Gluten Free, Dairy Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

I was craving chocolate chip cookies. I used to LOVE the nestle baking recipe so I thought I would try making the same recipe only substituting for gluten free flour, coconut oil and dairy free chocolate chips. The result was delicious. Even the accountant is sold on them! They tasted delicious in the middle of a Sunday afternoon with a hot cup of coffee.

Ingredients:

2 1/4 cup of gluten free flour ( I used Arrowhead Mills on sale at Fred Meyer.)

1 tsp of baking powder

1 tsp of sea salt ( Trader Joe's)

1 cup of extra virgin cold pressed coconut oil (nutiva brand through Amazon)

1 1/2 cups of organic cane sugar ( I bought a huge bag at Costco for 6 dollars)

1 tsp of vanilla (Trader Joe's has great prices)

2 organic free range eggs ( I buy mine at the end of my mom's street. 3 dollars per dozen)

2 cups of organic dairy free chocolate chips( bought in bulk at my local co-op)

optional: 1 cup of organic walnuts or pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl mix together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In another large mixing bowl beat butter, sugar and vanilla until creamy. Then beat in eggs one at a time.

Then gradually add in flour mixture.

Then add chocolate chips and nuts.

Place by rounded tablespoons on a cookie sheet. (this is my ancient cookie sheet. I need a new one!)

Place in oven and bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown

Yummy enjoy!

What's wrong with genetically modified food?

If you had asked me a year ago what a “genetically modified crop” meant to me or how it affected me I would have looked at you blankly. I had an underlying feeling that it might not be good for me because it doesn't seem natural to mess with a plant’s genetic makeup, but I wouldn’t have been  able cite anyone who would have agreed with me or been able back up my own thoughts as I had not researched the topic. Recently, I have had more time to care, research, and share my opinions. Here is a snap shot of what I have found out.

Just a little over 12 years ago a scientist, Pusztai, at the forefront of genetically modified research spoke out about his concerns regarding a potato he had been working on with a built in "Assassin" gene. The built in gene was "GNA lectin", a protein that kills insects. He had been working on this for seven years and up until then had seen no reason to doubt the pursuit of this modification until he conducted test on rats that involved them eating the modified potato. What he found shocked him and forever changed his mind regarding genetically modified food. When the rats were fed the modified food, their whole body was affected. Their brains, livers, and testicles were smaller, while their pancreases and intestines were enlarged. Their livers were partially atrophied. Organs related to the immune system, including the thymus and the spleen showed significant changes. Their white blood cells responded to immune challenges more slowly, indicating damage. All of this from a potato?

Previous studies by this same scientist tested just the GNA lectin on rats, which in and of itself had not caused damage. What happened? Pusztai says that when a plant is inserted with a gene (and/or when cell cloning has occurred) there is massive damage to the plant's other or original DNA, causing hundreds of mutations other than the intended one: adding the GNA lectin. According to this scientist, "Important natural genes can be inadvertently turned off, permanently tuned on, deleted, reversed, scrambled, moved, fragmented or changed."

I don't know about you but I have no desire to eat food that has been "messed" with. I want to know the food I am eating is pure and unadulterated. There are so many things in this world that mess with our bodies, why add one more?

Resources:
Genetic Roulette: The Documented Health Risks of Genetically Engineered Goods.
Seeds of Deception
www.huffingtonpost.com/jeffrey-smith/biotech-propaganda-cooks_b_675957.html
www.owenfoundation.com/Health_Science/Pusztai/GM/Pusztai_Science_GM_Food.html
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/10/08/a-pesticide-factory-in-your-stomach-think-corn-chips.aspx?aid=CD945


Take this with you shopping!
http://www.nongmoshoppingguide.com/

Organic Chicken Garbanzo (Chickpea) Bean Soup

Yesterday I was feeling frisky and made salsa, hummus and this soup all in the same evening. The soup was inspired by the fact that I had not used up all my chickpeas in the hummus and did not have enough room for them in the freezer! Olivia did a good job of occupying herself by crawling all over my now almost fully baby proofed house. I say almost because we haven't found a way to hide the computer wires from her yet.

This soup serves 4-6. Takes 1 hour total time including simmering.

Ingredients: 

3 Tablespoons of extra virgin organic coconut oil (nutiva brand purchased through amazon.com)

1 medium organic yellow onion, diced (my last one from the local market!)

10 cloves  of garlic, minced ( I buy the pre-peeled from the fridge section at costco then freeze it. It is the same price as the unpeeled.)

1 teaspoon of organic cumin

1/2 tsp of cinammon

4 cups of organic chicken broth

4 organic carrots, diced not peeled (Fred Meyers)

2 cups of my precooked then frozen organic chicken meat ( I precook, then freeze, de-boned whole chickens)

1/2 a lemon, you will use the juice from it

2 cups of water

2 cups garbanzo beans organic

2 Tablespoons of organic dried oregano

2 cups of organic green beans ( I used the frozen organic ones from Costco. Great price!)

2 Tablespoons of fresh cilantro

salt and pepper ( I used 2 tsp of pepper) to taste

Place dutch oven (or large stainless steel pot) on cooktop on medium heat. Coconut oil should be put in the pot and then allowed to melt. Then dice onion and also put in pot, cook until transparent.

Then add spices (cumin, cinnamon, pepper, garlic). Mix well with onions. Turn heat to medium low.

Next add precooked chicken, carrots and broth. Allow to simmer for 15 minutes.

Then add cilantro, lemon, green beans, and garbanzo beans. Simmer for 30 minutes. Then serve. 

Olivia you were a good girl! Thanks for letting mommy cook. She was camera shy today. Would not look at it!

Recipe Garlic Roasted Organic Salsa

This week I had a hankering for home made salsa. I have made it in the past but used canned tomatoes, and canned rotel. In the past eight months I have lost my taste for items not canned at home, due to the BPA  lining in cans and their factory processing. I viewed multiple recipes for salsa on the web. This is the result of taking ideas from multiple recipes at allrecipes.com. My homemade organic roasted salsa. It is yummy and very garlicky!First Step...occupy baby!

Ingredients: 

12 medium size tomatoes, halved ( I used organic "on the vine" tomatoes from Fred Meyers)

6 cloves of garlic peeled

1 medium organic yellow onion, quartered

3 fresh jalepeno peppers, cut in half lengthwise (this makes medium salsa. For mild use 1 or 2. For spicy 4 or 5)

1/4 cup of olive oil for drizzling

2 tsp of cumin, ground

1 juice from whole lime

1 cup of fresh diced cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

Pre-heat oven to 450. Place tomatoes and other vegetables in pans cut as directed above. Drizzle with olive oil, and a few shakes of pepper
 

Place in oven on middle rack. Roast until the edges of the vegetables start to blacken. Remove from oven and let cool. (Takes approx 20-25 minutes)

After vegetables have cooled to warm place them and the following in your blender/ food processor, cumin, cilantro and lime juice. Blend until desired consistency.

Place in container in fridge to cool completly. Serve with tortilla chips. Warning. Lots of garlic taste!

The accountant loved the salsa and has expressed his desire for more of the same.

Frugal Fall Tips Part 2

3. Buy whole organic chickens, cook them, debone them when they have cooled then freeze the meat in small quantities to be used at a future date in stir fry's, spaghetti, salads and so forth. Buying whole chickens is always cheaper, especially when we are talking organic, free range. I haven't bought actual chicken breasts in over 9 months now! Price comparison whole chicken (organic) 2.69 per pound. Organic Chicken breast 6.99 per pound. There is a lot of money to be saved!

photo credit

4. For Fall decorating use old wine bottles to put tall dripless candles in or mason jars (mine are from old jam jars) for votives. Make sure you put rocks or sand in the wine bottles so they are not top heavy! For a more decorative look you can add pebbles to your mason jars and place the votive on top.

 photo credit

5. Cook dried beans then freeze them. Yes beans freeze well! They store well in the freezer for up to 4 months. This way you don't need to use canned beans, plus you save money!! I bought garbanzo beans dried for 1.69 per pound compared to Eden canned beans at 1.89 for a small can! 1 pound of garbanzo beans, dried, made 6 cups of cooked. That is ALOT of savings.!

Environmental Working Group Video

A Wake-Up Story from Healthy Child Healthy World on Vimeo.

Frugal Fall Tips for Living Organically and Simply Part 1

Autumn is upon us and how lovely it is! I love the cool, crisp air, falling leaves, bright colored chrysanthemums, breezes, pumpkin spice and butternut squash. It's the beginning of the time of year for family get-to-gethers, spiced cider and warm hot chocolate by the fireplace. Fall to me equals romance. Today I want to share with you some tips for living frugally in a season of plenty!


1. Eat in season. Some of the best advice I have received for eating organic and frugal is always eat in season. So what's in season right now? broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, collards, cranberries, grapes, kale, pears, apples, pumpkin, swiss chard, sweet potato's, scallions, beets and winter squash.


Here is a quick idea list of meals. Some of which I will  be cooking soon:


Potato Kale Soup
Pumpkin Chili
Ginger Butternut Squash Soup
Chicken and Chickpea Soup
Sweet Potato Salad
Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Roasted Brussel Sprouts
Mixed Fall Roasted Vegetables
Red Lentil Coconut Curry


So many ideas...so little time


2. Go to your local library and take advantage of all the free events. For example Olivia and I went to a toddler time where there was music, dancing and singing. She LOVED it. Tomorrow we are going to the local reading Toddler time. What a great way to get out of the house as a new mom and NOT spend money. They also have plenty of activities for all ages. Here are some examples from my town:


Baby Story time, Toddler Story time, Preschool Story Time, Teen Gaming, Pop! A Comedy Noise Explosion! with Charlie Williams, The Noise guy; Reading with Rover


Now those sound like some fun events to me!

More tips to come