There's The Quick, And The Hungry

Hello everybody! Sorry I have been MIA as of late! School has been beyond busy for me this month. I've still been looking for new and fun gluten free goodies though!

On that note, I would like to talk about something that used to be a huge inconvenience in my life. Running around like a madman trying to get things done is stressful for anybody. It can be more stressful if you are gluten free, and can't pick up fast food at any old restaurant while you are running errands. So what do you do? Power Snack. I like to keep a stash of power snacks in my locker on campus. Here's a list of some of the things I like to keep in my stash:

1. Nut Clusters
While grocery shopping last month, I discovered True North Cashew Crunch. They are clusters of cashews and rice crisps that are lightly sweetened and salted. These things are addicting. I go through about 2 bags of them a week in my power snacking. True North makes other combinations of nut clusters, but I am quite partial myself to the cashew ones. From the display I saw, they are all gluten free, dairy free, vegan, and free of trans-fats, preservatives, artificial colors, and cholesterol. Be careful of these if you have fillings in your teeth! The sweet coating is quite sticky!

2. Microwave Popcorn
If you have access to a microwave where you are, this stuff is fantastic. I love sitting the the library during a study session on a cold day with a pipping hot bag of popcorn! Just make sure that you bring some napkins with you, especially if you are eating the buttered kind.

3. Apples and Oranges
Always an easy and healthy snack. I love apples, especially this time of the year. They stay fresh for a decent amount of time (unlike a banana) but you still want to make sure that you keep an eye on them if you are storing them somewhere. You don't want to find an old moldy apple in your stash! Yuck!

4. Water and/or Other Drinks
Keeping your fluids going down on a busy day is vital. When you are running around everywhere you don't always realize how thirsty you are, or how long it has been since you have had something to drink. I like to keep a few bottles of water in my stash, and a few cans of ginger ale, in case I find my stomach isn't feeling too well, or I want to replace some electrolytes.

Now these are just the items I keep in my stash. There are tons of options, depending on your taste and dietary needs. Just make sure that you keep an eye on expiration dates if things are sitting in there for a long time.

Here's hoping that November will be slightly less busy!!! If I don't post before then, I hope you all have a safe and Happy Halloween!!!

Celiacs Awareness Month 2013

I know it seems like it's a world away, but National Celiacs Month is about 200 days away, and I am hoping to get together a program for the blog. I wanted to plant this int he back of your minds now because
1) The holiday season is going to fly by soon, and that will take a big chunk of planning time away
2) Some of the project I am putting together requires some planning, and I am hoping for some feedback from my readers.
3) I hope with enough advanced notice, all of you will be able to participate in my project.

For the month of May in 2013, I am planning on the following activities:
1) Gluten Free Prizes. I would really like to put together some kind of prizes for my readers to win, wither it be in a raffle form, or in some kind of competition. I think we could have a lot of fun with it.
2) Celiacs Information. I would like to fill this blog with information about what Celiacs Disease is, what the symptoms are, how to get tested, and what to do when one is diagnosed.
3) Finally, I would like to issue a Gluten Free Challenge. For one week (Probably May 5-11th) I would ask that people who wish to support their friends and family with Celiacs attempt to live a gluten free life for an entire week. There are a lot of national groups that challenge the entire month, but I feel like that is a huge commitment  and a week is a more reasonable time frame.

If you have any suggestions, any piece of information to share, or would like to help out with running this event with me, please let me know! I would love to hear from you!!

Happy October!!!

Hello everybody!!! It's finally October, which means it's time for my favorite holiday of the year!

I LOVE HALLOWEEN! I love the costumes, I love the spirit of going out and causing mischief, and most of all, I LOVE THE CANDY!!!  For those of you with gluten free children, or who are looking for some gluten free candy yourself, I would like to refer you to my post from earlier this year: The Candy Man Can. There you will find a complete list of safe candy, candy to be cautious about, and candy to stay away from. I am quite a fan of this list, and I often refer to it myself when I am shopping for candy at the store. One thing I really like to do is offer an allergy friendly bucket of candy, not only that's gluten free, but one that is peanut free. I even let the kids who have allergies exchange some of the candy they are allergic to for candy they can eat. The parents love it because they don't have to take away as much candy when they get home, and the kids love it because, well, it's candy!

This month I am going to try and post a few spooky treats that are fun, tasty, and of course, gluten free. If you are looking for something specific, like a treat that is geared towards kids, (or even one that's for adults!) please let me know! I would be more than happy to try and help inspire some spooky celebrations in your life!

Organic, Gluten Free, and No Added Zombies!

Hello Everyone!

A week and a half ago I attended ROOTSFest! For those of you who have missed my previous excitement for the festival, ROOTSFest is an annual festival held by ROOTS Natural Foods, the local health food store in my area. It's what they like to call their "customer appreciation day" and let me tell you, did I fell appreciated!

I attended the festival with my boyfriend Andrew, and my good friend Chante. Chante is from Jamaica, and attends college with me. She brings a whole new culture into the world around her. The morning started with a mini sound bath. It was such a lovely experience! I loved listening to the singing bowls she had out. After that, we started with the outdoors area. We soon came to a table with, in my opinion, one of the best signs I had ever seen. It read as follows:

Oh good! I always worry that my food has added zombies in it! This sign was at a table for a company called Little Duck Organics. They make little organic fruit bites for kids. They are so tasty! They practically melt in your mouth! I am a fan of using them in my cereal. 

We wondered more and more both indoors and outdoors and tried all sorts of teas, butters, chocolates, veggies, honeys, and much much more! I got to see all the usual friendly faces I see each week when I visit ROOTS, and I even purchased a t-shirt with their new logo on it!

(Photo from ROOTS Natural Foods Facebook. Check them out!!)

Around noon time, it was time to line up for the free BBQ! YUM! The staff and volunteers of ROOTSFest were up half the night the day before preparing the food for the BBQ and it was all FANTASTIC! I loved the potato salad I tried! There were burgers, hotdogs, pulled pork, salads, fresh watermelon, homemade hummus and more food than I could fit on my plate! All of the food was well labeled, which was fantastic because between me (gluten free), Andrew (vegetarian), and Chante (exotic taste buds), we can be a group of picky eaters! 

They day was absolutely perfect, and I had lots of fun learning about new products, and tasting new things. About a week later, I got an email letting me know I won a gift basket in the big raffle they had at the festival!! I was attending King Richard's Faire that day, but luckily Andrew was able to go and get my basket for me. He had won one as well! He got a gift basket filled with all sorts of chocolates and treats! ( made out with a bag of lemon macaroons from his basket (he hates coconut!). My basket is a fantastic collection of bath products from Dr Bronner's! I have not tried a lot from the basket yet, but I promise to report back asap about the wonderful things in it! I will also be posting about some of the new products I discovered at the festival in the next few weeks!! (can't spoil all the findings in one post!) 

I hope all of you are enjoying the fall weather! Keep on living Gluten Free!!

Off to the Festival!

Hello there!

It has been a crazy week going back to school! I have made some amazing new friends, learned some fun things, and had an amazing college experience so far. I look forward to spending my weekend blogging about it. But before i can get to that, I must go attend Roots Fest 10!

If you live in the Leominster, MA area, make sure you stop by Roots Natural Foods for their annual customer appreciation day festival. There will be over 50 venders there sampling and promoting their organic foods, there will be live music, and tons of kids activities too! The best part is all the food is organic, and a lot of the companies will be there with vegan, vegetarian, and gluten free food! I hope if you live in the area, you will take the time to stop by today and check it out. I will be taking pictures, trying foods, and gathering information so i can come back and let you know about some amazing new products! I will also be meeting with the owner of the store in a few weeks so she can tell her amazing story of how the store came to be what it is today.

Happy Fall!

Easy School Morning Breakfast

Hello again!

As a commuter student in college, it is often hard to find the time in the morning to get up and make breakfast. And, of course, most quick breakfast foods, such as muffins and bagels, are not gluten free. So how does one get a healthy breakfast on the go? Make sure you have some breakfast foods ready to go in the fridge! Here are some of my favorites.

1. Yogurt and Fruit

This requires very minimal preparation. Like to invest in some single serving gladware containers, and mix my yogurt in that. If you are going to be mixing your own yogurt cups, it will save you quite a bit of money if you buy a large container of yogurt instead of the individual servings. I like to get the Stony Fields plain yogurt. It makes it easy to change the flavor with whatever fruit I may want to add. Simply take 1/2 cup of whatever yogurt you chose, and mix it with a hand full of wherever fruit you desire. If it is something like a peach, make sure you cut it down to bite sized pieces. Make sure you mark the expiration date on the container!

2. Egg Muffins

As much as I am not a fan of the South Beach Diet, they have some fantastic gluten free recipes. Egg muffins, by fare, are the best of these recipes. It's exactly what it sounds like, a muffin made from eggs. For each muffin you would like to make, simply whisk in a bowl, 1 large egg, 1/2 tablespoon cream or milk, and 1/2 tablespoon of each of the veggies or meats you would like to add to your muffins. I like to chop mushrooms and peppers for these. You can also add any cheese you may like to these. Bake them in the over at 350 for 10-15 minutes, until they no longer wiggle when you shake the pan. Use a knife to help pop them out of the pan. You can either eat them right away or put them in baggies and store them in the fridge. I microwave them for just a few seconds to warm them up the morning I eat them.

3. Hash Brown Cups

These are super easy, and super tasty too!! I am a huge hash brown fan, and these are just fantastic, and pair great with the egg muffins. Simply grate a potato and dry out as much as the moisture as possible. Salt and pepper to taste, and mix well. oil a cupcake pan generously, and in each well, fill about half way with hash brown mixture. Cook in the oven at 350 until brown. (Usually 10-15 minutes, keep an eye on it!!) Like the egg muffins, they can be stored in baggies in the fridge and quickly heated the morning of. 

I hope you enjoy these simple recipes! They are a great way to get a good breakfast when you are sick of eating cereal every morning. 

Happy Back To School!!!

End of Summer Blues!

Hello Everyone!

I know I kind of dropped the ball with the celebrity week. It's been a long week with some family being sick, and getting ready to go back to school. Good news is, I got some really awesome deals on my back to school supplies and some awesome new recipes for packing lunches!

If you or your child are already back to school, then yay! It's the start of a new and wonderful year!

I hope that all of you have taken advantage of the low prices of fish this summer. If you have not, there is still time! Fish prices have plummeted this summer due to the mass amounts of fish that have been pulled in by fishermen this summer. Even the price of lobster has dropped! The beautiful thing about seafood is that most of it needs little to no seasoning for it to taste fantastic!

Also, thanks to back to back to school time, the stores are full of easy to pack things for lunch. There is such a variety of single serving food that there is something for even the pickiest eater! My brother is quite fond of gushers and smart food.

And big news!! ROOTs Fest is on September 8th!! I will be posting all sorts of information that I get from the festival on the blog. Also, the owner of ROOTs has agreed to let me come in and talk to her and the staff about the benefits of local healthy foods. Be sure to keep an eye out for that post!

Enjoy that last gasp of summer!!