"Peace is making sure everybody is ok.”

My son goes to a Montessori School and they celebrated World peace day last week. They ate peace cake, sang songs about peace, stiched a peace dove and talked about peace. This is what the 3-6 year olds thought about peace (take out a tissue if you are like me, this touched me to tears).

“Peace is not throwing plastic on the ground.”
“Peace is keeping your hands to yourself.”
“Peace is doing everything nice.”
“Peace is not pushing people down.”
“Peace is being kind to people.”
“Peace is respecting each other’s bodies.”
“Peace is making sure everybody is ok.”
“Peace is loving and caring.”
“Peace is sharing and caring for people.”
“Peace is taking care of nature.”

Clothes that fit cloth diapering babies! (and coupon code)

I thought I'd share a discount code I got today for this little clothing company in the UK, Frugi. They make cute clothes for kids and also for breastfeeding moms, all organic and fair trade. And their collection for younger babies is made to fit over cloth diapers which I think is so cool. I struggle so much with clothes not fitting my cloth diaper babe. I also like it that they sell unisex clothes, another important issue for me. The company's work practices are ethical, and I am told that they're super nice quality and will last and last.

http://www.welovefrugi.com/

Discount for 10% off, enter code: moomins at checkout.

DIY: Vegetable broth powder

I have been using Rapunzel Vegetable broth powder. Since I like making stuff myself, I made this mix after I ran out of it. The ingredients are ordered from Frontier coop.

2 tbsp fine sea salt
3 tbsp nutritional yeast powder
1-2 tsp sunflower oil
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp carrot powder
1 tsp dried parsley
pinch of turmeric

Mix everything together. It is not maybe as good as the real thing but a good substitute. And homemade! I add a spoonful instead of salt in soups, casseroles and sauces.

Coconut vanilla pancakes

Coconut pancakes/crepes
Dairy free, egg free, gluten free, nut free, soy free, corn free

2 cups coconut flour
1/3 cup potato starch
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp corn free and gluten free baking powder
1 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp flax seed meal/ground chia seeds
3 cups hemp milk or coconut milk
1-2 cups water until the consistency is right (more water/try sparkling water for crepes like pancakes)
1/3 cup melted coconut oil
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp agave nectar
1 tsp vanilla extract

Sunflower oil for frying

For variations: sprinkle blueberries, dried pineapple pieces or chocolate chips on the pancake right after pouring the batter in the pan.

Fry on low to medium heat until golden brown. I used a Scandinavian pancake pan to make little pancakes (bought one from Amazon). They were a little hard to get to stay together so next time I will maybe add a little more starch instead of so much coconut flour.

Pancakes were eaten before I managed to get a photo. The reviews from the eaters: Best pancakes ever! I served them with agave nectar and fresh raspberries.

This is a good cooking project to get your little ones to help.

Please no more Sponge Bob!

Last spring we spent a few days in San Fransisco and in the hotel I let my son watch tv (at home we don't have cable, we let him watch some carefully chosen dvd's but not tv). He watched Sponge Bob. I remember paying attention how he seemed to go wild after the program and was acting really fast and kind of aggressive afterwards. I thought: Never again Sponge Bob to my kids. I have stuck to that promise and I am glad because today I read this on Facebook:

SpongeBob impairs little kids' thinking, study finds

[...] "To test what those might be, Lillard and Peterson randomly assigned 60 4-year-olds to three groups: one that watched nine minutes of a fast-paced, "very popular fantastical cartoon about an animated sponge that lives under the sea;" one that watched nine minutes of slower-paced programming from a PBS show "about a typical U.S. preschool-aged boy;" and a third group that was asked to draw for nine minutes with markers and crayons.

Immediately after their viewing and drawing tasks were complete, the kids were asked to perform four tests to assess executive function. Unfortunately for the denizens of Bikini Bottom, the kids who watched nine minutes of the frenetic high jinks of the "animated sponge" scored significantly worse than the other kids" [...] Read the whole article from here.

Same day I also read from Mothering blog that a new study finds that early TV watching has detrimental impact on literacy and language skills. This is because there is then less contact and talking with the parents. I don't think this last study is such new information but still, reading these both harmful TV related news today made me decide that today Miio isn't watching any dvd's. I will have to restrict it even more and same applies to little Leo in future.

Cloudberry caramel cake (lakka-kinuskikääretorttu)

I baked this delicious thing for an international potluck at my son's Montessori school. It is a variation from a Finnish popular cake, a rolled cake. It is super fast and easy to make. It is called Kääretorttu (rolled tart, a rolled cake). I don't have a photo, but by clicking this link you will see pictures of the cake roll.

Cloudberry caramel roll
gluten free, dairy free, corn free, soy free, egg free

1 cup potato or tapioca starch
1/3 cup superfine rice flour (or starch or some other gluten free flour)
2 tsp baking powder (gluten and corn free)
1 tsp vanilla extract (gluten free)
3/4 cup coconut crystals or sugar
3/4 cup and 2 tbsp milk alternative
2 tbsp vegetable oil

Line an inch deep baking sheet with parchment paper. Oil the paper. Pour the dough on it and bake in oven in 435 F for 8 to 10 minutes. Let it sit for a bit and then spread good stuff on it. I used caramel sauce (recipe below) and cloudberry jam from IKEA. A traditional and delicious way to stuff it would be whipped cream (or rice whipped cream from Wholefoods Market) and fresh strawberries...

Caramel sauce

1 1/3 cups water or (alternative) milk
1/2 cup coconut crystals or sugar
1/4 cup agave/coconut nectar
4 tbsp potato starch
3 tbsp coconut oil

Put all ingredients except the oil in a pan and mix while getting it to boil. Turn off the stove and add the oil. Mix until blended. Spread on a cake or pour in molds to make candies (you might have to use actual sugar to get the candies to harden, but I am not sure).

A new way of thinking. And baking (blueberry coconut cakes).

So last year we found out my son is sensitive to gluten. Then to dairy. And soy. And some other foods. Then I had another baby and went on elimination diet because he seemed to react through my breast milk to a lot of foods. This is the way I found out that many of those foods weren't good for me either (or my husband). We also did a gene test to my son and found out he has got two genes related to gluten sensitivity, one from each parent. So our family is now gluten free, dairy free, soy free, corn free and mostly egg free (little experiments done with my son) and my husband might not completely follow my program ;). I am also trying to be grain free since I noticed that the last grain in my diet, rice, doesn't make me feel that good in large quantities either. My diet starts to resemble paleo diet!

I have had to learn a whole new way of cooking and baking. And thinking. I guess at first I thought of our new diet as limiting. But then I noticed that actually it opened a whole new world for me. I have tried so many different recipes, ways to prepare food and bake and new foods even that i would have never maybe tried if I had continued on our old diet. I have also been eating healthier than ever. And felt healthier. I realized that our new diet is not limiting but vice versa. It makes us feel better! I will start sharing my experiences on this journey with the food sensitivities (or allergies if you wish) here too I hope.

Today I made these little blueberry cakes. I baked them in the toaster oven in little cute Finnish Arabia baking dishes. They are ceramic. Four of them fit in the toaster oven perfectly. You could also use four muffin cups. I have been contemplating on buying those muffin cups made of silicone? Any experiences or thoughts about them anyone? Are they safe? No toxins leaching out?


Blueberry coconut cake
gluten free, dairy free, egg free, corn free, soy free, no refined sugars

1/3 cup coconut flour
1/3 flour potato starch
1/2 tbsp Ener-G egg replacer
1/2 tsp flax seed
1 tsp gluten and corn free baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp gluten free vanilla extract
1/3 cup pineapple juice (or any other light unsweetened fruit juice)
1/3 cup agave nectar
1/2 cup frozen wild blueberries
3 tbsp coconut oil, melted

Mix dry ingredients together and add the rest. Mix, pour into ceramic little dishes or muffin cups and bake at 350 Fahrenheit (175 C) for 20-25 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out clean.