Gluten & Dairy Free Taco Pizza

Last night for dinner, we had a treat. Gluten & dairy free taco pizza. I know, does this even sound healthy? Taco and pizza together as one. I wanted to try to make something that would sound and taste extremely delicious for my son. I’m always trying to make healthy choices when
it comes to eating, and sometimes I feel like my ten year old is missing out on all of the fun kid meals. But this meal lets me feel a little less guilty about pleasing my sons palette.
With a gluten and dairy free diet, sometimes it feels like the pickings for fun yummy kid meals becomes less and less exciting. But I’m thinking, perhaps praying, there’s a way to get my family excited about healthy food the way they get excited about burgers, hot dogs, and pizza.
Don’t get me wrong, my husband is totally on board with eating good for you  healthy munch. When I make dinner, he always compliments how pretty the vegetables look on the plate. I think the man could live off my kale alone the way he rants and raves over it. But there’s something missing in their tone of voice when they scream “let’s go get pizza!!”
My husband was working late when I made this dish. So it was a table for two, just me and my boy for dinner. I wanted to make something I knew my son would enjoy and maybe even get a little excited about. To be honest, I kind of wanted something to get excited about too.
When I mentioned the idea of making taco pizza, there was immediate excitement. When it was done 30 minutes later, as we ate it, there were moans of delighted taste buds. It was a complete success. All he kept saying was, “this is so good”, “I’m having more”. This was simply wonderful to hear.
Food is a big part of culture, and while wanting to make the right choices, I also want to make pleasant meal time memories. Let’s face it, our society doesn’t make it easy for our children to grow up making healthy choices when it comes to eating food. When I was a kid I knew other kids that were living on French fries and grilled cheeses. It’s hard to compete with those fancy wrappers and catchy jingles for fast food too. When I was a kid, I used to love McDonalds.
Now things are different. I care. I care about what we put in our body because I want to do my part to keep us healthy. Also, I realize that certain foods just simply make me feel good, while others don’t.
I’m not saying this is healthiest dish ever. However, on my journey this is a step in the right direction to getting my son on board with learning to make healthy choices. Next time I would  experiment with different types of sauces and  vegetables. Definitely be on the look out for Taco Pizza II.
The Recipe: This is the fast and easy version. If you’re pressed for time and need to get dinner on the table quickly, this recipe works great. When ever I get prepared crust or seasoning packets I like to make sure they are at least good choices and are GF, Non GMO, and I recognize the ingredients.
Taco Pizza
Udis’ Gluten Free Pizza Crust (whatever GF pizza dough mix or recipe)
1b Ground Beef (Hormone and antibiotic free, grass fed) Or Ground Turkey or Shredded Chicken
1 tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce
Taco Seasoning Mix (GF)
2c Shredded Lettuce (enough to cover entire pie)
1c Fresh Salsa (diced tomato, onion, garlic, green pepper, jalapeno, cilantro)
Sliced Jalapeño Peppers to garnish (optional)
Instructions
1. Cook ground beef and Worcestershire sauce in pan until it is no longer pink and fully cooked. Once cooked, add taco seasoning. Let cook another 5 minutes and then set aside.
2. Heat pizza crust according to directions. I like to spray with a little olive oil.
3. Once crust is ready, cover with meat. Next cover with lettuce, salsa, jalapeños.
Serve immediately and enjoy!

LiveJournal Tags: Taco Pizza,Taco Pizza Recipe,GF Taco Pizza,Gluten Free Taco Pizza,Gluten Free Dairy Free Taco Pizza

A Retrospective on the Art Show, Lanktrospective

This past Friday night, with hubby and child, I attended an art reception at Gallery 219, put on by SAGE Coalition, for the artist Lank, aka Jonathan Conner. Lanktrospective! All I have to say is, awesome! The music was pumping, the crowd was buzzing and there was an all around good vibe in this gallery space on an unsuspecting street. Before even entering the gallery, you know you're entering a whole new world where the arts dominate. Bringing street art inside. Love it!

Jon is a friend of ours that we have known for the past few years and watching his work develop has been inspiring. He currently teaches at Monmouth University and Mercer County Community College. He also maintains a blog, where you can see some of his other work, http://www.jonathanconner.com/. He works mainly in stenciling, which if you are into the street art scene, then you may be familiar with some artist who stencil, such as Banksy, Gilf! , and Joe Iurato.

The show was mainly a collection of work Lank has developed through out the past few years. What I enjoyed about Lanks work was that I felt like I was peeking in on a brief history of his family time line. These pictures appear as ghost like images that have come back to visit distant loved ones for one last pose.




The rest of the show consisted of a collage of commissioned work he has created. Lank has also been a part of performance art shows where he has created his work live. Watching Lank at work can be a bit intense. While these pieces of work look like they were done with ease, there is quite a bit of work that goes into getting these complete. The images are intricately cut and applied in layers. It takes patience, commitment, and focus to get it done. In some of his pieces he includes a patterned background which adds depth and makes the focal point pop even more.

          


I find stenciling to be very inspirational.  I’ve dabbled in the stencil world a bit myself, and the results can be quite satisfying. A lot of work, but very much worth it. What I love about stencil art is the simplicity it offers in the design scheme. Usually there is a limited color palette which can create a dramatic look. The lines are clean and the statement is to the point. I also think that incorporating this type of art into your space can be great and easily personalized.

Washit, a green way to clean clothes.

Doing laundry never seemed greener. My goodness, lets take sustainability to a whole other level. Amazing! Do your laundry while you clean your body using Washit. Hmmm....

Let's face it. There's a water problem. We know there's a problem. I remember being a kid and my mom saying not to run the water while I brushed my teeth. No, it doesn't make headline news every day. It's one of those topics,we'll get to it when it's a problem. Meaning, when there are droughts and all of a sudden your being told to hold back on your water use. We try to conserve but perhaps there are other ways as well.

I have a neighbor who moved here recently from Nigeria and I asked her what did she like so far about America. Her answer was not about our culture, not about entertainment, or fashion. She said, "I like that I don't have to go fetch water five miles away. It comes straight from the tap." Oh my! Imagine all of the other countries around the world that face this very same problem. Are we taking our water supply for granted? Will our taps, one day, not run freely?

So now, here's this fabulous idea, which after reading the above, you may look at this design a little differently. Here, we have the Washit system which will take your bath water and use it to wash your clothes. I know, it doesn't sound that appetizing using your dirty body water to clean your clothes, but, do you really want to go fetch water someday?

Design team Ahmet Burak Aktas, Salih Berk Ilhan, Adem Onalan, Burak Soylemez came up with the concept to design something that would help with conserving water. Ok, so it's not like your dirty body water goes straight to the clothes, it does go through a filter before moving on to washing the clothes.

This is clever and I see this in our future. The types of spaces Washit can be used in is limitless. There are designs for both home and public spaces.

Really, Washit can be used at home for personal use, when guest are over. I think I'm more in love with the public use scenario, because this can use at work, school, the gym, airport, the list goes on. Anytime you've been in a situation and thought, I wish I could shower and wash my clothes.

To learn more , visit  Washit .

Upcycled Clothes in Frenchtown NJ.

I was just recently in Frenchtown, which is a neighboring town about 15 minutes away from where I live. The hubby and I love to go get a cup of coffee and then walk on the Tow Path along the deleware river. This quaint, eco concious town is known for the Tow Path which connects to Lambertville, NJ. You can even rent really cool bicycles and ride along the river.

Down the road is an old fahioned roller rink. Also a little eatery, lovin oven, where you can get gluten free pancakes or a yummy salmon salad. Frenchtown is a great spot to be low key and enjoy the delights that are scattered in book stores, quaint eateries, home decor and fashion boutiques.

A store Pantaluna caught my eye this last time we visited. Pantaluna adds to the ecclectic and unique fashion scene here.



The changing room above, is made entirely out of vintage t-shirts. The poles inside that support the shape of the tent are old pipes. I love it!






Illia Barger started this company after she cut up old cashmere sweaters to make comfortable pants for herself and her partner Glen Capelle. They opened their first workshop in Rosemont, NJ and then two years later moved to Frenchtown. Pantaluna makes skirts, pants, dresses, curtain tassels, and rugs using vintage t- shirts. Wow!

Back to school, so what's for lunch?

The summer has come to an end and now it's time to get ready for going back to school. If you're a parent this routine will sound very familiar: shopping for school supplies, fall clothes, and what ever other necessities may be needed for your child entering the new school year. And if like me, you send your child to school with packed lunches, then you need an awesome lunch bag to carry some awesome food to fill that little belly.

 In our home, it's all about eating the right stuff. After changing our diet to being a more healthy and satisfying selection, I realize that now I am ready to change the face of lunch for my son. Lunch for my nine year old Ian,has always consisted of a fruit snack, PB&J or a turkey sandwich with the occasional hot meal (like mac & cheese or some delightful left over). This summer, I have focused on providing different options for lunch and I see that I get a better response from my little eater when there are more options and the food is presented nicely.

I'm also tired of the endless use of Ziploc bags and random containers lying around. I need items that are going to last and that are versatile and fun. So, I found some really cool options for serving up some yummy food.

I like the idea of the bento box. This lunch concept comes from the Japanese. They have really turned lunch into a special occasion.

1. Laptop Lunches- Starting at $23.99


2. ECO Lunch Boxes- Ranging from $9.00- $45.00


3.Kids Konserve - Average Kit priced at $42.00





4.Lunch Bots
- Average Price starts at $14.99




5. Lunch Sense - Average kits starts at $42.99


6. Mo:Ben - This is the ultimate lunch box for a child or an adult. The Mo:Ben, plugs in to an outlet so that you can heat your food on the go. No need for microwaves. Just simply plug in and tada!, you've got a hot lunch. Simply amazing.


Eating healthy is so important for any age. Many of the above products are BPA free and Phthalates free. Not only do these lunch storage solutions contribute to healthy eating but they also save all the plastic wrap and Ziploc from ending up in the garbage graveyard.

The Artist Gilf! At Gallerie Swanstrom.

Clockwise: Little Seismic Girl, Empower Equality, To Tehran with Love, The Big Swim, Oh Yeah?

"Motivated by the idea of inspiring people I perhaps will never meet, I hope
to breathe hope into many of the issues we face as a global society. My goal is to
create art that provokes thoughtfulness and motivates a change of the zeitgeist." gilf!

Sometimes, you come across an artist that expresses your exact thoughts. The paintings above are images that definitely represent the times we are living in. In the "The Little Seismic Girl", her bang is a seismic graph at the peak of the earthquake in Fukishima, Japan. Polar bears wearing floaties in "The Big Swim", or the best one, the Statue of Liberty, which is a self portrait of the artist, drinking the Kool-Aid. The artist Gilf! is making a bold statement through the subtlety of her work and I love it!

Artist Yun-Woo Choi Makes Amazing 3-D Sculptures.

Artist Yun-Woo Choi creates expressive structures of 3-D art using materials like newspaper,magazines, wire, resin and light. Choi's style is a refreshing representation of contemporary art.

Choi describes his work as being an expression of his studies on theoretical physics. His work is organic in movement and offers a mysterious presence. It's interesting how his body of work through out the years concatenate, based on what he describes as a conceptualization of the fragments of his mind in a spiritual sense.

Small Space Living Embraces Urban Agriculture

  I love the idea of bringing the outside inside. For so many of us living in spaces where we have no access to an outdoor area can feel so limiting at times. Wouldn't it be nice if you could grow your own ingredients for a salad or herbs to season your food with all year round? In your own home at that?

Shipping Containers as Homes, say what?

OK, I know I may be a bit late with the idea of turning a shipping container into a livable, workable space, but I think it's a grand idea. My husband James (he's recently jumped on the sustainable lifestyle bandwagon, so you'll be hearing more of him), recently started reading about shipping containers being made into homes and presented me with the idea for us to consider this for ourselves. We have been doing some house shopping, and liking not loving what we have been seeing, have decided that maybe for folks like ourselves, it would be best to start thinking outside of the box.

1.

The Manifesto House by Infiniski. Made of shipping
containers and pallets.

These days the housing market seems to be headed in the direction of less is more. So the idea of purchasing a lot of land and building what we can handle sounds more feasible than jumping into something that could eventually get out of hand. What is attractive about these shipping container homes is that you can start off small and then eventually add on without it being a huge cost or a big deal. Also you can custom design what fits your needs, again, without spending the big bucks.

Vinyl Make Overs

I thought these switch plate covers were just too adorable. Recycled out of records from the company wrecords by monkeys, I think these would look great in many spaces. These guys work out of Brooklyn, NY (my home town). Very cool. The mirror and the cuckoo clock would make great little novelty gifts for the music lover in your life.Check out all of their other stuff at http://www.wbm.bigcartel.com/.