our thanksgiving

Thanksgiving 2013 really tricked me! A few months back, my mom let me know that she and my stepdad would be spending thanksgiving in California with his kids. Um, but we always do thanksgiving here. I'm not so good with change, you see. This left Bradley and I stranded. Where do we go now? My dad's? His dad's? His grandparents? Our friends in SC? Stay here and eat with my brother? So many choices, but we couldn't decide. Then my stepdad had some health scares (no worries, he's all better now) about a week or so before thanksgiving, and they decided not to go to California. And one by one our family made it work to be here for thanksgiving. We had the whole crew! I just think it's so funny because none of us were going to be together and then it all worked out in the end :)

via

This past year my mom has also had some health issues that have led her to go gluten free and dairy free. We were so proud to say that our entire thanksgiving feast was gluten free AND dairy free! I mean, who does that?! And the best part... everything was SO GOOD! And I bet if you had been a guest at our table and I didn't tell you, you wouldn't have even known. 

I really wish I had photos of every dish to show you, but I guess we were all too excited! Here's what we had:

Turkey

Honey Glazed Ham 

Brown Rice with Pecans + Cranberries (this year's dressing)

Roasted Sweet Potatoes + Butternut Squash

Roasted Asparagus with Parmesan Cheese

Grilled Basil Corn

Sweet Potato Casserole with marshmallows

Maple Brussel Sprouts (Aaren's specialty! So freaking good)

Collards

Cranberry Salad (This weird jello that my Nana always made)

Deviled Eggs

And for dessert:

Mini Pumpkin Pies

Mini Chocolate Chess Pies

Chocolate Chewies

And more sweet potato casserole!

When planning this meal, we also decided to change some of the traditional dishes for healthier options, like instead of a greenbean casserole, we had the roasted asparagus. But we still had to have a sweet potato casserole! That is a thanksgiving staple! Roasting a lot of the veggies was so easy and fast! Just drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper. And when it came to dessert recipes we just made a few substitutions. We used Bradley's Meme's Chocolate Chess Pie Recipe but just traded out the evaporated milk for evaporated coconut milk so it was dairy free. And my mom had already been trying some gluten free pie crust recipes, so she was all set. Instead of butter she uses ghee, which is clarified butter. This option still gives you that great flavor.

We had such a wonderful holiday and I am so thankful to have my family in my life. I hope you all had a great thanksgiving, as well!

gf hawaiian chicken + steak kabobs

Happy Tuesday everyone! I mentioned the other day that we were making these kabobs for dinner and if they turned out well, I would share them here! Well, they were amazing (and gluten free), so here I am. I have to give Bradley all the props here, except for the idea. That was all me. But he took that idea and made it happen.

We were pretty excited just to try this recipe. We tend to get stuck eating our favorites and forget to try new recipes. So even if it didn't work out, we weren't worried. Luckily for us, they turned out so well!

It's safe to say I'm obsessed with pineapple. So much so, I get inflamed tastebuds if I eat too much :( those are nottt fun. And I've been known to eat a whole pineapple. So any recipe with pineapple is usually a win in my book. 

skewers (but check marshalls- I found these for $3 on clearance!)

We served our kabobs with brown rice and sauteed veggies, so all GF! I was telling you about these veggies in the last post, too. We love them, but are eating them so much we are about to be burnt out. But they are fresh and so easy to make! Just rough chop into big chunks and drizzle some olive oil, salt and pepper and then put on the grill to cook alongside your meat. And this was the first time I've ever made brown rice. We used Lundberg's short grain brown rice. They said this one was tender and "clingy and tender"- just how I like my rice! It was really easy to make. I honestly don't think anyone could mess it up. And we loved it!!

what we've been eating

1. Taco Night// This one was pretty easy to make gf! Just swap out a flour tortilla for fritos! I know, it's a genius idea. Of course, you could do corn tortillas, I'm just not a fan :) In a bowl, we lightly crumbled some fritos, and added cheese, meat, zatarin's yellow rice, corn, black beans, diced tomato and more cheese. I then like to stir it all together so you get a little of everything in each bite!

2. Steak// Bradley was at piggly wiggly one day and saw that they were running an amazing deal on rib eyes. $49.20 for 16 steaks! It was one big slab of meat that they didn't mind cutting down for us. That totals to $3.07 a steak! So yeah, steak has been on the menu a lot, but we don't mind it!

3. Cripps Pink Apples// These are from the Savannah Food Co-Op, and boy are they good! I seriously can't get enough. I eat about 2 a day, sometimes by itself and sometimes with a spoonful of good ol' peanut butter!

4. Eat Local// This was our first box from the Co-Op. We loaded up on apples, fresh eggs, squash, zucchini, green beans, grapes, and watermelon. No joke, one of those zucchini was the size of my forearm! Everything has been amazing and we're onto our 2nd box.

5. Greenbeans// One of my favorite foods. Just sauté these babies up and you're good to go!

6. Dark Chocolate Brownies// These were a Bob's Red Mill mix and we are such a fan!!! Oh my goodness, so yummy and not too sweet.

7. Summer squash// These are from this week's box. We have been grilling almost every night and we love to grill these. Just rough chop squash, zucchini and sweet onion, add some olive oil, sea salt and pepper. Put this in a broiler pan and put on the grill. We like to cook it until the onions are somewhat translucent, but everything is still crunchy. Amazing!

8. Watermelon// Another treat from the Co-Op.

9. GF Cinnamon Sugar Waffles// I did a post on these last week, so go check it out if you missed it! I honestly don't know how these are gf. Crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside with a heavenly cinnamon sugar top! So delicious!!

If you're here because you are gf, maybe these can be some fresh ideas in your menu! If you're not gf, maybe you'll consider it. Clearly, we are still eating very well. I mean, come on. Waffles and brownies?! And tonight, we're having Hawaiian Chicken Kabobs over brown rice. If it turns out well, I'll definitely write a post about it.

gluten free cinnamon sugar waffles

How amazing do these look? I mean, come on. I grew up on cinnamon toast, and have been eating it regularly until now. I never thought that I would find something to replace it. Boy, was I wrong. My mom got the book Cooking for Isaiah, which is full of gluten and dairy free recipes. In the book, there is a recipe for pancake mix, but they can be made into waffles. My mom had already tried the waffles and made an "everything" waffle, similar to an everything bagel. Anyway, she made them and instantly loved them. If you are gf and have tried the bread options out there, you know they are less than impressing. These waffles became bread for sandwiches and I couldn't be happier that she found this recipe! To make the amazing waffles that you see above, you will need to make the flour and pancake mix. Both of these recipes make a ton so you'll have it on hand. I like this so I don't have to make it every time that I want waffles.

silvana's all purpose flour blend

makes about 4 pounds

 6 cups white rice flour (Bob's Red Mill)

3 cups tapioca flour (Shiloh Farms)

1 1/2 cups potato starch (Bob's Red Mill)

1 tbsp salt

2 tbsp xanthan gum (Bob's Red Mill)

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together. Store in an airtight container and keep in a cool, dry place or in the refrigerator. 

silvana's pancake mix

makes about 2 1/2 pounds

9 cups Silvana's All-Purpose flour 

1 cup plus 2 tbsp sugar

3 tbsp baking powder

2 1/4 tsp salt

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together. Store in an airtight container and keep in a cool, dry place or in the refrigerator. 

Recipes from Silvana Nardone

cinnamon-toasted belgian waffles

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

2 cups silvana's pancake mix (above)

2 large eggs- room temp, lightly beaten

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 tbsp pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups rice milk 

maple syrup

In a small bowl, combine both sugars and 1 tsp of the cinnamon. 

Preheat a waffle maker to medium- high heat. 

In a large bowl, mix together the pancake mix and the remaining 1/2 tsp cinnamon. 

In another small bowl, mix together the eggs, oil, vanilla and milk. 

Add this wet mixture to the pancake mix and stir until just combined. 

Grease the waffle iron with nonstick cooking spray (not the baking spray! it has flour!)

Pour a heaping 1/3 cup batter into each waffle iron quarter, spreading the batter to the edges.

Sprinkle generously with the cinnamon sugar.

Close and cook until crisp, about 4 minutes. 

Serve with maple syrup

**We thought that the waffles were amazing alone, so we didn't need any syrup, but a friend suggested that a cinnamon roll icing would be so good on these. I agree and will be trying it next time!

** Also, this recipe is gf and dairy free. My mom is doing both, so we made the waffles like the recipe. You could always use regular milk, but I'll say that I'm not dairy free and these were incredible!

Seriously? Does this not look delicious?! Somebody try it with the cinnamon roll icing and let me know how it is!

the good stuff

one.two.three.four

five.six.seven.eight

Sparkling Ice- I was given one of the Kiwi Strawberry from a friend and I instantly loved it. These are naturally flavored sparkling mountain spring water. It has zero calories and no sugar. I got a few other flavors to try, such as the orange mango and peach nectarine. They are all SO GOOD!

Udi's Margherita Pizza- I was skeptical about trying these because I had tried their hotdog buns and was not a fan. At all. But my mom swore by these, so we got like 7. Turns out they are so delicious! These are great when you have had a long day and don't know what to make for dinner. Just pop it in the oven. No thinking! Definitely get these!

Bob's Red Mill Pizza Crust, Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix and Brownie Mix- I have not tried these yet, but my mom said they were good, so I'm expecting that. I really want to try the brownie mix first!

Pirate's Booty- I tried these while at work one day. The little girl that I nanny for LOVES these! I didn't even realize they were gluten free until I started this. The Aged White Cheddar is the best.

Glutino Lemon Wafer Cookies- These are pretty good. They are not my favorite, but still good to have on hand. I will say that the lemon is very strong! They also have chocolate covered vanilla wafer cookies that I like, too!

Popcorn Indiana Kettlecorn- Not much to say here. It's kettlecorn and it's delicious! This is such a good snack when you want something sweet and salty. I am such a fan!

Aidell's Chicken and Apple Sausage- I really like this brand of sausage. And it's such a change up from the regular old maple. They have other flavors as well, but the chicken and apple will surprise you!

Lundberg Risotto- These I also have not tried but my mother swears by them. This would take the place of all the pasta you can't have. I think it will be amazing and I'll probably try it this week!

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Like I said in yesterday's post, we are getting fruits and veggies from our local food co-op. So don't think I am only eating processed foods from the grocery store. Fruits, veggies, meats and eggs are at the top of my list, but we need those extra go-to's to make the transition easier! Even if you weren't gluten free, you would love all of these choices! I can be pretty picky, so you can rest assured that if I recommend it, it tastes good!

going gluten free

It all started when I was in France and my mom found out that she has Celiac disease, which I'm sure most of you know means that she can't eat any gluten. She has been getting iron infusions because she had been so tired all the time, but they weren't working, and her blood levels were agreeing. Her body wasn't absorbing the iron. Eventually her doctor ran tests and concluded that she has celiac disease. She is really frustrated with being tired all the time so she is taking it so seriously! So much, that I found it amusing at the lengths she would go to. She completely cleaned her house of any gluten. This means no flour, bread, pasta, etc. I couldn't believe that she wasn't going to bake a Cold Oven Pound Cake with me anymore! That's my Nana's recipe that we bake all the time- you can't mess it up! She also replaced all of her pots and pans (teflon can hold gluten in the scratches) and bought a new cutting board and a toaster oven. Every plate, bowl and each piece of silverware had to go through the dishwasher on sanitary to make sure it was gone. So hearing her explain it to me, I couldn't help but laugh! I thought she had completely lost it.

Once I came home, she was constantly preaching gluten free, because celiac disease is genetic. It was very frustrating to me because I absolutely love food. I always have. I had no interest whatsoever in giving up my favorite foods. Mac and cheese and I have a serious relationship. My brother started saying that she had drank the koolaid. I could eat something with gluten and then sneeze (not related in my mind- I have terrible allergies) and she would immediately tell me it was because I ate gluten. I was being watched constantly! According to her, my allergies, skin problems and mouth ulcers would go away and my anxiety would go down. Sounds good! But I can't have my favorite foods.

Eventually, I decided to give it a try. I think she just wore me down. I went 10 days eating "gluten free." I say it like that because I wasn't eating obvious things like the bread, pasta and cake, but I wasn't being over the top and researching hidden ingredients, so I'm sure that I was still eating gluten. On the 10th day, I had a meltdown. I was frustrated and just wanted my good food back! So I broke the diet for 3 days.

Today, I decided to get back on track and I had my mom go grocery shopping with me. She has been GF for almost 2 months, so she knows all the little tips and secrets. We came home with a cart full of groceries, so I should be able to stay with it! We didn't get many fruits and veggies because my mom signed Bradley and I up for the Savannah Food Co-Op. Each week we will get beautiful, organic and local produce. Earlier today we went online and placed our order. We can't wait to get our box of food!

Let's all pray that this is worth it! Who knows, mom could be right! Tomorrow, I am going to post about what we got at the grocery store, so if you want to start you'll know some delicious picks!