A Long, Awaited Greeting for 2011

Greetings for the new year – 2011!

No, blogging was not neglected in December 2010; it was subsequently delayed . . . with travel, new discoveries, and *dicey* internet access.  Hopefully it was a great holiday season for all.

Just took a trip up north [north of Brisbane (luckily!!!)] and discovered some interesting soy-free products during my travels…  I shall post about a unique chocolate discovery (who here doesn’t like chocolate? heh.)

Anthon Berg Soft Dark (57% Cacao) Chocolate Bar - INGREDIENTS: cocoa mass, sugar, cocoa butter, emulsifier (canola/rape lecithin). MAY CONTAIN TRACES OF NUTS AND MILK

Anthon Berg manufactures 3 dark chocolate blocks (57%, 72% and 81% CACAO), all of which are free of gluten and soy (according to the ingredients listed below the image – though it may be worth noting that soya lecithin and milk are used in some other products) and have the same, great taste one would expect of any dark chocolate. Personally, my favourite was the 57% cacao (extra-dark varieties (>70% cacao) have not yet quite appealed to me.  Years ago, I would have not considered a block even this dark, however one notable difference between the ingredients in this series of chocolate blocks is that there are no added natural or artificial flavours present meaning that there is no vanilla flavouring added at all.  It is also pleasing to see companies using alternative forms of lecithin other than that derived from soybeans *all the time* as well!

LL Wine and Dine

Recently, I travelled to Sydney (for that routine visit every year!). Staying around the Darling Harbour area, finding places to eat proved challenging (particularly around this region).  From beer-battered fries to hamburgers and hotdogs, we were surrounded by wheat and soy at every front. Meal options were somewhat scarce and I certainly did not want to have to prepare my own meals when away for only three days. So I made a little investigation before I went just to see what might be in store other than McDonald’s French Fries. I mean sure, their fries are nice and we’re lucky that they’re allergen-friendly at this time ‘down under’, but when it comes to actually having a decent meal finding places that can accommodate can become sooooooo tiring! Especially around Darling Harbour!

Not much was found in the way of gluten free fare in this area of Sydney, many of the closest places were restaurants way out by the Sydney Opera House or an hour’s drive away into the outer suburbs, with a few odd exceptions – one of which included LL Wine and Dine. This was the destination to which friends and family of mine came to on my final night in Sydney. Though I was unsure of what to expect (despite having heard excellent reviews), I had called them earlier in the day about bookings and had explained my soy and gluten free dietary requirements to the staff. Of course, there was no problem at all. Never (prior to my dining experience), did I think or suspect, that there was that the menu clearly marked ‘gluten free’, ‘soy free’ AND ‘vegetarian’!. What was even more interesting was that these were the only two allergens mentioned, as can be seen on their FOOD page, which also explains the types of meals served. As many of their Asian meals are cooked in a sophisticated manner, only a smaller number of items on the menu are actually marked as both, gluten free and soy free. I specifically ordered the House blend chilli, sea salt and pepper calamari as I’ve always liked calamari myself, however there are a variety of others to choose from as well!

It is important to notify the waiter of any specific dietary requirements you may have, when dining at this destination as with many restaurants as recipes may differ over time and the ‘gluten free/soy free’ status of the menu item may be slightly out of date. There is also the fact that the recipe may require adapting to create a soy free or gluten free version of the meal. All in all, I was very impressed and shall definitely return when I plan to visit Sydney this time next year again!

Turns out that at least I might not be the only Gluten Free, Soy Free Aussie on this planet after all!

Takeaway Pizza – Gluten Free, Soy Free

Here in Australia, anyone somewhat familiar with a gluten and soy diet would find it very hard to imagine takeaway pizza suitable for this lifestyle, some of which has been discussed by me on the Pizza Posts at Gluten Free Family and a review on Pizza Capers at Gluten Shmooten.  I was emailed by someone, only earlier this year (for that matter), who had just found out about having to avoid gluten, soy and chic peas.  She was enquiring as she was curious about which pizza outlets in her area may be able to accommodate her needs.  [Sometimes individuals who've problems with soy ingredients will react to other legumes and their derivatives as well, but that's a whole other story we shall discuss later!]

Back to the topic.  It is very hard to find a pizza outlet offering gluten free that is able to also accommodate the soy side of things and this has become increasingly evident in the last year, mainly due to the introduction of gluten free pizza bases at a majority of major pizza chains around this country.  Domino’s Pizza in Australia and New Zealand made a significant move last November in this regard at the time of introducing gluten free bases to their menu.  Eagle Boys (an Australian pizza chain) did the same, only marketing the final pizza product as ‘gluten friendly’ instead of gluten free – the term that seems to be rapidly coming to play here, anyway.

The pizza bases used at Domino’s Pizza in Australia and New Zealand are endorsed by the Coeliac Society of Australia and New Zealand Coeliac Society respectively.  The endorsements is applied for, to the Coeliac Societies, by Domino’s Pizza.  This ensures that customers can be confident in the fact that the bases are, in fact, certified gluten free (one primarily *important* step in the process of producing a gluten free product, as deemed appropriate by the relevant Coeliac Societies mentioned).

However, I’m sorry to say that this isn’t really of that much help to those having to avoid other ingredients such as soy, as the gluten free bases used (supplied by Julian’s in Australia) contain soy flour as their primary ingredient!  I shall add that the bases used at the Domino’s stores in New Zealand are supplied by Venerdi, who’s products are all  soy free.

Therefore, to all those in New Zealand, it is actually possible to get a gluten and soy free pizza from Domino’s (yes, I recently confirmed this!) stores all around the country.  Please note, the following steps (on top of choosing a gluten free base and appropriate toppings, of course (N.B. even if you are not Gluten Free, you will need to order the soy-friendly pizza on the gluten-free base as this all the other bases require pans lined with the soy oil).

Here’s what you will need to do when ordering a gluten free, soy free pizza from Domino’s in New Zealand:

• notify the staff about your need to avoid soy (preferably at a less busy time of the day).
• peruse the allergen listing document found New Zealand website or in-store carefully, noting ingredients that need to be avoided.
• choose toppings based on this information (it is best to build your own pizza in this case)!

 

IMPORTANT:  Be aware that the pizza sauce (i.e. tomato sauce) used at Domino’s contains ‘trace amounts’ of soy due to the soybean oil used in this product.  The only safe base sauce is the Alfredo (N.B. If you don’t require GF, BBQ sauce is also an option).

 

• ask that they line the pizza base pan with some parchment paper before placing the gluten free base on the applicable surface.
• ensure appropriate preparation methods are followed.
• enjoy!

Please remember that the above points apply to stores in New Zealand only.  Be aware that it is currently not possible to order soy free pizzas from either Domino’s or Eagle Boys in Australia. Bummer!

That should make life a little easier for the Kiwis over there.  There’s also Hell Pizza over there, that offer gluten free bases from the same supplier as that of Domino’s in New Zealand, however coming from Australia I am unsure about topping recommendations and oil issues so I’ll have to leave those inquires over to you!

In the meantime, I shall return to focusing on the Australian gluten free, soy free pizza life?  So, what’s with it?

I was saving the best news ’til last…

Pizza Capers

Well folks, you will be pleased to hear that it was not long ago that I discovered a pizza chain over near where I live, Pizza Capers, located in various areas around Australia .  They offer gluten free bases that are absolutely delicious and crispy and free from dairy and soy although they do contain egg, corn and yeast.  (I shall keep my eyes open, particularly on corn, and will certainly update you on this blog should I discover a pizza outlet to serve GFSFCF bases for sure).  Their gluten free pizza bases are manufactured at a plant near their headquarters in Brisbane and, for me, it is absolutely great to have discovered a place where I can go in and buy a pizza without any hassles at all!  Staff are always very attentive and every experience here has been a positive one!  They really agree with me! I have a picture of one at the top right-hand corner of this post!  (I think I’ve just about enough coupons for a free one, too!)  A vast majority of their toppings are safe and neither soy oil nor cooking sprays exist on premises (only canola and olive oils are used to line the pans).  This place is certainly a must try for all who can!

Of course, we can only assume these products to be gluten and soy friendly, primarily due to the fact that ingredients containing these items are used on premises at all outlets, hence GF denoting  the ‘Gluten Friendly’ status on their menu.