Dairy Free Soy Free Peanut Butter Cereal Crunchies

My husband and I actually call this Peanut Butter Crack, because we seem to have no ability to leave it alone until it’s gone.  I love no bake cereal type desserts because they can satisfy my sweet tooth quickly.  With only a handful of ingredients and a five minute or less prep time we have a winner in my book.  Also I love peanut butter, and have used the pregnancy and post pregnancy as a reason to justify consuming unholy amounts of it. (it’s good for protein right?) This dessert is fast, sweet, crunchy, peanut buttery and totally addicting.

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup karo syrup
• ½ cup peanut butter
• 4 cups Corn Flakes, Rice Crispies, Rice Chex or any combination of the 3
• Optional (only for dairy eaters:  ½ cup chocolate chips)

Instructions:

1. Add 4 cups of corn or rice cereal to a large mixing bowl.
2. In a small sauce pan, over medium heat, mix the sugar and karo syrup until the sugar is mostly dissolved. 
3. Add the peanut butter to the sugar mixture in the pan and stir to combine.
4. Once the peanut butter is mixed into the sugar and Karo syrup add it to the bowl with the cereal and carefully mix together, trying not to crush the cereal.
5. (Optional – if diary is okay) Stir in chocolate chips.
6. Press warm mixture into a cookie sheet and cut into squares or eat by the handful.  Enjoy.

Dairy Free Soy Free Pasta Dinner

Since college I have always loved pasta. I think it might have been because it was the only meal I knew how to make and not botch for a number of years. Now when we’re sitting in the living room and I haven’t made anything for dinner and we’re all hungry it’s my go to meal. It’s quick and filling and to me it will always be delicious… honestly if I was trapped on a deserted island and I could have one food for the rest of my life it would probably be pasta.

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 can Light Ragu No Sugar Added Tomato & Basil pasta sauce (The only premade kind I could find that doesn’t have dairy or soy)
• ½ pound ground beef
• ½ white or yellow onion
• ½ box of spaghetti noodles (I have yet to find a pasta that has dairy or soy so you should be fine here)
• Optional: Fresh asparagus  

Instructions:

1. Brown ground beef in a skillet over medium heat.
2. Dice onion and add to browning beef in skillet.
3. While beef is cooking fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Once water is boiling turn temperature down to medium heat and add pasta. Cook according to package direction, likely 7-12 minutes. Drain the water from the pasta when finished cooking.
4. Once beef is browned drain the fat and add the Ragu sauce to the meat, continue to heat over medium until the sauce is warm.
5. Serve by adding pasta to a plate and covering with sauce.

Cooking Asparagus

1. Take each stalk of fresh asparagus and apply a light pressure toward the middle/bottom of the stalk. It should snap and the tough bottom part of the stalk can be discarded.
2. Layer the stalks on a microwavable dish and fill the bottom of the dish with a ½ cup of water or until the stalk are touching the water but not covered by it.
3. Cover the plate with plastic wrap and microwave for 2 minutes. Serve immediately.

Diary Free Soy Free Roast Beef Sandwiches

I’ve been working on finding some quick things for lunch and I haven’t had a lot of luck.  Sandwiches are always nice, but you have to have the bread to make them, and in my case I haven’t been able to find any store bought bread that works so I’ve had to make my own bread.  If you have bread or have made bread this is a savory warm meal that is great for lunch or dinner.  I had mine cheese-less and it was delicious, but I have to admit I envied my husbands that had gooey cheese melting off his sandwich and onto his plate. 

Servings: 4 Sandwiches

Ingredients:

• 1/2 onion sliced
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 pounds leftover roast meat or 1 pound package roast beef lunch meat, shredded 
1/4 cup Worcestershire Sauce
• Dash of salt – to taste
• 8 slices of bread – See bread recipe
• Optional: 4 slices havarti, white american, or swiss cheese (for the potential dairy eater – such as my husband.  One piece per sandwich)

Instructions:

1. Add onions and 2 tablespoon oil to a frying pan, cook until onions are soft and light brown. 
2. Add shredded meat in a single layer to the cooked onions in the frying pan.
3. Add salt and Worcestershire sauce. Stir to combine. 
4. Once meat is heated through add to bread and enjoy, or add cheese and give the cheese a few minutes to melt, then add to bread and enjoy.

Adapted from MMM… café - Leftover (GASP!) Roast Beef Sandwich

Diary Free Soy Free Pot Pie

This delicious low calorie, budges friendly pot pie is an adaption from one of my mom’s classic recipes.  It’s loaded with vegetables, has a flaky crust and is easy to make.  This is another one of my go to meals when I’ve neglected to plan dinner because I nearly always have the ingredients for it and  I can throw it together in a few minutes.   

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

Filling:

• 2-3 cubes chicken bullion
• 1 chicken breast shredded
• 16 oz bag frozen mixed vegetables (peas, corn, carrots, beans)
• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• 1 cup water

Crust:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1/2 cup rice or coconut milk

Instructions: 

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Add chicken to a small sauce pan, cover with water and bring to a boil.  Once water is boiling turn down the heat and simmer the chicken until cooked, about 10 minutes.
3. Once chicken is thoroughly cooked and no pink spots remain, remove from the water and shred using two forks. 
4. While chicken is cooking thaw vegetables. Adding them to a microwave safe dish, cover them with 1 cup water and microwave on high for 5 minutes or add them to a sauce pan cover them with water and bring the water to a boil.
5. Once vegetables are warmed combine chicken, vegetables, water, and bullion in the sauce pan and bring to a boil.
6. Mix corn starch with 1 tablespoon cold water and slowly mix it into the boiling filling mixture. 
7. Once filling is boiling remove from heat and add to a 9 x 9 or 9 x 13 glass baking dish.
8. To make the crust mix flour, salt, oil and milk together until a thick pasty dough forms.  
9. Using a piece of parchment paper and a floured rolling pin roll the dough to be a little bit bigger then  your baking dish.
10. Pick up the parchment paper with the dough on top of it and flip it over the baking dish with the filling so the dough is over the filling and the parchment paper is on top. 
11. Carefully peel off the parchment paper and press the dough into the corners and against the sides of the baking dish.
12. Bake at 425 for 25-30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

Diary Free Soy Free No Knead Cinnamon Bread

I seem to crave carbs like crazy, I think it’s mostly due the to fact that I can’t eat a sandwich for lunch unless I bake my own bread, and baking bread take time and energy with all the kneading and the waiting for it rise and what not. I found this recipe online and gave a big sigh of relief. It’s bread… well I actually think it’s a little more cake like… but we’ll call it bread. It was fast to mix together, there was no rising time or kneading and it was delicious. I love cinnamon to begin with, but this ‘bread’ hit the spot with it’s cinnamon sugar sweetness. It’s totally easy to make the top comes out with a nice little coffee cake-ish crunch. I bet if you make it you wont be able to leave it alone either.

Amount: 2 loaves

Ingredients: 

• 1 cup canola oil 
• 2 cups sugar 
• 2 eggs 
• 2 cups coconut or rice milk 
• 2 tablespoons vinegar 
• 4 cups flour 
• 2 teaspoons baking soda 

Cinnamon/sugar mixture: 

• 2/3 cups sugar 
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon 

Instructions: 

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. In a large bowl mix together oil, 2 cups sugar and eggs. 
3. Stir in milk, vinegar, flour and baking soda. 
4. Pull out two loaf pans and sprinkle a little bit of the cinnamon sugar mixture in the bottom of each pan. 
5. Put 2 cups of the bread batter in each pan, then add a generous layer of the cinnamon sugar mixture to the top of it. 
6. Add the rest of the batter to the pan and add the remaining cinnamon sugar mixture to the top of the loafs. 
7. Bake for 45-50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. 
8. Let cool in pan 10-20 minutes before removing. 

Adapted from Redfly Creations – The Amazing Amish Bread Alternative

Diary Free Soy Free Cinnamon Rolls

I have been dreading breakfast.  I love cereal, in the past I’d eat it for breakfast and whenever I felt like a snack.  It’s quick, low clean up, and delicious… it’s also no longer an option.  I’ve turned to oatmeal to fill that hollow pit in the mornings, but you can only get so excited for more oatmeal.  My sweet husband surprised me with these delicious cinnamon rolls the other morning and let me tell you, they were something to get excited for.  Fluffy, lots of cinnamon, walnuts, raisins, and an orange glaze. They took longer than oatmeal to make, but I enjoyed them for days!

Servings: 12

Ingredients:

Dough:

• 1/4-ounce package yeast
• 
1/2 cup warm water

• 1/2 cup rice or coconut milk

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 
1/3 cup canola oil

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 egg

• 3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour 


Filling:

• ¼ cup canola oil

• 3/4 cup sugar, plus more for pan

• 2 tablespoons cinnamon
• Optional: 
3/4 cup raisins, walnuts, or pecans

Glaze:

• 3 tablespoons rice or coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon orange juice concentrate
•  
2 cups powdered sugar
• 
1 teaspoon vanilla extrac
• t
3 to 6 tablespoons hot water

*If you wan't regular glaze rather than orange glaze add another tablespoon of rice or coconut milk and skip the juice concentrate. 


Instructions:

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water, about 5 minutes.
2. In a large bowl combine milk, sugar, oil, salt and egg.  Add 2 cups of flour and mix until smooth.   Add yeast and remaining flour and mix until dough is well formed.
3. Knead the dough for 10 minutes.
4. Lightly grease a large bowl with oil. Transfer the kneaded dough to the greased bowl and coat the dough completely with additional oil.
5. Cover, and set in a warm place to rise for 1 hour. I usually put the raising dough in my microwave with a cup of hot water.
6. After an hour, punch the dough down.
7. On a floured surface roll the dough into a 15 x 9 inch rectangle. 
8. Spread oil over the dough.  Mix sugar and cinnamon together and sprinkle the mixture generously over the oiled dough.  Add walnuts, pecans or raisins if desired. 
9. Start at the 15 inch side and roll the dough into a tight spiral. Pinch the edge together.  Cut the dough into 12 even slices.
10. Layer the remaining cinnamon sugar generously in the bottom of a glass baking dish. Place cinnamon roll slices close together in pan.
11. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
12. Let the rolls rise until they are double in size, about 45 minutes. 
13. Bake for 30 minutes or until the tops are lightly browned.
14. While the cinnamon rolls are cooking mix together milk, orange juice, sugar and vanilla.  Add hot water one tablespoon at a time until the glaze reaches desired thickness. 
15. Remove rolls from oven and let cool 5 -10 minutes before adding the glaze.

Adapted from Food Network - Paula Deen Cinnamon Rolls

Diary Free Soy Free Broccoli Salad

Finding foods without dairy or soy has led me to eat a lot of salads in the past couple of weeks. Now don’t get me wrong salad is delicious, but when you take out the dressing and call it a frequent main dish things can get a little boring.  I decided to mix things up a bit and forgo the traditional lettuce salad and try something a little more interesting.  It was great - filling, flavorful, sweet, and crunchy and I ate it as a meal for 3 days…

Also I’m not a huge fan of vinaigrette type dressings.  I’m a ranch girl through and through so having so many salads has been even more uninviting.  I found this poppy seed dressing at my local grocery store and I’m happy to report that it’s dairy and soy free and doesn’t have the same strong flavor as most of the vinegar based dressings.  It’s definitely not ranch, but it works as a decent replacement.  It’s a sweet flavored dressing, but I thought it worked really well on this salad.

Serving size: 4

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ head of broccoli
• 1/2 head of cauliflower
• 3 tomatoes
• 1 red or orange bell pepper 
• ½ red onion
• 5 strips of dairy/soy free bacon (I used Butterball turkey bacon)
• Optional: Brianna’s Home Style Poppy Seed Dressing

Instructions: 

1. Cook the bacon till crispy using package directions. I usually cook turkey bacon in the microwave, by layering paper towels on a plate and cooking for a minute at a time until they reach desired crispiness.
2. Once bacon is cooked break or cut it into small ½ inch sized pieces. Put aside.
3. Chop the broccoli and cauliflower into bite sized chunks. 
4. Dice the tomatoes, bell pepper and onion.
5. Mix the broccoli, cauliflower, tomatoes, pepper and onion in a large bowl. 
6. Add bacon to the top of the salad just before serving. Drizzle with dressing if desired. 

Diary Free Soy Free Chicken Wrap

This was my husbands go to meal as a bachelor, though he usually ate it on bread. I tried it on a tortilla and it was perfect, - crunchy, flavorful and filling.   While bread is hard to come by I’ve been finding a lot a great uses for my Costco tortilla and this one is by far my favorite.

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

• 4 leaves of lettuce, shredded
• 1 tomato cubed
• 1 orange or red bell pepper cubed
• 1 avocado cubed
• 1 onion diced
• 2 chicken breast shredded
• 2-3 cubes chicken bullion (depending on how salty you like your food)
• Pinch of pepper
• 2 Tbs water
• 2 Tbs canola oil
• 6 Costco Tortilla Land tortilla shells.

Instructions: 

1. Add chicken to a small sauce pan, cover with water and bring to a boil.  Once water is boiling turn down the heat and simmer the chicken until cooked, about 10 minutes.
2. While chicken is cooking, cube the tomato, pepper and avocado.  Shred the lettuce and dice the onion. Put them aside when finished.
3. Heat a large skillet on medium heat an cook tortilla shells.  Cook tortillas about 1  minute on each side or until lightly browned.  Remove from skilled and put aside.
4. Once chicken is thoroughly cooked and no pink spots remain, remove from the water and shred using two forks. 
5. In small sauce pan over medium heat sauté diced onion with add 2 Tbs canola oil, about 3 minutes. 
6. Once onions are soft add shredded chicken, bullion, 2 Tbs water and a pinch of pepper.  Combine and simmer together over medium heat until the water cooks off. Remove from heat.
7. On a tortilla, layer chicken mixture, lettuce, tomato, pepper, and avocado.  Roll up and enjoy.

Dairy Free Soy Free Shepherd’s Pie

This is a slightly quicker take on the tradition meal, mostly because I save myself the effort of cutting up lots of vegetables by using precut frozen ones.  It’s also a great comfort food for a rainy day and I feel like I can sneak in all kinds of vegetables without protest because they are covered by fluffy delicious mashed potatoes.

Servings: 6

Ingredients:

• 4 large russet potatoes
• 1 16 oz bag of frozen mixed vegetables
• 1 lbs ground beef
• 1 diced yellow onion
• ½ cup rice or coconut milk
• 1 can tomato soup
• ½ cup water
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• pepper to taste
• dash of paprika

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Peel and dice potatoes into1 inch squares. Place them in a medium saucepan and cover them with water. Bring the water to boil using high heat, once boiling turn heat down and simmer the potatoes for 10 minutes or until soft and easy to crush.
3. While potatoes are cooking add the ground beef to a skillet with the onion and cook over medium heat until the ground beef is cooked through.  Drain the grease and return the ground beef and cooked onion to the skillet. 
4. Thaw the 16 oz bag of vegetables in the microwave. Once thawed add them to the ground beef onion mixture with a can of tomato soup and ½ cup of water.  Stir to combine and simmer over medium heat.  Mix in salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce.
5. Once the meat and vegetable mixture is heated thoroughly transfer the mixture to a glass 9x13 baking pan and spread it evenly across the bottom of the pan.
6. Once potatoes are soft drain the water from them and add a ½ cup of coconut or rice milk to the potatoes and blend with a hand mixer until smooth.  If the potatoes seem too thick add another ¼ cup of milk.
7. Once the potatoes are mashed place big spoonfulls of them in baking dish on top of the meat/vegetable mixture and use a spatula to spread them evenly across the dish.
8. Sprinkle a little bit of salt and paprika on the top of the potatoes and place them in the oven for 20 minutes or until the potatoes start to brown. (*Note: If you're potatoes are still warm and you don't care about crisping them you can skip this step and just enjoy them white and fluffy)
9. Remove from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Diary Free Soy Free Oven Baked Fajitas

I think fajitas are great and I was really excited when I saw this oven baked version.  Using the oven means a lot less time in the kitchen and lot less oil in my food.  They turned out beautifully and I’ll make them again for sure.  I didn’t add cheese or sour cream to mine (obviously) and they were still amazing, but it was easy for my husband to add them to his. 

This recipe has been adapted from Real Mom Kitchen – Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas

Ingredients

• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips – I find that if you are thawing frozen chicken, it’s much easier to cut into strips after defrosting it a couple of minutes but when the chicken is still mostly frozen.  Finish defrosting after it’s cut into strips.
• 2 Tbsp canola oil
• 2 tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp dried oregano
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 1 large bell pepper, seeded and sliced
• 12 Tortilla Land tortillas

Instructions 

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  
2. Slice chicken into strips and layer them on the bottom of an greased 13X9 baking dish. 
3. Combine oil, chili powder, garlic powder, oregano and salt in a small dish.
4. Spoon the mixture over the chicken and stir to coat.
5. Mix in the tomatoes, peppers and onions.
6. Bake uncovered for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and the vegetable are soft.  
7. Serve with tortillas.  

These are the only dairy and soy free tortillas I've found.  I got them at Costco and they are the kind that are premade but you have to cook for a few minutes in the frying pan.

Diary Free Soy Free Blueberry Orange Muffins

It’s so much work to fine carbs that are diary and soy free and I find myself craving them all the time.  I open our cupboards and see loafs of store bought bread that my husband uses for sandwiches every day and I find myself longing for that bready deliciousness. 

I bought tons of produce during our last grocery trip and I realized that I hadn’t finished the blueberries and they were starting to get mushy.  I’m a fan of tart firm blueberries and once they are soft and sweeter I’m done.  To avoid wasting them I whipped up some blueberry muffins and they were delicious.  It actually might be more accurate to say blueberry cupcakes, because they were sweet, soft, and delicious, but muffins sound better for you so I’m going to call them muffins.


    •    1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
    •    3/4 cup sugar
    •    1/2 teaspoon salt
    •    1 tablespoon baking powder
    •    ½ teaspoon baking soda
    •    1/3 cup canola oil
    •    1 large egg
    •    ¼ cup coconut or rice milk
    •    ¼ cup orange juice concentrate
    •    1 teaspoons vanilla extract
    •    1 cup fresh blueberries
    •    Pinch of nutmeg



1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Add flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda and nutmeg to a large bowl and mix together.
3. In another bowl add canola oil, egg, coconut/rice milk, orange juice concentrate, and vanilla and mix together.  When well combined add this mixture to the dry ingredients and stir together. 
4. The batter should be thick, but still drizzle off a spoon.  If it’s too think add another tablespoon of milk if it’s too thin add another tablespoon of flour.
5. When all the ingredients are mixed together add the blueberries and gently fold them into the batter without crushing the berries.
6. Spoon the batter into a grease or lined muffin tin.  I think the top of muffins is the best part so I fill my cups to the brim rather than ½ or ¾ full.  By filling them to the brim I was able to make 9 muffins.
7. Cook them for 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned on top.

Dairy Free Soy Free Coconut Curry

Growing up my mom had a tendency to cook somewhat bland food, salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic we’re about the extent of the spices she used to flavor foods.  My mother-in-law is a lot more adventurous with flavors and I didn’t realize what I was missing until I was married.  Don’t get me wrong I still love my mama’s cooking and I often follow in her footsteps with more plain flavors but I’ve also learned to venture out and we’ve had some amazing foods because of it.  My point is that growing up curry was never ever on the menu.  I don’t think I even knew what curry was until my mid twenties and I’m a hesitant curry eater.  I get overwhelmed with the spiciness of it and I didn’t like it much until someone introduced me to coconut curry.  I happen to love this much milder version of curry and thanks to this diet restrictions I made curry for the first time.  I loved it and this will definitely be on future menus even when my diet is back to normal.  So if you are a hesitant curry eater or like more mild flavors I would suggest giving this a try.

Adapted from Mel's Kitchen Café – Coconut Curry Soup

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pound chicken breast cut into 1-inch pieces
• Salt and pepper for seasoning
• 1/2 cup chopped yellow onion (about 1/2 medium onion)
• 1 red or green bell pepper, finely chopped
• 3 red potatoes cut into 1-inch squares
• 2 cups chopped carrots
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 can (14-ounces) unsweetened light coconut milk
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 3-4 cups hot, cooked rice for serving

Directions

1. Cube potatoes and put them in a small pot with boiling water to soften, about 8 minutes.  Or put them in a microwave safe dish with water and cover with plastic wrap, heat in the microwave for 5 minutes.  Drain excess water and put aside.
2. Chop carrots into 1 inch pieces or use baby carrots.  Put the carrots in a small pot with boiling water and heat to soften, about 8 minutes. Or put them in a microwave safe dish with water and cover with plastic wrap, heat in the microwave for 3 minutes.  Drain excess water and put aside.
3. Heat the oil in the large pot using medium heat. (Note: If you are starting with frozen chicken, thaw if for a 3 minutes in the microwave then take it out and cut it.   I find it much easier to cut into cubes if it’s only half thawed.  Once it’s cubed but it back in the microwave to finish thawing.) Season the chicken pieces with salt and pepper and add them to the hot oil. Let the chicken cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the onions and red/green pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes, until the onions and peppers soften. The chicken and vegetables will continue to cook in the next step.
4. Add the carrots, potatoes, chicken broth, coconut milk, brown sugar and curry powder. Stir together. Bring the soup to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes. Stir in the lime juice. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Serve a ladle or two of the soup over a scoop of rice.

Diary Free Soy Free Pancakes

These pancakes are quick and easy to make and I honestly don’t miss the dairy ingredients in this recipe at all. They are light and fluffy, brown nicely and taste delicious. When my husband make them he grease the pan between each round of pancakes to get them a little extra crispy on the outside and if you don’t have time to make bread these can be a nice substitute if you’re craving carbs.

This recipe has been adapted from Food.com Milk Free, Egg Free Pancakes.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup flour

• 3 tablespoons sugar

• 2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 
2 1/2 tablespoons canola oil
• 
3/4 cup water

• 1 egg or 2 tablespoons water



Directions:



1. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together into medium mixing bowl.

2. Grease frying pan with 2 ½ tablespoons of canola oil, be sure to tip the pan so the whole thing is coated with the oil. 

3. Pour excess pan oil into a small bowl and add the egg to the oil. Mix well. 

4. Stir the oil and egg mixture into the dry ingredients until you have a lumpy batter.

5. Cook the pancakes over medium-high heat on the stove-top until the top of the pancake is bubbly and the bottom is browned. 

6. Flip the pancake and cook the other side, until both side are browned. 
 
7. Serve hot with jam or maple syrup.

Diary Free Soy Free Crock Pot Tomato Braised Beef

I’m usually a pretty bland cook. The go to seasoning for me are cinnamon, garlic salt, onion salt, regular salt and pepper.  The one major exception for me is the spicy fall flavors that usually accompany pumpkin flavored food in the fall.  I was interested in the recipe when I noticed that it used a lot of those fall flavors and I decided to step out of my standard spice comfort zone and give it a try.  I’m so glad I did, it was amazing and flavorful but not in an overwhelmingly spicy way.  This is also the first time I’ve used coco powder for something that was not a dessert, who knew coco was so versatile? Ha.

Crock Pot Tomato Braised Beef

Adapted from The Healthy Foodie - Tomato Olive Braised Beef with Rustic Cauliflower Turnip Mash

Ingredients

• 3 lbs boneless blade roast
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, smashed
• ¼ cup vinegar
• 1 cup water
• 1 large can diced tomatoes
• 1 tbsp canola oil

The Spice Mix

• 1 tsp pepper
• 1½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground clove
• ½ tsp ground allspice
• 1 tsp dark cocoa powder

Instructions

1. Trim all the visible fat from your blade roast, for me this meant tearing it into pieces to remove the long strips down the center of my meat.  Multiple pieces of meat is fine.
2. Mix the spices together.
3. Cover all sides of your meat with the spice mix.
4. Preheat about 1 tablespoon of canola oil in a large heavy skillet over high heat. When pan is sizzling hot, add the meat and do not move it until it has formed a nice dark crust, about 5 minutes. Flip the piece of meat and sear the other side until it too, forms a nice golden crust.
5. Transfer meat to the crock pot.
6. Add onions and garlic to the pan and cook for another minute or two minutes.  This gives time for the vegetables to soak up some of the meat spices that are still on the pan.  When finished add the vegetables on top of the meat in the crock pot.  
7. Add water and vinegar to the cooking pan to finish collecting the spices then pour that liquid over the meat and veggies.
8. Add the tomatoes to the top of the mixture in the crock pot and put the lid on.
9. Cook on low 5-7 hours or on high 2-3 hours or until the meat pulls apart easily with a fork.
10. Check the meat from time to time to make sure there is still liquid in the pot.  If you are running low add a little bit more water.
11. Serve alone or over rice.

Diary Free Soy Free Sauteed Peas and Red Onion

My freezer if full of frozen bags of vegetables and I generally grab a bag, throw it in bowl with a little bit of water and microwave it until it’s warm.  I thought this was a nice way to dress up my standard bowl of peas a little bit.  It was super easy, quick and delicious. 

Diary Free Soy Free Sauteed Peas and Red Onion 

Adapted from Martha Stewart Quick Vegetables

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• ½ a red onion sliced thinly
• salt and pepper
• 1 10 ounce package frozen peas
• ¼ cup water

Directions:

1. Heat 2 tablespoons canola oil in a skillet over medium. Add onion. Stir occasionally, until onion begins to soften, 2 to 3 minutes.
2. Regular Method: Add peas; cover skillet, and cook, stirring occasionally, until peas are warmed through and tender, 6 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
   Speed Method: Add frozen peas to a microwavable bowl with ¼ cup water and microwave 2 minutes or until peas are warm.  Drain water and add to onions. 
3. Stir until well mixed. Season with salt and pepper, and serve.

Dairy and Soy Free Bread

I have been missing bread! I’ve heard that someone somewhere has found store bought bread without soy, but I swear I’ve checked every label of every brand and I haven’t been able to find one without soy. Since bread is a pretty serious staple in my life I looked up some recipes, made adaptations and finally baked my own. This bread is delicious! About a million times better than the store bought stuff. The only down side is you have to find time to make it, and if you are doing this elimination diet for your new baby like I am, time is a hard thing to come by. This bread is at least really easy to make even if you don’t have a bread mixer.

This recipe has been adapted from The Curvy Carrot – Rosebud’s Butter Topped White Bread

Dairy Free Soy Free Bread, White or Wheat

Services: 2 Loafs – half the recipe if you only want one… but if you’re going to go through the effort of making bread, especially bread this delicious you may as well make 2.

Ingredients:

• 4 and 1/2 teaspoons dry active yeast (or the equivalent of two packets)
• 3/4 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 3 tablespoons unsalted canola oil
• 2 and 2/3 cup additional warm water
• 9-10 cups all-purpose flour – I haven’t tried it, but I’ve heard doing half wheat flour and half white flour is also delicious.
• Additional canola oil and flour for greasing your cooking pans

Instructions:

1. In the bowl dissolve the yeast in 3/4 cup of warm water, about 5 minutes.
2. Mix in the sugar, salt, oil, and 2 and 2/3 cup warm water.
3. Add 5 cups of the flour and mix until smooth.
4. Add the remaining flour cup by cup and continue mixing until the dough is smooth.
5. Knead the dough for 10 minutes.
6. Lightly grease a large bowl with oil. Transfer the kneaded dough to the greased bowl and coat the dough completely with additional oil.
7. Cover, and set in a warm place to rise for 1 hour. I usually put the raising dough in my microwave with a cup of hot water.
8. Let to dough raise for an hour, punch it down and divide it into two portions.
9. Oil and flour two loaf pans. 
10. Take half of the dough and roll it out on the floured surface, with a rolling pin, make it into a square with uniform thickness. 
11. Roll the dough in a spiral and place it edge down in the pan. Repeat with the second loaf. 
12. Cover the loaves, set in a warm place, and let rise another hour. 
13. Place the oven rack on the lowest position and preheat the oven to 425 degrees. 
14. Bake the loaves for 15 minutes, then take them out and cover each loaf with aluminum foil to prevent the tops from overcooking. 
15. After covering with foil, bake for an additional 15 minutes. 
16. Remove the loaves from the oven and place them on a wire rack to cool. 

Diary Free Soy Free Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies

Since my diet restriction I’ve been craving chocolate like mad, and all the premade stuff has dairy! I turned to my cupboard to see what I could create to ease my raging sweet tooth and ended up with my two favorite things coco (a lesser form of chocolate) and peanut butter, which I am happy to eat by the spoonful. I am a huge fan of quick and easy desserts, which makes no bake cookies perfect and these diary free soy free no bake cookies were fudgy and peanut buttery and perfect for an extra protein chocolate boost. As a bonus they took about five minute to make.

Diary Free Soy Free Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups oatmeal
• 1/2 cup coconut, rice or almond milk
• 2/3 cup peanut butter (this is the special Jif Natural peanut butter that doesn’t have soy)
• 1/2 cup honey
• 4 Tbs coco powder
• 1 tsp vanilla
• A pinch of cinnamon

Directions:

1. Heat milk, peanut butter, honey, coco powder, vanilla and cinnamon in a small pan over medium heat stirring frequently until all the ingredients are well blended 2-3 minutes.
2. Remove pan from heat and stir in oatmeal until all the oats are well coated.
3. Drop spoonfuls of the mixture on wax paper or a cookie sheet and let them sit for a few minutes to set up.
4. Enjoy your cookies.