Wednesday, October 28, 2009

And the winner is....

I used the random number generator here at Truly Random Number and the winner is.....

Karen at Fab Grandma!

Karen, send me an email (which is posted on my site) and I'll get the copy of Annalise's great book to you ASAP!

Much love, Ging

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Delicious Dinners Direct to your Door


Back when Jeffrey was an infant, we lived in Wurzburg, Germany. One of our favorite restaurants, just up the street from our economy apartment, was a Gasthaus that served delicious schnitzel. My favorite was always the pork schnitzel (there are lots of varieties) with its crispy crust and tender, spiced-just-right taste. Sometimes I'd order one for me and one for Jeffrey, which explains why I was so huge when we returned from Germany...but I digress.

I was never able to find that taste in an American product, but last week, I did, in the breaded pork cutlets made by gfmeals.

Selling at $20 a package (and a package has four servings according to the label) these cutlets took me back to the Schnitzel Factory near Kitzinger, Germany. I was in bliss! They also, I might add, are low in calories and carbohydrates, and have only one gram of sugar. That's great for my GF/SF diabetic diet!

There's really a lot to like about gfmeals by Your Dinner Secrets, and over the last month I've become a fan for two reasons. First, they're sold frozen and shipped for a reasonable shipping cost based on the cost of the order. Second, I really like the co-founded, Roni Piterman, whose son is recovering from ADHD through a gluten-free, casein-free diet (this product is free of most major allergins -- including gluten, of course, which matters most to me personally). According to their website:

Your Dinner Secret was founded in January 2007 to bring the finest entrees, sides and baked goods to the people of Los Angeles. In mid-2007 we recognized that people nationwide were desperately in need of frozen, ready-to-cook, entrees, sides and baked goods that are gluten-free and casein-free. Families dealing with autism, aspergers, ADHD and celiac disease embraced us, and word of our service spread across the US. We developed the brand gfMeals to serve this market. Now, since we use organic produce and all-natural meat, we also serve the nationwide market of people who simply want to lead a healthier lifestyle.


The website also has a wonderful section on the gf/cf diet for those considering it for a person with autism or ADHD.

I also tried the delicious turkey meatloaf. It's priced reasonably (about $16.50) serves three and is delicious. I'd consider having these in my freezer for those days when I've got to produce a meal but have no ambition when I get home. To me, though it's delicious, making meatloaf s a sloppy, intensive process. And I have to take my rings off to do it -- yuck. This meatloaf had an especially piquant sweet onion sauce. Though it's a little high for my low sugar diet, I liked the meatloaf fine without it, too. Either way works fine. Oh, and I love that there's no green pepper in it. I absolutely don't like green pepper in my meatloaf! This is actually very close to my recipe, to tell the truth.

Roni sent me samples of the pork cutlets and the turkey meatloaf at my request on Twitter, and she has secured a customer because of it. As soon as I can, I'm anxious to order a stock of the pork cutlets for my freezer -- they're perfectly sized for my diet, are delicious, and are very versatile. I thought about making pork parmegiana -- add sauce and cheese. Or Jaeger Schnitzel, bu adding a mushroom gravy. But I mostly like them plain. They're delicious and so easy to prepare, I can do them from frozen in my toaster oven in only 20 minutes. (Just be sure to spray the pan as directed.)



Oh, and they have weekly specials (which will tempt you in your email mailbox every week) AND a great newsletter called "The Secret Scoop.

Thank you, Roni, for the chance to sample your product. I'm so impressed.

Now, here's my idea for you, my readers. When people ask you what you want for holiday gifts, why not request a gift pack from gfmeals? It's a great freezer staple, no more expensive than some gluten-free products in the supermarket, and it's delicious. What a great gift!

Here's all the details:

Your Dinner Secret
www.gfMeals.com
888-700-5610
20929 Ventura Blvd., #22
Woodland Hills, CA 91364

Your Source For Gluten and Casein-Free Entrees, Sides and Baked Goods Shipped To Your Door

Keep in touch with gfMeals on Facebook.
Keep in touch with gfMeals on Twitter.

Much tasty love!
Ging

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

A thoughtful book, and a give-away!



A few weeks ago, I posted about a deal where you could purchase a Zojirushi bread machine and receive a copy of Annalise G. Roberts' Gluten-Free Baking Classics for the Bread Machine.. I was thrilled to receive a copy of the book for review, but, with full disclosure, I admit I don't have a Zo, so I couldn't test the recipes.

I wish I did, though. Now more than ever. This book should be nicknamed Clarissa, because it explains it all!

If you are new to the gluten-free baking world, and you have a Zo, this book will make your life and baking very straightforward and deliciously easy. I love to read cookbooks, and after reading the sections of this book on the gluten-free baking pantry, the flour mix ratios, and so much more. I could feel my taste buds activating when I read about the cinnamon swirl bread...I learned a lot from the book, in short, and that's an essential tool in good cook-book writing, in my opinion.

Annalise Roberts is a baking goddess, loved and revered by members of the gluten-free baking world. And her book is a true service vehicle to those who are gluten-free. In short, it's a must have for your baking library -- as long as you have a Zo, that is.

So for that reason, I am going to make this book available to one of my readers as a prize. You see, I don't have a Zo, and as a college professor of limited means (read:furloughed but fabulous?) I don't see buying one in my future. So for me, while this books is delightful, inspiring, delicious reading, it does me no good.

So here's the deal: Tell me in the comments here why you think I should give you this book (which in a way will be a tribute to Annalise's fabulous work) AND then I'll use my husband's random number ap to pick a winner.

Deadline to enter and win: Sunday, October 25. 6 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. I'll announce the winner and ask him or her to send me mailing details. Cool enough?

Thank you Agate Publishing, for producing such a fine book. And thank you, Annalise Roberts, for ALL you do for the gluten-free world.

Much love, and best of luck!

Ging