What You Will Find In This Issue...

• Diva's Ditties
  
  
• Feature Article: Easy Healthy Holiday Tips To Keep You On Track
  
  
• Feature Recipes: Great Gluten-Free Cookies

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December 4, 2008
Volume I, Issue 12.4

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I hope that you had a blessed Thanksgiving last week. Mine was wonderful. Having a child that will be leaving for college this next year, has really made me slow down and enjoy every minute that I have her here with me this year. Next year, she will be breezing in from college for the holidays and then right back out to college again. So, I am cherishing each moment that I have this year with her near to me.

This week I have 2 great cookie recipes for you. I know that sugar is a no-no on yeast-free diets, however, as my doctor told me, "Treating yourself in a healthy way over the holidays will help you to stick to the diet rather than feeling totally deprived." So, the cookies that I have for use healthy alternatives to the refined, sugar laden cookies that will be all around you this holiday. These are especially great for children to take to parties with them, so that they can enjoy the fun with everyone else, but not feel awful later.

And, don't miss my great Holiday Tips that I have for you this week.

Lori Winders, The Cooking Diva
Htime, Inc.
6350 Lake Oconee Parkway, Suite 102
Greensboro, Georgia 30642
678-318-1751, ext. 104
Info@TheCookingDiva.com

Easy Healthy Holiday Tips To Keep You On Track

Here are some great tips for you to use this holiday season. If you want to be able to bake cookies with your children, but they are not supposed to have the ingredients in the cookies - make ornaments instead. My children and I baked a huge batch of gingerbread cookies last year and iced them with royal icing, which gets very hard. Then we sprayed them with polyurethane and hung them on the tree that we have in our kitchen. This year, we were able to reuse them. And, we got to have the joy of cutting out cookies and decorating them without actually eating them.

Or, how about making Pet Treats for all the animals in your life. You can still roll out the dough, use your holiday cookie cutters and decorate them with seeds and such. And, you won't be tempted to sneak a taste.

Another great and wonderful smelling idea is mix 1 cup of applesauce with 1 cup of ground cinnamon and form a ball of dough. Place the dough between 2 sheets of wax paper and roll out to about 1/4 -1/2 inch thick. Use your favorite cookie cutters to cut out shapes. Carefully place the shapes on a wax-lined baking sheet. Use a straw, or pencil to make a hole in the top so that you can hang them later. Let the ornaments dry for 4-5 days. Then thread ribbon or string through the hole and hang on your tree, or give them away as gifts. They are very pretty and smell amazing.

If you know that you are not supposed to use dairy, but you and your children and longing for that hot cup of cocoa, use Mimmicreme instead. I featured this product in several ezine's earlier this year. It is a cream substitute made from nut milk. Mix together some carob powder or cocoa, some agave or raw sugar with hot mimmicreme and serve in large holiday mugs. I even saw gluten free marshmallows at Whole Foods a few weeks back. It is a small treat without breaking all the rules.

I hope that you have a wonderful holiday season and feel wonderful, as well. So, use these tips to help avoid some of the pitfalls that send us off track.

Oh, and Santa told me to tell you that he wouldn't mind a mug of that Hot Cocoa on Christmas Eve, and Rudolph would enjoy some of your tasty pet treats;-)

© 2008 Htime, Inc.

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WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Online entrepreneur, International best selling author, & speaker, Lori Winders, publishes the popular ezine, "To Your Health." If you're ready to start living a Healthy, Abundant Life full of great taste then get your FR*EE copy now at www.TheCookingDiva.com

Great Gluten-Free Cookies

Here are two great gluten-free cookie recipes that you can make this holiday season to share with friends, give as gifts, or enjoy with out feeling guilty.

GLUTEN-FREE VEGAN CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE BARS

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x13-inch glass baking pan.

In a large bowl, whisk together baking flour, xanthan gum, salt, baking powder
and baking soda. Stir in the brown sugar and mix until combined. In another bowl, whisk together the oil, vanilla, agave and coffee. Add the flax meal or egg replacer, and whisk until combined. Add the oil mixture to the dry ingredients, stirring until smooth. If the dough is way too stiff, add another tablespoon (or as needed) of coffee or hot water to soften. It is a pretty rather thick dough. Stir in chocolate chips.

Spread batter evenly into prepared pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the center is almost firm to the touch. Let the bars cool completely in pan before cutting into squares.

Gluten Free Holiday Sugar Cookies

Directions:
In food processor, blend ghee or room temperature butter, honey, sugar and
vanilla until smooth. Add flour, xanthan gum, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and egg white blending until mixture forms large ball.

If using electric mixer, blend ingredients, then add water if needed, 1 tablespoon at a time.

Shape into flat disk, cover tightly and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Grease a large cookie sheet. Preheat oven to 325℉. Mix the remaining cinnamon and sugar together in a bowl. Shape dough into 24 one-inch balls and roll in cinnamon-sugar. Place 2 inches apart on the
cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes or until edges are set. Remove from oven; cool two minutes before transferring to rack to cool. Store in airtight container. Makes 24 cookies.

**To learn how to make your own gourmet ghee and vanilla extract, check out my fr*ee video at www.TheCookingDiva.com

Lori Winders is "The Cooking Diva," along with being an author, speaker, business woman, wife and mom. Her cookbooks, "The Yeast Free Cooking Manual" and "The Crockpot Yeast Free Cookbook" are International hits that have sold in over 14 countries around the world. She is soon to release a new cookbook, "Whole Grain Cooking," which explores the wonderful tastes of not only wheat, but amaranth, millet, quinoa and more.

She has also authored two marriage devotionals with her husband, Tim, which they use in their marriage workshops.

Lori knows what it is like to have food allergies and very limited choices. She has felt the frustration and the hunger! Because she was such a great cook, her husband encouraged her to help others by putting her delicious recipes into book form. And, people have loved it!

Even if you don't have food allergies, you can benefit from a healthy, toxin free diet. Lori's goal is to help you to live the Abundant Life that you were designed to live. So, here's To Your Health!

To learn more about Lori and her products visit her website, TheCookingDiva.com

This month, I am recommending Bob's Red Mill Products.

I have a grain mill in my home, so I am easily able to make fresh ground flours out of any grain, beans, coconut, rice, you name it. This has been a wonderful addition to my healthy cooking. But, since every kitchen doesn't have this luxury, I wanted to give you a tip on the next best thing. Let Bob's Red Mill do the work for you.

Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods produces more than 400 products, including a full line of certified gluten free products and an extensive line of certified organic products. With a wide variety of whole grain products, from flours and hot cereals to baking mixes and grains, Bob's Red Mill has "whole grain foods for every meal of the day."

For more information visit the Bob's Red Mill website.

**If you have a product that you would like for Lori to review and recommend or include in one of her upcoming cookbooks, email her at products@thecookingdiva.com

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