Gluten Free, Vegan Blueberry Banana Muffins

Blueberry Banana Muffins
1 3/4 cups Glutino Gluten Free Muffin Mix
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup DTOX Almond Milk or nut milk of choice
1/2 cup applesauce
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 TBS coconut oil
1 tsp fresh lemon zest
1 cup blueberries
1 banana quarter cubed
*ghee (optional and not vegan)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line or oil a 12 cup muffin tin or a 24 cup mini tin with paper liners or coconut oil.   

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.  In a smaller bowl, whisk the nut milk, applesauce, maple syrup, melted coconut oil, and lemon zest together.  Add the wet ingredients into the dry, and mix together until just combined.  The batter will be lumpy, but resist over-mixing, as it    will cause the muffins to be dense.  Fold in the blueberries and bananas, then spoon into muffin cups.  Bake larger muffins for 25-30 minutes and mini muffins for 15 minutes, or until the tops begin to turn golden brown. *Cut the muffins in half and add a pat of ghee.  

My Grandmother Salter would wake us up with delicious smells like blueberry muffins or cinnamon rolls baking.  She would cut the blueberry muffins in two putting a "little pat of oleo" in the middle.  These remind me exactly of those with the ghee used in place of the "oleo" or butter or possibly margarine :/. 

Top 5 Reasons to Love Ghee

1. Ghee is free of casein and other milk solids. If you're intolerant to butter, try ghee! It’s a healthy alternative to health-depleting vegetable oils. A high quality product is a great source of healthy fats to incorporate into your diet.  

2. Ghee is great for cooking because the fatty acids are stable at high temperatures. 

3. Ghee stimulates the production of stomach acid, increases the absorption of other nutrients, and is very supportive for acid reflux, ulcers, and other digestive complaints. 

4. Ayruveda teaches us that ghee may be beneficial for balancing lipid levels, promoting learning and memory, strengthening the immune system, and warding off pathogens and cancer. 

5. Ghee is packed with flavor and a fantastic way to complement your meals!

Vegetarian Sloppy Joes

Firm Tofu 2 small bricks from Trader Joes (organic)
1 small tub of Organic Baby Bella Mushrooms chopped small
4 TBS Organic Tomato Paste
1 15 oz can Organic Tomato Sauce
1 tsp Cumin
pink salt and pepper to taste
1/2 yellow onion diced
2 small green peppers diced
garlic
1 TBS Worcestershire Sauce


Saute the onion for a few minutes then add green pepper and garlic.  Press as much water as you can out of the tofu.  Add the tofu and mushrooms.  Saute for 5 minutes.  Add the Cumin, salt and pepper, and Worcestershire sauce.  Stir well.  Add the Tomato sauce and paste.  Stir well.  Simmer on low for 10 minutes.

Serve on your favorite bun with pickles.

Do not use Udi Gluten Free buns.  YUCK! After we made an impromptu trip to the store for new, delicious buns, Salter ate 6 sandwiches.  Tim ate one even with the yucky bun and 2 after.  He thought it was turkey meat.  I don't cook or eat red meat or pork but will occasionally do chicken and turkey.  He was really surprised it was tofu.

They were really delicious.

SUGAR

The new anti-IT thing.  SUGAR.

Sugar is sugar in the body.  It's true.  Sugar makes you fat, not fat.  That's true.

But when you cut out entire food groups like fruit, does that make sense?

It wreaks of the Atkins craze.  Eat this hulking piece of meat slathered in mayo, cheese and bacon but DON'T TOUCH THE LETTUCE or TOMATO!

Or how about the South Beach Diet's sugar free jello, mozzarella cheese but NO FRUIT.  That doesn't feel right.  Doesn't make common sense.

Let's talk about Beet Sugar.

One cup of beet has about 9 grams of sugar.  But it also has a unique source of phytonutrients called Betalins that provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and detoxification support.  Pigments from Beets have been shown to lessen tumor cell growth in the colon, stomach, nerve, lung, breast, prostate and testicular tissues.  Beets can help increase endurance and athletic performance by utilizing oxygen better.  Beets are a rich source of betalins, B vitamins, iron and copper (formation of red blood cells), manganese (mineral needed for energy),  and potassium (regulates metabolism).

Let's not throw out the baby with the bathwater as they say.

Apples

The phytonutrients in apples can help regulate your blood sugar.  Apples are a great low glycemic index fruit used to sweeten green juices that would be bitter otherwise.  These phytonutrients also protect against cancer and heart disease.  Apple antioxidants prevent oxidation and free radical damage.  Try a DTOX Green in replacement of your regular coffee for a week and see how energizing it is.

Pineapples have 9grams of sugar per cup.  They provide vitamin C, A, calcium, phosphorus, potassium and Bromelain.  Bromelain is a great anti inflammatory that helps reduce sinus inflammation, arthritis inflammation, aids in protein digesting and improves digestion.    It has manganese for strong bones and beta carotene to strengthen eyesight.

So the fact that sugar is sugar in the body and we need less sugar, the sugar in a green juice is different than the sugar in a Krispy Cream Doughnut.  Why?  Because a doughnut has no nutritional value, only sugar and a green juice has amazing nutritional benefits beyond the sugar.  DON'T COMPARE.

Drink Your Juice.  Sweeten it with a little fruit if you like.