AWOL - back now with gluten free tips and recipes

Hi to all my followers. So sorry I've been AWOL. No excuses, I've just been neglecting my cakesknitsandcosies blog ever since I rebranded to Lynne's Pattern Parlour. So I 'm going to kickstart this blog, with handy tips on gluten free living and crafting.

Here are my first gluten free tips:

Gluten free bread.

It's really difficult to make decent gluten free bread. I've given up trying. But there are couple of 'bought' alternatives that are really nice.

1. Genius bread - great for eating as a sandwich (not as nice when toasted)
2. Dietry Specials bread - great for toasting (not easy to eat as a sandwich)

I buy a loaf of both, and here's a great tip:

Divide each loaf into smaller portions - 3 or 4 slices in each. Wrap and freeze. Just take out when needed. Gluten free bread goes stale very easily, so freezing it like this means you can avoid throwing it away (it's far too expensive for that!!)

Here's a lunchtime gluten free treat - You very own Welsh Rarebit
Take 2 or 3 rounds of gluten free bread (I would recommend dietry specials for toasting), 2-3 slices of cheese per round and 1 slice of ham, chopped finely, dried herbs if you have any. Toast bread on one side, turn and lightly toast on the other. Remove from grill and place cheese onto toast, then sprinkle the ham over and dried herbs. Return to grill. When the cheese is melted, remove from grill. Add a little gluten free tomato ketchup if desired (most brands are gluten free - just check ingredients). There you have it - a 'normal' lunch, with all the benefits of being gluten free and no butter too - so less calories. You could also add a sliced tomato or salad. Enjoy.

Keep following for more gluten free tips and recipes

Turkey Sandwiches with Cranberry jelly

Today I had a turkey sandwich, packed with turkey and cranberry jelly. It was soooo delicious. The reason I'm so happy is that I haven't had a sandwich in years. I have a wheat and gluten intolerance, so this means I can't eat ordinary bread, cakes, biscuits, and most food that comes in tins, jars and packets. I mainly eat meats, vegetables, rice, fruit and some gluten-free specialist products.

You can buy gluten free products, but most gluten free bread is really only edible if you toast it. Even then, many varieties simply crumble into nothing in the toaster, or are so dry that you can barely swallow it. My answer to this has been to not eat bread. I just eat crackers instead. They're slightly more palatable.

However, my very thoughtful hubby bought me a breadmaker for christmas so that I can make my own bread. Yippee.I've been testing various recipes, and bought a packet mix yesterday from Orgran. It turned out great, but not a good as the Orgran photo shows. I added skimmed milk powder, as suggested on the box, for a lighter loaf. I've even managed to sliced it very thinly - I had to be really patient whilst waiting for it to cool. I've eaten 4 slices and it was a dream. I've frozen half of it, so I'll let you know if it tastes as good when defrosted.

The only problem is that it's rather expensive, but definitely worth it. I paid £2.99 from Tesco, but I'm going to shop around and see where it's cheapest. There's a specialist shop in Congleton called 'Just for You', so I think I'll pop in and see the very helpful Val and see whether she can get it any cheaper.