• Gluten Free,  Kids

    Gluten Free Vanilla Coconut Pancakes

    Sometimes, you just want breakfast, for dinner. It happens. I do think breakfast foods, like eggs, fluffy pancakes and some salty breakfast meat can really hit the spot sometimes. My version of comfort food looks something like this.  I’ve wondered why these foods are traditionally eaten in the morning, in America.  Tonight, I went all out and even made the pancakes from scratch because I’ve wanted to try a new flour. The selection I chose tonight was coconut flour. Yep!  It was really good! This recipe also uses stevia which I liked better than regular sugar. Stevia is a natural sugar substitute that has no calories or carbohydrates which is…

  • Appetizer,  Kids,  Vegetarian

    Spring Soba Noodle And Edamame Salad

    One of the trickiest allergies that I, as a chef work with on a daily basis is an allergy to soy and products that contain soy lecithin.  I would like to take a brief moment to speak on why soy is so widely used in The United States starting with the fact that it is inexpensive and plentiful here and in many countries globally. Because soy is so versatile, it is commonly grown. You can notice the versatility of soy just by understanding how many thousands of products use soy. Isolated soy proteins are used to bring together oil, fats and water creating a longer moistness and stability in products keeping…

  • Appetizer,  Gluten Free,  Kids,  Vegetarian

    Coconut And Broccoli Salad

    Oh Broccoli! You’re one of a kind.  Broccoli is such a dramatic food. It’s versatile too. You can see broccoli as a main ingredient like the recipe today or broccoli can take a backseat to be just a component in your meal. Either way, it’s a very delicious choice because of all of its amazing properties. I love to introduce fresh broccoli to toddlers by steaming it to get them used to the flavor. It has so many good vitamins. I often like to serve broccoli almost raw because the texture and smell tends to be more favorable. However, I find roasted broccoli delicious. Not everyone does though. I think it’s great to try…

  • Appetizer,  Gluten Free,  Kids,  Recipes,  Vegetarian

    Mushroom And Asparagus Quiche

    Eggs are a super food and known for all of their versatile uses.  I do believe you can serve eggs in America at any meal and not feel like it is inappropriate.  My boyfriend and I will very often eat eggs for dinner in one form or another. For us, eggs are satisfying. I have an awesome egg recipe here that you can pull out any ol’ time and its quick and easy. For the quiche in the picture above, I did use egg whites for a lower calorie version. Quiche will taste great with the egg whites or whole eggs. You don’t get as much of the nutritional value without the egg…

  • Appetizer,  Gluten Free,  Kids,  Vegetarian

    Edamame And Vegetable Rice Noodle Salad

    One of the best things about these noodles is that they are a blank canvas for whatever you want to add. They are great for a quick side dish or you can make a full meal deal.  Rice noodles are naturally gluten free and they take just a few minutes to cook. You can find rice noodles at many supermarkets. If you’re a busy person, this is a very good recipe to have. I’d like to tell you about this handy dandy basket that I love to use for all sorts of things. I like stainless steel perforated baskets. When I cook for a lot of people, the large pots…

  • Appetizer,  Kids,  Vegetarian

    Five Spice Chicken Hand Pie

    There are beyond numerous options for pizza crust these days with each their own separate health benefits. Whatever pizza crust you’re into, here is an delicious recipe for you that goes beyond the traditional toppings and can work with gluten free crust, egg free crust and almond flour crusts. I have not tested with cauliflower crusts. This recipe has been tested with 120 little ones and the popularity was overwhelming. I came up with this recipe because I wanted to create a dairy free type pizza. Often a good choice for a dairy swap is coconut milk. In this recipe, I used canned coconut milk. Coconut milk has a good…

  • Appetizer,  Gluten Free,  Kids

    Protein Packed Crab And Lentil Cakes

    As I grow in my knowledge about what my body needs versus just eating what I like, I am teaching myself how to combine the two to create the best me I can be this year.  An incredibly important part of what our bodies need, is protein.  I’m not saying here that we need to eat more meat. Gram for gram, there are certain plant based proteins that can rival or equal the amounts in animal proteins. One such protein is lentils. Talk about action packed. Not only are lentils high in protein, they are high in folate, potassium and a slew of antioxidants. They are inexpensive and relatively easy…