Gluten Free Vegan Blondies

It's one of those mornings. I am procrastinating the chores that I have to do outside. It's -8 out, and for us, up in the hills, that is soooo cold! I will have to put on my carhart overalls, a brand name I'd never heard of till I met my husband, and brave the cold to feed the chickens and haul in some fire wood.  I'm by our warm fire, my two younger children, who don't have school, are bothering me to entertain them. The sun is lazily making it's rising appearance (it's 9:30) and I am content to just sit and type.

This year I am making all the presents that we are going to give for Xmas. It's a first. I have completed 2 of the 7 blankets that I am gifting to only close family. I have made various cowls, mittens, and hats for the few outskirts of friends that I feel to give to. In the past I have gotten carried away with trying to buy the perfect gift.....for everyone. I no longer feel that fits me. It's strange to look back and see how much one can change. In the past name brand gifts made me squeal...now, not so much. I'm content to watch my kids open a few gifts, while I sip some warm tea by the fire, with my husband.

This year we are also blessed enough to get to spend the Xmas and New Year holiday season with my bother in law and sister in law, and their mob! My mother in law and father in law will fly down with us and the kids and we will all be together. That is the extent of our Xmas spending. We are all super excited to leave the dark cold and spend it with people we really like, who happen to also be family. There will be 12 children, and I can't help but wonder where our two little girls are. I am praying a lot, as I wait on two countries to answer my paperwork. And it also makes me wonder what next year will be like. Sigh.

On to some recipes

Ever since I first discovered blondies, I became a huge fan! You can bake them in a glass dish, spread the dough, layer with jelly, chocolate chips and then add a little bit of the batter on top....but,  I prefer them in bite size mini muffin tins. It's much easier to ration your portion, or tell yourself..."it's just a little bite".... Oh, but what a bite! (be careful those bites do add up and before you know it....someone ate them all!!)


The batter will harden the more time that it is exposed, so you want to try to add the jelly as quickly as you can. Finding some really good organic jam/jelly and mini chocolate chips is important to this treat. I was using the cascadian farm raspberry jam, but learned that they spent money supporting the fight for Americans to not have Gmo's labelled (proposition 37 in California), so I am promptly moving on to another source. I'll let you know what I find.

Blondies!

Preheat oven to 340 and prepare your pan of mini muffin tray with liners
first your dry ingredients....

1/2c of garbanzo/fava bean mixture (I grind my own and mix 3/4 c fava/1c garb) you can use bob's
1/3c buckwheat flour
1/3c quinoa flour (If you wanted to make this grainless, you could simply mix 1/2c of buckwheat and quinoa, instead of the 1/3c ratios)...ahh! I just saw how expensive this is!! it costs about what I pay for a 25lb bag of quinoa! read below!
1/3c millet flour (again, I buy all these grains, and grind in my vita mix, saves LOTS of money!)
2/3c of coconut palm sugar
1/2t salt
2t of baking powder
1/2t baking soda
1/4c of ground flax or chia (chia is much kinder to the digestive tract)
 --mix all--

add your wet ingredients...
1/3c of applesauce
2T of vanilla extract
1/3c oil (coconut, or whatever you prefer)

 Once you have your batter, you will scoop to the 2/3 of the tins with batter and using a butter knife I put dabs of jam on top followed by a few chocolate chips (4?) and then I add another touch of the batter to top it off and sprinkle a few more chocolate chips

If you're using a baking glass dish, the same would apply...spread the batter on the bottom of the dish, saving some of the batter to plop on top....layer with jam, and chocolate chips...followed by remaining batter and more chocolate chips...bake in the over about 15 minutes..... depending on your oven....when they come out, they will be mushy, so let them cool down before attempting your bite, or cutting into the dish......mmmm!


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Thankfulness and Raw Pumpkin Cheesecake!!!

Happy Day of Thankfulness!!!!

I hosted Thanksgiving for the very first time this year! I completely enjoyed myself and the whole process. We set up the living room all opened up, and realized how wonderful it was to have all this space! Our kitchen/living room area is all open, and I love it. It is now still left open.

We had my mother and father in law over, whom I absolutely adore. We also had my mother in laws brother and their two children whom are married, with their families. It was perfect. The children played nicely and we were able to connect and have rich conversation. We talked about God, and what ever else was going on in our lives. They are all people that can relax and make you laugh. So we laughed, and we ate.

I prepared the turkey (this is a turkey that was loved and I took care of in every step of the way). I also made some amazing stuffing (yep, I was even surprised how well it came out!). I made some gluten free cornbread (sooo good!) and spelt rolls. I also made a couple of raw cheesecakes.

I really like making the raw cheesecakes. They are extremely easy, you can substitute sweeteners. I love how simple raw treats usually are. So I am posting this recipe because it was requested by a few of my dear family members.

Pumpkin/Vanilla Cheesecake

soak 2c of cashews for at least 2 hours.
I make two layers of flavors. In a spring foam pan sprinkle the bottom with unsweetened coconut flakes. I crush (you can use a food processor) walnuts and add a pinch of salt and some raisins and spread them as the crust. 

split the cashews 1 1/2 cups of the cashews and set aside the other 1/2 c ... in a high powered blender add to make your vanilla layer

1 1/2c soaked cashews
pinch of salt
half a fresh lemon juice squeezed
1/2 c agave
1T vanilla extract..........Blend........
slowly add 1/2c of melted extra virgin coconut oil

mix for a minute, until a smooth puree....
pour into the prepared spring foam pan.

with the rest of the cashews, pour in the blender
*I love to buy an organic pumpkin, or grow one, in early fall at the farmers market, and prepare it for this...very simple, just cut in half, poke holes with fork, set on cookie sheet, bake on 350 for a half hour, check to see if it's done*

1/2c of cashews
2c of pumpkin pulp or puree
1T of ground cinnamon
1t of ground nutmeg
1/2 c of agave

pour on top and let set in the freezer........

This year, I am doing something different. Instead of buying gifts, I will be making all the gifts that I give. I am kinda finding it freeing to not have to try soooo hard to find some "perfect gift", instead, out of love, I will make something that I hope the recipient likes. I have a few more things to make, then I will be done.

May we all discover how much richer it is to give than to receive. How much joy there is in finding gratitude, no matter where we are, or what we have. How great this short life can be. Pin It Now!

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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Raw Chocolate and Banana Mousse

I am trying to have a more correct blog. By correct I mean that there are complete sentences and appropriate capitalization, spelling, and grammar. This is not easy for me. I think I could have been a great writer in some life. A life without all the things I just mentioned in the previous sentences. I hate the boundaries and constraints that are placed on writing! I am perfectly happy to add ...... in between every new thought. I would be happy in a world without capitalization, paragraphs, correct sentences, and all the rest of it. I do like commas, like, a lot. So feel free to help me move to a more correctly written blog.

I am almost through the holiday season. Eating well, and making healthier choices during this time of year can get tricky. I think the support, or lack of, makes a difference. I bring dishes and desserts to family gatherings, which makes it easier for me, and for my kids, to eat what is more suitable for our eating habits. It can still get a little tricky explaining to my children why they cannot have the processed sweets/foods that the other kids are eating, but overall my kids get over it, and eat the sweets and foods that they CAN have. Such is the way of parenting, trying to guide them make the healthier choices. My greatest challenge with my kids is trying to show them that real food is more important for them (how food makes them feel) than what "tastes" (aka chemically tricking their brains) good. It gets confusing to little ones. How can it be not good for me, if it "tastes" good? My son's are better about eating well. My daughter sees it as the "forbidden fruit". Sigh. It is a journey for our household, I'll let you know how the different steps come along.

My house continues to go through an obnoxious amount of banana's. I made raw banana creme pie last night for dinner. It came out soooo amazing, that i can't seem to stop myself from eating it. I'll have to share the recipe sometime. Speaking of raw desserts. I have been eating them for dinner a couple of times in the past week. I don't even feel guilty.

I made this dessert weeks ago for dinner (it's taken me a long time to post, i will get better about this). It filled Toby and I up! I was satisfied and it left a smile on my face. Confession: I am not a fan of chocolate. Anyone who knows me, knows this oddity about me. Since cutting out processed food, I occasionally enjoy a little here or there. In fact, if my chocolate doesn't come with a berry or fruit, I will pass on the treat. So this came with Alaskan blueberries....and bananas!

I used my vita-mix to blend the following ingredients....but since bananas and avocados are pretty mushy, I bet a regular blender would work just fine


Raw Chocolate/Banana Mousse

1 large avocado
1 large banana
1/4 raw cocoa powder
pinch of himalayan salt
1/2 c of agave syrup

Blend....and enjoy!

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