There are so many things that I miss about Calgary and Canada right now. I miss my family, my friends (who are the same as family), my dog and my old boss. I miss how the use of a car horn is reserved for celebrating a win in hockey or to indicate an emergency – and NOTHING else. I miss how no one gets scared when you say hi to them, even when you don’t know them. I miss being able to find East simply by turning my back to the mountains, I miss the letter ‘U’ and I miss local business.

Moving here has been like being re-diagnosed all over again. Nothing is the same, grocery stores are inconsistent and the rules of ppm are different. I miss knowing what’s okay to eat.

So this post is dedicated to my people at home. Here are some gems in your area. Support local and support the GF conscious business near you.

First: I want to send a shout out to GF Patisserie. Why? Because they are awesome. I’ve never kept that a secret. They are a great example of local business that cares, and that takes the time to do it right. Quality over quantity. It matters – trust me. So to the lovely ladies at GF Patisserie and to the Celiac Husband that supports them – you truly are ROCKSTARS.

Second: Copper Pot Creations. Here’s the deal – I never had the pleasure of eating there. This information comes to me from an insider. Yes, I still have spies in Calgary. Be aware, be very aware! I looked over their mandate and the menu and I’m impressed. Their products are 100% free of wheat/gluten, egg, peanuts, tree nuts, dairy/casein, soy, sesame, fish and shellfish. Not going to lie, I had to stop and think: If the are free of all that, then what is left to cook with? And this, is why I am a domestic anti-goddess. There is lots left and they have made meals that look fantastic out it. They also offer free delivery with the city of orders $30/more. Someone please try them out and let us know how it is. I hope it tastes as promising as it looks/sounds.

Third: Wild Horse Bistro. My sister and my mom stumbled upon this gem when they were at the Farmers Market. And because they are so awesome, they sent the Chocolate Cake mix my way. It’s damn good. Nicely packaged, all ingredients included (at least the non-perishable ones) and easy to make. The cake came out fluffy, moist and rich. Wild Horse Bistro for the win! They operate out of Black Diamond, but can be found at Farmers Markets. Visit the site for more details.

So let me end with this. I miss you all. I miss you’re emails and comments. I miss your silent judgment of my culinary ineptness and even more importantly, I miss hearing about your lives. I may be living in the US, but for as long as I can type, I’ll do my best to contribute to your quest for GF greatness.

If anyone is interested in the directions I am going here, please feel free to follow my new twitter feed: @nonresident. A second blog is on it’s way. Because let’s be honest, I’m never short of things to say and living as a non-resident alien has given me more material than I ever thought possible.

Happy Easter My People.

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I’m being told that this new site will have all the same information as before, with a few new additions. One of those additions is a monthly newsletter.

Heads up: the Products section and its related pages require a login ID. If I understand it correctly, if you don’t already have a login ID you won’t be to subscribe until November. If this is the case, and you want to subscribe, write it down in you calendars.

I just took a quick glance at the new site and I can tell you this: I like its master head and cleaner design. That being said, it’s not October 1st yet and I will wait for the official launch to make my judgments.

Side Note: How do you know that you live with a web designer? You’re a celiac blogger who says things like master head.

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Did you just say “No” to me?

Um, I hate to inform you of this, but that is not a word I am willing to accept thank you very much!

You’re probably wondering what that was all about – it was about me. I don’t like the word NO and whenever possible, I change it into a YES.

Blame it on my upbringing, blame it on genetics, blame it on whatever you want – it’s a thing and I am very happy with it.

How does this relate to my blog? It’s the reason I keep talking about GF Beer. Believe it or not, in my pre-celiac days, I rarely drank beer – I preferred gin and tonic,  jagermeister and Coke, and red wine. Beer was something that other people drank.

Then one frightful day, Dr. Lady said to me: “Caitlin, this also means NO beer.” My response was: “You think so hey. I bet I can find beer that is suitable to drink, and I bet you a million dollars that I am going to like it.” Dr. Lady just smiled, she’s dealt with me long enough to know that I am prone to say things like this during an appointment.

And with that, the Epic Beer Quest began. With a lot of help from family and friends I have found some good ones, and some not so good ones. And this time, with the help of a very knowledgeable man at Willow Park Wine and Spirits, I found this:

Estrella Damm.

First, I just loving saying that name over and over again really loudly: Estrella DAMM, Estrella DAMM. There I go yelling at you with my caps lock key again! Sorry.

I also love this beer because it in no way has any of the trade mark features of the ‘not so great’ GF Beer. No fiz, no odd after taste, tastes the same warm or cold (prefer to drink it cold) and it has a great colour as well. It also finds a balance between being too light to matter and too dark to drink with a meal.

Estrella DAMM you’re good!

As a side note: If anyone has been able to find Bard’s GF Beer please let me know as soon as possible! I want to know if it lives up to the adds.

Happy Don’t Take No For An Answer, So Now I Drink Beer Day!

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One of the ways Simon makes my life easier is that he makes little GF desserts. They come perfectly portioned, and easy to heat up – open lid, microwave, eat. Three simple steps.

Recently I tried the Apple Delight. I can say that it was a delight to eat. (Wow, the grumbles that just reverberated through the internet world at my horrible humor – I heard you!) Anyhow, it was like eating a store bought apple pie in a cup. I say that because it had that perfect level of apples, Cinnamon, and sugar that store bought pies have. There is something about it that you don’t get from home made. That being said, I am NOT knocking home made pie, that stuff is awesome, it’s also completely out of my league. So for the rest of us, there is Simple Simon.

I will say this, Simon skimps on the crumble topping. MORE TOPPING PLEASE! Maybe if I yell at him on the internet with my threatening caps lock he will make some with more topping. Is this considered cyber bullying? If it is, well then it’s worth it for MORE CRUMBLE TOPPING.

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Since I am domestically challenged, I want my comfort in a box. And thanks to Annie’s Homegrown Rice Pasta and Cheddar, I can have just that.

Easy to make, and easy to modify – add shredded cheese, or goat cheese or even hot dogs. Nothing about this comfort in a box will disappoint you. They have even gone as far as manufacturing it in a gluten free facility. No cross contamination!

Comfort isn’t cheap, so don’t expect this Mac’N'Cheese to be the same price as Kraft Dinner. But hey, sometimes comfort is worth the extra money!

You can find Annie’s at almost all organic stores, and sometimes even at Superstore and Co-op. Try it and love it and thank me for it later!

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Cookie Occasions offers gluten free! This means that our loved ones can suck up with cookie deliveries instead of flowers. (Thanks for the link DH, Fiance curses you!)

Go forth and score brownie points with a cookie delivery!

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While at Whole Pay Check Foods in Vancouver, I stumbled upon Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Raisin Bread mix. Could not walk away. This was genius. Raisin bread is a luxury in my world. I love it but can’t eat it fast enough so I rarely buy it.

How brilliant is the ready made mix?! It’s cheaper than buying fresh, it can sit in the cupboard until you’re really in the mood for it, and it requires little to no work – which makes the anti-domestic goddess in all of us happy.

The verdict:

• Easy to make.
• Can be turned into great french toast.
• Drys out a little fast.
• Does not need any special GF settings on the bread maker to come out perfect.
• The tiny wholes in the bread are perfect for holding melted butter.

All in all. I was impressed. As with all Bob’s products, you may or may not be able to find this product where Bob’s Red Mill is sold. If you see it, stock up.

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We’ll at least now I know that this ninja isn’t in my home. Fiance and I found a great GF soy sauce at the Sunnyside Market. It’s called Tamari Organic Soy Sauce. Of course, because it’s organic and GF it’s not the cheapest soy sauce out there, but it’s worth the inflated price.

Sidebar: Only the blue label Tamari Soy Sauce is gluten free. So please look closely at the label to make sure you pick the right one.

One side note about this soy sauce: It is manufactured in a plant that also makes products containing wheat. What settled me on this issue is that it says clearly on the label that the plant is inspected by the Gluten-Free Certification Organization. An organization such as this will not allow it’s name to be printed on any product it does not deem safe for Celiac’s. So as with everything in life, use your best judgment. At this point I have not had a single problem and will inform you if I ever do.

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Mom use to make fruit crisp when it was a fridge cleaner week. You know those weeks – you need to grocery shop but don’t have room in the fridge because everything is half full, or you only have enough stuff to make a meal for 1 when you’re trying to feed 4. Crisp was her way of cleaning out the remnants of the fruit drawer before things went bad and before more was to be purchased. Mom is kind of a genius like that.

A traditional crisp has the great crumble topping that’s made with oats and butter and a little flour – SO NOT GF. Alas I have stumbled upon a great GF alternative made by our friends at Glutino. They call it Crisp and Crumble Topping Mix and sell it under their Gluten-Free Pantry line of products.

It was so very good. It doesn’t act like a traditional crisp in the that it is not as chunky on the top; but that doesn’t matter because it tastes just as good as moms. If I had any one thing to say about it, I’d say, double the butter that they tell you to use. It will help make it a little crumblier and a little less dry. In the grand scheme of GF cooking – that is not a lot of modification and it sure isn’t too much to ask for!

We found this at Superstore in their alternative foods isle. I haven’t seen it anywhere else but I’m sure we’ll start seeing it’s popularity rise. Just think of all the other things you could do with it – cake topping, desert topping, cookies, and more.

(I have photo’s to share with you, and will post those soon. Someone may have taken my camera with him when he left and isnt back yet. ~cough Fiance cough~ )

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Beside the obvious gluten free benefits of soy; many of us are also lactose intolerant and therefore rely on soy products to substitute for dairy products.

Soy is an important worldwide legume crop, and is a common ingredient in many natural and processed foods. It is often used as a meat substitute in fermented products such as tofu, tempeh and textured soy protein.

Soy milk is commonly used as a dairy replacement, but it should be noted that soymilk does not contain as much calcium as animal milks. Many varieties of soy sauce contain gluten as an additive, so PLEASE be sure to look for celiac-friendly versions.

Soybeans are rich in high quality protein (35-40%) and have a distinctive nutty flavour, making them an ideal addition to numerous foodstuffs. They also contain several essential amino acids, calcium, iron, phosphorous, vitamin B, essentially B1, B2 and B5. Products made with black soybeans have more protein, whereas yellow soybeans have more oil.

Soy flour is yellow-beige in colour, and has a strong aroma when dry that disappears when baked. The particular nutty flavour of soy makes it a good addition to fruited cakes and cookies, and is best combined with mild flour such as white rice flour. It generally comes in two varites: full-fat soy flour contains much of the oil from the soybean and can make baked goods more rich; whereas de-fatted soy flour has had most of the fat removed and tends to have a higher protien content. Soy flour will add moisture to baked goods and can also make them brown faster; cooking time and/or temperature many need to be slightly adjusted. You may also wish to tent the products with aluminum foil to extend the browning time. Keep soy flour in the fridge or freezer for 5-7 months; de-fatted flour lasts longer than the full-fat variety.

Source: Living Gluten Free but hte Canadian Cancer Society

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