Sure Foods Living – gluten-free and allergen-free living

It seems everyone is coming out with a gluten-free cookie these days. But for those of us who have multiple food allergies, or whose kids do, a gluten-free cookie isn’t enough — it needs to be free of other allergens as well. And don’t forget about taste… even kids with food allergies can be picky!

Cybele Pascal learned about allergen-free cooking when her son was diagnosed with severe food allergies. She has since written three cookbooks and has most recently launched her line of allergen-free cookies, called Cybele’s Free-to-Eat™ cookies. The cookies are gluten-free and free of the top 8 allergens: dairy, eggs, wheat, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, fish and shellfish. Cybele’s Free-to-Eat™ packaging features colorful icons that illustrates “Free of the Top 8 Allergens”. The cookies are also non-GMO, vegan and kosher.

I have had a chance to sample these cookies on many occasions, and the best news of all is that they taste great! The cookies come in three flavors: Chocolate Chip, Chocolate Chunk Brownie, and Oatmeal Raisin. Kids will love them, and grown-ups will probably sneak a few.

Would you like to try them? Enter this giveaway!

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I recently attended the Gluten & Allergen-Free Expo, put on by the wonderful Jen Cafferty. It was the first time it was held in San Francisco and it was great to reconnect with some of my gluten-free peeps! There were many food vendors of course, and one that was new to me was Kettel Krakkers, based in San Francisco. If you are gluten-free, you know that good gluten-free crackers aren’t plentiful. Most are very hard and crunchy, which I actually like (or I’ve gotten used to!), but I was happy to find a cracker that is softer, but still has some crunch from the seeds added in.

According to the company, the crackers are “handmade at our dedicated gluten-free facility using organic, locally-sourced ingredients of the highest quality.”

They are:

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Every year in March I attend Natural Products Expo West, which is a trade show featuring the foods, beauty care and lifestyle products in the natural foods industry (all the brands you see in Whole Foods and other natural foods stores and the companies that are trying to get their products in to those stores). It is a really fun time seeing people I know and getting to try all the new foods that my favorite brands, and new brands, are showcasing. I am on the hunt at these shows, looking for gluten-free and other foods that cater to special diets. I will be posting about some of the new products I sampled, and first up is one for you dairy-free folks out there…

So Delicious is a brand known for its milk-alternative products, such as soy and coconut beverages, yogurts and desserts. They have added another dairy-free option to their line with Almond Milk products, which they say are lower in calories, fat, sodium and sugar. They are dairy, soy and gluten-free (with the exception of Cookies n Cream ice cream and the ice cream sandwich).

Here are the new products I saw and tasted at the show:

• Greek-Style Cultured Almond Milk in Blueberry, Chocolate, Plain, Strawberry and Vanilla
• Ice Creams – Butter Pecan, Cherry Amaretto, Chocolate, Cookies n Cream, Mint Chip, Mocha Almond Fudge, Vanilla
• Frozen Dessert Novelties, including chocolate covered Vanilla Bar, Mocha Almond Fudge Bar and Vanilla Ice Cream Sandwich

They were all so delicious!

Now, as a mother of a child with a nut allergy, I was concerned that the coconut milk products we normally eat might be contaminated now that almonds are part of the line. We LOVE So Delicious coconut milk products and would be sad to have to give them up. From the email I received from the company, it looks like we won’t have to:

Like all other non-dairy beverages, our almond milk products are produced in some of the same facilities where dairy, soymilk, and our coconut milk are produced. With this in mind, our team takes the cleanliness of the production facility, prevention from cross-contamination, and validation of the allergen-free status of our products extremely seriously.

Many of our customers have food sensitivities and food allergies, and they have come to rely upon us for more than two decades to provide safe and delicious food options for their families. So Delicious® Dairy Free is a market leader in allergen testing and a world-class benchmark for food integrity. We apply strict quality-control measures, which are noted as the most stringent in the industry, in an effort to prevent contamination by undeclared food allergens. To assure our preventative measures are effective, we sample test our products for the presence of allergens using state-of-the-art testing methods.

Our allergen testing is trusted by allergen organizations and thousands and thousands of households, because we have a documented and regimented program that is instituted at every facility where we produce So Delicious® Dairy Free. It involves some of the most rigorous testing in the world, and that testing is conducted at various stages of production–from testing the raw materials and ingredients to the manufacturing lines to the final product. We ensure that the product that is shipped into stores is safe and of the highest quality. And we test all of our allergen ingredients down to 5 parts per million. Just to give you some perspective, the FDA allows companies to declare they are gluten-free if they test to 20 parts per million. But we are committed to testing that is four times as sensitive.

To learn more about our allergen-prevention program visit us at: http://sodeliciousdairyfree.com/allergen-information

If you are dairy-free, and even if you aren’t, this new product line will be a welcome addition to your diet!

This is a quick list of allergen-free Halloween candy for 2011. This list includes candies that do not contain gluten or the top 8 allergens (wheat, milk, soy, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish or shellfish) as an ingredient. I have included the allergen statement if it mentions any of these. For the complete listing of allergens and statements see the Halloween Candy List Gluten-Free Allergen-Free 2011. For a quick list of candies that are gluten-free, see the Gluten-Free Halloween Candy Quick List 2011.

Note: Please, as always, double check ingredients. This list is meant as a guide only.

NOTE for bloggers/organizations/media: Please do not reprint this list without my permission. Linking to it, however, is just fine and dandy! Printing is encouraged for personal use or for schools, etc. I appreciate your consideration of my work.

ANGIE’S ARTISAN TREATS

• Kettle Corn

BAZOOKA (located in New York, NY 800-489-9149)

• Ring Pops, Push Pops, Baby Bottle Pops

CE DE CANDY (located in New Jersey 908-964-0660)

• Smarties (only USA, not Canada), Giant Smarties, Mega Smarties, Candy Money, Love Hearts, Smarties in a Pouch, Tropical Smarties, X-TREME Sour Smarties, Easter Smarties, Smarties Parties, Smarties Double Lollies, Smarties Mega Lollies, Smarties Pops, Giant Smarties Pops, Candy Necklace
  • Check if it has been re-bagged for allergen info. If the UPC number on the packaging begins with “0 11206″, you can be assured that the product was packaged in one of Ce De Candy’s manufacturing facilities, and is allergen-free

FARLEY’S AND SATHERS (located in Minnesota 888-247-9855)

• Brach’s Candy Corn and Gummi Candy Corn (not flavored candy corns)
  • “Packaged on equipment that processes milk, egg, and soy. Milk, egg, wheat, peanuts, tree nuts, and soy may be present in the manufacturing or packaging area.”
• Brach’s Mellowcreme Pumpkins
  • “Packaged on equipment that processes milk, egg, and soy. Milk, egg, wheat, peanuts, tree nuts, and soy may be present in the manufacturing or packaging area.”
• Heide candies – Jujyfruits, Jujubes, Red Raspberry Dollars, Red Hot Dollars Wild Cherry, Heide Gummi Bears
• Jujyfruits, Jujubes
  • “Packaged on equipment that packages products containing traces of milk, wheat, egg, peanuts, tree nuts and/or soy protein.”
• Super Bubble and Super Bubble Blast
  • “Manufactured in a facility that manufactures products containing traces of eggs.”
• Trolli Gummi Bears, Trolli Sour Brite (Frite) Crawlers
  • “Packaged on equipment that packages products containing traces of milk, wheat, egg, peanuts, tree nuts and/or soy protein.”

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This is a quick list of gluten-free Halloween candy for 2011. This list includes candies that do not contain wheat or gluten as an ingredient. I have included the allergen statement if it mentions wheat or gluten. For the complete listing of allergens and statements see the Halloween Candy List Gluten-Free Allergen-Free 2011. For a quick list of candies that are free of the top allergens, see the Allergen-Free Halloween Candy Quick List 2011.

Note: Please, as always, double check ingredients. This list is meant as a guide only.

NOTE for bloggers/organizations/media: Please do not reprint this list without my permission. Linking to it, however, is just fine and dandy! Printing is encouraged for personal use or for schools, etc. I appreciate your consideration of my work.

Gluten-Free Candy:

AIRHEADS (parent company: Perfetti Van Melle headquartered in Italy and Netherlands)

• Airheads Bars
  • Package statement: “Manufactured in a facility that processes wheat flour”

ANGIE’S ARTISAN TREATS

• Kettle Corn

ANNABELLE’S (located in Hayward, CA 510-783-2900)

• Abba Zabba
  • There is the possibility of contamination from flour that is used on the belts
• Big Hunk
  • Regular size (2 oz) is guaranteed gluten-free. Other sizes have the possibility of contamination from flour that is used on the belts
• U-No
  • There is the possibility of contamination from flour that is used on the belts

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The gluten-free allergen-free Halloween candy list is here! I’ve updated the list to reflect ingredient changes, current manufacturers statements by web/phone, and I added some phone numbers so you don’t have to search them yourself if you have a question.

Each candy shows if the ingredients contain wheat/gluten, milk (represents all dairy), soy, egg, nuts, or peanuts (6 of the top 8 allergens — fish and shellfish are not included since I have not found this to be a concern with candy). I do not include coconut as a tree nut and have not listed coconut as an allergen.  To print this list, click on the Print icon above the title. (If you don’t see the print icon, click on the title of the article first.)

Note: Please, as always, double check ingredients and also check with the child’s parents before giving them any candy or allowing them to eat anything! I will not be held liable for any accident occurring due to the use of this list. It is meant as a guide only.

Need a short list? Check out these:
Gluten-Free Halloween Candy Quick List 2011
Allergen-Free Halloween Candy Quick List 2011

NOTE for bloggers/organizations/media: Please do not reprint this list without my permission. Linking to it, however, is just fine and dandy! Printing is encouraged for personal use or for schools, etc. I appreciate your consideration of my work.

AIRHEADS (parent company: Perfetti Van Melle headquartered in Italy and Netherlands)

• Airheads Bars
  • Ingredients free of: peanuts, tree nuts, egg, milk, wheat/gluten
  • Ingredients contain: soybean oil
  • Package statement: “Manufactured in a facility that processes wheat flour”
• Airheads Xtremes Belts
  • Ingredients free of: peanuts, tree nuts, egg, milk, soy
  • Ingredients contain: wheat flour, wheat starch

Gluten-Free info (via web Sept 2011): Airheads Bars do not contain gluten; however, they are processed in a facility that uses wheat flour in other items, so Perfetti Van Melle [the parent company] does not claim that Airheads Bars are gluten free.

Allergen info (via web Sept 2011): Airheads do not contain peanuts, tree nuts, pine nuts, sesame, eggs or dairy; however, since it would not be typical for these items to be found in our products, we perform no specific test for them. Please keep in mind that due to the fact that most of the ingredients are agricultural products and could be processed on equipment that may also handle products containing these items, we cannot make the claim that our products are free of said items.

AMERICAN LICORICE CO. (located in Union City, CA 866-442-2783)

• Sour Punch Twists, Bits, Bites, Straws, Sip n Chews
  • Ingredients free of: peanuts, tree nuts, egg, milk, soy
  • Ingredients contain: wheat/gluten
• Red Vines – all varieties, including Black, Natural and Fruit Vines
  • Ingredients free of: peanuts, tree nuts, egg, milk, soy
  • Ingredients contain: wheat/gluten

Allergen Info (via web Sept 2011): American Licorice products do not contain peanuts, tree nuts or sesame and peanut oil is not used in the manufacture any of our products. Red Vines® products do not contain peanuts. Peanut and/or peanut oil is not used to manufacture any of our products.

ANGIE’S ARTISAN TREATS

• Kettle Corn
  • Ingredients free of: wheat/gluten, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, milk, soy
  • Ingredients contain: none of the top 8 allergens
  • Package statement: “Certified gluten-free”

ANNABELLE’S (located in Hayward, CA 510-783-2900)

• Abba Zabba
  • Ingredients free of: tree nuts, eggs, milk, wheat/gluten (see company Gluten-Free info below)
  • Ingredients contain: peanuts, soybean oil and soy lecithin
  • Package statement: “Made in a facility that uses milk, egg, tree nuts, wheat and peanuts”
• Big Hunk
  • Ingredients free of: wheat/gluten, milk, tree nuts (see company Gluten-Free info below)
  • Ingredients contain: peanuts, eggs, soy lecithin
  • Package statement: “made in a facility that uses milk, egg, tree nuts, wheat and peanuts”
• Look
  • Ingredients free of: tree nuts, wheat/gluten (see company Gluten-Free info below)
  • Ingredients contain: milk, peanuts, soy lecithin, eggs
  • Package statement: “Made in a facility that uses milk, egg, tree nuts, wheat and peanuts”
• Rocky Road, Rocky Road Mint, Rocky Road Dark
  • Ingredients free of: peanuts
  • Ingredients contain: milk, tree nuts (cashews), wheat/gluten (barley malt and wheat flour), soybean oil
  • Package statement: “Made in a facility that uses egg, tree nuts, wheat and peanuts.”
• U-No
  • Ingredients free of: peanuts, eggs, wheat/gluten (see company Gluten-Free info below)
  • Ingredients contain: milk, almonds, soy lecithin
  • Package statement: “Made in a facility that uses milk, egg, tree nuts, wheat and peanuts”

Gluten-Free info (via phone Sept 2011): The only guaranteed gluten-free candy is the 2 oz. (regular size) Big Hunk. For all other candies, including the mini Big Hunks, there is the possibility of contamination from flour that is used on the belts. While there is no flour used specifically for the Big Hunk minis, there is flour used on the belts for the manufacture of the Look bars.

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My girls turned 7 and 5 this month, and for their birthday celebration, I decided to have something other than cake (see their past birthday cakes: Butterfly cakes, Fish cakes, Mermaid cakes, Aloha cakes).

The dessert was a surprise up until the moment it was ready, and it was a hit! Can you guess from the picture of my happy 7 year old what it was?

A chocolate fountain! With stuff to dip — all gluten-free and free of the top 8 allergens.

I purchased a mini chocolate fountain on Amazon for $28. It worked great, but I think in the future I would rather have the larger size. For the chocolate I used Enjoy Life Mega Chunks with organic canola oil (you have to add oil to the chocolate to thin it for the fountain). The chocolate flowed perfectly and was delicious. People couldn’t believe it was dairy-free.

For the dipping I used marshmallows, pineapple (canned), strawberries, mandarin oranges (canned), Glutino pretzel sticks, Kinnikinnick animal cookies, vanilla cake cut into chunks, and more marshmallows (the most popular item), which I also put candles in for my girls to blow out during the Happy Birthday song.

For dipping and eating, I had skewers, plates, and NAPKINS! And a hose. Yes, it was messy, but the smiles were worth it. I recommend doing it outside (even though the instructions say not to), and getting a plastic tablecloth.

The chocolate fountain may just become their birthday tradition!

Did you know that breakfast cereal was invented only a little over 100 years ago? What was intended as a health food has become, for most Americans, a meal of sugary processed grains devoid of real nutrition. Bright unnatural colors, marshmallow or chocolate bits and prizes are what define our boxed cereals of today. Even choosing healthy, natural cereals can mean a lot of gluten, as most cereals are made from wheat, and if you are one of the 7% of Americans who have celiac disease or are gluten intolerant (some doctors suspect the number is closer to 30%!), this big dose of gluten at the beginning of the day can really affect the rest of your day.

So, what are your breakfast options if you need to be on a gluten-free diet? Don’t worry – there are many! Head over to Attune Foods, the makers of Erewhon cereal, to read my list of gluten-free breakfast ideas, and add your own in the comments!

Yes, you heard me right — gluten-free potstickers! One of the things I miss most being gluten-free is eating Chinese food. Even if you avoid the obvious wheat-based foods, Chinese restaurants are challenging  due to the soy sauce used in most dishes. I recently had the pleasure of trying the new Gluten-Free Handmade Asian Style Dumplings made by Feel Good Foods. The verdict? Delicious!! It was such a treat to taste a potsticker again!

The gluten-free dumplings come in vegetable, chicken, pork and shrimp, and each are accompanied by a yummy gluten-free dipping sauce. And no MSG.

Vanessa Phillips, the founder of Feel Good Foods, has celiac disease. Her husband and partner, Tryg Siverson, is a chef. So you can see why they were able to make a great product!

Here are the ingredients of the chicken dumplings:
Wrapper: sweet rice flour, water, potato starch, rice flour, soybean oil, salt, xanthan gum, corn starch
Filling: chicken, cabbage, sesame oil, green onion, sugar, salt, garlic, ginger, cilantro,  yeast extract, black pepper
Dipping Sauce: wheat free tamari (water, organic soybeans, salt, organic vinegar), sugar, white vinegar, ginger, garlic, and ground black pepper

Where to find these darling dumplings? Good news for you on the East Coast (they are based in New York), but for me on the West Coast, I’m outta luck! (For now — I am sure they will make their way here.) Consult the list of where to buy or order from Gluten Free Mall (be aware that these are shipped frozen, so higher shipping charges will apply).

Maybe someday we’ll get Won Tons and Fortune Cookies too!

I have picked the winners of the glass bottles from Lifefactory!

First, let me say that it was totally random. Second, I want to tell you that since there were so many entries (153!) I just couldn’t stop at four bottles, so I decided to add two more winners! Yay!

Even if you aren’t a winner, you really still are, because

a) now you know about my favorite water vessel, and
b) you get a special discount of 20% online, using code surefoods20 until June 30, 2011 (UPDATE: The discount code was terminated on May 31st because it was posted on coupon sites – I apologize). By the way, these make awesome gifts. Check out the baby and kid bottles and safe teethers. We use everything in our house (well, not the teethers — but I give them to friends with babies. I wish this stuff was around when mine were babies).

And now, for the winners:

#141 Cori, who according to her blog is on a weight-loss journey. This bottle full of clean water should help! Cori said “I would love the 22 oz midnight blue!!”

#103 Shirley, who is one of my gluten-free blogging buddies! I can’t believe you won Shirley. I’m so glad you get one! Shirley said, “I actually got to see some of the Lifefactory bottles being used by folks at the Expo. Loved them! I’d love the larger size in midnight blue.” She was talking about the Gluten-Free Allergy-Free Expo by the way.

#24 Michelle, another one of my blogging buddies! She is one of the cleanest, greenest gals around, so I know she will appreciate this bottle! She said, “Hurray for safe bottles! Either size is great – I love spring green ”

#110 Venessa, who said, “I currently rotate between a couple of metal bottles, but I would love to try this one. It has an awesome look too. I’d like the 22oz. bottle in RED. Thanks! so much for this opportunity.”

#98 Lynette Harris, who said, “Would LOVE the 16 oz in Graphite! We are always on the go with sports activities, and this would be awesome! How fun!”

#33 @mpv61 (Melanie) who said, “I would love a 22 ounce Spring Green! I’ve never seen these before; they’re very stylish. And we could all use more hydration!”

Thanks everyone for entering and many of you for your nice comments about my blog. And thanks to Lifefactory, for this giveaway and for making these amazing products!