Introducing EveryMite – an allergy friendly super spread!

August 24, 2017 · 5 Comments

Introducing EveryMite – an allergy friendly super spread!

You have to love a bit of serendipity.

I only moved back to Brisbane 18 months ago and I haven’t really met a lot of new people yet. When your kids are in high school you tend to lose that connection with other mums a bit and it becomes harder to make friends.

But… I came across a mum (who happens to live right near me) in a local Facebook group and she was talking about a healthy, allergy friendly spread she was making. I instantly thought – hello, here is a kindred spirit, I need to find out more.

I ordered some EveryMite for myself to test it out and then I had to get in touch and tell her how awesome it was! Cinnamon came over for a cuppa last week and we had such a good chat about all things natural and healthy. Kindred spirits indeed.

Of course, then I had to tell all of you about her as well, because I think you are also going to love her story!

About Cinnamon…

Cinnamon and her husband were already the parents of two older boys, when along came William four years ago who was born with Down Syndrome. They had a lot of issues with his health including multiple food intolerances and digestive issues. After going down the mainstream medicine route and treating symptoms, they were not seeing any results.

They decided to embark on the GAPS diet and a natural way of living and saw immediate improvements. Further on down the track when William went to child care, GAPS became difficult to maintain and William became more independent and wanted to eat the same as the other kids.

Having had the two boys go through the school system and knowing how tough that being ‘different’ can be, Cinnamon wanted to do what she could to help William assimilate and engage with his world. Her idea was to make William foods that looked like mainstream products but were in fact healthier versions.

This is where EveryMite was born!

About EveryMite…..

Cinnamon wanted to create a spread for William to replace Vegemite that was black in colour, salty and that had ingredients that he could eat. Three years of trialing, testing and refining the recipe finally led to EveryMite.

It’s a unique product in that it is suitable for just about everyone and every diet including paleo, vegan and GAPS! For those with the MTHFR gene it does not contain folic acid either. Made with just four ingredients, it is organic, raw, nutrient dense and allergy friendly.

EveryMite doesn’t have any dairy, soy, nuts, gluten, eggs, grains, toxic oils, preservatives, folic acid, thickeners and weird stuff.

EveryMite does have naturally occurring vitamins, minerals, amino acids, protein, fibre, enzymes and acetic acid. The ingredients are simply organic black sesame seeds, organic coconut amino sauce, organic himalayan rock salt and organic apple cider vinegar.

Cinnamon and her family still hand-make every batch in a commercial kitchen in Brisbane and there is a lot of love added to every jar!

What’s it taste like?

Because it doesn’t contain yeast, it doesn’t taste like Vegemite and it’s not supposed to. It’s a savoury breakfast spread that can be used instead of Vegemite for those who want something healthier. It’s a healthy Vegemite alternative.

Did you know that Vegemite is loaded with additives? It’s always been marketed as a health product and a great way to get vitamin B in particular. Sue Dengate at Fed Up says that “yeast extracts contain free glutamates that are essentially the same as MSG”. Vegemite also contains folic acid (manufacturers Bega confirm the folate is folic acid), gluten and natural colour (150d) which contains preservative 220. Remember I have talked about 220 before?

We gave up on it quite a few years ago and my hubby in particular really misses it. So he is pretty happy that I found EveryMite.

We love the taste. It’s slightly sweet, savoury and tangy all at once. It’s delicious on celery, crackers, rice cakes and toast. It also has a long shelf life which other Vegemite alternatives on the market struggled with.

Want to try it?

You can get it at health food stores (ask your local to stock it!!) or online here.

So often we see mums paving the way with new products, innovations and ideas after seeking solutions for their own families.

Mums really are changing the world!

Chewy Honey Biscuits

July 31, 2017 · 10 Comments

What can I say about these biscuits (or cookies as the Americans like to call them)? Well, they are chewy and they taste like honey and they are very, very addictive!

It’s actually a great base recipe so add in whatever you like in place of the sultanas. The almond meal means they are really filling, so you really only need one with your cuppa to feel satisfied.

Do you like a chewy biscuit or a crisp biscuit best? Me, I will eat them any which way and however they come!

Chewy Honey Biscuits

Vital Stats: gluten free, grain free, dairy free, egg free, vegetarian

This is what you need:

3 cups organic or pesticide free almond meal

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

1 tablespoon organic cinnamon

1/4 cup macadamia oil

1/2 cup organic sultanas

3/4 cup organic raw honey

This is how you do it:

Mix everything together and then roll into small balls about the size of a walnut.

Place on a non toxic baking paper lined tray, pressing them down a little.

Cook for 15 – 20 minutes at 180 degrees celsius.

Leave room for spreading! Cool on a wire rack.

They firm up a little after cooking but are meant to be chewy.

These freeze beautifully, so make up a double batch and pop some in the freezer for those times when you need a healthy sweet treat!

**Just be careful to watch the biscuits as nuts and honey are prone to burn quickly**

Do you like my reusable snack pack pictured in the photo??? Check them out here >>

Healthy Unicorn Food

May 1, 2017 · 5 Comments

So the latest fad is unicorn food. But instead of all that artificial colouring, flavourings, sugar and weird stuff, you can actually make unicorn food that is healthy!

I reckon these recipes would be awesome for a kids’ party or to get the kids excited about cooking at home. Who doesn’t love a little sparkle and magic in their life?

Check out these awesome recipes to get your creative juices flowing.

PS No unicorns were harmed in the making of this unicorn food.

Healthy Unicorn Food

Unicorn Smoothy

I have to say, this smoothy using dragonfruit and spirulina looks so much more appealing than the Starbucks version.

Unicorn Nice-Cream

This looks amazing! The nice-cream uses whipped coconut cream and fruit but you could use frozen banana for the base as well.

Unicorn Cashew Coconut Dream Bars

A little more subtle but still so pretty, these vegan bars use edible flowers and blue algae powder!

Unicorn Yoghurt Bark

So easy to make, just add fruit to yoghurt. For your sprinkles, choose a natural brand like Hoppers to add sparkly fun without the nasty additives.

Unicorn Noodles

Despite these noodles looking like they are coloured with something fake, it’s actually just cabbage and lemon juice. Cool!

Unicorn Dip

A sweet dip for fruit, this dip is based on cream cheese and yoghurt with some healthy additions.

Unicorn Latte

Not a drop of coffee in sight, these unicorn lattes are based on cashews!

Unicorn Cheesecake

Using yoghurt, cream cheese and natural colourings, this cheesecake is actually quite easy to make.

Unicorn Donut

These gluten free, vegan donuts are baked in the oven and topped with naturally coloured whipped coconut cream. Delicious!

Paleo Unicorn Cake

How gorgeous is this paleo unicorn cake from The Cosmopolitan Hippy? It’s got different coloured layers and a healthier marshmallow icing.

Gluten-Free Unicorn Cake!

Lisa from Mummy Made It has this gorgeous recipe featuring vanilla cake and fruit curds with a whipped coconut icing. Yum.

Raw and Vegan Unicorn Cake

Look at this stunning cake!! I can’t believe it’s all natural. Find the recipe here.

Get Creative

Try making your own healthy unicorn food! Here are some things that can help add that magical sparkle to your creations.

Mermaids Latte (pictured above) or Beetroot Latte Powders

Hoppers Natural Food Colourings and Sprinkles
Spirulina or Chlorella Powder
Acai Berry Powder
Beetroot Powder or Kale Powder
Turmeric Latte Powder
Matcha Green Tea Powder
Edible flowers

Would you try any of these healthy unicorn food recipes? Or is it all too much?? 😀

Cool Ideas for Easter (that aren’t chocolate)

March 24, 2017 · 7 Comments

Cool Ideas for Easter (that aren’t chocolate)

This ancient pagan celebration has somehow turned into a commercialised chocolate-fest!

The pressure is on parents to make Easter another Christmas but with copious amounts of cheap, nasty chocolate. It’s easy for kids to get caught up the hype.

Okay, so how do you participate in Easter, enjoy some chocolate and not be a party-pooper?

My tips are to go back to basics.

Create family traditions based around making Easter treats together (homemade hot cross buns and Easter eggs are really not too hard to do!) You can put a limit on treats or let the grandparents supply the chocolate while you get the kids something else for their Easter basket.

When it comes to chocolate, buy smaller amounts of good quality, fair-trade chocolate and really savour it.

Here are some more ideas and alternatives for you.

♥ Bamboo Easter Signs

These bamboo signs are hand made in Melbourne and start at just $15.00 You can get a generic one or get it personalised with your kids’ or family name! Check it out here.

♥ Recycled Sari Easter Basket

At just $9.95, this gorgeous Easter basket is made from recycled saris and ethically made in Bangladesh. I want one of these for myself. Just adorable! Get it here.

♥ Terracotta Bunny Lantern

Perfect for the person in your life who doesn’t want chocolate for Easter but you still don’t want them feeling left out. It makes a gorgeous decoration for the house at Easter as well. Get it online here.

♥ Organic Crochet Bunny

Beautifully hand-made in Australia using organic cotton, you can get one of these adorable bunnies here.

♥ Wooden Counting Rabbits

This set of eco-friendly counting rabbits with carrots can be used as a puzzle or free play. Totally safe for kids with non-toxic paints and plantation timber.

Get it online here.

♥ BBYO Bunni Water Bottle

For those too old (or cool) for toys, this Bunni water bottle is super cute. The bottle has no plastic at all and is heat resistant so you can use if for water or hot drinks! Get it here.

♥ Oxfam Unwrapped

Gift some chickens or a goat or a myriad of other life saving things to those in need. Check out Oxfam Unwrapped here.

♥ Gingerbread Bunnies!

I am such a fan of Gingerbread Folk’s products. They are handmade in the Blue Mountains and contain no artificial nasties. The bunnies are wrapped individually in compostable packaging and perfect for baskets or for hunting! Get them online here.

♥ Healthy Marshmallows

The very clever Jo Whitton from Quirky Cooking has just come out with this yummy, all natural, honey-sweetened marshmallow recipe just in time for Easter. It’s so easy to make and relatively inexpensive too. Try out some different flavourings and have fun! Get the recipe here.

♥ Naturally Dyed Easter Eggs

A really fun project to do with the kids is dyed eggs. Using natural ingredients like turmeric and beetroot, Mommypotamus shows you step by step how to do it. Read more here.

♥ Cute Eco Easter Bags!

Super easy, eco-friendly and really, really cute. A great way to share your homemade treats. Find the tutorial here.

♥ You might also like to read:

Healthy Homemade Easter Eggs

Your complete guide to a Healthy Easter

Healthy Hot Cross Buns

Healthy Easter Ideas

Sweet Potato Pizza Bases (gluten free, dairy free)

March 16, 2017 · 7 Comments

We now have three of us in the family as dedicated gluten-free.

While I love almond meal based recipes, all that almond meal does get a bit expensive. So I’ve been experimenting with different things to bulk out the almond meal and be a little more frugal.

My first experiment with pizza bases was a winner with both kids saying they preferred it to the plain almond meal one I usually make. It’s pretty easy to make and perfect for using up leftover sweet potato mash.

The bases freeze really well, so make a double batch to have an easy dinner option on hand ready to go. They defrost super quick!

I hope you love these easy sweet potato pizza bases as much as we do. Let me know if you make them!

Sweet Potato Pizza Bases (gluten free, dairy free)

This is what you need:

2 cups cooked, mashed sweet potato

2 cups almond meal

2 eggs

1 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes (optional)

2 teaspoons Herbamare (or salt)

This is how you do it:

Preheat the oven to 200°celsius.

Add all ingredients to a large bowl and mix well.

Line two round pizza trays with non-toxic baking paper.

Spread the mixture onto the trays and form the shape you want. The mixture is like a batter, not a dough.

Use a spatula to help you push it to the edges and smooth out so it’s an even thickness.

Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes.

Now you can spread it with sauce and your choice of toppings.

Pop it back into the oven for another 10 minutes or so or until it’s cooked.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Cherry Tart (Gluten Free, Dairy Free)

December 8, 2016 · 6 Comments

We don’t eat a lot of desserts or sweets but every year for Christmas Eve, I make up something special for dinner.

This year I was thinking about chocolate and cherries because, you know …… yum!

Mandy from Crio Bru Australia kindly sent me some Vega Real flavour and I turbo-chocolated this tart with it.

Without sounding too food-wanky, the Crio Bru gives it a whole new delicious depth of chocolatey flavour. Vega Real is my favourite flavour but you could use any of the blends (probably not Mint or Mojito though).

What is Crio Bru? It’s ground cocoa beans that you can use in cooking or brew up to make a delicious hot or cold drink. It has loads of health benefits and the perfect substitute for coffee!

You only need a small piece of this tart – it’s rich and filling but I haven’t made it overly sweet. The best thing is you don’t even need to turn on the oven.

I really hope you enjoy it. If you make it for Christmas or any time, send me a photo!

Chocolate Cherry Tart

(Gluten Free, Dairy Free)

Vital Stats: gluten free, grain free, dairy free, vegan, raw

This is what you need:

Base:

1 cup almonds, soaked

1 tablespoon cacao

1/2 cup medjool dates

1/4 cup Crio Bru

Filling:

2 cups cashews, soaked

1 cup medjool dates

1 cup coconut cream (get one in a BPA free can)

2 tablespoons Crio Bru

1/2 cup cacao

1/2 cup coconut oil

1/2 teaspoon Himalayan salt

2 scraped vanilla pods or 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

200g fresh cherries

Garnish:

Extra Crio Bru
Extra cherries

This is how you do it:

Soak the almonds and cashews for a few hours or overnight. This just softens them down and makes them easier to work with and digest.

Process the base ingredients until smooth.

Press into a 20cm baking paper lined flan dish or springform pan. I use the back of a soup spoon to get it nice and smooth.

Place in the freezer until firm.

Meanwhile, infuse the coconut cream with the Crio Bru in a saucepan on a low heat for ten to fifteen minutes. Let cool completely, don’t strain. The whole lot will go into the filling.

Whizz up all the filling ingredients except the cherries. Keep going until it’s nice and smooth.

I like to test it now to check the flavour. If you like really sweet things you may need to add in a drizzle of maple syrup or if you want it really dark and chocolatey, go another tablespoon of cacao.

Pit the cherries (I got a kid to do this!! but you can buy cherry pitters) and place cut side down on the base.

Whack in the filling and smooth the top out.

Cover and refrigerate until set.

Decorate with fresh cherries and sprinkle over some more Crio Bru.

Store in the fridge and bring out just before serving.

You could also use frozen cherries or fresh or frozen raspberries.

Want some more Crio Bru recipes?

Choc Hazel Bliss Balls

Crio Bru Christmas Cake

Crio Mac

Double Chocolate and Berry Biscuits

Homemade Chocolate Chai Syrup

(this post is sponsored)

Easy Herb and Garlic Green Dip

November 1, 2016 · 4 Comments

My whole family loves a tasty dip.

It’s a great way to boost your vegetable intake – carrot sticks taste a whole lot yummier with something to dip them in.

This nut free dip is great in lunch boxes or for afternoon tea for the kids and even fancy enough to take to a barbecue. In fact, I always get asked for my recipe when I make this!

As well as serving the dip with plenty of fresh veggies, I also like to ‘upnourish’ as Kristin from Mamacino says, with extra vegetables and veggie powder added in.

This green dip is also so much cheaper to make than buying a pre-made dip from the supermarket. Seriously how expensive and full of additives is dip these days! Even the ones in the gourmet delis are full of canola oil and will set you back the best part of $10!

Anyhow…. here is the recipe. Let me know if you make it and what you think!

Easy Herb and Garlic Green Dip

Vital Stats: gluten free, grain free, nut free, egg free, vegetarian

This is what you need:

500g cream cheese*

1-2 small garlic cloves

1/2 cup parsley

2 cups baby spinach

4 small green shallots, trimmed

1/2 teaspoon Herbamare or salt to taste

2 teaspoons Vital Veggie Power

cracked black pepper to taste

*make sure you buy a plain cream cheese, not the low-fat ones as they are full of weird additives

This is what you do:

Wash all your greens well. Chop the shallots into a few pieces.

In your food processor or thermomix, throw the garlic and greens and whizz up.

Scrape down and add the remaining ingredients.

Whizz until well combined.

I don’t mind mine a bit chunky but if you have fussy kids, keep blending!

This is a spreadable, thick dip. If you want something softer and dippier (yep that’s a word), add a tablespoon or so of yoghurt or sour cream.

Serve it with plenty of cut up veggies and some seed crackers.

It will last around three days in a well-sealed container in the fridge.

Hot tip: If you want to go really hard-core, have a crack at making your own raw cream cheese.

Dorsogna 100% Natural Bacon Review

August 9, 2016 · 26 Comments

Dorsogna 100% Natural Bacon Review

This bacon product is fairly new to the market and caused a bit of interest on my social media amongst you all! I promised I would do you a review and tell you my thoughts and here it is.

First up, this review is not sponsored or endorsed by Dorsogna in any way. I actually emailed them to ask questions about the product months ago and I haven’t heard back!

Why is natural bacon of interest??

Well, it’s a long and complicated story! There still exists some debate about bacon and nitrates/nitrites but I found this article at Weston A Price to be quite good at explaining it all.

Personally, I try to eat full fat food with minimal processing and avoid synthetic additives.

The Product

This bacon is readily available in most of the big supermarkets with the 400g pack retailing for around $10.

Dorsogna make a number of claims on their bacon including:

100% natural ingredients

No artificial preservatives

No added nitrites

No artificial flavours

No artificial colours

Gluten free

No synthetic ingredients

97% fat free

Minimally processed

Of course, we all know that to truly assess a product, we should always read the ingredient list rather than relying on marketing claims, right!?

So, the ingredient list:
Pork (90%), water, salt, potato starch, cane sugar, vegetable extract, vegetable fibre, fruit extract, natural flavourings, naturally wood smoked.

I really wanted to know what exactly the vegetable and fruit extract and the natural flavourings are but as I didn’t get a reply from the company, it’s anyone’s guess!

So, the ingredient list doesn’t sound too bad, right? It’s definitely an improvement on some bacon you can buy from the supermarket. If you are specifically avoiding synthetic nitrates/nitrites you might be happy to buy it and not investigate further.

The Pork

So, my other questions to Dorsogna were, where is the meat sourced from? is the meat free range? what do the pigs eat? how is it processed? what chemicals are used in the processing? are there chemicals used in the packaging?

The package states that the meat is ‘made in Australia from local and imported ingredients.’

Having a friend that is a pig farmer has really opened my eyes to all of these concerns! I want to eat pork that is treated humanely, allowed to roam on pasture, reared and processed in Australia, that has eaten a nutritious, natural diet and is processed and packaged without added chemicals.

I will make an assumption here that the pork is not free range or exclusively from Australia. My conclusion is based on the fact that these claims are not on the packaging. As these are desirable attributes to a consumer, you would have to conclude that if it was free range, Aussie meat, they would be shouting it from the rooftops.

The Taste

Okay, so now we get to another important aspect – the taste!!!

Our family loves bacon….. like really loves it. But not this bacon. Everyone in the family hated it!

It’s really salty and tastes to me like Spam. The kids have no idea what Spam tastes like but they also said it was too salty and had a fake taste.

The texture is really mushy and has a strange, soft mouthfeel (again rather Spam like).

When cooking the bacon, I could not get it to crisp up at all, it just seems to stay the same colour and stick to the pan. You can see in the photo how it broke down into pieces after cooking. That happened every single time I cooked it.

So, when I compare this to the natural bacon I usually buy, it’s really, really different, both in taste and texture.

Final Verdict

I like the fact that the bacon is gluten-free and appears to have no added synthetic additives. It’s also easy to source and not too expensive.

Would I buy it again? Nope.

Aside from the fact that we didn’t like the taste and texture, I really don’t like supporting an industry where animals are treated inhumanely. Free range, high welfare meat is really important to our family.

I don’t mind paying extra for better quality.

Other Options

If you would prefer to eat natural, Aussie bacon with minimal processing the best advice I can give you is to see what you can source locally. Check out your farmers’ markets or your organic butcher and ask questions.

There are some amazing farmers out there producing beautiful pork products. Once you taste this type of bacon, trust me, you will love bacon even more.

I would love to know what you think! Have you tried it?

Peanut Satay Chicken Wings

August 1, 2016 · 5 Comments

Peanut Satay Chicken Wings

I have a love affair with satay!

How good are those flavours?? We quite often have satay stir fries or noodles for dinner.

I was inspired by a recipe at Taste and decided to try my hand at making a peanut sauce marinade on some chicken wings for a budget and kid friendly dinner.

If you can’t have peanuts, use any other nut butter you have – cashew would be perfect!

Peanut Satay Chicken Wings

Vital Stats: gluten free, dairy free, egg free, grain free

Serves 4

Okay this is what you need:

8 large organic chicken wings

1/3 cup organic peanut butter

1/3 cup organic coconut cream

2 tablespoons organic tamari

1 lime juiced (about 2 tablespoons)

2 teaspoons fresh turmeric, grated

2 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated

2 -3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 teaspoon coconut sugar

HOT TIP: Use coconut cream in a can that has a BPA free lining like this one.

Okay so this is what you do:

Mix all ingredients except the chicken wings.

Add the chicken wings to the mixture and marinate overnight or for a few hours.
Preheat the oven to 200°celsius.

Place the wings on a rack on top of a tray and cook for 30-40 minutes or until brown and cooked through.

The marinade will form a crispy crust on the wings. Droooool!

You can also cook the wings in all the marinade in an oven proof dish if you like.

Serve the peanut satay chicken wings with some coconut rice and an asian salad or stir-fried vegetables.

HOT TIP: When marinating chicken pieces, I always slash the skin in a few places with a sharp knife so the yummy flavours penetrate through to the meat.

If your kids are little, they might like smaller pieces, so cut the chicken wings into three pieces, discarding the wing tip (use it for broth). These smaller serves also work well as for nibbles for a party or bbq.

They are also delicious cold so make extra for the lunch boxes.

What do you think? Will you give them a go?

What is your best budget meal for the family?

Pecan Salted Caramel Truffles

May 31, 2016 · 7 Comments

Oh my goodness, these are so amazing.

These Pecan Salted Caramel Truffles taste a bit like caramel lollies! I came across a Nakd food bar in my supermarket last month and the only ingredients were dates and cashews. It was so delicious and so caramely, it inspired me to add some more of my favourite ingredients and make these truffles. Well, they are sort of a bliss ball, but taste a bit more decadent so I called them a truffle.

Hope you like them as much as we do!

Pecan Salted Caramel Truffles

Vital Stats: gluten free, grain free, vegetarian, vegan, egg free, paleo

This is what you need:

1 cup organic cashews

1 cup organic medjool dates (or you can use dried dates, just soak in hot water and drain well)

1/2 cup organic pecans

1/8 teaspoon pink Himalayan salt (or a tad more if you like it salty)

1/2 scraped organic vanilla pod (or any sort of vanilla you have)

This is how to do it:

Take the pits out of the dates (important!). Throw the dates into a strong food processor or thermomix with the cashews, salt and vanilla and blend until they just start to come together in a ball. Be careful – if you overprocess, they will go weird and shed oil.

Now add in the pecans and just pulse until they are chopped up a little. I like to see the pecan bits still in there. Roll into small balls and pop in the fridge or freezer to store. But I can tell you now they taste good straight up!

Please let me know if you try the Pecan Salted Caramel Truffles and what you thought!

Want more?
Try these Ten Amazing Bliss Ball Recipes