Top Three Worst Gf Products

[Guest Viola]

Okay everyone You've listed your favourites, now see if you can help me track down some of these products. A manger of our grocery store want to stock more gluten free products, and we don't want to discourage her now, would we

I need to know if we can get Tinkyada pasta

Amy's Gluten free meals and some of Pamelia's products out west .? Anyone know where a store might order these products?

[tasha]

I don't know how the store would order those products BUT I do know that Tinkyada pasta, Pamelas products, and some of Amys gluten-free meals are available in BC. I've found them in Victoria, Nanaimo, and Vancouver.

Good luck!

[skoki-mom]

Well, I admit the tips on the good stuff have been helpful, and I had to laugh at a lot of the comments. Would it be really horrible, though, to admit that by about page 5 of this thread I was crying?? I really thought there might be something out there that actually tasted like baking. Guess it just hit me that I will never eat a cookie again, but cut me some slack cuz it's only been less than a week. Part of the problem (for me) is that baking was definitely one of my fave hobbies, but what's the fun in it if you can't even taste it?? My kids want to bake cookies this week, I really don't want to do it, not sure I can stand it.

Anyhow, after reading this thread I will definitely stay away from the Ener-G bread. I was gonna try the local specialty bakery this week, maybe it's best I just remember bread for what it was and get over it.

I did buy some rice pasta shells this week and cooked them in a casserole and couldn't tell the difference, so I guess starting with success is a good thing. I swear if it weren't for popcorn (yes, hot air popped) I'd have starved to death already.

[Guest Viola]

I go through bowls and bowls of hot air popcorn. Nothing wrong with that stuff!

Tasha, it's Save on Foods that will be trying to get it in here. Did you find Amy's and Tinkyada in a big grocery, or a health food in Victoria? Darn, I was just there the first week of Aug.

[Corrine]

Hi Shirley,

Save On Foods here carries Kinnicinick stuff, Tinkyada pasta, and lots of other stuff. Your store there could contact one of their other stores to see what they carry.

[celiac3270]

Get a phone number for the company, call them, and ask about distribution to health food stores. You could probably order on the phone...but have the health food store worker do that

[mommida]

We found out the Energe bread is good as long as it is grilled. Make those panini sandwiches they turn out great.

Check out www.unitedbuyinclubs.com They recently started selling Foods by George and Kinniknik. They have been selling the Debole's and Tinkyada pastas, Amy's, Gillian's, Bob's flour products, Pamela's, Gluten Free Pantry, Mrs. Leeper's, Ian's, Gillians, Barbara's bakery, and Envirokids. Way too many products to list. You order by the case and cut the middleman. Orders are delivered every 4 weeks. You can join an existing group in your area or start your own. An added bonus in my opinion, you can read the labels on-line. The catalogue is also coded and most of the gluten free products are noted as gluten free. It has saved me so much time and money. Just an idea for you to consider. You would have to invest in a freezer and plan meals much further in advance than the average person, but having that special gluten free product on hand as close as the freezer is so much nicer than checking the 3 or more closest health food or mass supermarket stores at the last minute.

Laura

[Guest Viola]

Hi Corrine, our Save on carries a good variety, but haven't found the Tinkyada of Amy's Kitchen yet. They also have been having problems with Kinnic, not covering their orders, so are rather annoyed at them right now. Hopefully that will be sorted out soon, don't want to loose those products. Thanks for the heads up, I will tell her that Tinkyada must be in their central warehouse already. So she should be able to bring it in quickly

Don't you have to be careful with Pamela's products .. I see at least some of them contain oats?

[glutenfreeheather]

I've only been gluten-free for 7 months, and I'm still struggling with finding gluten-free products, but here is what I've discovered thus far:

Top 5 Nastiest Products (in my humble opinion)

1) Ener-G tapioca bread---YUCK (tasted sour and nasty)

2) Mrs. Leepers Lasagna mix (made me SICK AS A DOG)

3) Whole Kids Organic Yellow Mustard -- tasted straight up like thick yellow vinegar

4) Edward & Sons Rice crackers-- I only use as communion bread

5) I can't remember the name, but there were these big cookies individually wrapped and they were gluten-free, but when I opened it, the cookie was sticky and gooey and tasted nasty and nothing like chocolate chunk!

Favorites so Far:

1) Amy's Gluten-Free Rice Pasta & Cheese (yummy, but high in saturated fat)

2) Michael Season's Lite/Gluten Free Cheese Puffs- YOU'VE GOT TO TRY THESE!

2) Pamela's dark chocolate chunk cookies & chocolate brownie mix

3) Gluten-Free Pantry Favorite White Bread mix (awesome to me)

4) Midel cookies- Chocolate chip--great with Kozy Shack pudding!

5) Kozy Shack sugar free/gluten free Chocolate pudding cups

6) Wellshire kids chicken bites-fully breaded (Dinosaur shapes--good & fun!)

7) Namaste chocolate cake mix topped with a homemade caramel coconut icing recipe I found in a gluten-free cookbook. (My hubby even thought it tasted just like german chocolate cake! It really made my first gluten-free birthday not so bad!)

8) Whole Foods Market's "Gluten-free Bakehouse"... ANYTHING (all products are awesome, especially the cream biscuits and pecan pie). I have to drive 1.5 hours to get to the nearest Whole Foods Market grocery store but it's SO worth it! (very pricey though)

Has anyone else gotten sick off of Amy's Rice Crust Cheese Pizza or Ener-G pretzels? I get sick every time and stopped buying them once I realized what was making me sick!

****And since I'm new, if anyone notices a product on my favorites list that is not gluten-free or questionable, PLEASE let me know b/c I'm still new at this and I am eating these products on a regular basis.****

Well I'll stop babbling now! This is too much fun!

[glutenfreeheather]

Okay everyone    You've listed your favourites, now see if you can help me track down some of these products. A manger of our grocery store want to stock more gluten free products, and we don't want to discourage her now, would we 

I need to know if we can get Tinkyada pasta

Amy's Gluten free meals and some of Pamelia's products out west .? Anyone know where a store might order these products?     

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I find most of my groceries at my local Kroger in the health-food/organic section of the store. I don't know what stores you have out west, but other stores that carry gluten-free products here are Lowe's Foods, Harris Teeter, EarthFare, Whole Foods Markets, and little mom and pop organic/health food stores. I found some of my favorite gluten-free products by checking out a little family-run health food store. They actually carry some gluten-free foods that I cant get elsewhere!

Good luck in your gluten-free food hunting!

[N.Justine]

It is certainly amazing how so many of us have such extreme views on our favorites and least favorites -- of the same products! Some love rice products -- some hate them. Some love Amy's some hate Amy's. But it's great -- I think it shows that gluten-free products are just as diverse as non-gluten-free products -- I mean this reaction doesn't occur that frequently over a roasted chicken!

Anyway, I find that my preparation techniques make a HUGE difference in the way the product comes out. One day Namaste bread mix will come out tasting like the best bread in the world - then the next time -- I wouldn't even feed it to the birds.

Anyone else have this in consistency problem?

[Centa]

I just found this thread

Oh that Ener-G rice bread....I don't know anything about guns, but after I bit into its sour dry whatever it was I wanted to take a gun and SHOOT it.

(Sorry, to the folks who like it toasted; maybe they stock old Ener-G bread in my nearby health food store.)

Thank you, people who are posting favorite breads.

[MNBeth]

Has anybody else tried Enjoy Life's Cinnamon Crunch Granola. I cannot believe how nasty that stuff is.

[Juliebove]

Has anybody else tried Enjoy Life's Cinnamon Crunch Granola. I cannot believe how nasty that stuff is.

Daughter won't eat that stuff. Doesn't like the trail mix either. Too much fruit in it.

So far any and all of the gluten-free biscuit mixes we've tried have been awful. Crumbly and overly sweet.

[Green12]

OMG reading through this old thread is HILARIOUS!!!!!

All the comments on the Ener-G bread have me laughing out loud

I am sure since the start of this thread in 2005 there are so many more gluten-free products that are out there, it would be interesting to see what everyone's favorites and extreme dislikes are present day.....no doubt Ener-G bread is still way down there on the list.

[missquarejane]

Hol-grain brown rice crackers... ever so lightly sea salted corrugated charred cardboard. there's not enough peanut butter in the world to cover that taste. poison in cardboard form.

i love almost all glutino products, including their chocolate cookies that someone didn't like. they are so expensive but dreamy.

i also like bob's red mill flour. the garbanzo bean flavor is gross when raw (i.e. cookie dough) but really yummy cooked. (see my chocolate chip cookie recipe in the recipes section.)

in canada, no-name puddings are gluten free and yummy.

[blueeyedmanda]

Has anybody else tried Enjoy Life's Cinnamon Crunch Granola. I cannot believe how nasty that stuff is.

That stuff is nasty

I love Tinkayada Pasta, K-too's, Glutino crackers (ritz type), Grainless Baker products

I hated Energ Bread, Enjoy Life Granola....there are more but I have tried to block them from my memory.

I have found the most gluten free things at our Wegmans, Giant has started to carry some things but it easier to go to Weggies since they code their own products gluten free.

[casnco]

Oh, man ... you guys are killing me. I just found out I have Celiac. Look what I have to look forward to. UGH!

Portageegal, don't worry. I actually like some of the stuff others have mentioned dislikeing. I love NaNa's cookies. But I love hearing the stories of others. Really though, don't buy pregackaged bread. UCKKKKK!!!!! That is my all time worst product. Every one of them. I bake my own.

[confusedks]

1. Namaste Sugar Free Muffins.....EWWWWW!!!! We added pumpkin and a ton of sugar and they were still the most disgusting things I have ever tasted!

2. Ener-G White Bread...I don't know why it hasn't been discontinued! Lol!

3. Some sort of white subway loaf thing...a family member was trying to be nice, but OMG THEY WERE GROSS!!!!!!!!!! Even toasted with all kinds of stuff on them!

This thread is so funny! Also, to anyone who is new, we would all have varying opinions on non gluten-free food anyway, so it's the same thing. The difference is there aren't as many options.

Kassandra

P.S. I'm sure I have tried other gross things, but I seemingly can't remember! Lol!

[Centa]

OK, I'm in trouble....I really haven't done much off the shelf buying of prepared gluten free products...that Ener-G rice bread at $6-7 a pop was so expensive and so bleah dry sour...I wasn't willing to risk that much money on that much disappointment...

But oh boy, fat city here I come. what with all the praise of Pamela's cookies, I was in a health food store today getting another bottle of lactobacillus and ta-daaaa, they had some of the brands people have been praising...like Pamela's chocolate chip cookies, a mere $3.99 for 12 cookies (ouch!) but I bought some, drove to a "remote location" (thank you Dick Cheney for that permanent addition to our vocabulary) and ATE FOUR. I'm sure my recuperated GI tract will stick every calorie right on my hips.

I might as well get a double-wide task chair right now

I look forward to getting into some baking once it gets cold enough not to want to be outside by the way....great posts on the baking forum by people.

[Guest j_mommy]

My least favorites:

Any type of rice pasta(personal choice!LOL)

Glutino breakfast bars...they were sooo tart and yucky I spit it out!

ENER-G Bread...any variaty to me is yucky!!!

My fav's:

Corn pasta...mrs Leepers is my Fav

Homemade bread(the sorgum bread that was posted on here is GREAT!)

Grandma Ferdons...LOVE the pumpkin bars!!!(www.grandmaferdons.com)

Pamalas Chocolate cake mix(great for better than sex cake!)

Glutino brownies...taste just like gluten brownies and have little chunks of choclate in them! YUMMMMM

[Ridgewalker]

I have to admit, the first time I tired EnerG bread, I actually choked on it. ...of course, that was before we knew we were supposed to toast gluten-free bread. Even so, I like it best for grilled cheese sandwiches. My son will eat the EnerG Tapioca bread for PB&J, or cinnamon toast! So ya never know...

Also, the first time I made gluten-free chocolate chip cookies, I went to lick the spoon (raw dough,) and ended up hawking and yacking it into the sink! They tasted great once they were baked, though.

I personally think there is no help for the following items:

-Envirokids Cereal Bars

-Glutino Breakfast Bars

-Kinnickinnick Hamburger Rolls

I like lots of other things by those brands, but those three things were a no-go at our house!

-Sarah

[little d]

Ok, I'm in a rare mood tonight so I thought I'd start a thread just for fun.

We've all been there...the gluten-free product that you shelled out half your life savings for, slaved over for two hours in the kitchen, looked forward to trying all week long and turned out to be AWFUL!!! Let's vent about our *least* favorite gluten-free products and get a good laugh out of it.

Of course there should be a disclaimer somewhere here...something like "the following opinions are only opinions and as opinions mean absolutly nothing when it comes to actual products. Everyone's tastes are different and the top three nasty gluten-free products on one person's list may well be the top three yummy items on another's...yaddah yaddah yaddah".

That said........drum roll please..........

<span style='font-size:14pt;line-height:100%'>~~My All Time Top Three Nastiest gluten-free Products List~~</span>

3. Ener-G white rice bread. With twice the half-life of a twinkie (but none of the taste) this loaf of styrofoam strongly resembled bread but tasted like whatever my alergy-free pillow is stuffed with. So dry I wondered if it had been dipped in Decon before packaging. Inedible unless saturated with butter and toasted, and only marginally ediable then. My son liked it slightly less than I did.

2. My attempt at gluten-free crepes. "Ah," I thought, "Crepes are mostly egg and should be easy to substitute flours!". Little did I know. Followed the regular recipe but used gluten-free mix instead, turned out way too thick. Added milk. Put whole mess in blender and added more milk. Blended. Added more milk. Burned motor of blender up with still-too-thick batter. Opened windows to clear smoke. Tried to use batter anyway by smearing it around on the hot pan with a spatula. Crepes puffed up to pancake size, managed somehow to be burned black on outside but completely raw on inside. Tried to eat them anyway. Dumped the whole mess in the sink and prayed that the motor in the disposal would win the battle.

1. All-Time-Worst gluten-free purchase EVER: Nana's gluten-free cookies. Spent $10.00 on nicely packaged, moist looking, big round cookies. Bought lemon, chocolate, and chocolate crunch. Drooled all the way home. Opened cookies, sat down with the kids and dug in. When we opened the packages and tried to take out the cookies we ran into the first problem: Cookies disenegrate upon touch. Suddenly we each held a bag of crumbs, peppered here and there with a dime-sized chunk. Ok, I think, so they're a little crumbly. Then I tasted it! It was like eating chocolate flavored sand. But not as nice. The cookie stuck in my throat as if I had been eating cotton batting! Not only that, but my throat hurt after eating it, it felt all scratched up! The kids, who will eat nearly anything if it is sweet, were having similar experiences. All three of us instantly wanted to drink at least a gallon of water, there were crumbs all over the place (looked like a cookie factory exploded) and my toddler hated it so bad she started crying and trying to wipe her tongue off. No kidding! I kept the extra cookies in the pantry as incentives for eating a good, healthy dinner...."eat all your peas or you'll get a Nana's cookie for dessert!"

Anyone else want to share? I could use a good laugh!!!

1) Chebe Bread, has an aftertaste of licking a battery (metallic). GROSS!!!!!

2) Ener-g Bread.....ok MOST glutenfree breads BLEH!

3) Annies Cowgirl Ranch Dressing.........just plain nasty!!!

Those are my votes.

-Jessica

Good to see that Ener-g-Bread taste like it sounds, I had wondered about this bread I think that there was one time that I picked it up looked at and said I wonder if this tastes good, I was almost tempted to ask a clerk at Whole Foods if they have tasted it, and then I thought that the gluten free breads were supposed to be frozen so this I figured that it would not taste good to begin with and ya'll just confirmed it for me thank you.

I agree that the Kinnkinnick breads are wonderful.

Annies Cowgirl Ranch Dressing the first time I had it. It was ok and the more I bought it the more gritty it tasted. I now buy the Whole foods gluten-free Garlic ranch dressing and it is good.

donna

[hathor]

I agree with many of the views already expressed as to various inedible items. I don't want to name three, however. That would detract from the #1, Holgrain Brown Rice crackers. They taste like styrofoam. Putting a nice spread on top tastes like ... nice spread on styrofoam.

When I've given up on certain gluten-free breads, I've put them outside and the animals ate them. However, when I put the Holgrain crackers out, they stayed there for weeks. Not a nibble. They didn't even biodegrade, so styrofoam it is.

As long as we are listing some favorites:

1. I like the Glutino breakfast bars, but only in the cranberrry flavor. I guess the flavors work for that one, but not the others.

2. Glutino pasta

3. Eden 100% buckwheat soba noodles

4. Mesa Sunrise cereal

5. Breads by Food for Life and Breads from Anna (some of these other nice breads folks have mentioned have dairy, egg, and/or soy in them, so I can't indulge)

6. Food for Life brown rice tortillas

[Sugarmag]

Ok, this old thread is hilarious! Love it!

Has anybody else tried Enjoy Life's Cinnamon Crunch Granola. I cannot believe how nasty that stuff is.

Yup, I love it! I don't like the berry one though, even though I love berries! My favorite is to mix the Cinnamon crunch with EnviroKidz Koala crisps...YUM!!

I also bought the Ener-G bread as my first gluten-free bread. It went in the trash after the first bite, and I even toasted it!