Review: Meals to Live - Healthy Gluten Free Frozen Meals

It's no secret that delicious tasting, healthy gluten free freezer meals are not easy to come by at the grocery store.  Thank goodness for Meals to Live, a new line of frozen meals that boast (6) gluten free selections, all of which are made with natural ingredients.  Click here to see how Meals to Live offers a well rounded nutritional experience.

Check out the Tasty Gluten Free Frozen Meals from Meals to Live:

Shrimp Jambalaya

Grilled White Chicken

with Brown Rice Pilaf and Vegetables

Grilled White Chicken

with Red Roasted Potatoes & Green Beans

Spinach Omelet

with Turkey Sausage

White Chicken Fajita

with Santa Fe Rice

Sliced Turkey

with Balsamic Sauce & Butternut Squash

About Meals to Live:

"Meals to Live™ was founded by a group of individuals that have either been directly or indirectly affected by diabetes or other nutritionally specific disease. After experiencing firsthand the hardships and burdens that surround finding tasty, healthy, convenient foods on a daily basis, we at Meals to Live™ set out to make a difference.

There is no magical ingredient in our foods, rather a combination of ingredients that meet nutritional requirements of consumers with specific dietary needs. At Meals to Live™ our goal is to provide you with healthy, nutritionally beneficial meals at affordable prices. By working with you, the consumer, to guide us in the right direction, we take great pride in what we have accomplished.

Our Team Members play large roles in the creation of our company and provide all the recipes in our product line. Flavor profiles and recipe selections have been refined and produced based on feedback. You told us you wanted something better—we listened! We feel that Meals to Live™offers the tastiest, consistent, and most nutritionally specific product on the market. We hope you agree!"

My Opinion...

My family enjoyed the flavorful gluten free entrees from Meals to Live.  We especially appreciated them on busy days, when we didn't  have time to cook!  I felt good about serving gluten free Meals to Live to my family, as the ingredients are natural and the meals are nutritionally balanced.  My personal favorite was the Shrimp Jambalaya, which had a surprising amount of kick to it (which I love!).  My youngest daughter's favorite dish was the Grilled White Chicken with Red Roasted Potatoes & Green Beans.  My son favored the White Chicken Fajita with Santa Fe Rice; he added hot sauce to spice it up to his liking, and stuffed the filling into warmed corn tortillas (tortillas not included in meal).   

Give gluten free Meals to Live a try... I think you will be pleased!

*Note: Please be aware that not all frozen meals from Meals to Live are gluten free; for your convenience the gluten free meals are clearly marked as such.

Where to Buy:

Click here to find the store nearest you.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I was not compensated for this post; I received complimentary gluten free frozen meals for review purposes courtesy of Meals to Live. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I was not required to write a positive review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

$45.00 Gift Certificate Giveaway & Review: Outback Steakhouse - Gluten Free Menu!

I have made it my personal mission to find as many restaurants with gluten free menu options as possible, and share my findings with you.  I am always pleased when I find a well rounded gluten free dining experience, such as the one my family recently experienced at the Outback Steakhouse in Kirkland Washington.

The first thing that struck me as a good sign was that our waiter handed us a "real" professionally printed, laminated gluten free menu, as opposed to a computer print out that I had to request upon arrival.  In my opinion, this indicates that gluten free diners are looked at as equals to non-gluten free diners, not as "after thoughts."  It makes me feel like the special dietary needs of the gluten free diner will be taken seriously, as they well should be.

The Outback Steakhouse in Kirkland Washington's Manager Jesse Duncan, and our waiter Jeff Ellis definitely took the gluten free needs of my family seriously, and made sure that everyone had a safe and delicious meal.  We felt that both Jesse and Jeff went above and beyond our expectations to ensure that my family had a fabulous gluten free dining experience.

The Outback Steakhouse has completed the GIG (Gluten Intolerance Group) Gluten Free Restaurant Awareness Program (GFRAP); "Through this comprehensive program, participating restaurants have been provided with specifically designed gluten-free diet reference materials, meal preparation guidelines, employee awareness posters, and sources for gluten-free foods; further, there is on-going liaison between the restaurant and the Program. The restaurants have agreed to prepare meals that they believe to be gluten-free --- although this cannot be guaranteed."


Because of Outback Steakhouse's participation in the Gluten-Free Restaurant Awareness Program, I felt confident confidence that the staff had an awareness of how to offer gluten free diners a worry-free meal!  I wish every restaurant would follow in Outback Steakhouse's footsteps and complete the GIG Gluten-Free Restaurant Awareness Program (GFRAP)!

I am completely impressed with the versatility of Outback Steakhouse's Gluten Free Menu; they were able to cater to the varying taste of my family, which includes not only gluten free, but also dairy free, pescetarian and omnivore family members!  Thank you Outback, for creating a menu that even families with diverse tastes like mine can all enjoy together!

But What About the Food?

Ah yes, the food!  The gloriously gluten free, mouth-watering food. I would like to share the scrumptious gluten free meal that my family ordered from the Outback Steakhouse's Gluten Free Menu (keep in mind this is just what we ordered... their are many more selections on Outback Steakhouse's Gluten Free Menu which are not listed here!):

Appetizer:

Grilled Shrimp on the Barbie GF; Sprinkled with seasonings and delicately grilled. Served with remoulade sauce.  We devoured this in mere seconds... Outback's secret seasoning blend on the shrimp was almost addictive, and the sauce was insanely delicious!

Salads:

Filet Wedge Salad GF; Tender sliced filet with a cool, crisp wedge of fresh Iceberg lettuce, Blue Cheese dressing, grape tomatoes, red onions, bacon and Blue Cheese crumbles, drizzled with a sweet balsamic glaze. Avoid Blue Cheese dressing.  All of us but one ordered this fabulous wedge salad; the Balsamic glaze drizzled on top really hit a home run with us... it took this salad from great to amazing!  Note:  We decided to eat the Blue Cheese dressing even though the menu says to avoid it, because I feel that recent studies have shown that blue cheese is indeed safe on a gluten free diet.  Please make this choice for yourself, based on your own beliefs.


Caesar Salad GF;

Crisp romaine with freshly made croutons and a choice of Grilled Chicken or Shrimp on the Barbie. Request no croutons.  My son ordered the Caeser and said that this was the best Caeser Dressing he had ever had!  Upon talking to Jeff, our waiter, he informed us that Outback Steakhouse makes all of their salad dressings from scratch, in house!  No wonder they tasted so good! 

Entrees: 

King Crab (limited markets) GF; 1-1/4 lb. of mouth watering King Crab legs served with one of our Signature Side Salads and a choice of one side. Order veggies without seasonings or substitute with baked potato.  My daughter and I both ordered the King Crab, and let me tell you I felt like I was the "Queen of Crab" eating this... it-was-superb!  Cooked perfectly, sweet, tender and heavenly.  The Garlic Mashed Potatoes on the side were truly a comfort food and complemented the crab wonderfully.

Baby Back Ribs GF; These fall-off-the-bone ribs are exactly the way ribs should be. Succulent and saucy, each rack is smoked, grilled to perfection and brushed in a tangy BBQ sauce. Served with Aussie Fries. Aussie Fries are not GF. Order veggies without seasonings or substitute with baked potato.  My son is a rib fanatic, and ordered a full stack of these ribs.  He couldn't believe the HUGE portions, and said the ribs were extremely tender.  Good thing our waiter Jeff brought him plenty of napkins, he loved these ribs, and his face showed it!

Joey Sirloin GF; Includes a beverage and choice of side. Aussie Fries are not GF. Order veggies without seasonings or substitute with baked potato.  My young daughter who has Celiac disease ordered the sirloin from the "Joey" menu, which is designed for kids under 10 years old.  Kudos to Outback Steakhouse, for actually having a gluten free kids menu!  This is the first time I have ever seen a restaurant do this; usually I have to negotiate a gluten free kids size serving at kid sized prices with the management, because their gluten free offerings are tailored for adult diners.  My daughter's steak was tender, and was served with a baked potato and steamed veggies.  Even the Joey sized meal was sizable, and she had plenty of yummy left-overs to bring home for the next day.  My daughter gives Outback Steakhouses Gluten Free Joey Menu "two thumbs up!"

Dessert:


My young daughter with Celiac Disease is also dairy free, so my family did not want to hurt her feelings buy eating the gluten free dessert option in front of her (dessert is called Chocolate Thunder From Down Under® GF;  An extra generous pecan brownie is crowned with rich vanilla ice cream, drizzled with our classic warm chocolate sauce and finished with chocolate shavings and whipped cream). Because Chocolate Thunder From Down Under contains dairy ingredients in the brownie itself, not just in the ice cream & whipped cream, we could not order this delicious treat for her.  Something good came from this though!  Outback Steakhouse Manager Jesse Duncan felt badly that my daughter could not have the dessert, which led to a conversation where he and I discussed how many folks on a gluten free diet must also avoid dairy products, and he decided to look into offering a gluten free/dairy free dessert option on their menu, in addition to the gluten free option!  The best part?  Jesse actually followed through on this!  He e-mailed me and said he had approval from the franchise owner to go forward with the idea at the Kirkland Washington location!  It looks like this will take place in the very near future.  I encourage you to request your local Outback Steakhouse Manager to look into providing a gluten free/dairy free dessert option on their gluten free menus as well!

I feel that Outback Steakhouse's Gluten Free Menu truly has something for everyone!  They are trained to offer you a safe, delicious gluten free dining experience, which I truly appreciate.  The staff listens to feedback from their gluten free customers, and go the extra mile to accommodate them.  I look forward to enjoying the gluten free offerings from the Outback Steakhouse again in the near future.  I hope you will visit them soon as well... I know you will love the gluten free menu at the Outback Steakhouse!

Outback Steakhouse Locations:

Click here to find an Outback Steakhouse near you.

WIN A $45.00 OUTBACK STEAKHOUSE GIFT CERTIFICATE!


Here's how...

TO ENTER GIVEAWAY (mandatory entry):

1) Become a Freebie Fairy follower (must follow PUBLICLY via Google Friend Connect in the side bar of this website) AND visit the Outback Steakhouse website; LEAVE ME A COMMENT telling me you now follow me PUBLICLY, AND tell me what item you want to try from Outback Steakhouse's Gluten Free Menu. (1 entry)

BONUS ENTRIES (each entry comment must be entered separately to be a valid entry):

2) Follow Outback Steakhouse on Twitter. (1 entry)

3) Blog about this giveaway linking it back to my Gluten Free Taste of Home blog AND the Gluten Free Menu page on the Outback Steakhouse website. Please LEAVE ME A COMMENT with THE LINK TO YOUR POST or it will not count. (3 entries)

4) Follow me on Twitter AND tweet the giveaway; LEAVE ME A COMMENT (with your twitter link) telling me you did it. (one entry per tweet/RT; DO NOT EXCEED (1) TWEET/RT PER HOUR!)

5) Sign up for the Outback Steakhouse newsletter, for notifications on exciting news, celebrations and special events. (1 entry)

6) Grab my Gluten Free Taste of Home button and display it on your website/blog (copy the html code for my button from the sidebar of this website and paste the code into your website), and LEAVE ME A COMMENT with a LINK to where you pasted my button. (1 entry)

7) Follow my Freebie Fairy blog PUBLICLY via Google Friend Connect and LEAVE ME A COMMENT telling me you did it. (1 entry)

8) Follow my Freebie Fairy blog on Twitter. (1 entry)
*GIVEAWAY OPEN TO US ONLY*

Giveaway ends on Friday, November 5 at 7:00 p.m. PST (entries received after this time will not be posted). Winner will be selected by random.org. Winner will be notified by e-mail and will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is selected.

*REMEMBER... please leave your e-mail address with EACH entry so I can contact you if you win.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I was not compensated for this post; My family received a complimentary gluten free menu tasting for review purposes courtesy of Outback Steakhouse. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I was not required to write a positive review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”


Best of luck!

Review: Rudi's Gluten Free Breads

Finding delicious gluten free bread seems to be the #1 priority of most people when they begin a gluten free diet.  When my daughter was originally diagnosed with Celiac Disease several years ago, there were no gluten free breads on the market that my family liked.  Luckily, the gluten free food industry has come a long way since then, and there are a few gluten free bakeries selling tasty gluten free breads.  One of those companies is Rudi's Gluten Free Bakery, based in Colorado.

"Rudi’s worked extensively with gluten free experts to make sure we’re making products that are safe and do not contain gluten. As an added step, Rudi’s Gluten-Free breads are certified gluten free and carry the recognizable Gluten Free Certification Organization (GFCO) GF Symbol. GFCO provides a uniform system, using strict standards to certify a product gluten-free and enables people to easily identify GF foods with confidence. These standards are confirmed by field inspections in order to achieve heightened consumer confidence and safety. Learn more at: http://www.gfco.org"

"As part of our gluten free certification, every batch of our gluten free bread is tested and must test below <10 ppm of gluten for distribution."

 
In my opinion, the product that sets Rudi's Gluten Free breads apart from other gluten free breads on the market is their fabulous Gluten Free Cinnamon Raisin Bread.  My son practically went in to withdrawals when we first started a gluten free diet because the only bread he liked at that time was cinnamon raisin, and we couldn't find it once we went gluten free.  Rudi's Gluten Free Cinnamon Raisin Bread is everything that you want cinnamon raisin bread to be; comforting, perfectly spiced, and fragrant.  It makes fabulous toast!  My son has been a happy camper since Rudi's Gluten Free Cinnamon Raisin bread came into our lives.  Thank you Rudi's!

Rudi's Gluten Free Bakery also offers a healthy gluten free Multigrain bread, which was my family enjoyed sampling for everyday meals such as toast and grilled cheese sandwiches.  We all agreed that we preferred this bread toasted, although it can be eaten at room temperature as well.

Rudi's Original Gluten Free Bread is a nice loaf for those who prefer white bread.  My family generally prefers multigrain bread because we find it more flavorful, but we agreed that Rudi's Original Gluten Free Bread was tasty as well.  As with Rudi's Gluten Free Multigrain Bread, we all preferred the Original flavor toasted, although like all of Rudi's gluten free breads it can also be eaten at room temperature.

All in all, I feel that Rudi's Gluten Free Bakery offers some of the better gluten free breads on the market today, and it is worth trying for yourself.

WHERE TO BUY:

Click here for a list of retailers that carry Rudi's Gluten Free Breads.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I was not compensated for this post; I received complimentary Rudi's Gluten Free Breads for review purposes courtesy of Rudi's Gluten Free Bakery. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I was not required to write a positive review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Giveaway: Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook: 100 Great Recipes, Photographs, and Voices (One of My Recipes is in this Book!)

I am thrilled to announce that my recipe for Gluten Free Vegetarian Spring Rolls with Thai Style Dipping Sauce has been published in the brand new Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook, which was released today! Thank you to all of my readers who voted for my recipes; I truly appreciate your support!



Click here to be redirected to my Freebie Fairy website, where you can enter my Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook GIVEAWAY! 


*Please note, although this is not a gluten free cookbook, there are at least a few gluten free recipes contained within (including mine).  As far as the other recipes in the cookbook you can adapt them to make them gluten free by substituting gluten free ingredients wherever necessary, at your own risk and discretion.


BEST OF LUCK!


Disclosure of Material Connection: I was not compensated for this post; I received a complimentary copy of the Foodista Best of Food Blogs Cookbook for review purposes courtesy of Andrews Mc Meel Publsihing. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Gluten Free Kind Bars - Now in 6 New Flavors!

Great news for fans of healthy, gluten free Kind Bars! They have just released 6 new flavors... trust me on this, you are going to LOVE them! I can't get enough of the new Kind Bars, especially the decadent Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate + Protein and the Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew + Antioxidants flavors, which taste more like indulgent candy bars disguised as nutritious snacks!

Check out the new Kind Bar flavors:

Also newly available are the adorable "Kind Minis" in the following classic flavors, which are perfect as lunch box treats, or to hand out to trick-or-treaters: 

Look for the new flavors of Kind Bars at a Natural Foods retailer near you, or order in bulk directly from the Kind website.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I was not compensated for this post; I received complimentary Kind Bars for review purposes courtesy of Kind.  The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Giveaway Winner: Gluten Free Bisquick Prize Pack

And the winner is:

#42 lollimom

Congratulations! You were e-mailed on 10/16/10; please reply to my e-mail within 48 hours or a new winner will be chosen.

Special thanks to General Mills and My Blog Spark for sponsoring this giveaway!

Giveaway & Review: Gluten Free Bisquick Pancake & Baking Mix Prize Pack!

Like many of you, I grew up eating pancakes, biscuits, casseroles, and shortcakes made with Bisquick.  In our home Bisquick was as much of a pantry staple as flour or sugar, and we were never without it! When I grew up and started my own family, I relied on the Bisquick of my childhood to help put delicious meals on the table for my family... fast!

After my daughter was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, I had to say goodbye to my beloved Bisquick, because it contained gluten. I never imagined that three years later General Mills would support the gluten free community by producing gluten free versions of family favorites such as gluten free Chex Cereals, Betty Crocker Gluten Free baking mixes, and now Gluten Free Bisquick! 

Now that Gluten Free Bisquick is a reality, my family had the opportunity to sample it for the first time yesterday. There were many recipes I wanted to make with my treasured box of Gluten Free Bisquick, but I choose to make classic pancakes with it first so I could try out the fun pancake-related gadgets that Bisquick sent me, such as a "pancake pen", cast iron pancake pan, and a wide silicone spatula.

Making pancakes using the new Gluten Free Bisquick was a family affair; my youngest child helped mix the batter (it's so easy to make!), and all of the kids got to create fun shaped pancakes for themselves using the squeezable "pancake pen." The favorite pancake shape we made seemed to be hearts... maybe because we all love Gluten Free Bisquick so much!

Look for Bisquick Gluten Free baking mix in the baking aisle at your local grocery store. 

Of course the most important question is, how did the pancakes taste! My son said "These pancakes taste just like the Bisquick pancakes I remember eating before we were gluten free." My whole family thought that they tasted wonderful, and we also enjoyed the texture which was fluffy and light. One of the things I was extremely impressed by was that the pancakes cooked evenly with a light golden color, and they held their shape beautifully when flipped. These truly were "picture perfect" pancakes.

The pancakes we made using the new Gluten Free Bisquick pancake & baking mix were a huge success!  Now I am looking forward to experimenting with making biscuits, shortcakes, pizza crust and "Impossible Pie" recipes using the new Gluten Free Bisquick.

For great recipe ideas using Gluten Free Bisquick, visit www.bisquick.com/glutenfree. While there, you will find loads of gluten free recipes for delicious favorites like Gluten Free Strawberry Shortcakes and Gluten Free Pizza Crust.  Be sure to check back often... the good folks at Bisquick are adding new recipes each day!

Click here to download a printable coupon for $1 off Bisquick Gluten Free baking mix! 

Bisquick Gluten Free Prize Pack

WIN IT:

(1) Gluten Free Taste of Home follower will WIN a Bisquick Gluten Free prize pack (as shown in the photo above) that includes a box of Bisquick Gluten Free baking mix, a cast iron pancake pan, pancake pen and a pancake flipper! 

TO ENTER GIVEAWAY (mandatory):

1) Become a Freebie Fairy follower (must follow PUBLICLY via Google Friend Connect in the side bar of this website) AND visit www.bisquick.com/glutenfree; LEAVE ME A COMMENT telling me you now follow me PUBLICLY, AND tell me what you plan to make with the new Bisquick Gluten Free pancake & baking mix (1 entry).

BONUS ENTRIES (each entry comment must be entered separately to be a valid entry):

2) Visit Bisquick on Facebook to “Like” the brand and keep up with the latest news from Bisquick. (1 entry)

3) Blog about this giveaway linking it back to my Gluten Free Taste of Home blog AND the Gluten Free Bisquick page of the Bisquick website. Please LEAVE ME A COMMENT with THE LINK TO YOUR POST or it will not count. (3 entries)

4) Follow me on Twitter AND tweet the giveaway using the Twitter hash tag #myblogspark and LEAVE ME A COMMENT (with your twitter link) telling me you did it. (one entry per tweet/RT; DO NOT EXCEED (1) TWEET/RT PER HOUR!)

5) Grab my Gluten Free Taste of Home button and display it on your website/blog (copy the html code for my button from the sidebar of this website and paste the code into your website), and LEAVE ME A COMMENT with a LINK to where you pasted my button. (1 entry)

6) Follow my Freebie Fairy blog PUBLICLY via Google Friend Connect and LEAVE ME A COMMENT telling me you did it. (1 entry)

*GIVEAWAY OPEN TO US ONLY*

Giveaway ends on Friday, October 15 at 7:00 p.m. PST (entries received after this time will not be posted). Winner will be selected by random.org. Winner will be notified by e-mail and will have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is selected.

*REMEMBER... please leave your e-mail address with EACH entry so I can contact you if you win.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I was not compensated for this post; the products, information and prize pack were all given to me from Bisquick through MyBlogSpark for review purposes. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I was not required to write a positive review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Best of luck!

Giveaway Winners: Mini Pops

And the winners are...

#3 team jc AND #10 lv

Congratulations! You were e-mailed on 10/1/10. Please respond to my e-mail within 48 hours or new winners will be chosen.

Special thanks to Mini Pops for sponsoring this giveaway!