What I Baked This Week

TGIF! I hope that everyone had a good week. If you follow my blog, instagram or FB posts, it is quite evident that I am super into nutrition and healthy eating. We eat a whole foods diet in our house, and I spend a lot of hours in our kitchen! I like to bake alone early in the morning before anyone else gets up. Over the years I've heard so many people say, I just don't have the time to bake and cook for my family. Taking the time now, not buying anything processed, will buy you and your family more time on this planet, so it's worth every extra second spent soaking beans, baking bread, and buying organic. Unfortunately, the modern family opens bags, eats out, and is missing key nutrients needed for health and not only health, children's development. Developmental delays, sensory processing challenges, allergies, and Autism, are all rapidly on the rise, and I whole-heartedly believe that nutrition is one of the main factors to this increase. 

So, back to the point of this post! I'm sharing some of the recipes that I baked up this week to help you see how easy it can be to bake healthy, gluten free (I think everyone should be gluten free to be honest - but that's a whole other post), refined sugar free goods for you and your loved ones! For baked good, I am a recipe follower, which makes it easy for you! I have my favorites like Against All Grain, Elana's Pantry and Tasty-yummies, but I do stray and experiment from time to time! This week, my kids were the snack helpers at their pre-school, so we made Homemade Bagels, mmmm. The link to the recipe from +Elana's Pantry can be found here. The mini bagel/donut pan can be found on amazon. They also have a large one that I really want to order soon. I love Elana because her recipes have simple ingredients that I always have on hand! Check out her recipe and whip up some bagels this weekend! She has an awesome chocolate donut recipe too :) 

Honeyville Almond Flour

For snack, we sent in Once Again Sunbutter and local apple slices, which are still nice and crisp this time of the year! I have been ordering more and more from Vitacost to save money, and this is where the Sunbutter is from and linked above for you! 

Delicious! 

Next up from Danielle Walker +Danielle Walker and Against All Grain are Grain-Free Oatmeal Raisin Cookies, which actually contain no oats at all. I love Danielle's website, blog and instagram. She healed herself from illness through diet, as did Elana, and she seems like a kind-hearted, amazing woman on a mission that I love! If you haven't checked her out yet, this weekend is the time. I have made tons of her recipes and they are no-fail every time - the whole family devours them from Breakfast to Desserts to Dinners and yours will too! 

Last up, I made Almond Flour Banana Bread. I made this over the summer for my Sensory Camp as well, and the kids absolutely loved it and ate it up without hesitation. Although I didn't this time because there is a no juice and chocolate rule at my kids pre-school, I often add +Enjoy Life Foods mini-chocolate chips to the bread and they make it taste extra yummy! Follow the link here for the gluten-free, dairy-free, refined sugar-free recipe. 

I hope this post is motivating and encourages you to bake for your family this weekend. Children are eating for development; brain development, muscle development, sensory development, bone development, and they need key nutrients in their diet daily. Processed food does not provide them with the ingredients that their little brains and bodies need, and children are taking in way too much sugar in america's diet, impacting their development across the spectrum. Pairing these recipes with fruits and veggies are perfect ways to provide kids with healthy snacks between meals! They are also great treats to have on hand as the holiday season is upon us and visitors are coming and going. In Vermont, I'm lucky enough to buy local eggs and honey from our neighbors, maple syrup from our good friends at Bobo's Mountain Sugar and local, grass-fed meats right in town. If you can buy local and organic to support your local economy that is the best! The dry ingredients I do usually buy online to save money for our family, but I also support our local coops as well! Some food for thought ;)

Have a wonderful weekend!