Tag: food blogger bristol

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Beers and Pizza. GLUTEN FREE beers and pizza!

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In July and August this year flat hunting became one of my least favourite activities ever! Apparently a spacious, light, clean apartment in Bristol is near impossible to find.

After another day of fruitless hunting my boyfriend and I decided we needed a treat to cheer up our viewing woes. Pizza was the perfect choice to take my mind off estate agents, online ads and 1 bedroom apartments.

We chose Planet Pizza on the busy Gloucester Road. I’ve driven past the place so many times and after a sign saying ‘Gluten free pizza’ caught my eye, it’s been on my list to visit.

Planet pizza has two restaurants on Gloucester Road and Cotham Hill. They offer takeaways, eating in and a huge menu of gluten free pizzas and desserts –  my favourite.

I chose the capricorn – goats cheese, caramelised onions topped with rocket. My boyfriend went for a mars pizza -meatballs and pepperoni topped with corn chips and guac! Its a really chilled out place with no fancy extras and big servings.

The pizza was tasty but the base could possibly have been cooked for a little longer. Still, this wouldn’t have put me off going back and on a sunny evening it looks like the idea place to sit on the decking and people watch.

5-7pm Sunday – Wednesday is 241 on all pizzas. Its a great spot for mid-week pizza eating, washed down with a gluten free beer or cider and it definitely took my mind off moving flats…for an hour or so! They serve Duara Damm the beer I tend to see most commonly on menus. 

 

Forever, The Awkward Dinner Guest

xx

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Homemade Pecan, Yoghurt and Cranberry Gluten Free Granola. 

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Let’s be honest, it’s not cheap to be a coeliac! Whether it’s bread, sauces or granola you’re going to be paying a little more than the average brands. I’ve had to put serious bans on myself before when it comes to buying granola, I eat it so quickly its just not friendly to my bank balance. So, recently I’ve been making my own. It’s really quick and easy and I find you get a lot more for your money!

The great thing about homemade granola is that you can pretty much use a combination of any ingredients you fancy. Whichever oats, seeds, nuts or dried fruit you’re loving at the moment, put them together using this method and you’re ready to go!

This is the recipe that’s my ‘go to’ at the moment – feel free to add or substitute any of the ingredients you want to.

– Ingredients –

150g whole almonds

60g whole pecans

100g sweet dried cranberries

100g oats

40g deassicated coconut

75g yoghurt drops or yoghurt coated fruit

2.5 tbsp coconut oil

2 tbsp ground cinnamon

4 tbsp honey

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– Method – 

Preheat your oven to 180ºc

Blitz your almonds and pecans in a food processor or by hands so that they’re broken up but not completely ground.

Combine the nuts, oats, deassicated coconut and just over half of your cranberries in a mixing bowl

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Place your coconut oil, honey and cinnamon together in a pan over a medium heat. Remove when completed melted – this wont take long you don’t need to bring to the boil at all.

Add your wet ingredients to the dry ones and mix together then lay out on a baking tray.

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Pop in the oven and bake. I cook mine for around 25 minutes, but check every 10 minutes or so to separate the mixture.

When golden brown, remove from the heat and leave to cool.

Once cool add the rest of your cranberries and yoghurt drops.

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Then eat! Top yoghurt with your granola, eat with milk like a cereal or take to work as a snack.

Pick all your favourite parts of ‘off the shelf’ granola and throw together in one pot to enjoy for a fraction of the price!

Forever, The Awkward Dinner Guest

xx

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Turtle Bay – Delicious Cocktails and Kind of Gluten Free

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Some friends of mine and I booked a table at Turtle Bay in Bristol on Saturday night for some cocktails and University reminiscing.

We arranged the table for 19:30 and both the bar and restaurant were packed already. Unfortunately we just missed out on happy hour 241 cocktails which runs until 7pm every day. But, I’d hear so much about the cocktails here that we all order some anyway. I had the Jammin’ – white rum, apricot liqueur, fresh mint, ginger, lemon, apple juice and apricot jam. No complaints, we all enjoyed our choices and they went down very quickly.

Turtle bay do have an allergy menu, which at first glance has pretty much every dish marked with wheat or gluten. From what I could work out none of the starters were gluten free – but I had a good smell of everyone else’s which looked and smelt great – not awkward at all for the group! There are some main dishes on the menu that just have flour written in the gluten box. I was told that these could be GF as the flour is just for the roti and the dish can be served without this. So, that gives you pretty much all the ‘one pots’ to choose from!

Unfortunately all the jerk dishes are off limits as soy sauce seems to be used in all of the sauces.

I took my time deciding between goat curry, curry shrimp and mango or Trinidad curry chicken. I finally went for the latter; spiced chicken breast, cooked in coconut milk with spices, garlic and scotch bonnet.

Turtle Bay say “we like it hot,” and they certainly do! Proudly, I have got a lot better at eating spicy food and really enjoy a meal with more spice in now. This curry was just teetering on the side of too hot for me! Saying that, it really was delicious and I ate the whole lot.

I have to admit we all went particularly quiet while eating, sipping water, wine and milky cocktails after each mouthful – Turtle Bay is definitely not for those who can’t stand the heat.

After reading a few GF reviews before going I was pleasantly surprised at how many of the dishes I could eat on the menu. There are some posts out there telling you to avoid the restaurant completely. I probably wont return any time soon for food on my own but, if you’re going with a group wanting fun cocktails and good atmospheric music its a great Saturday night spot. They have restaurants all over the UK, have a look and I’m sure there will be one within a stones throw from you.

Forever, The Awkward Dinner Guest

xx