My local Natural Food Coop has been making a fiesta quinoa salad for years (10+). I ate it like crazy when it first showed up in the deli and would also pick some up for potlucks or for dinner. A few years ago I started making it myself. I remember it was a blistering hot summer, and for weeks it was over 100 degrees and I refused to turn on my oven for most of it. Like most summers, we live off of cool meals such as avocado mint soup, salads galore, raw treats and homemade ice cream. This quinoa salad is super refreshing and it’s a favorite among my family and friends. Maybe this dish will make an appearance at your next party…or for dinner one hot summer night. xo, –Amber Continue reading
Category Archives: allergy-friendly
Southwestern Quinoa Salad
Labels: allergy-friendly, grain free, salads, summer cuisine, vegan, vegetarian.
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Orange Kissed Apple Pie
When I was a little girl I loved helping my Gramie make apple pie. She did not play around when it came to the apples. She piled them apples a mile high in a huge mound and placed the crust on top. When the pie cooked the apples settled and there was at least a 4 inch space from apples to the top of the crust. I will always remember how cool it looked. When she broke into the pie, the crust fell nicely onto the apples. What I loved most about her apple pie, however, was the filling. She made it thick and gooey. The liquid ran all over the place. The apples were tart yet sharp with sweet cinnamon flavor. I loved extra scoops of the apple pie liquid on my ice cream which was the ultimate flavor combo. We remember those we love through food. When I taste my apple pie it takes me right back to her kitchen – standing there next to her oven, smelling the cinnamon and drooling for that flaky crust. I’m happy to say I’ve perfected my version of her apple pie with a dairy, gluten, and cane sugar free spin. It’s comforting to smell, taste, and physically enjoy a memory. Food has a way of bringing us closer to those we have lost, and really, then, suddenly they don’t feel so far away. Continue reading
Labels: allergy-friendly, dessert, fall cuisine, holidays, pie, summer treats.
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5 -Ingredient Chocolate Free & Sugar Free Frosting
My son turned 5 years old yesterday! My kids are starting to look VERY BIG to me these days. I’m loving the independence each year brings, but I would love to hold them each again as a baby (until they start crying and pooping – the fantasy ends there). The teenage years will be here before we know it so I am ever reminding myself to treasure small moments and not let the silly stuff feel so big. Continue reading





Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies (dairy free, cane-sugar free, nut free)





Fresh Cabbage & Herb Spring Rolls with Sunbutter Honey Dipping Sauce
About a month after I started blogging I posted a recipe for baked spring rolls and they were my favorite food for months. I made them over and over again…until like most things I make over and over again…I became satiated (and over it). I haven’t really made spring rolls in a while. Last month (in December) I was looking for a recipe to bring to a holiday party. I thought, “What would everyone like, carnivores and vegetarians alike?” So I made some raw spring rolls and wowza they are fun to make and super yummy. I forgot how much I enjoy stuffing those little rice wrappers. And the sauce, oh the sauce! The sunbutter honey dipping sauce that accompanies these little rolls has such a delightfully complex flavor. Sunbutter is a great sub for peanut butter in traditional peanut-based sauces. Definitely give it a try.
Labels: allergy-friendly, appetizer, sauces, spring cuisine, summer cuisine, vegetarian.
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Cinnamon & Coconut Sugar Dried Apples





Slow Cooker Pulled Pork with Homemade Barbecue Sauce
Labels: allergy-friendly, condiments, main dish, slow cooker recipes.
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Melt In Your Mouth Carob Sunbutter Fudge – and pictures of gorgeous sunflower fields
Melt In Your Mouth Carob Sunbutter Fudge
Ingredients:
-1/2 cup room temp homemade sunflower seed butter
-1/4 melted cup coconut oil
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-2 tablespoons honey (vegans use grade B maple syrup)
-5 drops stevia
-3 tablespoons raw carob poweder
-Pinch of salt
How To:
1. To a food processor add the sunflower seed butter, coconut oil, vanilla extract, honey, stevia and blend until smooth. Add in the carob and blend until well incorporated.
2. Set some wax paper into an 8×8 Pytex dish and spoon the mixture in. Don’t spread it around to all sides too thin, just give it little smooth over. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
3. Cut into pieces and enjoy. Store in fridge.





Homemade NUT-Free Nutella
Labels: allergy-friendly, dessert, dips and spreads, nut free, Paleo, snacks.
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Zucchini Chai Spiced Muffins (gluten free, dairy free, cane-sugar free)
Notes:
*Try homemade non-dairy milks for great results: Almond, Walnut, Hazelnut, Macadamia, Hemp.
*For baking, I suggest following the weight of the ingredients exactly. This might mean investing in a small kitchen scale. I cannot guarantee results if the recipe is not followed as specified and measurements are not accurate…just sayin’.
*For wet ingredients use only a 1 cup glass Pyrex for measuring. *For dry, use metal measuring cups. And when measuring flours, spoon the flours into the measuring cup, then level off with a knife. Never pack in the flour.
*The muffins will stay moist for 3 or 4 full days at room temp in a container.
*Oh, and I use these large baking muffin cups.
Here are my other baking recipes
(all gluten free, dairy free, cane-sugar free)
And stayed tuned for these chocolate cupcakes comin’ atcha soon
Shared on: Fat Tuesdays, Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Allergy Free Wednesdays, My Meatless Monday,





Sounds delicious! Hope you’re getting some cooler weather today. We have a nice breeze over here today.
Thanks Emily. We are actually in San Diego on vacation. It’s so nice to be out of the smokey air. Much cooler here – very tropical (like Hawaii but less humid). I do love that Delta breeze we get though through the Sacramento valley. So nice!! Hugs to you.
This looks delicious! Thanks for sharing it on Waste Not Want Not Wednesday, I’m featuring it this week 🙂
Awesome! Thanks for the feature. 🙂
Congratulations!
Your recipe is featured on Full Plate Thursday this week. Have a great day and enjoy your new Red Plate.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
Awesome!! Thanks so much for the feature Miz Helen! 🙂