Real Food with Christine

These muffins are perfect if your looking for a traditional blueberry muffin recipe. These are free of gluten, dairy and soy and are not too sweet. I hope you enjoy them as much as we did. Ingredients 2 cups gluten free flour mix #2 recipe found ---> here 1/2 cup organic evaporated cane juice 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum 1 tablespoon baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup milk (almond, rice or dairy milk) 1/2 cup safflower oil 2 eggs 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup fresh organic blueberries Directions Preheat oven to 350 and line a muffin tin with ubleached liners . In a large bowl combine the flour mix, evaporated cane juice, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the milk, oil, eggs and vanilla and stir until just combined. Fold in the blueberries. Scoop batter into 12 muffin cups. Bake for 35 minutes or until lightly golden on top.

There is nothing better when your in on a cold snowy day than some comfort food. This dish is very comforting and satisfying while still being packed with nutrients. I found the idea from Megan from The Detoxinista . This cream sauce recipe is a variation of -->  this recipe . I usually skip any vegan cheese recipes that call for nutritional yeast because I am allergic to yeast. This time I figured I'd give it a try without the yeast and see how it came out. The result was a creamy, spicy "cheese" like sauce that would be great on any pasta noodles, spaghetti squash noodles, or on top of veggies (I used cauliflower). I followed -->  this recipe  with the following changes: I left out the nutritional yeast, I used cayenne pepper instead of the chili powder and I used the orange sweet potato because that's all I had in the house. Benefits of this dish: Cauliflower contains vitamins B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), B3 (niacin), B5 (pantothenic acid), B...

Chocolate chip cookies are a favorite in our house. I have made many pretty good gluten free and dairy free versions over the last few years but none were exactly like the traditional ones I would make before we were gluten free. I made these yesterday as a test batch and when I got home from food shopping my husband had pretty much finished them! That's how I knew these were real deal chocolate chip cookies. He actually said "no one would know those were gluten free". I almost fainted. He is my toughest critic when it comes to chocolate chip cookies and when he asked if I was testing them out again today I knew he wanted more. I thought this would take a while to perfect, but since they are good enough for my toughest critic then I think you will all love them too. And, with the holidays coming these are the perfect treat! Ingredients 1/2 cup organic palm shortening 1 1/4 cups of evaporated cane sugar 1 tablespoon blackstrap molasses 2 large eggs 2 cups Bobs ...

I know I've been missing for the last two months. Aside from some Facebook posts and shares, I haven't posted on here. The reason is that my oldest child started kindergarten! Some people may laugh at me, but this was the hardest thing for me to get used to (and I can't even say I'm used to it, I'm just realizing I can handle it). All of sudden you go from a few hours of pre-k to a full day of kindergarten...6 hours with your little one out of your sight! You have to have faith that she will be OK for the hours she is not with you. This was not easy for me to do, I felt like I never saw her! Getting home late afternoon and some after school activities, homework, dinner and showers and before I knew it days were flying by and my time with her was minimal. She's growing up :( I know it's only kindergarten and some of you may still be laughing at me but this was a huge eye opener for me. I have enjoyed all the time I have had home with her but still wasn...

Naturegirl Industries Protein Bars I hope you all had a great summer. Now that summer is coming to an end and back to school lunches and snacks are on our minds, I thought I'd share a great product I found. This product is great for adults and kids. To fill you all in a little, I've been thinking a lot about what water we should be using in our house, bottled, filtered, alkaline, etc. I tried alkaline bottled water but was not happy about it being packaged in plastic. I tried filtering my tap water but I felt it wasn't removing all the chemicals it should. Then I found  Phountain Water . You can fill up your glass gallon containers and choose what alkalinity you want. I use an 8.5. Their filters remove all chemicals and you are getting clean filtered, alkaline water, in glass bottles. I am happy! Now back to my amazing product find. While in there filling my water gallons, I saw these bars from Nature's Fuel . They had samples to try and I fell in love with them....

I saw  this instagram pic the other day from Jenni Hulet at The Urban Poser  and I had to try these. I have always loved chocolate covered strawberries and have even made chocolate covered raspberries but never blackberries. Today I went to the store and saw a nice pint of blackberries and I knew what I had to do. Here is the recipe, although it is not much of a recipe. You really need to try this combination! Ingredients Blackberries preferably organic 1/2-3/4 cup Dark chocolate chips (I use Enjoy Life mini chips) 1 teaspoon coconut oil Directions Melt your chocolate in a microwave safe bowl on medium heat for 30 seconds at a time until melted. Stir in the coconut oil. Dip blackberries into chocolate and coat well. Place on a waxed paper covered dish and set in the freezer until chocolate has hardened. Remove from freezer. If you want to decorate them a little, drizzle a little more melted chocolate on top of the hardened chocolate and place back in freezer for a...

Ice cream is one of my favorite treats. Whenever the warm weather would come, my ice cream maker would come out and make ice cream at least twice a week. I would make all kinds of flavors, but chocolate was always our favorite. Going back to when I ate processed ice cream, my favorite was a flavor from Godiva called Chocolate with Chocolate Hearts. I don't know if the chocolate ice cream was even that good, but the dark chocolate hearts were amazing! My ice cream maker has been taking a break for a while. Since going dairy free I hadn't made too many ice creams. Not that I haven't tried, I have enjoyed some raw ice creams, you can check those our here  and here . I also found a coconut ice cream from Coconut Secret and it has a very clean ingredient list. They were good, but nothing satisfied that real rich, creamy chocolate ice cream that use to come out of my ice cream maker quite often. Any time I tried a recipe for dairy free ice cream using coconut or almond milk t...

I love smoothies, they are a quick meal or snack and can pack a lot of nutrition in one glass. I love giving smoothies to my kids for snacks too. I am always trying to come up with nutritious smoothies that also taste great so my kids will drink them. This one passed the test and all my kids loved it! It has a very tropical taste from the coconut and pineapple and is great for sipping outside on a summer day. Ingredients 1 cup unsweetened almond milk 1/2 cup frozen pineapple chunks 1/2 frozen banana 8-10 green grapes handful of baby spinach 1 teaspoon chia seeds 1 tablespoon coconut flakes 2 ice cubes Directions Mix all ingredients in a blender (I use the Vitamix) and blend until smooth.

I have always been kind of intimidated by spring roll wrappers. I thought they were very delicate and hard to work with so I just avoided them. Finally I decided to give them a try and I am so glad I did. Not only do they make a very healthy meal, but they are much more durable and easy to work with then I thought they would be. You can put almost any veggies you want in here, the possibilities are endless! Here is my version with shrimp and veggies with a homemade Gyoza sauce. This sauce is soy free but if you can eat soy you can replace the coconut aminos with soy sauce (use wheat free tamari if your gluten free). Coconut aminos are a great replacement for soy sauce in any recipe or on Sushi rolls too if you are soy free! This sauce taste just like the sauce you get from a Japanese restaurant with dumplings...yum :) For 8 rolls Ingredients for the rolls: shredded lettuce finely sliced carrot sticks finely sliced cucumber sticks 16 shrimp boiled and chopped into chunks 8 s...

I know I am always looking for a new ways to make chicken. I never considered Chicken Marsala, because of the Mushrooms. I am allergic and my husband hates them (I know!!, how does he hate them?? If I could eat them I'd have the ALL the time). I never use to be allergic to them, so I know how good they are, I only became allergic after my third pregnancy. I ate a piece of Gorgonzola which I also loved and my mouth got all itchy. It turned out I was allergic to fungus and mold. I decided that I could still have Chicken Marsala just without the mushrooms and it turned out great. If you can eat mushrooms, just add them in with the garlic and shallots and follow the rest of the recipe the same! Ingredients 1 pound of chicken cutlets 1/2 cup brown rice flour 1/4 cup olive oil divided 3 tablespoons soy free earth balance divided (any butter or ghee would work too) 1/2 of a medium shallot minced 2 clove garlic, minced 1/3 cup Marsala wine 1 cup chicken stock Salt and Pepp...

Mac and cheese was always a favorite in my house and it was the same when I had kids. Without gluten it was still easy to make a really good mac and cheese dish, see my pumpkin mac and cheese recipe --> here . Now without dairy, this was a little more difficult. I am not a fan of any dairy free cheese product and most of them are soy based anyway, which my daughter is allergic to so that is out of the question. I was surprised the first time I had Daiya   mozzarella  cheese on pizza and it was actually melted and stretchy like real cheese. I used the cheddar version for this mac and cheese and it was just as good in this dish as it is on pizza! Ingredients 1 pound gluten free elbow pasta (I use Tinkyada ) 3 tablespoons Earth Balance soy free margarine 2 cups Rice Milk (any nut milk will also work) 1 package Daiya Cheddar (2 cups) salt and pepper fresh parsley chopped Directions Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the pasta. While the...

I always loved stuffed shells but I haven't had them in a very long time. I've always seen the brown rice pasta shells in stores, but without dairy, that has been pretty much off the list...until now! Using my Marinara Sauce recipe and The Earth Diet's Cashew Ricotta Cheese , these came out amazing!! I used Tinkyada Brown Rice Shells .(A tip for the shells, they cooked a lot longer than the package directions). For the cheese recipe, go to this link on The Earth Diet ----> Cashew Cheese (I used 1/2 cup water instead of 3/4 because I wanted it to be thicker) I served these along with a chicken version of these meatballs . Ingredients One serving of The Earth Diet Cashew Cheese One serving of my Marinara Sauce 1 package of Tinkyada Gluten free Shells  cooked Directions Take each shell and spoon a tablespoon of cashew cheese inside. Fold to close and lay on a plate. Spoon sauce on top of shells. Serve as is or with a side of chicken meatballs ....

I've made many versions of almond flour pancakes and just wasn't fully satisfied with the way they turned out, so this morning when my kids asked for pancakes I had to find a new one to try. I didn't have time for recipe experimenting so I found this recipe from Jenni Hulet at The Urban Poser . I made them following the recipe except I substituted unsweetened almond milk as my milk and used vanilla. I noticed mine cooked on low heat with a cast iron skillet. I burned the first batch on medium heat and the inside weren't cooked. I doubled the recipe and made half blueberry and half chocolate chip (my husband's favorite). Both were great! As you can see even the kids loved them! Here is a link to the recipe: Perfect Dairy Free Almond Flour Pancakes Here are my step by step pictures:

Some days my mornings are so busy I really don't have a lot of time to spend on breakfast for myself. That's why I love the ideas of smoothies for breakfast. You can pack tons of nutrition in a smoothie and make it in just a few minutes. They are also great to take on the go when your running out the door (Like I do almost every day!). This combination is one of my favorites so far. It is so good, it will be hard to convince yourself it that it is good for you :) It was also approved by my kids so it is a great snack for kids too! Ingredients 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk 1/4 cup raspberries 1 tablespoon chia powder (I use Navitas Naturals ) 1 tablespoon raw cacao powder (also Navitas Naturals ) 1 tablespoon hemp seeds shelled (I use Nutiva ) 1 scoop chocolate whey protein (or any other protein powder you like, I use Blue Bonnet Whey ) 1/2 frozen banana 2 ice cubes Directions Put all ingredients in a blender (I use a Vitamix ) and blend until smooth. T...

I recently started using a product called Rockin Wellness. I am no longer a coffee drinker, and I am happy that I do not get up craving that cup of coffee like I use to. This drink gives me the perfect energy without the jittery feeling that caffeine would do. This is a perfect meal or in between meal snack. I also use this when I'm craving something sweet, because it satisfies that craving with the raw cacao. I became a fan of Rockin Wellness on Facebook and was amazed with the testimonials from people who started using this product, I had to try it for myself. After finishing my third bag, I am happy to recommend this product. You can add banana, berries or nuts or just mix it with almond milk and it tastes great every way! This has many super foods to get your body the nutrtition it needs in an easy to make drink. It contains Cacao, Goji, Maca, Hemp Seed, Chia, Flaxseed, Green Tea, Yerba Mate and Vegan Probiotics. To see the full list of ingredients an...

I've been in love with Emmy's Organics Chai Spice Macaroons for a while now. A friend of mine made a version of these that were so good, I had to make them. These are so easy to make and have only 2 grams of sugar from maple syrup per macaroon. Pair them with a cup of ginger tea and you have an amazing dessert! This recipe was adapted from this recipe . Ingredients 1/4 cup almond meal 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 tablespoons maple syrup 1 cup chredded coconut 2 tablespoons coconut oil 1/2 teaspoon chai spice**recipe below **Chai Spice Recipe 2 teaspoons cinnamon 2 teaspoons ginger 1 teaspoon nutmeg 1 teaspoon clove 2 teaspoons cardamom Directions Add all ingredients in a food processor and process until combined. Roll into balls and flatten tops slightly or leave as balls and roll in shredded coconut.

I have always been a little intimidated of curry sauce. I thought it would be very complicated to make. I've tried a few of the bottled ones, even the natural ones and I wasn't a fan. So, I thought I'd attempt my own. This version is very simple and it's free of soy, corn, gluten and dairy and is so creamy and delicious, it will be hard to believe it is so good for you! Ingredients 2 cups butternut squash steamed and cut into chunks (see below for steaming directions*) 1 teaspoon olive oil 1 small yellow onion, diced 3 cloves garlic, sliced 1 cup light coconut milk 1/2 cup water 1 tablespoon curry powder 1/2 teaspoon garam masala 1 teaspoon red chili powder (leave this out if you don't like spicy) 1 teaspoon salt 4 cups mixed veggies (I used, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and zucchini) quinoa (rice, millet or cauliflower rice will also work) Directions In a saute pan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the diced onion and garlic, and saute...

I love ice cream! I don't eat the traditional dairy ice cream anymore, but I do still crave that frozen creamy dessert. These are great for satisfying that ice cream craving without actually eating any ice cream. These are also kid approved and perfect bite size snacks, although it is hard to just eat one! There are many versions of this recipe out there. Two of my favorites that inspired this recipe are these Frozen Banana Truffles from The Detoxinista and these Chocolate covered frozen banana and peanut butter bites  from Marie at Not Enough Cinnamon . Here is my version: Ingredients 2 Bananas unsalted peanut butter pinch of sea salt 1 3.5 ounce bar of organic dark chocolate (I used Trader Joes) 1 teaspoon coconut oil Directions Slice bananas into rounds and lay half of them on a wax covered baking sheet. Spoon a small amount of peanut butter on top of each banana slice and top with the remaining slices. Place in freezer for about 20 minutes to f...

This dish reminds me of a fried rice dish that I use to get when I ate Chinese takeout. This version is made with quinoa which is a much healthier option. This dish is very versatile, you can have it as a side dish or you can turn this dish into breakfast by adding a scrambled egg to the pan and letting it cook before adding the quinoa. You can also add some cooked chicken breast for another lunch or dinner option.  Benefits of Quinoa -Quinoa is a complete protein containing all nine essential amino acids.  -Quinoa contains almost twice as much fiber as most other grains.  -Quinoa contains Iron, lysine, magnesium, riboflavin (B2) and manganese. Ingredients 1/2 cup quinoa (about 1 cup cooked) 1 head of bok choy 2 carrots shredded 1 onion chopped 2 cloves garlic minced 3 scallions 3 tablespoons coconut aminos (or Wheat Free Tamari if you can eat soy) 2 tablespoons olive oil Directions In a large pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add onions, ...

Ingredients for one shake 8 ounces almond milk (you can also use water it just won't be as thick) 8 frozen cherries 1/2 frozen banana good size handful of baby kale 2 ice cubes 1 scoop of chocolate protein powder Directions Put all ingredients in a powerful blender (I use the Vitamix) and blend until smooth. Drink and Enjoy!