A couple of weeks ago I wrote about how I have been dealing with some digestive issues in the past, and how, more recently, they have started to become more of a problem. I went and saw an allergist to get some advice on where to start since I know it’s gotta be my diet that’s messing me up, and she introduced me to the FODMAP diet. The FODMAP diet basically removes FODMAPS from your diet, thus limiting food that can suck more water into your intestines, which can cause issues later on in the bathroom. You can read all about my digestive issues over in the other post, but this post is going to be more focused on the food itself.
Ironically enough, the day I went to the allergist to discuss options, BFree Foods reached out to me asking if I’d be willing to give some of their products a try. No normally I would have said no as I’ve tried to limit my wheat/gluten intake in the past, after seeing a gastroenterologist, but I found the food to be flat out disgusting. However, this time, my issues were affecting my family, and not just me, so I had to make a change and what better way to start than with some free samples to try.
BFree was nice enough to send me a sample pack of pretty much all of the products they sell, and all of their products are wheat and gluten free. I technically only need to be wheat free, since I’m not celiac, but it’s just easier to find things without wheat by looking for gluten free products, so these were perfect. On top of that, if you’re a vegan, their products are completely free from all listed allergens, even eggs. So whatever your food allergies might be, BFree has you covered with a wide range of products.
The package I received contained the following products:
- Hot Dog Buns (Plain and Brown Seeded)
- Rolls (Soft White and Brown Seeded)
- Loaves of Bread (Soft White and Brown Seeded)
- Bagels (Plain and Multiseed)
The only products they didn’t send me, which I wish they would have, were their Pitas and their tortillas. I’ve been finding myself eating a lot of wraps, using gluten free tortillas, instead of bread these days for my lunches.
As soon as the package arrived I took the opportunity to make an egg and cheese sandwich. We hadn’t gotten to the grocery store yet to stock up the house with low FODMAP foods, so the timing on the package was perfect.
BFree Soft White Bread
The soft white bread was actually pretty good. I’ve had other gluten free breads in the past and wasn’t too impressed, but the BFree bread actually tasted more like a traditional white bread. The crusts can be a little harder than your used to, but the bread itself is fluffy and tasty, and it made the sandwich very enjoyable. I enjoyed it so much that for breakfast the next day I also toasted it with butter and ate it with my eggs and it’s even pretty good as toast, however it doesn’t fit in a standard toaster very well. It’s slightly wider than a normal piece of bread so I had to turn it the long ways down, toast it for a few minutes, then flip it over and toast the other side. But in the end, that worked fine, and I was able to enjoy a piece of toast with my eggs.
The BFree soft white bread is definitely a suitable alternative to normal bread if you’re looking for a wheat free/gluten free option.
BFree Bagels
I don’t have much to say about the bagels other than they are amazing toasted with some butter. I’ll be honest in saying that I didn’t really care for them plain, right out of the bag, like I do with regular bagels, but cut one of them in half, throw it in the toaster, and then slather some butter on it, and you’ve got a nice little tasty snack. I’ve pretty much eaten all of the bagels that were sent to me and I plan on picking up some more when we go to the store this week.
BFree Hot Dog Buns
After being so impressed by the bread and the bagels that I tried, I was really looking forward to trying out the hot dog bun. For dinner this past week we decided to make bratwurst, as it would be the perfect thing to try the hot dog bun with. Honestly, I’m not sure if a brat is 100% low FODMAP, but there were no outright ingredients that I couldn’t have, so we went for it.
The brat itself was absolutely delicious, as they always are, but I was pretty disappointed in the hot dog bun. I don’t know if it’s maybe because we didn’t eat them right away, like the bread, or if it’s just because of what they are made of, but as soon as I opened up the bun to put the brat inside, it basically broke apart and started to get very crumbly. It tasted ‘ok’, but it wasn’t the greatest, and I ended up trying to eat as little of it as I possibly could. It was just super dry and flakey, and just kind of hard to eat after a while. So I hope it was because we just waited a little too long to open up the package and try them, but unfortunately I don’t think I’ll be purchasing these buns in the future.
BFree Rolls
The rolls were solid, as long as you warm them up and put some butter on them, just like the bagels. They were a great compliment to my gluten free spaghetti meal while my wife and daughter were eating delicious, delicious garlic bread that I’m not allowed to have… ugh.
So overall, I will definitely be purchasing some of the BFree products in the future when looking for bread products that fit my low FODMAP diet, but I’ll probably be staying away from the hot dog buns. If you suffer from celiacs, or are just trying to avoid wheat and gluten in general, than this brand is one that should be on your radar.
- Gluten Free
- Vegan
I started eating this as I am on a Low FODMAP diet at the moment, but the bread contains apple and pea in some form, which is food which is meant to be avoided during the diet? Do you know if this small amount would cause any problem, as it does say you can’t even have a stock cube which has onion with it and to be careful because some ingredients are hidden when you wouldn’t expect it to be?
Hi Jenny,
I really only ate the white bread from BFree which does have pea protein mentioned in the ingredients list (but not the apple), but it did not set me off at all during the elimination phase. I adhered to the elimination phase as close as I possibly could and actually found that the Mission brand gluten free tortillas worked perfect for me to make turkey/ham, cheddar cheese, lettuce wraps for lunch each day. And I just noticed that those also have pea protein in them, so I would say give it a shot, but if you’re still having issues and you’re worried about it, maybe find something that doesn’t have the Pea Protein in it… After going through the elimination phase and adding things back in, the biggest culprit of my issues is garlic and raw tomatoes (even though tomatoes are on the safe list), so even though something is on the safe side, doesn’t always mean it’s safe for everyone. I plan on writing another update post about my FODMAP journey up to this point, so I’ll try to get that posted sooner rather than later. Good luck with your diet!
Recently purchased two moldy loafs.found customer service to be very rude
Hey Neil, I’ve never had to deal with their customer service so it sucks that you had that experience with them. Were you able to get non-moldy loafs? how were they?
Bagels taste like sawdust. Terrible
The pita bread is very good, not sure it is Fodmap safe. I was just told to try the Fodmap diet and am already gluten free and dairy free. It is definitely a challenge.
Hi Barbara,
The Fodmap diet is a challenge for sure, but hopefully it helps you alleviate whatever symptoms you’re experiencing. Stick with it! Once you get through the initial phase it gets easier. Good luck!
DON’T EAT THESE PRODUCTS IF YOU HAVE CILIAC DISEASE!
One of the main ingredients is cornstarch! Corn has a substance that acts like gluten! Read the medical reports about corn and cornstarch as it relates to celiac disease! I tried to eat the bread 3 times, and each time it caused horrible gastric problems!