(Mostly) Clean Eating Chocolate Cake

We have been faithfully following the Feingold Program in our family since April.  If you're new around here or unfamiliar with Feingold, it's a diet that eliminates all foods with artificial food colors and flavors, most preservatives, artificial sweeteners, and initially some foods with salicylic acid (like apples, tomatoes, peppers, etc.)  Originally, I started the family on this program to see if it would help our autistic son.  The results with the Beast were immediate and exciting.  As I have related on this blog before, I started noticing positive results in the other kids as well as myself and the Nerd.  Since then, we have slowly been moving towards an even more drastic change in our diet.  Clean eating is eating lots of fresh, organic fruits and vegetables, some locally raised meat, dairy products, seeds, nuts, and things made with whole grains.  It excludes refined grains (like white flour and white rice and refined sweeteners as well as most "processed" foods.  We have made gradual changes along these lines and love the way we feel when we "eat clean." 

The Spud's birthday was the first time I attempted making a birthday cake clean eating style.  I played around with some ingredients to make the cake, and then used the Gracious Pantry's recipe for chocolate pumpkin frosting.  Somehow no photos were taken of the cake; so I can't tantalize you with a delicious-looking picture.  You'll just have to take my word that this cake is good!  The frosting is definitely different.  The Nerd said it tasted a little weird at first, but then he started to really like it. 
I call it (mostly) clean eating cake because there is turbinado sugar in it, and we also decorated the top of the cake with Joe-Joe's (Trader Joes' version of chocolate sandwich cookies). 

(Mostly) Clean Eating Chocolate Cake
You'll need:
* 2 cups whole wheat flour (I think whole wheat pastry flour would work even better)
* 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
* 1 1/2 TBS baking powder
* 1 1/2 cups raw sugar (turbinado)
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 2 eggs, slightly beaten
* 1 1/2 TBS vanilla extract
* 1 1/2 cups whole milk
* 2/3 cup coconut oil or softened butter (unsalted)

To Make:
1.  Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Butter and flour a 9x13 pan and set aside.  (This recipe would work also in two 8 inch round pans; but baking time will be shorter.)
2.  Combine all dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, sugar, and salt) and whisk together.
3.  Combine all wet ingredients (eggs, vanilla, whole milk, and coconut oil) and mix well.
4.  Add wet mixture to dry mixture and beat until smooth. 
5.  Spread batter evenly into the pan and put it in the oven.
6.  Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the top springs back gently when you touch it or a toothpick comes out clean. 

When the cake is completely cool (and still in the pan), make the Gracious Pantry's frosting recipe (find it here) and smooth it over the top of your cake.  I did use agave nectar instead of honey in that recipe.  For my car lover, I smashed some Joe-Joe's and sprinkled them on the frosting and then outlined a monster truck arena with more Joe-Joe's.  The Spud picked out some of his favorite Monster Truck toys to put on the cake, and I spelled his name out with foam letters. 

The Nerd recently celebrated his birthday and has requested a late birthday cake - a cheesecake, no less.  So I'm on the lookout for a clean eating cheesecake recipe now. :)

Enjoy your chocolate cake!

Keeping Cool

We have finally been getting some "real summer" around here.  The days are hot and sticky, and we are finding ourselves spending a lot of time at splash parks and pools.  Last summer, we would have definitely been going through our fair share of freezer pops and other brightly-colored popsicles.  Now, with our diet and lifestyle changes, we have had to seek out alternatives to the freezer treats filled with high fructose corn syrup and chemical food dyes.  Here's a peek into some of our favorite frozen treats this summer.

1.  Banana "Ice Cream" - This one has been bouncing around Pinterest for a while now.  You simply take some very ripe bananas, slice them up, and freeze them.  When they are frozen solid, put them in your food processor and run it.  At first, it will just look like thousands of tiny granules of banana, but as you keep running the processor, it will turn into a creamy substance that has the same texture as ice cream.  It tastes great just as it is, or you can blend in a little cocoa powder or peanut butter for a different flavor.  This has been a fantastic treat for Little Sprout, who is teething like mad.

2.  Frozen Watermelon Cubes - This one happened to us by accident.  We bought a huge watermelon for a picnic and couldn't finish it all.  The Nerd decided to cut up the rest into cubes and put them in the freezer, thinking they would work well in smoothies.  And they do!  But the Beast and I love eating them frozen - a cold and very hydrating treat.  So so good - I'm snacking on some now while I type this post!

3.  Other Frozen Fruit - Blueberries and grapes are fantastic snacks when frozen.  We also like to munch on frozen mango slices.  But ask my kids what their favorite frozen thing is?  Peas.  Yes, you read that right.  I buy big bags of frozen peas at Costco, and my kids love to snack on them.  Who knew?

4.  Yogurt Popsicles - You can get popsicle molds anywhere.  I even found them at the dollar store.  I fill mine with organic vanilla yogurt, sometimes adding cocoa powder to make fudgsicles.  Lemon yogurt makes the best popsicles, in my opinion.

Our church's VBS gives out freezer pops to all the kids when they leave each evening.  It was a little hard on the Beast especially the first night to say no to the bright blue pops and wait until we got home for his treat.  But the rest of the week, he remembered the yummy popsicles waiting in the freezer at home and was able to pass on the freezer pops without a problem.  (Well, except the fact that he had to announce to everyone in a loud voice that the freezer pops had yucky food coloring in them.  We are still working on manners and tact.)

I am glad to have found so many delicious frozen treats that the kids genuinely enjoy.  Very occasionally, we allow them to have some Tillamook chocolate peanut butter ice cream.  It's all natural and perfectly find to have in moderation, but we kind of like keeping it to ourselves.  ;)

It looks like we'll have no trouble staying cool this August!

Cookie Dough You're Supposed to Eat

Today I've got an easy but very dangerous recipe to share with you all.  (dangerous to the waistline, anyway, and any slivers of self control that you might have remaining after making it!)  I call it "Cookie Dough You're Supposed to Eat" (fancy title, no?) because that's exactly what it is - chocolate chip cookie dough that you can eat without fear of getting sick from raw eggs.  (I'll wait a moment while you clean that drool off your chin...)

Okay, so here's what you need:

1/2 cup butter, softened

3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

4 to 6 tbsp. water

Take the butter and sugar and cream it together.  Stir in the flour, salt, vanilla extract, and chocolate chips.  Gradually add the water until you get a nice cookie-dough-like consistency.  Spread it into a container with a lid and put in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.  (This takes great self discipline, by the way.)

Then take it out of the fridge and help yourself to a few spoonfuls.  If necessary, hide in a closet or other kid-safe place so you don't have to share. 

If you're wondering how long this stuff lasts when kept in the refrigerator, I have no idea.  Mine has never made it past one day.  (No, I didn't eat the whole thing by myself!  At least not all in one sitting...)

Pepsi Doesn't Make Me a Good Mom

Pepsi-Cola and I have had a long-standing relationship.  We've had our ups and downs, to be sure.  I think I mentioned Pepsi and York peppermint patties as my favorite "snack" in my high school yearbook. (yikes!)  I have had my phases of trying to "quit" Pepsi.  Probably the longest we have ever been separated was about three months after I promised my dentist I would kick the soda habit to the curb.  Yet, every time I have found myself returning to my feel-good drink of choice.

I'm sure it comes as no surprise to you that there is no place for Pepsi on the Feingold diet.  With ingredients like high fructose corn syrup, phosphoric acid, and "natural flavors", it doesn't belong on any diet.  Still, I will be the first to admit that the Nerd and I have not fully committed ourselves to the Feingold program.  While I keep all the kids to a strict adherence of the diet, we have sometimes indulged in things not allowed on the Feingold program. (usually on date night or other times we are away from the kids).  I also have not fully "gone Feingold" in the beauty department.  The kids use fragrance-free and dye-free shampoo, conditioner, and soap;  I have switched to dye-free but haven't been able to convince myself to ditch the fragrances.

So, yes, I would still enjoy a Pepsi here and there - not under any delusions that it was good for my health, of course.  But after having a small slice of red velvet cake at a conference and immediately getting a migraine afterwards, I began to wonder what effects these artificial colors and flavors could have on myself.  I decided to keep a food and mood journal.  I had been doing this already for our TC (target child in Feingold speak), and it had proven very helpful in identifying what foods were triggering his moods, bizarre behavior, meltdowns, insomnia, etc.  After a week of journaling what I ate and drank and recording my moods and general health afterwards, I was shocked to discover something.

Pepsi did not make me a good mom.

  It seemed that I would reach for a Pepsi mid-to-late afternoon, the time of day that most stay-at-home moms know is a little more stressful.  After downing a can of Pepsi, my journal showed that I was angry, irritable, moody, and stressed out.  To put it bluntly, I was a bad mom.  I would snap at my kids and feel impatient when they didn't obey quickly enough.  I was amazed at how quickly and how fiercely my temper came out.  I was drinking the Pepsi to help calm myself during a more stressful time of day, and it was having exactly the opposite effect.

Once I realized this, it was no problem breaking up with Pepsi.  Strange that the negative effects on my teeth or my weight never seemed to impact me this way.

I don't know what it is in Pepsi that affects me that way.  I don't know if other sodas would have the same effect, but this girl's not in line to find out, if you know what I mean.

Bye, Pepsi.  This time it's final.

Easy Breakfast: Happy Toast

 My Beast does not like cereal - he won't touch the stuff.  I've tried multiple varieties to entice him, but he's not taking the bait.  So much for simple breakfast.  However, that boy does love him some toast!  I often make him Egg-In-A-Hole to make his toast a little more nutritious and satisfying.  He calls it his happy toast. :)

It's incredibly easy to make.  You just need a good sturdy piece of bread (pictured is a slice of homemade honey wheat bread), an egg, and some butter.
How to Make Happy Toast:
1.  Melt some butter in a skillet over medium high heat (or on a griddle).
2.  Cut a shape out of the center of your bread slice with a small cookie cutter or drink glass.
3.  Place the bread slice on the melted butter in the skillet.
4.  Traditionally, Egg-In-A-Hole is made by cracking an egg directly into the hole in the bread.  My Beast likes scrambled eggs better; so I whisk up the egg first and then pour it into the hole.
5.  Hold bread in place with a spatula while egg cooks.  (You don't want the egg to run out all over the skillet!)
6.  When egg is mostly cooked, flip bread over to finish cooking the egg.
7.  Serve it up to your kiddo and look for a delighted smile at the fun shape in his toast.  This will confirm that you have just made. . .

HAPPY TOAST!   Here's to a wonderful Tuesday to all you readers out there!

Potpourri of the Week #2

As usual my brain has been jumping all over the place this week and most likely driving my husband crazy. Potpourri of the Week is an opportunity for me to share with you where my brain has been - websites, blogs, books, outerspace, etc.  So let's get started....

1.  First up, I downloaded yet another free book to my Kindle with plans to read it in, oh say the next five years.  I realized that I have over 300 books now on there!  While skimming through the titles, I found Raising Kids With Love and Limits by Julie Barnhill.  A certain little someone has been making me question every "method" and "tactic" I have in my parenting arsenal lately; so I dug into this book.  So far, it has been - funny, heartwarming, useful, blunt, and convicting.  The honesty is refreshing.  I love this quote:  "So how to explain feeling (dare I admit, even looking) like a complete moron while standing in the middle of Target and trying to coerce a kid smaller than the circumference of our right thigh to listen and obey when we say no?"  For mommas of young ones who are constantly overthinking their parenting skills, I highly recommend this book.  And I've not even finished it yet!

2.  Next, along the same lines as it seems my brain (and heart!) have been consumed with mommyhood lately, I happened across this thought-provoking post by Rachel at Finding Joy.  "Where Did the Delight Go?" is a challenge to mothers everywhere to get back to enjoying their children instead of just viewing them as more work.  I don't think any of us consciously would label our children as work, but it is incredibly easy to get caught up in all the doing that children cause - laundry, messes, discipline, teaching, feeding, etc.  It becomes humdrum and ordinary and sometimes can make us resentful of the ones we were once so excited to mother and nuture.  But, Rachel says it a whole lot better than I do; so go check out her post.  I promise it's worth the read. 

3.  It has been over a month since our family embarked on the Feingold Elimination Diet.  Since then, I have been researching and studying food dyes, artificial flavors, and the preservatives that mess with my autistic child's brain and cause him to have such terrible meltdowns and space-outs.  The more information I uncover, the more I am appalled and ashamed that I allowed all of my children to ingest these terrible things for so long.  I am thankful in a way that my son's issues forced us to consider this radical change to our diet, because quite honestly I don't think I would have done the research otherwise.  Even if the elimination of petroleum food dyes and artificial flavors had not made a significant difference in the Beast's behavior, we cannot turn back now.  I cannot give these poisons to my kids, knowing what I know now.  Blogger Rebecca at Die, Food Dye devotes her energy to informing the public about these dangerous chemicals in hopes of making a change in America.  Read her recent post on who's doing it right and who's not in the food and medical industry.  I guarantee it will stop and make you think. 

4.  As always, I like to end on a light-hearted, not-so-much-deep-thinking note.  This post had me laughing hysterically yesterday.  The author's story and pictures resonated with me, as I have experienced something very similar with my boys.  I will warn you that there are potty words and anatomy words involved;  so if that kind of thing makes you uncomfortable or nervous, skip this one.  Otherwise, read on, and may I recommend not reading it at work or lunch or anyplace you may  be liable to distract everyone with your loud giggling. 

Carry on, everyone!  Have a great weekend!

Fits the Feingold Diet: Crunchy Cheese Stars

So in case you haven't noticed, I have four kids ages six and under.  This means that their little tummies are often empty, and the little beggars will come around looking for snacks.  Pre-Feingold, I would give them cheese and crackers, carrot sticks, tortilla chips, granola bars, goldfish, popcorn, etc.  While some of those are still good options for the offspring, manufactured snacks such as goldfish, graham crackers, and chips are out unless I want to shell out a lot of money for the organic, no-additive variety.  The frugal me says that's not okay, especially when my kids chow through a little box of crackers in one day.  Just sayin'.  So I have been on the hunt for recipes to make my own crackers (thank you Pinterest!) with these three goals in mind:  1) it has to have healthy ingredients  2) it has to be simple and not-too-time-consuming  and 3) it has to be tasty enough that the kids will eat it willingly - otherwise, it's so not worth it!  And in my search, I found this recipe for cheese crackers.  Five ingredients.  Prep sounded simple.  Baking sounded easy.  Pictures looked awesome.  And so I tried them.  Here's how my version went down:

First, I made the dough.  It's really just like making a pie crust, with the addition of cheddar cheese of course.  I took 4 TBS of butter, cubed it up, and threw it in my food processor.  Next I shredded up the cheddar cheese to get 8 ounces (make sure to use Feingold approved cheese) and attempted to add that to my food processor.  It was then I realized that I did not own a full-size food processor, but rather a "mini", which was not large enough to fit this recipe.  What to do, what to do?  I moved the cubed butter and shredded cheese to my blender, added a cup of flour, 3/4 teaspoon of salt, and pressed the button.  What happened next was a whole lot of nothing.  The blades whirled merrily around, doing nothing.  I shook the blender and did a lot of very-unculinary-like things to try to make it work.  Nothing.  Still persevering, I transferred the whole chunky mix to my Kitchenaid mixer.  I put that baby on high until finally the mixture was incorporated enough to add the 2 TBS cold water.   I then transferred the cracker dough (finally!!) to plastic wrap, wrapped it up tightly, and put it in the fridge for thirty minutes.  (Or maybe it was an hour, I did get pretty caught up in some Facebooking and Pinteresting...)

The next step was to put the dough on a sheet of wax paper and roll it out as thin as you can.  Realizing that I only had parchment paper in my pantry, I decided it would work just as well and commenced with the rolling.  This takes some muscle work, ladies!  The paper kept shifting on the table, and my only solution was to get one knee up on the table to hold down the paper while I rolled that dough.  And no, I did not get you all a picture of that athletic feat!  Eventually, I got a nice, even, thin slab of dough to cut out my stars.  Our Ordinary Life creatively made her own cutters out of a soda can.  I happened to have a little star cutter that worked just fine.  I cut and cut and cut and cut and put all those cheesy stars on my cookie sheet, close together because they wouldn't spread at all.  And then I baked 'em for fifteen minutes at 350 degrees.

Results?  Crunchy, buttery, cheesy, tasty crackers that were more than just a little addictive!  I rerolled the remaining dough a few more times to cut out the rest of the stars and baked them too.  What crackers actually made it past the hungry crew lying in wait in the living room were stored in an airtight container for future snacking.  And despite all my struggles with evil kitchen appliances and slippery dough, I felt it was very worth it.

I did some math for you all to figure out the cost of making a batch of these yummy crackers.  I used average costs for butter, cheese, and flour, with the final total being about $1.50 for 12 ounces of delicious cheesiness.  That's a lot cheaper than Annie's Homegrown Cheddar Bunnies!

I made these crackers a second time this past week, using the mixer straight away instead of messing with the other appliances.  My dough was not as pliable that time around and was much harder to roll thin.  I think I'm going to have to spring for a full-size food processor.  Me thinks there will be many more recipes in my future using this machine...

Fits the Feingold Diet: Cheesy Chicken Strips and Italian Fries

We have been Feingoldin' it now for a full month now, and I have been experimenting a lot in the kitchen to make yummy, kid-friendly, Feingold-approved meals.  I made one fantastic dish - coconut mango chicken with rice - that was a dismal failure for the rest of the family.  (I loved it and ate it for days!)  Maybe I'll share the recipe for that in another post, but for today, I present to you - Cheesy Breaded Chicken Strips and Italian Fries.  

The Italian fries are super easy.  Wash seven or eight medium-sized potatoes and cut up into fries.  Put them all into a big bowl and toss with a little olive oil, basil, and oregano.  

Spread them out on a baking sheet and set aside.  They will go into the oven a bit later, and when they do, you will experience this sizzling yumminess:

For the chicken strips, take two pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breast and cut into long strips.  Make a dipping solution of one part sour cream and one part ranch dressing.  Make a breading solution of one cup soft bread crumbs (I just took the last couple of slices from the bread I had made that day and tossed them into the food processor), one half cup finely shredded mozzarella cheese, one half cup finely shredded parmesan cheese, oregano, salt, and pepper to taste.  

Dip each strip into the ranch dressing mix and then into the breadcrumb mix, thoroughly coating on all sides. Place each covered strip on a greased cookie sheet as shown.  

Put your chicken strips into the oven preheated to 375 degrees and bake.  After ten minutes, add the potatoes into the oven.  Both the fries and the chicken strips should be ready to come out of the oven in about twenty to twenty-five more minutes.  (depends on how thick you cut your chicken strips and fries!)

These are so juicy and tasty - I promise you won't even need ketchup or other dipping sauce for the chicken or the fries.  Which is a good thing, considering there are no tomatoes allowed on phase one of the Feingold Diet...

Best Sandwich Bread Ever

As I have mentioned in previous posts, we recently changed our whole family over to the Feingold Elimination Diet, a food and lifestyle plan that has helped hundreds of kids with ADD, autism, and other issues.  Before we started this diet, the Beast was having daily meltdowns, longer periods of regression, extreme lack of focus, and bouts of anxiety that would keep him awake at night.  Those were primarily the reasons I started researching for a way that we could help him naturally.

The Feingold Diet is a pretty radical change from the way we were eating and living.  We purchased the member plan for a year, which gave us access to a 300-page book of what brands and foods and beauty products were acceptable on the plan.  It also gave us a lot of helpful tips on how to get started, with a compendium of recipes to use as well as breakfast, lunch, and snack ideas.  Obviously I have neither the room (nor the permission !) to share all of that information here; but here's a very basic overview of our new way of life.

The Feingold Diet eliminates all artificial food colors, all artificial flavors, most preservatives, all synthetic sweeteners, and natural salicylates.  Many autistic children have a sensitivity to one or more of the salicylic foods, which include apples, oranges, berries, grapes, peppers, tomatoes, and other natural foods;  so these natural salicylates are removed for 6 to 8 weeks and then are gradually reintroduced to the child one at a time to test for toleration. Also, toiletries and laundry detergent have to be color-free and fragrance-free.  As you can imagine, meal planning has been quite interesting!  I am able to purchase bread, but the brands and types allowed on the diet are quite expensive and not really feasible for a family that loves sandwiches for lunch!  

So I've been making my own bread and experimenting with several recipes to get just the "right" sandwich bread.  I think I've found a winner!

 This yummy white sandwich bread is made using King Arthur Flour's recipe here.  It is (literally!) the easiest bread recipe I have ever made.  You just put all the ingredients in your bowl in the order listed in the recipe, mix and knead, let it rise, transfer it to a loaf pan, let it rise again, and bake.

Here we got a little too eager and cut into the bread before it was cool enough.  I have no regrets. :)  The recipe makes a nice soft sandwich bread that is still sturdy enough to hold tuna salad or egg salad.  I am thinking that for the most part, this is going to be my go-to recipe for bread.
I am also working on finding or creating recipes that fit in our new diet and are kid-friendly (no easy task when you don't have tomato sauce to work with).  I am hoping to share many of these in the blog in the upcoming weeks to be a help to others who may also be on the diet or at least considering it.
Oh, and are you wondering if we've seen any results?  Two days after we started it, the Beast calmly and quietly stayed at the dinner table throughout the entire meal.  This has NEVER happened before.  I have also seen him now able to control himself better and able to calm himself down without help!  We are so amazed at the change.
I should have waited until the end of writing this post to add the pictures.  I am so hungry for a piece of that bread now!  I think I'll go warm up a slice and slather it with some butter...

Dear Brain, Please Stop

Ah, I haven't posted in a whole week! That's not to say that there aren't a host of them swimming around in my mind, though. The month of April is Autism Awareness Month, and as most of you know, our Beast was diagnosed with high-functioning autism almost two years ago. We are currently in the midst of a series of evaluations, teacher meetings, specialist meetings, and an ever-growing mound of paperwork. The Beast just celebrated his fifth birthday (fifth?!!!!) yesterday while he and I try to navigate through ever-increasing meltdowns, struggles to communicate, and most recently, bedwetting.

My brain is so literally filled to the brim with autism-related problems and hopeful helps that I am having trouble sleeping at night. I spend copious amounts of time researching and trying new ways to communicate and help my son. Then I worry and feel guilty that I may not be paying enough attention to my other children. It's a balancing act that makes me uncomfortable, but discomfort is all a part of parenting, anyway, as I am finding out more and more each day.

So while my head has been spinning and my heart has been hurting, life has still been a joy. God has given us more than we ever imagined, and my heart still smiles at the memory of my three oldest excitedly whispering to one another in their bedroom last night after a birthday celebration at John's Incredible Pizza. This weekend will be filled with Easter happiness and yes, probably a LOT of overstimulation for our little man.

Decisions are in the making for the Beast's education and other well-being. Next week, our whole family will be starting a new adventure as we tackle the Feingold diet(http://feingold.org/) and the drastic changes that will bring to our lives.

But, today, I am going to try to enjoy this day I have been given. The kids are playing with the Beast's new giant bowling set in the hallway, and Momma's got to show them her awesome bowling moves.