My Valentine Gifts to Myself :)

It has been over five years since I've been single on Valentine's Day and instead of being depressed about it, I'm actually kind of happy. It reminds me that I've been doing really well on my own again and that I've learned so much about life and love in the past few years. So, I thought why not buy myself my own Valentine gifts? Those things that I don't need, but would love to have. A little bit of mid-winter indulgence?

Of course, I had to buy myself chocolates, but not just any chocolates - I bought my absolute favorites from Vermont Nut-Free Chocolates. They are the only boxed chocolates that I can eat and I've only ever had them twice in eight years, so this one was a big one for me. They came about a week early and I had to hide the box from myself at the office because I couldn't stop looking at them. Just thinking about these deliciously decadent truffles had me drooling all over my paperwork.

The wait is finally over and I can say with assurance that they really are as good as I remember them. A woman's love of chocolate is a stereotype that I am happy to fulfill!

I also ordered some of their chocolate raisin clusters. I love chocolate covered raisins, but they are impossible to find peanut free, so this is the closest thing that I can find. I even tried their chocolate covered pretzels, which I've never had before. Why did no one ever tell me how amazing they are?!?!?! I could have eaten the whole bag in one go, but I had to remind myself that I only had so many of them, and sadly I don't think ordering chocolate from Vermont can be a regular thing for me.

My other gift to myself was something that I've wanted for a long time, but I've just never found a reasonable justification. Well, a Valentine's Day gift for myself seemed like reason enough :)

Its a silver wishbone necklace from SparkleTrue's Etsy shop. Its similar to the design made by celebrity jewelery designer, Jennifer Meyer (Tobey Maguire's wife), which Jennifer Aniston wore in He's Just Not That Into You. Its' simple, yet tasteful and unique. It hasn't arrived yet, but I can't wait for it to show up!

And to round off my Valentine's gifts I'm planning to buy some nice flowers when I'm out shopping this week. Not roses or anything like that, but just something nice and fresh to liven the apartment up.

So that's my single gal's guide to celebrate the holiday of love. Treat yourself to whatever makes you feel happy, especially if it has chocolate in it ;)

Nut-Free and Egg-Free Banana Bread

Last night I got home from work and discovered that I had some very ripe bananas on my counter. I had two options: chuck 'em and use 'em. I'm not one of those people who can just throw them into the freezer and leave them to become petrified black monoliths. Everytime that I do that, I end up forgetting about them and then buy more bananas until they start to pile up. I probably still have some in the freezer, just taunting me.

In the end, I decided to make this super easy recipe for a healthy banana bread that is also nut-free (for people like me) and egg-free (for people who are allergic to eggs. I feel for you). Not only does this use up ripe bananas, but it also uses whole wheat flour and it has protein in it from cottage cheese, which is not as weird as you'd think. It doesn't rise very much, but still stays light and moist. Makes a great breakfast bread or for a snack.

What you'll need:

2 Ripe Bananas
1/2 cup Low-Fat Cottage Cheese
1/2 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1/2 cup All-Purpose Flour
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
1/4 cup White Sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/4 cup Canola Oil
1/4 tsp Cinnamon, Ground

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, mash peeled bananas.

Add cottage cheese and continue mashing.

Add remaining ingredients.

Mix together with a spoon until well combined.

Pour batter into a greased loaf pan, spreading evenly. Bake for 32-35 minutes.

Let cool before removing from pan and serving.

I like to freeze this in pre-cut slices, with wax paper between them, and then just heat one up when I get a craving. Otherwise you can store it in the fridge for 3-4 days, but if I left it out, I'd eat the whole loaf!

I thought I'd try a bite with some of that Maple Syrup Jelly that I picked up at the One of a Kind Show. Oh so yummy.

And then for my other bite I put on some President's Choice Dulce de Leche Caramel Spread. I'm torn on which I liked better. And the reality is that its sweet enough that it doesn't even need either of them.

Because so many people are trying to eat healthier now that the holidays are over (myself included), I thought I'd add the Nutritional Information for this recipe as well.

Nutritional Information

Printable Version

Fun Holiday Peanut-Free & Nut-Free Goodies

The holidays are coming up soon, and for those of us with food allergies, it can be like walking through a mine field trying to navigate family gatherings and cocktail parties. Thankfully there are some fantastic companies out there that make some great special treats to share over the holidays.

 

Vermont Nut-Free Chocolate is my favorite nut-free chocolate company. They make an incredible assortment of different flavour combinations and fun shapes. These cute little Christmas bells would look great in a small glass bowl, or even placed on top of cupcakes.

 

This is their box of assorted chocolates, and I seriously have a meltdown whenever I receive these. The first time I was given these was for my sixteenth birthday and before that the closest thing that I had ever had to chocolates out of a box, were Smarties. Not only do these taste fantastic, they are also beautifully presented. Even non-allergy people would love to receive these.

Guardian Angel Foods is a great company based out of Quebec that makes an assortment of cakes, cookies, muffins, chocolates and breads that are allergy-free. Available in stores through Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick, they also have an online store. This year they realized how hard it is for allergic kids to find safe advent calendars and they've made one that is not only peanut and nut free, but dairy and egg fee as well. What better than allergy safe chocolate magically appearing every day until Christmas?

 

I've yet to try Divvies Chocolate Caramel Corn for myself, but from what I hear, it is out of this world. It comes in an adorable cardboard box, and includes a little scoop and small paper bags for sharing. Divvies entire line is nut, dairy and egg free and they also sell cupcakes, frosting, candy, cookies and gourmet popcorn.

Keep an eye out this holiday season, as there are always companies that jump on the nut-free bandwagon with lots of new and interesting things, like holiday shaped Ritz crackers. Pair these with sliced cheese cut into holiday shapes (with cookie cutters), and you could have a really nice little holiday cheese tray for the family. The snowflakes ones also look great at a cocktail party around a nut-free cheese ball.

Also be sure to check out the Dare Foods line. They have one of the best peanut-free policies around, and a whole smorgasbord of products to make entertaining during the holidays easier.

Do you have any other peanut/nut free holiday goodies that you've discovered?

These are suggestions based on my own experiences with a peanut and nut allergy.  Always read the ingredients on any product and call the company for further questions. The number one rule in my house has always been "if you can't read it, don't eat it".