Life, Gluten Free

Happy Green Bee Tights Review & Giveaway

Happy Green Bee was created by Roxanne Quimby. She created the company with the philosphy in mind that the clothing be comfortable, colorful, playful and ecologically responsible. In my opinion, she did just that! 

The clothing is cute and upbeat. My daughter got to try the Watermelon/Sky tights. I love them! They are spunky and fun plus soft and comfy. The best part is that they are made from organic cotton.

Happy Green Bee also offers tops, bottoms, sportswear and incredibly cute dresses!

It is important to wear organic cotton because non-organic cotton is grown with petroleum-based pesticides and chemicals. This chemically-grown cotton can cause rashes and eczema. 

My daughter has rashes and eczema, and when we found out how profoundly non-organic cotton can affect you, we switched her to only organic clothes. We have seen an improvement and we love the durability and softness of the organic cotton clothes.

Win it! Happy Green Bee is offering one of my readers one pair of their organic cotton tights. You get to choose the style and size! Sizes infant to 4 years.

Rules on How to Enter:

1) Visit Happy Green Bee and tell me what style/size you would choose and tell me who you want to win these for.

2) Leave a comment with the required information (above) or you comment will be deleted.

3) You must have a U.S. address to qualify to win.

4) Deadline is February 8th at 11pm MST.

5) Extra entry? Grab my button and put it on your blog or web site. Be sure to leave a separate comment telling me that you did. You can also blog or twitter about this giveaway. If you blog or twitter, be sure to leave a link so that I can verify it!

And lastly, Good luck! Leave a creative comment. The winner will be chosen randomly, but if they do not respond, the person with the most creative and wholehearted comment wins!

-heather

January's "Go Ahead Honey, It's Gluten Free!" Round-Up

For January, the theme I chose was "Foods that Bring Good Fortune." Everyone created something different, and several people created something that is in the shape of a ring. Things that are round, not necessarily just cakes, are thought to bring good fortune because a circle symbolizes "coming full circle," completing the year's cycle. 

Kelly, at The Spunky Coconut, created Soba Noodles with Red Pepper & Sunbutter Sauce. She chose the tradition of Japan, where long Soba noodles are eaten because they symbolize long life. She added some red peppers, because the color red is thought to bring good luck too.

Naomi, at Straight Into Bed Cakefree and Dried (also the creator of the wonderful "Go Ahead Honey, It's Gluten Free!") created Lucky Birthday Cake with Lemon Drizzle and Coconut Filling.

Vittoria at Deliciously Gluten Free created Stuffed Fruits that look really quite lovely!

Lauren from Healthy Indulgences created a Healthy Molten Chocolate Lava Cake!

Lauren from Daring to Thrive created some really yummy Lentil Burgers.

And I created a Coconut Cake. And yes, it is round!

This was lots of fun, and I thank everyone who participated. May you all have a wonderful year! 

Kelly at The Spunky Coconut is hosting February. She chose "Sweets for your sweetheart." I love it! Check out her post for full details.

-heather

Coconut Cake - Go Ahead Honey It's Gluten Free!

 

 

A new year's hopes unfolding,

as the winds of change come in

to gently brush the trees and awaken

the sprouts of spring.

 

And as the wind begins to slow

and fade away, with it, it gently

takes fragments of the past.

 

What is left are gentle hopes for

the new year intertwined with memories

of the last.

 

Sprouts of hope,

memories to last,

and the desires of things yet to be.

 

 

Coconut Cake 

NO: gluten, dairy, nuts, eggs 

Ingredients: 

 

1 cup coconut flour 

1 cup tapioca flour

1 cup brown rice flour 

2 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/3 cup organic cane sugar (or sweetener of choice)

2 1/2  teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup apple sauce

1/2 cup safflower oil

1/3 cup coconut oil

2 cups of water (added when blending)

Egg Replacing Ingredients (or use 2-3 eggs)

8 tablespoons apple sauce

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 teaspoon egg replacer

Preparation:

Add flour ingredients to one bowl. In another bowl, mix the sugar and oil ingredients. Mix together the egg replacing ingredients in a bowl of its own. Start to add the sugar and egg replacing ingredients to the dry ingredients. Blend using a mixer.

Add to two round cake pans or pans of your choice. Bake at 350 degrees fahrenheight for 40-45 minutes. Remember: every oven is different. Use a tooth pick or sharp fork to test to make sure the cake is done.

Icing:

1 1/2 stick earth balance (or butter)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cups powdered sugar (more if needed)

1 cup organic palm shortening (or more earth balance/butter)

Add water for desired consistency. Start with 2 tablespoons of water (that may be enough).

Water can help make the icing fluffy and more full, but if you put too much then it is watery.

Spread icing on the bottom layer of the icing and then sprinkle some shredded coconut before placing the other layer on top. Generously spread icing on the entire cake and sprinkle with shredded coconut.

Coconut Quick Facts: Coconut soothes the digestive system, improves immune system function, helps prevent tooth decay, supports thyroid function and kills fungus and yeast.

So what are you waiting for? Make some coconut porridge too!

Naomi at Straight Into Bed Cakefree and Dried started the "Go Ahead Honey It's Gluten Free" event and it is just a blast to be a part of. Since I hosted this month, I will be posting the round-up near the end of this month.

Wordless Wednesday

Recipes Written in Crayon

Although we have many pens to choose from, they are never in the draw or anywhere to be found when you need them.

Was it the gnomes?

Perhaps.

You see, where we lived previously, we had a large laundry cart in our closet. It contained three bags. One for whites, one for darks and one for our daughter's clothes. Pretty easy, right?

Unless you have gnomes...

My husband said that the reason his clothes always ended up laying over the cart or near it on the floor, was a direct result of what he called "gnomes."

Pesky little buggers. Since we moved here, they must have followed us and decided that they needed a new hobby: pens.

This has been an ongoing issue, and many of my recipes have been scrawled in crayon.

And I am guessing, that the popcorn that I stepped in while photographing the recipe, was more than likely those same gnomes!

Because, clearly, my daughter didn't do it. She loves to clean and help.

And she's very good at it too.

Show your kids that housework can be fun. It doesn't have to be a bore! 

-heather

Spiced Chickpeas with Basmati Rice

Spiced Chickpeas with Basmati Rice

NO: gluten, dairy, nuts, eggs

Ingredients:

1 large onion 

1 teaspoon cumin powder 

2 small kaffir lime leaves 

1 teaspoon fenugreek seeds 

1 1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds 

3 cups chickpeas (already cooked)

Dash of turmeric

Preparation:

Chop onions and saute in a pan with extra-virgin olive oil.

Allow onions to begin to brown and caramelize.

Add a very small amount of water if onions begin to stick.

Add the cumin, fenugreek, mustard seeds and kaffir lime leaves.

Cook for several more minutes before adding the chickpeas.

Stir in a dash of turmeric and add a small amount of water if the mixture is too dry.

Serve on top of some brown or white basmati rice.

You can also serve it with a side of salad. Try eating this dish with some brown rice tortillas lightly coated in oil or butter of your choice. Put them in the oven for a few minutes to get crisp.

-heather

Flip & Tumble Reusable Bags (Review and Giveaway!)

Flip & Tumble bags were created by Hetal Jariwala and Eva Bauer. They met while attending Stanford University's Product Design graduate program. After graduating, they took a leap and started flip & tumble bags!

There are two bags, the 24-7 bag and the loopt bag. And I can tell you that the bags are durable and are able to hold a lot of groceries, toys, clothes, cloth diapers and wipes, you name it! I use them for my shopping and for trips to the park. The 24-7 bag folds up into a ball for storage (see photo at top left). You can carry them in your purse or even in your pocket so you will be sure to have one at the check out! For a serious shopping trip, you can easily use several loopt bags to carry all of your purchases.

The 24-7 bag boats a 25lb carrying capacity and the loopt bag has a 23lb carrying capacity, so you can be sure they will hold all of your groceries and more. My favorite is the 24-7 bag not only because it rolls up easily but because the shoulder strap is comfortable, leaving my hands free to grab my running toddler. (and run she does!)

The 24-7 bag:

Just fold and roll the loopt bag for storage and secure it with the elastic:

Why use reusable bags?  from the web site:

The average person in the U.S. goes through 332 bags a year. Often we use these bags for what amounts to just minutes or hours, but plastic bags stick around for 500+ years.

Win it! Flip & Tumble has offered one loopt bag and one 24-7 bag in the winner's choice of colors. 

Rules on How to Enter:

1) Visit Flip & Tumble and tell me what your favorite feature and color of each bag is. *You must complete this step in full or your entry will be deleted*

2) Fill in your answer and information in the form below.

3) You must have a U.S. address to qualify to win.

4) Deadline is January 21 at 11pm.

5) If you are unable to fill out the form, you may leave a comment and be eligible to win.

Extra entry? Grab my button and put it on your blog or web site. Leave a separate comment telling me that you did!

Wordless Wednesday

This picture was taken by my husband. He likes to experiment and take interesting photos. This is one of our daughter's blocks. The picture was not edited.

Check out more Wordless Wednesday's at MomDot.

You can see more of my Wordless Wednesday's here!

-heather

Tomato Sauce with Balsamic Vinegar

Tomato Sauce with Balsamic Vinegar

NO: gluten, dairy, nuts, soy

Ingredients:

2 small yellow onions

extra virgin olive oil to saute onions (about 1-2 tablespoons)

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh oregano

1 teaspoon dried basil

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 can of organic fire roasted tomatoes (14.5 ounces)

Preparation:

Saute onions until translucent and slightly browned. 

Add balsamic vinegar and continue to saute. 

Allow the balsamic vinegar to reduce slightly, to decrease the liquid.

Add the herbs and continue to cook, allowing the herbs to release their aroma.

Add the tomato sauce and cook for a few more minutes.

Serve sauce, warm over rice noodles of choice. Have chocolate rounds for dessert!

We used the fettucini noodles by tinkyada.

You can also enjoy with a side of toasted gluten free bread. We had some tempeh sausage left over from breakfast, and so we crumbled some on top:

My husband made the sausage, and he doesn't measure! We will be sure to make it again and put the recipe up. He made the sauce too, but luckily I was standing there with a pen in hand, making him measure each ingredient! :)

-heather