Torrijas

 This is one of those treats that I've grown up with.

My dad used to make torrijas for us occasionally and they hardly ever lasted a day.
They are made using bread that is a day or two old, and it was a fine art to casually leave enough bread around ready for Sunday morning, when he could be gently persuaded to make them.

There are as many recipes out there as people making them, some of them use syrup instead of the final coating in sugar, but this is the way I like them and I've eaten them all my life.
Thinking about it, I'd say I've only ever had them at home.



Milk dip

I've tried making them with a gluten-free baguette and it works quite well. I would recommend the one from Sainsbury's or Marks and Spencer's, both have the right consistency.


Ingredients:
* Gluten-Free baguette, one or two days old
* 125ml milk (I used soya) & 2 tbsp of sugar, mixed
* Gluten free flour
* 1 beaten Egg mixed with a couple of tbsp of milk
* Oil to deep fry it. I use a mix of olive and sunflower oil and a small pan
* Mix of sugar (3tbsp) and ground cinamon (1 tsp)

Method:


flour away

* Cut the bread into slices 1 inch thick
* Dip them in the milk&sugar mix, turning around and making sure they are well soaked. If your bread is really hard, you might need to keep it in there a bit longer.
* Coat them in the GF flour both sides
* Coat them in the egg mixture
* Deep fry until a golden brown colour. The oil should be on medium heat, too hot and they'll burn, too cold and they'll absorb too much oil


eggy

* Leave to rest on kitchen paper to absorb some oil for a few minutes

* Coat them in the sugar and cinamon mixture while still warm

Enjoy!



Dairy Free Chocolate raisins - Fabulous Freefrom Factory

These raisins are really nice, advertised as dairy free (and no gluten containing ingredients).

I found them at Holland and Barrett, a 75 gr bag for £1.69

Unfortunately, as I was doing some more online search for this brand I've found this March 2014 notice from the Food Standards Agency, it seems that one of their batches contains milk:
http://www.food.gov.uk/news-updates/allergy-news/2014/mar/milk

So, one to be cautious about.

The Jelly Bean Factory Gluten Free

My nephew wanted to share some of his jelly beans with me, and as I was explaining about not being able to eat things with gluten and blah blah blah, he went back to the box and said ... but they ARE gluten free!!!

My nephew and nieces spent all the time that I was visiting finding out more about being intolerant and allergic and coeliac, checking labels, and when we went to a street market this Christmas, they also pointed out all the gluten free options for me, they are sooo cute ;)

January Blues

Oh dear, Christmas is over and it's cold and dark. I don't know about you, but I don't like January much.
Too much over indulgence in the last month, is that what is making me a bit sluggish??
Despite everything, I am quite happy with this last Christmas. I managed to eat most of what I wanted without being glutened once.

That is a great success compared to last year, my first gluten free one. I so wanted to eat like everyone else that I got glutened a few times, but this year, I've been extra careful reading labels, and it's been great feeling fine.

I've been eating a lot of turron, the Spanish traditional sweets. In principle most varieties should be gluten free, as they are almond based, but once you start adding new flavours it's not obvious any more. It is also important to keep them separate from any gluten containing ones just to be safe.
I was really happy to discovered that my two favourites were gluten free. They are liquor cherry covered in Chocolate from Virginia's and Caramelised Yolk (yema tostada).
And I also had some Mon Cheri chocolates that are also gluten free.
I didn't manage to get on the reservation list for gluten free "roscon de reyes" this year. This is a traditional sweet eaten around the 5th Jan.
It is like a giant donut shaped cake, like sweet bread with candied fruit and filled with cream, so something to look forward for Christmas 2014 ;)
For anyone going to Spain, I'd recomend checking out the Celiac group of their destination (asociacion celiaca), as they tend to have suggestions of shops, restaurants, etc.
On the Spanish Celiac website they is some information in English (bottom right corner of the main page). Their website is: http://www.celiacos.org/

Marks and Spencer Christmas range

I went into Marks and Spencers the other day and decided to check their gluten free Christmas range.
They have a good selection, with mince pies, a Christmas pudding for one and a Christmas cake. Reasonable price too, around £2.Not bad.

I haven't tried them, as I've never really liked the pudding or the mince pies in my gluten eating days, but I though I should mention it. If any reader has tried them, please leave a comment with your thoughts, thanks!

Vanilla cupcakes

I was dreaming of some sweet nothing the other day and reached for my baking book, Cake Angels by Julia Thomas, going over my favourite recipes for a quick and easy one. Vanilla cupcakes it was, plishhh plashh plosh, done in no time!
I always leave out the frosting, too sweet for me.

Goody Good Stuff

I love these sweets! the sour mix is my favourite, but I tried the other flavours at the Allergy Show and they are equally yummy.

They are made with natural ingredients and no E numbers, they are vegetarian and free from many things, gelatine, fat, dairy, artificial colours and gluten.

I recently found them in Waitrose for around £1.50, and seem to be available through Amazon too. Great treat!