Gluten free product review

Think: MACARONI AND CHEESE

My wife found an interesting product for me to try. Made by a company called Namaste Foods, the product I tried is called Say Cheez - A delicious cheese flavored pasta blend. It comes in a paper bag and the bag says it's an all natural easy to prepare pasta mix. The mix is supposed to be free of: gluten, wheat, potato, nuts, soy, corn, dairy, and casein. The ingredients listed are: Brown rice pasta (brown flour, water), shelled hemp seed, natural non-dairy cheddar seasoning, rice milk powder, sea salt and paprika.

I think this product is probably okay for my dietary restrictions so I gave it a shot on my rice day. It was pretty darn good. It's quite a bit different from the standard Kraft mac and cheese that my son can eat by the wheelbarrow full. Although the cheese mix smells quite good, and smells rather spicy while it's heating (more on the cooking in a moment), it's a little bit on the bland side when done unless you add something. I added Parmesan cheese, rotisserie chicken, and some pistachios. That combination was great.

This product comes packaged in a little paper bag, like a lunch sack. Inside the sack, you'll find the pasta encased in a plastic bag and the seasoning mix encased in another plastic bag.

For the big picture here, you'll need a big pot--one that holds more than three quarts. You'll need a second pan--one that only needs to be able to hold about four tablespoons of oil and water.

You put some salt in about three quarts of water, then bring the water to a boil in your big pot. Add the pasta and cook for seven or so minutes. Meanwhile, put about three Tbsp of oil and one Tbsp of water in a separate pan to heat. Mix the cheese/spice mixture in with the oil/water.

Once the pasta reaches the desired consistency, drain the water. Once you do that, you can mix the oil/water/cheese/spice mixture in with the pasta and toss. Then you're done unless you want to add other stuff like I did.

A couple of points. The amount of salt you put in the water before you boil it will affect the taste. The kind of water you use will make a difference--tap water versus filtered water, for example. The kind of oil you use will make a difference. Etc.

Bottom line: this product is okay for my diet and I will use it again.