Be Free For Me Blog

I love Thanksgiving. The turkey, the mashed potatoes, sweet butternut squash, gluten-free stuffing, cranberry sauce and more. But I must admit…  as I am enjoying my feast, I am already secretly concocting and contriving the “Feast of the Day After”… as I like it to be called.

Yes. I know. Some people refer to this meal the day after as “leftovers”  – a word with such a negative vibe. But not to me… Instead the stacked containers in my fridge full of my cleverly planned extra foods are full of promise and potential.

Move over Black Friday… this day should be called the “Feast of the Day After”!

But sometimes my mind goes blank on recipes ideas. That’s why I was more than thrilled when I discovered all the fab-u-lious “Feast of the Day After” recipes that are being featured on the Pacific Foods website. I love that the recipes can be sorted by allergen or special dietary requirements (there are tons of gluten-free recipes). Some of them include Asparagus Risotto (made with Organic Chicken Broth), Rustic Creamy Mushroom and Vegetable Soup (made with Organic Vegetable Broth), Pumpkin Spice Soup (made with Organic Free range Chicken Broth) and Parmesan Delicata Squash Soup (made with Chicken Simply Stock).

And if you think that Pacific Foods is just about broths, stocks and soups, you need to check out their website and see all themagnificent gluten-free products that Pacific Foods offers! Some of my favorites for Thanksgiving, and the “Feast of the Day After” include, Cranberry Sauce,  Mushroom Gravy and Organic Pumpkin Puree. And did you know that Pacific Foods has a gluten-free condensed Cream of Chicken Soup?? Yup… Perfect for casseroles and more!

I also love that Pacific Food’s products contain no preservatives, and the ingredients are things that you can pronounce, and are all natural or organic. Some good stuff.  Their Tetra packaging also makes the products shelf staple – so no refrigeration is needed (until opened, of course).  In a nutshell? Pacfic Foods is just natural and simple goodness.

All of these simply good reasons are why I am so excited that Pacific Natural Foods is the sponsor of this Win-It-Wednesday on BeFreeForMe.com.

Two winners will each receive a prize pack containing a variety of Pacific Natural Foods . One (1) of the winners will be randomlyselected from all comments / entries received before Tuesday, December 3, 2013 at 11:59 PM (EST), and one(1) more winners will be selected from all comments / entries received between Wednesday, December 4, 2013 at 12:00 AM (EST) and Tuesday, December 10, 2013 at 11:59 PM (EST).

How Can You Win?

Easy!

Reply to this blog and tell us which of the Pacific Natural Food Product looks the best to you – and make sure to sort by the allergen(s) that you are concerned with! (Me? The Rosemary Potato Chowder knocks this New England gal’s socks off… and I love my chowda! And second runner-up is the condensed Cream of Chicken Soup… perfect for casseroles!)

Good luck, be thankful, love those leftovers, and …. as always….

Be Free!

With Thanksgiving next week, many of us our now putting our nose to the grindstone and hashing out exactly what our gluten-free menu will be for the Big Day.

And if your menu doesn’t  include Gluten-Free Stuffing, you need to check out this video, see how easy it is, and put it on your menu… pronto!

Now you can have your gluten-free feast with stuffing too!

Enjoy! Want to print out the recipe? Check out this link from BeFreeForMe.com’s Recipe Section.

(P.S. Make sure you make extra stuffing for Thanksgiving Sandwiches… Gluten-free bread, turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing and mayo…  for next day leftovers! Yum.)

The holidays are almost here, and so are the dinner parties, cocktail parties and get-togethers.

And sometimes it’s hard to find good gluten-free ideas for appetizers and finger-foods. But after I found these two new Goldbaum products, the Quinoa Crisps and Flatbread Crisps, my mind got reeling with tons of great appetizer ideas that are perfect for both the gluten-free and the non-gluten-free folks.

The quinoa crisps are perfect for dipping, dunking and devouring… one single crisp at a time. These bite sized delicate and delicious multigrain crisps are gluten, preservative, MSG, Trans-fat and additive free. They are also non-GMO, kosher and have only 100 calories per serving. The flavors are fantastic too, and lend themselves well to finger foods. Try the Sea Salt flavor with a tangy tapenade like this Allergen-Free Olive Tapanade; the Onion & Garlic flavor with a Veggie Cream Cheese Dip, and the Barbeque flavor on the side of barbeque buffalo wings, and blue cheese dip. Watch out though. These quinoa crisps are additive.

The Flatbread Crisps are perfect for topping, garnishing, and relishing… the possibilities with these crackers are endless! They come in four flavors: Just Salt, French Onion, Nutty Sesame and Roasted Garlic. These flatbread crackers are unlike any other gluten-free product I have found. I love them… since they can be used for an assortment of appetizers and starters instead of bread. I can’t wait to try them this holiday season in replacement of baguettes in my gluten-free crostini recipes. They are also under 40 calories each, are gluten and GMO free and also have no Trans fats.

For debuting these delicious and convenient new snacking crackers for the holiday season, this week’s BeFreeForMe’s Friday Favorite  is awarded to Goldbaum’s! Thank you and… congratulations!

P.S…. If you can’t find these two new products at your grocery store, ask them to order!

Chips, and Chunks, and Morsels… Oh My!

Yes… the holiday’s are here, so fire up those ovens and get baking my friends!

And when ogling and goggling over all of the delicious cookies, cakes, bars, breads & muffin recipes in magazines and on Pinterest and blogs, remember that Enjoy Life Foods makes baking gluten & allergen free so much easier with their Baking Chocolate.

The Enjoy Life Food products are all free of gluten and the 8 most common allergens, including dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, soy, fish and shellfish. But do not fret… these chips, chunks and morsels are full of premium semi-sweet and dark chocolate. The taste is melt-in-your-mouth chocolaty goodness, making them perfect for melting and  for baking your favorite recipes.

Enjoy Life Foods knows that baking gluten and allergen free can be a challenge… and that’s why they came out with these products. I love that we can all count on Enjoy Life Foods, and that they have all of us, and our holiday baking, covered.

So when you’re looking for a semi-sweet mini chocolate chip to sprinkle over that super-moist banana bread; a regular sized morsel of a dark chocolate chocolate chip for your famous traditional gluten-free triple chocolate brownies, or a big semi-sweet chocolate mega-chunk for your cookies … look no further than Enjoy Life Foods Baking Chocolate.

All of these delicious and chocolaty reasons are why I am so excited that Enjoy Life Foods is the sponsor of this Win-It-Wednesday on BeFreeForMe.com!

Two winners will each receive a prize pack containing SIX (yes… 6!) bags of the Enjoy Life Foods Baking Chocolates (Two bags of each of the three varieties: Mini Chips, Mega Chunks and Morsels).  One (1) of the winners will be randomly selected from all comments / entries received before Tuesday, November 19, 2013 at 11:59 PM (EST), and one(1) more winners will be selected from all comments / entries received between Wednesday, November 20, 2013 at 12:00 AM (EST) and Tuesday, November 26, 2013 at 11:59 PM (EST).

How can you win?
Easy!

Reply to this blog and tell us which of the Enjoy Life Foods Baking Chocolate looks the best to you. Is it the big super-duty Mega-Chunk? The tiny petite Mini Chips? Or the traditional Morsels? (Me? The Mega-Chunks – big, chunky, pure chocolate chunks that are perfect in my favorite allergen-free Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe – or even eaten right out of the bag for a quick little morsel “hit” of chocolate when those chocolate cravings strike… and just a little chunk will do ya.)

Good luck, always remember as Charles M. Schulz said, “All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt” and as always…

Be Free!

Want to buy now? Check out these links on Amazon.com:

Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips, Gluten, Dairy, Nut & Soy Free, Mini Chips, 10-Ounce Bags (Pack of 6)

Enjoy Life Semi Sweet Chocolate Mega Chunks, 10-Ounce (Pack of 6)

I love Nana’s soft, chewy cookie bars. Unlike some gluten-free cookies, they are moist and delicious – perfect for tea-time or snack-time.

These gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free and egg-free cookie bars are also non-GMO and are certified gluten-free. The flavors are awesome too: Berry Vanilla, a classic vanilla cookie with a touch of berry; the Chocolate Munch, a chocolate lover’s cookie paradise; and my favorite, the Nana Banana, packed with real banana-y goodness.

Nana’s also makes some great cookies too. Soft and chewy, as well, some of the gluten-free flavors include Chocolate Crunch, Ginger and Lemon. They are also free of the same allergens as the cookie bars.

I also love that both the cookie bars and the cookies are individually wrapped, which means they stay fresh longer and can be transported easily in a purse, back-pack or lunch tote.

All these delicious gluten-free and allergen-free reasons are why I am so excited that Nana’s Cookie Bars are awarded this week’s Friday Favorite on BeFreeForMe.com! Congrats!

Want to buy? Check out this link on Amazon.com