Happy holidays, friends!  I thought I would squeeze in another Friday Favorites before Christmas.  I heard this weekend is the busiest shopping time of the year.  For me, it’s one of the busiest baking times of the year!  I have already made 4 batches of granola for all the teachers and sent those off yesterday and today.  I always get a great response afterwards, usually something along the lines of, “it’s so nice to receive something healthy for the holidays.”  I swear!

There were a few things I thought you might like to know about sooner rather than later.  And here they are:

Tarriss Luggage Scale

Traveling can be so stressful, especially during the holidays.  I for one am always worrying about the weight of my bag when I am traveling around Christmastime since I tend to overstuff.   Have you ever experienced putting your bag on the airport scale and hear those words, “this is over the weight limit”?  Ugh, the worst.  Do you fork over the $50 or start reshuffling shoes and jeans into lighter bags?

I thought that this luggage scale, made by a company called Tarriss, is a great last minute gift for anyone in your life that does a lot of traveling!  I just bought this for us and my dad, who is a big traveler.  This will put anyone’s mind at ease before you get to the airport and it is really lightweight and easy to use. It has a strap that you hook onto the top handle of your bag, and then just lift up and weigh. Pretty simple and this is totally affordable too at around $17 with free prime shipping on Amazon!

 

If You Care Disposable Paper Loaf Pans and Pie Plates

I think there is no better gift than something that is homemade. People really do appreciate the effort of something that is made by you, and I think edible gifts such as homemade cookies, quick breads, granola and biscotti are perfect holiday gifts. On my holiday gift guide a couple of weeks back I wrote about gifting a quickbread in a nice loaf pan, but if you needed a less expensive gift or just wanted to give the bread, I think these disposable paper loaf pans and cake pans from If You Care are absolutely perfect!

These are so much more attractive than your typical disposable aluminum pans and are made from completely chemical free paper that won’t leach anything into your food like aluminum does!  These are available for a great price on Thrive Market, but you can find them on Amazon (loaf pan and pie plate) as well with prime shipping! Check out some of my recipes below for ideas of what to make for these!

For the Cake/Pie Plates (any recipe works here that goes into an 8×8 or 9×9 inch baking dish):

Cinnamon Apple Cake

Whole Grain Olive Oil and Rosemary Cake

Coconut Coffee Cake with Chocolate Chunks

For the Loaf Pans (any standard 12-cup muffin recipe will work in a loaf pan):

Whole Grain Banana Bread 

Zucchini Blueberry Bread 

Pumpkin Bread (put in loaf pan and increase baking time to 1 hour)

 

 

 

Cuyana Products

I mentioned a company called Cuyana in my holiday gift guide a couple of weeks back, but I wanted to highlight them again because I’ve received a few inquiries about my favorite products.  I have made many purchases for holiday gifts this year- and been thrilled with every one!

Cuyana offers very chic, elegant, yet simple products.  All of their merchandise is such a high quality, and all at completely accessible prices. The company’s motto is “fewer, better” and I try and live by that when it comes to my closet and items that I purchase. Cuyana also gives back to those less fortunate, and will send you a reusable bag and pre-paid return label with every purchase. You can fill the bag with a couple of items from your closet that you no longer wear, and they will donate those items to women in need. Plus, for every donation you will receive a $10 credit towards your next purchase. I think that is very generous and admirable, and I love companies that push the boundaries and set the standards for others. Check out all of their amazing products on their website.  This season I ordered scarves, totes, key chains and cashmere sweaters and I thought everything was perfect.

Artificial Food Coloring-Free Sprinkles

We are all well aware by now about the danger of artificial food dyes and while the FDA may be dragging their feet on this one, I am not.  Studies show that artificial food colorings can be detrimental to brain health as well as carcinogenic and I am going to avoid them at all costs.

There have been many products to hit the market that use all-natural, vegetable-derived dyes, which I think is a better option.  But for the most part I prefer to make real food instead of buying packaged food that needs some kind of coloring or dye to look appealing.  However, when it comes to certain foods, like sprinkles, there aren’t many ways around using them, except completely avoiding them all together.  And while this is clearly a blog that promotes all-natural, healthy eating, I do think there is a time and a place for “fun” foods, and I am glad to know there are artificial coloring-free sprinkles for those special occasions!

Now keep in mind that these sprinkles are in not a “health food” or that I think you should be giving these to your kids everyday.  They are still made of refined sugars, oils, and even maltodextrin (eek!)- which are not on my list of top-notch ingredients, but again there is a time and a place, people!  India Tree is a company who’s products are available on Amazon and they use vegetable dyes in their products.  They have a large assortment of sprinkles in all different forms.  Another good option I found is by Let’s Do..Organic! and they have little confetti balls that are fun for decorating as well.  These are available on Amazon as well, but only as a pack of 12.  But I have also seen this brand at my local Whole Foods.

Rough Linen Half Aprons

I am always confused why tv chefs don’t wear aprons.  Can someone explain this to me?  I cannot cook without them!  My apron collection is ever growing and I am never disappointed to add to my stash. Jenni Kayne told me about this company called Rough Linen and I fell in love with their linen half-aprons.   Not only are they soft and luxurious but breathable, durable and totally practical as well. I love the way they look and feel and the natural colors are chic and versatile.  They are reasonably priced at $50 and I think that it is always nice to have a half-apron on hand when you don’t want to wear a full one but still need a little bit of coverage.  These have 2 large pockets in the front with a small pencil holder in the center- how perfect for cooks like me who are constantly writing down notes in the kitchen!  I think these aprons would make a great gift for the holidays for anyone who enjoys cooking, but I will just warn you they are a very small company and don’t have amazon-type shipping so they might not make it in time for CHristmas.  They are available on the Rough Linen website, where you could call them and ask what they’re turnaround time is.

Lastly, ✨GIVEAWAY✨ ‘Tis the season of giving and I have a good one for you! I’m sure you know how crazy I am about Elemental Superfood Bars and Crumbles. They are gluten-free, raw, dairy-free and loaded with Omega-3’s. Elemental bars have always been a favorite to-go snack and now their crumbles are on all my smoothie bowls. For a chance to WIN 4 BAGS OF CRUMBLE (one of each delicious flavor including dark chocolate + peanut butter, mulberry, cacao + spirulina, cranberry, almond + lucuma, and currant, cacao + hemp seed):  GO TO MY INSTAGRAM AND 
•like the photo I posted yesterday + follow me @pamelasalzman + @elementalsuperfood
•tag one friend in the comments Or tag multiple friends in different comments for multiple chances to win
•I will pick a winner at random Friday 12/18 at 5:00 pm PST (open to US only) 
You can also order product from the Elemental Superfood website and use promo code PS20 for 20% off Crumbles until December 31st.