Firstly I want to thank everyone for your kind remarks on my last ‘styling’ post. I appreciate that you were all very gentle with me.
But, without further ado and #inothernews I was contacted recently by two companies offering me samples of their gluten-free goodies.
Lifestyle Bakery’s bread rolls and pizza bases
I’d already tried Lifestyle Bakery’s new Soft ‘n’ Light bread back in February so when they offered to send me some bread rolls, who was I to say no?!
In the previous review I talked about my personal fave GF bread at the moment – flat rolls baked on Tuesdays by a bakery in my (neighbouring) childhood home town. I order a dozen rolls every week or two which basically does me for breakfasts and the occasional lunch. I love the bakery-made rolls as they’re great toasted.
However, now that I’ve tried Lifestyle Bakery’s GF bread rolls I’m realizing that my bakery rolls can be a bit hit and miss.
It’s not uncommon you see for them to have gaping holes in them. Yesterday’s for example, had a large airhole where the bread should have been.
Thanks to Lifestyle Bakery I was supplied with a four-pack of large bread rolls and a six pack of dinner rolls for my tasting pleasure.
Both were delicious. Thick but soft. And they smelled just beautiful. Unlike GF bread – which can be a bit heavy and well, ‘meh’ for me – the rolls have a decent amount of bread plus they’re soft. And did I mention they’re soft?! They’re also a lot thicker than the ones I buy at the bakery.
I also received a packet of pizza bases (two in a packet) and made myself a meat-lovers pizza on State of Origin night last week. I liked it a lot more than any other GF base I’ve tried in recent times. Again it was thick but not chewy and definitely not brittle, which is sometimes a problem.
The only negatives for me are that the rolls are more expensive than the ones I buy from the local bakery (which is sadly the case with all GF-specific products). The 4-pack of bread rolls or 6-pack of dinner rolls are just under AUD6.50 each. The local bakery makes a GF dozen bread rolls for AUD8.00.
They’re also not readily available. Only one outlet stocks Lifestyle Bakery products locally and on my recent visit they didn’t have the rolls or pizza bases. (The assistant suggested I return when the manager’s there and ask about getting them!)
However, I’ll definitely be stocking up next time I find some. I kept the rolls aside for special occasions (eating the less-expensive and lower-quality bakery rolls for breakfast). I’ve been taking the rolls out to lunch with me a couple of times (not as a guest… hee hee, but as a replacement for the cafe’s crappy GF bread for my steak sandwich). I also made sure I handed them over in the wrapping so they could see the brand for themselves!
Slim Secrets snacks
I was also approached by Slim Secrets to try some of their GF products. Having previously tried their chips (and loved the cheese and onion flavor) I was pleased this time to receive an array of snacks.
I love that so many of Slim Secrets products are GF and that they come in low carbohydrate and low calorie options. Years ago I loved a seed and nut bar but it was calorie-laden! The low-calorie Slim Secret snacks are perfect for just that…. a snack.
I’m not hugely fond of fruit – in general – or ‘in’ things, so I stuck to the Apple and Cinnamon bars and really really enjoyed the Vanilla Almond bars. I actually had them for dessert on a couple of occasions and they were perfect – giving me something sweet to end the night, but still quite healthy. Plus the fact that they’re chewy – in my mind – means that they’re not quickly guzzled (and I must surely burn calories doing all of that chewing! 😉 )
Although I liked the taste of all of the bars, I fell IN LOVE with the butterscotch bliss fit balls. Thankfully they come in perfect snack sized bags. I LOVED them. Nice and chewy and delicious. God…
I generously shared some of the bars with my visiting mother and as she loves both tea and peppermint, she fell hard for this Mintabolism Boost!
Slim Secrets brand foods are available at a range of supermarkets internationally although I did notice that the my local Coles or Woolies didn’t have them. I’ll keep an eye out though because it’s not often I can be tempted by something relatively healthy AND low calorie! (And I’m a little bit in love with the butterscotch bliss fitballs. But I’m pretty sure I already mentioned that!)
Have you tried any new products lately?
Disclaimer:
I was provided with free samples of Lifestyle Bakery bread rolls and pizza bases and Slim Secrets snacks for the purposes of a review. There has been no compensation or other incentive offered to write a favorable review. All opinions expressed in this space are mine, written with the objective of giving readers my personal opinion of the products in question.
July 2, 2013
The gluten free bread does sound good. I’ve had some in the past and it’s always really cardboardy. I wouldn’t dare eat it without toasting it well beforehand. But the one you tried sounds way better – I’ll have to keep my eye out for it.
July 2, 2013
Yes Char, the rolls are great!
July 2, 2013
Those butterscotch balls sound good! I don’t think I’ve seen slim secrets in woolies or Coles either, they sound great though.
Can you freeze the GF bread? Or do they stay fresh better then normal bread?
July 3, 2013
You can freeze the GF bread. I always do so it stays fresher longer. (In fact it’s probably worse than normal bread for staying fresh!)
July 3, 2013
It’s good to see that so many GF products are now available in bog standard supermarkets!
July 3, 2013
Absolutely Lou Lou. I am really impressed that Coles (here in Oz) have started introducing a lot of own-brand GF products. Woolworths have had a few for ages, but Coles is now on board as well!
July 3, 2013
Is there a GF bread that doesn’t need toasting? That said, Naturally Gluten Free bread is by far the best. You can get it in Coles these days or order direct from their website and they’ll deliver it to you. They do bread – plain, fruit loaf and a few savoury varieties – and bread rolls and they do a lovely banana bread (yummo). Can’t go past them. I try new GF stuff when it comes out, but usually revert back to the old reliables – my favourite is Naturis Rice Bread. Really simple – no crappy ingredients – and great (very well) toasted with banana, ricotta, honey and flaked almonds on top.
July 3, 2013
I always toast my bread, though these bread rolls (and probably the bakery ones) are soft enough not to need it. I’m actually more of a fan of the rolls than any GF bread of late!
Deb
July 3, 2013
I love those Butterscotch balls that Slim Secrets makes. They are delicious!
July 3, 2013
Oh yes they are Liz. I’ll be keeping a lookout now!
July 5, 2013
My spouse and I absolutely love your blog and find most of your post’s to be just what I’m looking for.
Do you offer guest writers to write content in your case? I wouldn’t mind composing a post or elaborating on a number of the subjects you write regarding here. Again, awesome blog!
July 8, 2013
I buy the Lifestyle Bakery breadcrumbs all the time from Coles (mmm crumbed prawns yum!) – so some free ones (I’m getting pretty low!) would be lovely. I’ve never seen their other products in the stores around me though, so I wouldn’t mind trying them!
July 17, 2013
With the holidays right on the doorstep, we figured this would be a great time to showcase one of our newest GF recipes: Gluten-Free High-Fiber Dinner Rolls. Moist and tender, these rolls could easily slip unnoticed (though not unappreciated) into any Thanksgiving bread basket.
July 18, 2013
The bakers at Lifestyle Bakery have given this loaf the taste, texture and lightness that you have been looking for in gluten free bread. Not a seed in sight but simply delicious high quality gluten free bread that works perfectly with a meal, a sandwich or a snack.