Glutenista Review: Gluten-Free Soft Pretzels from Kim & Scott's Gourmet Pretzels

HAPPY NATIONAL {GLUTEN-FREE} PRETZEL DAY!  Here at Glutenista headquarters, we're celebrating this great day with one of our favorite gluten-free convenience snacks: Kim & Scott's Gluten-Free Soft Pretzels!  And we want to share the yumminess with you - be sure to scroll to the bottom to enter Glutenista's Gluten-Free Soft Pretzel Giveaway!

Kim & Scott's Gourmet Pretzel's is a Chicago company with awesome gourmet pretzel flavors like Grilled Cheese, Pizza and Spinach Feta. They created a gluten-free soft pretzel due to extended family members who were diagnosed with Celiac Disease. 

Kim & Scott's Gluten-Free Gourmet Pretzels

The Gluten-Free Soft Pretzel Goodness: 

Soft Pretzels remind us of our youth -  roller rinks, hockey rinks and smelling soft pretzels when walking through the mall.  Those memories came flooding back the first time we took a bite of Kim & Scott's delicious gluten-free soft pretzels.  Things the Glutenista team loves about the gluten-free soft pretzels:

• Delicious Gluten-Free Soft Pretzels, from the freezer to hot in our hands in under a minute?  YES PLEASE! 
• These gluten-free soft pretzels were LOVED by the gluten-full members of our families too - no one even knew they were eating gluten-free!
• the Kim & Scott's Gourmet Gluten-Free Pretzels are fun to play around with - see our recipes below
• Each pretzel is twisted by hand by skilled professionals (we can only imagine the messy chaos if the Glutenista team tried to twist pretzels!)
• We may have used these as an easy lunch on-the-go option too.  Okay, maybe a lot.  They are convenient & delicious. 
  
• There are 10g of Whole Grains in the pretzel.

The Other Details: 

• At a MSRP $6.49 for 2 pretzels, these are a little costly to be feeding a gluten-free crowd frequently.  They are definitely worth the money and are cheaper per pretzel than one tank of gas or a latte :) BUT you can win them from Glutenista below OR print a $1 off coupon: http://coupons2.smartsource.com/smartsource/index.jsp?Link=BTIYQTPKRCT3W 
• Kim & Scott's Gluten-Free Pretzels are not certified GF & are made in the same facility as other pretzels.  I do give Kim & Scott's HUGE props for being so open about the production process - scroll to the bottom of the page to see their step-by-step to ensure your safety.  "Our gluten-free pretzels are produced on clean and sanitized equiptment as first product of the day.  Al. GF packaging materials and ingredients are segregated from standard stocks.  No additonal production in initiated until all GF is packaged."
• To locate Kim & Scott's Gourmet Gluten-Free Soft Pretzels near you: http://www.kimandscotts.com/buy/

Easy Peasy Gluten-Free Soft Pretzel Recipe Ideas

Gluten-Free Pizza Soft Pretzel

Classic Cheesy Gluten-Free Soft Pretzel

• Sliced cheese from the deli is the perfect size to melt on top for a delicious treat & the possibilities are endless!  Simply microwave for 30-45 seconds, place cheese on top & microwave until melted!
• Gluten-Free Pizza Soft Pretzel - Top with Mozzarella and Italian Seasoning, Dip in Pizza Sauce
• Classic Cheesy Gluten-Free Soft Pretzel - Top with Cheddar or a cheese of your choice. 
• Cinnamon & Sugar Gluten-Free Soft Pretzel - Spray with Butter, sprinkle cinnamon & sugar and dip in cream cheese frosting!
• Dip-a-holic Gluten-Free Soft Pretzel - dip in all of your favorite sauces - garlic butter, ranch, lemon garlic aoili (WOW, is that delicious), roasted red pepper aioli 

Win Gluten-Free Soft Pretzels from Kim & Scott's Gourmet Pretzels & Glutenista!

In honor of National {gluten-free} Pretzel Day, Kim & Scott's agreed to give away FOUR BOXES of gluten-free soft pretzels to THREE Glutenista fans  - how fun is that!?!?

To Enter: Simply comment below, answering:

1. What do you dip your pretzels in, if anything?  (if not, just comment about your favorite pretzel recipe, pretzel brand, pretzel flavor or if you prefer hard or soft pretzels - basically anything pretzel related!)

Details: Giveaway ends May 10, 2011 at 11:59pm EST. Winner will be announced & notified via e-mail on May 11th. E-Mail Addresses will not be shared. Product will be mailed by Kim & Scott's Gourmet Pretzels. US Residents Only.  1 Entry Per Person Please.

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Kim & Scott's Q&A re: Gluten-Free Soft Pretzel Development

Jahn Marie Parise, Kim & Scott’s research and development chef, has answered some important questions about how this delicious treat came to be.

Do you have a personal reason for wanting to develop the GF pretzel (aside from a directive)?
 Several of my extended family members have been diagnosed with Celiac Disease and have never had a chance to taste our products. I wanted to make a Gluten Free pretzel for them, and for others out there with the diagnosis, or those have chosen to eat Gluten Free as a lifestyle. Many Gluten Free products have unusual textures; my goal was to create something that would appeal to even those who do not have to follow a  Gluten Free diet.

What was the toughest part of development?
 The word Gluten comes from the word in Latin for “glue.” And that is what Gluten does within a product, acts as a glue or binder to hold ingredients together and create a structure. Here at Kim & Scott’s bakery, everything is made from scratch, and all of the pretzels are hand twisted, which is hard to do without the Gluten to help the product hold together and become elastic. We had to find a way to mimic that gluten and hold the ingredients together so the Gluten Free pretzel could be twisted.

Why is the GF pretzel different than others?
 Kim & Scott’s Gluten Free pretzel has 5 servings of Whole Grains! Many gluten free products rely solely on just one non-gluten flour to create their product. At Kim & Scott’s, we use a blend of 5 Ancient Grains (Sorghum, Millet, Quinoa, Amaranth and Teff Flours) to achieve its biscuit-like texture.

Why are you proud of this pretzel?
The Gluten Free pretzel was created from a cup of science, a teaspoon of ingenuity and a touch of tenacity. That and some blood, sweat and tears along the way!

Kim & Scott's Gluten-Free Pretzels Gluten-Free Production Process

No we are not certified GF.  The GF pretzels are made in the same facility that our other pretzels are made in.  But, our gluten-free pretzels are produced on clean and sanitized equiptment as first product of the day.  All GF packaging materials and ingredients are segregated from standard stocks.  No additonal production in initiated until all GF is packaged.
 
1)  Ingredients for the Gluten Free items are stored in sealed containers. 
  
2)  All ingredients, hand tools, gloves, hairnets, etc. used for other items are either cleaned and sanitized or removed from the production, baking, and packaging areas. 
  
3)  The production, baking, and packaging areas are washed down with particular attention given to the product contact areas. 
  
4)  Personnel are routed from the personnel areas to the production areas so that they do not come in contact with ingredients that might contain gluten.  
  
5)  Only the sealed containers of ingredients for the gluten free product are brought into the production areas after the area has been cleaned. 
  
6)  Production, baking and packaging areas are kept sealed off until the gluten free product is produced and packaged. 
  7)  To assure results, finished gluten free products are randomly sampled and checked for possible gluten contamination. 1)  Ingredients for the Gluten Free items are stored in sealed containers. 
  
2)  All ingredients, hand tools, gloves, hairnets, etc. used for other items are either cleaned and sanitized or removed from the production, baking, and packaging areas. 
  
3)  The production, baking, and packaging areas are washed down with particular attention given to the product contact areas. 
  
4)  Personnel are routed from the personnel areas to the production areas so that they do not come in contact with ingredients that might contain gluten.  
  
5)  Only the sealed containers of ingredients for the gluten free product are brought into the production areas after the area has been cleaned. 
  
6)  Production, baking and packaging areas are kept sealed off until the gluten free product is produced and packaged. 
  
7)  To assure results, finished gluten free products are randomly sampled and checked for possible gluten contamination.