Chocolate chip Pumpkin Cupcake

I am back!!!! After a much needed break...can we all just admit that we need one every once in a while? I decided to blog! Yippee! I know that taking a break is against the cardinal rules of blogging, however life happens and some things are just more important than blogging. However, my love for blogging and cooking did not vanish. So, if there's anybody out there reading this, give me a shout out and post a comment! With out delay here is a delicious recipe that is a fall must! 

Chocolate chip Pumpkin Cupcake

2 1/2 Cups of Gluten free Flour Blend

1 1/4 Cup Agave Nectar

2 tsp. Baking Soda

1 tsp. Baking Powder

1 tsp. Guar Gum

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1/2 tsp. Sea Salt

1/4 tsp. Nutmeg

3/4 Cup Pumpkin Purée 

1/2 Cup Grapeseed Oil

1/2 Cup Hot Water

1/2 Cup Coconut Milk

1 Tbsp. Lemon Juice

1/2 Cup Vegan Chocolate Chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F and line a cupcake tin. Mix on ingredients in a mixer on medium speed for a couple of minuets. Pour batter into cup 3/4 full. Bake at 350 for 30 min or until toothpick pokes clean. Enjoy!

Pumpkin pancakes

It's the season for pumpkin everything! Pumpkin Pancakes. These are delicious, Vegan, and totally Allergy Free. Free of Gluten, refined Sugar, Eggs, Dairy, Soy, Nut, Wheat, and Corn. These are also kid friendly! My kids loved them. 

Ingredients

2 cups of Multi-Grain Gluten Free Blend (see my post for that)

1/2 tsp. Guar Gum

1/2 Cup Shredded Coconut

1 1/2 Cup Coconut Milk

1 1/4 Cup Puréed Pumpkin

2 tsp. Baking Powder

1/2 tsp. Sea Salt

2 tsp. Cinnamon

1/2 tsp. Ground Cloves

1/2 tsp. Nutmeg

1 Banana (mashed)

1/3 Cup Coconut Sugar or Brown Sugar

1 tsp. Pure Vanilla 

3 Tbsp. Grapeseed or Olive Oil

Directions

Mix all ingredients on high for several minuets. Use a 1/4 Cup to portion out cakes onto a non-stick frying pan. Cook on medium heat until top starts to bubble. Then flip and cook until edges start to brown. Top with Pure Maple Syrup or Agave Nectar. Yummy!

Powerful Pizza

A pizza that is Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Egg-Free, Soy-Free, all natural, organic, healthy, and packed full of healthy protein. And for my food friend who is fighting liver cancer....it contains very low Sodium! Yippee!

Topping Ingredients 

3 pounds of ground turkey

Olive oil

1 Red Pepper

1 Yellow Pepper

1/2 Jar of Organic and Allergy Free Marinara Sauce

3 heaping tsp. Minced Garlic

1 Tbsp. Onion Powder

1 Cup Fresh Spinach

Crust Ingredients

1 Cup Dairy-Free Milk (I used Coconut Milk)

1 1/4 Cup Quinoa Flour (or your grain of choice

8 Tbsp. Tapioca Starch (or your starch of choice)

1 tsp. Guar Gum

1 tsp. Sea Salt

1 tsp. Baking Soda

4 Tbsp. Grapeseed Oil

1 Tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar 

Directions

1. Preheat Oven 350 F

2. Mix all crust ingredients on low for about 5 minuets.

3. While crust is mixing, start browning Ground Turkey on low in a frying pan.

4. While turkey is browning, flatten dough onto a greased pizza pan.

5. Bake Pizza Crust for 18 to 20 minuets. 

6. While Crust is Baking add Onion Powder, Garlic, and Spinach to Turkey. Toss in some Olive Oil to keep it moist. 

7. Wash and Chop Peppers and add them to the frying pan.

8. Pull out crust, flip it, and then spread sauce evenly over the entire thing.

9. Add all toppings from the frying pan. Drizzle more olive oil over the top of Pizza. 

10. Bake for another 20 minuets. 

11. When fully cooked, slice into even peices and Enjoy!

Chocolate Zucchini Muffin

These are so good and fluffy. They are completely Allergy free. They contain NO Gluten, Egg, Wheat, Dairy, Corn, Tree-Nut, Peanut, or Soy. They are Vegan, super healthy and include a secret ingredient that contains healthy fats.

Let me first add that I found and amazing Ancient Grains, Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour that I used in this recipe. It is called Premium Gold All Purpose Gluten-Free Flour. I ordered it online but I have heard that most Costco's sell it. However, our local Costco does not carry it. It contains no Corn Meal, or Almond Flour unlike most Gluten-Free Flour. It is made with Rice Flour, Flaxseed, Quinoa Flour, Buckwheat Flour, Amaranth Flour, Tapioca Flour, Arrowroot Flour, and Xanthan Gum. To access where to Order it just simply click on the link and it will take you right to the website. If you don't have access to this and don't want to order the flour I have the conversion for you.

All Purpose Flour Mix Conversion

1 Cup Quinoa Flour (or grain of choice)

8 Tbsp. Tapioca Starch (or starch of choice)

3/4 tsp. Guar Gum or Xanthan Gum

Ingredients

1 Mashed Avocado

1 Cup Shredded Zuchinni 

3 Tbsp. Flax meal

6 Tbsp. Warm water

1/2 Cup Grape-seed Oil

1 tsp. Pure Vanilla

1/3 Cup Boiling Water

1 1/2 Cups of Gluten-Free All Purpose Flour

1/2 Cup Cocoa Powder

1/2 Cup Craisins

3/4 Cup Stevia or Sugar

1 1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

1 1/2 tsp. Cinnamon 

Directions

1. Preheat Oven to 350 F

2. Mix Warm Water and Flax meal. Let sit for 8 minuets to form a gel

3. Mix all wet ingredients with Flax Gel

4. Mix all dry ingredients

5. Combine wet and dry ingredients

6. Line a muffin tin with paper baking cups

7. Fill paper cups with batter to top

8. Bake on top rack for 35 minuets or until toothpick pokes clean

*You can Convert the Recipe to a Bread Simply by putting batter in a Greased Loaf Pan and increasing the time to 55 minuets.

Product of the Week: Hemp Milk

Being on an Elimination Diet can be difficult for people who love Milk. Taking Dairy out of a child's diet is not recommended because Cow's Milk is similar to Breast Milk in the sense that it is full of Calcium And Vitamin D. Calcium plays a huge role in Bone development, and Vitamin D in Brain development. Needless to say, switching to a Non-Dairy Milk should not be done casually. When it comes to a child's development you must be considerate of all nutritional values.

Here's a list of Dairy replacements:

• Rice Milk
• Soy Milk
• Almond Milk
• Coconut Milk
• Hemp Milk

I broke each one down, did some research, and good old fashion comparison of Nutrition Labels and here's what I found. Rice Milk has literally no nutritional value. It's packed with Carbohydrates and lacks Protein as well as Vitamins and Minerals essential to a child's development. Soy is not the drink of choice because it's full of Fat and again, lacks Protein, Calcium and other vital nutrients. Almond Milk is a great choice, it has the same Calcium and Vitamin D content as Cow's Milk. Two problems with Almond Milk though. 1) It lacks Calories, 30 calories just doesn't cut it for the kiddos (For an adult it's great though). And 2) Almond Milk is not recommended for people on an Elimination Diet because it contains Tree-Nuts. Other than the allergy part of it, Tree-Nuts can cause inflammation in the digestive tract. Almond Milk is not recommended for people with Auto-Immune Disease, Eosinophilic Disorder, or Inflammatory problems. So, that leaves us with Coconut Milk and Hemp Milk. Coconut Milk, like Rice Milk lacks nutrition. It does contain lots of great Fatty Acids, but it's also full of Sugar. Not a good choice when substituting Milk in a toddlers sippy cup. However, Coconut Milk is great for baking!!!! Unlike Almond Milk, Coconut is not considered a tree-nut. It's hypoallergenic and was recommended by my Allergist!

Since the Elimination Diet excludes Soy, Dairy, and Almond Milk, and both Coconut and Rice Milk are unhealthy,  what do I replace Cow's Milk with for my little tot? I present to you....

Hemp Milk!

Full of Calcium and Vitamin D, in fact it has as much as Cows Milk! It contains Protein, lots of great Fatty Acids, and comes in a Vanilla flavor that does NOT contain processed Sugar! What?! I'm not kidding. See for yourself. 

I purchased mine at Sprouts, but if you don't have a Sprouts in your hometown here is a link for you to order. Pacific Hemp Milk.

No Sugar and only 1 gram of Carbs!!!!! Sweetened with Natural Vanilla! Wait, did you see it has 70 Calories and is full of Healthy Fats? That's a Caloric equivalent to Cow's Milk and twice as much as Almond Milk. Better than Cow's Milk though, it is Healthy Fat, not full of Cholesterol. I thought I died and went to Heaven when I found this for Zachy. It gets better, the taste is wonderful! He drinks about 2 sippy cups a day of this stuff. I can rest assure he is getting proper nutrients to foster Bone and Brain development. Yes, Vitamin  D helps stimulate brain development. Cheers to the smart kids that this stuff is helping create! 

One very funny question I was asked by someone, was whether or not you can get high from drinking it. Although hemp is from the Marijuana plant, it does not contain THC. So, whether that is good news or bad news for you, it's the truth. No getting high here. 

The last note before I leave for today... Because it is made from a seed, it has an oil that will separate from the grain. Make sure you give the carton a good shake before pouring. And if you re-refrigerate sippy cups like I do...Shake it well before giving it to your child. 

There you have it. The product of the week. I will keep them coming! 

Dairy Free Italian Soda

One of my favorite drinks! I have tried several different ways to make this without dairy and with a syrup that is allergy safe. I tried to make berry syrup homemade and it wasn't all that great. So, here's what I finally came up with and after some trial and error, it was perfected! 

 Ingredients

1 Cup of Club Soda 

1 Cup Coconut Milk

3 Tbsp. Vanilla Extract

1 Tbsp. Maple Syrup

Half of a Peach sliced

Ice

Directions 

1. Pour Syrup and Vanilla in a glass filled with Ice

2. Add a few slices of Peach

3. Add Club Soda

4. Add Coconut Milk

5. Do NOT stir

Avacado Cilantro Lime Chicken

This is not Vegan, however without the chicken it is still and amazing dish full of protein! If you are Vegan or you are in the beginning if the Eosinophilic Diet Guidelines and can't have meat yet, simply omit the chicken. For the time being I'm using Chicken.

This is an amazing dish! And a little bit different, and better than the ones you see floating around Pinterest. Here's my rendition. 

Ingredients

3 Chicken Breast boiled, shredded and cooled

2 Ripe Avocados

1 Lime

1/2 Red Onion

1 Bushell of fresh Cilantro

2 Tbsp. Coconut Yogurt

1 tsp. Sea Salt

2 Tsp. Minced Garlic

1 Cup Quinoa

Directions 

1. Put Onion and Cilantro in food processor until finely chopped 

2. Combine Chicken, sliced Avacado, juice from Lime, Coconut Yogurt, Galic and Sea Salt to a mixing bowl. Toss until evenly mixed and Avacados are fairly mashed

3. Add Quinoa, Onion, and Cilantro to the bowl. Toss until evenly mixed. 

4. Enjoy!!!