Grain-less, Gluten Free, Vegan, Uh-maze-ing Scones

this cracks me up! Big shout out to my friend Kristine who I got this from....

Oh Happy Halloween everybody! I must be candid....this is my least liked of all the holidays. I know, I know.... I have a whole lot of people that enjoy dressing up, and getting candy. But I remember being terrified as a child. It seemed frightening to me that grown ups dress up and try to scare kids. As a child, I hated that it was dark out, and going to stranger's houses, but I did like the candy! Halloween is not celebrated in Romania we celebrated the day of the dead, I have some hazy memories of the day. Massive amounts of people would migrate to cemeteries and put flowers and candles around the graves of loved ones. Though the roots of the holiday are just as creepy, as a child, seeing all those hundreds of candles in the dark, and remembering our elders, hearing stories of who they were.....well, it was way less scary.

My displeasure with the massive amounts of candy given to my children on this day, has increased every year. So this year, instead of trick-or-treating, we did a family party. What's a family party? Well, we sort of made it up. I got the kids each a small toy (legos for the boys and some fairy figurine for Bella) along with a chocolate bar (I love enjoy life's)and an organic lollipop. The all had to perform for Grandma Mary, Toby, and I. We set up a stage, complete with a microphone and speaker. We had a blast, and still got too much sugar! I made some donuts (yes, I'll post the recipe sometime) and we ended it with us all dancing. Much better than trick or treating. It will be a tradition. I decided to wear the very same costume, this year, that I wore 11 years ago, the first day that Toby referred to me as "his girlfriend". It still fits :)

Mommy the school girl (there's a sentimental story to that), Bella the purple princes, Zaya the little ninja, Isaac Darth Vader, and Daddy the big ninja!

I make scones once in a while. They have vegetable shortening, so it is more of a treat than something that I consider healthy. Nonetheless, it's super easy to have handy on those morning when we are running late. And my oldest, and the most difficult to feed, Isaac likes the chocolate chip version, so I make em from time to time.

What I love about these scones is that I can make them with anything. It is the great thing about scones! add fruit to the batter or chocolate chips....or lemon shaving and poppy seeds. The different flavors are a very long list. I also use a scone tray it's cast iron with a coat of non stick (yes, I know). I find it helpful in gluten free baking to have a mold, because often times the batter is runny.

This recipe has no xanthan gum, which i prefer. I made this one with thinly sliced apples that I poured some lemon juice and mixed some coconut crystals with cinnamon powder and then just topped it off on the scone before putting it in the oven, I also sprinkle more coconut palm sugar on top (same thing as the coconut crystals)....because I believe in using less sugar in the batter, and just sprinkling on top. You taste it better.

Gluten Free Vegan Chocolate Chip Scones!

Preheat oven to 400
prepare scone dish (or baking pan)

dry ingredients
1/2 c of garbonzo/fava bean flour (you can use bob's, but I like to mill and mix my own with my vita mix 1c garbonzo to 3/4 c fava)
1/2 c of quinoa flour (grinding your own, saves lots of money)
1/2 c of buckwheat flour (read above)
1/4 c of ground chia seeds (I grind mine in our coffee grinder)
2t of baking powder
1t of baking soda
a dash of salt
1/2c of coconut crystals
1T of vanilla extract (I like to make my own)

mix thoroughly and set aside 1c of coconut milk mixed with 1T of apple cider vinegar (this will curdle)

add 1/2c of vegetable shortening mix with a mixer until there are little crumbles
add the 1c of curdled  and add 3/4 c of chocolate chips.... Put in pan and sprinkle with coconut sugar on top...

this happens to be thinly sliced apples with sprinkled coconut crystals on top

bake for 20-25 minutes (I need 22 minutes in my oven)

Once done, they will be soft, so let them sit for 5 minutes before removing....place on wire rack and let them cool all the way down...they will harden....Enjoy!!!

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Hummus and the family

I suspect that the emotions surrounding advocating for my children will never truly be a stoic experience. But I am praying that some of those intense feelings and reactions that occur within me (I have never been one for internalizing feelings, I'm more of a speak now, regret later, sort of gal :( will become less so, as I rest in the Lord.  Our oldest son has an IEP. For those of you that aren't sure what that is, it stands for Individual Education Plan, meaning Isaac has needs and issues that go beyond typical peers, his age. As a result, I must advocate for him. He has a team that meets and we discuss his needs, what services he qualifies, etc. It is an exhausting push...pull....balancing act. Bureaucracy reigns supreme in the public school system. Whines about funding, attempts to withdraw services because the child is actually gaining ground (after regressing without the needed services), are all moves that are choreographed in this dance that we do with the public school. It has been 5 years of a never ending amounts of meetings and advocating. Today was no exception. Just when you hear that your son will FINALLY get a much needed service, you hear suggestions that he may benefit in a classroom setting that would work on his social behavior. So I am trying to unwind from listening to input that I did not want and do not agree with...at all. I am not looking for the school to teach my son to be typical...or them to help me parent. I am wanting them to support him in a typical classroom so that he can be more successful....which is what he has been doing the past month....with the support now intact. It continues to be a difficult and shaky road for me. I do not yet have a team that I believe wants the best for Isaac. I still see bureaucracy and that is very difficult as a mother. Isaac will have his current support , which was my big desire. And he does happen to have the most incredible teacher that I have ever come across, so my heart is full of gratitude.

I would have never guessed that the fight in me, that I almost seem to have been born with, would actually serve a purpose in my life....to fight for my kids..... but it seems to have. That same fight is brewing within me to sustain the long journey of adoption that awaits us. My blog has been one of very impersonal post with recipes. This will no longer be how I blog.

I love food. I love nutrition. I love educating in those areas. That has come easily to me. My schooling is coming along well (in case you were wondering) and I will continue to write about food, nutrition, recipes...but I will be adding our adoption process and my motherhood tales, tying them all together,  with my faith.

If can boast of many things that seem to come easily, being a mother is NOT one of them. When the bible tells of boasting of our weaknesses because it is when we are weak, that Christ is strong, it was surely referring to Cristina's mothering. I want it to be clear that I am not very confident in this area. It does not come easily or naturally for me. It sure seems to for others, but I will boast of my weakness, because any strength in this area, surely is evidence of the invisible working through me.


This week I sent off my paperwork to the Romanian embassy in D.C.  I will then wait to hear back from Romania in regards to my Romanian citizenship. They will either reinstate it (my hope).....or I will have to jump many more hoops to reapply for that citizenship. I am praying this matter doesn't take months. In the meantime, I still have not heard back from USCIS (not so long ago it was referred to as INS) regarding my green card. I was on the phone with them this morning. It seems that my wait can be 3 1/2 months! Until the matter of my citizenship is resolved, the home-study will have to wait. I am praying I don't have to wait an exacerbate amount of time for Romania's response. So here I am typing away.



In food news. Toby and I did a veggie type cleanse last week....it was refreshing. I learned a whole bunch about my body's relationship and reaction to carbs/sugar. I have a diet with very little processed food....my baking is gluten free and made with coconut crystals (low glycerin palm sugar)....yet, I must confess, my body has a very strong reaction to any sugar, period. I have terrible cravings, as a result, and then my body is sent into an insulin roller coaster ride....I didn't realize how sensitive I am. I am the same way with caffeine. I hate the way it makes my body feel! I can barely ever tolerate it. Who knew?


I make hummus a whole lot in our house. It is a simple dip. I am hoping that at some point, my children will want to try it. But as of now, Toby and I, are the ones that enjoy it. It's a basic recipe and I really do eye ball the measurements. I blend the beans in my vita mix, but you can blend in a blender, or food processor, depending on your texture preference. 


I like to buy my grains and beans in bulk. I think it is just a better idea and it's much cheaper to make garbanzo beans from dry, than get them in a can (who knows how long they've been in a can and what has leaked in the beans), but I know we are a very busy society. I typically will soak my beans(a cups worth of dry beans) for a day or two, it makes all the difference! Why soak beans? Beans have an outer layer of indigestible sugars, tannins, phytic acid and tryspin inhibitors. This outer layer is the root cause of intestinal gas. I then will either stick them in my pressure cooker or a regular pot and boil them till they're ready (mushy)....wait till they're luke warm and then put in my vita mix


2c cooked beans (or a can of canned)
1 medium garlic clove (or two small)
1/2t of tahini (I usually put in 1/4c of sesame seeds, since my vita mix crushes em into tahini)
2T of extra virgin olive oil

1T of lemon juice or half a fresh lemon squeezed
1T of cumin
1t of turmeric
a few pieces of chopped onion
and I usually add some greens (like spinach or kale leaves)
I fill the container with water till it almost covers the beans (this really is a trial and error experience to get the right thickness you want)

I add salt as I blend...because it varies, but i start off with 1T of it....which is usually enough

add some oil and sprinkle some turmeric on top...voila!

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Adoption and tinctures

This year's family portrait, next year, I'm hoping there will be two more little girls!

 My life has been super busy!!! I assumed that once the kids were in school, I would have all these hours in the day to clean my house (how clean can it really get?) and stay on top of laundry, dinner, homework, and dishes. I had this completely distorted view of what "life with all kids in school" would be like.

A few weeks into the kids' school, I realized that I was very very wrong. My house is actually full of more clutter and crumbs than ever before. We had a nasty gnat infestation, that I am still trying to recover from. I hid my bananas in the microwave (which I rarely use) and oven to try to escape the numerous gnats that landed on them. I covered the harvested green tomatoes and covered them over. The few hours I have are full of partially touched on attempts to complete (laundry and clean counters are last battles, I must acknowledge).

I also added two new events to focus my time and energy on. Adopting internationally out of Romania, and working on my schooling degree. Both, I have longed for in my heart for many years. And this seemed like the right time. I am wondering if I have bit more than I can chew! We have just begun our home study and I just turned in my application to renew my green card. I will then need to apply for my Romanian citizenship followed by getting my American citizenship. It will allow my to get my visa. It is a long, bureaucratic process. At times it feels daunting....and I have begun to raise funds. This is the site that I have created to help us. Free gifts are always humbling to recieve....but we are grateful for the support that we have gotten all along the way!

I have not been able to sit and read and study, like I envisioned, either. Sneaking in time to focus on my studies has been very difficult! I am attempting to get my nutritional consultant degree. The anatomy and physiology part is intimidating. I will truck on. It is my desire to get my degree and begin a practice next year. We'll see.

So I will close out with Tinctures. I have just begun to dabble in them. I just finished a batch of echinacea tincture. I started to grow the plant from seed this last spring. I loved the site with the information on it. I have since given out some of the final product to friends I know that are battling cancer. We shall see what happens. Tinctures are simple. It is just a long soaking process with the plant exposed to alcohol or water. The alcohol preserves the nutrients that are pulled in the soaking process. I simple chopped up my echinacea leaves and part of the root and stuck it in bacardi 151 for 7 weeks, occasionally shaking it. 

I happened to make some vanilla extract at the same time

happy tincture making everyone!! I will let you know how my friends battling cancers do...But I have already taken some due to sick symptoms, or headaches.....and have felt great, and not gotten sick :) Pin It Now!