Barilla Chickpea Rotini

 

I like chickpeas. I like pasta. I liked this chickpea pasta. It wasn't amazing but it certainly wasn't horrible. I like the consistency but there wasn't any taste to it that I could tell. 

 

I also liked that this wasn't sticky at all, in fact I was shocked that it wasn't sticky. I almost assume gluten free pasta will be sticky and just clump as leftovers. This did not and that is a pleasant surprise. 

 

I definitely recommend you try this pasta and if you do let me know your thoughts on it.

 

Wegmans Plant Based Burgers

Imagine my shock when I found a plant based burger that was gluten free. So many are made with wheat or gluten but Wegmans came through with a gluten green plant based burgers.

I did get these for free from a Wegmans newsletter coupon and honestly I would easily pay for these. I really liked these burgers. It is has been 20+ years since I ate beef but this reminded me so much of beef burgers from way back when. I loved the "spice" and the texture after cooking was very good.

Full disclosure, I thought the burgers looked and smelled like dog food when I opened the package. So I was very very skeptical BUT once cooked up these burgers looked good and tasted sooo good. So don't let your first impressions get in the way :) I look forward to adding these to my meal rotation.

Wegmans Cauliflower Bites

 

Not bad. Not great. Not crisp enough on the outside for me but if I had them again I might investigate how to make them crispier. 

And I would have them again but only on sale or with a coupon which is how I got them in the first place. I was shocked they were gluten free since they were breaded. So I had to try them at least. 

We enjoyed them with ranch dressing and also tomato sauce for dipping. Although the bites were fine on their own with the breading having some nice seasoning. 

It was only enough for the two of us to have an appetizer/snack as there is not a large amount of bites in the box. I wouldn’t think one box would work for a party or larger get together more than two people :)

If you try them, let me know your thoughts.

Feel Good Foods - Three Cheese Bites

 

I’ve read from a few people about how much they like these bites. It took awhile to find them but a Wegmans came through. 

I really wanted pizza tonight but I didn’t feel like eating a large amount of pizza. These were perfect! Amazing pizza taste but a simple and light meal. So very good.

There were 10 pieces in the box so it was 5 pieces each which was just right. I can’t believe it was cauliflower for the crust. I would never guess it. I liked the sauce and everything about these bites.

I definitely would buy these again without question. I wish I had more already. 

Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Cheese Ravioli

I tried to get these last month but they were not in stock. I lucked out this trip but now I kind of wish I hadn’t. 

I usually love Trader Joe’s gluten free items. These were …. Terrible. I hate even writing that but it’s true. I would never buy these again. 

No taste, and all but one exploded in the pot. It was basically a pile of gluten free pasta with some type of cheese trying to be ricotta all over it. 

I followed the instructions and they were well within their best buy date. 

I was so sad. It was good they were only $4.49. Let me know if you had a different experience with these. 

Gluten Free Bakery Girl

 

We were in Bethany Beach Delaware and one of the coffee shops 3BB Cafe had these gluten free baked goods for sale. 

We had the brownie as a dessert and the bakewell as a breakfast item. They were both delicious. I wish I had bought two of each so we didn’t have to split each one 🙂

The brownie was not overly sweet and the balance of chocolate and peanut butter was perfect. It was savory and so yummy. 

The raspberry almond bakewell was perfectly baked and the raspberry was sweet and just enough filling. The almonds on top were crunchy and tasty. 

The bakewell was $7.50 and while it was delicious, I think that is way too expensive. The brownie was $5.50 and that seems more reasonable and worth the price. For a special vacation treat and supporting a local business, I have no complaints.

You can find Gluten Free Bakery Girl online and order for shipping. I do notice the bakewell is significantly cheaper online, more than just a mark up cheaper but again I’m happy to support a local business and have vacation treats. I might consider an order in the near future and try some of her other items.

Let me know if you have ever had her treats and what are your favorites.

Banza Four Cheese Pizza

 

I won’t lie, I didn’t have high hopes for this pizza. But I’m tired of cauliflower crusts and I like chickpeas. 

I was pleasantly surprised. It wasn’t spectacular but it was not bad at all. I would most definitely buy it again. 

It was a little softer than I like for a crust but the taste was good overall. Good sauce and yummy cheese. We added some chicken and it was a good match. 

I did worry that it seemed too small for a pizza for two but it ended up working and not being over filling as bigger pizzas can be. And the size also makes the calories doable for half a pizza. 

This pizza was $8.99 at Wegmans and I had $1 back from Ibotta. It was worth this especially since frozen gluten free pizza prices have only increased through the past two years or so. There is a roasted veggie option that I would also like to try. 

Tell me of any other gluten free pizzas I should try that I haven’t written about yet. 

Tattooed Chef Cauliflower Crust Cheese Pizza

 

I decided to try this pizza when I needed to spend a certain amount of money in frozen foods at Giant. I believe it was $9.99 at the time. 

It was not bad but it wasn't great either. I wouldn't turn it down if it were offered to me but I don't think I will buy it again myself unless I need to spend the money and there is nothing else to try.

I think I'd rather gluten free "traditional" crust instead of cauliflower crust. I just seem to prefer the taste of "flour" crust than cauliflower. But again the pizza was good, just not great. It was crunchy which I like and it was a good size for two people to eat in one sitting.

It is worth a try if you are seeking different pizzas to try but if you have something you love, I am not sure this will beat it BUT everyone has different tastes.

Rummo spaghetti

Tastes like pasta of my gluten filled days. 

I have seen several of my gluten free people I follow online mention this pasta. I had not been able to find it in my stores until just recently. It was on sale, thankfully, so I bought it.

It was delicious and easy to make. It didn’t stick except for the leftovers somewhat. But the leftovers did reheat nicely in the microwave which did surprise me and they unstuck there too. 

It was definitely more expensive than the gluten filled variety ($3.99 on sale at Giant Food Stores) but I will gladly pay that as it really reminded me of pasta from my past. The right consistency and texture. Not gummy and no aftertaste. I recommend trying it out to see if you like it too. Next up the Rummo Penne as I just saw that Giant started carrying it in addition to the spaghetti.

Stouffer’s Gluten Free Macaroni & Cheese

Many of my online gluten free “friends” were very excited for this new offering in the gluten free world.

I am not a huge macaroni & cheese fan but since going gluten free, I have actually eaten more of it than when I was still eating gluten. So when I found this at Wegmans I decided to pick it up and try it.

Well it wasn’t bad but it wasn’t great as I was hoping it would be. I would say the number one thing I didn’t like was its gritty texture. I was surprised too since most gluten free foods have figured out how to not be gritty but this felt that way to me. I did do the microwave method to make it so perhaps the oven method would turn out differently.

I know that photos on the boxes for food are never what the food will look like when you make it at home and this was true here too. There was sooooo much cheese. I feel like I shouldn’t complain about that :) but a little more pasta would be nice so it was a little more filling. Mind you we did divide the supposed single serving into two. I guarantee I could never eat one of these on my own and not just because that would be 450 calories but it would just be too much cheese.

I am curious if anyone else has tried this and how they liked it or not. 

Wegmans Gluten Free Cheese Tortellini

Yum yum yum

So good. The pasta is a good amount and the cheesy inside is delicious and savory. I really enjoyed these. It also make a lot!! Like two meals worth for two people. I was surprised. In the package it looked like one meal for two people but when I went to dish it out that way, it was way too much. 

$4.99 for two meals for two! I am on board with this. 

Follow the instructions exactly and you will be happy. Overcooking is definitely not good for the pasta but the inside stays tasty. The second servings I had, I left in the pot because we were ready to eat and I didn’t have time to pull the rest out. Well, they were no longer perfect and the pasta was pretty mushy but again the insides tasted good and it didn’t stop me from eating the leftovers 🙂

 

California Pizza Kitchen frozen pizza

Waaaay better than I thought it would be. It was on sale and I wanted to try it. Turns out it’s the first frozen pizza in awhile that had a crisp crust and you could hold a piece of pizza without it flopping over. 

It wasn’t too spicy and all of the flavors worked well together. The cheese was perfect. Nothing overwhelmed and the cauliflower taste was very mild if I even tasted it at times. 

The directions were spot on for my oven. I loved that it only needed 375 degrees to bake. All other pizzas I get are 400 plus. This was extra welcome for our 90 degree day.

 I really enjoyed this pizza. I will definitely buy it again.

Pacific Sustainable Seafood - Cod

So incredibly delicious. Crunchy outside, perfect flaky cod inside. Yum yum yum

Followed the instructions perfectly and it rewarded me with an incredible dinner. 

Found at Wegmans for $4.99 for 8 small pieces of fish but it was more than a filling dinner. I will keep stock of this now. So good. 

Cappello’s Sweet Potato Gnocchi

I have tried a few gluten free gnocchi, although it is something I had never eaten when I ate gluten. So I honestly don’t know what gnocchi should be like but I really like this one.

I followed the instructions exactly including the sautéing in oil in a pan after boiling and that probably helped me like them.

They were substantial and I enjoyed the sweet potato flavor. I did have some tomato sauce on the side and I liked these both with sauce and plain. 

I don’t know if I would spend $6.99 for two servings again but I might. Overall I’m impressed with the  Cappello’s items I’ve had recently. What have you found, tried and liked? 

Hollywood Brown Derby a Walt Disney World

The main reason for our February trip to Walt Disney World was to celebrate our 20th wedding anniversary and to eat at our honeymoon and 10th anniversary restaurant, Hollywood Brown Derby. It is one of our favorites and we always have wonderful service and amazing food here. This time was no different. We ended up splitting appetizers and desserts this time, instead of getting large meals and it was perfect.

Pan-seared Sea Scallops with Roasted Pork Belly - it was a little too spicy for me but the scallop was really good.

Deanna gluten free rolls with salted butter. I could have just had this for dinner :)

Their famous chef salad. So fresh, crisp and tasty.

Hubby had Curried Butternut Squash Soup - too hot for me but he really enjoyed it and would have it again.

I decided to get the special sweet drink, Malibu Beach, the only one without soda in it and it happen to come with a light up ice cube. Silly but fun. Honestly the drink was way too sweet and even though I could get a refill, I did not.

Sorbet with fruit.

Something neither one of us remembers the name but it was good, especially the whipped cream.

As I said this is always a favorite of ours and it is our honeymoon dinner so it has personal meaning to us. We did have an amazing server and service.

The only downfall, is that they changed their dining room set up and we ended up basically eating with someone else, so the romantic nature of our meal was definitely hindered. At least he was very nice, if not too talkative, and finished before us so had a little alone time to reminisce about previous trips to celebrate our anniversary. Until 2025!

Sanaa Animal Kingdom Lodge Walt Disney World

I am not an adventurous eater. Well I wasn’t. I have gotten better in the past few years. Sanaa is not a place I would have gone to 5 years ago for sure. But I was willing to try some new things this time in Disney World and it went on the list. We could not make a reservation for the day and time we wanted so we decided to try and just walk-in.

We headed to the lodge well before sunset and checked in at the desk. A wonderful woman helped us and I told her that we would love a window table, that we were gluten free, that it was our first time at Sanaa and also our 20th wedding anniversary, which she could see from our pins. I thought I would lay it all out there and see what happens.

More Disney magic for us!! She told us she could have a window seat ready for us in about 20 minutes. YES!!!

We went to check out the animals from the walk out off the lobby and waited for her to text us. Apparently we were so into the animals that we missed her text and she came to get us. She laughed and said it wasn’t the first time she has had to do this.

She walks us to our table and not only was it a window table, I would gather it is the BEST window table in the place. Smack dab in the middle of everything. And sunset would be coming - mind you we were facing east but we knew the colors could be awesome anyway.

Our server was fantastic and she was training someone new who was also just a joy. They interacted with us over everything from the animals outside, to the gluten free food choices to being from our area in Pennsylvania.

Ok on to the food. We ordered the gluten free Naan bread service with a nine spreads and we forgot to do our sharing meal and we each ordered a meal. In retrospect I would not do that again. One it was too much food and two we had no room for dessert and I really wanted to try their desserts. Oh well, we will just have to go back again. Although I would still get the gluten free Naan bread service and then split a meal... or just skip the meal and just get dessert :)

I found the menu a little confusing so our server had her work cut out for her.

Our server told us that the Butter Chicken with Aloo Masala and Basmati Rice I wanted wasn’t hot at all, in fact it was on the children’s menu. I was happy to hear that as I am not a fan of spicy hot food. Well I don’t know what children eat here but my dinner was spicy hot, NOT terribly so but my tongue was dancing :) But it was also DELICIOUS! I would definitely order this meal again but be better prepared for the spice.

Hubby had the Mozambique Chicken, which is Roast Piri Half Chicken with Sweet Yam and Roasted Vegetable Hash and it was amazing. The flavor from the outside of the chicken somehow soaked all the way through the piece of chicken and it was divine.

We saw tons of animals

 and we saw the sunset in the clouds and reflecting in the hotel room windows across from the dining area. It was so amazing that hubby did run outside to try and get photos but he was still not facing the right way to capture it.

So not only did Sanaa have it’s own Disney magic to offer us, the food was incredible, the service impeccable and the view was heavenly. I doubt we could ever match this situation again but we will be back for more Naan and to try dessert.