Say goodbye to...Starbucks valencia orange cake.

As quickly as it came, it is now gone :( Although I never did get to try it over here in Seoul, this is sad news for the gluten free Starbucks community. The gluten free moist valencia orange cake that came out in spring, is no longer available at Starbucks. On Twitter, Starbucks said, "We heard that it was too much of a treat, and not a nutritious snack. The @KindSnacks bar is replacing it." Fruit and nut bars definitely don't go with coffee like a moist scrumptious cake does. Not happy with this? Tell Starbucks what you think about this! After all, it was your voice that got us this cake in the first place, right?! Until then, if you feel a craving for this delicious treat and have time on your hands, make your very own valencia orange cake.

For those of you loyal readers, you'll notice I'm not posting a recipe like I normally do on Fridays. This Starbucks news is well in need of being circulated for the celiac community ;)

Say hello to...gluten-free grains quicklist.

I was browsing Mike Eberhart's gluten free blog the other day and came across an interesting article that I wanted to share with those of you who may not be familiary with his blog. He talks about the misconceptions that people have about gluten-free diets and how they often wonder, "WHAT CAN YOU EAT??" after receiving a brief explanation of what we can't eat. Mike goes on to list all different kinds of grains that we CAN eat; a gluten-free grains quicklist:

rice, corn, potato, teff, sorghum, amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat, millet, chia seed, bean flours, squash flours, and spices.

An interesting quote from him: "Whenever i encounter the theme of 'living without' (with regards to living without gluten), I can not help thinking that perhaps it is the rest of the population that is living without--without the variety of grains, flours, and ingredients that one may otherwise never encounter or experience unless essentially 'forced' (by celiac disease, gluten-intolerance, autism, etc) to try all these great alternatives to 'normal' flour. Happy variety-filled baking everyone! ~ Mike Eberhart.

Check out his gluten-free blog, website on gluten-free news, or purchase his gluten free gourmet desserts cookbook.

Say goodbye to...Maple Leaf Top Dogs.

Although I've never purchased Maple Leaf Top Dogs, I thought I'd share some recent updates on changes of ingredients within this product. Maple Leaf Foods recently changed the recipe of its Top Dogs hotdogs to improve flavour and taste. The new formulation now contains wheat gluten instead of soy. Although Top Dogs hotdogs were never a certified gluten-free product, Maple Leaf wanted to notify the Canadian Celiac Association as this product may be referenced by members as a suitable choice. The new recipes will be in stores in July 2009 and feature the updated ingredient list on the package. Please note the list of TopDogs products that have been reformulated: Top Dogs Original, Top Dogs Original BBQ, Top Dogs All Beef, Top Dogs Singles, and Top Dogs 33% Less Fat.

Say hello to...sesame chicken.

I cook a lot with chicken since red meat is cut differently and often expensive here in Korea. I've posted my 2 favorite chicken recipes already: fragrant chicken and mustard lime chicken. Sesame chicken is my third favorite- it's simple and tastes great.


Ingredients
3/4 brown rice
3 tbsp honey
2 tbsp sesame seeds
2 tbsp gf soy sauce
1 garlic clove, chopped
2 egg whites
1/4 cup cornstarch *
2-3 chicken breasts, cut into cubes
2 tbsp vegetable oil
Handful of broccoli, separated
Salt and pepper to taste


1. Begin cooking the rice.
2. Fill saucepan or pot with 1 inch of water. Put broccoli in it and cook on low for 5-7min.
3. In a small bowl combine honey, sesame seeds, soy sauce, and garlic; set aside.
4. In a large bowl whisk egg whites and cornstarch. Add chicken and season with salt and pepper, toss to coat.
5. In skillet, heat 1 tbsp oil over med/high heat. Add half the chicken, turning occasionally for 8-10min. Repeat with remaining chicken. Return all the chicken to the skillet and add reserved sauce, toss to coat.
6. Serve over with broccoli over brown rice.


*The original recipe called for corn powder, not cornstarch. Although I haven't experimented with other flours yet, I'm sure there's another one that might even work better than cornstarch.

Say hello to...honey nut Chex cereal.

I previously mentioned how Chex now comes in 5 different gluten-free flavors. I didn't think I'd have the chance to try the new flavors until next year when I'd be in North America. But my friend in Seoul who has access to the grocery store on the american army base recently came across the gluten-free honey nut Chex cereal. Since it just came out in the States in June, I was surprised that it had already made it to the army base grocery store here in Seoul! Lucky me, I have now tasted it, and am completely and utterly satisfied :) I definitely recommend it!

Say hello to...gluten free alcohol.

There seems to be varied opinions on what alcoholic drinks are gluten free, and which ones aren't. Some people say you can have this or that, and some say you can't. I have to admit that it's pretty confusing. Up until now I've simply stuck to my favorite: white wine, and the occasional mix with Bacardi or Malibu. I recently discovered several websites that have very useful information on gluten free alcoholic drinks. Check them out: Gluten Free Kitchen and Gluten Free Drinks. Hopefully this will make it a lot more clearer on what you can and can't drink.

(Photo taken from BërN's photostream on flickr).

Say hello to...gluten free flour mix.

I've lived in Seoul for 3 1/2 years now. Whenever I have the chance to travel to a western country, I always try to bring as much gf flour back with me. Or when I know of someone traveling here, I'll get them to bring some. It's worked quiet well, until recently, when I've been trying to experiment with more gf baking. I've suddenly ran all the bags dry ;) Korea does most things quiet different from westerners, and adds wheat flour to most potato starches. Until just last week I hadn't been able to find a gf potato starch. Luckily I was able to find a tapioca starch at a foreign food mart here. So with those two, combined with rice flour, I can now make my very own gf flour! Here's my basic mix, which I'm sure a lot of you are already familiar with:

2 cups rice flour
2/3 cup potato starch
1/3 cup tapioca starch

I've used it for several recipes and am more than content with the simple mix. Please, let me know of your favorite gf flour mixes. I would love to expand from this :) But I might have to wait until I have access to more flours ;)