gluten free familyA mum's blog about gluten-free living in Australia

Our product 'haul' from previous expos.

You win some, you lose some: that’s how it played out in the world of gluten-free trade shows in recent years.

2010 was a bumper year for them with many capital cities getting two each, then last year we had a show shakeout and we just got the one. (The official word from the Irresistible Show folk was the market was not strong enough to sustain two events in the one state.) Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve been working my way through some of Coles new freezer range of gluten free products. A while back I reported on the new Bellyhoo pies which come in fruit varieties as well as beef with veg or beef burgundy. And more recently I have had a couple of tries of the Tutto Pasta meat lasagne (I haven’t tried their vegetarian lasagne or cannelloni yet).

Now it turned out that a few of our readers were not as enthusaistic about the Bellyhoo pie range as I was. Some said the filling was a little sparse and dry for their taste. So I recently gave them another go (this time the beef burgundy instead of beef and veg) and I still rather liked them.

Even more important is that my little boy likes them – I think it’s because the pastry is quite tender and tasty. Read the rest of this entry »

From the Coles freezer - one is gluten free and one is not!

I am always on the hunt for something new to add variety and colour to our family table – so I was delighted to see some of those new products we found at the recent Gluten Free Food expo in my local Coles freezer section. Read the rest of this entry »

Start spreading the news. We’re leaving on Tuesday.

It’s going to be our first official Gluten Free Family fact-finding mission to the Big Apple. (Okay its really a holiday).

But between shopping trips and sightseeing, we plan to suss out the gluten free US supermarket scene, hunt down the legendary Babycakes, and sip gluten free cosmopolitan cocktails.

We did a similar roundup on the gluten free scene in London last year, when Lucy braved the British summer to visit relatives.

This time the whole team (all two of us) will travel to New York, and we’ll report back on all that we find—and even post a few pics—in a week or two!

Lucy and Mandy

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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 »

Most people don’t need to know their glucose syrup from their yeast extract—but we gluten avoiders tend to be a fairly fluent bunch when it comes to deciphering food labels.

Now a new iPhone app that can scan food labels could make gluten free grocery shopping expeditions easier. Read the rest of this entry »

Food for Health gluten free muesli (right).

Breakfast happens to be a favourite meal of mine – but it all became so much more complicated when we had to stop eating gluten.  Bacon and eggs is never quite the same without a round of hot, buttered toast, and my favourite cereals all dropped off the menu when wheat fell out of favour in our home.

But like all things, we have learned to adapt – and a few new products on the market have helped us to bring some of the yum factor back into brekky. Here is a round up of some of our favourites. Read the rest of this entry »

Syndian lentil burgers

We of the gluten free lifestyle know all about the difficulties of finding the right dietary balance – but what about those who have other strict dietary restrictions on top of being gluten free?

I once explored some of the options for vegetarians who must also avoid gluten, but when Syndian sent me some samples of their gluten-free vegan range of frozen convenience products, I started to think even more about the the lack of options in mainstream dining outlets for those on very strict cruetly-free diets who are told by their doctor they must also ditch wheat products. Read the rest of this entry »

Gluten free lunchboxes

I have become a bit obsessed with finding quick, great tasting gluten free carb options for school lunchboxes this week.

Why?  I recently went back to fulltime work and with relief handed the dreaded lunchbox duties over… and that’s when gluten free choc chip cookies & mince pies quietly started to find their way into the daily mix. Oops! Time for a lunchbox overhaul. Read the rest of this entry »