Apple-Blueberry Crisp

So yummy!  My kids couldn't wait for this to come out of the oven - they just sat in front of it and watched it bake!  I had my youngest help put the fruit in the pan, and my oldest measured out the other ingredients for me.  :)

Apple-Blueberry Crisp
4 medium apples, cored and chopped
2 cups frozen blueberries
1 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 Tablespoons canola oil

Preheat oven to 350.
Spray a 9x9 pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Add apples and blueberries to pan and stir to mix.
In a medium bowl, combine remaining ingredients, stirring to mix until crumbly.
Spread mixture evenly over top of fruit.
Bake 40 minutes.
Serve warm.

Orange Julius!!

An Orange Julius is one of my husband's favorite treats.  Of course, we usually have to sneak around and hide them from the kids.  But not anymore!  Here's an easy, dairy-free recipe for your own frosty treat:

My Orange Julius:

1 8 oz. can of orange juice concentrate
1 cup of your milk (I've only used soy so far)
1 tsp. vanilla
about 8 ice cubes or so

Toss in the blender and let 'er rip! 

This makes a pretty large drink, so I halved the recipe and then split it between each of my kids.  Just enough for a treat.

Let them eat (dairy-free) chocolate cake!

Graham loves chocolate - almost to a fanatic extent.  If he hears someone say the word 'chocolate' he'll be right at their side saying "have some?".  It is so sad to have to look at his chubby little face and say "No, baby, you can't.  It has dairy in it."  Enter the dairy-free chocolate cake!  I baked it while he was taking his nap, and when he got up he smelled it, came into the kitchen, and without even looking too excited about it asked "have some?".  I could tell he wasn't expecting to be able to eat it, his little shoulders were slumped and he was looking at the floor.  So I knelt down next to him, put my hands on his shoulders and said "Yes, you can, sweetheart!"  The gigantic smile that lit up his face at that moment was almost as sweet as the one at the table when it was covered in frosting.  I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as he did.  I have the feeling we'll be making it with some frequency around here :)

Crazy Dairy-Free Chocolate Cake
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups cold water

Spray a 13x9 baking pan with nonstick spray.  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  In a large mixing bowl, sift together flour,s ugar, salt, baking soda, and cocoa powder.  Make three wells.  In one well, pour the vegetable oil, in the second pour the vinegar, and in the third the vanilla.  Pour cold water over all, mix well using a whisk.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a tooth pick inserted comes out clean.  Frost with your favorite (dairy-free!) frosting. 

Dairy-Free Peach Pie

This is a great recipe that is actually the combination of a recipe from my mother-in-law and one from my aunt. I modified it of course, to be dairy-free.

Dairy-Free Peach Pie

1 cup soy milk (or almond, rice, whatever you use)
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup sugar
2-29 oz cans of sliced peaches*
cinnamon to taste, if desired
1/2 cup dairy-free butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter in a 13x9" pan. In a bowl, combine sugar, flour, and milk. Pour over melted butter. Sprinkle peaches with cinnamon, and pour peaches in the pan with the rest of the ingredients. Bake for 1 hour.

We serve this with dairy-free vanilla ice cream.

*when peaches are in season and at a good price, I will use fresh peaches. Usually it takes about 8, but you're just looking for enough to equal 4 cups. This is great 'mindless' work for the kitchen: slicing, pitting, and peeling the peaches.