Ok, so I didn’t make any special meals for the 4th of July weekend…but I did make cookies!  I tried a new baking mix by The Cravings Place.  Their Chocolate Chunk Cookie Mix is egg free, dairy free, gluten free and nut free.

The cookies have a different taste then a regular cookie mix,  they have almost a biscuit type texture to them.  It comes with alot of big chocolate chunks, although I did add some Hershey chocolate chips in: )  I ended up eating quite a bit of the cookie doh like I always do however since they don’t call for eggs I didn’t have a stomach ache afterward!  I’m definitely going to be buying more of this mix, it made for some delicious cookies and cookie doh!

For anyone interested in buying this mix I bought it at Whole Foods and you can view their site at The Cravings Place.

It turned out really good!  I personally liked it either grilled or just heated up it up in the microwave to make it a tad bit softer.  It makes for some great sandwiches!  The upside of this bread over the bread mix is that these are already cut into the perfect size sandwich slices.  Sometimes the bread mix bread is kind of hard to eat or make into sandwiches since it falls apart and is hard to cut.

So if you want some great gluten free bread and have a Whole Foods around you, try some out!  You can also search on Udi’s Gluten Free part of the site for a location near you that carries Udi’s products.

I ending up trying the chunky peanut butter protein bar, dark chocolate protein bar and of course their Lemon Creme Pie Dessert Bar (pictured above).

I do live a good bit away from Whole Foods so I don’t make the trip often and they do cost about $2 a piece, so they aren’t exactly something I will be buying all the time (even though I would love to try all of them to see if they are all just as good!).

You can even buy Think Thin Protein Bars Online if you don’t live close enough to a whole foods to buy some of these great tasting protein (and dessert) bars!

Be sure though if you do ask for something (like cheese) that they use their hands to grab that you ask them for some fresh cheese.  The reason I ask is because they use the same gloved hand to grab your cheese and they do to roll up another persons wheat burrito.  It is kind of annoying to have to ask for this request – It would be nice if they used utensils for all of their condiments, not just some.

They do offer corn tortillas, however I am still weary of them since the heater they put them in (I believe) is also used for the other wheat tortillas.

So if your ever in a Chipotle wondering what you can have, try the chicken and rice!

So finally I saw that they were offically done their testing stages and that their chicken fingers were ready to be purchased and eaten!  I was pretty excited to see what they tasted like since I haven’t had chicken fingers in 7 years.  Tonight I was able to go out and try some!

I called ahead and ordered 8 gluten free chicken fingers that they said would come out to $11.52, which I thought was a pretty good deal.  However once I got there they kept calling them wings, which made me worried they were going to give me wings so I checked to see what they looked like before I left.  To my surprise they are not chicken fingers at all!  They are actually tiny chicken pieces (reminded me of the ones you can get at Chic-Fil-A).  I’m going to be honest and say that I was pretty disappointed since they advertised them as chicken fingers and they were really “Boneless Bites” as they call them…not exactly what I was expecting.

Would I pay over $11 for these Boneless Bites again?  Probably not, I mean yes, they were good…just not what I expected.  So definitely check them out if your in the area, just don’t count on them being chicken fingers!  I will say I prefer their pizza over their other gluten free products.  Apparently they also have gluten free cookies now too.

I tried their Jaipur Vegetables and really enjoyed it!  Honestly while I was eating it I was trying to figure out how on earth I would describe it.  It was spicy, but it was kind of weird just how it was.  It tasted nice and spicy (though not as spicy as I enjoy…I like it so spicy that my eyes water).  But it was very spicy going down my throat…which I’m not sure I’ve experienced before?  Did I say the word spicy enough : )

And of course for those you would like to know what exactly does this pre-packed meal contain? Not only is it gluten free it does not contain any MSG, preservatives, it is Kosher along with being vegetarian.

Anyway it is definitely something I would try if you can get your hands on some!  I checked out the Tasty Bite website and you can order them online.

I used a gluten free rice lasagna by DeBoles.  They turned out really well and tasted delicious!  I ended up having two pieces, it was so good : )  DeBoles makes alot of other gluten free products as well.

Lasagna Recipe

• 1 Box of DeBoles Lasagna
• 1 pound uncooked beef
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 Full Jar of Spaghetti Sauce
• 16 ounces Cottage Cheese (make sure to read ingredients to find one gluten free)
• 2 Eggs
• 2 Cups Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
• 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese
• 2 Teaspoons Oregano
• 2 Teaspoons Basil
• 1 Teaspoon Salt
• 1/4 Teaspoon Black Pepper
• 1/2 Teaspoon Garlic Powder

Directions for Making Lasagna

1. Defrost the beef in microwave then brown in skillet.
2. After meat has browned drain meat then put back in skillet and add 1 jar of spaghetti sauce and 1/2 cup water.
3. Move on the the dry ingredients in a separate mixing bowl and stir together in:  Garlic, Black Pepper, Salt, Basil, Oregano, Parmesan Cheese, 1 and 1/2 cups Mozzarella Cheese.
4. Heat oven to 350 degrees
5. Put down Lasagna shells on the bottom on dish
6. Spread some of the beef/sauce you stirred together and put about 1/2 over shells.
7. Repeat layer with shells and add beef/sauce.  Add mixture from mixing bowel of all cheeses/spices to top.
8. Top off with extra (1/2) Mozzarella Cheese and Parmesan Cheese.
9. Cover dish with foil and cook in oven for 45 minutes.  Take out and throw away foil – put back in oven for 10 minutes.
10. Let cool for 10 minutes then serve!

The Saucy Tomato

Las Vegas

Gluten Free Pizza…In Vegas?  That’s right!  Apparently they moved from Oregon to Las Vegas and opened shop about 8 months ago in 2009.  According to the waitress the owner supposedly knew someone who couldn’t eat gluten and so they started carrying gluten free pizza.  It reminded me of the pizza I had back in New York at Risotteria.  It was extra thick crust so much so that I could only eat two pieces…and I like my pizza so usually I have to make myself stop after a third piece…even though i want more : )

So to start off I ordered an appetizer since I did not have any breakfast and they said that the gluten free pizza may take up to 30 minutes.  I went with the Sliced Mozzarella Basil Tomato with Olive Oil.  It was good and I ended up eating most of it…I was really excited for my pizza I didn’t want to be too full.

We ordered The Carnivore which included a bunch of different types of meat on top of the pizza.  The crust was so thick we both could only eat two pieces.  Luckily their gluten free pizza only comes in the small size otherwise their would of been alot left over.

As for the dessert I was talking about it was a chocolate brownie and wow it was by far the most delicious gluten free desert I have ever tasted.  Way better than any gluten brownie I have tried.  Laced with chocolate icing on the outside, chocolate brownie inside along with powered sugar and coconut.  After this little brownie I know it’s back to the gym for me!  So worth it though : )

Harley Davidson Cafe

Las Vegas

Ok, so they did not have a gluten free menu.  However with a few requests I was able to eat gluten free and I did not get sick.  I ordered a strawberry smoothie along with the grilled chicken wrap (had grilled peppers, tomato’s and salad) with fries.  However I told them I was very allergic to bread and could not eat the wrap or the dressing that their menu said came with the meal.  They were very helpful and got my order right.  Oh yeah and they even had Heinz ketchup!  Bonus : )  So you can add the Harley Davidson Cafe to a list of places to eat!

Caesars Palace Las Vegas Hotel

- Augustus Cafe

Hey it’s vacation I can indulge, right?  My husband and I shared this Banana Split in Caesars Hotel Augustus Cafe.  I thought they only had coffee, but as it turns out they have alot of different stuff!  I do believe this is the biggest Banana split I have ever seen (and eaten).

Simply Organic Banana Bread Ingredients:

• Simply Organic Banana Bread Mix
• 2 Large Eggs
• 3/4 Cup Water
• 2 Ripe Mashed Bananas

Heat the oven to 350 degrees then bake for 50-60 minutes.  I actually ended up taking it out at about 40 minutes and it was already done.

Wow was it delicious!  I love spicy foods and this was one spicy pizza!  Usually I tend to go for pizza that have minimal toppings just with cheese or pepperoni pizzas.  The chipolte pizza was topped with a generous amount of pepperonis, cashews, red onions, tomatoes,  spicy Italian sausage and of course some chipotle pesto.  I’m not big of cashews normally, but for some reason mixed in with all these toppings it tasted great.   Between my husband and myself we ate the entire pizza in one day!  It was just too good to stop eating it : )  I also like to put some red pepper that they provide if you ask!

The Nutty Chipolte Pizza is now at the top of my list for best tasting pizzas!  I highly suggest to go try some if your around one of their shops!