Saturday 26 September 2015

Inside Out Bakery in Saskatoon

I'm excited to do my first post on a local business! Lucille from Inside Out Bakery here in Saskatoon contacted me and told me about some of the things she has going on with her bakery. I had never heard of it, so was glad she reached out. I got to drop by the bakery on Avenue C and taste some of the goodies!

Inside Out Bakery is a facility free from gluten, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, refined sugars, yeast, xanthan gum and MSG. They also carry a range of products that are--or can be altered to be--paleo, vegan or diabetic friendly. Many ingredients used are organic, so there's an option for everyone! 


In the bakery on Ave C

They use whole foods and healthy ingredients, swapping white sugar for date paste and other natural sweeteners. Lucille told me they like to use a lot of coconut flour and bean flour for fiber and nutrition. Instead of white rice flour they use brown, and when starches are necessary, arrowroot and tapioca are used instead of more refined corn or potato starch. They even make their own chick pea paste from scratch by roasting and grinding the peas right on site.

in the bakery on Ave C

Products are baked fresh to order or can be bought off the shelf at the bakery or at Herb N Health on Broadway and 9th. They have an amazing selection of products including cookies, cakes, cinnamon buns, breads, muffins, and even soups. Orders can be picked up at various locations around the city (see their website for more details) and they will also deliver for a fee. Lucille told me she is working on getting her products in another location downtown as well. 


Muffins (banana chocolate chip, pumpkin, carrot cake), cinnamon buns, chocolate chip shortbread, lemon shortbread, lemon and chocolate cupcakes and biscuits


pumpkin, banana and carrot cake muffins

I had the chance to taste a few of their products and was impressed. My husband said their carrot cake is comperable to any carrot cake he's had and I have to agree. All mine needed was a little cream cheese icing! (I believe they offer their carrot cake with a coconut cream frosting). My favourite would have to be the cinnamon buns. They are chewy and goey and sweet, even though they're made with date paste and whole grain flours! I froze a few and am eating the last one right now. Microwaved from frozen, these cinnamon buns are just as good as they were fresh. Mmmm... I also really enjoyed the chocolate icing that was on the chocolate cupcake. The cupcake was good, but the icing was to die for: rich, dark, and delicious! The biscuits were soft and mild in flavour but were yummy with butter and jam and are designed to go alongside a soup or stew.


goey cinnamon buns

They really infuse a lot of flavour into their baking. There are lot of spices (cinnamon, ginger, etc.) in their muffins and the flavour comes through very strong. I really like spices so this was a plus for me. The lemon flavour in the lemon shortbread and cupcakes was strong too. They use the whole lemon, including the zest, so the flavour is very bright, tart, and citrusy. To see all the products they offer, check out their website.


mini cupcakes 

Because they use fiber rich, nutrient packed whole grains and foods, their products tend to be more dense than their wheat flour counterparts, but I think (and my gluten-eating husband agrees) the texture is still great and the flavour is definitely there. You can really taste the coconut flour flavour in the muffins. 


some natural products they have for sale at the bakery

Support a local business! You can order a cake for a birthday party, cinnamon buns and muffins for a morning business meeting, go sit down in their Broadway location for soup and dessert, or Ave C bakery for a cold drink and warm scone. I think it would be great for restaurants, coffee shops or hotels to have some treats from Inside out Bakery on hand for guests with dietary restrictions. Most products can be kept frozen and microwave beautifully. Lucille also mentioned they are hoping to open up a location in Lloydminster in the near future!


a nice place to sit and taste some goodies or just wait for your order to be ready

Have you tried anything from the Inside Out Bakery? What did you think?

Saturday 19 September 2015

Enjoy Life Pizza Crust Mix Review


My family really enjoyed this pizza crust. I felt like I could have cooked it a few minutes longer before adding the toppings, but it was still fine. My husband actually said that this was the best gluten free pizza he's tasted! I think I still like my pizza crust recipe a little better, but this one was a close second, and wayyyy easier to make!


The mix is enough to make 2 pizzas but I cut it in half to make one. I think it was about 1 2/3 cup of the mix. I spread my mix pretty thin so the pizza crust was dense and a little chewy in the middle with crispy edges. We added peppers, onions, italian sausage and mozzarella and served with a caesar salad. Yum!


The cost for the mix is $8.49. A little bit expensive, but like their other mixes, this mix contains lots of whole grain and high fiber ingredients, so you get what you pay for. This was probably our favourite mix out of the bunch!

Taste                         5 stars
Texture                      4 stars
Quality Ingredients     4.5 stars
Cost                         3 stars

Overall Rating            4 stars

dough for 1 pizza 

pressed thinly

after baking 9 mins 

toppings on and back in the oven for 10 mins or so

Tuesday 15 September 2015

Enjoy Life All Purpose Flour Review


I used this flour in my recipe for chocolate zucchini muffins and they turned out great! I've made these muffins many times using my own flour blend, and while they were a little different in texture this time, they were still really good.



My favourite part of this flour is the multiple healthy grains used. They make the mix higher in fiber and nutrients than a lot of gluten free flour blends you will find. The flour blend costs $8.49 per box, which seems a bit more expensive than most gluten free flours on the market. 


Texture                       4.5 stars
Taste                          4.5 stars
Quality Ingredients      5 stars
Cost                           2.5 stars

Overall Rating             4  stars


Enjoy Life Pancake and Waffle Mix Review



I tried this mix as pancakes first and found them a little too thin and the batter too runny. On my second attempt with pancakes I added a little less water than was recommended and they turned out much better. They were great with blueberries mixed in and topped with greek yogurt and maple syrup. I found the texture to be a little more moist in the centre than I would have liked, but overall the taste was good and they were super easy to make. 


Although the mix worked great as pancakes, it didn't work at all as waffles for me. They just fell apart; I couldn't get them to come out of my waffle iron without crumbling, no matter how much I oiled it. Sad day. 


The instructions for the box say to use 2 cups of mix at a time, but I just did 1 or 1/2 cup at a time and adjusted all the other ingredients accordingly. I've made 3 meals out of the mix and still have some left. This mix costs $8.49, which is an okay price for how much you get.


I also love that they've included ancient grains for more fiber and protein, making these pancakes much healthier than most that come from a mix, gluten free or not. 

Texture                       2 stars
Taste                          4 stars
Quality Ingredients      5 stars
Cost                           4 stars

Overall rating              3.75 stars