Mama's Chocolate Hemp No-Bake Macaroons

Hey Folks, super excited to share this recipe with you.

My kids love them and I took them on my girls weekend to get a second opinion. They got unanimous approval from 11 other mama's. So you know they must be good.  Plus it is so easy. Hello - no bake. Its summertime - who wants to turn on the oven. 

Being full of super foods doesn't hurt their standing either. Hemp. Check. Coconut oil. Check.

I was on a fully grain free diet for a LONG time. But, I have recently re-introduced some grains and am coping okay with them. I generally avoid them early in the day (or my blood sugar gets right out of whack) and their role in my diet is pretty limited. But I'm always trying new (or old) things. I'm not a slave to one particular diet - I just try to figure out what my body is, or is not, responding to at any given time. And trust me, it changes with the seasons, stress, weight, etc. A constant guessing game. 

In the past, when my adrenals where in bad shape, and my blood sugar was crazy low, I couldn't have handled this little snack. But these days, I can indulge in a few oats now and again. As long as I've had a good dose of protein for breakfast and my blood sugar is stable. 

And, oh lordy, am I enjoying these!  Hope you do too! These girls sure did.........

Mama's Chocolate Hemp No-Bake Macaroons

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Keywords: raw dessert dairy free gluten-free vegan hemp seeds oats

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Ingredients (3 dozen)

Dry Ingredients

• 2 cups quick rolled oats (GF if necessary)
• 1 cup hulled hemp hearts
• 1 cup shredded coconut (I used fine)
• dash of salt

Wet Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/4 cup butter or vegan buttery spread (if dairy free)

Other

• 1/2 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 6 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 3/4 cup organic cane sugar
• 3 Tbsp Stevia (or adjust sweetener)

Instructions

In a bowl, combine dry ingredients. In a separate saucepan, add almond milk, coconut oil, butter, cocoa powder and sugar. Stir over medium heat until it comes to a low rolling boil. Let boil, stirring regularly, for about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add vanilla (it will bubble up). Pour cooked mixture over dry mixture and mix thoroughly. Scoop packed 1 Tbsp spoonfuls onto a piece of wax or parchment paper. It may stick a bit so you have to work slowly/patiently.

Let stand until cooled completely. Enjoy!

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Merry Christmas and a Little Vegan Gluten free ginger bread man.........

Hello Everyone!!!
Just wanting to send out a big, huge, gingery Merry Christmas to you.

I am finally finding some time to "slow" down. Okay - kind of impossible with three kids but spending some time at home at least.

We've got one sick kid but we still managed to get them all helping with baking some cookies. I originally posted this recipe last year. I decided to dust it off and try it again.........still works. My 7 year old still loves them "Mommy this is the best batter ever....even better than cupcake batter". And she knows her batter.

I added an extra tablespoon of maple sugar this time. They are still not super sweet but they did the trick for my kids. If you want more sweetness - go for it. Or add some sugary toppings.

December was trying to do me in but I survived and now I'm ready to catch my breathe. 

I hope this finds you all well. Take some time for yourself. Slow down. Breathe. 

And eat a cookie..........................Merry Christmas!

Vegan Gluten Free Ginger Bread People or Cookies

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes

Keywords: bake dessert gluten-free vegan almond flour coconut flour gluten-free flour

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Ingredients (18 - 24 cookies)

• 1 Tbsp ground chia seeds
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup organic coconut flour
• 2 Tbsp Almond flour or Almond meal (I just grind blanch slivered almonds in my coffee grinder)
• 1/2 cup All purpose Gluten Free Flour (I used Cloud 9 brand from Costco)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• pinch fine sea salt
• 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp molasses (I used Blackstrap)
• 3 Tbsp pure maple syrup

Instruction

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine Chia seeds with water and let stand for 5 minutes to gel.

Combine all dry ingredients.

In a seperate mixing bowl combine all wet ingredients including Chia gel.

Mix wet and dry ingredients together until just combined. It should form a ball (like dough).

Let stand for 5 minutes. If it seems sticky add some additional coconut flour.

Roll out dough until about 1/8 inch thickness on a piece of parchment paper. Cut shapes out of dough and transfer to lined baking sheet. I just kept reusing the scraps (forming into a new ball and re-rolling out) until there was no dough left. I let my kids choose and cut the shapes. They loved this job.

Bake for about 12 minutes.

Let cool and decorate.

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Happy Birthday to Me with a Silkken Peanut Butter Chocolate Pie! Vegan and Grain Free!

I can't believe its August 23rd and this is my first post of the month.  There are two main reasons:

1) We have been soaking up every bit of summer so we have been busy playing. I haven't exactly been hanging out in the kitchen experimenting with recipes; and

2) Other than the stomach flu that has been circulating our house and normal monthly hormone fluctuations I have been feeling really good.

Throughout our summer adventures (and there have been many) I have managed to stick to my grain-free, dairy-free, low sugar diet. I actually can't believe I did that given how much time I spent away from my kitchen. Yes - I am proud of myself. It would have been very easy to let things slide but after my anxiety fueled spring I was pretty motivated to stay off the crazy train. And its working. If I stay away from grains (okay - I have a couple bites here and there but never a serving) I don't have anxiety. Low grade stress and worry - yes. Honest to goodness fear and anxiety - no. 

So that's what I have been doing. Along with banishing my anxiety I've noticed a few other benefits of "keeping it clean". My skin is clearer, my moods are WAY more stable, I rarely get grumpy, my stomach works properly, I have more energy and my monthly cycle is way less volatile. And I haven't had brain fog all summer. 

This all translates into THE MOST AMAZING SUMMER OF MY LIFE. Its crazy and hectic and the kids drive me crazy lots of the time but I'm in the right frame of mind and have enough energy to sail through the madness and appreciate the all the beauty and blessing around me. Over the past 7 years its not that I haven't enjoyed my kids - I have. But more often than not I went through hours, days, weeks or months of just struggling to get through the days. Fighting to feel like myself, trying to shake off fatigue, stomach aches, brain fog, moodiness, anxiety, etc, etc, etc. This is the first time in a while that I have felt CONSISTENTLY good for hours, days, weeks, months. Yay! 

So as I turn 38.....................

I am grateful for my new job that allowed me to keep all three kids home for the summer. 

I am grateful that all three of my kids are healthy and FINALLY sleep through the night.

I am grateful that we have the money to do so many fun things with the kids. 

I am grateful that my husband has been so supportive of my lifestyle changes and even thought his inclination is to hang out at home he lets me drag us around the city and province to enjoy summer out and about.
I am grateful that I was able to figure out my food sensitivities - it has changed my health but its very hard to do.

I am grateful that I "hit rock bottom and burned out". It has made me completely change how I live my life. And although I have had to "give up" many things I have gained so much in return. 

Giving things up doesn't have to mean losing...........it can just force you to make new discoveries. And its worth the effort.

One of my discoveries has been Silkken tofu..............................its magic! So I made myself a magical pie - because the chances of someone else making me a grain and dairy free Birthday cake are slim to none - and that's okay! Now I gotta run................there's still a week of playing  summer to enjoy!

Creamy Dreamy Peanut Butter Chocolate Tofu Pie with a coconut walnut crust

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 40 minutes

Keywords: bake blender dessert dairy free vegan gluten-free Silkken Tofu Peanut Butter chocolate walnuts

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Ingredients (1 pie)

Crust

• 1/4 cup walnuts
• 1/3 cup organic coconut flour
• 1 Tbsp ground golden flax
• 2 Tbsp Earth balance (dairy-free butter)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 6-7 Mejdool Dates, soaked in 1/4 cup warm water

Filling

• 1 container extra firm Silkken Tofu
• 1/2 cup full fat canned coconut milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 Tbsp arrowroot flour
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 3 squares unsweetened Baker's chocolate, melted
• 3 - 4 Tbsp sweetener of choice - I used a combination of Truvia and maple syrup

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8 inch pie plate (I used a glass one).

I roughly chopped the dates before soaking them. I used my coffee grinder to roughly chop/puree both the dates and the walnuts. I then mixed all the crust ingredients together (including the leftover water from soaking the dates) until the earth balance was full incorporated throughout. If my food processor was working I would have just thrown everything in and processed it together. Work with what you have.

Press the crust mixture into the pie pan - including up the sides. Make sure it is not loose or it will crumble later.

Bake the crust for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, while the crust is baking you can make the filling:

I melted the chocolate squares in the microwave in a glass dish (60 minutes, stir and then an additional 30 seconds) to have it ready.

I then blended the tofu in my high speed blender until smooth. Depending on your blender you may have to stop and scrape down the sides a couple of times. I then added all the remaining ingredients, including melted chocolate, and blended until smooth. Again you may need to stop and scrape down the sides. Blend until JUST smooth. Do not over-blend.

Add the filling to the baked pie crust and put it back in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool. Refrigerate and serve chilled.

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Red Velvet Brownies - Vegan and Gluten Free with Beets and Black Beans

Hello everyone.

I'm finally back with a recipe.

I have been busy enjoying my summer and dealing with the roller coaster that is my life with adrenal fatigue and Candida. I've had to go back to a strict "grain-free and very low sugar" diet so I can't actually eat these brownies anymore. Tear. But I'm feeling much better so it is worth it.

But if you can handle some non-glutenous grains then I say go for it..........I enjoyed them while I could and now its time for someone else to enjoy them.

I'll be back with an update on how my battle with adrenal fatigue and Candida is going soon. In the meantime hope you are all enjoying your summers...............

Vegan and Gluten Free Red Velvet Brownies with Beets and Beans

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Keywords: bake blender dessert vegan sugar-free low-carb almond flour black beans coconut flour beets cake

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Ingredients (16 small squares)

• 1/2 cup almond flour
• 1/2 cup GF quick oats
• 1/2 cup organic coconut flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa or cacao powder
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk (I used almond)
• 2 Tbsp oil (melted coconut oil or grape seed oil)
• 2 Tbsp pure pumpkin puree
• 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup cooked & shredded beets (I used ones that had previously been cooked and frozen)
• 1/4 cup black beans drained and rinsed
• handful non-dairy chocolate chips (more if desired)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a food processor or blender (I used my Ninja), blend the almond and coconut flours, oats, cacao powder, salt, and baking powder. It should basically turn into a flour.

Add in the milk, vanilla extract, oil, pumpkin puree and maple syrup, and blend until fully combined.

Add in the cooked beetroot and the beans and blend until the mixture has formed a thick batter.

Remove the blade and stir in the chocolate chips or just toss them on top after pouring in pan.

Pour the batter into an 8 x 8 baking dish lined with parchment paper. I just cut a square to fit the bottom and didn't worry about the sides as I greased the pan first. Smooth the top with a spatula.

Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until the top is fully cooked. Let cool. I dare ya to wait. Although we really liked these a bit warm with some toppings (coconut cream, cool whip, berries).

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Vegan GF Peanut Flour Chocolate Chip Cookies

When I first went CLEAN I was doing the Wheat Belly Diet. Dr. Davis, of Wheat  Belly fame, uses lots of peanuts in his recipes. So I scoured Winnipeg for peanut flour. And when I didn't find any, I scoured the internet and ordered some on-line.

But then I went PALEO.........and then I went on the Candida diet.........and then I found out my daughter had peanuts on her "no go" list. So the peanut flour just sat there in the freezer.

But I've come full circle. I'm trying not to be scared of food. I don't think a half cup of peanut flour is going to make me so moldy, acidic (etc, etc, etc insert scary word) that I won't survive. I'm trying to be more balanced with my eating. Because the stress you can cause yourself from being insanely strict with your diet can wipe out all the awesome benefits of eating clean.

So I pulled out the peanut flour and decided to make some peanut cookies. If you don't have peanut flour, I don't see why these wouldn't work with almond flour or almond meal. And damn I am enjoying them. They aren't fully PALEO, fully Candida diet friendly, or fully grain-free. But they are full of great "clean" ingredients and they are FULLY VEGAN. I'm choosing to pick my battles.

Gotta run. I feel like eating a cookie!

Vegan & Gluten Free Peanut Chocolate Chip Cookies

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 10 Minutes

Cook Time: 10 Minutes

Keywords: bake snack dessert gluten-free low-carb vegan chocolate peanut cookie

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Ingredients (15 cookies)

• 1/3 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk (I used almond)
• 1 Tbsp ground golden flax
• 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
• +1/2 cup organic palm coconut sugar
• 2 Tbsp coconut oil
• 2 Tbsp Earth Balance (vegan margarine - or replace with more coconut oil)+
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 Tbsp applesauce

Dry Ingredients

• 1/2 cup All-Purpose Gluten Free Flour Blend
• 1/2 cup peanut flour (or other nut flour)
• 1/4 cup organic coconut flour
• 2 Tbsp arrowroot flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• pinch fine sea salt
• Hand ful of vegan chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Mix together first 3 ingredients. Let stand for a couple of minutes.

In a second bowl, whip together oil/butter and sugar. Mix until fully combined and slightly fluffy. Add applesauce and vanilla.

Mix together two separate bowls of wet ingredients.

Add dry ingredients and chocolate chips. Stir until just combined.

Scoop out a heaping Tbsp at a time. Form into balls and then flatten out slightly with the back of a fork.

Bake for 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool before eating. I dare ya!

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Vegan Chocolate Pumpkin Ice Cream - Paleo and Anti-Candida diet friendly

I really love this ice cream. Really.

Hence why I've been making it daily for the past week. Hence why I wish my ice cream maker didn't have to be re-frozen for 24 hours between each batch. Or maybe that's a good thing. Otherwise I would probably be eating it for breakfast. I'd probably even bring my boss some for breakfast if they were to ask nicely.

Funny thing. It is so full of healthy ingredients you COULD eat it for breakfast. And not feel guilty.

As you may or may not know, my daughter is on a gluten, egg, dairy, soy and peanut free diet. And I'm on the Candida diet. So there is a long list of things we can't, won't or shouldn't eat.

I was struggling to find us an ice cream that we both liked that was vegan, low sugar and relatively low fat. The low fat part only because I eat so much fat during my other snacks/meals that I don't want to overdo it. Some days I feel like I live on nuts.

But after many failed and some mediocre attempts - this one was a winner.

The leaves are falling, the air is getting brisk and here I am FINALLY sharing an ice cream recipe. I got my ice cream maker before summer. That's how long it took me to nail down a recipe that I wanted to share. I actually gave up on the experiments for a while as they weren't working.  But it is working now. Is it ever. And I'm loving it.

Its got pumpkin in it at least. So it is totally a fall appropriate recipe. Don't you think?

Hint: you can skip the cocoa and add some pumpkin pie spice instead if you want to really make it Fall worthy. Just sayin'. And I really would bring some for my boss.

Vegan Chocolate Pumpkin Ice Cream - Candida diet friendly

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes in ice cream maker

Keywords: blender freeze dessert candida-diet friendly vegan sugar-free canned coconut milk chocolate pumpkin

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Ingredients (Serves 3 - 4)

• 1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree
• 1/2 canned full fat coconut milk
• 1 1/2 Tbsp 100% cocoa
• 1 Tbsp Truvia (or sweetener of choice)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened milk (I used almond milk)
• 1 1/2 Tbsp nut butter (I used sugar-free, raw almond butter)

Instructions

I put all the ingredients in my Bullet (or blender) and pulse until fully combined.

Pour into ice-cream maker and prepare according to manufacturer's instructions.

I have a Cuisinart and it takes about 25 minutes to turn into ice cream. You can eat immediately (I can never wait) or transfer to a container and put in freezer for about 1/2 hour before serving.

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Lemon Zucchini Pound Cake - Grain and Sugar Free - with Dairy free options. SO ADDICTING!

This is the most addicting thing I have made in a long time. Keep in mind that I bake ALL THE TIME so that's something. I love this cake. I eat it for breakfast and snacks and dessert. YUMMY!

I survived my first week back at work after 14 months of maternity leave. Okay - it was only two actual work days but I also got my kids started off at school and a new daycare so it was one of the those crazy weeks anyway.

We are all surviving the transition and the kids are thriving. I myself am fighting a serious bout of low iron and B12 - again - so I'm back in dizzy/tired/spaced out land. I've done some really dumb things this week in my nutrient deprived state - like going to my first day of work with my home laptop instead of my work laptop. And I took the bus so I couldn't rip back home to get the right one. Even more embarrassing is that it took me about 15 minutes and numerous repeated unsuccessful attempts at logging onto the network before I noticed I had the "blogging" computer with ALL THE MISSING KEYS (darn baby).  Luckily hubby saved the day and brought me the right one.

So not exactly thriving. I want off this dizzy, Candida, leaky gut, digestive hot mess roller coaster I'm on. Really. I've worked hard. I deserve to get off.  But I'll get into that pity party a little more on Sunday

Anyway, my worst fear about going back to work was how we would keep eating clean. Week 1 - success.

Mainly because I had done a bunch of baking and had lots of pre-wrapped snacks to throw in my lunch kit.

This pound cake was my FAVORITE snack of the week. I am addicted to this cake. Something about the combination of sweet and tart. And the texture. It is just so yummy.

Plus its high in fiber and even has a bit of protein.

And zucchini - you know I'm loving zucchini these days. I also made some awesome Banana Chocolate Chip Zucchini Mini Muffins that are gluten, vegan and nut-free that my daughter could take to school. And I made a sugar and grain free chocolate zucchini loaf last week.

I have been making pound cakes and loaves, slicing them, wrapping them individually in parchment and freezing them. Then I have snacks ready to go for lunches. Portable snacks. Yummy snacks.

It can be done. But will the momentum continue or is this just a back to school high I'm flying on that will fade out once we get settled in? Who knows? Stay tuned to find out.......................and wish me luck!

Addicting Lemon Zucchini Pound Cake - Grain and Sugar Free

by MamaChanty

Keywords: bake bread dessert candida-diet friendly gluten-free low-carb sugar-free almond flour coconut flour egg yogurt

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Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

• 1/4 cup blanched almond flour (I used almond flour I made by grinding slivered blanched almonds in my coffee grinder)
• 1/4 cup coconut flour
• 1/4 cup arrowroot (or sub an additional 1/4 cup almond flour)
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt

Wet Ingredients

• 4 large free run eggs
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 2 Tbsp Truvia (or sweetener of choice)
• 1/2 cup finely shredded zucchini (packed - I used yellow)
• 1/4 cup plain unsweetened high protein Greek Yogurt
• Juice from 1/2 of a fresh lemon
• 2 drops natural lemon oil (optional)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Grease a loaf pan with butter AND line with parchment paper.

Combine dry ingredients.

Combine wet ingredients.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until just combined and no lumps remaining.

Let stand for 10 minutes to let coconut flour absorb liquids.

Pour into loaf pan.

Bake for approximately 50 minutes or until knife in center comes out clean.

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Chocolate Zucchini Pound Cake - Grain & Sugar Free and Candida diet friendly

I have a slight obsession with zucchini. The lady at the Farmer's market recognizes me as the "girl who keeps buying all the zucchini's". She gave me a free bag of apples this week. Maybe she thinks I need to eat something other than zucchini.

Plus she wanted to know what I was doing with them..............

Well, other than baking and making relish, I have been chopping and freezing a ton of it for my smoothies. I can't have banana (damn, damn, double damn) because of my food sensitivities and the fact that I'm still on the Candida diet which excludes fruit. So I put frozen zucchini in my smoothie. Every morning.

And guess what..... I like it.

But this week I decided to do some more experimenting (i.e. trying to find sweet snacks and treats that are legal on the Candida diet) and I came up with this chocolate zucchini pound cake.

And guess what..... I liked it.

I used almond and coconut flours to keep it grain free and low carb. I did add a bit of yogurt as I'm introducing it back into my diet. If you are avoiding dairy I would just sub it out for full fat coconut milk. It should work.

This is a very simple recipe and an easy and quick way to use up some zucchini if you have it in abundance. And here are a couple other zucchini recipes that you might like to try:

Black Bean Veggie Cakes with Zucchini and Hemp Hearts - Candida diet friendly
Grilled Zucchini - Candida diet friendly
Coconut Flour Zucchini Dark Chocolate Brownies 
Zucchini Frittata - Candida diet friendly
Paleo Dark Chocolate Zucchini Bread

And you can always shred it and freeze it for some fall baking..........or for a smoothie perhaps.

Chocolate Zucchini Pound Cake - Grain, Sugar Free and Candida diet friendly

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Keywords: bake bread candida-diet friendly gluten-free low-carb paleo almond flour coconut flour chocolate zucchini

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Ingredients (1 loaf)

Dry Ingredients

• 1/2 cup blanched almond flour (I used sliced blanched almonds that I ground in my coffee grinder - much cheaper than buying blanched almond flour)
• 1/4 cup organic coconut flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3 Tbsp cocoa powder - 100%
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt

Wet Ingredients

• 3 free run eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup finely shredded zucchini, packed tightly
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup plain unsweetened high protein Greek Yogurt
• 2 Tbsp Truvia (Stevia/Erythritol blend or sweetener of choice)

Instructions

Combine all dry ingredients.

Combine wet ingredients in a separate mixing bowl.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients until just combined.

Let stand for about 10 minutes to let coconut flour absorb liquids. 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a loaf pan with butter. Optional - also line the loaf pan with parchment paper. 

Pour batter into loaf pan.

Bake for about 1 hour or until knife in the center comes out clean.

Let cool COMPLETELY before removing from loaf pan and slicing. I know its hard to wait but it will give you the best results. Enjoy!

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Blow Your Mind - Black Bean Brownies - Flourless & Fabulous

I'm In Love with these Brownies.

Four batches in three days in love.

I've got it bad.

I didn't invent black bean brownies, but I did modify the recipe to make it gluten free, dairy free and sugar-free. So these are Candida-diet friendly. Oh yeah!

I generally don't eat legumes. But small portions are allowed on the Candida diet (and most low carbohydrate diets) because they are so low in net carbohydrates and have no sugar. Don't eat the whole pan but a couple of servings can help to keep you satisfied and ready to keep taking on that sugar beast trying to get back into your life.

I used Xylitol for a bit of sweetness. If you aren't on the Candida diet you could probably substitute maple syrup or agave. Or increase the amount of Xylitol if you want it a bit sweeter. I'm trying to restrict my sugar and sugar alcohols as much as possible so I keep them to a minimum.

My mind is still blown that such a simple recipe made out of a a can of beans can taste this good. They really are amazing. And I've tried lots of weird and wonderful combinations of foods in my quest for clean, low-carb fare. So I'm not that easily impressed. But these impressed me.

Give them a try. Even my kids liked them.

Blow my mind - Black Bean Brownies - Candida Diet Friendly - Sugar Free, Flour-less and Fabulous

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 5 - 10 minutes

Cook Time: 22 minutes

Keywords: bake dessert candida-diet friendly gluten-free low-carb sugar-free wheat belly chocolate black beans

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Ingredients (10 - 12 cupcakes/brownies)

• 1 can (15 oz) organic black beans
• 2 free run large eggs
• 3 Tbsp organic coconut oil, melted
• 5 Tbsp 100% cocoa
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
• 3 Tbsp Xylitol (or alternative sweetener of choice)
• 1 Tbsp maple or vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts - I used Walnut

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Rinse and drain beans.

Mix all ingredients, except nuts, together in mixing bowl, blender or food processor. If you are doing it in a bowl use an immersion blender to combine ingredients until beans are fully pureed.

Add nuts (except 1 Tbsp) and gently fold in.

Separate mixture into 12 lined muffin tins.

Top with left over nuts. If you aren't on the Candida diet you can add a few 70% dark chocolate chips (optional).

Bake for about 22 minutes or until knife in center comes out clean.

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My Little Man is One - A few Mustaches, a Couple of Tears , and an Egg Free Take on the Betty Crocker Gluten Free Devil's Cake Mix.

Today my little man (now referred to as Big Boy) turned ONE. Happy Birthday my playful, fun, busy Big Boy!

We let him go to town on the cake. The benefits of a summer birthday. This would never happen in the house!

I'm finding it a very emotional milestone. I don't remember feeling this way with the girls.

Not sure if it is because he is my last one. Although I'm sure the 250 people at my brother's wedding think I'm pregnant because I refused to drink a shot of Anti-candida diet Tequila. Or he has just been such a blessing. Not only because he is a fun guy. Which he is. Very playful. Always ready for a quick laugh. But because he just completed our little family. I felt an instant sense of peace when I had him. He was the missing piece of the puzzle. When he was about two weeks old a relative of my Mom's (which I had never met) said "you don't look like you just had a baby - my wife was so tired all the time". Its because I was beaming. I still remember my Mom saying "Its because she's happy".  I didn't really have time to think about it. But yeah. I was. I am.

I had an inner turmoil going on from the moment I had my first child. My heart wanted three kids. My head thought my heart was crazy. Should I have three kids. Can I handle three kids. One kid is hard. Two kids is really hard. Maybe I'm not cut out for this.

Didn't help that I was suffering severe burn out around the time I had "planned" to start trying for a third.

Luckily, I listened to my heart and my burn-out had lifted enough that we did decide to go for number three. Now my heart is happy. My heart was right. He was meant to be with us.

So we had to have a big celebration of his birthday. A Big Boy Celebration. With lots of Mustaches. And it had to be a celebration that my daughter could partake in. Namely she needed to eat the cake. Because that girl loves cake. And she can only eat cake that is gluten, egg and dairy free.

Since I'm still recovering from my brother's wedding I wanted to do a boxed cake. So I bought the Betty Crocker Gluten Free cake. It calls for water, butter and three eggs. Hmmm, obviously some experimenting needed to happen.

I modified the recipe (ignoring the instructions completely) to use 1/2 cup of unsweetened almond milk, 3/4 cup of Chia gel (about 3 tbsp ground Chia with just under 3/4 cup of water) and 1/2 cup of butter.  It wasn't quite dairy free but two out of three ain't bad. I will try this again with coconut oil instead of butter to make it dairy free. Next time.

UPDATE: I made these again using Coconut oil instead of butter and it worked perfectly. So 100% dairy free. 

It turned out awesome. It was super moist and ALL the kids loved it! I was so impressed.

And making a basic mustache cake is so easy. Just follow these simple directions or look at the pictures - its self explanatory:

1) Make one round (8") chocolate cake.

2) Let cool completely and then freeze.

3) Take out of freezer. Place a piece of parchment paper on top and make a zigzag pattern with toothpicks (see picture).

4) When the cake is partially thawed. Cut the zigzag pattern into the cake.

5) Flip one piece over and join in the center.

6) Ice the cake when it is still partially frozen. I used a fork to make a "hair" design. Done.

And a couple other ideas if you want to host a mustache party. Because there is just so much you can do with a paper mustache on a stick. 

Its hard to read but we decorated shirts for the party. Mine said "BIG BOYz Mom". With a mustache on the front and back. Yes. I'm proud to be his Mom.

Happy Birthday Little Buddy! I love you. I love us all more because you are with us! Thank you for laughing so much! I love your laugh. 

Egg, Dairy and Gluten Free Blueberry Crumble - Candida Diet friendly

Okay folks. I'm back. 

Well I wasn't gone anywhere. I was just consumed with discussing my daughter's leaky gut and food sensitivities and cooking new recipes for her. 

But my sweet tooth was getting impatient with me baking for her. Baking things I can't eat on the Candida diet like gluten free home-made granola and cornmeal muffins. 

So last night I whipped up this blueberry crumble. Something that could appease both of us and not upset our "diets". 

The base is made with a combination of coconut flour and flax and I used Chia gel as a replacement for the eggs. Worked like a charm. 

The berries are a debatable Candida diet item but given there is one cup of berries for the whole recipe I think it should be fine. Unless you plan on sitting down and eating the whole thing in one sitting. Which I must admit I was tempted to do. It was that good.

I sweetened the topping with a small amount of Xylitol and it was plenty sweet for me. I try to use Xylitol in extreme moderation and stick to Stevia 95% of the time but this was calling for some "sugar". 

Overall a great recipe that is quick to throw together and it safe for many different low-carb and food sensitivity diets. 

Next time I'm going to make a batch of vanilla bean coconut ice in my new ice cream maker to go on top.......................

Blueberry Crumble - Low Carb and Grain Free

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Keywords: bake dessert candida-diet friendly gluten-free low-carb paleo sugar-free wheat belly vegan almond flour canned coconut milk coconut flour blueberries

6049376

Ingredients (9 slices)

Base

• 1/3 cup organic coconut flour
• 1/3 cup ground golden flax (I grind mine in the coffee grinder and keep in fridge)
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup unsweetened milk (I used almond milk)
• 1/2 cup canned full fat coconut milk
• 2 Tbsp Chia gel (1/2 Tbsp ground Chia with 1 1/2 Tbsp water)
• 10 drops liquid Stevia

Blueberry Fillings

• 1 cup fresh blueberries
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice

Coconut Crumble Topping

• 1/4 cup blanched almond flour
• 1 1/2 Tbsp organic coconut flour
• 2 Tbsp Xylitol
• 2 Tbsp Butter, cold
• 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Greese an 8 x 8 baking dish with butter.

Base

Combine all dry ingredients.

Mix together milks, vanilla, chia gel and Stevia.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients.

Gently combine until fully mixed.

Let stand for 10 minutes before pouring into baking dish.

Smooth out top with back of a spoon so it is even.

Bake base for 10 minutes.

Blueberry Filling

Combine blueberries and lemon juice.

Spread evenly over cake base.

Coconut crumble topping

Combine almond flour, coconut flour, coconut and Xylitol.

Cube butter into small pieces and add to dry ingredients.

I use my hands to blend the butter into the flour until it is fully combined and crumbling.

Spread over top of blueberry filling.

Bake in oven for an additional 20 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool before slicing and serving.

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Fruity Oatmeal Muffins and Living with Food Sensitivities - IGG tests to the rescue - Part One

You might be wondering why I'm posting an oatmeal and fruit recipe made with agave. If I ate one of these I would be way off the rails on my Candida diet (fruit and agave), triggering one of my worst food sensitivities (banana's) and slowing my digestive system way down (oats).

But these were not for me. They were for my sometimes sweet, sometimes saucy, 5-year old. And they are very purposefully gluten, dairy and egg free. 

Yep. We finally got her IGG food senstivity panels back. 

Well, we actually got them back a week ago. I needed a few days to have a good cry, panic and then regroup, get shopping, get researching and get cooking.  It was not good news. 

If you want to read about my food sensitivities and some discussion on IGG tests go here.

But this is about my daughter. Let's backtrack a bit.

My 5 year old (first born) was a very colicky baby, a very serious and often cranky toddler that got sick often and had lots of ear infections, and an impossible to deal with 3 year old that was sick with high fevers for a good part of a year. We often said she was an old soul - one that has been here before and was not happy to be back.

The doctors just thought she was "in a daycare with lots of kids so kept picking up bugs". I went along with that for a long time. But finally after her behavior got so bad (a 3 year old that seems depressed, violent at times towards her mother, extreme temper tantrums, general discontent?) and we were all at our breaking point (I actually broke and my husband wasn't far behind) my intuition FINALLY kicked in.

This is not normal. This is not my child. I need to help her. 

So we took her to a Naturopath. And we bit the bullet and paid almost $500 dollars (including the first and follow up visit) to get her food sensitivity panels run. 

And we found out that very clearly this child has a severe leaky gut. And severe food sensitivities. She was reacting, quite highly, to numerous foods (more than 75% of the 90 foods tested). Like mother, like daughter. The worst offenders for her seemed to be eggs (yolk and white) and dairy. 

So we reluctantly switched her to soy milk - that girl LOVED her milk. Cut egg based meals out of her diet (scrambled eggs) - that girl LOVED scrambled eggs.  And put her on a course of Probiotics and multi-vitamins. 

You have to remember that I wasn't into this clean eating business back then. I was uneducated in nutrition and still didn't fully buy into the concept of you are what you eat. So that is all we did with the information. We didn't fully cut out egg products, milk products or keep up with our supplements. We never addressed the other 60 plus foods that might be bothering her. And we never went back for a follow up visit.

But it worked. Her behavior changed DRAMATICALLY. She is actually a very goofy kid. She laughs a lot and is actually quite easily amused. She's funny. She is very loving - especially towards her mother. She has an extremely nurturing nature. I finally got to meet my real kid. 

And she didn't get a flu or fever the WHOLE YEAR SHE WAS FOUR. 

I can not tell you what a miracle and blessing this was to our house and our life. I have regrets that I didn't figure this out sooner but I also feel so grateful that we ended up down the right path - at the Naturopath, $500 dollars less in our wallet but full of hope and laughter and giggles. 

Some of you might think: 1) IGG tests have no basis in science, 2) why didn't you just figure this out by yourself by watching her symptoms or 3) its a coincidence. 

Well, I'll address some of those things on Monday in PART 2 to this post. Its too much for me in one day. I need to make some egg free, gluten-free meatballs for supper and time is ticking.

So for now I will just leave you will a new recipe that I made for my giggly girl. One that she didn't love but her dad adored so its going in our family cookbook anyway.  And yes, I stole one bite (just to make sure they were edible) - they were fabulous!

Fruity Oatmeal Muffins - Gluten, Egg and Dairy Free

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Keywords: bake breakfast dessert snack candida-diet friendly gluten-free low-carb paleo sugar-free wheat belly almond flour canned coconut milk coconut flour raspberry

6048846

Ingredients (12 muffins)

• 1 cup gluten free quick oats
• 1/2 cup blanched almond flour (Almond meal would work too)
• 1/4 cup organic coconut flour
• 1/4 cup ground golden flax
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 ripe mashed banana
• 1 cup carton unsweetened almond milk (or milk of choice)
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 1/4 cup agave nectar
• 1/2 cup fresh blueberries
• 1/2 cup fresh raspberries

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin tin with 12 large muffin liners.

Combine dry ingredients.

Mash banana. Add milk, coconut oil, agave and applesauce to banana and mix thoroughly.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Don't over-mix. Let stand 10 minutes to let coconut flour set.

Gently mix fresh fruit into batter.

Divide batter into 12 muffin liners and bake for 25 minutes or until knife in center comes out clean.

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Sugar Free Grain Free and Dairy Free Lemony Poppyseed Muffins & Sorting out my symptoms - Adrenal Fatigue, Candida - die off or flare up, and low iron

I have had a surprisingly fabulous day. 

I willingly and enthusiastically let my Kindergartner play hookie today so we could go to the park for a picnic and go shopping. Baby in tow, of course, but as close to one-on-one time as I get with her these days. And we had a blast. She picked out a funky hat and a scarf headband that I kind of want to borrow - too bad she's only 5.

Why was it so fabulous.............because kids are fun when you feel great. And they behave, and the sun is shining, and YOU FEEL GREAT. They aren't that fun when you don't feel good. I don't want to say it but I'm saying it anyway- they feel like a real chore when you don't feel good. And when you feel terrible they can feel completely overwhelming.  

Why is it surprising..............because I haven't been feeling consistently great for a while now. I've had some good days or partially good days. Some okay days. And some really off days. But today was a great day. Pray for me that it means I've turned a corner on this Candida business because I like enjoying my kids. Its one of the main reasons I am determined to straighten out what is wrong with me. Its why I had kids. They sense when I like being with them versus it being a chore for me. And I want them to feel liked.

Part of this figuring out what is wrong with me business is all about listening to my body and recognizing my symptoms. If any of you have suffered or suspect you are suffering from leaky gut, food sensitivities, Candida,  Adrenal fatigue or low iron - or all of them at once - you will probably know that many of the symptoms are similar or overlapping. That's what makes it so hard to figure out what is going on. Especially when they are all happening at once.

I have been on the Candida diet (strict phase) for about 5 weeks now. The first 4 weeks were a bit experimental as I tried (and failed miserably) to incorporate/keep some grains, fruit and small portions of higher carb vegetables in the diet. So for 4 weeks I was going through Candida die-off and flare-ups alternatively - but couldn't really figure out which was which. Five weeks ago, I also got my IGG food panels back and eliminated any food sensitivities from my diet. 

For the past week I have been following the most strict version of the Candida diet to a tee and I started taking some much stronger anti-fungals. And voila - after 5 days of feeling off (see below - Candida die-off) I am feeling better. 

So by process of elimination, a little intuition and lots of paying attention to my body I think I'm starting to figure these symptoms out. 

I have made some notes as a future reference, for when I get confused again and need to regroup, or to possibly help someone else in my shoes that is frantically searching for help in sorting out their symptoms - here is what I "think" I've learned: 

Low iron - My low iron symptoms were primarily extreme dizziness and extreme fatigue. The dizziness was the "I need to hold onto something or I'm going to fall over" type not the "I feel a little nauseous" type that I felt when I had morning sickness. The fatigue was both physical fatigue (i.e. I can barely lift my baby) and sleepiness (i.e. I could not make it through the afternoon without a nap). 

Adrenal fatigue ("AF") - My symptoms of AF co-incidentally seemed to almost stop when I cut out all my food sensitive items from my IGG Panels. Here are the ones that disappeared even when I was having a Candida flare up and that I now believe were my true AF symptoms (not Candida): 

• Anxiety, Anxiety, Anxiety - irrational fears of death - usually in the form of disease and sometimes end of world scenarios. Intellectually I would KNOW that it was me "over-reacting" and I would try to stop it but I couldn't. Very frustrating. My brain doesn't let it go when it gets a grip on something if I'm in this state. It is not depression. I don't feel sad. I feel anxious. 
• Fatigue - I think the main thing is that I wake up feeling not rested. A generally feeling of low energy throughout the whole day. Not necessarily sleepiness, just not much get up and go. 
• Low blood sugar/blood sugar swings- before the Candida started flaring up this would hit me really badly in the late morning/early afternoon (11 - 2), especially if I didn't eat enough protein at regular intervals. 

Candida flare up - I think I have been in a perpetual state of candida flare up for years but it definitely got progressively worse over the winter and I can now tell when it is flaring by the following:

• Hunger and cravings - these go hand in hand. I am a bottomless pit. I could eat and eat and eat and never be full. I crave sweets and always sweets. Sugar is my drug of choice not carbs. I can live without the carbs but the sugar haunts me. If I'm not careful I overeat and get indigestion which just perpetuates the Candida. Vicious cycle. 
• Slow digestion - enough said. I don't like to talk about my bowel habits to strangers. Or it might be that the slow digestion of something my stomach can't handle flares the Candida. Either way they seem to go together. 
• Anger - holy Dinna I get pissed off. I have a short fuse. Low patience. Mad. This is not me. This is not who I am. When it starts happening I try to have a pep talk with myself that its not "____(fill in the blank) its just the Candida". Doesn't matter - Candida doesn't listen to reason. I still feel mad. Then I feel mad and frustrated. Like bad PMS. Usually between 3/4 and 6/7 pm. And then it lifts. 

Candida die off  - so they say its not necessarily the Candida dying off that causes this but my system not being able to get the toxins out fast enough. Since I started the anti-fungals in conjunction with the strict diet I went through about 5 days of this. Now that I've been through this a couple of times here is what I think my symptoms of Candida die off are:

• Tiredness. I wake up feeling rested. I just don't have enough energy to quite make it through the entire day. By evening I was POOPED. Had to go to bed at 8:30 one night. 
• Brain fog - This was bad. I felt completely out of it. Spacey. Not quite dizzy but kind of off kilter. Almost like my brain was fuzzy. Hard to think straight and follow a conversation. 

So there you have it. I figure if I can sort out the symptoms I will be closer to figuring out what is causing them for good. And I'm getting closer. The low iron is fixed for now. The AF seems to be at bay. I just need to get a long-term handle on the Candida.

But I'm happy to report I slept deeply last night, woke up rested, had lots of energy all day, had normal amounts of hunger (I think I will always be a bit hungry) and had no anxiety or anger. I had a lovely day. My kids felt well liked. Hopefully we are on track for a summer full of great days.

I still haven't figured out what the night sweats are correlated with? I assumed it was from one of the above but maybe I just have too many covers......................

Okay - if you read all that you deserve to eat a yummy sugar-free, grain-free muffin................go for it! 

Sugar Free Low Carb Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins - with Almond and Coconut Flour

by MamaChanty

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 - 25 minutes

Keywords: bake breakfast dessert snack candida-diet friendly gluten-free low-carb paleo sugar-free vegetarian wheat belly almond flour canned coconut milk coconut flour lemon

6048380

Ingredients (12 muffins)

• 1 cup blanched Almond Flour
• 1/2 cup organic coconut flour
• 1/4 cup ground golden flax (I grind in my coffee grinder)
• 3 tsp poppyseeds
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
• 3 drops natural lemon oil
• Juice from one fresh squeezed lemon
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, seperated
• 4 Tbsp free run liquid egg white (equivalent to two whites)
• 1 cup canned coconut milk
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 1/2 tsp liquid Stevia
• 12 fresh Blueberries

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line your muffin baking pan with 12 large liners. Don't skip this step.

Combine dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Set aside.

Separate egg yolk and egg white into two separate mixing bowls. Add vanilla, coconut milk, coconut oil, lemon and Stevia to egg yolks. Mix to combine.

Add egg yolk mixture to dry ingredients and mix until fully combined.

Add liquid egg whites to separated egg white. Using a hand mixer, blend until egg is fluffy and starts forming peaks. This should take a couple of minutes on medium speed.

Gently fold egg white mixture into batter.

Place about 1/4 cup of batter into each muffin liner. Smooth out the top of each one with the back of a spoon. Top each one with one blueberry for garnish.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a knife in the center comes out clean.

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