Gluten Free Illawarra - shopping in bulk to save

I love shopping at Warilla Grove. It has most things you want and you don't have trouble with parking or moving from one end of a huge shopping center to the other. Another reason I love it is because there is a huge greengrocers with deli, fruit juice bar and cooking needs.

Since moving to a gluten-free diet the price factor has hit home, especially when my freelance photography and web design work has dried up and I've been living on very little money. It makes you more cautious about buying and searching for the best prices.

At Mitchell's Fruit for Less I noticed there are bulk quantities of Polenta (corn meal) and Almond meal.

At Woolworths it is $33/kg in small bags ranging from 110g to 250g. Mitchell's Fruit for Less sels 1KG of Almond Meal for $13.99. That's a BIG saving.
There are many recipes where Almond Meal can replace other flours. It is widely used in muffins, crumble, cheesecake bases, friands, biscuits, cakes and pancakes. Mmm.. pancakes.

I've tried buckwheat pancakes but now to try out a new recipe I found today.
The lesson is learned is that the more uses you can find for an ingredient the more motivation to buy it in bulk and save yourself money over time. The one thing I have heard about Almond Meal is that when making macaroons don't freeze Almond Meal because you'll lose the 'feet' or frilly part that is so attractive. 

Ingredients:

• 1 cup almond flour
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup water (for puffier pancakes, you can use sparkling water)
• 2 T oil
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 T sweetener

Preparation:

Mix ingredients together and cook as you would other pancakes. I like to use a nonstick pan with a little oil. The only real difference is that they won't "bubble" on top the same way as regular pancakes. Flip them when the underside is brown.

Serve with sugar-free maple syrup, Easy Three Berry Syrup, strawberry topping, or other low carb topping.

Yield: Six 4-inch pancakes

Nutritional Information: Each pancake has 1 gram effective carbohydrate, plus 2 grams of fiber, 6 grams of protein, and 155 calories.

References:
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/products/p/almondmeal.htm
http://lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/breakfast1/r/lowcarbpancakes.htm

How to cook Polenta the tradiitonal Italian way

As a lead up to the Tutti in Piazza, Italian Day in Wollongong mall I have been making Italian recipes and one which I have wanted to learn is Fried Polenta.I did a search on Google and found this series which I love and hope you do as well.
Polenta is corn flour and is gluten-free.

Gluten Free Products: Simply Wize Crusty Bread

I just received an email from Wize foods about their new crusty bread mix. Very soon I will be receiving a sample of their Crusty Bread Mix which I am really looking forward to.  They also have a Bread Stick mix which I am really excited about as I love to make antipasto or mezze platters and have been missing nice crusty white bread for the platter.

Simply Wize Crusty Bread Mix produces bread of excellent quality, flavour and appearance, and is 100% gluten free. Made from the finest blend of baking ingredients, this bread mix has the same texture as conventional dough, and the same deliciouse taste.

After visiting the website I am getting hungry for some crusty gluten-free bread. There is a helpful
video showing how to make the bread and information about Stockists and Distributors.







I also found out a that  Simply Wize Brand is a major Sponsor, alongside Coles Supermarket, of The Ceoliac Society’s upcoming Gluten Free Expo to be held in Sydney on Friday the 6^th and Saturday the 7^th of August.
Definitely something to put in my  Google Calendar.