Gluten Free

Del Real Foods Review & Giveaway

Oh, My goodness! I have to tell you about these delicious foods from Del Real Foods. They sent me a Party Box assortment to review. I sort of expected average taste. Since we lived eight miles from the Mexican border for two and a half years, it has been hard for Fabgrandpa and I to find authentic tasting Mexican food in restaurants, much less in the grocery store. Let me tell you, though, that these dishes from Del Real Foods are just fabulous. They are the most authentic you can get without driving south of the border. OH! Did I mention that all of these Del Real Foods are Gluten Free?

The package that we received included included a six pack of Beef Tamales, a six pack of Pork Tamales, and packages of Carnitas, Arroz, Chile Verde, and Barbacoa. There was also a package of Pulsas, which are corn meal patties with chile cheese inside.

We started out our first meal with the Del Real Carnitas. I love carnitas when I go out to an authentic Mexican restaurant, and these were very good. The best part of it is that you just heat and eat. There is no cooking and no mess to clean up. And there is a generous portion in the package. Fabgrandpa and I ate dinner twice, and made breakfast burritos once with the meat in this package of food.

Beef and Pork Tamales — Del Real Pork Tamales

When we lived in South Texas, we had a lot of Mexican employees. They brought us the traditional tamales for Christmas every year, and I loved them. These tamales from Del Real are really comparable to home made tamales. I think you will agree once you try them.

One of you is going to get the chance to try these tasty Mexican treats yourself. One winner will receive a Del Real Party Box. To enter to win, use the Giveaway Tools Form below:

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Glutino Gluten Free Toaster Pastries and Muffin Mix Review & Giveaway

Karen · 54 Comments

The good folks over at Glutino sent me some delicious gluten free Toaster Pastries at the beginning of May. When I was a little girl, I loved to eat pop tarts for breakfast. I also have to confess that I used to eat them pretty often for breakfast and snacks after I grew up. But when I found out I had to eat gluten free, I had to say bye bye to them. Until the first week of May 2013, that is. These toaster pastries are SO GOOD! I had to make myself eat only one at a time to make them last longer. They come in two flavors, Apple Cinnamon and Strawberry. I wish I had taken a picture of one of them before I ate them all up.

DSCN0175 — Glutino Gluten Free Toaster Pastries

These pastries tasted equally good whether I just opened one up and ate it without heating it up, or if I put it in the toaster. The strawberry was my favorite, and I hope that they will make some in cherry flavor real soon!

Glutino also sent me a package of their Gluten Free Muffin Scone Mix. I decided to use it to make a Raspberry Banana Bread. It was so easy to use this mix, just measure out just like when I used gluten full flour, and mix in all the ingredients. The taste of it was pretty good, too. It didn’t have that “bean-y” flavor that some mixes have.

I used a recipe I found online for banana bread, and just used the mix instead of the flour called for in the recipe. I made a couple of changes because I did not have enough bananas to make plain banana bread, I used 1/2 cup of mashed bananas and 1/2 cup of frozen raspberries. I used Chinese Five Spice Powder instead of the cinnamon and nutmeg called for in the recipe. The taste of this Raspberry Banana Bread was marvelous! Even my non-gluten free husband was raving about it.

I did have to cook this bread a little bit longer than the recipe called for, but I think it is because the raspberries were wetter than bananas would be.

One of my winners will win two boxes of Glutino Gluten Free Toaster Pastries, one of each flavor. Just use the Giveaway Tools entry form to enter:

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My Favorite Gluten Free Products

Karen · 22 Comments

This post has affiliate links. If you click on them and make a purchase, I will receive a commission. Thank you!
May is Celiac Disease Awareness Month, so I decided to write about my favorite gluten free products. In the beginning, in 2007 when I started eating gluten free, I had never even heard about gluten free. It took me a long time to figure out which products were worth buying a second time. Since then, I have found several things that are good, and that I buy over and over again. So, here is a list of my favorites, and what I use them for.

Udi’s Gluten Free White Sandwich Bread

I think this bread is the best tasting gluten free bread on the market. I use it for toast for breakfast; for sandwiches; in casseroles; and in my southern style corn bread dressing. You can get it on Amazon.con in a case of 8, but sometimes you can find it in grocery stores. If your local supermarket doesn’t carry it, ask them to. Also try Udi’s Cinnamon Raisin Bread. Soooo good for French toast.

Pamela’s Baking and Pancake Mix

My husband who is not gluten free, loves pancakes made from this mix. It is the only one he likes. I also use it to make biscuits that taste a lot like the ones you get at Red Lobster; for sausage balls for parties; cobblers; and for making muffins. My favorite gluten free product.

Pamela’s Cornbread & Muffin Mix

This gluten free cornbread mix is the only gluten free cornbread mix that I have found that does not have sugar added to it. No southern cook puts sugar in her cornbread, at least none that I know of. If you want true southern cornbread, this is the one for you! I have also used this mix for breading catfish and okra before frying, and it is the main ingredient in my Gluten Free Southern Style Cornbread Dressing. My non gluten free husband loves this cornbread too. He asks for it by name. It is really really good. I buy in a 6 pack.

Chocolate Chex

This cereal is my favorite snack. I eat it right out of the box, no milk. I also use it to make Chex Treats, much like Rice Krispie Treats. Sometimes I add crushed peppermint candy to it, to make Chocolate Peppermint Crunch. I also make trail mix with it. Actually, all of the Chex Cereals except for Wheat Chex are gluten free now.

Tom Sawyer Gluten Free Flour

Tom Sawyer All Purpose Gluten Free Flour is a flour mix that can be used cup for cup as a replacement for regular wheat flour. It is a blended flour of rice and tapioca flours, xanthan gum, and kosher approved unflavored gelatin. The flour is prepared in a dedicated gluten-free environment, using gluten-free mixing and packing equipment and is then tested for gluten contamination. It makes a pretty good gravy. I use it for breading things like chicken, liver, and pork chops for frying. If you like onion rings and fried cauliflower, it makes a terrific beer batter using your favorite gluten free beer.

Cookies

Cookies are a whole separate category. There are so many good gluten free cookies out there, that it is really had to choose just one. However, here are some I have tried that are really good, and worth buying a second time. These are my favorites:

Udi’s Snicker Doodles (soft and chewy)

Udi’s Chocolate Chip (soft and chewy)

Lucy’s Sugar Cookies (crunchy)

Lucy’s Oatmeal (crunchy)

Lucy’s Gingersnaps (crunchy, and makes a great cookie crumb pie crust)

Glutino Lemon Wafers (wafer cookie)

Glutino Chocolate Vanilla Creme (Oreo type cookie)

Katz Colored Sprinkle Cookies

Miscellaneous

These products are just good. They don’t really have a category:

Comstock Raspberry Pie Filling, makes a great cobbler. It comes in other flavors too.

Fischer & Weiser Raspberry Chipotle Sauce. I marinate pork roast with this yummy sauce.

New Grist Beer. It’s hard to find it in the southeast, but it is a pretty good gluten free beer.

Goodbye Gluten Flour Tortillas. I found these at a grocery store about 45 miles away from my home, and the next time I went back, I bought all they had on the shelf. They freeze well, and make terrific wraps, breakfast burritos, and quesadillas. I have even thought of making chocolate tacos with them for dessert.

Rudi’s Gluten Free Flour Tortillas. These are just as good as the Goodbye Gluten tortillas, but they are smaller in size.

Kinnikinnick Crumbs

Gluten Free Graham Cracker Crumbs.

This product is worth it’s weight in gold if you want to make pies with a graham cracker crust. They taste just like regular graham cracker crumbs to me. No one will ever know it is gluten free if you don’t tell them. I use this to make my Banana Split Cake. Yum!

Cedarlane Frozen Dinners. I received some of these to do a review a couple of years ago, and now I buy them all the time. My husband likes them too, and he is not a gluten free eater. His favorite is the Enchilda Pie.

favorite gluten free product — My favorite is Eggplant Mediterranean

Look for Cedarlane Gluten Free Frozen Entrees in the freezer section of your grocery store.

If I think of other things I’ll update this list. What is YOUR favorite gluten free product?

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Pepperidge Farms Baked Naturals Tortilla Chips Review

Karen · 143 Comments

Pepperidge Farm sent me two bags of their new Baked Naturals tortilla chips to try. And thanks to them, they are also going to give some to one of my readers!

These chips are so good, whether you eat them right out of the bag or use them in a recipe. I have to confess that I ate almost the whole bag of the nacho cheese flavor before I knew it because they were that good. One of the things I liked most about these chips is that they are not hard like some tortilla chips can be, and that is important in a household where a denture wearer lives.

I decided to use the plain, simply tortilla flavor in one of my favorite recipes, Shrimp and Black Bean Nachos. I made up this recipe years ago, after eating some Shrimp Nachos in a now extinct restaurant in Atlanta. One thing I like about this recipe is that you can use just about any vegetable you like in it and it still tastes good. Here is how I made it the other day:

Shrimp and Black Bean Nachos

1 bag Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Simply Tortilla Chips

24 shrimp

1 can black beans

1 small can sliced black olives

3 green onions

12 cherry tomatoes

1/2 green bell pepper

1 yellow summer squash

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Grill the shrimp, tomatoes, bell pepper and squash until done. Put a generous handful of Pepperidge Farm Baked Naturals Tortilla Chips on microwave safe plate. Use your hand to grab a generous handful of black beans on each plate on top of the chips. Add sliced black olives, and sliced green onions. Add half of the grilled shrimp and vegetables to each plate. Top each plate with half of the cheese. Microwave about one and a half minutes until the cheese is melted. You can add salsa and sour cream if you like it.

The prize in this giveaway is 3 bags of each flavor of Baked Naturals Tortilla Chips from Pepperidge Farm to one winner. To enter, use the Giveaway Tools form below:

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Glutino Pretzels: Review and Giveaway

Karen · 94 Comments

Did you know that Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell declared April 26 National Pretzel Day in 2003 to acknowledge the importance of the pretzel to the state’s history and economy? It is amazing to read about the history of pretzels and their variety of meanings attached to them. I am particularly happy that Glutino decided to make gluten free pretzels. I have been eating them for several years. My most favorite thing to do with them is to crush them up and sprinkle them on top of casseroles, the way I used to do with crackers before I started eating gluten free.

glutino pretzels — How do you like your pretzels? Sticks, twists or yogurt covered?

When Glutino sent me a box with samples of their pretzels, I loved the crunchy sweetness of the Gluten Free Yogurt Covered ones. I decided to make a sweet and salty snack to take on a picnic to the lake when Fabgrandpa goes fishing next time.

Sweet & Salty Gluten Free Party Mix with Glutino Pretzels

Sweet and Salty Gluten Free Party Mix

1 cup Gluten Free Chocolate Chex

1 5.5 oz bag of Glutino Gluten Free Yogurt Covered Pretzels

1 cup nuts, you favorite kind (I used mixed nuts)

1/2 cup white chocolate chips

1 cup dried fruit (I used dried cranberries, but you can use your favorite. If I had some dried pineapple that would have really good in this mix)

1 cup Glutino Gluten Free Pretzel Sticks

Put all the ingredients in a large bowl, and stir to mix well. I stored mine in a gallon zip lock bag. Yummy! Makes six cups.

I had to sneak a yogurt covered pretzel!

Oh, how good this is! It will be good for picnics, hikes, parties, kids school lunches, or just anytime you are wanting a snack!

One lucky reader will win one pack of Glutino Pretzel Twists, one pack of Glutino Pretzel Sticks, and one pack of Glutino Yogurt Covered Pretzels. To enter, use the Giveaway Tools form below:

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Are You Sure You Don’t Have Celiac Disease?

Karen · 2 Comments

I ask that question because if you are related by blood to anyone who does have Celiac Disease, you could have it too. Although I have not been tested for Celiac Disease, I know that I have it. My cousin was diagnosed with it, and sent an email to everyone he was related to to let us know. I am forever grateful to him, because as I read his email where he described his symptoms, what he had lived through for several years before he was diagnosed, I could have been reading a story about my own life. Suddenly, all my symptoms made sense to me. If one member of a family has Celiac Disease, the odds are that about one in ten of their first-degree relatives will also have it.

I started eating a gluten free diet that day, and I started to feel better almost immediately. After only a week, I felt like a new person. While it is highly preferable for you to be tested for Celiac Disease to be sure you have it, I do not have health insurance so I can not afford the test. I also am not willing to eat wheat for a month so that the test can be accurate.

So, what are the symptoms of Celiac Disease? That is a very good question. Some people have chronic diarrhea, others have chronic constipation. Sometimes people with Celiac Disease may have no gastrointestinal symptoms at all. Some experience pain in their legs and feet, brain fog, and many other symptoms.

The good news is that if you DO have Celiac Disease, you can delete gluten from your diet and feel better. There are no pills or other treatments for it. And while it may be difficult in the beginning for you to figure out what has wheat and what does not, it will eventually get easier for you to know what you can and can’t eat. And, there are lots of good gluten free products out there, even more than there were in 2007 when I started eating gluten free.

Since my cousin, Jimmy was diagnosed with Celiac Disease in 2007, there have been several other family members diagnosed as well. So, if you are related to me, or to anyone who has it, go get yourself tested. You could feel better by next week!

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Ready To Cook Out!

Karen · 1 Comment

Since we moved into the house back in November I have wanted to get a barbecue grill. We tried using the small one we had while traveling in the RV, but it is too short, and we have no outdoor table to put it on. Fabgrandpa had to set it on the porch and then stand on the ground beside it to cook our chicken the one time we used it here.

So, on Friday, we headed back over to Home Depot, when I had spotted some barbecues when we were there looking at the tractors. We found our idea of a “perfect” grill there. We decided on the Weber 18.5″ grill. We’ve had a Weber grill in the past, and it lasted a long time, and cooked things evenly. Not a bad deal at $79.

Saturday afternoon I walked out on the porch, and Fabgrandpa had the grill pieces spread all over the place. He said my part in this job was to sit and read the instructions, then tell him what to do. Hmmm, I think I am pretty good at that. So, we got started right away.

My only physical contribution to the construction project.

After several attempts, we got the grill all put together. My only physical contribution was to put this handle on the lid. He did everything else. Since it went together pretty quickly, we still had time to cook up a chicken for dinner.I cut a whole chicken in half, sprinkled on tenderizer generously, then sprinkled with a chicken seasoning that my sister gave me, and then put both halves on the grill.

Once the chicken is put on the grill, we put the lid on and walked away for twenty minutes. Turn it over, replace the lid, and walk away for another twenty minutes.

Check the chicken at the end of the second twenty minutes, and if it needs more time, cover and wait. We turn the chicken a second time and left it for another ten minutes. It turned out tender and delicious! I think we are going to love this grill!

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Review: Crunchmaster Multi-Grain Crisps

Karen · 90 Comments

Crunchmaster sent me samples of this product for review.

crunchmaster

I am always open to trying new gluten free products. When I was asked to review these crackers from Crunchmaster, I told them of course, I would love to try them. The Sea Salt Flavor is my favorite. They are crunchy but not too hard to bite, like some gluten free crackers can be. They are on the small side, so they make a good snack right out of the box, but they are equally as good with a dip or with summer sausage and cheese. I especially liked them with tomato basil soup.

crunchmaster sea salt crackers

The Multi-Grain Sea Salt Crisps are made with the following ingredients:

Brown rice flour, whole crain yellow corn, potato starch, safflower oil, oat fiber, dried cane syrup, sesame seeds, flax seeds, millet, sea salt, quinoa seeds. There are 120 calories in a serving of 28 crackers. They come in a variety of flavors, including Roasted Vegetable and White Cheddar. You can also look for Kids Crisps in Cheddar and Cinnamon Sugar flavors. All of these are gluten free!

Right now you can get a $1.00 off coupon on the Crunchmaster website.

And, one lucky reader will win a six pack of Crunchmaster Crackers. Use the entry form below to enter.

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