Alisa Cooks - Recipes from the Go Dairy Free kitchen » Giveaways

Holiday Pumpkin Bread (Gluten-Free & Vegan)

alisa — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 15:00:59 +0000

Even though I’ve never had a gluten-free holiday in the past, as the honorary dairy-free gal in the free-from foodie club, I was invited to join in on the Home for the Holidays: Gluten-Free Style event, hosted by Shirley at Gluten Free Easily. Truthfully, the timing couldn’t be better, as by coincidence (seriously, this is just a coincidence) we will be having our first gluten-free and dairy-free Christmas this year.

Now, the idea of Home for the Holidays is to share a gluten-free recipe that says both “home” and “holidays” to me. I liked this concept, but honestly, I was a bit uncertain about what to post. With a small family scattered around five states / provinces, holidays have become less about tradition for my husband and I, and more about relaxing. While I definitely do not want to get rid of the relaxation part, I’m eager to “settle down” and inject a little more love into the season. So I’m digging deep into my childhood memories, past the toys and gifts, to the things that truly meant the most to me at Christmas.

One wonderful memory that I have is my mother baking dozens of mini-loaves of pumpkin bread to give as gifts. It was a traditional present that she baked up every single year for friends and neighbors, and it filled the house with such warmth and an unforgettable sweet and spicy aroma. She was a bit of a perfectionist, so I wasn’t allowed to help with the baking process, and thus had no “tried and true” family recipe to start with. Not to mention, with Tony on a gluten-free and egg-free diet, conventional recipes just wouldn’t do.

I searched all around for egg-free, gluten-free pumpkin bread recipes, and found a few, but all of them were so different! Which one would work best, and what could I safely modify? It was all so overwhelming that I scrapped the lot and I winged it. That’s right, sans recipe, I threw together a quick bread that is free of the top eight allergens and gluten-free to boot!

And you know what? It turned out fantastic on the first batch! Now that is something that doesn’t happen very often. It must be the magic of the holidays.

Recipe: Gluten-Free, Egg-Free, Dairy-Free Perfect Pumpkin Bread

Summary: This pumpkin bread has a wonderfully tender (yet cohesive) crumb that hits the sweet spot in texture, not too moist, not too dry. I didn’t get out of control with the sugars, so though it is dessert-like, it’s also passable as a brunch-style treat. We loved snacking on it plain (especially when warm), or even slathered with some dairy-free margarine or nut butter.

Ingredients

1-1/3 Cups Brown Rice Flour (can use white rice flour if preferred)
1/2 Cup Potato Starch
1/4 Cup Tapioca Starch
1/4 Cup Buckwheat Flour
2 Teaspoons Xanthan Gum (can sub guar gum for corn-free)
2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1-1/2 Teaspoons Pumpkin Pie Spice
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
2/3 Cup Packed Brown Sugar or Coconut / Palm Sugar
1 15-ounce Can Pumpkin Puree
1/2 Cup Oil (grapeseed, coconut, canola, etc.; your choice)
1/2 Cup Pure Maple Syrup
1/4 Cup Water
1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Instructions

Lightly grease and flour (I used a little brown rice flour) 4 mini-loaf tins, and preheat your oven to 325ºF.
In a medium-sized bowl, combine the flours, starches, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the sugar, pumpkin, oil, maple syrup, water, and vanilla.
Stir in the flour mixture until all is just combined. It actually becomes smooth quickly.
Divide the batter between your prepared tins, smoothing out the tops with the back of a spoon or spatula, since it will be a little thick.
Bake the bread for 45 to 55 minutes, or until firm to the touch. The bread should pull slightly away from the pan when done, and will be lightly browned, but a toothpick inserted may yield a few very small crumbs, so I didn’t rely on the toothpick test.
Let the loaves cool for 10 minutes, before popping them out to cool completely on a wire rack.
Resist the urge to cut into these loaves while still hot. Like any bread, they will be a bit crumbly when hot, but firm up perfectly as they cool.

Quick notes

This recipe was baked at sea level. Note that egg-free AND gluten-free bread becomes trickier at high altitude. It may still work, but I haven’t tested it as of yet. Also, you may need to add a little more liquid at high altitude or in very dry climates.

Variations

If desired, before baking, sprinkle the tops of the loaves with a little cinnamon and sugar or with coconut sugar, for a little extra crunch and sweet.

This recipe should work well as muffins (will make about one dozen) and as a large loaf (use a 9×5 pan). Since I haven’t tested these, use your best judgment on the baking time. I would start with 22 minutes on muffins, and watch them from there. For a large loaf, it will probably take at least 60 to 70 minutes of baking time.

Preparation time: 15 minute(s)

Cooking time: 50 minute(s)

Diet type: Vegan, Vegetarian, Dairy free, Egg free, Gluten free, Nut free, Peanut free, Soy free, Wheat free

Number of servings (yield): 12

GIVEAWAY TIME!

Note: This Giveaway is now closed, but you can still enjoy the recipe above!

I’ve got FIVE PRIZES to share, which means FIVE WINNERS (see below for the big bonus prizes for the event)!

The Gluten-Free Asian Kitchen

The Gluten-Free Diner eCookbook + Whole Gang Jumbo Tote

7 Quick Start Tips for Living a Healthy Gluten-Free Fit Life eCookbook (2 winners)

Delight Magazine Subscription

BONUS: By commenting to win on this giveaway, you will automatically be entered to win one of the GRAND PRIZES in the Home for the Holidays event:

The first prize is a top-of-the-line Vita-Mix professional blender 5200 Super Healthy Lifestyle package and a free copy of the super cool e-book Eat Fresh and Detox your Life (a $560 value!)
The second prize is a shopping spree from Free From Gluten (a $150 value!)
The third prize is a Caveman Cookies giveaway package (an $89 value!)

To Enter to Win:

Leave a Comment telling me which book(s) and/or subscription you would like to win AND one of your favorite holiday traditions.
For a second entry, share this giveaway on facebook, twitter, your blog, or via email to friends, and leave a second comment telling me that you’ve shared it. Don’t forget to leave this second comment for your second entry!

This giveaway is open to entries worldwide! The entries will close Tuesday, December 20th at midnight (PST), so enter now!

Note: If you want to join in on the Home for the Holidays event, feel free to grab the badge above and use it in your own gluten-free recipe post. Be sure to link back to the Home for the Holidays event page so that Shirley sees your post!

Giveaway: Introducing the Fab Uplift Detox Program from Nutritionist Meghan Telpner

alisa — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 18:40:36 +0000

This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to Mary Horowitz, she won the Fab Uplift Detox Program. To sign up for any of Meghan’s nutrition programs, and to see her great recipes, visit Meghan’s blog, Making Love In The Kitchen.

I’m veering away from my usual “foodie” giveaways to offer a healthy gift from my friend, Meghan Telpner …

Even when we know the right things to do- it is so easy to get derailed by the busyness of everyday. Suddenly that time when we can eat the best food possible, look and feel amazing becomes some foggy lensed vision of the way off magical time in the future when we have all the hours in the world.

You know what I’m talking about, right?

Well, the adorable Ms. Meghan Telpner, the Toronto-based nutritonista you may know from her blog Making Love In The Kitchen is here to the rescue.

She has put together the ultimate detox program. Now this is not one of those lame, cheesy fad detoxes that requires you to starve yourself while pumping your bod full of supplements and laxatives. No way. Not her style. Meghan and her team have put together a Food Detox! The ladies over there have named it The Fab Uplift Detox Program. And wouldn’t you know, she is giving away a few spots in this program, and one of them is for one of you! (read on)

Included in the program is all of the following:

A full 16-Day Detox Program ebook which you can download immediately upon registration.
4 day pre-cleanse coaching tips and recipes.
8 Day Cleanse program including meal plan, shopping list and recipes.
4-Day Post Cleanse guidelines.
Loads of info on why you should detox, what it means to detox, what this detox entails, and how to keep it going after the sixteen days have passed.
A daily email offering tips and support, progress, and bonus recipes.
Daily tweet coaching tips throughout the day (follow at #fabdetox)
Group TweetChat on Sunday, November 20th at 9:00pm EST
Live stream video chats with Meghan and her team (Scheduled for Friday November 18th and Friday, November 25th at 11:00am EST)
Email support throughout the main eight days of the detox with my resident nutritionists Alexa and Jill
Extra sweet incentive: At the end of the cleanse, send in a before + after on how you feel or a general testimonial and you will be entered to win some of our most fave detox goodies from some of our most fave detox loving brands.

To note, participation in Meghan’s Detox is valued at $79, though if you register on Monday, November 7th, the cost is just $69 and you can live anywhere in the world to participate.

You can get full details on the program over on Meghan’s website.

Now, for a chance to win a spot in The Fab Uplift Detox Program, simply leave a comment below and tell me your favorite healthy food.

This giveaway is only open for a few days. The winner will be chosen on Thursday, November 10, 2011. So comment now to enter!

Giveaway: Stonehouse 27 Exotic Indian Cooking Sauces and Lundberg Brown Rice

alisa — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 13:00:27 +0000

This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to Lexie of Lexie’s Kitchen, she won a gift package from Stonehouse 27 and Lundberg!

Congrats to Jsv888, who responded, “I would love to try the unsweetened almond milk in my latte and on my sons oatmeal since we are both dairy free!” to the Earth’s Own + Whole Foods Giveaway. She is the winner! Now onto the next giveaway …

I know, it’s like giveaway central around here lately! I’ll have a killer recipe coming soon, but first … I received a fun challenge from Stonehouse 27 and Lundberg Family Farms, involving a review, a recipe, and a giveaway for readers. It wasn’t something I could pass up. For my part, I was required to pick one sauce, one Lundberg Heat n Serve Rice Bowl, and add just three more ingredients to make a meal. Easy enough …

First, those extremely bold Stonehouse 27 sauces come in six varieties, so an initial selection had to be made. Alas, you would think (or at least hope) that sauces called Cashews & Cream would be thickened with cashew crème, but no such luck. I’ll have to work on making those two sauces dairy-free at home. Regardless, with four amazing flavors to choose from, I decided to whip up a gluten-free and dairy-free recipe with the Dates & Tamarind sauce. The label said that it goes well with two ingredients that I had on hand, pork and bell peppers (note: the dairy-free sauces are vegan, so you can easily enjoy them with just vegetables and/or tofu for a vegetarian meal).

Before adding the sauce I gave it a quick taste test, and boy was I glad I did! This stuff is SPICY! At that moment I decided to make my fifth ingredient coconut milk – something to tame the heat a touch and add a little richness to the final dish …

Recipe: Creamy Tamarind & Date Pork and Bell Peppers over Brown Rice

Ingredients

1/2 Cup Stonehouse 27 Tamarind & Dates Sauce
1/2 Cup Canned Coconut Milk (full fat / regular)
1 Large Sweet Bell Pepper, sliced
6 to 8 Ounces Lean Pork or Chicken Breast, trimmed of excess fat cut into 1/2-inch cubes (can sub an equivalent amount of cubed extra-firm tofu for vegan or vegetarian)
1 Lundberg Organic Heat & Eat Brown Rice Bowl

Instructions

Toss the sauce, coconut milk, peppers and meat in a saucepan.
Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and allow to simmer until the meat is cooked through (mine took about 10 minutes).
When the sauce is almost done, heat up the rice in a saucepan or in the microwave.
Divide the rice between to large bowls and top with the sauce.

Variations

If they would have allowed 6 ingredients, my final addition would have been pumpkin puree. I swirled some into leftovers, with a wee bit of salt, and it upped the flavor to a new level. For vegan or vegetarian, use tofu.

Preparation time: 5 minute(s)

Cooking time: 10 minute(s)

Number of servings (yield): 2

A full review will be on its way on Go Dairy Free! But for now, lets get to that giveaway …

Giveaway Prize: A Gift Pack to include Five Stonehouse 27 Exotic Indian Cooking Sauces (winner picks!) and all Three Lundberg Organic Heat ‘n Eat Brown Rice Bowls ($40 value in total!)

To Enter: Comment below and tell me what 5 Sauces you would select (you can get more than one of a single flavor if you wish!) and if you can think of one, what 5-minute recipe you would make first with one of these sauces!

For More Info: Stonehouse 27 Website, Lundberg Website, Stonehouse 27 on Facebook, Lundberg on Facebook

This giveaway will be open through Monday, November 7, 2011. Enter now! …

Giveaway: $40 Whole Foods Gift Card + Ryza and Almond Fresh Non-Dairy Milks

alisa — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 16:05:14 +0000

Yes, Earth’s Own, makers of Almond Fresh and Ryza Non-Dairy Milks, is sponsoring a giveaway here on Alisa Cooks and Go Dairy Free this week and the prize includes:

A $40 Whole Foods Gift Card
Product Vouchers for Almond Fresh and Ryza Non-Dairy Milks

Their products are new to U.S. grocery store shelves (available at Whole Foods and many other stores!), so they are spreading the awareness with this marvelous giveaway.

Comment to Enter: Tell me in the comment section of this post which variety of Almond Fresh or Ryza that you would like to trial first.

There will be one winner! But, related to this giveaway prize, I have two things for everyone. Check these out and enjoy after you enter to win this giveaway:

A Recipe: Pear Almond Power Smoothie (Trust me, it is good! No, it isn’t grainy, and yes, the flavors pear beautifully (yes, that was me typing a cheesy pun))

A Review: Ryza and Almond Fresh Non-Dairy Milks (Both received the thumbs up, but I give some more tasting details in the review)

To keep up with my recipe posts and giveaways, you can follow me via:

I’m actually dabbling in all of the social media (Stumble Upon, Pinterest, Google+, etc.), but Facebook and Twitter is where you will get my updates!

Ready, set, enter this giveaway! The winner will be selected on Tuesday (November 1st!) …

Sweet & Spicy Crisp Mix Recipe + Giveaway

alisa — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 12:00:26 +0000

After posting up this egg-free, dairy-free meatball recipe, the folks at WASA offered up a prize package for a giveaway, and who was I to say no? One of you will receive this fun loot:

The Cooking with Crispbread full-color, hardback cookbook
A cool WASA bag
Three boxes of WASA Crispbread, assorted flavors

To Enter: Simply comment on this post, and let me know if you have ever had crispbread and if so, your favorite way to eat it! I’ll pick a winner on Wednesday, Oct 5th, so enter now!

Personally, I’ve enjoyed their crispbread with almond butter, in meatballs, and in this party mix recipe …

Party gnome approve. Hope you enjoy it too!

Recipe: Sweet, Salty, Spicy, Crispy Party Mix

Summary: This mix combines an array of textures and flavors for a little bit of everything. It isn’t overly sweet or overly spicy as is, but you can certainly amp it up if desired. The flavors meld nicely when the mix is allowed to rest, so I make it earlty in the day or night before and store in an airtight container. This recipe is adapted from the Cooking with Crispbread cookbook.

Ingredients

1-1/2 Cups Broken Crispbread Pieces (I used the Rosemary WASA)
1 Tablespoon Oil or Dairy-Free Margarine (I used coconut oil for a rich and buttery flavor without margarine)
3/4 Cup Seeds and Nuts (I preferred sunflower seeds in this; almonds, cashews, and pumpkin seeds go nicely also)
2 Teaspoons Brown Sugar
2 Teaspoons Honey, Maple Syrup, or Agave Nectar
2 Teaspoons Finely Chopped Fresh Rosemary
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/4 Teaspoon Cayenne (you can double it if you prefer the mix HOT, but this was enough heat for us)

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 400ºF.
Place the crispbread pieces and seeds or nuts on a baking sheet and spread them out.
Toast the crispbread and seeds or nuts in the oven for 5 to 7 minutes.
While that is toasting, melt the margarine or coconut oil and combine with the remaining ingredients.
Place the toasted crispbread mix in a large bowl, and while still hot, pour on the oil/spice mixture. Stir to coat.
The flavors meld more as it rests, so feel free to make a batch of this at night to enjoy the next day.

Preparation time: 10 minute(s)

Cooking time: 5 minute(s)

Diet tags: Vegan, Dairy free, Egg free, Peanut free, Soy free, optionally Nut free, optionally Gluten free (with a GF crispbread or crackers!)

Number of servings (yield): 6 snacks

Giveaway: Organic Rudi’s Bread & Sandwich Boxes

alisa — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 12:00:38 +0000

This is my favorite commercial bread bakery, and frankly, the only brand I’ve purchased in years. I’m big on homemade bread, but when this stuff goes on sale, I sometimes cheat and pick up a loaf for breakfast toast. I love that they run a dairy-free bakery!

To get warmed up for the giveaway, here are a few fun Rudi-related things that might interest you:

Today I posted a Banana Hot Dog “Sundae” Recipe from Rudi’s Bakery on Go Dairy Free. This is a fun snack that you and your little ones can enjoy whether vegan, gluten-free, or nut-free!
A couple of months ago I reviewed Rudi’s Whole Grain English Muffins and Tortillas. Yum!
A Coupon for $1 Off Any Rudi’s Organic Bread (vegan).
A Coupon for $1 Off Any Rudi’s Gluten-Free Bread (gluten-free and dairy-free).

Okay, are you ready? Comment on this post to enter to win:

Two Rudi’s FREE Loaf Coupons (gluten-free or regular/wheat – your choice!) AND
Two Rudi’s sandwich boxes

Tell me, which loaves of Rudi’s bread would you purchase? You can see the whole line-up at Rudi’s Organic and Rudi’s Gluten-Free. I’ll pick a winner in two days, on Friday, September 23rd!

Me personally? I just bought the 100% Whole Wheat Organic Bread from Rudi’s using the coupon, but if I could find that Spelt Ancient Grain bread, I would be all over it.

4 NuNaturals Stevia Winners & 2 Lindsay Olive Winners …

alisa — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 21:11:36 +0000

Congratulations to the following winners of the NuNaturals Stevia Giveaway:

Alli - “I love using stevia to make frozen fruit sorbet in my Vita Mix. Frozen fruit chunks+ water+ stevia. Yummy fat free creamy goodness.”

Willow - “I am an absolute lover of stevia and it’s the only sweetener that I’ll use nowadays. But have only used the powdered version, and would love an excuse to switch over to liquid. Thanks for running this giveaway!”

Alex - “I use stevia almost everyday in my coffee and tea but I’ve never tried the NuNaturals brand”

Astrid – “<3 Loooove Stevia I put it in my coffee, desserts, smoothies, everything. I haven’t tried this brand yet, but I would love to, it could become my favorite brand. I have a sweet tooth so I make a lot of sweet things using stevia.”

And now for the Lindsay Olives Giveaway (see that link for some recipes too!) Winners from Twitter (you can follow me @GoDairyFree and @AlisaCooks!):

Meg @mmillerb

Whitney @whitrae

Giveaways: Olives, Stevia, Recipes!

alisa — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 16:28:04 +0000

Okay, I’ve slacked a little the past couple of weeks and forgot to pick the stevia giveaway winners! So here’s what I’m going to do. Tomorrow I’m going to announce both the stevia winners AND the olive winners for today’s giveaway.

How to Win Sample Packs of Lindsay Olives Naturals (no preservatives!) and their Reclosable Olives: This is an easy one, a twitter giveaway. You can see the giveaway post on Go Dairy Free for details. That is where the recipes are too! But basically, just do the following to enter …

Follow both Lindsay Olives and Go Dairy Free on Twitter, and then tweet the following for your entry: “Tweeting to WIN @LindsayOlives from @GoDairyFree http://bit.ly/lindsay-olives #giveaway”

There will be two winners for the olives and four winners for the stevia packages announced tomorrow!

Enter to Win NuNaturals Stevia and NuStevia Products!

alisa — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 12:00:48 +0000

NuNaturals giveaways seem to be popping up all over the internet, and I am happy to offer one more opportunity for you to win these great sugar-free sweeteners. I’ve trialed a few stevia products, and though I still like to use it with a light hand, NuNaturals has been my favorite by far. Just a drop or two here, or a generous dash there, and my food transitions to the perfect sweetness sans the extra sugars.

But enough with the chit-chat, let’s get to it, shall we? Thanks to NuNaturals I have a slew of offerings for you, including a giveaway, free samples for all, and a discount. Read on …

Four Winners will each receive one 50-count box of NuStevia Packets AND one 2-ounce bottle of NuNaturals Vanilla Stevia Liquid. To enter, simply leave a comment on this post and let me know if you’ve ever used stevia, and if so, what you like to use it in.

Free Samples of NuStevia Packets are available to everyone within the continental U.S. Simply send a self-addressed, stamped, #10 envelope to NuNaturals, Inc, 2220 West 2nd Ave. # 1, Eugene, OR 97402.

A Special Discount + Free Shipping is available on the NuNaturals Website to everyone within the continental U.S., from now through September 30, 2011. For 15% off your total order, use the following coupon code at checkout: BLG930. All orders shipping within the U.S. that total $35 or more after the special discount will automatically qualify for free shipping. Visit www.nunaturals.com to use this offer.

Finally, here are some recipes utilizing Nunaturals stevia from some wonderful blog friends:

Grain-Free Blueberry Lemon Coconut Muffins from What Runs Lori
Carrot Pumpkin Cake from Making Food and Other Stuff
Spiced Mocha Mix from Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free
Overnight Chocolate Brownie Protein Oats from Love Veggies and Yoga
Peach Cobbler from The Non-Dairy Queen
Raw Chocolate Almond Butter from Diet Dessert & Dogs

Now that I’ve enticed you with these awesome recipe ideas, you can comment on this post to win! I will announce the winners on Monday July 11.

Giveaway: A Raw Food Cookbook!

alisa — Wed, 22 Jun 2011 15:00:08 +0000

First things first … the winner of the I’m Organic Giveaway from last week is Stephanie! Congrats, and I believe you will have a cute eco-friendly mug coming your way. For those who didn’t win, you can still check out the I’m Organic website for cool stuff (they recently lowered their prices – now cheapo me thinks this stuff is a deal!), and I have another giveaway ….

This week you could win The Raw Truth: Recipes and Resources for the Living Foods Lifestyle by Jeremy Safron …

It’s finally summer, so I couldn’t imagine a better style of “cookbook” to have than one that doesn’t require you to turn on the oven or stove!

This book has a nice informational guide section at the beginning, giving a low-down on raw foods and some of those details that may be fuzzy for us newbies (sprouting, culturing, dehydrating, which foods are classified as raw, how to make the transition, health benefits, etc.), followed up by a plethora of recipes. Today on Go Dairy Free, I note the recipes that caught my eye in terms of which I would want to make, but here are some other recipes in this book that sound really intriguing:

Ruby Cooler
Fruit Rawies
Creamy Carrot-Ginger Soup
Cauliflower Chowder
Apple Cinnamon Essence Bread
Chile Mole
Tamales
Tribal Wild Rice Salad
Brownies
Ultimate Sundae
And the list goes on …

To enter, just comment here on your favorite raw food recipe. If your like me, it is probably a smoothie or salad, but maybe some of you have done a little more adventuring in raw foods!

The winner will be picked next week!