b.good - healthy, local, delicious and gluten free

b.good is a restaurant we fell in love with on a recent trip to Portland and Wiscasset Maine. We visited the Portland store at least three times in our five days in Maine. The other two days we were in Wiscasset.

The Portland, Maine store employees were friendly and helpful in keeping our food gluten free and so delicious. The six of us tried just about every gluten free item on the menu from burgers to salads to kale and quinoa bowls. Everyone absolutely loved everything. Especially awesome are the kids meals. We loved it so much it just didn't seem worth the bother to look up other safe restaurants.

The photo on the right is our last visit up in Maine. Loved the brick and the photos of the local farmers.

So the wait for the Raleigh store seemed ever so long. But open it did last week!

Chris, Joe and I went on Friday for lunch. This was their second day open and the line started clear across the restaurant. We obviously were not the only people anxiously waiting for them to open. The line moved quickly and the young man taking our order was friendly and capable. He quickly told us the couple of items we couldn't have and assured us the rest were safe.

The look of the Raleigh store is fresh and new and the farmer photos are local to our area. I was happy to later hear that JMF Photography took their photos.

We ordered and found a spot at the counter in front of the window to sit.  While I all but stopped drinking sodas years ago, at b.good I indulge with their outstanding Maine Roots soda. My family loves lots of their flavors but I always get the root beer. It's just like what we had growing up ages ago - creamy and perfect.

The guys' burgers and my chicken sandwich were perfect. The toppings are fresh and local, as are the burgers and chicken breasts. The veggie patties are house made and vegan (but not gluten free).

But the fries are amazing. If you're gluten free you know what a big deal safe gluten free fries are but at b.good you can get sweet potato or regular fries. Both are absolutely awesome.

The next day Marc, Marie, Aiden and I ran in for lunch. We arrived just before the doors opened and by the time they did open there was another family waiting with us. Several others filled tables before long.

The crowd Friday at lunch was definitely a work crowd and the Saturday lunch crowd was mostly young families. Steve Woodward, the owner said he was pleased with the lunch turnout but also pleasantly surprised by the dinner crowds, many of whom live in the apartments above the restaurant. How convenient would it be to just pick up dinner and take it right upstairs?? It seems a perfect location for everyone.

Marc and Marie ordered burgers and I ordered the spicy avocado lime kale and quinoa bowl.  It was my first b.good bowl and I ordered it as a healthy and maybe lighter choice. It was such a great combination of fresh veggies with a very spicy and flavorful sauce that I have a new favorite. So fresh and satisfying.

One thing I really love about b.good is their kids meals. Our sweet Aiden loves to eat and Marie and Marc feed him real, whole foods. The kids meals at b.good live up to their requirements and Aiden loves them.

Saturday he enjoyed a bunless turkey burger (freshly grilled and juicy) and a side of veggies. He loved the tomatoes, mushrooms, carrots and kale.

Aiden - so happy and busy with his kid's meal.

It's so nice to be able to walk into a restaurant and know that we can all enjoy healthy, local and delicious food without a worry about gluten. I can't recommend b.good highly enough.

Happily shared on Gluten Free Wednesdays at Gluten Free Easily!

Introducing Aiden Christopher!

This sweetest little boy was born last week to Marc and Marie. Since you have seen their wedding posts and had a short video on the gender reveal post it seems only right you get one here, too. Here he is the day after he was born. Thanks M&M for letting me share this sweet moment.

Marc and Marie have been blessed with a beautiful, healthy, happy and content baby. Marie had a short and natural labor and both baby and mom are doing really well. Of course I think Aiden looks very much like his daddy did as a baby but there's a lot of Marie's side in the mix, too. It's going to be so fun to watch him grow and change into the wonderful boy God intends him to be. Marc and Marie are already including him in their family devotions which melts his ChaCha to no end. I love you Aiden!

It's a. . . .

I'm so excited to share Marc and Marie's wonderful news.

Thanks to Gabby for taking all the pics of the happy day!

November Gratitude - Day Twenty Three

This is one of my favorite shots of Marc and Marie.

Tonight our darling wedding photographer came over with her mom Julie to show us all her beautiful photos.  Marc and Marie, Terri and Jerry were here and we had the best time looking through hundreds of gorgeous photos.

Katelyn did such an amazing job. Here's the thing. Katelyn is 14. She's got such God-given talent and a great eye and she is wonderful to work with and professional beyond her years. Check out her site at Katelyn McKay Photography.

I am so blessed by this family - love mom and dad here. 

Our two families - such a joyous day.

So thankful for the love God has put in their hearts for each other.

November Gratitude - The Wedding Edition

November 1: I am thankful for a loving God who has blessed me in every way possible. Amazing parents, husband, sons family and friends. And a special bit of gratitude for the weather he blessed us with during the ceremony!

November 2: I am thankful for Chris. He makes me laugh and makes me crazy. He has more energy than anyone I know and is one of the most giving people I've ever met.  When he's not making me crazy he keeps me sane - well as sane as I can be. Doesn't he look sharp?

November 3: The third day of November was Marc and Marie's wedding day. So this is their day through and through. Their love of God and each other is so beautiful. And because they are so sweet here they are sharing wedding cake.

November 4: Joe made our family a family of four. He completed our family. He is an amazing brother friend and son. He teaches me how to be a better person daily. Daily. It's humbling being his mother and a privilege.  Here he is presenting his best man toast.

November 5: We are now a family of five! Marie has really been a part of our family for over three years but now it's official and for this I am thankful.

Photos thanks to Gabby Fekete, Maryanne Kalman & Josh Stevens.

Marc & Marie's Engagement Party

It was a blessing to celebrate Marc and Marie's engagement yesterday. We had an early evening fiesta with our families and a couple of very close friends. 

Gabby took the photo below as one of their official engagement photos recently and this one sets the tone.  

Here's a little peek at our evening which may serve as an explanation of my recent lack of blogging. 

My friend Maryanne was one of the first people we met when we moved here years ago and her son Jake is one of Marc's oldest friends. She sweetly decided on the theme of the party and made this gorgeous banner and helped me with other projects, too.

There were lots and lots of of handmade banners and I made custom labels for wine bottles with another Gabby photo of M&M for them to give to our guests. It was a really easy and fun project.

A peek at the dessert table and yes, the teeny flags for cupcakes to match the banners just might have been a teeny bit of overkill.

Pinterest lead me to these custom match boxes - they made me far happier than they should have. But really - a match made in heaven matchbox? I ordered them from Gracious Bridal. They were wonderful to work with and so fast.

Setting up the tostada buffet - an easy way to accommodate our vegan, vegetarian and omnivore loved ones. See that covered blue bowl - Gabby's mango salsa. Under the foil? A huge amount of Gabby's Cheesy Rice. Don't you love the bucket of flowers complete with their wedding date?? Marie's mom Terri found the buckets and customized them beautifully.

Marie's sister Elizabeth made a custom table runner that decorated the table outside. She also kept me sane through out the night.

Marie's parents gave them a beautiful bench and surprised them by putting it in the garden.Terri and Elizabeth made cards for everyone to fill out date night suggestions.  

The cards were clipped to the tree and I know Evan's suggestions will come in very handy. Maryanne made the flower clips - they were gorgeous.

Marc and Marie testing the bench out.

Oh how I love this girl!

And this boy - oh look at those eyes!

Here's Marie with her family - Jerry, Elizabeth, Marie and Terri. 

Somehow Joe was left out of our family shot but I love this pic with my mom and dad.

Gabby and Mike with my favorite little buddies. A photo of all four of them is rare and Marie did a great job taking this one.

Such a nice evening spent with friends and family and soon to be family. 

xoxo

She Said YES!!!

Yesterday Marc proposed to our sweet Marie and she said yes! We feel so blessed that Marie will be our daughter in law, especially blessed that they are following God's will for their lives and blessed to be planning their wedding with Marie's wonderful parents.

An autumn wedding means not too much time for planning their perfect wedding but we have amazing friends and family on both sides that are willing to dive in with us. Like Gabby who took these beautiful shots of Marc and Marie.  It's going to be a wonderful, wild ride.

Marc has asked to learn to cook some healthy, frugal, gluten free meals that will fit into their newlywed budget and we'll be sharing them here so they can access them easily. In fact, he's already put his first pot of pinto beans on the stove for the meal he's making for tonight. I look forward to spending time teaching him a bit more of why I do what I do in the kitchen but mostly cherishing our together time.

Marie's Birthday!

One of my favorite pics of Marie & Marc!

Today is sweet Marie's birthday.  Because Marie is a crafty girl, last night we had a DIY birthday dinner for her with Asian Salad Rolls and S'mores.

Marc and Marie were great and helped get everything ready for the salad rolls. We packed the table full of sauces and fillings and we had so much fun making seriously messy rolls. No pictures this time.

  After dinner we had a fun surprise visit from Gabby & Olive, did presents and went outside to make dessert. The DIY s'mores don't need a recipe.

Just pick your favorite gluten free chocolate chip cookies - ours were thin and crispy.  We use Eylon marshmallows because they are dye free, gluten free and all natural.

Chris had the tabletop grill ready to go so we got our marshmallows good and gooey.

Just smash the toasty marshmallow between two cookies like Marie.

It looks like we're all watching Marie eat that s'more! =D

After s'mores Marie and I went inside and did another DIY project just for Marie and got to spend a little more time before the busy week ahead. We had so much fun just getting to hang out together.

And, if you didn't get enough of the graduation photos in the last post - here's one more featuring Marie!

Marc's Graduation & Poha with Coconut & Cashews from Michael Natkin

It's been a busy few weeks and I've missed blogging but Marc just graduated from college last weekend and we were fortunate enough to celebrate with family and friends.

How I love these two!

Gorgeous photo of my gorgeous parents with Marc taken by Gabby.

Wonderful family friends even came from California to celebrate making the weekend even more special.

Words cannot express how proud I am of Marc and the wonderful young man he has become. His future is in God's hands and I can't wait to see it unfold. It was a crazy busy, deeply emotional and ultimately blessed time.

We had a great time at his party.  My friend Ruth helped me with set up.  Gabby not only made a trio of dips and her amazing beachy fruit salad but she also took gorgeous photos that we will treasure. Marie and her mom made shrimp skewers, watermelon skewers and the hit of the party - gluten free lemon bars garnished with strawberry slices.  They've shared the recipe and I'll be sure to pass it along soon.

She loves him as much as I do!

Oh my gosh!

I haven't had much time for catching up here or anywhere else for that matter. There are several posts that need to be done - one on Martin's Curry Rice's South Indian Sunday Brunch (which is amazing), one on our weekend in New York and a scrumptious gluten free bakery we enjoyed while we were there and some new recipes I've played with, too.

If you've stuck with me this far you deserve a great recipe!  Here's a new favorite recipe from an old favorite site I love. The website is called Herbivoracious.com and it is such a wonderful place to visit and just wander through. Michael Natkin presents vegetarian recipes from around the world with gorgeous photographs and the unique combinations he comes up with make simple foods really shine.  While not a gluten free site, many recipes are either already gluten free or easily adaptable. His Enfrijolada recipe is a family favorite and once you've made it the first time you'll find you can adapt it a million different ways for quick weekday meals.

This Poha with Coconut & Cashew is a recipe I intended to make a month ago or more. I've always got a bag of raw cashews in the freezer in case I need a quick fix of Sri Lankan Cashew Curry and I'd just gotten a nice big pail of shredded coconut from Tropical Traditions. All I needed was the Poha (flattened rice from the Indian market) so I ran out to get it that afternoon. Then something came up and I didn't make it that night or for the next couple of weeks. I finally got to make it right before all the graduation craziness began.  Although there are a few ingredients to gather everything comes together very quickly if you have everything ready and measured before you start. Our meal was a simple one of Sri Lankan Lentils, Basmati Rice and quick frozen organic veggies.  It was flavorful, satisfying and absolutely delicious.

I think you'll enjoy this as much as we did - let me know if you try it!