Welcome
Welcome to your local group’s autumn newsletter! We hope everyone has had a good summer and has coped with the restrictions we have all had to comply with. We know that these are going to be with us in some form for a good while yet and it means that we are not going to be able to organise any in-person meetings for group members. However, we do still want to keep in touch.
Over the summer many of us have been out and about enjoying the sunshine. Lesley has been on a walking holiday which catered specially for Coeliacs and recently a few of us got involved in Coeliac UK’s fundraising weekend.
We know that finding somewhere safe to eat is important to us all, whether we are away on holiday or closer to home, and so we have included some personal recommendations from our members. Please let us know if you have come across anywhere you would recommend and we can include the information in our next newsletter.
Gemma has been baking and if you feel inspired you can try her recipe for apple crumble cupcakes. If you have been trying out any new recipes recently – or you have an old favourite– please send them to us so that we can all have a go!
Thinking ahead, we are planning a Christmas card competition for our younger members and you can find out below how your children can get involved.
Please do keep in touch. Our Facebook page is a good way of maintaining contact and you can also email us at northhampshire@coeliac.org.uk with any ideas or suggestions you may have. Or if you would like to become more involved with your North Hants group, we are looking for some members to join our committee. We look forward to hearing from you!
Margaret, Keith, Tom, Gemma and Lesley
Coeliac UK Challenge Weekend
The aim of this year’s Challenge was to pledge a distance (by running, walking, swimming or cycling) towards the overall national target of 2500km (1,553 miles) and collect sponsorship from friends and family to help with fundraising activities. As a committee we decided we would like to do our part to help raise funds, especially given Coeliac UK estimate they will be 75% down on income this year due to the usual fundraising events being cancelled. We pledged a total distance of 130 miles and set ourselves an ambitious target of £500 with 2 weeks to go before the weekend. With the support of our generous friends, family, colleagues and Coeliac UK members, we are delighted to have raised £735 so far (plus up to another £625 in matched funding!) and exceeded our pledged distance!
Margaret had lots of fun walking with her preschool friends – and they managed to collect rather a large amount of conkers on the way!
There is much of the North Wessex Downs which Keith has yet to explore, so he decided to set himself the challenge of 20 miles discovering the footpaths. “Despite learning the Ordnance Survey symbols by heart 36 years ago, I must have forgotten a few, as I still managed to go wrong twice. I should also have paid more attention to the contours. Only later did I realise that the first two hours were constant uphill! Yes, the Downs do deserve their status as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Aching legs and sore feet were worth it, for what we have raised. I am grateful to my colleagues for their generosity.”
Gemma persuaded her husband and 5 year old Coeliac daughter to join in with the fundraising, setting themselves an ambitious 50 mile target. “Our daughter has only very recently learned to ride her bike without stabilisers, but it hasn’t taken her long to build her confidence and speed, with us running to keep up with her. Over the weekend she managed nearly 14 miles cycling and walking, with my husband and I running and walking a further 47 miles to bring our total distance to 61 miles!”
Lesley’s walking break in the Cotswolds coincided with the challenge weekend, so she pledged a combined distance of 50 miles with her friend. They enjoyed fantastic weather and beautiful countryside, covering an amazing 60 miles! Read more about Lesley’s walking holiday further below.
https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/North-Hampshire
Lesley’s Staycation with HF Holidays
It has indeed been a strange year and like many people, I was disappointed that my holiday plans for the early part of the year were cancelled due to the Covid 19 lockdown. As the restrictions eased, I felt very grateful that during September I was able to take a “Staycation” in the UK. I chose to go on 2 guided walking breaks with HF Holidays – one at Abingworth in the South Downs and one at Harrington House in Bourton on the Water in the Cotswolds.
HF Holidays organise guided and self guided walking holidays which are perfect for singles, groups and families and there are always a choice of daily walking routes to suit all levels. There are 18 country houses to choose from in different locations throughout the UK and they are the only UK holiday operator that is accredited by Coeliac UK. This means that they understand the dietary needs of Coeliacs and you can be sure that there are always plenty of delicious gluten free options on the menu for breakfast, dinner and packed lunches. I have now stayed in 6 of the houses, all of which are excellent and in the future, I am planning to work my way round to all of the others!!
This year felt a bit different due to the additional controls that had been put in place at the houses to protect people from the risk of infection. Wearing of face masks was mandatory in public areas of the house, clear signage was in place to ensure adherence to social distancing measures and the frequent use of hand sanitisers was encouraged. During my stay the guests and staff abided by the rules at all times and consequently I felt that I was in a very safe environment.
Our walking break in the Cotswolds coincided with the Coeliac UK Challenge Fundraising Weekend. My friend and I decided to pledge a combined total of 50 miles as we would normally opt for the shorter walking routes…!!! However, on this occasion, we decided to rise to the challenge and selected the longer routes and surprised ourselves by achieving a combined total distance of just over 60 miles!! The weather was fantastic with sunshine, blue skies and temperatures reaching the mid 20’s and so we were able to appreciate the beautiful countryside which surrounds the Cotswold villages.
Children’s Christmas card competition
It may be hard to believe it, but the countdown for Christmas has already begun with less than 100 days to go. To help get you in the Christmas spirit we are delighted to announce our Children’s Christmas card competition!
We want to see how creative our younger members can be, so would love to see their colourful creations. Email us a photo of your child’s Christmas card design, along with their age for a chance to win your child’s picture printed on their very own Christmas cards. Entries must be sent to us no later than 30 October, with the winner/s and runners up to be announced by 9 November.
Small print - Entrants must be 16 years or younger. There will be up to two age categories, depending on the number of entrants. Winner/s will be contacted by email and will need to provide the address for their 10 Christmas cards to be sent to.
New committee members
Your North Hampshire Group needs you! We want to do everything we can to ensure the continuity of our regional group so we can support our members and provide a Coeliac network across the region. In order to run the group we need a minimum of 3 committee members (Group Coordination, Treasurer and Secretary), but in practice if this drops below 5 it becomes very challenging for us to continue.
Therefore, we are looking for two general committee members to join our committee. No previous committee experience required, just a motivation to want to help support your local Coeliac community. Our committee typically meet 4 – 6 times a year for approximately 1 hour in Basingstoke/ by video call. Please email us if you are interested. We would be happy to have an informal chat to answer any questions you may have before you commit.
Eating out Recommendations
We all know how difficult eating out gluten free can sometimes be, so we are sure it comes as no surprise to hear this is the most popular topic on our Facebook group. We asked our members for their top recommendations for restaurants and takeaways in the area and include a selection below.
Please note that only some of the places recommended are Coeliac UK accredited (visit here for a full list of accredited venues). It goes without saying, but please be extra careful if a venue is not accredited. Check they understand about cross contamination (for example, are separate fryers used for GF food) and if something doesn't feel right then trust your instinct.
Fish & chips - Fish‘n’chick‘n, Brighton Hill Parade (near Asda), Basingstoke (Coeliac UK accredited) – GF on Mondays & Tuesdays. Recommended by several members.
Fish & chips – Camberley Fish Bar – GF Monday to Thursday – Linda “separate fryers, beautifully light batter, cooked to perfection”
Chinese - New Dynasty, Tadley – Donna “…so clued up! Quite a rare find!”
Indian - The Towers, Basingstoke (Coeliac UK accredited) – Claire “All their curries are GF and delicious! No website, just google them for details”
Indian - Chennai Express, Basingstoke – Lucy “Great food, takeaway menu online doesn’t look as good but they adapt things for you. Very clued up on cross contamination etc”
Thai - The Lime Leaf restaurant, Basingstoke (Coeliac UK accredited) – Claire “They’re really knowledgeable about gluten and even corrected my husband when he accidentally ordered the wrong thing which would have glutened me!”
Pub food – Barton’s Mill, Old Basing (Coeliac UK accredited) – Andy “They have a specific GF menu and even have Gluten Free 6X beer!”
Pub food – The Wellington Arms, Stratfield Turgis, A33 between Basingstoke & Reading – Sarah “fantastic and large GF menu and very clued up”
Cosy Club, Basingstoke – Lucy “Make sure you state you’re coeliac so they’re extra careful. Meal includes a flag stating it’s GF.”
Recipe – Apple crumble cupcakes
If instead of (or as well as!) eating out, you fancy trying out a new recipe, Gemma has kindly shared her favourite cooking apple recipe.
Ingredients
Apple filling
Approx 2-3 cooking apples (cubed)
55g light brown sugar
Pinch of cinnamon
Cake
175g margarine
175g caster sugar
2 medium eggs
3 tbsp milk
175g gluten free self raising flour
Crumble
50g gluten free plain flour
25g light brown sugar
25g unsalted butter (cubed)
Method
- Preheat oven to 160 deg C (fan oven)
- Make cake mix – cream margarine and sugar, then mix in eggs, milk and flour. Put to one side
- Mix crumble ingredients with finger tips until they resemble crumbs. Put to one side
- Make apple filling by mixing the cubed apples, sugar and cinnamon until they become syrupy.
- Fill cupcake cases with approx. 1/3 apple filling, 2/3 cake mix, with crumble mix sprinkled on the top.
- Bake in the oven for 15-18 minutes until golden brown.
Top tips
- Use lined cupcake cases or silicone ones to stop the apple mix seeping through the cases.
- Best eaten with a spoon.
- Add a GF cracker to the crumble mix for some extra crunch.
