Eating normal food again!

Today and yesterday I got to eat food that I haven't been able to eat since my diagnosis last may!

No things didn't get the better of me and I didn't succumb to cravings.

It started last night with a gluten free frozen pie! I've walked past them many a time at the supermarket and often wondered what they tasted like, but kept on walking. This pie was brought for me, for the first time in 18 months I. was able to have pie and chips! I know you all want to know the outcome of this pie. Well to start I think my
taste buds are slightly adjusted to gf food and I forget what a normal pie tastes like. This pie reminded me of school canteen pies, the colour and texture was different to a gluten pie but the taste was surprisingly tasty! And the thought that I can eat something and feel a bit normal was uplifting, in a weird type of way.

My ventures in eating normal food continued, I was at the local shopping mall, Narellan Town Centre for locals, wandering the food court. Sushi is my normal dish of choice, healthy and gf, but I felt like being a bit naughty
and I wandered over to Ali Baba,the kebab chain and I was completely amazed to discover that they had a gf range!
For only an extra dollar, I had my first kebab in nearly two years! There was not only gf bread but marked gf sauces
and the people working there were well versed in their range of gf products! There was not only kebabs but salad
plates!

I thoroughly enjoyed my kebab, which topped off with hommus and garlic mayo, made for a delicious, mouth watering food experience! With no side effects that I used to have when I ate a kebab, obviously no gluten this time! This kebab shop is definately not in the category of dodgy kebabs, the ones that we all eat after a night out on the
town, after a few beverages! Definately something that everyone must try who is a coeliac or on a gluten free diet.
For a kebab without the dodgy side effects, head to Ali Baba.

Let's hope other food chains follow in their footsteps and we begin to see gf options as something that is
available at all places, making eating out at shopping malls not such a limited experience.

I loved feeling slightly normal again, it was the high light of my day! Sad but true, the feeling of being a bit normal again, to have choice in what I eat was an amazing feeling, that so many of us take for granted!

Enjoy feeling normal like I did, you will enjoy it and share it with others!

A hidden gem in Picton

A few Friday nights ago, I had the pleasure of going out to dinner with an old friend. We were fortunate enough to gain a reservation at '6 Months', a new restaurant in Picton (for locals its underneath the Pumphouse Gym). I've tried a few times to get a booking to this new trendy restaurant, so needless to say I was excited to finally get in!

The restaurant is only small, but that adds to the ambidence created by the overall design. The style is very minimilist, but trendy and extremley city like. Something that a small country town like Picton needs. The setting is a french style, with the decor and walls painted white, and for me the feature was an old rustic ladder, leaning tenderley against the wall. All of these things made a marvellous combination to enhancing the overall mood of the restaurant, and the evening for indivudal groups of diners.

The menu is written on a large blackboard, no individual menus that have been handled numerous times by others, but something nice and big in print, for all to read. The basis of the meals is shared plates, very similar to a Tapas style of dining. All drinks are also for you to bring (how great is that!), water however is provided, and was the drink of choice for both of us on that night.

We had a fantastic waiter, who was not only well mannered, but well versed in the content of the menu (not a trait found in all waiters!). I was in total and utter amazement when I discovered that there was only one meal that I couldn't eat! Generally it's only one meal that I can eat. The extremely talented chef cooks in gluten freee flours to ensure all patrons can experience the delight of the vast majority of the menu! Needless to say I was very excited! A definate restuarant to go to for any coeliacs or gluten intoerlant people!

When a restaurant endeavours to take on the idea of shared plates of their main method for serving food, its the pace that the meals are brought out that makes all the difference! To begin, we had the cured beef, which was cold beef (it had the taste and texture of a prostitio type meant), with sweet potato and a delicious sauce. The presentation was suberb, in theme with the rustic style of the restaurant, dishes were served in a ceramic bowl, with additional cultery for each person to put on their plate. The cured beef, left a lingering delicious flavour in your mouth, activatiting my tastebuds to a whole new level.

There was enough time to digest the first plate and indulge in some catch up converstation before the next dish was served. Our second dish was pulled pork, accompained by a white bean salsa. The pork literally melted in your mouth, with an expolision of various tastes mixed with the salsa, the pork was simply delicious and highly recommended.

The final dish was handcut chips, accompanied by a handmade garlic aioli! They were simply delightful and a fantastic final dish to a lovely meal.

I definately recommend everyone in the Macarthur area to try this hidden gem of the'Dilly'. Prices are extremley reasonable at $30 per head for a selection of 5 dishes from the menu or $45 for all 10 dishes on the menu. With BYO for all drinks, this calls for a very affordable and enjoyable evening at a remarkable restaurant. For bookings at '6 Months' call 0467 666 036.

Enjoy and let me know your thoughts on this great restaurant.

Quinoa, the facts and figures about this ancient grain

Recently I trekked off to the gf expo in Sydney. I have mentioned to my readers this before and I do recall informing my readers I would be writing some product reviews; this was to be done in exchange for some lovely exhibitors displaying my blog cards! Firstly apologies for the delay on this blog post, my health has not been the best of late, even resulting in an 11 day hospital stay! Unfortunately typiintonation the computer is something that greatly aggravates my various injuries and subsequent illnesses. Thankfully I have recruited the assistance of my husband and mum in typing my blog! I had the pleasure of buying what is known as 'The lost Ceral', quinoa and amaranth seeds. As those of us who are coeliacs know, that most grains are banned from our diet, if we follow the diet strictly and correctly! The best thing about quinoa seeds is it's a rediscovered ancient grain, originally from the South of America and was called 'The Gold of the Incas'. It is also filled with an ambudance of healthy minerals, protein,making this grain an essential part of any gf diet, or indeed any diet! There is a variety of types of quinoa based products including; a berry based cereal (of quinona and amaranth seeds), also quinona seeds (which I purchased), there is also a quinoa and amaranth pasta(which cooks in 3 minutes!). Apologies if I have missed any of the great products they have! There website is www.glutengrainfree.com, check it out for yourself or email any queries to info@glutengrainfree.com. I brought the quinoa seeds at the expo, and to be honest I wasn't entirely sure what to expect. I cooked the quinoa as per the instructions of the lovely ladies at the expo told me, in a saucepan with chicken stock, instead of water. The flavor was lovely, it had an almost nutty texture to it. I served it with herbed Mexican chicken dish, it was the perfect combination! I'll be putting the recipe up later this week. I urge all coeliacs to buy this amazing grain, checkout the website above, for stockist or how to buy online. But the main reason to buy and eat this grain, is we miss out on so many grains, which are an important part of our dietary needs. So make sure you try this 'Gold of the Incas', please let me know what you think of this amazing grain.