Cashew Cream

Hey guys!

Thank you so much for the congratulations! We are very excited and at now at 17 weeks! YAHOO!!  The baby bump is starting to show!

Anyways – you didn’t come here for baby talk!  The other day I was invited to a brunch at a friends place – I woke up late and didn’t know what to bring…  originally I was going to make my favorite muffin recipe – Mom’s Muffins – but they take a bit of time to make.

So I decided to make “Flourless Oatmeal Pancakes” they are super easy to make and a great vessel for yummy sauces!   I added a bit of unsweetened coconut to the above recipe.

Sorry again for the bad iPhone photo – One day I’ll take out my big camera again!

I needed a topping so I made some raspberry chia jam – Basically just boiled down frozen  raspberries, added some brown sugar and let it boil for about 1/2 hour!   Once I took it off the heat I added about 2 tablespoons of chia seeds – to thicken it up a bit!

For the cashew cream – I had made this before – but I didn’t love it.  Just cashews and water – didn’t cut it for me – So I followed this recipe and added about a tsp of vanilla, a tsp of lemon juice and maple syrup to taste!!  

Together with the raspberry chia jam and the pancakes – it was great!  The kids seem to really like it to – so if you are a parent with a dairy free kiddie this might be a good addition to the family!!

And I feel like the possibilities are endless with the cashew cream!  Here’s what I’m thinking…

• Flavor it with a chai tea bag – would be great on a scone! 
• Strain some of the water off so that it becomes thicker – you could almost use it as a cream cheese!
• Add it to my blended veggie soup! To add to the creaminess!
• Using it like a dairy free sour cream (only adding lemon juice – no vanilla or sweetener)
• Making a fruit dip!  Adding extra vanilla and pouring over strawberries!
• Using it as a base for ice cream!!

I could keep going – but you get the idea!!   

Have you guys tried cashew cream before?

 

Much love,

Jessica

No Cooking from DFB

Hiya guys,

I can finally announce why there haven’t been many posts from me lately…

 

Food and I have not been friends, but I’m sure you all understand that!  

I hope to start posting (and eating) more yummy dairy free treats as soon as possible! 

Until then… 

Much love,

Jessica

xo

These are a few of my favorite things…

Hi guys!

So as mentioned on my facebook page – I have been hitting home runs with a few products lately! All dairy free of course – so I thought I would share my findings (and maybe save you some hard earned $$ in the process).

I got most of these products at the health food store – and while many of them are “organic” I didn’t spend much $$ on them. I find the health food store very reasonable, and I keep up with their monthly sales as well, which they deeply discount many things. Please note – I paid for all these products with my own money – and it’s all my own opinion (as always).

First off – I finally found and tried daiya wedges!

I tried the Jack flavor and it was incredible – melt in your mouth dreamy.  Huge fan – unfortunately, like the shreds, my stomach doesn’t approve. I know many other people don’t have problems with them though, so it must be my sensitive tummy’s problem!  I wish I could eat it though, as it would change a dairy free person’s life!

 

Next up Amande Yougerts (vanilla specifically)

This stuff is SO good!!  I’ve been loving it mixed with dried fruits & seeds and also on top of homemade waffles (my favourite recipe) with a little blueberry syrup!  (sorry for the bad iphone photos)

A few of you have mentioned you’ve tried it and not enjoyed it?  Give the vanilla try I think you’ll enjoy.

Up next…

Matcha Pumpkin Seeds – I got them from Courtney at the Tea Center – but you can usually find them at any Asian Food store!  So good! I’m a huge fan of matcha – and these just sounded too good!

 

Kamut Puffs by Natures Path.

I have loved these forever.  They are super cheap (around $2-$3 per bag) and are a 1 ingredient cereal!  I love them in yogurt, as a cereal with banana, some almond milk and a drizzle of maple syrup!

 

My health food store has had these on sale all summer – 2 for $5 – which is cheaper than buying the plain ones at the grocery store.  They are crispy and have better nutritional value that regular rice cakes!

This is awesome -  I don’t know about you but I very rarely use up a whole can of coconut milk.  This stuff is awesome – all you do is add a bit of water and you have as much coconut milk as needed!  WAY cheaper than buying it in the cans as well!   Plus you can add a teaspoon or so too a smoothy for a coconut milk flavor!

I have been loving quinoa all summer – cook it up, add some fresh veggies, a few fresh herbs, salt and lemon juice and you have yourself an awesome meal!  This bag is from Costco – and by far the cheapest way to purchase quinoa!  (plus it’s organic and pre-rinsed!)

and now…

While I said that everything I purchase is cheap – these are an exception.  I stopped by our health food stores demo at a recent fair and they were handing these babies out… I fell in love – especially with the green one.  Anyways they are about $2.50 each and pretty small – but they taste awesome. I just watch for sales and get them for around $2.00  (Please note a few of them do have dairy in them, please read the ingredient list before purchasing)

Another great Costco purchase!

Who doesn’t LOVE guac?  This comes with 4 little packages, and you can freeze them! I usually keep one out and freeze the rest – just run it under cold water until thawed… perfect for last minute visitors or a last minute taco party!

Never have I ever met a “tofu dog” that I liked… until a few weeks ago when the hubby was craving hot dogs and we stopped by a hot dog stand – this is what I got!  To me – they taste like regular hot dogs more or less but aren’t filled with wacky ingredients!  They are packed full of 9g protein per dog and come in at 60 calories each!   While they don’t roast like regular dogs, they are perfect if you are a boiled/steamed hot dog gal like myself!

Lastly, a product I’ve been meaning to talk about forever.   Please note – I did receive a free sample about 1 year ago from this company, however, I have purchased this product since many many times, as well as referred many friends to it.  While it’s not food – it’s pretty awesome.

I don’t know about you – but stress gets to the best of us.  I tend to get really nervous/stressed/anxious  when travelling, or before presentations or even going to the doctors.   These have totally 100% helped with those problems. After over a year of using this product when needed = I’m still a firm believer in it.  It also helps when you can’t sleep at night!  I want to do a more in depth post on it one day – please let me know if you are interested in more information!  

Again 100% my opinion on this and all these products!

 

Hope you enjoyed this post!  It’s been awhile, but I thought I’d let you in on what I’ve been loving lately! 

How about you – what have you been loving?

I promise to do a post very soon with non – iphone pictures!  

Much love,

Jess

A Little Round Up

It’s been forever since I’ve opened up my Live Writer to write a blog post!    Lots going on in my neck of the woods these days mixed with summer time has made for not many interesting creations coming from the kitchen (did I mention we’re trying to sell our house and creations usually = big messes!)

However – I’m still here – and I’m still cooking (other people’s recipes!) So I thought it would be fun to do a little round up/shout out post!

First off – Summer equals lots of zucchini – so I went on the hunt for a perfect Zucchini Bread recipe and I found it at Smitten Kitchen. Best zucchini bread I’ve ever had hands down – ever!  I made a few alterations – including using whole wheat flour, chia eggs instead of regular eggs (made it vegan), and 1/2 cup less sugar!  It’s awesome and delicious and dairy free!  I’ve made it two times now (mmm it’s cooking in the oven right now!) Check it out!

Also – I’ve been making Pea’s and Thank You’s Mmmmm Sauce!  It’s perfect for dipping salad rolls in – something I’ve been making a lot of lately!  They are the perfect summer lunch!  Follow the link to see how I make them!

Also thanks to Pintrest I found the perfect tip to never buy rotten avocado again – I’ve tested it out for a few weeks and it’s true!!  It works perfectly!  Nothing worse than cutting into a rotten avocado!

I’m really happy also to see that my friend Tasha at the Clean Eating Mama is posting again!  She’s a lovely lady and she’s awesome in the kitchen!   We’ve also been chatting about a blogger meet up on Vancouver Island – let me know if your interested!

I also have been checking out lots of redesign blogs and found this AWESOME one – this chick is so creative and does everything for pennies!   She gives me so much hope for all the imperfect (but wonderful) houses we’ve been looking at !!

Also, because I still LOVE weddings check out Purely Twins wedding recaps!  It’s one of the most beautiful weddings EVER and makes me wish I had more time to plan our wedding!!

I hope everyone is doing awesome!  I really do love hearing from you guys – so always feel free to send me an email (under contact info) on facebook or in a comment!   I have a few blog posts in the works too – so hopefully you’ll be hearing from me shortly!!! 

xo Much Love,

Jessica

Sundried Tomato Dairy Free Pesto?

Hiya!

What’s shaken folks?

How about a little pesto recipe that is easy, flavourful and dairy free?

I know you want it?

 

Sundried Tomato Pesto (Dairy Free)

1/4 cup pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

1/4 cup raw or toasted almonds

1/2 (or more) packed basil

1/2 cup chicken broth (or veggie)

2 TBSP oil – I used grape seed

1/4 cup sundried tomato in oil – rinsed of excess oil

1 TBSP nutritional yeast (optional)

1 clove of garlic (or more if you are a garlic lover)

Process all ingredients in a food processor! – You will probably have to scrape down the sidesa few times to get everything processed!   Yum that’s it!!  Add more liquid as required – this made a fairly thick pesto!

 

Now what to do with it you ask?

• I roasted a bunch of my favourite veggies, and tossed it with them and some pasta and topped with chicken.
• As a base for pizza instead of tomatoes sauce
• Spread for sandwiches
• Dip for crackers/veggies
• Spread on burgers
• Spread on chicken/fish/tofu
• Thinned out and used as a salad dressing
• Coating for kale chips (mmmmmm must try this!)
• Inside a lettuce or rice wrap

Now that summer is here, I’m hoping to do more cooking and start getting recipes out to you guys! I’ve had TONS of emails (thank you) encouraging me to get back into blogging, I’m so sorry for my absence – I lost my blogging mojo a bit – but hopefully I’ll be back soon!

 

Any recipe requests out there?  Also, any great ideas for Arugula?  I was gifted a big bag of garden fresh stuff, but haven’t used it much!?   Thank you!! 

 

Hope you guys  are all doing well!  My posts on facebook haven’t been reaching everyone – so if you’d like to make sure you receive all my posts – please sign up through  email!!   The link is at the very top of my page on the right hand side!! Thank you bunches for your support!

Much love,

Jessica

Curried Millet with Greens

Happy first day of summer!  I don’t know where you guys all live, but here – the weather is sub par to normal “Summer” weather!   I had a few hours off yesterday and was feeling cold to the bone – I wanted something creamy, filling, thick and with a spicy kick!

Drool….

Curried Millet w/Greens

1 tsp. oil

1 onion diced

1 clove garlic minced ( more if you love garlic flavour)

3 TBSP curry (I used mild spiced curry)

1 cup millet

1 red pepper sliced into short strips

2 cups chopped cauliflower

2 cups chicken broth

1 can rinsed and drained chickpeas

1 can full fat coconut milk

3 TBSP  (or to taste) fish sauce (sub 1.5 tsp. soy sauce for vegan)

1 TBSP sugar (or to taste)

5 cups packed greens!

______________________________________

DIRECTIONS

• Sauté onion & garlic in oil
• Add in curry powder and millet (I find toasting the curry powder and millet adds to the flavour).
• Add in the rest of the ingredients (except greens)
• 
• Simmer on medium low for 30 – 40 mins or until millet has softened
• Taste – you may need to add in more fish sauce and or sugar – depending on your taste buds
• Final step – add in greens just before serving!

 

NOTES

• You may need to add extra water/broth  - depending on how thick you would like it.  It thickened up overnight!  
• I say add fish sauce and sugar to taste because everyone likes their flavours different – I am a huge fan of the salty – so it may be too salty for other’s taste buds!!
• All curries taste different and have different spice levels – so be sure to do lots of taste testing!

 

Hope you enjoyed this recipe!  I know I’m looking forward to the left overs!

Dairy Free Hollandaise Sauce

So being dairy free – do you remember the smooth, creamy, buttery taste of hollandaise sauce? Don’t worry, I won’t make your mouth water for nothing!

When I lived in Kelowna, I used to go on Sunday’s with friends to a place called the Jammery for Eggs Benny!   They would do English Muffins w/cream cheese, apricot jam, ham, eggs and hollandaise sauce – it was TO DIE FOR!!!! 

So I was thinking about that – mouth watering and decided to try out a recipe and see what happened?    Now it’s been a long time since I’ve tasted hollandaise – but I felt like it was close!

This recipe is by no means good for you!

Dairy Free Hollandaise Sauce

1/4 cup dairy free margarine

1/4 cup coconut milk

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp turmeric ( I added more but I love turmeric!)

1 tsp lemon juice

Whisk together all ingredients over medium heat!   Add salt to taste.  Depending on the coconut milk you use, you may need to add some thickener to it – I added about 1 tsp sifted cornstarch.   Continue whisking together until everything is combined and warmed!

I served over a peice of dairy free toast (which I cut the corners off of to make it look pretty), sautéed kale  and of course with a perfectly poached egg!

It was oozy and delicious and perfect for a lazy weekend treat!

Sorry it took me awhile to post – but I hope you enjoy this recipe!!   Next time I will recreate the Jammery’s recipe with dairy free cream cheese and apricot jam!! Mmmm!!

xo Jessica

Smore Pie w/Peanut Butter Chocolate Sauce

Howdy!!

Glad you guys enjoyed the last post!  Yum – gotta love ice cream that us dairy free folk can eat!!

So yesterday we cooked dinner for my parents and grandma!   We made some kebabs, some chicken, potatoe salad and grilled corn on the cob!  It was a tasty meal – but of course we needed something for dessert! 

With summer peaking it’s head out – I start craving all things smore – so I decided to test my hand at a smore pie!!  Oh yes!!

Ok, I’m not going to lie – it’s not pretty – but what can you do!?

On the bottom I crumbled up graham crackers and then made this dairy free cake recipe and poured it over the graham crackers!  I baked it for about 15 mins and then added the marshmallows on top (If I was doing it again, I would cover the top with more marshmallows <maybe mini ones>) and baked for another 5-7 mins or until the marshmallows get brown!

Yum!!!  It was good – but it needed a little something – so I made some Peanut Butter Chocolate Sauce (which was AWESOME!)

Into the mix

1/4 cup smooth peanut butter

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup cocoa

1 tsp vanilla

Whisk all ingredients together over low – medium heat until combined!   Once warmed – drizzle over the pie!!  *drool*

This peanut butter chocolate sauce would make an awesome fondue too!!

Sorry for lack of photos – but I was busy cooking getting ready for our guests!!  Hope you enjoy this recipe – it’s an easy recipe that will make your guests happy (just add those extra marshmallows)

Hope you enjoyed this recipe!!  They would be fun as cupcakes too!

Enjoy

xo Jess

Delightful Double Chocolate Coffee Ice Cream (Guest Post)

Hello blog land!!  Another guest post for you all!  I hope you enjoy this delicious sounding ice cream recipe!!   This will be my last guest blog post for awhile, so I hope everyone enjoys!

_____________________________________________

 

Hello, my name is Amber, and I’m the author of The Tasty Alternative . I’m thrilled to be guest posting today on Dairy Free Betty! The dairy free community is close to my heart, and I admire Jessica’s dedication to health, dairy-free information, and cuisine. Thank you Jessica for your beautiful blog and health-full recipes.

Eight years ago was I diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease. You can read more about my health and healing journey here. I was young and very scared, but absolutely determined to heal and live a positive quality of life. In doing this, I began healing holistically and immediately changed my diet (gave up dairy, wheat, cane-sugar, and soy). I’ve learned a great deal of information along the way and while I was lenient with some foods, I’ve been 100% dairy free since 2004. It’s completely possible, and totally worth it. My greatest accomplishment from this lifestyle is learning how to create delicious alternative recipes. I’m a foodie and determined to make awesome food that both tastes great and heals.

When I gave up dairy, I mourned the loss of ice cream. Anyone with me on this?! As you might have noticed, we’ve come a long way just in the last ten years in the alternative ice cream department! When I went dairy free, soy ice cream was the dominant alternative (that and rice ice cream). Now, coconut milk dominates the field, and I can’t tell you how happy this makes me. Coconut milk is a wonderfully healing food, and I have to say, with complete and utter honesty, it makes the most delicious ice cream. And did you know that it’s ridiculously easy to make? I use coconut milk as the base to all my ice creams (but you could also use a nut-milk based ice cream, I have several homemade nut-milk recipe son my blog). So with summer right around the corner, I wanted to share one of my favorite ice cream recipes with you today. My chocoholic husband goes insane for this recipe. If you haven’t tried making your own dairy free ice cream, please do give it a try. An ice cream maker isn’t necessary, but oh so worth it. See notes below.

Delightful Double Chocolate Coffee Ice Cream

Ingredients

-2 cans coconut milk (this brand has BPA free lining)

-1/4 cup raw cacao

-1/3 cup grade B maple syrup

-1 tablespoon vanilla extract

-1 teaspoons coffee flavor

-1/2 cup shaved chocolate bar (this is my favorite chocolate, only sweetened with beet sugar, it does contain soy lecithin)

How To

1. Mix above ingredients in a blender, high speed or otherwise.

2. Transfer to ice cream maker and churn

3. Just before you remove mixture from ice cream maker, add in your chocolate shavings, and churn for about 30 seconds

4. Transfer to glass storage and freeze at least 4 hours

6. Remove from freezer 20 minutes before serving

7. Garnish with additional chocolate shavings, shredded coconut, or coffee beans. Serves 6-8

Notes:

*An ice cream maker aerates the mixture, creating a lovely creamy traditional texture. You could just blend then transfer to glass storage and freeze, but it gets icy and doesn’t mimic traditional ice cream. If you’re in the market for an ice cream maker, I LOVE this one.

Other dairy & cane-sugar free ice cream recipes from The Tasty Alternative

-Chocolate Pumpkin Ice Cream

-Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

-Pink Peppermint Ice Cream

-Strawberry Almond Ice Cream

Amber Husten is author of the alternative foods blog, The Tasty Alternative (TTA), which launched August 17, 2011. The Tasty Alternative features posts related to alternative cuisine, holistic healing, organic gardening, green living and organization. All recipes found on TTA are dairy free, gluten free, cane-sugar free, and peanut free, with an emphasis on allergy-free cooking with the omission of eggs, corn, and soy. Amber includes a special focus on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet (SCD), with recipes free of grains, starches and sugars (expect honey), and provides additional information on Crohn's disease and eczema. Amber is also one of the seven hostesses of the weekly bog hop, Allergy-Free Wednesdays.

Stevia Winners

Are you ready!?

25 – Colleen

41-Voita

38- Kathi

12 - Char

Congrats guys – hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Please send me an email with your address (remember no PO BOXES) by Wednesday evening at the latest (Thursday morning I will draw again if I haven’t heard from you!)  and I will forward your info on and they will ship directly to you!!     Click here for email address.

Thanks for all your entries!

Jessica

Stevia Giveaway

Ask and you shall receive my friends!

I recently won a giveaway at Everyday Foodie’s blog!  And was super excited when my package arrived – especially when Ron the “SUGAR-FREE POPPA” mentioned that he’d like to sponsor a giveaway on my blog – and not only one but FOUR!!   Can I get a “whoo whooo”?

As you may know, I don’t love stevia – I find it very bitter – and if you have a blog and you use stevia – you have probably had a comment from me such as;  “How much sugar do I use if I don’t use stevia?”  So it was bitter sweet (no pun intended) when I won the giveaway because I felt a little bit guilty taking a product I wasn’t so sure about but NuNaturals claims their stevia is not bitter – so I decided try! 

When I opened the package it smelled like orange!  Real orange, not fake orange flavor – I quickly opened it up and dripped a few drops into my water/lemon juice hot drink mix and guess what? It wasn’t bitter!!  YAYA!

Unfortunately, I smashed the vanilla before getting to try it *sniffle* and I haven’t tried the lemon yet, but I’ll get to it shortly.

 

Anyways – enough chatter – you probably don’t care about those above details, you just want to get to the good stuff!

SUGAR FREE POPPA is offering up 4 different winners – 2 bottles of liquid stevia – one orange and one lemon!   Sound good!?

I’m going to make this easy one everyone – please leave ONE comment for EACH entry.   Please note – this is open to US and Canadians – but THEY DO NOT SHIP TO PO BOXES

Here’s how to enter!!

1. Leave a comment letting me know why you think you should have some stevia?  
2. Like me on facebook  (and leave a comment here)
3. Like NuNaturals too!  (and leave a comment here)
4. Share a status on facebook that says something including – giveaway + Dairy Free Betty + NuNaturals!! (and leave a comment here!)

That’s all!  This is open to bloggers and non bloggers – so don’t be shy! 

Closes MONDAY  May 14th! 

Foodie Pen Pals

So you may already know about the “Foodie Pen Pals” thing that’s going around in blog land right now!  I signed up for April and had a blast!

I sent my package to Jennifer and I received a package from Amanda, who unfortunately doesn’t have a blog, but I know she reads mine (Hi Amanda!)

The best part about the package arriving is I totally forgot that it was coming!  So what a surprise when a big box full of goodies arrived!

She couldn’t have done better if she tried!  Clean Eating Magazine (awesome!), Tea and fillable Tea Bags,  2x Justin’s nut butter (so good), Love Grown Granola (drool) and a Vega shake and go, plus of course a lovely card! 

Take a look at this tea!

It has big chunks of apple, nuts and beet root (which makes it turn hot pink), it smells incredible too like cinnamon apple pie!

If you want to be apart of Foodie Pen Pals click the link and it will give you details!  I will for sure be doing this again – it was a blast!

Thank you again Amanda!  Such an awesome gift pack!

xo Jess

West Coast Living

So I’ve done these posts in the past – they are always one of my favorite posts.  I live in an incredible place and have awesome friends so these posts always highlights it!

It is finally beach fire season around here!   We packed up some dinner and spent Friday night with friends at the beach and it was awesome!

We live in such a magical place!   And days like this day make up for the 350 days of rain per year! (Just kidding, it doesn’t rain that much, but sometimes it feels that way)

We also happen to have friends that fully embrace West Coast living AND eating!  We are always treated to a feast.   Salmon and veggie kebabs and bacon wrapped oysters!

Served on driftwood of course!

The sun started to set while the dogs played on the shore…

Usually as the sun goes down the cruise ships start to pass by, but I guess it’s not quiet time yet!

Want to come visit?  I know you do!

xo Jessica