Nourish the Budding Lotus

Strawberry Mango Muffins

Sometimes I need to prioritize.  Life can get pretty busy, and although it would be ideal to be able to do everything…I can’t always keep up with those aspirations.  I love to cook for myself, partly because I love to cook, but additionally because it is important for me to eat well.  I feel good when I eat well, and therefore when it comes down to it, if I am tired and don’t have the energy to cook everything from scratch… I still choose to eat well, and am glad that there are options out there that make my choices easy.

After returning from my 3 weeks of travels in Europe I have to say that the gluten-free revolution in the States is decades ahead of the European one.  I am sorry for the Europeans because it is tough to be gluten-free over there.  I have to say that I felt at least fortunate enough that a little wheat does not kill me…because it is already a challenge to be a vegetarian over there, but throw in gluten-free and there are slim pickings!  While I can indulge in a glutinous baked good once in a while, 3 weeks of it is pretty tough on my system.

In the past I have been a bit judgmental about a gluten-free product here or there, but in comparison, we are lucky with what we have available to us here!  I was so excited to return to my gluten-free staples when I got back.  And I am glad that I live in a city where I have these great gluten-free choices available to me because I know that not everyone in the States can access gluten-free products and ingredients easily.

One of my favorite gluten-free companies is Pamela’s Products.  As I said, I like to cook from scratch, but if I don’t feel up to it, I am happy to have some Pamela’s cookies on hand for a gluten-free sweet treat.  My current favorite are the Dark Chocolate, Chocolate Chunk Cookies… yum!  For a few years now I have also been a big fan of Pamela’s Baking Mix which makes great muffins!  So, today, when I was inspired to bake, but still feeling the jet-lag from my trip, I was happy to reach for a bag of Pamela’s mix and whip up these Strawberry Mango Muffins.

If you want to make these muffins start with a bag of Pamela’s mix and then add the fruit/nut of your choice.  I used frozen strawberries and mangoes that I chopped up and they were delicious.  I think my next combo will be banana/date.  Yum!

How about you?  What are your favorite gluten-free companies?  I will definitely be blogging more about a few other go-to products that I keep on-hand in my kitchen, but I would love to hear from other people too.  Let me know what your favorites are.

Note: I did not receive any endorsement from Pamela’s Products for this article.  I just really like their products!