I recently came upon a dilemma. Not a large on of sorts, but a tiny small one…. Mom was making Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins tonight. A favorite in our family, if you remember from this post. But here was my dilemma, I haven’t tested chocolate or pumpkin yet! How was I going to be able to test them both? I just finished day three of my latest “food” (maple syrup—yum!), so I could introduce one but not both.

       After thinking about it for a while, I finally came up with a solution! I would try chocolate and use sweet potatoes as a substitute for pumpkin since I have read a lot about using them instead of pumpkin…Sno White uses them a lot in her baking (due to Frog Prince’s allergy?? I think), like with this recipe for Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip Bread…which looks amazing.

     Anyway, I gave it a shot, and used my mom’s recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins which I thought I had used for my original recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins….but I realized that I hadn’t. So, I decided to see if I could get closer to mom’s recipe.  

   As I was making these, I realized that I could submit them for this months SOS challenge! Hooray! I had wanted to participate, especially since I love sweet potatoes and eat them a lot, but I wasn’t sure what to make, and was happy that I came across something without even trying! I’m also submitting these to Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays.

Anyway, all in all, they came out great! I made notes though for you, and me, so that you can make changes as needed to fit your diet and to make the recipe more suitable for you!

 

Pumpkin or Sweet Potato Chocolate Chip Muffins

by Ariana Anderson, based of mom’s recipe

Sweet potato love! And look at all those chocolate chips! Mmm! And they’re homemade too!  

Ingredients:

• 1 c. brown rice flour (I find I need less flour if just using brown rice flour, it seems to be very thickening) OR 1 to 1-2/3 c. GF flour blend OR 1-2/3 c.“regular” flour---whole wheat or spelt would be great!
• 2.5 t. liquid vanilla stevia (next time, I would decrease or omit this as I found it a little to much overbearing, but not too noticeable since I had chocolate chips in it too) OR 1 c. sugar (I would suggest Sucanat OR palm/coconut sugar) if tolerated
• 1 T. pumpkin pie spice
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1/4 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. salt
• 2 large eggs (I suggest free-range)
• 1 c. sweet potato (blend mashed sweet potato with a little water until it is more of a “canned pumpkin” consistency---ie. you want it smooth and thinner than just mashed up sweet potatoes with nothing else….I used my food processor) OR 1 c. plain pumpkin (which is 1/2 of a 1/2 lb can)
• 1/2 c. melted butter or oil or applesauce (I used applesauce)
• 1 c. chocolate chips (I used my own recipe—free of sugar, gluten, and dairy)
• 1/2 t. almond extract (I omitted because I haven’t tried almonds yet)

 

Directions: Heat oven to 350*. Grease muffin cups or use papers. Thoroughly mix flour, spices, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Break eggs into another bowl. Add pumpkin/sweet potato and oil. Whisk until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips and almond extract. Pour over dry ingredients and fold in with a rubber spatula just until dry ingredients are moistened. Scoop batter evenly into muffin cups. Bake 20-25 minutes until puffed and springy to the touch in the center. Turn out onto a rack to cook. Makes 12 (1 dozen)

Notes: Next time, I think 1/2-3/4 c. chocolate chips would be plenty. Also, while the brown rice flour and stevia worked fine, I would like to try it with a GF flour blend (at least of brown rice and tapioca flour) and less or no stevia and some agave or honey instead.

 

Swirls of sweet potato….and spice!

"Kitchen Scraps and Food Storage"

I found this article on another site and I wanted to quote and post it here because I thought it was so good and useful!

"Kitchen Scraps and Food Storage...
Here is a wonderful way to save money, have gourmet items in your pantry and enjoy great tastes!

Dehydrate!
You will need a food dehydrator or an oven and a way to grind the dried material into a powder. Spice grinders, coffee grinders, food processors are all good. Work with what you have or are comfortable with. Once ground into powder, store the powders in baby food jars, spice jars or whatever tightly lidded jars you have handy. Sterilize and COMPLETELY DRY jars before putting powder in. Also, put an O2 absorber in each jar.

TOMATO PEELS
Those tomato peels that are usually flung in the trash when you can tomatoes? Dry them out, nice and VERY dry, grind them into powder. Tomato powder sells for big bucks in gourmet shops, but essentially, it is made from peels that would otherwise be discarded.

Use the powder to boost the flavor in soups, stews and sauces, add some to your tortilla recipe to make those gourmet *tomato wraps* most people pay a premium price for. Make your own pasta? Add tomato powder! Add to softened butter for tomato butter (great on steaks and fish!) Combined with dry milk and a few spices, you can have a quick and easy instant tomato soup! Toss tomato powder into your favorite breading recipe to add a little sparkle to the flavor of fried chicken or fried fish. Add a teaspoon to your salad dressing and shake!

ORANGE PEELS
Grate orange peels or toss in a blender or chopper to have your own orange zest without paying those high supermarket prices. Orange zest can also be used in home made soap recipes. I have even dried out orange peels, ground them up and added a teaspoon or two to a regular bottle of shampoo for a citrus-wake-me-up scent. Orange powder can also be used in sachets and pomanders to repel insects and freshen closets.
Orange peels (powdered) can have a *bitter* taste to them if you get too much of the inner white peel in the powder, so be careful of that! You can also add orange powder to salad dressings, breading, butter, ginger ale (orange ginger ale is pretty good). Use your imagination!

APPLE PEELS
Dry those apple peels out nice and very dry and grind into powder as with tomato peels.
Apple peel powder is great to add to oatmeal and other cooked cereals. A teaspoon in a glass of ginger ale is lovely on a hot day, or add a teaspoon to a hot mug of tea on a cold winter night. Toss some apple powder into your body wash for a wonderful scent, or add to unscented talcum powder and dust some on! Apple powder can also be used as a sachet scent or in a pomander.

BROCCOLI STEMS
Slice up your leftover raw broccoli very thin and dry it completely. Grind into powder. Mix with cream cheese and sour cream and a smidge of tomato powder for a great dip. Broccoli powder + dried milk + water = cream of broccoli soup. (I always scatter some grated cheese on top) Again, use your imagination!

SPINACH STEMS AND PIECES
Dry out completely. Grind into powder. Spinach powder + sour cream + cream cheese + spices = terrific dip or spread for crackers! Cream of spinach soup when mixed with dry milk and water.
Add to pasta dough when making pasta. Add to flour tortilla recipe. Good to add to salad dressings or mayonnaise.

CUCUMBER PEELS
You have to be careful with this. If you grow your own or buy locally, you should be okay. You cannot dry out most store bought cuke skins as they are wax coated! That being said--dry out totally and grind into powder. Add to cream cheese or sour cream (or both-mixed) for a nice dip or flavorful spread. Cucumber is a pretty popular additive to bath salts, soaps, shampoos, etc. Add to alcohol and water (half and half) in the summer and put in a spritz bottle. Spray yourself to stay *cool as a...* you know the rest! A teaspoon added to a bottle of salad dressing is great for cool summer salads. Add to mayonnaise.

CELERY BITS AND PIECES
Slice thin and dry completely before grinding into powder. Use in place of celery seed in soups and stews. Add to salad dressings, dips, spreads or mayonnaise. I like to sprinkle it on deviled eggs (VERY lightly!).

CANTELOUPE RINDS (ALSO WATERMELON OR ANY MELON)
This one always gets me weird looks, lol! Okay, there is ALWAYS some leftover *meat* in that rind. Dig it out, slice it into thin slices and dry it out. (NOW you can toss those rinds in the compost heap!) Once dry, grind into powder.
A teaspoon in a glass of ginger ale is absolute heaven on a hot day in July! Adding watermelon powder to hot tea sounds weird, but is actually pretty good! Add some to unscented bath salts.
I have used watermelon powder in a white cake batter to make a watermelon cake. (It was terrific! Just add 3 to 5 teaspoons (depends on your tastes) to batter and mix in well. Add to softened cream cheese, sour cream and add a bit of honey and mix well to make a dip for fruits."

"I highly recommend the dried watermelon powder...watermelon cake is really good. I have also made watermelon ice cream by mixing the powder into a basic ice cream recipe.
I recently watched a show on the Food Network and a chef was just going nuts over a tomato ice cream he had tried somewhere...I thought "Gee, that's easy to make", lol!..have also made peach, nectarine and apricot powders. Strawberry powder, too. Basically, anything you can dry out thoroughly and grind into a powder--fruit or veggie. The only limits are your imagination and your taste buds!"

So, there you go...eat your garbage!."

My gluten-free version (also sans raisins)

What do you eat on a cold, fall morning? Muffins! What do you eat on a chilly night?

I served this warming turkey noodle soup last night with these applesauce muffins.

Soup and muffins!  Muffins are great anytime of day.

One of my absolute favorite muffins that my mom makes are applesauce muffins! They are so good….especially with mom’s homemade macoun applesauce! I decided to make them for my family one night and one morning for me. So, I’ve tested this recipe both as my mom originally wrote it (with wheat flour and all) and gluten-free. Both are great!  

Mom's Applesauce Muffins

Mom’s original recipe: made with whole wheat flour and raisins

Ingredients:

1-1/2 c. brown rice flour*

1/4. c. tapioca flour/starch*

*If you can have gluten, sub 1-3/4 c. whole wheat flour (as originally stated in my mom's recipe) or spelt flour

1 t. baking soda OR 2 t. baking powder (original recipe)  

3/4 t. cinnamon

1/4 t. ginger

1/3 c. oil or applesauce or half oil/applesauce (I used applesauce, although I think it would work the best with at least 1/2 oil)

1/4 c. apple juice

1 egg, beaten

1/2 c. honey (original recipe) or agave (I used agave)

3/4 c. applesauce (yes, in addition to using it as a sub for oil if you used that)

1/2 c. raisins (optional, but my favorite! I didn't add them this time, because I haven't "tested" them yet)

1/2 c. chopped pecans (or other nuts, also optional; I don't remember my mom ever using these, but it's on the recipe, so I'm sure it's good!)

Stir together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and ginger. Combine egg, applesauce, honey, oil, and apple juice. Add to flour mixture. Stir just until flour is moistened. The batter should be lumpy. Fold in pecans and raisins (if using...dried cranberries might be good here too!) Fill 12 greased or papered muffin tins 2/3 full. Bake at 400* F for 20-25 minutes until lightly browned. Serve warm.

Enjoy!

Ari

Home...A time to heal!

I'm home! I just returned tonight. As of tonight, I have had my last bite of gluten, dairy, and sugar (and other such nasty things like hydrogenated oils and such). No more for me. I'm sad that I ever got off the bandwagon, but hope I can get back on and remain free of those things....They don't make me feel well...they only feed my emotions and keep me binging. Never mind the fact that they cause me terrible fibromyalgia pain, heartburn, headaches, stomach discomfort, and weight gain. Today, from this minute on, I promise myself and you that I will be gluten-free, dairy-free, and sugar-free. I will eat mindfully. I will learn to listen to my body and heal. I will do all I need to do to heal. I will go back to the basics...go back to adding one new food in at a time...and waiting three days before I try another one. I will start exercising again...and much more....here's to hoping that I'll be able to do this all...

Any suggestions would be great. Anyone know how long it takes to get the gluten, dairy, and sugar out of your system??

Thanks.

Thanks for all your support!

~Ari

Personal Health Update...Sadly, It's Not Better..

Remember this post? I talked a lot about how I wasn't handling school and things and just overeating and bingeing a ton even on gluten and sugar? I want to be honest with you, and appreciate your help and support. Unfortunately, things have only gotten worse and those things have continued...Besides having bingeing issues, I have also had a lot of stomach problems like normal and my old friend fibromyalgia and such...and some other personal health problems as well. Suffice it to say, I have been in and out of the doctor's office more frequently in a shorter span of time than I care to count! I have been so sick in so many ways, and have missed zillions of classes and assignments. On Friday, I went into my doctor again.  He suggested that I withdraw from school and go home and get some help there and not have the stress of school to make matters worse and to focus on healing. I prayed about it and I know this is what I am supposed to do. It's not easy...and it still won't be an easy road even at home, but what I need to do now is focus on getting better. If you want, I'd appreciate prayers in my behalf as I am going through this tough time in my life and especially for the next few days as I try to rush through cleaning my apt and packing and moving and doing this all while I am not feeling well.

The stress of dealing with all of this has not made the bingeing easier either...in fact, I've been terrible lately...binging on gluten and sugar too. And a lot. I've gained some weight and that just makes me feel worse. Plus, I worry about going home...because my family still eats gluten and sugar and having that around is going to be even more of a temptation...especially since Halloween is almost here and around the same time, my brother's birthday...

Anyway, just wanted to let you know the big news and see if you have any suggestions...

Are you addicted to food? Especially sugar? How did you beat it? (Feel free to send me a personal email too if you want....thefrugallyrichlife AT gmail DOT com).

Giveaway and Natural Deodorant

Nourishing Days is having a giveaway for a gift certificate for natural personal care or beauty products. This would be a great opportunity to switch to natural products. I'd love to win some myself! :) The natural makeup looks awesome too.

Want to begin using natural products, but have a hard time spending that kind of mulah ($)? Me too. You can start here though by making your own frugal and very natural deodorant! It's so cheap to make, lasts forever, works great, and is so much better for you then commercial deodorant. Check it out! You'll be glad you did...I'll never go back to regular deodorant!

Oh my. These are so good. I’ve eaten way too many. Best of all? These are free from any grains at all….gluten-free or otherwise. And? They involved very little work, contain only one flour, and taste just like “whole-wheat” or regular muffins. :) Tested by my room mates even, and they approve!

This recipe came to be because I’ve been testing coconut flour and trying agave. :) Mmmm….good!

Best Banana Muffins

by Ariana Anderson, adapted from this recipe by Tasty Eats At Home

Ingredients:

• 3 bananas (mine were just ripe-no brown spots—but I’m sure these would be even more delicious with riper bananas)


• 4 eggs


• 1/2 c. agave


• 4 T. oil (I used sunflower seed oil)


• 15 drops stevia (I used vanilla stevia)***


• 3/4 c. coconut flour


• 1 t. baking soda


• 1/2 t. salt


• 1.5 t. cinnamon

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F.  Line muffin tins with paper liners or grease well. Mash bananas with a fork, or with my prefered method, a potato masher. Crack eggs and stir  them in. Add agave. Stir. Add oil. Mix. Add stevia. Mix. Add coconut flour, salt, and cinnamon. Stir. Add in baking soda. Stir again. Using an ice-cream scoop (or spoon---the scoop just tends to be able give out the right amount of batter per muffin tin), pour batter into individual cups. Smooth tops of muffins with slightly wet fingers, if desired. Slide muffin tins in the oven. Let cook for 20 minutes or until your toothpick comes out clean. Mine were perfect right at 20, but every oven is different.

Yields: 12 beautiful, soft, super moist, just sweet enough, perfectly satisfying tasty muffins great warm or cold

Enjoy! Let me know how you like them! :)

***Update: I made them again. They were so good. I used speckled bananas this time...they yielded an even more moist sweet muffin. I think in this case you could use less or no stevia and be fine...especially if you are weary of the stevia after taste you sometimes get. I've never eaten a more moist muffin!!! It's almost like a cupcake or something of a dessert it feels like because it is so moist, you would think there would be cups and cups of oil in it--but it's so healthy and yummy! :) I want to try these next time with half oil and have applesauce. If you try that or any other variations, let me know.

This is linked to Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays!

What is it about pancakes that makes them so warm and comforting? For General Conference this morning, I wanted to make a special breakfast. I recently realized that I could have brown rice flour. I didn’t think I could have any flours yet because I haven’t tested them yet, but realized that brown rice flour should be totally fine since I know that brown rice doesn’t bother me whatsoever. :) It is one of those hypoallergenic foods that most everyone can tolerate….which is true for me too. Because it is so well tolerated by me, even on bad days, it is one of my favorite comfort foods.

Anyway, as I realized recently that I could have brown rice flour, I became excited and thought of what I could make with just brown rice flour that would still taste ok…since GF flours do not taste the greatest most often on their own. I remembered a recipe I had used for crepes one time that had just used brown rice flour….Thinking about this lead me to think of just warm, comforting hearty pancakes. So I began searching. I found several recipes for pancakes made with brown rice flour but most had other flours and or ingredients that I couldn’t yet. Finally, I found this one and tweaked it to fit my needs.



These are good size pancakes…this is the one I ate…it filled up the whole plate (except for the wide rim). :)

It turned out great! These pancakes are super hearty, reminding me of whole wheat pancakes. They are a tiny, itsy bit grainy, but barely so. Especially when you add the banana syrup that I came up with due to a moment of inspiration. :) They are very filling and you will most likely only need one medium-large one (like the one in the photo above) to be full.

Also, these are very frugal pancakes and syrup to make! :) They are also very thick and puffy! :) You could definitely play around with this recipe to make different variations…like blueberry pancakes, for example! :)

Basic but Hearty Brown Rice Flour Pancakes (with Healthy Banana Syrup)

by Ariana Anderson, based off this recipe from Wallet-Friendly Wellness

Ingredients:

2 c. brown rice flour***

1/2 T. baking soda

1 t. sea salt

1 t. cinnamon

20 drops vanilla crème stevia

3 eggs (preferably free-range)

1-3/4 c. rice milk (or other dairy/non-dairy milk)

Directions:

Heat and oil frying pan (I used my cast-iron pan.)  on the stove to about about 3.5 or halfway between low and medium. Mix wet ingredients together.  Add dry ingredients, mixing well. Pour desired amount of batter (more for bigger pancakes, less for smaller) into warmed pan. Let cook for approximately 3-5 minutes or until you can easy stick your spatula underneath the pancake to fill it over. Cook another 2-3 minutes. Repeat for remaining batter. Serve topped with my healthy and delicious banana syrup (below)  or other desired compliments like maple syrup, honey, agave nectar, fresh fruit, etc.

*** If you aren't allergic to gluten, try whole wheat instead of brown rice flour. Or, you can purchase it or make it by grinding some brown rice in your wheat grinder!

Makes about 7 large, hearty pancakes…which are very filling. Serves 6-7.



(My stack of pancakes…minus the one I ate. :) See how thick they are?)



Pancake with banana syrup! mmmm

Healthy, but Delicious Banana Syrup

by Ariana Anderson

The inspiration for this syrup comes from the fact that I haven’t really tested honey, maple syrup, or agave, yet. When I did have maple syrup, I found that I just binged on it. :( So, I’ve stayed away from all of that. The only thing that I do ok with is stevia and fruit. I thought about putting banana slices on top, but wanted something more…syrupy…which is how I came up with the simple recipe below.

Ingredients: 1 ripe banana per pancake/person

Directions: Break your banana in thirds. Throw it in the blender. Whirl it around until it is syrupy, with a few chunks left. Pour over pancake. Enjoy!

This is linked to Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays.

                   

    First off, I’d like to thank all of you for the love and support I’ve received lately, due to my last post. I’m working on those things personally now, and I’ll update you at a later point.  If you emailed me, and I haven’t emailed you back yet, please know I really do appreciate your email, I just haven’t found the time to reply yet. :)   

Also, I apologize for the lack of posts.  School and things have been pretty crazy here lately. I have a ton of recipes to post for you! It’s just finding the time to post them. :( Any volunteers? lol.  Thanks for your patience! They’ll be up as soon as I can get to them! :)       

               Tonight I made homemade goulash. This was quite a staple in our house at home. I’m testing tomatoes, so I figured this would be a great dish to try it with.

             Goulash is just like spaghetti except you use macaroni noodles and mix it all together instead of just topping the pasta with the sauce. Or you could serve it like spaghetti and just pour the sauce over. Another great way to serve it without meat, is to just use a fried egg.

              I can’t have beef right now so I made “ground chicken” with my free range, no hormones/antibiotics/etc chicken. It’s really simple and easy….and very frugal. To learn how to make your own, simply read my post on it here. :) Plus, this way, you control the fat content in your meat (ie. really low fat if you cut the fat off the meat and use the white meat.)

Side note: I apologize that the pictures aren’t the best quality. My camera broke and I had to purchase a really old second hand one to get me through until I can afford a better one. Also, apparently the date got screwed up on these too. :)

 My homemade ground chicken

        I boiled the noodles and made the sauce. I usually follow more of my mom’s recipe for sauce, but just made it simple and used a 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes with basil. I added garlic and parsley to it.

My sauce (with the “ground chicken” in it)

 

Bon Appétit! (Pictures of it mixed in or just served over the top)

 

Ready for the recipe? Yeah? Me too. :)

Homemade Goulash or Spaghetti 

Ingredients:

• 3 chicken breasts (to become “ground chicken”- my recipe makes  approximately 1-1/3 c. cooked ground chicken and I used a little over half of it…but you can use as much as you want) OR sub up to 1-1/3 c. ground meat
• approximately 1/2 of a 16 oz bag of pasta (I used Tinkayda brown rice elbows) –You can use spaghetti, elbows, or any other kind. :)
• 1-28 oz can of crushed tomatoes (I used Natural Directions Organic Crushed Tomatoes with Basil)
• minced garlic
• parsley

Directions:

Boil pasta. While pasta is boiling, prepare ground chicken.  To the cooked ground chicken, add your sauce. Sprinkle with desired amount of garlic and parsley. Warm. Serve over noodles or combine with noodles for goulash.

Enjoy! This would be great along with garlic bread and green salad.

Serves: 4-5 people

• Need another, quick and easy, healthy dinner? Try my Sloppy Joes. You could use the same method you learned about making your own ground chicken and use it to make the Sloppy Joes. I may just have to do that myself soon! Or try: Chicken Noodle Soup (in the Crockpot even!), Fish Sticks, Chicken Nuggets,
• Looking for a fun way to encourage your kids to eat salad with this or other dinners? Try my Funny Face Salad.

Falling, falling, falling….help!

I have felt like I am falling down a downwards spiral. I can’t get out. I try but there is no willpower left. The stress  (I suppose? I don’t know what else to call it?)  has overcome me. So much so, I don’t even know why or what the stress is for. School? I started 3 weeks ago…why am I already feeling behind? I can’t stay on top of things. I don’t get enough sleep. I barely get any exercise. I’m too tired too…I don’t have time. I was doing so well with my elimination diet…I was slowly adding in things one at a time. Then all of a sudden…or maybe it just gradually crept upon me, I started overeating…first, moderately.  Just to the point where I thought that I just must have took a little too much (“My eye’s are bigger than my stomach.”) Then, gradually, but rapidly, I started just binging. Gorging myself on food. Healthy food to start. And when I needed a sweet treat? I’d just eat a ton…just gorge myself…full of applesauce or bananas or some other fruit that I’m allowed right now…but then I still wouldn’t feel satisfied. So I’d try some gum…Extra Just Dessert’s Version…or any kind. That wouldn’t last long. Soon I’d be back in the food again. I’d feel guilty for overeating it so I’d try and eat something more healthy…cooked carrots for example. And then I’d find myself gorging the entire container. I’d feel stuffed and confused and upset. More gum but that wouldn’t stop there.. there would be more food as soon as there was a tiny bit of room, more food.  Then  Saturday night, we planned on surprising my roommate with treats. I volunteered to make the cookies. No problem I thought. This will be fun. I haven’t gotten to cook or bake much since I started the diet. I was fine at home this summer when I made cookies with my brother. I just enjoyed making them with him, and not eating them. Well, this time I couldn’t do it. I ate the batter. I ate the cookies. I didn’t just have a taste of either… I ate so much I felt physically sick. Never mind that this amount would make a “normal” person feel sick, but for me, one who doesn’t eat sugar, or gluten, or dairy, or such unhealthy things like margarine, I felt terrible. But I couldn’t stop. Even when I started to feel sick. Finally, I stopped. I felt sick the next day. I thought that would cure me. Nope…while I didn’t indulge in any other forbidden, I still overate and mindlessly ate. I felt like I wasn’t enjoying my food, I was stuffing it in my face.  I tried to satisfy my cravings  and justify my overeating, by the fatigue I was feeling. I needed the extra fuel I thought. It just got worse and worse. I couldn’t stop, wouldn’t stop eating. I soon was eating because it was comforting…because somehow it must make me better. Lately, I have been dealing with lots of constipation…even taking a new natural product called Natural Calm, I still was, and still am experiencing severe constipation. I reasoned, hmm…maybe brown rice will help. So I wasn’t hungry….but I stuffed my face with the warm comforting, freshly made batch of brown rice. Even these healthy foods are becoming my enemy. Thinking I’d be totally fine now, since I was full, really full, I told my roommate it’d be fine to start frosting the cupcakes I made for our other room mate for tomorrow since it’s her birthday.  I couldn’t resist. I tasted my mom’s frosting…the frosting I haven’t had in years. I kept trying it. So sweet…so good. Then I had one cupcake….One cupcake won’t hurt I said. And another…More frosting. Starting to feel really sick. Brown rice will make me better. Down some rice went. Not satisfied. More frosting. Still need more. I started gorging on the leftover cookie dough from Saturday night. Then I made a bunch of cookies from it. I ate almost all of them. I could feel myself getting sicker (and fatter) by the minute. Faster and faster down they went. I couldn’t even sit down. I wanted milk with them. I didn’t have any. Finally, so disgusted with myself, I started talking to a room mate and was able to throw the last cookie or two away. But, meanwhile, my stomach (which was already upset pre-cookies and pre-cake---guess, I figured, it’s already a mess---can’t get too much worse!) was complaining even more. My room mate complained because of the embarrassing smells that my body was frequently emitting. I am embarrassed. Can’t sleep. So exhausted, but I can’t sleep. I’ve had problems with binging before, but I thought I was through. I thought I could just eat healthy and find out what bothers me and stay on this healthy way of life. I’d even begun to exercise more frequently…but now? I feel awful. What is wrong with me? Why can’t I stop myself? Why do I let myself eat the foods that I know are “poison” to my body? Why can’t I enjoy my food mindfully, even when it’s healthy? Why can’t I eat normal? Why do I feel so strange? I don’t feel like myself. I feel like someone else has taken over my body.  Not only is this going on, but I feel a lack of motivation for a lot of things. I don’t want to go to class….I feel behind. I miss class due to exhaustion and not feeling well. I push through the exhaustion and go to class and stay up to do homework and clean the apartment etc just to have the cycle repeat again. Help. What is wrong with me’? Why can’t I just be me again?

The case of the $7 loaf of bread – or the high-cost of going gluten-free (really?)

The case of the $7 loaf of bread – or the high-cost of going gluten-free (really?)

This awesome post is my first-ever guest post on my site. I hope it will be the first of many to come. If you would like to do a guest post on my site, please contact me via email (thefrugallyrichlife AT gmail DOT com). Consequently, it is my first day of school today...starting another year at college. :) I'll let Jen Saunders take it from here. Jen Saunders and I met and started chatting through twitter. I was impressed that she was also gluten-free, dairy-free, and refined sugar-free! That was amazing to me! Not many people are all three--and I can definitely empathize with her post here. So go on, read on, and check out her brand new blog, Brilliant Well-being, while you're at it. She already has some good articles up, like this one, "Chasing Skinny".

The case of the $7 loaf of bread – or the high-cost of going gluten-free (really?)

The first time I went to see my family physician after having experienced two nasty allergic reactions to eating wheat, I explained in great detail what I had had to eat and what/when my symptoms were. She agreed that I very likely had a wheat allergy, arranged for allergy testing and then said, “well, eating gluten-free is really expensive – are you okay with that?”

I told her I’d have to be because I was not going to keep eating foods (dairy and refined sugar had already been eliminated from my diet) that made me sick.  So, off I went, with no books, blogs, friends or family to guide me – I was on my own in this dairy, refined sugar, and gluten-free lifestyle.  And in hindsight I wouldn’t have it any other way. Let me explain…

When you eat gluten-free it eliminates everything with gluten in it – bread, crackers, cookies, pasta, desserts, etc.  I have, somewhat recently, come to learn that there are gluten-free substitutes for all of your favorite gluten food. Most grocery stores have a gluten-free section, health food stores carry a lot and so does my local bulk food store.  But I am not just avoiding gluten – I also avoid dairy and refined sugar. This eliminates most processed, packaged foods. And those little gems add up!

I have spent the last 18 months truly changing my lifestyle. I now eat primarily vegetables, fruits and lean meats. I have rice somewhat frequently as well as vermicelli and brown rice pasta. My dear Mother occasionally makes me homemade dairy/sugar/gluten-free banana biscuits (oh so good – recipe to be posted soon to my website).  Up until last weekend I had not spent one pretty penny on “gluten-free” anything. So, you ask, what changed?

Well, my family and I were enjoying a beautiful weekend at the beach when we decided to hit up the local Farmer’s Market. It was one of the loveliest Farmer’s Markets I have been to – small but a variety of vendors. We had breakfast, enjoyed the live music and browsed the vendors’ stands – fresh produce, baked goods, homemade crafts, art – then I saw it – a sign for homemade gluten-free bread. $7. I about near choked! $7?!? Who spends $7 on a small, loaf of bread?

Well, me.

I asked the vendor what the ingredients were – no dairy and sweetened with honey. Somewhat risk averse and a hater of money wasting, my initial reaction was to keep walking, which I did. I told my Mom about it.  We talked about it. As we talked, I realized that $7 for a loaf of gluten-free bread is a lot.  But I used to spend $3.55 every morning at work on a muffin and large chocolate milk. A box of “healthy” crackers? Minimum $2.99. I used to buy these things regularly.

I added up how much money that is per week on the foods I used to eat. Times the weeks per month. Times 18 months. Suddenly $7 on a loaf of gluten-free bread doesn’t seem so extravagant. It was a treat, sure. It was delicious. First time I have had toast and (natural, organic) peanut butter in a long, long time. But what treats have we given up in our quest to honor our bodies?

The next time you scoff at the high price of a quality, homemade gluten-free product (or the ingredients to make yourself something) remember how much you spent before the allergy or disease diagnosis or lifestyle change. And ask yourself this – is eating the foods my body tolerates and honoring my health a curse or a privilege?

Last time I checked, chronic diseases were very expensive to manage.

Saving Money and Heading Back to School

I'm headed back to school. Most college kids have already started (my sister included) but we start late...it's nice because then I get to work longer and enjoy the summer more.

But as I head back to school, I'm even more focused on saving money.

For example, I posted messages online on my schools "Bulletin Board" and ended up saving myself 50% of the cost to go from the airport to school (a 4-5 hour drive) by taking a ride from some other students versus paying a shuttle company.  Unfortunately, they wouldn't give me my money back since I'd already booked but I can use it another time in the next 6 months...and I'm sure I'll need it. So I'll just save now and use it when I need a stress-free easy option in the future.

I'm also trying to save money in as many other ways I can. I'm thinking about setting a cash amount to spend at the grocery store and only bringing that cash so I can't spend more than I have....only hopefully less.

While waiting around the airport, I found an article in Shop Smart Magazine, a magazine I've never seen before but I enjoyed browsing. I jotted down some notes I found helpful about saving paper and especially ink when you are printing. Who couldn't use some help with that? Seriously, ink's expensive! :) And if you're like me, you probably go through a bunch. Whether you're printing tons of papers for school as a college student, or just print a lot of recipes, or information in general, here are some tips for you extracted from the Shop Smart Magazine September 2010 issue. Some of this is quoted and some is paraphrased. I'm not sure which are which since I just rushed to write this down but hopefully you'll understand this is from them, and not my own ideas. :)

1. Try a different font! Engineers discovered in testing that they were able to print 27% more pages with Times New Roman than with Arial in the same size 12 font.

Here's a list of a few of the major fonts and how many pages (and how much longer your ink would last---more pages of text, not just paper)

Font:                      Pages per cartidge

Times New Roman             419

Calibri                               395

Arial                                  305

Tahoma                             291

Fraklin Gothic Medium        286

Verdana                             276

2. Print in draft mode if you don't need graphics. Thought there will be slightly less quality, it will still be readable. And you will use about 50% less ink!

3. Ever have a web page with a bunch of extra info or images etc you don't want? Or you end up with a blank page with just the web address on it? There are options to help (besides cut and paste). Try GreenPrint (printgreener.com). Or look for the free add on's for internet explorer and firefox from hp and canon. To get to HP's add on, go to www.hp.com and search "web page printing".  For canon, go to www.canoneasywebprint.com/en/index.html

4. To save on paper, print double sided

I hope this helps! I certainly helped me.

More to come!

Ari

A Time For Healing

Today is a time to heal. To heal my body and get well. I started today. Today is a time to heal, not later. I am tired of not feeling well, even with being gluten-free, sugar-free, and  dairy-free.

I am going to be following the advice of a good friend (Wendy) and the book The 7     Day Detox that she suggested I follow. I started today with a liquid detox. Lemon water, water, and more lemon water.

Today, I struggled a bit with being 100% liquid and no food...and was really pale and weak by the end of the day so I was kind to myself and followed what both the book and Wendy suggested and that was to have a brown rice protein shake. Which helped and helped a lot. I couldn't believe how full I was and how much energy I had.

Wendy also suggested I could try a few tomatoes (cherry tomatoes or a big one of something) if I got too hungry and could tolerate it..since it was a vegetable and I seemed to do ok before. I found out that my suspicions in the past were correct. I love tomatoes. I really do. Especially now when they are so fresh and delicious straight from the garden. I have fought giving them up before and just told myself it didn't bother me that much and or it was something else. But now I know. I've heard somewhere that it is common for the foods you love to be your own worst enemy...and that would be me lately. Before starting the detox, I started wondering if chocolate, coconut oil (and possibly coconut milk/coconut), almonds, and agave where bothering me...All of these I sure love! But for now, they are off the list.

After the two-day liquid fast, I start on foods again. I can have most vegetables. I can have most fruits. I can have brown rice, brown rice protein shakes, 2 T. sunflower/olive oil/flax oil a day. And for now, that is pretty much it.

According to the book and the help of Wendy, I must avoid "meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy, fasts and oils [besides what I mentioned], chocolate, nuts, beans (other than mung beans [and possibly garbanzo beans/soy beans or things made with soy]), grains (other than rice, quinoa, amaranth, and millet), wheat, oats, corn (any form-corn starch, corn flour, corn kernels, etc), [peas], sugar [includes] "honey, molasses, artificial sweeteners" etc.  Plus the things I know bother me...apples (unless it's applesauce), raw carrots, onions, green/red peppers, melons, tomatoes, garlic, cucumbers, yeast, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, etc.'

Although the lists of what I can't have may seem overwhelming, I determined to focus on the positive and what I can eat. There is much I think I will try for the first time and or learn to like more. There are new, simple, delicious, healing foods and a healing body ahead of me.

Although the detox itself only lasts 7 days, days 3-7 being just eating basic meals  using the foods mentioned, afterwards I start testing foods with one food at a time for 3 days. It will be a long process, I'm sure, but I'm willing to do it. Wendy suggested too that I don't bake much now and stay away from sugary things as much as possible...which I know will be hard but will be worth it in the end. She also wanted me to stay away from gluten-free mixes of flours or recipes at the beginning with more than one flour and wait and test each one because I could be sensitive to any number of them.

I'm actually looking forward to a more simple time. I need it. I need to focus on getting myself well, and healing inside (physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually), and out.

I am learning to exercise and enjoying it. I've been taking a 15 minute walk during my 30 minute lunch at work and feeling good for doing it.

Also with the detox, I've started using and focusing on more natural products. I'm using my natural deodorant I made still, but I'm making other changes as well. I am also using  natural and fluoride free toothpaste, lotion, and castile soap for my washing my hair, body, and hands. I bought all these things and though I'd rather make them myself, I realize now is not the time to stress. Besides, I saved myself lots of money by buying a big container of Dr. Bronner's Castile Soap and am using it for all those things mentioned above and more hopefully in the end.

Wish me luck on this journey. Let me know if you know of any suggestions or recipes for foods I can make with the restrictions I know have. :)  (Like for example, I bought brown rice pasta but what do I put on it now that I can't have tomatoes (and obviously dairy)? :)

Tomorrow starts day two of the detox. I'll have to let you know how it goes! :)

And don't worry, I still have lots of  things to post that I just haven't had a chance to type up that aren't so restricted, but hopefully, I'll be posting some of the simple recipes I make too during this phase of my life.

--Ari

I made this in the Vitamix my aunt has. It was so good and tasted just like ice-cream!  I had to share. It’s very simple, but very good. :) I’ll be trying it in my blender (which is good, but not a Vitamix) soon.

    

1 and 1/2 bananas

1 lb frozen strawberries

Mix in a vitamix or other strong blender. Scoop and serve immediately. Makes approximately 6 scoops.

Crust-less Colonial Innkeeper’s Pie

   Grandma served this pie (the version with crust, dairy, and sugar) to my mom and her family when she was growing up. They only had it when important or special guest came over.

  (A picture of Grandma’s version)

Mom liked it a lot growing up and so I’ve grown up with it too. We’ve had it for holidays, special guest, or just a fun and tasty dessert. It goes great with vanilla ice-cream.

    If you’ve never heard of this pie, you’ll definitely want to try it. I decided to make my version crust less, which saves time, money (on crust ingredients), and calories…And you won’t really be sacrificing much! :)

My crust less version: :) So delicious!

   This pie is basically like a cake with a rich chocolate fudgy bottom. So in reality, I could just call this Colonial Innkeeper’s Cake…but to me, crust or not, it will always be Colonial Innkeeper’s Pie. :)

My version…what it looks like from the top

    Crust-less Colonial Innkeeper’s Pie

Based of this recipe, which is basically the same as Grandma’s

*Note: I thought that this was really sweet and rich with 9T. stevia and 1/3 c. agave…Next time, I want to try it with less stevia and perhaps a little less agave? :)

Ingredients:

Sauce:

• 1 1/2 (1 ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/3 cup agave (or 2/3 c. sugar or 1/3 c. honey)
• 1/4 c. butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Pie/Cake:

• 1 cup flour or GF blend
• 9 T. stevia (or 3/4 c. sugar or 1/4 +2 T. of honey/agave)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 c. butter or earth balance
• 1/2 cup milk or non-dairy milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
•  
• Directions:

1. In a small pan, melt the chocolate with the water. Stir in 1/3 cup agave. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in butter and 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla. Set aside.
2. Blend together flour, stevia/sugar, baking powder, salt, butter, milk, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla with an electric mixer on low speed to mix. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Mix in the egg. Beat 2 minutes more. Pour the batter into a greased pie plate.
3. Stir the chocolate mixture, and drizzle over the batter.
4. Bake in a 350 degrees F  for 55 to 60 minutes. Serve warm.

Enjoy! Serve with ice-cream if desired!

Peanut Butter No-Bakes (Cookies)

I made this recipe up myself! :)

They are so good and so easy to make! :) No oven required! :)

  

Mix together:

• 3/4 c. peanut butter (natural)
• 1/2 c. melted butter or earth balance or coconut oil (I used earth balance)
• 2-1/4 c. oats (certified GF if needed)
• 1 T. honey or agave (I used raw honey…but any is fine…you can add more if you need…)
• Form into balls and flatten, enjoy, and refrigerate any left over's.

A Blogger Anniversary & Dark Rich Chocolate Cake

    

Cakes are made for celebration, right? I mean, of course the most common and enjoyed is birthday cake. Then there's often graduation cake, valentines day cake (for your sweetheart---or is that only at my house…mom makes a strawberry heart cake every year for dad), congratulations cakes, best wishes cakes (like that employee at work who’s taking another job and leaving the company)….anyway, you get the picture.

I’ve been dreaming of a cake to make for my own celebration. My blogger anniversary! One year ago this month I started blogging as “Food Intolerances Cook” (with GF, dairy-free, sugar-free recipes and reviews). At some point during the year I had to test gluten and things again and went off the diet but eventually jumped back on. Then I changed over to word press as I liked the format and stats better…with that I changed the name of my blog to The Frugally Rich Life. This is what I have been doing with my blog and why I do it….and what I want to continue/start doing.

• My purposes with this blog are to blog gluten-free, dairy-free, and (refined) sugar-free. I will always, always be sugar-free and most likely always be gluten-free and dairy-free.
• I also still want to include reviews of recipes and products.
• I want to offer suggestions on frugality. I am especially found of naturally healthy frugal things…(see my homemade frugal deodorant for example)
• Because this blog focuses on frugality, I encourage those that read it, to practice frugality in their own lives. This can be done in many ways. While some aren’t as health conscious as I, and/or are not ready to pay for things such as non-hydrogenated shortening and other oils lets say, I still want people to be able to make these foods frugally with what they have and know. This is why I have often included changes that someone can make if they are not following the same diet that I am personally on. Even if it makes me cringe ;) to type Crisco or white sugar or margarine as options, I think it is more important to first become more self-reliant and make your own recipes for much cheaper and often healthier than premade or mixes of store bought goods.
• I want to also focus on being frugal with your time and energy. Since I am not always good at this, I almost recently discontinued my blog. Because of this, I am going to try harder to be frugal with my time and energy and not stress about posting a ton…although I would love to a post at least once a week or more…but I’m going to try and be gentle with myself on that…and I hope you will too!
• I also want to share frugal ideas beyond food…
• I also want to share frugal ideas for food in and of itself, especially when you have food intolerances and/or allergies or/and are just trying to live within your means but healthily too.
• Here’s to another year of Fabulous, Fun Frugal Food (and more)
• and The Frugally Rich  Life! Now, let’s eat cake!

Dark Rich Chocolate Cake

I adapted my cake from this recipe…

*Note: Since I am trying to better manage my time, I decided that I would use a recipe I’ve been meaning to blog about for quite a while (versus trying to find time to make a cake right now)—back when I was on the glutenous (not gluten-free) diet. I’m including instructions though to make it gluten-free and think it would still work great if you need to make it GF.

Ingredients:

1/2 + 1/3 c. whole wheat flour or gluten-free flour blend (I made it with red ww flour—came out great, a little dry…can’t wait to try it with a GF flour blend)
1/4 c. honey or agave
1 t. or so vanilla
1/4 c. + 1 T cocoa
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
3/4 c. milk (or non-dairy milk sub)
1/4 c. melted butter (or earth balance)
1 egg

 

Directions: Mix honey and melted butter first. Add in milk and warm for 30 seconds in microwave if needed. Add in cocoa. Then all dry ingredients. Stir. Pour into greased (buttered) and floured round cake pan (that's what I did) or sq pan... bake at 350 for 35 minutes. Comes out perfectly and tastes just like I remember chocolate cake tasting! :) YEAH! :)

Besides making it GF, I also want to try making a yellow cake next time perhaps...:)

And as for the glaze: I couldn’t find a note of exactly what I did anywhere—but according to what I remember I think I just mixed a little honey with a little butter and added a little vanilla. It was liquid so it made the perfect glaze. Play around with this yourself or sub your favorite frosting or glaze recipe. I topped it with grated orange zest.

Blue Raspberry Pie

Blue Raspberry Pie (before topping)

         Summer is such a glorious time for berries. While visiting upstate NY in the Adirondacks (which are so beautiful), we got to pick wild blueberries.

Adirondack Wild Blueberries (about the size of a pea)

Though tiny, these are stock full of flavor and taste so much better then store-bought. Of course, store-bought would work here too (and I ended up adding some in), it is a nice way to incorporate the fresh berries of this summer season.  My mother made a blueberry pie with them for the family (see below).

Mom’s Blueberry Pie

Not wanting to be left out, I decided to make my own pie. Originally, it was going to be just blueberry pie. But then, I discovered that even with some store-bought blueberries, I still didn’t have enough to make a full-pie and didn’t know how to make a “half-pie”. :) So, I ran to our freezer and found some frozen raspberries. Though on a whim, I knew I would love them in the pie, because raspberries are one of my favorite foods! They are certainly my favorite berry, although I love them all! :)

So, I went to work:

I made the crust using another recipe from Hope For Healing.

 

And the topping too was from there too.

Of course, I made a few changes here and there…and will show you below.

 

Blue Raspberry Pie

Adapted from Stephanie’s Recipe

Crust:

1+ c. almond flour or home ground almonds in a food processor

1 c. sorghum flour (or if not GF, white/wheat flour would be fine)

1/4 c. earth balance/ butter (softened)

1/4 c. spectrum’s organic palm oil shortening

(or regular shortening if that is all you have)

a tiny sprinkle of salt

1 T. cold water

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Mix all the ingredients with a pastry cutter or fork and press into a pie plate. Poke a few holes in the sides with a fork.  Let cook until browning for 20 minutes. Set aside to cool while you make the pie filling.

 

Blue Raspberry Filling:

2 c. blueberries (frozen and fresh both work well)

2 c. raspberries (again, frozen and fresh both work well)

1/2 c. maple syrup (or other sweetener)

1 T. lemon juice

3 T. cornstarch (or other starch)

Mix all the ingredients together. If you are using frozen berries, it is not necessary to defrost before hand. Pour into pre-baked pie-crust and top with another crust or topping.

Sweet Maple Crunch Topping:

1/2 c. ground almonds/almond flour

1 c. oat flour

(you can grind this yourself using oats in a food processor, coffee grinder, wheat grinder, or strong blender)

1/2 c. oats

1/4 c. coconut palm sugar (or cane sugar)

1/4 c. maple syrup

1/8-1/4 c. earth balance or butter, softened

(I used 1/4 c. but I think it would still work well with half that.)

Mix these ingredients together with a spoon. Drop clumps of the mixture onto the top of the pie.

 

Bake the pie for 50 minutes at 350. Don’t forget to put foil on the edges of your pie crust, if you don’t want them to get too brown. 

It is easiest and the least messy to serve when it is cool…but tastes fantastic anyway! :)

Enjoy…and try not to eat it all in one sitting. ;)

Makes a nice “breakfast” treat on occasion too. :)

-Ari

PS. Needing some more blueberry and raspberry love? Check out:

• Double B Muffins (Banana Blueberry Muffins)
• Strawberry Blueberry Muffins
• Blueberry Breakfast Cake
• Or try out this berry good :) cereal, review here:
• Erewhon Crispy Brown Rice with Mixed Berries