Gluten Free Banana Bread Using Better Batter

I've been on a total banana kick lately...which is funny as several years ago I used to hate bananas. But now, they are the cream cheese to my bagel <3. I also recently picked up some Better Batter flour mix at Gluten Free Country Store (this is an uncompensated review, btw) that I've been itching to use. So what better than to combine the two and make banana bread!!!

I found the recipe using Pinterest (umm...hello, love that site). The original recipe can be found here.

The results didn't disappoint!!

Gluten Free Banana Bread

 (pics are from my iPhone, so sorry if they are shitastic)

1 stick of butter (1/2 cup), softened (sub dairy free if necessary)

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

4 large overripe, mashed bananas

2 cups Better Batter Flour Mix

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine butter and sugar until creamy. Add mashed bananas, eggs, and vanilla. Beat until well combined.

In a separate bowl, combine GF flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Add the dry mixture to the wet mixture and stir until combined. Pour into a greased bread pan.

Bake for 55 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool before removing from pan.

(again...iPhone pic. My apologies)

I can't vouch for what non-GF banana bread tastes like (see: aforementioned hatred of bananas), but to me, I can't tell this bread is gluten free! It is dense, but not spongy. It's moist, but not mushy. It has just the right amount of sweetness. The crust is the best part: a little crunchy, a little chewy. This bread is so delicious, I will definitely be making it again! And again. And again.

So far I love Better Batter's flour mix..it is a cup-for-cup substitute that stands up in recipes really well. If you haven't browsed their website yet, check out their recipe archive. So many good recipes, it leaves my head spinning!!

If you live in Arizona, the ONLY place I have been able to find Better Batter products is at Gluten Free Country Store! Check them out ASAP! Love them!

Gluten Free/Dairy Free Check In -- Week 4 & 5

We might have hit a breakthrough. It hasn't been easy though.

Last week was hard. On top of being fussy, Ben started to really fight me at feedings. He would latch, unlatch, arch his back away from me, squirm, cry, sometimes scream...it was exhausting and truly baffling. I was at a month being dairy free--which originally seemed like the answer! But here I was, my baby was sleeping less and was now apparently trying to launch himself away from me while screaming during feedings. And to top it all off, the eczema on his legs was flaring up. We took him in to the doctor's office because I just didn't know what direction I should take. Continue dairy free? Test it? Find out if it's a different food? He also started fighting taking a bottle like a champ. We switched him to soy formula which he took to fine at first (he gets formula in the few instances I'm away from him). Then he would have nothing to do with it. So was soy a problem? But he won't take the hypoallergenic (read: $$$$$) formula either. Is he just being opinionated and picky?

As you can see, my head was spinning so fast and I didn't know what to do. Within the first 5 minutes of being with the doctor he said, "Yep, he has reflux!!" He wrote us a prescription for Zantac that really seems to be helping a lot. He told me to wait a week and then try to start challenging the dairy and see if Ben has a reaction. He said to just start eating dairy as I normally would, but to be honest, I am TOTALLY chicken to just jump back in. I'm afraid I'm going to eat something cheesy and delicious then follow it up with a big ol' bowl of chocolate ice cream, then all of the sudden at 3 am Ben is going to unlatch, look up at me with his red eyes, sprout horns, and before I have a chance to protect myself, he'll just eat my head right off. I'm baby steppin'. Dunking my little pinky toe back into the dairy pool, if you will. I had some ranch dressing the other day (I KNOW, RIGHT?!?!). Then allowed myself a chocolate pudding cup a while later. Yesterday I had the same, but I threw some white cheddar cheetos in the mix. So far, Ben has been an angel. Last night he even slept 7 1/2 hours.....STRAIGHT. I don't anticipate this happening again, however; I feel like babies like to giveth and then taketh away and laugh in your face while you're crying from sleep deprivation.

Deep down in my heart, though, I'm secretly hopeful that the reflux has been the problem all along and I can go back to my life wherein I drowned myself in cheese, and ice cream, and chocolate cupcakes. Also, my birthday is about a week away and I would really like to eat an entire gluten free chocolate cake (with chocolate frosting) all by myself and not suffer the wrath of demon-dairy baby.

This week I finally made my first solo outing with the baby...and where did I go? Gluten Free Country Store, of course!!! It had been waaaaay too long since I'd be there, and boy have I been missing out! They have so much GOOD stuff! And a ton of things I haven't tried yet! I was sad though because without knowing whether or not I am staying dairy free, I had to turn down a lot of really good looking food! I'll definitely be making another stop if I get to enjoy dairy again. But I did get Better Batter flour mix to try! And also some Enjoy Life dairy free chocolate chips. And some dairy free/soy free butter. So do I see some chocolate chip cookies in my future? Hmmm....maybe!

Also....Happy Earth Day!!!

[image credit]

This year, in our house, we are trying to lessen our waste amd reduce our carbon footprint by starting to cloth diaper (about 3/4 of the time, at least at first). So we're going green and saving some green at the same time! Hooray!

Alright, well I'm off to take care of the baby...what's that? You'd like to see some super adorable pictures of him?

Okay!

Dang, I make cute babies. :)

Glutenfreeda’s Frozen Burritos

I heard about these gluten free frozen burritos from Glutenfreeda a while back on Twitter. I knew they were going to be in Sprouts, but I could never find any. Finally, I found the Vegetarian Bean & Cheese and the Breakfast Burrito at the Sprouts in South Chandler, AZ. Not long after this amazing discovery, I found out they were also being carried at Gluten Free Country Store, as well as the Chicken & Cheese burrito.

The first burrito I tried, and my favorite, was the Vegetarian Bean & Cheese burrito. I’m sorry I don’t remember how much I paid for each exactly, but I think it was around $3.

Along with beans and cheese, this burrito also includes organic corn and rice, which was a lovely surprise! I really enjoyed both of those ingredients in the burrito. It helped make it a little more substantial as a meal.

The burrito itself doesn’t photograph well, but I know that I am always curious about the look of foods I haven’t tried. Texture is everything! So here it is, fresh from the microwave:

These are very simple to make: cut off one end of the package and microwave on one side for 1 minute, then flip to the other side for another minute (give or take depending on your microwave). Then fight with the package to get the burrito to slide out and on to your plate (it likes to stick). Or I guess you could probably grab some scissors and cut the package. It’s almost embarrassing that I didn’t think of that solution until now. Ha.

Texture-wise these are awesome. The tortilla is unlike any other gluten free tortilla I’ve had. It is very soft and not unlike it’s wheat-y predecessor. Flavor-wise, this burrito was good. I liked it, however, I did feel it was a little bland. Nothing a little salsa and sour cream couldn’t fix though!

I tried the Chicken and Cheese flavor and I liked it. Though the chicken wasn’t really overly noticeable. The breakfast burrito—well, I was not a fan whatsoever. I recommend skipping that one unless you’re one who needs to learn firsthand from your mistakes. :)

I love to have several of these in my freezer for something quick to grab to take for lunch or for nights where I just can bare the thought of cooking anything.

Glutenfreeda definitely accomplished something wonderful when they created these gluten free burritos!

Pamela’s Gluten Free Mini Cheesecakes

These cheesecakes are something that I had no idea even existed. So imagine my surprise and delight when I found them at Gluten Free Country Store!

Pamela’s makes these mini cheesecakes in three different flavors: Original, White Chocolate Raspberry, and Zesty Lemon. Each sell for $4.99. I am a big fan of anything lemon flavored so I decided to give it a try first.

I could barely wait to get through my dinner before I wanted to tear into this. I shared with my husband because I feel the size is a little too big for one person.

This cheesecake was fantastic. There was absolutely nothing wrong that I could find. It was rich, thick, creamy, and flavorful. The lemon was very prominent, but not overpowering. The crust is made from gingerbread, which I was slightly concerned about beforehand. I am not a gingerbread fan. However, when you are eating it, you can’t really taste it. There was probably only a few times that you could really taste the bite of the gingerbread. But for a non-gingerbread loving gal such as myself, it wasn’t terrible at all.

I really loved this cheesecake and will definitely be buying it, and the other 2 flavors, in the future!

Conte’s Gluten Free Cheese Ravioli

I have been silently pining for Conte’s gluten free cheese ravioli for a while. I found them on the internet probably close to 2 years ago. I tried to order them online, but quickly aborted that mission when I found out that shipping would be more than I make in year. I refused to EVER pay more for shipping than the actual product, and so, I lived without ravioli for 2 loooong years.

If you asked me what I missed most since being gluten free, ravioli would have be right at the top of that list. It’s one of those things that you just can’t make yourself without it being a HUGE production. Rolling my own pasta dough and stuffing it myself? No thanks. I was not interested in that at all.

That brings us the the present. The present is where I think I peed myself a little when I found Conte’s gluten free cheese ravioli in the freezer at Gluten Free Country Store. I was so excited. I think I skipped over to it, but I’ve sworn Gary to secrecy as to that embarrassing act.

…

Wait. Ah, whatever, we’re friends, right?

This pasta could not be any easier to make. You take it straight from the freezer and drop it into simmering water. Let it cook for about 8 minutes or until done.

Top with your favorite pasta sauce. We used Newman’s Own Roasted Garlic pasta sauce. Deeee-lish.

I really liked these ravioli’s. They were a little pricey ($8.99 and I think there were 12 good sized ravioli’s in the bag) but after waiting 2 years and crying over shipping prices, I was more than happy to pay the price. My only real complaint? I thought the texture of the pasta was kind of gummy. I’m not sure if I cooked it right though. I’ll have to go for round 2 to see if I get different results.

Have you tried these? What was your experience with them?

Udi’s Gluten Free Bread

Stop what you're doing. Now, go throw away all those gluten free bread mixes in your cabinet. Shred all those recipes you've printed from the internet for gluten free bread. Dig into the depth of your freezer and banish those frozen loaves to the garbage can.

I have found the end-all, be-all of gluten free bread. Udi's has created a product that will change the way you think about gluten free bread and will keep you coming back for more. Forever.

First of all, I have to give a big shout out and HUGE thank you to Gluten Free Steve for introducing me to the miracle that is Udi's gluten free bread. Thanks Steve, for spreading the word to the gluten free community about this spectacular product!

If you live in Arizona, I have fantastic news for you. Sprouts is now carrying Udi's gluten free bread in their stores!!! I have been stalking 3 different locations since the announcement was made by @udisglutenfree on Twitter on December 22nd. And today, a seemingly unassuming day, turned into the happiest day of my life. Today, I found the bread in the freezer section at Sprouts, and to top things off, it was on sale, a mere $4.49 a loaf (which is cheap for GF bread).

Udi's gluten free bread is sold frozen at Sprouts and can be thawed at room temperature. Once thawed, it is amazingly shelf stable. No refridgeration needed. You could refridgerate if you wanted to, but you won't have to. This won't last long enough in your house. But if you're skeptical about how fast you'll devour this bread, I'll ease your worries by saying you could easily leave this on your counter, fully defrosted, for 2 weeks and it'll still be soft and delicious (and not moldy) on day 14.

When your loaf first thaws, I guarantee you'll be amazed by how soft the loaf is. You'll pick up the package and squeeze--and the bread will actually give, much like those, ahem, mainstream wheaty breads. I've never known a gluten free bread to not feel like a brick. Then, you'll open the package and grab a couple of slices. The texture will blow you away! Light, airy, little holes all over!

But then, and here's the kicker. No really, you won't believe this. This is practically unheard of when it comes to gluten free bread.

You won't toast this bread. You will bypass your toaster all together. Sorry little guy, you won't be needed as much anymore.

You will go straight for the mayo and mustard, or for the peanut butter and jelly. And you know what? You'll take a bite of your finished sandwich and you will die. DIE. Because can you remember the last time you had untoasted bread? The last time you had a gluten free grilled cheese sandwich that didn't taste and feel like your Kraft cheese slices were stuck between two sponges? The last time you had just plain ol' toast with jelly in the morning? The last time you had a BLT? (*swoon*). No, you probably can't remember, and neither could I.

But Udi's has changed this gal's gluten free life. And it could change yours too!

If you're in Arizona, make it a priority to hit up a Sprouts and pick up a loaf or two. Or, if you live elsewhere, visit the Udi's website and see about ordering it online (p.s. their muffins are magnificent too). You could also talk to them on Twitter at @udisglutenfree and see if they are carried anywhere close to you. Heather at Udi's is incredibly helpful and friendly, so don't be afraid to say hello!

Oh, and WHEN you try this bread, let me know what you think! I've never been this excited about a gluten free product ever.

**** Updated to Add:

Gluten Free Country Store in Gilbert, AZ is also carrying Udi's products!!! AND they are carrying more products than Sprouts!

They have Udi's gluten free whole grain bread, blueberry muffins, lemon streusel muffins (which are amazing), and their pizza crusts (which I have heard people RAVE about)! So, if you want more selection go see the great folks at Gluten Free Country Store!

Gluten Free Country Store in Gilbert, AZ -- Review!!!

I came. I saw. I freaked out. I shopped till I dropped.





As I mentioned before, Gluten Free Country Store is now open in Gilbert, AZ. The gluties of the world rejoice!!

I went out to Gluten Free Country Store about a week ago and it did not disappoint! In fact, it FAR surpassed my hopes and dreams and aspirations for a gluten free store in our area!

They have a HUGE selection of Mixes From The Heartland (read me singing their praises here). It is amazing. I wandered around just wondering HOW I was going to get out of there without buying their ENTIRE inventory!

They also sell a lot of my favorite products by Kinnickinnick and Glutino, as well as other fantastic GF products! I was also chatting with the owners about even more products they are looking to sell in their store. I was pretty much bursting (BURSTING!) at the seams with excitement! All my favorite foods! Under one roof!

But, my absolute favorite part of this new store? The staff. Fantastic, wonderful, friendly, informative people. The entire store is family owned and operated. They all eat gluten free and have tried an extensive amount of the products they carry. Ask them for suggestions, and they can tell you, from experience, what they think is best. They understand the gluten free diet and how frustrating (!) and liberating it can be all at the same time. In short...they get you.

If you live in Arizona, you have got to check this out!

Have you been there? What do you think?

Gluten Free Country Store in Gilbert, AZ -- Official Opening Date!

As promised, I have the newest information on the opening of Gluten Free Country Store in Gilbert, AZ!! And this time, it's GOOD NEWS!!

The official opening date is next Tuesday, December 8th!!! Let me know what you think after you go!! It's on the top of my priority list to check out!

Here's all their information:

Gluten Free Country Store
3345 S Val Vista Dr, Suite 101 (202 Santan freeway and Val Vista)
Gilbert, AZ 85297

480-889-9932
Email: glutenfreecountrystore@yahoo.com

Don't forget to help spread the word!!

***Updated 1/4 to add:
Their hours are:

Sunday - Closed
Monday - Closed
Tuesday - 10 to 6
Wednesday - 10 to 6
Thursday - 10 to 8
Friday - 10 to 6
Saturday - 10 to 6

Gluten Free Country Store Opening in Gilbert, AZ -- UPDATE

I have the latest, up-to-the-minute news for you on the opening on Gluten Free Country Store in Gilbert, AZ.

I have been informed as of tonight that, unfortunately, the store will not be able to open its doors to the public on November 17th as previously stated. I'm sure you all can understand what goes into the opening of a store like this, and all the channels and approvals you must go through before you can start delighting the masses with your plethora of gluten free goodies.

As of right now, I do not have an open date. But, just as I've jumped on my computer tonight to tell you this information, you can bet that I will be updating you with the opening information within minutes of hearing it. I know you all are just as excited as I am to get your foot in the door at Gluten Free Country Store! I can assure you that your interest and excitement is very much appreciated by the owners of the store; they are equally as anxious to open and meet everyone!

For all you Glass-Is-Half-Full folks (because I always like to balance the negative with the positive), the good news is this: You have more time to clean out your trunk to make room for all the stocking up on delicious gluten free food you'll be doing as soon as this store does open! (For those of you that have seen my car, you know what a dire situation my trunk is in. I need to get crackin').

In case you missed it, here is all their information:

Gluten Free Country Store
3345 S Val Vista Dr, Suite 101 (202 Santan Freeway and Val Vista)
Gilbert, AZ 85297
480-889-9932
Email: glutenfreecountrystore@yahoo.com

In the meantime, while you're waiting, don't forget to tell all your friends and family about this great new store coming to our community!


(P.S. Have you entered my giveaway yet?? Betty Crocker GF Fruit snacks and prize pack! Last day to enter is Tuesday, November 17th!)