Butternut Squash Soup

Everyone loves soup and no one loves it more then when you are not feeling well.  People without allergies take it for granted that when they get sick they can just go to the store and buy soup.  We can not have store bought soup or deli soup or restaurant soup.  The only soup being eaten in our house is homemade.  I do not think that many people will argue with me when I say that homemade is sooooo much better then store bought.

I love soup because I can make huge batches of it and freeze it single serving sizes and pull out when we need.  It is super handy to have a freezer full of soups.  I always have at least 15 jars of soup on hand.  Soup is also pretty easy to make and pretty hard to screw up.  In our home the favorite soup of course is chicken noodle but since we have no chicken at the moment the next on the list is Butternut Squash Soup.  It is so creamy and sweet and tastes divine

Butternut Squash Soup

2 large butternut squash peeled and cubed
2-3 leeks chopped
2 tbsp. beef tallow
salt and pepper to taste
8 cups homemade beef broth

Put the 2 tbsp. of beef tallow in a pot and add the leeks.  Sautee for a few minutes and then add the broth and the squash.  Simmer until the squash is soft.  Puree with a hand blender and add salt and pepper to taste.

* I have done this recipe with just water when I did not have broth and it is not as rich but still good.
** You can substitute the tallow for coconut oil or butter

The Struggles of Mom

Mom Guilt, it seems all moms have it.  I have yet to talk to one that does not have guilt over something.  Whether it comes from us, other moms or society we all have it and it can easily consume us.  As a mom with a corn allergic the guilt piles on pretty high sometimes and it is pretty hard to get rid of.

I know that I am not a bad mom.  I love my kids, would die for them and spend my days taking care of them.  This allergy is a catch 22 and it seems that when you are trying so hard to make things work for one kid you are letting the other down.  In our house I have a corn allergic kid and a husband with the allergy.  We keep our house free of allergens which means I cook a lot.  On average I cook 6 hours a day, that is 6 hours that I am standing in my kitchen prepping and making food.  Some days it is 8 hours and some days it is 4 but it is fair to say a good portion of my awake time is cooking.  You see when I am cooking I am not playing with my kids, I am not reading stories, building forts or heading to the beach.  My oldest who has no allergies struggles with the amount of time I spend in the kitchen.  He gets mad that I am always cooking and can not play with him and it has gotten worse since he started school.

Today was a hard day.  My oldest wanted to build a fort and read books.  I told him he had to wait until I made the three pots of soup I needed to make, as well as wash 15 lbs of blueberries and freeze them.  He got teary eyed and told me I was mean, that I was not being a good mom and that he was sad that I did not want to play with him.  I will not lie and say that that was not the worst thing to hear.  It broke my heart and put me in a place I hate to be.  I hate having to choose between making sure there is enough for my family and spending time with kids.  I really do not like that my son feels that I do not want to just spend my days snuggled next to him.  I am at a loss of what to say to make him understand.  It really seems so unfair at times and it is the source of my guilt.  When I cook I feel bad for not being more active in their lives and when I am playing with them I feel guilt about not making the foods I need to make.

I sometimes get jealous of the other moms out there that can buy dinner at the grocery store or take their family out to eat.  I get jealous when I see pictures of all the fun stuff that people are doing while I am cooking.  Sometimes I get so overwhelmed, the weight on shoulders hurts and I cry.  Tonight I cried.  I let out the frustrations of never getting a break, I let go of the life we won't live anymore and I cried for the vacations we will never take.  After the good cry I picked myself up and went to prep for tomorrow's cooking day.  I know that the work I do makes my son healthy and happy.  I know that eating REAL food makes us all healthier and happier.  I know that my boys appreciate all that I do and love eating the foods that we have in the house.  I know that we are teaching our boys important lessons in life and that there will come a day when they will look back and be very grateful for all that we have done.

I know that we are never given more then we can handle but sometimes it is so hard.  I am a stronger person because of this allergy and I do believe it has made me a better mom.  Tonight when I tucked in my oldest, I told him I loved him and that I am so happy he is my son.  He reached over and kissed me on the cheek and told me that he loved me and really loved the smoothie I made him today and just maybe I could make it again tomorrow. And just like that the guilt is gone and I am grateful for all that I have.

The Perfect Pie Crust

One of my biggest challenges with this allergy was to make a pie crust that not only tasted good but had that perfect flakiness to it.  I had been trying for about a year using olive oil and I was extremely unhappy with how the crust was turning out.  It was dry and hard to roll and was never pretty looking.  So one day I decided to give coconut oil a try. 

For the first time since the allergy I made a perfect crust.  It rolled out well , went in the pie plate with out issues and tasted just like a regular crust like my Baba used to make.  It was so easy to do that I actually now enjoy making the crusts.  (Before it was liking having my teeth pulled with out freezing!!)

The Perfect Pie Crust

1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup firm coconut oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
8-10 tbsp. cold water

Mix together the flour and salt.  Cut in the coconut oil with a knife until crumbly.  Add water a tbsp. at a time until a dough forms.  Refrigerate about 10 minutes and then roll the dough out on wax paper.  Place the pie plate upside down over the dough and flip.  Fill with your favourite fillings!!

So the favourite pie in our house is apple pie.  This recipe tastes so good you just may want to eat the entire pie.

Apple Pie Filling

6 large apples peeled and chopped (we love to use gala apples)
3 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. cinnamon
2 tbsp. lemon juice
3 tbsp. flour

Mix all the ingredients together and pour into the crust.  Top with another crust.  Brush with egg and bake at 375 F until golden brown.

Chocolate Bark

For anyone that knows me, they know that I love chocolate.  It is one of my most favourite things to eat and if that is all Kevin ever bought me as a gift I would be content.  Since changing how we eat, where we get our food and they type of footprint we want to leave behind I have started to make my own chocolates.

The first one I made was not corn safe for Ry because of the cranberries but the second one I made him - peanut butter and sea salt he loved and devoured.

Cranberry Sunflower Chocolate Bark

1 bar semi sweet baking chocolate
1 bag bitter sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 tsp sea salt

Melt the chocolate over a double boiler.  Once melted pour on a wax paper lined sheet and spread out.  Top with the cranberries, seeds and salt and allow to set in the fridge.  Break into pieces and store in a container in the fridge or freezer.

For Ry's I added organic peanut butter to the chocolate and topped with sea salt.

Cucumber Dill Relish & Dill Pickles

So what do you do when you have an awesome sister in law who gives you a huge back of cucumbers from their garden? Well first you thank her endlessly and then you start turning them into something that will last the winter.  I used the cucumbers to make dill pickles and cucumber and dill relish.  It is so nice to have pickles to snack on and so very nice to have another condiment to add to burgers when we make them.

So many people stray away from canning since they figure it is too hard or could be dangerous but once you get the hang of it you can create a lot of different goodies that you can enjoy year round (not that anything ever lasts that long in our house).

Cucumber Dill Relish

4lbs cucumbers
1 tsp turmeric
1/4 cup sea salt
2 onions
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tbsp. dill
1/2 cup coconut vinegar

Chop the cucumber in larger pieces and place in the food processor.  Pulse until shredded.  Place the cucumbers in a bowl with the salt and turmeric and allow to sit for 1 hour.  Pulse the onions in the food processor.  Drain the cucumbers and combine all the ingredients together in a pot.  Bring to a boil and let simmer for 10 minutes.  Pour into jars and water bath can.

Garlic Dill Pickles

3lbs cucumbers
4 cups water
1 cup coconut vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup sea salt
dill
garlic cloves

Scrub the cucumbers and cut into quarters.  Pack into sterilized jars and add dill and garlic cloves.  Heat the water, vinegar, sugar and salt.  Pour the liquid in the jars and seal.  Water bath can for about 10 minutes.  Let sit for 7 days before opening.

Coconut Flour Breakfast Muffins

My wonderful shift working husband was getting tired of having the same old breakfast options every day and was looking for something he could throw in his lunch that was quick and packed with protein.  These breakfast muffins are full of protein and are so easy to throw in your lunch.  They freeze well too.  I currently have 2 dozen frozen to pull out as needed.

Coconut Flour Breakfast Muffins

4 eggs
1/4 cup of water
4 tbsp. coconut flour
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 cup leftover cooked ground beef or 1 -2 cans of salmon or tuna
1 tsp paprika
1/4 cup green onion

Mix together all the ingredients.  Pour into silicone muffin cups and bake at 375 F for 15-18 minutes.

I freeze them in baggies of two which makes a perfect breakfast or snack.

Dehydrators and Beef Jerky

I remember when I was trying to convince my husband that not only did we need a dehydrator but we need the Excalibur I had my work cut out for me.  He did not see the point of apple chips or fruit leather so when I told him I could make beef jerky we got the Excalibur pretty quick.

My husband has had to give up a lot of foods since the allergy and he really missed beef jerky.  It was a go to snack when he went fishing, quading or out on the snowmobile.  After I made the first batch of beef jerky he was in love and very happy that we now owned a dehydrator.

The beef jerky recipe is super simple, quick to do and makes a great snack.  I make a big batch and try and vacuum seal some to save but it never seems to last that long.

Beef Jerky

2 steaks, I prefer sirloin or tenderloin but any will do
2 tbsp. coconut aminos
1 tbsp. sea salt
1 tbsp. pepper

Allow the steaks to slightly thaw out and then slice into think pieces.  Place all the pieces in a bowl and combine with the aminos and spices.  Allow to marinate in the fridge overnight.  In the morning put it in the dehydrator and dehydrate on the highest setting for 3-4 hours depending on the thickness of the meat.  Enjoy!!