It really is the season of gluten free food fests here on the GFF blog.
Last week we reported on all the exciting developments from Sydney’s annual gluten free expo (which included these delicious wares from Healthy Feast). Now we have good news for our followers in Melbourne. Read the rest of this entry »
Rowie's heart-shaped polenta cake.
Recipes were the talk of the show at this year’s gluten free expo in Sydney as Australia’s GF glitterati gathered together to promote their favourite dishes, recipes and entertaining ideas. Read the rest of this entry »
Pastry Pantry in action
One of the holy grails of gluten free cookery would have to be pastry. How I toiled in the early days trying to create something akin to sausage rolls to pack in my little boy’s lunchbox—only to find the pastry (both homemade and packet mix) would break when I tried to roll it—and then emerge rock hard from my oven.
Then I discovered Pastry Pantry ready-made puff and shortcrust pastry sheets. They actually behaved like normal pastry even though they contained no wheat or dairy.
But several months ago, our supermarket suddenly stopped selling it (read more about this here), but now it’s back with a brand new recipe and packaging in some selected outlets.
So what do we think of the latest version? Read the rest of this entry »
Some of my pastry pantry creations
It has been a bit of a bumpy ride for Pastry Pantry since I wrote with such glee a few years ago about finding gluten free pastry in my local supermarket.
Several months ago it suddenly vanished from the shelves in Coles, and when it failed to show up again a month or two later, I decided to get in touch, first with the wholesaler (unsuccessfully), and then with the company direct.
I was told there were some supply issues but we would see it back in store soon. Then a little later I got an update saying perhaps we would not see it back in Coles after all. Read the rest of this entry »
The season of Easter hunts and bakery treats is almost on us once more, and while the littlies dream of shiny chocolate bunnies, my thoughts have been turning more toward toasted, buttery, hot cross buns.
It’s been a while you see. We missed out on hot crossed buns last year because I don’t have a gluten free bakery near me and as much as I love my Easter buns, I just couldn’t find the time (or inclination) to make my own.
But they are back on the menu this year because Simply Wize is selling some yummy gluten free hot cross buns (pictured above) in Coles’ freezer section alongside the other gluten free frozen goods like Bayview’s nuggets. Read the rest of this entry »
Dairy-free chocolate icecream
‘Tis a fact of life that many of we gluten sensitive types must also avoid dairy—and so it is in my family. So although we may call ourselves a gluten free family, we are in fact a gluten-free casein-free (or GFCF) family.
So it was with great interest that I agreed to review some pre-mix dairy free icecream this week. Read the rest of this entry »
I think a lot about protein. It’s a sad admission I know, but hunting down tempting sources of this crucial food group not only eats up a lot of time but is also a source of angst when we are on the road.
You see we are not just gluten free. Our boy’s doctor says he must also avoid casein to maintain good health which makes him ‘GFCF’ and therefore unable to tolerate cheese, milk and yoghurt.
I admit we have the odd lapse. If we suspect there may be a little dairy in something we will often turn a blind eye when out on the road. But we draw the line at things like yoghurt pots and cheese sticks. The side effects are just too annoying for our poor little fella who gets a runny nose along with a bunch of other irritating symptoms.
So what do we do when we go out? We tried taking soy yoghurt pots but these seemed to have even more dramatic side effects, possibly from the food colouring or flavours added or even a reaction to soy. So now we just steer clear completely. Read the rest of this entry »
Another holy celebration is upon us and with it comes the traditional feasting on chocolate, buns and everything else that is usually taboo in our household.
Easter egg hunts and visits with indulgent grandparents bearing Lindt bunnies must all be planned with military precision so no feelings get trampled on, and no tears of deprivation haunt our precious holiday memories.
So here is my Easter survival plan. We think we can sidestep the hot cross bun issue for our toddler this year because they don’t come in shiny paper and will thus be less sorely missed.
The chocolate thing is so much trickier so we are going to put it back on the family menu for this one day of the year and treat it as an experiment to see what happens when our food sensitive toddler eats it.
For the rest of the year we will continue to find alternative treats. Gluten free jelly snakes and marshmallows are his favourites.
For those that don’t have the luxury of making exceptions, some retailers are coming out with dairy free eggs that are packaged in exactly the same way as the real thing. I researched this fairly thoroughly last year and vegan shops seem to be taking a lead. Some will even deliver products to your door by post or courier.
Hot, crossed and wheat free?
This brings us to the subject of gluten free hot cross buns for me (stodge fan that I am). I haven’t yet had chance to check out whether any of the supermarkets have got something in store for us this year, but I am quite a bun fan so this is on my to do list – and I would love to hear from anyone who has spotted GF easter buns for sale anywhere mainstream. [LH: have since checked out my local Coles and Harris Farm - and found no GF hot cross buns in either].
It is my suspicion that if you want something particularly fresh and delicious, you may be best off going to a specialist GF bakery like Choices (Sydney) or Silly Yaks (Melbourne) or even cooking something up yourself.
There are umpteen recipes online if you do happen to Google “gluten free and hot cross bun” and though I haven’t had time this year to experiment with any of these, we would, as always, love to hear from you if you have found a fabulous recipe that you think is worth sharing with us.
Happy Easter!
LH
