Every mommy-to-be has her go to favorites to fill those pregnancy cravings. Katz Gluten Free saw me through two pregnancies and all of those times between. It’s no secret they’re a favorite for me. They’ve captured my heart on the sweet side that’s for sure, with my pastry favorite Chocolate Buns, the delicate Sprinkle Cookies just like I used to get from an Italian bakery, and the cupcakes, oh my, picture perfect Chocolate Cupcakes iced with chocolate frosting and topped with rainbow sprinkles. And so much more! But they don’t just do sweets, their bagels have always held a sweet spot with me too! They were the first to offer this gluten free mommy a gluten free Everything Bagel that could rival even it’s gluten competitors.
So when I heard that Katz Gluten Free was coming out with a Grab ‘N’ Go line with donuts and bagels I had to check them out. Could it be that my favorites were going to be packed and ready to go for a busy mom out the door? All of us gluten free folks are well versed on bringing along our own meals and/or snacks to any and all events. Katz makes our lives so much easier with this now. The benefits with these delicacies wrapped in individual portions are endless. I’m thinking vacations! I love that these will make those weeks away a breeze. Ahem, not to mention those early morning flights to Disney that can now start with a fresh powdered donut or egg sandwich on a bagel. Love it!
The best part, these individual portions are kept so fresh in their wrapping! Nice soft powdered donuts ready to be enjoyed as a quick breakfast or treat at a school party. Plain bagels that are perfect to throw in your bag for lunch or bring along to put together a breakfast sandwich at a restaurant. Hey, we can all totally admit that we’ve brought our own bread and put together our own burgers, sandwiches, and beyond, right? Well if you haven’t, you will with these!
Admittedly, I was slightly disappointed by the size of the plain bagel. I’ve purchased their regular bagels in their plain and everything flavors for years and they’ve always been biger bigger but don’t let the size deter you. The convenience, texture, and flavor speak for themselves and are on my list of must gets before our Disney vaca in a few months!
Interested in Katz’s Grab ‘N’ Go line, check out all they have to offer here!
This mommy is getting her gluten free groove back! That’s right after almost a year of a restricted pregnancy and nausea dictated diet, I’m back with a healthy appetite for anything and everything gluten free I can get my hands on (well maybe not everything, I am still a very picky eater). Once baby girl arrived my acid reflux and nausea had vanished, I was diving into fruit salads, appetizers of soft cheeses, and heaping cold cut sandwiches piled high on some of the best gluten free bread I’ve ever tasted.
Next to one of my favorite gluten free breads, Canyon Bakehouse’s Deli Rye bread, Schar has released a brand new bread that’s perfect for every kind of sandwich. Their Artisan Baker White Bread is soft, fresh, and needs no prep before eating, a huge win in the gluten free world! And trust me, when it comes to gluten bread I’m hypercritical seeing as I love my sandwiches and have greatly missed them over the years.
Not long after baby arrived, my husband first brought home a loaf of this brand new bread and I have to admit that I was a little reluctant to give it a try. Unfortunately my faith in Schar’s breads has dwindled down to pretty much nothing after I’d bought many a loaf of bread over the past year that was either squished into tea sandwich sized slices or so brittle that just removing a slice from the small package causes the whole loaf to break in half. I’d grown so frustrated wasting $5.99 on a small loaf of unusable bread that we really hadn’t been purchasing bread the past few months and my love of sandwiches was put on the back burner towards the end of my pregnancy.
Thankfully though Schar has stepped up and given us a phenomenal new loaf of gluten free bread, one that I hope sticks around for a very long time. First off, while the loaves are still the same size, you cut the packaging open and the slices are ready to eat then and there, no toasting needed. I absolutely love being able to just pull the bread out of the packaging and use it straight away, a rarity for gluten free breads which usually come frozen or fresh, requiring heating in some way before eating. Next up the texture, I can’t rave about the texture enough. We all know that anything bread like in the gluten free world can be really off putting texture wise but this bread is a huge exception. These slices have that elasticity that lacks in so many other types of gluten free bread, but these definitely hold their own in so many different kinds of meals, trust me I’ve tested it. Whether you want a sandwich loaded with lunch meat, french toast or grilled cheese in the skillet, or even use a slice to wrap around your favorite hot dogs, Schar’s Artisan bread can do it all without crumbling to the touch or disintegrating with the moisture.
For the ultimate bread test though, the biggest question is taste. Will the perfect new texture compromise the breads taste? I’m happy to report that the answer on that one is absolutely not! This bread literally reminds me of gluten breads from my past, soft and pliable slices of bread that are squishy and elastic to the pull who’s taste blends with any and all kinds of concoctions.
Using a new recipe, Schar’s successfully created a fresh, soft and squishy, and excellent tasting gluten free bread, all the qualities we’ve been dreaming of and they’re now wrapped up in just one loaf of bread. I have to admit in my postpartum recovery where easy to make sandwiches are a new mommy’s best friend this bread has been a savior. I’ve had many a gluten free sandwich for quick lunches and dinners without any thawing, microwaving, or toasting. Thanks so much to Schar for giving us the gluten free bread of our dreams! Now let’s cross our fingers that they’ll use this new recipe to make all of our favorite versions of bread!
So put away that frozen bread, run to the store, and buy all of the fixings for your perfect sandwich but don’t forget Schar’s Artisan Baker White Bread because that’s what will make your sandwich truly perfect and perfectly gluten free!
Pregnant or not I am huge fan of gluten free bagels. Over the years I’ve admittedly had some doozies but fortunately it seems like many a gluten free company is catching on and putting out some decent bagel substitutes. One of my favorite gluten free bread companies by far is Canyon Bakehouse, you know the ones that make that fantastic Deli Rye Style Gluten Free Bread that I raved about along with their amazing Gluten Free Focaccia that I used in my appetizer bites. Well, I’m happy to report that they’ve done it again. They’ve given us more fantastic gluten free bread items that we can add to our pantries/freezers that not only live up to the taste but also the texture of what bread items should be.
Canyon Bakehouse Everything Gluten Free Bagels
My most favorite addition to their gluten free product line are these delectable Everything Bagels. They come pre-sliced in a four pack for $5 on their website and are good at room temperature for about a week and then in the freezer for as long as necessary. On top of the great value that you get with these, the product itself is phenomenal. They’re flavored with garlic and onion along with poppy and sunflower seeds giving that perfect everything flavor. You can enjoy them fresh out of the bag or if frozen, a quick defrost and toast later and you have yourself a tasty breakfast or lunch. I personally always toast my gluten free bagels and then add a layer of fat free cream cheese to them, and for these I have to admit that I dusted them with a little Kosher salt for a little extra flavor, hey I’m pregnant don’t judge.
Along with the amazing flavor of the bagels, their texture is pretty on point as well. While they still have more of a bread feeling, they certainly have accomplished a slight chewiness factor resembling the classic bagel we all might remember. Even though cream cheese is my favorite topping for any kind of bagel, I can imagine many a delicious bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich with this little number in my future. Now, if only my local grocery stores would catch on and sell any if not all of Canyon Bakehouse’s products then I’d really be in business!
Now that I have a little bit of my appetite back I’m craving tons of things, and true to form both sweet and salty. I’ve always been somebody that loves a salty bite after a sweet or vice versa and pregnant me I guess is no different. I certainly have been craving some fun snacks from my beloved pickles or cheddar and sour cream potato chips to a good bowl of ice cream. Besides the obvious treats, I also can’t get enough of fresh fruit and salads galore. Since fresh fruit can be very very pricey at this time of year in my neck of the woods I on occasion enjoy a fresh fruit salad but I also turn to juices or smoothies. I used to love making these fresh and mixing in some veggies here and there, but until produce prices come down a bit and I get a little more energy to make them on my own again, I rely on delicious fruit smoothie substitutions like this one by Naked.
Gluten Free Naked Fruit Juice Smoothie
Naked offers tons of different smoothie options from all fruit to fruit and veggie and most are gluten free. They have a perfectly thick and smooth smoothie texture and are packed full of nutritious goodness. I pair a half of a glass of smoothie in the morning with either a sweet breakfast treat or toast or a bagel, keeping my growing belly full for just a bit longer than usual. I’ve only tried a few of the fruit flavors but my favorite so far is the strawberry banana which is conveniently marked gluten free. Check out more on this smoothie option and all of the rest of their Naked Fruit Juices. But I should probably note that there is some confusion on gluten free labeling for these juices.
According to Naked, there are only a few varieties that they do not recommend to you if you’re gluten free and by my inspection it appears to be because of the presence of barley or wheat. However, some of the varieties like the strawberry banana are marked gluten free while others whose ingredients appear fine are not. I was in mid drink of a glass of the mango juice smoothie and noticed the labeling difference and called customer service for an explanation on the discrepancy. Unfortunately, the information I received was less than helpful and I was told to review the ingredients with my doctor. Now I should mention that regardless of whether an item is marked gluten free or not, I personally always review the ingredients for my own reassurance; that being said, prior to the instruction to just read the label, I knew already that the ingredients were okay on the mango juice but I wasn’t sure why some were marked gluten free and others were not, i.e. because of cross contamination or something like that. After a few more minutes going over cross contamination and differences in labeling I was no closer to any clarification but was directed again to read the ingredients on the label carefully and even told that maybe Naked was starting to label those kinds that were gluten free.
Despite the confusion on the juice labeling, by reading the ingredient labels I have never had an issue with any of the varieties I’ve tried. But for now, I’ll be purchasing those that are labeled gluten free for my own reassurance so I can enjoy every last drop!
While I can’t actually vouch for the quality of Krusteaz’s new gluten free mixes, I’m just super excited to announce the arrival of a gluten free berry muffin mix. I used to love blueberry muffins for breakfast, lunch, or snack. they were always just a perfect addition to my day. As of late, baking and cooking me has really taken a backseat so anything that can make my life easier like a ready to bake mix I’m on board to try.
Trying a new gluten free product is always a toughie for me. I’m a little wary and anxious because of the usual higher pricing but I am just as excited to unearth the next gluten free star. I cannot tell you how excited I am to try these out. I always really enjoyed Krusteaz mixes prior to going gluten free so I’m hoping their gluten free mixes standup to their great reputation from before. I haven’t yet spotted these in my local store but I’m surely on the lookout now, with a sweet little $1 off coupon in my pocket!
So keep your eyes out for Krusteaz’s new gluten free blueberry mix and make sure you print your coupon today for your first try!
A little while ago I introduced you to this gluten free sourdough brand that I stumbled upon. They’re a San Francisco based company that created some authentic sourdough bread that’s gluten free! A small leap for mankind, sure, but a giant leap for the gluten free world. Those at Bread SRSLY sent me a few samples and I’ve had so much fun trying them out in every capacity that I could think of. Check out everything that I had to say about their products here but I thought I’d also share a little sneak peak of what I decided to do with them.
From these tasty, toasted tomato and mozzarella sandwiches on their sourdough sandwich rolls: To soup in a bread bowl made from a hollowed out half a loaf of bread: Each creation was just as delightful as the one before, but there’s one in particular that I haven’t shared with you yet that’s a little extra special. One of my all time favorite non-gluten free breakfast items is french toast. I remember for my birthday, my parents would always let each of us choose a restaurant that we’d like to have our birthday dinner at. One restaurant that never failed to appear for at least one of our birthdays during the year was Cracker Barrel, and not for their dinner menu but rather their breakfast selection. If you haven’t been, it’s probably for the best now seeing as though they aren’t very gluten free friendly at all but the days that I spent diving into their heaping plates of amazing french toast, hashbrown casserole, egg sandwiches, and cinnamon apples I look back fondly on and they just sing of family memories.
Much to my dismay, since my gluten days dining at Cracker Barrel I haven’t had the pleasure of tasting the wonderfulness of a french toast breakfast or dinner if you’re like my family and likes a breakfast kind of dinner. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve definitely given gluten free french toast a try, but the fragility and delicateness of gluten free bread just hasn’t held up to it’s construction. Until now that is. Thanks to Bread SRSLY and their gluten free sourdough bread, I’ve tasted french toast again! Nothing will quite meet the family friendly food memories that I have of Cracker Barrel’s finest dishes, like their french toast, but any recreation that won’t give me countless aches and pains I’m more than happy to enjoy in their place! So with Martha Stewart’s help and some twists and tweaks, grab your favorite gluten free sourdough bread and give my Gluten Free Sourdough French Toast a try.
Ingredients:
1 loaf gluten free sourdough, staler the better (I like Bread SRLY.)
6 large eggs
1 1/2 cups milk or light cream
2 tbsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
a pinch of nutmeg
a pinch of salt
2 tbsp unsalted butter
pure maple syrup (gluten free) and additional butter for enjoying
Directions:
Cut 6 to 8, 1-inch slices of a loaf of gluten free sourdough bread and set aside.
To a medium bowl, whisk together 6 eggs, 1 1/2 cups milk or light cream, 2 tbsp pure vanilla extract, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg, and a pinch of salt.
Place slices of bread in a single layer in a shallow baking dish large enough to hold slices. I used a 9 x 13 dish that was large enough to fit 6 slices. When the first 6 slices are finished soaking, just add remaining slices to dish or to a smaller dish with the mixture for their soaking.
Pour egg/milk mixture over the bread and soak for 10 minutes.
After first 10 minutes, carefully turn slices over and soak an additional 10 minutes until slices are soaked through.
Heat 2 tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
To the warmed skillet, cook 3 slices of bread until golden brown on each side (about 2-3 minutes each side).
Once all slices of bread have been cooked, serve with melted butter, warmed pure maple syrup, and a little powdered sugar too if you’d like! Another little tip, pair your french toast with some fresh fruit, berries or bananas!
Gluten Free Sourdough French Toast
And voila! There you have it, some gluten free french toast courtesy of the perfect gluten free sourdough bread. I love the crispy cinnamon flavored, egg coated crust on the outside and soft and warm inside, all smothered in some amazing pure maple syrup. I have to say, adding the dusting of powdered sugar on top was the icing on the cake for me though. In the past, my french toast was simple, just topping it with syrup, but now, the added decadence is warmly welcomed and very well enjoyed by this mommy. And it makes it so pretty too!
So if you’re in the mood for a little breakfast for dinner or breakfast for breakfast, dig up some sturdy gluten free sourdough and dabble away with this gluten free french toast recipe. I know I’ll definitely be ordering myself some Bread SRSLY’s gluten free sourdough and throwing this together again soon, maybe for a breakfast dinner or maybe for a special holiday breakfast.
pure maple syrup (gluten free) and additional butter for enjoying
Instructions
Cut 6 to 8, 1-inch slices of a loaf of gluten free sourdough bread and set aside.
To a medium bowl, whisk together 6 eggs, 1 1/2 cups milk or light cream, 2 tbsp pure vanilla extract, 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg, and a pinch of salt.
Place slices of bread in a single layer in a shallow baking dish large enough to hold slices. I used a 9 x 13 dish that was large enough to fit 6 slices. When the first 6 slices are finished soaking, just add remaining slices to dish or to a smaller dish with the mixture for their soaking.
Pour egg/milk mixture over the bread and soak for 10 minutes.
After first 10 minutes, carefully turn slices over and soak an additional 10 minutes until slices are soaked through.
Heat 2 tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium heat.
To the warmed skillet, cook 3 slices of bread until golden brown on each side (about 2-3 minutes each side).
Once all slices of bread have been cooked, serve with melted butter, warmed pure maple syrup, and a little powdered sugar too if you'd like!
By Gluten Free Mom To Be
Adapted from Martha Stewart Living
Adapted from Martha Stewart Living
Gluten Free Mom To Be http://www.glutenfreemomtobe.com/
A month and a half ago we spent a short weekend in Washington D.C. visiting the National Zoo, my favorite gluten free dinner restaurant, Carmine’s, and one of my good friends from college. Our first day was a jam packed, mini adventure which on an unseasonably warm day in September. After our drive from New Jersey to Washington D.C., we spent the entire late morning and afternoon trekking around the National Zoo, followed by an amazing couple of hours stuffing our faces full of family style gluten free goodness, courtesy of Carmine’s. Make sure you check out the rest of the details from that day along with the impressive gluten free dining experience that we had at Carmine’s in my previous post here. While we always enjoy spending time in our nation’s capital, that day was filled with so much fun and excitement making it another one of our extra special family adventures, especially one that tuckered us out.
After a full day of showing Washington D.C. to our little girl we headed back to Hotel Palomer, a boutique Kimpton hotel chain that we love staying at, and bunkered down for the night. And I must say, oh what a night it was! Keep in mind our little one never sleeps with us unless we’re on vacation without any other option of sleeping arrangements. So when she does have the rare treat to sleep with Mommy and Daddy she has a ball. She’s already a mover and groover at night time, so her kicking and rolling on top of you every 5 minutes is to be expected. But the cutest little quirks of our sleepovers that my little one is known for is out of no where, you find her sitting on top of you and saying “Mommy, hi” or “Daddy, hi.” Whether it be 7 am or 2 am, it never fails we’ll get at least a handful of those wide awake greetings at least a few times at night. And even though we never get a restful night of sleep as a family of three in one bed, they definitely are special nights that we share with our little girl that we look forward to each vacation.
So after a long night of tossing and turning and middle of the night greetings and cuddles, as the sun peaked through the curtain, our little girl began flipping and flopping between us, making sure that we both were wide awake before she was. We decided to take our time getting ready and take a nice morning walk around the area before we snatched some breakfast and headed back to New Jersey. Little did we know that breakfast time in D.C. means a late brunch on the weekends, about 10 am or so, which is completely not our normal everyday schedule, nor our little girl’s. In comparison to the D.C. schedule, we’re definitely early birds, with breakfast between 7 and 8 am each day; so to buy us some time on that day we took a very long walk and got a quick bagel for our little one to nibble on for breakfast.
Finally, after we spent 2 hours sightseeing the Dupont area of Washington D.C. the restaurant that we had picked out for breakfast finally had opened for brunch. Breakfast really is one of my most dreaded times of day to find something to eat that is gluten free. I’ve found that no matter we go, oddly enough, breakfast seems to be one of the meals that restaurants most rarely take extra strides to accommodate for. So I was super excited to find that the restaurant that was right across from our hotel, had a great breakfast menu for my husband along with conveniently marked gluten free offerings for me as well.
Nothing too flashy, but a refreshing plate of fresh fruit was a nice treat while we waited for our late breakfast.
So as 10 am rolled around, we made our way over to Scion Restaurant. They had some great outdoor seating options which we couldn’t help but take advantage of since we rarely have this option at home, even though it was excruciatingly hot even at 10 am already. After we were seated, our waitress took our orders, I went with an omelet with bacon, tomatoes, and cheese along with a Mimosa; I love Mimosas and only ever get them on the rare occasion on vacation so it was a nice little treat for this Mommy. While we waited for our meals to arrive, Dan and I alternated helping ourselves to some fresh fruit from their buffet inside, a nice little appetizer to hold off our very hungry bellies along with keeping our little girl happy. Just as I was taking my turn inside getting some fruit, our meals had arrived and I had a huge omelet with some delicious looking breakfast potatoes waiting for me when I got back.
Scion’s omelet with breakfast potatoes.
The omelet was delicious, loaded full of fresh tomatoes, pieces of bacon, and cheese. But the real highlight on the plate for me were the breakfast potatoes. As a gluten free diner, many of you probably would agree when I’d say that we rarely can enjoy fries, hashbrowns, or many other types of potato concoctions when we dine out since very rarely are they ever fried in a separate fryer or cooked sans gluten. So I was definitely pleasantly surprised to see half a plate of delicious, thin cut breakfast potatoes staring back at me just screaming to be tried. They were a little crispy but still soft enough so they weren’t like potato chips. And the seasoning on them was perfect, not too spicy or bland, just right!
All together, I’m very happy that we hung around for a late breakfast before our drive home. While we love living in the suburbs, we really do enjoy some of the perks of living in a city, especially the accessibility of restaurants, great ones too that are nestled one after another along the main streets. We especially love the outdoor seating perk too where you can sit and watch the hustle and bustle of the city around you, which is really only an option at a few local chains around us like Uno’s or Red Robin, not quite the same as city dining though.
It was a great miniature weekend away. Ever since our little girl was born we’ve always tried to take the time for fun adventures like this one, no matter how big or small, we just want to show our little girl the world. It makes me so happy that at only 1 1/2 we’ve exposed her to so many of the fun things that Dan and I loved to share and enjoy pre-baby. We always agreed that we wanted to show the world to our little one, a little bit at a time, and introduce her to the beauty, fun, and history that exists outside of our tiny home state of New Jersey. Little by little we’re ticking off our list of must sees for her and have years more of fun and exciting sights to see ahead of us.
Sincerely,
Lindsay
Check out Scion’s full breakfast menu along with their dinner menu which also has some gluten free options highlighted.
A Disney vacation for us wouldn’t be complete with at least one character experience. While our little girl loves many a character, by far her favorites are Mickey and his friends. So without hesitation, we signed up for an early breakfast at Chef Mickey’s on our last full day of our vacation. We’ve dined here once before with little one when we were in Disney for Halloween and she loved it then so we could only imagine now almost a year later what her reaction may be.
The only tough part about having an early breakfast reservation at a Disney resort is the act of actually getting there. Since we stayed at Art of Animation this time around we didn’t have access to the boat to drop us off at the Contemporary, so for our 7:00 breakfast reservation our only option was to catch the earliest bus to Magic Kingdom, which was at 6:45. They dropped us off at Magic Kingdom where we then had to hike over to the Contemporary, making us a little late for our reservation. I’m guessing that we’re not the only ones that have ever had that happen, since they weren’t really phased by our tardiness. Still though, they should have a better system for getting guests to their early breakfast reservations.
Nonetheless, we arrived to our reservation, a little late, but we got there safe and sound, one of us dressed in her cutest Minnie dress. We waited only a few minutes before we were seated at one of the last tables in the first dining room. The chef immediately joined us and offered to escort me around the buffet to review my gluten free options. Knowing that I wouldn’t actually be daring enough to eat anything off of the buffet line I decided to save us both the time and just put in my order with him right away. I love Chef Mickey’s cheesy shredded hashbrown so that was a given, I also went with some eggs and extra crispy bacon too, and no Disney breakfast is complete without gluten free Mickey waffles and some fresh fruit. And as simple as that, my order was placed and Dan was up filling some plates for he and our little one.
Chef Mickey’s gluten free breakfast of cheesy hashbrowns, eggs, and crispy bacon.
I was busy cutting up Lila’s plate of food when my plates had arrived. Wow, that’s all I have to say, a lot of food for little old me. I knew that I wouldn’t touch even half of this amount of food, especially given the amount of distraction at this meal, but I had to at least try everything I wanted. Only a few bites into breakfast and the first of the characters began to circulate. Our little girl’s eyes grew ten sizes as she didn’t take her eyes off Goofy the entire time he walked around the room, only taking pauses to nibble at her food. And finally the moment arrived for her to meet her first character. I sprung her from her highchair and she ran up to him giving him a huge hug, a moment that makes our hearts melt for sure. She continued the same greeting with each of the characters, making Dan and I so thankful that we were able to bring her to Disney again.
Now the food itself was delicious, just as wonderful as I had remembered from months before. The hashbrown is always my favorite here, they remind me of a gluten filled hashbrown casserole that I used to enjoy at Cracker Barrel, a country style restaurant that we used to go to when I was younger. They’re the shredded potatoes that I love, coated with a cheesy sauce, can’t get better than that. The Mickey waffles I honestly can say I barely got a chance to enjoy as my little girl caught one glance and adopted half of my plate. But what I did taste was amazing! Besides being adorable, being gluten free didn’t impact their taste and texture at all. They’re beautiful aren’t they!
Soft and light gluten free Mickey waffles at Chef Mickey’s.
It was a wonderful start to our last full day of vacation and as you can see our little one was all smiles as we were leaving. We headed out to catch the monorail to head over to Magic Kingdom. We had some big plans for our last full day from meeting Ariel to enjoying the splash zone over by Dumbo, a surprise for little one that we thought she’d really enjoy, all ending with dinner at Kona Cafe and the electrical parade. The monorail took a bit longer then we had planned, so we missed park opening but with fastpasses in hand we headed straight back to begin our long day in Magic Kingdom. That morning we explored every bit of Fantasyland from Ariel and Dumbo to Peter Pan and the carousel. To escape some of the heat we even headed into Gaston’s Tavern to enjoy some cool air and a snack too. No, sadly the giant cinnamon buns are not gluten free but their specialty drink, Lefou’s brew, is. So it was one Lefou’s brew for each of us, mine I’d be splitting with little one. It was pretty tasty, a cold apple flavored slushy with hints of marshmallow and topped with a passion fruit foam. The marshmallow was a bit strange for me but I did definitely like the combination of the apple slushy and passion fruit foam which was a bit sour. All together it was a pretty good treat, just nice to enjoy something gluten free while everyone else around you is digging into the Mount Everest of cinnamon buns.
Gaston’s Tavern Lefou’s Brew is gluten free and delicious too!
The rest of our time in Magic Kingdom, before heading to dinner, we let our little girl enjoy the splash zone over by Dumbo. She loved the water shooting out from the circus cars and who wouldn’t, seeing as the heat index was well over 100 that day. Being soaked from head to toe didn’t bother her as we hopped on the train to take a relaxing tour around the park. Once we were brought back to Fantasyland we headed up to the front of the park to shop a bit before dinner while our little girl enjoyed her nap time.
Dinner that night we were super excited about seeing as we were revisiting Kona Cafe, where we had one of our favorite meals the trip before. We arrived a bit early but took advantage of the cool air and peace and quiet while our little girl was sleeping. Soon enough, we were all awake and being seated for dinner. It took awhile this time for the chef to come out to take my dinner order but I successfully placed my order for the gluten free noodle dish with chicken. Meanwhile, Dan ordered his sushi and it was Mickey shaped ravioli, and not to mention the deliciously sweet Hawaiian bread, on the menu that night for our little girl.
Gluten Free Noodle Dish With Chicken at the Polynesian’s Kona Cafe.
Our meals had arrived and not a peep was heard around the table, except for the occasional excited declaration of Mickey being on little one’s plate. The Mickey raviolis were a hit for sure, definitely a dinner item that I wish we could get at home. My gluten free noodle dish though was by far one of my favorite meals from that trip, in all honesty it was one of the only nights that I wasn’t feeling sick at dinner, but putting that aside, it was the only dinner that I wished I knew how to make at home so I can enjoy it more often. The flavors are just amazing and remind me fondly of the days when I could enjoy a warm bowl of lo mein. Rice noodles and fresh veggies, some still with a little crunch, slathered with a delicious gluten free terriyaki sauce of sorts made me one happy gluten free Mommy.
With our last dinner coming to a close and the end of our vacation drawing near, we couldn’t help but look back at the past week with sadness. As always, the vacation flew by much faster than we had hoped. It was a bit more eventful in the health department than we had wished for but that’s life, you just have to roll with what life gives you sometimes. All together it was a wonderful Disney vacation, that ended with a great electrical parade that night with a couple of characters stopping by to say hi to our little one and a full morning the next day in Magic Kingdom to enjoy some last moments on our favorite rides. I’m still holding out hope that our next Disney vacation we won’t have to order a prescription, retreat to the hotel room for recovery, or make an impromptu visit to the urgent care center. We’re not sure when we’ll be back for our next Disney vacation but my fingers, toes, and everything that can be crossed will be crossed, along with many a prayer, for a completely healthy vacation. For now, we’ll be dreaming of our next days in Disney and all of the memories that they will bring.
With years of hopping between grocery stores just to find a loaf of bread that I could eat, I now can happily just grab a loaf of gluten free bread and toss it into the cart with the rest of my groceries on my bi-weekly trip to the store. It took awhile, but now my Shop Rite stocks a pretty wide selection of Schar gluten free products, from rolls and breads to cookies and crackers. Now when I grab my husband and daughter’s loaf of bread, all I have to do is turn around and see four or five shelves of yellow packaged products with Schar’s signature red label and a red “gluten free” plastered on them.
At the beginning of my gluten free adventure, I, like many others, struggled to find just the right bread that I could eat on a daily basis. Most, if not all, of the options out there were frozen and kind of bleh, but when I came upon Schar, and found it right there on the middle of a non-refrigerated grocery store shelf, I just had to try it. A quick toast later and it was ready to enjoy and boy did I ever enjoy it. I’ve turned to Schar ever since for my sandwiches and miscellaneous bread consumption, among other sweet and salty gluten free snacks. While I’m always on the lookout for new gluten free breads, especially those that don’t require a little pre-toast before eating and might even be available in my local store, for now, I’ll stick with Schar who I know I can grab at my Shop Rite and enjoy without too much prep.
I always like to keep a pretty close eye on some of my favorite brands, just in case they release any new products. Just recently, I was clicking along on Schar’s website and came upon their very own gluten free bagels, plain and cinnamon raisin. I was elated with this news! While I’ve had great gluten free bagels from Katz and Sweet Note Bagels, neither of which have made their way into my local grocery store yet, leaving an online order as my only option for now. Since I’m an avid fan of both brands, especially Katz’s everything bagels and Sweet Note’s cinnamon raisin, this isn’t too big of a deal, but it would certainly be nice to have additional bagel options on hand at all times when you’re just in the mood for a bagel.
For those in-a-pinch, bagel craving moments, I’ve always turned to Glutino bagels. They’re in the frozen section and a package of 4 or 5 is priced at $5.99. A quick defrost and toasting later and you have your gluten free bagel fix. Now, sitting next to Glutino in the freezer case, you can find Schar’s bagel options, coming in a pack of 4, you can get plain and cinnamon raisin varieties for only $2.99 at my Shop Rite. They’re a bit bigger than the Glutino options but very similar in taste. Just like Glutino, these taste more like a Lender’s type bagel that have a bread kind of texture. So far, I’ve enjoyed Schar’s plain bagels toasted with butter or cream cheese, both of which have been quite good, but one of my favorite uses for a gluten free bagel is a breakfast sandwich.
Schar Bagel Breakfast Sandwich
For pregnant me, one of my favorite pregnancy breakfasts was a gluten free bagel, either with butter, cream cheese, or an egg, bacon, and cheese combo, along with fruit on the side. It was substantial enough to hold me over for more than a half an hour and filled that nagging craving for one of those huge bagels from that small bagel shop around the corner from me, well kind of. At the time I only really had Glutino bagels and later on Katz varieties to choose from for my bagel craving, but now and next pregnancy I have so many to choose from, kind of exciting isn’t it.
With the Schar bagels on hand, I decided the other night to do a breakfast dinner, yolky egg sandwiches with pork roll and cheese. These are so simple and tasty and really perfect on any gluten free bagel. They’re certainly a must have during a pregnancy for me, but of course with a fully cooked yolk center or just a scrambled egg instead.
Ingredients:
1 Gluten Free Bagel (I love Katz, Sweet Note Bagels, Schar, and Glutino)
1-2 slices of Pork Roll, use either pre-sliced or in a roll, pre-sliced is easier (Case’s is gluten free)
1 egg
Cheese of choice (I like American or shredded colby jack on my sandwich.)
Directions:
Begin toasting your gluten free bagel.
While your bagel is toasting, slice your pork roll if necessary and add the slices to a warmed skillet (medium heat). The key with cooking pork roll is that you put four 1/2 inch long slits at 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00 around the circle. As pork roll cooks it begins to puff up and the circles will buckle, so with the slits it keeps the circles lying flat.
Cook the pork roll a few minutes on each side, just until they brown a little.
Cook your egg to your liking, making sure you have a fully cooked yolk center if you’re pregnant.
When all is done cooking, just add your slice of pork roll to the base of your toasted bagel, then your egg, top with some shredded or a slice of cheese, and finally cover it all with the top of your bagel.
Either let your sandwich stand for a minute to allow your cheese to melt or microwave the sandwich for a quick 10-20 seconds or so to melt the cheese.
Enjoy!
Porkroll, egg, and cheese on a toasted Schar bagel.
This sandwich is perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. I could really eat any breakfast option at all times during the day, but especially a breakfast sandwich. The Schar bagel was a perfect size for the sandwich, large enough for the egg and pork roll to not hang over the sides. Better yet, the signature falling apart of a gluten free sandwich was non-existent with this one. From start to finish, each bite held together perfectly thanks to the fantastic Schar bagel.
You certainly can’t beat buying a pack of four gluten free bagels for $2.99, especially when they’re as big and tasty as Schar’s are. Finally, we can enjoy a regular everyday item without breaking the bank. Now, if we could only bring the price of breads down I’d be a happy camper. Thanks Schar for adding yet another great bread product to the gluten free market! Now hurry up and grab your gluten free bagel today and make one of these sandwiches, just don’t forget to send one over to me too!
Sincerely,
Lindsay
Gluten Free Pork Roll, Egg, And Cheese Bagel Sandwich
1 Gluten Free Bagel (I love Katz, Sweet Note Bagels, Schar, and Glutino)
1-2 slices of Pork Roll, use either pre-sliced or in a roll, pre-sliced is easier (Case's is gluten free)
1 egg
Cheese of choice (I like American or shredded colby jack on my sandwich.)
Instructions
Begin toasting your gluten free bagel.
While your bagel is toasting, slice your pork roll if necessary and add the slices to a warmed skillet (medium heat). The key with cooking pork roll is that you put four 1/2 inch long slits at 12:00, 3:00, 6:00, and 9:00 around the circle. As pork roll cooks it begins to puff up and the circles will buckle, so with the slits it keeps the circles lying flat.
Cook the pork roll a few minutes on each side, just until they brown a little.
Cook your egg to your liking, making sure you have a fully cooked yolk center if you're pregnant.
When all is done cooking, just add your slice of pork roll to the base of your toasted bagel, then your egg, top with some shredded or a slice of cheese, and finally cover it all with the top of your bagel.
Either let your sandwich stand for a minute to allow your cheese to melt or microwave the sandwich for a quick 10-20 seconds or so to melt the cheese.
Enjoy!
By Gluten Free Mom To Be
Gluten Free Mom To Be http://www.glutenfreemomtobe.com/
After hibernating a bit the day before, I woke up to feel a tad bit better on our Animal Kingdom day. I managed to get down a few bites of breakfast and we were off to walk the wonderfully shaded trails of Animal Kingdom, certainly a great choice in my book for this day in particular. We moved a bit slower and found quite a few benches but we still managed to see all that we had hoped.
With fastpasses for some of the more popular rides, we headed straight back to Dinosaur where our riders barely had to wait. I was hoping to maybe get on this ride this trip as I hadn’t yet been, but instead, I happily sat out with my little non-rider and took advantage of a few more minutes of rest. Once all of the group was out of the Dinosaur ride, we made our way back to the safari for our fastpasses.
Our favorite Animal Kingdom photo spot, great angle for the tree.
In route to Asia, we passed the Allergy Kiosk, you know the one I raved about last trip, that stands conveniently towards the front of the park by the Bug’s Life show. Since this time I was totally not my usual hungry self by mid-morning I wasn’t really in the mood for anything BabyCakes, but since we had some snack credits to use and I hadn’t eaten but two bites of toast that morning I decided to pick up a gluten free chocolate glazed donut like last time (check out my review here from before). Throughout the morning, I nibbled on the donut and managed to eat most of it, that’s how you know the donut was that good seeing as I had zero appetite but managed to convince myself to eat most of the sweet treat.
BabyCakes Gluten Free Chocolate Donut, Spring Disney Trip
Soon enough we had arrived at our destination and hopped on board for the morning safari ride. Our little girl was so tuckered out already that she decided on an early nap for herself (little did she know that Mommy would’ve gladly joined her). The animals were all out and about, grazing along happily and giving us some great picture worthy moments. When the safari came to a close, in the transition from arms to stroller little one woke up after her cat nap and was ready to explore the Pangani Forest Trail, one of our favorite things to do in Animal Kingdom.
Nap time and a safari.
The trail let out near Camp Minnie and Mickey where we decided to stop in since the line was on the shorter side. After some hugs and pictures we were off to experience the Kali River Rapids. This was another ride that I hadn’t been on yet, so Dan and I were excited to maybe get to go on this one together while little one was out with her cousin, Aunt, and Nanny. It’s no surprise that we managed to get ourselves in the wet seats, Dan more so than me, but it was certainly a welcomed cool down since it was so hot. This really was a great ride and I can’t wait to take our little one on here someday.
Another trail walk later and we found ourselves in a rain shower under the awning at Flame Tree Barbecue for lunch. While Dan managed the ordering, I headed down to snag tons of dry seats for our group under some coverings along the river overseeing Expedition Everest, a view that the kids loved. I was kind of disappointed that one of my favorite lunch spots in Disney happened to fall on a day that my stomach was still not right but don’t worry I did manage to squeeze in a little bit of my favorite barbecue dish here. That day I decided to order the pulled pork, sans bun, with the usual accompaniments. The pork was deliciously tender and juicy, just how I remembered, and hit the tiny pang of hunger that I was starting to feel (Sorry no recent picture on this one either, I certainly didn’t want to even look at food let alone take pictures of it.). To give you a little reminder though, here’s a picture from our last trip that certainly portrays just how tasty the pulled pork is.
Flame Tree Barbecue, gluten free pulled pork, Spring Disney trip
After eating some of the pulled pork, enjoying a nice cold drink, and waiting out the rain, we wandered around the park a little while more checking out wait times on other rides and shopping a bit too. After a busy morning I for one was ready to head out and rest a bit before our dinner that night in Epcot’s Mexico. It was a fantastic day in Animal Kingdom, and even though I wasn’t feeling the best, I’m so glad I decided to not stay in and miss out on some great memories. It was just the kind of day I needed to get going again without baking in the sun all day. And may I just say, seeing as the first real bites of food that I managed to squeeze down in my sicky state were at Animal Kingdom, I think it’s safe to say that the gluten free eats that I’m able to get here, from the BabyCakes treats at the Allergy Kiosk to the Flame Tree Barbecue pulled pork, are some of my favorites by far.
