December 27th, 2009
I can not stop eating these brownies! I’m not sure whether I should love Erin right now or hate her 
* 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
* 1 cup water
* 1/2 cup butter (I used 1/2 cup canola oil)
* 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
* 2 cups white sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
***chopped up chocolate bar!*** or some chocolate chips.
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9×13 inch pan. In a heavy saucepan combine the 1/3 cup of flour and water. Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until thick. Transfer to a mixing bowl and set aside to cool.
2. In a small saucepan, melt butter. When butter has melted, add the cocoa and mix until smooth; set aside to cool. Beat the sugar and vanilla into the cooled flour mixture. Stir in the cocoa mixture until well blended. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt, stir into the batter until just blended.. Spread evenly in the prepared pan.
***if you have some chocolate chips, or a bar of chocolate. chop it up and throw it on top. (i didnt mix it in because i’m a noob. halway through baking i got a fork and mixed it while it was still gooey–so it gave a yummy nice bubbly texture ontop) ruuustic. oooohhher.
3. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool before cutting into bars.
They’re a big hit with 2 year old boys 
November 20th, 2009
I’ll be honest, life is a little on the stressful side right now. I feel like I’m constantly talking about Finley’s food allergies but it consumes me right now. Seriously, for the past two nights my first and last thoughts of the day are about food and I’ve actually woken up in the middle of the night thinking about it. We already knew that Finn is allergic to peanuts, dairy, egg, avocado, banana and tomato. Monday at his allergy appointment, I found out that he is also allergic to corn, potatoes and pecans. We’re starting to reach a point where his nutrition could be jeopardized. Following his doctor’s instructions we are eliminating the corn for the next 2-4 weeks and if he doesn’t get better then we will have to eliminate potatoes. Before this week, I had no idea how much stuff contained corn. We can no longer buy anything pre-made at the grocery store. Everything he consumes must be made from scratch with his special milk, butter, oil and baking powder. I never realized before this diagnosis how much I had to be thankful for. The ease of opening a box of graham crackers to give the kids for an afternoon snack is a thing of the past for us. I’ll admit that it all makes me sad and even breaks my heart but I still have so much to be thankful for. I am so thankful that I have my very happy boy. I’m thankful for the products out there that I can cook with; products that make this lifestyle a little easier. I’m thankful for all my friends and family that send me recipes and ideas for meals. I’m thankful I have a working oven to cook in (even if it does smoke). I’m thankful for the internet and the endless amounts of information I’ve been able to obtain. I’m thankful for the medical knowledge and testing that has allowed us to diagnose Finn. I’m thankful for epi-pens. I’m thankful for the many prayers from our friends and family. I am thankful that God is good.
This morning Finley and I made these simple biscuits (I’m including our modified ingredients below). I am so thankful my boy loves to help me cook!
1 Tbsp. Hain Baking Powder (made with potato starch rather than corn starch)
1/3 cup Earth Balance natural shortening
Preheat oven to 450°F. Mix flour, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add milk. I had to throw in a little extra flour due to the extra stickiness because of using shortening instead of butter/margarine. Place on lightly floured surface; knead 20 times or until smooth. Pat or roll lightly until dough is 1/2-inch thick. Cut with floured 2-inch cookie cutter to make 16 biscuits, rerolling dough scraps as necessary. Place on ungreased baking sheet. Bake 10 minutes or until golden brown.
ETA: Because the above substitutions lack the buttery flavor these tasted kinda floury. I made them again today and cut back on the shortening and subbed some honey instead. They tasted much better this time.
Since we can’t smother our biscuits in butter once they’re cooked we dipped ours in some raw honey.
