Gluten free day trip to Alfriston

Today I decided to take a trip down to the south coast to a lovely village called Alfriston. Unfortunately this week it turns out the main road through the village was being dug up and the road was closed. Luckily for me the car park has been kept open so my 1 hr drive wasn’t in vain. Due to the exceptionally cold weather I decided to head straight for a tea shop. Almost immediately I came upon Badgers at the old village bakery, cosy and warm with a lovely fire just perfect! I was pleased to see that they offer Molly cake, gluten free with no added fat sugar or eggs. The cake looked delicious but as it was too close to lunch time I settled for a nice cup of decaf tea. The tea was beautifully presented in a silver teapot and matching milk jug.

 

The tea shop had a delicious looking array of homemade cakes, also a good choice of hot food. I asked the friendly waitress about gluten free food but was informed that they had little call so just offered molly cake.

The village is a perfect place for a potter, there are some interesting gift shops and also a very old post office and shop containing a deli at the rear of the shop. well worth a look.

 

Alfriston has a National trust property called The Clergy house which can be found just behind the high street near the church. It is a medieval thatched timber framed cottage. I have been to the village many times so didn’t pay a visit on this occasion.

 

I had a walk around the village, having a good look at all the restaurant and cafe menu’s looking out for gluten free fayre. I settled on The singing kettle a tiny tea shop right in the centre of the village. I noticed that one of the specials was marked gluten free. Bubble and squeak with free range poached egg and home cooked ham perfect on a day like today. Relieved to be out of the cold I chose a table by the fire. The waitress took my order and asked if I would like milk with my Camomile tea!? 

The hot food soon arrived decorated with a large quantity of parsley, It was nice to have something other than a baked potato. Usually my only choice being gluten and yeast free.

I was very happy with my lunch, good quality ham and tasty bubble and squeak.

 

Before I left to drive home I followed directions from the waitress to avoid the roadworks in the village and made my to my favourite lookout point at High and Over car park. From here you can see for miles. Below is the Cuckmere valley and the river winding down to the sea. In the distance you can see the sea and while I was there the sun pushed through the clouds for just a few moments and lit up the sea, stunning! By now I couldn’t feel my hands so hurriedly made my way back to the car. 

 

It was such a shame the weather had taken a turn for the worse because this area is amazing for long walks. Maybe next time I will take the dog and walk down to the beach at Cuckmere Haven and the Seven Sisters country park.

Alfriston and surrounding area is well worth a visit. One of my very favourite places. I have many happy memories of time spent here. 

Great for a day out, and for the little ones Drusillas  zoo park.

New freefrom cafe and bakery comes to Kingston

Recently I heard about a new cafe and bakery in Kingston the Healthy cook co selling gluten free, dairy free, egg free and no refined sugar cakes muffins and other baked goods. I was delighted when I saw it was very close to Bruschetta restaurant.

On Saturday I made the trip over to Kingston from Dorking not an easy journey especially on a busy shopping day. I am glad to say it was well worth the trip. Old London road was very easy to find, just down the road from Bruschetta restaurant and close to the leaning red phone boxes. The road is full of tiny interesting shops

the Healthy cook company has very clear signage and looked very cosy and inviting, but smaller than I was expecting. As I entered the cosy little cafe my eyes were drawn to a large array of cakes scones and brownies. If only I hadn’t eaten so much for lunch!

Unfortunately being early afternoon all the bread had sold out, but fortunately for me there was a brown bag of gluten free soda bread mix for me to make at home.

Then came the exciting bit, choosing cakes. I chose a Courgette cupcake, Carrot and raison cake and a yummy looking Chocolate cake, also a sultana scone.

While I was there I was fortunate enough to meet the owner and talented Baker Trisha Kelly. A lovely lady who I’m sure I will get to know very well when I hopefully return often for my gluten free, unrefined sugar free goodies.

The cafe had a good selection of fairtrade teas and coffees and herbal drinks. There was salads and homemade soup on offer and Trisha explained that very soon there would be quiches etc available too.

The first cake i tried at home was the Courgette cupcake, soft and sweet and so pretty a very moist cake with glints of bright green, Perfect in fact! wish i bought more.

The sultana scone was very good, I expected it to be dry and crumbly but far from it. Very moist and delicious perfect with butter and jam. Nice size not to big.

Next I tried the carrot and raisin cake. Just a perfect size for a treat. beautifully wrapped and unsurprisingly winner of a gold star at the 2011 Great taste Awards. I kindly shared this with my husband who pronounced it the best gluten free cake he had ever tasted. The lightness of Trishas cakes are amazing. Moist and very moreish.

Lastly the delicious looking iced chocolate cake, hard to believe these cakes are gluten free. Again light and delicious. All 10/10 cakes!

Think we can safely say I wil be back very soon!

Certainly worth searching out. Goodies also available to order online too, so no need to miss out.

Gluten free pizza at its best!

Yesterday my husband and I took a 45 mins drive to Kingston especially to have lunch at Bruschetta restaurant on London road. We were welcomed and seated by the window. The restaurant was not overly busy, but I had not taken any chances and had booked a table.

Parking is not easy but suggest Asda car park is your best bet. Perfect to pick up any shopping on your way home. It has a 2 hr limit so if you are after a leisurely lunch then maybe worth looking closer to the town centre. There is certainly plenty of choice on the menu. Lots of delicious starters, mains and puds.

The Pizzas range from £7.90 to £11.50. We both decided on the gluten free Alex Corbisiero favourite, which consists of buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes, italian sausage, diced chicken and spicy salami. The pizzas arrived promptly and were straight out of the oven and very hot. I was beyond excited! I don’t have pizza very often so this was a real treat. It had the thinnest stone baked base, crispy and a good size. The topping was quite runny which I loved. Buffalo mozzarella melted into the tomato base just perfect! My favourite of the pizzas I have tried there so far.

We both thoroughly enjoyed our pizzas very much. Feeling very satisfied we decided to share a pudding. I chose for us the Caprese the chocolate, almond and hazelnut cake. Gluten free, homemade and served with cream or ice cream. Naughty but oh so nice!

The cake was soon devoured, a definite 10\10 at £4.25 I thought it was a fair price. Desserts range from £3.50 to £4.25.

It was lovely to go out to eat, in the confidence that Chef Julia being gluten intolerant herself, and her team know all about gluten intolerance. They can also cater for other food intolerances too.

I can recommend this Italian restaurant not only for its great pizzas and fresh pasta.

But also as a place to pick up gluten free pasta, breadsticks, biscuits. A take away service is also available for pizzas and pizza bases can be purchased to,

for baking at home.

I look forward to returning again soon, many more things to try!