What is it that they say? "The best laid plans..." I have been counting down to Thanksgiving for WEEKS. WEEKS. Maybe even months. Now that I have more of a handle on my diet, and cooking, I was so excited to go from my sisters to my husbands family armed with gluten-, dairy-, grain- and sugar free dishes that I could share and inspire with.  I wanted to lead up to Thanksgiving with some great recipes to share with all of you. And then BAM! I caught the bug going around and spent Wednesday sick at work, Thanksgiving in the guest bed at my sisters between breakfast and Turkey dinner, and Black Friday in bed. Today I am still recovering, but I DID still manage to make a few delicious dishes for the holiday that I wanted to share. Luckily my appetite didn't wane, and I was armed with enough herbs and vitamins that I didn't lose taste of this delicious treats!

I was SO excited to make donuts. It's been a standing tradition since I met my husband, that on Thanksgiving or Black Friday morning we would get donuts. But since the store, and bakery, bought varieties are full of sugar, gluten, dairy and chemicals I wanted to attempt to make some that I could enjoy and share with the fam while everyone gathered to cook the turkey. I was nervous that they'd turn out bland, because I didn't use sugar, or too mealy, because of the almond flour. I was afraid that they frosting would be runny because I made my own version using coconut oil.

But none of that happened. They. Were. Absolutely. PHENOMENAL. Even my two-year old niece devoured one, her happy little face covered in chocolate. She's always my official taste tester. I figure if the littles like it, I must be doing something right. If you keep reading, you will find the recipe below. I do use NUTS & EGGS in this recipe. You may be able to use an egg replacer, but I can't guarantee how it would come out, and swapping out for a different flour will drastically change the taste and texture. 

After breakfast I had to nap for a while, this darn cold got me good but I could still smell the amazing aromas in my sisters house. This year I wasn't able to eat as much of her menu as my dad did the turkey his traditional way and more family members attended, bringing their own dishes. So Mr. Charming and I brought a lot of our food from home. (He ate my menu with me and boycotted the "gluten food" in support. I adore that man.) Below is my scrumptious meal. For the first time since I changed my eating habits, it truly tasted like "Thanksgiving". I found organic jellied cranberry. I'm not a fan of whole, and though I don't like to eat a lot of canned food because of heavy metals, something about jellied cranberry just says comfy, Thanksgiving dinner to me. So Mr. Charming found me an organic canned one, with no corn syrup or funky preservative. My menu is below, to help you with choices for your other holiday meals this season. Make sure, that even though you are including traditional carb-y comfort foods, to also get plenty of vegetables and protein. 

My menu included:
- White sweet potato with EB butter
- Organic cranberry sauce
- Turkey breast baked with EB butter, onion and organic herbs
- My Vanilla-Honey Carrots
- Lemon infused olive oil grilled green beans 

After we enjoyed dinner at my sisters we loaded up our things in the car and Mr. Charming drove us to his cousins while I napped in the car. We met over there for more family time and dessert. I was particularly thankful for her big comfy couch where I got to rest my little head. I brought my apple pie. It's gluten and dairy free. There is rice starch in the crust, so it's not completely grain free, but I had already gotten the crust before my Dr's ordered changed so I just had a slice. I call it my "Thanksgiving splurge". Everyone does it, even us healthy-foodies. Again, we're only human. I added my lattice top crust and baked it with lots of cinnamon. And topped it off with a scoop of sugar-free coconut milk vanilla icecream. Mm. Mm. Mm. Then it was off to bed again. 

Despite the cold bug, I had a beautiful Thanksgiving. I truly have so many blessings I am so, so thankful for. I will continue posting my Gratitude Photo Challenge that ended today. I am kind of sad it's over, it was a fun photo project that really brought focus to things we are thankful for. Thank you to those of you who joined in on instagram with #letsbegrateful. Hope you all had a wonderful, healthful Thanksgiving as well! 

Which means I am counting down to fall. Eighteen days to go. I'm seriously counting. I wasn't kidding. I live in Arizona, which means each day that creeps closer to fall means I am closer to hiking again. Running outside. Picnicking in the park. Playing mini golf with Mr. Charming. Basically, not feeling like I'm going to die if I roll down the windows in my car only to be hit in the face with an oven-like heat. 

So... a few awesome things in September. The new featured recipe is now on the site! Zucchini pancakes which are scrumptious and are free of gluten, dairy, egg, grains, nuts and are completely vegan! 

Cold & flu season seems to have hit our house early this year. Oh joy. So Mr. Charming and I are stuck on the couch with an abundance of movies and veggies and supplements. Ok. and I snuck 2 gluten free chocolate chip cookies. But it was only 5 grams of sugar and I ate REALLY clean. Like, all week. 

To help better prepare your immune systems for the magic that is school and workplace germs, the following supplements and vitamins seem to work quite well. 
*Remember to always discuss any regimen with your doctor before starting new medications, vitamins or supplements

• Vitamin D -I load up on extra when I feel rundown, though I am also deficient. So it's a double whammy. I'm taking 4,000 iu a day right now.
• Echinacea - I do 1 capsule 2-3 times a day as a tea. Sometimes I add honey to cut the bitterness, but not often, because sugar feeds your germs. 
• ViraClear - I get this from my Naturopath in liquid form and I believe its saved me some colds in the past. 
• A pharmaceutical grade Probiotic - Everyday. 100 Billion. With gut issues and now a weakened immune system I can't afford not to devour these by the billions. 
• My morning protein shake - Loaded with turmeric, ginger, blueberries, and coconut it packs A LOT of anti-inflammatory, immune-boosting goodness. To see the one I use, click here. 
• And water - LOTS and LOTS and LOTS of water. Seriously. LOTS. 9+ glasses.

Stay healthy & be well! 
Sincerely ,
Mr. and Mrs. Sniffles. 

My day started off like this. And all credit must go to Trader Joes for their new gluten & dairy free pancakes. I make 95% of my food fresh, cooking it myself, but sometimes on busy work mornings such as today a frozen pancake with minimal ingredients was a-ok to me. I sprinkled them with fresh, organic blueberries and I got organic, all natural chicken and maple sausage to go along with. Mmmm!

I must say I felt very balanced & accomplished today. I give all the praise to my heavenly father for that one because lately I've felt a little overwhelmed trying to keep up with two jobs, the house and relationships. Today I managed to:

• work a full shift at the studio, secure a concert with Nike and blog!
• fully cleaned my office and kitchen. I'm talking top to bottom, cupboards, stove, microwave, the works.
• Prepared breakfast, and a healthy balanced dinner for Mr. Charming.
• AND I found out a song of mine got placed on MTV2 on a show called "Guy Code"

I usually don't toot my own horn, but since I've wanted to spend a lot of this month in bed (partly due to my current ear infection and earlier this month due to hormonal and food issues) I have to give praise and thanks for super productive days. Especially since I'm currently trying to be more intentional on being a Proverbs 31 wifey and woman to those around me. Energy definitely comes in handy for that! So.. on to those new recipes! I posted a ton of new recipes this weekend with even more to come. The latest additions are all gluten & dairy-free with additional notations made on each recipe. If you have any dietary restriction recipe requests, let me know! Without further adieu.. bon appetite!

• Chocolate Granola
• Egg & Veggie Scramble
• Bacon Wrapped Eggs with Sweet Potato Hash
• BLTA Wraps
• Grilled Cabbage & Bacon
• Pesto & Tomato Spaghetti Squash
• Zucchini Pasta 

A reader asked...

"What types of flours do you regularly use?"
See my answer here. And feel free to send in your questions. 

It's almost the 4th of July, the day we celebrate this amazing country where we get to live our dreams and be free everyday with fireworks, bbq's, and of course apple pie. Apple pie is a staple of our great country. It's a delicious, ooey-gooey warm comfort food that evokes memories of childhood, grandmas house, mom baking in the kitchen while you played outside. Ok, maybe I'm waxing a little too romantic, taking us back to the 50's, but you get my drift. It's something that has it's own right to be celebrated. And paired with vanilla icecream. Now, as a GAPS girl. Gluten-free girl, dairy-free girl, grain-free girl and almost sugar-free girl I had to say goodbye to a lot of the american "comfort" foods or "staples" of the american diet, which believe me i am happy about. But sometimes I miss some warm and yummy that brings me back to my childhood. Don't we all?

That's why, like so many of my recipes, I wanted to find a way to recreate my own version of the apple pie. They sell "Gluten free" ready made apple pies. However they are still loaded with cane sugar, milk, or other nasty preservatives I don't want to consume. I did use a gluten-free pie crust for this, because it was a new product made with VERY few, pure ingredients that I was happy about. The recipe isn't paleo, due to the use of potato starch, and I did use a pinch of organic maple sugar to up the sweetness factor to take to a party. But when made with organic apples and cinnamon, it will cook into a gooey mountain of natural sweetness that you needn't add any sugar too. 

The recipe can be found here. Enjoy a Happy & Safe 4th of July Noshers!