Hello my lovelies! 

With this being a very busy year that included renovating our new home, moving into said home, buying a new business, growing our current ones and raising and homeschooling a busy toddler, I have intentionally decided to slow waaaay down in December. 

It has felt so good.

It's hard for me to lay things down. Especially when they feel like they are 'good' things. Yet I had so many balls in the air that I just couldn't handle all I was juggling and I was starting to get sick more often (which hasn't been the case in our home since we went more natural), and I was just run down and on edge and I finally said, no more. 

Our month has looked a lot like more intentional family time, date nights, traditions new and old, a lot of Christmas movies and baking. All. The. Baking.

We have some exciting news announcing in January, and it's sure to be a new season of busy, so for now I will bake and ice to my hearts content and enjoy every moment of peace this season of our Savior offers my weary heart. 

These Gingerbread Men are gluten-free, dairy-free, extra moist and subtle. 

We served them to family before a night of looking at lights and we got an overwhelming response of these being the "best gingerbread cookies ever!"

So, not to toot my own horn, but I've heard these are pretty good. ;) 

If you're looking for a Paleo/Grain-Free version, you can swap the All-Purpose Flour for Almond Meal. 

Ingredients

• 2/3 c. molasses
• 1 large egg
• 2/3 c. vegan butter
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3/4 c. coconut or maple sugar
• 3 1/2 c. all-purpose GF flour (almond flour for paleo)
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1 TBSP. ground ginger
• 1 TBSP. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp. ground cloves 

optional: royal icing or allergen-friendly, dye-free white icing. 

Directions
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• In a large bowl beat butter for 30-60 seconds with a hand mixer until creamed. 
• Add coconut or maple sugar and molasses and mix again until blended. 
• Beat in the egg and vanilla on high speed for 1-2 minutes. Scraping bowl as needed. 
• In a medium bowl, whisk your GF flour, baking soda, salt and spices until mixed well. 
• Add the dry mix into your wet ingredients and bear on low until combined. Your dough will be very sticky.
• Divide dough into two halves and wrap each in plastic wrap, forming into a thick disc. 
• Refrigerate for a minimum of four hours, overnight is best. We did ours for six hours. 
• Once chilled, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a few baking sheets with parchment. 
• Remove one disc of your dough and on a generously floured surface roll out 1/4 inch thick. Use your cookie cutters to make your desired shapes and transfer to your sheets.
• Bake for 10 minutes for medium shape cookie cutter cookies, for smaller cookies, bake for 8 minutes and for oversized or large cookies bake for 12 minutes. 
• Allow to cool for ten minutes before transferring to cooling rack. 
• Allow cookies to cool completely before decorating.  
• Enjoy your little festive friends!

As a mama who strives to make better choices for my family year round, I've been frustrated in years past when it comes to finding a balance of avoiding all that's unsafe for my son's body (food dyes, artificial flavoring, and ingredients I just don't feel great about such as gluten, dairy or possible GMO ingredients) and allowing him to feel like he got to have a fun holiday. 

Now, we are BIG promoters that holidays are NOT about candy. That they aren't about food or treats in general, but as he gets older and participates with family and friends, I do allow him to have fun and have some treats. Thus the inspiration for this post. 

I wanted parents, grandparents, teachers and anyone who will be treating kids to candy this season to a guide to all of my favorites as well as a couple of tips to keep your kids safe. 

In celebration of #NationalWatermelonDay with WTRMLN WTR, these coconutty and creamy watermelon popsicles are perfect for a hot summer day for adults and kids alike. My little guy devours these and we love to enjoy them at home or by the pool. 

INGREDIENTS: 
1  +  1/4  cup  cup  fresh  watermelon  slices 
½  cup  WTRMLN  WTR   
½  cup  coconut  milk 

PREPARATION: 
Puree  1  cup  of  chopped  WTRMLN  slices  with  ½  cup  WTRMLN  WTR  and  pour  into  popsicle  molds  so  molds  are  2/3  full. 
Freeze  for  30  minutes  and  pour  chilled  coconut  milk  on  top  of  frozen  watermelon  blend. 
​Top  with  remaining  watermelon  slices  and  freeze  for  an  additional  30  minutes.  Rinse  molds  under  warm  water  to  release  popsicle, add dried or toasted coconut for crunch  and  enjoy  somewhere  near  a  pool  or  beach.    

Ingredients: 

9 tablespoons ground espresso beans
5 tablespoons coconut sugar 

Directions: 

• Brew fresh, strong coffee with 5 cups water and espresso. Transfer hot coffee to a cake pan or shallow bowl, add sugar and stir until dissolved. Taste coffee and add more sugar of desired. 

These brownies work well with most diets if cocoa is tolerated. They are easy to make ahead of time and take on the go. 

This gluten & dairy free Decadent Lava Cake is the perfect dessert for any holiday or date night. As our pregnancy is almost half-way (whaaaaaaaat? crazy!), we've been scheduling many date nights. .

When it comes to date nights & culinary delights, I try to cook up a special dinner and bake something delicious that is gluten-free and dairy-free, (and when I can, refined sugar free) because it’s hard to go out with a limited diet. My husband and I usually stay in and have a picnic by the fire and then go out to do something fun like catch a movie, go to the arcade or check into to a local resort for a weekend staycation. For tips on how to have an affordable getaway, check out my post on budget-friendly retreats.

This amazingly delicious gluten and dairy free lava cake has a delicious and warm ooey-gooey surprise inside and looks extra fancy when topped with a light sprinkle of confectioners’ sugar.

Serve warm with a side of dairy-free vanilla ice cream, fresh organic berries or a glass of bubbly champagne.

INGREDIENTS
​
4 oz. dairy free dark chocolate
2 tbsp. honey
½ tsp organic vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 tbsp. almond flour
3 tbsp. coconut oil
1 tbsp. sugar-free cocoa powder
dash of sea salt

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease four small ramekins with dairy-free butter or coconut oil spray and give a light dusting with cocoa powder. Melt dairy-free chocolate with coconut oil in a small sauce pan and set aside.
In a medium sized bowl mix eggs, honey, vanilla and sea salt. Add almond flour and cocoa powder and fold ingredients together until smooth. Divide the batter among the ramekins and place on a baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes and serve warm.

Fall has just officially arrived in Arizona. I say just simply because since September 21st, the first "official day of fall" to all other U.S. states but us desert dwellers, it's averaged about 108 degrees during the day. But since last week it's been a steady, refreshing 70-80 and I couldn't be happier. 

Today I actually got outside for a workout, took the pup on a walk and spent the evening baking. That's the other thing about fall. The baking. Oh, the baking. 

Mr. Charming and I have had a lot to celebrate as of late, and although we are planning on cutting out grains and all sweets for a while again as we continue our TTC Journey, we are both celebrating new jobs, I recently graduated school for Personal Nutrition, we found a new bible study home and the holidays are around the corner. 

And that always calls for celebrating. So naturally, cupcakes. 

When I was in Las Vegas for the FABlog Conference, I met the lovely Soy Nut Butter Company and got to sample some yummy products. You may remember my Pumpkin Maple Granola from last fall using their nut-free granola after a lot of readers requested more nut-free recipes. I use soy in moderation, (a good gluten-free soy sauce on my takeout recreations is a must) and I only use Non-GMO soy when I do. I.M Healthy, the company that created Soy Nut Butter makes delicious non-nut butters from roasted soybeans that taste extremely close to classic nut butters but are safe with kiddos with nut allergies. They are also low in sugar, have zero sodium and can be used in a variety of ways. 

​

Instead of using my jar of Chocolate Soy Nut Butter as a simple spread, I was inspired to create a frosting, and with some simple experimentation, my German Chocolate Cupcakes were born. They are rich and chocolaty and make the perfect fall treat.

For the cupcake you can use a traditional gluten-free chocolate cake box mix (just watch the sugar content) or for a healthier option you can use my Paleo coconut flour chocolate cupcake base.

​For foodies who can tolerate almond, you can also use my Paleo almond flour chocolate cupcake base. This is personally my favorite when it comes to texture. In the picture I used a rice and sorghum based chocolate flour.  

For the frosting, which couldn't be simpler, and of course is always the best part... 

Ingredients:
1 C. Chocolate Soy Nut Butter - ENTER TO WIN A FREE JAR BELOW!
2. C. Coconut Whipped Cream or other Dairy-Free Whipped Cream or Cool Whip Equivalent
1 tsp. organic vanilla extract

Directions:
Mix thawed coconut whip and vanilla with room temperature soy nut butter with a hand mixer until smooth. Scoop into piping bag or ziploc bag and pipe onto FULLY COOLED cupcakes. Top with shaved coconut. Serve immediately or chill in fridge until ready to serve. 

For those of you new to Rafflecopter, each activity listed above gets you a certain amount of entries to the contest! Good luck to everyone who enters!

I would love know your favorite way to use Soy Nut Butter if you've tried it before, or your favorite Fall cupcake recipe! 

Ingredients:

1/4 cup raw cocao powder
2 ripe avocados
3/4 cup  agave nectar, Grade B maple syrup or honey
3 tablespoons coconut oil
1 tablespoon vanilla
dash sea salt 

Directions: 

Combine all ingredients in your Ninja blender until creamy, fluffy and smooth.  Spread on the brownies. You can also chill and serve with chopped berries & bananas for a raw treat. 

Ingredients: 

1 cup pre-soaked almonds
1 cup pre-soaked cashews
3/4 cup raw cacao powder
1 cup chopped dates
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup maple syrup

Directions: 

Combine nuts, dates, cacao and salt in a food processor until the mixture is well combined.  Slowly add up to 1/4 cup maple through the top of the processor while it is running.  Stop adding maple when the consistency resembles brownie dough.  Press the mixture  into an 8×8 glass pan.  Frost and refrigerate until you are ready to serve them.