George's chippy, Leek, now does Gluten-Free every Sunday!

I heard some great news the other day! I'm really happy to tell you that George's Tradition Fish and Chips now do gluten-free every Sunday, simply ask the staff and they will be happy to oblige.

I blogged a while back about my excitement that George's were offering gluten-free fish and chips on the first Sunday of every month - click here. Now, due to the enormous success, you can order gluten-free fish and chips EVERY Sunday - amazing!

https://www.georgestradition.co.uk/gluten-free-sundays-2/

52 Broad Street

Leek

Staffordshire

ST13 5NS

Morrisons new and improved 'free from' section

It's been a while, and I'm really sorry. I should probably start this entry by wishing you all a Happy New Year, as this is my first blog post of 2016! Thank you for reading and supporting this blog. It means a lot.

It seems that the new year has brought a positive change to the supermarket chain, Morrisons. They have really upped their game in the past couple of months and increased their 'free from' section about ten-fold! OK, so maybe that was a slight exaggeration. But there are so many more products to choose from now (in the supermarket's own free from range) and they have introduced loads of new and exciting well-known brands which you just couldn't get in there before, such as:-

No G
Feel Free For Gluten Free
ilumi
Heck sausages
Udi's
Schar &
Mrs Crimbles pasta range

to name a few!

Free From section in Leek Morrisons which is now 3 times the size!

Free From chilled section too!

I didn't really think much of Morrisons free from section in my local Leek store before. I found it was much smaller than the free from section in Sainsburys or Waitrose and very uninspiring, but now it's probably just as good. I was so impressed to see they've made a huge effort, listened to their customers and brought in lots of new products. They can now compete with the best of them. I will definitely be popping in a lot more often now.

Good work Morrisons!

To see more information about Morrisons' free from range click here

The Roaches Tea Rooms, Upper Hulme, Leek

Could this tea room have possibly one of the best views in the whole of UK? I certainly think so.

Take a look at this for a view.

Not a bad place to stop off for a brew and a piece of cake is it?!

I recently discovered that The Roaches Tea rooms not only have amazing views of the Peak District countryside, but also their very own gluten-free menu! And it's only a short drive from Leek where I live.

Here's a copy of their GF menu

I was really impressed with the choice. Plus there's always a good selection of gluten-free cake.

It's still quite rare for a restaurant to have a separate gluten-free menu so any place that makes the effort to print their own gluten-free menu's will certainly get my business time and time again.

I've been here a couple of times now, the first time just for coffee and cake, but the second to have lunch - which was a lovely tuna mayo ciabatta with chips and salad. Now there aren't many places that actually will have gluten-free ciabatta's available either!

The tea rooms are ideally located at the South-western edge of the Peak District National Park and so is a very popular pit stop for walkers and hikers alike. It can therefore get quite busy at peak times, so may be best to call ahead and either reserve a table or get there nice and early before the lunchtime rush. I would highly recommend one of the tables outside (weather permitting) with their breathtaking views.

I'm so incredibly lucky to live near here!

http://roachestearooms.co.uk/

Gluten-free at Fairways Garden Centre, Ashbourne

You know you are a homeowner when you spend Bank Holiday at a garden centre!

So this is my life now, I own a home. And this is one of the reasons why this blog has been so quiet lately, my apologies.

Fairways Garden Centre is located at Clifton in Ashbourne, roughly 16 miles out of Leek (they also have a centre in Macclesfield).

The garden centre itself is lovely but what I was more interested in was whether they had any gluten-free options in their cafe/restaurant upstairs. Gardening is hungry work after all.

The restaurant upstairs is huge by the way.

More and more smaller, independent cafes are becoming more aware of dietary requirements and a lot now do have gluten-free options on their menu. Fairways is probably one of the more clued up places I have visited recently. And here's why.

I was so pleased to see that their menu tells you exactly what gluten-free options they have - and there's not just one or two choices...they are 5 different options for lunch!

The garden centre's selection of cakes and pastries is pretty extensive but they have not forgotten us Coeliacs either - there was gluten-free flapjack or fruit toast on offer. They clearly know what they are doing when it comes to preventing cross-contamination too as the gluten-free items were all individually wrapped to protect them from any gluten crumbs (all the gluten-containing cakes were on big plates where you just helped yourself).

I was also really impressed to see that all the food was clearly labelled and indicated what allergens were present in each one - so for example, the ticket would read "contains wheat, gluten, egg" etc. So helpful! And is probably a result of the new law that came in in December 2014 which means that now all food businesses must provide allergen information for the meals they serve.

If you don't fancy a hearty meal like cottage pie or a roast pork dinner, there are lighter options on the menu suitable for Coeliacs, like the soup, It was great to see there were two soup options. And there's also gluten-free bread if you ask one of the servers behind the counter.

OK, so it wasn't a bread roll, but still I was able to have gluten-free bread with my soup (for me, there's nothing worse than having soup with no bread, you need something to dip in!). In a lot of places there isn't always an option to have gluten-free bread with your soup so Fairways definitely gets the thumbs up from me.

I think it was probably Genius bread (is it sad that I can tell what brand of bread it was?) and tasted great with a bit of butter and dipped in to my carrot and coriander soup.

The soup itself was really tasty, creamy and filling - it really was a massive portion! All the food is homemade, prepared from fresh ingredients on site and they use locally-sourced ingredients too. I have to say I was really impressed, not just with the quality of food, but also their knowledge of dietary requirements and availability of gluten-free options, I would definitely eat here again.

Gluten-Free Fish & Chips at George's, Leek

Yes, you did hear me right...gluten-free fish & chips are now being served at my local chippy, George's on Broad Street, Leek.

I very nearly crashed my car when driving past my local chippy a few months ago. A new sign had been put up in the window advertising Gluten-free Sundays, the first Sunday of every month. This is very exciting news for Coeliacs living in Leek. Finally another place we can eat!

To offer my support I paid George's a visit on their opening Sunday to sample their gluten-free fish and chips and I was not disappointed. Since then I've been again and both times I've enjoyed beautiful fish and chips like a normal person.

Gluten-free fish and chips are served between 12-4pm on the first Sunday of every month. They use a completely separate fryer to fry the fish and chips in gluten-free batter so it's completely safe and free from contamination.

I ordered a small fish and chips and rushed home to tuck in. Now this is a small portion of fish and chips which I think is a pretty decent size and I can happily say I demolished the whole plateful.

It was so good to have "proper" chips again. You just can't beat chips from the chippy. The batter was light and crispy and not as thick as normal batter which meant you could taste the flavour of the fish a lot more. It was not as greasy as normal fish and chips which is definitely a bonus and in a way felt a bit healthier (probably wishful thinking). All in all these fish and chips tasted just as good as any fish and chips I've had pre-Coeliac days. Even my husband couldn't tell the difference.

It's so pleasing to see a chain of fish and chip shops like George's offering gluten-free Sundays. I really hope that the people of Leek support Gluten-free Sundays so that it stays for good. I certainly will be. I loved the fact that a family who came in to the shop after me ordered 5 portions of gluten-free fish and chips. If this is anything to go by the word is already being spread.

George's also have chip shops in Allestree, Belper, Chellaston, Chilwell, Ilkeston, Long Eaton, The Thorn Tree Inn, West Bridgford and Loughborough.

You can view their website here

Thank you George's for my first gluten-free fish and chips. I'm already looking forward to next month!

Primo Piano, Leek, Staffordshire

Primo Piano is a Ristorante and Pizzeria based in Leek, Staffordshire. Yes, you did hear me right, Leek - that's where I live! Finally, somewhere in Leek I can review, Hurrah! As far as I know this is the only restaurant in my home town offering to cater for Coeliacs (at the moment). But I'm really hoping I can change that soon.

It was a special occasion, our 3rd wedding anniversary, so we decided to book a table there on a Wednesday evening (I've heard it can get quite busy on Friday and Saturday nights so definitely book in advance). Family friends had mentioned that they offer some gluten-free options on the menu and I also checked www.onionring.co.uk in advance too and was pleased to see that "gluten free dishes available" was clearly stated on this website. A quick phone call to the restaurant a couple of days beforehand also clarified this for me. You can find a copy of their menu on onionring (although I'm not sure how up to date this menu is).

Once we were seated at our table the waitress very kindly explained that all the chicken and steak dishes could be prepared gluten-free so I could choose any of those. I had heard that they do provide gluten-free pizza bases so you can also get a pizza there but I decided to go for a steak, it was a special occasion after all, and I never would normally choose steak on a menu.

I must say I was a bit disappointed to see that although there were options I could have on the menu, there was no mention of a gluten-free pizza base on the menu and it would have been nice if there had been a gluten-free pasta option on there too. Still, the meal I had was delicious, steak in a blue Italian cheese sauce with salad and potatoes. The steak was cooked exactly how I liked it and the sauce was absolutely moreish, rich, creamy and filling and yet not too overpowering to the steak. I would most definitely order this again when I go back although I am trying to be careful with my dairy intake at the moment so I have to be careful with creamy sauces like that.

I'm hoping that the more people that get diagnosed with Coeliac Disease (and it is becoming more and more common) and as the demand increases for gluten-free cuisine, smaller restaurants like Primo will develop their menu to include more pasta and pizza dishes in line with some of the bigger chain restaurants that are already doing this. The good thing about Primo though is that it is my local restaurant and they do offer some gluten-free choices so it means I don't have to travel to Manchester for a meal out, however, if you don't like chicken or steak (or you happen to also be vegetarian) I do wonder whether there would be anything for you to have here. Also, the steak dishes happen to be the most expensive meals on their menu rather annoyingly! I do think in the future Primo should work on their menu, maybe highlight on there with a 'GF' symbol all the dishes that are gluten-free so it is really clear and if they could expand their menu to include one pasta dish this would ensure I came back time and time again. Still, I have to give it to Primo for being the first restaurant to openly advertise gluten-free choices in Leek and I'm hoping that other venues in Leek and the surrounding areas will catch on and also do the same.

If you're a restaurant/cafe in Leek, I'm coming for you!!!!

Happy Anniversary to us!

Misco's Chocolates and Truffles, Leek, Staffordshire

I managed to pick up some Misco's Chocolates randomly at an open evening at my local hair and beauty salon a couple of weeks ago where the company were exhibiting their wares. Having never heard of them before I was pleased to discover they are a local company based in Leek, Staffordshire - hurray!

The chocolates are handmade from only the best ingredients and use no artificial colours and the best bit is they are gluten-free.

They come in a variety of flavours including:-

Violet Cream
Coconut & Vanilla
Ginger Wine
Passionfruit & Raspberry
Dark & Gold leaf
Hazelnut Truffle
Port
Champagne & Galliano white or dark truffles
Cherry Kirsch
Intense Coffee
Blackcurrant & Blueberry
Salted Caramel
Strawberries & Cream
Lemon Cream
Raspberry & Vanilla

They all sound amazing, but I opted for a box of 4 for £3.80 which contained Passionfruit & Raspberry, Cherry Kirsch, Champagne & Galliano white truffle and Intense Coffee.

I found the chocolates were incredibly indulgent yet not too rich or sickly, perfect for that little naughty treat every once in a while. The fruity flavours really came through and I was impressed by how fresh they tasted and how crisp the chocolate was. They also melt in your mouth just perfectly. I would definitely consider ordering a box for a special occasion or as a gift for someone special. All their chocolates are made fresh every week and sent out on a Thursday for delivery in time for the weekend.

As they are a local company I am giving my full support to Misco's Chocolates & Truffles who are flying the flag for gluten-free producers in Leek and I am so glad they are! We need more companies like this in Leek! It seems they are going from strength to strength too by appearing at local markets where you can pick up their tasty delights. If you are out and about visiting the Artisan Markets in Staffordshire and Cheshire you may well see them there so pop over and say hi.

****Winner of the Totally Locally Leek Award 2012 for Totally Locally Producer/Maker****

To find out more and to order online you can visit their website here

Or you can follow them on Twitter or Facebook

Cupcake Cafe & Bakery

Today I had my first ever gluten-free eating out experience. This was a really big step for me. My friends and I decided to visit the Cupcake Cafe and Bakery in Leek, Staffordshire and this is where I sampled my first gluten-free cupcake.

The Cupcake Cafe is a small, friendly cafe situated at the end of a cobbled courtyard in the centre of town. Although slightly off the beaten track (it's behind another building) it's well worth the visit. You can either sit in or take-out and they also do celebration cakes and special orders if you have a birthday or occasion and need to buy in bulk. The cafe provides a wide range of delicious cupcakes and cakes all home made on site (and also sandwiches and soups) but in the past year have also introduced a dairy and gluten-free cupcake of the week. Every week the flavour changes and this week the cupcake of choice happened to be Bakewell - I therefore couldn't wait to give it a try.

Check out the beautiful vintage-style china too!

I have to say this is one of the nicest cupcakes I have ever had and as it was my first ever taste of gluten-free cupcake I was pleasantly surprised to find that I really couldn't tell the difference between a normal cupcake and gluten-free. The sponge was lovely and light, yet moist, with a jam centre and the vanilla icing (dairy free) was rich and creamy - topped off nicely with a cherry - perfect. I enjoyed it so much that I had to buy a second cupcake to take home for later!

If you are ever passing through Leek I would definitely recommend you stop at the Cupcake Cafe and give their tasty treats a try. I wonder what the flavour next week will be...

www.cupcakecafe.co.uk/ or www.facebook.com/CupcakeCafeandBakery