Monday, April 29, 2013
Eats and Treats...
Well, it's here...Monday! I had an incredible weekend so I'm going to move my mood right into the amazing Ms. Katie's Marvelous In My Monday!


I needed a recharge this weekend and that's exactly what happened. Admittedly, Tony and I had ants in our pants Saturday morning and needed to go out for a quick run even though we had a long run scheduled for Sunday. We live close to the park, so we ran to the park, around it and back home for a total of 2.5 miles. Just what we needed. Then, I did some cleaning around the house, while Tony cut the grass in preparation for friends to come over. We did a big Tex Mex meal with Max making guacamole...


I LOVE that he makes this all on his own. Seriously, the recipe is in his head and he does the whole thing start to finish!


I also made my gluten free angel food cake with seven minute icing. That icing is a weakness...


So, when we got up on Sunday morning, Tony and I were greeted with this lovely weather...rain (lots and lots of rain!!!)! I don't mind running in a drizzle, but all out rain, that is not fun. Oh, that reminds me, I never shared our 5k experience with you. I am so behind...let's just say running in the pouring rain in ponchos is less than ideal. 


To the treadmill we headed. We had 6 miles on our out loud plan, with 9 on our mental plan. ;) We are noncommittal like that. This run was brutal! With all the moisture in the air, even being inside, it felt like I was breathing under water. I played it smart though and just walked when I need to catch my breath and get some water, then pushed through to 10 miles! Yeah, I'm still riding that double digit high! It was our first time in the double digits! I was impressed that I had a slight dry spot on the only peace of clothing that wasn't touching my body at the top of my shirt. I was drenched! Fuel was needed pretty much immediately! A massive grilled vegetable salad with lentils and nutritional yeast totally hit the spot! Although, really, when does it not for me...

BWV-Round2-April-Cabbage

Dinner came in the form of one of my favorite dishes that I don't have enough. I really wanted to share this on Heather's Meatless Mondays from A-Z this week, so I was happy to get the push to make it again!

This week is cabbage week. I LOVE cabbage just about any way you prepare it. This dish is loaded with good stuff thanks to my favorite spice...turmeric! I am a huge believer in the healing qualities of the food we eat, so I like to incorporate healthy spices in our meals. Turmeric and cabbage are both great for inflammation (hello running joints) and digestion (we always need help in this department). The boys love this with roasted pork or chicken and I love it with an over easy egg on top. 


Turmeric Roasted Vegetables


1 small head of cabbage (1 1/2 - 2 lbs.), chopped into large rustic pieces
5 large carrots, thinly sliced on a diagonal
1 red bell pepper, chopped into large pieces
1 cup water
3 TBSP gluten free all purpose flour ( I used Bob's Red Mill)
2 tsp vegetable base
1 tsp turmeric

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. I recommend using a glass dish. The color will stain other dishes.

Put the chopped vegetables in a 13x9 baking dish. Put the water, flour, vegetable base and turmeric in a measuring cup and stir well until there are no lumps. Pour the mixture over the vegetables and bake for 30 minutes. Stir the vegetables, bake for another 30 minutes, stir and bake for another 20-30 minutes or until the carrots are done.

Anybody else still riding a high from a great weekend? I hope you all have an amazing week!

I will be sharing this on Slightly Indulgent Tuesday and Allergy Free Wednesday.

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posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 8:31 AM   10 comments
Monday, April 15, 2013
Gluten Free Muesli Winner!
The winner of the Bob's Red Mill Muesli Giveaway is Rachel from Grateful Girl Goes Gluten Free! Email me your address so I can pass it on! Congratulations!


posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 3:34 PM   5 comments
Blueberry Baked Yogurt
Before I get too far into this, don't forget to enter the giveaway for Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Muesli! I will pick a winner through random.org at noon EST!

Also, if you would be so kind as to vote for me, I would really appreciate it! The voting ends April 22nd.

I have to say, I'm feeling pretty amazing this morning! I would even say I'm a little bit...


The ever so sweet Katie highlights Monday with a positive spin and I love it! I am coming off of a great week with my guys. We did some fun stuff around the house for Spring Break since Tony and I had to work. 

A little park time and pizza out on the patio of one of our favorite parks...

Nothing feels better than fresh and and watching sunsets with your loved ones. 

We also enjoyed the beautiful weather out on Saturday with a little competitive game of mini golf and some ice cream for the guys. We couldn't go away on a trip, but we did a few extra fun things and the boys had plenty of time for rest and relaxation. Really, you couldn't ask for more...well, a trip to the beach would be nice, but that's for another time. I hope!

Better With Veggies

I'm also feeling a little Marvelous In My Monday because I finally got my butt in gear to participate in Heather's Meatless Mondays From A-Z. This is round 2 for MMAZ! She's started something different this time with everyone preparing an original recipe one week and then cooking from someone else's recipe the next week. I LOVE this! I'm a horrible repeat food offender and this definitely got me out of that cycle. This week is blueberries...which I LOVE! I had to jump in and give this a go! 

I had a blast thinking about food again. I've been focused so much on fitness and workouts for my clients that I've stepped out of doing too much experimenting recently. I've got a good amount of recipes already worked out so developing menus for clients is easy for me based on my tried and true recipes. Making new foods for myself, well not so easy. So, I made the time for me!


I love blueberries. I love them frozen, fresh, baked and raw. I wanted to do something a little different this time though. I've really been craving textures these days. Does anyone else do that? I wanted something creamy and decadent. So, I came up with this little dish...


Blueberry Baked Yogurt Custard
(serves 2)

1 cup frozen or fresh blueberries
2 TBSP water
1 TBSP whole chia seeds
12 drops liquid stevia (I used NuNaturals orange and loved the flavor combination, vanilla is good too)

Microwave the blueberries and water for 1 minute. Stir in the chia seeds and stevia. Allow to sit 1 hour or overnight in the the fridge to thicken. 

6 oz plain dairy free yogurt (I used So Delicious coconut yogurt)
1/2 - 1 scoop vanilla protein powder** (I used Plant Fusion)
6 drops NuNaturals vanilla stevia

In a mixing bowl, combine the yogurt, protein powder and stevia drops. Whisk until fully combined. The mixture will be thick. 

In two ramekins, evenly distribute the blueberry mixture on the bottom. Next, evenly distribute the yogurt mixture over the top. Smooth out. Place in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until slightly browned on top. Serve warm for a warm custard or refrigerate and serve cold for more of a cheesecake texture. 


**The more protein powder you use, the more solid your custard will be when cooled.

Who else is a repeat food offender? It's not out of laziness for me either. I tend to just go for the easy fixes that I don't have to think about. Breakfast is always protein loaded oats for me and salad for lunch...dinner, well, that really depends on time. 

Have a great Monday!

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posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 8:40 AM   21 comments
Monday, April 8, 2013
Gluten Free Muesli Giveaway and Peach Breakfast Calzone
I think we are all aware by now that I love Bob's Red Mill products. So, when I got the opportunity to develop a recipe for their Gluten Free Muesli recipe contest, I had to jump on it! I love the challenge of developing a recipe and I really love finding new incredible gluten free products. This one definitely does not disappoint! Also, you all get the opportunity to win some of your own! Exciting, right!

Confession, I've been on a HUGE calzone/stuffed bread kick these days. If you follow me on instagram, you, no doubt, already know this. So, when I was offered the chance to develop a recipe using Bob's Red Mill's Gluten Free Muesli, I knew exactly what I wanted to make...Peach Breakfast Calzone (I'm a Georgia girl for goodness sake)!


Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Muesli is beautiful. Huge chunks of coconut, brown rice crisps, whole grain oats, seeds, nuts and dried fruits. What's not to love?

I thought about how I could incorporate all of this goodness in a breakfast I knew the kids love. I really wanted to do things differently though (meaning not a cookie or bar). I ended up using it two ways...ground up and whole. The nutty flavor from all the nuts and seeds, along with the whole grain taste from the oats and brown rice crisps combined with the sweetness from the dried fruit perfectly complemented the peachy fruit filled calzone. This is incredibly easy to make and would be a perfect dish for a Sunday Brunch! You can even prepare the fruit and flours the day before so all you have to do is assemble it on the morning of your brunch!


Peach Breakfast Calzone
(gluten free and dairy free)

1  cup Bob's Red Mill Brown Rice Flour
1  cup Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
1 cup Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Muesli, ground in a food processor (measure then grind)
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp xanthan gum
4 TBSP  Coconut Oil or your choice of dairy free butter, cold and cut into pieces
3/4 cup egg whites
1/2 cup almond milk (I used unsweetened vanilla, but sweetened would be good too)
2 TBSP apple cider vinegar

Peach Filling
10 oz fresh peach, 2 medium, large diced
1/2 cup water (more as needed)
2 TBSP sugar
1/4 cup Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Muesli
15 drops vanilla stevia

Topping
1 TBSP butter substitute of your choice, melted
1 TBSP sugar

Glaze
1/2 cup powder sugar
1 TBSP butter substitute of your choice, melted
1-2 tsp almond milk

In a large bowl, mix the brown rice flour, all purpose flour, ground muelsi, baking powder and xanthan gum together until fully combined. Next cut the butter into the flour mixture with a fork to evenly distribute throughout the mixture. Then add the egg whites, almond milk and apple cider vinegar to the flour mixture. Stir to combine. The dough will come together and form a ball. Allow the dough to rest in the fridge while you work on the peach filling.

In a sauce pan, combine the peaches, water and sugar. Cook on medium heat until the peaches are tender, but still hold their shape. Add a little water if needed while cooking. When the peaches are cooked, add the 1/4 cup of whole muesli to them and the stevia drops, stir well to soak up any liquid. You want all the liquid to be soaked up with the muesli. It should look like this...


Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place half of your dough on the parchment. Flatten as shown above using damp hands. The dough should be easy to handle with damp hands. It should not stick to your fingers (if it does, you should add more brown rice flour, a tablespoon at a time). Next place the fruit mixture on the dough and evenly distribute it around. Then flatten the rest of the dough out in the bowl and flip it out to lay on top of the fruit. Using damp fingers, flatten the top layer of dough out and seal up the edges. Make sure all of the fruit is covered. Using a pastry brush, brush the melted butter evenly over the calzone and sprinkle with the tablespoon of sugar. 

Bake at 400 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool slightly before you glaze it. 

Prepare glaze by melting the butter, add the powder sugar and 1 tsp almond milk. Mix well. If you need  more liquid to make it easy to drizzle, add another tsp of almond milk. It should be a little thicker though, so only add if you really need it. 



Giveaway!
Bob's Red Mill will provide a case of muesli for a single winner! Trust me, you want in on this! All you have to do to enter is leave me a comment here telling me if you've ever had muesli before and if so, what you've done with it.

You will receive additional entries for doing each of the following (that's 7 entries total):
Enter Bob's Red Mill Muesli Instagram/Pinterest contest (one entry only)
Like Bob's Red Mill Facebook Page
Follow Bob's Red Mill Twitter Page
Follow Bob's Red Mill on Instagram
Follow Bob's Red Mill on Pinterest
Vote for my recipe!!! I will let you know when voting begins (April 9th and goes to the 22nd), so make sure you come back and let me know you voted for another entry!

I will pick a winner through Random.org on Monday, April 15 at noon. Good luck!

I will be sharing this on Slightly Indulgent Tuesday and Allergy Free Wednesday!

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posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 5:00 AM   89 comments
Friday, April 5, 2013
Happy Friday!
Another warm-up sketch from Tony today is from My Big Fat Greek Wedding. I had to share this one too! One of my all time favorite scenes!


I will be back next week with recipes and a giveaway! Have a great weekend and hopefully you all get some sunshine to enjoy!

posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 9:59 AM   5 comments
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Almost Wordless Wednesday
Tony is doing warm up sketches from movie scenes and this one is from today...

This is from Zombieland and it's one of my favorite movies to watch with my guys! Happy Wednesday!

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posted by Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen @ 9:50 AM   7 comments

Name:
Sarena Shasteen - The Non-Dairy Queen
Home: Atlanta, GA, United States
About Me: Lactose Challenged
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