Great Contradictions

apple cupcakes: Creative & sneaky twist on gluten free (or not) boxed cake

When it comes to school, I have realized there is a lot that children with food allergies can get isolated from. I make Hunter his own cupcake for every party, but he misses out on that special character, design, toy, etc… that everyone else gets. For the first 2 weeks of October, the theme was apples. I decided to supply the class with apple cupcakes to celebrate the end of the theme. Of course, I had to stick with my “sneaky” traditions, but no one seemed to notice the sweet potatoes in their yellow cake cupcakes! Apple Cupcakes Ingredients Boxed cake mix (I used Hodgson Mills yellow cake mix) 1/2 c. sweet potato puree (boil sweet potatoes then puree with 1-2 TBSP water) 1 snack size applesauce 1 cup water (for added sweetness...

DIY: Make your own #glutenfree playdough recipe #celiac

Today was the boys’ first day of school. Since Hunter is starting pre-k, we have a lot of gluten free issues to consider within the school. 4 year olds with playdough was definitely one of my major concerns, so Hunter & I are making weekly batches of playdough for the whole class. I love those teachable moments! Using everyday items to create playdough is a great way to show children how simple ingredients can have wonderful results. Hunter at age 4 has now had the experience of playing with playdough! Gluten Free Playdough Ingredients: 1/3 c. rice flour 1/6 c. potato starch (2 2/3 TBSP) 1/6 c. salt (2 2/3 TBSP) 1 tsp xanthan gum 1/2 TBSP Cream of Tartar 1 tsp. koolaid powder (any color) 1/2 TBSP oil 1/2 c. warm water Directions: 1. Mix dry...

Lunch Time

I pride myself on my ability to encourage my family to eat healthy and delicious foods. As babies, they all had homemade baby food. As toddlers/children, I have encouraged them to help me choose foods and cook. Now that Dylan has started kindergarten, the problem is that he wonders why he doesn’t get the pre-packaged, processed foods all his friends eat? Now that my baby is out of the bubble, he is seeing there are more options. He has gotten to the point that he has been refusing lunch even his favorites. I bought a cute Thomas the train bento-type boxes. Let him pick out what he wants. I know that he will figure out he has to eat; however, it is very frustrating especially when he comes home complaining he’s hungry. Tomorrow I am...