Casein Free

Healthy Lunchbox 2012: Shannon from Enjoying Gluten-Free Life

August 24, 2012 By SunnyB 3 Comments

I first met my friend Shannon when she won a copy of Eat Like a Dinosaur several months ago. Since then, her site: Enjoying Gluten-Free Life has become one of my favorite stopping grounds. Not only does Shannon share some wonderful tips for gluten-free living, she finds the most interesting people to interview!

I am a firm believer in planned overs and hope you find Shannon’s post as enjoyable and enlightening as I do!

Thanks, Shannon! Xo

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Loving Leftovers

Leftovers – or planned-overs – are a mainstay in our home. Switching from purposefully making one meal to two or more may increase the prep time a bit or not at all, depending on the recipe, so the time savings are obvious. Some meals like a casserole naturally stay in the same form for lunch and some like roast chicken can easily be transformed into many different meals. No matter what, leftovers can translate into fast, healthy, delicious meals that take little prep time and will be enjoyed by both kids and adults when lunchtime rolls around.

On that roasted chicken, I roast bone-in breasts in the oven*. (I like the flavor and moistness of the bone-in vs. boneless). Or I put a whole chicken in the crockpot, seasoning it up, add a little water in the bottom, and cook it on low for half a day. Either becomes an immediate meal but offers up so much more.

Lay slices of chicken on bread or roll in a tortilla. A sandwich of chicken with a bit of mustard was my favorite when I was a kid.
Cut chicken into cubes, mix in mayo and the child or adult’s favorite veggies or add some seasonal fruit. As summer ends, chopped peaches and plums would be perfect. As fall fruits appear, add apples and pears. (Remember to coat the apple and pear with some citrus juice so it doesn’t brown.) Some seeds or chopped nuts add a nice crunch.
Chunks of chicken on a bed of lettuce. Throw on some other veggies, some berries, cheese, again the seeds or nuts for crunch (sunflower seeds are my favorite) and add a small container of dressing to add later.
Have a meal like chicken pot pie, shredded chicken in BBQ sauce on a bun or chicken tetrazzini for dinner – using the pre-cooked chicken. Send leftovers – hot except the BBQ – for lunch the next day. (This makes three meals off of that chicken.)

*My favorite and oh, so, easy seasoning for baked chicken (I have some in the oven right now) – Generously sprinkle on Italian Herb Seasoning and paprika, then add salt and pepper to taste, bake at 375 degrees until done.

Cold

(Remember to add ice packs or, for adults, put this in the fridge at work.)

A slice of a frittata –we’re used to eating frittata’s hot but Italians are comfortable with having a cold slice.
Many proteins – roast beef to meatloaf to salmon – can either be sliced or mixed with some mayo and added to a sandwich or wrapped in a tortilla or lettuce wrap.
Pizza. (Am I the only one who loves it cold?)
Hummus or another bean dip with things to dip make a great high-protein, and totally fun, lunch.
Hard boiled eggs make a nutritious breakfast or snack and can go to school (peeled is probably best) as is or quickly morph into deviled eggs.

Hot

Use a keep-warm container such as a Thermos. (For food safety: you may want to test the container by putting hot food in it per the directions then checking the temperature when it would be eaten – four or five hours later – to see if it held the heat.)

Any soup. You could even send fun toppings for the child (or adult) to add such as cheese (dairy or not) for the top of black bean soup or tortilla strips for a spicy chicken soup.
Casseroles – Anything from a gluten-free version of tuna and noodle casserole or macaroni and cheese
Last night’s main course. Many dinners – chicken parmesan, pot roast, spaghetti (squash) and meatballs – and their sides make great lunches.

Complete the meal with other leftovers. Bake extra muffins (hopefully low sugar) at breakfast time then throw one in as a fun dessert. Consider making a chunky fruit salad for dessert the night before then transforming the leftovers into a fruit kabob with a dip on the side. (As Elise Johnson from Cooking with Elise said in her Healthy Lunchbox 2012 post, cut the sharp tips off of the skewer for safety.)

Planning ahead so that you have more than you need for one meal can make your life a lot easier, and make both mornings and lunch more pleasant. I also find it saves us money because I’m less tempted to buy more expensive alternatives that are easier when I’m in a hurry and nothing else is readily available.

Healthy Lunchbox 2012: The Paleo Parents

August 23, 2012 By SunnyB 9 Comments

I have no doubt that you are familiar with my friends Stacy and Matt from The Paleo Parents. I mean, between their fantastic and family friendly book, Eat Like a Dinosaur, their phenomenal Pod Cast and of course their adorable website, how could you not?

If that weren’t enough, last year’s Healthy Lunchbox Paleo Parents Guest Post is what launched me from an 80/20 or 60/40 paleo dabble to a 99.9% dedication (0.01% for the occasional slip).

It’s easy to see why I am so very excited to have them once again join the Healthy Lunchbox series and share their paleo parenting expertise with us all.

I hope you enjoy their post as much as I have, and please don’t forget to check back with The Paleo View Podcast tomorrow, which I am tickled pink to be a part of!

Thanks Stacy and Matt!

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If you recall, last year we did a guest post for Sunny of And Love it Too on packing paleo lunches for school. We’ve included those ideas for you at the end as our daily suggestions. As a quick reminder, we also discussed the topic of healthy lunches quite extensively on the first episode of our podcast, The Paleo View. We also cover this topic in our book, Eat Like a Dinosaur.

Due to our personal experiences last year with lunch packing, when Sunny asked us this year to contribute to her annual round-up, we wanted our annual post to focus more on food “replacers” as an option for alternative choices. Otherwise known as, food that looks the same as what the other kids are eating.

As our oldest child moved up in grade school, the challenge of packing a “normal” looking lunch in order to avoid being “different” and teased became more complex. So, this post is full of ideas for dealing with the emotional emergency of Johnny says I’m weird and teases me because I don’t eat yogurt and chips.

Also, it’s a very real and overwhelming problem of converting to always homemade real food for so many people. Going from prepackaged foods like chips, yogurts, cheese sticks, and fruit cocktails and instead using whole ingredients and packing from the fridge instead of the pantry can be quite daunting in the rushed morning. Even worse, many people don’t know what to do in place of that old lunchroom standby, the sandwich. I thought it might be helpful to share some of our best tricks t0 replace those easy-on-hand products with better* versions.

Replace Sandwich Bread with Pure Wraps

Let me address the biggest hair-tearing quandary straight off. So many people tell me they can’t imagine packing a lunch without also packing a sandwich. Unfortunately, regular bread is the most gluteny, high-carb food product you can buy (not to mention that most grocery store breads are full of all kinds of crazy chemical preservatives. The gluten-free replacements aren’t much better: they’re usually based on other grains like rice or heavy starches like tapioca or potato, along with containing the same preservatives. Not only that, but they often have seed oils and bean products (like guar gum), and don’t even have the texture and mouthfeel of real bread anyway. What’s a parent with lunchmeat to do?

Enter a favorite of ours, Pure Wraps. Somehow, the folks at Improv’eat have figured out a way to make a tortilla using only coconut meat, coconut water, and salt. They’re like tortillas with a slightly stiff bite and are pretty delicious on top of it! Use it like you would any wrap! We like to use ham or turkey wrapped with avocado slices or use them for tuna salad.

Replace Pudding or Yogurt with Almond or Coconut Milk Yogurt

If you’re dairy-free like us, losing Bill Cosby’s favorite treat and the staple of yoga moms everywhere was very hard for us. I believe the human palate has a desire for different textures even more powerful than its desire for different “food groups” and yogurt and pudding hit that creamy spot and are very hard to replace without the whole lot of effort of cooking custard on the stove or fermenting your own yogurts over the course of several days.

Luckily, you can now find coconut milk and almond milk yogurts in most higher quality and health food stores (including Whole Foods), many grocery stores (like Wegman’s) and even on Amazon. The texture is practically identical to regular yogurts and there are the same variety of flavors Dannon and Yoplait will give you. They’re even free of evil soybeans! So when your kids become jealous of their friends’ strawberry yogurt, you can confidently sending them to school with a strawberry coconut yogurt.

Replace Chips with Banana Chips or Healthier Potato Chips

Nothing says empty calories and rancid seed oils more than Doritos and cheese puffs! Then again, nothing appeals the child’s palate more than a salty crunchy carb! Instead of potato chips, why not give them a crunchy food that also contains some mineral and vitamin content? Still not the best choice, but a really special treat your kids will love!

We are able to find a plain brand like this one in oure regular grocery store, but try to plan ahead by ordering online and choosing brands that cook with safe fats & oils – these Avocado Oil Potato Chips and Banana Chips in Coconut Oil are always big favorites with our boys. They love using cool reusable baggies, which saves the environment and our money!

Replace Crackers and Popcorn with SeaSnax, Coconut Chips or Trail Mix

No, really! You’re already thinking that your kids won’t like seaweed, but these green wonders are actually really delicious! They’re salty, but contain all the mineral content you’d ideally want from a snack. Did you know that seaweed is one of the best sources for iodine, a key mineral in thyroid function, that we can find? We buy cases of SeaSnax and pack them several times a week.

Coconut and fruit and nuts are also much more nutrient dense sources for snacking, our boys LOVE making their own trail mix with their favorite nuts, dried fruit and coconut – or there are plenty pre-made options available at Trader Joe’s or Amazon.

Replace Fruit Cocktail with Apple Sauce Pouches

If you ever look at the side of a fruit cocktail cup and actually read the ingredients and nutritional content, you’ll find that this is not a healthy fruit source of vitamins and minerals, but rather an insidious sugar delivery system that amps up the sweetener, especially the corn syrup, content. So, instead, I pack him an all-natural unsweetened apple sauce squeeze pouch. It’s fun to suck up applesauce from a straw! Plus, a natural applesauce is much lower in sugar than indeterminate fruit pieces cased in syrup!

Replace Granola Bars with Larabars

Nothing, to me, is more overhyped as a health food than ye olde granola bar. When I was growing up, this was the healthy alternative to candy bars and moms were always using it as the default snack. Unfortunately, soon the default granola bar was the Chewy brand, practically a candy bar with HFCS and chocolate chips and marshmallows.

Even the healthy and natural versions have added sugar and, of course, grains. Larabar takes a different tact. All the ingredients in this delicious snack are dried fruit and nuts. All you do is mash together all these ingredients and you’ve got a real whole food snack to replace your granola! We have recipes to make your own Fruit & Nut bars in Eat Like a Dinosaur, but even we take shortcuts too!

Replace Cheese Sticks with Black Olives

In our preschool, the default snack that parents provide seems to always be cheese sticks. Unfortunately, I know that nothing good will come from my son eating that cheese stick. What are they really getting from cheese anyway? Mostly fat. So why not replace that fat source with heath olive oil? The sacred olive fruit is a perfect snack and we eat them by the bowlful! Best of all? We can subscribe and save some cases of BPA-free cans!

*Please note, some of these options aren’t the best choices. However, when you’re converting to whole foods from processed, when you’re dealing with children’s emotions and the trauma of being teased, or simply about to give up all together if you can’t find shortcuts – these foods are much better choices than their alternatives.

Here is what our children’s lunches usually look like, when we’re able to plan and everyone’s feeling strong about their healthful looking lunches. You’ll note, half the battle is with the cool accessories, which we post on our site here!

I hope this post has been of use to you and you can now be less stressed about leaving behind your formerly standard packed lunch items; time doesn’t have to be a limiting factor from having a nutrient dense and wholesome kid-friendly lunch!

Stacy and Matt are the minds behind the blog PaleoParents.com. They also wrote the children’s cookbook Eat Like a Dinosaur for their three boys, Cole, Finn and Wesley. When they’re not chasing three active boys, they enjoy packing lunches while listening to Stacy’s new podcast, The Paleo View.

Filed Under: Healthy Lunchbox, Other, Paleo Tagged With: Casein Free, Corn Free, Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Main Dish, Paleo, Soy Free, Sugar-Free

Healthy Lunchbox 2012: Tessa the Domestic Diva

August 22, 2012 By SunnyB 3 Comments

When Tessa the Domestic Diva first started entering my Ingredient-Challenge Monday’s, I must say the events took on a new level of excitement.

You see, when I do our Ingredient-Challenge Monday reviews, I actually do my best to make every recipe entered.

Yes, every recipe.

And Tessa’s first ICM Winning Recipe for Sautéed Kale with Caramelized Onions has become a staple in our home because of it.

Anything that gets my kids excited to eat their greens is a welcome item in my home.

Since the this year’s Healthy Lunchbox series was well under way when I would normally have posted a challenge, I opted to skip this month but promise to feature our winning Blueberry Recipe when the ICM challenge opens again in September (and yes, Tessa is definitely in the running!).

Until then, I am so pleased to share Tessa’s lunchbox tips and delicious recipe below.

Thanks, Tessa! xo

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I have never considered myself a lunchbox guru. Just like every other mom out there, I find myself whirling around the kitchen to assemble a lunch before the bus arrives. But time and time again, I get asked about lunchboxes, AND I GET IT!! I have learned a thing or two about packing TASTY gluten free lunchboxes, and I would love to share with you! I did a whole 10 day day series on GF lunchboxes which could help inspire you in your GF Allergy-Friendly lunchbox endeavor this year! The topics I covered: Here are the topics I’ve covered in this series of lunchboxes: Reusable Lunchbox Wares, Sweet GF Wrap Ideas, Packing a Balanced Lunchbox, Stocking Up w/ an Oatmeal Snack Cookie, Lunch on a Stick, GF DF Dips & Spreads for a Lunchbox, 10 GF Wrap Ideas, Sweet GF Wrap Ideas, Making Use of Leftovers, Muffins & Waffles for a Lunchbox?!, Top Foods for a Healthy Lunchbox.

WHAT ABOUT MY SANDWICH??!!!:

The quintessential lunchbox filler: the sandwich. When gluten is out, sandwiches can be the very first thing that people look to recreate. But gluten free breads lack the softness, the texture, and appeal of most of their gluten counterparts (THERE, I said it!).

While my family has several breads we have grown to love…if you are looking to replace your old sandwich bread exactly…you might be disappointed. I have yet to find a GF bread my husband will accept in the form of a sandwich! Great Harvest makes a good loaf on Thursdays, but there are eggs and butter. Udi’s Chia-Millet is my daughter’s favorite, but it has eggs too. We have a local bakery (New Cascadia) that makes many delicious loaves …but all have eggs.

I propose you think OUTSIDE the box when packing a gluten-free lunchbox. Or more accurately: outside the SANDWICH!!

The Deconstructed Sandwich: Leave the bread off and cube some favorite sandwich meat, allowed cheese, cherry tomatoes etc. Serve with a toothpick and a mustard and mayo ‘dip’! In this method, I provide a serving of whole grains the form of a muffin or crackers…both popular with my kiddos.
The Toasted GF Bread Secret: OK, so maybe it is not a secret, but lots of newbies don’t know this: To get the BEST texture out of your GF bread for sandwiches, toast it lightly first!! I do this before I assemble the sandwich, and it improves the texture drastically in most instances.
Protein is protein: protein does NOT need to be housed in a tidy sandwich mold!! make yourself of list of proteins your child will go for (allowed yogurts, nuts, seeds, eggs, meats, nutbutters, etc). Figure out a a serving size, and stuff in it’s own container along with something from every other food group: wholegrains, fruits, vegetables, sensible treat. Think a mini buffet or salad bar: a little of this, a little of that…kids love it!

The Pizza Wrap (foundation):

Finding a perfect wrap. It was my mission.

When corn is out, so are corn tortillas and teff tortillas (they are made with corn too). And quite frankly, we don’t even like corn tortillas as a sandwich wrap, and the teff tortillas are not up our alley (strangely, as teff is one of our very favorite flours?!) We started using brown rice tortillas, but I REALLY wanted a soft, pliable tortilla that mimicked a whole wheat tortilla. It took loads of attempts, but I eventually came up with a recipe that I think is SO good, that even if I COULD have gluten again, these would be in my fridge at all times like they are now.

I used that here, and best of all? I have provided plenty of options for making it grain free or nut free (yet always vegan!) as your allergies dictate. And every version I have made ( and I change it up almost every batch) turns out great! Versatile and handy to have around, this is one recipe you definitely want in your repertoire!

I created this wrap to incorporate one of my kids favorite foods: pizza. The fillings you choose to put in can cater to each person’s preferences and is easily adaptable.

Ingredients:

1 GF Flour Tortilla (find my favorite tortilla recipe here)
1-2 slices deli ham, thinly sliced
Sliced pepperoni (we like Applegate Farms, no dairy, no gluten)
Grated mozzarella cheese (allowed), or any allowed cheese
Additional Topping Options: peppers, olives, mushrooms, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, etc.

Method:

Gently heat the meats in a medium skillet over medium heat.
Place the tortilla in an oiled pan, sprinkle with cheese, and top with warmed meats of choice. As the cheese begins to melt, remove from heat. Roll the tortilla up as tightly as possible. I like to make sure there is some cheese on the very end of the tortilla that I roll to to help ‘glue’ it closed in it’s rolled form.
Serve along with a marinara ‘dip’!

Filed Under: Gluten Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Other Tagged With: Casein Free, Cheeze, Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Main Dish

Healthy Lunchbox 2012: Gluten-Free Gigi

August 20, 2012 By SunnyB 7 Comments

Have you met my friend, Gluten-Free Gigi? Gigi is a scientist turned health specialist and I simply adore and always learn so much from her “A Side of Science” series.

Gigi was one of the guest-bloggers for last year’s Healthy Lunchbox series where she shared a delicious chocolate chip mini-muffin recipe.

This year she made me smile when she sent me an e-mail saying “Of course, amid all the veggies and healthy deliciousness, you can count on me to make a cookie. ”

To which I replied, “even the healthiest diets deserve a cookie every now and then. ”

No doubt your healthy lunchbox will deserve one of these grain-free, dairy-free, peanut-free and tree-nut free cookies, too!

Thanks, Gigi! Xo

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What a happy surprise when I opened an email from Sunny inviting me to be part of her Healthy Lunchbox series again this year! It’s a real honor to join Sunny and her awesome bunch of foodies again. I love seeing how each one makes lunchtime a little healthier.

In my home, because we home school, there is no “lunchbox” and lunchtime can happen at any time.

Sometimes our tummies tell us we need a veggie stir-fry at 11AM. When that’s the case, we take advantage of the “teaching moment”. Learning to put together a healthy, in-season veggie dish with what we have on hand, practicing knife skills (slicing and dicing the veggies) and fine-tuning our cooking techniques are important parts of our home school days.

Other times, we’re caught up in activities and projects (as we have been lately creating a hummingbird habitat in our backyard) and lunch comes late in the day. When that happens, we make up funny names like “linner” or “dunch” for that meal that fits neither into the “lunch” or “dinner” category. One of our favorite hearty late lunches is simple roasted chicken with garlic and lime, cauliflower mashed “potatoes”, and spinach salad with a tangy lime vinaigrette.

Regardless of how erratic our lunch schedule, one thing remains constant. We must have dessert. Every day.

Because we are cookie lovers to the core, we spend a lot of time revamping traditional recipes to fit our gluten-, dairy-, soy-, peanut-, tree nut-free household and to make the recipes just a bit more nutritious.

We each have “our” cookies – recipes developed especially for each of us. We also like creating cookies to mark occasions like our giant tooth cookies we leave for the Tooth Fairy and the autumn leaf cookies we make to celebrate the first day of fall each year. And of course, with each new school year, we create a brand new “Back to School” cookie.

To kick off this school year, my Little Chef (she’s 11) and I developed a new (healthier) version of one of her favorite flavor combos – chocolate and peanut butter!

When we created the recipe, I knew it would be perfect for sharing with you. It fits multiple special diets, is grain free and uses very little natural sweetener.

The recipe is so simple to put together and these substantial little cookies bake up moist, chewy, and delish, yet are sturdy enough for packing into a lunchbox to make the school day a little sweeter!

Little Chef’s Gluten Free Back to School Cookies

Grain free, dairy free, peanut free, tree nut free

Ingredients:

1/3 cup sunflower seed butter (I make my own from unsalted roasted sunflower seeds; you can find out how here. You can also substitute any nut or seed butter you like – store-bought or homemade.)

2 Tablespoons organic coconut oil, soft

2 Tablespoons pure maple syrup (or other liquid sweetener of your choice, like honey or agave nectar)

2 eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (Look for Rodelle brand grain free vanilla.)

4 Tablespoons tapioca flour

3 Tablespoons coconut flour

Pinch of salt

1/2 cup chocolate chips or chunks (We use Enjoy Life Foods gluten free allergen free chocolate.)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a baking pan or line with parchment.

2. In a mixing bowl, stir sunflower seed butter, coconut oil, maple syrup, eggs and vanilla together until smooth.

3. Add flours and salt. Stir until smooth.

4. Stir in chocolate pieces.

5. Spoon batter onto prepared pan in 1/2-Tablespoon rounds, about 1 1/2-inches apart. Do not flatten.

6. Bake approximately 10 minutes.

7. Remove pan from oven and allow cookies to cool on the pan.

Filed Under: Dairy Free, Desserts, Gluten Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Other Tagged With: Casein Free, Cookies, Corn Free, Dessert, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Grain Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Nut Free, Paleo, Side Dish, Snack

Healthy Lunchbox 2012: Paula from Live Free, Gluten Free

August 19, 2012 By SunnyB 4 Comments

Today on Healthy Lunchbox 2012, Paula from Live Free, Gluten Free shares her tips for packing delicious lunches for children and spouses.

Paula’s story is very similar to mine in that she spent years being ill and no body, not even her gastroenterologist, could tell her why. It was not until her mother suggested that she might have Celiac Disease that Paula ever considered removing gluten. And while that made her feel better, it was not until she removed dairy that she felt 100%.

Please take time to read Paula’s story, as between her own experience and the process of having her boys diagnosed, there is so much that hits home with me and undoubtedly much that will hit home with you as well.

Thank you for taking the time to share your tips and delicious crepe recipe with us, Paula! xo

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I’m a mom of two cute boys (a 2nd grader and a preschooler), my older one is gluten-free, and my younger one is gluten and dairy-free, like me. And I’m also a wife to a gluten-eating husband. My preschooler gets a snack every day at school and also eats lunch and a snack at day care, all of which are provided by them. I’ve worked with both places extensively to train them on how to properly handle his food. But, that leaves three of us that need lunches during the day.

My biggest piece of advice in packing lunches, is pack them for that person. Everyone has their own tastes and preferences, so if you want them to eat their lunch, pack it with their preferences. Involve your kids (or husband) in deciding what goes into their lunch. I make a weekly menu every Saturday, and each time I do, I ask my son what he wants to eat for lunch that week. His favorite is peanut butter and jelly on Udi’s bread, and he would eat that everyday if he could. So, if your kids are like mine, prompt them with ideas of new things to try, and they probably will get excited about it and look forward to trying it.

For my own lunches, I almost always have leftovers. Its fast and easy, which cuts down on the time I spend making lunches and saves money, too. Below is what I had for lunch the other day: left over oven fried chicken, mashed potatoes, veggies with both hummus and red pepper hummus, a banana, and water kefir with mango puree added. The fruit and veggies are usually used as my snack in the afternoon, when I hit a wall, and the kefir stays on my desk next to a water bottle, so I will drink from both throughout the day.

My husband always eats sandwiches. If I gave him leftovers, he would go out to lunch, and I would prefer him eating a lunch from home, because it saves a lot of money that way. So, sandwiches and fruit is what goes in his lunch. No picture, because, well, it’s not that exciting.

My son is getting better at trying new things. He’s discovered he loves to assemble his own little pizzas with the Schar Crispbread, Pepperoni, and Cheese (we use Daiya Cheese in our house). And he LOVES crepes. And, I love that I can make a bunch ahead of time, freeze them between wax paper, and thaw them as needed for lunches.

What I really enjoy about crepes is their versitility. You can roll them up with turkey, spread them with nut butter and roll them up with fruit, or spread them with hummus and top it with veggies. The possibilities are endless.

My son’s favorite way to eat them is to spread them with peanut butter and jelly and roll them up with bananas. That lunch is easily completed with some veggies and hummus, fritos (yes, I do let my son have chips, he’s more likely to eat the hummus if I add the fritos into the mix), some almond milk, and some grapes for dessert and lunch is good to go! I sliced his crepe and skewered the slices to make them easy finger foods, and did the same to the grapes just to make them a little funner to eat.

Below is my recipe for crepes:

Basic Crepes

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour blend (note: my blend has xanthan gum in it)

3 eggs

3/4 cup So Delicious Original Coconut Milk or other dairy-free milk

3/4 cup water

1/4+1/8 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons dairy-free margarine, melted

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the eggs. Gradually add in the milk and water, stirring to combine. Add the salt and margarine, beat until smooth. If the batter seems thick and a little more water to it until it’s the consistency of a thin pancake batter.

2. Heat a lightly buttered (with dairy-free margarine) 10-12″ frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter into the pan, using about 1/4 cup or so for each crepe. Tilt the pan in a circular motion so that the batter coats the surface evenly.

3. Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes or until the bottom is light brown. Loosen with a spatula, flip and cook the other side. Serve hot. This makes about 10-12 crepes. To freeze, cool them completely and place them between pieces of wax or parchment paper and freeze in gallon size ziploc bags. You can then pull them out one at a time and thaw the night before for lunch the next day.

Filed Under: Healthy Lunchbox, Other Tagged With: Casein Free, Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Snack, Sugar-Free

Healthy Lunchbox 2012: Dawn Allen from Cuter than Gluten

August 14, 2012 By SunnyB 11 Comments

Today on Healthy Lunchbox 2012, Dawn Allen from Cuter than Gluten.

Dawn is, what I consider to be, a gluten-free/dairy-free bento box expert. I knew when she joined this year’s Healthy Lunchbox series that we were in for a treat! I love her cookie-cut fruits and veggies, the recipe below is a great alternative to more traditional grain-filled breads and who doesn’t love waffles?

After you read her post below, be sure to visit Cuter than Gluten and learn more about Dawn’s soon to be released cookbook: Culinary Creativity: Let your restrictions set you free. For more great ideas, you can also follow Dawn on facebook.

Thank you Dawn! xoxo

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Thank you Sunny for inviting me to talk about lunches for kids.

When I was in second grade in rural West Virginia, the lunch my (hippie) mom packed for me got a lot of strange looks. She often packed her thick homemade bread in repurposed bread bags (to reuse/recycle). My vegetarian lunch was always full of carrot sticks and red peppers—not common fare at the lunch table. Now I am proud of my mom for packing healthy lunches. Back then I liked my lunch but I didn’t like all of the attention it drew. Everyone else was eating bologna on white bread with potato chips. I pleaded with her to purchase sandwich bags.

Fast forward 30 years and now I am the alternative mom packing the different lunches …

A few years ago, when my daughter started preschool, I discovered the Japanese tradition of decorative bento lunches for kids. It looked like tons of fun to do little art projects made of food. It also seemed like a great way to send my daughter to school with gluten- and dairy-free lunches without drawing attention to her special diet. It worked, all of the attention goes to the cute boxes and fun food themes, and no one notices she doesn’t have food coloring or sugar in her lunch. (Best of all she doesn’t notice!) And as a bonus there is no waste, so in the tradition of my mother, I don’t need to purchase sandwich bags!

Getting started with bento is easier than you might think. I will share some of the basics here and you can always visit my website to see more bento lunches or check out my book which offers more details on how to create the lunches.

1) Start with a container that will contain enough food to fill up your child. This might take a bit of experimenting. You don’t need a special bento box (although they are fun); you can just use food storage containers. Stainless steel bento boxes are available too.

2) Be sure to use nutrient dense food (no potato chips or space consuming sweets and snacks).

3) Try to provide some balance nutritionally. (Of course we all go about nutrition from our unique perspectives. The great thing about bento is that it works for gluten-free, paleo, raw, vegan, etc.)

4) Make it fancy, keep it fun, and stop before it feels like a burden.

5) Save aside foods as you prepare dinner for the next day’s lunch. I generally don’t make lunches that require additional cooking (to save time in the mornings).

6) Pack lots of raw fruits and vegetables. They add color, nutrients, and require very little preparation.

7) Cookie cutters, food picks, small sauce containers, and other fun accessories can make a simple lunch a little bit fancy.

8) Kids like to help, and that can be a great, fun project. And sometimes it is quicker and easier to do it yourself. We take it day by day.

I thought it would be fun to take a pile of ingredients from my refrigerator and show you three different ideas of how to make cute bento lunches. I didn’t plan these designs in advance and I just used what I had on hand. Sometimes I plan my fancier bento lunches but I wanted to show you how this can be a fun simple project that can be done any day. The simplest took about 3 minutes and the most complicated took less than 15 minutes. I don’t really time the work and my kids interrupt a lot … so who really knows how long it takes? In each bento the lunch is centered on leftover Grain-Free Waffles prepared as almond butter and jelly sandwiches.

For this abstract bento I simply cut the sandwich to fit the box. I made “turkey maki”; rolled up nori paper, turkey, red and yellow peppers with mustard to hold the roll closed. I filled in the remaining spaces with sugar snap peas, watermelon, kiwi, and a peach musical note (I used a cookie cutter).

This building block box actually has a second level but I was just making a small breakfast bento for my daughter so I didn’t need the extra food. This bento couldn’t be easier. I simply cut the sandwich and fruits into blocks and stuffed them in. If I were making a lunch I would be sure to get some vegetables in there.

I wanted to show you what a more elaborate bento can be like, but typically kids are happy with just one cute element, so you could easily do a simple salad on one side to accompany the face.

For the face, I used the bento box to cut the sandwich to size (like a cookie cutter). Then I made a small slit for the mouth and inserted a ham tongue and a red pepper lip. (Vegetarians could use a thinly sliced beet.) Then I simply added a few other facial features and the top of the box held everything in place on the way to school.

I used a cookie cutter to make the watermelon dancer and rolled peppers in ham. The rest is filled with raw vegetables. It is doubtful that my daughter will eat the greens, but I persist in offering them just in case she gets curious.

I hope you give bento a try, and remember to keep it simple and fun!

Grain-Free Waffle Recipe

Dry Ingredients
2 tablespoons coconut flour
½ cup almond meal/flour, packed
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon salt

Wet Ingredients
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon honey
¼ cup full fat canned coconut milk
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine the dry ingredients in a small mixing bowl.

Whisk together the wet ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Sift the dry ingredients into the large bowl with the wet ingredients (sifting really helps here). Whisk to combine thoroughly.

Cook in your waffle maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. If your waffle maker has settings; I recommend using low browning.

Yields 4 standard waffles or 2 Belgian waffles

Filed Under: Healthy Lunchbox, Other Tagged With: Casein Free, Corn Free, Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Grain Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Main Dish, Paleo, Side Dish, Snack, Soy Free, Sugar-Free

Healthy Lunchbox 2012: Phoebe Lapine from Feed Me Phoebe

August 13, 2012 By SunnyB 2 Comments

Today on Healthy Lunchbox 2012, I am thrilled to have Phoebe Lapine who has shared a gorgeous and very grown-up lunch salad with us today

I am blessed to know Phoebe through the FoodNetwork Summer Fest series and am always impressed with her brilliantly healthy recipes. Be sure to visit Phoebe’s beautiful sites which include: Feed Me Phoebe and Phoebe Lapine, where you will not only learn more about this amazingly talented New Yorker, you’ll also find many more of her recipes and striking images! You can also follow Phoebe on twitter and facebook.

Thank you, Phoebe!

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The summer after I graduated from college, I traveled around Israel for two weeks. I saw many sites, I learned many things, and I ate my weight in falafel. Now, fried balls of ground chickpeas are decidedly not the healthiest of lunches. But there were plenty of other options that were.

On days when we weren’t wandering the open air markets and grabbing a quick pita pocket, we’d sit down to a more formal lunch. The table would be littered with small bowls of various salads – the classic Israeli version of cucumber, tomato and lemon, and others that included healthier interpretations of chickpeas. I love this type of grazing, and I heart any dish that forms its personality from fresh lemon juice, herbs, and little else.

When I’m looking for a healthy lunch I often think back to Israel and these salads, all of which keep very well in the fridge and don’t require a last minute doctoring of dressing. This particular version is a hybrid of that classic Israeli salad, and the chickpea dishes I came to know and love. To give it a little more body, I set it on a bed of mustard greens, which stand up to the lemon juice a lot better than everyday lettuce, which tends to wilt by lunchtime in a Tupperware container.

I’m not going to lie: I would still happily eat a pocket of fried falafel over a salad any day (I have a gluten-free baked version here). But this bowl of greens is so healthy, filling and delicious, it puts my cravings at bay. At least, until I’m forced to walk by the halal cart on my corner.

Eat up!

Phoebe

Israeli Chickpea Salad with Mustard Greens

Makes 4 side servings

Ingredients

2 cups cooked chickpeas (rinsed and drained, if from a can)

1 cup diced seedless cucumber, skin removed

4 purple or regular scallions, thinly sliced

1 garlic clove, minced

Juice and zest of 1 lemon

1/2 teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon sweet paprika

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 bunch mustard greens (about 8 leaves)

¼ cup roughly chopped parsley leaves

1. In a medium bowl, mix together the chickpeas, cucumber, scallions, garlic, lemon juice and zest, cumin, paprika, and salt. You can make the salad up to this point and keep it in the fridge for up to 2 days.

2. Stack the mustard green leaves with the largest at the bottom, smallest at the top. Trim away the stem and discard. Roll the leaves width-wise into a cigar. Turn the roll over so that the opening is touching the cutting board. Thinly slice the cigar – the result will be beautiful ribbons of mustard greens.

3. When you are about ready to eat, fold in the mustard greens and parsley with the chickpea mixture. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and lemon juice as needed. Serve at room temperature.

Filed Under: Healthy Lunchbox, Other Tagged With: Casein Free, Corn Free, Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Main Dish, Raw, Soy Free, Vegan

Healthy Lunchbox 2012: Susan from Real Kids Eat Spinach

August 12, 2012 By SunnyB 3 Comments

Today on Healthy Lunchbox 2012, Susan from Real Kids Eat Spinach is sharing some of her favorite school lunchbox tips and three, count ‘em, three, delicious recipes!

A single mother of two children, Susan spends much of her time preparing healthy meals that her children love. As a certified holistic health coach, Susan offers insight and healthy solutions to families through the internet and her home. Be sure to contact Susan directly if you are interested in knowing more.

I am so glad Susan chose to join the Healthy Lunchbox series again this year. To see more Healthy Lunchbox ideas from this year and last, visit the tag cloud on the right and click “Healthy Lunchbox.”

You can also follow Susan on facebook.

Thanks Susan!

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My kids always delight in letting my know what their classmates’ lunchboxes contain. I feel that I’ve really done right as the years pass, as their comments have gradually become less envious and more informed. I don’t encourage self-righteousness in my offspring, but seeing them really grasp the notion of healthy food makes me proud.

And while I also reserve judgment when it comes to double-stuffed Oreos and chocolate Pop-Tarts, their presence on the elementary lunch circuit reminds me that the most fun part of a school lunch is almost always the treat. Of course kids don’t need processed treats to fuel their afternoons, so wanted to share a couple of ideas and recipes that embrace the concept of dessert at lunch. Without the sugar crash an hour later…

All three of these recipes are free of gluten, grains and dairy and naturally sweetened. Perhaps even more importantly, however, they have all passed rigorous taste testing (performed on my children and several of their peers). I’ll start with a treat that just screams fall and back-to-school time: Cinnamon Apple Snack Bars.

These bars have a triple whammy of cinnamon, which means they will fill your kitchen with the most comforting, cozy scent. Based on almond flour, they are obviously not suitable for a nut-free school lunch. I wanted to include them, however, as they are a perfect candidate for after-school snacking or even a quick breakfast, if your kids’ school doesn’t allow nut products.

Cinnamon Apple Snack Bars

2 cups almond flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup dairy-free milk of choice
3/4 cup natural applesauce
1/2 cup chopped, peeled apple (about 1/2 large apple)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tbs. palm sugar
large handful of raw walnut pieces

for topping:
1 tbs. melted coconut oil
1 tbs. cinnamon
2 tsp. palm sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Combine almond flour through salt in a large bowl. Add milk and applesauce. In a separate smaller bowl, combine 1 tsp. cinnamon and 1 tbs. palm sugar. Toss apple pieces in mixture until they are well coated. Fold into batter long with nuts.

Pour into a greased 8×8 baking dish. In a small bowl combine melted coconut oil, cinnamon and palm sugar. Using a spoon, drizzle all over top of the cake. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Allow to cool and cut into bars.

My next two school-worthy desserts are both chocolate-based. My daughter doesn’t love anything too rich, so both of these are perfect candidates without being overly fudgy or indulgent. First I wanted to come up with a replacement for the ever-popular pudding cups that often sneak their way into lunches. I’ve made my kids avocado-based chocolate pudding in the past, and love how the fruit adds a creamy texture. I wanted to come up with a version that wouldn’t require additional sweetener, however, so I turned to a different secret ingredient: baked sweet potato. While you can’t taste the potato in the finished product, its inclusion adds both nutrition and the perfect amount of natural sweetness. I can’t wait to try this recipe out with canned pumpkin as well!

This turned out amazingly well, and was ridiculous easy. I cooked my sweet potatoes in the microwave, measuring out the other ingredients while the potato cooled. My pudding was plenty sweet as written, but for a special treat I also stirred in some dairy-free chocolate chips. Using a Vitamix, the chips and the coconut oil emulsified easily; if you don?t have a high-powered blender, melt your butter/oil first.

I suggest you taste your pudding for sweetness before deciding to tinker with it. If it needs more sweetness, you can use a smidge of raw honey, maple syrup or chocolate chips. This pudding tastes great warm, but even better once chilled (thus a perfect candidate for lunchtime).

Sweet Potato Chocolate Pudding

2 large baked sweet potatoes, skins removed
1/3-1/2 cup non-dairy milk of choice
2-3 tbs. of unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tbs. coconut oil or butter
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tbs. vanilla extract
optional: raw honey, maple syrup or chocolate chips, as desired

Combine all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth.

My final recipe was a slam dunk at a healthy eating lecture I gave to children and their parents at our local library this summer. Even the kids who didn’t really really engage in the subject matter weren’t shy when it came to devouring the brownies I brought! Everyone was shocked when I shared what made it possible to make them grain-free: canned chickpeas. I personally follow a Paleo diet and as such avoid legumes, but even I made an exception to enjoy one of these little brownie bites. They are a good source of fiber and taste positively sinful. I baked mine in mini muffin cups to make them perfectly portioned for kids.

Mini Chickpea Brownies

1/2 cup coconut oil
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup raw agave nectar or honey
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tbs. vanilla
2 eggs
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 cup mini chocolate chips (I use Enjoy Life dairy-free chips)

Preheat oven to 325. Heat coconut oil and cocoa powder in a small pot over low heat; warm until oil has melted and cocoa dissolves. Stir well.

Meanwhile, run chickpeas, sweetener and salt in a food processor until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla, processing again until thoroughly blended. Pour chickpea mixture and chocolate into a large bowl and allow to cool.

Stir in chocolate chips. Scoop batter into greased mini muffin cups and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

I made all three of these recipes with help from my 6 and 8-year olds; while the older one isn’t always in the mood to get busy in the kitchen with me, they are both equally eager to lick spoons. I hope these healthy treats inspire you and yours as well, and offer them a sweet little reminder of how much love and effort you put into sending them off to school nourished and ready to grow.

Filed Under: Healthy Lunchbox, Other Tagged With: Casein Free, Dairy Free, Dessert, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Nut Free, Paleo, Side Dish, Snack, Soy Free, Vegan

Healthy Lunchbox 2012

August 10, 2012 By SunnyB 4 Comments

Welcome to Healthy Lunchbox 2012!

One year ago, I had an idea…

Every year the struggle to fill my children’s lunchboxes with healthy foods they will enjoy seems to become a little more complicated.

To keep things interesting, I asked some of my favorite bloggers for some help.

Thus, the Healthy Lunchbox Series was born.

Last year was the first year all five of my children were full-time students.

This year, with a new dedication to healthy eating, my husband joins the list of lunches that must be packed.

And if you weren’t certain, I too work full-time and bring my lunch to school as well.

That’s a whopping seven lunches every day, and sometimes I run out of ideas!

To help with this, I once again sought help from a number of fabulous bloggers and am happy to announce that over the next 31 days, dozens of fabulous bloggers will be sharing their secrets to a healthy lunchbox with you!

What makes a healthy lunchbox?

Well, that depends on who you ask.

The government will tell you that a healthy lunchbox should reflect the new MyPlate plan.

I don’t know about you, but I trust the government with my health about as much as I can throw them, collectively.

My pyramid looks a little more like this one from Mark Sisson:

We love to bring sandwich rolls containing uncured meats, tuna, lots of veggies and healthy fats. Hard Boiled eggs, planned-overs and slices of salami make for easy to eat and carry lunches, too.

There is always a side of vegetables and often a side of fresh fruit, although for variety I love to throw in things like these Perfectly Sweet Fruit Roll-Ups.

Most importantly, a healthy lunch is a simple lunch.

These are the lunches I packed for my week away from home.

Planned overs with Shirley’s Bacon Chicken, Farmer’s Market Plums and Cucumbers.

Hard boiled eggs, carrots, cucumbers, grape tomatoes and Roasted Red Pepper Paleo Hummus

Dixie Chik Bok Choy Tuna Rolls (sans dip), cucumber and grapes from the farmer’s market.

Uncured turkey rolls with Melissa Joulwan’s Olive Oil Mayonnaise vegetables, cucumbers and cherries.

Columbus Salami, avocado dipped in lemon juice, carrots and cucumbers.

The cucumbers serve a double purpose…not only are they refreshing and nutritional, eating cucumber slices after your lunch can help refresh your breath without the need to rely on a chemically-packed piece of gum.

Once I learned this trick, cucumbers became my new best friend.

I cannot wait to share all of the amazing lunches my friends have been sending my way.

Be it school or work, I know you’ll find lots of new ideas and tasty ways to be proud of the lunches you are sending every day.

xoxo

Filed Under: Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Main Courses, Other, Paleo, Sugar Free, Vegan, Vegetarian Tagged With: Casein Free, Corn Free, Dairy Free, Farmer's Market, Gluten Free, Healthy Lunchbox, Main Dish, Nut Free, Paleo, Side Dish, Soy Free, Sugar-Free, Whole30

Roasted Red Pepper Paleo Hummus

August 8, 2012 By SunnyB 20 Comments

I must admit that, when giving up legumes, hummus was not high on my list of things I would miss.

Don’t get me wrong…I love a good hummus. It’s just not one of those things that was on our regular shopping list. In fact, previously, I might purchase hummus once a year and I might make it once or twice a year on top of that.

So you can imagine that creating a paleo-friendly hummus was not high on my priority list…and it wasn’t. That is until Shirley shared her Brazilian Un-Cheese Rolls/Biscuits where red pepper hummus is a key ingredient.

Couple this with the opportunity to adopt Shirley in last month’s Adopt a Gluten-Free Blogger event, perfecting a red pepper hummus suddenly hit the top of my to-do list.

To my surprise there are a number of paleo hummus recipes available online, but I still couldn’t find one that was just-right for what I needed.

I did find though, that I prefer cauliflower based hummus recipes over nut and squash based recipes.

Isn’t cauliflower amazing? From potatoes to hummus, this vegetable makes a delicious replacement for so many less nutrient-dense foods. I love it!

My contribution to this week’s FoodNetwork Summer Fest, this recipe is so delicious that once I finalized it, I had to kick my kids out of the kitchen and force them to stop scooping vegetables through this to ensure I had enough to make Shirley’s Biscuits with!

Use this as a dip, a spread or as part of Shirley’s delicious recipe, I hope you enjoy this as much as we do.

xoxo

Roasted Red Pepper Paleo Hummus

Ingredients

1 large Red Bell Pepper
1 head Cauliflower, cut into flourets
2 Tbs Olive Oil
2 tsp Ground Cumin
2 tsp Smoked/Regular Paprika (I prefer smoked)
½ tsp Smoked/Regular Cayenne (I prefer smoked)
¼ tsp Salt
3 cloves Garlic
½ c Tahini
¼ c Lemon Juice

Instructions

Broil red pepper in the oven or over open flame until skin is charred and flesh is beginning to become tender, turning often to ensure even roasting. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
Lower/preheat oven to 500f.
In large bowl, mix together cauliflower, olive oil, cumin, paprika, cayenne and salt.
Spread seasoned cauliflower evenly over parchment lined cookie sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
Once roasting is complete, peel skin from pepper and place this, the roasted cauliflower, garlic, tahini and lemon juice in blender or food processor. Blend/process on medium/medium-high speed and tamper as needed until ideal texture is achieved.
Remove from blender and serve as-is, with vegetables or in your favorite hummus based recipe.
Makes approximately 2 cups

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For more pepper persuasion, be sure to visit all of this week’s FoodNetwork Summer Fest bloggers.

Jeanette’s Healthy Living: Stuffed Peppers With Quinoa Grilled Vegetables and Pesto Sauce

Cooking With Elise: Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

What’s Gaby Cooking: Oven-Roasted Peppers With Herbed Breadcrumbs

Feed Me Phoebe: Grilled Flank Steak With Gazpacho Sauce

Big Girls Small Kitchen: Seared Pepper Tacos With Pintos and Avocado Crema

Delicious Lean: Peppery Kung Pao

Daily*Dishin: Shrimp and Chorizo With Red Pepper Chermoula Sauce

Napa Farmhouse 1885: Spicy Roasted Red Pepper Dip With Baked Corn Tortillas

Thursday Night Dinner: Black Bean and Sweet Pepper Salad