How to be Gluten Free Naturally

With so many people being gluten free these days, companies are beginning to catch on and create g.f. packaged foods, full of junk that does not belong in the human body.

Now I'm not vegan, paleo, or anything like that, I'm just gluten free and mostly dairy free, but I still believe it is important to feed our bodies whole, real foods. It might be easier to pick up a package of granola bars off the shelf of the grocery store, but in the long run? Your body will thank you for choosing an apple and peanut butter, or something like that instead.

So below, I'm going to list some gluten free foods that are just naturally g.f. please note that I am not a doctor or certified nutritionist, and I'm not recommending that anyone go gluten free. This is for the many people who are gluten free, but would like to remove packaged foods from their diet.

Milk.                    
Yoghurt

Cheese

Butter

Fruit

Vegetables

Rice

Potatoes

Corn

Quinoa

Certified G.F. Oats

Eggs

Chicken

Beef

Pork

Lamb

Salmon

Tilapia

Codfish

Shellfish

Catfish

Vinegar

Coconut oil

Olive oil

Honey

Agave

Maple syrup

Cocoa powder

Nut butters

Nuts

Coffee

Tea

Please note also that you should always double check each item listed here to see if it really is g.f. because sometimes there can be a glutenful product in a place you least expect it.

Hope this has helped you! This is not EVERYTHING that's g.f., So be sure to explore your options around you!

<3 Danielle

Simple Thai Spaghetti Squash

Suddenly, it's freezing out. The grass and garden are dying. Leaves are changing colours, I've traded my tank tops for sweaters. Ugh.

The good news is that I have a whole bunch of winter squash to use up! 

Between the pumpkins, butternut squash and spaghetti squash from my garden, I'm set for the winter!

Spaghetti squash is the star of this dish. It gives the illusion of pasta, with a slight crunchier texture and a more earthy taste. I showed you how to cook these bundles of perfection in this post.

The chicken packs the protein. its what will keep you full until your next meal. The green beans add color, flavor, and nutrients. The ones pictured above were actually home grown! Then comes the sauce, contributing a Thai-like flavor that comes from soy sauce, garlic, and of course I couldn't leave out peanut butter!

I also recommend sprinkling crushed red pepper flakes over the top, of you want to give it a little kick!

Simple Thai Spaghetti Squash
1 spaghetti squash
1 cup chopped chicken, cooked
about 20 green beans, cleaned
2 tbsp. peanut butter
2 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp. rice vinegar (can substitute water)
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
crushed red pepper flakes to top (optional)

1. Cook and remove flesh from spaghetti squash with a fork.
2. Steam green beans in a sauce pan with 1 inch of water until soft (about 15 minutes)
3. In a small cup or bowl mix peanut butter with vinegar until smooth. Add in the soy sauce a little at a time, stirring constantly to keep a smooth texture. Finally, stir in the garlic powder.
4. Toss together the chicken, squash, green beans and sauce, and red pepper flakes if using.
5. enjoy your meal!

Hope you al like it!
<3 Danielle

Links to Make You Smile

Hello everyone!
Sorry I never posted yesterday! I caught a bug and slept in,  and then I was feeling too gross  and tired all day to be creative enough to write a post. So basically I needed something to cheer me up. Sometimes the best medicine in the world is a smile or laugh, of  course accompanied by a huge mug of tea.
So here I'm going to share some links to thing that make me happy. Hopefully they'll make your day, too.

Happily Ever Eloped by That is What She Read

These gorgeous pictures from World of Wanderlust

This confetti eyeliner from the beauty department

Have you ever seen any of these Honest Trailers? They're pretty funny... and accurate!

How about this prank from The Ellen Show?

Well if I made you smile at all, comment below which link tickled your funny bone!
<3 Danielle

Mango Sorbet

This is summer in a bowl. I mean really this and summer have so much in common:

They are bright and cheery

They make me happy

They are both things I always look forward to

They make you forget your worries and cares

They go by really fast. 

And I mean fast. One bite of this and I started shoveling it in my face as fast as my spoon could travel. It's so silky and sweet, and its only one ingredient. One. Just one. Yeah.

I am always skeptical of recipes advertised as one ingredient, because a lot of the time it's some kind of processed packaged product.
But not this. This is about as fresh as you can get! And even fresher if you have access to mango trees (if this is the case, I'm so jealous)!

Mango Sorbet
1 mango

1. Peel and cube the mango. Find out how to cut a mango like a pro here.
2. Freeze the cubes until solid.
3. Process until smooth in a food processor. Enjoy immediately.

I hope you love it as much as I do!

<3 Danielle

Spiced Butternut Squash Soup

Oh boy, do I have butternut squash on my hands. As someone who rarely uses squash, I really didn't know what to do with it. The only logical thing I could think of was soup.

Butternut squash has kinda a sweet flavour, so the next step was to decide what to pair it with. Should I play off the sweet and add cinnamon and cloves, or add onions and garlic for contrast?

The latter won. And I'm glad it did. This soup had a flavour profile that blew me away-- curry, garlic, carrots, onions, sriracha, and (wait for it........) peanut butter!

I'm sorry, guys... I just couldn't resist adding a tablespoon. It's totally optional; add it if you like love adore fantasize over peanut butter. And before you add it in, let me warn you: that little bit adds quite a punch!

Spiced Butternut Squash Soup

3 medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed

2 large carrots, peeled and chopped

1 medium white onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth

1 tbsp sriracha sauce

1 tbsp peanut butter (optional) 

1 tbsp. Curry powder

1/4 cup basil leavers (fresh)

Salt and pepper to taste

2 cups milk (I used dairy milk, 2%)

1. In a large soup pot, steam all ingredients except for the milk in the broth until soft (about 30 minutes). Allow to simmer for about 20 minutes on low, stirring occasionally.
2. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly.
3. Blend in batches with milk. Make sure each batch is blended with milk, for example, it took me 4 batches, divided into 1/2 cups of milk.
4. Return to pot and bring back up to temperature. If it seems too thick for you, add some more broth.

Enjoy it! I know I did!

Life in Pictures: Wisconsin

Welcome to my very first Life in Pictures Link Up!

Last week, I was invited by Linda to join the Life In Pictures Link Up. Basically, it's a bunch of pictures from your day or week with as little text as possible. Click on the graphic below to access the link up! 

I normally don't do much of anything super interesting on a daily, so I thought I would show you all some pictures of my vacation I took in Wisconsin last week! Can you all guess where in Wisconsin I was?

Well that's it! I hope you enjoyed the pictures! This is my first link up ever, so sorry, Linda if I did it wrong, and thank you all for reading looking! Comment below what you think!
<3 Danielle

The Easiest One Pot Mac 'N' Cheese

Ahh the joys of being a kid. I remember spending every morning watching Sesame Street, and on occasion, Mr. Rodger's Neighborhood.

Often, in the afternoon in the summers, I'd go outside and swing on the swing set shared by my siblings and I, or I would ride my bike down to the playground near my house. When I was lucky, my best friend would be allowed to come over and we'd jump rope.

Winter time was all about sledding. My backyard was sloped, forming the perfect sledding hill. When sledding grew old, me and my brothers and sisters would build snow forts and wage war on each other, with snow balls as ammo. Then when our cheeks and toes were so frozen that we couldn't have anymore fun, we'd go inside and sip hot chocolate by the wood burning stove.

Ahh the joys of being a kid. But wait, there was a terrible part of my childhood. A dark and murky shadow over the highlights of my youth: boxed macaroni and cheese. Blah! Back then, I though it tasted fine. But check the side panel of the box. That list of ingredients? Don't be ashamed if you aren't able to read them, the list and contents of that list are waaaay too long!

So today I am going to share with you a recipe for macaroni and cheese that really does not take much, if any, longer than the boxed junk! This is so easy in fact, that you won't believe that it's at least 1000000 times better than it's packaged  cousin.

The Easiest One Pot Mac 'N' Cheese
3 cups elbow noodles, uncooked
1/3 cup milk of choice ( I used 2%, cow milk)
2 tbsp butter
1 tbsp flour
6 oz cheddar cheese, shredded
Salt to taste

1. Cook elbow noodles according to package in a 4 quart saucepan. Strain when done and leave in collander.
2. In the sauce pan, melt the butter and stir in first the flour to make a roux. Then stir in the milk. Once the milk is very hot, but not yet boiling, stir in the cheese. Continue to stir until melted and sauce is thick, seasoning with salt. 
3. Return the noodles to the pan and toss with the sauce. 

Enjoy your Mac 'n' Cheese!
<3 Danielle

Layered Berry and Banana Baked Oatmeal

Okay, so I am sorry-not-sorry that I am sharing two oatmeal recipes in a row. These are just sooo amazingly delicious, and I wanted to post them before the fruits go out of season!

My grandma grew up in the Great Depression, and to this day, she does not waste anything. Absolutely nothing. Not an exaggeration.

While this can be an admirable quality that many of us could use more of, it's almost obsessive on my grandma's part. She's walks around her house in the dark to save on the electric bill. Air Conitioning is only for  when company is over. Moldy cheese or bread? Cut off the mold, and eat the rest. But the killer is that after meals, she sweeps the crumbs fallen from the plates onto the table during the meal into her mouth.

Nasty. 

I am not nearly that obsessive, but still,if there is a sane way to avoid waste, I try to take it.

So when I saw the bananas in the fruit bowl were on the verge of blackening completely, and the berries in the fridge were not getting any younger either, I decided to make them into a baked oatmeal.

And let me tell you, not wasting food never tasted so good (definitely a lot better than crumbs from a table)

Layered Berry  Banana Baked Oatmeal

2 Very ripe bananas, mashed

1/2 cup old fashioned rolled oats

1/4 tsp. Baking powder

1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

1 tbsp. Milk

1/2 tsp. Vanilla extract

1/3- 1/2 cup blueberries

1/2 cup sliced strawberries

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease a single-serving ramkin.
2. Stir together oats, baking powder, and cinnamon. 
3. Add milk, bananas, and vanilla to the oat mixture. Gently combine.
4. In the ramkin, layer: strawberries, oatmeal batter, blueberries, strawberries, oatmeal batter, blueberries, oatmeal batter.
5. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until center is no longer jiggly.

Enjoy!

<3 Danielle

Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal

Why, oh why is cherry season so short?

Why, oh why do cherries cost so much?

Oh the problems I have. When I do have cherries, I try make the most of them. However, usually my attempts are in vain, as I end up snarfing them down by the handful... oops!

But this year, I managed to save some for this oatmeal! And guess what? It was definitely worth it!

The juice from the cherries spread throughout the oats while cooking, letting off a subtle flavor that pairs well with the chocolate.

So if you have self control enough to save your cherries, try this out. It'll be worth it!

Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal
1/2 cup rolled oats
1.5 Tbsp. cocoa powder
1 banana, mashed
12 cherries, pitted and chopped
1 cup water
1/2 cup almond milk, or milk of choice

1. In a small saucepan, heat all ingredients except for the almond milk until thickened.
2. Add almond milk, then bring back to a boil and let thicken again.
3. let cool slightly before enjoying!

Serves one

~Danielle