Giving Thanks

I am thankful for my family. And I am proud to be a part of such an amazing extended family!!
I am thankful for my husband.
I am thankful for my awesome friends who are like family.
I am thankful for a roof over our heads and food on our table.
I am thankful for the animals that we care for and how they enhance our lives.
I am thankful for our God who loves me enough that he came to earth, died and rose again.
I am thankful for the travels that I have had in life and the memories of them that I visit often.
I am thankful for the leaves on the ground that are brilliant red.
I am thankful .......

Turkey Time!!

Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Can you believe it? Where has the time gone? I love Fall. The leaves, the chilly air, the fire in the wood stove!! Can't wait to see how that brings our heating bill down... Woohoo!!

Anyway, Thanksgiving is soon upon us and that makes me think about food. I decided this year to buy a turkey fresh from the farm. I missed the cutoff dates for that, and anything local was already paid for. Drat. Where else is a girl to go? I ended up at the butchers counter at my local Whole Foods. I love those meat slingers. They always take good care of me. I decided to order my turkeys, yes plural, from them. They carry a regular ol broad breasted turkey and many other variations. I settled on a regular ol turkey and an heirloom variety turkey. I have heard people rave about the flavor of an heirloom turkey and I can't wait to try it.

Here's the catch..... I don't even cook Thanksgiving dinner!! I am buying these turkeys to process and freeze for later use. I plan on slicing these up into cutlets, breast pieces, ground meat, turkey legs, stock and whatever else I can think of!! It is turkey season, so they are fresh and the prices are good. Hopefully my Mom is going to help me cut them up. I have cut up chickens but for some reason, turkey seems intimidating. I am borrowing her meat grinder too. What am I getting myself into? Delicious meat to be on hand. Actually, I am looking forward to this adventure. I will let you know how it goes!

Well, I Tried

Well, I tried something the other day that I have missed for awhile. Yes, it was food related. I have been missing oatmeal since the chilly mornings arrived. I have cautiously stayed away from it because oats are often cross contaminated with gluten. This can happen a few ways. Often the fields that they grow in used to be fields where gluten containing grains were grown, or they are grown in close proximity of these grains. The machinery that they are processed on are usually used for other grains and this causes cross contamination as well. So, to be on the safe side, I have stayed away from oats in any shape or form.

This weekend I decided to spend the money on gluten free oats. These oats are grown and tested for gluten along the process. Oh, the smell, the taste!!!! Divine! I didn't realize how much I missed a little grain. I piled it up with walnuts and raisins. Yummy! My taste buds were satisfied. I waited for a reaction from my gut. I went all day just fine, until the next morning. Bummer. I guess I need to try a smaller quantity of oats or not making it a main meal. Oats do naturally obtain a small amount of gluten, but many gluten sensitive people can tolerate small amounts of oats.

I won't give up yet!! I will they it in small amounts, maybe in cookies, or the oh so missed meatloaf! I used to make a killer meatloaf. Maybe I can resurrect it. I will keep you posted on my progress.

Have any of you had an experience with oats? I often wonder how other people are affected by food.......

My Sweet Tooth Kicked In

My sweet tooth kicked in and now I want some chocolate. What is a gluten free, sugar free, dairy free girl to do? Well, there is always some Coconut Bliss to be had. I never get tired of ice cream and Coconut Bliss fits my bill every time. But my birthday rolled around and I wanted something cake like. I wanted chocolate. I hadn't really had anything cake like since starting my healthy eating plan. I am not a girl that LOVES frosting, so I didn't need a traditional cake. I searched recipe sites far and wide. I dreamed of the chocolate ganache that I had at Sunflower Cafe. I found nothing close to it.

Then I remembered a brownie recipe that I found, guess where? At Elana's Pantry of course. You can find it here.

I LOVE these brownies. I hadn't made them before for a few reasons. 1) it makes a big pan of brownies 2)the ingredients are expensive, around $10 total 3)I didn't want a huge pan of brownies in the house because I would eat them!!!

So, when my friend Jen asked if she could make something for my birthday I jumped on this recipe. I supplied the ingredients and Jen whipped them up. They are SO good. Everyone agreed. These are a hit!!

What I LOVE about these brownies 1) anyone can make them. No special ingredients needed. Everything can be found at the local grocery. Get baking for your gluten free friends!!! 2)they are high in protein and low in natural sugar. No guilt in these babies! 3) they keep well 4) I could take these to a potluck or friends house and everyone would be satisfied 5) it makes a big pan of brownies so I don't get mad when Dave eats three or four in a day

Have you had your brownies today??? Maybe you should make some.......

Pumpkin Bread That is Gluten free, Sugar free AND Delicious?

Yes, that is right!!! Thanks to my new favorite website I have made delicious pumpkin bread that meets all of my dietary requirements. It is super moist, easy, and high in protein. Are you as excited as I am?

The recipe is from Elana's Pantry. You can find it here. It is super amazing. You have to check out her recipes. I want to make so many of them. The only thing that I changed in this recipe was that I made mini loaves instead of muffins. I hate cleaning muffin tins. I also doubled the recipe since it is for only 8 muffins. I think next time I am going to add a bit more spice as well. I like my spiced breads spicy!!

I am off to make some more pumpkin bread.... Enjoy!!!

Healthy Eating Update

You may be wondering how my healthy eating is going. Just for a reminder I am gluten free, sugar free, dairy free, yeast free, and corn free. It was difficult at first figuring out how to eat, but I am pretty used to it now. I really don't get tempted often and even then, saying no is easy when you know that thing will make you feel yucky later.

Meals really aren't that hard or different. We just stick to meat and vegetables with an occasional side of rice. I can still have Dave's amazing grilled steak which gets better every time he makes it. So far I am not missing too many foods either. I will admit, Thanksgiving might be tough. I love cornbread dressing. sigh. That will be missed.

As a result of all of this healthy eating, I have become the incredible shrinking woman. Do you remember that movie? I need to look it up. Anyway, without trying to, nor did I expect it, I have dropped almost thirty pounds. This side affect of losing weight wasn't on my horizon. I was quite happy with my weight and size. I didn't look in the mirror and wish that I was smaller. Now I am faced with getting a whole new wardrobe. Almost nothing fits that did before. I think that most women would love this- losing weight and having to buy new clothes. Have I mentioned that I hate shopping? Especially when I can no longer judge what will fit me just by looking at it on the rack. To set out an outfit only to have it hang off of you when you put it on is no fun. And when you decide that you will try to wear it anyway and your friend tells you that it looks like you have a load in your pants, you decide to go shopping.

I bought my first pair of skinny jeans. What!!! Dave is thrilled of course. One bonus of all of this, I actually have normal sized calves!! My fluid retention has gone way down. I am so thrilled about that. I have shopped here and there for bits and pieces, but I need to get some more work clothes soon.

My energy levels are up and down. I had been doing pretty well, but a month of stress at work knocked me down. I am trying to get back to where I was. Oh, my creative juices are flowing again though!! I have been hand stitching up a storm and loving it!! I haven't really sewn in two years. I am so glad to have that creative energy back. Be in the look out for pictures of my creations.

Ok, now that I have written a short book, I am going to enjoy my day.... I hope that you are enjoying yours too!