I’ve recently been converted to the world of Amazon Prime.  My sister-in-law, Blair, convinced me that Amazon Prime is the way to go, as it diminishes the frequency of shopping, which for me is a huge plus.  Basically, I hope to buy all of my food, toiletries, etc. (except meat and veggies) through Amazon Prime.

For those of you that don’t know about Amazon Prime, it’s truly genius.  You pay an annual fee of $79 and you get free two day shipping on all of your purchases (that qualify for Amazon Prime, which is most items). Not only will I be buying things like toilet paper, laundry detergent and trash bags, but even groceries.  (And of course there will always be the book impulse buys.)

Did you know that Amazon has an amazing selection of gluten-free products???  Some of my favorite GF items are on Amazon.  This is a great option if you live in a small town and don’t have access to a Whole Foods or natural food store.  Or if you’re like me, and the thought of going to Costco or a shopping mall makes you break out in a sweat.

Mesa Sunrise Cereal

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Lara Bars

bionaturae fusili Pasta

Peanut Butter Panda Puffs (Enviro Kids)

Pamela’s Baking & Pancake Mix

Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Oats

Jif to Go

Bye bye Costco membership, hello Amazon Prime!  Just make sure you recycle all of the Amazon boxes you’ll start to accumulate!

What do you like to order on Amazon Prime?

I received the following email last week from Marie, of Levy Restaurants, informing me of great additions to the gluten-free options at Atlanta’s Philips Arena.  Just in time for the NBA Playoffs!  Look for the gluten-free cart next time you head to Philips.  This list includes everything from sweet to salty to savory, healthy and not so healthy.  Whether you’re at Philips for the Hawks, Thrashers, Bon Jovi or NKOTB/Backstreet Boys (June 22!), check out their GF choices.

Hi ­­­­Betsy-

I work with Levy Restaurants, the official restaurant partner of Philips Arena. Levy has expanded their gluten-free menu offerings at select arenas and ballparks throughout the country this season and I would like to share some of the new items with you.

The gluten-free menu options allow all sports fans to enjoy the traditional game-day experience. Levy Restaurants introduced gluten-free snacks and beer to all sports venues last year and they are stepping up their game this year with the launch of an exclusively gluten-free portable cart. The cart will be debuting at Philips Arena in time for the playoffs. I’ve included details on the new gluten-free versions of fan-favorite concessions, as well as snacks, sweets, and beverages already offered nationwide.

• Hot Dog – Certified gluten-free hot dog, Kinnikinnick bun, Heinz ketchup and French’s mustard
• Chili Cheese Dog – Certified gluten-free hot dog, Kinnikinnick bun, Ghel’s chili sauce and cheese
• Nachos – Mission tortilla chips, Ghel’s cheese, Embasa jalapenos

• Loaded Nachos – Mission tortilla chips, Ghel’s chili sauce and cheese, LaVictoria Alamo salsa, Embasa jalapenos

• Beverages – Red Bridge Beer
• Snacks – Taste Good Tortilla Chips, Classic Snacks Gluten-Free Carmel & Cheddar Popcorn Mix, Eden Organic Pumpkin Seeds, Eden Organic Berry Mix, Larabars
• Sweets – NuGO Free Dark Chocolate Bar (gluten, soy and dairy free too), Class Snacks Gummy Bears, Skittles

Do you know Marie Antoinette never actually said that?  (History nerd fact.)

Marie Antoinnette didn't really say those famous words.

I’m not a natural born baker.  Don’t get me wrong, I love to bake, especially when I have the time, but made from scratch cakes aren’t always at the top of my to-do list.

Thankfully more and more companies are making gluten-free baking mixes.  If you, walk down the baking aisle at Whole Foods, search on Amazon, or google ‘gluten-free baking mixes,’ the choices can even be a little overwhelming.  These mixes can also be costly so you don’t want to spend lots of money on ‘not so edible’ cake mixes.  It’s hard to know which one to go with when they’re all staring at you from the shelf.

A couple of months ago, I had a bunch of girls over to celebrate a fellow gluten-free friend’s birthday.  Of course, gluten-free cake is a must for a birthday celebration!  I decided to bake two cakes, using two different brands because, well, why not?

My first cake was Pamela’s Classic Vanilla Cake Mix.  Pamela’s brand is a family favorite, especially when making chocolate chip cookies, Sunday morning pancakes, or communion bread (yes, that’s right, communion bread).

When I lived on a high school dorm, I often made Pamela’s cakes for dorm parties and advisory birthdays.  Pamela’s is one of the pioneers of GF baking mixes.  I enjoy her cakes, but they can be a little on the dry side…my solution for this, lots of icing!  Pamela’s also makes an icing that you make, adding butter, but I find it too much effort for not that great of icing.  (I would rather make homemade or use Betty Crocker’s, which are now labeled gluten-free.)

Pamela’s is easy to make and not many additional ingredients.  It bakes correctly if you follow the instructions, but no matter how much I try to flatten out the batter in the cake tin, it still tends to come out unevenly high in the center, which sometimes affects baking time and baking consistency.  After a few days sitting on the counter, the cake becomes a little dry.  (Solution: heat in the microwave for about 7 seconds, not too long or the cake will melt.)

Pamela's cake with chocolate frosting: Don't judge the cake by its decorator.

I won’t turn down a slice of Pamela’s cake, but I think I’ve found something better and simpler…

The second cake for the festivities came from the mother of ‘glutenful’ baking, Betty Crocker.  Betty’s gluten-free line of baked goods, which hit shelves last year, offers a-mazing brownies and chocolate chip cookies.  I love the brownies but the jury is still out on Crocker’s cookies.  (I go with Pamela’s if I’m making GF cookies from a mix.)

So I tried the expert and went with Betty Crocker’s gluten-free Devil’s Food cake mix.  This cake was so easy to make and cooked perfectly.  With both Pamela’s and Betty’s cake mixes you need to use a mixer, but it’s worth it.  The cake was perfectly moist and flavorful.  Very chocolatey but not too sweet.  I normally prefer yellow cake over chocolate, but this devil’s food cake is my new cake of choice.  It was delicious.  Of course we all had some of both, but my heart was with the chocolate.  (It looked prettier too.)

Betty Crocker Cake: M&Ms make everything look better.

As I mentioned before, I just used Betty Crocker icings for the two cakes.  So easy.  Making your own icing is fun too, but it means two more times cleaning the mixer.  (Why do I hate washing that dish so much?)

Two pieces are better than one!

What are your favorite gluten-free baking mixes?  Recommendations or hesitations?

This past week, I was home alone, without my partner in crime, David.  I must say, it was totally weird not having my companion with me.  (Getting married a month after you graduate from college will do that to you!)  Especially in the last few months, we’ve spent a lot of time together, so it was an adjustment to be without my man.  I stayed busy though and I began to figure out what “meal planning for one” looks like.

Friends and family made the week much easier and of course, being the planner that I am, I had many things on my calendar.  My mom came to Atlanta for a visit at the beginning of the week so I made a big batch of chunky lentil soup.  I love this recipe, but after eating leftovers all week, I don’t want to see chunky lentils again for at least a few weeks.  (I did freeze some for future solo dinners.)  I also made a batch of super easy pumpkin bread, using Pamela’s Baking Mix.  (I consumed the whole loaf, with the help of others, but you can put half in the freezer or freeze individual slices to save for later.)

Chunky Lentil Soup

Mmm...pumpkin bread

I was a little nervous about the weekend sans my main source of entertainment.  Surprisingly, it flew by with activities like power yoga, cleaning out my dresser, making granola (stay tuned for my delicious new recipe), football watching, wine tasting, and skyping with my sister-in-law and nephew in Japan.  (I know…I lead a wild life.)

On Sunday morning, it was particularly unusual to be by myself in our home.  Usually David and I make some kind of breakfast (hopefully David’s specialty: pancakes).  Of course on Sunday morning there was no one to make me pancakes while I brewed coffee…

If you know me, you know that I love treats; I love any excuse to treat myself to a treat.  So on Sunday morning, I treated myself to a morning outing to Starbuck’s with a detour by Kroger in search of gluten-free bagels, a pitiful replacement for homemade chocolate chip banana pancakes.  The Kroger on Howell Mill has  quite a decent selection of natural foods and gluten-free items.  They don’t have Udi’s bagels which I’ve heard rave reviews about, so I went with Kinnikinnick cinnamon raisin bagels.  They are dairy free, which makes me a little nervous but pickings were slim.

Let’s be honest, Folks: For me, unless it’s Bodo’s, a bagel is just a vehicle for cream cheese and homemade jam.  My toasted Kinnikinnick bagel was not the easiest bread item to swallow, but it toasted well and did the job for my solo Sunday morning.  (It’s no Sally’s Bakery cinnamon raisin English muffin, for sure.)

So I sat at our table, and enjoyed the quiet of the morning, missing David, but content with a day of rest, a good cup of coffee, and a lot of cream cheese.

While I love making my own granola, a girl doesn’t always have time to bake from scratch.  When I am craving a crunch in my yogurt and have depleted my own stash, my default is Bakery on Main.  Their motto, “Good Things Come From Small Batches” is adorable and clever, and however they’re making it, it’s turning out right.

Recently I had the opportunity to try their Bakery on Main Gift Set, which includes a variety of granola snack packs, that are perfect for taking along in your lunch or carrying in your purse.  These snack sizes are essential for plane travel, as they add more nutrients and substance to a yogurt when stuck in the airport.  While I had enjoyed their granola flavors before, I had never tried the Fiber Power granola that uses GF oats.  (Fiber: another important component of travel!)  I highly recommend trying both the Fiber Power and their regular granola.  I like to mix Bakery on Main with my Mesa Sunrise cereal in the morning to add more flavor.

The gift set also includes Bakery on Main’s granola bars, which make for a great afternoon snack.  They remind me of the granola bars I ate as a child, not the ones that can be so dense, and full of calories and carbs.  (My personal favorite is peanut butter chocolate chip.)  With your gift set, you also receive a handy reusable shopping bag, which is always essential, as well as a coupon for your favorite granola of choice.

The folks at Bakery on Main are also about to release “Soft & Chewy Gluten Free Granola Bars” made with real, certified gluten-free oats.  I can’t wait to try them!  Their three flavors are Peanut Butter & Jelly, Chocolate Almond, and Apple Cinnamon.  Yum!  Stay tuned for more details on those.

You can find Bakery on Main in many natural food stores and you can order online.  This gift set is a perfect present for someone you know that’s gluten free.  (We, celiacs, don’t often get food given to us by others so it could be a rare treat.)  I love supporting small businesses that are making delicious, gluten-free food, and Bakery on Main is doing just that.  Check it out for yourself!

AND, if you comment on this post OR become a fan on Facebook by 6:00 on October 28th, you will be entered in a drawing for a free Bakery on Main Gift Set.

It’s hard to find good gluten-free beer.  Really hard.  While beer’s not my usual beverage of choice for cocktail hour, there are certain occasions, where I find myself thinking, “It would be nice to have a cold beer right now.”  Boating on the Chesapeake Bay, watching football on a Saturday afternoon, or grilling in the backyard.  Mmm, yes.  Beer please.

Needless to say, my attention was captured when my friend Brittanny (who’s an expert on all things beer) sent me this Beer News article about Estrella Damm DAURA, which apparently has received the label, “Best Gluten-Free Beer.”  (Of course my first thought was DAURA sounds a lot like Dharma Initiative.)  Produced in Spain, at the Esrella Damm Brewery, DAURA has won this title at the World Beer Awards in 2008 and 2009.

Watch out USA, because DAURA is hitting the shelves in the land of the free and the home of the brave.  What better way to celebrate October: National Celiac Awareness Month by tasting this “new to the USA” tasty adult beverage?

Have a any of you tried DAURA yet?  Thoughts?  Reviews?

Check out this article for more information on DAURA’s arrival: U.S. Beverage Brings Estrella Damm Daura to U.S.

My apologies for the delay in writing this post.  I love my subscription to Bon Appetit and usually I devour the material the minute it arrives.  When my January issue arrived, I was wrapped up in my favorite author, Barbara Kingsolver’s, new book, The Lacuna, so I held off on diving into Bon Appetit.  Of course when I was ready to start reading this month’s issue, I couldn’t locate my copy.  Fortunately, David found it yesterday on our coffee table, and I immediately started scouring its contents.  Even though Bon Appetit doesn’t create recipes that are labeled ‘gluten-free,’ they have many recipes that are naturally gluten-free, and the ones that aren’t GF, I simply modify to make gluten free.

To my surprise and excitement, Bon Appetit’s Conscious Cook selected her “Top 3” brands of gluten-free pasta.  While I’m not a huge pasta person in the first place, I will say the editor was smart to select pasta brands that use a combination of flours, such as corn and quinoa, as opposed to just rice.  She selected Riso Bello Spaghetti al Riso, Ancient Harvest Supergrain Quinoa, and Rustichella d’Abruzzo Organic Corn Spaghetti.  Cooking gluten-free pasta can be a little tricky because it gets sticky pretty easily, but I find that good brands don’t taste too different from regular pasta.  Bon Appetit’s attention to gluten-free items is another example of the rising prevalence of celiac and gluten intolerance in the U.S.  This only affirms my belief that you can be a gluten-free foodie.

What gluten-free pasta brand do you prefer?  Do you have a favorite pasta dish?  I enjoy tossing homemade pesto with chicken and pasta.  While fresh basil is not seasonal right now, it makes me excited for warmer weather ahead.  We’re not too far from spring, right?