Buckwheat Pancakes

Pancakes + butter + warm maple syrup =heaven!  I adore carbs.  Upon beginning my Candida diet, I mourned the loss of fluffy pancakes drenched in butter and saturated in real maple syrup.  Not only did I miss the taste, I missed the satisfying, filling feeling that came over me after having consumed said pancakes.  I was HUNGRY!!  Meat and veggies just weren’t cutting it.  So, I began researching alternate grains which would still permit me to eat carbs/grains without the side effects of traditional wheat and white flour.  Enter buckwheat flour! I don’t remember how I discovered it, but I’m so happy I did.  Buckwheat flour is gluten free and is an excellent source of nutrients. It yields pancakes which create a nourishing, filling breakfast.  It took me awhile to adjust to the taste and texture, but these have become one of my favorite meals. 

Buckwheat Pancakes

• 2/3 cup buckwheat flour


• 1/3 cup brown rice flour


• 1 egg


• 1 cup water

Mix all ingredients together.  Add more or less water to batter to reach desired consistency and cook as you would normal pancakes. 

[caption id="attachment_310" align="aligncenter" width="498" caption="I topped these with maple syrup for Bri and she ate 'em up!"][/caption]

Tip: Since these pancakes are dense and don’t absorb toppings like regular pancakes do, I thin out my batter so my pancakes aren’t very thick.  I top mine with butter and serve immediately. 

**Those with Candida react to foods differently.  These recipes are based upon my reactions to food and should be altered to fit your unique dietary needs.

Score Cheap Diapers on Amazon

I don’t know about you, but I hate spending money on diapers.  I learned the following trick from Money Saving Mom and it has definitely taken the sting out of purchasing diapers!

• Go to Amazon and search for the brand and size diaper you want.  I buy Luvs because they are the cheapest ($35.00). 


• Click on the diapers you want and on the right-hand side of the page, there is a blue box that says “Save 30% with Subscribe & Save.”  Click on the “Subscribe Now” button and enter your shipping and payment information. 


• Once you’ve entered all that, you’ll see your First Delivery Summary on the right-hand side of the page showing your discount amount ($10.50) and your free shipping.  If you’ve ordered Luvs diapers, your total should be $24.50. Click “Sign Me Up” and your first shipment will be on it’s way!


• Once you receive a confirmation email that your diapers have shipped, go to "Your Account" on Amazon, click on "Manage Your Subscribe and Save" and cancel the subscription. 

 I also shave money off of my diaper total by using Amazon gift cards that I earn from Swag Bucks.  Swag Bucks is a search engine which awards digital dollars called "Swag Bucks." These can be redeemed for gift cards, books, apparel, accessories and much more.  I purchase $5.00 Amazon gift cards, which I apply to my diaper purchases.

So, by combining my gift cards from Swag Bucks with the discounts from Amazon, I end up spending approximately $15.00 on a case of diapers!

Candida-Friendly Soup Recipe

I’ve decided to start posting recipes that fit in with my Candida diet.  Most people have never heard of a Candida, so here is a definition in a nutshell.  Anyway, when I first realized I had Candida, it required a complete change in the way I ate. No more starches , processed foods, no sugar in ANY FORM, etc.  It is easier to list what I can eat than what I can’t eat. Basically I can consume  meat, veggies and some complex carbohydrates like rice and barley.  I can also eat grains no one has ever heard of like buckwheat, amaranth, and the like.  I was seriously depressed for quite some time because I was hungry and had no idea what to make that I could actually eat.  But with the help of my Mom, my sweet friend Carmen, and lots of experimenting, I have a pretty broad range of recipes to choose from.  So in case anyone else with Candida ever stumbles across my blog, maybe they can benefit from some of the recipes I’ve collected.

So all that to say, I threw this soup together last week when we all wanted something warm, satisfying and comforting.  It turned out delicious! All of the ingredients are Candida friendly except the potatoes.  Those can easily be eliminated and the soup is still tasty and, most importantly, FILLING!

Ingredients

3 cups chicken stock

3 cups water

1 large can diced tomatoes

1 small can Italian diced tomatoes

½ cup rice or barley

½ cup lentils

2 potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 large onion, roughly chopped

3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 lb. sautéed sausage

2 tsp. thyme

2 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. red pepper flakes

Salt and pepper to taste

Simmer all ingredients until veggies, rice and lentils are soft.

A Kerr Christmas

Our Christmas was a busy one! We celebrated Christmas Eve with hubby’s family and had a wonderful time.  Bri is at the age where she has fully grasped the meaning and excitement of “presents.” It was so fun to watch her tear into gift bags, rip wrapping paper and exclaim, “Ohhhh!!” when the present was finally revealed. 

Emmie had no clue what was going on, of course.  She did thoroughly enjoy being around all the family, especially Nana and Papa’s dog, Ralph. Ralph is massive golden retriever with the sweetest temperament you could ask for.  He let Emmie hold onto his ears and get right in his face, which sent her into fits of laughter. 

[caption id="attachment_273" align="aligncenter" width="491" caption="Emmie and Great-Grandmama Kerr"][/caption]

We also spent quite of bit of time baking.  Bri started baking sugar cookies with Grandma, but rapidly lost interest.  She may do better next year when she has more of an attention span. 

Six hours in the kitchen on Christmas Eve day produced these four gorgeous pies!  I was, and still am, so proud of how they turned out.  They tasted good, too, which was a real plus after all that time I spent on them!

Bri also gave us our first Christmas gift this year.  She went to the bathroom on her potty for the first time!! Best Christmas gift we could have asked for.  I guess this means potty training is looming on the horizon of our New Year!

Emmie also had a milestone on Christmas Morning.  She pulled up for the first time on her own and I got a picture of it!! My babies are growing up so fast!

Emmie Grace

My sweet baby is 8 months old. So far, my favorite age range has been 6-12 months with both my girls.  Emmie is still a soft, cuddly baby but she sleeps through the night (for the most part), responds, interacts and is nearly always happy. 

It’s so interesting to watch Emmie’s personality develop.  This child loves being around people and is definitely not reserved.  She watches everything Bri does with intense curiosity.  I don’t think she’ll grow up to be a person who does anything halfway.  Her enthusiasm for learning to roll over, crawl and pull up is adorable and kind of surprising.  Maybe that much zeal is normal, but it’s new to me, since Bri is so cautious about trying anything new or different. 

This is Emmie’s first Christmas and she has not mauled the tree as I feared she would.  Obviously, she’s touched it and I think she’s pulled an ornament off once or twice, but overall, she’s done well. 

Baths are a big hit with this little girl, just like they are with her big sister.  She loves to splash, chew on the toys and try to eat the bubbles, as you can seein the pictures below :)