Brookfarm, Slow Food for Fast People

I was recently contacted by the lovely Chontelle and Office Buddies from Brookfarm asking if I would like to try some of their gluten free products.
In my box of goodies I received packet of Cranberry and Macadamia Muesli, a box of Brookfarm Bars, some pouches of Walkabout Snacks and a bottle of Macadamia oil. How exciting!

Living with food InTolerances does not have to be restrictive, companies like Brookfarm that make great gluten free food available 'main stream' are doing such a great job, and I'm sure all us InTolerants are extremely grateful for the thought and effort - and yumminess- that goes into these products.

Founded in 1999 by Pam and Martin Brook, Brookfarm is today Australia's leading producer of premium quality Macadamia products and works on the 3 P's principal, Passion for Quality, Passion for a better environment and Passion for great tasting healthy food.

"At Brookfarm we believe it is not enough to produce healthy nutritious food, the customers have to taste the difference. People with gluten intolerance often have a limited choice of foods, our mission was to create a Gluten Free Muesli that was full of flavour and didn't taste like cardboard. Pam Brook, the creator of Brookfarm's Gluten Free Muesli, took over 12 months to source the high quality ingredients, create and refine the recipes"

First I tried out the muesli.

It has a nice mix of textures with lots of fruit and big chunks of nuts.(I hate it when manufacturers skimp on the good bits) I poured on my lactose free milk and tasted.... a light taste of honey was my first impression, followed by the great crunchiness of a cereal that can take a dousing without going instantly soggy- it even maintained it's structural integrity while I took a few photos. As with all good muesli's, you really don't need a lot to be satisfied, but it is yummy, so try to take it easy!

Brookfarm bar with Macadamias and Cranberries

I'm not usually a fan of these type of bars, they are way too sickly sweet for my taste, but these ones are much better, as they're geared for grownups instead of the kiddies. They hold together crisply with a nice amount of fruit and nuts and manage to escape the stickiness that I also find unappealing in other commercial bars. I'm not a big snacker, so used these as a light breakfast on the go instead. I enjoyed them very much and hid them from the children citing 'research' as my excuse.



Walkabout snacks

Now these were really yummy. What impressed me was how fresh tasting everything was. You know what it's like with nut mixes, all the flavours melding together with one slightly dominating and a slight mustiness over all. But I could taste all the flavours properly and they worked together beautifully. My favourite was the with the dark chocolate buds. They are tiny little gems of sweetness like gracenotes in the nuttiness. The only downside of these little baggies, is that I was soo full after having one. That's when I read the packaging and realised it served 3. Ooops! That just shows how much I liked it I guess.



These are the type of thing I keep in my handbag or locker for those emergency times when no one has thought of me, the InTolerant, and think that some rice crackers are a suitable option for me at a luncheon buffet. The only option. That's when I break out my yummy stash and think happy thoughts, instead of plotting revenge on the host.




There was also a recipe card tucked in with my goodies for an interesting sounding chocolate cake. I really wanted to try it, but begrudged the amount of muesli needed (see, told you I liked it). I decided to compromise by making a half quantity instead.

For those of you not lucky enough to have some Brookfarm muesli available, substitute it with another-probably less yummy one or use almond meal.
I also used butter as it's practically lactose free, and Lindt extra dark chocolate for the same reason.

Gluten Free Chocolate Cake
Recipe created by Anthony Telford. Serves 12

Ingredients
125g/4oz unsalted butter
200g/7oz quality dark chocolate
250g/9oz Brookfarm Gluten Free Muesli
4 large eggs
225g/8oz caster sugar

Method
- Line a 22cm spring form cake tin with baking paper
- Preheat oven to 160°C/320°F
- Place butter and chocolate together in a heat proof bowl over gently simmering water
- Remove from heat and set aside to cool to room temperature
- Place muesli in food processor and blitz until it resembles a "nut meal"
- Mix the eggs with the sugar until combined
- Stir the egg mixture into the chocolate mix with the muesli meal.
- Pour into prepared tin and bake for about 45 mins or until skewer comes out clean
- Remove from oven and allow to cool
- Serve with cream and fresh berries
- This cake will last one week in an airtight container in the pantry or fridge, but I bet you won't leave it that long!

The end result is a lovely, rich fudginess with the surprise of an odd bit of cranberry here and there. Because I used a smaller tin it created a higher cake which is why mine has the exaggerated cave in. It doesn't matter with such a dense cake like this, merely dust it with some icing sugar or cocoa or maybe a spoonful of cream or berries or coulis, or perhaps them all, and no one will complain. There will be silence around your table except for the scraping of spoons on plates and surreptitious licking of fingers when no one is looking.

For more information on the lovely Brookfarm and online shop and distributor list, check them out at http://www.brookfarm.com.au/ **I also just discovered they are stocked at Belconnen Westfield in the little health food shop, oh so dangerously close and accessible to me!

See, we can change the world, one Gluten at a time! Thanks Brookfarm for helping me make this possible!

So Readers, what do you think of companies who make gluten free mainstream?













Goodies supplied by the lovely people at Brookfarm. Thanks Guys!
http://www.brookfarm.com.au/