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Review: Trader Joe’s Gluten-Free Iced Lemon Rounds

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff 4 Comments

I haven’t been able to get to Trader Joe’s very often in the past couple of months, so I wasn’t all that surprised that I found a new gluten-free product almost as soon as I walked in the door. Have you seen these new Iced Lemon Rounds Cookies?

I had to take a second look to make sure I wasn’t seeing things. Did the label really say “gluten-free” on it? I even flipped the box over to read the ingredients to make sure. Yep, they are!  I knew that my son would be thrilled, as he loves all things lemon.  The box of 7 cookies wasn’t cheap, but I bought them anyway.

Ingredients:

Brown rice flour, organic powdered sugar (organic evaporated cane sugar, organic tapioca starch), unsalted butter (milk), eggs, cane sugar, potato starch, rice flour, lemon icing (powdered sugar, water, sugared lemon peel [lemon peel, sugar, lemon oil]), almond flour, coconut flour, honey, xanthan gum, sea salt, almond extract (ethyl alcohol, water, oil of bitter almond), baking powder (monocalcium phosphate, sodium of bicarbonate, cornstarch).

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I don’t know that I can put into words how wonderfully amazing these cookies are! I honestly didn’t expect them to be as good as they are.  They are similar in texture to a thicker sugar cookie but have just enough moisture to hold them together nicely.  The lemon flavor is just enough and not overwhelming.  What a refreshing afternoon treat to have alongside a cup of hot tea! My son fell in love with these cookies as well, so I have a feeling that they will be making frequent appearances in our house.

Trader Joe’s maintains a list of their “no gluten” products on their website.  They update the list regularly, but may not have all new products listed, as the cookies aren’t on the list.

Have you tried the new Trader Joe’s Iced Lemon Rounds?  What is your favorite Trader Joe’s product?

Review: King Arthur Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake Mix

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff 2 Comments

King Arthur launched their gluten-free flour and mixes a few years back.  The flour and mixes are all delicious and preformed well when I baked with them.  I mentioned trying the chocolate cake in this post and the comments, but never got around to it.

Fast forward a couple of years to a special birthday dinner this past Friday night.  Some friends and I made plans to celebrate my birthday along with one of our other friend’s birthday at a new-to-me local restaurant. While the restaurant does have an extensive gluten-free menu, there are no dessert options.  I thought about going across the street to Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream, but my dear friend had already thought ahead and made a gluten-free cake!

 

My friend does eat gluten-free, but (she doesn’t have Celiac Disease) she and her family follow the Paleo diet for other health reasons.  Melissa is very well-versed in the gluten-free diet, so I knew we were all in for a very special treat.  She used the King Arthur gluten-free Chocolate Cake Mix and then made a whipped cream cheese frosting from scratch to frost the cake.

INGREDIENTS: SUGAR, MODIFIED TAPIOCA STARCH, RICE FLOUR, COCOA (PROCESSED WITH ALKALI), POTATO STARCH, EMULSIFIER (RICE STARCH, POLYGLYCEROL ESTERS OF FATTY ACIDS, MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES OF FATTY ACIDS), BAKING POWDER (SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE, SODIUM BICARBONATE, CORNSTARCH, MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE), SALT, XANTHAN GUM.

The gluten-free mix requires the addition of vegetable oil, vanilla, eggs and water.  It makes 2 8-inch or 9-inch rounds, cupcakes or a 9 x 13 inch rectangle cake.IMG_4698

I can’t begin to put into  words how amazing this cake is!  I sample a lot of gluten-free products and mixes and this cake rates up there at the top!  I can’t believe how incredibly moist and flavorful it is!  The cake was shared with many people, most of them don’t have to eat gluten-free and they all raved about it!  I love when I can share how good gluten-free can be!  Normally I don’t do seconds of dinner or desserts, but I did have more of this cake!  I brought home some to share with Jon and he was in heaven, too!

King Arthur gluten-free mixes are available in mainstream grocery stores across the US and online. Have you tried the King Arthur gluten-free Chocolate Cake Mix?  What about the other King Arthur gluten-free mixes?

Review: Udi’s Gluten-Free Double Vanilla Muffins

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff Leave a Comment

I know it may be hard to believe, but there was actually a product made by Udi’s Gluten-Free that we had yet to try! Udi’s Double Vanilla Muffins have been around for a little while, but I don’t know whether I hadn’t seen them in our local stores or I just never bought them because we were so attached to the Double Chocolate, Lemon and Blueberry varieties.

When I did finally spot these at Raisin Rack the other day, I grabbed them along with my favorite Udi’s bagel – The Mighty Bagel.  Jon was thrilled when he saw me walk in these muffins!  I never did get another photo besides the one you see above, as he inhaled these.  I was lucky to get a bite of one before they disappeared!

INGREDIENTS: WATER, EVAPORATED CANE SUGAR, RICE FLOUR, WHOLE EGGS, PALM OIL, POTATO STARCH, CANE SYRUP, MODIFIED TAPIOCA STARCH, EGG WHITES, METHYLCELLULOSE, VANILLA BEAN PASTE (SUGAR, WATER, VANILLA EXTRACT, VANILLA BEAN SPECKS, TRAGACANTH GUM), BAKING POWDER (SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE, SODIUM BICARBONATE, CORN STARCH, MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE), GLYCERINE, SALT, CULTURED CORN SYRUP SOLIDS (NATURAL MOLD INHIBITOR). CONTAINS: EGG

IMG_4679Jon said these were now his favorite of all of the Udi’s gluten-free muffins.  They are very moist and have a delicate vanilla flavor.  Let’s just say that Jon is lucky that he ate the rest before I got a bite because I may not have been so willing to let him have them all.  Udi’s suggests that these might even be frosted as a cupcake!  Hmmm…not a bad idea!

As I was browsing the Udi’s gluten-free website for ingredient information, I noticed they have a couple of new products that I haven’t heard about prior to this moment.  Are you ready?  Gluten-free tortillas, but not just in 6-inch size, but a 9-inch size for burritos and quesadillas!  I haven’t spotted these in stores yet, but I will make sure to let you know when I do.

Have you tried the new Double Vanilla Muffins yet?  What about the tortillas?

Review: Katz Gluten-Free Blueberry Pie

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff Leave a Comment

Pie is something that I have always enjoyed eating if it was served to me, but it wasn’t something that I sought out.  If given the choice I would have chosen cheesecake or chocolate cake over pie.  Once you tell me I can’t have something it makes me want it even more, even if it wasn’t that big of a deal in the first place.  That explains how I feel about pie.  Remove the option and I want it.  Gluten-free pie crust can be tough to prepare, but frozen pie crusts and pre-made pies have made it easier to enjoy a slice of pie.

Katz gluten-free has three different pie varieties in their product line-up: Apple, Cherry, and Blueberry.  The Apple Pie is the only one offered in both family and personal size options; the Blueberry and Cherry only come in personal size, which can easily be sliced into four pieces.  The personal-size pies are $7.99 each and the family size is $12.49.  All of the pies are free of dairy, nuts, and soy in addition to gluten.  I ordered some products from Katz gluten-free last week and made sure to include a Blueberry pie.  It has been over 7 years since I have had blueberry pie – it is probably more like 15-20 years.

Ingredients:
gluten-free Flour (Tapioca, White Rice, Sorghum, Corn) Palm Oil, Water, Eggs, Sugar, Salt, Xanthan Gum, Blueberry Pie Filling (Blueberries, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Locust Bean Gum, Citric Acid, Sodium Benzoate As A Preservative, Cinnamon).

IMG_4571After dinner the other night I sliced a quarter of the pie to enjoy after dinner.  I was very impressed with the flakiness, flavor, and texture of the pie crust!  The filling was equally as tasty, though I would have liked to see some bigger blueberries in the middle.  I am looking forward to trying the Apple and Cherry pies in the near future!

If you aren’t following Katz gluten-free on Facebook and Twitter, head over to check them out as they are always posting deals. Katz gluten-free products can also be found in select stores across the US.

Have you sampled any of the pies from Katz gluten-free?

Review: Gluten-Free at Bravo

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff Leave a Comment

My weekend was full of celebration for my birthday and my mom’s birthday – how cool is it that we share a birthday?  We ended up eating out for three meals, with Bravo being one of those restaurants.  I hadn’t been to Bravo in years, in fact, I am not sure that I have dined there since starting the gluten-free diet.

The gluten-free menu is decently sized with options for salads, entrees and pasta.  Since we were there for lunch I chose a salad with grilled salmon.

IMG_4497Doesn’t that look wonderful?  The salad is “Served with field greens, tomatoes, grilled asparagus, Feta and a balsamic vinaigrette”.  I was pleased with the freshness and flavor of this salad.  The salmon was cooked perfectly and I love the addition of grilled asparagus to a salad!

The one thing lacking from Bravo is a dessert option for the gluten-free diner.  The menu does have crème brulee and ice cream on it, but neither are included on the gluten-free menu. It would be nice to see one or both added in the future.  Bravo has locations across the US. Visit the website to see locations nearest you.

Have you dined gluten-free at Bravo?  Please share your experience below.