Real Food with Christine

  When I picked up my daughter from preschool yesterday, her teacher told me that they were having DD Munchkins for a birthday party tomorrow. I avoid all foods that are not made with real wholesome ingredients. Even if it's a dessert and made with sugar I still want it to have clean, real ingredients. I have made it my goal to find a replacement for every snack that my kids may see and want. They have never asked for a Munchkin. Now I realized this is one thing they are going to come across a lot and I need to find a replacement. I never want my daughter to feel left out just because she has allergies, so I started searching online, and in every cookbook I had in my kitchen and couldn't find something that would come out round but be donut-like. Then I remembered that I bought this cake pop pan in Target and haven't used it yet. I used the Vanilla cake donuts from  Babycakes NYC  posted  here . Now I've got a perfect Munchkin replacement. Whew, I can breathe ...

Before going gluten free I had been known to make a meal out of bread. Well, bread, olives, hummus, etc. I could eat bread everyday. I always had digestive issues but never thought it was the gluten. The more bread I ate the more uncomfortable I was. I cut out gluten and felt better, I also found out I was allergic to yeast which the bread was not helping with. I didn't miss the bread all that much because I knew it would lead to stomach discomfort. Every so often, I get this urge for a really good loaf of bread. Until now, I did not have one that was gluten free but tasted good enough to satisfy the craving, I did try some gluten free baguettes but they usually contain yeast and any recipe I tried that didn't have gluten, dairy or yeast was not that good so I just rather do without. If I'm not going to thoroughly enjoy my food when I eat it, I'm going to eat something else that I enjoy. When I saw this Easy French Bread recipe from Iris from The Daily Dietribe...

These meatballs are perfect as appetizers or for a main course on top of salad. There is so much flavor in these, that you can eat them just the way they are. My one year old loves these. He is now at the age I can hand him a small item and he will walk around and take bites. I gave him one of these, and he ate it so fast and came running back for more. This recipe was inspired by this recipe from  The Urban Poser . Ingredients 1 lb. grass fed ground beef 1 egg 3 scallions chopped 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped 1 teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1/4 cup brown rice bread crumbs (you can use almond flour if you do not eat grains) 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper Directions Preheat oven to 350. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix together until well combined. Roll into golf ball size meatballs and place on parchment lined baking sheets. Bake for 20 minutes. Place under broiler for the last 2-3 minutes...

It's that time again where Girl Scout cookies are being sold. I wanted to make some of the cookies in a gluten free, healthier version for my kids to enjoy. I started with Samoas, these are a favorite by all of us and this version didn't disappoint. I even tested these out on some gluten eating people and they loved them. If Samoas are one of your favorite Girl Scout cookies I definitely recommend this recipe. This recipe was adapted from this recipe from Elana's Pantry . Ingredients Cookie 2 cups almond flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 3 tablespoons honey 1 egg 3 tablespoons coconut oil For the Topping I used a caramel recipe from  Paleo Indulgences  by Tammy Credicott. If you are looking for a good paleo cookbook, this one is great. There are many recipes in here I can't wait to make. Here is the caramel recipe posted with permission from The Healthy GF Life . Ingredients for Caramel 1 cup coconut crystals 1/4 cup coconut necta...

I found out my daughter was allergic to soy a little over a year ago. Once we found out, I made sure we didn't use any soy sauce in the house. Some of my recipes that called for soy sauce really did need it. I was very happy recently, when I found this product from Coconut Secret called coconut aminos . This is a really good replacement for soy sauce. Vegetable fried rice was one of my favorite Chinese takeout dishes. Now this version is not only soy free, but grain free, gluten free and dairy free too! Using cauliflower as rice is a great way to get a rice textured dish and include another veggie in your meal.  This recipe was inspired by this recipe  from Detoxinista. Ingredients 1 tablespoon olive oil 1/2 onion diced 1 large garlic clove (if they are small use 2) minced 1/2 cup shredded carrots 1 tablespoon filtered water 2 whole eggs beat 2 cups cauliflower “rice” 1 tablespoon of coconut aminos sea salt 2 scallions for topping Directions ...

This is another recipe from The Earth Diet that I would like to share with you. Ice cream is another one of my favorite desserts and this recipe from Liana at  The Earth Diet makes it possible to have a healthy nutritious ice cream treat. I have made other raw nut ice creams, but so far I think that this walnut version is my favorite. Original recipe can be found here . Ingredients 1 1/2 cups walnuts 1 cup water 1/2 cup maple syrup dash of sea salt 2 tablespoons cacao 1 tablespoon vanilla extract For some other variations try adding one of the following: 1/2 cup raw cacao chips 1/2 cup chopped homemade peanut butter cups 1/2 cup chopped raw cookie dough bites 1/2 cup chopped raw chocolate coconut balls Directions Put ingredients into a powerful blender, I use the Vita-Mix. Blend until smooth and creamy. If adding any of the optional additions, stir them in after blending the ice cream. Transfer to a bowl and put in the freezer for a few hours (I left mine f...

Sweet Potatoes are a favorite in my house. Usually I just bake them and enjoy them as is with a sprinkle of sea salt, cayenne or garlic. I never made homemade french fries, so when I saw this recipe from The Earth Diet , I figured they would be awesome and I was right! This recipe is from The Earth Diet See the original recipe here Ingredients 3 large sweet potatoes shredded coconut coconut oil for frying sea salt Directions Cut your potatoes into french fries. Heat about 1/2 inch of coconut oil in a deep pan. Fry potatoes in batches until golden brown. Transfer to a dish and sprinkle with shredded coconut and sea salt.