Cheenies

This is a fun snack-y product that you might enjoy trying.

I'm talking about Cheenies Cheese Bite Rolls. "One bite - that's all it takes...and you'll understand why Cheenies have been the favorite snack in Brazil for the last 100 years."

I got this box over at Harris Teeter. I don't know how available the product is, I had never seen it before.

They're small rolls made mostly of tapioca starch. Ingredients: Tapioca Starch, Imported Parmesan Cheese, Homogenized Whole Eggs, Vegetable Oil, Whole Milk, Water and Salt.

The box has about 20 rolls that are pre-frozen, unbaked. You just set them out on a cookie sheet and bake them about 30 minutes.

The come out of the oven piping hot! Crusty on the outside and soft on the inside. I think they are wonderful. MMM.

I recommend you try them out. They're so easy, and taste amazing. You can eat them with soup, as dinner rolls, or just a snack by themselves. I just had some for breakfast. A great, versatile little food!

What's to eat Underground?

Here in the Underground, life gets a little busy.  I saw someone put up a tweet the other day asking for ideas of GF things to eat that are "quick, easy and not Amy's".  I love Amy's.  I found some great prices on Amy's frozen dinners at Kroger this afternoon.  The Rice Mac'N'Cheese was 2.89 (the best price I've found in Raleigh), and the Rice Lasagna was 2/7.00 (3.50 each). 

That said, what else is there to eat?

Well, lots of things.  This weekend I had Singapore Noodles from a chinese restaurant (one of the few dishes without SOY SAUCE).  Corn Chips.  Yogurt.  Jello.  Fruit Smoothie.  The other day I had a Glutino Pizza Crust pizza.  Today I've got some bread in the machine for the upcoming week.

My little brother thinks a gluten free blog is a little bit silly.  Because he doesn't really feel like he goes out of his way to find GF things to eat in his life.  He said, "come on, just have your corn chips, grits, and eat plain other stuff like meat, vegetables, rice and potatoes."  You know, he's right.  There are times that I think to myself, there's no need to blog any of this stuff, it's so obvious.  

Ten GF things that are amazingly easy to find/make/eat:

1. Corn Chips (I dip in salsa, guacamole, plain greek yogurt, or hummus)
2. Rice. It only takes 20 minutes to cook rice.  Serve with butter, or Mrs Dash, or other seasoning.  Combine with any vegetables and it's a great side or light meal.  Put extra in the fridge for later.  Sometimes I'll eat plain rice with butter, even for breakfast.
3. Tuna Salad. Mix a can or pouch with real mayonnaise (check label to make sure it doesn't have modified food starch) and relish.  Spread tuna salad on GF bread for a sandwich, or onto gf rice crackers.  Nut Thins are awesome crackers for this.
4. Personal Pizza.  Use either a Glutino Pizza Crust* (see note below), piece of GF bread, half a GF French Roll or English Muffin from Trader Joe's, or your choice any other bread product.  Spoon spaghetti or pizza sauce onto bread or crust, sprinkle with shredded mozzarella cheese.  Bake in oven @ 400 until all cheese melts.  Broil about another minute, to make the cheese bubble, if desired.  Also easy to make in a toaster oven, or even a microwave (careful in the micro, though, it will prob. turn out mushier).
5. Fresh fruits and vegetables.  This week I had a bag of oranges that I was enjoying one a day.  Apples are very good anytime.  Celery and carrots.  Melon.  If you're not eating enough of these, go out and find a cool new vegetable/fruit cutting board and big knife.  Then you'll want to use it--and just from excitement you'll be bringing home all kinds of pretty new produce.  You can throw these into recipes too.  Have them both ways. 
6. Hummus.  Anything goes with hummus.  These days, they have all kinds of amazing flavors, such as:  roasted garlic, red pepper, basil, cilantro, white bean, etc.  I eat it with corn chips, baby carrots, any other veggie or chip.
7. Yogurt.  Just double check the ingredients to make sure they don't have modified food starch.  I think Breyers used to be OK, but now it isn't.  (anyone know?)  But I've been trying to move to the organic yogurts more and more, and lower sugar ones.  Most of the time, I've just been getting plain greek yogurt.  You can add any fruit, fresh or frozen (I esp. like fresh apple pieces, frozen raspberries or cherries).  Honey too, if you are into that.  It's wonderful stuff, and very good for you (lots of probiotics).
8. Soup (homemade).  I don't know anyone who can't get a carton of GF organic/low sodium broth, a bag of frozen vegetables, a chopped onion (also available frozen), a couple cut up potatoes, a can of tomatoes (and leftover meat, or a ham bone, etc).  Put everything into a big pot and cook for an hour or so.  Vary with whatever's in season or make with any variety of beans or lentils.
9. Salad (oh, yeah!) Any to-go salad or bag of greens will do.  Some ideas: add fresh grilled chicken, salmon or veggies--mushrooms, grape tomatoes, cucumber slices, julienne carrots, etc. (**Just watch out for the dressing.  Assume that all dressing is EVIL (GLUTEN) unless proven otherwise--esp. watch for Modified Food Starch.  Read the ingredients.  I usually enjoy Maple Grove Farms dressings). 
10. Any cut of meat, poultry or fish.  Seasoned any way you like, just without CARAMEL COLOR or MODIFIED FOOD STARCH or SOY SAUCE (also found in TERIYAKI).  Grilled, broiled, baked, etc. etc.  Of course!  So simple, yet so good.

There you have it. Mix and match any of them for a delicious meal.  It doesn't have to be hard.  Just leave the pre-made foods out of it.  Simplify.  It's easier than it sounds.

*Glutino Pizza Crusts.  A few years ago when I first tried these, I was very disappointed in them.  I felt that they came out very DRY from the oven.  They seemed flavorful enough (they have tons of sodium, so they must taste good), but just dry.  I hate dry foods...so I discovered this Underground Tip: Rinse the crust (both sides) in warm/hot water when you take it out of the freezer, for about a minute.  Then, turn the crust upside down and douse it in water, set it on your cookie sheet/pizza pan.  Soak like this for about 5 minutes, until the water seems absorbed.  No longer or it will be soggy.  Flip over, cover with sauce, cheese, toppings.  Bake until cheese melted all over (about 12-15 min) @ 400.  Tell me if this works for you!  It's really good to me.

GF Breakfast at the Motor Inn

When on a road trip, staying at any hotel or motel, this is an easy GF breakfast:

1. Take a cooler.
2. Load it up with waters, sodas, whatever drinks you like.
3. Add one or two yogurt cups, depending on your meals you are planning. (breakfast only = one cup.  Breakfast and lunch = 2 cups).
4. Before check-in, stop at a SHEETZ gas station.  Go to menu screen.  Order 2-pack hard boiled eggs.  Get one orange juice bottle, if needed.

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Keep in hotel room fridge overnight.  If fridge is unavailable, take gallon ziplock bags to the ice maker and fill one or two.  Add ice bags to cooler--voila  (and surprise)--you have made your own fridge.

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Wake up tomorrow, and enjoy: Yogurt, 2 eggs, orange juice, bad hotel coffee, and a feeling of complete GF independence and joy.

Underground tip:  Actually, you can put anything you want in your cooler (but you already knew that).  These are just some ideas that work well for me.  When I found out I could get hard-boiled eggs at a gas station I was awestruck.  WAY better for you than a candy bar, overall!

Bagel, please!

I haven't had a chance to write much lately, but I will now report the thing I'm most excited about this week: Whole Foods in Cary has started carrying Glutino PLAIN Bagels again! I haven't been able to find these for years, and I went yesterday and found them, on sale, for 5.39 for the 5-pack! (or was it 5.69?). No matter.

What is great, is that a plain bagel is just that--PLAIN. They have been stocking Glutino Cinnimon Raisin Bagels, but there are some people who like fruit in their baked goods, and then there are the rest of us.

I am so excited about this I can't even put it into words.

The size and texture of these bagels are amazing. Honestly, I feel like the Glutino bagels are to Kinnickinick's bagels, what Panera Bagels are to Lender's. I just love 'em, and am so glad they are back! I was so excited, I went out and bought a toaster!

So you can either have a bagel with butter or cream cheese, of any savory or sweet flavor. Everybody wins. This is the magic of a plain bagel. You just can't put a lox on a raisin bagel! You just can't turn a raisin bagel into a bagel-pizza!

So, this week, it's kudos to the freezer guy at WF in Cary for re-stocking this magical product!

Going Bananas

I mentioned that I used to drive 35,000 miles/yr the last couple years. Fortunately, I don't have to do that anymore. But I am on the road this week. Every evening this week I have rehearsal about 1-1/4 hour away from home. This is a challenge to eat well because I get home from job #1 and have about an hour to eat/pack/email/etc. then straight out the door, onto the highway, to job #2.

Leave home at 7:30, get home from job #1 at 4:30, leave for job #2 at 5:30, return home at 11:20.

Then write a blog.

So, how do you I eat gluten-free on the go?
Lunch, at job #1 (microwave available at lunchtime):

• Frozen lentil stew (from crock pot that I made last week)
• Frozen green beans
• Yogurt
• Banana

Dinner(?) between #1 and #2:

• Finish leftover tomato basil pasta
• Apple
• Banana Bread (See recipe and photo)

But I wasn't that hungry, because it was only 4:30. So, road snacks to fill in the gap:

• One slice banana bread in a ziplock
• bag of Ener-G gluten free pretzels
• one yogurt
• Fruit leather
  
• Soynuts

I only ended up eating the fruit leather, banana bread and yogurt. but I had some choices!

So that worked out for eating today. I will be having an overnight later this week and will talk about some things I take in a cooler.

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Here's my recipe for Banana Bread, which is scrumptous, and easy.

• 2 cups Flour (1 cup Rice, 1/2 cup Corn, 1/2 cup Sorgham)
• 1 tsp Xantham Gum
• 1-1/2 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp Nutmeg

Blend together the above. In another bowl:

• 2 Eggs
• 1-1/2 cups Mashed Bananas (4 or 5)
• 3/4 cup Sugar
• 1/3 cup Cooking Oil

Spray a 9" loaf pan with Pam. Mix the two bowls together. Fold into loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour, or until knife comes out clean.

Let me know what you think!