watermelon and blueberry salad

One of my biggest cravings this pregnancy has been watermelon.  I ate an entire watermelon in two days... Yes, a whole watermelon... by myself, before finding out that it has such a high natural sodium content that it could cause swelling.  (Seriously? Fruit=swelling. Dang it.) But, now I still enjoy it in moderation. My favorite way to eat it is with a handful of fresh blueberries. 

This salad is so ridiculously easy you don't really need a recipe. Cubed watermelon, fresh blueberries, and a touch of lemon juice... What could be easier, right? But it is so delicious and so refreshing.  Perfect for summertime. The sweet watermelon pairs perfectly with tart blueberries.  I really thought about tossing in a handful of feta and a few mint leaves to make it a little more gourmand, but in this case, I really think less is more.  Enjoy!

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weeknight wonders: belgian waffles (Gluten-Free)

Sometimes we eat waffles for dinner... It's a fun way to make a Tuesday night a little more happening, especially if you eat them with the best scrambled eggs ever and lots of real maple syrup.  These waffles might be gluten-free, but they don't really taste gluten-free. Even my not-so-gluten-free husband loves them.  The secret is folding in whipped egg whites just before you toss them on the griddle. The egg whites make them light and crisp, while butter makes them, well, butter-y. These are adapted from a great little cookbook, but I use my own brown rice flour mix. 

Sometimes we eat ours the traditional way (syrup and berries), but they are also great for breakfast sandwiches. You could always add a little cheddar and chives to the batter before making them into egg and ham sandwiches. Go crazy, y'all.  Happy Monday! 

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dark chocolate cake cookies

Hello there! Happy Friday! Sorry I've been MIA this week... Between Braxton Hicks, swelling, party planning, work, car stuff, and just general business it's been a bit of a crazy week. But, I have cookies for you... Not just any cookies, dark chocolate CAKE cookies. 

A few weeks ago, I was at a cook out and I totally cheated on my diet.  My friend had made these huge gooey cake batter cookies with peanut butter chocolate chips.  I knew they weren't gluten free.  I knew I had already eaten a hot dog, tons of salsa, and pasta salad. I knew they weren't a mid-wife approved snack. Instead, I ate three.

Afterwards, I just couldn't get these cookies out of my head... they haunted my dreams, my late night cravings, I almost spent $8 bucks on a GF cake mix just to see if that would work. So I set about replicating them and with the help of my brilliant mother, finally succeeded.  After a few attempts that produced delicious chocolate cookies but not fluffy cake-like cookies, she suggested using applesauce and baking soda in place of eggs to make the cookies light and fluffy. Genius! These had the perfect cake-y texture.  Every bite was chocolate-y and light. Plus, they are made from scratch instead of a mix so no high fructose corn devil in these babies.

I used bittersweet chocolate chips with this batch, but feel free to get creative with your chocolate chips. Peanut butter, white chocolate, Andes mints... Things could get a little crazy but be sure to give it your own touch.

 

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