Alright, we’re back to food combos. If you recall my past entry on the bakery, Simply Gluten-Free, I am adamantly against fried candy bars, but pretty positive about the rest of the food combinations that are out there. I came across Lundberg’s Buttery Caramel Rice Cakes in Whole Foods the other day and was intrigued.

I really liked Lundberg’s Purely Organic Hot’n Creamy Rice Cereal that I wrote on previously, but what stood out most to me when first noticing this snack was the ‘buttery caramel’ flavor. Butter and caramel are not two things I’d necessarily choose to put together. Then again, it reminds me, in theory, of kettle corn’s salty and sweet flavoring: two distinct and very different tastes that usually are kept separate but when put together with popcorn is actually very good. So I thought Lundberg had done me well in the past, I might as well give it a go and see if I could place it in the column of good food combinations.

What ironically stands out about these rice cakes is their subtly. Kettle corn, or at least the types I’ve tried, is a snack of intense saltiness and sweetness that when you eat too much is like a taste explosion in your mouth. These rice cakes, however, have just a hint of caramel flavoring. (So I guess my kettle corn analogy wasn’t so great.) I didn’t notice the butter, but perhaps this means the combination was correctly blended together to make one noticeable taste. While I’m usually all about loud, intense flavors, I think these rice cakes have a pleasant, delicate flavor that many will enjoy. Rice cakes are light to begin with, and a light flavoring seems appropriate.

What’s good for the celiacs out there with other dietary needs, is that it is also both diary-free and vegan. And for calorie counters, 80 calories per rice cake seems pretty good to me.

 Some people have their ‘food musts.’ Anyone remember Kel of ‘Kenan and Kel’ fame and his love for orange soda? Is that just me? Well I think if I had to pick my food must, it would be coffee. I used to do the sugar-pumped brew, but I’ve since graduated to a black cup of joe each morning with a dollop of low-fat milk, mostly to cool it down. I suppose the pump of caffeine each breakfast isn’t the healthiest, but when you pull those late nights and still have to get up bright and early the next day, than it definitely qualifies for food must classification.

This love of coffee (and an equally strong love of cookies) made be buy Pamela’s Products’ Espresso Chocolate Chunk Cookies. The espresso is a pop of flavor when you take your first bite. While this extreme flavor is the first thing to jump out at you, you’ll quickly recall the second part of product name: chocolate chunk. The chunks of chocolate in these cookies are sweet and melty, as if freshly baked. Is texture important to you? I’d classify it as crumbly-in-a-good-way: these aren’t soft baked cookies, but neither are they a semi-edible rock, like others. I personally enjoyed the texture because when I first saw them I figured they would be rock-eque but they easily break at each bite.

What I find enjoyable about many gluten-free products are the other health conscious elements that seem to accompany them. While don’t get me wrong, Pamela’s espresso cookie is a cookie, I’m giving it a healthy nod for its ‘made with over 70% organic ingredients.’ So my recommendation for you concerning this organic-conscious, coffee-flavored treat? Grab an Espresso Chocolate Chunk Cookie and a cool glass of milk and go to town. If your food must is a cookie but you want to make it yourself, take a look at what Deliciously Gluten Free Products had to say about Pamela’s Chocolate Chunk Cookie Mix.

As you may have read in blog posts and updates on support group websites recently, the decision to define the term ‘gluten-free’ for labeling is potentially delayed.  Check out the American Celiac Disease Alliance for more information on this.  For now, gluten-free is still not an agree upon labeling term.  While celiacs wait for the decision to be passed down by the FDA, the Gluten Intolerance Group’s Gluten-Free Certification Organization is working to make shopping a bit easier for the gluten-free consumer.  If you’ve seen the GFCO’s mark on products, here’s some information about their certification process that might be useful as you continue to eat gluten-free while awaiting the FDA’s ruling.

GFCO’s certification involves inspections on-site, product tests, and ingredient reviews.  The inspections and reviews are done by representatives from Orthodox Union (OU), a kosher certification company.  (The GFCO was made in cooperation with the Food Services Inc, which is an auxiliary of OU.)  Products certified as gluten-free by the GFCO contain less than 10-ppm gluten and like proteins found in rye and barley; right now, there isn’t a method for measuring to zero.

The GFCO is not planning to change their standards after the FDA’s conclusion on ‘gluten-free,’ saying they will meet or go beyond the decision.  “As a global program, the GFCO uses the highest standards for gluten-free ingredients and a safe processing environment based on a continual review of the current scientific and testing methodologies, existing global standards such as Codex, WHO, and Canada, balanced by reasonable application by the manufacturer,” the GFCO explains on their website.

While I mentioned in the past that Stonyfield Farm makes some products that are certified as gluten-free by the GFCO, some other companies that have certified items are Country Life and Gluten Free Creations.  All the information here was found on the GFCO’s website and if you’d like more info on the GFCO’s certification, it can be found there as well.  So don’t get too discouraged while the FDA continues to mull over their gluten-free labeling decision.  The GFCO is picking up the slack.

(I hope you’re all getting jazzed about our new Celiac Awareness campaign! Keep spreading the word!)

So I’m feeling a little guilty about my baked good-obsessed blog posts lately. I am actually trying to lose a few pounds this summer so what I really should be concentrating on is healthy living, not sugar, fat and gluten-less gluttony. Therefore I went in search of a healthy gf blog, and up popped Eat’n Veg’n, a vegan blog with some great looking gluten-free recipes.

Eat’n Veg’n is both a calorie counter, and a lover of food: two critical qualities that go into the creation of delicious, nutritious meals. You don’t want low calories and no taste, now do you? So whether you are a weight watcher or a food aficionado, you can find something here that will meet your dietary and taste needs. However, celiacs will want to note which recipes are labeled gluten-free because not all are. So keep your eyes pealed and your kitchen utensils out.

Personally what I appreciate most about this healthy blogger is her healthy desserts! Some health-conscious treat recipes allow you to indulge without the scale-related downside. And Eat’n Veg’n will not only let you know what’s good to eat, but how to serve it. Check out her latest entry on how to turn your salad bowl into a work of art.

Don’t want to take my word for Eat’n Veg’n’s top blogger worthiness? She’s also received the Brillante Weblog award from fellow bloggers plus been listed as one of the top 100 health-inspiring blogs. So exactly what are you waiting for? Check her blog out for yourself and find something low fat and fabulous to snack on.

What does ‘gluten-free’ mean? While the FDA may still be struggling with this one, for many the word is associated with negatives: crumbly, tasteless, mealy. While Triumph Gluten-Free! is devoted to presenting you with foods that break this definition, so too is Sinfully Gluten Free, the newly opened Ohio gf bakery I mentioned in my previous post. Their tagline on Sinfullygf.com reads “Not Your Ordinary Gluten-Free,” and for those who have confused a cupcake with stale cornbread, this is definitely true.

If you are like me, combination desserts are the best. Like cookies and cupcakes? Grab a frosted cookie. Ever thought of cheesecake plus brownies? Check out this delectable recipe by Cassandra at Delightfully Gluten Free. And you know somebody has to be keeping those Dunkin’ Donuts/Baskin-Robbins joint stores in business. The only bad combo I can think of is the combination of deep frying and candy bar which tasted like a chocolate-filled egg roll. But solidly in the good combo category you will find the Peanut Butter Cup Cookie (a cookie plus a peanut butter cup). Shaped like a mini cupcake, the Peanut Butter Cup Cookie has a hole on top in which a small peanut butter cup is placed and melted.

Crumbly? Mealy? Tasteless? Nope. The Peanut Butter Cup Cookie has a pie crust-like texture outside, with scrumptiously sweet (but not overwhelming) peanut butter and chocolate on top. Even my coworker who is not a fan of peanut butter thought the cookie was delicious. So all you peanut butter naysayers out there, take a bite! You just might be converted.

And even if you refuse to get on the peanut butter bandwagon, Sinfully Gluten Free has a myriad of desserts from lemon bars to brownies. Don’t worry if you are a reader from outside Ohio drooling over the thought of a gf lemon bar. Perhaps the best thing about Sinfully Gluten Free for the non-Buckeyes out there is that they will ship these gf treats to your door. So get ready to sin your way to gluttony with these gf delights, because as Sinfully Gluten Free says, these aren’t ordinary gluten-free.

A few weeks ago, I reminded readers of the joys of birthday cakes and sweet treats, encouraging gluten free’ers to rejoin the cake bandwagon and eat this delicious dessert. Today, I’m taking up this mantle again to champion the latest bakery in my area, CakeLove. CakeLove sells ‘cakes from scratch’ in locations across the Washington DC metropolitan area and just opened their latest shop in Tysons Corner, conveniently a hop, skip and a jump away from me.

While CakeLove isn’t a completely gf bakery, they try to have gluten-free cupcakes (chocolate or vanilla with chocolate or vanilla buttercream frosting) in all their locations daily; however, they encourage customers to call ahead to make sure they are available when they come. Also, you can call and order your gluten free cakes or cupcakes four days ahead of time.

Having tried a CakeLove gluten-free chocolate cupcake with vanilla icing, and a vanilla cupcake with vanilla icing, I wasn’t surprised to hear from one CakeLove representative that many customers thank them for supplying these gluten-free treats. These are not the corn bread-esque cupcakes that crumble in your hand. Remember moisture? You’ll find it here. And the keyword in buttercream vanilla icing is definitely buttercream. This creamy icing compliments the soft cake and leaves you sweetly satisfied.

If you don’t live near this newly opened CakeLove or any of their other locations, don’t fret. It seems like bakeries with gf items are popping up across the country as of late. Just a few days ago, Sinfully Gluten Free opened its doors to salivating celiacs in Miamisburg, Ohio. Portland Oregon also recently became home to a gluten free bakery called New Cascadia Traditional. Check out CeliacChicks’ entry on this bakery for a review and some picture of gf goodies that will make your mouth water. And definitely leave a comment and let me know about any good gluten-free bakeries in your area!

Even if your town isn’t being blessed with a gf bakery any time soon, bloggers are continuously picking up the slack with their recipes and product reviews. So look to your gf online community. Bloggers like Sure Foods Living, with her entry on how to make sure your child doesn’t go without the traditional cupcake, will help you keep some necessary sweetness in your life.

Sick of your old tortilla chips? Dump the chips, and get strips. Green Mountain Gringo’s gluten free Tortilla Strips come in a couple varieties including organic blue corn. Personally, I think there’s not enough blue foods out there, so I went straight for those. They look a little more purple than blue, but hey, purple foods are rather rare too so I still felt like I was enjoying a pretty special treat.

Now if you couldn’t tell from the title of this entry, Green Mountain Gringo is all about the strips. “Not to be compared to any other ‘dipping utensil,’ the Strip was invented to go beyond sturdy and reliable to reach a whole new level of taste satisfaction. A solid rectangle of pure leverage makes it stable enough for the most aggressive dippers,” reads the blue Tortilla Strip product information. You have to appreciate their passion, don’t you? While I wouldn’t say it in those words exactly, I would say that I didn’t notice these Tortilla Strips break off in my guac.

While Green Mountain Gringo stresses the durability, I’d emphasis the taste and ingredients. Not too salty and a satisfying list of ‘no’s’ and ‘frees:’ no preservatives, no trans fat, GMO free, allergen free and, not least of all, gluten free.

While I used my Tortilla Strips to snack on some pretty yummy guacamole, you could test out that legendary durability with some of Green Mountain Gringo’s gluten free salsa. You can also try your hand at some bloggers’ gf creations. Check out Karina’s Kitchen’s tasty looking Blue Corn Chip Fritatta and Nachos Fabuloso for two creative blue chip recipes. Or if you want to eat some salsa and make it too, take a look at Cindalou’s Kitchen Blues for her Corn and Cilantro Salsa; this recipe looks good for all the cilantro lovers out there, and those who want a little spice with their Strip.

While I picked my Tortilla Strips up at Whole Foods, you can also order them at Green Mountain Gringo’s online store (a place for the Green Mountain Gringo enthusiast, with accessories that’ll let the world know where you fall on the strip versus chip divide.)

With ‘Triumph Gluten-Free’s Blogger of the Month,’ we will be putting out an entry every four weeks or so to recognize great bloggers who benefit the gf community.  It’s an opportunity to find out about gf bloggers you didn’t know were out there, for us to acknowledge the great blogging that’s going on in our community, and for me to go on and on about my latest blogger-crushes!

Triumph Gluten-Free’s Blogger of  the Month for July is Béa, from La Tartine Gourmande.  Her blog is not solely gluten-free, however its index of gf recipes is a cornucopia of great eats, from vegetable stew to lime mousse.  If the lime mousse didn’t give it away, this is a blog of exquisite food.  While many gf bloggers’ recipes seem over my head, with Béa’s, I feel like cooking’s a foreign language.  But this is more because of her beautiful photographs that make these dishes look like masterpieces (and my own cooking handicaps) than because of the recipes themselves, at least not all of them.  For example, check out her Apple Juice Sabayon, an easy to make treat that looks like a five star restaurant’s dessert special.

So check out this blog.  Make fancy dishes for your gf loved ones.  Check out some beautiful photography.  And add another blogger to your daily blog reading regimen.

While wheat may be hidden in many products, some breakfast cereals passionately trumpet this ingredient, not only in their labels but in their names as well. Wheaties? Cream of Wheat? Come on, we get it already - you’re made of wheat! Perhaps this is ultimately helpful for the gf dieter, but it also seems like a taunt.

Maybe the fact that so many cereals are bursting at the box corners with wheat has driven several gf bloggers to take on the subject of gluten-free cereal. If you’re in the mood for a cold cereal that’s met with a gf blogger’s stamp of approval, check out The Gluten Free Blog’s review of New Morning’s Cocoa Crispy Rice or Allergic Girl’s thoughts on Erewhon’s Crispy Rice. Or even take a look at our previous posts on Rice Chex and EnviroKidz cereal.

But on the few cool June mornings that are left, sometimes a bowl of cold cereal just won’t cut it. You want something with a bit of heat, that will warm up your insides and be a satisfying beginning to your day. Afraid of gluten found in many hot cereals? Tell Cream of Wheat to ‘kiss my gf grits!’ because there are gf hot cereal options out there just waiting to be heated up.

I did a comparison of two rice cream cereals: Lundberg’s Purely Organic Hot’n Creamy Rice Cereal and Erewhon’s Brown Rice Cream. There are many similarities between the two: both are low fat, organic, obviously gluten free, and taste somewhat similar. However, while both advertise that they are whole-grain and made with brown rice, I think it’s Lundberg’s “oven-roasted organic whole grain California brown rice” that gives it a little extra something.

Also, Lundberg’s has microwave instructions, which does make it somewhat easier and faster to make for the completely cooking incompetent like myself (improv’ing your own microwave instructions for Erewhon’s, however, is completely possible - I did it). Although made for the stove, Erewhon’s hot cereal instructions also include an intriguing apple juice instead of water suggestion to give your cereal an added sweetness.

A word of advice when eating whichever cereal you choose: while I enjoyed my gf hot cereal sampler breakfast (adding some blueberries to give it a healthy but sweet kick), it is a heavy, stick-to-your ribs meal, so be aware. I’ve been eating lightly in the mornings for the last couple months and my stomach was in a bit of a shock at my breakfast change.

Update: I initially planned on doing a three way comparison of gf hot cereals so here it is! The third and final hot cereal I tried was Bob’s Red Mill Brown Rice Farina. While similar to the other two I tried in taste and contents, the Farina cereal has a unique quality: it’s texture. For those wishing to relive the days of grits, this cereal will let you do that. It’s grains of rice are less fine in texture and while you can alter the thickness and thinness of the overall cereal with how much you cook it (there are microwave instructions! yes!) the cereal is generally grainy. If a spoon full of rice grits in the morning is what you’ve been missing, try some and see if you have a new favorite breakfast.

If you haven’t noticed while browsing the shelves at your local grocery store, Stonyfield Farm is proudly proclaiming its recent gluten-free certification by GFCO on their yogurt tops.  While some of its products are still off limits, many others, like my sister’s favorite lowfat organic yogurt, have been given the green light for gluten-free dieters.  Since it was already in my refrigerator, I decided to reach for a spoon.

I’m rather picky about my yogurt, especially when it comes to texture.  I prefer those that call themselves ‘creamy’ or ‘whipped’ and have no smooth-defying fruit chunks.  Stonyfield Farm’s lowfat yogurts are made up of fruit, located at the bottom of the container, and plain yogurt on top.  If you have a chunky yogurt phobia like me, this is somewhat helpful; you can mix the yogurt to fit your desire.  However, I’m partial to zero fruit chunks so for me, the texture was okay but not great.

Out of Stonyfield Farm’s ten lowfat flavors, I’ve tried four: blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, and ‘Just Peachy.’  Each has a subtle and tasty flavor that I attribute mostly to the plain yogurt itself; while I usually pass if it’s plain, the unmixed yogurt tasted good just by itself!  And whether you’re dieting or indulging, Stonyfield Farm allows you to stick to your desired diet with their fat free, lowfat, and whole milk yogurt options.

If yogurt by itself doesn’t spark your interest, Stonyfield Farm has a database of recipes from pastas to desserts that use yogurt.  Either search for gluten-free recipes or try your hand at converting dishes into celiac-friendly delights.   (To be on the safe side, I’d make sure the gf recipes really are gf.)  And if none of these look good, check out Dianne at Gluten Free Journey’s tasting looking yogurt, honey, and walnut snack.  It’s looks both simple to make and like a good way to satisfy a sweet tooth.

If Stonyfield Farm’s flavors, calories, and fruit-lined bottom sound good, check out their store locator to find some yogurt near you.  And keep an eye out for more gf items from this company in the future.  While their yogurt, smoothies, and soy-yogurt  have been deemed gluten-free by the GFCO, other Stonyfield Farm products are in the process of certification.