Traveling Gluten Free- Road Trip

The biggest challenge faced when having food allergies or sensitivity is travel. I've been on missions trips, camps, faced college, sleepovers, and even day trips. Each comes with preparation because of how I eat. I've been preparing a list to make travel easy and enjoyable because it should be! Never let allergies get in the way of travel or new experiences.

Domestic Travel- Road trips

1. Google search the destination. Then use yelp.com, yellowpages.com, or a website similar to search for gluten free restaurants near by.

2. Look up grocery stores nearby. Worse comes to worst you go to the grocery store and grab some thing to last you the duration of the trip.

3. Alert whoever your staying with. If it is a hotel, call the restaurant, concierge, or room service and ask if they are allergen friendly.

4. If staying with friends/family, let them know! Especially for planning ahead for your arrival, they will most likely buy food for the number of guests expected. Tell them about the allergies and ask if it would be alright to use the kitchen to prepare meals for yourself.

5. Look up fast food restaurants gluten free menus. Such restaurants include: chipotle, noodles & company, panera, Culver's, Mcdonalds, and subway. Search for those on your maps app. Then when your hungry you can make a stop!

What to bring:

1. Stock a cooler with leftovers, salad, veggies, fruit, sandwiches, lunch meat, anything that will be a meal. This is the healthiest option. Its east to grab a bag of chips if you do not prepare for your road trip. Bring gluten free bread in the cooler. If your traveling for days, you can stop at a grocery store and buy lunch meat or cheese for a sandwhich.

2. Granola bars, protein bars, and fruit is a must. It will keep you full and is easy to eat while driving.

3. Stock up on oatmeal. You can ask for hot water and eat it anytime.

4. Protein shakes are also a great idea and easy to travel with.

New to the gluten free lifestyle? PART ONE

Over the past year A LOT of people have been asking for advice. Mainly because drastically changing your diet requires work. I have compiled a list of hidden ingredients and things to refrain from. There are hundreds of other items to avoid. Therefore do not use this list solely as your guide.

Hidden 

Malt/malt extract - Be careful with brown dyed foods because they usually contain malt which is a form of gluten. Also malts as in an ice cream shake. These also contain gluten.
Instead try: regular shakes, but always check ice creams as well as with the waiter to refrain from gluten

Soy sauce- General soy sauce at restaurants as well as in dressings, marinades, and sauces can contain soy sauce which is made with wheat.
Instead try: Gluten free soy sauce is extremely easy to find in the international sections of grocery stores. Also look for Braggs liquid amino's this product is a healthier version of a soy sauce which happens to be gluten free.

Tortillas- Mexican food provides a vast selection of gluten free safe options. Gluten is used for many tortillas
Instead try- Corn tortillas. All mexican restaurants give the option, just ask!

Rye- Rye bread is gluten
Instead try- Schar brand breads, many local farmers markets sell gluten free bread and desserts, and local bread smiths tend to have gluten free days

Brownie Crumble Cake

I originally set out to make a chocolate cake. It came out of the oven looking like brownies. Then I tried to take it out of the pan and it fell everywhere. Well then, I guess it will be what it wants to be!

Lemme tell you...Its one of the best brownie recipe I have ever made. I love them. I ate one whole pan by myself. Not my proudest moment but I couldn't help myself.

Ingredients:
5 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate chips or baking bars
1 stick of vegan butter
1 cup of brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup of sugar
2 eggs
1 serving of vegan vanilla pudding
2/3 cups of almond flour
1/4 cup of oat flour
1/2 cup of bob red mills all purpose baking flour
1 tsp of xanathan gum
1 1/2 tsp of baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9x9 baking pan
2. Melt the chocolate over a double broiler
3. Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and beat until incorporated.
4. Add pudding and vanilla extract as well as cooled chocolate.
5. Add flour and baking powder/soda
6. Pour batter into a pan and bake for 30 minutes or until the top starts to set.

If a crackled crunchy top is desired, leave the brownies in the oven but turn the temperature off, for 10 minutes.

Chocolate Pudding Cake

I made this as a stepping stone to a dairy free soufflé. This has qualities of a torte, but remains uber gooey and light.

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup of vegan chocolate chips (found at whole foods)
6 Cage free egg whites
6 Tablespoons of vegan butter
1/4 Cup of palm sugar (if not available white sugar is acceptable)

Directions:
                                                 Pre-heat oven to 275
1. Melt the chocolate with the butter in the microwave for 45 seconds. Stir.
2. Whip the egg whites until glossy and slightly firm.
3. Add palm sugar to the egg whites.
4. Gently add the chocolate mixture into the egg whites.
5. Pour into a buttered pan.
6. Bake for one hour.
7. After baking sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.

Gluten/Dairy Free Calzone

I think pizza is one of the hardest things to replicate when you have food allergies. Theres nothing that can truly replace the cheese. On that note, I believe that this calzone is a pretty darn close replication of the real thing. Its crispy, yet gooey. Oh and it takes less than an hour from start to finish!!

Serving size: 4

Ingredients:
Cup for Cup Pizza Dough- Follow the directions on the package
1 1/2 cup of daiya mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup of marinara sauce
Optional: diced mushrooms, peperoni, sausage, onion

Directions:
                               Pre-heat the oven to 425
1. Roll out the dough into a circle
2. Place marinara, cheese, and toppings a farther than the center- making it easier to fold the dough
3. Fold the dough over. It should not fully meet the other edge.
4. Fold over the bottom layer of dough on top of the dough.
5. With a fork press the edges so the filling does not escape.
6. Make three 1/2 inch slices otop of the calzone for air to escape.
7. Drizzle olive oil over the top along with salt and garlic powder.
8. Bake for 35 minutes.

CINO DE GUACO

Guacamole mmm, avocado has numerous health benefits. But, the problem is too much healthy fats are bad for you. This recipe is a modified, lower calorie version. Its tasks wonderful. My mom couldn't stop eating it!!!

If you don't like peas.. you cannot taste them at all. Trust me please!!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups of thawed peas
1 avocado
1/2 small onion, diced
6 small cherry tomatoes
juice of half a lime
2 tbsp salt
1 tbsp garlic powder
1/2 tbsp cumin, cayenne, and cilantro

Serving size: 6

Directions:
1. Thaw correct amount of peas, then place in a blender with the pitted avocado. Save the pit and place in finished recipie. It helps the guac to retain it's color and freshness.

2. Remove and place in a small mixing bowl.

3. Add in the remaining ingredients and stir well.

4.  Serve within 4 days

Serving suggestions:
Sliced vegetables such as sweet pepper, carrots, and celery.
Tortilla chips
Pita bread
On a wrap
In a taco salad
or Just by the spoonful!

Fluffernutter Freezers

Who doesn't love peanut butter and fluff? This combination creates a great dessert that blends, chewy crunchy, sweet, and salty.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup peanut butter, 1/4 cup reserved for later
1/4 cup fluff
1 1/2 cup of soaked pecans
1 cup pitted dates

Serves roughly 10

Directions:
1. Place pecans and dates into a food processor. Blend until grainy and fully broken down.
2. Add peanut butter and fluff.
3. Freeze for at least 4 hours,
4. Top with remaining peanut butter.
5. Slice into squares and serve.

Brownie batter protein shake

This shake is very thick. Its suppose to be. Add more water if desired.

1 serving

Ingredients:
1 scoop of chocolate protein power- I prefer vitamin codes raw chocolate power
1/2 frozen mango
3 frozen strawberries
1/2 cup water
1/2 tbsp coco powder
hemp seeds
Sweetener -if desired


Directions:
Place all ingredients in blender. Blend and serve!

GIVEAWAY!!!

Thank you all for responding greatly to my blog and all the support! I cannot believe the response. I truly thank you for supporting me. It means a lot.  In honor of reaching 1000 views I'm giving away Clif and Luna bars. All you need to do is share one post and comment on one post. Thats it. Winner will be announced in two weeks. So get sharing!!

Clif and luna bars are gluten, dairy, and egg free. I keep them in my car, purse, and workout bag. They provide an energy and protein boost. Luna bars specifically target woman by proving four core nutrients woman need for a healthy lifestyle. But men love em too!

                                                       

Photo Credit: Clif bar: excelsports.com and Luna bar: cooking light.com

Balsamic onion quesadillas

Man have I been ms. Traveler. I haven't posted anything in ages! I'm so sorry. Between going to Kenya, Peoria, St. Louis, ft lauderdale, and the keys... Well I haven't been able to cook. But I'm back!!

While I was in the keys, all I craved was quesadillas. Odd. One of my favorite vegetables is the onion. So I sautéed some of them up, plopped them on a quesadilla with cheese. It was delicious. I did have some left over balsamic dressing on my plate from a salad. I though: hmm It could be good. Balsamic and onions! Mmm. It was more than good. I loved it.

I'm sharing this easy recipe with you because it makes sense. Onions and Balsamic combo is always a winner. It's also a quick dinner or lunch.

Ingredients :
Two gluten free wrap sized tortillas
One large onion, sliced
Vegan cheese ( I use follow your heart brand)
Balsamic dressing of choice ( I have to say Kraft creamy balsamic is awesome)

Directions:
1. Sauté sliced onion in a cast iron skillet ( everything taste better in cast iron) with a tablespoon of oil.
2. After three minutes, add in salt and pepper.
3. You want the onion to be caramelized. it does take a while but it's delicious.
4. Take a tortilla and fill with roughly 1/4 cup of cheese with half the onions.
5. Fry in a skillet until cheese is melted.
6. Repeat with other tortilla.
7. Once ready to serve drizzle balsamic over and enjoy.

Clean Eating Banana Bread

The reason this is considered "clean" is: only 1/4 cup of sugar, egg whites, no gluten, no dairy, no corn, and no soy. Thats a lot of NO'S! But those no's are awesome. Try out this form of banana bread. I'm sure you will love it!

Ingredients:

1 3/4 C gluten free flour (I used 3/4 oat flour, 3/4 white rice flour, and 1/4 almond meal)
1 tsp xanath gum
1/4 C almond butter
1/4 C white sugar
3/4 C splenda or stevia
3 mashed bananas
2 egg whites
1/4 C dairy free butter
3 Tbs honey
1 Tbs cinnamon

Pre-Heat oven to 350
Yeilds 8 large slices

Directions:
1. In a small bowl combine flour, xanath gum, and sugar. In a large bowl mix together egg whites, almond butter, and bananas.
2. Combine wet and dry ingredients together
3. Place in a greased loaf pan for 35 minutes.
4. While cooling, whip butter, honey, and cinnamon together. Place atop hot bread. This will soak into the bread infusing it with flavor.
5. Enjoy

Cheesy vegetable sauté

Being cows milk intolerant, broccoli and cheese no longer exists. Heck I never have even had it even before this intolerance. I wanted to change up a normal sauté. I was bored. I had some whipped goat cheese dip on hand and decided to pour it over vegetables. Ummm yum!!

Seeing size:
1 meal portion or 2 side servings
Ingredients:
2 cups of mixed frozen/fresh vegetables (I used carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower)
3 tablespoons of whipped goat cheese dip
1/4 cup of nutritional yeast

Directions:
1. Sauté the vegetables until softened.
2. Add in the dip and nutritional yeast.
3. Serve immediately or stores well in the fridge for three days.

Whipped goat cheese dip

I visited a restaurant recently that served an amazing goat cheese dip. That inspired this recipe.
Serving suggestions:
Pretzels
Pita chips
Fried Zucchini
Sliced pepper

Ingredients:
1/2 log of goat cheese (can you vegan blocked cheese found at whole foods)
1/4 cup of nut milk
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of garlic powder, tyme, onion powder

Directions:
1. Mash the cheese.
2. Add the spices.
3. Slowly stir in the milk.

Juice: The Pink Lady and The Hulk

Juices seem to be a new fad diet. All throughout social media, T.V shows, and magazines, you see juice cleanses. I personally think they aren't a smart idea. Juice contains an enormous amount of sugar. Yes, i's natural, but even too much is a bad idea. It can lead to spiked blood sugar levels, which progresses into a crash. Energy and motivation becomes harder to find. Juicing removes fiber from your fruit and vegtables. Thats what all the left over garbage is. Unless you just blend and make more of a smoothie.

That said, juice is the easiest way to get the daily recommended amount of fruit in your diet. A normal body weight for your height, 6 servings of fruits are recommended! Thats really difficult for me....I hope I'm not the only one. Juice's benefits are great for just a glass a day or a few a week. So here are some that I created.

The pink lady leads with grapefruit. This fruit speeds up metabolism, therefore aids in weight loss. Both oranges and grapefruit are high in vitamin c boosting your immune system naturally.

The hulk speaks for itself. This powerhouse of a drink will erase a guilty indulgence. Kale is considered a superfood, an apple a day keeps the doctor away, and carrots really do improve eye sight. I will admit the visual aspect is not appealing, but give it a try. Its delicious!!

Some helpful juicing tips:
If you juice multiple times a week, consider buying frozen fruit. Just de-thaw a small portion 30 minutes before juicing time. This cuts down cost drastically.
Always peel the fruit if it has a think rind
Quarter fibrous ingredients
Use the left over "junk" in your garden. The plants will thrive when the pulp is in the dirt
Can make the night before, but give a nice shake to the juice in the morning

Each serve two

The Pink Lady:

1 Grapefruit
1 Orange
2 Medium sized apples (I used Gala)
1 Carrot stalk
Optional: Add in honey if you prefer a sweeter drink. Grapefruit is very bitter!

The Hulk:

5 handfuls of kale (approximately 7 cups)
2 Medium Apples
2 Carrots
1 orange
1 cucumber
1/2 Cup blueberries
2 Celery stalks

Directions:

Peel the orange and quarter the apples. Then place everything in a juicer. DONE!

Whipped Cream

This form of whipped cream is simple. It's also extremely healthy. There is no added sugar or unnatural ingredients. All it is, is a can of cream of coconut. Isn't that awesome??

Try adding some lemon juice, cocoa powder, or jams into the frosting for a healthy twist on a plain flavor.

Ingredients:
1 Can of cream of coconut

Directions:
1. Empty can into a glass container. The entire can, can be added, or just the hardened part for a thick frosting.
2. Refrigerate overnight.
3. Whip with electric mixer.
4. Store for up to a week in the fridge.

Vegetable Saute

Ingredients:

5 Mixed Baby Peppers, Chopped
1 Onion, Chopped
1/4 Cup Sliced Carrots
1/2 Can of sweet corn
1/2 Can of Kidney Beans
1 Zucchini, Diced
2 Cups Spinich
Salt
Pepper
Cumin
Parsley
Garlic
Oil
Cheese to garnish

Directions:
1. Place all chopped vegetables into a pan. Add water just covering the vegtibles. Boil until all water evaporates.
2. Add in oil to cover the vegetables nicely. Saute with beans and all spices. Add spices till desired amount is reached.
3. Add spinach and cook till wilted.
4. Serve with freshly shredded cheese of choice. I like manchego.

Polenta pizza

Ingredients:
Sliced round polenta
Sundried tomatoes, diced
Cheese

Directions:
1. Turn broiler on. Then place the polenta on a sprayed pan. Bake on one side for ten minutes.
2. Flip, then top with tomatoes and cheese.
3. Broil for 7 more minutes.

Optional: sprinkle with garlic salt

Avocado citrus salad

Ingredients:
2 avocado, diced
1 can if sweet corn
1 can of white northern beans
1/4 cup of lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
Salt & Pepper

Directions:
1. Place the brand and corn in a bowl.
2. Prepare the dressing by adding lemon and olive oil together. Whisk.
3. Place diced avocado in the bowl.
4. Top with dressing and salt.
5. Let the salad sit for two hours in the fridge.

Vegan Scramble

I like my egg whites. I do. Sometimes I just don't want an egg, other times there is a pile up of tofu in my fridge. Most times I make my protein mousse, but when its firm tofu I have limited options. I tried out vegan scrambled eggs and was very nervous. I honestly thought they would be nasty. To my surprise, I loved them, a lot. :) Love the fact that it's a high protein dish to start you're morning off right!

Estimated time: 45 Minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients:
1 Package of firm tofu, cubed
About 7 mushrooms, diced
1/2 Yellow pepper, diced
1 Tbsp yellow mustard
1 Tsp Gluten free soy sauce
Lots of salt & pepper

Directions:
1. Take the cubed and drained tofu and place in a sprayed frying pan. Get it going on medium heat. Let it cook for a while. Tofu is very wet. So, in order for it to crisp up you need to be patient.

2. Meanwhile, chop up the vegtables. Place them into another pan. I like to do a light steam on them. In the frying pan, I fill it up with water. Let that steam out. You save calories because you are not constantly placing oil in the pan, and you soften them pretty quick. Once the pan is dry, spray with pam and let them saute for just a few minutes,

3. Check on your tofu. It should be almost ready!

4. Now its time to place your soy and mustard with the tofu. After thats incorporated, add the vegetables. Then serve it up.

Sweet potato and black bean quesadillas

Yes, the combination of sweet potatoes and black beans is frightning. But, its brilliant too. So READ ON!

 I went to Nashville a few weeks ago and found myself sitting in a little restaurant called the wild cow. The vegan restaurant created delicious dishes; I found it hard to choose just one thing. I ended up ordering sweet potato and black bean tacos. It was weird at first, then it grew on me. I loved that sweet potatoes were incorporated because they have numerous nutritional benefits. So here I am whipping up my own version.

I decided to go with quesadillas because the super bowl is tomorrow. They are super easy to make and have ingredients that many people have on hand. Thats why these are nice. Plus, you can sneak in healthy food without anyone really noticing.

Ingredients:
4 Corn soft tortillas
1/2 Can of black beans
1 Sweet potato
1/4 Cup almond milk
1 Tsp salt & pepper
1 Tsp cumin
Vegan sour cream
Vegan cheese

Directions:
1. Get a pot of boiling water started. Peel and dice the sweet potato.
2. Place sweet potato into the water and let simmer for about twenty minutes. When sticking a fork into the sweet potato, it sound enter easily.
3. Drain the water and mash the potato with a fork.
4. Stir in almond milk. Then, place in a bowl.
5. Throw the black beans into the pot with spices and cook until heated. About 3 minutes.
6. Fry the tortillas in a pan sprayed with pam. Each side only takes a minute.
7. Place half of the potato mixture onto two of the tortillas, then top with black beans.
8. Top both with cheese and sour cream.
9. Place the other tortillas on top.
10. Slice the tortillas like you would a pizza.

Optional: Top with salsa or guacamole