The Dutch Pantry & New Hope Mills

When T and I head to Roanoke, we generally go up I-81 N, which takes us past the exit for The Dutch Pantry. We’ve wondered about it several times, but have never stopped there.

Several days ago, we were only heading as far as Wytheville to get the only gluten-free cat food our oldest cat will eat these days, and decided since there was no hurry, that we would stop and check it out. And we got a nice surprise!

At the edge of the parking lot was a large sign that announced that gluten free items were available! Although they do not have a huge selection, they have a good selection, including products from a NY-based company that we had never heard of: New Hope Mills.

They had several mixes that looked really tasty, but since we both like brownies, we chose the Double Chocolate Brownie mix.  Although the company produces both gluten-full and gluten-free products, the gluten-free ones are certified by GIG, and the packaging states that they are manufactured in a gluten-free processing area on dedicated equipment. (The equipment may be shared with products that contain egg, tree nut & dairy ingredients.)

The Dutch Pantry also had pasta, some Bob’s Red Mill products, Route 11 Potato Chips, among other products. They even had a gluten-free cookbook for sale! It didn’t include the healthiest of recipes, but if you’ve been trying to find some gluten-free alternatives to traditional home cooking (especially Southern from what I could see when I flipped through it), you may want to go check out this book!

That evening, we made the brownies. The directions call for beating 2 eggs with a high speed mixer, so this was also our first opportunity to try out the Kitchen Aid mixer we received as a wedding gift. Once the eggs are beaten, you add the mix and then 6 TBSP of melted butter. The batter was thick and creamy, and smelled and tasted quite a bit like rich chocolate soft serve ice cream!

 

We baked the brownies in an 8×8 pan for about 30 minutes. Our apartment smelled quite yummy as they baked! These brownies are good hot out of the oven. They are good when they have cooled slightly. They are still delicious a couple of days later! (We left them in the glass pan and covered them with a sheet of tinfoil.)

The top was flaky and the bottom delightfully soft and a bit chewy. They may be the best gluten-free brownies ( from a mix ) that I have tried so far. We both really enjoyed them!

I can’t wait until we have the funds to go back to The Dutch Pantry and try another product from New Hope Mills, and check out their other gluten-free items again.

(Please note that the prices at The Dutch Pantry are quite affordable for the average customer, we simply cannot afford a lot of extras.)

If you’re in the area, be sure to check them out!

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