glutenfree

Cranberry, Apricot and Nut Oat Granola Bars

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For those longer hikes and backpacking trips, it’s important to have protein and energy-packed snacks at your chewing disposal. But let’s face it, healthy snacks can be expensive, plus there’s all that extra packaging, and who knows what really goes in them if you didn’t make it yourself, right?

I faced a similar dilemma while prepping for my annual Ladies’ Backpacking Weekend, and decided to take matters into my own hands. Instead of loading up on Kind bars and Soy Joys (though I do love them), I tried my own homemade granola bars and a sweet treat. Thanks to Minimalist Baker for this awesome 5 ingredient recipe, which both accommodates great taste and easy creation. Continue reading

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Roasted Corn and Avocado Caprese Salad

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Oh, yeah, summer won’t be over that easily! This salad is very simple to put together and a perfect side dish (or even a full fledged meal).

Ingredients (serves 4)

  • 1-2 corn husks or 1 can of corn (on the cob is WAY better!)
  • 2-3 tbsp butter
  • Seasoning – I keep this open-ended, because it can be good with so many different flavorings. I chose a BBQ rub, comprised of chili powder, garlic powder, kosher salt, brown sugar, cayenne and Italian seasonings
  • 2 avocados, cubed
  • tomatoes, diced (I prefer cherry tomatoes, but that’s just my bag)
  • Kale leaves
  • Mozzarella cheese
  • Optional meats: salami, cubed chicken, salmon

Directions

Grill up the corn adding butter and seasonings toward the end of its roasting (after about 10 minutes). If it’s not grilling season, it’s just as easy to do this on a stove top, it just tastes better when it’s off the cob. Mix in with avocado, tomatoes, and any other toppings you’d like. I found that the butter coated the whole dish nicely and didn’t require any additional dressing, though I would recommend a squeeze of fresh lime over the whole thing. Enjoy!

Cherry, Peach and Raspberry Chia Seed Crisp

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Holy moly! I’ve only recently heard about chia seeds and their alleged health properties, but I am now a full on believer! Packed with protein and aiding hydration, these little guys are a wonderful addition to your diet, particularly in the hot summer months when it’s hot and you need all the water retention you can get.

While at the local farmers market, Whole Foods was set up promoting healthy eating and this amazing raw cherry chia seed crisp recipe. It was so delicious I ended up coming back for seconds, and because they were strategically placed right next door to a farmer selling Rainier cherries, you better believe a pound of those things came home with me. I promise that this recipe is not a labor of love, even though it does involve a food processor. You’ll have it whipped together and served to delighted friends in T-20 min or so. Continue reading

Potato Green Bean Salad and Rustic Pesto

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It’s picnic season, and an all time favorite of mine is this gluten-free, super easy potato and green bean salad. This baby first came into my life during my inaugural Hipcooks class “Healthy, Fresh and Zingy 2“, and I’m happy to say it’s made many appearances over the past few years. The most time consuming part of this dish is boiling and cooling the potatoes, everything else is smooth sailing.

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Lemon Artichoke Chicken

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Nom. Just nom. Yet another win from Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice! This light chicken dinner is seasonal win for the upcoming summer evenings, plus it’s easy to put together and leaves satisfied customers all around. The artichoke marinade can be prepared ahead of time, so it’s perfect if you’ve had a long day and want a simple (and delicious) meal ready within 30 min.

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Scallion Crepes and Sautéed Shiitake Mushrooms

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Whoever said you can’t have breakfast for dinner has obviously never had savory crepes. At a recent Hipcooks Dim Sum and Then Some class, I learned the power that is scallion crepes, and after making a gluten-free batter batch, I have some pre-made and ready to go for some joyful consumption. I’ll admit this recipe isn’t completely gluten free due to including hoisin sauce, but man it’s tasty! Continue reading

Colorful Kale and Cauli Salad

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Colorful Kale and Cauli salad

Fast, visually pleasing and delicious, this salad brought me great joy as my dinner. I was lazy after pilates and didn’t want to cook, so I dug through the fridge and tossed together my findings, and thus became my tasty meal.

Salad bits

  • Kale
  • Blue cheese crumbles
  • Shredded cabbage
  • Died cranberries (or cherries)
  • Pumpkin seeds (great for building immunity)
  • Pine Nuts
  • Fig & Walnut Vinaigrette (found at New Seasons)
  • Cauliflower (first tossed with the Fig & Walnut Vinaigrette)

Cucumber-Wrapped Lox

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Picture this: it’s Crafty Night at my house, friends are coming over in T-no time, and I have no appetizers prepared. What’s a girl to do? I pulled inspiration from the previous evening’s sushi making class, and thought of a visually pleasing, relatively quick snack: lox and cream cheese stuffed cucumber rolls. I feel so grateful that there’s a New Seasons just down the road from me, granting access to local, fresh vegetables meats and anything else to save a procrastinator like me. I picked up the ingredients to craft my masterpieces, and got rolling. Continue reading

Salted Dark Chocolate Caramel Delights

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Chocolate and caramels are a complicated subject matter for me. I love them, but I’m not as crazy for them as other desserts (give me crème brûlée any day). However, I am starting to sing a different tune after having experienced some of the most amazing chocolate caramels ever. My friend, Sara is an incredibly talented blogger/photographer and, turns out, baker, and when she contributed traditional and chocolate caramels to our December Crafty Night, I knew my world would never be the same. Continue reading

On the docket: Oven Braised Mexican Beef

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My friend, Jessica recently underwent the Whole30 challenge, totally killed it, and posted multiple amazing Paleo recipes, including the Oven Braised Mexican Beef. It looks a-mah-zing, and I am very much looking forward to trying it myself. Hmm, perhaps another recipe to use the beef from my local, organic, totally woo-woo cow share. I’ll keep you posted on how successful I am!