Category: Snacks

Egg Free Mayo

Ingredients

3/4 cup olive oil (light olive oil works best)
2 T Dijon mustard
1 T lemon juice
1/4 cup chickpea brine (yep the stuff you usually tip down the sink from your can of chickpeas!)
1/2 tsp salt

what to do

Put all the ingredients in a narrow blender (or tall narrow container if using a stick blender). If your blender has a wide jug it may not work, and you may need a stick blender or NutriBullet type blender, my vitamix works fine.

Blend starting slowly, then increasing speed slightly, until it is thick and creamy, usually about a minute. Store in a glass jar in the fridge for a week. It will thicken slightly more after refrigeration.

This recipe can be temperamental to work with, and even with exact measured ingredients can sometimes end up with two completely different textured mayos! I suspect maybe the temperature and exact measurements might play a part. If it’s not thickening up, adding a scant 1/4 cup wholegrain mustard turns it into a really delicious tangy mayo, add then blend until thick. Often now I will add wholegrain mustard from the start (and omit the Dijon mustard) because I like the flavour.

Kayla

Crispy Chicken Burgers

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 large chicken breasts, sliced (you can try do 4 slices and have one for each burger, or several and just pack a couple into each burger)

Chicken coating

1/4 cup tapioca
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup sunflower seeds.

what to do

Grind sunflower seeds in blender and combine all ingredients. Use to coat two large sliced chicken breasts. (No egg or anything required, straight onto to chicken. Fry and serve immediately.

Enjoy

If you can have egg, then you can also coat in flour, egg then above recipe, but I’m all about less dishes here!

Here is the recipe I use to make buns – instead of baking as a loaf I cook in individual pie dishes – makes perfect buns!

http://www.wholeheartedeats.com/2016/06/unbelievable-buckwheat-bread/

Kayla

How To help Out a New Mum with special dietary requirements!

So, as Ashton has so kindly shared with many shop checkout assistants and strangers over the last months, in December, we are going from a family of 4 to a family of 5 (humans, that is, we don’t count our pets anymore or i might just pack my bags and bugger off somewhere less crowded!)

While i’d love to say this is for all you out there who are expecting a new baby soon,  this is also aimed at hopefully helping my family and friends overcome the barriers and worries of supporting me and my family, with dietary restrictions and allergies for 3 out of the 4 food-eating family members! Though i’m not totally selfish – Hopefully, it can fulfill its purpose and also help some others out too – a resource to direct well meaning friends and family members to, if you find yourself with a new baby and a family to feed with allergy requirements.

Myself and the boys avoid dairy, soy and wheat / gluten (this includes oats, barley & rye for Felix and I). We try to eat real food – food that doesn’t come with an ingredients list, with added colors, flavors, sugars or preservatives. I don’t eat refined sugar as it makes me feel terrible, and it sends Ashton bouncing off the walls! I absolutely cannot eat any gluten, it makes me really sick, and very minimal dairy. Felix is also very strictly dairy / soy and gluten free while we continue to let his gut heal from his extreme allergies he suffered in his fist 18 months of life, to pretty much all foods.

Because of the boys’ allergies, and how they presented from birth, to foods in my diet while i was breastfeeding them, i have opted to remove dairy, soy, gluten / wheat, nuts and eggs from my diet 5 weeks before my due date, to ensure that, when baby is born, there is no trace of this in my breastmilk. Because having a newborn baby is hard enough, without adding in the harrowing experience of  a baby reacting to it’s only food source. If i opted to ‘wait and see’, by the time we recognize there is a reaction, after eliminating the offending foods, the proteins are not completely clear from my system for up to 6 weeks! So i’m getting ahead and doing it backwards, if all is well, then when baby is 6 weeks old i will introduce these back to my diet one by one, to carefully check for any signs of reaction, and hopefully, there wont be!

So while i manage to feed us breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, day in and day out, no problems, to an outsider with no allergies, this sounds pretty bloody daunting! I know, because i once was an allergy outsider! And when you don’t live the life every day, its hard to comprehend and remember!

So – how on earth to you turn up to visit a new Mum and baby with something they can eat!? Here are some of my suggestions that comply with my family’s needs (free from – gluten, dairy, soy, eggs & nuts).

I’ve divided it into categories of time, location and expense (because, if you are buying allergy friendly packaged goods, they are going to be more expensive than their not so friendly counterparts!)

So you can choose from:

QUICK AND EASY MEAL PREP – make at home with minimal cooking & prep

QUICK PICKS FROM THE SUPERMARKET – pick up from the supermarket on the way over

ONLINE PRODUCTS – more specialty items to buy online and have it delivered straight to us (please count this as a gift for us or baby!)

HOMEMADE – or go the whole hog and bake or cook  something (recipes included!)

(**disclaimer** this post is in no way sponsored or any of that jazz by the food companies I recommend, they have never even sent me free shit! It purely based on my own personal experience and overall satisfaction with these particular products, and how they fit into our lifestyle, that i recommend them).

Quick Easy Meal Prep

ROAST VEGETABLES:

We eat all veggies, chop them up, roast them in olive oil, coconut oil, rice-bran oil, avocado oil – or give me a text to check if your oil might be ok (‘vegetable oil’ generally isn’t as it can contain soy). We love to snack on roast veggies, make them into soups, put them in smoothies even! Or serve them with meat for an easy tea. Roast some veggies, you are on to a winner, bonus is, its pretty easy and fuss free!

CHOP UP SOME VEGGIES:

Don’t even cook them! Just chop up or prep a whole bunch of veggies that we can cook or use in salads. Capsicum, lettuce, cucumber, carrots for salads or snacking or root veggies for roasting, even mushrooms, courgette, cabbage, spinach, celery will get used. I spend a lot of time cutting and preparing veggies, it is such a big help to have this done for us.

CHOP UP SOME FRUIT

Baby is due in dec, there should be some yummy fruits around by then – make us a fresh fruit salad, the boys will be stoked and it will save me cutting up fruit snacks for them for a day at least! Or just bring fruit, whole, in all its glorious naturalness.

COLD COOKED MEAT

Throw some chicken breasts, in the oven with salt and pepper, cool then slice – this is an awesome protein rich snack for everyone in the family. Even a small roast, or some steak cooked and sliced would be very well received.

 

QUICK PICKS FROM THE SUPERMARKET

PROPER CRISPS

I really should ask proper crisps if we can partner up haha, I am a fantastic source of free advertising for them! Any flavour, we love them all! Grab them from the supermarket on your way over, easy as that!

ROTISSERIE CHICKEN & SALAD BAG

Pick up a hot cooked chicken (preferably one with no stuffing please 🙂 ) and a bag of coleslaw or salad. Meal done!

DIPS

Turkish Kitchen garlic hummus or ‘Kumara & Lentil with roasted Pumpkin’ dip.

‘Lisa’s’ hummus from the supermarket are gluten free – just a quick double check of the label to make sure it’s a flavour with no dairy, soy or nuts.

COCONUT YOGHURT

Raglan Coconut Yogurt, Cathedral Cove, and Zenzo are all brands that we can eat.

COCONUT ICE-CREAM!

Little island coconut ice-cream – a delicious summer treat – any flavour – we are not fussy!

LITTLE ISLAND COCONUT MILK

Again a delicious treat, especially the chocolate coconut milk, we might not share though!

CATHEDRAL COVE CEREAL

They have one specific cereal that does not contain nuts – great for  sprinkling on coconut yoghurt and an easy snack for mum and kids. This is it here:

Online products

FRANKS SAUSAGES

Not all the sausages on the site are suitable for us .. but these ones are ok for all:

Pork, Apple & Cranberry, Pork & smoked parprika, Chicken & French Tarragon, German Bratworst, chicken & pork Chipolatas, chicken, mango & coconut, plus the mince meat selection .

HUNTER GATHERER GOURMET

The nut free baking mix is the only one I can eat, but the boys can have everything on the site! I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t mind if Mum could quickly whip them up some baking that they didn’t have to share 🙂

GREEN MEADOWS BEEF

They have a store on Katere Rd, New Plymouth, full of beefy goodness. Beef and Beetroot meatballs or patties!! Yum, this would save us so much time, and the boys would be over the moon – especially Ashton, who asks for meatballs for dinner every night!

MY FOOD BAG

The gluten free my food bag is ok for my family – 5 meals picked out and chosen with recipes, and all the ingredients delivered! I think we could manage that! Some of the ingredients contain dairy but it’s easy enough to leave out or only include for dairy eating family members. However, you would need to make sure they can deliver to your town (we would need this delivered to someone in New Plymouth, as they don’t currently deliver to Stratford).  They also do vouchers, so you could order a bag on a week that would help the most. Lots of options.

CRAFT SMOOTHIE

all the ingredients for 5 days of fruit & veg smoothies delivered to your door – all you have to do is throw them into the blender with some liquid – yes please!

From their website:

“Can I order a smoothie box as a gift?

For sure! Our smoothie kits make the perfect gift! To order a Craft Smoothie box as a gift, just email hello@craftsmoothie.co.nz with the name and delivery address of the recipient, and we’ll send you the payment details and confirm the delivery date. We will also add a personalised gift card in the box for that someone special 😊”

homemade

Have some extra time and want to attempt to make us something? Good on you – here are some recipes you cant go wrong with!

Meatballs – 4 ways

Choc Almond Cranberry Bliss Balls

Just make sure you swap the almonds for seeds 🙂

Veggie Nachoes

Chocolate Avocado Mousse

Hummus

Seed Crackers

Also i will hopefully have recipes up by the end of the month for:

Spag bowl mince

super simple curry

Taco / burrito / mexican meat and chopped salad

Roast Meat & veggies

Moroccan chicken salad

And maybe some links to other online recipes we use!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kayla

Super Simple Muffins

This muffin recipe is a super simple, one bowl wonder that can take so many variations and substitutions there is sure to be something for everyone. The basis of the recipe is banana muffins but I’ve adapted it to also be berry muffins, chocolate muffins and carrot / zucchini muffins disguised as chocolate!

Cook times depending on the size of muffin you are making:
Regular muffin size: 18-20 minutes
Large mini muffin size: 15 mins
Mini muffins: 10 – 12 mins

Print Recipe

Super Simple Muffins

This muffin recipe is a super simple, one bowl wonder that can take so many variations and substitutions there is sure to be something for everyone.
Cook Time15 mins
Course: lunchbox
Cuisine: Gluten free
Keyword: allergy friendly, baking, dairy free, healthy

Ingredients

  • 2 bananas See notes for subsitutes
  • ¼ c milk almond, coconut, cows milk, rice milk
  • ¼ c oil light olive oil, coconut oil (melted, avocado oil – some sort of oil! – melted butter would probably work too.)
  • 1 egg or egg replacement
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup flour buckwheat, gluten free, wholemeal, white, spelt – whatever you use!
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ¼ c sweetener sugar, coconut sugar, maple syrup, honey – whatever you use

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 180 deg c, fan-bake. Grease or line a 12 hole muffin tin, or two 12 hole mini muffin tins.
  • Mash the banana and mix together with all the wet ingredients. Alternatively, chuck them all in the blender and blend away until smooth – then put into a bowl.
  • Sift the dry ingredients over the wet and carefully fold everything together.
  • Spoon the mixture into muffin tin. See cook times below depending on your muffin tin size.

Notes

Choc muffins
Swap 1/4 c of the flour for 1/4 c of cocoa, i even swapped 1/2 cup flour for 1/2 cup cocoa once when i ran our of flour. I have also used carob powder, which worked great too. Cocoa is naturally a bit bitter, so you may need to add a little more sweetener
Zucchini & carrot muffins disguised as chocolate
I used the cocoa sub as above an also swapped one of the bananas for about 1 cup of very finely grated carrot and zucchini. I put a tiny sprinkle of coconut sugar on top of each muffin before baking since i swapped the sweet banana for veggies, just as insurance that they would get eaten!
Berry muffins
Add about 1/2 cup fresh or frozen berries to the mix with the flour.
Banana free
You can make these muffins banana free by replacing the bananas with 1 cup apple purée. You can also use 1 cup pumpkin purée – and be sure to add the sweetener to the pumpkin as well, taste the batter and adjust sweetness accordingly. I love to add cinnamon, orange juice (in place of the milk) and rind to the pumpkin muffins.
Egg free
My favourite egg replacer in these muffins is 1 Tablespoon of chia seeds + 1/4 cup water. Soak the chia seeds in the water for 5 mins, then add with the wet ingredients. You can find more egg replacement options Here.

Kayla

Zucchini Cheese – Dairy free, melty delicious cheese

I am a lover of all things cheese. Cheese is life. When cheese and life begin to clash, in my world, this is quite a problem. I am 99% dairy free, as my body does not love me eating dairy. The 1% allows for me to sometimes, eat cheese. I save my cheese eating for special occasions, like when we are at a function, event or family gathering and someone brings out the cheeseboard! I allow myself some cheese, and my body seems to be ok with this (and so i sternly tell it). But at home, when life calls for cheese, i am totally happy for this replacement.

Sincerely Yours,

A fellow Cheese Lover

Recipe Notes

coconut free

Use light olive oil instead

Vegan

Replace gelatine with an equal measure of agar-agar

Cheesy Flavour

I brought nutritional yeast to try in there because apparently it tastes cheesy, i’m more than happy to leave this out, it is not to my taste! So if you like nutritional yeast then some of that too.
Half a teaspoon onion and / or garlic powder can also make this next level, or sometimes I use garlic salt instead of regular. But i don’t always have these and it’s fine without. A pinch of smoked paprika can give a subtle smokey depth and a more yellowy colour. 

Gelatin

This ‘cheese’ is set with gelatin, make sure you choose a good quality, setting gelatin (I personally use Great Lakes Beef Gelatin) cheap supermarket gelatin can sometimes have a nasty flavour. I have tons of recipes on my blog that use good quality gelatin so you will have no trouble using it up! 

Storage

It stores in a sealed container in the fridge for about 5 days to a week. You can Freeze, but on defrosting it can be a little watery, so is best used for melting and adding to meals after that, rather than snacking. 

If you are after a delicious, cheesy dairy free meal, then my Mac and Cheese  is inspired by this recipe, I highly recommend you check it out! 

You could also use this cheese sauce recipe to make your cheese instead – (a few more ingredients but the flavour is next level!)  Use 2 Tablespoons gelatin to every 1.5 cups of cheese sauce. Heat the sauce, sprinkle the gelatin on and whisk through (or blitz in blender) until melted. Then set, as below in the recipe. 

Print Recipe

Dairy Free Zucchini Cheese

Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time10 mins
Keyword: AIP, allergy friendly, dairy free, easy recipe, egg free, grain free, paleo, SCD

Ingredients

  • 1 generous cup peeled diced raw zuchinni 2 small – med sized ones
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil i use refined coconut oil here because i don’t want my ‘cheese’ to have lingering notes of coconut!*
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice this makes it quite lemony but i like it this way, you could reduce slightly
  • 2 tablespoons gelatine**
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • Good shake of white pepper

Instructions

  • Steam the zucchini until tender (about 5 mins if its diced small) drain all water off, and keep in the hot pan.
  • Add the coconut oil to melt. Sprinkle the gelatine over the top and let it melt and dissolve in while stirring.
  • Add the rest of the ingredients.
  • blend up everything in your blender, food processor or stick blender. I have a taste and adjust seasoning accordingly.
  • I set ours in a mini silicone loaf pan so it make about 2 mini blocks of ‘cheese’. But set in a lined container of choice, that your are happy to store and slice your ‘cheese’ from that shape.
  • Takes a couple hours to set in the fridge. Stores in there in a sealed container for about 5 days to a week.

Notes

*coconut free? – use light olive oil instead
**vegan? You can replace gelatine with an equal measure of agar-agar

Kayla

Party Food! Real food, allergy friendly party treats (gluten, dairy, soy, nut, egg free)

The one stop for real food birthday party food inspiration – find links to the stuff i made here! Every single thing on the party table is free from dairy, egg, soy, gluten, wheat, nuts, peanuts, refined sugar and vegetable oils. Most of the food is made from good quality wholefoods ingredients, without feeling like the party food is missing. No sugar highs or post cake meltdowns after this party! And best of all, one very happy two year old, who for the first time in his life could enjoy all the party food!

Here i used my almond cranberry bliss ball recipe, but instead of almonds i used 1/2 cup sunflower seeds and 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds to make them nut free.

this fruit creation was kindly put together by my Mum (i said she could do the fruit or some baking – good choice mother). she just used a bunch of fruit available at the supermarket, honeydew melon, pineapple, apple, grapes, strawberries and banana – a pretty impressive selection at this time of year. the the middle is half an orange (skin and all) where she stuck the skewers and threaded the fruit on. The kids loved grabbing a skewer of fruit to take to their plate.

The famous everything free chocolate cake, so delicious and fudgy. recipe here along with choc ganache and marshmallow icing.

Batman biscuits! Recipe courtesy of Mummy Made It – its the ‘healthy tiny teddy’ recipe cut with batman cookie cutter. Free from dairy, egg, soy, gluten, nut and refined sugar! Ive made this a few times and is my go to special occasion biscuit recipe.

This pancake recipe comes from Be Good Organics – it is free from gluten, dairy, soy, eggs and nuts! But not free from deliciousness! For the party i subbed the buckwheat flour for a standard gluten free flour mix, given that buckwheat can be an acquired taste to unsuspecting guests! It is also the recipe i use in our waffles. The icing is choc ganache left over from the cake and the sprinkles i found at countdown which claim to be naturally colored, perhaps I was scammed by the marketing but i was willing to forgo research on this one for the sake of the party.

this was one of my favourite platters of the party! A trio of hummus. I used our standard hummus recipe, then to one added a bit extra garlic, the other about 1/2 cup roasted carrot and a tsp curry powder and the third, two small cooked beetroot and a little honey. lots of cut up vege to dip and some of our seed crackers.

Home popped popcorn! and Proper Crisps – salted and smoked paprika flavour. I love proper crisps because they aren’t cooked in refined canola oil, and they taste so good! Best chips I’ve ever tasted, they have spoiled all other potato chips for me now! For the popcorn, i melt about 1 Tbsp coconut oil in a large pot, add 3 popcorn kernels and cover, as soon as they have all popped add half a cup of popcorn kernels, cover and keep on the heat until the first ones start to pop. then turn off the heat and take the pot off the shake it, then put back on the element (while its turned off but will still be hot) for 30 seconds, and repeat until all the popcorn is popped. add a knob of coconut oil or butter to the hot pot and let melt through the popcorn then turn out into a bowl and season to taste.

 

Jellies! i made three types of jellies about a week ahead and kept them in the freezer, then transferred to the fridge to defrost a day or two before the party. I made blueberry, strawberry and lime (sorry didn’t get a picture of those ones!) and peaches jellies. i got the heart, star, duck moulds from Kmart and the lego men from Aliexpress.

Chicken Nibbles – Bostocks organic free range chicken nibbles (my second favourite after their wings!) marinated in honey, garlic, ginger and coconut aminos. For ‘honey soy’ chicken nibbles. these were delicious!

Franks sausages – our go to for gluten free, preservative sausages, these were the chicken ones and lamb ones. They are so good, and the only sausage I’ve found with ingredients I’m happy to feed Felix. In the big drink dispenser there is soda water with frozen blueberries and orange slices, and in the glass bottle chilled water with lime wedges.

Kayla

Real Food Jelly Lollies

Ingredients

Strawberry & lime

1 cup strawberries (frozen is fine)
1/4 cup water x2
1 T lime juice

1 T maple syrup (optional)

2 T gelatin*

Blueberry

1 cup blueberries (Frozen is fine)
1/4 cup water x2
1 T maple syrup (optional)
2 T gelatin*

Peaches

1 cup peaches (i used tinned – rinsed and drained)
1/4 cup water x2
1 T maple syrup (optional)
2 T gelatin*

*(you can use up to 4 T gelatin for a firmer jelly / lolly like consistency)

what to do

Put the fruit, one lot of 1/4 cup water and sweetener for your your chosen flavour in a small pot and heat through.

While its heating add the gelatin to the other 1/4 cup water and stir. It will expand and soak up the water. Add this to the hot pot and stir through until dissolved.

Remove from the heat and blend the mixture in a blender, or with a handheld blender.

Pour into moulds, or line a tray with cling wrap and pour into the tray to cut into shapes when its set.

Set in the freezer for 20 – 60 mins depending on the size, or overnight. This part is essential for making sure the jellies come cleanly out of the moulds, especially if its a fiddly mould – like a lego man! you can store them in the freezer and defrost over night in the fridge before needed, or store in the fridge for a couple of days.

They should be able to handle being at room temperature for a couple hours, but are nicest when cold.

Kayla

Marshmallow Icing

This is what I poured over the top of Felix’s birthday cake in the weekend, to get the yellow drizzle topping.  You can find lots of party snack photos on our facebook page and i’ll add more recipes for everything throughout the coming week.

Ingredients

1 cup water
3 Tbsp gelatin (we use great lakes or vital proteins)
100g honey or maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch salt
Natural colour if you wish (i used 1/4 tsp turmeric, beetroot powder would probably work for pink – use your imagination im sure the natural colour options are endless.

what to do

put 1/2 the water in a large mixing bowl with the gelatin and leave to bloom while you prepare the honey.

In a saucepan heat the honey, water, vanilla, natural colour and salt until melted and combined.
Using an electric beater or stand mixer, start to beat the gelatin and water on low, while slowly pouring in the honey mix. Once combined turn the speed up to high and beat until it starts to become fluffy marshmallow texture, can take anywhere between 5 and 15 mins depending on the speed of your beater. Mine takes no longer than ten mins.

I’m not sure if i over beat it every time, but i find it sets too fast to ice a cake with, so i then melt it in the microwave ever so slightly (5 seconds at a time!) to make it a pour-able texture. Don’t worry if you melt it too much – it will firm back up on standing! But you need to make sure its loose enough or it won’t pour over the cake!

Depending on your climate it might set out of the fridge (its freezing at my house!) otherwise an hour or two in the fridge will firm it up.
Alternatively pour into a baking paper lined tin and cut into squares of marshmallow when set.

Kayla2 Comments

Choc Almond Cranberry Bliss Balls

Ingredients

1 c almonds
1 c dates
1/2 c dried cranberries
1 t vanilla extract
1 T coconut oil
1 T raw cacao or cocoa powder
1 c desiccated coconut

what to do

Put the almonds in the food processor and pulse until they are broken down. If you want almond chunks then leave them a bit chunky, if you want them all blended in then grind them to a powder. Add the rest of the ingredients and process on high until the dates are broken down and the mixture is clumping and sticky. Roll into balls and store in the fridge or freezer. I store them in the freezer and they get eaten straight from there.

Remember there is lots of dried fruit in these, even though they are wholefoods etc, they are still a ‘sometimes’ treat 🙂 they are especially good as an after dinner sweet or a high energy lunchbox treat.

Kayla