Gluten free mixes from Spice Queen

On a trip to Ipswich we stopped off in Chelmsford and enjoyed a walkround the town centre and market. we've always got our eyes peeled for gluten free things and so were pleased to see the Spice Queen stall selling a range of mixes that were gluten free.

The chap on the stall was very knowledgeable about gluten free needs and offered some samples which Emily tried and liked. We bought the Chicken Tikka, Chicken Curry and Any Bean Curry mixes.

The pots of flavour come with a recipe sheet and Emily made some great dishes with the mixes. Some photos of the prep and results of the delicious Chicken Tikka and Chicken Curry are below.

Ingredients and recipe sheet for the Chicken Tikka

Getting messy marinating the chicken

Sealing in the flavour

We like to cook chicken using the 'beer' can method. As I'm gluten free we opt for cider cans instead

The curry mix ingredients

A fine gluten free curry. A nice treat. Especially with an obligatory gluten free beer

You can find the Spice Queen team at farmer's markets across Essex. For more information visit the Spice Queen website.

Links:
- Spice Queen website
- Spice Queen on Twitter
- Spice Queen on Facebook

Related blog posts:
- Gluten Free
- Coeliac
- Emily's cooking
- Gluten free beer

Gluten free Eggy Bread with Bacon and Cheese

Trying out a new recipe from The Co-operative.

We're always looking for new and interesting things to cook and eat and we really liked the look of the Eggy Bread with Bacon and Cheese dinner idea on a recipe card from The Co-operative.

Dinner for last night was from a Co-Op recipe card for eggy bread with bacon and cheese. As a Coeliac we used Genius Gluten Free bread. A very tasty dinner

Check out the recipe for the Eggy Bread with Bacon and Cheese (and lots more ideas for dinner) at the Dinner4tonight website.

Links:
- Dinner4tonight
- The Co-operative Food
- Genius Gluten Free

Related blog posts:
- Gluten Free
- Coeliac
- Emily's cooking

Happy British Pie Week

2 to 8 March 2015 is officially British Pie Week!

To celebrate the national week for pies I'd like to give a shout out to Voakes Free From Pies. I'm a BIG fan of their 'Special Pie'.

I first tasted the excellent gluten free products from Voakes Free From at a food fayre organised by the Beds & Mid Herts Coeliac UK Group at a food fayre in Biggleswade. The pork pies were great, but the Special Pie was delicious. If you're a meat eating Coeliac I highly recommend it

Check out the Voakes Free From website for more information on how the free from gluten side of their business began and to see more about the product range and availability.

Finger's crossed Emily will make me a pie to celebrate British Pie Week.

Emily is a great cook and always experimenting and creating new gluten free meals for me. It's not easy being a Coeliac and having to adhere to a strict life-long gluten free diet. This was a pork and mushroom pie Emily made using Shortcrust Pastry from Genius Gluten Free. It was lush

This year Coeliac UK's Awareness Week is taking place from 11 to 17 May. Read more on my blog post about it.

Visit the Coeliac UK website for more information about Coeliac Disease and the gluten free diet.

Links:
- British Pie Week website
- Voakes Free From website
- Genius Gluten Free
- Coeliac UK

Related blog posts:
- Gluten free
- Coeliac
- Mince Pies
- Emily's Cooking
- Genius Gluten Free

Isabel's Gluten Free Dough Balls Mix

Cooking up some cheese dough balls with a free from mix from Isabel's.

On a recent shopping trip to Asda we spotted a product in the Free From section that we hadn't seen before - the Gluten Free Dough Balls Mix.

The 250g box makes approximately 24 dough balls and Emily made exactly two dozen delicious 'pão de queijo' snacks from the mix.

The pão de queijo' made from the Isabel's gluten free dough balls mix

They were really nice when eaten warm and with plenty leftover we've found them to be great cold too.

Putting a twist on the recipe on the packet Emily added brie to the mix, a good choice as it melted perfectly inside the dough balls.

As someone with Coeliac Disease I pore over the ingredients, claims and small-print on every single item of food and drink I buy to ensure it's safe to consume, it's pleasing to see that all of Isabel's products are naturally 100% gluten and wheat free.

Related blog posts:
- Gluten Free
- Coeliac
- Emily's Cooking

Links:
- Isabel's Free From website
- Isabel's Free From on Twitter
- Isabel's Free From on Facebook
- Asda
- Coeliac UK

Gluten free Gnocchi from Rustichella d'Abruzzo

Cooking up some dishes with Rustichella d'Abruzzo senza glutine Gnocchi.

While on a recent visit to the West Berkshire town of Newbury we popped into Oldbury's Deli for a look round and were pleased to see they had a gluten free section. It was also nice that there were some interesting and different products on sale.

The one item that really caught our eye was the gluten free Gnocchi. Something that is not a stock item in most shops. Emily has tried to make Gnocchi before, with mixed results, so we decided to buy a bag and give it a go.

Gnoccho di patate senza glutine from Rustichella d'Abruzzo

The Gnocchi (senza glutine) is from Rustichella d'Abruzzo, and is made to strict standards to avoid cross contamination in the production process.

Gnocchi with a tomato and basil sauce

Emily cooked up two sauces and prepared the Gnocchi two ways. We had boiled Gnocchi with a tomato & basil sauce, and a fried Gnocchi with a lemon & sage butter. Both were delicious. I really liked the fried version.

Gnocchi with a lemon and sage butter

Being on a strict life-long gluten free diet can be frustrating and a little boring so it's great when Emily and I spot something new to cook and eat. The 500g bag of Gnocchi cost £5.80. We would buy it again.

Related blog posts:
- Gluten Free
- Coeliac
- Emily's Cooking

Links:
- Rustichella d'Abruzzo website
- Rustichella d'Abruzzo on Twitter
- Oldbury's Deli website
- Coeliac UK

Dinner time - a gluten free mystery meal

When you're a Coeliac what do you have at dinner (or tea) time?

Udi's gluten free asked on Facebook "Is your evening meal Dinner or Tea where you are? And more importantly....what are you making?"

Well, here in Leagrave (the sunny part of Luton) we call it dinner. When Udi's asked I didn't have a clue what we'd be having, but Emily obliged with the answer "It's turkey meatballs with tomato and basil sauce. All gluten free. Obviously."

And it was very good indeed. Absolutely delicious.

The rustic gluten free turkey meatballs with tomato & basil sauce, served with Gallo gluten free spaghetti 

As someone with Coeliac Disease every day can be a struggle to eat and drink safely. It can also be pretty stressful and annoying, so it's brilliant that Emily cooks up some brilliant gluten & wheat free meals for us to enjoy.

Check out the Facebook thread that started the discussion and have a look at the blog posts and links below for more information on the range of gluten free food from Udi's. They do some really great products.

My current favourite breakfast/brunch/lunch/snack/pudding is an Udi's gluten free Chocolate Chip Bagel, toasted and topped with a sliced banana.

Related blog posts:
- New products from Udi's Gluten Free
- Udi’s Gluten Free – more than just mince pies
- Awareness Week: Coeliac Facts from Udi's Gluten Free
- Gluten Free
- Coeliac
- Emily's cooking

Links:
- Udi's Gluten Free UK
- Udi's Gluten Free UK on Facebook
- Udi's Gluten Free UK on Twitter
- Riso Gallo
- Udi's Gluten Free USA
- Coeliac UK

Gluten free Lebkuchen Christmas Biscuits

Baking some treats from the Gluten-free Baking at Christmas book by Samantha Stein.

One of the Christmas food items I've missed most since being diagnosed with Coeliac Disease is Lebkuchen. They are a tasty glazed - and sometimes chocolate-coated - gingerbread biscuit from Germany.

With my German-heritage I remember receiving hampers from relations in Germany and my favourite item was always Lebkuchen.

As there are no commercially available gluten free Lebkuchen in the shops I haven't eaten any since Christmas 2007.

I heard via twitter that fellow coeliac Samantha Stein (aka The Happy Coeliac) had included a recipe for gluten free Lebkuchen in her 'Gluten-free Baking at Christmas' book! As an early Christmas present I bought the book and it was delivered in time to get baking before the big day.

The Gluten-free Baking at Christmas book by 'The Happy Coeliac' Samantha Stein. The book contains 20 festive recipes

Emily is a great cook and budding baker and looked forward to cooking the Lebkuchen. As recommended in the recipe the dough mix was prepared 24-hours in advance an left overnight in the fridge so that the flavour could intensify.

We had to hunt for some Christmas-shaped cake cutters, but managed to track down a set in M&S so we could make the Lebkuchen festive.

The end result was a batch of very nice Lebkuchen and a very happy coeliac. As well as the glaze we topped some of them with melted dark chocolate. They really tasted of Christmas.

Gluten free Lebkuchen biscuits

You can buy the 'Gluten-free Baking at Christmas' book by Samantha Stein on The Happy Coeliac website. Check out the gluten free Lebkuchen recipe on the site too.

If you sign-up for free updates from The Happy Coeliac you will also receive a free 40-page eBook 'Gluten Free For Beginners'.

Related blog posts:
- Coeliac
- Gluten Free

Links:
- The Happy Coeliac website
- The Happy Coeliac on Twitter
- The Happy Coeliac on Facebook
- The Happy Coeliac on YouTube

New Glutafin gluten free pizza bases

Trying out some of the new gluten free pizza bases from Glutafin.

I recently received a 'Sorry you were out' card in my letterbox and so headed down to my local sorting office to collect my large item. When the postman brought out the parcel it was a surprise!

The bright 'takeaway' pizza box I collected from the Royal Mail sorting office surprised me and I got some funny looks from the other people waiting to collect their packages. It's not often you go to a Post Office for pizza!

Glutafin was one of the first gluten free brands I heard of when I was diagnosed with Coeliac Disease in 2008 when I first saw my Consultant and Dietitian at the L&D Hospital. I was given details of the products, information on how to order on prescription and some coupons for free sample products. I've been buying their products ever since and I've also received Glutafin products on prescription over the years.

The new pizza bases from Glutafin are very good. They are nice and thin, with a slightly raised edge so you can fill it up with tasty toppings. The pizzas we made were so good that we scoffed them before we had a chance to take any photos.

The Glutafin pizza bases came with a movie themed pizza ideas leaflet and details of a contest

Find out more about the Glutafin range on the website, follow them on Twitter and Facebook and sign-up for the newsletter. If you're a newly diagnosed Coeliac you can sign-up to receive a free hamper of Glutafin goodies on the website too.

A slice of very nice gluten free pizza cooked by Emily. The Glutafin Pizza Bases are great. They hold up well, are nice and thin, with a good crust. This pizza was topped with some of the tasty Kelkin Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce (that we bought in our haul from Lidl recently), some excellent Chorizo from The Bath Pig and Mozzarella

Related blog posts:
- Coeliac
- Gluten Free
- Glutafin
- Gluten free surprise at Lidl

Links:
- Glutafin website
- Glutafin on Twitter
- Glutafin on Facebook
- Kelkin
- The Bath Pig

Gluten free chicken and beer

Chicken and beer - a great combination.

Emily's a great cook and makes some delicious gluten free treats - both sweet and savoury. We've blogged about some of them here on The Ham & Egger Files and also posted photos and details on her Twitter feed.

The latest creation Emily has perfected is oven baked cornflake chicken (think kind of southern fried, but healthier if you will).

Southern-style baked chicken coated with crushed Nestle Gluten Free Corn Flakes, served with paprika potato wedges, BBQ beans and an avocado. Washed down with a chilled Estrella Damm Daura gluten free beer. Delicious food, gluten free or otherwise

Since my diagnosis with Coeliac Disease in 2008 I've tried a fair few of the gluten free beers available and Estrella Damm Daura is one of my favourites.

While recently shopping for a gluten free Chocolate Yule Log in Tesco's Free From section I noticed that Estrella Damm Daura were included in a 3 for 2 offer and so twelve bottles of the great gluten free beer were £12 - a great buy for a savvy coeliac like me.

Links:
- Estrella Damm Daura website
- Estrella Damm Daura gluten free beer on Twitter
- Tesco Free From website
- Nestlé Cereals website

Related blog posts:
- Gluten free Ale, Beer and Lager
- New Nestlé Gluten Free Corn Flakes and Honey Corn Flakes

- Coeliac

- Gluten Free

Cooking with Genius Gluten Free shortcrust and puff pastry

Some great gluten free cooking from Emily Gottfried.

As someone with Coeliac Disease I'm incredibly lucky to have a very understanding wife, who is also a very keen cook and baker!

One very happy Coeliac with a fresh from the oven Cheese Straw - my absolute favourite puff pastry treat

Check out the photos below for some of Emily's recent savoury and sweet baking.

A selection of Hors d'oeuvres (including a first attempt at Vol Au Vents) made using Genius Gluten Free Puff Pastry

Gluten Free Empanadas using the Genius Gluten Free Shortcrust Pastry

Apricot Frangipan Tarts made using Genius Gluten Free Shortcrust Pastry

A Pork & Mushroom Pie made with Genius Gluten Free Shortcrust Pastry. It was a little crumbly, but tasted great

Check out Emily's Twitter feed for more photos of her great gluten free cooking.

Visit the Genius Gluten Free website for more information on the Genius range of gluten free products.

Link:
- Genius Gluten Free website

Related blog posts:
- Gluten free
- Coeliac

The Simply Cook Gluten Free Box

Trying out the new Gluten Free recipe and ingredient box from Simply Cook.

The Gluten Free Box from Simply Cook

At the recent launch of the online gluten free review website Gluugle I met Karen (aka The Gluten Free Chef) from Simply Cook.

Following the event Karen sent me a sample box including four recipes and ingredients from their first ever Gluten Free Box.

The aim of the kits is to give restaurant quality food in 20 minutes, with you just needing to follow the recipe and add between 4-6 fresh ingredients.

The Gluten Free Box looks good and is well laid out in the smart packaging. The recipe cards and ingredients contained within allow you to make four interesting meals – Malay Laksa (a chicken and butternut squash dish), Pork and Chorizo Beans, Spiced Butternut Squash Risotto and Smoked Haddock Kedgeree.

The recipes are for two people – and we found there was plenty left-over for lunch the next day (or seconds).

Check out our photos of the four tasty meals below.

The first dish we made was the Malay Laksa

One pot cooking

Gluten Free Malay Laksa

The Pork and Chorizo Beans recipe card and ingredients

Dinner is served

The ingredients and recipe card for the tasty Spiced Butternut Squash Risotto - no photo of the finished meal exists as it was quickly scoffed!

The ingredients for the Gluten Free Box Smoked Haddock Kedgeree recipe

I'm a big fan of Kedgeree so this was my favourite meal of the week

Emily enjoyed cooking and eating the dinners, while I enjoyed eating the food Emily and the Gluten Free Box produced. Following our testing of the box we've sent the team at Simply Cook our feedback.

The normal price of the subscription service is £10 a month, which includes postage. Simply Cook has an offer where you can get 50% off when you quote the code 'GFRichard' when making an order on the Gluten Free Box.

Find out more about Simply Cook at the links below.

Links:

- Simply Cook website

- Simply Cook Gluten Free Box

- Simply Cook on Twitter

- Simply Cook on Facebook

- Gluten Free Chef on Twitter

- Gluugle

- Gluten free-related blog posts