Deli Divine - The Deli with a Difference!

Have you ever wished you could walk into a shop and be free to eat anything within it? Or, is your dream to be able to open just such a shop yourself? Well, that was Debra's dream. And recently she fulfilled it, when she opened her own shop Deli Divine. 

Et voila!

Here's what to look out for!

Having been a coeliac for a fair old time (twenty years in fact), Debra's shop is dedicated first and foremost to goodies that are gluten free. However, many of the products that she has in stock are dairy free as well. 

Visiting the shop the other day, I was delighted to discover many products are also soya free. Bonus!! 

Based near the entrance of a small industrial estate in Netley, near Southampton (don't switch off, there's something for everyone here - she also sells online), Debra's shop is packed with breads, pies, cakes, biscuits, packet mixes, desserts, preserves... you get the idea, right??

I first came across Deli Divine, when I visited The Allergy Show a few months back. Well, I say I came across - I didn't get close enough to examine the stand as it was completely surrounded by folks eager to get their hands on the products Debra had on sale.

Some of the produce stocked is by well-known gluten free brands, such as Isabel's, and Moo Free, but there's also newcomers such as B-Free and smaller producers as well. There were even a few of the elusive but very highly-regarded Foodamentalist  products. These I was keen to see, as I have heard so much about them but have been unable to sample, until now, due to geography (The Foodamentalists are based in Cheshire). 

Genuinely great pastry!

I really couldn't walk away from Deli Divine without buying an award-winning Foodamentalist Pork Pie, and I have to say the pastry was amazing - I never knew you could make gluten, dairy and soya free pastry so well! I only wish I could get my hands on the doughnuts they make!!

In fact, I came away with a whole stash of free from goodies (don't tell The Hub - bank balance and all that), that I can't include here, as I haven't managed to taste them all yet, but the Baked to Taste Lemon Drizzle cake has to get a mention, as I had that today. I honestly don't think I've ever tasted one better.

A handbag-sized delicious slice!

I think it'll have to go on my list of things-to-take-to-a-do-when-you're-worried-about-what-you'll-eat. 

I've only recently come across Baked to Taste, but I love them already. They deserve a whole blog post of their own. As well as cake slices, they also make a range of pies and ready-made pastry, many of which are also stocked by Debra (they're also on the menu at Celiacs Fayre). 

My bag was actually fuller than this!!

If you live within range, and wish to visit Deli Divine, it's not as hard to find as I thought it would be - it's a few miles off junction 8 of the M27. The directions I got from Google Maps were pretty clear. However, I would advise avoiding rush hour and any time after 3pm in the afternoon, as Hamble Lane can get rather busy!

Shopping online is perhaps a bit less tricky for most, especially if yo don't live anywhere near the shop! The website is easy enough to navigate, and there's free delivery on orders over £35, but if you visit the shop, you may well find a few extra products in store that aren't available online. And also, you get the added bonus of meeting the delightful Debra - with her extensive product knowledge. Having sampled and experimented with with many of the products herself, she's more than happy to pass on the odd tip or two!

The shop is perhaps a little bit of a way for me to go for regular visits, but many of these products are stored in the freezer - which obviously extends their shelf life. So as long as I can get them home still frozen, I can fill up my freezer and they'll be ready for when I want them, but, there's always the online option. Also, unlike your normal Health Food Store (with the exception of shops such as Whole Foods Market and Food for Thought) Deli Divine has a range that's worth the journey. However, with Deli Divine you also get a Free From shop run by someone who knows, if you know what I mean! 

P.S. If you're considering making a trek to visit the shop, for yourself, there are a number of local attractions, especially for history buffs! Netley is quite close to Southampton (which has a branch of IKEA), but Netley itself boasts a small ruined abbey (great for photos, exploring and picnics) and the Royal Victoria Country Park (once the site of a military hospital). Or go back towards the M27, the other side of which is Manor Farm Country Park, where a BBC series 'The Wartime Farm' was recently filmed. A bit further towards Portsmouth (home of the Naval Dockyards), is Hamble, a really cute waterside backwater. So, you can pick up your provisions from Deli Divine, then go out and explore - go on, you know you want to!

Update:
Deli Divine has unfortunately had to close (April 2014). This is really sad, as so much effort and thought went into setting up this business and it was a great way of getting hold of some lovely products that the supermarkets just don't stock. However, Debra has some new plans in the pipeline for something else. I'm waiting to hear more and wishing her all the best!

Warning: Vegans may contain milk!

This is a bit of a messy picture but just about sums up a recent morning I had! 

Yes, the cakes burned in the oven and I resorted to 'shaving' them!

It should have been a lovely start to the day - I planned to bake with 'Baby'. Nothing special, as I had plenty of other stuff I needed to do, so it was just a quick Hale & Hearty (gluten free) chocolate muffin mix. Made with dairy free margarine, they are usually 'fail-safe' mixes, for me.

All was going well, until I suddenly came to the realisation that a nasty smell was emanating from my daughter and it was an unmistakeably pooey one. In the middle of mixing everything together, I hurried 'Baby' along, shoved the muffins into the oven and whisked her upstairs for a nappy change. 

Unfortunately, the delay was my downfall, her nappy had leaked and it soon became apparent that a bath was in order. Hence my cakes burned and had to be shaved - resulting in the mess above.

It didn't take me long to work out what was behind this disastrous nappy. The day before, whilst out in town, I'd noticed a product in the health food shop that I had heard about via Twitter. Marketed as 'Vegan' and 'Dairy Free', I believed it to be milk free and therefore 'safe,' so I neglected to read the ingredients until 'Baby' was someway through.

Aaagghh!!!! I couldn't believe it what I saw! 'May contain milk!' 

Fortunately, for us, 'Baby' does not have anaphylactic reactions to milk. So I knew that if it did contain milk it was not going to be fatal for her, 'just' uncomfortable. Even more fortunately for us, she does not react as immediately, (or as violently) as she used to, Nonetheless, we don't like seeing her suffer the consequences of ingesting milk accidentally.

Now, I accept it is my own fault - I should always check, BUT I was under the (obviously somewhat mistaken) impression that as Vegans are opposed to the consumption of animal products (including milk), 'Vegan' products were a pretty safe bet for my dairy free 'Baby'. 

Increasingly, I'm becoming aware that this is a bit of a grey area. Some products purporting to be Vegan carry the May contain... catch-all statement and it appears that there are Vegans who seem happy to take their chance with such products. If this is you, I'm not 'having a go,' honest, but I'd like to suggest that you are consuming more milk than you realise. If that's not a problem for you, then fine, but for us...

'Baby' (who has rather a sensitive little tummy) tends (as on this occasion) to react to these products more often than not - the only two that seem to be happy exceptions to this rule, are Betty Crocker ready made icing and Hotel Chocolat 'Vegan' chocolates. Knowing that some people are even more sensitive than 'Baby' to milk traces, I am prepared to accept that others may choose to disagree and still avoid these products too. So you may well wish to reconsider which products you buy.

If you're a manufacturer of goods and resorting to this, May contain... warning,  then I'd like to suggest that you consider testing your products to make sure. You may actually make more sales this way - if people know they can trust what you say, 'on the tin' as it were. 

As for me, I'm going to continue to do my best to avoid any more products that may contain and that means reading the labels more carefully in future - including products that claim to be 'dairy free'!! 

Postscript: Funnily enough, just as I was in the middle of writing this post (they take me ages, these days - 'Baby' does not give me much time to myself), I discovered that another allergy mum was writing a similar post about 'May contain...' warnings relating to nuts. Come on food manufacturers, do us a favour.... please???

Please note: More information on Food Allergy Labelling can be located on the Food Standards Agency website. The following link is particularly important as it outlines the new rules regarding food labelling that are soon to become law in the UK. These rules apply to food bought in shops as well as food sold in restaurants. I really recommend familiarising yourself with the changes, especially if you are 'gluten free' as this labelling will disappear.

Home Sweet (new) Home

Well we're in! The move has taken place! It's been a bit of a rollercoaster ride. though. 

It's meant to be one of the most stressful things you can do, right? I really can't tell you the number of times during this process that I've wished for the ability to nip out and get a quick take-away - no cooking/washing-up would have made things a lot easier! And we're still not fully settled - curtain poles to put up, boxes STILL to unpack etc. We have so much STUFF! I can't decide what to do with it/where to put it all! BUT! at least the place is functional. We even have the Internet again (phew)! The Hub had some device to tide us over, but certain things were off-limits such as iplayer, as it meant we used up our monthly allowance rather too quickly! (Oops! Someone should have explained it to me first, maybe?)

A little extra from our mortgage company, most of which is useless to me, but our guests may well see the benefit!

I'm beginning to get my bearings of our new surroundings now (well, not completely new - I've lived here before but quite some time ago). We're getting to know which parks, soft play etc. are worth a visit but there's certain things that I'm definitely missing!!

One is my former health food shop. OK, so it was a bit of a drive but it was so excellent. There's two near me now but neither stock any where NEAR the same amount of stuff as 'Food for Thought', in Guildford (there's another in Kingston). They seem willing to try new products/order stuff in, but I've been a bit disappointed, so far - one is permanently out of stock of the products she says that she stocks, the other one tried to order in Mrs Crimble's pancake mix, but it didn't arrive.

Then there's the supermarkets. My former Tesco at Brooklands definitely did a lot better for choice than my current Tesco Extra although I think Sainsbury's is just about the same. Our new Waitrose, is bigger but it doesn't sell our ice cream (Besssant and Drury) or 'Baby's' favourite sausages (The Black Farmer's Daughter's, in fact she won't eat any others, at the mo) and it ran out of the Antoinette Saville gluten free bread that I rely on - the only one that seems to really suit my gut! 

However, it's not all bad. 'Every cloud has a silver lining,' as they say. In fact, this 'cloud' seems to have not just one, but multiple silver linings!

First of all, we can still get Ocado here (BIG phew, as I rely on their Free From foods range SO much!) and secondly I discovered that this Tesco  still stocks the same new gluten and dairy free products that I liked before. I have also discovered that although this Tesco might not stock Mrs Crimble's pancake mix (which has almost become an essential item in my shopping basket, as we make them at least once a week, for breakfast) Amazon do - in packs of ten admittedly, but at least we're stocked up for a while now! And yes, I could make them from scratch (as some lady behind me in the queue at Tescos' 'Customer Service' desk helpfully' suggested - as if I were a bit stupid/lazy) but then 'Baby' wouldn't eat them (very fussy) so that wouldn't exactly do, would it?

Still on the shopping front, I came across 'Deli Divine' at the Allergy and Free From Show (well I didn't actually get a good look the stand, it was packed). It's a bit of a drive, but they are now within a reasonable distance, so I'm planning to visit them, at Netley, soon!

The next bit of silver in the lining is that I have discovered (by word of mouth - Internet searches didn't throw this one up) that our nearest chippy does gluten free fish and chips all day every Thursday - the nearest chippy to do that before was nearly half an hour's drive away. Needless to say, we have already availed ourselves of the opportunity to check out this one! 

Not bad at all! I always add my own veg, though!

I do wish I'd found them a little bit earlier! I did think of asking - after all, don't ask, don't get, but I wasn't feeling that brave and was sooo busy! They do have a large poster inside the shop, as I discovered when I went there, but since I'd never attempted buying fish and chips before I knew for sure, it was wasted on me! 

Can't understand why this wasn't on a sandwich board outside!

When we went there, the gluten free fish and chips were certainly popular - a brisk trade was being done and hardly any of it was for 'normal' fish and chips!

Not only, do I have a local gluten free fish and chippy, I also am not too far away from a gluten free cafe 'Celiacs Fayre' which I have visited before. I haven't made I there recently, but must do so soon, as I'm salivating over the thought of the chicken fajitas, that were being served the other week (she shared them on Face Book)!

More importantly, for me, another bit of silver lining is that I have discovered I can drink the water here! Now that might sound a bit weird to you, but in the last two places that we lived I discovered I couldn't. I had to drink bottled water (including in my tea and coffee) and cook my rice and pasta in it too! No idea why, but if I didn't, my gut became uncomfortable. 

The most important bit of the silver lining, though, is that we are now living in our own house in a particularly beautiful part of the South of England, with which I am already familiar and where some of my old college friends live, and where hopefully (all going to plan) we will live for some time to come - maybe even the for rest of our lives.

Warning! This jam contains milk!

'Dairy free shopping means checking the food labels on every food product you purchase (even if you have bought the product before, as recipes and ingredients can change) and being aware of all the ways that milk might be referred to on these labels.'

This is what I wrote about a year ago, on one of my earlier posts - Shopping Around. Shame I didn't pay more attention to my own advice!

I wrote this following the discovery that milk hid in all kinds of strange guises and in all kinds of strange places - like chicken gravy, like sauces made from tomato*, toiletries and the like. So I should have, perhaps have been more careful, but after a while, I suppose I've become a bit blase and careless - after all I thought I was pretty clued-up about what was safe or not, by now.

BUT it was today (as I was scraping out the last scrap of jam from the jar) I noticed the following words: 'ALLERGEN INFORMATION: Contains Milk'

'Eeeeek!' I thought. 'Surely not!' But, there it was, and the following: 'Processing aid: Unsalted butter'.

I was absolutely flabbergasted.

I've loved and eaten jam all my life. My Dad has made his own jam (from home-grown fruit) pretty much all my life. NEVER would I have suspected that jam might contain milk. 

'Why on earth would it?' I thought, genuinely puzzled. My Dad only ever used three ingredients in his - fruit, sugar and water. That's it!

I know that others of you, have shared my astonishment, but Veronica, (obviously a cannier woman than I am) shared on Face Book that butter is often used - to stop jam from foaming as it cooks. She, however, uses olive oil instead. 

'Well I never!' thought I. There was obviously a gap in my culinary knowledge (there are many, it has to be said).

Then I realised why I never knew - Dad never bothered with anything like that. He always skimmed the foam off the top of the jam and deposited it on a saucer. It was from this saucer that we always got our first taste of his freshly-made jam. I actually loved this foamy first fruit of my Dad's labours, but obviously others don't!

Now the jar of the jam that I noticed today looks like this:

Contains milk! Who'd have thought??

I wouldn't normally show you one that was not dairy free, in case it caused confusion. But in this case I have made an exception, because I believe it is an exception. I honestly can't remember where it came from, Looking at the label, I think it may have been bought from a Farm Shop.

However, this jar of jam, that I bought this afternoon, is safe.

No milk added to this one!

It only contains the following: strawberries, sugar, cane sugar, lemon juice and pectin. Phew!

Having perused the jars of most makes of strawberry jam in the supermarket aisles this afternoon, I have come to the conclusion that the only reason that the other jam IS made with butter is that it is a posher brand than I would normally buy. I only bought it as I ran out of my supply of Dad's homemade jam and looked for something more expensive (so that it wouldn't taste so artificial, although, to be honest, it's still never as good as the home made stuff). 

Why do I say that - that it's probably because it's more expensive? Because it seems to follow that many products that are cheaper are made with vegetable oils rather than milk - dairy products are more expensive. Supermarket own-brand biscuits are a case in point. So, for example, 'Baby' can have Waitrose own-brand chocolate Bourbon biscuits, as they're not made with milk.

So there it is. Jam may contain milk. It may explain 'Baby's' unexplained tummy aches, that she's had recently *guilt trip*, *guilt trip* (my fault). From now on, it seems I shall have to check jam jars in the supermarket too, although, actually, 'Baby' prefers honey on her toast. 

Now, there's no chance of there being any milk in honey, is there??

Oh yes! I just have to ask, what other products (that you'd never have suspected) have you discovered, that may contain milk??

Please note: More information on Food Allergy Labelling can be located on the Food Standards Agency website. The following link is particularly important as it outlines the new rules regarding food labelling that are soon to become law in the UK. These rules apply to food bought in shops as well as food sold in restaurants. I really recommend familiarising yourself with the changes, especially if you are 'gluten free' as this labelling will disappear. PLUS I discovered that the FDA thinks 'May contain...' warnings should be taken seriously!! Now why has no-one ever warned us of this before? 'May' just doesn't sound urgent enough. Personally, I think it needs to be proceeded with something along the lines of 'Warning!'

NB For anyone who was wondering: Tomato-based sauces are often made with milk, as the milk cuts the acidity. Carrots can be used instead. I have Nigella Lawson to thank for this tit-bit of information (Twitter)!!


Update 2015: 

Other unexpected places you might find milk:

Ecover Washing up liquid (not the pomegranate one)
Some wine (used for clarification)
Some paints, chalk (look out for casein)
Noilly Prat

The Tale of the Convenient Co-op

When I was a child, the local convenience store was a Spar at the end of the road. 

It wasn't very big - about the size of a large living room, but you could buy your everyday essentials there.  I  have fond memories of buying bottles of Corona lemonade from that shop. You could return them (once empty) in exchange for 10p. 

I'm so glad I didn't need free from food back then, as I'm absolutely certain that the Spar didn't have any Free From foods - that was probably an unknown in those days.

Where we live now, there's a Co-op. I don't know whether you've ever tried shopping at the Co-op (I have to say that I tend to find them a bit variable). I don't usually darken the door of this one - mainly because it soon became quite apparent that it didn't stock Free From food... of any kind. I wasn't too surprised, as it was really just a convenience store and whoever heard of a convenience store with a Free From section??

Now, that's not to say that Co-op is always that limited, with regard to Free From. Where we used to live, the nearest Co-op used to be a Somerfield's (before they went out of business) and was consequently much bigger and better - especially as far as Free From shopping went. It certainly wasn't the greatest - I preferred Tesco Extra or Sainsbury's, as their ranges are much wider, but it was worth the odd fly-by from time to time.

Recently, however, our local Co-op closed for refurbishment and 'Lo and Behold' it has undergone a real transformation! Its cleaner for a start, but also, having a slightly larger shop floor, it now boasts a Free From section. It's mainly gluten free, with nothing specifically dairy free, apart from Alpro soya desserts, but that's a start. 

Ok, so it's only the end of an aisle!

The Co-op does stock dairy free milk, though, both in the chiller and the long life aisle, but it's no good for me, as it's all made with soya. However, on the plus side, the dairy free margarine in the chiller is Pure sunflower margarine, which I can have. It was also priced very reasonably. AND, what's more, they now stock The Black Farmer's dairy, soya , gluten, nut and sesame free sausages in packs of ten - just right for a BBQ, I reckon!

So, it would seem that things are on the up, and wonders will never cease - a village convenience store can have a Free From section after all! Although, I have to wonder... is it just because we live in a fairly  'affluent' area (well bits of it are, anyway, compared to some other parts of the UK)? 

It does seem to me that affluent areas are slightly better catered for in this respect. Waitrose in Cobham (more affluent still), where my sister lives, seems to have a lot more choice than our nearest branch. How is it for you, where you live??



More on shopping:

Shopping Around

Avoiding the hop - free from shopping online

The Allergy Show - Mission Accomplished!

Last year I was an Allergy Show virgin, this year, I was a bounty hunter.

I was prepared with tickets, cash, trolley, snacks, bottles of water, phone. Oh yes!

Shame we left our tickets in the car. 

Good job you can download etickets on an iphone (phew) and show them at the door!!

'Baby' had been carefully primed - I told her there would be dairy free donuts, cake and chocolate. She needed to know no more than that. We were in search of bounty - gluten and dairy free!

So once we got inside, we wasted no time, but headed straight for Sweetcheeks for donuts. We could have got cakes as well - they looked delectable, but a bit too fragile for my trolley!

First objective achieved, it was soon time to head for Allergy Adventures. 

I'd heard about these online and was keen to see how they were going to help children with allergies. It turned out they offered crafts and told stories. I'd noted a dairy free adventure story time and wanted 'Baby' to join in. 'Baby' seemed to enjoy the story time, so we bought the book.

After that it was time to really get stuck in.

I have to say, having found some really great products, this year, it was mostly about visiting their stands and picking up stock at bargainous prices. 

Before long, though, despite the larger hall, this year, it became apparent that it wasn't going to be that easy - the place was soon heaving! And exhibitors were telling me that they were selling out, of their stock because Friday (which they had expected to be quiet) had actually been very busy!

Busy, busy, busy!

However, we got the Bounty that we came for. It was great to visit Zero Zebra for chocolate; Lovemore for Oreos; Amy's Kitchen for Macaroni Cheese; Koko for strawberry and chocolate milkshake; Eskal for ice cream cones; Hale and Hearty's mixes, cereals and flapacks; Del 'Ugo pasta; and Orgran for a whole host of stuff!

There were others we've enjoyed that I'd love to have visited, but I ran out of time, such as: Pudology desserts; Kirsty's ready meals; Smooze ice lollies; and Dr Lucy's Cookies.

Some were sampling, rather than selling, like Co-yo coconut yoghurt Bessant and Drury dairy free ice cream, also Mozzarisella, whose cheese was sampled on a new find...

Venice Bakery pizza bases. I'll probably have to go into more detail another time. BUT, suffice to say, they're dairy, gluten and soya free! And we're obviously not the only ones who thought so, because their bases were selling like hot cakes! If you want to try them, they're available online.

Another find that everyone seemed to love was ilumi. Such a great innovation - dairy, gluten and various other things free ready meals. Unique in that they can be stored at room temperature and then heated up -  a must for anyone going on holiday and uncertain of what they might find, and tres delicieux! Also available online, they have a special offer on orders this month. Do not miss out, you won't be disappointed!

There were, in addition, some French companies that looked as though they had interesting products, like a dairy free almond cheese, but unfortunately, they had no samples nor any stock to sell. Oh well, maybe next year!

By the end of our time at the show, my trolley was bulging, our pushchair was loaded, and even though The Hub had whisked her off to Kensington Park, to play for an hour, 'Baby' had clearly had enough!

Just some of our haul!

I had just enough time to buy the last cake from Ms Cupcake's stall, before we left the show with our stash... for this year anyway!

And on the way home, I picked up another treat I'd missed at the show, from Kensington Whole Foods Market - Glamour Puds Chocolate Fudge Pudding. Yum!

All in all, we had a great time. If you go, we hope you do too.

Some additional practical notes, for those yet to go:

• We experienced difficulties with lifts at two stations - Clapham Junction and Olympia itself.
• Cash machines can be found near the train station.
• Small children will find it difficult to cope for long.
• Changing facilities for those in nappies are limited.
• Be prepared to queue for the loo (ladies).
• The show was extremely busy, so go early if you can.

Baking Dairy Free

Loyal long-term followers of this blog will know full well that I've never claimed to be Nigella - in fact quite the opposite! And, if the newer followers among you take time to flick through the few recipes on this blog, I'm sure it won't take you very long to agree. However, I can actually follow a recipe (well, usually, anyway) and in the few years that I've been doing this dairy free thing, I've learned a thing or two that might help out those of you who are completely new to this game and want to do some baking.

I love the philosophy on this tin

I wonder if, when you were first faced with the prospect of going dairy free you felt the same way as I did?

I was devastated. 

I loved dairy and without it in my life, I felt like eating was never going to be quite the same again - for as long as it lasted, anyway! For a while my food was certainly restricted. I well remember my first dairy free Christmas. Although The Hub did a marvellous job with the turkey, and potatoes dinner was rather dry minus gravy (did you know chicken gravy is made with milk?) and lacked a dessert. 

I eventually came to the conclusion that the way to deal with this - to bring yumminess back into my life, was to return to baking, so I started looking for recipes. However, I learned that you don't necessarily need to acquire a whole new repertoire of recipes - although you can if you like. You can actually bake many of the recipes that you used to - using dairy free alternatives instead. You just need to find some and experiment a bit, to find out what suits you. 

These days there are lots of dairy free substitutes that really can do the job. Here are some that we like to use:

Dairy free milk

Perhaps the most important aspect of going dairy free is choosing the right milk substitute. Some may be unsuitable for dietary reasons (like nut allergies) or because of age (rice milk is unsuitable for children under five, soya for children under six months - at the very least). The following post outlines some of the most common dairy free milk substitutes and shares some of the ways in which we have used them:

Which milk? When? Where?

Dairy free fats

Okay, butter it certainly 'aint, but there are a number of acceptable alternatives for margarine. 

Pure also have recipes online

We started off with Pure as a spread and Stork margarine (the block variety) for baking. You can read more about Pure here. Since then, we have also used Vitalite. All of these have worked well in cakes and scones etc. and are available in major supermarkets (who also now have their own brand dairy free margarines). 

Having said that, I've yet to really get to grips with pastry making, so don't shoot me, if it doesn't work quite as well, for that!

Flora Cuisine is a liquid form of baking fat, which my sister favours - she reckons she gets really good results with it, but it's no good for me, as it contains soya. See this for information about conversion for use in recipes and recipe ideas.

Trex is a vegetable-based shortening, that is also suitable to use. 

Vegetable cooking oil can also be used as a substitute, but requires a little more experience to adapt (in my humble opinion). Advice on using this, can be found here.

A newer form of fat, that has become quite trendy, is coconut oil, which can be bought from most health food stores. I've yet to get to grips with this one, I've ony used it for frying pancakes, so far, but really want to try it out more.

Dairy free cream

Scone without cream, anyone?

If you're going to get in to dairy free baking, at some point you're going to require a form of cream - even if it's just to accompany your scones. If you're okay with soya, then Alpro probably have you covered and you can find their products quite easily in most supermarkets. If not, or if you'd like to see what else is out there, then look no further than this post:

The Creme de la dairy free Creme

Dairy free yoghurt
If you're okay with soya, as before, Alpro seem to have this one covered. I've not used any of these in baking just yet, but as I'm unable to tolerate soya, I have tried the following dairy and soya free yoghurts:

Wot no dairy! Wot no soya!

Heaven in a mouthful

Dairy free cheese

Now, if your taste is for something more savoury, such as 'cheese scones', these posts might come in handy:

Cheese Please! What are the dairy free alternatives?

More 'Cheese please!' More dairy free alternatives to cheese

New cheese on the block - meet Mozzarisella!

Since posting these, I've come across even more 'cheeses' available from the Alternative Stores - an online Vegan store. So there's plenty of choice!

Dairy free chocolate

Mmm! Chocolate!

Yes, well, those of you that know me well, will know that I'd have to bring the subject of chocolate up sooner or later! Sometimes, chocolate is called for in baking - especially if I'm the one who's baking!


In terms of a bar of chocolate, I usually use dairy, egg and gluten free Kinnerton's dark chocolate. If chocolate chips are called for, I tend to use Plamil's. They're a bit pricey, but work really well. That said, I'm sure most dairy free chocolates would work fine.

If you'd like to know what else is out there, see this post, here: Oo! Ah! Chocolat!


Dairy free baking cheats

If you can't bake... cheat!

Ok, so some times, life, time, energy run short and some baking help may be required! Some ready mixes in the supermarkets are, quite surprisingly, dairy free! However, personally, being gluten free, I turn to Hale and Hearty or Mrs Crimble's packet mixes. They've always worked well for me. You can buy these in the Free From sections of the larger supermarkets, online and also in good health food shops. 

There are others, made by Orgran and Glebe Farm, which are available from health food shops.

Other dairy free baking 'cheats' can be found in this post:

How to cheat at baking dairy free

And for icing cheats: The icing on the cake


Dairy free recipes

Now, having said all I have about not needing recipes that are specifically dairy free, it's still nice to know where to look if you need one. There are loads out there that are absolutely brilliant, but here are a few bloggers that I've picked out for your attention. Some of these are specifically for allergies, others are Vegan, which means that they're dairy and egg free - as well as meat, of course!

Pig in the Kitchen

The Intolerant Gourmet

i bake without

Queen Bee Allergy Free

Azelia's Kitchen

Oh she glows

Deliciously Ella

Chloe Coscarelli

If, after all that I've left anything off this list, then please come back to me and ask! 

Adios amigos - 'til next time! Meanwhile, enjoy your baking!!

Update: Dec. 2013
I have added a link to an American blog which has since created a similar page, with American products. It also has some other useful tips which I am sure could come in useful.

Some cunning allergy free baking substitutes via Pinterest!

Just seen this article on Veganising cakes - Amazeballs!