Toasted Cauliflower Rice {Gluten-free, Vegan}

Cauliflower makes a delicious side dish and is a great substitute for rice or pasta when you're looking to eat less carbohydrates. It's full of nutrients and fiber too! Mushrooms add great savory flavor so you won't miss the meat. More serving suggestions, nutrition facts and my recipe can be found at type2diabetes.com. Enjoy! ...click here for the recipe!

Lettuce-Wrap Burgers and Baked Sweet Potato Fries {Gluten-free, Beef, Grilling}

This is a two-for-one recipe! My hubby's deliciously simple grass-fed beef burgers wrapped in crisp lettuce AND sweet and savory, baked sweet potato fries! You can absolutely add your favorite bun or roll for the burger if you prefer, but crunchy lettuce is a really tasty compliment. Sometimes I just put my burger over a giant green salad and it's wonderful. Click here for Lettuce-Wrap Burgers and here for my Baked Sweet Potato Fries recipe. Enjoy! ...click here for the recipe!

Peanut Butter Yogurt Dip {Gluten-free, PB2, appetizer, Party Fare}

This is such a tasty dip and with fewer calories and fat than straight peanut butter you feel much better about eating it! It uses peanut butter powder, which is such a cool product! It's peanut butter that has been pressed to remove the oil and fat. You simply re-hydrate it with warm water ,or in this case yogurt, and bam, delicious peanut flavor without all the calories. I love this with crunchy, tart apples but it's also great with celery, snap peas, pretzels, crackers, etc. Click over to type2diabetes.com to see my recipe and some serving ideas. Enjoy! ...click here for the recipe!

Thai Pork Salad {Gluten-Free, Salads}

Looking to break-away from chicken every now and then? Pork tenderloin is a great alternative and is still a very lean protein. This salad is the perfect base for deliciously grilled pork tenderloin and the homemade dressing is easy and amazing. If you don't prefer peanut butter or have an allergy you can substitute almond butter or sunflower butter. Click over to type2diabetes.com to see my recipe. ...click here for the recipe!

Balsamic Glazed Green Beans

Balsamic vinegar adds so much flavor and is perfect with fresh vegetables. These are my favorite alternative to heavy green-bean casserole. Elegant, delicious and still so easy! Click over to type2diabetes.com for my recipe. Enjoy! ...click here for the recipe!

Oven Roasted Vegetable Medley {Clean Eating, Vegetarian}

Roasting vegetables is my most favorite way to prepare them. Roasting brings out such amazing flavors and aromas. Choose veggies that are hearty and will hold their shape such as broccoli, squashes, mushrooms, bell peppers and cauliflower. Click over to type2diabetes.com to see my recipe. Enjoy! ...click here for the recipe!

Cucumber Salmon Bites {Gluten-Free, Appetizer, Low-Carb}

These are such a fun appetizer to make and serve. I love how elegant they are without being overly fussy to make or eat. Salmon is delicious in this and a great source of protein and healthy fats and pairs perfectly with the crisp, fresh cucumber. Are you planning any new and fun appetizers for your next family get together or family dinner? Why not treat your guests to something special? Click over to www.type2diabetes.com to see my recipe. Enjoy! ...click here for the recipe!

Salad Skewers with Homemade Ranch Dressing {Appetizers, Cooking with Kids, Gluten-Free}

These are so much fun! Pretty much any food you put on a stick instantly becomes fun and enticing for adults and kids alike. My boys loved helping me make these and they ate them all up! They're perfect as a make-ahead appetizer for your next get together, as a side for your family barbecue or just a fun new way to serve salad for dinner tonight. You can make them ahead and store covered in the fridge for a couple hours! Skewer up your favorite veggies and then dip them in the tangy and creamy Ranch dressing that will have everyone coming back for more. Click over to www.type2diabetes.com to see my recipe. Enjoy! ...click here for the recipe!

Caprese Skewers...the perfect bite

The fresh burst of tomato with creamy mozzarella and lemony basil are the perfect trio in these bite-size appetizers. A great start to any family dinner or party. They are easy to prepare ahead of time and can be served chilled. Click over to type2diabetes.com to see my recipe.

...click here for the recipe!

Mushroom Quinoa {Gluten-Free}

This mushroom quinoa (pronounced keen-wah) makes a great side dish and pairs really well with chicken or turkey!  It has more protein than other grains and is a good source of fiber. Click over to type2diabetes.com to see my recipe. Enjoy! ...click here for the recipe!

French-Style Potato Salad {Gluten-Free, Dairy-free}

I love this lighter version of potato salad! I'm not a huge mayonnaise fan to begin with so I was excited to try making a French-Style version sans mayo. This is zippy and flavorful and best served slightly warm or at room temperature. Click on over to type2diabetes.com to see my recipe. Enjoy!

I'm linking up with 

...click here for the recipe!

Easy 5 ingredient Salsa {Paleo, Sugar-Free}

This salsa is super easy and yet very tasty.  It started from our attempt to make fresh salsa when we didn't have any fresh tomatoes on hand.  Cheating a bit by using canned Organic tomatoes ended up tasting great and makes for easy 5 minute salsa any time of the year.  The bright lime juice and fresh cilantro give it great flavor and a fresh taste.  There are many more ways to enjoy this salsa than just with chips, I love this over chicken, eggs and salads, although it's great with chips too.  Enjoy!

Recipe: (Makes about 2 cups)
Ingredients:
1 (14 oz) can Organic No salt added diced tomatoes
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1/4 cup diced red onion
the juice of 1/2 a lime
1/4 teaspoon salt plus more to taste

Put all ingredients in a small but somewhat deep vessel.  I like to use my glass batter bowl or a small soup pot with tall sides.  Then pulse with an Immersion Blender about 6 times until smooth but still chunky.  If you don't have an Immersion Blender you could also use a food processor or even a blender, just pulse until you get the consistency you like.  Season to taste and enjoy!

...click here for the recipe!

Gluten-Free, Grain-Free Biscuits {Paleo}

These biscuits are my attempt to find a tasty warm "bread" for my hubby to enjoy with all the soups and stews I make.  These are gluten-free and grain-free, which is what he prefers, so they are more dense like a biscuit. You can detect a hint of coconut from the coconut flour but we are used to it and like it now.  If you are looking to try a grain-free option or perhaps you are entertaining for someone who avoids grain, gluten and dairy, this is one to try.  You can double the recipe to make about 1 dozen and you can still fit them all on one baking sheet because they do not rise during baking.  Enjoy!

Recipe: (makes 6-8 biscuits)
Ingredients:
3/4 cup Coconut Flour
3/4 cup Tapioca Starch (Flour)
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg
3/4 cup warm water
1/4 cup Avocado Oil

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350'F.  In a mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients; coconut flour, tapioca starch and salt
2. In a separate bowl combine wet ingredients. Whisk the egg and add in the water and oil.

3. Pour wet ingredients over dry ingredients and gently stir until combined.  If too dry, add 1 more tablespoon of water.

4. Scoop about an ice cream scoop size amount of dough into your hand and gently roll into a ball.

5. Place biscuits on a Silpat-lined baking sheet and bake at 350'F for 33-35 minutes or until biscuits are a deep golden all over. {cooking times will vary, you are looking for a deep golden color.  When doubling the recipe I typically add 2-4 minutes to the cook time}

6. Enjoy plain or with a drizzle of honey!

*This post contains affiliate links
...click here for the recipe!

Potato-Crusted Spinach Quiche {Gluten Free}

 Quiche is such a warm and satisfying dish and hearty enough to stand alone as your main entree.  We had this delicious quiche as our Christmas Eve dinner this year but it can work anytime of year.  We are in the process of preparing to relocate from California to Michigan and packing during the holidays meant this year had to be sweet and simple.  My hubby eats gluten free and since we eat dinner together as a family, our dinners are gluten free also.  Growing up my Grandma Oma ate gluten free and she loved this thin potato crust.  This was my first time making it and it was really easy!  My hubby also eats dairy-free so I just added some cheese to half of the quiche.  You can add cheese to the filling if you prefer and certainly can have fun playing with swapping out the fillings.  I'd like to try a sun dried tomato, spinach and goat cheese combo next. I'm also thinking of trying these in a cupcake pan for a tasty appetizer!  Merry Christmas and Enjoy!

Recipe:  {serves 4 as main dish, 6 as a side}
Ingredients:
2 medium Russet potatoes, peeled
1 cup cooked spinach
2-3 ounces Canadian bacon diced
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1-2 tablespoons diced red onion
4 eggs, well beaten
3/4 cup milk or water
1 tablespoon avocado oil (or other cooking oil)

Directions:
1. Using a Mandolin, thinly slice the peeled potatoes.  Or use a knife if you don't have a Mandolin.
2. Drizzle 1/2 tablespoon oil in bottom of a glass pie plate.  Layer potato slices all over bottom and sides of pie plate, slightly overlapping each slice.

3. Bake potatoes at 425'F for 25 minutes.
4. In a saute pan add 1/2 tablespoon oil and diced Canadian bacon and saute over medium heat for 5-10 minutes or until golden and fragrant.

5. Add garlic and onion and stir to saute.  Once onions and garlic are tender, add in cooked spinach to warm through.  Remove spinach mixture from the heat and allow to cool slightly.

6. In a large bowl mix together eggs, milk (or water), and cooled spinach mixture (if it's too hot it will scramble your eggs).

7. Remove potatoes from the oven and decrease oven temperature to 375'F.  Pour the egg and spinach mixture over the potatoes, smoothing evenly with a spatula.

8. Bake at 375'F for 30-40 minutes or until eggs are set.  Remove from the oven and let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.  Top with cheese if you like.

*If you are a cheese eating family, go ahead and add a palmful of your favorite cheese to the filling!
For Diabetic Friendly, consider substituting Egg Beaters for the eggs for 1 CHO exchange, 3 Protein exchanges and 1.5 fat exchanges ...click here for the recipe!

Pistachio Encrusted Chicken & Wild Black Rice Salad {Gluten Free}

We love pistachios and their toasty, salty bite.  This is a new and different way to dress up your chicken for dinner tonight.  The pistachio crust gives it a rich and toasted depth of flavor without being too heavy.  We paired our tasty chicken with some nutrient-packed wild rice.  A light dressing and a few sweet, chewy pieces of dried fruit made it the perfect accompaniment to the chicken. Have you ever tried black rice before?  It does take awhile to cook but it's worth the wait.  Enjoy!
Recipe: (serves 4-6)
Chicken:
4-5 chicken breasts
1 1/2 cups pistachios (shelled) (roasted and salted preferred)
1/2 cup millet flour (or flour of your choice)
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon coconut sugar (or sugar of your choice)
1 egg, white only
light olive oil

Chicken Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350'F. Place chicken in a resealable plastic bag and pound until it's about 1/2-inch thick. Place the pounded chicken on a couple of paper towels to absorb any excess moisture.
2. In a small food processor or chopper, pulse the pistachios to a medium-fine consistency.
3. In a flat bottomed glass baking dish combine the pistachio pieces, flour, salt and sugar. In a separate dish add the egg white and whisk for a few seconds to loosen whites a little.
4. Dip each chicken breast into the egg white first, allow excess to drip off then gentle lay the chicken into the breading mixture, flipping to coat.
5. Place chicken on a baking sheet and bake at 350'F for 15-20 minutes, flippin gonce halfway through, or until chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165'F. Serve right away to enjoy that crispy, crunchy crust.


Wild rice salad:
1 3/4 cups wild rice {black rice}
4 1/4 cups water
1/2 teaspoon salt
the juice of 1 lime
2 teaspoon agave nectar<
1/3 English cucumber, diced
small handful of pistachios (roasted and salted preferred)
handful of dried cranberries
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped


Rice Directions:
1. Add rice and water to a pot over medium high heat and bring to a gentle boil. Once gently boiling, quickly reduce heat and simmer for 1 hr 15 mins until rice is split and soft. 2. Drain excess water, if any. Mix rice with rest of ingredients and serve warm or chilled. ...click here for the recipe!

Light and Fluffy Gluten-Free Cornbread

Have you been looking for a moist and delicious gluten-free cornbread recipe?  Today is the day!  This is my hubby's creation; the perfect blend of gluten free flours and slightly crunchy cornmeal come together to make a light and flavorful bread that actually holds together.  A slice of this goes perfectly with our Potato Kale Soup or Pumpkin Chili.  For an added treat we like to drizzle a bit of sweet local honey on top.  Enjoy!

Recipe: Makes one pie pan size cornbread loaf or 12 muffins
Ingredients:
dry mix:
3/4 cup medium grain organic cornmeal
1/2 cup rice flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch flour
1/2 cup millet flour
1 1/4 teaspoons sea salt
1 1/4 teaspoons xanthan gum
3 1/2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
1/3 cup sugar

wet mix:
2 eggs*
3 Tablespoons light olive oil
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup apple sauce

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350'F.  In a large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients.
2. In a separate bowl combine wet ingredients, mixing well.  Add wet ingredients to the dry ones, stir to combine.
3. Pour into glass pie dish coated with cooking spray and bake at 350'F for about 24 minutes or until slightly golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  If you prefer you can bake them as muffins at 350'F for about 15-18 minutes or until slightly golden and internal temperature is about 200 degrees.
*If you can't have eggs or you choose not to, try substituting 1 Tablespoon ground chia seeds with 1/4 cup water in place of each egg. For this recipe it would be 2 Tablespoons ground chia and an extra 1/2 cup of water to replace the two eggs. You can buy ground chia or grind it yourself in a blender, grinder or food processor. Make up a small batch and store in an airtight container so it's reading when you're baking.
...click here for the recipe!

Oven Roasted Corn on the Cob {So easy}

Happy summer everyone!  Hope you are enjoying the final weeks of summer.  We are in the thick of swim lessons, splash parks, longing to go back to our beach vacation and thinking about getting ready for school to start.  On our recent vacation we enjoyed fresh roasted corn in the husk from a street vendor at a Farmer's Market and loved the simplicity of it.  It's a super duper easy way to cook up all that delicious corn that's in season now. I love using the husks themselves instead of wasting foil, genius, and this way they never char!  We don't put a single thing on fresh roasted corn but if you like to, you can add salt, pepper or butter after they're done.  Give it a try tonight!

Recipe
Ingredients:
corn on the cob in their husks

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350'F.  Trim extra leaves from corn husks {the long skinny green ones} but leave main husk completely in tact.
2. Place corn directly on the oven rack and bake at 350'F for 30-40 minutes until it just slightly gives to the touch when you squeeze it {while wearing an oven mitt}.  The husk will turn slightly golden.
3. Let cool slightly then peel back your husk and enjoy your perfectly cooked corn

...click here for the recipe!

Roasted Zucchini "Steaks"

Our vegetable garden is going nuts and we love it!  The plants that are producing the most right now are the cucumbers and zucchinis.  Now cucumbers are a cinch for us to eat up.  We eat them sliced, diced, on sandwiches, dipped in hummas or in salads to name a few.  Zucchinis require a tad more creativity.  Tonight I tried just slicing it into "steaks" to roast in the oven.  Can you say, "fast"?  They turned out great with a wonderful smokey, roasted flavor.  We served them up along side our Crock Pot Teriyaki Chicken...delicious. Enjoy!
Recipe: (a baking sheet full feeds 4-6)
Ingredients:
zucchini or summer squash, sliced into 1/2 inch rounds
                *my zucchini was HUGE, about the size of my arm, so I had fewer steaks
fresh cracked black pepper
Parmesan cheese, grated
olive oil (or cooking spray)

Directions:
1. Place squash rounds onto a baking sheet.  Drizzle or spray lightly with oil.
2. Sprinkle each "steak" with black pepper and cheese
3. Bake in a 375'F oven for 20-25 minutes or until cooked through and slightly golden.

...click here for the recipe!

Summer Quinoa Salad {Gluten Free}

I made this for our son's 5th birthday party picnic and it was a hit! I have had several people ask for the recipe...so here ya go. It's really pretty simple and great for a light summer meal. You can definitely mix it up with different veggies or beans, garbanzo beans would be yummy too. Get creative with your quinoa. The "dressing" is light, lemony and versatile and the salad will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days, in fact I think it's better the next day after it's had a chance to marinate a bit. Enjoy!

Recipe: (serves 6-8)
Ingredients:

For the salad:
1 cup raw quinoa (prepare with 2 cups water or per package instructions)
1 can(15oz.) corn, rinsed & drained
1 can(15oz.) black beans, rinsed & drained
1 small zucchini, cubed
1/2 English cucumber, cubed
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped

for the dressing:
1/4 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (~1 lemon)
1/4 cup olive oil or grapeseed oil
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
1. Prepare the quinoa: over medium-high heat; 1 cup quinoa in 2 cups water, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 15 minutes until water is absorbed, fluff with a fork and set aside.
2. In a large salad bowl combine corn, beans, zucchini, cucumber, bell pepper, tomatoes and cilantro.
3. In a liquid measuring cup whisk together lemon juice, oil, cumin, salt and pepper.
4. Once quinoa is cooled, add it to the veggies and stir to combine, then dress the salad with dressing and stir to coat. Give it a taste. Add additional salt, pepper or dressing* if needed. Store in the fridge covered 3-4 days.
*Note: I made this for 25 people so I tried to scale the quantities back for you. It may be that you need more dressing, just make alittle more (equal parts lemon juice and oil with a pinch of cumin, S & P) and add it until you're happy with the flavor. Keep in mind the flavor will develop more each day. ...click here for the recipe!

Pinto Beans {Slow Cooker}

Who loves pinto beans?  I do, I do.  I must admit, in the interest of time and with two little boys and a third on the way I usually opt for canned pinto beans or vegetarian refried beans {gasp}.  My sweet hubby is always trying new things, which I love because it gets me out of a cooking rut.  He decided to try making pinto beans in the slow cooker, much like our very popular Peruvian Bean recipe.  They, of course, turned out wonderfully delicious and oh so much more tasty than anything out of a can.  Best part...they're easy to make, just soak the dried beans overnight then put that slow cooker to work.  We had ours with our Baked Chicken Taquitos and Spanish Rice. *TIP* It's especially tasty to use the broth from our Crock Pot Chicken, if you're using that to stuff your taquitos, in the Spanish Rice, in place of the chicken broth and water (2 1/2 cups)! Enjoy and Merry Christmas!

Recipe: (serves 8)
Ingredients:
3 cups dried pinto beans
2 pieces of cooked bacon and 1 pieces worth of grease
2 T agave nectar (or 1 T brown sugar)
1-1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ginger powder
1/2 tsp ground coriander seeds
3 c chicken broth (low sodium)
1-1/2 cup water

Directions:
1. Soak beans overnight in a pot with 6 cups of water.  In the morning, drain and rinse the beans.
2. In a large pot, bring about 6 cups of water to a boil.  Once the water is at a rolling boil, add the beans and boil for about 3 minutes.  Drain and rinse the beans.  (This flash boiling is an optional step, it really helps remove the {ahem} excess gas from the beans)
3. Place beans into your slow cooker and add remaining ingredients, stir to combine and cook on high for 4-6 hrs.
4. About a half hour before serving, check the consistency of your beans.  If they are too liquidy, remove the lid of your slow cooker for the last 30 minutes of cooking time.  Stir beans a few times near the end of cooking to mix well and to make the beans creamy.  Serve hot.  These reheat well and are great for leftovers too. ...click here for the recipe!