the babe's faves

One of the most asked questions I think any pregnant woman gets would be "are you craving anything?"  At first I really didn't crave anything as much as I had "anti-cravings."  During the first trimester, anything chocolate sounded more like the plague to me, and I couldn't stomach the thought of chili.  But now that we're almost at the close of the second trimester, I can definitively point out some yummy (and new-to-me) recipes that the baby just can't stop flailing his/her arms for (or legs for that matter!).

So, here we go with The Babe's Faves!

Bread: Coconut bread with orange glaze

I think this is the BEST gluten free sweetbread I've ever homemade before. Whether it's the hormones or the baby talking, I can't be sure, but this bread is GOOD.

Snack: Apples! Apples! Apples!!!! (did I say apples?)

Lunch: A lettuce wrap with tomato and bacon (I use turkey bacon), pepper strips dipped in hummus, and probably another apple

Dinner: Real Simple's Mac and Cheese.  Okay, I get that this is very fattening, so believe me, I don't make it often at all.  I also do not use 6 cups of milk. That always seemed like a lot to me, so I use 3 cups of soymilk and only 1 cup of gruyere (hey, gruyere is expensive!).  Is it weird that I use soymilk and then real gruyere? Probably, but that's just how I roll! haha!  I also never have cayenne seasoning so I just use chili powder (sorry, free spirit here, I can never follow directions). :)

Dessert: Mud Pie (I received this recipe from a friend, and used a homemade hot fudge from a recipe I found online.)  Sorry for no photo, I would have taken one, but I made it in a regular cake pan at first, when looking back I should have done it in a spring foam pan.  Once I had baked it in the regular pan, there was no getting it out so I served it straight from there (you can gather from the name that this is a moist cake!). I have not made it in a spring foam pan yet, though I don't believe it would fall apart, but don't take my word on it so use a cake pan if you don't care about presentation!  Rest assured, it is very appetizing!

   Mud Pie
     1 c. sugar
     1/2 c. melted butter
     1 tea vanilla
     1/4 tea salt
      2 eggs
     1/3 c. flour (I used 1/3 c. all purpose gluten free flour plus a tea of xanthan gum)
     1/3 c. cocoa
     1 c. chopped walnuts
     1/2 c. hot fudge topping
      whipped cream

• Grease spring foam pan (or regular cake pan- see note above), set oven at 325
• Mix all ingredients together except for the hot fudge topping and whipped cream.  Pour into springfoam pan and bake 20-25 min.
• Remove from oven immediately, prick holes in pie with wooden pick.  Spread 1/4 c. of fudge over top
• Let first spreading of fudge cool for a few minutes before adding another 1/4 c. on top. Then put the cake in the fridge
• After at least an hour in the fridge, take the outer springfoam part off, spread whipped cream on top, and if you're feeling fancy, top with mini chocolate chips or chocolate shavings.  Store leftovers in refrigerator.

Enjoy perusing some new recipes!  If you are gluten free, you must try the coconut bread, it's amazing!  I think the babies' top favorite right now is apples (in case you couldn't tell, haha!).  NOT applesauce though, they've gotta be good ole red gala apples!  Now, I know the baby wishes they could eat all these foods every day, but don't worry, I keep the mac and cheese and mud pie's to a healthy minimum!  All in all- the baby really has been making me crave a lot of healthy foods like apples, hummus, almonds, etc.  I can't complain!  What are YOU craving lately?