I'd Rather Wear Fur than Eat Naked Nuggets Again!!

So I'm at the grocery store looking in the health food section for gluten free products and there is this granola looking chick next to me. You know the kind of girl who has that flowing naturally curly hair and sun-kissed cheeks while wearing carefree clothes that scream "I am healthy and don't have a care in the world!!" I pick up a package of non-breaded chicken nuggets and Granola Girl tells me I have to try the Blue Ribbon Restaurants Gluten-Free Naked Chicken Nuggets because they are the best. She even said she would eat the whole package in one sitting. I think to myself "if you can't trust a granola girl in the health food section then who can you trust" so I toss the package in my cart with high hopes.

At $5.99 a package (about 26 nuggets) these gluten-free, antibiotic-free, hormone-free chicken nuggets should be good right? Wrong!!!! They were bland and tasteless and not even "real" chicken!!! The nuggets are compressed chicken that were spongy at best and only had the painted on grill marks on one side of the nugget. Making gluten free chicken nuggets shouldn't be rocket science. You cut up some chicken and cook it. But Naked Nuggets make it complicated and bad. These things were really bad and if I never eat another Naked Nugget I will die happy.

I was really disappointed and confused since Granola Girl gave me her stamp of approval. Even after reading all the rave reviews on the Internet about these naked nuggets I was even more confused. How could people actually think these things tasted good? Has the world really given up their taste buds for convenience? For $5.99, I will save my money and cut up a chicken breast and saute it up in a pan.

"Mom, please don't ever make me come back here again."

I usually enjoy trying out new restaurants but for some reason I wasn't especially excited to have dinner at Hibachi Grill, Augusta's newest buffet restaurant. The reason may be that tacky all you can eat buffets just aren't my thing. Does that make me a food snob?

As I have said before, I don't think of myself as a food snob. I love McDonald's and macaroni and cheese from the box. I even think Papa John's is good pizza. And after having dinner tonight with my parents at Hibachi Grill, I can say with all confidence that I am not a food snob but I do like food that is good.

When Dad first suggested that we go to Hibachi Grill for dinner, Mom didn't think I would be able to find anything to eat that was gluten free. I assured her that there would be something for me to eat since I can usually find something at any restaurant I go to even given my aversions to fish, mushrooms, raisins, and cauliflower. And I am usually okay with just mediocre food if it is cheap enough.

Hibachi Grill is in an older strip mall in Augusta. It is a large restaurant that was trying for an Asian feel in its decor. It succeeded - if you like tacky lacquered decorations mixed with standard industrial buffet equipment. But the corrugated boxes of fortune cookies stacked underneath the bug zapper really made the atmosphere along with the requisite fountain in the foyer. (Isn't it a health code violation to have a bug zapper above tables of diners?)

The actual buffets were full of a wide variety of food - most of which I could not eat since it was either breaded and fried or covered in some sort of sauce which looked like it contained soy sauce. (One of the main ingredients in soy sauce is wheat so it is a big no-no for a gluten free diet.) I did manage to find some rice, mashed potatoes, and some "premium" steak which turned out to be pot roast. The "steak" was fine. It was tender and while it didn't have much flavor it was tasty enough.

I began to look around the restaurant while Dad was still perusing the buffets while Mom and I were already seated. The other diners were from a large cross section of society. I leaned over to her and said "please don't make me come here again." She rolled her eyes and chuckled. Hmmmm, maybe I am not a food snob but I might just be a snob in general. :) (Don't judge me.)

After finishing my first plate, I went back up to see what else I could find. I found some french fries, a stuffed baked potato, sauteed green beans, and some pork loin. What I really wanted was the yeast rolls drenched in melted butter, but I was good and stuck to what was on my plate. The french fries turned out to be under cooked. It takes a lot for me to not eat french fries but after one bite I was not interested in eating another one. Not only were they undercooked but they were very cold and over salted. The stuffed baked potato was simply half of a half way done microwaved potato topped with cheese, bacon bits and scallions. It was not good. The green beans were a tad greasy but were still crisp and green so I enjoyed those. In my book, there is nothing worse than an overcooked vegetable. The pork loin had a decent flavor but it was over cooked so it was very tough.

Since we are less than two weeks away from out trip to Disney World, I have Disney dining on the brain. I have been researching about gluten free dining in the parks and resorts and know how careful Disney is with special dietary requests. So, midway through my tough pork loin I leaned over to my mom and said "if this was Disney World, the chef would have come out and walked me through the entire buffet and told me what I could eat and what I couldn't eat." I knew that was not going to happen at this restaurant so I didn't even mention my dietary restriction. But I can see now why having gluten free friendly restaurants is so important. It was very difficult to even know what I could eat. If I was a person who got sick from eating gluten I would not have even tried to eat at this restaurant or any other buffet. It was just too hard to know what to eat and that isn't even taking into consideration the threat of cross contamination of food items from utensils.

For dessert, I did find some tapioca pudding and some ice cream. It is hard to mess up opening up a tub and setting it out on a buffet so both the pudding and the ice cream were fine.

Dad seemed to enjoy his meal. Mom tolerated hers, as did I. The bill for three of us with two drinks was $38.11. Gluten free issues aside, I can see why this restaurant is popular - people like cheap food. But should people really have to sacrifice good food for cheap food? Does it really cost any more to cook food properly than to cook it improperly?

Adventures in Brownies - Take 3

Since I have been avoiding the grocery store lately, I am out of most of my snack foods and have been pantry surfing in between meals with no success. There is however that third box of gluten free brownies that needed to be made. So, I made them to see if they would satisfy my cravings for junk food.

The Betty Crocker Gluten Free Brownie Mix was simple to make - just add melted butter and eggs but no water. Most regular brownie mixes require that you add oil, eggs and water. I was confused with this but went with it. The batter ended up being more like a dough, similar to the Pamela's Products Chocolate Brownie Mix I previously made.

One thing I have noticed about gluten free flours is that they are very, very fine. So fine that when I poured the mix into the bowl you could see the sugar crystals in the brownie mix which is something you don't notice in regular brownie mixes. Being a curious person by nature, I really need Alton Brown to do a show on gluten free baking so I can understand the science behind all of this. I am not understanding the why and how of gluten free baked goods.

The results: These brownies were pretty good. They had a nice chocolate flavor and were fudgie and moist with no unpleasant aftertaste at all. Are they as good as regular brownies? No. Are they a pretty good substitute so I am not "only the kid at the party without cake"? Yes.

I did notice that if you rolled the brownie around on your tongue it was a bit grainy. But if you didn't roll it around on your tongue you don't notice it. So, I will refrain from rolling the brownie around on my tongue in the future.

Another thing I noticed was this brownie was a tad bit sweeter than a regular brownie. And although I don't typically like nuts in my brownies, I think that if you added some walnuts to this mix the sweetness might be cut a little and make a pretty good brownie.

All in all, I am pleased. In fact I am so pleased, I think I may go eat another brownie. :)

Movie and a Pizza???

One thing I have discovered on my gluten free journey so far is that eating gluten free is easier when I at my house and not having to orient my family that I am eating gluten free and I can't eat like I have for the last forty two years. The old saying holds true: you can't teach a old dog new tricks. (Not that I am calling my parents old.) ;)

While visiting my parents recently, Mom and I went to a late matinee showing of Letters to Juliet. (It was a good "chick flick" by the way.") As we left the theater about 6:15 p.m., Mom and I briefly discussed what to eat for dinner. We didn't make a decision, which was a good thing because when we walked in to the house Dad announced that he had ordered pizza for dinner. My reaction was not a happy reaction but more of a "what are you thinking? I can't eat pizza" reaction. Thankfully, I had been to the grocery store and happened to pick up a frozen gluten free pizza. Dinner was saved!!!!

So, I opened the freezer and turned on the oven to cook my Gluten Free & FABULOUS Pepperoni Pizza. Quite honestly, that is quite the name to live up to so I was hoping for something really good especially since it was $7.99 and only 8 inches.

I followed the directions exactly - heated the oven, removed the plastic and cardboard round, put the pizza directly on the oven rack, and waited the allotted cooking time. By this time, the pizza delivery guy had arrived and I was really craving some "real" pizza". Part of my brain said "just a little piece of pepperoni won't hurt" but the other part of my brain won out and I waited patiently for my gluten free pizza to finish cooking. But the pizza didn't really want to brown up in the middle and I was afraid it was going to burn so I pulled it out.

The results: It was okay. I'm not really that picky about my pizza - I think Papa John's is good, so I am certainly not a pizza snob. The Gluten Free & FABULOUS Pepperoni Pizza reminded me of a frozen pizza you eat in college when you have run out of money but with a thinner crust. Since it didn't really brown up in the middle of the pizza the center was a little gummy but it didn't have any aftertaste or strange texture. The pepperoni were good and there was more cheese than I expected.

All in all it was fine and I wasn't "only kid at the party without cake" but for $7.99 it could have been better. In the future, I will look for other brands of gluten free pizza or just make the crust myself when I HAVE to have pizza. I've seen frozen gluten free pizza crusts at the grocery store so I might try those but that also requires that I would need all of the other ingredients which might be a problem for my recent habit of avoiding the grocery store at all cost. Sad but true.

Mmmmmm, Brownies - Or Not???

I love brownies and am known for making fabulous brownies. The secret is the pan you use for baking them and blending at least two different kinds of chocolate for a smoother chocolate taste. But brownies are made with wheat flour which means they are not gluten free. :( There are however gluten free brownie mixes. Woohooo!!!!


My entire family had a Mother's Day Cook-Out at my sister's house to celebrate what a wonderful mother we have. I was in charge of the salad and dessert so I thought I would make my "world famous" brownie ice cream sandwiches. What could be better than sitting by the pool and eating brownies and ice cream without any utensils?


The day before the party, I made the regular brownies for the family but tried out two different gluten free mixes for me so I wouldn't be "the only kid at the party without cake". I hate being left out. :)

The first mix was Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Brownie Mix. It is readily available in the health food section of the grocery store and was between $5-$6. Sort of expensive but for an occasional treat it seems reasonable.


It was easy enough to make. You added the normal brownie mix ingredients: egg, warm water, melted butter. And like the Betty Crocker Gluten Free cake mix you had to add vanilla - which isn't typical in regular brownie mixes.

The results: They were moist but cakier than I like my brownies. At first bite, I thought "hmmmm, these are pretty good" but after I swallowed that bite the aftertaste started. It wasn't good. It was like having a chocolate chemical residue in the back of your mouth. And I wasn't the only one who thought this - both my Mom and Dad tried these and cringed at the taste.


The second mix I made was Pamela's Products Chocolate Brownie Mix. It was about a little less than the Bob's Red Mill mix and is also readily available.


You had to add an egg, water, and oil to the mix. There were several different versions on the back of this mix to make it fudgier or cakier or dairy free. I just went with the regular version. The brownie batter wasn't really a batter though - more like a dough that I had to spread out in the pan with a little bit of force. Normal brownie mix usually just spreads out on it's own- it was odd.


Also, this mix only made a pan of 9x9 instead of 9x13. So, it is a bit expensive.

The results: These were fudgie but also inedible. There was a grainy texture and also had this smell that reminded me of carob. (Remember when protein bars first came out and they used carob for the coating. I couldn't stand carob then and I can't stand it now.) I took one bite and spit it out. My Dad tried to eat this brownie and even heated it up in the microwave which usually solves most baked goods problems - it didn't help. We ended up all laughing about all of the faces we made.


As it turned out, I didn't get any of my brownie ice cream sandwiches at our Mother's Day Cook-Out because both brownie mixes weren't worth eating. I was "the only kid at the party without cake". In the end, this is what happened to both batches of brownies -


I haven't given up on having gluten free brownies though. At this very moment, there is a box of Betty Crocker Gluten Free Brownie Mix in my pantry just waiting to be made. Maybe the third time will be the charm. What can I say, I am an optimist. :)

Let Them Eat Cake!!

Cake!!!! I've always loved cake. I love to bake it and decorate it and eat it. Cake is what you eat when you are celebrating. I like all kinds of cake. Cake is good and something that doesn't fit into a gluten free diet all that easily.

Once I made the decision to "go gluten free", I thought about all the things I would have to give up and cake was on the list - or maybe not. Strolling down the grocery store aisle, I happened to find that Betty Crocker makes a gluten free cake mix. Wooohoo!!!! I never noticed it before but in my new gluten free state of mind I see it and my heart was filled with joy. Of course the cake mix is twice as much as a normal cake mix and only makes half as much as a normal cake mix but it is still cake and that is something to be happy about.
Once home, I happily get out the ingredients and mixed up my new found cake mix and waited until it came out of the oven. It was easy enough to make - like any other cake mix except that you had to add vanilla in addition to the butter, water and eggs. After it cooled, I frosted it with some chocolate frosting.

The Verdict: it was okay. It certainly looked like regular cake and was moist. I am sort of a cake snob since I am baker and come from a long line of excellent bakers in the family so I might be too harsh a critic though. It did have a slightly different taste to it that I couldn't place and was a little dense. I am guessing that has to do with using rice flour and potato starch instead of wheat flour. It wasn't dense like a pound cake but wasn't light and fluffy like a normal cake.

Normally, I would have snacked on the cake for a few days but after a couple pieces of this cake I wasn't all that interested in it any more and threw it out. This was my first adventure in a gluten free product and I was pleasantly surprised but a little disappointed. I was surprised that the cake was edible but was disappointed that it wasn't as good as regular cake. In my heart, I was hoping that I would be eating cake that was just as good as a regular box cake.

I happened to find the same cake mix at Big Lots the other day so I bought it to give it another try. As I have been eating more gluten free products, I have decided to not anticipate them to be like regular food and to judge them as what they are and not in comparison to gluten food because gluten free food will never be exactly like gluten food.

In hindsight, this cake was probably better than other mixes. And it is nice to have an alternative to being the only kid not having birthday cake at the party.


Next up - brownies!!!

Why Gluten-Free?

I've been lazy about going to the grocery store over the past few months. One of the joys of living alone is you can eat whatever and whenever you want. That means you don't have to have conventional meals at conventional times. Sometimes it was cheese and crackers for dinner and sometimes it was a bowl of buttered noodles for breakfast - and no one complains that there isn't meat and veggies or that you are eating lunch at 3 o'clock.

The problem with being lazy about grocery shopping is that you eventually run out of things to eat and have to resort to eating the staples in your pantry. In my case, that means I eventually eat rice and scrambled eggs for a few days and then I only grocery shop when I have run out of Diet Coke. (Don't judge me - sometimes it is nice to be irresponsible in a few areas of your life.)

During those periods of rice filled meals, I noticed that I didn't feel as bloated as I normally did and I liked it. After I would go the grocery store and start eating like I normally would (bread, pasta, crackers, etc...) I would feel bloated again. I especially noticed it after my trip to California where I ate all the good stuff you normally eat on vacation - pastries for breakfast, burgers for lunch and dessert at dinner. Let's just say that the seat belt on the plane ride home let me know just how bloated I was. It doesn't take being a genius to figure that there might be a connection between what I was eating and how I was feeling. So, I thought I would look into a gluten free diet.

What is gluten? Basically gluten is wheat, barley and rye. Sounds easy enough to eliminate, right? Wrong!!! Gluten is in a lot of prepared foods in the form of stabilizers, thickeners, and coloring. You also have to be careful about the ingredients in medications. There is also the question of whether the food has been processed in a plant that also processes wheat - like oats. So it isn't as easy as it sounds. And don't even get me started on what to order when you are traveling and want to go through a McDonald's drive-thru.

Stay tuned for my first adventure in gluten free baking.

I'm Back!!!

One of my New Years resolutions was to start posting again - so here I am!!! I have missed not writing but have been lazy about it. It is curious that it is so easy in life to just find something else to do to occupy your time and avoid something you actually like to do.

There are two things I am very excited about sharing with you. The first is a trip my Mom and I took to California on an Adventures by Disney trip. We went to Hollywood and Disneyland. It was a great trip and I can't wait to relieve all the special (and not so special) moments. The other thing is that I am trying to go Gluten-Free. After the California trip I decided it was time to see if I actually had an intolerance to gluten that was causing some of my digestion problems - so I am exploring the world of gluten-free. It isn't always easy but I think you will find some of my adventures in the special diet area of life humorous.

It's good to be back!!! Can't wait to start sharing my life with you again. :)