Allerfree Recipes

So, time to make some changes. We have recently had some big time stuff going on (including losing the air conditioner and furnace when it was 90F, and a surgery for a two year old) and we are forced now to stick to a tight budget. Not easy with five kids, a special diet, and life! But i am going to follow through with it here! and also, i updated my mac and cheese recipe! it's creamy, delicious, and full of veggies that you can't tell are in there! The budget change must be instant. The good thing about this mac and cheeze is that it lasts a lot of meals. The rough price breakdown, as written is about $32 for the pot, but for 6 people it lasts AT LEAST 4 meals, so $8 a meal, which is about $1.25 per person per meal. WAY cheaper than the boxed stuff or take out!! Here it goes! Creamy, healthy delicious comfort food that your kids will eat (and you don't need to tell them about the vegetables!). Oh also, my dad ate it..... and that's really all i need to say about that...

We hit a record high yesterday for February! It was 75 degrees F. and Fantastic!!! Homeschooling is great on days we can play outside! (Well and almost every other day!) So i had a bazillion bananas get ripe because if i buy two they eat them before we get home, if i buy 20..... i throw them away. Anyhow, i got proactive and peeled and froze them before they got really gross. So i made nice cream. pretty run of the mill recipe. nothing exciting. added strawberries and "milk" to frozen bananas yesterday, then little chocolate chips (all dairy free of course!). And today this... i looked online for cake better flavored things and came up with this based on a few. Cake Batter Nice Cream 5 frozen bananas vanilla (about a tablespoon) milk (just enough to blend thick. though a smoothie would be good too, add more!) melted dairy free butter (1/4 cup) coconut flour (about 1/4 cup) sprinkles (optional) a big spoonful of cashew butter (probably a big tablespoon) (...

I am attempting to be more committed to this blog this year. I have so many new ideas and we have been through so much. And I have invented the healthiest, best, allergy free mac n cheese ever.  No, seriously, all four of my children and my husband, ate it. i practically threw a party. That is why it got its own line. ALL.FOUR.KIDS. For 5 meals (judge if you will! we have a newborn and three nights of dance a week! plus homeschooling) So we had a new guy in November 11/11, after a very strange (for me) end of pregnancy. He's so sweet and the kids try to maul him (i just told the 2yo three times to stop honking his nose) . It also appears he doesn't like something i eat. cue biased food allergy parent fear.... In case anyone's interested, i apparently was the only person ever to be veganish (still eat pastured free range, local friends when we can, eggs. cant force my husband to give them up, he's given up his entire way of eating) and unable to eat dairy ever at the...

As I sit here and blog.... I am reminded of so many things I am thankful for! My family being first! My dad's tumor is benign! He has to have a major surgery because it needs to be removed and is very large, but still.... It brings to mind others who did not get that same news. My kids are wonderful, sweet and smart (except from about 4:40 to 6 which I lovingly call the not happy hour) Also as I sit here, I am reminded of why I actually shouldn't be sitting here and that I have so may things to do and far less time than required to do them. hahahaha... Here's our Menu for tomorrow... (in your head, pretend someone is whining about everything I type) Lentil/Bean (and secret ground up mushroom- please don't tell my husband) Loaf Mashed potatoes (and cauliflower- see above, change husband to kids) gravy (that only my husband will eat) Stuffing (adults only, I'm sure) green bean casserole (vegan zed, freshized, and probably just for the adults, and also, my hus...

We went on vacation! Myrtle beach was wonderful. The ocean is very much my Zen! although we learned a few things... never take anxious kids on a walk when they are tired and it's very dark and they are unfamiliar with the area. Yikes... Also, the baby loved the sand, to eat... which was great, didn't have to feed her as much! Ha! Also, cleaning, cooking and doing laundry is way better on the beach!! But also, though, I seriously have to thank Cheeseburger in Paradise in Myrtle Beach for making our first time going out to eat in 5 years (with the kids, and I still brought food for the kids) way less anxiety inducing than expected! I told them that I don't eat dairy or meat. They checked with me several times about a few things, they took precautions and had the manager bring out me and my husbands. I really appreciated their attention and consideration! (we were with my parents, hence the cheeseburger :) The very name says ER in paradise to us considering our oldest is all...

So before I start the discussion about the supposed superfood Spirulina, I'd like to take you on the journey of grocery shopping affordably and organically. Done.... that's it. I don't know how. Our grocery bill has been quite honestly more than our house payment by plenty and we cannot afford it. So I'm beginning to delve deeper into the world of budget cutting and cheaper food. We can do this together! I started by deciding that avocados, while a extremely healthy favorite of many in this family, are too expensive for regular consumption, and have been (very sadly) demoted to treat food. We also are using far less plant based milk, which cuts down, but mainly because my children will only drink the full sugar junk. We try not to do tons of sugar, but i'm not convinced they get enough calcium, B12 and other stuff based on the level of picky. I'm continuing to work on cutting down by leaving out processed foods (though the occasional Gardein nuggets pop in). We ...

Happy later mothers day! (in the US- but seriously it should be everyday everywhere!) Happy day for those who act as Mothers (not including my 5 year old)! My Mother's Day was spent napping.... HA! Jokes aside, we drove two hours to see a baseball game that got rain delayed for two hours.....a slightly different plan then my get some groceries and grill artichokes...this one included standing smooshed with a zillion people watching it pour on the field, paranoid that someone's hot dog, cheese, ice cream, pizza, or pop corn would touch our severely allergic son, reconsidering whether that was more scary than our exhausted two year old ticking time bomb, debating for 2 hours whether we should just leave and lose our tickets if they did play. packing ourselves into the team store with everyone else to get warm. and a debacle when a guy ended up in the ladies room (he was pretty surprised when he exited the stall to a group of security, and may still not know where he is...

Back in the pre dairy free days, one of my favorite candies (which says a lot since I was pretty much addicted to anything candy like) was peppermint patties. Ahhh York..... I could have been in a commercial. In fact it was always a dream I had to be in a commercial, anyone really. In case you're wondering, that did not work out! But I still had candy. ha. I've been reading peppermint patty recipes for years trying to decide if I  wanted to attempt one. but none seemed quite right. I didn't want coconut shavings, or a variety of other ingredients. I also like to make everything quick and easy. Generally, I also will not make a recipe that requires cooling or freezing before eating. I've acquired a bit more patience though, and as long as it's not more than say, 20 minutes (I said a bit more!) I'm good. Here it is.. Peppermint Patties 1 can coconut CREAM (not milk) 1/3 cup melted coconut oil 1/3 cup coconut flour (or any probably) 2/3 cup confectioners su...

So. four kids 6-6 months is busy! but we like to celebrate everything! Thanksgiving we had traditional food with lentil loaf instead of meat. Yum!! Nothing unusual there. Take a meatloaf recipe, trade in cans of beans and lentils. Voila! The worst part was a majorly sprained ankle, but my husband was forced to help cook which I enjoyed. ;) Christmas was not easy with our dietary restrictions and visiting others, but we made it work. We started the weekend before travelling to family. Started right out with a birthday party for nut allergic children. they planned pizza. When asked how they could make that easier for us (ya know, severe dairy, beef allergy-pizza?) we stated we'd be ok with peanut butter and jelly. the reply "What you can't do that, they have peanut allergies!" Our reply, "yeah, we'll take care of ourselves!" we bolted when the pizza came, and went to a fabulous vegan restaurant in Rochester, NY. We don't get to go out ever, so we w...