Gluten-free, Egg-free, Cane Sugar-free Chocolate Protein Bars

Whew, that was a mouthful of a title.

The day before I found out about my egg and sugar intolerances, I was spending time with my friend Lexi and we attempted to make Macarons. I already knew about my gluten intolerance and Macarons are gluten free so we decided to go for it! Macarons use almond meal for their main ingredient so we had a bunch left over when we were done.

I was poking around at it and mentioned to Lexi, "This would make a great base for a protein bar, wouldn't it?" Being the awesome, innovative lady that she is (she makes the most amazing things just by guessing measurements and they always turn out delicious!), she got right to it.

The next morning I found out that I was intolerant to sugar cane and eggs and was about to go crazy when I remembered that I could eat everything in the bars we had made the day before. I won't lie, I was addicted to sugar. I eat pretty healthy except when it comes to the baked goods department, and then I'm sunk. So, to know that I could still get my sweets fix and not be poisoning myself at the same time, that was great news. :)

These bars taste so good that sometimes I'll bite into one and get instantly scared that I'm eating something I shouldn't be. Yep. Guilty pleasures that aren't so guilty. :) Also, they're "free" by nature, not by replacement so they aren't really that expensive to make. That's a huge relief to me too, I've been really overwhelmed by the prices of gluten free baking ingredients.

Lexi and I made this up and I've further tweaked it so there's not really an exact recipe. It's just kind of one of those "sense it as you go" type of deals. You can substitute or tweak it as much as you want and I'm sure they'll still turn out great.

Approximate Recipe:

2 cups almond meal (We bought bulk almonds and ground them in a food processor)
1/2 + 1/4 cup raisins
1/2 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut (found it in the bulk section of my grocery store)
1/4 cup cocoa powder (dark is super tasty but regular is really good too)
1/4-1/2 cup Gluten-free oats (the only specialty thing you need. It's pricey, so I just used a little)
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup honey (pretty much use as much as it takes to make it all stick together)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
2. Grind the almonds in a food processor or blender.
3. Leave about 1/4 cup of almond meal in blender and add 1/2 cup raisins.
4. Blend the 1/2 cup of raisins and almond meal (the almond meal helps prevent the blended raisins from becoming a sticky mass).
5. Mix almond meal, blended raisins, extra 1/4 cup of whole raisins, coconut, cocoa powder, gluten-free oats, and salt together.
6. Mix in honey until is all sticks together. Using your hands works the best. :P
7. Put into a lightly oiled 8X8 pan and bake at 250 for 10 minutes.

The salt adds a little bite to it all, without it I thought they were too sweet. Baking really firms them up and into and actual bar. For some reason the taste changes. Don't ask me why. :)

I hope you enjoy these as much as I do!

Here's Lexi's blog too, if you want to check it out!
Mrs. Lemonmint

Rachel

And thus, my journey begins...

I've been struggling with my health for quite a while now, but especially in the last year. I found an awesome naturopath in my area and she ended up recommending that I get tested for food allergies and intolerances. I did the allergy test and everything came back negative (I used to be allergic to peanuts and now I'm not anymore!) so she decided to test my intolerances as well.

She had already suspected gluten so I had been off of that for two weeks already when the test came back. I wasn't feeling any better so I knew there had to be something else. It turns out that I have a 6/6 intolerance to eggs (both the white and the yolk, as well as duck eggs) a 4/6 intolerance to wheat gluten, wheat, spelt, and rye, and a 4/6 intolerance to cane sugar. Cray-zay.

I was beyond thrilled at first because I finally know what is probably making me sick!! I have muscle aches, joint pain, constant headaches, horrid stomach aches, depression, anemia, and a really low energy reserve. And now I've found out that I can start feeling my age again?? AWESOME. This high lasted a little while until I realized how drastically my lifestyle would have to change. It's a good trade off, honestly, and I'm really not complaining...but it was still a shock.

I let myself be upset for a little while and then I kicked my butt into gear and decided to do something about it. If you know me at all, you know how much I love to bake...and not having cane sugar, gluten, or eggs at my disposal makes things a bit more difficult. Not impossible...but difficult. And more expensive...but more healthy. I know all of the plusses of eating healthier and all of the substitutions I can find, but it STILL SUCKS, okay?? I had just perfected my chocolate chip cookie, guys. For reals. So basically, yes I was upset.

This isn't tragic by any means, but it's still a little depressing to walk through the supermarket and know I can't eat 75% of what's there. And apples and almond butter are great snacks, but not when you want a delicious, sugary brownie or a creamy hard-boiled egg.

Plus, I'm a frugal person. Knowing that I might have to spend 3X the amount on special flours than I was previously spending did not make me a happy camper. But, knowing my nature, I'll find frugal ways of baking once I get into my groove.

I know I'll have moments of ups and downs, but I'm doing alright now. Yesterday I made my own allergen free chocolate chips and today I made an allergen free chocolate protein bar.

YES. I can do this!

Silk Dyed Easter Eggs

Silk Dyed Easter Eggs!

This one is my friend, Alayna's, hers turned out with perfect detail!

Enjoy!

Rachel 

Reason #32 1/2 why we're awesome.

These were taken on my phone starting in 2010. 

The fact that we are both making the same face in almost all of them is completely by chance...I guess we're just the same breed of goofball. :)

Inaugural Fred Meyer date hat photo, Nov 2010 

Hicks in Pullman

Howdy Pardner

Dorky rain hats

Ahm a Polar Bear! 

So. Much. Fuzz.

Winky face birthday hats for Rachel. Sean was covered

in green glitter for days after.

Butchart Gardens 

Honeymooning Pirates

U.F.O. (Unidentified furry object...on our heads)

Mohawk and Dinosaur helmets

Pixie Haircut Tips

This is what I've learned in my flirtatious dance with my pixie cut. For a longer post with pictures from the different stages of my cut, click here: Evolution of My Pixie Cut

Tips on getting a pixie cut:

Know your cowlicks. It turns out I have at least 5 that I didn't know about...until I cut all of my hair off..They make things problematic. My main one is right in front at my bangs, so I have to fight with it.

You'll learn how to work with them eventually, but don't be dismayed.

Find a model with hair like yours before you get it cut. It helps when you're not expecting something that is impossible for you to get. I kept looking at pictures of women with fine, thin hair and thinking that's what I wanted. I have a large quantity of thick hair and it looked nothing like theirs. Mine is unique and still really cute, but it was still a surprise at first.

Find a really good hairstylist to do your initial cut. We're not talking Supercuts, here.

When growing out your cut, don't go for the "I can't cut it!! I need length NOW" route. This is how you get the mullet stage. The top and sides need to grow out first so keep trimming the back of your neck until the sides and back are similar lengths and you can grow it out as a bob. 

You can trim it yourself. If you don't want to look like a homeless man, you need to get your hair trimmed quite often. I usually wanted to every 2-3 weeks...which can get pricey if you go to a hairstylist. Especially if it's really short you can do it yourself with clippers, scissors, youtube, and a lot of patience. It may not be as trendy and cute of a cut as you could get from a salon, but you'll save a ton of money and it will still look cute. I usually do this for trims and every few months I'll go into a salon for a cute style. 

Invest in products: There's a huge difference between just letting your hair dry (mine usually gets very poofy and looks like a toupee) and when you put texturizing clay or some kind of product in it. 

Take time to style: Depending on what kind of hair you have, (thin, thick, fine, etc) you will still have to take the time to style it, but it will take shorter time than longer hair and will look cuter than a ponytail. 

Be bold! If you've decided that a short cut would look good on you, go for it! If it doesn't, you can always invest in cute hats. ;)

Evolution of my Pixie Cut

In August of 2011, I got bored and decided to cut myself some bangs. I watched a few YouTube videos, looked up the number of the nearest hair salon so I could go there after I was done ruining my hair, and chopped away. The goal was not to have cute bangs, the goal was to stop being bored. Right away.

After a few hours of cutting away, being scolded by the hairstylist when I went to get them fixed, and a few weeks of wearing a headband to cover up the awful mess I had made, I decided to just cut it all off!

Here are some absolutely riveting pictures of the evolution of my pixie cut. For a list of tips, click here: Pixie Haircut Tips

UPDATE: (January 2013) I'm currently growing out my hair a little bit for the winter, and I'm loving the length that it's at!

(January 2013)

First day, August 2011. I was scared and didn't want her to cut it too short. This was also the day that I realized that my hair is nowhere NEAR the same as Emma Watson's. Sad face.

I loved it, but thought it was a bit too long and shaggy for what I had envisioned, plus being an odd shape for my head.

Told the next girl that I wanted it more "pixie-ish" so...she cut it short on one side and not the other because that was "the way my hair laid." I was looking for something short and spiky but didn't really get it. (looking back, I think that it's really cute!)

(October 2011)

This is what I wanted...not eighties, just cute and pixie-ish, right?

November 2011: Finally got it! This was the same day as the cut.

(November 2011)

It turned out that I didn't really like how I looked with spiky hair,

(November 2011)

So I started wearing it like this...

(November 2011)

Ew. What was I thinking? No style, no texture, no bangs even! Sigh.

I then decided to grow it out because I was bored with it always looking the same and thought I might want a little bit longer hair again. This was a few months in to growing it out.

(March 2012)

Still kinda cute, here (shameless plug: Hey, I met JJ Heller!)

(March 2012)

A week after this picture was taken, my hair started to be way too fluffy and boring. 

It was all one length on the top because I didn't want to lose any length in the growing out process.

Bad move there. Always get trims when growing out your hair, and have them thin it out to preserve length while keeping down the poofiness. 

I started wearing hats all. the. time. 

(March 2012)

A few weeks later I decided to try for a cut that was long in front and spiky in the back and this is what I got:

It was one of my favorite cuts, because of its versatility. 

(April 2012) Photo by Robert Worl

(April 2012) Photo by Robert Worl

I kept trimming it in this cut for quite a few months and then starting growing it out in June 2012 for my wedding in September of 2012. I was worried about having a pixie cut for my wedding day, but I think it turned out alright (we were only engaged for 2 months, so I didn't have long to grow it out.)

You can find those pictures in my post about my wedding day hair.

Wedding Pixie Cut Hair and Fascinator

Feel free to ask any questions!

Play by Play

My brain seems to be incapable of a certain type of self-pity. I can feel sorry for myself at times, yes, but it never lasts more than three seconds before I talk myself out of it. I don't know where this came from or why it's here, but it's not the worst thing, I guess.

My cat is a ninja. She's worn a jingle bell for all twelve years of her life and one night Sean and I just decided to take it off. Talk about freaky! I always subconsciously knew where she was in the apartment and now she just materializes from thin air. I've never known how stealthy she is until now and I'm pretty sure she very much enjoys scaring the pants off me multiple times a day. What can I say, I like to live on the edge a little. :P

I haven't been posting here much because I just can't seem to get into the whole blogger world. I'll do fine for a while and then just get sick and tired of the whole thing. I don't like being told I need to "market" myself by doing blog hops, pinterest, linky parties, and whatever. I'm too busy doing stuff, creating things, and seeing people to try and make blogging a full-time job. I'm also a little tired of pinterest. I actually had a friend who thought of something all on her own (people still do that??) and was super proud of it until she saw that I had made something similar (also thought of it on my own). Then she was like"...oh...I've seen things like this on Pinterest before, I guess I didn't think of it on my own." Ugh. Pinterest is great and all, but sometimes it leaves no room for thinking of anything yourself! I told her that she was being ridiculous, people have been hanging things for centuries (we had both made a shell wind chime thing) and not to let Pinterest steal her thunder.

I finally figured out how to brew Kombucha...but I haven't adjusted to the taste yet. I'm convinced now that the stuff I buy in the store is like 1/4th kombucha and 3/4 fruit juice. That stuff tastes awesome and mine is just odd. Still working on a balance. I was trying to figure out how to make it fizzy, which I figured out, but it also makes it more bitter. Right now, I've mixed it with fruit juice and I'm letting it ferment again.

End of random post.