Mom’s Best Corn-Oat Gluten-Free Vegan Waffles

My grandmother used to make these waffles for breakfast, they were so filling that one was enough and they tasted so good. Whenever I went to her house and it smelled of these waffles, I knew I was in for a treat. Now, my mother makes them in large batches, freezes them and we can have a wonderful breakfast for about a week. These waffles are super healthy, they are gluten-free, vegan (honey is optional), and can be done organic! I give small pieces to my 1 year old without anything else, no honey or maple syrup and he loves it, and I don’t feel the least bit guilty about giving him some.  In general, I can’t stand the taste of gluten-free products but these are an exception, they are delicious. All the picky eaters who’ve tried them, the non-health nuts, etc., all love them, and ask for the recipe. So, here it is!

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Best Corn-Oat Gluten-Free Vegan Waffles:

• 7 cups organic rolled oats
• 7 cups water
• 1 cup organic cornmeal
• 1/4 cup organic coconut oil
• 2 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 cup honey (optional)
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 2 ripe mashed (not over mashed!) bananas
• Sesame seeds for sprinkling
• Optional but highly recommended: 2 tablespoons each chia seeds, flax seeds

Blend oats, water, cornmeal, coconut oil, salt, honey and vanilla extract in blender, 3 or 4 cups at a time.  If you have a Vitamix or Ninja blender, the large 9 cup container is big enough to do all of it at once, otherwise you’ll want to split the mixture.  Batter should not be too thick or too runny.  Pour into large mixing bowl and add bananas, mix with large wooden spoon.  For best results, oil waffle iron with coconut oil once before adding batter.  For easy removal and enhancing flavor, sprinkle sesame seeds on hot waffle iron, pour batter, then sprinkle with more sesame seeds.

Depending on your waffle maker, it can take between 5-10 minutes for each to cook.  We use an Oster waffle maker we bought at Target for under $20, set on high heat. We do not recommend the cheap Black & Decker waffle maker from Walmart, it takes forever but it does work in a pinch.

Set to cool on a rack so they can release their moisture. Once cooled, they can be stacked with wax paper between them and frozen.  Makes about 10 waffles. You can double this recipe and store them frozen for a quick yet nutritious breakfast the whole family will enjoy.  We recommend using real maple syrup or honey as topping.

Best Corn-Oat Vegan Gluten-free Waffle

Guylian Artisanal Belgian Chocolate Giveaway

I love chocolate, I rarely indulge however because of all the sugar and other added nastiness. But quality chocolate is so good to have in moderation. With Valentine’s Day coming up, I definitely wouldn’t mind getting a nice box, which I’d share with the household….right….yeah…maybe…

Anyway…I came across this giveaway for Guylian Artisanal Belgian Chocolate and thought it would be a sin not to share the chance

Win a Year of Netflix Streaming or Amazon Prime

This is an awesome giveaway, I must say! A year’s subscription to either Netflix Streaming or Amazon Prime service.  I already have Netflix so I would personally choose Amazon Prime, which I’ve wanted to check out for a while now.  It’d be nice to have it since I can see Amazon Prime on my Roku box.  I refuse to pay for cable, which is why services like Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hulu Plus on my Roku box are just great for the whole family.  There’s always something interesting to watch.

To participate, visit Single Root’s blog.  It’s a very easy Rafflecopter giveaway, winner’s will be announced Feb 15, 2012.

TEA COLLECTION (CLOTHING) $100.00 GIFT CERTIFICATE GIVEAWAY

Finding cool and original styles for boys can sometimes be a little challenging.  So when I came across this giveaway I just had to share!

Mama to 4 Blessing is hosting a Tea Collection Review and $100 Gift Certificate Giveaway.  Be sure to check it out, their styles are very versatile and super hip for boys. I’d love to get some of these pieces for my little boy, they’re just the style we like for him.

Tea Collection designs distinctive fashion collections inspired by the beauty they discover in their travels around the world. From the iconic art and architecture of Barcelona to the graphic boldness of Brazilian street graffiti, Tea interprets their discoveries into beautiful, dynamic styles for children, ages 0-12.

Leap Frog 2 Piece Set

Fabulous Vegetarian Moms

My family and I went out to Infusion Tea last night. It’s one of our absolute favorite places in all of Central Florida, what with all the tea options, the vegetarian menu, vegan and gluten-free options, the gorgeous craft section and the farmers market. Not to mention its just a great spot to chill with friends. We’ve been in the house for a few days due to our juice fast/diet so we decided to dress up a little.

Fabulous Vegetarian Moms

My mother and I are both life-long vegetarians, she breastfed me for 2 1/2 years and has always been very focused on healthy living in every aspect. She’s so gung-ho and willing to try all kinds of new things in the name of good, clean fun and delicious, nutritious eating.  This week she tried her hand at home-made sauerkraut; we’ve been making up veggie patties, home-made gluten, yogurt, dressings, and more!

Before my pregnancy, I was at around 180lbs, nearly nine months after giving birth, I’m at 167lbs! I’m super excited, I can fit into clothes that had been sitting in my closet for way too long, my energy level has increased and I’m loving it.  It’s been a combination of the breastfeeding, carefully watching what I eat (more than usual) and exercising with the baby.  I’ve been doing squats, walking with and lifting the baby. Considering he’s over 20lbs right now, he’s the perfect set of weights.

See the results for yourself:

Pre-pregnancy, July 2010

Before delivery, May 2011

9 months Post-baby, January 2012

 

Juicing Day Three

It’s our third day of juicing. Today we used: carrots, zucchini, cucumber, celery, mint, apples and half a lime. It’s important to add a little bit of lime or lemon to avoid the juice oxidizing.

Veggies and Fruits for Juicing

My baby likes to try everything we make so we let him have some.

Veggie Fruit Juice for Mama and Baby

Baby Drinking Vegetable Juice

So far so good! Last night we had some of our Sesame Seed Smoothie and had our friend and her baby try it. It was a success. The two babies couldn’t get enough of it! Good times

No Waste Juicing

We’re planning on going on an organic juice fast in my home soon and today we did a test run.  My mother and I both had two large glasses of organic juice for breakfast made with celery, carrots, granny smith apples, cucumber, zucchini and squash.

Veggie and Fruit Juice

It was good and actually pretty satisfying, considering it was just juice!

Juicing Leftovers

Now if you’ve juiced before you know there’s a lot of leftover fiber from the fruits and veggies; it has always seemed a shame to me to throw it away even if its into the compost bin. This picture only shows a small portion of the leftover fruit and vegetable fiber after we made our juice.

After some brain storming, we decided that the best way for us to use the leftover fiber from the juicing was to make patties.  We sautéed finely chopped red onions and minced garlic in a cast iron skillet, and mixed them in with the juice leftovers.  We also added a can of black beans for extra protein and flavor and a bit of organic whole oats so they wouldn’t be too liquid. We also added salt and pepper to taste, very important!  Once everything was well blended together by hand, we formed patties and cooked them in the cast iron skillet on medium heat with a little bit of sesame seed oil so they wouldn’t stick.

Veggie Patties

Once that was done, which was very quick actually, they cooked in about 5-10min, we added a little side salad. Mom likes arugula, mine was baby spinach,  spring greens, and chopped baby carrots for both of us. As a dressing, we used homemade yogurt that we had prepared previously with garlic, salt, pepper, cumin and lime.  It was a very nice meal, nothing got wasted and it was incredibly nutritious.

We had frozen berries with more homemade plain yogurt, sweetened with real maple syrup for dessert.  Throughout the day we’ve also consumed bananas, apples and water. We’re trying to make sure that if we do this kind of regimen for 10 days that we’ll feel relatively satisfied, particularly because I am currently nursing.  This will allow for us to go on a juice fast of sorts, enjoying the benefits such as losing weight, detoxing our bodies and so on without all the side effects.

Book Giveaway Extravaganza

Continuing with the giveaways, winning books is about the easiest prizes you can get.  I’m a huge bookworm, so I love discovering new books, getting them for free is a huge bonus.  Right now, Smitten Over Books is having a Book Giveaway Extravaganza! You get to pick your choice of book if you win, the list she’s offering is great, there’s several that I want on there. I’m particularly interested in Divergent and Cinder.  Daughter of Smoke and Bone I actually won in another giveaway, otherwise I’d go for it. Waiting for it in the mail, so excited to read it!  This book giveaway is open internationally as well. Rafflecopter makes it super simple to participate in the giveaway, so take  a minute and join.

What does this have to do with being a fabulous, crunchy mama? Well, we all need our downtime! Reading keeps me sane, takes me away from a world of spit-up and diapers into realms of imagination.

Babykicks organic one size fitted diaper Giveaway

I really need to update this blog more! I’ve been participating in so many giveaways, I’ve been wanting to blog about them but never get to it. This one I thought I really should share though! Life With My Littles is hosting a Babykicks organic one size fitted diaper giveaway. I love cloth diapers for so many reasons; they’re cheaper than disposables, safer for baby’s skin, better for the environment and super cute.  I have a great stash already but I’d addicted and love trying new kinds. Its so liberating to not have to buy disposables all the time, I’ve gone for 8 months without buying more than one pack and that’s for trips where washing clothes is not an option.

The Babykicks Organic One Size Fitted Diaper Giveaway ends on 01/18/2012 and since its with Rafflecopter, it’s super easy to join! Best of luck!

Trikke T5 Kids Carving Scooter Giveaway

I have a new obsession, entering loads of giveaways online!  So far its been working out great, I’ve won several goodies, explored lots of cool blogs and learned about new products, books and more.

One of the giveaways I’m currently participating in is for a Trikke T5 Kids Carving Scooter, its being sponsored on The Bragging Mommy blog.

I’d love to get one of these for my 5 year old niece, I feel like when she comes to visit, which is fairly often, she doesn’t have anything to keep her busy other than TV.  This scooter would be perfect.  If you’d like to enter for the chance to win, visit the The Bragging Mommy and follow the steps!