Spoonful of Sugar Free

Registered Dietitian

Gluten-free

Last Minute Easter Basket (Eco-Friendly)

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Tomorrow is Easter!

I am very excited! I love Easter and all the joy it brings. The joyful news of Jesus and the prospect of Spring coming. Not to mention the fun of giving Easter baskets, dying eggs, and hunting for easter eggs!

I wanted to give something to a very kind neighbor of mine for Easter, but didn’t have anything planned. Going to the store for the fifth time this week did not appeal to me, so  rummaged around my house to see what I could find!

Easter Basket Ideas:

Instead of buying a basket, why not make your own with stuff around the house?

  • Re-use cardboard boxes and decorate with colored paper, or paint (shown above).
  • Use tote bags lying around the house and stuff with tissue paper.
  • Decorate your own plastic/paper bag with stickers and ribbons.
  • Have any old t-shirts? Tie a knot or place a rubber band tightly around one opening to use. Tie-dye fun colors, if desired.
  • Old wicker baskets make great easter baskets!

As shown above, I taped the flaps of a cardboard box to the sides. Then, I decorated plain, white paper with markers and taped it to the outside of the box. Instead of buying plastic “grass” to fill, I used recycled paper that was torn and colored. 

Inexpensive Non-Edible Filling Ideas:

  • Packets of seeds for a vegetable garden or flower garden.
  • Gardening gloves and a shovel (I found the one in the picture for $1 each at Michael’s).
  • Coloring Book, crayons, markers, and gel pens.
  • Homemade Paper flowers made with recycled paper. Tutorial here. Or use the leftover egg cartons from all the dyed eggs you make.
  • Homemade gifts. The are always the best in my opinion. I made a fabric flower and a lavender sachet to use for laundry.

This gardening glove and shovel was bought at Michael’s for $1 each.

Homemade Lavender sachet on left, and fabric flower on right.

Healthy Edible Gifts:

Forget the chocolate bunnies and candy, try these healthy treats! 

Homemade Granola, Recipe Coming Soon! I like to package my homemade goods in plastic or glass containers. Peanut Butter jars work well. Decorate with ribbons and hand-crafted labels. Marla has some cute printable labels here. 

For more fun ideas, check out my Holiday Pinterest board.

Happy Easter Everyone! 

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What are you putting in your Easter Baskets? Or, what do you wish you will have in your Easter basket?

Flourless Berry Puffed Pancake

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Do you want a breakfast that is light, yet decadent at the same time?

Something to impress guests without overloading on sugar, flour, and butter?

Perhaps something made with only 5 fresh, whole ingredients?

Looks like you have too many demands, and your wishes are impossible….

 

Only kidding! It is all possible with this berry souffle.

 

 

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Flourless Berry Puffed Pancake

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Yield: 4 servings

Flourless Berry Puffed Pancake

Ingredients

  • 1 teaspoon coconut oil
  • 2 cups fresh or frozen berries
  • 4 eggs, separated
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400*
  2. Heat oil in a 10" saucepan on medium heat. Add berries and let simmer for 3-5 minutes, or until the berries are soft and form a thick liquid.
  3. In a bowl, whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form.
  4. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the vanilla and cinnamon for a couple minutes.
  5. Fold the yolk mix into the egg whites until combines.
  6. Pour the egg mix on top of the simmering berries and let cook on medium heat for 2 minutes.
  7. Transfer saucepan to oven and bake for 10 minutes, or until the pancake puffs and is slightly brown.
  8. Place a plate over the pan and flip it over so that the fruit is faced up.
  9. Slice and eat warm with a drizzle of coconut milk or Whipped Coconut Cream, if desired.

Notes

~Paleo, Gluten-free, Grain-free, Dairy-free, Corn-free, Soy-free, and Sugar-free

https://www.spoonfulofsugarfree.com/2012/04/02/flourless-berry-puffed-pancake/

*This recipe was featured on Daily Health Buzz Top 9 on April 9th, 2012.

Health Benefits:

  • Eggs: A great source of protein, vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats. Due to the carotenoid content, specifically lutein and zeaxanthin, eggs are great for the eyes. They are a good source of choline. One egg yolk has about 300 micrograms of choline. Choline is an important nutrient that helps regulate the brain, nervous system, and cardiovascular system. Eggs are one of the only foods that contain naturally occurring vitamin D.
  • Coconut Oil: Coconut is widely misunderstood because of it’s high fat content; however, coconut’s saturated fat is made up of medium-chain fatty acids. These medium-chains are easy to absorb and digest, and are converted quickly into energy. This means that the body has no opportunity to store the medium-chain as fat. Coconut is also a great source of dietary fiber with a whopping 5 grams per oz!
  • Cinnamon: Studies have shown that it can help lower LDL cholesterol, help regulate blood sugar levels, has anti-clotting effect on blood, and it can boost cognitive function and memory.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What is your favorite recipe that is easy to make, and uses minimal ingredients?

Roasted Sweet Potato and Rosemary Frittata

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Lately, omelettes, frittatas, and eggs have replaced my bowls of oatmeal and pancakes. Savory foods with capers, olives, and oregano are on my mind.

With family in town, it makes more sense to make large quantities of food rather than making breakfast individually. Frittatas take much less hands-on time, in my opinion, so I have more time to play with this cutie while breakfast cooks:

Yet even though there are more mouths to feed, leftovers still arise. Last night we made a huge batch of Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Rosemary. Instead of simply heating up the leftovers, I threw them in with some eggs and a handful of spinach. Whisk, pour, cook, cover, and serve with a dash of salt and pepper.

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Roasted Sweet Potato and Rosemary Frittata

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Yield: 6 large frittata slices

Calories per serving: 160 per slice

Roasted Sweet Potato and Rosemary Frittata

~Dairy-free, gluten-free, paleo, vegetarian, soy-free, and sugar-free.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Either use leftover roasted sweet potatoes with rosemary, or make it fresh by chopping approximately 2 sweet potatoes (or 2 cups) with skin on. Toss in 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 Tablespoon rosemary, and 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Lay on baking sheet and roast at 450* for 40 minutes, or until slightly brown and soft. Stir occasionally while it bakes.
  2. Preheat a 12 inch pan with a dab of oil to prevent sticking.
  3. Beat eggs until fluffy and stir in spinach.
  4. Place roasted sweet potatoes in the preheated pan and pour egg-spinach mix on top so that it evenly covers it.
  5. Cover and cook on low heat until a toothpick comes out clean (about 10 minutes).
  6. Slice and serve with salt and pepper, to taste.
https://www.spoonfulofsugarfree.com/2012/03/22/roasted-sweet-potato-and-rosemary-frittata/

Health Benefits:

  • Eggs: Great source of protein, vitamins, minerals, and healthy fat. They are great for your eyes because of the carotenoid content. Also great for your nervous and cardiovascular system because of the choline content. Contrary to previous belief, moderate consumption of eggs does not have a negative impact on cholesterol, and it is one of the only foods with naturally-occurring vitamin D.
  • Rosemary: Rosemary is rich in calcium, magnesium and potassium. It has good amount of phosphorus, sodium and iron with small amount of zinc, copper, manganese and selenium. It is also useful in increasing blood circulation, improving concentration and digestion. It stimulates the immune system, reduces the severity of asthma attacks and helps prevent breast cancer.
  • Sweet Potatoes: Click HERE for a post about the benefits of sweet potatoes.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

When you have guests over, what is your go-to breakfast/brunch?

I love making pancakes, frittatas, or baked oatmeal!

P.S. Don’t forget to enter my Digital Measuring Cup Giveaway!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Birthday Cake

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Happy Birthday to Me!

What better way to celebrate than with cake and presents?

Presents for you! Bob’s Red Mill sent me a few gluten-free flours mixes to try out (coconut flour,  hazelnut meal/flour, and teff flour), and to giveaway. Bob’s Red Mill is a great company, and I use many of their products for my baking.

Coconut flour has to be one of my favorite gluten-free, grain-free flours. Made from  the fiber of coconuts, it has a light sweetness without the carbs. This cake and my brownie recipe are my favorite ways to use it. Check out my coconut flour pinterest board for more ideas.

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Grain Free Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Frosting

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Yield: 1-layer cake, 9 servings (double or triple recipe for a layered cake)

Serving Size: 1 slice

Calories per serving: 165

Grain Free Chocolate Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Frosting

~This cake is too good to be true. My whole family enjoyed it. Gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, grain-free, and, of course, sugar-free! Inspired by my Grain-Free Fudge Brownie Recipe.

Ingredients

    Cake Ingredients:
  • 1/2 cup coconut flour
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 eggs
  • 5 dates
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 1 1/4 cup milk-substitute (I used unsweetened almond milk) whisked with 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar to create vegan buttermilk.
    • Frosting Ingredients:
  • 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
  • 1/3 cup dairy-free milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)

Instructions

    Cake Instructions:
  1. Preheat oven to 375*.
  2. Blend the dates into a paste. Add wet ingredients and stir until well-combined.
  3. In a separate bowl combine all dry ingredients and stir until lumps are gone.
  4. Combine wet and dry until well combined. Mix very thoroughly to ensure there aren’t any date chunks. The dates are the natural sweetness in the recipe. Feel free to add more dates if needed to suite your sweet tooth. The 5 dates make a dark chocolate cake, more may be needed for more sweetness.
  5. Lightly grease a round 9" cake pan (I used coconut oil), and pour batter into dish. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
    6. Frosting Instructions:
  6. Blend peanut butter and milk until creamy and fluffy. You may add dates to the frosting as well if desired. Adjust liquid to suit your frosting thickness preference.
  7. Once cake is cooled, spread frosting on cake and top with Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups, like this cake. Or mix a small amount of coconut oil with cocoa powder, and drizzle on top of cake (as shown in pictures).
https://www.spoonfulofsugarfree.com/2012/03/03/chocolate-peanut-butter-cake-giveaway/

Health Benefits:
  • Chocolate: Click HERE for a post I wrote earlier about the health benefits of chocolate.
  • Coconut: Coconut is widely misunderstood because of it’s high fat content; however, coconut’s saturated fat is made up of medium-chain fatty acids. These medium-chains are easy to absorb and digest, and are converted quickly into energy. This means that the body has no opportunity to store the medium-chain as fat. Coconut is also a great source of dietary fiber with a whopping 5 grams per oz.!
  • Dates: A laxative food with a high-fiber content, so it can help those suffering from constipation. They are digested quite easily and are great for when you need quick energy. Also, regular consumption of dates has been found to help the growth of friendly bacteria in the intestines.
  • Peanuts: These legumes are full of protein with 7g per ounce. They also have a great monounsaturated fat content that helps your heart and brain. Peanut is a good source of Coenzyme Q10 which protects the heart during the period of lack of oxygen example high altitudes and clogged arteries. It also has a high antioxidant and high niacin content that helps in the recovery of cell damage and provides protection against Alzheimer’s disease and age-related cognitive problem.

 

Flourless Banana Bread

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Happy National Banana Bread Day!

What better way to celebrate banana bread day than by, well, making and eating banana bread?

Whenever I go to the grocery store, I look in the produce aisle for bananas. It isn’t necessarily that I need bananas (in fact I have about 15 sitting on the counter right now), but I look to see if the store is giving away brown bananas for a very discounted price. Then, I peel them and add them to my freezer bag full of bananas. These can be used for smoothies, PBC Bars, Smacaroons, or, of course, Banana Bread!

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Grain Free Banana Bread

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes

Yield: 1 loaf

Grain Free Banana Bread

~This recipe is gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, soy-free, paleo, and sugar-free!

Ingredients

  • 3 ripe bananas
  • 1/2 cup almond butter
  • 3 eggs
  • 3 Tablespoons Ground flax
  • 3 Tablespoons Chia Gel (mix 9 tablespoons of water with 3 teaspoons chia seed and let sit for 15-20 minutes. The chia seeds will puff into a gel)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Optional: 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350*.
  2. Mash the bananas. Then, mix all ingredients together in a bowl.
  3. Pour batter into a lightly greased bread pan-or even try a muffin tin!
  4. Bake for one hour, or until toothpick comes out clean.
  5. The bread will rise while in the oven, but will sink when taken out. Let the bread cool for fifteen minutes in the pan (this is necessary for the bread to set since it has no flour in it), and then plop it onto a plate or cutting board and enjoy!
https://www.spoonfulofsugarfree.com/2012/02/23/flourless-banana-bread/

*This recipe is linked to Allergy Free Wednesday.

This is not your typical banana bread. However, it is surprisingly moist, and it works! Tastes great toasted with a smear of peanut butter. I also like to keep it cold so I can take it with me to-go. Combine this with a cup of coffee or tea, and you are ready to tackle Banana Bread Day!

Health Benefits:

  • Bananas: Rich in potassium, bananas help the body’s circulatory system deliver oxygen to the brain. This also helps maintain a regular heartbeat and a proper balance of water in the body. It also contains tryptophan to help relax you and lift your spirits!
  • Almonds: Almonds are a major superfood, and they are full of monounsaturated, good-for-you fats. It contains many nutrients that benefit the brain, and regulate cholesterol. The monounsaturated fats and vitamin E reduce the risk of heart disease.
  • Cinnamon: Studies have shown that it can help lower LDL cholesterol, help regulate blood sugar levels, has anti-clotting effect on blood, and it can boost cognitive function and memory.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What are your favorite ways to use up brown bananas?

This post is a part of my Operation Beautiful Food Project. My original recipe was posted here. 

Paleo Breakfast Burrito

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After having some stomach problems last year, I decided to take grains out of my diet. My body felt great without it, and my stomach problems went away.

A couple months ago, I had a bowl of oatmeal. “One bowl won’t hurt.” And it didn’t. One bowl turned into brown-rice pancakes, oats thrown in my PBC bars, and sides of rice and quinoa. Then the stomach problems started coming back last week. It’s time to go off grains again.

It’s not really a drag giving up grains. I love eating grain-free food. I’m excited to try new recipes again like my coconut flour Fudgy Brownies and these Paleo Breakfast Burritos. They have great flavor, and I never really enjoyed the floppy, flavorless white flour tortillas any way.

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Paleo Breakfast Burrito

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Serving Size: 1

Paleo Breakfast Burrito

This Breakfast Burrito is fit for a day of hard work! Full of protein and antioxidants from the veggies. Dairy-free, gluten-free, grain-free, paleo, nut-free, soy-free, and sugar-free.

Ingredients

  • Sliced Ham (choose a ham that is large enough to fold and medium-thickness so that it doesn't break when wrapped. You may need more than one slice)
  • 2 eggs (or egg whites)
  • 1/4 cup chopped veggies (spinach, black olives, bell pepper, tomato, etc)
  • Optional: Salsa, Guacamole, Cilantro

Instructions

  1. Saute the veggies in a small bit of oil over medium high heat.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and poor over the veggie mix.
  3. Using a spatula, scramble the mix until cooked through. Take the eggs out of the pan.
  4. Roll the ham around the eggs and place back onto the skillet. Grill for a few seconds each side until the ham is slightly brown.
  5. Serve with salsa, guacamole, and a sprig of fresh cilantro on top.
https://www.spoonfulofsugarfree.com/2012/02/21/paleo-breakfast-burrito/

Health Benefits:

  • Eggs: Great source of protein, vitamins, minerals, and healthy fat. They are great for your eyes because of the carotenoid content. Also great for your nervous and cardiovascular system because of the choline content. Contrary to previous belief, moderate consumption of eggs does not have a negative impact on cholesterol, and it is one of the only foods with naturally-occurring vitamin D.
  • Tomato: Best known for its high lycopene content. Lycopene is a carotenoid that may reduce incidences of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and macular degeneration. Tomatoes are especially high in vitamin C and A as well.
  • Ham: Preferably bought organically, ham is a good source of protein, iron, and B12. It is low in calories and is a lean meat.

Thought-provoking, mind-prodding question of the day:

What are your thoughts on grain-free  and paleo diets?

I could never go completely paleo, because then I would have to give up legumes as well. Which takes away my beloved peanut butter! I also think that if I have the occasional bowl of oats or pancakes made with a gluten-free flour, it won’t hurt me too much.