Once I find a running shoe that I like, I am fiercely loyal to that brand.  If you are a runner, you are well aware that proper running shoes are very important pieces to running pain and injury free.  It took me a while to find the right shoes, but when I did, there was no turning back.  I had originally been in the wrong shoe, a stability shoe, when I didn’t need that much support.  Turns out I needed to be in a neutral shoe, but had problems finding one to fit all of my needs.  Unfortunately my feet are high maintenance when it comes to running shoes.

I started wearing the Brooks Glycerin 8 a couple of years back and quickly fell in love.  I quickly adjusted to the shoe and finally felt like I was “home”. 

I had these in pink/white and the blue/yellow shown above. 

When the Glycerin 9 debuted, I ran right out and bought a pair.  I loved the new color combination, black with a teal blue, only they didn’t work for my feet.  The toe box seemed a little more narrow and my right foot seemed unhappy.  Since the right foot is my problem foot, I returned the Glycerin 9 and went on the hunt to stock up on the Glycerin 8s. 

It was such a shame to return these beauties! 

I heard about the Glycerin 10 before it was available and I had my heart set on the grey/hot pink.  I began stalking Fleet Feet before the shoe was released and when they did get it in stock, they only had the blue model.  Of course I asked them to order in a grey/pink pair for me. 

Aren’t they pretty?

I never thought I would find another shoe that worked as good as the Glycerin 8s did for me, but I was wrong.  The Glycerin 10s were even better!  It seems that Brooks returned the toe box back to the wider version that it was (or close to it) in the Glycerin 8 model.  The ride was soft and comfortable and provided just the right amount of support for my persnickety feet.  Over the course of a year I have had 3-4 pair (only 1 blue) and was ready to go on the hunt to stock up in case the Glycerin 11s, due out at the beginning of June, didn’t work for me. 

A friend sent me a picture of the new Glycerin 11s before they were available and I fell in love.  How could I not love a shoe that looks like this?

The stalking began again and I noticed one Sunday in late May that the shoe was on the shelf!  Bonus! I tried the shoe on and haven’t taken it off since.  Okay, well maybe I have taken them off to shower and I do have 100+ miles left on one pair of my Glycerin 10s, so I do occasionally run in them, but I don’t want to wear them anymore! 

The Glycerin 11s seem so much lighter than the 10s, but they aren’t.  Both the 10s and the 11s weigh 9.6 ounces.  More about the Glycerin 11:

Think of the Glycerin 11 as your foot’s butler, catering to your every want and need with plush, conformable comfort in every step. The luxury begins with an ultra-comfortable upper that uses innovative 3D Fit Print overlays to create structure and reduce weight. We’ve also removed the mid-foot shank to optimize ground contact for a transition that puts the "oo" in smooth. Finished with fresh colors and hot looks, Mr. Belvedere’s got nothing on this shoe.

The best way to describe running in the Brooks Glycerin 11 is “effortless”. 

What shoe do you run/walk/workout in?  Are you loyal to one brand?

We have been enjoying Chex gluten-free varieties for several years now.  I was sad to see the Strawberry variety was discontinued a year or so ago.  Now there is a new Chex cereal in town…

Vanilla Chex!  I am already dreaming up different breakfast cereal combinations…Cinnamon + Vanilla Chex like a Snickerdoodle cookie, Chocolate + Vanilla Chex like a chocolate vanilla swirl bowl of ice cream and Apple Cinnamon + Vanilla Chex like apple pie with vanilla ice cream!

I have heard reports of the Vanilla Chex already being spotted in grocery stores across the US.  Have you spotted or tried the new Vanilla Chex?  I would love to hear your thoughts!

One of my favorite ways to eat waffles is smeared with nut butter and fruit preserves or pumpkin butter and then topped with seasonal fruit.  Sure, warm butter and maple syrup is tasty, but my heart belongs to creamy almond butter, Trader Joe’s Roasted Creamy with Sea Salt, to be exact.  When I first began the gluten-free diet over seven years ago there was one gluten-free waffle on the market, Van’s Natural Foods, in three different varieties (Plain, Apple Cinnamon and Blueberry).  Over the past few years we have seen several other gluten-free waffles make their way into the grocery store freezers, including Nature’s Path Gluten-Free Waffles.

There are three different varieties of gluten-free waffles from Nature’s Path:

• Buckwheat Wildberry
• Homestyle
• Chia Plus

I picked up the Chia Plus frozen waffles at the store the other day and couldn’t wait to try them.  I fell in love with the Buckwheat Wildberry waffles several years ago, so I hoped the Chia Plus would measure up. 

These waffles smelled so good while they were toasting that Jon wandered into the kitchen to ask what I was making.  In addition to being gluten-free, these waffles are also vegan.  Check out the list of ingredients:

I was so excited to dig in once the waffles were done toasting I forgot to snap a photo!  Bad food blogger!  The waffles were every bit as good, if not better, than I expected them to be.  They were the perfect base for my simple peanut butter and strawberry preserves toppings.  Now that I picked up some more berries at the store, I hope to add them to the waffles tomorrow!

Which gluten-free frozen waffle is your favorite or do you prefer to make them from scratch?

First week of summer vacation is in the books!  Well, three days to be exact.  Last day of school was last Tuesday.  We went to the pool on Wednesday and got the sunburn out of the way.  Thursday we went to see the movie, “Epic”.  I really liked it, but Hannah said it was a typical kids’ movie and it was too predictable.  She is at that age where she is really between kid movies and the PG-13 movies.  The weekend looked a lot like this:

Weekly Menu

Monday – Rotisserie chicken, baked potato, roasted broccoli and salad

Tuesday – Taco salad w/ blue tortilla chips

Wednesday – Thai Chile salmon, coconut baked brown rice, zucchini and salad

Thursday – BBQ pulled pork sandwiches, Boulder Canyon potato chips and salad

Friday – Make your own pizza and salad

Saturday – Graduation party

Weekly Recap

Don’t forget to enter the Boulder Canyon giveaway to win a free bag of chips!

Rudi’s Gluten-Free launches a Facebook recipe contest!

Red Apple Lipstick voted best GF cosmetics brand by GFREEK!

Blue Ice Vodka is the first to carry the gluten-free label!

Have a great week!

Kim

Rudi’s Gluten-Free Bakery launched a Facebook Recipe Contest just yesterday.  The contest challenges cooks to come up with an original recipe using Rudi’s Gluten-Free Tortillas. 

More about the contest:

From June 7th – June 15th, we’re inviting foodies of all sorts to show off their most creative and delicious gluten-free wrap recipes!  The winner of the “Rudi’s Gluten-Free Wrap Star Recipe Contest” will win a 3-month supply of Rudi’s Gluten-Free products + a “Kitchen Prize Pack!” (pictured above, valued at $135).  We’ll also award the “runner-up” recipe winner a 2-month supply of Rudi’s Gluten-Free products.
The contest started Friday June, 7, 2013.

The rules to enter are simple – and we’re looking for creativity! All recipes must:
•       Feature Rudi’s Gluten-Free Tortillas
•       Be Original
•       Include a photo of the finished recipe

I love the tortillas and use them for wraps with turkey and cream cheese or beans and cheese.  They are also great for quesadillas! 

I can’t wait to get busy making a new recipe!  Which variety of Rudi’s Gluten-Free Tortillas is your favorite?  I love the plain and the spinach!

It’s no secret that I love Boulder Canyon’s Red Wine Vinegar Potato Chips.  I am not normally a fan of vinegar potato chips, but these are spectacular!  In fact they have a great line-up of varieties sure to please everyone!

Boulder Canyon Natural Foods just recently received gluten-free certification from the GFCO (Gluten-Free Certification Organization) for both its products and manufacturing facilities.   Some of the awesome varieties include:

·         Garden Select Vegetable Crisps, Sour Cream & Chive

·         Garden Select Vegetable Crisps, Hearty Cheddar

·         Rice with Adzuki Bean Snack Chips, Natural Salt

·         Red Wine Vinegar Kettle Chips

·         Totally Natural Kettle Chips

More information:

Inventure Foods, Inc. (Nasdaq: SNAK), a leading specialty food marketer and manufacturer, has received certification from the Gluten-Free Certification Organization (GFCO) for its Boulder Canyon™ Natural Foods products and manufacturing facilities in Bluffton, Ind. and Goodyear, Ariz.

The Bluffton plant, located at 705 West Dustman Rd., produces snack chips for the company-owned Boulder Canyon brand, in addition to salty snacks under the T.G.I. Friday’s®, Nathan’s Famous® and Vidalia Brands® licensed brands. Inventure’s Goodyear plant, located at 3500 South La Cometa, is a state-of-the-art kettle-cooked potato chip facility, producing potato chips under the Boulder Canyon, Poore Brothers® and Bob’s Texas Style® brand names.

All Boulder Canyon products will carry the certified Gluten-Free logo going forward.

The Auburn, Wash.-based GFCO is considered the leading global gluten-free certification program. The strict certification process includes periodic gluten testing of the manufacturing facility, regular plant inspections by a GFCO contracted auditor and random product testing in the marketplace. Products carrying the GF logo meet similarly strict gluten-free standards constituted by the GFCO. For a complete list of GFCO certified companies and products, please visit www.gfco.org.

Seeing the gluten-free certification from the GFCO makes me feel better and more likely to buy the product over a comparable product without the certification.

Boulder Canyon Foods was nice enough to send me some samples, which were quickly devoured, and some free product coupons to pass along to my readers!  I have 10 coupons for a free bag of Boulder Canyon Natural Foods Snacks to give away to 10 lucky readers.  All you have to do to enter to win is follow the instructions in the Rafflecopter box below.  These make great snacks to pack for a picnic lunch at the pool.

Continue reading →

School is almost out for summer!  Hannah and I already have plans to hit the pool and the movies this week.  I love daytime movies in the summer.  Not only do you escape the heat and humidity for a couple of hours, but the prices tend to be cheaper mid-day.  I pack my own gluten-free goodies in my purse so there is no need to worry about high snack prices or what is gluten-free or not.  Do you know what my favorite gluten-free movie snack is?  Gimbal’s Jelly Beans.  YUM! 

Looks like a cute movie!  Next week?  Iron Man 3.

Weekly Menu

Monday – Baked Spaghetti with salad and Udi’s Gluten-Free Rolls

Tuesday – Mexican Pizzas, corn and salad

Wednesday – Grilled chicken, baked potatoes, broccoli and salad

Thursday – Burgers or hot dogs on Udi’s Gluten-Free buns, sweet potato fries and salad

Friday – Make Your Own Pizza and salad

Saturday – Take-out

Weekly Recap

Review: Trader Joe’s Gluten-Free Joe Joe’s

Betty Crocker Introduces New Gluten-Free Mixes

Recipe: Gluten-Free Squash & Caramelized Onion Quesadilla

Have a great week!

Kim

It is always great to find convenience items that are gluten-free.  Tandoor Chef is restaurant quality Indian Cuisine in the comfort of your own home.  Another bonus?  Many gluten-free options to choose from!

Tandoor Chef is running a contest for a gluten-free prize pack worth $50.  All you have to do to enter is click on the picture above and follow the instructions.

The Tandoor Chef gluten-free line includes:

• Tandoori Chicken Wings
• Lamb Vindaloo
• Masala Dosa
• Chicken Tikka Masala
• Chicken Tandoori with Spinach

• Chicken Curry
• Chicken Biryani
• Vegetable Pad Thai
• Chicken Pad Thai
• Palak Paneer
• Channa Masala

• Balanced Vegetarian Vegetable Korma
• Balanced Vegetarian Paneer Tikka Masala
• Balanced Vegetarian Mutter Paneer
• Balanced Vegetarian Palak Paneer

To see where you can find the Tandoor Chef products close to home, click here.  Also, if you are wine lover like me, Tandoor Chef has a page dedicated to wine pairing!

I will be the first to admit that I am “kind of” guilty of texting and driving.  It isn’t something that I do regularly, but I have checked my texts while sitting at a traffic light and then before you know it the light is green.  Sure, the phone gets put down and hands are back on the wheel, but my attention isn’t 100% on driving 100% of the time, which could certainly set the scene for disaster. 

We have all seen drivers run red lights, right?  Imagine looking up from your phone, hitting the gas and not seeing the car that is now in the intersection colliding with your car, having run the red light.  Sure, the red light runner is at fault and may have hit you anyway, but if (and it is a big IF) you had been paying 100% attention, would you have been able to avoid that red light runner? 

I am taking the pledge, as I am writing this blog post.

I have pledged…“IT CAN WAIT”!

Did You Know?
• Those who send text messages while driving are 23 times more likely to be in a car crash.
• Of all cell phone related tasks while driving- including talking, dialing or reaching for the phone- texting while driving is the most dangerous.
• In 2010, texting while driving increased 50% in one year and 2 out of every 10 drivers say they’ve sent text messages or e-mails while behind the wheel- despite the rush by states to ban the practice.
• When drivers read or send a text message, their reaction time is doubled; and when asked to respond to a flashing light while texting behind the wheel, drivers were more than 11 times more likely to miss the light altogether.

Do you have your cell phone close by?  Go ahead, grab it and look at the last text you sent.  Is that text worth dying for? To get an idea of how distracted you are when texting and driving, check out this Texting and Driving Simulator.

Will you join me and take the pledge?  Please comment below and let me know that you have taken the pledge.