Gluten free vs gluten

Do I like it gluten free or do I like it with gluten?

Hello I am Miss Zen, the insider / outsider in the gluten free world for Baci di Dama. Living gluten free!

I keep going through my journey into this world that is new to me as I regularly eat gluten.

This time, I wanted to test gluten free pasta. I asked some advice to my favorite expert Chiara and went straight to my organic store Sequoia in Brussels.

Maybe it was the Summer or the growing success of the “no-gluten movement” but I could not find any gluten free pasta: the aisles were empty.  I did not want to try corn/rice/whatever pasta.

So I changed my plan I decided to try bread and cookies.

I already knew the delicious “Generous” cookies brand  (which I’m proud to have introduced to Chiara) so I opted for another brand to try “Les recettes de Céliane”  the nuts variant (http://www.lesrecettesdeceliane.com)

The bright side, I could not tell any difference in terms of texture: it tasted exactly the same as the regular brands.  

The down side: those cookies were awfully sweet, too sweet for my taste.

As usual, I asked my son to taste and he liked them a lot. He has a serious sweet tooth…   So if you like sweet treats, you should try them….

Then I picked up my first gluten free bread.  The fresh bread aisle was almost empty too. I was so disappointed!

I found some industrial version from the brand Schär. It was the only choice I had and I needed bread to prepare the picnic for my son summer camp. So I went for it……(I hope that my friend Chiara will not be too upset as she suggested better to start with artisanal, fresh gluten free bread)

The bright side: If I compare this industrial brand to other “with gluten” industrial brands like Harris – frankly it passes the test. The texture is nice. I tried it toasted for breakfast with peanut butter and also for dinner with avocado.

Not the best bread in the world but again no difference in terms of texture/taste.

I was  positively surprised ! And I did not feel down/tired after eating 2 or 3 slices.

The down side:  it is clearly an industrial brand, not very gourmet…

And I used the Schar bread for my son’s picnic: I asked him  if he liked what I prepared and he did not seem to have noticed any difference ……

Net, net: I will not buy this brand again because it is too white/too neutral for me. But it convinced me that gluten free breads are not that different from regular breads.

Next time, I do hope to share my experience with gluten free pasta and fresh bread.

I really enjoy my gluten free journey.

Food Photography by Chiara, Baci di Dama. Living gluten free