Elevate Me! Energy Bars

Recently I received a variety pack of Elevate Me! Energy Bars from PROSnack Natural Inc. Elevate Me ! Energy Bars are gluten-free protein Bars. Each 66 gram cold-formed bar (divided into 3 pieces per bar) contains 24% protein. In addition to being wheat free they are also soy free and contain no added sweeteners, preservatives, or flavorings. They are also low in fat and high in fiber. I know what you’re thinking, that’s all great news, but how do they taste? The answer is, pretty darn good actually.

Elevate Me! Energy Bars come in seven different flavors. All of the flavors contain a base of why protein isolate, date, and organic raisins. Then a variety of additional ingredients are added to make up the different flavors. The All-Fruit Original contains almonds, apples, cranberries, papaya, and mango. This was the one we thought tasted to strongly of dates. The Blueberry Cranberry Gojiberry Boost!, and Matcha Green Tea with Cranberries were my favorites because they were filled with complimentary tangy berry flavors. My significant other appreciated the addition of coca to Chocolate Acai Berry Brownie, Espresso Cocoa Crunch, and Cocoa Coconut Cluster. These tasted more like treats than a healthy protein bar. We both thought the addition of banana flavor in the Banana Nut Bread worked really with the date and raisin base.

No matter which flavor we ate the results were the same. We ended up satisfied and re-energized. The compact bar makes them a great meal on the go. In the case of my other test subject they made and easy quick snack to have when you are running out of energy are hungry and have lots of time till you can stop and have a full meal. The fact that Elevate Me! Bars are gluten free makes them a great option for training or competing celiac athletes (For more on celiac athletes visit NFCA’s Athletes for Awareness blog). However, the fact that they are also delicious makes them a yummy healthy snack for everyone.

To learn more about Elevate Me! Bars visit www.prosnack.com. Till next time, happy and healthy gluten-free snacking!

Amy’s GF Soups

If you have read my review of Amy’s Gluten Free Products, then you know I’m a big fan of a lot of Amy’s ready made meals. So, of course, I was happy when representatives of Amy’s Kitchen asked if I would review three of their gluten free soups. Along with two of their other gf soups, Fire Roasted Southwestern Veggie and Chunky Tomato Bisque, they also sent me their newest soup, Hearty Spanish Rice and Red Bean,

The Hearty Spanish Rice and Red Beans soup is, as its name implies, very thick and hearty. It is filled with organic red beans and brown rice. The rich and thick sauce that coats the main ingredients is packed with organic veggies such as tomato, onion, green chilies, and zucchini. All the ingredients are complimented by a nice blend of herbs and spices, resulting in a mild and pleasant hint of heat in each bite.

The Southwestern Veggie Soup is loaded with fire roasted veggies such as potatoes, onions, corn, and bell peppers. This gives this soup a smoky southwestern flair. This soup is thick and so full of veggies that it is almost like a stew.

The Chunky Tomato Bisque was probably my favorite. Regular can tomato soup will never be good enough again. This soup was filled with the texture and taste of a rich tomato sauce that had only lightly been blended. Along with the organic tomato puree and diced tomatoes that make up the heart of this soup, is a hint of organic cream and spices. The result is purely yummy!

All three of these soups tasted very close to homemade. In minutes you get what could have taken hours in the kitchen. They are also cooked to perfection, so be sure not to over cook when you heat these delicious soups up.

To learn more about these soups as well as the many other wonderful products Amy’s Kitchen has to offer visit AmysKitchen.com. Amy’s Kitchen website has a great section that lists all the products they make that fit special diet requirements. Be sure to check out the gluten free section.

Doodles Gluten-Free Cookie Mix

Yesterday I baked a few trays of gluten-free cookies. I used the organic dry cookie mixes Doodles Cookies sent me to sample. Not having to gather and mix up all the dry ingredients was a great time saver and made the prep time so much shorter allowing for fresh baked cookies in no time.

Doodles Cookie mixes come in three gf varieties, Chocolate Chip, Sugar, and Nut Butter. Each box of Doodles Cookies Organic Gluten Free Cookie Mix contains all the dry ingredients you need to bake some fresh from the oven cookies. To mix up a batch of cookies all you need is two or three added ingredients. These are all common ingredients that can be found in most refrigerators and pantries.

In addition to adding an egg and vanilla extract to the chocolate chip cookie mix you also add applesauce. The result is a moist, yummy, chocolate chip filled cookie. For the Nut Butter cookies you can choose any nut butter you prefer. The Sugar Cookies can be mixed up with your choice of extract. Vanilla, lemon, or almond extracts are the suggestions on the box and each will result in a slightly different type of sugar cookie. So these three simple boxes actually result in a lot of variety depending on what you like to taste and bake with.

When I added the suggested ingredients to the dry mix I was surprised that the dough was so thick. It’s often suggested to refrigerate gf mixes since they are often runny. No refrigeration is required for these mixes though. If I had wanted to take extra time I could have even made the cookies into shapes.

As impressive as the cookie dough was, I was still a little skeptical. After the cookies were done baking I got another surprise. They were pretty darn tasty. The next step was to find more victims…err… test subjects. I gave cookies to two subjects both gluten eaters with a bit of experience in the wonderful wacky world of gluten free baking. The first an adult male who liked them and thought they would go great with coffee (which I completely agree with). The second an 11 year old boy who was not told they were gluten free. He quickly returned to the kitchen to say cookies were “yum!” and then asked for more.

On top of being gluten free, the ingredients that go into the mixes are organic and wholesome. Organic whole grain brown rice flour tops the list and I think that influences the final product a lot.

Great ingredients, easy prep combined with short cooking time, and yummy. I will call this product a winner. To learn more about Doodles Cookies visit www.doodles.com

Cormier’s Kitchen Cooking Sauces

Cormier’s Kitchen was kind enough to send us samples of their fabulous cooking sauces. Each flavor of Cormier’s Kitchen Sauce is a wonderful mix of herbs and spices blended into a high quality Wheat and Gluten Free Soy sauce. These versatile sauces are excellent additions to barbecue, marinade, sauté, or stir-fry dishes. They work great with meat dishes and add a much appreciated level of flavor to vegetarian dishes.

I tested each flavor of Cormier’s Kitchen cooking sauces by adding them to  fresh cut stir-fry vegetables then served them on noodles. These sauces come in five flavors. Cracked Black Pepper, is a spicy sauce that has a mild amount of heat from its fresh cracked black pepper blend. Orange Burst is a sweet tangy orange flavored sauce paired with a hint of ginger to spice it up. Double Garlic has a blast of sweet roasted garlic flavor achieved by a balanced combination of a double dose of garlic along with a nice blend of herbs and sugar. Garlic and Ginger is very similar to the double garlic but has been spiced up with ginger root. Garlic and Jalapeño is spicy with out catching your tongue on fire. Instead of a fast blast of fire on your tongue, this sauce’s flavor lingers with a long lasting and pleasant level of heat.

All the sauces in this line are rich and filled with flavor. The blends added enhance but do not overpower the soy sauce. This makes them an exciting substitute for many other cooking sauces and an excellent addition to your gluten free kitchen.

To learn more about Cormier’s Kitchen Cooking Sauces visit cormierskitchen.com.

Three Senses Chocolate Soufflé

Today’s review is a very special product. Three Senses Gourmet makes an exceptionally delicious gluten free Chocolate Soufflé that comes as a ready-made frozen dessert. This amazing dessert won the 2009 NFCA’s San Francisco Gluten Free Cooking Spree “Best Product”.  The ingredients that make this great dessert are simple, all natural, and of the highest quality. The spongy cakes itself is flourless so it is naturally gluten-free. The center of each Chocolate Soufflé is filled with a rich molten European chocolate filling.

The yummy dessert that is the result of Three Senses Gourmet hard work, skill and creativity, is good enough to find on any elegant café or restaurant’s menu. However, Three Senses Gourmet founder, Amy Phillips, realized gourmet easy-to-make “heat and serve” items were missing from the grocery store. This is lucky for the celiac and gluten-free community, because this delicious dish is now available in a growing number of grocery stores.  The Chocolate Soufflé, Caramel Chocolate Soufflé, and the Chocolate Chip Brioche Bread Pudding frozen desserts are just the beginning. The company plans to add more desserts and other gourmet cuisine to their line designed to help with convenient, gourmet entertaining. But don’t take my word for it, Three Senses Gourmet’s Chocolate Soufflé is a must try. Visit www.3sensesgourmet.com to learn more about all of Three Senses Gourmet’s products and learn where you can get one of your own.

Betty Crocker “Simple Joys” Contest Winner!

Drum roll….

The Winner of the GFHP Betty Crocker “Simple Joys” Contest is:  Leslie Hart!

Congratulations Leslie Hart, I’ll be contacting you soon.

Easy Cake from Happy Kitchen

Today’s gluten-free review is for a quick and easy dessert or a guilty pleasure snack. The Gluten-Free Trading Company sent us some samples of Easy Cake manufactured by Happy Kitchen. Happy Kitchen is a line of easy to prepare baking mixes, prepared from high quality ingredients. Easy Cakes are small delicious gluten free cakes that are ready to enjoy in 3-4 minutes.
Each box of Easy Cake comes with a microwave-safe cooking container with a lid (to store leftovers), a bag of cake mix, and frosting. The directions are simple to follow. Just add a little vegetable oil, your choice of liquid (milk, soy milk, rice milk or water), an egg the cake mix, and stir. Microwave the cake for 2-3 minutes then add the frosting bar and you’re done! Easy Cakes come in two flavors, Dark chocolate or Vanilla. Each cake serves 1 to 3 servings depending on portion size.
I did not have high hopes for this product at first. I’ve tried regular microwave cake deserts and many of them fail so it was hard for me to think a gluten-free one was going to be any better. However I was pleasantly surprised once again. The cake ends up fluffy, the texture is smooth, and the flavor is yummy.
In addition to being gluten-free these cakes are also milk/casein free, peanut free, tree Nut tree, and vegetarian. That’s pretty amazing for a tasty, fast and easy gluten-free dessert. To learn more about Easy Cake visit the Gluten-Free Trading Company online at www.food4celiacs.com.

Flackers

Recently we received some samples of Flackers created by Doctor in the Kitchen. Flackers are nutritious crackers made almost completely of flax seeds. The makers of these crackers know there are a lot of health benefits packed into each tiny unsuspecting flax seed. They are natural sources of antioxidants, protein, omega-3 fatty acids and many other vitamins and minerals. Most importantly to the many members of the celiac community flax seeds are also naturally full of fiber which in addition to reducing cholesterol also helps with digestion.
Flackers contain all the benefits of flax seed pressed into a simple easy snack cracker. Since the ingredients are simple they end up being gluten-free and dairy-free. They are made even safer by being manufactured in a dedicated facility that is wheat, nut and dairy free.
Each cracker is made of whole flax seeds that have been sprouted then dehydrated to preserve all their nutrition. The result is an intensely flavored, crunchy, and very healthy cracker. Flackers are available in three flavors. Dill which has a hint of red chili pepper; Rosemary with a hint of sage; and Savory which contains garlic, onion, red chili pepper, and basil. After the strong taste of flax seed subsides the organic herb and vegetable flavor soon follows. If you are worried that the flavor of these crackers are too strong but still want all the health benefits, I suggest pairing it up with a complementary spread or dip to even out the flavor.
For full product details as well as information on where you can purchase Flackers visit www.drinthekitchen.com.

Jules’ Gluten-Free Flour Review By Molly North

I refuse to compromise. That’s why I was determined to find an all-purpose flour that I could use as a one-to-one replacement in my favorite recipes.

It was love at first sight when I tried Jules’ Gluten-Free Flour. The recipe they provided for Beer Bread was absolutely delicious when I first took it out of the oven. It was light and fluffy and mouth watering and I wanted to cry because I hadn’t tasted bread that good in months. Being only 17, and having been diagnosed less than a year, the prospect of finding delicious bread in such little time seemed miraculous. I had no idea how to properly store my loaf, so I wrapped it in saran and a ziplock and prayed.

But alas, the loaf became dry and crumbly over the next several days and my excitement was short lived. Luckily, I still had faith in my 5 lb. bag of flour.

From then on, I used the Jules’ Gluten-Free Flour Mix for everything I baked. From lentil burgers to apple custard pie, it has never failed me, which is especially good considering that the recipes I use normally call for wheat flour. Yes, I think Jules’ Gluten-Free Flour Mix is the ultimate substitute for wheat flour. And though I haven’t used any Jules recipes since the Beer Bread, I do have faith in them. In fact, I plan to do a lot of my thanksgiving cooking from the “Jules’ 101 Thanksgiving” guide I downloaded from their website. Needless to say, I find myself evaluating my space in the kitchen as I get ready to ask my mother for the 20 lb. bag!

We have since contacted Jules and asked her about storing bread. She responded immediately urging me not to freeze or refrigerate the bread until I am ready to store the remainder of the loaf for breadcrumbs, stuffing or croutons. She explains that breads that use thin liquids (like beer and water) tend to dry out rather quickly. They are best freshly baked. She referred me to her Bread Making 101 e-booklet that includes two recipes using yoghurt, which Jules says “tend to stay moist for many days.”

I can’t wait to bake my next loaf!

For more great reviews and recipes visit Molly North’s blog.

Betty Crocker “Simple Joys” Review and Contest

Last week at GFHP headquarters we received a “Simple Joys” Prize Pack from Betty Crocker. Each “Simple Joys” Prize Pack includes two boxes of Betty Crocker Fruit-Flavored Snacks, a retro Pick ‘em Up Sticks game, a light-up yo-yo and a classic Frisbee. In addition to sending us the prize pack Betty Crocker has generously offered to send one “Simple Joys” prize pack to one of our lucky readers. So we have decided to run a short contest. Details to this contest and instructions on how to enter are described at the end of this review.

One of the boxes of fruit-flavored snacks included in this prize pack is a Variety Pack that includes packets of Fruit Rollups (a classic favorite from my days as a kid), Fruit Gushers, and Fruit-By-The-Foot. The variety pack is an all-time favorite at our house as a dessert choice or a sweet treat during long road trips. Since the kids in our home are not required to eat a gluten-free diet it never occurred to me that these as well as all of Betty Crocker’s Fruit Flavored Snacks are gluten-free.

As much as I like to inform the celiac community of new GF products by new food manufacturers it is also a great pleasure to get the chance to help spread the word that there is a GF product available from a larger food manufacturer such as General Mills Betty Crocker Brand. It becomes a bigger treat when the product is targeted toward children. Betty Crocker Fruit Flavored Snacks are a food item that not only your gluten-free child will find in his lunch bag but is something his gluten eating peers will also have. To me that makes this product special.

Also included in this prize pack was a box of Betty Crocker Create-a-Bug Fruit Flavored Snacks. It was fun to watch the kids’ faces light up when I handed them items from the variety pack. However, it was a bigger joy to see them happy to try something new. Their father and I shared a good chuckle as the oldest (a 14 year old girl) told her younger brother (11 years old) who was ready to gobble down the whole pack, that first he has to play with them. When I asked them what they thought of the Create-a-Bug Fruit Flavored Snacks they both exclaimed “Yum, those are a winner!”

In addition to being gluten free all of the Betty Crocker Brand Fruit Flavored Snacks made with real fruit and are low in calories and fat. To learn more about these wonderfully yummy fruit flavored treats visit Betty Crocker’s official website.

To enter the GlutenFreeHotProducts.com “Simple Joys” prize pack contest:

Send your name, email address to alacy@celiaccentral.org , please include “Simple Joys” prize pack in the subject line. This contest will run from November 30th, 2009 till December 14th, 2009. I will announce the winner on GFHP and send them an email requesting their mailing address. Till then Good luck and happy GF snacking!