No-Poo!

Where do I even begin with explaining what being "no-poo" means? It definitely doesn't mean what it sounds like it does! No-poo means to break up with your shampoo and conditioner! I know this sounds gross and horrible and not even possible but it is! I swear. Please don't judge.

I really am not even sure what enticed me to try this besides knowing what I was putting on my body by making my own hair products. After being diagnosed with celiac disease, I found that the most random things contained gluten! It is literally everywhere! I found it in a lot of my hair products and didn't have a clue that it was effecting me until I stopped them. Honestly, how often do you touch your hair during the day??? When you pay attention, it's a lot! Then your touching food, snacks, your mouth, etc. Do you even know what all those ingredients are in your hair products? I don't think one person could honestly say they do. So, I got rid of them all and started going "no-poo!"

There many different ways of doing this. All of which are much cheaper and you're not putting chemicals into your body that you have no clue what they are. So here are the methods I use the most....
 

Method #1 Baking Soda/Apple Cider Vinegar:

Invest in a travel size shampoo bottle and sprayer.

Place 1-2 tbsp. of baking soda in a 16 oz container and fill the rest with water. Shake until the baking soda is dissolved. You can also add essential oils to this. Mine usually includes tea tree oil.

Apply this mixture to your hair, focusing on your scalp. Rinse.

Next put 1-2 tbsp. of apple cider vinegar in your spray bottle and fill the rest with water. You can also add lemon juice, essential oils, or even honey if you would like. Mine usually has lemon juice and a couple drops of lavender essential oil. Mix it up and spray on your hair, focusing on the ends.

Your hair is not going to smell like vinegar after this! I promise.

Method #2 Egg Wash:

I usually do this method every couple of weeks. It's nice when your hair is not cooperating one week and you have a lot of sebum (this is your body's natural way of taking care of your hair by producing it's own natural oil to keep your hair healthy).

For the egg wash shampoo, I take the egg whites from 2 eggs and mix in a couple teaspoons of corn starch, a couple drops of tea tree oil, and a tsp of baking soda is my hair needs it. Then fill the rest of the bottle with cool water.

For the conditioner, I use the 2 eggs yolks, a couple drops of lavender essential oil, a tsp of lemon juice, 1 tbsp of honey and mix. Add cool water to the rest of the bottle.

Massage the shampoo onto your scalp and rinse throughly with lukewarm water. Add the conditioner to your ends and rinse again.

You can finish either method with coconut oil on your ends to stop your hair from splitting and give it a nice shine. If you need a dry shampoo, cornstarch works wonders! Add a little cocoa powder to it if the white is too noticeable on your hair color.

I have to tell you the "transition period" when you first start doing this....well, it's not fun. Your hair is learning to produce it's own oils again so give your body some time to figure out how to do this! Let's say, one or two months. It's going to feel weird, gross, greasy, and you WILL want to quit. But don't be a quitter! This is worth it in the end!!! I used to have to wash my hair every day because it would get greasy! I now usually go 3-4 days between washes, sometimes longer! I still shower, don't worry! I will just rinse my hair out or put it up when I shower.

I have been "no-poo" for 9 months now and my hair has never felt thicker and healthier before! My hair stylist friends can't believe how much thicker, healthier, and longer my hair has gotten in this short amount of time. I'm letting my body do what it was naturally meant to do! There are many different methods and recipes for no-poo shampoos and conditioners. You will find one that works for you! Or many, like me! If you are sick of putting chemicals in your body that you don't know, if you are experiencing hair loss, oiliness, dryness, or just want healthier hair, please, try this!

Shepherd's Pie

St. Patrick’s Day was on Monday so I saw a lot of recipes on Pinterest and Facebook for Shepherd’s Pie. Inspiration struck me a little late for this one but I had to throw my own together to enjoy last night! Again, I like to use whatever I have in the house so I used the rest of the red potatoes I had, along with some fresh carrots. I didn’t have quite 2 pounds of red potatoes left, so yes…I did make some boxed potatoes quickly after I mashed my fresh ones! No one was the wiser....until now, that is! I obviously needed more vegetables than carrots so I used a couple canned vegetables. You can adjust this recipe in so many different ways with whatever you have! My kids (and me!) love cheese so I threw some cheese on top after it was baked, cheesy goodness!!

Shepherd’s Pie

Ingredients:

2 lbs of ground beef

2 lbs red potatoes, washed and scrubbed

1 1/2 cups beef broth (I used Pacific Natural Foods Beef Broth)

1 onion, chopped

1 can green beans (you could also use peas)

1 can corn

2-3 cups carrots, chopped

1 ½ sticks of butter

2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Salt, pepper, seasoning of choice

Cheese, if desired

Directions:

-Boil whole red potatoes in salted water until tender.

-While the potatoes are cooking, cook ground beef and onion together in a large frying pan. When browned, remove and set aside.

-Next, melt a couple slabs of butter in the large frying pan. The only fresh vegetable I had on hand was chopped carrots so I added them to my pan first, cook until tender.

-Then I added in the canned green beans and corn.  Add in about 1 ½ cups of beef broth and the ground beef to the pan and simmer about 10 minutes. You could also throw in some Worcestershire to add a great flavor to it! Add salt, pepper, and whatever seasonings you would like.

-Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

-When potatoes are done, drain and put the potatoes in a large bowl. Mash with a potato masher, butter, and about 2/3 cup of milk. Add more or less milk depending upon how you like your potatoes. If you don’t have enough potatoes on hand, you could also make some boxed potatoes to add to your mashed potatoes (no one will know the difference).

-Place the beef and vegetable mix on the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Evenly distribute the mashed potatoes on top. Use a fork to put lines in the potatoes for a nice brown on top.

-Cook in oven for 30 minutes. I added some freshly grated sharp cheddar when it was finished. Enjoy!

P.S. this meal goes great with Cabernet! Thank God wine is gluten free!

Stuffed Baked Potatoes with Andouille Sausage and Stewed Tomatoes

I really don't think I have ever made something the exact same way twice. Not just because I'm too lazy (with a baby in one arm, who can help it!) to measure anything when cooking. I love strolling through Pinterest for recipe inspiration and using whatever I have laying around the house at the time to throw together a meal for the family.

Last night I made Stuffed Baked Potatoes with Andouille Sausage and Stewed Tomatoes. I used the vegetables (some fresh, some frozen) that I had but you could substitute about anything for this! I used the Johnsonville Andouille Sausage because they are delicious and gluten free. I also used a stewed tomato with onion, celery, and bell pepper in it.

Here is how I made this but adjust or change it up any way you want! There's really no messing this up!

Ingredients:

6-8 russet potatoes, washed and scrubbed
olive oil
2 smoked andouille sausage links, sliced
1 yellow onion, sliced
1 tbsp. minced garlic
mushrooms, sliced
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 green pepper, thinly sliced
1 (14 ounce) can stewed tomatoes, chopped
Roasted garlic and herb seasoning
Salt & Pepper

Directions:

-Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

-Rub olive oil on outsides of potatoes. Stab each potato with a fork several times. Sprinkle with a little salt. Bake about one hour or until tender.

- While the potatoes are baking, prepare the "stuffing."

- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a couple tablespoons of olive oil and add sausage. Toss in sliced onions until all is lightly browned. Next add in mushrooms, garlic, and peppers. Cook until lightly browned. Add in stewed tomatoes with most of the juices. Throw on salt, pepper, and seasoning and let simmer about 5 minutes. Keep warm until potatoes are done.

- When potatoes are done, let cool until they can be handled (or just use an oven mitt). Make a slit down the potatoes center to open it. Squeeze it to open it enough to use a fork to mash up the inside to make room for the stuffing.

- Scoop a heaping amount of sausage mixture into each potato well and enjoy!

Some Like It Hot and Gluten Free

I named this blog "Some Like It Hot and Gluten Free" for many reasons. One of which, is my absolute love for Marilyn Monroe and everything she stood for. Femininity and not being ashamed of who you are; standing up for yourself and not changing because that’s what someone wants you to do; believing in yourself and self-reliance; elegance, beauty, sensuality.

Two is my love for cooking which has really expanded since being diagnosed with celiac disease in 2012. I have always loved to cook for my family but since my diagnosis, I have a passion for turning any recipe someone has and making it gluten free and delicious.  I have a busy life with work and kids so I may not make the most extravagant meals but I do make some tasty ones! Besides recipes, I will be posting on gluten free products and restaurants reviews. I also watch for health and beauty products that contain ingredients that I can actually read! I am also one of those “no-poo” people that broke up with their shampoo and conditioner.  I can explain this in more detail later…it’s really not as gross as it may seem.

Three, I like things hot! Doesn’t everyone? I won’t go too much into detail on this. But, this does include hot weather! I am really from the wrong state for this, I know, but that makes traveling that much more enjoyable! I love to travel and if I had the money, I would do it all the time! I want to let my fellow gluten free travelers know where to go or not go for gluten free travel finds!

So why am I writing a blog? Frankly, I just want to. I don’t even care if anyone reads it. I enjoy writing and I enjoy cooking. I want to share that with people. And if I can help just one person’s gluten free life become just a little bit easier, hey, I can live with that!