Let the cooking begin!

So, since I've started my new lifestyle of a diet, people think that there is NOTHING that I can eat. Well, some days it does seem like it is easier to say what I can have rather than what I can't, but luckily God blessed me with a love of the kitchen and a creative mind.

My restrictions are: gluten, dairy, eggs, yeast, soy and legumes (beans and peanuts). And, no red meat or pork because of the high fat. So, it does seem like that eliminates a whole lot. But, luckily there are products out there such as gluten free flour that make life a little easier. Anyway I figured since I have a blog, I might occassionally post a recipe or two up here so people can see that I really do eat rather normally.


My first one isn't a meal, but a snack that I cam up with all on my own. I bought this amazing granola at Sam's club about a month ago that had pumpkin seeds in it and I loved the pumpkin seeds. So the other day when we took our monthly trip to town (in our covered wagon...haha), I visited the Whole Foods Bulk section and found...pumpkin seeds! They looked just like the ones in the granola, so they had to be just as good right? Wrong... they were terrible. I figured then that they probably had to be roasted.... so I figured I'd just make my own granola.

Seeing that it is almost fall (although in the South, you'd never know with the 80-90 degree days), I thought I'd do something a little fall-ish.

So here it is:

Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice Granola


1 1/2 cup rolled oats (gluten free of course)
1/4 cup of raisins
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1/4 cup pecans
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
1/8 cup sunflower seeds
1 tbsp flax seed
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon

In a large mixing bowl, mix these ingredients together.

1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/4 cup applesauce
1/2 cup pumpkin pie filling
In a small bowl combine these ingredients and whisk until mixed.

Add the wet mixture to the dry and mix well.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, stirring often to prevent from burning. Take out and let dry. Enjoy!


I had every intention of making another pumpkin delight with the rest of the can of pumpkin pie filling, but I pretty much ate the rest right out of the can with a spoon :) (Hey, its got lots of fiber and Vitamin A!)