ALL THAT SOF'ELLA BUZZ
We wanted to share some of the great reviews we've been receiving from Gluten Free Bloggers, Communities and Organizations around the web.
Gluten-Free Living
glutenfreeliving.com
Gluten-Free Living magazine featured the following review of Sof'ella Foods Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix in their Summer 2011 issue.
Literally A Piece Of Cake
Making a gluten-free chocolate cake is as easy as 1,2,3. Three ingredients are all it takes to turn Sof'ella's gluten-free chocolate cake mix into tonight's dessert.Just add water, eggs and butter and dessert will be ready in no time. The mix has a flour base of white rice flour, navy bean flour, cornstarch and tapioca starch. The same base is used for Sof'ella gluten-free all purpose flour mix, which is great for pancakes, waffles, cookies and many other gluten-free treats.
Sof'ella Gourmet Natural Foods introduced their gluten-free baking line to continue their commitment of bringing easy-to-prepare all natural foods to families. Sof'ella's name is a testament to this commitment as it is a hybrid of founder Carlo Brandon's daughters' names, Sofia and Stella. Sof'ella products do not contain corn syrup, artificial colors or flavors, or preservatives.
Sof'ella plans to continue expanding its gluten-free line and is preparing to launch a gluten-free pizza dough mix.
sofellafoods.com
The Taste Spot
thetastespot.com
I love baked goods, however if you are a frequent viewer to this food blog you know... I HATE to bake. Its just who I am. There is nothing I can do about it so don't try to change me... It won't happen. Baking is a science and I have the up most respect for those who can create baked good from scratch. What are those of us who don't posses these skill supposed to do when we want baked goods? I would suggest trying some of these super simple, all natural mixes from Sofella Gourmet Natural Foods. Watch the video to see what I thought of them.
http://www.thetastespot.com/the-taste-spot/2011/05/sofella-gourmet-natural-foods-review.html
Baking Bites
bakingbites.com
Not every cake mix is going to appeal to me, but the gourmet mixes that use all natural ingredients tend to catch my eye and get me wondering how they compare to real, homemade baked goods. I’ve tried some mixes with great results, and others with more mixed feelings. This Sof’ella Gourmet Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix is a little bit unusual because it is gluten free, and there are fewer gluten free options out there (although there are certainly more now than before!). It is made with a blend of white rice flour, cocoa powder, navy bean flour, tapioca starch and cornstarch, all of which work together to take the place of wheat flour. The mix also includes ingredients like sugar and leaveners, of course, and just requires that you add butter, eggs and some warm water.
 |
The box gives you several different options for baking this cake: cupcakes, a single 9-inch cake or 2 8-inch layers. I went with the easiest option and baked my cake in a 9-inch springform pan. The mix made a very thin batter that rose up beautifully in the oven. It is very dark – almost black – in color and is very moist, with a tender and even crumb. The cake is not too sweet and has a well-balanced chocolate flavor. The texture was excellent for any cake, and especially a gluten free one because it was just as tender as a “regular” chocolate cake and neither dense nor crumbly, which some gluten free cakes tend to be. In fact, I would say that if you didn’t already know that this cake was gluten free, you definitely wouldn’t know after eating a slice. This is one box mix that I would definitely make again. |
 |
The cake pictured here is unfrosted, but I ended up topping this off with a layer of milk chocolate frosting that really rounded out the chocolate flavors in the cake and added a nice sweetness to it, too. I also want to note that, for those cake pop fans out there, the company has a recipe for Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Pops up on their website. Most cake pop recipes start with a mix (not all, but most), and this definitely a good base for a moist chocolate cake pop whether you’re looking for a gluten-free pop option or not! |
Sof’ella Gourmet Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix, reviewed
Cost Plus World Market
worldmarket.com
April 2011, Sof'ella Foods is the featured baking mix product of the month on the World Market web site! Our brand new No Bake Strawberry Cheesecake, Lemon Bar Mix and Carrot Cake and Cream Cheese Frosting Mix represented in a colorful and tasty display.
GlutenFreeda
glutenfreeda.blogspot.com
Ingredients
White Rice Flour, Navy Bean Flour, Cornstarch, Tapioca Starch, Vanilla Powder (Dextrose, Vanilla Bean Extractives), Baking Powder, Sea Salt, Baking Soda, Xanthan Gum.
Overall Rating - 4 out of 5 stars
Taste
I made pancakes, a much anticipated treat, and the first I'd tasted since going gluten free. Plain with no "trimmings" the pancakes had a definite aftertaste which I believe can be accounted for by the inclusion of navy bean flour. The vanilla powder flavoring counteracted the aftertaste a bit, but not enough to completely mask it. A pat of butter and some maple syrup helped the palatability, but the after-taste was still present, no matter what I tried (and I tried three different flavors of jam after the syrup). I'm not sure this would be my first choice of mix when making pancakes or waffles, but it's an alternative when something else isn't handy. Of course the navy bean flour contains terrific nutritional value, so each cook will need to decide what's most important. BC
For this review, I prepared both pancakes and a Sour Cream Coffee Cake recipe included with the mix. For the pancakes, I did notice a distinct aftertaste- but promptly did away with it by including (a lot of) chocolate chips. Whoops. The taste is not overpowering and for me, it wasn't even that distracting (so maybe my chocolate chip to pancake ratio was a little high) but still... they were pretty good! And, as Becky reminds us, Navy Bean flour is a really healthy ingredient and, much like flax, I can handle a little healthy getting in the way of my pancake inhaling erm, eating...
As for the coffee cake, the taste was hardly noticeable! There was a bit of a taste, but I'm 99% sure it was from my nutmeg and not the mix -- similar incident a few recipes ago. Either way, the coffee cake had no such aftertaste but could use a little bit more brown sugar in the crumb topping. Maybe not the best coffee cake I've ever tasted EVER, but perfect for a short-notice breakfast or brunch! KG
Texture
WOW - the pancakes I made cooked up exactly like those made with wheat flour! They were moist, light but dense (who knew that was possible?) and cooked like a dream. As they were cooking, the pancakes even filled with little bubbles that popped as they were cooking, just like the pancakes from my old-style cooking days. My mother's rule of thumb was always five bubbles popped and they were ready to turn, and I'll be darned if that wasn't the case here as well! Lightly browned, moist and tender - a great texture overall! BC
Pancakes - epic! Fluffy and light and bubbly and deep enough to wrap my chocolate chips in a nice big hug - I would call this a win. The coffee cake was unbelievably moist without being dense (see photo above) - with air pockets and crumbs and awesome baked in a cake pan. KG
Storage
Inside the box is an inner paper bag to preserve freshness, and this is handy for easy re-sealing. The box holds 1 lb., or approximately 3 1/3 cups of mix, so there's enough for several weekends' worth of pancakes or waffles. BC
Amen! But the package is kind of disappointingly small... with only 3 1/3 cups in the whole box, you can only really make one recipe + pancakes/waffles with a single box...KG
Availability
Available through the Sof'ella website for both commercial and wholesale orders. Also available in some specialty food markets nationwide with a growing distribution weekly!
GlutenFree Ville
http://glutenfreeville.comThe folks at Sof'ella Gourmet Natural Foods were kind enough to send me some of their Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix to try. They were extremely confident that I'd LOVE it, which is my main criteria for posting a review. They were so right!
After adding simply water, eggs and butter to the mix, and popping it in the oven, I had the best chocolate cup cakes I can remember, gluten free or not. Not too sweet, dark and rich. No heavy or dense feel. The cake had the light and airy consistency of gluten filled cake, and the sophisticated chocolately flavor that you'd be proud to bring to the book club. No need to tell anyone they are enjoying a gluten free treat. They wouldn't believe you anyway. It's just too gourmet, moist and delicious to be gluten free.
What special treat am I making my family for Valentine's Day, you may be wondering. After enjoying my sample box, I went out and bought a few boxes of my own.
You can get your own box of Sof'ella Chocolate Cake Mix on the Sof'ella website or at Cost Plus World Market and at Fresh & Easy.
Gluten Free Reviewer
glutenfreereviewer.com
Secondly, what kind of frosting goes best with chocolate cake? Cream cheese? Vanilla? Do I incorporate fruit? At once, I am inspired and overwhelmed with the possibilities this little box of Sof'ella chocolate cake mix offers.Taste: The taste of the cake by itself is extremely rich. I know why a serving size is 1/12 of the cake – that's all it takes. I almost want to say that it didn't need such a sweet, buttery frosting because the cake itself was so moist and rich. One small piece definitely satiated any and all chocolate cravings I had.
Labeling: Labeling is aesthetically pleasing, with an amazing photo of a layered cake and some cupcakes in the background covered in frosting. Huge, easy to read directions cover the back, and nutritional facts take up one entire side.Full Review
Goddess of Baking
goddessofbaking.blogspot.com
Red Velvet Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Buttercream Frosting
So I found this company online called Sof'ella Gourmet Natural Foods. They made all kinds of gourmet box mixes from breads, to cupcakes, pancake mixes and more. I found a couple of mixes that I wanted to try and ordered them! I was so excited when they came in the mail, and I couldn't wait to try them. I wanted to make the red velvet first because I have not made cupcakes in a few weeks. So all you have to add for the mixes is butter, eggs and water. These are fool proof for beginning bakers or if you do not have the supplies, resources, or energy for baking from scratch. I have never made red velvet from scratch, but I have tried some delicious red velvet from various bakeries, and this box mix is amazing in comparison! If you don't tell anyone that this is a box mix, no one will know, just keep it a secret between you and your kitchen! Be sure to check out their website Sof'ella. The best part is these mixes are very reasonably priced! They range from $4 to $6 and have gluten free options too! I hope you enjoyed these as much as the hard working team at Working Wardrobes did!! In the next few weeks I will also be baking their lemon bars and sea salt caramel brownies, so be sure to check out those reviews too!
Gluten Free TV
Sof'ella Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Review-Episode 113
The Sof'ella chocolate cake is unlike most other gluten-free chocolate cakes you've ever had. Unlike most gluten-free chocolate cake mixes out there, which are typically dry and don't last very long, the Sof'ella cake proved to be moist, rich, and incredibly delicious. If you're addicted to chocolate, this will satisfy your sweet tooth.
Gluten Free TV
Sof'ella Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Mix Review-Episode 117
The Sof'ella Gluten-free All-Purpose Banking Mix lets you make great tasting chocolate chip cookies, donuts and more!
NFCA (National Foundation for Celiac Awareness)
By Cheryl McEvoy, NFCA Online Content Manager
Sof'ella Gluten Free Chocolate Cake
Piece of cake. Yes, I ate several, and that’s also how easy it is to use this baking mix. Simply add water, eggs and butter, pop it in the oven and - Viola! - a rich chocolate cake in about 30 minutes. You can top the cake with frosting, but I think it stands fine on its own, almost like a cakey brownie. One note of caution: Be careful when opening the box. The powdery mix has a tendency to plume, and walking around with a streak of brown on the back of your thigh isn’t the most appealing way to tell people you’ve been baking. I speak from experience.
FancyPantsGirl Blog
http://fancypantsgirl.blogspot.com
Introducing...some yummy gluten free deliciousness!!! Did you read my post that I shared few days ago about Sofella Foods? I was given the honor of creating some yummy treats with their basic baking mix, as well as their chocolate baking mix. I am thrilled to share what I created this weekend! I made chocolate cupcakes with Sofella's yummy Chocolate Cake Mix. I used the recipe printed on the box, but I added an 8 oz. Bag of Toffee Bits to the mix. The crunch in the cupcakes are oh so yummy!
After baking them, I added chocolate chips to vanilla icing and coated the top of the cupcakes with it. Yum! My man was skeptical of gluten free cupcakes, but kept saying over and over how amazing they were! I'm so excited that they came out so well and can't wait to share them with my co-workers tomorrow. I know I am biased, but I can honestly tell you that these are the best cupcakes I have ever made! My next creation (in the same night of course), was cranberry orange muffins! I used the same recipe from the Sofella website that I used to make the blueberry muffins. I added dried cranberries instead of blueberries and orange zest and juice instead of lemon. I used calorie free sweetener instead of sugar, just like I did with the blueberry muffins. Before putting them in the oven, I sprinkled brown sugar on top of each muffin. Yum! You must try these tasty gluten free recipe!
MsCeliacSays
Sof'ella Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Cupcakes
Let's Make Cupcakes! I was recently sent a box of Sof'ella's Gourmet Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix to sample. I chose to make some chocolate cupcakes! These cupcakes turned out to be very moist and still stay together. Even those not on a gluten free diet enjoyed their dark chocolate flavor!
The cupcakes were rather easy to make - all that needed to be added were butter, eggs, and water! I used chocolate frosting to top them off! In addition to Sof'ella's Gourmet Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix they also sell a Gourmet Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Mix! Both items are available on their website at www.sofellafoods.com!
Gluten-Free Fun
Sof'ella Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Cupcakes
Did you ever bake a gluten-free dessert for the gluten-eaters that was a HUGE hit? I did, it was Sof'ella Gourmet Natural Foods Chocolate cupcakes with Domino's Sugar Buttercream Frosting.
Sof'ella Gourmet Natural Foods contacted me back in November after reading one of my comments on the LA Times article called Celiac Disease Resources. I am always excited when companies that are new to me find me and my blog. Ahhh, the power of the internet!
Sof'ella produces a gluten-free chocolate cake mix as well as an all-purpose gluten-free baking mix. I opted for a sample of the Gluten-Free Chocolate cake mix since the ingredients were good for me and for my nieces who have multiple allergies besides being gluten-free. The ingredients of the chocolate cake mix are: sugar, white rice flour, cocoa powder, navy bean flour, tapioca starch, cornstarch, baking soda, vanilla powder, baking powder, sea salt and guar gum.
When I asked Sof'ella Gourmet Natural Foods how they avoid cross-contamination in their production facility, they gave me a very thorough answer.
"Our processing procedures begin with thorough sanitation after a 24-hour idle period; This means that the production facility is shut down for 24 hrs to allow all the dust to settle prior to a complete sanitation of the machines and the facility. Production takes place at the start of a work week and prior to non-GF runs. We verify proper sanitation through sensory/visual inspection, AccuClean swabs on food-contact surfaces to detect residual protein and simple sugars, and finalize with gluten tests on food-contact surfaces and the end product to ensure gluten levels comply with regulations for “gluten-free” foods".
I don't usually bake for myself, but I decided this Sof'ella Gmix would be perfect to use to make cupcakes for my office holiday party last Thursday. I have a soft spot for really decadent and sweet buttercream frosting, so I used the recipe found on the side of the Domino's Confectioners Sugar box.
I made the Sof'ella Chocolate Cake into cupcakes by following the directions on the box to a T. The recipe yielded approximately 17 cupcakes, although my pouring skills probably made for the various sizes in cupcakes and a different number from the box. After making the buttercream frosting, I reserved about two separate half cups to add food coloring to decorate. I am no Martha Stewart, but I had a lot of fun decorating these cupcakes in holiday colors. My apartment is really hot, so the frosting kind of melted but the thought and heart was still there. :-) Considering I was using Ziploc bags with the corners cut off, I think my red and green icing piping came out pretty well!
All I have to say is these cupcakes were very popular. I usually don't like telling people when I bake something that is gluten-free. I feel like people are reluctant to try anything that is labeled gluten-free. I noticed a few people trying them to be nice but then realizing that these cupcakes were really good. The Sof'ella gluten-free chocolate cupcakes were moist with a delicious chocolate flavor. The buttercream frosting was a nice balance with the chocolate, but I could have definitely eaten the cupcake alone.
We had our party on Thursday and I noticed 6 cupcakes left on Friday. Monday I was planning on eating the last one, but it was gone! Not only were the cupcakes delicious, but they had a really good shelf life in a Tupperware container kept in the fridge the entire weekend.
If you get a chance to try the Sof'ella Gluten-Free mixes, I highly recommend them! They were delicious and a big hit with both the gluten-free (me) and gluten-eating crowd.
Gluten Free Mike
Sof'ella Gluten Free Chocolate Cake
I recently received a sample of Sof’ella Gourmet Natural Foods Gourmet Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake Mix. I always welcome any baking tool or mix that will make my life easier as I am admittedly “baking challenged” though I do follow instructions well so mixes let me feel like the real deal.
Sof’ella’s mix did not disappoint. It required just three additional ingredients: eggs, butter, and water - super simple. The one thing I immediately noticed was the ultra-fine consistency of the mix itself. It was like a chocolate dust that magically transformed into a thick and rich batter once he wet ingredients were added. One package makes enough for two 8” rounds which is exactly what I made (as they were among the only pans I had handy).
I followed the instructions to the letter and was rewarded in the end with two fantastic and quite decadent cakes in the end. The cake was wonderfully moist and rose to perfection. But where this cake truly stands out is in the taste. It had a rich chocolate taste that was perfectly balanced - not too sweet or bland. The taste lends itself well to a decadent icing (which is what I did) without being overly sweet.
I served these two cakes at my gluten-free birthday dinner (and nibbled on it the next couple of days). My guests would not believe that it was gluten-free and commented on how delicious it was and could not believe it came from a box.
So, I would highly recommend giving this mix a try - particularly those of you like me that need a bit of help in the baking department. Check out their Web site where you can even order right online.
Celiac.com-By Dyani Barber
Gluten Free Chocolate Cake
Gluten-free chocolate cake has a whole new meaning after trying Sofella's Gluten-free Chocolate Cake Mix! Preparing the batter for the cupcakes seemed so simple that I decided to let my middle school children do all the work. Even though my kids were mixing the batter by hand, the batter for the cake blended up smoothly and was "clump free."
Each cupcake cooked beautifully and within the recommended time. The gluten free cupcakes came out moist and spongy with a wonderfully rich chocolate flavor. Even the non-gluten eaters in my family enjoyed Sofella's Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake Mix!
Glutenfreevegitarian
GLUTEN-FREE VEGAN MARBLE BUNDT CAKE WITH SOFELLA BAKING MIXES
The folks at Sofella had sent me a package of chocolate cake mix and a package of all-purpose baking mix, which just screamed marble cake to me. My niece recently began following a vegan diet, so our version would be vegan and gluten-free. The Sofella website has tons of recipes, and I easily found one for a vanilla cake. I used EnRG egg replacer and almond milk for cow's milk. I used a nonstick (but not teflon, just one of those slickly painted ones) bundt pan and sprayed it liberally with Trader Joe's Canola Oil Cooking Spray. Oh, and if, like me that day (I've since moved on to sophomore status--yay!), you've never made a marble cake, there are many videos on youtube to guide you through the embarrassingly simple process. (I think bundt cake fear has its legitimate points, but marble cake? Why hadn't I ever made one? It's such a snap!
The main point, repeated ad infinitum on each video is to not overmix. If you become overly enthusiastic in that department you will probably end up not with a marble cake but with a taupe cake, or tan cake, or toast-colored cake. Definitely not the goal. The rest of the story is short. Cake came out of pan without a hitch. Put plate on top of pan. Flipped pan. Cake on plate. Really! Dusted confectioners sugar on cake. Presented to admiring family and friends. Excuse poor lighting and odd placement of cake slice on cake. (Beautiful marbling, though, isn't it!) Family and friends emit suitable oohs and aahs. Yours will, too! Follow instructions on the Sofella chocolate cake box. Here's the recipe for the yellow cake. I don't ordinarily use mixes, but on a day when two kinds of latkes, roasted carrots, fennel salad and assorted appetizers had me tied up for some time, these cake mixes were just what I needed. And even the family member who notoriously eats like a bird had two slices! I may just keep a couple of these boxes in the cupboard for other busy days.
Excellent products: delicious, convenient and gluten-free, even vegan if you'd like them to be! Perfect!
Thesucculentwife.com
Seriously. Best. Chocolate. Cake Mix. Ever. And, as if anyone would ever know the difference, it's gluten-free. No one in my family has celiac disease, but I do try to stay away from gluten whenever possible. In my case, it just makes me swell (ankles disappear) and for the kids, my homeopath trained me years ago to limit gluten products whenever any of us was sick or had a cold. Gluten is glue and makes everything in our insides stick. So, all that to say that I'm always on the lookout for - tasty - gluten-free alternatives. I was shopping at Fresh & Easy when I first found the Sof'ella Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix. FA.BU.LOUS. You would never guess that it's gluten-free (no dry, crumbly business here) with alllllllllll natural ingredients.
It's my kids' favorite chocolate cake. And they're bigger kids now, with more discerning taste buds, so that's a real testimonial. The icing is perfect too, with just the right amount of sweetness and chocolaty-ness. I recommend it for ANY occasion, but it's a must if you attend any event where there is anyone that is remotely gluten intolerant; they will finally get to eat their cake! (Here's the Sof'ella press release on that)
The cake mix is presently available at Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Markets (in CA, NV and AZ)You will also soon be able to find it online directly through the Sof'Ella website. In the meanwhile, Jennifer Black Dea, the genius R&D developer behind this product, mentioned to me that the best way to get your local Costco or grocery stores to carry the cake mix is to request it. Personally, I'd make a big fuss over this cause! Totally worth it.
PS: Be on the lookout for other Sof'ella products. I've tried their side dishes and other baking mixes. Très, très délicieux.
