Be Free For Me Blog

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

I love it when I can easily pick-up gluten-free items in my “regular” grocery store. So I was absolutely thrilled when I found Perdue’s newest addition to their product line-up: Simple Smart Gluten-Free Chicken Tenders.

These certified gluten-free chicken tenders are breaded, tender-shaped chicken breasts that are fully cooked and certified gluten free! Just pop them in the oven and dinner is served!

They are also only 150 calories per serving, and taste great too. These will be a keeper on your dinnertime line-up since your whole family’s going to love them!

For all these reasons Perdue Simply Smart Gluten-Free Chicken Tenders are awarded this week’s Friday Favorite on BeFreeForMe.com. Congratulations!

P.S. Purdue also makes Simply Smart Chicken Nuggets that are NOT Gluten-Free… so make sure you read the packaging and make sure it says gluten-free!

Good Gravy! It’s tough being gluten-free for the holidays. All the baking, the roasts, the turkeys, the fixings… it can leave a gluten-free gal like me wondering when holiday cooking and baking will get easier and more convenient.

Well wonder no more. Thankfully, Club House has recently come out with some gluten-free products to make our holidays… and our lives a heck of a lot easier. Thank you, Club House!

The gluten-free products that Club House has recently come out with are the Brown Gravy, the Turkey Gravy, Rice Flour, Potato Starch and Minute Tapioca. It’s also important to note that Club House, which is McCormick Canada – the largest spice, dry sauce, seasoning extract and specialty food operation in Canada – has become one of the growing number of companies that has become certified by the Gluten-Free Certification Program (GFCP) with the introduction of this line of gluten-free products (which will be available at grocery stores across North America).

I love the new gravy mixes. Why? They taste great, and they help me make my holidays meal prep a lot more simple. Gluten-free folks everywhere can now enjoy gravy on their Thanksgiving turkey or holiday roasts without all the fuss, mixing, whisking and lumps. These gravies also contain no artificial colors and flavors, and have 25% less sodium than the Club House original gravies.

The flours are awesome too. Want to try some chewy and fudgy Gluten-Free Brownies? Then grab a bag of Club House Potato Starch and get baking. How about making some Classic Gluten-Free Shortbread Cookies and packaging them up in a gift basket with an assortment of teas for a thoughtful, yet thrifty, gluten-free gift idea; or for a quick and easy dessert for a weekday (because desserts should not be reserved for special occasions only!) try making some Gluten-Free Tapioca Pudding with Club House’s Minute Tapioca.

The convenience of the Club House gluten free gravy mixes and the ease in baking-up gluten-free classic desserts are why I am so excited and thankful that this Win-It-Wednesday on BeFreeForMe.com is sponsored by Club House.

A total of FOUR (Yes… 4!) BeFreeForMe members will be selected to win a prize pack containing the Club House Gluten-Free Gravy Mixes (both the brown gravy and the gravy for Turkey), Minute Tapioca, Potato Starch and the Rice Flour. This prize pack is bursting at the gluten-free seams with holiday goodness! Two (2) winners will be randomly selected from the entries received before Tuesday, November 5, 2013 at 11:59 PM EST; Two (2) more winners will be randomly selected to win from the entries received between Wednesday, November 6 and Tuesday, November 12, 2013 at 11:59. SO make sure that you enter to win two times!

How can you win?
Easy!

Reply to this blog and tell us one thing (even the simpliest thing) that you are thankful for. (Me? I am thankful for the happy, cheery and smiling gal that serves me every day at my local coffee shop. Through thick, or thin, her smile is always there!)

Good luck, be mindful of and thankful for those little things… and as always…
Be Free!

This week’s Friday Favorite is Nature’s Choice Easy Quinoa, a product that is a “keeper” since it received the thumbs-up from the non-gluten-free folks!

Nature’s Earthly Choice Quinoa is one of those products that no one can believe is gluten-free.  It’s a tasty, delicious and quick to prepare product that is perfect for a side dish or even “doctored-up” with pieces of chicken, pork, beef, or veggies to become a shining-star main course.

And they have created four delicious recipes of Easy Quinoa. The flavors are all gluten-free and include; Garden Vegetable, Mediterranean & Vegetable Medley, Sundried Tomato Florentine, and my favorite, Roasted Garlic & Olive Oil.

Easy Quinoa is convenient, great-tasting and easy-to-prepare… and for all these reasons they are being awarded this week’s Friday Favorite on BeFreeForMe.com. Congratulations!

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

This week’s Friday Favorite is awarded to a new exciting snack that I found recently – Yolo Popcorn.

I know. You’re probably all thinking that popcorn is just popcorn.  How exciting can it be? Well, the folks at Yolo know just how to make popcorn a fabulous taste-sensation that will have your taste-buds tantalized and your mouth smiling after every single crunchy gluten-free bite.

The trick is in the flavors. Being made in Vermont, the folks over at Yolo Snacks looked right in their own backyard to find the tastiest flavors around. The flavors that offer a taste of New England in every bag are the Maple Popcorn, full fluffy popcorn kernels that are maple sugar kissed, and the Cheddar Popcorn, popped up with sharp Vermont Cheddar and aged Parmesan. Other flavors include Original Popcorn with herbs, buttermilk and sea salt… which is delicious too!

The fabulous, tasty, gluten-free flavors make this week’s Friday Favorite winner, Yolo Popcorn, the best of all the rest! Congratulations and keeping popping up the good work!

This week’s sponsor for the Win-It-Wednesday on BeFreeForMe.com is a new nutritious gluten-free cereal that has made its way into a Whole Food’s Market near you… Erewhon’s Quinoa & Chia Cereal.

Erewhon’s Quinoa & Chia cereal is packed with crispy flakes of organic quinoa and organic brown rice, and then it’s tossed with omega-rich chia seeds and baked to perfection. The result? A crunchy, super-nutritious cereal that is packed with 5 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein.

I love that this not-to-sweet, organic cereal is made with only 5 ingredients (organic quinoa, organic brown rice, chia seeds, organic brown rice syrup and salt) and is not only gluten-free, but also free of nuts, dairy and eggs.

Erewhon, which was founded in 1966, has been making gluten-free cereal for years. Their philosophy is “Simple Ingredients. Simply Made” and their SuperGrain cereal line-up (including this new Quinoa & Chia cereal and also the Buckwheat & Hemp cereal) is a perfect example of that philosophy.

I also like that this cereal is non-GMO project verified, something that is important to me, and has been in the spotlight recently. All of the Erewhon’s gluten-free cereals are also certified by GIG (Gluten Intolerance Group).

In other words, you feel healthy and happy about eating this cereal. And what a better way to start off your day?

All these simple, healthy and tasty reasons are why I am so happy to have Erewhon Quinoa & Chia cereal sponsor the next two week’s WIN-It-Wednesdays on BeFreeForMe.com.

How can you win?
Easy!

Reply to this blog and tell us a simple thing in life that makes you happy. Me? Taking a walk on a crisp New England morning… kicking & rustling the fallen leaves up with my feet … while enjoying the scents and colors that make this time of year so refreshingly perfect!   =)

A total of FOUR (Yes… 4!) BeFreeForMe members will be selected to win a prize pack containing two boxes of the Erewhon’s SuperGrain Cereals (one box of the Buckwheat & Hemp cereal and another of the Quinoa & Chia cereal). Two (2) winners will be randomly selected from the entries received before Tuesday, October 22, 2013 at 11:59 PM EST; Two (2) more winners will be randomly selected to win from the entries received between Wednesday, October 23 and Tuesday, October 29, 2013 at 11:59. SO make sure that you enter to win two times!

Good luck, Keep things simple… and as always…
Be Free!

P.S. If you haven’t done so yet, make sure you download the $1.00 OFF Coupon for a box of Erewhon’s SuperGrain cereal!

Check out the Erewhon’s FaceBook Page and follow them on Twitter for more recipes, tips, savings and more!

It’s autumn, and appley-goodness is popping up everywhere! One of my new favorite finds is Earthbound Farms Apple Crunchers.

Quick, easy and convenient these crunchy apple snacks are perfect for kids or adults and are great for a snack-on-the-go or lunchboxes.

Made of 100% organic ingredients, these super crunchy snacking bites are made with real organic apples that have been popped to perfection.  They come in three flavors – Original; Cinnamon; and my favorite, Caramel.

These gluten-free snacks have only 60 calories per pack,  are a good source of fiber and have no added sugar. All these appley-good reasons are why this week’s Friday Favorite is awarded to Earthbound Farm’s Apple Crunchers. Congratulations!

This week’s Friday Favorite is awarded to a quick and easy side dish that is perfect for a Fall dinner or in your favorite recipes – Lundberg Brown Rice Couscous.

I often would find recipes that require couscous as an ingredient. And since “typical” couscous is made with semolina it means it’s off limits to me since it is full of gluten (semolina are granules of durum wheat).  That is why I was so excited when I found this gluten-free couscous made with roasted brown rice by Lundberg.

The texture is perfect and the taste is fantastic. It is light and fluffy, with a nutty taste. Plus it is quick and easy to prepare.

Check out the recipes on Lundberg’s website using this fantastic gluten-free couscous, or try it today in your own favorite recipes. Cheers to Lundberg Brown Rice Gluten-Free Couscous for being awarded this week’s Friday Favorite on BeFreeForMe.com!