Calling all Vegans!

The logical step for many people who are vegetarians is to take the next leap and become vegan, right? But remember when you went GF and wondered, “How will I get pizza, cookies, bread, etc.?” It was scary. Well, going from vegetarian to vegan is the same thing. “What about pizza, what about cheese,” we ask.

Southwest vegan pizza with black bean paste

Well, these days the answers are a lot easier than they were years ago. And I recently had the chance to sample the new vegan pizza at Gluten Free Creations that would make the transition even easier. Using Daiya cheese and vegan ingredients for the crusts, they’ve managed to make a pizza that is satisfying and vegan, finally.

There are a few varieties (along with just the crusts) that are quite good. I suggest the Southwest pizza with black beans or the pesto/spinach/artichoke pizza. The crust is crispy and just right for pizza toppings. It doesn’t carry a lot of flavor on its own, which makes it the perfect vehicle for any toppings you want. At the time I tried the pizzas, there was an issue with canned mushrooms, which is one of my pet peeves, but just go without mushrooms and you’re good to go (unless you like them, then have a blast). All in all, if I were a vegan, this would be a wonderful treat. Not on the cheap side, these are treats and not something we could do every day, but most GF products are costly, right? Buy a few and top them with your own special toppings.

As I’ve blogged before, I’m a big fan of the Italian GF crusts from this bakery and always have them in my freezer for those nights I have no creativity or energy to cook. Bake with just olive oil and spices and dip in marinara, or top with cheese and garlic, or even make a sandwich with it. The same can be done with the vegan crusts. Go nuts and be creative, or just heat them up and dip.

And once again, I have to put a plug in for the chocolate donuts there, which are my favorites. I get them when I have a killer chocolate craving. Chocolate donuts with chocolate frosting and chocolate chips. Phew, they are intensely chocolate and just what I need sometimes. What about you?

(I am remiss in this post since I spent a wonderful morning at Gluten Free Creations not long ago and I promised to blog about it. Well, it’s been too long and I got too busy. Sorry for the delay in the post.)

Wonderful Donut Discovery

I’m not sure if these are new, but they are certainly new to me. While shopping at Sprouts, Daughter and I came upon frozen donuts in the freezer case. Kinnikinnick brand, and very tasty.

There were vanilla glazed, chocolate glazed, cinnamon and maple glazed. I bought the cinnamon and took them home. Wonderful! After thawing them out for about 30 minutes, I was in heaven. It was just as I remember old-fashioned cake donuts…chewy, dense and ready to dip in a cup of coffee. Too bad it was after dinner. But in a few days I’ll be taking advantage of that.

I highly recommend them.

Enjoy!

What’s for breakfast?

Today, let’s talk about pre-made breakfast items. There aren’t that many to choose from, since most traditional breakfast items are made with wheat. And most GF breakfast items fall way short of the mark, as far as I’m concerned. I haven’t had a good GF waffle yet, but it’s not that easy to do. Trader Joe’s sells a pretty decent GF pancake in the frozen section that you can just pop in the toaster and eat. It’s the closest to a real pancake you’ll find, although I wouldn’t want to eat it every day. Of course, there is always that box of Rice Chex cereal in the cabinet (see post below).

But today, we’re talking bread items. If you happen to live in the Phoenix area, you’re quite lucky these days. That’s because a small bakery, Gluten Free Creations, has opened in town. Catering to those with food allergies, this little bakery tucked behind a Midas Muffler shop bakes up some pretty decent GF items. Most are also CF, DF and more, so check it out if you can.

Although not everything hits the mark, there are quite a few items that justify the big price tags they carry. The first are the GF donuts. The best two, in my opinion, are the maple-glazed donut (4/$5.95) and the insane chocolate donut (4/$6.95). These are both so close to real donuts that I’ve even fooled people with them. That’s amazing considering most GF baked goods can only be used as doorstops. But the maple-glazed donut is a soft, cake-like donut with a yummy glaze on top. I keep a few in the freezer and just defrost when I want a donut with my coffee in the morning, or just a late-night snack.

The insane chocolate donut is just that. It’s a chocolate donut, covered in chocolate icing with chocolate chips on top. Half a donut is usually all I can do, but I sure can do it. It reminds me of those great chocolate muffins I used to be able to eat. These can also be frozen until you need them. I freeze them in individual bags, making it easy to pull one out quickly.

Do these look great or what? I took these out of the freezer for the photo and it took all my willpower not to eat them. If you want a great GF treat while meeting friends for coffee, take along one of these and you won’t feel deprived at all as everyone else dives into coffee cake and muffins.

The second item, also from Gluten Free Creations, is a loaf of bread. Yes, I know, GF bread stinks unless you make it yourself. Well, I have neither the time or desire to stay at home baking bread. I never did before, and I just can’t now. My only attempt was a complete failure. It’s like a science experiment with all the different flours, xanthan gum, baking soda, etc. I never was very good at science. I’ve also tried many of the GF bread options out there. Brown rice bread, tapioca bread, brown rice with fruit juice, etc. They could all be better served as a doorstop, being dense, inedible blocks.

Ener-G makes the brown rice bread and a tapioca bread. Neither is very edible. The tapioca was the only bread I could tolerate when I began the GF diet. Now, there is no way I would touch it. I suggest trying GF Creations multi-grain bread ($8.95). It’s pricey, but a luxury in my eyes. I usually freeze a few pieces each in separate bags, that way toast is not a problem. Take the bread straight from the freezer and toast, you just have to toast it twice–once to thaw, once to toast. I like peanut butter or butter and marmalade. But the sandwich possibilities are endless. The bakery also makes a white sandwich bread, but this multi-grain has so much more texture and taste.

Yummy. Anyone remember the fluffernutter? Well, it’s now possible with this bread. I’ll post a photo of the next one I eat, if I can get it from my daughter in time.

I would suggest if you live in the area, give the bakery a try. They usually have a few items out to taste, giving you a better idea of what you like. I’m not a big fan of the cookies or cupcakes, they have a funny taste to me. But others have just raved about them. I love the hamburger bun, which is more like a good sandwich roll. The only way to know what you like is to give it a try. You can even buy just one of something, in most cases, if you want to try it without buying a whole pack.

If you’re not in the Phoenix area, I believe the bakery ships items out of state. And no, I don’t get any kind of commission from the store. I’m just a satisfied customer with a craving for something good for breakfast.

Enjoy.