From My Kitchen

This Week’s Menu {Week #4 of no sugar, no coffee, and no gluten}

by Crystal on May 20, 2013

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Waffle recipe

Breakfasts

Oatmeal, Cereal, Eggs, and/or Fruit

Lunches

{I’ll be eating a salad with chicken/tuna, etc. on it every day}

Brown Rice for Breakfast
Snack-y lunch
PB&J, carrot sticks, apples
Cheese quesadillas, carrot sticks
Leftovers x 3

Snacks

Fruit/veggies
Popcorn
Healthier Dark Chocolate Muffins
Boiled eggs
Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Waffles

Freezer Cooking {I’ll share how this goes later this week!}

Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Muffins
Healthier Dark Chocolate Muffins
Chocolate Power Balls

Dinners

Slow Cooked Cheeseburger Casserole, veggies, fruit
Chili Tortilla Egg Bake (using gluten-free tortillas that I got marked down to $0.99!), fruit
Oven-Baked Tacos, fruit, tossed Salad
Build-Your Own Haystacks, fruit
Dinner out
Dinner with extended family x 2

What’s on your menu this week? Share details and/or your link to your menu plan in the comments.

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This Week’s Menu Plan {Week #3 of no sugar, no coffee, and no gluten}

by Crystal on May 13, 2013

It’s my third week of not eating sugar, coffee, or gluten and I’m really excited and surprised at how easy it’s becoming to eat this way — even when traveling for a few days like I did last week. And yes, I still feel great. :)

I’m headed to Nashville to speak at the Teach Them Diligently conference later this week, (will you be there? If so, I’d love to meet you!) so I’m keeping our menu pretty simple.

Breakfasts

Oatmeal, Cereal, Eggs, and/or Fruit

Lunches

{I’ll be eating a salad with chicken/tuna, etc. on it every day}

Mac & cheese, fruit
Snack-y lunch
PB&J, carrot sticks, apples
Cheese quesadillas, carrot sticks
Leftovers x 3

Snacks

Fruit/veggies
Popcorn
Healthier Dark Chocolate Muffins
Boiled eggs
Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Waffles

Freezer Cooking {I’ll share how this goes later this week!}

Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Muffins
Healthier Dark Chocolate Muffins
Taco Meat

Dinners

Steak on the grill, veggies, fruit
Chili Tortilla Egg Bake (using gluten-free tortillas that I got marked down to $0.99!), fruit
Oven-Baked Tacos, fruit, tossed Salad
Build-Your Own Haystacks, fruit
Dinner out
Dinner with extended family x 2

What’s on your menu this week? Share details and/or your link to your menu plan in the comments.

{ 47 comments }

Freezer Cooking in an Hour: One flop, one success, and two other favorite recipes

by Crystal on May 11, 2013

I changed up my freezer cooking plan for this week a little because I wanted to get some Gluten-Free Waffles in the freezer and I also was really curious to try these Banana Peanut Butter Pancakes.

Unfortunately, the Banana Peanut Butter Pancakes weren’t the success I was hoping for. They cooked really, really fast and I found it was basically impossible to not burn them. Of course, it didn’t help that I was multi-tasking in the kitchen. :) I also just didn’t really care for the egg-y banana taste. But it might just be me!

I also made a big batch of Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole. None of it made it to the freezer though, sadly. We had one batch for dinner and then ended up serving the rest of it for dinner the following night. Yes, it’s a hit recipe around here!

I love these Gluten-Free Waffles. They are so, so good warmed and dolloped with a little butter and honey!

And I already told you about the Grain-Free Muffins. Because I couldn’t wait. I finished off the last muffin tonight, so I think I’m probably going to be making the recipe again soon… but I want to try a few different variations this time. Because you know how hard it is for me to stick with the recipe as it is! :)

Recipes I Made

Banana Peanut Butter Pancakes
Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
Grain-Free Muffins
Gluten-Free Waffles

{ 18 comments }

Delicious Grain-Free Honey-Sweetened Muffins

by Crystal on May 09, 2013

I’m doing the happy dance over here because I discovered a new grain-free muffin recipe that is actually really delicious.

{Those of you who have been grain-free for awhile probably think it’s funny that I’m so stoked that these are delicious, but I’m new to this whole grain-free thing, so it’s been a little hard for me to imagine a grain-free muffin could qualify as being delicious! :) }

The ingredients are a little unique, but trust me on this, these are good. No, they might not taste quite like a regular muffin made with flour, but they are still scrumptious — and easy to make, too.

I especially love how versatile they are! I swirled in some extra honey and sprinkled the tops with dates (my chocolate chip replacement).

So, so good — I even packed some to bring with me on my trip to Pennsylvania this weekend!

Find the recipe here.

{ 31 comments }

Easy Honey-Sweetened Energy Bars

by Crystal on May 06, 2013

I saw this recipe for Easy Energy Bars and immediately knew I wanted to try it. I subbed a few things to use what I had on hand and also to make the recipe sugar-free.

I was really happy with the final recipe — it’s so easily adaptable, too. My husband even agreed with me that these bars were pretty good, so that’s saying a lot. :)

{Yes, I mixed the ingredients up in the pan — because I’m lazy efficient like that! :) }

Easy Honey-Sweetened Energy Bars

  • 1 1/2 cup oats
  • ½ cup peanut butter
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1/2 cup chopped dates (or shredded coconut)
  • ½ cup sunflower seeds (or ground flax seed)
  • ½ cup dried cranberries, cherries, or raisins (you can also use chocolate chips if you’re not off sugar like I am!)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine all ingredients and pat firmly into a greased 8×8 pan (or roll into balls). Chill in refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Cut into bars and serve. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Note: The bars are a little crumbly.

Recipe adapted from Brooke McGlothlin

{ 30 comments }

This Week’s Menu Plan {It’s my second week without gluten, coffee, or sugar!}

by Crystal on May 06, 2013

Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole

I’ve survived a week without gluten and two full weeks without coffee or sugar! Surprisingly, I actually didn’t miss it all as much as I thought I would. And I’m sleeping better than I have in months — maybe years?

I’m honestly having fun finding new recipes that are gluten-free and sweetened with honey… and I’m also loving the incentive to eat lots of fresh fruits and veggies and lean protein. :)

I don’t know what I’m going to do longterm, but I’m really happy with the results I’ve seen from this short stint of diet changes.

Breakfasts

Oatmeal, Cereal, Eggs, and/or Fruit

Lunches

{I’ll be eating a salad with chicken/tuna, etc. on it every day}

Mac & cheese, fruit
Snack-y lunch
PB&J, carrot sticks, apples
Cheese quesadillas, carrot sticks
Leftovers x 3

Snacks

Fruit/veggies
Popcorn
Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie
Boiled eggs
Banana Peanut Butter Pancakes

Freezer Cooking {I’ll share how this goes later this week!}

Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Muffins
Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole
Grain-Free Muffins

Dinners

Steak on the grill, veggies, fruit
Chicken Broccoli Rice Casserole, Fruit, Tossed Salad, Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Muffins
Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Waffles, scrambled eggs, fruit
Simple Beef & Veggie Casserole, fruit
Dinner out
Dinner with extended family x 2

What’s on your menu this week? Share details and/or your link to your menu plan in the comments.

{ 90 comments }

This Week’s Menu {and yes, I temporarily gave up coffee & sugar–can you believe it?!}

by Crystal on April 29, 2013

Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

For a long list of reasons, I temporarily gave up coffee and sugar a week ago. Yes {gasp!} can you believe it?!

It’s been eight days, and now that the massive headache is gone, I am feeling so, so good (and sleeping better than I have in years). I’m happy and all, but on the other hand, I was sort of secretly hoping I wouldn’t notice such a marked difference. :)

Because of this success, I’m now getting brave and giving up gluten, too, as a 30-Day experiment. It’s amazing how health issues will motivate you to do things you used to think were pretty crazy!

So if you notice a bit outside the norm recipes on my menu, you’ll know why. And if you have any amazing gluten-free, sugar-free (I am eating some honey, but no other forms of sweetener outside of fruit) recipes you think I’d love, please do shoot them my way.

Breakfasts

Oatmeal, Cereal, Eggs, and/or Fruit

Lunches

{I’ll be eating a salad with chicken/tuna, etc. on it every day}

Mac & cheese, fruit
Snack-y lunch
PB&J, carrot sticks, apples
Cheese quesadillas, carrot sticks
Leftovers x 3

Snacks

Fruit/veggies
Popcorn
Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie
Boiled eggs

Freezer Cooking {I’ll share how this goes later this week!}

Banana Oatmeal Breakfast Muffins
Easy Energy Bars (I’m going to sub raisins for the chocolate chips.)
Marinated Chicken

Dinners

Steak on the grill, corn on the cob, veggies
Supreme Egg Loaf, Gluten-Free Dairy-Free Waffles, fruit
Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole with ham, veggies
Simple Beef & Veggie Casserole, fruit
Dinner with friends
Dinner with extended family x 2

What’s on your menu this week? Share details and/or your link to your menu plan in the comments.

{ 128 comments }

Gluten-Free Oatmeal Spice Muffins

by Crystal on April 19, 2013

Guest post from Brigette Shevy

For those of you who have specifically asked for gluten-free recipes… this recipe was created just for you!

And those of you who aren’t gluten-free? This recipe is for you, too. It doesn’t contain any specialty ingredients (because I realize that not everyone keeps xantham gum in their pantry), and no one will ever guess these soft, fragrant muffins don’t contain any wheat. My family can’t get enough of them!

But there’s more. With a few simple adaptations, this recipe can also be fat-free (well, almost) or dairy-free (see my notes below)… and still taste seriously amazing.

Food issues aside, though, these muffins stand on their own. We love to eat them at breakfast time, snack time, or as “dessert” at dinner time. Yum!

Gluten-Free Oatmeal Spice Muffins


Makes 16 muffins

INGREDIENTS:

  • 3 ½ cups quick oats (use gluten-free if it matters to you)
  • 1 Tablespoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg
  • ½ cup pecans, chopped (optional)
  • ¾ cup applesauce*
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons finely shredded orange peel (you can substitute lemon)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup milk
  • 2 ½ tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1/3 cup sugar, mixed with ¾ teaspoon cinnamon

*I don’t always keep applesauce on hand – so I often throw a cored medium/large apple into my vita-mix along with the cup of milk and blend until pureed (and then pour it back into the mixing bowl to combine with the sugar, eggs, orange peel and vanilla).

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.Put oats into a blender and blend until they reach a flour-like consistency (I have a Vita-Mix and this only takes 5-10 seconds. If you don’t have a high-powered blender, you may have to do this in a couple of batches).

Put the oat flour into a mixing bowl and add the baking powder, salt, nutmeg and pecans and mix well.

In another bowl, mix together the applesauce, sugar, eggs, orange peel, vanilla and milk. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and mix just until combined.

Pour batter into greased muffin tins, filling each ¾ full. Bake 14-18 minutes.

While muffins are still warm, dip the tops in the melted butter and then the cinnamon sugar mixture.

VARIATIONS:

Fat-free (almost!) version: Use low fat milk, leave out the nuts, and brush the tops of the muffins with a tiny bit of water instead of butter before dipping them in the cinnamon/sugar mixture.

Dairy-free version: Substitute dairy-free milk (we like almond milk) for the regular milk, and use melted coconut oil instead of the butter.

What are your favorite gluten-free muffins?

Brigette is a full-time wife and mother who is blessed with three amazing bundles of energy (ages 6, 4, and 2). She enjoys music, experimenting in the kitchen, homeschooling her children, finding great deals, long-distance running, and anything chocolate.

{ 32 comments }

Freezer Cooking in an Hour: Pizza Dough & Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies

by Crystal on April 19, 2013

Silas helped me do a little freezer cooking last night.

We made Freezer-Friendly Pizza Dough.

I had planned to freeze half the dough, but the whole family ended up wanting to make their own pizzas. So we just went with it. :)

I was really unsure of how the Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies were going to turn out.

But I ended up being very impressed with them. We added chocolate chips and a few dried cranberries. They are addictive! :)

Recipe Links:

Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies

Freezer-Friendly Pizza Dough

{ 7 comments }

Cheesy Hashbrown Potatoes

by Crystal on April 12, 2013

Guest post from Brigette Shevy

While I love scalloped potatoes, classic hashbrown casseroles, and basically anything with potatoes and cheese, I don’t like the fact that most recipes call for cream soups and/or sour cream – ingredients that I don’t regularly buy and almost never have on hand.

Either that, or they require making a stove-top sauce with butter and flour and milk… which would be fine if I could actually make a sauce without lumps (my Vita-Mix has saved the day for me on more than one occasion!)

So I was thrilled when my mother-in-law introduced me to a family recipe that would solve all my potato recipe issues… for good!

Not only does this recipe rely on basic ingredients that we all keep around (no can opener needed), there is no tedious (or in my case, frantic!) stirring and whisking involved. And did I mention it’s cheap? And flexible! You can add a couple of more potatoes to it stretch a little further, and the amount and kind of cheese can be adjusted according to your personal taste.

This is a perfect side dish to accompany all your upcoming summer cookouts as it pairs well with hamburgers or grilled meats. Kids and adults love it! I like to make it up early in the day and pull it out of the refrigerator shortly before baking it.

I never use frozen hash browns, but I’m weird like that. If you want to save yourself some time, I would definitely recommend starting with frozen hash browns.

The best part about this gluten-free recipe – if I haven’t convinced you to try it yet – is that it tastes great!

Cheesy Hashbrown Potatoes

Makes a 9×13 pan (8-10 servings)

INGREDIENTS:

  • 8-9 medium large potatoes OR 2 lbs. frozen shredded hashbrowns
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (or any kind of cheese or mix of cheeses you prefer)
  • 2 cups milk
  • 4 Tablespoons butter (I only use 2!)
  • 1 ½ teaspoons salt
  • Shredded Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

If using whole potatoes scrub potatoes: Place whole unpeeled potatoes in a large pot of boiling water. Boil for about 15 minutes, or just until starting to get tender. (NOTE: I’ve tried skipping the boiling part and just using shredded raw potatoes and it doesn’t taste the same. So don’t skip this step!)

Rinse in cold water and peel (the skins will fall off with just a little bit of pressure – it’s not necessary to get every little piece of skin off). Let cool and then dry the potatoes (I use a paper towel to do this) Once potatoes are dry, grate them to resemble hash browns.

Place shredded potatoes or frozen (unthawed) hashbrowns in a 9×13 pan. Sprinkle with shredded cheese and stir lightly to combine.

Heat milk, butter, and salt in a separate pan until butter is melted (I do this in the microwave). Pour over potato/cheese mixture. Sprinkle generously with Parmesan cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes, or until cheese is browned (I usually turn the broiler on high for the last 1-2 minutes). Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

What is your favorite go-to potato recipe? 

Brigette is a full-time wife and mother who is blessed with three amazing bundles of energy (ages 6, 4, and 2). She enjoys music, experimenting in the kitchen, homeschooling her children, finding great deals, long-distance running, and anything chocolate.

{ 76 comments }