Thanks Cafe 140 for the invite to your “Additions & Alterations” evening, it was a fun night and delicious food.   Much on the menu remains gluten free including my favourite smoked salmon and feta omelette.   A new breakfast option (or in my humble opinion a tasty lunch!) is the Good Morning Vietnam which is made with sweet chilli sauce rather than soy sauce so is also gluten free.   My new favourite lunch is the Chicken Salad with crispy sweet Granny Smith apples, cranberries and candied walnuts with a serve of homemade aoili on the side.   The great thing about Cafe 140 is they make everything on the premises and source good quality local produce so the staff can go out and chat to the chef’s to confirm your choice will be gluten free.   Don’t be shy just ask!

Thanks again to Springhill Farm for letting me sample their new range of slices that while available in Coles in Victoria and NSW are not available in WA yet. I love the Real Bread Mix and have sampled their slices at Hudson’s Coffee at the airport. The slices include Rocky Road, Floretine and Chocolate Brownie. My 10 year old and I sampled the Rocky Road and while I liked it that is something we make ourselves and add the ingredients we like. I felt the Springhill Farm Rocky Road had too much chocolate and coconut and not enough other ‘bits’ like marshmallows. The Florentines I took into work for a staff meeting and I got one as the rest got eaten very quickly and everyone said they were just the right size for morning tea with your coffee. Not too much chocolate but enough to satisfy along with the crunchy cornflakes, almonds and sultanas.

My personal favourite was the chocolate brownie as each slice just the right size for a morning treat with coffee or served warmed up with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream for dessert. Springhill Farm has been making finger slices, biscuits and baking mixes for almost three decades and was one of the first companies to respond to the growing demand for gluten free products. For more information or ordering online visit Springhill Farm website here.

Thank you to Springhill Farm for letting me sample their new Real Bread Mix varieties.   I have been a huge fan of the original Real Bread Mix mainly to make excellent homemade gluten free pizza bases that all the family love not just me as the gluten free one!   I decided as it has been very wintery to bake the Fruit Real Bread Mix and use it to make a Bread and Butter pudding for dessert on the weekend.   I used my dough setting on the Thermomix to make the dough as per the instructions on the packet and baked it in a high sided loaf tin that actually bought via Springhill Farm stand at the Gluten Free Expo on year.   As you can see from the photo it makes a lovely loaf of bread and I could not resist when it cooled trying a slice with some apricot jam before I made the rest of the loaf into the pudding.   It tasted delicious and had great texture as fresh bread but would be nice toasted later on as well.

You can find the recipe for the Wintery Gluten Free Bread and Butter pudding here at the Springhill Farm website.  I used a gluten free apricot jam and vanilla bean paste instead of a vanilla bean pod.   I was also short on eggs so only used the 4 eggs and not the extra 4 egg yolks, it still turned out OK but the egg mixture did not set and was a bit runny still after baking.   It still tasted delicious served with some Weiss Vanilla Bean ice cream.   I think it would have tasted nice with a splash of Cointreau liqueur added.

I have been meaning to try more of the recipes in the TM gluten free cookbook but my 10 year old can be a picky eater so while he was away for school holidays decided to give some recipes a try.   This soup was delicious and I added some gluten free Slim Pasta to the soup rather than serve with a side of jasmine rice but that would have been tasty as well.

Coriander & Basil leaves
1cm piece of Ginger peeled
25g Lemongrass
1 medium Red Chilli deseeded
2 x 400g cans Light Coconut Milk
20g Fish Sauce
6 Kaffir Lime leaves
1 tsp Brown Sugar
500g Chicken breast cubed
1/2 red & green capsicum cut into strips
80g Brocollini
1 packet Slim Pasta Angel Hair pasta (prepared as on packed and cut with scissors)
2 tsp Lime Juice

Place coriander and basil into the TM bowl and chop for 4 seconds on speed 7 and remove and set aside for serving.
Place ginger, lemongrass and red chilli into the TM bowl and chop for 4-5 seconds on speed 7.
Add coconut milk, fish sauce, lime leaves and brown sugar and cook for 10 minutes at 100 degrees on speed 1.
Add cubed chicken and cook for 2 minutes at 100 degrees on Reverse + Soft speed.
Add sliced capsicum, brocollini and Slim Pasta angel hair pasta and continue cooking for another 7-8 minutes.
Add lime juice and stir through for 3 seconds on Reverse + Soft speed.
Transfer to serving dish and sprinkle coriander and basil on top.

Unfortunately having Coeliac Disease I never lost lots of weight and if anything after going 100% gluten free have put on weight as being gluten free does not mean low fat!   Often to compensate for the lack of gluten products can have more fats or sugars added and also are not necessarily very high in fibre or nutritious.   One thing that is tricky is to find a gluten free snack to eat on the go, after the gym or on the road.   Slim Secrets “Wanted Less Than 100 Calories” snack bars fit the bill as can carry in my bag for after gym coffee instead of the gluten free cake.   They are also good to have at work in my drawer if hunger strikes or if someone brings in cake I cannot eat.   I like the cranberry, choc ‘n’ nuts best but the vanilla almond is tasty as well.   Slim Secrets also have Low Carb Fit Balls which are choc mint and these are only wheat free but actually don’t contain any gluten in the ingredients so  assume it must be gluten contamination in production that stops them being labelled gluten free.   All the bars and snacks have chia seeds which are a super food.

Slim Secrets also do a range go gluten free low fat chips.   I am more a sweet tooth than savoury but like chips occassionally.  I snuck some into the cinema today as nothing at the snack bar is gluten free, even the popcorn can have gluten in the flavouring.    The sea salt ones are nice but prefer the flavoured salt and vinegar or cheese and onion.   Slim Secrets can be bought at the supermarket, Coles in Bunbury stock some of the range, or ordered online here.

It was a wintery day so on return from taking my Mum home to Collie went to Donnybrook for some lunch and to taste and buy some wine.   Decided to try Cafe Tiffany’s on the main road just up from the playground.   They had a good selection of savoury and sweet gluten free options for lunch made on the premises from local produce and the owner was able to let me know exactly what was gluten free.    I had the risotto cakes which had a delicious flavour and texture with a side salad.   The portion size was just right for lunch and very reasonable prices.   The lunch left me enough room to sample a gluten free chocolate hazelnut brownie which went well with the smooth Five Senses coffee.   Check out Cafe Tiffany’s next time you are in Donnybrook or visit their Facebook page here.   Afterwards it was a trip to Barrecas winery to pick up a case of mixed red wine.    We love this family owned and operated winery and often make the trip to buy some great tasting wine at a fantastic price.   Visit Barrecas on South Western Highway just east of Donnybrook or visit their Facebook page here.   I can highly recommend any of the shiraz varieties with the Shiraz Malbec being my favourite.

It is definitely winter here in Bunbury, Western Australia and it is the time of year for porridge.   I love porridge but of course oats are out for most Coeliacs.   I have already taste tested WBC GF Porridge and was keen to taste Brookfarm’s new GF Porrij as I love their GF Muesli for summer.   Also there is no local stockist of WBC and it is expensive to get mail order.   That said I still prefer the WBC Porridge which has a different texture and much tastier with vanilla and cinnamon added.   It is easy enough to add to the Brookfarm GF Porrij to improve the otherwise quite bland taste, I added almonds, sultanas and craisans as well as some vanilla extract and cinnamon.   I like mine served with some slice banana, dollop of creamy greek vanilla yoghurt and drizzle of honey.    Check out the Brookfarm website here and the GF Porrij can be bought locally here in Bunbury at Tastefully Yours on Stephen Street, get in soon before I buy it all up for winter!

I was diagnosed with Coeliac disease as an adult and I have had my 1o year old son tested but he does not have Coeliac disease.  I think it must  be very hard for children to be gluten free and hard for the parents to manage it.  Thankfully there is such a good range of gluten free products available as well as other allergy free products.   Recently I had the chance to sample or get some kids to sample a range of products.   Firstly the Baby Mum-Mum Rice Rusks which are gluten free and also egg and peanut free, a good idea with young babies where you don’t know what allergies might have when first introduce them to solids.   I taste tested them on some babies from the staff in my office and they were a hit!   For slightly older children taste tested the Orgran gluten free Itsy Bitsy Bears biscuits which are very similar to the much loved Tiny Teddies, so a great option for children that have to be gluten free so they don’t miss out.   The final product was one close to my son’s heart, peanut butter, luckily he does not have Coeliac disease and luckily no peanut allergy!   He was not sold on the Eskal FreeNut Butter which is actually made from ground roasted sunflower seeds but my husband who is American loves a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and thinks the crunchy nut free butter is not a bad alternative.   I think it is fantastic that there are so many gluten free and other allergy free products on the market for children and if it can make their life a bit easier and make them feel like not missing it out this a good thing!

I had some over ripe bananas so decided needed to make some banana bread.   After the success of the Anzac biscuits from The Healthy Chef website I decided to give the banana bread recipe a try, you can find the recipe here.   I ground my own almond meal and flaxseed in the Thermomix and set aside.   You then whip up the rest of the ingredients like a smoothie on speed 5-6 for 20 seconds.   I then added the almond meal and ground linseed and mixed for another 20 seconds on speed 5-6.   The mixture pours into the loaf pan like a batter.   I sprinkled the top with walnuts, cinnamon and some organic raw sugar before baking for about 60 minutes on 160 degrees celsius.   I did oil and flour the pan but had some trouble getting it out and some of the base stuck to the bottom, think maybe needed to cool a bit more before removing from the pan.    Served it with ricotta, blueberries and drizzle of organic maple syrup, made a delicious brunch with coffee, I think my cat Peppa agreed!

It is Anzac Day and felt inspired to try and bake some gluten free Anzac biscuits.   I checked out various recipes and consider making some with my supply of Bob’s Red Mill Wheat Free Oats from USA.   Oats that are not contaminated are considered gluten free in USA but in Australia they are not considered gluten free, mainly due to contamination issues but also as oats do contain a type of gluten known as Avenin.   I have been eating a moderate amount of Bob’s Red Mill Wheat Free Oats for a while now with no ill effects.   Consult with your health professional and read the Coeliac Australia position statement on oats here before you consider consuming them.

So oats debate over found a recipe for gluten free Anzac Biscuits at Teresa Cutter’s The Healthy Chef website here.  I did not have any flaked almonds so added more almond meal.   I also used half cup of coconut and half cup of the World’s Best Cereal Porridge with Brown Rice Flakes, Quinoa, Cinnamon and Rapadura Sugar.

150g ground almond meal (in the Thermomix)
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup WBC porridge
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon bicarb soda
1 tablespoon water

Combine almond meal, coconut and WBC porridge.
Combine honey and oil in small saucepan and heat gently.
Mix the bicarb and water and pour into saucepan and mix until starts to go frothy.
Pour into the dry ingredients and mix until combined, add a little water if needed.
Form into small balls (about a teaspoon each) and place on baking sheet, flatten with a fork.
Bake in low preheated oven, 120 degrees celsius, for about 30 minutes until golden.
Allow to cool slightly before eating, taste delicious with a cup of tea!