Coffee

By a raise of hands, how many of you love coffee? **raises and  waves her hand wildly**

Love.Me.Some.Coffee.

The fabulous peeps over at NuNaturals contacted me recently and wanted to know if I would like to try some of their new all natural, sugar-free products. I was like, Ummm YES! I love their products. I have some recipes on here tagged under ‘sugar-free’ that use their stuff if you’d like to look them up. NuNaturals uses Stevia and other all natural sweeteners in their products. One of the products they said they wanted to end was their new chocolate syrup. I knew I wanted that! I had tried one of the most popular national brands sugar-free version and did not like it. I’ve been a little gun-shy about trying another, but when NuNaturals contacted me, I knew for sure I wanted to try their new syrups because I love their other products. They sent me a simple syrup, chocolate syrup and a chocolate mint syrup, among other things.

I decided I would make a chocolate coffee of sorts with my new, delicious syrup. I could probably try it with the chocolate mint syrup as well…I might just do that.

Chocolate Coffee **sugar-free** (Click HERE to print recipe)

Stuffs:

• 1-2 T. powdered creamer(depending on how creamy you want it)
• Splenda to taste (or your favorite sugar-free sweetener)
• 1-2 t. NuNaturals NuStevia Cocoa Syrup (depending on how chocolatey you want it)
• 12-16 oz. your favorite coffee (depending how much coffee taste you like)

Steps:

1. Pick your favorite mug, cup or travel mug.
2. Spoon the desired amount of creamer into your cup.
3. Now add your sweetener.
4. Next squeeze 1-2 t. NuNaturals NuStevia Cocoa Syrup into your cup. You can add more, to taste, being careful not to add too much as it is sweetened with stevia and will have a bitter taste if you use too much.
5. Last, but definitely not least, pour coffee over everything and mix well with a spoon.
6. Taste and adjust flavors as needed to your liking.

Now, you could add so many things to this to make it yummy. Cinnamon, mint, caramel extract, the possibilities are practically endless. Go crazy with it. Have fun!

Live, laugh, love and EAT what you love!  xoxo

Shish Kabobs

By a raise of hands, tell me how many of you have made shish kabobs…okay okay. So, what do you like on yours? I LOVE veggies on mine. Onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, the works! And what meat do you use on your shish kabobs? The possibilities are close to endless…pork, beef, shrimp, lamb, heck you might even be able to use tofu! Eh…maybe not tofu.

You can marinate your meat if you want to as well. I did not marinate mine this time around, but I have before. I also used pork this time. I have had good luck with beef and venison before. And I always have lots of veggies! You don’t have to use veggies, though. Put what you like on them. In fact, you could use only veggies if you wanted or only meat! Hey, I am not the boss of you…

Shish Kabobs  (Click HERE to print recipe)

Stuffs:

• 1-1 1/2 lbs pork (can use beef, chicken, venison, etc.) cut into bite size pieces
• 2 bell peppers washed, seeded and cut into chunks
• 2 medium size onions, peeled and cut into chunks
• mushrooms
• tomatoes, washed, cut into chunks
• salt and pepper to taste for veggies and meat

Steps:

1. Wash, seed and cut all your veggies; set aside.
2. Trim most but not all of the fat from your meat; cut into bite size pieces.
3. Season veggies and meat well.
4. Preheat our grill.
5. Start putting veggies and meat on your skewers, alternating meat, veggie, veggie, veggie, veggie, meat, and so on.
6. Grill shish kabobs over medium heat until pork is no longer pink and juices run clear.
7. Remove from grill and allow to cool a few minutes before serving.
8. Serve with a nice big salad or another veggie!

MMMmm, these shish kabobs are so good.

Live, laugh, love and eat what you love! xoxo

Gluten and Sugar-Free Pumpkin Pie

When I went gluten and sugar-free I thought I’d never be able to have pumpkin pie again. I was DEVASTATED! Pumpkin pie is the ultimate Thanksgiving desert, everyone knows that! So when I realized I can make this gluten and sugar-free pumpkin pie, I was ecstatic!

MMMmmmm, so good!

Gluten/Sugar-Free Pumpkin Pie (Click HERE to print recipe)

Stuffs:

• 2 (12 oz.) cans evaporated milk
• 1 t. salt
• 2 t. cinnamon
• 1 t. ginger
• 1/2 t. cloves
• 4 large eggs
• 1 (29 oz.) can pure pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie mix)
• 1 3/4 c. Splenda® (or granulated sweetener of choice, adjust amount as needed)

Steps:

1. Preheat oven to 375º F. Spray a 9×13 baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.
2. Pour milk into large bowl, followed by salt and spices; allow to sit for several minutes.
3. Add eggs, pumpkin and sweetener.
4. Stir to mix everything together well.
5. Allow to sit a few minutes.
6. Pour into prepared baking dish.
7. Bake for 1h 10m or until set and starting to brown on top.
8. Serve with Whipped Topping.

This gluten and sugar-free pumpkin pie is so good, you’ll never miss the crust or the sugar! The best part…you can eat it and not feel guilty! Well, that’s second best, the very best is you can eat it and not get sick!!

Live, laugh, love and EAT what you love!  xoxo

Almost Homemade Cinnamon Raisin Bread

As most of you know, I have been gluten free (mostly) for almost a year now. I work with a couple different companies, for which I do reviews and giveaways. I enjoy doing this so much. Sometimes I just try the product as is and review it. Sometimes I make  recipe with the product. I really enjoy doing this. The product I am reviewing today is Glutino Foods Favorite Sandwich Bread. This is a mix, so you must prepare it yourself, but I decided I wanted to use it to make a recipe instead of just making plain bread. I decided to make this Almost Homemade Cinnamon Raisin Bread.

It turned out great! And just look how it rose out of the pan! Can you believe that it’s gluten-free?!?! I also love the color, so golden brown… YUM!

Almost Homemade Cinnamon Raisin Bread (Click HERE to print recipe)

Stuffs:

• 1 box Glutino Foods Favorite Sandwich Bread
• 3 t. cinnamon
• 3 T. Splenda® Brown Sugar Blend
• 1 3/4 c. warm water
• 2 1/2 t. vanilla
• 4 T. oil
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 c. softened and well-drained raisins (red or golden)

Steps:

1. In the bowl of your stand mixer, pour the bread mix and the package of yeast included in the box, Splenda and cinnamon. Start mixer and stir to combine. (You can just use the paddle because this bread will remain pretty loose).
2. Now add warm water, vanilla, oil and eggs; start mixer on low-speed and mix to combine. Once everything is mixed fairly well, turn mixer to med-high speed and mix for about 3 minutes.
3. Once mixed, add softened raisins and mix just until raisins are incorporated.
4. Spoon bread dough into greased 9″x5″ bread pan. Allow to sit while you preheat your oven to 375° F.
5. Once your oven is hot and your bread has risen to the top of the pan, bake your dough for 30m or until golden brown and it sounds hollow when tapped.
6. Allow to cool 5-10 minutes in the pan and then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely before cutting to serve or putting in an airtight container to store.
7. Best if stored in refrigerator or freezer.

You could totes change this Almost Homemade Cinnamon Raisin Bread up by using any dried fruit and using different spices to go with whatever fruit you’re using.

My Review:

I am giving Glutino Foods Favorite Sandwich Bread ♥♥♥♥

This bread has great flavor and texture. It isn’t dry and doesn’t fall apart like some gluten-free breads I’ve tried. I really like it. It does have a bit of an odd aftertaste. I think it’s the pea protein. It’s not enough to totally turn me off to this yummy bread, though, which is why I gave it 4 hearts out of 5!

Live, laugh, love and be kind!  xo

Gluten-Free ‘Spaghetti’

If you’re like me when you think of spaghetti, you automatically think of long, thin noodles.  Well, there is nothing saying you have to use those kind of noodles.  In fact, you can use any kind of noodle you want to.  For me, I need to have a Gluten-Free Spaghetti. So, whatever your need or want is, use your imagination.  Anything goes.  As long as you have noodles and tomato based sauce, you have spaghetti!  🙂

You can used brown rice pasta, corn pasta, rice pasta. There are any number of choices out there. For my THM friends there is Dreamfields Pasta. It is, however, not gluten-free so that is not an option for me.  When I make dinner, my whole family eats gluten-free because I don’t want to have to make two separate meals because I can’t have gluten.  That’s just too much work for my taste.

For quite some time now, I have been making my own spaghetti sauce. Sort of… I start with a canned sauce and add to it. If I wanted to , I could make one totally from scratch, but I got this ‘recipe’ from a full-blooded Italian woman who makes her spaghetti sauce like this so I figure if it’s good enough for her, it’s good enough for me!  😉

So here’s the recipe…

Gluten-Free Spaghetti

Get This:

• 1 lb. gluten-free pasta, or spaghetti squash works too (whatever noodles you like, I’m not the boss of you!) (If you are a THM’er, use Dreamfields Pasta and only cook what you will eat in one sitting as it cannot be reheated)
• 1 lb. lean venison, turkey or chicken
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 c. fresh mushrooms
• garlic salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 can or jar of spaghetti sauce (make sure to get one WITHOUT high fructose corn syrup or added sugar)
• 1 can all natural organic diced tomatoes
• Italian seasoning, garlic powder and pepper to taste
• Truvia, to taste (or your favorite sweetener) (yes, you add ‘sugar’ to the sauce to cut the acidity)

Do This:

1. Cook your pasta until JUST done. You will cook with the sauce a bit. If using Dreamfields Pasta, cook according to packaging.
2. Brown onion, lean ground meat, mushrooms and garlic together in medium pan until hamburger is no longer pink and onion is translucent. Season with garlic salt and pepper to taste.
3. Once the hamburger mixture is done, add sauce, tomatoes, Italian seasoning, garlic powder and pepper.
4. Add cooked pasta and stir to mix well. (If you are a THM’er, DO NOT add pasta to sauce, as you cannot reheat pasta).
5. Simmer sauce for about 5 minutes.
6. Add Stevia or sugar to taste.  My husband likes his sauce on the sweet side.
7. Enjoy!

**note: for every 4-6 people just add another can of sauce and another can of tomatoes**

Live, laugh love and be kind! xoxo

Almost Sugar-Free Salted Caramel Sauce

I know, I said I was going to post this sugar-free salted caramel sauce a couple of days ago, but life gets busy sometimes and I just haven’t had the time. Saturday, I stacked wood all day and yesterday we had church and then we had a church sledding party, then church again. After that, we were invited to an impromptu ‘Super Bowl’ party. Busy, busy busy…

So, I’m posting my sugar-free salted caramel sauce now. Better late than never, right?

I do have to tell you something funny that happened while I was trying to make it, though…I read the recipe wrong and instead of adding 1/4 t. of molasses, which the recipe called for, I added 1/4 c. molasses! My sugar-free salted caramel sauce was very dark while the sauce I was replicating was very light. As soon as I added the molasses to the pan, I knew it was wrong. So I ran back and read the recipe and sure enough, 1/4 t. not 1/4 c.

Funny enough, it tasted fine. I was able to use it for the cheesecake. I thought for sure I would have to throw it away, but I tasted it before I poured my cream in and it was good, so I poured my cream in and carried on like nothing happened. And while it was darker than the original and it was quite rich, it worked out great and the flavor was good! So I changed the recipe a little because if 1/4 c. was good, I can definitely add more than 1/4 t.  I made a couple other changes, too, so here is my adjusted recipe. You can find the original on mrscriddleskitchen.com.

Sugar-Free Salted Caramel Sauce (Click HERE to print recipe)

Get This:

• 1/2 c. butter
• 2 T. molasses
• 1/2 c. Truvia® (or sweetener of choice)
• 1 t. caramel extract
• 1/2 c. heavy cream
• pinch of sea salt

Do This:

1. Heat butter and molasses til butter is melted and molasses is thin; add sweetener and stir well.
2. Heat this mixture over med-high heat until it becomes thick, stirring often.
3. Add caramel extract, cream and salt and stir well.
4. Heat til warmed through; remove from heat.
5. Allow to cool just a few minutes before pouring into a jar to cool completely.

Note: This sugar-free salted caramel sauce is fantastic on my Chocolate And Salted Caramel Cheesecake, but you could use it for all kinds of things. Drizzle it on a Muffin In A Mug, in your morning coffee, over ice cream (THM approved, of course), you could even put it on apple crisp, YUM!! Have fun with it!!

Have you entered my Glutino Giveaway?? Hurry before it’s too late!!

Live, laugh, love and be kind! xoxo

Chocolate And Salted Caramel Cheesecake

I am usually one of those people who are all or nothing. When I am on a ‘diet’, I normally say no to anything I would normally consider indulgent. Not because I feel I can’t splurge now and again, but because I can’t do ‘just one bit’ or ‘just one piece’.

Take this chocolate and salted caramel cheesecake for example….

This is not something I would normally indulge in. Something so rich and chocolatey with rich, salted caramel.  So yummy!

BUT, this one I can! This chocolate and salted caramel cheesecake is gluten and (mostly) sugar-free! It can be made completely sugar-free very easily. I made it using a couple of Glutino products because I was coming up with a recipe using their  chocolate and their new salted caramel pretzels. I found a few recipes for gluten-free and sugar-free cheesecake and tweaked them using what I needed to for the crust and topping. Boy, was it tasty! Yeah, I’ll share the recipe!

Chocolate And Salted Caramel Cheesecake  (Click HERE to print recipe)

For The Crust:

Get This:

• 1 c. almond flour
• 1 c. Glutino’s Salted Caramel Pretzels, blitzed in the food processor til chunky (if making 100% sugar-free omit these and use 2 c. almond flour or 1 c. each almond and coconut flours)
• 1/4 c + 1 T. butter, melted.
• 2 T. Truvia® or sweetener of choice

Do This:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Mix flour, pretzel bits (if using) and sweetener together.
3. Pour melted butter over mixture and mix well, making sure to get everything covered and a dough ball begins to form.
4. Spray a 9″ x 13″ pan with non-stick cooking spray.
5. Press dough firmly  into bottom of your baking dish.
6. Bake crust at 350° F. for about 20m or until golden brown.
7. Allow to cool.
8. While the crust is baking and cooling, make your cheesecake filling.

For The Cheesecake: 

Get This:

• 2 (8oz.) packages cream cheese or Neufchâtel, room temperature
• 2 eggs
• 1 t. caramel extract
• 1/4 – 1/2 c. Truvia® or sweetener of choice (more or less to taste)

Do This:

1. Beat your cream cheese for a minute or so by itself so it’s creamy.
2. Add eggs, sweetener and caramel extract; beat again til smooth. Set aside.
3. Once your crust has cooled, spoon onto crust and bake for 25-35m or until you start to see golden brown patches across the top of your cheesecake.
4. Allow to cool 5-10m before adding toppings.

For Toppings:

Get This:

• sugar-free caramel sauce (I made my own, I will share my recipe tomorrow)
• sugar-free chocolate chips or 80%-85% dark chocolate, chopped
• pecans (optional)
• Glutino’s chocolate covered pretzels, blitzed in the food processor til chunky (optional)

Do This:

1. While your cheesecake bakes and cools, make your caramel sauce (recipe coming tomorrow).
2. Chop your nuts (if using) and your chocolate (if needed).
3. Blitz your Glutino’s chocolate pretzels in the food processor til chunky.
4. Now sprinkle nuts, chocolate chips (or chocolate chunks) and pretzel bits over your still warm cheesecake.
5. Once your chocolate bits have had a chance to melt a bit, drizzle caramel sauce over everything.
6. Refrigerate for at least an hour before cutting and serving.
7. ENJOY!!

Note: You can make this recipe completely sugar-free by omitting the pretzel bits in the crust and on top.  I am a product reviewer/recipe developer/giveaway hostess for Glutino and I wanted to come up with a delicious recipe using their new gluten-free salted caramel pretzels.

This recipe was inspired by these cheesecake bars. It came out better than I could have dreamed. Once again, Glutino’s has amazed me with their wonderful product. It gave this chocolate and salted caramel cheesecake a wonderful punch of flavor and I couldn’t have been happier with the results. Even my picky-eater sister thought it was really good, in fact she’s having a piece for lunch as I type this!

For my THM friends, simply leave the pretzels out and use either all almond flour or a combination of almond and coconut flours. This delicious chocolate and salted caramel cheesecake is an S dessert!

REVIEW: I am giving Glutino Salted Caramel Pretzels ♥♥♥♥♥

Lie, laugh, love and be kind!  xoxo

Pumpkin Poppers W/Cinnamon Brown Sugar Dip

Y’all know my love of all thinks pumpkin, right? Well I have found yet another! Hubby came home this morning with a cake pop/donut hole maker! Yay! I have been wanting a donut maker for a while now. I saw one on an online yard sale site the other day and it was a great deal but the guy selling it was kind of yanking my chain a bit and my husband wasn’t going to play his game. So he went and bought me one of my very own from the store.  Gosh, I love that man. So, of course the first thing I made was these Pumpkin Poppers.

Pumpkin Poppers W/ Cinnamon Brown Sugar Dip (Click HERE to print recipe)

Get This:

• 1 1/2 c. almond flour
• 1/2 c. oat flour (process old fashion oats in food processor til fine)
• 1/2 c. THM brown sugar
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1 t. baking powder
• 2 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. pumpkin pie spice
• 1/2 c. half and half
• 1/2 T. lemon juice
• 1/2 c. pumpkin
• 2 T. butter, melted
• 1 egg

For Dip:

• 1/4 c. heavy cream
• 1 T. THM brown sugar
• 1-2 t. cinnamon

Do This:

1. In a medium size bowl, combine all dry ingredients; mix well.
2. Preheat donut hole maker or oven (if using an oven preheat to 350°F.)
3. In another bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients.
4. Combine wet and dry ingredients; mix just until combined.
5. Spray donut hole maker or donut pan with non-stick cooking spray.
6. Fill donut hole pan holes to overflowing; close and snap lid closed. If using donut pan, fill to just full.
7. Cook for 8 minutes or until poppers are done. They will not sink in when you try to  lift them out when they are done. (I’m not sure how long these will take in the oven. I would start with 10 minutes and go from there).
8. Remove from maker and cool on a wire rack til completely cool.

For Dip:

1. Whip cream til it starts to become thick.
2. Add sugar and cinnamon; beat til thick.
3. Enjoy with pumpkin poppers!

For all my THM friends, these pumpkin poppers are a fabulous S snack/dessert. Please keep your carbs to 10 or less when enjoying these.  You could even add a couple oz. of cream cheese to your dip, that would be delicious!  MMmmmm, an idea for next time!

Live, laugh, love and be kind!  xoxo

Peanut Butter Cup ‘Shake’

I know, I know. A peanut butter cup shake doesn’t sound healthy. But it actually is. It’s quite healthy. And if you can have your chocolate (and peanut butter ) and eat it, why the heck not, right?!? RIGHT!! 😉 I just know y’all agree with me on that point, because ummmm… CHOCOLATE (and peanut butter)!!! Haha…check this out.

This peanut butter cup shake is amazingly similar to a certain brand of peanut butter cups. So similar that if I have a craving for those certain cups, I whip one of these up and BOOM, no more cravings!

I found this recipe online…actually I found  for this online, but I changed it up so much that I’m not even going to link to the original. I made it to fit my needs and my budget. My version doesn’t have any ‘specialty ingredients’ that are hard to find or cost an arm and a leg.

You’re welcome….now on to the recipe for this delicious peanut butter cup shake.

Peanut Butter Cup ‘Shake’ (Click HERE to print recipe)

Fetch This:

• 3/4 c. unsweetened vanilla almond milk (can use unsweetened original)
• 1/4 c. 1% cottage cheese
• 1 T. coconut oil (optional)
• 3 – 4 T. truvia (or sweetener of choice)
• dash of salt
• 1/2 – 1 t. xanthan gum
• 2 T. all-natural peanut butter
• 1 heaping T. cocoa powder
• 1/4 c. boiling water
• 6-8 ice cubes

Do This:

1. Add everything except water and ice to blender.
2. Blend slightly; add boiling water (this will melt your oil).
3. Now add ice and pulse.
4. Blend to desired consistency.
5. Enjoy!

Notes:  This recipe is easily doubled or tripled to serve 2-3 people. As written, it is a single serving. This peanut butter cup shake is a delicious S meal/snack. Be sure to keep your carbs to 10 or less when enjoying this shake!

Live, laugh, love and be kind! xoxo

Mediterranean Grilled Chicken

I have been scouring the interwebs for new and exciting recipes for me and my family to try. Recipes that are not only exciting but that are healthy as well. That is important to me. More important than being exciting….maybe. Okay, probably not but pretend you believe that okay? Pinky promise?  Mediterranean Grilled Chicken sounds exciting, doesn’t it?!?! And it’s certainly healthy…at last this version is!

Any who, as soon as I saw this recipe, I knew I had to try it! It looked so yummy with the olives and tomatoes. YUM!  So I made a couple changes cuz hey, she’s not the boss of me!  This is what we ended up with for dinner one night.

Mediterranean Grilled Chicken (Click HERE to print recipe)

Fetch This:

• 12 oz. of chicken breasts, split in half or flattened (about 4 chicken breasts cut in half)

***Marinade***

• 3 T. garlic in fused red wine vinegar
• 1 T. extra virgin olive oil
• 1 t. oregano, dried
• 1/2 t. pepper
• 1 t. salt
• 2 T. greek yogurt, plain

***Mediterranean Salsa***

• 1 large tomatoes, seeded, diced small
• 1/4 c. sweet red or orange bell pepper, diced small
• 1/2 c. cucumber, diced small
• 12-15 black olives, sliced in half
• 1/2 oz. goat cheese or feta cheese, crumbled (I used fresh mozzarella)
• 1/2 tsp. oregano
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1 T. greek yogurt, plain
• 1 t. fresh basil
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 T. garlic infused red wine vinegar
• 1 t. lime juice
• Balsamic Glaze (optional)

Do This:

1. Place chicken in a shallow bowl; set a side.
2. In a bowl, add all of the marinade ingredients, mix until combined. Pour over chicken. Cover chicken and refrigerate for at least two hours.
3. Meanwhile, to make the salsa, add all the salsa ingredients together and refrigerate until ready to use.
4. Set grill over medium heat.
5. Place chicken on grill and cook for 5 minutes; flip chicken and cook for about 3 minutes or until no longer pink.
6. Serve salsa over top of chicken and drizzle with balsamic glaze.

Note: If you do not have garlic infused wine vinegar, add about 1/4 tsp minced garlic to the marinade.

You throw everything together in a bowl over a couple of chicken breasts cut in half, throw it in the fridge for a couple of hours.  You take 10 minutes to make this delicious salsa, throw that in the fridge. Then when it’s time to eat, you take everything out of the fridge, another 10 minutes to grill the chicken breasts, top with your salsa and BOOM! Time to eat. It really doesn’t get much easier folks!

Live, love, laugh and be kind!! xoxo