Adventures of a Gluten Free Mom
Gluten and Allergen Friendly Recipes that the Whole Family will Love
I cannot think of another processed food that has become more embedded in the minds of children than Pepperidge Farms’ Goldfish Crackers. While they are not only just naturally entertaining in design (brilliant marketing if you ask me), they are the perfect size for kindergarten age fingers to expertly handle while they learn to count, [...]
There’s an age-old saying that, in my opinion, has never been more true… “Tis better to give than to receive.” And the holiday season is the perfect time for you to give back to the gluten free community! In the spirit of the giving season, I want to bring your attention to a fundraiser [...]
Have you heard of hard lotion yet? If not, listen up because this stuff is awesome! If you or your child suffers from gluten intolerance or food allergies, then there is a good chance you are all too familiar with the many skin conditions that often accompany both food allergies and gluten intolerance: eczema (atopic [...]
Welcome to Day 3 of Home for the Holidays – Gluten-Free Style, hosted by Shirley Braden of Gluten Free Easily. In case you’ve missed the first two posts, here’s a quick recap for you: From November 28 – December 23, we have 25 bloggers sharing 26 gluten-free recipes that mean “home” and “holidays” to [...]
Are you ready for Halloween? My boys sure are biting at the bit (okay, their mom is too). Before your little beggar dives into his or her loot bag tomorrow, make sure you’re armed with the 2011 Gluten and Allergen Free Halloween Candy Lists! Looking for Halloween recipe ideas? Be sure to scroll to the [...]
Kid-Friendly Dill Dip for Raw Veggies: Gluten-Free, Dairy/Casein-Free, Egg-Free, Corn-Free and Vegan
The 2011 Gluten and Allergy Free Halloween Candy Lists are here! My friend Alison from Sure Foods Living works extremely hard every year to put together these comprehensive candy lists for those of us in the gluten-free and food allergy community. I am so deeply appreciative to Alison for her amazing dedication and hard work, [...]
I was the recent recipient of 4 complimentary packages of Enjoy Life Foods New Crunchy Cookies and while I did not personally sample them (I avoid all grains and cane sugar), my guys had a lot of fun “working” on my behalf…it’s a tough job, ya know! I really like Enjoy Life Foods, they are [...]
I’ve never been a huge fan of trail mixes, especially those of the store-bought variety because there’s usually too many things going on in them that don’t appeal to my taste buds. Nor do I care for protein bars. I know a lot of folks like them (my boys love LÄRABARS) and they are very [...]
Gluten and allergen free moms, REJOICE! The day has finally arrived that our kiddos can make the dreaded Fruit Loop necklace along side their classmates and no longer feel left out! It was precisely the above situation that led me to Freedom Foods in the land down under a couple weeks ago. When Luke and [...]
Ranch Dressing Take 2. Last January I shared my first attempt at a dairy-free, corn-free, egg-free and soy-free Ranch dressing and while it’s very good, there are two problems with the recipe. 1). It contains cashews so it’s no good for my friends out there with tree nut allergies. 2). It’s entirely too involved of [...]
Printable Post As a mom to two children with multiple dietary restrictions, I can think of few things more mind numbing than coming up with creative and healthy boxed lunches (that my kids will eat) 5 days a week, so I thought I would begin a list of links to recipes that I make [...]
Of all the many successful ingredient tweaks I’ve made over the years, this is one I am especially proud of, an egg-free version of King Arthur Flour’s Gluten Free Bread Mix. While I no longer buy very many gluten-free prepackaged products, this bread mix is one occasional exception I will make for my kiddos (even [...]
I have never had a better blueberry muffin in my life. Not with dairy, not with eggs and certainly not with gluten. Now, the fact that I was on the modified elimination diet when I made them may have had a teeny tiny influence on my lust for these beauties, but I really don’t think [...]
I’ve been thinking a lot about my 96 year old grandma lately. She and I have always been really close but sadly, we live over 1,000 miles apart and I haven’t been able to see her in nearly 3 years. I’ve always been compared to my grandma, mostly by our similarly strong personalities but the [...]
I can not stress the importance of gluten-free art supplies enough, especially for the preschool set. Little ones are notorious for putting anything that is not intended to be eaten straight into their mouth (see exhibit A, below). And don’t think you’re off the hook if you have older children. Kids are funny little people, much [...]
Okay, if you want to get technical about it, this really isn’t a “cake” per se, but rather a cupcake tower that looks like a tiered cake. I made this for Luke’s 4th birthday party on Saturday, after dreading how I would pull off a Batman cake without the use of artificial colorings (namely the [...]
I am very excited to share some fabulous gluten free personal care products from Green Beaver with you today. Green Beaver is a Canadian Company that believes mother nature is fully capable of helping us to take care of ourselves, which is why they rely on pure natural ingredients [...]
Isn’t that a pretty hamburger bun? And yes, it’s as soft and moist as you might be imaging it to be. While I couldn’t eat any of the buns from the complimentary package I recently received from Canyon Bakehouse for this review, I know how moist and fluffy they are because I was able to [...]
I just love the first week of summer vacation, don’t you? No more of the hectic morning rush out the door to get to school and no more packing gluten free, allergen free lunchboxes! Instead, I’m now quietly sipping green smoothies on the patio, listening to the birds chirp their little songs and tending to [...]
If you are the mother of a gluten free and/or food allergic child, then you know how important it is to have a safe play dough for your kiddos (if you are brand new to the gluten free lifestyle, please note that Play-Doh™ is NOT gluten free and neither is Crayola Dough). Why does that [...]
I’m not sure if it’s ketchup, catsup, or any other bizarre spelling, but if you are the parent of a child under the age of 10, then you always make sure that you NEVER run out of this key ingredient. My kids put this stuff on everything, even foods that just don’t seem to make [...]
Photo Credit If getting your kiddos to eat their fruits and veggies makes wrestling a wild hog to the ground look easy by comparison, trust me, you are not alone! I have learned many things since I ventured into the great unknown called parenthood, but nothing more than food, nutrition and society’s inherent and deep [...]
Homemade Gluten-Free, Allergy-Friendly Beef Jerky. Easy to make, challenging to photograph (in an appealing fashion anyway)! I love beef jerky, but all too often the prepackaged variety contains wheat so therefore it is off limits to me and my brood. I’m actually kinda thankful for that because it is not only easy to make, but [...]
It doesn’t matter how you eat on a regular basis, one bite into one of these bad boys and I promise, you will be asking for more. I think these are without a doubt the best gluten-free pancakes I’ve made in the past 5 years and the most devilishly satisfying aspect of all? The pancakes [...]
I don’t know about you, but I LOVE Ranch dressing! I love it on my salads, I love it as a veggie dipping sauce (okay, the veggies are really more of a Ranch delivery vehicle), I love to dip pizza in it and…(close your eyes)…I LOVE to dip my medium-rare grass fed beef tenderloin in [...]
When was the last time you said ‘I love you’ to yourself? Was it with a quiet day at the spa? A cucumber eye treatment with a purifying avocado, kale and lemon masque perhaps? Prior to a few days ago, that would have been my idea of self pampering. I’m great at wearing green veggies [...]
Today I am doing a guest post on dish towel diaries for Silvana’s Holiday Cookie Countdown and that is where you will find this yummy recipe for gluten-free, dairy/casein-free and egg-free biscochitos! Now, I know many people are not fans of anise, but I encourage you to give this recipe a try anyway. My best [...]
Today’s guest post is by my better half, the man “behind the curtain” in this Glutadoodle Oz of ours. Without Mike’s love and support, I never would have been able to go on this 18 month journey of self discovery and seeking out the answers to our family’s health issues. Little did he know 9 [...]
I shared this recipe last year but it contained dairy-filled chocolateso I thought I would share how I went about making a dairy-free version this year. This was an easy tweak to make, especially since I had just received a complimentary sample of Boom Choco Boom Bars by Enjoy Life Foods. You could also use [...]
It only took me close to a year to attempt making homemade marshmallows again, but there is no better motivation than being thrust onto the food allergy playground! I first attempted to make corn-free, gelatin-free marshmallows last January (you can read that post here), but there were egg whites in it. I also used xanthan [...]
Welcome back for Day 6 of 12 Days of Gluten-Free Christmas Cookies, being hosted by Maggie of She Let Them Eat Cake! So far, there have been some tantalizing toe tapping delights: Simply Sugar and Gluten-Free’s Pistachio-Cranberry Biscotti I shared a recipe for Dairy-Free Fudge Gluten-Free Life With Jen’s Chocolate Peppermint Wafer Cookies The Mommy [...]
Welcome to the second day of 12 Days of Christmas Cookies, being hosted by the fabulous Maggie of She Let Them Eat Cake. In the event you missed the kickoff yesterday, Amy Green of Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free, shared a recipe for Pistachio Cranberry Biscotti. Amy is also hosting a giveaway for FREE baking supplies, [...]
I’ve teamed up with 9 other gluten-free bloggers to help Katie Chalmers, author and illustrator of the new children’s book, Mommy, What Is Celiac Disease? give away 10 holiday gift bags filled with all sorts of gluten-free treats and trinkets, including a signed copy of her book! The following bloggers will also be hosting The [...]
I am super excited about this recipe for gluten-free, dairy/casein-free caramels because I have tried it 3 times using different substitute ingredients and each one produced a buttery, chewy caramel candy…perfect for dipping apples, making homemade candy treats, you name it. First, let me tell you how I landed on it. I began my quest [...]
Hehehe…Score 2 in my new adventures of gluten-free, dairy/casein-free and egg-free baking!! This is my submission for The Gluten-Free Baking Challenge which Shauna and Danny Ahern are hosting over at Gluten-Free Girl.com, so be sure to pay them a visit so you can see all the amazing gluten-free baked goods being shared across the web [...]
I realize you might be wondering why the heck I am posting a chocolate chip cookie recipe this close to Thanksgiving. Most people close to me in my “real” life are most likely thinking, “Oh, there goes Heidi again, off on an ADD tangent…does she NOT REALIZE what today’s date it is? Where’s the $&@#! [...]
First thing first. “Alfredo” is probably not the right word for this sauce, at least not in a technical sense because it lacks one of the most important components of a true Alfredo sauce…Parmesan cheese (shhh…it also lacks the butter and heavy cream, but I won’t tell if you won’t tell). When my husband and [...]
I pretty much flarped on Halloween this year and haven’t done nearly as much as I typically like to. I think I have had a serious case of “spooky block,” not having artificial colorings to fall back on, LOL! That’s okay though, I will just look back at this as my “deprogramming” year. It’s funny, [...]
Update 8/10/2011: I have an updated version of this chicken salad and you can find the full recipe here: The BEST Mayo-Free Chicken Salad. There are also TWO gluten-free, egg-free and soy-free mayos on the market, Soy-Free Veganaise and one by Earth Balance, called Mindful Mayo I’ve been having some trouble in the egg-free, soy-free [...]
I have a little secret to share with you. I am a bonafide silicone ice cube tray-aholic! I have so many of these brilliant little gadgets that I am running out of places to store them. I should probably look into renting a storage unit for them…although, I think my husband would shove me in [...]
Have you ever tried to make a Lego birthday cake without gluten, dairy, eggs, soy and artificial colorings? Let’s just say it’s challenging. The gluten, dairy, soy and artificial colorings are actually a breeze to replace, but eggs are an entirely different matter, they play a very important part in baking! I made 17 different [...]
Gluten-Free Pop Tarts, I still can’t believe it (and nevermind the goldfish, it’s a bonafide illness of mine)! I have attempted homemade gluten-free pop tarts many times over the years using various recipes that call for pie crust. While the end results were always tasty, they were not the Pop Tarts™ I remember from my [...]
Homemade Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free”Hostess” Cupcakes, why did it take me so long to try this? I guess I forgot that “Fresh, Wholesome Hostess and Kids Go Together!” Did you notice the part about being fresh and wholesome? I won’t comment on the “wholesome” aspects because I think we can all agree that we know that statement [...]
Disclaimer: The actual French Toast that you see in the picture is NOT dairy-free and egg-free. I began this impromptu project late in the evening and I was too tired to make up some homemade dairy-free pancake mix and bake a fresh loaf of vegan bread (especially since I have never made it before)…but the [...]
I made an impromptu stop at my favorite local co-op today (La Montanita on Rio Grande Blvd. for my fellow ABQ. peeps) and I hit the jackpot! I have been looking EVERYWHERE for Amy’s new gluten-free burritos and today was the big day! I only found the non-dairy version, but that was just fine by [...]
Gluten-free mozzarella cheese sticks, who’da thunk it? YES! Heck, even in my former gluten-life, I could not make a cheese stick. I could make a mean hollow tube of fried bread crumbs mind you, but somehow, the cheese always managed to escape! Has this ever happened to you? You roll your cheese stick in bread [...]
Okay, here it is! This is so exciting for me, I never imagined being able to enjoy toasted ravioli again. Not only is the toasted ravioli in the above photo gluten-free, but it is also allergy-friendly too! This post is now linked to a great series that the lovely Jenn (a chemist!) over at Jenn [...]
I am SO EXCITED about this review and giveaway that I can hardly stand it!! To all my corn-free friends out there (especially the itty-bitty’s), it’s time to throw a popcorn Mini Pop party! What the heck is a “Mini Pop” you ask? Well, Mini Pops are an itty bitty corn-free version of popcorn made [...]
The inspiration for this nifty little concoction came from the Taste of Home Magazine. I thought this would be a great introduction to the joys of sandwiches for my kiddos, who are meat-sandwich adverse. I really don’t get it, but they will only eat a nut butter & jelly sandwich. Deli meats must be cubed [...]
I am really excited to finally be participating in my first “Adopt a Gluten-Free Blogger” event! The Adopt a Gluten-Free Blogger program was started by Sea of Book of Yum, in 2008. This is a great way to get to know gluten-free bloggers by trying some of their recipes! August’s Adopt a GF Blogger is [...]
The past two days have been a bit of a roller coaster ride for me as I’ve been preparing to set Luke up with a safe environment at preschool. Preschool is a dietary-restricted parent’s worst nightmare! Gluten and food allergens are EVERYWHERE and not just in the popular processed kid fare department (have I told [...]
Okay, let’s just address this upfront. “Say whaaa?“ Well, there is a very big NEED for gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free cheese slices and I can’t seem find a commercial one anywhere! I got excited the other day when I found some “cheese” that looked like it would fit the bill perfectly BUT then (there’s always a [...]
Gluten-Free Sopaipillas. Fluffy “pillows” of fried dough, drizzled with sweet honey…oh, how I never thought this day would come!! Why is this such a big deal to me, you ask? Well, I live in New Mexico, the birthplace of sopaipillas and they are as commonplace in New Mexican restaurants as bread baskets are in Italian [...]
My youngest son loves “jelly” cups (a.k.a. Jello/Gelatin), but when we started a synthetic dye-free challenge a few months ago, out went the Jello brand gelatin cups! I tried a product by the NutraDrink company called Natural Jel Desserts back in May (see my “Funny Oranges post”) and while I was initially impressed with the [...]
I recently received several complimentary gluten-free products from Goldbaum’s to sample and review on my blog. I have been ordering Goldbaum’s gluten-free ice cream “cake-style” cones for a few years now, but that is all I had tried up until this point (and we love them!). GF mom tip: the cake-style cones are handy snacks [...]
For this chocolate pudding, I pretty much merged two recipes I found online: a recipe for Homemade Vanilla Pudding that I found on allrecipes.com and Tyler Florence’s recipe for Chocolate Pudding which I found on FoodNetwork.com. I then made my dairy-free substitutions and finished with MimicCreme Healthy Top Whipped Cream! Ingredients 2 cups Milk (I [...]
NOTE: This recipe does contain tree nuts (almond and cashews). At the end of this post, I will tell you of a dry pudding mix that will setup with dairy-free milk (at least it does with So Delicious Original Coconut Milk). Okay, I am really excited about this recipe! My 3 year old LOVES chocolate [...]
I love Boar’s Head brand deli meats and cheeses, in fact, it is the only brand of deli meat I buy for my family anymore. I primarily buy the low sodium turkey breast (at 2 pounds a week!) but we also like to indulge in the low sodium ham and roast beef on occasion. I [...]
This is a new favorite dessert of mine, it also makes for a high fiber breakfast. I have been on a melon kick lately and have been branching outside of the cantaloupe, honeydew and watermelons that I usually buy. In the above photo, the peach colored melon is a Crenshaw Melon. According to FoodReference.com: Crenshaw [...]
I’ve finally recovered. Ever have one of those days where nothing goes as planned? When one small blip turns into a gnarly black cloud hanging over your head for two solid days? Boy did I have one of THOSE weekends! It all started on Friday when my sister called to point out that my city’s [...]
Hello readers, I would like you to meet my nightmare friend, Ellyvan from Jungle Junction, a giant blue elephant on wheels (who thinks of this stuff?): I only say “nightmare” because my soon-to-be 3 year old LOVES this show (the real nightmare is my oldest son who planted the idea in his brother’s head for [...]
I recently received a couple complimentary packages of trail mix from Enjoy Life Natural Brands to sample and review on my blog. I am always looking for healthy, safe snacks to stick in the boys’ lunch boxes and these sounded like it they would fit the bill perfectly. While my kids are not allergic to [...]
Back in the late fall I received a complimentary sampling of products from Schar to review on my blog. I am really embarrassed that it has taken so long for me to post this review, but it has nothing to do with the products themselves. There were so many goodies for us to sample (on [...]
It has been hot in New Mexico, and I mean Hades hot! The temperatures have been hitting the low 100′s and that is unusual for New Mexico this time of year. The heat is getting to me and I have found myself being lazy in the kitchen, and with the laundry, and with the, oh [...]
This is completely off topic but Sam would like to share a few closeup photos we took of a butterfly this past weekend during our afternoon in the Sangre de Christo mountains at Sipapu. I have never had the opportunity to see a butterfly this up close and personal before. To be still in the [...]
I have been sick for the past few days and cold medicine does funny things to my head, this cupcake is proof! Sam had a birthday party to attend this weekend and the birthday boy was celebrating with an Army themed party. Prior to the dye-free challenge we decided to take, I probably would have [...]
I am beginning to have a lot of fun on this dye-free challenge! The other day when I was at Whole Foods (the same day I found the Snyder’s Gluten-Free Pretzels), I stumbled across Turtle Mountain’s So Delicious All Natural Kidz Pops! The popsicles are delicious and they have a nice bright color that is [...]
I recently had the opportunity to sample Gluten Free Cafe’s New Chicken Noodle Soup, courtesy of Mambo Sprouts. I cannot even begin to tell you how excited I am about this! There is nothing worse than having to make chicken noodle soup by scratch when you are sick! This is the first product by Gluten-Free [...]
I hit the jackpot yesterday on a trip to my local Whole Foods Market; I found the new Snyder’s Of Hanover Gluten-Free Pretzels! I wasn’t expecting to find them at Whole Foods and would have missed them altogether, had I not gone down the chip aisle (my local WFM has a dedicated Gluten-Free pseudo-aisle {it’s [...]
This post is linked to Gluten-Free Wednesdays Cake Challenge. Back in the spring I took several cake decorating classes in order to pick up a few tips for making the boy’s birthday cakes. One class I took was called “Stage Cakes.” Basically, you build a stage out of cake and then build a scene. I [...]
Back in early March, Alta from Tasty Eats at Home posted a Gluten-Free Churro recipe for her Kids in the Kitchen series. When I saw them, I knew I had to make some for Sam. Churros were his favorite treat before he went gluten-free. In case you do not know what a Churro is, they [...]
A recent funny post that Kim made over at Gluten-Free Is Life, titled “True Blogger Confessions,” got me to thinking about GF dental products, so I wanted to share the brand of toothpaste that I buy for my boys. JASON Kids Only! is an all-natural line of products that are specifically designed for children. The [...]
After I got the Breville Citrus Press and started making fresh squeezed orange juice each morning, I found myself knee deep in orange peels. Instead of throwing them all away, I wondered if I could use some of them for a fun lunchbox treat. I remembered seeing a recipe for Gelatin Oranges on Disney’s Family [...]
Yesterday, my shipment of Glutino Chocolate and Yogurt Covered Pretzels arrived! There has been quite a bit of buzz around this new product since the announcement was made in March on Food Biz Daily, so the second I heard they were available for sale on GlutenFree.com, I had to order some. Sam used to love [...]
I love Limeade, especially during the hot summer months. I find it to be even more refreshing than Lemonade or water for that matter. While I have been learning to reach for water first, or even sparkling water with a spritz of freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice (no added sweetener), I still enjoy [...]
On a recent trip to Costco, I found a package of Tribe Hummus Snacker Packs and I thought they would be great for tossing into the boy’s Easy Lunchboxes (a great “prepackaged” 100-calorie pack! Just toss in some carrots or other raw veggies and there you have it! ). A box of 16 individual snack [...]
Recently, I was the lucky recipient of some complimentary gluten-free bread products from Canyon Bakehouse, a dedicated gluten-free facility in Loveland, Colorado. All I can say is… YUM! Funny story; the day the Canyon Bakehouse products arrived, I placed them on the counter and waited patiently until Mike and the boys got home from work/school [...]
Maybe I should have called them “Eggless Meatball Wonders,” or “Guiltless Meatballs,” because there are several nutritious ingredients cleverly hidden inside, and you cannot even tell! Ever since I started experimenting with “flax eggs,” I have become increasingly impressed with the results in most of my experiments. So much so, I have found myself buried [...]
Back when I was working on my review for the Easy Lunchbox System (while simultaneously trying to recreate an “authentic looking” GF Lunchable), I really started to ponder how most kids perceive foods just by how they look and how they are packaged, you saw my “McCarrot Experiment,” right?. I have also been trying to [...]
I had completely forgotten about an article I had read a few years ago until Mike, the boys and I were watching Jaime Oliver’s Food Revolution last night (last week’s episode, as the only “Live” TV we watch anymore are sporting events. I am making a conscious effort to minimize how many ads Sam and [...]
I originally posted this last summer, but I thought I would do an update with better pictures. Last week, I took the boys to see “How To Tame Your Dragon” (a really GREAT movie by the way)! I loved the underlying message of the movie and thought it very appropriate for Sam, who has been [...]
So you knew “it” had to be coming at some point, right? I must say this first, Mike and I are REALLY working with Sam to embrace his “differences” (as we all have them), and I think it is starting to catch on. He is not asking for GF Lunchables all that much anymore [...]
