Gluten, Dairy, and Sugar Free Nut Butter Balls

Shout out to my friend Wendy Musarella for giving me this recipe a while ago, even before we had to eat gluten, dairy, and sugar free. 

Now I make these nut butter balls once every one or two weeks, so we usually have some on hand for snacks. 

Ingredients-

1 cup of rolled oats

2/3 cup of shredded coconut flakes

1/2 cup any nut butter (I have used cashew, peanut, sunflower, and almond.) 

1/2 chocolate chips or chunks (I use a sugar free dark chocolate bar and chop it up)

1/3 cup agave nectar or honey

1 Tbsp. chia seeds

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. pink sea salt

I mix everything together using my Kitchen Aid mixer with a coated flat beater attachment. Then I use a small thumb press scooper to shape the balls. Note: I actually use the same scooper to make smaller and larger balls so that we have a choice for a smaller or larger snack. I line a plastic container with wax paper and cover it with an air tight lid and store this in our fridge. 

Homemade Dairy-Free, Sugar-Free Caramel Pumpkin Spice Coffee

Ingredients-

Plain Oatmilk (Barista Version)

Sugar-free caramel syrup

Stevia

Pumpkin Pie Extract

Pumpkin Pie Spice Mix

Equipment-

You will need your usual coffee maker and a milk warmer/ frother. Note: A milk frother takes non-diary milks like almond or oat and turns them into something magical. If you are transitioning away from dairy in your coffee, a milk warmer/ frother will make this transition 90% easier. 

How to-

Pour a tablespoon or two of sugar free caramel syrup into the bottom of your favorite mug. I like to make this in my Ember, so it stays hot the whole time I drink it. 

Add a spoonful of stevia if you want it even sweeter. 

Brew or pour your favorite coffee into your mug. We like the Starbuck Holiday Blend K-cups right now. 

Froth and warm 1/2 to 1 cup of oat milk. Note: I like barista version oat milks, because some of the regular oat milks don't froth well in my experience. 

Add a few drops of pumpkin pie extract to your coffee. 

When it's frothed to your liking, add the milk to your coffee right to the top. 

Stir. 

Then sprinkle some pumpkin pie spice on top. 

Enjoy! 

 

Les Mis

We coordinated with our dear friends to see Les Mis together yesterday. The parents took up four seats in one row. Our kids took up the four seats right in front of us on the next row. Afterwards, we all went out to dinner. We left our little kids out of this event, since we knew that the content of this musical was too grown-up for them. 

Some of the songs were very familiar, and I had a basic story line in my mind, but it has been years since hearing the songs or seeing the film, and I had never seen the whole story played out on Broadway. Therefore, I was totally blown away by the spiritual elements and all the redemptive messages. 

From the first note of the orchestra, I was captured and transported. Les Mis is going to be competing with Hadestown as a favorite musical. 

And having just read about justice and equity and forgiveness in Aristotle's Rhetoric this week and then rereading it all yesterday morning before leaving for the play, the timing of the story could not have been more perfect. 

Obviously, I believe in mercy and forgiveness in my mind, because of what Christ has done for my soul and all the Scripture I have read through the years. But interestingly, after reading Aristotle this week, something huge and monumental shifted in my heart. Aristotle actually demonstrates through argument how mercy is quite reasonable given all the reasons why people do what they do, and the fact that we all commit injustices. No one is without sin, which leads back to Jesus and the Scriptures and all I know, because of God's forgiveness to me and His goodness in my own life. So this musical contrasting justice and mercy really landed for me yesterday in a way that only God could orchestrate. 

The wonder of God's perfect justice and mercy astounds me!