Sure Foods Living – gluten-free and allergen-free living

The other day I had a gluten-free donut emergency. There was a birthday in my daughter’s class and the kid brought donuts to share. I am always prepared for birthdays with cupcakes in the freezer and I can make a fast brownie, but donuts? That is not in my repertoire.

But then I remembered that my mom had just given my daughters a Babycakes Donut Maker. At the time I wasn’t that excited about another appliance in the house, but now I was ecstatic!  All I had to do was come up with a batter that was gluten-free and egg-free (daughter is allergic to eggs) and I would have mini donuts in about five minutes! I decided to use a pancake and waffle mix as the base and work from there. I always have The Cravings Place All Purpose Pancake and Waffle Mix on hand because it is a mix that does not call for eggs at all and somehow the waffles always defy gravity and come out fluffy. I sort of used their recipe (on their website) for Shortcake to make the donut batter. I can’t be certain I followed it exactly, because, like I said, it was a donut emergency and I was in a hurry! You can probably use any gluten-free batter with success.

When I brought the mini-donuts to school, I peeked in the donut box that held the “regular” donuts and to my pleasant surprise, there were donuts with vanilla icing and chocolate sprinkles, just like I had made! My daughter and another allergic girl in the class that I brought donuts for were very happy, and I have to admit that I felt like Super Mom that day!

Here is (approximately) how I made the gluten-free dairy-free egg-free donuts:

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups The Cravings Place All Purpose Pancake and Waffle Mix
• 1 cup Earth Balance Soy-Free Buttery Spread (or other non-dairy “butter” or real butter or shortening)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water

Directions:

Cut the butter or shortening into the dry mix, using a pastry cutter or knives until the the butter or shortening is blended in, or resembles small pebbles. Add the sugar and water and mix until fully blended. Batter should be somewhat thick.

Take a ziplock bag and cut off one corner so there is 1/2 inch hole. Spoon the batter into the bag, and following the directions on the donut maker, squeeze the batter out of the bag into the donut rounds when the donut maker is ready (hot). Fill it pretty full (even though the directions say to fill each with two tablespoons, don’t bother measuring). The bottom side of the donut will brown more than the top, but if you turn the donut over before icing, no one will see the less-cooked side.

Let the donuts cool a little bit before icing them or the icing will melt down the sides. For a quick icing, I mixed a little Pamela’s Vanilla Frosting Mix with a little water until it was the consistency I wanted, but you can also just use powdered sugar and water or milk, and add some vanilla too if you like. It’s up to you how you want to ice them — you can dunk the whole thing to get a glaze all over, or ice the tops like I did. There are also several frosting recipes in the recipe booklet that comes with the donut maker.

These SunButter Balls are much better than Schweddy Balls and they are gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, nut and peanut-free, and soy-free! The credit for this recipe goes to my sister, Leslie, who lovingly adapted it so that my daughter could eat it too. She also used healthy ingredients to give these little snacks a nutritional punch!

This is a great recipe to make with kids. They love to make the balls and roll them in the cereal! Once coated, keep them (the balls, not the kids) in the refrigerator to have as a healthy snack, to pack in lunches, or for protein on the go. The cereal on the outside, in addition to providing a little crunch, prevents them from being sticky.

To read the recipe for Sunbutter Balls, click over to my post on the Attune Foods blog!

My girls turned 7 and 5 this month, and for their birthday celebration, I decided to have something other than cake (see their past birthday cakes: Butterfly cakes, Fish cakes, Mermaid cakes, Aloha cakes).

The dessert was a surprise up until the moment it was ready, and it was a hit! Can you guess from the picture of my happy 7 year old what it was?

A chocolate fountain! With stuff to dip — all gluten-free and free of the top 8 allergens.

I purchased a mini chocolate fountain on Amazon for $28. It worked great, but I think in the future I would rather have the larger size. For the chocolate I used Enjoy Life Mega Chunks with organic canola oil (you have to add oil to the chocolate to thin it for the fountain). The chocolate flowed perfectly and was delicious. People couldn’t believe it was dairy-free.

For the dipping I used marshmallows, pineapple (canned), strawberries, mandarin oranges (canned), Glutino pretzel sticks, Kinnikinnick animal cookies, vanilla cake cut into chunks, and more marshmallows (the most popular item), which I also put candles in for my girls to blow out during the Happy Birthday song.

For dipping and eating, I had skewers, plates, and NAPKINS! And a hose. Yes, it was messy, but the smiles were worth it. I recommend doing it outside (even though the instructions say not to), and getting a plastic tablecloth.

The chocolate fountain may just become their birthday tradition!

I love to snack and I guess I’m pretty good at making healthy snack choices for myself. Kids, on the other hand, require a bit of coaching as to what constitutes a healthy snack. Pre-dinner time is the worst, when kids turn into beggars looking for handouts! So, to stave them off before they reach for the chips and treats, I try to put a variety of snacks out before kids ask for them — you know what they say: be one step ahead of your kid. Sometimes I set them out in a high-traffic area and don’t say a word. They discover them and sure enough, they are eating the healthy snacks and not rifling through the pantry.

Need kid-friendly snack ideas? All of the snacks on my list are gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, egg-free and nut-free… also minimally processed and healthy! Even kids with food allergies can overload on packaged carb-heavy snacks and sugary treats, so it’s important to not fall into the deprivation syndrome (letting them have as much as they want of the allergen-free treats because you feel they are deprived enough already).

These are snacks that my kids, ages 5 and 7, will actually eat, plus they double as great lunch box items!

To see my healthy snacks list, please visit Attune Foods, and add your own ideas in the comments!

Happy and Healthy Snacking!

Did you know that breakfast cereal was invented only a little over 100 years ago? What was intended as a health food has become, for most Americans, a meal of sugary processed grains devoid of real nutrition. Bright unnatural colors, marshmallow or chocolate bits and prizes are what define our boxed cereals of today. Even choosing healthy, natural cereals can mean a lot of gluten, as most cereals are made from wheat, and if you are one of the 7% of Americans who have celiac disease or are gluten intolerant (some doctors suspect the number is closer to 30%!), this big dose of gluten at the beginning of the day can really affect the rest of your day.

So, what are your breakfast options if you need to be on a gluten-free diet? Don’t worry – there are many! Head over to Attune Foods, the makers of Erewhon cereal, to read my list of gluten-free breakfast ideas, and add your own in the comments!

The first time I made Rice Crispy Treats, they turned out hard as a rock. After many attempts, I have a yummy and soft Rice Crispy Treat recipe, and it’s gluten-free and dairy-free too!

The key to making good Rice Crispy Treats is in both the ingredients and the technique. The ingredients in my recipe are different from the traditional Rice Krispies version. First of all, I  don’t use Rice Krispies because they are not gluten-free (they contain barley malt). This is changing in June 2011 — if you haven’t heard yet, Kellogg’s Rice Krispies is going gluten-free. This is wonderful news for so many families, and evidence of the growing and powerful gluten-free market.

I personally will continue to buy Erewhon Crispy Brown Rice Gluten Free Cereal because I like the ingredients better: Organic brown rice, Organic brown rice syrup, Sea salt. (The new Rice Krispies will contain whole grain brown rice, sugar, salt and BHT.) Erewhon compares in taste and crispiness to Rice Krispies, and it has been a staple in my house for years.

The next change I made to the traditional recipe was to use dairy-free butter. I used Earth Balance Soy-Free Buttery Spread, and the result was soft and chewy. You can also use coconut oil, which will result in a chewy but not as soft treat with a hint of coconut taste.

Another difference in my recipe is a higher marshmallow to cereal ratio. I have always felt that rice crispy treats never had enough marshmallow, so I fixed that problem!

I discovered after trial and error that technique is important. You must slowly heat the marshmallows or you will get a rock-hard treat.

I hope you enjoy!

Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Soft and Chewy Rice Crispy Marshmallow Treats

Ingredients:
Easy to remember! 4-4-4 (or 2-2-2 if you want just a small batch)

• 4 tablespoons Earth Balance dairy-free butter or coconut oil (coconut oil will result in crunchier treat with a hint of coconut flavor)
• 4 cups mini marshmallows
• 4 cups crispy rice cereal (I prefer Erewhon Gluten-Free)

Directions:

1. Heat dairy-free butter or coconut oil on low heat until almost melted.
2. Add marshmallow and heat S-L-O-W-L-Y in a large saucepan, with little to no stirring, until the marshmallows are almost melded together. Be patient.



3. Stir gently until the marshmallows resemble marshmallow cream. The marshmallow cream should be light and fluffy. If you heat too quickly, it will become tough and sticky, making for a tough treat. If using coconut oil, it will seem like the oil is not stirring in at first, but gently continue to incorporate it in until you don’t see any more in the edges of the pan.

   

4. When it is creamy and the butter or oil is blended in, turn off the heat, and pour the rice cereal into the pan, gently blending the marshmallow with the cereal until evenly distributed.

   

5. Pour into any kind of greased pan.
6. Cut the treats with cookie cutters while warm or cool. If using coconut oil, it is better to cut the treats while warm, as they will harden. To cut, flip the treats out of the pan onto a cutting board. Cut with a knife or use cookie cutters. If using cookie cutters, you may have to run a knife along the edge to break the marshmallow strands. If the edges of the shapes turn out a bit rough, simply mold the edges with your hands to make smooth.

   

7. When cool, store in an airtight container or plastic bag.
8. Shapes can be frosted too!

Gluten-Free and Allergen-Free Valentine’s Day food and treat ideas so you can enjoy your day of love feeling happy and healthy:

♥ Make a gluten-free Valentine’s Day pizza!

♥ Follow the trend of cake pops – gluten-free, of course!

♥ Make sure your Valentine’s candy is gluten-free!

♥ Explore some Gluten-Free Chocolate Recipes for Love!

♥ Serve up some morning love (no, I don’t mean that!) — Chocolate Cherry Drop Scones that are free of gluten and refined sugar!

♥ Make heart-shaped gluten-free brownies and frost with Valentine’s flair!

♥ Make Allergen-Free Sugar Cookies or Allergen-Free Red Velvet Cake!

♥ Buy your sweetie some See’s Candy – make sure you check the allergen info first!

♥ Make allergen-free Sweetheart S’mores!

If you have any more Valentine’s Day ideas, leave them in the comments!

Tonight my girls chowed down a plate of kale and fought over the last bite, which I then had to split in half. No, I’m not magic! The kale tasted good. Take it from my 4 year old who looked at it and said “Yuck” and then tasted it and said “Yum!” It feels good to watch your kids eat such a powerhouse veggie, packed with vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C, calcium, vitamin B6, and magnesium! Plus, it’s in season now (winter).

I was first introduced to the idea of kale chips by Michelle of What’s Cooking With Kids many months ago when she shared with me her simple recipe as we walked through the Marin farmer’s market. Combining her instructions, a few tips from Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen, and my own advice, I am sharing how I made the kale chips that my daughters loved so much.

KALE CHIPS

Ingredients:

• One bunch of organic kale (try to get Lacinato kale, otherwise known as Dinosaur or Tuscan kale — the hearty leaves are dark blue-green) UPDATE: I’ve decided I like regular old green kale better for chips and it is easy to break the leaves off the stem.
• Olive oil
• Salt (I prefer fine grain sea salt for these chips)

Directions:

1. Wash the kale leaves and spin dry in a salad spinner, or dry with a towel or paper towels. CONTINUE READING »

Okay, if you are like me, you don’t always (never?) have time to make roll out sugar cookies, cut them into shapes and decorate. Though they are fun, they really are time-consuming. And I still haven’t experimented enough to find a reliable gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free roll out sugar cookie recipe.

What I have been doing lately is make whatever cookie is good (in this case it was oatmeal cookies) and pipe decorations onto them. The kids love them! If you don’t own a piping set, you really must get one. It’s so easy and fun to make your treats look fancy!

Don’t miss the 2010 Halloween Candy lists:

• Halloween Candy List – Gluten-Free Allergen-Free Status – 2010
• Allergen-Free Halloween Candy Quick List 2010
• Gluten-Free Halloween Candy Quick List 2010

This year’s double birthday party featured a Hawaiian theme. We went to Hawaii on vacation this summer and my girls fell in love with a hula dancer we saw. (I also encouraged the Hawaii idea so I could re-use the fish decorations I have used the last two years! I am running out of themes featuring the ocean.)

Once again, my mom made the cakes with Pamela’s chocolate cake mixes, and they were gluten-free, dairy-free, and egg-free. I have already frozen the leftovers for any future cake needs that arise — I will keep the frosting as is or scrape it off and refrost as necessary!

We had 12 little girls and invited the parents to stay for food and Mai Tais made with my husband’s grandfather’s secret Mai Tai recipe from Hawaii. You only needed one!
The gluten-free dinner menu included:

• Quinoa tabouleh salad with cucumber, tomatoes, green onions, mint, parsley, lemon juice, feta cheese
• Black bean salad with corn, jicama, red pepper, and cucumber, tossed in a vinaigrette
• Oven roasted baby gold potatoes
• Barbecued Aidell’s chicken apple and cajun style andouille sausages
• Freshly cut pineapple

The party was a success, complete with tiki mask pinata, treasure hunt and a spontaneous dance party at the end. It is hilarious to hear 6 and 4 year olds singing, “All the single ladies!” They are growing up too fast!

Past birthday posts:
Happy Birthday to my girls and wow! gluten-free mermaid cakes! 2009
Happy Birthday to my girls 2008