When my son switched over to the gluten free casein free diet, I knew what I was getting into. I knew that a lot of what we would have to do would be trial and error finding acceptable substitutes that met his diet restrictions and that he would eat. I had no idea how hard it was going to be to find a substitute for something as simple as sandwhich bread, though. So, until we find a decent sandwhich bread that my son enjoys he has been eating lunch and snack sandwhiches on rice or corn cakes, which he actually enjoys quite a bit.

About Ener-G Foods Brown Rice Gluten Free Yeast Free Bread

Unlike many of the gluten free breads which are found in the freezer section this one is not. I found this with the other "shelf-stable" products like cereal, crackers and pastas in the Gluten Free corner of Nature's Market in my local Wegmans grocery. It is able to be sold on the shelf like this because it is vaccuum packaged and it even has a non-toxic oxygen absorber packet in it that reminded me of when you buy a new pair of shoes. Ener G guarantees "freshness" through the "best-by" date which is a YEAR from when it was made. Once you open it you should keep it in the refrigerator or freeze it but not before then. A single loaf of bread that has 12 slices cost $5 which is really way too high for a loaf of bread. But, when dealing with products made specifically for special diets, you pay more.

I will include the ingredients because if you are looking for a "safe" bread then this is important to you. Of course, ingredients change on products so please check for yourself as well on the product you are purchasing

This bread is:
gluten free
wheat free
casein free
dairy free
yeast free
egg free
soy free
nut free
potato free
corn free
Kosher

Ingredients (from Ener G):
Filtered Water, Rice Flour, Safflower or Sunflower oil, Leavening(glucono-delta-lactone [from rice], calcium phosphate and sodium bicarbonate), Methylcellulose, Sodium Carboxymethylcellulose, Citrus Fiber

Breaking Bread
Though this is a "brown rice" bread, don't be confused by that. This bread is white bread and from an arm's length it looks pretty much just like regular boring white bread. When you take a close look you'll notice though that it looks a little different, mostly in the consistency. I noted that it looked a little spongy but didn't think much of it. I did however really notice it once I could touch and feel a slice. This is no lightweight bread, and its dense consistency makes it seem odd to hold. Likewise its not soft and if you fold it (ex. like try to wrap it around a hot dog) it breaks instead of rolls. To use this bread, Ener G suggests toasting or microwaving it before making a sandwhich on it. Unfortunately toasting it doesn't do much for the consistency of it nor does it make it more palatable.

In short, this bread doesn't taste the way that bread should - nor does it work for sandwhiches. Any time that I sent my son with a sandwhich on this bread to school, it came home completely untouched or with only 1 bite taken out of it. I think a sandwhich made on 2 sponges would probably taste about the same. I couldn't in my right mind continue to feed my son this yucky bread. He clearly hated it and both my husband and I found it downright miserable.

If you are looking for "special-diet" bread, this one may be on the safe-list of products but it is dreadful.

www.ener-g.com

Recommended: No