Goose Valley’s Brown & Wild Rice Fusion is a hearty and healthy blend of four types of whole grains, CalMati Brown Rice, Wild Rice, Heirloom Red Rice, and Calmochi Sweet Brown Rice.  Each serving contains 4 grams of fiber and 5 grams of Protein along with many of the vitamins and minerals that play an important role in a healthy diet. In addition to all the health benefits this blend brings to the table it is also wonderfully aromatic, colorful, and most importantly, it’s delicious.

Goose Valley offers several other varieties of blends and fusions including Basmati Rice Fusion and a Rice and Bean Fusion, in addition to packs of pure wild rice. All Goose Valley products are heart healthy and certified Gluten-free.

To learn more about Goose Valley Products including some delicious recipes and cooking tips visit goosevalley.com.

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If you are interested in surprising your sweeties or just treating your self with the new Surf Sweets Fruity Hearts do so soon. Currently Fruity Hearts are only available for a limited time. To learn more about this and all of Surf Sweets products visit surfsweets.com. You can also check out the original Surf Sweets review here.

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New Year’s Eve Dishes and Appetizers

Celiac Central’s Seasonal Gluten-free Recipes
The official site of the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness, Celiac Central, is jam packed with information, including gluten-free holiday suggestions and recipes. Many of the delicious recipes found through out the site are contributed by gluten-free food manufacturers like Blue Diamond, Thai Kitchen, French Meadow Bakery, and Rudi’s Gluten-free Bakery just to name a few. These companies also provide support for celiac awareness through generous sponsorships. Check out Celiac Central’s Seasonal Gluten-Free Recipe Box for delicious New Year’s Eve Recipes.

Glutenfreeda: Celebrate New Year’s Eve Gluten-Free
Glutenfreeda Foods is the manufacturer of gluten-free oatmeal, granola, cookies, and frozen wraps. You can read full reviews of Glutenfreeda’s Products here. In addition to tasty gluten-free products, Glutenfreeda also publishes an online magazine. This month’s edition is filled with holiday recipes that would be welcome additions to any gluten-free New Year’s Eve dinner party. While you are there check out an older article with tips on Celebrating New Year’s Eve Gluten-Free.

New Year’s Eve Gluten-Free Libations

What alcoholic drinks are safe and unsafe to consume can be a confusing subject for celiacs. In case you choose to ring in the new year with a toast here are a few clarifications.

Distilled alcoholic beverages including rum, gin, whiskey and vodka are considered gluten-free because gluten does not survive the distillation process. If you rather play it safe and would prefer to avoid alcohol derived from grains then Tequila, White Rum, and Vodka when it is made from potatoes are all safe choices. It is important to be aware of what you are drinking. This is especially true of cocktails which may be made with mixers and other ingredients that are not gluten-free. As always, reading labels and asking questions when someone else is making your drink is an important step in avoiding hidden gluten. Wine and Champagne also make excellent and safe choices when toasting in the New Year since they are made from grapes.

If you prefer beer then you are in luck since there are some great gluten-free options available. Many of them have been reviewed here on Gluten-free Hot Products. Gluten-free beer options include: Redbridge distributed by Anheuser Busch, Bard’s Tale, Green’s Gluten Free Beers and Crispin Hard Cider.

From all of us at Gluten-free Hot Products,
Happy New Years!

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1) Tru Sweet Candy Canes
Tru Sweet is the manufacture of organic and natural fruit flavored Surf Sweets candies (read the full Surf Sweets review here).  Tru Sweet Candy Canes are classic treats made with all natural ingredients and no artificial flavors or colors. In addition to being gluten-free and organic they do not contain any corn syrup. Learn more about Tru sweets and where you can buy them by visiting trusweets.com.

2) Pure Fun Organic Candy Canes
Pure Fun Peppermint Candy Canes are also organic. They are also hand wrapped adding a bit of an old fashion flare to this traditional treat. If you visit Pure Fun’s Website you can get full and very detailed allergy information on this product. Visit www.purefun.ca for more details.

3) Spangler Candy Canes
Spangler Candy Canes are possibly the easiest to acquire among the three gluten-free candy canes in this list. In addition to manufacturing the traditional peppermint flavored candy canes, Spangler also produces candy canes in other fun branded flavors like Jelly Belly, Sour Punch, and Smarties. Visit www.spanglercandy.com for more details.

For more information on gluten-free candy visit Celiac Central for a printable gluten-free candy list.

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I started with a recipe I found on Betty Crocker’s official site for Gluten Free Cheese Garlic Drop Biscuits. Since I wanted the younger members of the household to be able to try them I left out the garlic powder, but otherwise followed the recipe exactly. It is only a tiny bit more complicated then the standard directions for drop biscuits, so it was not very hard to make. Nor did it take very long. In less than a half hour the biscuits were done and ready to taste.

The finished product did not look exactly like traditional drop biscuits. I partially credit this to trying out a new recipe.  In addition the flour mixture, a combination of rice and potato flour, was much finer than the original. They did not taste exactly like traditional drop biscuits either. To me they tasted too much like potato. However everyone else in the house liked them. Even though I didn’t enjoy the flavor as much as everyone else, I was pleased with how fluffy and moist they were.

Since the cheesy drop biscuits had a potato after taste I was concerned the pancakes would as well. I couldn’t have been more wrong. In addition to being fluffy and moist they tasted exactly as pancakes, gluten-free or not, should taste.

Though I do not agree that Bisquick Original or Gluten-Free is the right choice for a pizza crust or maybe not even a pie crust, it is amazingly handy for early morning pancakes and dinner biscuits.  Especially when you are short on time. Unfortunately, as is often the case, the gluten-free consumer has to pay a bit more for this convenience. For a 16 oz box of Gluten-free Bisquick I paid $4.99, while the same size of Original Bisquick was only $2.29.  On the positive side, individuals diagnosed with celiac disease may be able to receive tax deductions for expenses associated with gluten-free foods in instances were the cost is higher than that of regular items.  To learn more on how this works check out Celiac Central’s Tax Deduction Guide for Gluten-Free Products.

If you would like to learn more about Betty Crocker’s Gluten-Free Bisquick as well as get great recipes and more visit www.bettycrocker.com.

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Though Amy’s Organic Sandwich rounds are thin they are surprisingly sturdy and versatile. They arrived frozen and can be thawed in the fridge or by toasting them directly out of the freezer. Thawed in the fridge or very lightly toasted they are extremely soft and fluffy and make a great gluten-free option for kid favorites like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Toasting them a bit longer and they become much stronger making them a perfect base for open face sandwiches and pizzas. Since Amy’s Organic Sandwich Rounds are vegan friendly they can also be used as a bun for your favorite veggie burger.

The flavor of the Sandwich Rounds alone, without anything added, is pretty simple and reminds me of slightly starchy and spongy potato bread. However, when combined with sandwich ingredients or toppings  the flavor becomes extremely complimentary. With Thanksgiving only a day away I’m looking forward to testing Amy’s new Organic Sandwich Rounds on my traditional leftover Turkey sandwich.

If you would like to learn more about this product or about the many other products offered by Amy’s visit www.Amys.com.

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After receiving samples and trying Rigoni Di Asiago’s spreads for myself I discovered why they have received such high praise. Their Nocciolata is definitely a treat with its rich hazelnut and cocoa flavor and its creamy texture.  Nocciolata can be enjoyed as a spread on cookies or bread, an accompaniment to cakes, crepes or ice cream, or as an ingredient in holiday cooking and baking. As much as I enjoyed sampling Rigoni’s Nocciolata, I found their Fiordifrutta to be my favorite. I like strawberries, but I love pomegranates, so finding an all fruit spread that could make both flavors taste great without making either overly sweet is a very worth while discovery for me and something I think RdA’s Fiordifrutta really delivered on. Along with classic strawberry and the newer pomegranate flavors, Fiordifrutta organic fruit spreads are available in a wide range of popular flavours including apricot, plum, peach, cherry, Seville orange, lemon, blueberry, raspberry, blackberry, cranberry, rosehip, black currant, fig, and wild berries.

If you would like to learn more about any of Rigoni Di Asiago’s fine Italian products visit rigonidiasiago.com.

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The recipes in Make it Paleo can range from extremely easy, to those that require a tad bit more skill. Regardless of the difficulty level very few of the dishes require more than eight ingredients. Although the ingredient lists are simple the dishes are far from bland because they use natures own flavor enhancers like garlic and pepper along with delicious food pairings to achieve maximum flavor while maintaining the larger goal of a healthy diet.

Simple ingredients do not mean boring either. This cook book is jam packed with a wide variety of dishes ranging from Asian or Indian inspired to traditional American meals and all are adjusted to fit the Paleo Diet. Just like the subtitle implies the dishes in Make it Paleo are indeed for any occasion, since the book does not only cover breakfast, appetizers, main dishes, side dishes, and deserts it also includes recipes to make the sauces, soups, salads, and even a recipe to make homemade Almond and Coconut milk! A few recipes you can look forward to if you purchase this book include (just a very small sample as there are far too many to list):

• Eggs Paleo (the Paleo Diet version of eggs benedict)
• Deviled Eggs (includes homemade mayo that is paleo approved)
• Chicken and Vegetable “Lo Mein”
• Artichoke and Avocado Salad (yummy)
• The seasonal must, Butternut Squash Soup (I made for the first time after being inspired by this recipe)
• Garlic and Herb Mashed Cauliflower,
• Cajun Sweet Potato Fries (I’ll be attempting these fries this weekend).

The recipes for all the sauces and dressings required for any of the dishes in this book are also included. And the dessert section includes cookies, cakes, pies and baked fruits all made the grain-free Paleo way.

Make it Paleo is easily worth its cost in recipes alone, but this cookbook includes so much more. Along with explaining the basics of the Paleo Diet, the first few sections are very guide like with in-depth instruction for changing your kitchen into a Paleo Kitchen. After seeing how much thought and effort went into this book it is clear to me that the authors not only subscribe to this diet but feel passionately about it.

It is important to note that though the Paleo Diet ends up being gluten-free it is not designed specifically for those suffering from Celiac Disease. The recipes included are naturally gluten-free as long as you make sure any of the ingredients you purchase to include in these recipes are also gluten-free. This shouldn’t be too hard since the majority of the recipes are made with fresh ingredients. The authors of Make it Paleo and all of us here at GFHP promote actively thinking about what you are eating and reading all food labels, both are something that HAS to become a way of life for those with dietary restrictions.

To learn more about Make it Paleo visit www.makeitpaleo.com

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To learn more about all of Food Should Taste Good products visit www.foodshouldtastegood.com. While you’re there check out how you can help Food Should Taste Good raise money to fight breast cancer.

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I had high hopes as I boiled the water. The directions were almost as simple as the ingredients list, which included only brown rice flour and water. After 11 minutes of boiling on high I was ready to give it a try. I’m happy to report that it tasted great! The texture was smooth and far from chewy or slimy. As for the flavor it was simple yet very delicious.  Though this pasta tasted good by its self or sprinkled with some salt and herbs it also held up well to the addition of sauces and vegetables.

Along with the box of Jovial Brown Rice Spaghetti I also received two boxes of their gluten-free cookies, Fig Fruit Filled and Chocolate Cream Filled. The Fig Fruit Filled cookies tasted like a more grown up version of Fig Newtons. The outer cookie was soft and sweet with a even sweeter chewy fig center.

Though I liked the Fig Fruit Filled Cookies, I loved the Chocolate Cream Filled ones. The outer cookie was crumbly and crunchy with a rich chocolate mousse center. Both were delicious and are now among my favorite gluten-free cookies.

If you would like to learn more about these and all of Jovial Foods Products visit www.jovialfoods.com.

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