Monthly Archives: June 2012

Disneyland, California, USA

Posted by Glutenfreewheeler on June 23, 2012 1 comments

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Like most theme parks I’ve ever been too, Disneyland in Anaheim, California is on the outskirts of the city. So once you get there, you’re pretty much stuck and if you only have a day like we did, you’ll need all the time you can get on the inside. Unlike most theme parks in Australia, you are welcome to bring a picnic into Disneyland (though being gf is good reason to bring one anyway in Aus).

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The good news is that you don’t have to be organised enough to bring your own food – there are plenty of gluten free options at Disneyland. Go to ‘City Hall’ on your way in – they’re on the left after entry, and they can provide you with a ‘Disneyland Parks & Resorts Dietary Request Reference Sheet – Celiac Offerings’. I’m sure you could get one at the Adventure Park too.

The document recommends using your discretion to make an informed choice, though the preparation and handling that I witnessed was pretty good. The list includes all-American classics like gluten free hot dogs (from Coke Corner – they take about 15 minutes to make which is reassuring), gluten free hamburgers and sweet potato fries (from Hungry Bear Restaurant and the list says to request the fries are cooked in the dedicated fries only fryer), gluten free waffles and hash browns, sausages and bacon breakfast from the ‘Plaza Inn’ and suggested outlets for gluten free ice cream.

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There were lots of options at the ‘Rancho Del Zocalo’, including these chicken tortillas below which were made in a dedicated gluten free area. Hooray! No complaints then and we could get on with our (very long but enjoyable) day.

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On the non-food front I’d definitely recommend getting there as early as possible – it packs out by about midday and the queues are much longer. We got a lot of good tips from this site: http://touringplans.com/disneyland which has lots of information for making the most out of your visit, including updated queue times and suggested itineraries.

Our little one got herself lost at one point (though we could see her, she couldn’t see us) and she asked a group of concerned people ‘Can you see my Dad?’ (pointing to her cheeks), ‘He’s the one with all the prickles.’

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Buckwheat Pancake Mix

Posted by Glutenfreewheeler on June 13, 2012 None comments

If you tried to exist on pre-packaged gluten free food, your food bill would be stratospheric and your health compromised. There are a few particularly good ones though and this is one of them:

Orgran has been around forever and have an international distribution. These buckwheat pancakes are super dense and will keep your appetite at bay for hours. Expect to feel sated, not full. The mixture is very thick – I use almost double the liquid they suggest so they’re more crepe-like and can be rolled up.

Buckwheat pancakes can, of course, be made from scratch with buckwheat flour – if you’re really keen you can make buckwheat flour from buckwheat, I’m going to try that one weekend…

There’s been a lot of talk lately about how coeliacs are often deficient in magnesium – magnesium is linked with bone health, digestion & mental health – have a look at Glutenfree Works here if you need any encouragement to up your dose.

Buckwheat is a rich source, so are pumpkin seeds, almonds, spinach and chocolate (the good stuff with lots of cocoa, not mamby pamby milk chocolate).

Buckwheat pancakes are one of the easiest to make a meal of – eat them!

 


Red Velvet and Chocolate Heartache

Posted by Glutenfreewheeler on June 11, 2012 None comments

As a child, I imagined life as a grown up and cast myself as a round, blond short curly haired mother who pretty much just baked. Ah those heady pre-body image conditioning, pre-feminist understanding, pre-blond-turning-to-brown and pre-gluten-free days.

Still. Post-children, I was excited about baking with them and here they are and they love to bake! But the parameters are different. After my coeliac diagnosis I made a cavalier attempt to bake that Australian staple, anzac cookies – they crumbled to death. Then hugely ambitiously, I tried to make pasta with my juicer (which is amazing and does do this), but the stiff gluten free recipe had the machine labouring to the point of smoking – literally. Deeply traumatised, I was too scared to turn it on for a year but hooray, it still works.

So although my savoury stove-top cooking hasn’t changed much – a packet of gluten free pasta here, a different choice of stock there, I haven’t ventured into the oven so much.

I bought this wonderful book pre-gf, and was then excited to see that almost everything is gluten free. Author Harry Eastwood ‘didn’t want those with wheat intolerances to miss out on the fun’ bless her. Beyond that, Harry Eastwood has integrated ‘secret ingredients’ into her recipes – vegetables. Seriously; sponge cakes with 200g of grated potato, pistachio chocolate cake with 300g of grated courgette (that’s zucchini in Australian) and this show-stopper of a Red Velvet Cake with a bunch of almond meal and hazelnuts and 200g of grated beetroot – there’s a stack of nutrients in there!

It’s a beautiful book with sumptuous styling and gorgeous, poetic photography. Harry gives all the cakes characters and personalities (This cake is the food equivalent of watching your mother put her lipstick on for a night out).

This cake was made with the help of three children (jamming the nuts on the side was their favourite part), the Red Velvet Cake page in the book is now suitably splattered with beetroot bits.

If you’re looking for a book to give a newly diagnosed coeliac, skip the ‘gluten free cookbooks’ (I never use them), and get this little gem.