Visiting Canmore and Gluten Free Wild Garden Snack Packs

I remember when vacation was all about me; what I wanted to do, where I wanted to go, what I wanted to eat, me, me, me. Now that I'm a mom, that's such a distant memory, I'm starting to wonder if I imagined the entire thing.

Seriously, this place is gorgeous! The kid is cute too ;) #canmore

A photo posted by Amber Smith (@mommastuffblog) on Aug 23, 2015 at 11:26am PDT

We're currently on  a family vacation in Canmore Alberta and although it is an absolutely stunning place to be, keeping two boys aged 4 and 6 occupied, entertained and quiet is a challenge and a half. Fortunately, we are staying in a small condo, which is by far preferable to a basic hotel room, however when you're used to a three floor home, its not a lot of space.

And then there's the food. When your family requires both gluten-free and peanut-free options, simply grabbing a bite to eat is generally not an option. I emailed a bunch of local restaurants before we arrived and was pleasantly surprised to hear how aware and accommodating they all were. That being said, tonight is our fifth night here and we finally ordered pizza, every other meal we have cooked for ourselves.

When it comes to outings, I put a lot of effort into healthy snacks for the kids but for myself, I'm perpetually just grabbing something from the cupboard on the way out the door and otherwise noshing on the gluten-free portions of the kids' snacks.

I'm super excited about Wild Gardens NEW Gluten Free Hummus Snack Packs; these little packs are convenient, shelf stable and delicious. Each box comes with a pack of hummus (that tears open easily and even I managed to eat without making a mess) and one of three types of crackers. And one of my good friends was ecstatic to hear that two of the three varieties (veggie chips and and quinoa chips) are also soy free.

Wild Garden Gluten Free Snack Packs are tasty little snacks packed with just enough protein to fuel me to my next meal without wanting to nibble on every little snack in my beach bag. They're quick, convenient and gluten free; if that's something you're looking for, I highly recommend you try them out.

Disclosure: I received samples of Wild Garden Gluten Free Snack Packs for the purposes of this review, however all opinions are my own.

Food.ee Snackbox | 50% off Coupon Code and Giveaway

Last week, I showed you a photo of my Food.ee Snackbox and promised you I'd report back on all that gluten-free deliciousness and share an awesome coupon code. Not only can I get you 50% off your first Snackbox, I'm also giving away one free personal sized Snackbox (that's the size I recieved) to one lucky reader.

Are you excited?

Like it or not, we all snack and sometimes even though we may remember to eat whole, healthy foods at mealtime, the lure of chocolate, chips and candy can be hard to resist in those snackable mid-day moments.

Food.ee Snackboxes solve that problem by shipping you a box full of gluten-free, natural treats (many of which are soy-free and vegan) each month so that you can safely nosh in good conscience.

Snackboxes are shipped out of Vancouver and you can expect your first box within about 4 days of ordering; subsequent deliveries will arrive around the 15th of the month. A personal sized box costs  $33 per month plus $6.95 shipping, is intended for one to two people and includes 15-20 servings.  The Family sized box is $67 per month (free shipping) for 30-40 servings and the Bounty sized box is $97 per month (free shipping) for 50-60 servings.

After plowing through most of my Snackbox in a mere week, I can say with certainty that your Snackbox will be filled with delicious, high quality, natural foods. And if you've ever bought packaged gluten-free snacks, you know they come at a premium cost; the price of a Food.ee Snackbox is not just reasonable, I think its a great deal.

The superstar of our sample Snackbox included the Hippie Foods Coconut Chips, after snacking on them Wednesday night, the first thing Bolt asked for Thursday morning was more Coconut chips. They were sweet and salty with the perfect amount of crunch, I will absolutely be buying them again. In fact I loved the brown rice and quinoa granola too; 'Hippie Foods' are yummy!

But I digress, if you're dying to try out a Snackbox for yourself, head over to getsnackbox.com and enter code MOMMASTUFF at checkout to receive 50% off your first Snackbox. Code is valid until April 31, 2013.

And don't forget to fill out the Rafflecopter form to be entered to win a personal sized Snackbox.
a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received a Food.ee Personal Sized Snackbox in exchange for this post; all opinions are my own.

Loving 'Love Child Organics'

My kids love, squeezy, squirty fruit snacks and I love whole, natural, minimally processed foods; fortunately Love Child Organics satisfies everyone. I admit the very first time I saw soft pouches of applesauce I worried about sticky spills in diaper bags if the kids didn't finish eating them; that was in vain however since neither Bolt or Simba ever has leftovers.  When presented with Love Child Organics, my boys gobbled them up before I could even grab my camera.

I love that EVERY pouch contains one of my all time favourite super grains, Quinoa as well as acerola fruit which provides a natural source of vitamin c.  Add to that nutritional powerhouse a variety of organic fruits and veggies and local Whistler residents John and Leah Garrad-Cole have finally created a packaged food that I want to feed my children.

And perhaps more importantly, my kids can't get enough. The second I showed the boys' the squeezy pouches of goodness they were begging to eat them and surprisingly neither of them expressed a preference among the flavours. We tried out three of the six flavours; 'Mangoes and Apples', 'Blueberries, Apples and Bananas' and the 'Sweet Potatoes, Carrots, Apples and Blueberries' and I promise you, not one single drop was spilled.

For all of us living an allergy-friendly life, I love that Love Child Organics are produced in a nut-free facility and are naturally gluten-free, dairy-free and kosher. I remember travelling around Asia looking for gluten-free, dairy-free baby food for Bolt when he was eight months old, it was a total nightmare. You'd be amazed how many of the non-fruit baby foods include at least one of the two.

Just in case you're worried, the packaging is all BPA-free and although only the cap is recyclable, the packaging is still a sound environmental choice.

Our pouches use 80% less material than many alternative forms of packaging. An independent audit of the life cycle of our pouches has shown that the energy used, and the environmental impact made, when making, transporting and destroying them is significantly less than PET plastic bottles, Tetra packs and glass. When compared to the glass jars commonly used for baby food, our pouches can use as little as 8% of the energy requirements.

You can find Love Child Organics in Wal Mart Stores and you can also check them out on their Website, Like them on Facebook and Follow them on Twitter and Pinterest.

Have you checked Love Child Organics out? What did your kids think?

I received three packages of Love Child Organics products for the purposes of this review; all opinions are my own.

My Snackbox Arrived!

Oh my goodness, the excitement.

I got a Food.ee Snackbox in the mail today.

All that deliciousness is Gluten Free!

I promise I'll tell you more about Snackbox (and share an awesome, totally worth-waiting for, coupon code) later, but for now I'm off to bed.

Chocolate Cranberry Granola Bars Recipe | Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Nut-Free, Soy-Free

We made it through my first week of work, unfortunately I did very little working, and not in the lazy way.  The baby woke up Sunday morning covered in vomit and as the week progressed the barfing seemed to increase.  My Mom is amazing, she only works on call and is usually able to watch the kids when I'm in need, unfortunately, she is currently suffering from sciatica and a day of holding, carrying and rocking my twenty plus pound little boy is near impossible for her.

In the end I worked two short days and stayed home with my barfy little man for two days.  As I told the hubs, it was a very long week, but not at all in the ways that I had expected it to be.  I spent hours cuddling, snuggling, rocking and soothing my little man this week; aside from a ridiculous amount of laundry the only other thing I accomplished this week was a batch of homemade chocolate cranberry granola bars.

These bars are easy to make (I made them with a crying baby on my hip) and I love that they use nutritious pumpkin as a secret ingredient to create moist, chewy and delicious granola bars.    This recipe comes from The Looneyspoons Collection by Janet and Greta Podleski (which I love and will be reviewing this month), though I have made a few minor adaptations to make it meet the dietary restrictions and tastes of my household.

You can change up the add-ins as you please, but Janet and Greta recommend that you keep the quantities the same and chop your ingredients small to keep your bars from becoming crumbly.  I  have used both gluten-free oat flour (ground up gluten-free oats) and my all-purpose flour mix and didn't find much difference in the end product; use whatever you have on hand, I'm sure it will work well.  For those of you who can tolerate gluten, the original recipe keeps these bars extra nutritious with whole-wheat flour.

(adapted from The Looneyspoons Collection by Janet and Greta Podleski)

Ingredients:

• 2-1/2 cups gluten-free quick cooking oats
• 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 3/4 cup chocolate chips, chopped (or mini)
• 1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped
• 1/3 cup gluten-free oat flour or all-purpose mix
• 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
• 1/4 cup hemp hearts
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1-1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup
• 1/4 cup coconut oil (or canola)
• 1 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a 9x13 pan with a large piece of parchment paper.  Allow the parchment to overhang on two sides to you can use it like a sling to pick up the cooked granola bars.
2. Combine all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
3. Whisk together the wet ingredients and then mix into the dry ingredients.  Stir well.
4. Pour mixture into the prepared pan and use your hands to ensure it is tightly packed into the pan.
5. Bake for 25 minutes until the top is light golden brown and dry to the touch.
6. Cool completely, in the pan, on a wire rack.  
7. Use the parchment paper to carefully remove the slab of granola.  Use a sharp knife and firm pressure (not a sawing motion) cut the granola slab into 16 equal bars approximately 1.5 x 4 inches. 
8. Wrap bars individually in saran wrap.  Bars can be stored on the counter or in the fridge.
9. Enjoy!

Mi-Del Gluten-Free Cookies | Review and Giveaway

When you're gluten-free grabbing a snack, or worse a treat, on the go can be close to impossble.  Frustration and hunger often ensue, though as you become more comfortable with the lifestyle, snack awareness increases.  I rarely go out without something to eat stashed in my bag, car or stroller and even if I do, I have the knowledge and experience to  know which grab and go treats I'm able to eat.

One snack I love to have on hand are Mi-Del cookies, they are small, crunchy and delicious little cookies that satisfy a sweet craving in a second.  They have great texture and flavour and I love their small size as it allows me to grab a handful without too much guilt.  Mi-del cookies are very versatile and can be used to make cookie crumb pie crusts, eaten with a dollop of ice cream sandwiched between two cookies or simply dunked in (rice) milk.

Mi-Del cookies come in nine different flavours including traditional flavours such as chocolate chip, arrowrort and ginger snaps as well as more exciting flavours such as chocolate caramel, pecan and s'mores.  Mi-Del cookies are free of gluten (and routinely tested using the Elisa Method) but depending on the flavour may contain eggs, soy and dairy so make sure you read the label and ensure they are safe for your families allergies.

Mi-Del Cookies are available at supermarkets across the United States and at select locations in Canada and the most amazing part is that they retail for only about $4 a bag.

The folks at Mi-Del provided me with some cookies for the purposes of this review and we're also giving away a free bag of cookies to THREE lucky winners, to enter check out the Rafflecopter after the jump.

Quick & Easy Carrot Homous (gluten-free / dairy-free / soy-free)

I think every parent struggles with finding healthy, nutritious snacks that their children will eat.  When you start to factor in dietary restrictions, what was a struggle truly becomes a challenge.  I've been gluten-free for over three years now, so in truth its simply a way of life for me.  Dairy-free was a bit of an adjustment in my cooking; though I don't drink milk I do eat cheese and yogurt.  Now that soy has also been stripped from the boys diet, I sometimes feel like finding quick and easy snacks for the boy is an impossible undertaking.

I'm being dramatic.  It is hard, but it is more than possible to feed the boy.  I'd been trying to feed the boy homous for quite some time when I discovered the Fat Free Vegan's Recipe for Shiny Happy Hummus.  Although the boy isn't a huge fan of carrots, I thought it was worth a try.  I figured perhaps the sweetness of carrots could counteract the strong taste of traditional homous.  I didn't use the spices or the ground ginger, just a tiny bit of garlic, lemon juice and tahini in addition to the chickpeas and cooked carrots.  Shiny Happy Hummus was a hit; the boy gobbled it up and I loved that he was getting protein, fibre and veggies.

Now that I'm back to work however, finding time to make gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free lunches is hard enough, I figured there must be a quicker way to make carrot homous without cooking carrots and dirtying up the food processor.

And there is.  Now I use plain store bought homous and babyfood to make a delicious snack the boy happily eats is as an afternoon snack ater his nap.  Plus it satisfies his current need for all things 'dip'.  Ironically I never fed the boy jarred babyfood before but the work-life balance means sacrifices all round. 

Personally I like to use organic babyfood for this reicipe (and I always make sure the ingredients are just carrots and water) and I try to buy the 'plainest' homous I an find at the grocery store.  It sounds a bit odd, but there are often multiple brands of homous available and some of them have far more 'extra ingredients' than others.  My boy LOVES to eat his homous with gluten-free Sundried Tomato and Oregano Cracklebred - if you haven't tried them, these crackers ROCK!

I have tried making this with pea babyfood as well as a sweetpotato/carrot combo of babyfood but none were as successful as plain old carrot.  I'd love to hear if you have any successful veggie/homous combinations I should try out.

Quick and Easy Carrot Homous

Ingredients:

Store-bought, plain homous
1 jar (organic) carrot babyfood
crackers or cooked veggies to 'dip'

Instructions:

• In a small container mix 1 tsp* of homous with approximatley 1/3 a jar of babyfood.
• Mix well and serve as a 'dip' with crackers or soft cooked veggies.

*If your child has never tasted homous before, you may want to start with a greater ratio of carrot to homous and then increase the proportion of homous as your little one becomes accustomed to the taste and texture of the chickpeas.