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Tim Horton’s Gluten-Free Menu

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff 38 Comments

If you have ever been inside a Tim Horton’s, you know that there don’t seem to be a lot of gluten-free options to choose from.  I happened to meet a friend there the other day and was discouraged when I was really hungry, yet the employees on duty didn’t have any idea if they had any gluten-free choices other than fruit.  I made a mental note to not only check into the gluten-free options when I got home, but to share what I found with you all as well.

Upon browsing Tim Horton’s website, I found that they do indeed have an allergen list.  I knew that there wouldn’t be any magically appearing gluten-free doughnuts, but I wanted to be better prepared the next time I was at Tim Horton’s, as I really like their coffee. I hadn’t made Tim Horton’s one of my priorities in the past because they weren’t on any of my daily routes.  With a new location in my gym parking lot, I see that changing in the near future.

After perusing the allergen list, I found that the following items don’t contain any gluten (USA):

  • Iced cappuccino (with milk, chocolate milk, or cream)
  • Iced cappuccino supreme
  • Mocha iced capp
  • Iced coffee
  • Iced mocha
  • Iced chill mocha
  • Strawberry Banana Smoothie with yogurt
  • Strawberry Banana Smoothie without yogurt
  • Mixed Berry Smoothie with yogurt
  • Mixed Berry Smoothie without yogurt
  • Frozen Lemonade
  • Real Brewed Iced Tea
  • Coffee
  • Decaffeinated Coffee
  • Hot Chocolate
  • White Hot Chocolate
  • French Vanilla Cappuccino
  • English Toffee Cappuccino
  • Café Mocha
  • Caramel Café Mocha
  • Apple Cider
  • Caramel Apple Cider Supreme
  • Steeped Tea
  • Specialty Teas
  • Hot Smoothies (all flavors)
  • Gingerbread Hot Chocolate
  • Candy Cane Hot Chocolate
  • Caramel Hot Chocolate
  • Hashbrown
  • French onion soup (broth only)
  • Hearty potato bacon soup
  • Turkey and wild rice soup
  • Chili
  • Creamy Sundried Tomato with Roasted Garlic
  • Yogurt & berries

As always, ask questions before ordering.  Iced beverages and smoothies may be made with the same blender as versions that contain gluten, so ask for a new one.  Ask about the hashbrown preparation to see if they are cooked with gluten-containing foods.  Some locations may have different procedures in place, so it is necessary to do your due diligence.  I was pleased to learn the yogurt & berries were on this list, as  I had asked about it yesterday, and since nobody had a definite answer at the time.   I ended up settling on an XL coffee and a bar from my emergency stash.  Tim Horton’s has locations across the US and Canada.

Have you eaten at Tim Horton’s gluten-free?  What did you have?

Recipe: Pancakes with Cinnamon Raisin Apples

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

Our weather in Columbus has been unseasonably warm so far this winter; no complaints from me. January 2, 2012, was a rude awakening – blustery snow!  Not a ton of snow, but enough to make me realize that perhaps we aren’t going to get lucky & skip right to spring.  With such a cold morning, I instantly began to think of a warm, comforting breakfast.  Hannah wanted pancakes, so I agreed and decided to make a warm topping to go along with our pancakes.

IMG_0240I whipped up some pancakes using the Simply Organic Pancake & Waffle mix that we received last week to review. The recipe called for 1 cup of mix, 1 egg, and 2/3 cup of milk (I used Silk Pure Almond), and made 6 small pancakes.  While the pancakes were cooking in the pan, I prepared the cooked cinnamon raisin apples.

 

Cinnamon Raisin Apple Pancake Topping (makes enough to top 2 pancakes – can be doubled to serve more)

  • 1 apple
  • 1 TBSP raisins
  • Cinnamon

1.  Chop apple and sprinkle with cinnamon.  Cover with a paper towel & place in the microwave for 1-2 minutes.

2.  Stir and place back in the microwave for another 1-2 minutes.

3.  Add raisins & stir.

To complete the dish, top 2 pancakes with cinnamon apples & drizzle with 100% maple syrup.IMG_0245

This breakfast really hit the spot on such a chilly morning! The cooked apples didn’t need any added sweetener because of the drizzle of maple syrup that I added before eating. The pancakes were a little thicker than I prefer, but I am sure that could easily be fixed by my adding a little more almond milk. The pancakes had a wonderful flavor & great texture. The ingredients in the mix are:

Organic brown rice flour, organic potato starch, organic yellow corn flour, organic cane sugar, baking soda, organic guar gum, sea salt, monocalcium phosphate.

The mix can be purchased for $4.99/box on the Simply Organic website or in some local health food stores.

Review: Trader Joe’s Gluten-Free Crispy Crunchy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Last Updated on by the Celiac-Disease.com Staff 8 Comments

I headed to Trader Joe’s the other day to pick up some necessities and found that they now had gluten-free crispy crunchy chocolate chip cookies. One of my favorite places in the store to check out is the end cap which has a variety of new product offerings on it. Of course, I picked up a pack, even though I had many cookies already at home.

The cookies are $3.99 for a 7 oz. the package which has roughly 14 cookies in it.  Each serving (2 cookies) contains 140 calories, 7g fat and 1g protein. The ingredient list is as follows:

Semi-sweet chocolate chips (sugar, chocolate liquor, cocoa butter, milk fat, soy lecithin vanilla, natural flavor), rice flour, butter (cream), brown sugar, sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, baking soda, salt, xanthan gum, and water.

IMG_0232These were probably some of the most unique packaged gluten-free cookies that I have tasted.  They were super crispy and had a wonderful butter flavor.  If these had been on a plate and not in a package, I would not have been able to tell that they were not homemade.  Each cookie had a decent amount of chocolate chips in it, which is not always the case.  The front of the bag says “buttery and rich chocolate chip cookies that melt in your mouth” and I have to say that I completely agree!

These cookies join a long list of gluten-free foods available at Trader Joe’s.  Our location just recently started carrying some of the Udi’s Gluten-Free product line.  It is nice to pick up my bread, bagels and buns at the same place that I get a lot of my other groceries.  I have also noticed the pricing on the Udi’s products seems to be a little lower at Trader Joe’s than some of the other stores in the area that carry their products.  Trader Joe’s maintains an extensive list of their gluten-free products.  The list is updated frequently can can be found online or in store locations.

Have you had a chance to try the new cookies from Trader Joe’s yet?  If so, what did you think?

Recipe: Holiday Rice Bowl

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

With the holiday season in full swing, most of us will be indulging in meals, treats & drinks that we may pass up under normal circumstances. Some studies claim that most people gain between 5 and 10 pounds during the holiday season.  This article from the NIH says it is actually closer to only one pound, but that one pound is more likely to stay around & contribute to obesity issues down the road.

Whatever the actual amount is, there is no doubt that most of us take in many more calories than we need during this time of year.

So what can you do to avoid the extra weight gain this time of the year?

  • Take advantage of being gluten-free and stick with naturally gluten-free foods at parties – fruits, veggies, salad, lean meats & cheeses.  There has never been a more perfect excuse to pass up the dessert table!
  • Don’t skip meals.  It is tempting to skip meals to save room for the “big spread” later in the day.  Going to a party hungry is never a good idea.  Eating normal meals will keep your body fueled & nourished and you will be less likely to binge on party food.  Additionally, by eating beforehand, you avoid being left with little to choose from that is safe to eat (gluten-free).
  • Continue your exercise program.  Even if you are traveling or have guests, there is no reason you can’t continue to exercise.  There are many workouts available online via Workouts on Demand, yogadownload.com or Gaiamtv.com.
  • Walk after meals. Gather friends & family & do a walking tour of holiday lights.

It is all about balance.  Indulge & don’t deprive yourself of treats.  Don’t regret the choices you made.  Just make sure to balance it all out with lots of healthy meals and exercise in between.  Here are some healthy meal ideas:

  • Dinner salads – include protein & lots of vegetables for protein & fiber.
  • Rice bowls – use brown rice and lean protein for staying power.
  • Breakfast – makes sure to include plenty of protein & fiber – eggs, gluten-free oatmeal, nut butter and fresh fruit.

Here is one of my favorite ways to eat a rice bowl.  I love the colors, which happen to be perfect for this time of the year.

 

IMG_0092Holiday Rice Bowl

  • 1 cup cooked Lundberg japonica rice (I cook my rice in Trader Joe’s lite coconut milk for added flavor)
  • 1/2 cup garbanzo beans
  • 1-2 cups fresh spinach sauteed in a touch of olive oil
  • 1/2 cup sliced beets (canned are fine, but roasted are the best!)
  • 1-2 TBSP goat cheese
  • Sea salt & pepper

1.  Heat pan with a touch of olive oil to cook spinach.  Once heated, cook spinach over medium –medium-high heat until it begins to wilt.

2.  Add rice, garbanzo beans & beets.  Season with sea salt & pepper.

3.  Place mixture in bowl & top with goat cheese.  Enjoy!

***Feel free to play around with ingredients & seasonings.  Sometimes I will add soy sauce (La Choy is gluten-free) or Thai sweet chile sauce for a kick.

Recipe: Chocolate Mint Sandwich Cookies

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

Sometimes when I can’t fall asleep at night, I brainstorm about baking. What fun new treat can I bake? The other night I thought about making chocolate mint cookies and then as I was preparing to bake them, it dawned on me to make them into sandwich cookies!

When I was trying to figure out an easy base cookie, I wanted something that would be soft & chewy, so I settled on using a recipe for cake mix cookies and modifying it.

Chocolate Mint Sandwich Cookies

IMG_00631 Betty Croker gluten-free Devil’s Food Cake Mix

1/2 (8 ounces) container Cool Whip Lite, thawed

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1/2 tsp peppermint flavor/mint extract (I used Simply Organic)

1/2 cup powdered sugar (sifted)

Betty Crocker Triple Chocolate Fudge Chip Frosting

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix 1st 4 ingredients, mixing well (dough will be sticky).

3. Dust hands with powdered sugar and shape dough into 3/4 inch balls.

4. Coat balls with powdered sugar and place 2 inches apart on parchment lined baking sheets

5. Bake for 10 – 12 minutes or until done.  I found that they needed a little longer than 12 minutes the bigger they are.

6. Let cool/set up and then remove to wire racks to cool

7. Once cool, spread with frosting & make into sandwich cookies

*Amount of cookies depends on how big you make the cookies.  Jon prefers larger cookies, so we got about 10-12 sandwiches

**Dough will be sticky – just work quickly with it.  Chill for a short period of time if it gets too sticky.

These cookies were phenomenal!  They were well worth the sticky dough!!  They brought back memories of the Girl Scouts Thin Mints!  They didn’t have the same texture, but the flavor was spot on!