The Gluten-Free Trading Co. Blog

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Please Join Us! Sampling Day at Gluten-Free Trading Company will take place Saturday, September 19, 2009 from 1:00 – 4:00 pm at 3116 S Chase Avenue in Milwaukee.

At this session you’ll be able taste the products and meet the people behind four great lines:

• Mark Swanson from Full Flavor Foods will serve up savory dishes prepared with his company’s tasty gravy mixes, soup bases, and cheese sauce mixes.
• Loretta Hamelink founder of Gluten Free Sensations will offer tastes of her granolas, hot cereals, and baking mixes–including a brand-new sugar cookie mix.
• Jenny Bosking from It Tastes Like Real Food will offer delicious baked goods made with the Toro baking mixes her company imports from Norway.
• Our own staff will offer samples of Easy Cake from Happy Kitchen, an instant gluten-free lava cake you can prepare in the microwave in less than 3 minutes.

Gluten-Free Trading Company will be an exhibitor at the 2009 Gluten Free Cooking Expo in Lisle, Illinois on August 15 & 16, 2009. Admission to the food fair is $15. The event also features a two-day program of gluten free cooking classes. For details see http://glutenfreeclasses.com/ .

We’re pleased to announce the return of Bi-Aglut Pasta!  Six shapes are now available.  For details please see http://www.food4celiacs.com/ShopOnline/BA/index.html .

We’ve just received a big selection of Kosher for Passover items. Even our non-Jewish customers will be interested in these potato starch based products, which are available only in the spring. They include cookies, ready-to-eat cupcakes, egg noodles, chow mein noodles, salty snacks, “shake and bake” type coating mixes, “bread” crumbs, and of course matzo ball (dumpling) mix. For details please go to http://www.food4celiacs.com/ShopOnline/520/index.html .

Gluten-Free Trading Company will be a vendor at the Grand Rapids area gluten-free food fair on Saturday, May 2, 2009. This event is sponsored by Anchor Baptist Church and will take place from 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM at Kuyper College, 3333 East Beltline NE, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Gluten-Free Trading Company will bring a variety of items for purchase. Customers may also pre-order items for pick-up at the show by calling 1-888-993-9933 (please order by April 22nd).

We were introduced to Cook’s Bison Ranch at a recent food fair in Indiana, where we discovered their excellent Buffalo Jerky. We’re stocking three flavors: Original, Barbeque and Sweet Pepper. They are made from all-natural American Bison meat. Great for road trips or a quick snack. (In case you’re wondering, almost all gas station jerky contains one or more wheat based ingredients).

We’re pleased to announce the return of Cornito Rainbow Spirals, the multi-color version of Cornito’s popular Rotini/Fusilli pasta.  Great for a colorful pasta salad or almost any Italian pasta dish.  The colors are completely natural: spinach powder for the green spirals and paprika (powdered mild red pepper) for the red spirals.

Gluten-Free Trading Company will be a vendor at the Detroit area gluten-free food fair on Saturday, April 25, 2009. This event is hosted by the Tri-County Celiac Support Group (TCCSG) and will take place from 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM at the Farmington First Presbyterian Church at the corner of Farmington Road and 11 Mile Road in Farmington Hills, Michigan. Gluten-Free Trading Company will bring a variety of items for purchase. Customers may also pre-order items for pick-up at the show by calling 1-888-993-9933 (please order by April 15th).

Made with Garden Fields Unseasoned Bread Cubes

This old-fashioned bread pudding is easy to make. The brandy sauce adds to the rich flavor, or serve it with maple syrup for breakfast.

Ingredients for the Bread Pudding

1 bag (8 ounces) Garden Fields Unseasoned Bread Cubes
¾ cup raisins
2 Tablespoons (1/8 cup) brandy or rum
1/3 cup brown sugar (packed)
1 cup milk, soy milk, rice milk, or water
4 eggs
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil (canola oil, sunflower oil, etc.)
1 teaspoon GF vanilla extract
Dash of cinnamon or nutmeg (optional)

Pour the brandy over the raisins, cover, and set aside to soak (preferably overnight). In a large mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar, milk or water, eggs, oil, and vanilla extract. Beat until frothy. Grease a large bread loaf pan (7.5″ x 4.25″ x 3″) with a dab of butter, margarine, or shortening. Layer the bread cubes and raisins in the pan (put more of the raisins at the top—they tend to sink during baking). Pour the egg mixture over the raisins. Cover lightly with foil and bake at 350°F until the eggs are set (about 1 hour). Set aside to cool.

Ingredients for the Brandy Sauce

¼ cup white sugar
¼ cup brandy
1 Tablespoons water

Combine the ingredients in a microwave-safe mixing bowl and mix thoroughly with a fork or wire whisk. Heat the mixture in the microwave for a total of approximately 4 minutes, stopping every 1 minute to stir thoroughly. Sauce is done when it begins to thicken and bubble (as with any sugar syrup, it will thicken as it cools)

After baking, slice the bread pudding about 3/8 inch thick and pour some of the brandy sauce on top. Cover and refrigerate the unused portion. It is easier to slice when it is cold. To reheat, place a slice on a plate and microwave about 30 seconds.