GFXCON: Thoughts, praise and a big Thank You to Kristin Carey!

I am so happy I was able to attend the  the first ever GFXCON! Didn't attend? Don't worry! I have it on good authority that there will be more! There was so much to do at this Gluten Free Convention that there was never a dull moment. There was not only the Expo, there was also Conferences, Cooking Demonstrations, and a dinner to close out the night. I missed some of these events due to scheduling conflicts but in the future I know that I will not want to miss out on the fun!

Who is the mastermind behind the GFXCon? Kristin Carey. Why does her name sound familiar? I have mentioned her prior; she is the owner of Nourish. She is incredible. She keeps bringing fourth new ways for the GF/Dairy free/Soy free/Vegan/Vegetarian/Allergen free communities together in exciting ways. This Conference was the perfect blend of food,education, and fun. I want to thank Kirstin Carey for creating such an all encompassing  Conference.

That said, I am a big supporter of all the GF conferences, I think we (Celiacs), should go to every conference  available to us. The more of us that show up and give the GF lifestyle a face; the more conferences that will appear in your area. This is better for us as consumers. Keep that in mind...

Back to the GFXCON:

This is what the GFXCon looks like when you enter. There were a lot of Vendors and they were all very informative. There was not one that was unfriendly. It was great to see familiar faces like Julia from Julia's Bakery!

I sampled a ton of delicious foods, drinks and tried a lot of new beauty products. Most of the tables looked like this:

This is the Udi's table. I have spoken about my love of Udi's many, many, many times on the blog. A lot of the tables were set up like the Udi's table. Had I not been chatting so much with the awesome vendors, I would have taken more pictures. I am sorry, I was having such a great time and learning so much that I neglected to take photos.

 At the bottom of the post, please check out some of the links I have included for you to look at.  Additionally, I will be posting a lot of new great reviews of products from companies that I wouldn't have otherwise known about, had I not gone to the Expo.

I also met some amazing bloggers! One that I have followed for years and one that I now am excited to read! Please check out these two awesome blogs:

Stephanie- I read her all the time when she was SkinnyJeans! She was so kind and I was very excited to meet her. I love it when readers come up to me and she was very personable. Please check out her latest blog.

Ken-Ken was so nice and he is GF. He is your go to guy for sustainable living the GF way!


While I was at the GFXCon, I happened to catch three speakers. I saw Dan Maakastad, Sous Chef from Nourish, Kirstin Carey, Owner of Nourish and Dr. Kyle Collins from Upper Cervical. Each speaker brought something very interesting and unique to the table. Dan talked about Grain Free cooking, Kristin talked about how to travel without having to worry about getting sick and Dr. Collins spoke about Eliminating toxins.

The Expo made me very hungry! So before I made my journey home, I ventured to Nourish and ordered a meal to go. 

Teriyaki Wild Rice Bowl with ground beef added. Delish! Also, I love the blackboard quote they have displayed.

I had a marvelous time. I cannot THANK everyone that made this event possible enough. I cannot wait for the next one. I was in the best mood all day because of it. I loved the GFXCon!
Every vendor there was great, please check out these websites because I think that they are amazing:

• Celicas Disease Foundation-East Valley Chapter
• I am Fine (Skin Care)
• Gluten Free Country Store
• New Planet Beer
• Treehouse Bakery
• Sprouts
• Lady Of Moore

Check out FIT SUGAR, They Have A Post On GF LABELING!

Fit Sugar has a post on GF Labeling, leave comments and see if you agree with their views since they are not strictly a gluten free site!

Bisquick Gluten Free Pancake and Baking Mix

I have become a snob.A pancake/ waffle mix snob that is. I was stoked when I saw this on the grocery shelf and I was dancing in the kitchen when I was cooking this because Bisquick diving into the gluten free foods world is good for the community...or so I thought. However, when I tried the mix, I realized what a snob I have become...I hated the mix. It isn't that it is horrid but I have had better. Betty Crocker and General Mills are all companies that are now known for entering the gluten free market with good tasting products, I expected the same of Bisquick.  There are amazing companies that are soley GF that do it better!

Lucy's Chocolate Chip Cookies

I found these at Starbucks. They do not have milk, eggs, peanuts, or tree nuts! They also have organic ingredients and they are also vegan...I am sold. I got them after a long day out with Jacob when I failed to pack for a hunger emergency for myself (he is always well prepared, I am sometimes not!) so I gave in and purchased these. They were pretty good. They are not going to be my go to snack but they did the job and kept me satisfied. Plus, it is nice to know that if I am in a bind, I have options at a mainstream place like Starbucks!

The Stats:
Servings Per Package : 1.3
Calories: 130
Total Fat: 5
Total Carbs: 20
Sugar: 12 grams
Protein: 2

Fresh & Easy is making it EASY!

I received an email from Sallie over at Fresh & Easy letting me know that today Fresh & Easy was going to launch a few more gluten free items onto their shelves! They are also going to make those products easy to find with new labeling:
Now you can now print out a gluten free shopping guide to take with you to the store, here! Make sure that you go to your local Fresh and Easy to see these changes for yourself! How exciting, I love it when the world becomes more gluten free friendly!

REMINDER!

Watch DR OZ tonight! Topic tonight is Celiacs!

Betty Crocker Gluten Free Brownies & Cookies!

Two reviews in one? Hells yes! OK, it is because I have been a bad blogger...a slacker of sorts. In fact, I almost slacked tonight and put this off for yet ANOTHER night. This should really be two separate posts. I have been dedicating time to my new (and 4th blog Heartbroken Confessional), so please forgive me. I am a heartbroken blogger now, but the Betty Crocker GF brownies and cookies sure helped! They were really...hum...I should set this up like my other reviews...or I am just going to slack this so much that I am not even going to do this in my traditional form? Screw tradition!

The Cookies:


SO GOOD! I loved them. I could have eaten them all up, but I shared them! After all, gluten free sharing is caring! I only ate three! Yes, a crime because they were so good. I wanted them all to myself though. This is them before baking:
Final Product:
They were moist and chewy. These were serious gluten free perfection. Awesomely gluten free.

The brownies:

Oh my gosh! I loved the brownies more than the cookies....I didn't think that would be possible. So delish! Smelled like heaven in the oven. I served it warm with vanilla ice cream on the side:
I could eat this daily if it was a health food. It should be written as a prescription when going through a breakup. I served this to my sister and my friend Melissa and they couldn't even tell it was gluten free (but they knew it was because I was eating it).

If you have not tried these, you should! You will not regret these!

Thanks Betty!

If you follow my twitter ,you would know that I was not only waiting for the launch of these Betty Crocker Gluten Free mixes, but when they came out, the gluten free community was having a hard time locating them! Just because they launched didn't mean that they were available everywhere yet. On Sunday I spotted the elusive GF mixes at my local Fry's and I picked these up! Look for reviews on these soon! I am currenly making the chocolate chip cookies! Review should be posted tonight!

GFSteph posted a great review on the white cake mix, you should check it out here!

Thanks Starbucks for thinking of the Gluties like me!

I was counting down the days until the launch of STARBUCKS: GLUTEN FREE VALENCIA ORANGE CAKE! Today was the big unavailing! I checked twitter to see the chatter, a friend told me her Starbucks wasn't carrying it until tomorrow. I decided to call the closest location to me and they had three left! I was happy that the gluten free community was gobbling these goodies up! We want Starbucks to know that we not only exist; but that we have needs that have to be met!

We walked to Starbucks and I was so happy to see that they still had two when I arrived! See the joy on my face...
My son just wants his drink!
Then it was time for the moment of truth, could Starbucks create a fabulous gluten free dessert?

YES! A BIG YES!!! It was moist, and spongy. It reminded me of the orange version of the lemon pound cake that I loved in my pre-gluten free days! I was in gluten free heaven! The glutton in me was satisfied! Oh Starbucks you won me over, I was skeptical.

ADDITIONAL THINGS I LIKED:
It came prepackaged and it was not in the same case! So I felt like cross contamination was not something to worry about. I also liked that the ingredients and the nutritional information was listed on the packaging!


Normally when we walk, I wear different shoes. I should stick to routine because I got massive blisters that bled. This was so worth it!

Yup, that is blood!

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 290
Total Fat: 16 grams
Carbohydrates: 32 grams
Fiber: 4 grams
Protein: 9 grams

Go Fit Sugar!

(Posted on the Endless Possibilities Blog on 8/22/08)


I have mentioned the sugar websites before, I love them. They have everything you could ever want to read about. I really enjoy the Fitsugar site. Look at what they decided to write on:

"Somewhere between leaving home after high school and graduating college, I toyed with the idea of giving up gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley and rye. So many people I knew were living gluten free lives and claimed to feel so much better for giving it up. In fact, gluten free living seems to be on the rise.

Doctors estimate that one percent of the US population has Celiac disease, an extreme intolerance to gluten, but according to food marketers upwards of 15 to 25 percent of food consumers (that's you and me) want gluten free foods. Many see eating gluten free as a new fad diet. You all remember that Oprah Winfrey 21 day cleanse included giving up gluten."

It sucks that I am in the one percent. Check out FITSUGAR for this article and to look at the site. I am glad that I am not alone in my battle again gluten alone though. My best friend also has to deal with Celiac's , this is her blog.