Janelle, Brown Bag Blues - Is it really that time of year? The leaves are turning and the lunch bags cross my counter every morning. The kids' backpacks are strewn throughout the house and school projects are the talk of the day.  I am tickled to be back in the brown bag lunch season, where I dig deeper for new ideas and recipes, and try to rally my boys to try new snacks, dips and sandwiches. One recipe that I reach for each fall is our pumpkin cookies; though the irony is that they are made with cooked carrots: not pumpkin...

Julie, Parenting Children with Special Needs Blog - Are you challenged by desserts because of your child’s special diet? Me, too. Last year I made a milkless, eggless cake. And while it was “ok” – it truly wasn’t that yummy and no one, except the birthday girl, was interested in eating it. So I decided to try something else. LuLu, my daughter, and I concocted [dairy-free] cups of dirt to share with her friends for her birthday. You may be familiar with this, but if not…it’s a good party idea... [Read more for the recipe]

Figs... the forgotten fruit.  Did you know that these little gems are a powerhouse of calcium, potassium, and fiber?  A serving consists of just 1/4 cup (40 grams) or 3 to 4 dried figs, but within this portion lies 20% of the RDA for fiber, 244mg of potassium, and 53mg of calcium!  Believe it or not, figs house more dietary fiber per serving than any other common dried or fresh fruit.  Of course, there are other important reasons we love figs.  First off, they taste great!  Second, they are excellent in recipes...

Sarah Hatfield, No Whey Mama - I love zucchini. Alas, it is almost gone. So here are a few fun ways to use it up, most of which freeze well. From Mary Hunt's Everyday Cheapskate column, here are her recipes for Zucchini Brownies and Zucchini Curry Soup. I've altered them to be dairy free, of course...

Deciding on the theme for this month's Best of the Blogs Round-Up was no challenge.  The number of "how to" posts I stumbled across (especially when compared to the summer months) was staggering.  Cherry picking a few that caught my eye, the chosen collection seems to be as diverse as it is delicious.  From greek-style soy yogurt to homemade candy corn (you heard me!) the blogging talent I uncovered was nothing short of amazing....

The fruits of autumn are truly my favorite.  Pears and apples are wonderful for snacking raw, yet they can so easily be transformed into various delights, including my all time favorite, apple crisp.  However, they really show their versatility in the form of "butters."  The traditional fruit butter has a creamy texture, hinting at jam in flavor, but more luxurious in texture.  On another butter front, pureed fruit can make a wonderful fat substitute in baking.  A rather handy tool for the dairy-free, vegan, or low fat foodie.  In celebration of its multi-tasking capabilities, here are a few fruit "butter" tips and recipes...