Gluten-Free Banana Mini-Muffins

Sweet little mini-muffins with big banana taste.

Sweet Morsels

Week four began Monday. My month of soft foods only is slowly winding down. I can feel the diet working, spinning its soothing magic and calming this burning monkey gut of mine with scoops of mashed potato and spoonfuls of slow cooked soups between doses of kitten cuteness and favorite comedies. My medicine has been a stew of Protonix, Culturelle, baby food, and laughing as much as possible.

I'm a big believer in the healing power of a hearty guffaw.

But I'd be lying if I didn't confess I crave texture and crunch like there's no tomorrow. Who wouldn't? After four plus weeks of nothing more al dente than a boiled rice noodle, I am sorry to tell you I wake up dreaming of potato chips. I miss the nutty terrain of a pecan cracker. The sexy chewy center of  a chocolate chip cookie. 

This yearning has not gone unnoticed.

Steve has been pondering my dearth of oral satisfaction. And always one to roll up his sleeves and pitch in, he started  rummaging around the kitchen, imagining something I could eat- without repercussion. A treat soft enough to comply with my diet's rules. A go-between bite nestled somewhere in the middle of hot buttered toast (not allowed) and pureed pumpkin (allowed, but so dead boring).  

And thus the mini-banana muffin was born. A petite friendly bite of moist banana goodness. Not overwhelmed by cinnamon (off limits). Not studded with nuts (emphatic no-nos!). Just simple, clean, honest banana taste.

In a darling, non-pointy vegan parcel.

READ MORE and get the recipe ...

Banana-Apricot Hemp Smoothie

Frosty banana apricot smoothie with hemp milk.

It's been a week of bland soft foods. I've dubbed this week the No Pointy Foods Diet. Mashed potatoes. Creamy rice. Squash puree. No nuts, seeds, or chips. No crunch. No snap. No spices. Talk about not sexy. Suddenly, I'm the Goddess of Bland. Slurping tiny bites of baby food.

Lucky for me, bananas are doable. Especially if they're frozen and whipped into a frothy silky smoothie.

READ MORE and get the recipe ...

Gut Instinct

Gut Instinct

Nine days in the hospital. This is what a monkey gut can do. Nagging, for years, with its hot little protests and complaints. You blame gluten, or milk, or a parade of assorted culprits, from chili peppers to chai. And while these offenders may indeed play a part in the long burning dance of your life with food, a new realization begins to poke its way into existence. 

Your brain has a twin.

And it lives in your gut. The Second Brain.

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Carrot Soup with Pan Toasted Croutons

Easy carrot soup topped with cornbread croutons.

Vegan Comfort in a Bowl

What I love about slow cookers? The obvious. It's a no-brainer. (Such an odd expression. I mean, if I had no brain would I care about soup?) Wait. Are zombies no-brainers? If so, I can relate. Totally. I've been feeling zombie-ish again, assaulted by the second wave of pollinating hostile trees here in my hip little hamlet of Santa Monica by the sea. Excuse me while I honk.

The dreaded oak. My nemesis.

In spite of hopeful neti pot usage I am brainless once again. Shambling. Screwing up paintings. Too tipsy for kettle-bells (I visualize my zombie-pitiful grip during a swing, letting the kettlebell fly out my fifth floor apartment window like a missile and knocking out some poor soul in the street below; if you read about a kettle-bell incident in the news, I swear I'm innocent).

And craving comfort food in a big way.

That is, easy comfort food. Not complicated comfort food. Who wants to stand at a stove right before dinnertime, chopping and stirring and simmering, when you can chop and toss in the morning and let a Crockpot do the work for you? Zip. Boom. Bonjour! The slow cooker must have been invented by a woman, right? Or maybe a zombie who had better things to do than sauté.

Free time. It's a gift.

Ask any zombie.

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Make Gluten-Free Brownie Cupcakes with Namaste Baking Mix

Easy brownie cupcakes from a mix.

Check out these fudgy little gems. Chocolate chip brownies dressed up like cupcakes. These are Steve's creation. He's the resident brownie expert. I bow to his expertise. He's baked brownies from scratch. He's tried all the gluten-free mixes. He's added flavors. Coffee. Peppermint. Vanilla. He's added extra chocolate chips. Chopped walnuts. Pecans. Even raisins. He bakes brownies weekly. But lately he's got a new twist to this favorite classic treat. He plops the batter into a cupcake liner clad muffin tin. Steve swears this creates a better, moister brownie.

Gluten-free brownie cupcakes cooling on a wire rack.

Steve used the Namaste Gluten-Free Brownie Mix for these  chocolaty bundles of goodness. He used three organic free-range eggs, and light olive oil as the fat. He added 3/4 cup chocolate chips. They baked up in roughly 40 minutes. The mix yielded 14 brownie-cupcakes.

Although it's very un-Zen of me to say, and possibly un-PC to the slow food foodies out there, they're perfect for a grab-n-go treat. Ready when you are. Compact. Chocolate. Boom. Wrap them in recycled foil, bag, and freeze. 

Karina's note:

This post is not a sponsored review of the Namaste mix (which we purchased ourselves); it's simply the baking mix Steve currently uses. And they looked so pretty today I couldn't resist grabbing the camera.

In the past we did a Gluten-Free Brownie Mix Taste Test- check it out if you're interested in how brownie mixes compared under scrutiny and fierce personal preferences in the Allrich household.

More:

Check out Sensitive Pantry's Spiced Up Chocolate Cupcakes

Enjoy sugary treats in moderation. Gluten-Free Goddess advises consuming no more than 2 tablespoons of sugar a day. 

Wordless Weekend

You Show Me Yours

Shot on my iPhone, Santa Monica, CA.
©Karina Allrich

Strawberry Hemp Milk Smoothie

Drink pink! Organic strawberries make fabulous smoothies.

It's that time of year. Smoothie weather is upon us. Time to whip fresh fruit  into a frenzy of deliciousness. Then go for a walk. And burn off those winter blues. Lethargy is so yesterday.

Today?

Today is berrylicious.

READ MORE and get the recipe ...