Pumpkinut Bread Puddin'! GF & DF!

Hey Happy Tummies!!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

I just love when the family is all together:)

So we had a treat this weekend. We had the AMAZING Anna May come to our house and take family photos.

She is seriously the most talented photographer ever.

She's based out of Louisville, but will travel to capture beautiful moments for your family, or engagement or wedding.

So thank you Anna May Photography for such gorgeous photos!

Look at that little goober:)

Light and shadows with yours truly :)

Alright...now onto a show stopping recipe!

I made this for my family for breakfast on Thanksgiving, but it could also be dessert. :)

Here's the secret: it's actually pretty doggone healthy!

It's made with Gluten and Dairy Free ingredients, and can easily be made sugar-free by subbing agave or honey for the sugar in the recipe!

I call it: Pumpkinut Bread Pudding! (get it -- pumpkin and coconut :) )

Here's what you need:

1 loaf (14 slices) of Udi's gluten free bread

Custard:
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp salt
1 can of pure pumpkin puree
1 cup coconut milk

Garnish:
coconut milk
sprinkle of cinnamon
pecans

Preheat oven to 250. Place your bread slices on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes per side, until the bread is dry and toasty.

Turn up the oven to 350.

In a medium sized bowl, beat the eggs, sugar, vanilla, and spices together. Then, stir in your pumpkin and coconut milk. ((This all can be done the night before, and refrigerated overnight.))

About 2 hours before you plan on eating, assemble and bake your bread pudding.

Thoroughly spray a deep casserole dish with coconut oil spray. Spread a layer of the custard mixture on the bottom of the pan.

Break your toast slices in half, and arrange in a shingle pattern in the casserole dish, like so.

Then, spoon the custard over the toast shingles until everything is thoroughly smothered in the custard.

Let the dish sit for about 10-15 minutes, allowing the bread to absorb the custard. (If you let it absorb and soak overnight, the gluten free bread will become gummy.)

Bake for 1 hour - 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the custard sets. Rotate the pan if any dark spots develop.

Before you serve, mix some coconut milk with a dash of cinnamon. You can also add some honey, stevia or sugar if desired to taste.

Also, chop some pecans or other nut of choice for a garnish.

Serve warm, and liberally drizzle with the coconut milk.

OK, you guys. This was a winner.

To be completely transparent, I could not eat this, because I can't have the ingredients in the gluten free bread, but it gave me so much joy to prepare a dish that my family loved. And boy, did they love it! My entire family (G-Free'ers and gluten-full-er's alike) polished it off!

I can attest to the custard and WOW, the flavor was amazing. Rich and creamy, and perfectly sweet -- not too sweet, but juuust right.

And the texture was great. The bread was wonderfully spongey and light. Gluten Free bread can become notoriously gummy when soaked for casseroles or bread puddings. But the trick is to really dry it out, and then soak it shortly RIGHT BEFORE you cook and eat it.

My sister-in-law said that it tasted so light, yet decadent. "Light, airy, comforting, and warm, with soft palate flavors -- not overwhelming at all. SO GOOD!" -- and this is coming from a woman that's NOT gluten free!!

And my dad (also not gluten free) loved the coconut drizzle. He said it made the dish so luxurious and moist. I think he had three helpings ;)

So there you have it, folks - the proof is in the pudding :) hehe

And one last thing -- look at how sweet my bro and his wife are: They know I don't eat turkey for Thanksgiving, so he made me a veggie turkey!! Isn't that so sweet?! And look closely at the feet -- he even used celery tops for the "toes" haha!! I'm a spoiled baby sister :) hehe

Alright, until next time! :D

PALEO PUMPKIN PIE! GF, SCD & Paleo!

Hey Happy Tummies!

ANNOUNCEMENT: 2 ½ WEEKS UNTIL THANKSGIVING!!

Whaaaaaat??!! 

I. Know. Craaaazy, huh? Time is literally flying by. 

Have you started making plans for Thanksgiving yet? I am going home to be with family for turkey day. I'm super excited. Bought my plane tickets and everything! :D

Well, as promised, I'm sharing a gourd-geous dessert recipe with you all today:) ((See what I did there?!)) :) hehe

I’ve got a show stopper here folks. PALEO PUMPKIN PIE!!

It’s Gluten Free. It’s Dairy Free. It’s Specific Carb Diet Friendly. It’s Paleo. It’s fan-frickin-tastic.

I made this for Thanksgiving last year and it was an absolute hit. It brought the house down!

Filling: (Makes 2 pies)

1/3 cup raw cashews
2 cups pumpkin or butternut squash puree
2 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp ground clove
1/8 tsp ground ginger
4 droppers full of pure liquid stevia, alcohol free (SCD omit, and use an extra Tbsp honey instead)
2 healthy pinches of salt
2 Tbsp honey
3 egg whites
12 oz coconut milk – I used light

CRUST: (Makes 2 crusts)
16 dates
1 cup cashews
1 cup almonds
4 healthy pinches of salt

Preheat oven to 400. Cut your squash or pumpkin in half length-wise, scoop out all the seeds and place cut-side-down on a tin foil-lined, olive oil-sprayed baking sheet. Bake for about 45 minutes, until tender. Take it out and let cool for about 7-10 minutes, until you are able to touch it. When you take it out, increase the oven temp to 425.

Meanwhile, make your crust. Pit and chop your dates into small pieces to help out the food processor. Then, add all nuts and salt to the food processor and process until they have broken down into small bits. Then, add your dates and process until it forms the consistency of chunky, wet, sand. You’ll need to scrape the sides once or twice. Spray two, 9-inch pie pans with cooking spray and divide the crust evenly between the two. Then, with your fingers, press the crust together along the bottom and up the sides. The dates will hold it together. Set aside.

Reassemble your food processor. You will now make the rest of the pie.

Place your cashews in the food processor and process until it forms a fine dust. Then, scoop out the flesh of the cooled squash and add it to the food processor. Process until smooth, scraping the sides several times. Then, add your stevia, spices, honey, and egg whites. Process to combine. Then, in 2 batches, add your coconut milk and slowly pulse to combine, so as not to splatter. The batter should be a thick, creamy liquid.

Divide the batter evenly between the two pie shells. Place in the 425 degree oven for 15 minutes. Then, reduce the heat to 350 and bake for 40-50 minutes. When you reduce the oven to 350, plaee a tin foil “hat” around the edge of your pie, so the delicate crust doesn’t burn. It is finished when a knife or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool for 2 hours before cutting into it.

Oh. My. Gosh. You guys, I don’t mean to brag, but my dessert stole the show for Thanksgiving. ;) We had this and a store bought gluten free apple pie. Let me just tell you – we polished off my entire pie….and there was only one piece of the apple pie gone!

Everyone RAVED about it. They couldn’t believe that there was no butter or cream in it. They said it was so decadent and delicious. Everyone - GFree'rs and "omnivores" alike -- thought it was incredible. 

The flavor was warm and spicy, and the texture was so rich, luxurious and creamy. And the crust – wow: nutty, sweet, chewy, sticky! The perfect compliment to the luscious center.

These pies were like my little babiesJ Oh- just thinking about them warms my heartJ #proudmama haha

SO whether you use butternut squash, or pumpkin, these puppies come out fantastic!

One last thing: A tip on gourds ;)

Butternut squash can be a bit intimidating to prepare, simply because they can be tricky to prepare. But fear not friends, I'm here to break down how to break down squash in an easy and safe way!

You'll need a sharp knife -- and I suggest honing your knife's edge before hand. (It goes without saying to be careful whenever using a chef's knife)

Step One: Cut off the top and bottom of your butternut squash. 

Step Two: Cut the squash in half, (like the equator), where the thinner part meets the rounder part where the seeds are. This gives each part a solid base to stand on while you peel the skin.

Step Three: Peel the skin of each half.

Step Four: Cut the round part in half, lengthwise, and scoop out the seeds. Discard.

Step Five: Cut the remaining part in half, lengthwise. 

Now, you have manageable pieces of squash to slice and dice:) Hope that helps and makes these gourds less intimidating! 

Alright, see you guys tomorrow with a new recipe! :D

This was shared on delishknowledge's link party.

Butternut Squash Dessert Pudding! GF, V, SCD, BED, Paleo!

Hey Happy Tummies!

Four more sleeps until Thanksgiving!!! Wooo!

I am so excited. I've been dreaming up the Vegan/Paleo/SCD dishes I'll be making.

For the first time ever, I think it's going to be a completely gluten free thanksgiving, as the majority of my family that will be there are GF! So there will be lots to share:)

Alsooo, it's my niece's first Thanksgiving!! Lots to be thankful for:)

So today, I'm sharing a recipe that I literally cannot live without. I eat this probably 3 times a week and I'm not even joking. It is THAT good!

I've shared this recipe a long time ago, but the photo was...well...less than beautiful. Sooo, I've updated the pic and decided to share it because it would be a PERFECT side dish for thanksgiving!

What is it?

BUTTERNUT SQUASH PUDDING!

Gluten free, vegan, SCD, BED, Paleo and 100% delicious.

I like to put it in the freezer for an hour before I eat it and it is literally like ice cream. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

This recipe has actually been a life saver for me. Lots of people ask me, after learning about my diet, "how do you stay sane? How do you do it?!" Well friends, this pudding is the answer. Being on the SCD, it's true: you can get into the mindset of feeling deprived if you dwell on all the things you CANNOT eat. But, I've found if you can find even just one thing that you REALLY enjoy, and can look forward to, you're fine. So maybe I look forward to butternut squash instead of chocolate or Reeces peanut butter cups...big whoop. It's my favorite food and helps me remain faithful to the SCD. :)

The way this recipe came to be is actually a funny story. So if you've been following my blog, you may know that I used to LOVE a recipe that was very similar to this, but made with carrots. (see below)

It was my saving grace during the Body Ecology Diet. And I pretty much ate it every other day-I'm telling you, it was that good. Well friends, I literally turned orange from eating so many carrots! It's not an urban legend, you really do turn orange!! Look how orange I was at Christmas last year!!

So my brother, being a doctor, was like, Care, you're getting a toxic dose of Vitamin A and it could be doing damage to your eyes.

Sooo, I did some research, and found that butternut squash has a lot less beta carotene (what turns into Vit A) than carrots. So, the substitution was officially made. And to be honest, I don't eat carrots anymore. Because even if I have a few baby carrots, that orange color comes back to my hands and face. The human body is crazy, huh?

So without further ado, here's my favorite food!

Here’s what you need:
1 small butternut squash: halved and roasted (or diced and steamed)
1/4 cup raw cashews
2 dropper-fulls of alcohol free, pure liquid stevia (SCD use 2 tsp honey, or more to taste)
2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
pinch of ground cloves
tiny pinch of sea salt

You have 2 options to prepare your squash.

Either A) Peel your squash and dice it into small cubes. In a steamer basket, steam for about 20 minutes until tender. Then, let it cool, and wring out all the excess liquid with a clean kitchen towel or paper towels. This is how I make it.

OR B) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Carefully cut your butternut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Line a baking sheet with tin-foil and spray with olive oil. Spray or rub the cut-side of the halves with olive oil, and roast cut-side-down for 40 minutes.Let them cool for several minutes, and then scoop out the flesh.

Combine the flesh in the food processor with the rest of the ingredients. Process for 2 minutes, until creamy and smooth, scraping the sides twice. Enjoy warm, or chilled in the freezer for an hour.

Oh. My. Gosh. This is sheer decadence. It is buttery smooth and down-right amazing! It seriously tastes like pumpkin pie! My parents tasted it and couldn’t believe that there wasn’t cream or butter in it!

The flavor is straight out of a Thanksgiving Yankee Candle – ok, that maybe doesn’t sound too appetizing, but the flavor brought me back to the Thanksgiving table, eating pumpkin pie with my family. The cinnamon, nutmeg and clove give it such a warm spiciness, that just travels through your senses and warms your soul. Ok, maybe a little dramatic, but it is just SO remarkable.

Finally, the texture is just rich and luxuriously creamy. I particularly enjoy it semi-frozen. It's seriously like ice cream:)

And to make it extra special for Thanksgiving, I'm going to toast a few pecans with cinnamon and honey, and sprinkle those on top:)

How's your Thanksgiving prep going?

NYC GLUTEN FREE CRUMBS BAKESHOP!!

Hey guys! 

I owe you all a super big apology for my lack of posting last week! Things here are INSANELY busy with the band! If you missed my big news, I'm the new singer in a cover band! It's pop/Latin fusion, so I'm having to learn some songs in Spanish! (I'm channeling my inner Shakira...see below ;) ) But as you can imagine, with rehearsals 3x a week, school, auditions, and just life in general, I have hardly had anytime to breathe, let alone blog! 

But I'm on top of my game now, and back at it. I've got the ingredients in the fridge for a yummy new recipe, and I'm excited to share it with you! 

Well, I hope you had a great weekend!

I know I did! Lots of fun "Halloweeny" things! :) A pumpkin carving party on Friday and then a house warming party last night! I may or may not have stayed out until 4am.... :D

So. Big news. BIG NEWS.

Brace yourselves people.

Crumbs Bake Shop has a GLUTEN FREE STORE!! 

Yes, THAT Crumbs. The incredibly amazing cupcake shop in NYC. 

Friends, they've done the impossible. They opened an ALL GLUTEN-FREE cupcake and bake shop!!!! 

And my mom and I were one of the first people in it! Yep, we stumbled upon this little gem on its second day!

Now, sadly, I couldn't have any of the cupcakes because I follow the Specific Carb Diet (read: grain free...these cupcakes are free of gluten, but still contain Gluten Free grains, like rice flour, chick pea flour, etc.). But my mom had one. Now she's not gluten free, but she said, and I quote, "These were the best cupcakes...ever." She said they were moist and outrageously delicious. She had the red velvet.

But there were SO MANY!! Carrot Cake, Cookies n' Creme, Red Velvet, Death By Chocolate, Classic Vanilla, Vanilla and Chocolate, a "Little Debbie's style" one, chocolate chip...and other decadant cookies and cakes!

And they even had Dairy Free options!! Swoon:)

But look at these babies! All. That. Frosting!! 

And no, you're not dreaming...that's a gluten free cookies n' creme cupcake. 

Have we died and gone to Heaven?! I don't know, but I'm pretty sure there will be one of these shops on Pearly Gate Lane:)

And look at how friendly the employees were. They couldn't wait to share their gluten free goodness with us.


AND WILL YOU LOOK. AT. THOSE. SAMPLES?!!! Legit 1/4 of a cupcake....

Crumbs. Check it out next time you're in NYC. It's in the village...around 5th Ave and 8th St.