30th December, 2009 - Posted by Scott - 1 Comment
I’ll admit it. I ate the whole package. By myself. Why? Because these are the best gluten free cookies I have eaten since being diagnosed with Celiac Disease.
Finding tasty quality products when on a restricted diet can be difficult and when you find something worth buying it is important to share that information with others. So here I am recommending to anyone with a gluten issue to try Quinoa Qookies.
From reading my earlier cookie reviews, you know my biggest complaint so far is texture. Thankfully, that is not a problem with these. They nail a soft baked cookie nearly perfectly: soft, chewy, and with a light delicate crumb. Combine that with a flavor that starts as coconut and honey, ending with brown sugar and molasses and this is a winner. A pleasurable, high quality winner.
If you are on a gluten free diet, give Quinoa Qookies a try. They are comparable in price to other similar items and more than worth it. They are better than anything else I have found on the market yet.
Price: $4.95 for 3 Qookies.
Purchase at: http://www.quinoaqookies.com/
Note: I did receive my Qookies as a sample from the maker, James Sklar. This did not however influence my review. If I didn’t like them I would not have written about them.
30th December, 2009 - Posted by Scott - No Comments
I have not had good luck in the finding an acceptable gluten free pizza dough recipe or pre-made crust, so widened my net to look for other sources. In going through the freezer section of the grocery store I saw McCain Ellio’s pizza so contacted the manufacturer to see if they offered a gluten-free pizza at all, or had plans to develop one.
Here is my response from Customer Service:
Thank you for contacting the Consumer Affairs Group with the Quality Assurance Department for Ellio’s Pizza. It’s always nice to hear from consumers like you who take the time to contact our company when you have a comment, suggestion, or question regarding our product.
McCain has no plans at this time to manufacture a gluten-free pizza. However, I will pass your suggestion along to our R&D and Marketing departments for their consideration. They are always interested in consumer feedback.
http://www.ellios.com/
28th December, 2009 - Posted by Scott - No Comments
On opening the package the first thing I noticed was the smell of peanut butter. It was very appealing and a great start to an otherwise uninteresting cookie. As some of you who have eaten gluten free baked goods for a while know, the lack of gluten can lead to a coarse gritty texture in some baked goods. In the case of these cookies it was too much. They did not hold together well enough to make it from the package to my mouth, so I was left picking up little pieces out of the pack, off the carpet, and anywhere else they decided to disintegrating while I tried to eat them. Determined that I would keep get through the whole package eventually, even if it required a spoon, the box went back into my cabinet to be tried again.
On the second day, I grabbed another cookie and was surprised by the overnight transformation. After picking up some moisture from the air, they held together and weren’t as gritty. This was what I had hoped for in the first place. Regretfully, it didn’t last and on day three they were back to self-destructing. By the time I reached the third well in the pack, it was nothing but a pile of crumbs and I was forced to get that spoon.
I will give Pamela’s another go in the future to give the products a fair shake, but the initial impression left me unimpressed.
http://www.pamelasproducts.com/
26th December, 2009 - Posted by Scott - No Comments
This is the first gluten free alternative product I have eaten that tastes like the original. Though Kinnikinnick’s donuts are very good and nice and cake like, they are still off. These are not in any way. Crisp, crunchy, crumbly, they fall apart in your mouth with a satisfying hint of honey. After eating one, I had a second, and then a third before closing up the box they are that good.
I picked these up so that I can make a graham cracker crusted cheese cake. If that works out well, other pies will follow. Results on that will be forthcoming.
Price: $4.29 for an 8oz package.
Purchased at: Giant Food Stores
24th December, 2009 - Posted by Scott - 1 Comment
For being such a whole grain, low sugar (4g/serving), cookie Andean Dream Quinoa Cookies are delicate, flavorful, and have a good texture. Where some gluten free cookies feel like a mouthful of sand when you start to chew them, these come apart into big crisp crumbs that are a little chewy. The orange essence is clean and lingers on the tongue for a few minutes after eating. Each cookie is individually wrapped which makes them easy to grab and take with you. Having bought quite a few boxes, since they were onsale, I toss some in my pocket whenever we are going out so I have a safe snack.
Price: $2.44 (onsale) for 7oz. Regular retail is $3.49. They are a worth it at either price.
Purchased At: Giant Food Stores
http://www.andeandream.com
22nd December, 2009 - Posted by Scott - No Comments
These have become my quick, simple, go to cookies. They are so good you wouldn’t know they are gluten free!
Makes 12-15 cookies.
1c Peanut Butter. Smooth works, chunky is better.
1c Sugar. Demerera or White.
1 Egg
1t Cinnamon
1/2t Nutmeg
1t Vanilla
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine the sugar, egg, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla in a large bowl.
- Blend together until well mixed.
- Add the peanut butter and continue to mix. It will have the texture of course, wet sand.
- Using your hands, roll the dough into 1 1/2″ balls and place on an ungreased cookie sheet.
- Press each ball down with a fork until 1/3″ thick. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes.
- Remove immediately to a cooling rack.
20th December, 2009 - Posted by Scott - No Comments
Glotenfreeda's Chicken and Cheese Burrito
Ah, the comfort of a microwave burrito sliding out of the wrapper and onto a plate. The Glutenfreeda’s Chicken and Cheese Burrito is fast, convenient, and tasty to boot.
Taste: It is a microwave burrito. I don’t expect it to win any awards for cuisine, but found the flavors pleasant though lacking complexity. Simple and straightforward, the taste stayed the same from the first bite to the last with no lingering after taste. The chicken appeared to be a mixture of white and dark meat and paired well with the tomatoes and rice.
Value: For anyone buying dedicated gluten free products, this is quite subjective. I was glad for the convenience and simple pleasure of the burrito, and given many of the other options the price was good, but would have been better if it was a bigger, say 6 oz. That would make it a quick meal by itself with about 350 calories.
Buy It Again?: Yes. Definitely. Keeping a couple of these in the freezer let’s me grab something quick.
Price: 2.99 for a 4oz burrito.
Where Purchased: Wegmans
http://www.glutenfreedafoods.com/
http://www.glutenfreedafoods.com/burritos_chicken.html
19th December, 2009 - Posted by Scott - No Comments
My toddler daughter prefers to tear her food apart rather than learn to use her knife and fork. To keep her calorie intake high enough, her diet has consisted of foods she can handle and dissect: cheese cubes, green beans, pepperoni, sausage, home-mixed fruit salad from a can, and toast sticks, as a few examples. We kept finding ourselves coming up short overall with vegetables. Anything small she liked to smush between her fingers then fling at the cats. Feeding her off of a spoon or fork and she would treat it like a patient resisting drugs: hide it in her mouth and then spit it out when no one is looking, or she couldn’t take it any longer. Larger items, like whole green beans, were also turned into projectiles heading quickly to the floor. A few nights ago, we tried giving her sugar snap peas. Instead of crushing them like a gleeful tyrant, she tore them open and sucked out the peas. Success, she was eating more greens!
Not trusting that this would be a recurring event, the experiment was repeated over several days and multiple meals. She continued to eat the peas without realizing that these minuscule green morsels were good for her.
We were lucky. Our local grocery store, Giant, had moved edamame to the forefront of the frozen vegetable case so my wife picked up a bag. Tonight we moved on the experiment forward and were again pleased by the results. The Terrible Toddler loved them and so did Daddy.
I fell in love with this vegetable for two main reasons: quick to cook and great taste. In the time it takes to prep the evening meal they are done cooking and can be left to cool while everything else is finished.
The initial taste reminds me of my favorite bean: the Lima. Buttery, a little sweet, but with a smooth, creamy texture. If you’ve ever cooked dried, frozen, or even canned limas, then you know that the texture can range from fine grit to total mush. To me the perfect bean is firm at first bite but goes soft and tender. Instead of playing bean roulette, each and every edamame was just right.
One place where they were different from my much beloved bean, was in the finish. An aftertaste best described as green remained. Green like the smell of a fresh cut lawn, not the a newly chewed one. Combined with the buttery feel in my mouth it was not unpleasant in the least, bring forth memories of raw milk sold by a local organic dairy. Spring, as we set in for a cold winter with a large snow storm approaching from the Gulf of Mexico. When the wind blows and the days are short, with long dark nights, I will cook a few up and remember warmer times.
18th December, 2009 - Posted by Scott - No Comments
This recipe doesn’t need the bacon but the smoked flavor adds a nice depth.
1lb Brussels Sprouts
2T Olive Oil
2T Butter
1T Lemon Juice
4 slices of Bacon
Salt and Pepper to taste.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Wash and trim the brussels sprouts. Halve them.
- In a large bowl, toss the sprouts with olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Spread the sprouts out on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper and place in the oven.
- While the sprouts roast, cook the slices of bacon in a large frying pan over medium heat until done. Drain and reserve 1T of the drippings. Crumble the bacon.
- After 20 minutes, turn the sprouts and let them cook for another 10-20 minutes until soft. Pull them and place into a large bowl.
- Warm the frying pan and bacon drippings over medium low heat. Add the butter and lemon juice. Cook until the butter is melted and everything is hot.
- Pour the butter, lemon juice, and bacon drippings over the sprouts. Toss with the crumbled bacon.
-
- Serve and enjoy.
16th December, 2009 - Posted by Scott - No Comments
As a parent, and fan of Ian’s foods, I love this website.
For children, they can earn points to redeem for prizes, but besides that it encourages them to eat well, be active, and participate with their families and local community.
Parents can use this site to encourage their children as well as contact Ian’s Dietician with any questions.
All around it is just well designed, easy to use, and provides some resources I have not seen elsewhere.
http://imasuperfitkid.com/
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