About Calgary City Editor
Calgary City Editor Ricky Zayshley knows a good thing when he sees one. His heart races when he discovers a new hotspot and his mouth waters at the sight of delectable food. After years of living out east, this Prairie boy has found his way back home and can’t wait to dish about sweet finds in his favourite city.
I’ve been on the hunt for coconut flour ever since I found out there was such a thing as coconut flour — it’s quite hard to find, especially in small quantities. So you could imagine my joy when I discovered what is destined to become my go-to source for gluten-free baking essentials: Bulk Barn.
I stumbled upon the store quite by accident, actually. After a long day of thrift store perusing and a fruitful pitstop at Army & Navy (where I bought an amazing pashmina scarf for $10), my mom and I decided to hit up Dollarama. As we drove up, I noticed the familiar red and yellow logo and remarked, “I didn’t know Calgary has a Bulk Barn.” (For a city of this size, there is a major lack of bulk food options.)
Well it just so happened that we were among the first customers to walk through the doors; the store had just opened that day! What an amazing array of bulk spices, tea, snacks, coffee, rice and, YES, gluten-free flours — coconut flour, quinoa flour, pea flour, arrowroot flour... you name it, they have it. One woman was literally jumping for joy and yelping with delight as she wandered down the aisles. Every few seconds we’d hear her say, “Yessss!” I thought Meg Ryan was around the corner.
My love of gluten-free cooking began when I first moved to Calgary. While living with my wonderful friend Karen, I adopted her healthy eating habits, which included a gluten-reduced diet. Although I always tried to be sensitive to her culinary needs, at first it was wasn’t so easy. During the first week of living together I baked my famous no-knead bread, which is essentially a gluten lover’s delight. She indulged me and ate a slice, as delicious as it was, even though I’m sure she didn’t feel well later. The next morning I tried to make up for it by making her a special breakfast. And what did I make? Toads in a hole using the leftover bread — seriously? It’s like I had a mental block.
Eventually I learned. I began to make steel cut oats for breakfast (they take a bit more time, but they’re worth it), substitute rice pasta (Rizopia makes the best I’ve tried thus far) for whole grain pasta, and simply lay off bread entirely. And I never felt better. I had more energy and found it easier to ward off that pesky flu/cold I seemed to get every winter. The only thing I couldn’t seem to master was the gluten-free dessert. Of course a plain old chocolate bar is free of dastardly wheat, but I was on the hunt for something much more elusive — gluten-free cake.
I was about to give up until I found this recipe for a brownie featuring coconut flour. I was intrigued. It made sense: coconut flour wouldn’t have that weird taste and grainy texture other gluten-free options often have. And brownies aren’t supposed to be light and fluffy. A perfect union. Here’s a picture of the result (please pardon the terrible picture; I was losing light):
But the true test is obviously the taste, and I’m happy to say this recipe passes with flying colours. I can’t wait to share it with Karen.
What are your gluten-free secrets? Follow me on Twitter @be_spoken