My Gluten Free Rainbow Piñata Cake

I decided to make this rainbow piñata cake for Coeliac Awareness Week 2019 to spread positivity about Coeliac Disease as there is always a rainbow at the end. Once you start your gluten free diet it is just something you get used to and learn as you go along. I personally feel a lot healthier since I was diagnosed Coeliac two years ago.

I posted this a couple of days ago and it was SO popular and a lot of you requested the recipe so here it is! This cake was so moist and delicious, sometimes with gluten free cakes they are really crumbly but this one wasn't, I hope it goes well for you guys!

Ingredients for the cake:

• 390g soft butter
• 390g caster sugar
• 6 eggs (I bought medium)
• 390g self raising flour (I used doves farm)
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
• 5 colours of food colour flavouring (I bought a pack from Sainsburys which was called 'gel food colours' and it has been designed for making rainbow cakes, it was something like £2.25 which was a lot cheaper than buying the food colouring individually) I used green, blue, pink, orange and yellow.
• 3 x 20cm round cake tins (I bought mine from TK Maxx, but if you don't have any loads of shops sell them like supermarkets, amazon etc)
• Baking parchment paper 
• Sweets (I bought haribos, haribo strawbs and minstrel for mine but you can put whatever sweets you like in it!)

Ingredients for the butter cream icing:

• 400g soft butter
• 3 teaspoons of vanilla extract
• 800g icing sugar

Method:

1. Firstly, pre-heat your oven to 160c fan or 180c conventional oven.
2. Secondly, you will need to grease your 3 cake tins and line the bottom of them with baking parchment paper.
3. Next, mix all of your cake ingredients together and make sure that you mix until you get a smooth consistency. With your flour I would use a sieve to get this into the bowl so there are no lumps.
4. Once all the cake mixture is mixed and is smooth, you will then need to divide the cake mixture evenly between 3 bowls.
5. Once you have divided the cake mixture evenly, you then need to put one colour in each of your bowls (I used first the green, blue and red but you can use whichever colours you like first!)
6. You will then need to pour your 3 different coloured cake mixtures into each cake tin.
7. Next, bake your cakes in your oven for 25 minutes. You will know they are cooked if you put a knife into cake, if it comes out with mixture on the knife it is not quite cooked yet, but if it comes out with no mixture on it will be cooked. I would also not open the oven door whilst the cake is cooking.
8. Then, you will need to take these out to cool. I left mine for about an hour to cool.
9. Next, make your second batch of cake mixture these will be for the next two cakes.
10. Repeat the separating process into two bowls and use your final two colours.
11. Then, put these into your cake tins and bake again for 25 minutes.
12. Next, once baked take these out to cool down for about an hour again.

Method for the icing and decoration:

1. For the icing, you will need to mix all of your icing mixture together until it makes a smooth consistency into butter icing.
2. Next, put one of your cakes on your cake stand and cut the middle of that out with a cookie cutter or anything you can get your hands on!
3. Then, spread some of your butter icing over the top of the cake.
4. Next, cut out the middle of 3 of your other cakes, repeat the process of putting icing on top of the cake and placing the other cake on top.
5. Then, before you put the final cake on top, fill the middle of the stack of cakes with all of your sweets.
6. Finally, put your 5th cake on top of the stack of cakes (you do not cut the middle of the cake out on this one)
7. Then, spread the rest of your icing all over the cake and I sprinkled coloured stars all over but you can use whatever you like to decorate it with!
8. I then left the cake overnight to set in the fridge, once set you can then cut a slice out of the cake and your sweets will fall out like a piñata!!

I hope you enjoy this recipe and remember to tag me in your posts if you do make it! 😁

Danielle x

12 Recent gluten free finds - that you may not know are gluten free! *correct as of May 2019

A few days ago I asked everyone on Instagram what they would like me to write about on my blog and this was one of the most popular requests.

You may notice that I have posted a few gluten free finds recently, some of which you may not notice they were gluten free.

So firstly, we will start with chocolate spreads!

1. Twix chocolate spread

The 'crunchy biscuit pieces' label is enough to put any Coeliac off... however after looking at the ingredients on the back this is actually gluten free! What a treat!

2. Cadburys chocolate caramel spread

Now this one doesn't really have anything that would put you off on the front - it still however does not have one of them lovely gluten free symbols on the front of it! This again, has no gluten containing ingredients so is perfectly save to use. This would be sooo delish on pancakes!

Now onto puds!

3. GU free from cheesecakes

I found these free from chocolate and vanilla cheesecakes a few days ago in the Co-Op and they are so delicious. Not only to they come in glass pots so you can wash and keep them, they just melt in your mouth and are the perfect treat. They have a coconut cream alternative in them to make them vegan, but i feel there is only a hint of coconut it is not too strong in case you are not keen on it! They are £3.50 for two which is a bit pricey, however they are worth it!

These next two finds I found in B&M a few weeks ago.. you just can't go wrong with B&M! 😄

4. Quick milk magic sipper - fruity cereal flavour

This would be another one that sometimes you just wouldn't pick up and check because the 'fruity cereal' flavour is another one to put you off. But to my surprise, I soon spotted that lovely small green symbol on the front stating that it is actually gluten free! 

5. Quick Milk magic sipper - Jammy Biscuit flavour

Again seeing that 'jammy biscuit flavour' is another one to put you off! But there is that lovely gluten free symbol on the front again. I used to love these magic sipper straws when I was young mainly because I hate straight milk! These would make drinking milk a lot nicer for me 😄

Now onto foods and kits...

6. Katsu Chicken breast fillets - Tesco

This for me is another one that you wouldn't usually pick up off the shelf because basically it just looks like it contains gluten really doesn't it! 😁

I bought this reduced (bargain) a couple of months ago and paired it up with jasmine rice for my dinner and it was amazing! It has a crumb coating however there are no gluten containing ingredients so it is fine for us to eat!

7. Aldi's Taco Kit

I found this Taco kit recently and as they are corn tacos they have no gluten containing ingredients! I love it because it is such a quick and easy dinner! All you basically need is your filling - it does come with the spike packet and a salsa packet. The spice mixture is actually really nice with the mince. The taco's only take a few minutes in the oven and bobs your uncle! It is so cheap also, I usually pick it up for £1.59, bargain!

8. Aldi's frozen paella mix (new)

I found this paella mix from Aldi a couple of days ago and this also has no gluten containing ingredients. It says you can cook it in 10 minutes also so another quick and easy dinner! I have really been wanting to cook a paella for ages now and if you are lazy like me and don't have time then this is perfect! Just wack it in a pan for 10 minutes then you are sorted!

9. Aldi's fajita frozen mix (new)

Another quick and easy dinner found in the frozen aisle in Aldi a couple of days ago. All you need is your wraps and your sauces! This one also says that it is ready in 10 minutes and you can cook from frozen again. Another thing I love about these frozen mixes is that it keeps, sometimes you just accidentally leave things in the fridge too long and its a waste! Where as you can cook some of this and put it back in the freezer for your next meal and it will be fine to eat a month later! 😄

10. Aldi's frozen seafood selection (new)

This is something that probably wouldn't contain gluten but it is a good one to put on here for you guys! It comes with a black garlic and lemon butter which is again naturally gluten free. I was just really excited when I saw this because I have been craving seafood for a few weeks and what a perfect pack, all in one! This is also good for paellas and anything you would put seafood in because again you can just keep it in the freezer until you want to cook it because it cooks from frozen!

11. Aldi's Whitebait

I see a theme coming along here! Another one from Aldi's frozen section - lightly dusted whitebait in a gluten free coating! How very generous! A gluten free coating! You can also cook this from frozen so it is good to keep in the freezer for when you want it. I think this is something that is perfect for dinner parties.

12. Aldi's frozen cauliflower cheese

I actually couldn't believe my eyes when I by the off chance checked the ingredients on this! I really struggle to find cauliflower cheese pre made as they all seem to have wheat in them! So to my surprise this has no gluten containing ingredients! I just really don't like making my own as all the gluten free packet mixes for cheese sauce I really hate, they just don't taste nice at all in my eyes! So fingers crosse that this is nice! And again, it keeps in the freezer so I can take it out whenever I need it! 

So that is it! All my recent gluten free finds in one place for you all! Make sure to follow my Instagram to keep up to date with all my latest finds!

My Gluten Free Guide to Broadway Market - London

Broadway market is a Victorian Street Market that runs every Saturday in Hackney, London. It is open from 9-5 and it offers so much from flowers to gluten free meringues. There are also loads of cute shops and restaurants running along side it. It is honestly such a bustling and enjoyable place.

The closest station to get off at if you are coming in from London would be London Fields. The market is just a short walk away through the park from London Fields station. We got the tube to Liverpool Street and then the overground to London Fields, it didn't take too long.

I thought I would put together a few recommendations from my visit to share with you all. It is a must visit!

Eat n Mess

Eat n Mess is honestly a must visit at the market. Their range of gluten free baked goodies is amazing. From cookie pies to smores cheesecake slices. It is gluten free heaven! I was so stuck with what to choose because it all looked amazing. I eventually chose the smores cheesecake, chocolate orange cookie pie and a peanut butter and jam donut. I have tried all of them since I visited and they are all heaven. The flavours are just incredible, proper melt in your mouth moment!

They also have a cafe in Sevenoaks in Kent if anyone is local to there or visiting.

Floris Bakery

Floris bakery is another gluten and wheat free bakery which is also just amazing! They do all sorts also from arancini balls to jam and custard donuts. I again could't decide what to pick! But I decided to try a jam donut and the custard donut pictured above.

Meringue Girls

Meringue Girls has the most amazing selection of meringues that are 70p each. The flavours range from passionfruit to chocolate. They all looked so delicious but unfortunately I couldn't try them all! I picked up a passionfruit one and it was so sweet and tasty. 

They also had some large meringues but I just went for a small one as I had already eaten a lot!

The Bach

The Batch is a cafe at the bottom end of Broadway Market. I visited here after lots of recommendations from other people who have visited, and I am glad I did!

It is the perfect brunch spot, it is quite small but there is a few tables and seats outside as well which would be lovely when it is nice weather! So it can get full really quickly and they do say to try and go before 11am as it gets busier after then.

Their menu has plenty of gluten free options on and they are really clued up on allergens. Again, with plenty of choice it was so hard to pick what to have!

I decided to go for the gluten free cheese and ham toastie with tomato chutney and it was delicious!

I was so surprised because I literally got two toasties instead of one!! It's fair to say I couldn't eat it all but I did give it a good go!

Makatcha Eats

Makatacha eats is a fully gluten free indonesian curry stall. There were three different types of curry available on the day and I decided to try the vegan one as it looked sooo good with the mushrooms, chickpeas and rice! And I was right in what I thought because it was sooo delicious! I would never usually go for a vegan curry, I love a meaty curry however this one really caught my eye. It was slightly spicy but was great because I was full of cold at the time!!

Other places I found but did not try:

1. Galettes stall

I also found a galette stall that offered gluten free galettes. I don't think they were all gluten free so there is a cross contamination issue for me there as they make them on the spot. So if you do want to try them, I would recommend speaking to them about allergies first.

3. Osu Cocunuts

Osu Cocunuts are a pancake company and their pancakes are 100% coconut based and gluten free. They were offering Berry Mad pancakes with berry coulis, coconut caramel sauce and date syrup. The other pancake that they offered was banana choc which had caramelised banana, peanut butter and chocolate sauce. They both sounded absolutely delicious however I was so full again, I could not stomach a pancake! 

However, with it being 100% gluten free, I would try it next time I visit!

So there we have it! That is my gluten free guided to Broadway Market in London. I would highly recommend visiting if you haven't visited yet, it is just amazing!

My top tips for traveling with coeliac disease

One thing that I find that I get asked a lot is tips for travelling. So I thought I would write a blog post with my top tips. These may not all suit you, but they are things that suit me and I find most helpful!

1. Plenty of research is KEY

I will not go anywhere unless I have researched it before hand. I find it incredibly important, because the last thing you want is to end up somewhere and not be able to eat anything. And of course, naturally when you are just diagnosed, this is something that can be easily done. I didn't think as much into things when I was first diagnosed then what I do now.

Firstly, when you are going abroad, it is generally either self catering, bed and breakfast, half board or all inclusive. If you are going self catering, you obviously need all the cooking facilities and storage facilities, which I am sure you will in self catering accommodation. However, with self catering you are going to be eating out a lot, unless you are cooking in the accommodation.

What I usually do is just search into google (for example if I am going on a holiday to Prague) "gluten free Prague" and you will find that it comes up with LOADS of pages on recommendations into gluten free places to eat in Prague. 

When you find a restaurant that you might like, go onto Trip Advisor and search in the box "gluten free" and it will come up with all the reviews with the word "gluten free" in. Or you can even search "coeliac" and reviews may come up with that word in.

I would only ever go to a restaurant if it has good reviews and recommendations from people that have actually experienced it. A lot of restaurants think it is okay to put "gluten free options" but actually, a lot of people have had bad experiences with the restaurant.

If you are going bed and breakfast, half board or all inclusive I would highly recommend doing your research on the hotel beforehand. Best ways of doing this are:

• Contacting the hotel (emailing them or phoning)
• Again, searching on trip advisor, click onto the hotel and then search the key words in the search bar
• Search on Facebook groups or ask for recommendations. Some pages that I recommend are "Coeliacs in the UK" or "Coeliacs Abroad" there are loads of support pages. I would recommend joining them and having a search through.

2. Take the essentials

Essentials to me are snacks and medication. If you can fit it in your suitcase then take a few snacks with you. I would recommend checking with the airline as I wouldn't like to say how much you can take into different countries. There is loads of different dried goods that you can take: biscuits, bread etc.

Firstly, I carry some important medication on me that I feel I need to be with at all times. I will put some in my suitcase as well. Again please be careful about taking medication in your hand luggage/hand bag into certain countries (I wouldn't like to say how much you can take and where)

The things that are most important for me are imodium, buscopan and my lansoprazole. I generally do not go anyway without these. General medications as well I make sure I bring is paracetamol and ibuprofen. These are just the important ones for me in case I get poorly, but you will more than likely have different medications to me.

3. Translation cards

There are loads of translation cards out there in loads of different languages that you can download or print out and take along with you. Just as an example this is one website: http://www.celiactravel.com/cards/

Of course if you have a family member or friend that is knowledgable at a certain language then maybe you could get them to help you out also.

4. Don't be afraid to ASK!

One thing that I find with travelling is that you just have to ask. There is no harm in going up to someone in a restaurant or someone that is trying to get you into a restaurant on the street and just asking if they cater for gluten free/coeliacs.

Sometimes with certain places i.e Ibiza, a lot of the members of staff are English as it is a place they work for the season. So a lot of people will liaise with the rest of the restaurant staff and the chefs to check they can cater for you. Sometimes it is more reassuring when there is no language barrier there for confusion.

5. Travel insurance

Another thing that I find really important is travel insurance. A lot of people just brush this off and think that they will not need it and then when it comes to them needing it, they regret it. I always get travel insurance wherever I go out of the country. You should also really declare that you in case you to get really poorly on holiday from eating gluten.

So these are my main tips for traveling with coeliac disease! I hope they are helpful to you all. I have a few travel guides on my blog in case you wanted to check any of them out to help you with recommendations that I have. Head to www.glutenfreedanielle.blogspot.com/search/label/Travel if you would like to check them out!

Danielle x

Popcorn Shed Review

Popcorn Shed sent me a few samples of their range to try and I can honestly say I really enjoyed the majority of them!

So I thought I would review each one of them for you guys. I think the ones in the shed style boxes are the perfect stocking fillers for Christmas. I honestly think the packaging is so eye catching and just fabulous for a present!

1. Butterly Nuts

So this one is Peanut Butter Caramel Popcorn with Roasted Peanuts. This one was 100% my favourite, I could eat sooo much of this. I love peanut butter so the taste was perfect for me. It obviously does contain dairy with it having butter in it, however it is 100% gluten free. This one I can definitely recommend, 10/10!

2. Pop 'n' Choc

I wasn't sure on this one at first, I never really eat chocolate popcorn so at first it was a weird taste, but then I did get into it. It is chocolate caramel popcorn with Belgian milk chocolate. It does have the perfect chocolatey taste in my opinion, and I do actually like how its not a dark chocolate popcorn, I really prefer milk chocolate. This one also contains dairy but is again, 100% gluten free. I would give this one a 8/10 😊

3. Salted Caramel

This one was another one of my favourites, I just love anything to do with salted caramel, it is one of my faves! This one is as it says on the tin, salted caramel popcorn with a hint of creamy Belgian milk chocolate. Absolute yumminess if that is even a word! 😆 This one I would give a 9/10. It does contain dairy, however is 100% gluten free.

4. Berry-Licious

This one unfortunately for me I didn't like. I really am not into mixing fruit with popcorn, I just don't like it. To be fair, I am not a particularly fruity person when it comes to snacks. This one however, you may enjoy if you do like that. It is raspberry & dark chocolate caramel popcorn. The 3 for me just do not mix unfortunately, however my boyfriend did enjoy them. This one again is 100% gluten free but does contain dairy. I would give this a 3/10.

5.  Say Cheese!

Cheesy popcorn... I was scared about trying this one and the other cheesy one that they do. Again, it is something I wouldn't usually mix! This one is just cheddar cheese and I actually really liked it! I do love cheddar cheese in general, I don't really mix my cheeses I just generally stick to cheddar or red liecester 😆 So this one obviously has dairy in it with it being a cheesy popcorn, but is 100% gluten free. I would give this a 7/10.

6. Pecan Pie

This one was honestly so yummy. I absolutely love pecans and this was perfect. It is caramel popcorn with pecan nut pieces. I know.. sounds delicious doesn't it! I loved it finding the pecan pieces within the pop corn as well 😆 This one also contains dairy but is 100% gluten free. I would give this one a 9/10!

7.  Sweet Cheesus!

Another cheesy popcorn which I was quite nervous to try! These ones are kind of like a bush tucker trial when you're not sure and you just have to go for it 😆 This one is actually a mixture of cheddar cheese and caramel which is such a strange mix! In all honesty I did prefer the say cheese ones just because they were not mixed with caramel. But if you want to try a quirky flavour this is definitely the one to try! This one obviously again contains dairy however is 100% gluten free. I would give this one a 4/10!

So you can buy all of these flavours that I have reviewed on their website, click here: Popcorn Shed and you can buy all of their shed packs which are £3.50 each. They also do jar's of popcorn as well which is another fab stocking filler idea! You can also pick them up in Superdrug, Selfridges, Harrods, Waitrose food hall's, The Co-Op and on Not on the High Street, Amazon and Ocado.

Enjoy! 😊

Gluten Free Cheese Scones

Ever since I was diagnosed I have craved Gluten Free Cheese Scones a lot! So I thought I would share my recipe with you all incase you feel the same way! They are super easy to make and you can also put your own twist on them if you want to!

Ingredients:

1. 350g Self Raising Gluten Free Flour (I used doves farm for mine)
2. Baking powder (I bought mine from Dr Oetker)
3. Salt
4. 60g Margerine
5. 75/80g Mature Chedder Cheese
6. 200ml Milk

Method:

1. Set your oven to 180c fan/ 200 degrees/ gas mark 6
2. Mix all together the 350g self raising flour, 1 1/2 tea spoons of your baking powder, 1/4 tea spoon of salt and the margerine. Rub in the margerine until the mixture turns into breadcrumbs.
3. Next mix in about half of your cheese into the mixture. Obviously the more cheese the more cheesier it will be so feel free to put whatever you want into the mixture!
4.Next, mix in the 200ml of milk to make a dough. I used 200ml but pour in what you think is right, do it gradually so it makes a nice dough. If you think you need less or you need more add it into the mixture.
5. Sprinkle some flour onto your chopping board or clean work top and place the dough on it.
6. Pat down the dough until its about 2-3cm thick.
7. Cut the dough into whatever shape you would like your scones to be! I did squares however I wish i did circles when making them so go for circles if you want to, or even hearts!
8. Put the dough shapes onto a baking tray and brush them over with some milk. Sprinkle the rest of your cheese on top of them also.
9. Bake for 17-18 minutes. 
10. Once baked leave to cool and enjoy!

Hope you enjoy making these! Make sure to tag me in your pictures if you do 😊

Danielle x

My Gluten Free Guide to Tenerife

So I went to Tenerife at the beginning of October on my holidays and naturally I was worried about what I was going to eat there.
We went all inclusive which I was really nervous about. I contacted the hotel before we booked it to see if they did any gluten free options and they said they can do gluten free pasta and bread. It was enough for me as I knew that we would eat out as well and the drinks would be all inclusive. The hotel wasn't the best, I wouldn't really recommend it to people with allergies. However, on the buffet which was help your self at set times they did have labels with allergens on, so I did get a bit more into it towards the end of the holiday when I familiarised myself with everything. If you guys do want to check the hotel out, it was Compostela Beach and Golf Apartments.

I firstly highly recommend Tenerife as a holiday. It's gorgeous, it has loads to do and is perfect for everyone! We stayed in the Playa De Las Americas area and I personally think this is great for couples/family holidays. There is loads to do for kids as well as adults.
One thing I will also say is that Siam Park is a must if you go. It is honestly the best water park ever.

So like my other Gluten Free Guide's I decided to write one up for you guys on my trip to Tenerife:

1. Siam Park

I read up on what to eat at Siam Park and saw something about the beach cafe so decided to try there. As soon as I mentioned to the server that I was gluten free he told me exactly what I could have and was really helpful.

I decided to go for the roast chicken and chips that they had. He went and got a chicken that had been cooked separately to the chickens that you could see roasting. The fries were gluten free so I just went and helped myself to them.
Naughty but they do say you cannot bring food in with you.. but us Coeliac's know a way around this. I just wrapped some crisps I had brought prior in our towels in my beach bag and brought them in with me. You could easily bring some sandwiches etc as well if you wanted to!

2. Taste Sin Gluten - Av. La Habana, 11, 38650 Los Cristianos

I had to visit this Restaurant whilst I was staying in the area. It is a 100% gluten free restaurant! Just a tip with finding this: when I put it into my apple maps it really was not clear where the restaurant was, we couldn't find it. It will take you to the road but not to the restaurant. Further up the road there is a whole row of restaurants, it is above the restaurant called Habib, so just look out for that and you will see the Taste Sin Gluten sign 😊

The food was so amazing! And the view made it even better. It is right over the beach so you can watch the sunset if you go there for dinner. I had the Calamari and chips and my Boyfriend had steak which was also lovely! The staff were so attentive as well which made the whole experience. Highly recommend!

3. Mcdonalds

I mean you have to visit a Mcdonalds when you're abroad! Not going to lie I think I may have had one nearly every day... but oh well! Just down from Taste Sin Gluten is the beach and there is a Mcdonalds along there. I also went to one in Playa De Las Americas which is just on the strip of Veronicas.

Yumm! You have to go all out and make the most of it!

4. Hard Rock Cafe - Av. Las Americas, 38660 Playa De Las Americas

We love to visit Hard Rock Cafes if we can as we went to one in Barcelona last year and it was amazing. So we decided to visit the Hard Rock Cafe in Tenerife as I knew the standards had to be the same with allergens. Naturally I was quite nervous ordering but the waitress was really helpful. 

I went for the American style burger and fries which was soooo good. It is a must if you are visiting Tenerife!

5. Mercadona Supermarkets

To my excitement we had a Mercadona right outside our hotel so I knew I would be fine for food worst case scenario. The Mercadona's are amazing, they are full of gluten free food. I took some pictures of my favourites:

I could list so much more but these were my favourites. I found some chocolate bars with cookies in (I know), something similar to Smarties which are amazing and also an alternative to Maltesers! All sooo tasty! I also found Mercadona incredibly cheap. The Beers above were only 2 euros 75! I also found some gluten free churros which I was so happy about but they were frozen unfortunately so I couldn't bring them home with me! 

6. HiperDino Supermarkets

Another brilliant Supermarket chain is the HiperDino Supermarkets. All the labels with the prices on are white, however if the products are 'Sin Gluten' they are black... I know, amazing! I wish it was like that in the UK, it would be much easier than reading through all the ingredients! Just look at the black label and stick it in your trolley! Below are some of my favourite things I found:

I ended up buying some Chorizo to have with my gluten free pasta at the hotel on some nights which was nice! The chicken nuggets I was sooo excited about when I found them but unfortunately we didn't have a oven in our apartment. The cheesy puffs I bought a few packets of whilst I was there, and brought a couple home with me they are amazing! They also had a couple of Schar breads as well in there.

So that is my Gluten Free Guide to Tenerife! Feel free to contact me on my social media if you would like any more tips! I hope this helps someone who was just as nervous as I was! 😊

Danielle x