Gopicnic Gluten Free Lunchboxes

Gopicnic is a company that makes ready to eat meals and they offer gluten free options. They remind me of lunchables and searching for gluten free lunchables is how I initially heard of these. My boy was feeling left out at school because his friends would bring lunchables for lunch and I was interested in what, if any, options were out there. Through their website you can see they have several gluten free options including some that are geared towards kids. I've thought about ordering them but never quite followed through.

We can now find these locally at World Market. Nicole found these and sent me the picture below and said they are located toward the back of the store. There was only one GF option available so beware that not all of them are safe.

I'm not sure my boy would be excited about the hummus part but my girl would love it!

A Trip to Great Falls

Last weekend I went on a road trip with a couple friends to Great Falls to meet the one and only Pioneer Woman. Ree is such a hoot and we really enjoyed listening to her share her journey on becoming a blogger. If you haven't seen her blog it is well worth your time.

Of course I have to share the picture of us with Ree, she thought we were sisters and it didn't surprise me since I get that all the time with Shannon (on the right). I'm in the salmon colored jacket and I actually look tall in this picture, must be the heels.

For our dinner before this event we went to Romano's Macaroni Grill. I asked for the GF menu which was just a piece of paper listing my options under each category but at least it was something. Most of the options are safe without certain parts of the dish and I opted for the Jumbo Shrimp Spiedini without the vegetables so I opted for the grilled asparagus since it was under the safe sides list. The vegetables aren't safe because it looks like they have panko bread crumbs mixed in with them, I'm not sure why. So my dish arrived and it tasted great but I have to say I was disappointed that there were only 6 asparagus spears next to my shrimp. It was the type of plate where you look down and "Where's the rest of it?" pops into mind. At least I wasn't glutened and didn't go hungry.

Gluten Free Night at Vera Fare

Vera Fare will host another Gluten Free Night this Wednesday, the 16th, at 6:00pm. The Montana Celiac Society will start the talk and then Dr. Lou Walters from the Source Wellness Center will also be there for discussion after the talk.

The event is free and you can arrive early to purchase food and drinks.

Community Supported Agriculture - Naturally Gluten Free!

With spring promising to be close, at least within the next three months, I am starting to dream about my vegetable garden and my CSA. This will be the third year that I'll be a part of the Madison Meadowlark CSA and I always look forward to the weekly pickup. It's like a present that you sort of know what you'll get but there's always a surprise. For instance the kohlrabi that really threw me for a loop. It pushes me to try new food, new recipes, and to use up (or can/freeze) the fresh produce before it goes bad. This was a struggle for me the first year but it's a healthy change and I did much better last year.

Not only is the fresh produce fantastic but I really enjoy supporting local business. If you are interested in finding out more about CSA's and what is available in your area check out LocalHarvest. You'll see we have a few options for CSA's in the Bozeman area including a yarn CSA. They also list farms that you can purchase local meat through. Some require a 1/4 or 1/2 minimum purchase of the beef, buffalo, or pork and some will sell individual cuts.

I'm now going to keep dreaming about fresh local produce, warm weather, and how I want to lay out my garden this year. Anyone else starting some seeds soon?

Giant Cookie Pizza - Gluten and Dairy Free

The kids had some friends over for a pizza and movie night this past weekend and I finally tried my hand at a giant cookie. I mean really, what better dessert goes with pizza than a cookie pizza? I was a bit nervous about it baking properly and my conversion to gluten free but the sun must have been shining on me because it worked out, a bit too well if you ask my scale.

I think it was best after it had fully cooled so make it the day ahead and cut just before serving. If you do cut it while the marshmallows are still warm spray your pizza cutter with non-stick cooking spray, it makes life a lot easier.

Giant Cookie Pizza - GF/DF

Adapted from Allrecipes

1/2 C Earth Balance Margarine (butter works if you can have it)

1/2 C peanut butter

1/2 C granulated sugar

1/2 C brown sugar, packed

1 egg

1/2 t vanilla

1/2 t xanthan gum

1 1/2 C gluten free flour, I used Gluten Free Mama's Almond Blend

2 C mini-marshmallows

1 C chocolate chips, gluten and dairy free

Preheat oven to 375 F.

In a mixing bowl combine the margarine, peanut butter, and sugars until fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla mixing thoroughly then add the xanthan gum and flour mixing until combined.

Spread the dough on a greased pizza pan into a 12 inch circle and bake for 12 minutes. Top with the marshmallows and chocolate chips then bake another 8 minutes or until lightly browned. Cut after completely cooled and be sure to share.

Shabtai Gourmet Review

I came home a couple weekends ago to find a sweet package of gluten free, dairy free (also free of a lot of other allergens) treats from Shabtai Gourmet. This wasn't good for my diet but it was so delicious.

The first thing I had to try was the Swiss Chocolate Roll and Bon Bons. This was only natural since I'm a chocolate fiend. The white filling in both of these is beyond delicious, I easily could have eaten the Bon Bons all to myself and they were my favorite. The Swiss Chocolate Roll had a nice hint of lemon to the cake and wasn't dry at all. Both of these had everyone in dessert heaven, I kept getting requests from the kids of "more please". That's all I need for a review from them.

I wasn't sure what I was going to think of the Florentine Lace Cookies since I've never had them before but man was I surprised how fantastic they were. They were crispy and light with a great chocolate base, yum! The kids loved these cookies though I ate most of them, I need to work on sharing.

After eating these first three treats I had to give myself a break with sweets and put the Raspberry Roll in the freezer for safe keeping. My parents were up for the next weekend so I thawed this bad boy and was impressed with how well it froze, great for buying a few treats and then freezing them for later. I think this was Hubby's favorite he loved the lemon hint in the cake and commented on how moist it was. It was gone within the night.

If you're in need of some quick and yummy desserts Shabtai is a great option. They have a flat shipping rate of $5.95 across the USA and freeze wonderfully. I had ordered some birthday treats for my dad through them last summer and e-mailed them with shipping questions. They responded to me within an hour of my request and were fantastic to work with. Now I need to order some Ring Ting's through them, the picture has me drooling.