which yes, you guessed it, I am giving it away here. Today. For you (well, if you are ever so lucky to be the one lucky winner). Look friends, this cookbook is a MUST. Even if you don’t win the giveaway, you will still need to get your tushie to a bookstore and buy it. Immediately. It’s that good. For instance, you can find this (gluten-free and vegan) White Lasagna recipe inside:

And if that doesn’t make you wanna slap your mama, try this one out for size:

It’s a freaking Phillysteak Cheesesteak Sandwich…without the cheese, steak or gluten. What the wha?! Genius.

Okay, so who isn’t convinced yet? That’s what I thought. So you wanna enter to win? Easy. All you need to do is write a comment below. Simple. Ready? Set…Go!

**THIS GIVEAWAY WILL CLOSE AT MIDNIGHT (PST) ON FRIDAY, JUNE 21st. THE WINNER WILL BE ANNOUNCED ON SATURDAY**

Or they can be the complete healthy alternative as an egg replacer as seen in these Black Bean Burgers:

So when the happy folks over at Health Warrior reached out to me to test out one of their recipes made with their chia seeds, how on earth could I possibly refuse?! Especially when the recipe is to create a freaking blackberry jam that is gelatin-free. In fact, the only thing that holds this jam in tact is, well, you guessed it, the chia seeds!

A healthier (and tastier) way to eat your peanut butter and jelly!

Check out Health Warrior’s website and take a look around at all the little goodies they offer. While you are there, read up on how healthy this nutritionally-dense food truly is. Click the links below on whichever road your wish to roam.

**Please note that Health Warrior supplied me with every ingredient pictured here and the bread is not gluten-free.**

This is an unpaid review.

Blackberry Chia Seed Jam Recipe

A Health Warrior Recipe

Set time: 1 hour

Cook time: 5 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 1 c. frozen blackberries, starting to thaw
• 1/2 c. water
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 2 Tb whole, dry Health Warrior chia seeds

DIRECTIONS

1. Bring water to a boil.
2. Add sugar and stir until it dissolves. Remove from heat.
3. Pour 2 Tb of sugar water into a blender and blend with blackberries until smooth (or with chunks–depending how what consistency you prefer).
4. Add whole chia seeds to the mix and stir until well blended.
5. Place in a bowl or jar and chill in the fridge for 1 hour in order to set.

Ifs, shoulds, would-bes, If onlys…

The funny thing about those thoughts are that they are a complete waste of time, despite how they actually make you feel like you are accomplishing something. They take you away from the present and rob you from attaining what you truly have: this moment. The more time you daydream about how other people keep you from happiness or how the “seemingly” mistakes you have made have kept you from where you thought you should be, the more time you waste in enjoying the moment. After all, the present is all that we are guaranteed anyway, right?

The moment you find yourself thinking these futile thoughts, stop and think about the fact that you already have everything you need to be happy in the moment. It’s all at your fingertips. You have the choice. Always.

BBQ Cauliflower Salad Recipe

Vegan & gluten-free

Serves 2

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 head cauliflower, cut into florets
• 1/2 c. BBQ sauce
• 1/2 c. black beans
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 1 ear of corn, cooked and sliced
• 1/4 of a red onion, diced
• shredded carrots
• 3 c. lettuce
• non-dairy ranch dressing (add some BBQ sauce to spice it up if you desire)
• crushed torilla chips

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with foil.
2. Place cauliflower florets on the sheet and bake 5-7 minutes.
3. Brush the BBQ sauce onto the cauliflower. Bake another 2-3 minutes.
4. Assemble all of the ingredients together for the salad.

“We often manifest what we secretly, unconsciously expect or believe we deserve (not what we may tell ourselves or other people what we want)… We all (completely) create our lives and what we truly desire, always inevitably manifests.

Getting control of this means becoming conscious of our secret fears and desires so that we can see what the real motivating force is in our lives. Only then can we begin to exert some kind of control over how that force manifests.”

-Gary Quinn (May the Angels Be With You)

This has me thinking a lot about what I ultimately want out of life, what I need to do to get there, and the messages that I’ve been telling myself that keep me from attaining my truest desires. Think about it, the messages we tell ourselves ultimately dictate how live out our lives. So even if we desire success in whatever form we fancy, as long as you tell yourself you are a failure, that is all you will be. Not because it’s the truth according to reality but because you have created your own reality in your thinking.

I’m not sure about you but I’m kinda of tired of wasting time with useless thoughts swirling around in my head that keep me from freedom.

Anyone care to join me in this meditation?

 Lemon Blackberry Crumble Cake Recipe

Gluten, egg, and dairy-free

This recipe is great baked in an 8″x 8″ greased baking dish

Dry ingredients:

• 2 c. Cara’s gluten-free flour blend
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp xanthan gum
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 c. fresh blackberries
• zest of 1 lemon

Wet ingredients:

• 1 cup non-dairy milk (I used almond, unsweetened)
• 1 Tb apple cider vinegar
• 4 Tb oil

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mix non-dairy milk and vinegar together and allow to sit for 5-7 minutes to sour.
3. Combine all of the dry ingredients together (minus the blackberries and zest). Whisk well.
4. Pour oil into soured non-dairy milk and pour into dry ingredients.
5. Fold in berries and lemon zest.
6. Pour into desired pan/dish and top with pistachio cardamom sugar topping (recipe below).
7. Bake 22-25 minutes or until knife is clean when inserted in the middle (I have a really old oven that bakes things quicker than newer ovens).

Pistachio Cardamom Sugar Topping:

• 5 Tb vegan butter, chilled
• 1/3 c gluten-free flour
• 1/4 c brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 c sugar
• 1/3 c pistachios, dry roasted, unsalted, roughly chopped
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom

1. Combine sugars, flour and cardamom together.
2. Add vegan butter until a sand-like crumble forms.
3. Add pistachios.

Anyone who tells me that eating a mainly vegetarian diet isn’t satisfying hasn’t eaten at my house. Not to say that every body works well on a veggie-based diet–I do not understand anyone else’s body but my own, however what I do know is that veggies for dinner can be flippin’ tasty AND filling.

Even the man in your life will come to their meat-eating senses if you make them cauliflower for dinner or these meaty tacos. Mine did.

 Shiitake Mushroom Asada Tacos Recipe

Gluten, egg, and dairy-free

Serves 2

• 3 shiitake mushrooms, washed and sliced vertically
• 1/4 c. olive oil
• 1 large handful of cilantro, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• juice of 1 lime
• corn tortillas
• Pico de gallo

1. Combine the oil, lime juice, cilantro and garlic together.
2. In a shallow dish, place marinade on top of sliced mushrooms. Cover and allow to sit for 20 minutes in the fridge.
3. Grill (or cook in a skillet) until heated through.
4. Serve with corn tortillas, limes and pico de gallo.

After the photoshoot from this recipe creation, as I was putting back my wood props, one of the pieces dropped right down onto my big toe. I screamed in horror waiting for that initial pain to subside. You know, that “take your breath away because the wind got knocked out of you” pain. Little did I know I did a lot more damage than just getting the wind knocked out of me. (We’re talking toenail falling off sort of damage)…

Anyone walking by my place must have thought I was getting murdered with all that screaming, cursing and crying. But there I was between a rock and a hard place: my toe was in excruciating pain but my cauliflower parmesan sat there on the table getting cold as I cried. So I did what anyone would naturally do…

I ate my damn food. While wincing in pain.

This dish is THAT good.

Cauliflower Parmesan Recipe

Gluten, egg, and dairy-free

Serves 2-3

INGREDIENTS

• 4 slices cauliflower (hold head of cauliflower upright and slice vertically, making sure to keep the stems intact in order to keep it in cutlet form)
• Bread coating (see recipe below)
• Marinara sauce (use store bought or make your own below)
• Gluten-free Pasta, cooked (I love brown rice)
• non-dairy cheese

For marinara sauce:

• 6 roma tomatoes, chopped
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1/2 c. vegetable broth
• 1/2 c. tomato sauce
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp salt

1. In a skillet heated on med/high heat, saute the onions with olive oil for 3-4 minutes.
2. Add dried herbs and garlic. Allow to become aromatic (30 seconds).
3. Add tomatoes and begin to lightly mash with the back of a fork.
4. Add broth and tomato sauce and allow to come to a boil. Turn heat down to a simmer for 10-15 minutes.
5. Season with salt.

For bread coating:

• 1 flax egg (1 Tb flaxseed meal + 2 Tb warm water, allow to sit until thickened)
• 1/3 c. gluten-free flour
• 1/4 c. water
• 1 tsp flaxseed meal

1. Combine the above ingredients together in a shallow dish and allow to thicken a little.
2. Dip each cauliflower slice into the dish carefully. Make sure to coat the entire slice.

• 1 c. gluten-free bread crumbs (or crunch cereal of choice, ie: Rice Chex, Corn Flakes, etc)
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp salt

1. From the bread coating, dip the cauliflower slice into the bread crumbs. Coat on all sides.
2. In a heated skillet cook each slice in olive oil until browned on both sides (approx 7-10 min on each side).
3. Preaheat oven to 450 degrees.
4. In a baking dish, place the marinara sauce in the bottom. Top with cauliflower slices and non-dairy cheese.
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until non-dairy cheese is melted.
6. Serve with cooked pasta.

It’s not as if this entire year I have spent crying over the fact that I wasn’t able to work in what appeared to be a most serendipitous workplace; I can’t really explain to you why I had such a hard time letting it go though. It’s just that it’s been exactly one year from that monent and sometimes it’s difficult to accept where I am compared to where I could have been. Silly talk, I know. It’s difficult to compare where you could have been when there’s no way of knowing really. I know you know what I am talking about, right friends? I mean, I know the right answer but sometimes I can’t stop these damn human emotions.

Thankfully there is a very special man who visits my job weekly (I am so blessed to have some of the most amazing regulars!) and offers me such comforting advice (for free!) He reminds me with his wisdom that I have to keep my mind positive constantly and that my heart’s desire will come but first and foremost, my main focus is to keep that energy going and to trust that all things are working and unfolding as they should.

I wish I could cut open my heart and show you all how deeply this trust has grown for me in this month especially, but because that sounds a bit morbid and painful if taken literally, you can just trust my word that I have entered a new phase in life of trust and focus…

Baked Taquitos Recipe

Gluten, egg, and dairy-free

• 6 corn tortillas
• “Refried” beans recipe (see below)
• 1/2 c Quinoa taco meat
• Serve with homemade guacamole and pico de gallo

For “Refried” beans:

• 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 Tb almond milk
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• salt to flavor

1. Add beans into a small saucepan. Turn heat on to low/medium and start mashing beans with either a fork or the back of a large spoon in the heat.
2. When smooth, add garlic, spices, salt, and non-dairy milk. Stir to combine fully and allow to heat through until bubbly and begins to thickened a little. Remove from heat.

For Taquito Assembly:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a skillet, heat up 1/2 c. of water until it begins to boil. Place 1 corn tortilla into the water and allow to sit for 10 seconds. Flip and allow to sit on the other side as well.
3. Place black beans filling and quinoa “meat” (and if you desire, non-dairy cheese) towards the edge of the tortilla and roll up. Place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, edge side down.
4. Repeat for each taquito.
5. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until it reaches the desired crispiness.

Orange-Rosemary Wine Cooler Recipe

Makes 2 glasses

• 3 c. Sauvignon Blanc wine, chilled
• 1/3 c. rosemary-orange simple syrup *see below
• 1/4 c. vodka

1. Place all of the ingredients into a carafe and stir.
2. Serve with slices of orange rind and a rosemary sprig for garnish and a boost for more flavor.

Orange-Rosemary Simple Syrup Recipe

• 3 c. water
• 3/4 c. sugar
• Rind from 2 medium-sized oranges
• 5 large sprigs of rosemary

1. Place the sugar and water in a boiling pot. Allow to heat until boiling, stirring often and reduce heat to a simmer.
2. Place rind and sprigs in the pot and simmer for 10 minutes.
3. Turn off heat and allow to cool fully. Place in a container and chill in fridge.

You can set out to do something all you’d like but always to open to (and expect) set backs. In fact, allow those set backs to be your teacher and your guide. When you get caught up on your version of how you think life is supposed to happen,  you miss out on what it’s really about. In fact, I know from personal experience that if I am not open to learning from my set backs I become rigid, angry and unwilling to budge. The antithesis of growth.

The best part of staying open to any possibility in life? You create a HUGE cookie that can be enjoyed by everyone at the same time. It’s even more fun to fight over that favorite piece. And that, after all, really is what life is about…

The Ultimate Break-Apart Cookie Recipe

Gluten, egg, and dairy-free

Makes 2 huge cookies

INGREDIENTS:

• 3/4 c. Cara gluten-free flour blend
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 c sugar
• 2/3 c. brown sugar
• 1/2 c. olive oil
• 1 flaxseed “egg” (1 Tb + 2 Tb warm water)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 3/4 c. chocolate chips
• 1/2 c. walnuts or pecans (optional)
• 1 1/2 c. rolled oats

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Line your baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Grease with cooking spray.
2. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl .Whisk until well combined.
3. With an electric mixer, blend sugars and oil together for a good minute. Add flax egg and vanilla for another 30 seconds.
4. Pour flour mix into the sugar/oil mix until combined.
5. Fold in chocolate chips, nuts and oats. *You will notice that your cookie dough is not going to completely hold together and that is okay! When the oil is heated and baked it will spread throughout the dough and allow it to create that cohesiveness needed to keep it intact.
6. Pour half the cookie dough onto the first greased and lined baking sheet. Spread flat and evenly with your fingers.
7. 10-12 minutes or until brown along the edges. Keep an eye on it though, you don’t want it to burn. Allow to cool for at least 5 minutes so it can harden a bit. Repeat with the remainder of the dough.
8. Place on a platter and allow everyone to dig in!

The secret ingredient given to me from the incredible lifestyle website BlissTree? Rhubarb.

• 1 c. Cara’s gluten-free  flour mix
• 1 c. non-dairy milk + 1 Tb apple cider vinegar (allow to sit for 7-10  minutes)
• 2 Tb olive oil
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 Tb sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 c. thinly chopped rhubarb
• 1/2 c. thinly chopped strawberries

1. Combine the dry ingredients together in a large Pyrex measuring cup (I like  to use this because it’s easiest to pour the batter out onto the skillet but you  can just use a bowl and scoop the batter out with a small measuring cup if you  do not have a Pyrex).
2. Make a well in the center and add the wet ingredients. Mix until just  combined. Allow to sit while you heat up the skillet.
3. Pour batter onto the skillet and quickly place approximately 1 Tb of the  chopped rhubarb and strawberries on the top of the batter. Cook until sides are  bubbly and firm, then flip over. Cook until lightly brown.
4. Serve with Strawberry-Rhubarb syrup (recipe below).

• 1/2 c. chopped rhubarb
• 1/2 c. chopped strawberries
• 1 Tb sugar
• 1/3 c. water

1. Place rhubarb, sugar and water into a small boiling pot. Allow to simmer  for 5 minutes.
2. Add strawberries and bring back to boil another 2 minutes.
3. Allow to cool a little and then place into a blender and mix until smooth.  Be careful! It will be hot still. Feel free to add more sugar or water,  depending on preference of sweetness and thickness. I prefer my syrup to be  thicker and less sweeter.