Ooh, these are exciting times, my friends! The festivities are in full swing and whether you're a grumpy Scrooge-type or a jolly holly sticks Santa-lover with jingle bells on, you can't deny that this time of year has a lot of little pleasures on offer to be excited about.
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| One such pleasure: an ENORMOUS hot chocolate mug with reindeer on! |
One of these little pleasures is stopping in at your local coffee shop. You leave the bitterly cold wind and rain behind, to be welcomed into the comforting bosom of a wam, bustling cafe, so you can rest during your frantic Christmas shop. But which coffee shop?
I've been a loyal follower of Costa for a LONG time, but as a tea drinker, rather than coffee. Why? Because every single time I've had a hot coffee from Costa, I've been really poorly afterwards. In a glutening kind of way. They've assured me over and over that there is no gluten. I've checked all the ingredients and can find no gluten. But having found other coeliacs have had the same problem, I decided to brave a different shop and disappeared off to Starbucks.
Well, that was a mistake! I asked the (rather confused) young man at the counter which of their hot drinks were gluten free...and he responded by pointing out a gluten free cake. I tried again and he asked a colleague, who said I could only have coffee with soya milk, rather than normal milk (?!). I pointed out that milk was gluten free...and was told I could have an Americana coffee with soya milk, did I want that? I think my exact words were 'No thanks. I have a rule of thumb; if I ask about gluten free and I'm met with blank faces like the ones you're all giving me right now, I walk away. Thank you!' (And yes, I did email Starbucks to complain afterwards).
Next up: Cafe Nero. And this time, success! After initial confusion, again, over whether milk was gluten free (where is that even coming from!?), they checked their complete allergen list, which was pinned behind the counter, and confirmed I could have anything except the hot chocolate. Yay!! I had a praline coffee and a chocolate brownie, both of which were utterly delicious. Well done, Cafe Nero!
In other news, my Mum's birthday was on 8th December and she requested some raspberry and white chocolate cupcakes. I couldn't get them to her on her birthday but made them for her this weekend. They're a combination of white chocolate chunks, big, fresh, tart raspberries and vanilla sponge, topped with a drizzle of lemon icing and garnished with mint and a raspberry. They're typically more of a summer cake, but the red, white and green make them look quite Christmassy, don't you think?!
If you're interested in ordering any of these little beauties, please contact me either by email or on my Facebook page, as prices change according to season.
Anyway, that's it from me for now until Christmas, but I do want to say a huge thank you to everyone who has supported me over the course of this year. I can't tell you how much your support and your custom means to me and how wonderful it feels to hear from you, so thank you! Before I bid you all goodnight and wish you all a wonderful Christmas, here's a little something that pretty much sums up my week!
T'was the Sunday before Christmas
And all round the kitchen
Lay the remnants of cooked treats
From cheesecakes to chicken
The aprons were smeared with chocolate and flour
Dirty pans piled high into a tower
Worktops were covered with crumbs and icing
Ginger and cinnamon from all of the spicing
Gingerbread fudge and gingerbread men
Cheesecakes, cookies, biscotti and then
Enough carrot cake for six families
And three platters filled with crackers and cheese
The kitchen's a mess, the house is in tatters
But I no longer care; none of it matters
For right now I've drunk half a bottle of wine
And this business is tough, but this is business iS mine
I've destroyed the house and my husband's a wreck
It'll take hours to clean up every fleck
But when push comes to shove, it's been worth all the fuss
So sit back and relax, and have a merry Christmas.
That's it folks. Have a very happy gluten free Christmas!
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