It’s hard to believe the holiday season is upon us! Around here it is at least feeling a little more like Christmas due to the cool front that came through.  As a result we are going to to be having temperatures in the 30’s tonight here in the Houston area! While you are busy shopping and your life get busy, I hope theseFree December Planner Stickers brighten your day!

Click Here for Sticker Download

Easter is such a wonderful time of the year! All of the cute bunnies and colorful eggs make decorating so much fun. And of course the most important reason, celebrating the true meaning of Easter – that He has risen! He is risen indeed! The actual day Easter is celebrated changes from year to year. This is because “Christian churches in the West celebrate Easter on the first Sunday following the full moon after the vernal equinox on March 21”1.  You can use these Free Easter Planner Stickers to help you celebrate. Just print on this sticker paper then use your Cricut or Silhouette to cut them out. Click on the picture below to access the folder where you can download the file you need to be used with your cutting machine.

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Free Easter Planner Stickers pdf

1 www.historychannel.com

“April Shower Bring May Flowers”! It’s hard to believe that it’s almost April! Download these Free April Planner Stickers to decorate your  EC Life planner for the month of April. Just click on the picture for the PNG file or the link below the picture for the PDF file. And if you do get a lot of rain in April where you live, here is a list of national days you can celebrate:

April 2:   Peanut Butter & Jelly Day

April 4:   School Librarian Day

April 6:   Caramel Popcorn Day

April 7:   No Housework Day (this is one of my favorites!)

April 10: Siblings Day

April 12: Grilled Cheese Day

April 13: Scrabble Day

April 16: Easter

April 20: Cheddar Fries Day

April 23: Cherry Cheesecake Day

April 26: Pretzel Day

April 28: Blueberry Pie Day

April 30: Oatmeal Cookie Day

Free April Planner Stickers PDF

Gluten and Sugar Free Blueberry Pancakes

These gluten free blueberry pancakes are fluffy, moist and full of flavor!

My husband went to have dinner with a friend.  So I decided to make pancakes for myself since he thinks pancakes for dinner is weird.  He wouldn’t eat them anyway because they are gluten-free!  I only make a small batch so I can eat one or two and then save the others for breakfast.  If I make them small to medium-sized I can get about 8 pancakes.  If I make them really large (like the ones in the picture) I only get about 4 pancakes.  I used some of the fresh blueberries that I had picked at a local blueberry farm and stored in the freezer.  They are the same ones I used to make these gluten-free blueberry muffins.

Recipe For Gluten Free Blueberry Pancakes

Preheat griddle to 350° or medium heat.

½ cup + 2 tablespoons gluten free multi-purpose flour

½ cup + 2 tablespoons almond flour

1 tablespoon Splenda (or equivalent sweetener)

¾ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon xanthan gum

1 large egg

1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (or dairy equivalent)

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons melted coconut oil or butter

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

1. Mix all of the dry ingredients from gluten free flour to xanthan gum together in a bowl.

2. In a separate bowl mix the egg, milk and vanilla extract. Quickly mix in the melted coconut oil and then add this mixture to the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. The coconut oil may start to harden a little but it will be fine.

3.  Gently stir in the blueberries to the batter.

4.  Grease griddle lightly.  Pour batter onto griddle until you have formed the size pancake you would like.  Small size take about 2-3 minutes per side. Large take 3-4 minutes per side.  You will flip the pancakes when they appear dry around the edges.

Enjoy your gluten and sugar free blueberry pancakes!

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I generally eat healthy to help manage my autoimmune diseases and food allergies. However there are times when I like to eat some comfort food. This gluten free fried chicken fits the bill.

Gluten free fried chicken:

Ingredients

6 boneless chicken thighs

1 egg beaten with water

1 ½ cups gluten free flour blend (no xanthan gum)

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon basil

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon celery salt

½ teaspoon pepper

oil for frying

Directions

1. Heat oil. You can use about and inch of oil in a pan on the stove or use a deep fryer.

2. Mix all ingredients from paprika to pepper in a small bowl.

3. Put gluten free flour in a medium size bowl.  Add seasoning mixture and stir to combine.

4. Dip chicken thighs in flour mixture to coat.  Then dip each piece in the egg wash followed by the flour mixture again.  Make sure they are well coated.

5. Check your oil by dropping a pinch of the flour mixture in.  If it’s ready it should sizzle.

6.  Put 2-3 pieces of chicken in the deep fryer or pan.  I left mine in the deep fryer for about 7 minutes until they were light brown.  If you are using a pan on the stove cook for about 4 minutes per side.

Enjoy your gluten free fried chicken!

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Blueberry Coconut Smoothie

Frozen blueberries are a nice snack by themselves.  But when added to a smoothie they make a nice refreshing drink! These blueberries were picked at Moorhead’s Blueberry Farm back in June.  I just popped them in the freezer and get some out when I want to use them. I got a cup of these out the other day to make this blueberry coconut smoothie (plus a few extra to snack on).  A frozen kale cube was also added for its nutritional benefits. You can find out how to make them here.  Kale is high in vitamins, especially vitamin K, vitamin A and vitamin C.  Furthermore adds some fiber and protein to help fill you up. The canned coconut milk contains fat but it is the kind of fat that is good for you – it doesn’t raise your cholesterol. It also has more than 10% of your daily needs for iron, magnesium, potassium and zinc. Since the coconut milk and cashew milk are both unsweetened the only sugar in this blueberry coconut smoothie is the natural sugars found in the blueberries. It is also dairy and gluten free. 

 

Blueberry Coconut Smoothie

Serves 2

Blueberry Coconut Smoothie - A deliciously refreshing summertime smoothie!

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Ingredients

1. 1 cup frozen blueberries
2. ¾ cup canned unsweetened coconut milk (I used full fat but the low fat works just as well)
3. ¾ - 1 cup unsweetened almond or cashew milk
4. 1 frozen kale cube (optional)
5. ¹⁄8 teaspoon liquid stevia or sweetener of choice

Instructions

1. Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor.
2. Blend until all ingredients are combined.
3. Pour into 2 cups and top with some extra blueberries.

By Roseann Hampton

 Hope you enjoy!

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Have you ever looked at the ingredient label of your canned or jarred spaghetti sauce?  Most likely you will see sugar or corn syrup as one of the ingredients.  When I first started eating sugar free due to my candida overgrowth I could occasionally find a jar of “light” brand name spaghetti sauce that claimed there was no added sugar.  But the grocery store only seemed to have it some of the time.  And soon they stopped carrying it altogether.  They seem to do that a lot with products I can eat!  It’s very frustrating! So I began experimenting with making my own.  This recipe for homemade sugar free spaghetti sauce is really good and yet very easy to make.  It is a recipe I often get asked to share.  So for those of you that have asked for it, here it is!

Ingredients:

The recipe uses herbs that I have dried from my garden but you can certainly use fresh or buy them from the store.  I also used some chopped tomatoes from my garden that I had stored in the freezer.

 

In addition, these other ingredients I purchased at the store – pureed tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, onions and stevia.

Directions:

First add all the tomato products to a large pot. Then add minced garlic, chopped onion, oregano, and basil.  If you like your spaghetti sauce to have a little sweetness you can also add a few drops of liquid stevia.

Then stir it all together and cook, covered, on medium heat for about 15-20 minutes.  After that reduce heat to low and simmer for about 2 hours allowing the sugar free spaghetti sauce to thicken. Stir occasionally.

Serve over your choice of noodles or add to your favorite pasta dish.  I often use the sauce over spaghetti squash, but I also use these noodles – they are a mix of 4 different grains.

Finally, enjoy!

 

Homemade Sugar Free Spaghetti Sauce

A thick and hearty sugar free spaghetti sauce with a hint of sweetness.

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Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

2 hr

Ingredients

1. 1-28 ounce can tomato puree
2. 1-28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
3. 2 cups fresh chopped tomatoes (or 1-14 ounce can)
4. 1-6 ounce can tomato paste
5. ½ onion, chopped
6. 1 tablespoon minced garlic
7. 1 tablespoon dried basil
8. 1 tablespoon dried oregano
9. a few drops liquid stevia

Instructions

1. Put all ingredients into a large pot.
2. Cook on medium heat, covered until it starts to bubble (about 15 minutes).
3. Turn heat to low and simmer for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Notes

1. This makes a large quantity. There is usually enough to freeze some for later use.

By Roseann Hampton

Shrimp Scampi makes a great weeknight meal because it is quick and easy to make.  This shrimp can be served in a variety of ways including over pasta or rice.  It would also be good in a salad.

Even though shrimp is a common allergen it does offer many health benefits.  It contains 2 antioxidants – selenium and astaxanthin and has about 20 grams of protein per 4 oz serving. Shrimp also supplies 78% of your daily B12 needs as well as 50% of your phosphorus. To read more about the health benefits of shrimp, click here.  Furthermore, at 28 calories per ounce it makes a pretty low calorie meal.

Directions

STEP 1

Finely chop ½ a small onion then cook it in a small amount of olive oil over medium heat until soft. Put the garlic in the pan and cook for another 1-2 minutes.

STEP 2

Add shrimp and cook until the shrimp turns pink.

STEP 3

Finally, add lemon juice.  Then salt and pepper to taste. 

That’s it!  Just three easy steps and only about 15 minutes of prep and cook time! Enjoy!

Leave a comment on how you would serve this dish!

Shrimp Scampi

Serves 4

A low calorie, quick and easy weeknight meal.

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Prep Time

5 min

Cook Time

10 min

Total Time

15 min

Ingredients

1. 1 pound peeled, deveined small raw shrimp
2. ½ onion, finely chopped
3. 1 tablespoon minced garlic
4. ½ tablespoon olive oil
5. ¹⁄3 cup lemon juice
6. salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Put olive oil in pan and heat over medium heat.
2. Add onions to heat pan and cook until soft.
3. Add garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes.
4. Add shrimp to pan and cook until pink.
5. Pour in lemon juice.
6. Salt and pepper to taste

By Roseann Hampton