Gluten Free Goblin

Supernoodles

2012-01-13T13:02:00.002Z

I use to live off Supernoodles. Especially during my time at University. I would sometimes venture out to the students union for cheesy chips, but my cooking ability back then only reached as far as heating noodles in water and adding a flavoured sachet to it. The flavour was usually bacon, which resulted in Frazzle burps for the next few days at least.

I went off them a bit though. Nothing to do with them not being gluten free. But once I got so drunk on quadruple vodkas that I was sick and supernoodles came out of my nose. Gross. I soon learnt to cook after that - even Pot Noodles made me feel queasy.

I now feel ready to try some noodle based convenience food again and it looks like Tiger Tiger have come to the gluten free rescue with these Thai microwave noodles.

Christmas Goblin

2011-11-03T20:31:00.001Z

All families have their traditions at Christmas. Some families go to midnight mass, some insist on watching the Queens speech, and there are those strange people who don't open the presents until after Christmas dinner. But I'm yet to meet another family who eat chocolate biscuits for breakfast on Christmas day.

Keen to keep this tradition going, this year I provided a selection of gluten free biscuits that put that old McVities tin to shame.

Ingredients for Christmas day breakfast :-

Pink Panther Gluten Free Pink Wafers

Trufree chocolate fingers

Doves hazelnut cookies

Trufree custard creams

Trufree chocolate digestives

Birds Eye Potato waffles...

2011-10-09T18:11:00.001+01:00

They're waffly gluten free

Be Bop - Milan

2011-04-10T20:36:00.009+01:00

I was treated to a wonderful romantic trip to Milan for Valentines day this year. As pure coincidence, Spurs were also playing AC Milan the next day, so my boyfriend suggested catching the match as well.

I thought I might be in for a few days of salads and sneaky rice cakes in restaurants, but was in for a massive surprise when we found Be Bop Restaurant with a gluten free pizza and pasta menu.

Here I am enjoying a pizza and beer in Italy - so tasty!

And here I am next to a poor waxwork Ruud Gullit - not so tasty.

To fill our pudding pockets we went to Grom a few times. Their pistachio gelato was amazing, even in the rain...

http://www.grom.it/eng/celiachia.php

Abby and the Gluten Free Factory

2011-01-23T16:18:00.002Z

I had the best gluten free day ever on Saturday. It started with the postman delivering a sample of Juvela’s Special Flakes. I’m not sure how they came up with that name for the cereal, probably something to do with them being for people with a ’special’ diet.

Then I met the Cake Crusader - a real superhero, although she didn’t have her pants on over her apron. She had a cake stall at the Harehatch Sheeplands market, and makes the best gluten free millionaire short cake I’ve ever tasted. All of her cakes are gluten and wheat free, so we brought four cupcakes, a brownie and a millionaire shortcake. There are none left today.

Already loaded with yummy cakes, we thought we’d have a quick look in the farm shop. It was like some kind of gluten free version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Clive’s pies, Dietary specials Yorkshires and pasties in the freezer, Mrs Crimbles, Kallo rice cakes, Bryon Bay cookies and so much more, even ice cream cones . I could have stayed there all day, but was in real danger of becoming Augustus Gloop!

Surviving Japan, only to end up in Hell

2010-10-10T14:57:00.014+01:00

I'm so pleased my big sister and her husband have returned to England from Japan. I loved Tokyo and survived eating gluten there. I also survived a massive earthquake and then being in a typhoon half way up Mt Fuji, but that's a different story.

I took my own bottle of gluten free soy sauce everywhere I went - luckily nothing is weird in Japan. Most Japanese restaurants have a mini BBQ on your table and you cook the food. As long as we ordered without sauce this was great for me, expect the time we nearly set fire to the restaurant...

Of course it helped having two Japanese speakers with us to avoid those Lost in Translation moments, but with places like Coco Curry having an allergy menu, it's possible to visit Japan and eat out gluten free.

So although their return has scarpered my plans to return to Japan on the cheap, at least they're returning to Clapham where Hell Pizza deliver gluten free pizzas. So they'd better get used to much more frequent visits from me!

Back to Basics

2010-10-03T18:10:00.006+01:00

In the search for an alternative to Hula Hoops, I discovered Sainsbury's Basics Potato Rings. They're so cheap that they probably can't afford to add the barley malt extract that may or may not be in plain Hula Hoops.

http://www.sainsburys.co.uk/groceries/index.jsp?bmUID=1286126025691

The only down side is that I look like a pikey at lunch time in work. However the plus side is I can once again eat the cheddar cheese filled Hula Hoops snack I saw on Freaky Eaters.

Pikachu Soup

2010-09-14T19:56:00.005+01:00

I'm reading Gluten Free Girl by Shauna James Ahern at the moment, and have been inspired by her to try new and different foods.

So, I bought this lil' fella at the farmer's market in Winchester on Sunday.

Part squash, part Pokemon, it seemed a shame to have to chop him up and put him in my soup!

Wheat Prices Crisis

2010-08-08T08:44:00.005+01:00

Let's see how everyone else likes paying £3 for a loaf of bread.

Animals are cute – fact

2010-05-22T19:38:00.004+01:00

There comes a time when all teenager girls realise animals are in fact too cute to eat. Some parents are very helpful and encourage this lifestyle choice. Others aren’t so willing to make the rest of the family eat tofu just because their 13 year old daughter just watched Babe.

My attempt at not eating cute things didn’t go well. I was under the impression my mum was being helpful. She said she wouldn't cook me separate meals, but I could either a) cook for myself or b) pick the meat out of dinner

I opted for option B thinking it would be easy. There followed a week of Chilli Con Carne and Spaghetti Bolognese, not only two of my favs, but also leaving me with little choice but to inevitably eat it a little bit of the meat.

As it turns out, its a good job mum wasn't so corporative and I was a lazy 13 year old unwilling to prepare my own meals. Being a vegetarian ceoliac isn't easy.

But it is easier than I thought. I could eat at Mildreds every night! Its a completely veggie restaurant but also one that marks the menu with those thoughtful little GFs. I fully embraced my inner hippy when we went there this week, drinking organic wine and eating sweet potato curry.

The guilt of playing with the reindeer recently at my friend’s wedding was therefore doubled.

A sight for sore eyes and gluten free pies

2010-04-03T15:12:00.006+01:00

After squinting continually at the telly, I thought it was time to get my peepers tested. Turns out I need glasses to see things in the distance. So I put on my new specs for the telly, the cinema and those dreaded powerpoint presentations at work.

I love my glasses and think I look sophisticated in them (even when watching What Katie Did Next), but I always forget to take them with me. They could have come in handy in Warwick at the Merchants pub this weekend. The menu was on blackboards at the other side of the pub so I didn't immediately see the little (g) symbols next to the gluten free dishes. The idea of a steak chips for a fiver won over the laziness and I made the trip across the pub to read the menu properly. I skipped back to the table to tell my friends 'I can even eat the chips!'

Tonight I'm going to try a Dietary Specials steak pie. I'm usually a Clive's Pie kind of girl, but thought I'd try this one as Clive only seems to sell his pies to random health shops. Pie and mash, isn't a typical Easter weekend meal, but after two days drinking in Warwick, it's going to sort out the hangover (the Creme Egg for pudding will sort out Easter!)

Wispa Gold, always believe in your soul

2010-02-27T22:16:00.004Z

Somethings in life are not worth questioning.

Like, for example, the fact that Wispa Golds are gluten free, but the run of the mill Wispas are not.

No point shouting at Cadburys or campaigning via Facebook, I'll just quietly enjoy my Wispa with loads of gooey caramel shoved on top!

Flipping 'eck

2010-02-17T20:03:00.004Z

Whose stupid idea was it to go out on Pancake Day? The only day of the year that it's acceptable to heap ice cream, Nutella, and banana onto one plate, and I found myself in rainy London, arguing with a waiter over poached salmon.

It's not often that a restaurant won't cater for my gluten free requests, often offering to cook something totally different than what is on the menu.

Not the case in Auberge, where they couldn't confirm if the poached Salmon was gluten free, because it had been cooked by a different chef in the morning. At 8pm, suddenly the thought of old fish with a possibility of added gluten didn't seem so appetising. And by then my friends, (in the spirit of those Carlsberg adverts) said if I couldn't eat there we were leaving. Probably the best friends in the world.

Just as we were about to start fighting over the last few eggs and Jif lemons and call it a (pancake) day, we stumbled across Cafe Rouge. I've never been to one before and it was brilliant when they reached into a cupboard and pulled out a gluten free menu for me! Had a lovely fresh salmon fillet with roasted veggies.

I will be having belated pancakes sometime this week and will give up going to Auberge for lent!

Approaching 30, fast....

2010-02-12T14:17:00.003Z

Long gone are the days of drinking cider in the park before gigs. The last two bands I've seen, we started the evening in a nice restaurant, with a nice bottle of wine. A clear sign I'm growing up.

Pete and the Pirates were great at the Plug and Play, following a posh meal in Myalacarte in Caversham. And before Stornaway (a folk band, another indication of my age) we went to Las Iguanas by the Oracle in Reading.

Both these places mark their menus with gfs, which is great and means I spend less time worrying about what I can eat and more time concentrating on the pre-gig drinking, which ultimately results in the same level of teenage drunkness obtained from two cans of White Lightning up the park!

The toast of things to come

2010-02-07T08:59:00.003Z

I have finally succumbed and paid a whooping £2.50 for one loaf of bread. One small, fresh, delicious, Genius loaf of bread.

It has been quite a while since I had 'real' bread, so can't actually remember how it tastes, but this seems to hit the spot!

Rumour has it thats it's on offer in Sainsbury's at the moment, so hoping for another massive snow storm so I can panic buy 20 loaves!

It would be rude not too

2009-05-31T09:00:00.004+01:00

Being a coeliac has got easier – in the three years since I’ve been anti gluten there have been loads of new products for me to eat. Which is great, except I keep eating them. The ones that mostly catch my eye are the cakes and biscuits. If I notice something is gluten free, I buy it! It’d just be rude not to!

The effect this is having on my waistline is catastrophic!

Eating endless packets of Pom Bears just because it says ‘Gluten Free’ on the front of the bag is not going to make me look like Kate Moss. Buying loads of Thorthons chocolate just because it says ‘Suitable for a gluten free diet’ on the packet, isn’t going to get me into the size tens!

When I found gluten free brownies at the farmers market one Saturday, I had to get one. I even tried to save it for later, but actually ended up eating it in a sports shop while my boyfriend tried on running shoes. A particular low point.

So I’ve joined the gym, and am actually going! The perfect solution! Everything in moderation, a little bit of what you fancy and loads of gluten free goodies!

Did I cause the credit crunch?

2008-10-28T18:19:00.002Z

Some of my friends still can't get their heads around me not drinking beer. On more than one occasion I've been brought back a pint from the bar, but I suspect this may be so they have an excuse to down two pints.

I was indeed a fan of a few pints of Stella, I loved nothing more than a nice cold Kroneburg, and was especially partial to a Fruli strawberry beer.

But I didn't expect me having coeliac disease could cause a global economic meltdown!! Yesterday's dramatic credit crunch headline was that beer sales have dramatically fallen in the last year and pubs are in crisis.

I can't help feeling like I've let the side down. Just expect cider and wine sales to rocket sky high soon!

Glastonbury 2008

2008-06-30T20:58:00.002+01:00

If there is one place in the world that I don’t want to get glutened and spend extensive amounts of time in the toilet, it’s at Glastonbury festival! So with the knowledge I would be paying £4 for a plain jacket potato, I packed a few rice cakes in with my wellies and loo rolls.

I stumbled across Risotto2Go (after stumbling away from the Brothers Cider bar). Its ‘nice rice’ and soups were gluten free and by the Sunday night of the festival I had become a regular and ate enough risotto to earn myself a free bowl.

Another highlight of the festival was Honeybun’s café which had gluten free cakes and is home to the best caramel slice on the planet.

Oh I saw a few bands too and managed to avoid Amy Winehouse’s right hook. My favourites were Operator Please, fellow Devonian Seth Lakeman, the Wombats and the Duke Spirit.

Here Today, Glooooten Tomorrow

2008-06-15T20:54:00.007+01:00

As an addict of Creme Eggs, I couldn't wait to try the new 'Twisted' variety. They would feed my addiction all year round, not just twice-daily during the Easter period. Since seeing it on Snackspot, I hung around Woolies, waiting for my fix.

But after being faced with a 'may contain gluten' warning I will be going cold turkey. I'm most concerned on the repercussions this may have on the Creme Egg in it's purest form. I might book my place in the Priory early for next Easter...

Christmas is cancelled. I've just eaten Rudolf

2008-05-28T13:24:00.005+01:00

Rumour has it that you can buy gluten free Big Macs in Finland, but I refuse to eat Macdonald's on holiday, and insist on trying traditional dishes of the country, like reindeer for example.

We didn't go to Lapland but found a log cabin styled restaurant in Helsinki called Lappi that looked just like you see on Noel's Christmas Presents. I had sautéed Reindeer and mash with these red berry things. It was very nice and I didn't feel too guilty about scoffing one of Santa's trusty friends. While I'm confessing to eating cute things, I may as well get the puffin I ate in Iceland of my chest too.

Local delicacies dealt with, I managed to eat perfectly normally in Finland. Coeliacs are two a penny and most menus are marked up with a nice big 'G' for things for them to eat. Wine is very expensive so I stuck to cider - some were really strong and smelly, and others concerned me that I'd just paid 5 euros for an Appletise. Apparently the banana beer was nice too, it certainly smelt fanatastic.

Chippy Whips

2008-04-07T20:29:00.008+01:00

It's a bloody good job I don't drive or own a car for that matter.

If I did, I would drive myself over to the other side of Reading every Monday night to the Deep Blue fish and chip shop and buy cod in batter in gigantic proportions.

Every single Monday night I am acutely aware that not far away by car, there is a whole fryer dedicated to gluten free battered cod and chips. I never even ate fish and chips that much anyway - surely they should just be an occasional treat, but now they're suddenly an absolute luxury. It occupies my mind and I start scheming to get there, exploring the options...

I could get the bus and eat them on the way back. I should buy a bike and ride there, but will I get them home before they go cold? I might just run there and scoff them in the street.

I really ought learn to drive, no matter how much driving lessons cost or the fact I once failed the theory test - this time I have a reason to pass.

BlOggy blOggy blOggy...

2008-03-13T21:58:00.003Z

In Plymouth, pasties are considered as one of the major food groups. I grew up on Ivor Dewdneys, later progressed onto Oggy Oggy, and then found the perfect pasty in the West Cornwall Pasty Co.

I used to take my pasties seriously. I’d complain if one had peas in – not a proper pasty. If the crust was on the top, and not the side – it’s just not a proper pasty. It may seem trivial, but there have been wars over pasties.

Alas, I will never again walk down Royal Parade in Plymouth eating a steaming Dewdneys pasty out of a paper bag. It’s a sad fact, but one that will probably improve my waistline, not to mention my social decorum.

So what of the gluten free pasty alternatives? I honestly can’t bring myself to try them. It would almost be disrespectful to my Westcountry past, to the pasty pioneers, the miners of Cornwall and my mum’s fantastic pasty pie.

I live in Reading now, I’ve moved on and have bid farewell to most Devon culinary customs (with the exception of clotted cream on cornflakes naturally).

2008-03-04T22:13:00.006Z

Having once commuted to work in London, I now only make the journey to drink wine with my friends. This makes the trip much more enjoyable, but I have been known to fall asleep on the way home and wake up in Oxford. I now try to be sensible and eat something to stop the bottles of wine going to my head.

I suggested a Leon Restaurant on the Strand, which would have been an ideal solution. The menus are marked with little ‘GFs’, ‘WFs’ and ‘Vs’, so they have put a lot of thought into considering different diet needs. Unfortunately, they have absolutely no consideration for people that might want a glass of wine. The realisation that we were in a restaurant that only served fruit juice and smoothies, sent us running to the nearest Wagamamas quicker than you can say chicken katsu curry.

I have since given Leon a sober second chance, and am pleased that I did. Calling Leon a restaurant is a little ambiguous - the food comes in a cardboard box. But it’s lovely none the less. I’m heading back to Leon next time I’m in London, and will give my liver a well deserved break. I think we'll be OK here.

I've brought myself some silicones

2008-02-28T20:01:00.003Z

They're quite big and wobbly. I am, of course, talking about my new silicone loaf tins.

I brought them primarily to make gluten free bread, but I'm sure they can also be used to make other loaf-shaped goods - fruit cake for example. But one step at a time.

Being lazy and unable to follow simple recipe instructions, I opted for a Glutafin bread mix. The instructions are pretty straightforward. Add water, yeast and oil, mix around, put in the oven.

Sceptical that there is more to bread making than this, I was surprised that A) the silicone loaf tin didn't melt and B) there was actually a loaf of bread in it.

'I see you've played knifey-spoony before'

2008-02-19T17:08:00.001Z

My boyfriend once used five knives to butter a single piece of peanut butter on toast.

This was to prevent the dreaded 'contamination'. All just so I could have some peanut butter on rice cakes.

He had hugely underestimated the amount of peanut butter needed to satisfactorily cover his toast. Unable to put the same, bread-crumbed covered knife back into the jar, he got another knife, and another, until the perfect quantity of peanut butter had been applied.

Some households operate a spoon system; using a spoon in the jar and then spreading with a knife. We have a better system - we buy two jars of peanut butter.

A gluten free shop, for gluten free people

2008-02-15T14:24:00.004Z

We couldn't resist visiting the town of Hadfield where the League of Gentlemen is filmed when we went to the Peak District. We tried to be inconspicuous as we walked down the high street gawping at the shops, trying to work out their Royston Vasey equivalents. It was quite sinister with the war memorial eerily looking over the town, and you could almost imagine Tub's and Edward's local shop secluded up on the hills in the distance.

On the way back to normality, we stopped off in Bakewell which is famous for its tarts. Here, I found another local shop thefarmersmarketshop.co.uk which had a freezer dedicated to gluten free goodies! I spoke to the owner, and she cooks all these herself and of course makes gluten free Bakewell tarts.

The Peak District seems to be a gluten free haven; every market stall seemed to have something on offer. I don't know if this is true of other markets - I tend not to visit them that often as I still am under 30 after all.

Walking is another activity I tend to leave to older folk. I sincerely regretted mocking some fellow walker's hiking boots and sticks, when I was stuck in a bog in Converse trainers holding on to a wall that was covered in cow's muck.

I much prefer walking between pubs, and we crawled around the pubs of Ashbourne, which was still recovering from Shrovetide. Had a posh meal in the Lamplight, where they checked everything for me and totally understood Coelism!

Gluten Free Goblin

2008-02-03T17:23:00.000Z

Had Mum finally lost it? She was in the kitchen wearing a mask while making a cake. A cake that was not using gluten free flour, which she was in danger of inhaling, hence the mask. Bonkers.

So, I inherited coeliac disease from my Mum's side and my webbed toes from my Dad's. Marvelous! The toes I love, they are my party piece and I often get them out at parties after a few shandies. The gluten free diet is not so great at a party. It usually results in me drinking far too much on an empty stomach and showing strangers my feet.

But it's not all that bad - I've just had to change a few things I eat since being diagnosed 6 months ago. Not the end of the world, and I'm yet to wear a mask in the kitchen!