Another (Gluten-Free) Birthday Party!

Yesterday, in the final day of celebration
for GracieGirl's birthday,
we had a family party at our house.

GracieGirl loved this dress from her aunt,
especially because it came with a
matching dress for her baby doll.



GracieGirl was actually tired of cupcakes
after having them several times this week,
so we opted for gluten-free brownies.
We cheated and used Betty Crocker Gluten-Free
Brownie Mix. Everyone thought that they were
really good and couldn't tell that they were gluten-free.





I don't have a picture, but we also had
Food by George's Brownies, which are a
longstanding favorite. They're premade,
so we try to keep them in the freezer
for emergencies. They are also soy and
corn-free, unlike the Betty Crocker's.
They are, however, processed with products
containing tree nuts, so they're not safe for E.

We tried Let's Do Gluten-Free
Ice Cream Cones for the first time,
and even the picky eaters ate them!
They are also soy-free.



One of GracieGirl's newest loves
is Lego Friends. She got several
sets for her birthday, and I was amazed
at how she built every one without
any help at all. This was the largest set,
almost 200 tiny pieces. She was very
proud of her accomplishment!



She loved her new dress so much that she
wore it to church today with a sweater.

As crazy as it's been with all of the celebrations, it was so worth it because GracieGirl is so sweet and appreciative. Every little thing made her happy, and I loved seeing her face light up at each show of attention. Birthdays haven't always been easy in our house, so we didn't take any of this for granted!

Now I'm ready for a quiet week...except that tomorrow is the 100th Day of School party, and Tuesday is the Valentine's Party and GracieGirl's Gotcha Day!

I should know better than to expect a quiet week! :)

*********************

Fun Junk Food

GracieGirl was having a tough time not eating wheat when there were so many goodies around over the holidays. I wasn't feeling well enough to do any baking, but I decided to try this quick and easy idea, knowing that we'd pay for the effects of the artificial colors later! We did, but they had so much fun that it was worth it.

We made Marshmallow Pops by inserting extra long
lollipop sticks into marshmallows and dipping
them in melted white and/or dark chocolate.
The kids then rolled them in their choice of sprinkles.

Easy enough for me to handle, and the kids loved them!

If I was a wealthy purist, I would have made homemade
marshmallows and used natural sprinkles.

But I'm not,
so I didn't.
:)

********************

1-2-3 Gluten-Free

I tried a gluten-free cake mix from 1-2-3 Gluten-Free for E's birthday. The mix is free of gluten, wheat, dairy, casein, peanuts, tree nuts, corn, sugar, eggs, and soy. I had both chocolate and yellow, and decided to try the chocolate first.

The mix calls for eggs, but also has an egg-free version using flaxseed. Since E can eat eggs in baked goods that have been baked for at least 30 minutes, I used eggs and made a 9 x 13" cake. It rose beautifully and although we didn't get a single picture of it, it was a great looking cake!

I'd never used a cake mix to which you have to add your own sugar, but I ended up liking it because they have an option for making it with agave syrup and maple syrup. It was very sweet and I don't think that anyone would guess that there was no refined sugar in it.

Everyone who tried the cake really liked it, and these are people who aren't necessarily used to GFCF, refined-sugar-free cakes!

Personally, I like the chocolate cake I make from scratch better, because I think it's just a bit moister. This was very good for a mix, though, and I'll definitely make it again. Next time, I'll try making 9" round cakes because I think I'd like it better with the extra icing in-between the layers.

Ingredients: Rice flour, potato starch, tapioca starch, aluminum-free corn-free baking powder, natural flavor, xanthan gum, salt. Manufactured in a dedicated allergen-free facility (NO gluten, wheat dairy, casein, peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, and soy!).