GLUTEN-FREE PREGNANCY

Brownies!

2008-04-11T19:25:00.000-07:00

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

2008-03-31T03:41:00.000-07:00

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

2008-02-23T09:02:00.000-08:00

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

2008-02-04T07:14:00.000-08:00

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

2008-02-03T20:46:00.001-08:00

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

2008-01-18T21:05:00.000-08:00

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

2008-01-16T20:37:00.000-08:00

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.

Gluten Free Dinner Menu

2008-01-08T12:07:00.000-08:00

Monday: Black bean chili with corn and grass-fed ground beef, and whole grain pumpkin cornbread muffins.

Tuesday: Herbed whole rotisserie chicken, sweet potatoes and salad.

Wednesday: Chicken noodle vegetable soup with homemade bread.

Thursday: Brown rice spaghetti topped with marinara sauce with grass-fed ground beef, and broccoli.

Friday: Burritos with corn or rice tortillas, pinto beans, with topping like cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, hot sauce, or guacamole.

You can check out other Gluten Free Dinner Menus at Gluten Free Mommy's Gluten Free Menu Swap.

Homemade Bread

2008-01-01T16:48:00.000-08:00

The lovely blonde loaf rising atop the stove, the smell of baking yeast bread pervading the house, the taste of the soft warm slice or slices.

I really missed bread, packaged brown rice just isn't the same. This recipe is easier and quicker than traditional gluten bread. I mix it in my Kitchen Aid mixer, put in a greased pan (I do not even let it rise in the pan), then bake (whereas traditional wheat bread has to be kneaded with a dough hook or by hand, put in a bowl to rise, then pushed down, formed and put in the pan to rise again, and then baked of course). I use Bob's Red Mills Homemade Wonderful Bread Mix. I used to eat 100% whole wheat bread, so I feel kind of guilty with this "white" looking bread. I am still hoping to find something that tastes like Orowheat Whole Wheat bread, but my past efforts at homemade 100% whole wheat bread were hit and miss, mostly miss. We have tried Bob's Red Mills Hearty Whole Grain Bread but it is tastes more like Rye or Pumpernickle than Whole Wheat, I really do like it for a chicken salad sandwhich though. Both mixes are available at my store, no Sunday purchases please. I am thankful to God for gluten-free bread. Luke 4:4 "But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’"

Breakfast

2007-12-27T20:37:00.000-08:00

Blueberry Muffin My You're Lookin' Swell,
Cute Lil' Muffin with a Blueberry Smell!

I love blueberry muffins and these are better than any gluten ones I can remember having.
These can be made into a highly nutritious breakfast or snack. They are easy, freezable and packable. Having food on hand is really important during pregnancy and breastfeeding in order to avoid the dilemma of being hungry but having nothing safe to eat. I also aim to list easy recipes because morning sickness and babies can make more complicated baking projects difficult. I order Bob's Red Mill GF Whole Grain Cornbread by the case, and you can too, by visiting my store. I use this mix as a muffin base and am about to enjoy some pumpkin mini-muffins made with this mix and a 15 oz. can of pumpkin, some nutmeg and cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice (I will try to take and post some pictures the next time I make them). I hope you like these blueberry muffins, I like mine warm with a little bit of butter or trans-fat free spread, they might just become a craving:). And if you wake up with morning sickness these might even make your pregnant tummy feel better.

Blueberry Mini-Muffins
1 pkg Bob's Red Mill GF Whole Grain Cornbread Mix
1 1/2 C. milk
2 omega-3 eggs
1/3 C. canola oil
2 C. wild blueberries (I have used a whole 16 oz. package before)
Prepare according to package instructions
Makes 3 dz. mini-muffins, enjoy and you can freeze the extras!