G-FREE cooking

me! gluten free?! yeah, it's true. and i haven't been too happy about it lately. i'm a die hard sf sourdough fan, love me some sweet baked treats, cereal, BEER, the gluten works. well i was recently diagnosed as being allergic to wheat (go figure!) which explains a lot on a digestive level. (i'll save you the details). so of course when you can't have something, you want it even more.

i made my first mistake of buying Food For Life Brown Rice Bread from trader joes. this lovely little item should only be used as a home security device if a robber breaks in. the weight and density will surely knock him out. or maybe as a replacement brick for that wall you've been meaning to fix. regardless, pass go and never come back! YUCK.

So after that little disaster buy, i had given up all hope (and $6.20!!) of ever having a sandwich or piece of toast again. then my lovely bf reminded me he has a bread maker! an old gf bought it for him as a "take me back" move. strange present for a guy that had never made bread in his life. luckily he ditched the girl and her gift has become my saving grace.

whole foods has an amazing selection (most stores) of g-free products. bread mixes in particular. you can get dizzy looking at all the options. i knew to be hesitant from my last purchase. i first experimented with Bob's Red Mill since it was a well known alternative flour brand.

it was good. better than that nasty rice bread, but not 100% legit either. i was just happy toast came back into my life. my first batch's texture was a bit off so i gave it one more try. much better texture round two. then i decided to try another flavor mixture of Bob's....

mummmm, cinnamon raisin bread. i used to love that stuff back in my G-BINGE days. the texture of this one came out on point. i was so proud of my 1.5lb loaf. i felt like a real baker (even though the machine did the hard part). flavor scale, 4 out of 5. not too shabby.

i found this sweet G-Free food reviews website that really got me hyped. no more guesswork. they do it for me. so today i ventured off back to my local wf's and bought two new bread mixes to sample. today's is:

Pamela's Gluten Free Bread Mix (like my table and nails? i thought so.) this loaf came out a little softer than Bob's. i let it cool and sliced that puppy open to see my work in depth.

nice air pockets. got some dense zones in there but how does it taste? at first un-adorned bite, it was good flavor wise. a little sweeter than Bob's and a little chewier that BRM. but how did it toast? oh sweet jesus!!! the best toast by far. who needs gluten bread when you have this?! i ate it so quick i couldn't snap a pic of the golden Buddha. but i did snap a pic of my late afternoon snack, G-free Sam Smith's Organic Cider and a slice of wheatless wonder.

more reviews to come as my adventures continue. cheers!