Brownies!

A warm brownie and a cold glass of milk, makes a nursing mommy like myself happy! I confess I use a mix I am presently using Trader Joe's gluten free brownie mix, I also like Bob's Red Mill's brownie mix. I do make them more healthy by adding 1 C. of fruit or vegetable puree (you can reduce the liquid and oil if you do this). This batch was made with 1/2 C. spinach and 1/2 C. sweet potato. So they are sort of healthy:) If you like you can add walnuts or chocolate chips.

Gluten Free Menu Swap

This week's gluten free menu swap is hosted by Natalie, Gluten Free Mommy, and the ingredient is lemon. We were generously given citrus fruit by sweet family members and need to use it up. I am thinking of making some lemonade. During my last pregnancy someone told me that lemonade helped her nausea, and I at least felt better while I was drinking it. Homemade with a natural sweetener instead of the high-fructose corn syrup, yum, or if you are not up to making it there are ones available with sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup. If you make it yourself you can also use less sweetener. I wonder how it would be with white grape juice concentrate? If you try it, please let me know how it turns out.

Dinner Menu:

Monday: Salmon with lemon, brown rice and asparagas.

Tuesday: Turkey meatloaf made with carrots, gf oats and ketchup, red potatoes and frozen green vegetable.

Wednesday: Chicken and vegetable stir-fry with brown rice.

Thursday: Beef Tri-tip with potatoes, onions and carrots in the crock-pot.

Friday: Pepperjack cheese enchiladas, corn and pinto beans.

Gluten Free Dinner Menu for Morning Sickness

If you are experiencing nausea and vomiting of pregnancy that plagues you around dinner time, making dinner can be very challenging. Preparing raw meat can be especially nauseating, spicy food can upset the tummy. Plus you may feel so wiped out you can barely get off the couch. So below are some ideas:) This week the Gluten Free Menu Swap is hosted by Natalie, the Gluten Free Mommy (who says she has had experience with morning sickness) and the ingredient of the week is bananas (probably safe for nausea :). A banana and a glass of cold milk if one of my favorite snacks! My mom used to make banana pancakes when I was growing up, so maybe I will make some for my little ones soon, by the way my favorite gf pancake mix is Bob's Red Mill.

Monday: Breakfast for dinner: bananna pancakes (use a mix and add the banannas, blueberries, pumpkin etc. or if you are really feeling bad use frozen pancakes or waffles), and scrambled eggs, and fruit.

Tuesday: Premade soup like Trader Joe's butternut squash, lentil or tomato soup with grilled cheese sandwiches.

Wednesday: Turkey (or another meat) sandwiches on toasted brown rice bread with lettuce, tomato, avacado, sprouts, cheese etc.

Thursday: Green salad topped with high protein items like precooked meat, hard boiled eggs, cheese, or beans etc., and veggies.

Friday: Boston Market: turkey breast, mashed potatoes, poultry gravy and steamed vegetables (all gluten free)

Gluten Free Snacks

baby carrots w/hummus or guacamole

celery w/ peanut butter and raisins

apple slices w/peanut butter

handful of nuts or trail mix containing nuts and dried fruit

cheese and crackers (like Mary's Gone Crackers)

milk and GF oatmeal cookies

plain yogurt and GF granola

fresh fruit

GF mini muffins (like pumpkin or blueberry)

corn tortilla chips w/ fresh salsa or guacamole

bananna and a glass of milk

smoothie

Gluten Free Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

I use this recipe adapted from Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Oatmeal Cookies, however I do not use white sugar, I instead used turbinado (also evaporated cane or brown sugar can be used), and I reduced the amount of sugar to 1 C. I also use this recipe to make oatmeal chocolate chip cookies (add 1 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips, omit cinnamon and raisins) as I find that they are more nutritious than regular chocolate chip cookies and I prefer them too. Inspired by the oatmeal cookie recipe in Jessica Seinfeld's Deceptively Delicious cookbook, I add 1 C. of vegetable, bean or fruit puree. Bob's Red Mill is temporarily out of oats, so I haven't perfected this recipe yet.

Gluten Free Dinner Menu Plan

Sunday: Herb Crusted (with Rosemary) Tri-Tip (Hormone and Antibiotic Free), Roasted Yams, Potatoes and Carrots with Onion, and Salad, with Vanilla Ice Cream (from pasture fed cows with no rBST) for Dessert. I ended up doing an herb rub and cooking the tri-tip and veggies in the crock-pot, either way, the meat can be seasoned and the veggies prepared on Saturday night for a restful Lord's Day.

Monday: Black Bean Chili with Corn and Ground Turkey, and Whole Grain Pumpkin Cornbread Mini-Muffins.

Tuesday: Chicken Vegetable Stiry Fry with Brown Rice.

Wednesday: Lasanga made with Rice Noodles, Cheeses, Grass-Fed Beef and Spinach served with Salad and Garlic Bread (made with Bob's Red Mill GF Wonderful Homemade Bread Mix).

Thursday: Wild Salmon, Quinoa and Frozen Green Vegetable.

Friday: Green Curry with Chicken Breast, Coconut Milk, Potatoes, Carrots, Green Beans, Peas, Bell Pepper and Onion, served with Brown Rice.

This week's gluten free menu swap is hosted by Carrie, Ginger Lemon Girl, who said she hoped that I would share my recipe for Gluten-Free Whole Grain Pumpkin Cornbread Mini-Muffins.

Whole Grain Pumpkin Cornbread Mini-Muffins

Whole-grains, omega 3 fatty-acids, protein, calcium, beta-carotene, low in sugar (no refined sugar): a recipe that is healthy, delicious and easy. I served these with my black bean chili on Monday night and I had them for breakfast on Tuesday. They are very moist with the pumpkin. Please try them and tell me what you think. In my effort to pack more nutrition into every bite, these one of my favorite foods.

1 package of Bob Red Mill's Gluten Free Whole Grain Cornbread Mix (available in my store)
2 Omega 3 eggs
1/3 Cup Canola oil
1 1/2 Cup Milk
1 15 oz. can of Pumpkin
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (or a combination of cinnamon and nutmeg)

Bake in mini-muffin pans sprayed with gf baking spray at 375 degrees, check for doneness beginning at 10 minutes. Makes 3 dozen.