Soft Sugar Cookies (Gluten Free & Vegan)

It's snowing again!  I can't believe it.  The girls have been busy building forts in the living room, enjoying their day off school, while I've kept busy cleaning, decluttering and working on school stuff from home.  Music keeps me focused, although DH and I differ on exactly what "focused" means.  For him it means concentrating on one thing at a time to the exclusion of other things.  For me it

Chili with Black Beans and Sweet Potatoes

It's cold!  I finally broke out my wool sweaters and socks last month and have worn them several times already.  Our temps have been swinging from 80 degrees to 20 degrees, and this morning we woke up to 17 degrees and snow.  Snow!  Driving to school this morning was an adventure with the wheels spinning starting off in first gear, the car sliding across the roads and watching other people do

Sweet Potato Hash with Cilantro and Lime

Well, it's been awhile.  I can't believe I've let a month race by without posting any recipes.  Time just slips through my fingers like sand.  I blink, and a week has passed.  It seems like every time I look at the girls they look bigger, taller, stronger.  I find myself thinking of them as babies a lot lately, pulling down memories of their toothless grins and baby drool.  I wonder if my

Nori Wrapped Asian Marinated Salmon

For Christmas, DH and I received some Forbidden Rice - a black rice that retains a deep purple color throughout the grain even after being cooked.  The color made me think of seaweed, which set off a search for Asian staples in my pantry and chain of thoughts that ended up in this dinner - Nori Wrapped Asian Marinated Salmon, steamed broccoli, black rice, and Vegetable Summer Rolls with Peanut

Peanut Free, Soy Free Dipping Sauce

The other day I had a hankering for summer rolls with peanut sauce.  An Asian restaurant close to us makes a really good peanut sauce that is gluten free and as best as I can tell, it consists of peanut butter, sweet chili sauce, sugar and water.  The girls can't do peanut so they never get to partake.  I decided to make a dipping sauce at home they can enjoy.  I used crunchy almond butter, but

Pecan Tassies, Gluten Free & Vegan

Pecan Tassies are one of my favorite holiday treats and one I have not had in 6 years, since going gluten and casein free.  Some people cheat for foods they love, but I never do.  The results are just not worth it.  For me, no food is worth a migraine, or bloating, or IBS, or itchy skin, or drop-dead exhaustion.    I've kept my old recipe, however, in hopes that one day, someone would come

Gluten Free, Vegan Linzer Torte & Linzer Strips

Every year during the holidays I make Linzer Torte. A Linzer Torte is a big cookie filled with fruit preserves and topped with a lattice crust. It's served in slices like a cake. It's beautiful and always impresses - it is the dessert that gets the most compliments year after year.  A Linzer Torte,  while not overly complicated, is definitely worth the time and effort it takes to make.