardons, think you know a thing or two about Turkey Day? Gobble your way through today's featured CNN Challenge: the Thanksgiving Quiz.

It's easy: pick your favorite host – whether it be Candy Crowley, Ed Henry or Larry King - and get ready to stuff yourself silly with festive facts.

Take the THANKSGIVING QUIZ.

The number of Americans fighting off hunger stayed level last year, though food insecurity rates remain the highest they have been since the federal government began keeping track 15 years ago, a Department of Agriculture report released Monday found.

About 14.7 percent of U.S. households were "food insecure" in 2009, meaning they had difficulty feeding one or more of their members at some point last year due to a lack of financial resources, according to the report.

That equates to 17.4 million households total, or roughly 45 million people.

This year's rate marked a slight increase in percentage from 2008, when 14.6 percent of American households had trouble putting food on the table.

The CNN Wire Staff has the full story - "Federal report: U.S. hunger remains at highest levels in 15 years"

Quoth commenters on our recent post It's not Thanksgiving without...:

It's not Thanksgiving for me without meatless stuffing with extra celery, onion, pepper and herbs. Also, mashed potatoes with the skin still on. I'm a vegetarian so Tofurkey and meatless gravy. It's more delicious than people realize! - jillmarie

That sounds like a pretty sad meal, Jillmarie. I feel sorry for people like you who can't put your militant food choices aside for just one day in order to enjoy a nice traditional meal. - deedee

Earlier today, Eatocracy shared another installment of our T-Minus guide to a laid back Thanksgiving, centering some of our efforts around ways to make all guests - even non meat-eaters - feel welcome in your home on a holiday. Silly us.

I've been the vegetarian at the passive-aggressive table on Thanksgiving and assure you that it was no picnic. Aunt dragged me to her friends' home, disallowed me from bringing along any food I could actually eat and the hosts, whom she'd pre-warned of my freakish eating habits, made sure the meat - which was in every dish but the bread - was in big chunks so I could easily just "pick it out." Aunt compounded my discomfort by pulling me aside to chastise me for not just gobbling down drumsticks and bacon-laden casseroles.

Upshot - I sat at the kids' table, refusing dishes as politely as possible (no sense in wasting food for show), gnawing at burned dinner rolls and wishing I'd just been allowed to bring along some roasted veggies to share. But no - that would have been "rude."

When President Obama commented that the Republicans were standing around drinking Slurpees while the Democrats were busy creating real change in Washington, it caused quite a storm. Now that he's sitting down with the new Republican leadership this week, the so-called "Slurpee Summit" is the talk of the nation.

While most of us have had one of 7-Eleven's frozen concoctions, there's plenty more you probably don't know about this too cool drink.

Read the entire COOL HISTORY OF THE SLURPEE from Mental Floss.

Susan Chun is a Producer with AC360°.

A negative review of a new restaurant can be devastating, especially when it comes from the New York Times. Restaurant critic Sam Sifton recently reviewed Eddie Huang's Taiwanese/Chinese restaurant Xiao Ye on the Lower East Side of Manhattan and while Sifton had a lot of praise for Huang's food, he also had a lot of criticism over the menu and the chef himself. He declined to give Xiao Ye a star.

But that didn’t really discourage Eddie Huang, who is a writer as well as a chef and restaurant owner. Huang responded publicly to the review by posting an e-mail from his mother Jessica on his blog "Fresh Off the Boat". Jessica called it a "review of your life". She wrote, "You have always tried to be different or funny for the sake of funny, to cover up your anger and discomforts about how we Asian are being perceived. It is not necessary to do that, your true talents will lead you above it all."

Her e-mail prompted a lot of comments from readers of Eddie's blog on both his food and his Asian American identity. CNN Eatocracy's editor Kat Kinsman recently sat down with Eddie and Jessica at Xiao Ye to talk about these issues and find out why Eddie was actually pleased with the review.

While you're frying up some eggs and bacon, we're cooking up something else: a way to celebrate today's food holiday and the most delicious finds on TV.

We’ll take a #1 with a Dr. Pepper, please: November 16 is National Fast Food Day.

QSR magazine, a publication focusing on restaurant news, ranks the top 50 quick service restaurants each year. In 2010, McDonalds topped the list with more than 31,000 restaurants worldwide.

Following the Golden Arches is Subway, Burger King, Wendy’s, Starbucks, Taco Bell, Dunkin Donuts, Pizza Hut, KFC and Sonic, in that order. Commercial eating places rake in $388 billion annually.

So, the question isn’t if you’ll be able to find some fast food to celebrate today’s holiday, but which chain you’ll choose.

What’s your favorite fast food meal?

What's on TV?
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Over the next 10 days – including yes, the very day of – we'll be sharing our time-tested hosting tips and recipes, as well as plenty from chefs, hospitality experts, celebrities (that's always fun, right?), hosts and home cooks we love. Our goal – sending you into Thanksgiving with a confident smile on your face, and seeing you emerge on the other side with your sanity intact.

Here are several Thanksgiving issues about which you could choose to freak out. Please don't. It will just make your guests uncomfortable, and if you have a dog, it will probably unnerve him or her.

Aaaacccckkkk! There will be a VEGETARIAN! In my home!
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