A full family meal

My baby ate pot roast tonight. Not just any pot roast, but Pioneer Woman's pot roast. I have her cookbook The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl and I have to say it's awesome!

Here is the post online with the step by step instructions. I did make some changes, but only because I didn't have all of the ingredients.

I'm sure there is GF/DF/allergen-free beef stock, and because all special foods are expensive - it would cost a pretty penny, but I just used water, and you know what? It was awesome!

As well as the fresh herbs, which you could use I"m sure, but I used a few sprinkles of dry herbs and it was excellent. Wayyyy better than my usual dry onion soup mix and veggies in the crock pot. I served it with boiled potatoes. Lucy LOVED it. She was eating as much meat as me! Now my almost-3-year-old was another story, but ehhh she was tired after a long day at school...

Can't wait for the leftovers tomorrow night!! Mmmm....here's a picture of what I put away just to make you salivate!!

Whole Foods Living Social Deal

You can get $20 worth of groceries for only $10 today at Living Social with this deal. I got mine, be sure to grab yours!!

GF/DF Apple crisp

After picking 14 pounds of apples this weekend, I'm looking for things to do with all these apples (besides eating them of course!) This gluten free and dairy free dessert will be one you should enjoy at some point this fall!

First I peeled and quartered apples (I only used 4 but they were super huge!!) Then I took each quarter, cut it in half, and thinly sliced each half. I did enough apples to get 8 cups. While chopping I made sure to put a little lemon juice on the apples to keep them from getting brown while I was working.


Then I added 1/4 C white sugar and 2 Tbsp cinnamon. Stirred it up until the apples were evenly coated. Spray a 9x13 glass dish with safe cooking spray and fill it with the apple mixture.


In a different bowl (or I rinsed out the apple one after transferring it) mix together 2 C old fashioned oats (I don't use specifically GF ones since Lucy isn't severely allergic to wheat like she is with peanuts & milk but use what is best for your situation) with 1/3 C margarine (we use this), 1/2 C brown sugar, 1/2 tsp salt and 1 tsp vanilla. I like to mix it with my hands to get the margarine all crumbly!


Spread the oat mixture evenly over the apples. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes or until bubbly.


Enjoy!!

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Apple Crisp:

8 C apples
lemon juice
1/4 C white sugar
2 Tbsp cinnamon
2 C old fashioned oats
1/3 C margarine
1/2 C brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Peel and chop apples into bite sized slices. Squeeze some lemon juice over apples to coat them. Stir in sugar and cinnamon. Place apple mixture in a greased 9x13 pan.

Mix cinnamon, oats, margarine, brown sugar, vanilla & salt in a separate bowl. Crumble over the apple mixture.

Bake in 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes. Enjoy!

Whole Foods Gluten Free Tour (Update)

Our local Whole Foods Market is doing a Gluten Free tour of the store with giveaways and samples. Here is the link to sign up if you're local to Lexington. Check out your local store's website to see if they are offering something similar in your area.

Our city has a gluten free organization. Check out the site if you're local or not, because it has many wonderful tips!!

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After emailing to reserve a spot with the tour and explaining our situation, I have now set up a FREE personal one-on-one tour with a Healthy Eating Specialist! She thought I would benefit better from that. Call your store and see if you can set up something similar! What a great idea. I will be updating after we have our meeting!

Great restaurants for those with food allergies

My family doesn't eat out very much. We prefer to cook at home to save money and eat healthier.

We did go out to T.G.I Friday's the other night and noticed they had an allergen menu with a key for which foods contained which ingredients. Most had gluten and dairy, but if you aren't extremely sensitive (because all the food surfaces are shared) you might be able to get a plain hamburger or something. A few cuts of steak were okay, but you can't exactly feed a baby with four teeth a steak...lol.

I've heard wonderful things about Chipotle and their menu. They are on the pricey side, but isn't everything these days? I found information about their top allergens on their website here.

While doing some research I found this site, which is designed specifically for people with problems with milk, yet they have a lot of information for most top allergens. Be sure to check them out!

When we're on the road to see family, we usually would frequent Wendy's or McDonald's. It seems like their allergy menus are limited. The one thing I did find at McD's that Lucy could eat would be the new grilled chicken breast - no bun. Their fries contain milk and wheat. Wendy's has an ultimate chicken grill fillet that appears to be free of wheat & milk. At least they have the option of a plain baked potato, although I'm not sure Lucy would be such a big fan of that. The oil is shared with the other menu items, so it is not "safe" but I'm not sure if she would react to that or not. Guess that's why it's good to have Benadryl and the epi pen handy!!

First recipe...

...coming tonight...

And it's DESSERT! Mmmm

Some snack foods

These are not recipes, rather foods that Lucy will eat. She has pretty much refused baby food from day #1 and prefers chunks of foods that she can pick up herself - Miss Independent!

Here are some foods that she can and will eat!

-Puffed rice cereal (no salt added)
-Chunks of fruit (watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries, blueberries, mangoes, raspberries, grapes) Bananas are good too, however, she hates them!
-Vegetables (peas, carrots in chunks & cooked of course, sweet potatoes, cut green beans, broccoli, peeled boiled potatoes)
- Soy yogurt
- Waffles & pancakes made with Bisquick Pancake and Baking Mix, Gluten-Free,
- Cereal bars like Enjoy Life Caramel Apple Chewy On The Go Bars, Gluten, Dairy & Nut Free,
- Chex (rice and corn are GF!)