Be Free For Me Blog

It’s no trick… Glutino Chocolate Covered Wafer Cookies are a fantastic replacement for all of us Twix candy bar lovers that are now on a gluten free diet!

I have a couple of favorite candy bars and Twix is one of them. But they are loaded with gluten. That’s why I was so excited to have found these gluten-free cookies (aka: Twix substitute) from Glutino.

They come in two varieties: Milk Chocolate covered chocolate or vanilla wafers. I personally like the vanilla covered wafers the best, but for all the chocolate lovers out there, you may want to reach for the double chocolate variety.

And these cookies are also great in recipes. Looking for a chocolate pie crust? Then check out this recipe made with the Chocolate Wafer cookies. 

Because they are fantastic replacement for one of my favorite candy bars; taste so good that non-gluten-free folks love’em too, and because they make the best Chocolate Crumb Crust, are the reasons why Glutino Chocolate Covered Wafer Cookies receive the honors of this week’s Friday Favorite on BeFreeForMe!

No Twix! Just Treats!

Today was one of those just fabulous days! It was full of gluten-free food, fun and folks!

I just got home from the Healthy Villi Gluten-Free Winter Membership Meeting in Wellesley, Massachusetts. Like many of you, I belong and participate regularly in my local celiac (as well as food allergy) support groups. I love to join in the activities, find support and also meet some awesome fellow celiacs / food allergen-free folks that make my life just so much nicer.

I met so many wonderful BeFreeForMe members today… Thanks for stopping by and introducing yourselves!

Here is a summary of some of fabulous food finds from the exhibits today:

Willoughby’s Muffins: Gluten/Nut/Dairy and Soy-free these muffins are like homemade. Made in a designated gluten-free facility, Willoughby’s may make muffin pans a thing of the past! Buy on-line at EdiblesByJack.com

More Than a Macaroon: Can I say YUM? A must try, these cookies are chewy, gooey and hands-down one of the most addictive cookies I have ever eaten. A family-owned and operated business, with a passion for celiac baking, this cookie company will become a household name in gluten-free households everywhere. Mark my word.

Lola’s Italian Groceria: Craving gluten-free Eggplant Parmigiana, classic Italian Lasagna or a sweet cannoli? Check out Lola’s and have a tray delivered to your house for your next get-together or small party. Delicious!

Glutino: The number of gluten-free items, and the quality and tastiness of the products Glutino’s has in their line-up always amazes me. The pretzels, the cookies, the meals … all delicious and truly some of my all-time favorites.  Thank you Glutino for being the benchmark for gluten-free products!

Ian’s Natural Foods: The products in Ian’s line-up make me secretly wish I was a kid again… but, then again, Big Kids can love Ian’s products too! If you haven’t tried them yet, check out Ian’s Maple Sausage & Egg Wafflewich for a fast & easy breakfast idea!

Riceworks: A favorite of the gluten-free community, riceworks are just so good! Crunchy and tasty, Riceworks gives back tons to the gluten-free community too. Make sure you nominate for your favorite non-profit group for Riceworks Show Us Your Goodness program!

Kettle Cuisine Soups: It’s about 20 degrees over here in Massachusetts so I was so excited to see Kettle Cuisine here at the show today! If you haven’t tried them yet, you MUST! With 10 (yes, TEN!) gluten-free varieties and five that are dairy-free and five that are vegan, this is one of those staple gluten-free items that I always have on-hand. Need to buy? Find out where here. 

Mr. Ritt’s Bakery: A favorite at tradeshows, Mr. Ritt’s carries it all! Breads, cookies and pizza crusts – a favorite gluten-free designation!

Check out more finds from the Healthy Villi Winter meeting tomorrow on BeFreeForMe.com!

On Monday, January 11, 2010 from 8:00 – 9:00 PM (EST) Glutino Foods (a brand we all know and love!) will be hosting a Gluten-Free Twitter Party… and you’re invited!

I am excited to be a part of this Glutino Twitter Party alongside Elisabeth Hasselbeck, co-host of “The View”, fellow celiac, and author of “The G-Free Diet”; the folks over at Ian’s Natural Foods, that make all natural, organic (plus allergen-free and gluten-free!) meals for kids; and Chad Hines, from GlutenFreeFaces, the gluten-free and celiac social network. During the party we will “chat” about living the gluten-free lifestyle, ways to make living gluten-free more manageable, tips & tricks, and also have some phenomenal gluten-free give-aways and prizes.

In order to RSVP to the party check out the invitation from Glutino. The hashtag for the party is #GF. (Note: A few days before the party, I will post another blog regarding specifics & tips on joining this Gluten-free twitter party).

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Twitter, or just haven’t gotten around to checking it out, NOW is the time!

In a nut-shell, Twitter is a free social networking or micro-blogging service that allows you to “tweet” or chat, back and forth, with other like-minded people (or “peeps” as they are know as on Twitter!). These tweets can conveniently be up to 140-characters – so they are short, but are packed with tons of information, links, ideas and thoughts. Those that subscribe to, or “follow”, you receive your tweets. In return, tweets from anyone you “follow” are delivered to your twitter account. You are able to send and receive tweets from the Twitter website, SMS messaging, or from other website applications (like tweetdeck.com or Twhirl.com).

Tony Hsieh, the CEO of Zappos, the on-line shoe superstore, says that although twitter seems a bit awkward at first, it will eventually be as common place as text messaging in your life. In fact, he goes on to say that if you and your friends all use Twitter for a 2 week period, it will “change your life”, and you will “wonder how you ever lived without it”. By the way, Tony has over 1,639,877 followers!

If you aren’t sure where to start join once you join Twitter, log on and start following me!

If you want to find out more about Twitter, how to join and tips on getting involved, check out the website and blog links listed at the end of this blog post. Get tweeting today!

On January 11th, crack open a bag of Glutino gluten-free pretzels, log-on to your Twitter account and join us for the first ever Glutino’s Gluten-free Twitter party! See you then!

Good Twitter Resources:

Zappos.com’s CEO, Tony Hsieh, “Beginner’s Quick Start Guide and Tutorial to Using Twitter”

PurpleCar.com: Great blog on “How to Start Using Twitter”

About.com: Information on Twitter